I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 696

“What comes after ‘One Kill’?”

A long time ago.

After learning the secret sword technique [One Kill] from his master.

When Nobody asked, his master scoffed, taking a swig from his bottle as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“There’s nothing, you little shit. This is the only sword technique I’m going to teach you, what else would there be?”

His master had never taught Nobody swordsmanship before.

He had only taken in the blind Nobody and taught him how to sharpen his senses other than sight so that Nobody could live his daily life.

He had only trained his physical strength so that he could handle a sword, corrected his basic posture, and made him train the basics to death.

Ten years passed like that. Now, Nobody, who could somehow live as a swordsman even without his sight, was taught this, [One Kill], as his first and last swordsmanship.

“Isn’t it too reckless a technique? It can cut through anything, but you have to throw away your own life as well…”

“Don’t talk nonsense, you blind bastard.”

Even though he was also blind, having lost his sight in the war, his master chuckled and spat out those insults.

“There isn’t a swordsman who doesn’t risk his life when wielding a sword.”

“……!”

“Your life is already outside your pocket. The moment you decide to live by the sword, it’s as good as throwing your life away. All you can do is swing with all your might.”

His master gulped down the bottle.

“After that, whether you live or die isn’t up to you. The strength of the enemy you face will decide.”

“……”

“If the opponent is someone you can cut down with your abilities, they will die. If not, you will die. It’s that simple.”

It meant that a swordsman should live every moment with the mindset of mutual destruction.

For Nobody, who was blind, it was even more so. If he swung his sword with a half-hearted mind, he would only be defeated and die anyway.

Every time, in every fight, he had to draw his sword with the intention of killing the opponent and dying himself to move forward.

“Always fight with the mindset of ‘One Kill.’ Because with your pathetic talent and weak body, you won’t be able to use this secret sword technique properly even if you die and come back to life. Just grit your teeth and follow it clumsily, and you’ll be able to do your part.”

Nobody, pouting his lips, grumbled.

“What if I complete this secret sword technique someday?”

“That would mean you’ve found the best place to die. It means you’re cutting down an enemy you wouldn’t normally be able to handle, displaying a talent you wouldn’t normally be able to reach.”

Thud!

His master, slamming his old scabbard on the floor, murmured in a serious voice.

“But remember. The sword is a means. Never the end.”

“……”

“Don’t focus on how to cut with the sword. Think about what you will protect as a result of cutting. Money is fine, people are fine, even some shabby belief that you can’t even trade for candy is fine.”

Whack-

His master threw the scabbard. Nobody, unable to see, barely caught it by the sound. It was an old longsword.

It was an heirloom that his master, a descendant of the Eastern Continent, had inherited, and he wouldn’t let anyone touch it.

“A sword is, after all, a tool for killing, no matter how many fancy words you attach to it. But, if you can protect what you need to protect with that sword…”

After casually passing on the secret sword technique and the heirloom to his disciple, his master smiled.

“…Well, then it might be okay to call it ‘One Life’ instead of ‘One Kill.’”

***

Nobody snapped back to his senses.

Had the darkness infiltrated his weakened mind? The last day with his master flashed before his eyes.

The world around him was moving slowly.

It was the hyper-focused state unique to those who use the sense of touch. It was also the reason why Nobody, who couldn’t see, could move on the battlefield on equal terms with others.

Nobody felt the tentacles pouring down like rain from all directions, and the darkness that filled the area around the airship.

“……”

Nobody let go of the black sword he had been using—the Dragon Slayer made from Ipian.

He decided to stop being consumed by the act of ‘cutting’ and forgetting his purpose, and borrowing the power of darkness.

Instead, he took the very old longsword that he always carried at his waist.

Since joining this front line, Ash had been providing him with new equipment. Every time he broke his sword in battle, Ash would find a better sword for Nobody.

But this old longsword was always at Nobody’s waist. Nobody always carried two longswords.

The nameless sword his master had passed down.

The moment he gripped this old sword, which was full of nicks and completely unbalanced from being used for too long.

“……!”

With a lightning-like realization, all the sword principles within the secret teachings his master had recited were understood.

Nobody realized.

‘Ah.’

It was now.

Nobody held the scabbard with his left hand, and with his right hand, he gripped the handle of the old longsword in reverse, slowly drawing the sword all the way out, then,

Click.

He gently placed the blade back into the scabbard.

The next moment,

Flash……!

A momentary flash of light illuminated the area, and then the darkness was split.

All the tentacles, claws, and talons that were pouring down around the airship, as well as the curtain that had been hanging in front of the airship. All of it was cut horizontally.

Strangely, all the allies in that sword path were not cut.

As if this one sword had distinguished friend from foe…….

The darkness let out a miserable scream and shattered around the ship. The airship La Mancha pierced through the curtain and entered the next darkness.

“Huh?!”

The black mage Chain, who had been caught in a shallow nightmare, gasped and woke up at the flash of light that Nobody had caused.

