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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 16
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16. King of All Weapons (2)
***
—First Strike.
In a spar or a duel, the first strike was incredibly important.
Whether one attacked first or not held immense significance, greatly influencing the outcome of a match. Broadly speaking, this held true in many other aspects as well.
Being able to act first, to do something first, often carried profound meaning in itself.
And for a wielder of the spear, the first strike was...
...a phrase that held even greater significance.
...
"Alright. I appreciate that."
When Leonhardt offered the first strike, Cheon-seong naturally accepted.
And immediately, he activated his mana.
—!
A faint blue light shimmered around his arms and legs.
Instead of infusing his meager mana into his spear, as he had shown in the entrance exam, Cheon-seong enveloped his own body with it.
This was to further accelerate his movements.
Click!
The moment Cheon-seong took a single step from his spot, his body shot forward like a streak of light.
"…"
Various objects and the background blurred into his vision. Then, Leonhardt's entire form, his target, rapidly expanded and filled his sight.
Whoosh!
His fingertips, launching the spear with full awareness, seemed to become one with the weapon, lightly cutting through the air. As this was a spar, he did not aim for vital points like the heart or head.
What I'm aiming for now is Leonhardt's right shoulder.
In just a single breath, he had closed the distance and reached striking range.
And he anticipated.
'He'll counter, won't he?'
The difference in our unique abilities was clear, and I knew I couldn't finish him in one blow.
But this was just the beginning. At this low level of unique abilities, there wasn't such an absurd difference that I couldn't possibly contend with him. Of course, later on, the gap would widen beyond comparison. But for now, it meant I had a chance to contend with the protagonist.
As expected, Leonhardt met his spear with his sword, a look of surprise in his eyes at Cheon-seong's unexpected speed.
Clang!
Large sparks flew from the colliding sword and spearhead, and the spearhead bounced back significantly.
Leonhardt's movement was like a light flick, yet the power I felt in my grip was immense, as if I'd struck a wall.
'As expected of the protagonist, then.'
Even his basic stats felt superior.
But it didn't matter.
I had already anticipated it. There was no surprise in something I expected.
Swish!
He swiftly launched the spear again, rotating the bounced-back shaft once as if to dissipate the force.
Clink!
Naturally, following the first exchange, his second attack also bounced off Leonhardt's sword.
That, too. It didn't matter.
I had expected it, and this situation itself held meaning.
As proof, Leonhardt had now taken a step back.
'I must not stop.'
His hand, retrieving the spear, moved even faster, swiftly thrusting it forward.
Clang-clang!
When the spear, thrust lightly as if to create a variable, initially bounced back strongly, he used the force of its recoil to sweep it horizontally. The sharp clang of metal rang out almost continuously.
Thus began the clash of spear and sword.
The collision of weapon against weapon was, metaphorically speaking, like a form of applause.
Just as you cannot clap with one hand, there must be hands to meet for a proper clapping sound.
And now.
That sound continued to reverberate.
Clang-clang-clang-clang-clang!
The spear, thrusting again and again, continuously bounced off the sword, sharp sounds echoing and sparks flying incessantly.
Even though my offensive seemed to be blocked pointlessly, my spirit burned even brighter.
'It's fine.'
I was on the offensive and merely getting blocked. I wasn't 'being attacked'.
It was an offensive like unilaterally clapping, one hand continuously striking the other.
That was natural, of course.
Leonhardt was at a distance where his sword wouldn't reach me even if he thrust it, whereas I held the advantage of reach, allowing me to launch a furious assault on him.
Furthermore, the harder Leonhardt struck my spear mid-attack, the more I used that force to thrust the spear even more powerfully, preventing Leonhardt from doing anything else.
A kind of chain reaction had been completed: endlessly thrusting the spear, and having it parried.
And this offensive, I intended to maintain it until the very end of the spar.
The reason I thought I could win was this: Leonhardt wasn't accustomed to the spear.
No, no one would be accustomed to it.
Because only a spear could endlessly deploy an offensive while subtly maintaining such a reach advantage.
As our gazes slowly met, I could see.
"..."
Leonhardt's eyes, which had held a hint of apology when he offered me the first strike, were now completely rigid, anyone could see that.
A reality different from his expectations.
It would be hard for him to know that a unique ability, which one could only underestimate as Common, actually possessed an oddly strong aspect.
Clang-clang-clang!!
Before I knew it, I was thrusting the spear almost in a trance.
Thrusting the spear, having it bounce back, then retrieving it and simultaneously thrusting again.
It continued as naturally as breathing.
This wasn't just the thousands of thrusts and slashes I'd practiced in the air for two months. The sensation of the spear clashing against a weapon and reverberating like this was special to me.
And…
Even I couldn't understand myself.
That I could thrust the spear so adeptly in my first spar.
Clang-clang-clang!
Even now, by parrying my spear, Leonhardt seemed to have no opening to counter.
It was even clearer to my eyes as I thrust the spear.
Shoulder, thigh, flank, arm... My spear, targeting virtually every part except vital points, aimed for the next difficult-to-defend area as it was retrieved.
