How To Suck Honey With Extras [EN]: Chapter 318

353. The Truth Is Here (9)

“I won’t make the same mistake again.”

I’ll fight you with swordsmanship this time.

I could just crush him with gravity control again, but that wouldn’t be in the spirit of things.

I need to test various things.

“Come.”

As if responding to my challenge, the monster regenerated its remaining body and charged at me.

It brought its flame-covered claws down toward me, using the intense heat of its boiling body to amplify the attack.

“That’s pathetic now.”

I scoffed and lightly swung Killmoulis upwards.

Clang!

The blue aura devoured the monster’s heat, grinding it away.

As the blue line soared upwards, the monster’s foot was cleanly severed and shattered into pieces.

“And that was just a light swing.”

I grinned at the monster, who seemed bewildered, and immediately lunged forward.

Simply coating my fist with aura and punching him sent him flying with a ground-shaking boom.

“The density of my aura is incomparable to what it used to be.”

I’ve literally surpassed the limits I knew until now.

“So, this is what she meant.”

Whether it was just my imagination or not, the blue energy surrounding the sword seemed denser than usual.

“The limits I knew weren’t limits at all….”

I finally understood.

The fundamental reason why I had been handling my power so clumsily.

Of course, it was partly due to my lack of experience and being a novice, but there was a bigger problem.

What she meant by being out of sync.

“Was I arbitrarily setting limits… and suppressing my power…?”

There is no end to mastery.

There is no set endpoint to becoming stronger.

Why didn’t I accept that, even after hearing it directly?

It felt strange now.

The descriptions from the original story that I knew.

Until now, I had been building and wielding my power based on those descriptions.

In the novel I read, the descriptions of their power literally stated those limits.

“…That was the contradiction.”

A limit set by someone else.

What those beings did to control human development within a set framework to carry out their plans wasn’t just creating a framework and making humans dance to their tune.

Abilities, magic, swordsmanship… they limited the end of all skills according to their standards.

Because that would be easier to handle.

“Thinking about it, that’s the contradiction….”

If a strong person wields it, it should naturally become stronger.

Why did I assume that reaching the same level as them was natural?

‘Was I simply mistaken? Or did someone intervene?’

Well, let’s think about that later.

In the brief moment I looked away, the monster’s tail had reached right in front of my nose.

“Oops.”

I leisurely dodged it, as if teasing him, by lightly moving my body.

It’s not just destructive power that has surpassed its limits.

The enhancement of my physical abilities while holding Killmoulis is the same.

The stronger the nature of the aura, the more the limit of its ability to enhance the body increases.

“Should I finish this first?”

I could tease him more, but let’s not be complacent.

I’ll end it.

“It would be nice if there was an easy-to-find weakness, but since there isn’t… well, I’ll just keep swinging until you’re in pieces.”

I stab the sword and make it explode [referring to an energy burst].

I split it into dozens of pieces in an instant.

I crush it with a massive sword aura.

In addition to that, I use all sorts of means to drive him back again and again.

“Looks like you’re reaching your limit?”

The monster’s body is now only about one-fifth of its original size.

Its power is visibly weakening.

“…I really can’t believe I struggled with a guy like this for days.”

It feels so distant, even though it was just a little while ago.

I didn’t know this….

I smiled bitterly and raised my sword for the last time.

Yes, let’s use that.

I imagine the Secret Art Melas showed me, not the descriptions from the original story that I know.

I reset my own limit.

“Hmm?”

At that moment, I felt a strange sense of incongruity.

Why now?

I understood in that instant.

The last trait of Killmoulis that had not yet been unlocked.

In short, it completely makes the swordsmanship itself my own.

Until now, I couldn’t use the power unless I held the sword, and the great techniques consumed points [Influence Points, a form of currency or energy].

In other words, it was a trial version.

And now, this sword is offering to let me use it in earnest.

Perhaps it will allow me to use the power even without holding Killmoulis.

‘But I met the conditions? Does that mean I didn’t meet them before?’

Maybe that’s the problem Melas was talking about?

Anyway, let’s use it.

As I approve, Killmoulis sucks in a large amount of points.

And a massive amount of memories flowing out of the sword climb up my arm and permeate my entire body as if to devour it.

A cheat that literally engraves the techniques.

In that instant, all the techniques engraved in this sword were permanently imprinted into my body.

“That’s the end, you nuisance.”

The sword aura I unleashed swept through and completely ground him, scattering him into pieces.

The power is… beyond perfect.

The same as the sword aura she demonstrated… no, even more.

Indeed… so this is it.

I smiled contentedly and leisurely savored the disappearing afterimage of the aura and the monster’s heat.

* * *

After completely defeating the monster, I returned to Melas and reported the progress.

She seemed to be aware of the situation and listened to my story.

“So, you knew all along? That my perception was off….”

“I knew that you were always thinking strange things when using your power.”

Well, then you should have told me sooner.