“Nobody?! Hey, are you okay?!”

Chain hurriedly crawled across the deck towards Nobody.

Nobody, kneeling on the floor, had white hair. The blind swordsman was smiling faintly, bleeding from his nose and mouth.

“When I was young, on the autumn festival day when I first ate cotton candy with my master.”

“……”

“It was so delicious that when I asked what it looked like, he said it looked like a cloud in the sky.”

Chain sobbed in front of his dying old friend who had completed the secret sword technique. Nobody mumbled in a weak voice.

“But since I don’t know what a cloud looks like, I used to imagine it as I pleased. I imagined that the high sky was full of cotton candy. I wanted to go up to that sky someday.”

“……”

“I’ve come this high, so how is it? Is it a cotton candy field all around…?”

In the sky that was still dark with darkness, Chain couldn’t help but laugh.

“Yeah, you blind bastard. It smells so sweet. There’s colorful cotton candy everywhere.”

“Haha. I’ve fulfilled my lifelong wish……”

Nobody’s breath grew weaker.

“Rather than a dark and gloomy sky, a sky full of all those colors of cotton candy… seems prettier.”

“……”

“Such a sky… even a guy like me… will protect…”

His words trailed off.

Holding a broken sword, Nobody was no longer breathing.

After tightly gripping his dead friend’s shoulder, Chain gritted his teeth and looked back.

Having barely overcome one hurdle, another swarm of tentacles was pouring down like a waterfall from the next darkness.

Just like his old friend, he too, to protect the rest of his comrades… the world.

Chain roared and activated his ultimate skill, transforming into a giant of darkness and taking the waterfall with his body.

***

Kuilran patted his full belly.

“Ugh, stop giving me food, bro! I’m so full I can’t eat anymore.”

“What are you talking about? You’re nothing but skin and bones.”

On a sunny autumn day. A valley with clear water flowing.

Kuilran’s brother, Kureha, was constantly cooking inside a hut built next to the valley.

“If you’ve come to see your brother after a long time, you should gain some weight before you leave. Just wait a little. I’m baking a dessert pie.”

“Please, bro… I’m going to become a pig at this rate…”

Kuilran yawned, holding his full belly. He was so full that he was getting sleepy.

The sun was warm, and the wind was cool.

If he could just lie down on the mat and take a nap, what could be better than that….

Just as Kuilran was about to doze off, that was when it happened.

Flash……!

A flash of light flickered in the distance.

It was a single flash of beautiful color, unleashed by someone’s life-risking sword strike.

Kuilran’s eyes, which had been drowsy from eating too much, widened. Kuilran hurriedly got up from his seat.

“I have to go.”

“Huh? Where to? What for?”

“To save him.”

Kuilran clenched his fist and spoke through his teeth.

“To save Yoon.”

Then Kureha chuckled.

“So, this little rascal finally has someone he likes?”

“…Yeah.”

Kuilran admitted with some difficulty. Kureha pressed him further, urging him on.

“What kind of person is she?”

“She’s a human woman. Very assertive, sharp-witted, and, well… she likes me. A lot.”

Kuilran, who had been hesitant, blurted out honestly.

“Actually, I was scared. Of getting close to someone. Of forming a connection with someone.”

“……”

“I was afraid of losing her, just like I lost my brother. Afraid of creating another weakness in my already fragile self…”

After losing someone precious, he was afraid of experiencing that same pain again.

He tried not to love anyone.

But in the face of Yoon’s relentless affection, Kuilran finally opened his heart.

“Hey. Actually, I wanted to see it too, you know?”

Kureha said, smiling as he came out with a freshly baked pie from the hut’s fireplace.

“The future where you get married, have children, and live happily…”

“…Brother.”

“But it’s okay. Even if I couldn’t see it directly, just hearing that you have someone you want to save, even at the cost of your body and soul, is enough. I’m happy.”

Kureha shoved the pie into Kuilran’s mouth.

“You’re doing well on your own now, my brother. Now, go quickly!”

“……”

“Leaving the woman you like to be saved by someone else, that’s…”

Kureha winked slyly.

“Too uncool, isn’t it?”

Kuilran, who had swallowed the pie in one bite, grinned back.

“That’s absolutely right, brother.”

Kureha raised his fist. Kuilran raised his fist in response, and the brothers’ fists met in the air.

“I’ll live happily enough for both of us, until I burst.”

“Of course, you should. Go, my miracle.”

The brother from his memories smiled brightly.

“Now… become the miracle for the person you love.”

Kuilran nodded emphatically and turned around.

And….

***

《Ugh…!》

Lunared, barely regaining consciousness from the flash of light caused by Nobody, staggered to his feet.

《How pathetic, losing consciousness to mere darkness…》

He was far from his usual condition. Lunared couldn’t understand.

‘Why? I took over such a perfect body, so why isn’t it working as I want….’

Shaking with anger, Lunared belatedly noticed that his body was moving against his will.