Even if Leonhardt parried all of them, that was the extent of it.
There was no way for Leonhardt to launch an offensive against me in return.
If he tried to force an opening and launch an attack, I intended to seize that exposed gap and choose a mutual kill.
"…"
Leonhardt, whose gaze met mine now, must have instinctively realized that.
That's why Leonhardt was defending with such a rigid expression, I suppose.
Even so, his body gradually began to feel heavy.
The spear, thrust madly. No matter how much I deflected and redirected the force, I couldn't dissipate it entirely, and my body slowly began to creak.
Yet, my heart was strangely joyful.
'Victory is already within my grasp.'
The moment he yielded the first strike, this reality was already a confirmed future, and I had simply brought it to fruition.
The protagonist's unique ability, which would allow him to possess absurd martial power, capable of splitting the earth with a single swing and tearing the sky apart.
—Sky-Rending Sword.
That was a story for the distant future.
Currently, Leonhardt could not imbue his swinging and parrying sword with such absurd power.
Clang!
When the spear, thrust in an instant, bounced back even more strongly than before, my hand gripping the spear also trembled violently.
Leonhardt, realizing there was no solution if he remained on the defensive, made a strong move.
As I saw a faint blue light imbued in his sword, the smile on my lips deepened.
'Even if he forcibly creates an opening...'
I didn't try to forcibly remain in place, following my spear as it was lifted high by the great force.
Instead, I used that very force and suddenly pushed off the ground.
Thud.
Whoosh!
The moment I pushed off the ground, I saw a sword enveloped in blue light cut across the space where I had just been.
Observing it calmly, I landed and then pushed off the ground once more.
Thud.
And once again, I began to thrust the spear intensely.
Clink!
I naturally tried to create the same situation as before.
The situation where I madly thrust the spear on the offensive, and Leonhardt, forced onto the defensive, was barely managing to parry my spear, was re-established.
Clang-clang-clang!
As the rhythmic clang of spearhead and sword striking his ears reverberated again, he thought calmly.
'...Like this, until the end.'
The sensation in the arm wielding the spear had long since vanished.
In fact, I had felt the spear I was holding grow heavy not long after it first bounced back.
But I ignored it.
Moving my legs to match the distance Leonhardt was pushed back, or the distance he approached, wasn't like it was at first either.
With only 2 mana points, the mana wrapped around my entire body had long since disappeared, and I could feel my movements slowing down.
Before I knew it, my body seemed to have adapted, thrusting the spear with movements similar to when I used mana.
Even though it was hard, heavy, tiring, and my vision was blurring.
Still, I didn't stop.
The distinct blue light imbued in Leonhardt's sword.
Watching him use the Sky-Rending Sword, my mind settled like a calm lake.
'It's possible.'
I could spar on equal terms with the protagonist of this world, no, even push him back.
It was no dream at all.
The initial worry and fear of defeat had long vanished, and even though my body creaked, I continued to thrust the spear.
Even if he used the Sky-Rending Sword, its reach wouldn't extend. I had no reason to fear it in the slightest.
Why would I fear a sword that couldn't reach me?
This world wasn't like some novel where one could freely control the sword's reach, like with aura.
Of course... later on, with the protagonist's inherent advantages, such insane feats would become possible, but...
'At least not yet.'
Clang! Clang!
Unlike before, the sounds of the spear and sword clashing reverberated even more intensely and loudly.
It was clearly visible to my eyes that Leonhardt was parrying the spear with almost genuine power.
Each time the spearhead bounced back powerfully, I calmly retrieved the spear and repeated the thrust.
My body was under strain, and my breath grew heavily ragged.
Even though my vision was blurring, it was fine.
Retrieving the spear again and thrusting it wasn't impossible.
...This endless exchange of blows.
It was strangely enjoyable.
***
"…"
"…"
Clang! Clang!
Only the sharp clang of metal, echoing loudly, heated the sparring arena.
There was no other sound.
When the spar first began, everyone watching had expected it.
From Glacia, who had arranged the spar, to Yumia, who had followed Leonhardt, and Instructor Avalanche, who was observing their spar. Even the A-class students who had gathered in the training grounds out of curiosity.
They had envisioned Han Cheon-seong's defeat in just a few minutes. No, in mere seconds.
Legendary and Common.
There was such a vast difference that comparing them was laughable.
But then.
Quite some time had passed without anyone realizing.
Now, more than 20 minutes had passed since the spar began.
Clang! Clang-clang!
The fierce clang of sword and spearhead clashing had become so familiar it permeated everyone's ears, and it showed no signs of stopping anytime soon.
Now, everyone was watching in silence.
A spar that defied expectations, utterly unforeseen.
A spar that transcended understanding, one that couldn't even be described as a struggle, was unfolding.
"...Is that really a Common-grade ability?"
Then someone spoke up.
At that moment, several people nodded in dazed agreement.
Only 'two people' were looking at the spar with different thoughts.
Namely, Instructor Avalanche and Glacia, observing the spar as spectators.
Only they were watching the spar with a different gaze than the dazed students.