“It’s not a problem that can be solved by pointing it out. You have to confront it directly and understand the contradictions in your own power.”

Know your limits.

“As I said, this is something that a fledgling usually realizes when they’re just starting to shed their feathers [a metaphor for early stages of development].”

“…Hmm, it’s a bit complicated.”

Well, now that I’ve realized the contradiction, I can use my power to my heart’s content from now on.

Frankly speaking, from now on, it’s ‘Full Power Aileon’.

“Don’t be reckless. Don’t misunderstand. You’ve only corrected your perception. No, rather, that will make it more dangerous.”

“I roughly know.”

Not knowing the limits means that there might be a future where I can’t control my power and crash into things.

In a way, the perception of the limits of my power that I knew was a safety device.

Up to this point, it was okay.

I could limit myself like that, but it’s different now.

Since there is no end, I might overdo it trying to exert more power and self-destruct.

“But that’s normal. It’s a risk that someone with great power must naturally bear. Do you understand?”

“Well, I don’t want to do anything that would cause me to self-destruct. If I just take care of the problems right in front of me, I’ll live the rest of my life lazily.”

“Do as you please. After all, my era and your era are different. There’s no need to interfere with your way of life.”

“Yes, yes. Thank you.”

After answering vaguely, I pondered for a moment.

“Is there anything else you want to ask?”

“It’s not something else, but I’m just curious about one minor thing.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“You clearly said that Master knows. That is….”

Even if she doesn’t know all the truth, doesn’t that mean she knows the future of this era?

If that’s the case….

“I know. This era will soon come to an end. It will meet its end faster than this old body meets its end.”

She admitted it.

“Nelkeros said he had plenty of time, but I’m not so blind that I can’t see through that much of a lie.”

“But… this matter….”

The fact that she voluntarily went out of her way to defeat the monsters… does that mean it has meaning?

“Meaning… you’re asking something unnecessary.”

“Yes?”

“Are you going to throw your life away just because the world is ending?”

She asked me as if pointing it out.

“It doesn’t matter whether it ends or not. What’s important is how you live until the very end.”

“Living?”

“That is the duty of those who live.”

The majority of humans do not know their fate.

Rather, only a very small number of humans know.

And they are not despairing, but accepting the end.

…I can’t fully understand their feelings.

“More than anything, it’s not the end of everything.”

“…Could it be.”

The beginning of the novel that I know.

Sylvester, who originally plays the role of the protagonist, is a person from this era.

However, she sealed him with her own hands and left him for the next era.

I thought of one thing there.

Why did she leave Sylvester behind?

She said that Sylvester took on the role of the protagonist by chance.

She just had her eye on him because he had the strongest potential.

She didn’t know his fate and send him.

If that’s the case….

“…Does this selfish old woman have anything else to say?”

“No. Yes. Well, I understand your resolve.”

I didn’t ask about her true intentions.

It would be presumptuous to ask.

“Then one more thing, about this sword.”

“Hmm, you have a lot of questions.”

I pointed to Killmoulis and asked.

“If… could this sword possibly be given to someone else….”

“It doesn’t matter, you can have it.”

She said that it doesn’t matter if I keep using it.

“I didn’t think about who would pick it up and use it, but it seems that judgment was right. So, you use it. Wouldn’t it be troublesome without it?”

“I guess so.”

Since I’ve received permission, I should use it without hesitation.

I’ll use it until it’s worn down and breaks. Hehehehe.

“Aileon. You take care of the future… and my damned disciple as well… I’m counting on you.”

“Yes.”

Instead of an awkward answer, I bowed my head resolutely.

Even before being asked, I won’t have my own happiness if I don’t do that.

I intend to do what I have to do.

The best thing would be if there was someone to do the annoying things for me… but it would be shameless to ask for that much.

* * *

All I can do with the remaining time is chat or pick up some of the things I’ve gained?

“Come to think of it, I got this, but what do I do with it?”

“Hmm? What is it?”

I rummaged around and showed her what I had obtained.

A material placed inside a temporary box made by shaping a rock with magic and further reinforced with magic to prevent it from spoiling.

“It’s the material from that monster from earlier.”

“Judging by the looks of it, it’s that guy’s magic stone [a source of magical energy]. But it’s unusual.”

Usually, a magic stone is simply a stone that contains the monster’s energy.

But this is too hot to be considered a simple magic stone.

“This stone is still burning even now.”

“It must be retaining the monster’s properties as they are. Tsk, tsk. What a degenerate age. For such a monster to be running around freely.”

“So, what do I do with this?”

Unfortunately, it seems that I can’t take any money or items I obtained here with me.

Unless it’s something I originally had.

“It’s a pity, but I can’t have it.”

“You really seem to regret it.”

Yes! I regret it to death! I regret it so much I could cry.

“…Hmm, this old woman doesn’t know much about things like this, so why don’t you ask someone who might know?”

Someone who might know?

As I looked at her in confusion, she said, “Alright, let me take care of it,” and started packing her things and got up.