His right arm was raised, and on his clenched right fist… a dark red energy was swirling and gathering.

That dark red energy was….

《What?》

The curse of the wolf.

The very curse that turned Lunared into a werewolf and the Maple Leaf Tribe into beastmen [a race of humanoids with animalistic features].

A virtual ‘vessel’ pulsating like a heart appeared in the air, and the wolf’s curse that had left Kuilran’s body was swirling and pouring into it.

《What is this?!》

Starting with his right arm, which was closest to the vessel, silver-red fur and hypertrophied muscles receded, and he began to transform into the form of an ordinary human. In an instant, his right upper body changed into the form of a human, not a wolf.

And with his right face completely returned to human form, Kuilran spoke.

“I’ve realized something while fighting on the front lines, ancestor.”

《…?!》

“The martial art you passed down is powerful and domineering, but it’s a bit different from the path I pursue.”

Kuilran chuckled. Lunared was horrified.

“You see, I’m a bit of a delicate type. I felt the need to lower the power a bit and increase the precision.”

《Don’t tell me, you, from the beginning…!》

“To grow further as a martial artist, to complete the martial art I desire, I needed to… if possible, completely master you and the wolf’s curse, and then cleanly remove it.”

Now, not only his right upper body but most of his body had turned human. Lunared was rapidly losing control of his body to its original owner.

“So, I deliberately let myself be consumed once.”

《You! You dared to use me?! Don’t make me laugh! Do you think I’ll just disappear quietly like this-》

“Sorry, but my brother already taught me how to completely remove you.”

Kuilran had inherited the power of the tribal god.

He could easily apply the ‘vessel of curse’ technique that Kureha had shown him.

From the beginning, Kuilran had created a small ‘vessel’ to prevent himself from being completely consumed by Lunared. Using the part where the curse was escaping as a breathing hole, Kuilran had been waiting for a chance to take back his body.

Kwaaaaaa!

The ‘vessel’ pulsed on Kuilran’s right fist, condensing all the curses that had been dwelling in Kuilran into it.

《Stop, descendant! Once the wolf’s curse is removed from you, what will be left?!》

Lunared shouted urgently.

《You will become an ordinary human with a weak, glass-like body! You will never be able to unleash the beast-like destructive power you once had! Then what value will be left in you!》

“What makes me who I am is what I think and what I do.”

Now, with no trace of the wolf left except for a part of his face.

Kuilran clenched his right fist tightly.

“I am still a member of the Maple Leaf Tribe, a representative of all beastmen, a member of the World Guardian Front, and…”

A sheepish smile formed on Kuilran’s lips.

“Yoon’s man.”

《You…!》

“Thank you, Grand Master. For going to such lengths for your descendants until the very end.”

《You bastard-!》

Lunared couldn’t finish his sentence.

The Maple Leaf Fist stance that Kuilran was slowly preparing was clearly different from the one he had created. No….

‘It’s improved?’

Not of the wolf, but of the human—every aspect was refined appropriately.

So that it could be used without borrowing the power of the wolf anymore.

So that anyone, not just beastmen, could learn and master it without relying on the curse… without losing the basic principles. But it was tinged with a gentle and peaceful red light.

《What… is this?》

“Maple Leaf Fist.”

Kuilran, who had reached the stance of the ultimate technique, Single Heart Maple Leaf Storm, replied.

“Of a new era.”

《…Haha, hahahaha!》

Lunared roared with laughter.

《Now you are no longer the forty-fourth head of the sect, you brat!》

Kuilran thought that this evil ancestor was about to declare his expulsion.

But it wasn’t.

《You are the new grand master of your martial art!》

With an unexpectedly refreshing voice, Lunared acknowledged Kuilran.

《Go. You damned descendant. Surpass me, surpass the clan…!》

Lunared’s last dying words flowed into Kuilran’s ears as he blinked in surprise.

《In the new era, go as far as you want to go!》

Soon, the last bit of the curse left Kuilran’s body and was transferred to the ‘vessel.’

“Hoo.”

Kuilran took a short breath and looked straight ahead, his golden eyes gleaming.

The next curtain of darkness was rushing right in front of the airship. Kuilran adjusted his stance and prepared.

The strongest fist he could use only once in his life, burning all the curse and grace that had resided in his body.

“Transcending(超).”

No longer bound by the initial(初) form defined in the past,

Transcending(超) all the past grudges and past sorrows-

“Single Heart Maple Leaf Storm(斷心風狼)-!”

He unleashed the new ultimate technique that he had changed according to his heart, pioneering his own path.

On top of the martial art that Kuilran had improved, all the wolf’s curse extracted from his body and the Nightmare Slayer burned like fuel, adding to its power.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

A dazzling red maple light exploded, creating a huge hole in the curtain of darkness.

“Wake up, Yoon.”

Kuilran whispered, filling the dark sky with his own color.

“It’s morning.”