The 9Th Class Swordmaster: Blade Of Truth [EN]: Chapter 308

205. The Northern Teacher (3)

“How do you know that?”

Even as everyone knelt and worshiped Karil, Altemann asked in a calm voice.

“Old people tend to be more sentimental. It’s easy for them to be moved by pleasant words.”

The Otherworlders are not heretics but a true will.

The elders were moved by the words they had longed to hear, but Altemann rebuked Karil’s words as flattery, arousing a sense of alertness in the elders.

“In the ruins of the Council of Seven Elders, known as the Gray Council, I obtained a box. And inside it was a relic of the Blader. Not the artisans of the Magic Era, but a true Blader. He was with the spirit kings in the mythical era, so they can testify to this as well.”

Karil pointed to the three spirit kings behind him.

“Do you need confirmation?”

“Surely…”

“N-no way.”

Despite Altemann’s words, the elders’ attitude already acknowledged Karil as their leader.

From the moment he received the title of Great Warrior, it was already decided, but the fact that he used Rakna and, furthermore, possessed the power of the spirit kings, the elders no longer had any reason to distrust or not to support Karil.

“Inside it was a weapon used by our ancestor from the mythical era, called the Blader, the Master Key, and the one in the box was special.”

Karil looked at Altemann.

“Yes, it’s the same as Hwarin’s will of the Lycanthrope. Did you know that it was a relic of the Blader?”

At his question, Altemann nodded with a faint smile.

“Well, then I understand why the elders are reacting so strongly to my words. And they saw with their own eyes that I handle the Master Key more perfectly than Hwarin…”

Swish…!

A blue snake wrapped around Karil’s wrist, appearing and disappearing.

“You’ve been putting on a good act. Saying you couldn’t acknowledge me; all the words you’ve said so far were just to show the last bit of dignity to the leaders as an elder.”

At his words, the elders wore awkward expressions.

“The fact that the will of the Lycanthrope is with her is proof that our ancestors were Bladers. But there was no one who could prove it. Altemann, you were waiting for me as the Northern Teacher.”

“You see through everything. That’s right. The Otherworlders now need a true leader who can unite them. I’ve been waiting for that.”

“Was Kaliak not enough?”

At Karil’s words, Altemann gave a bitter smile.

“Unfortunately, yes. Hwarin, who manages the will of the Lycanthrope, is the same as a leader of the Otherworlders. Unlike us who know these inside stories, ordinary Otherworlders need a clear example.”

“That’s Rakna.”

“That’s right, if they can use the relic of the Great Warrior that hasn’t been seen until now, they will serve that person as their leader without a doubt.”

“And there’s another reason.”

At Karil’s words, Altemann’s face slightly hardened.

“The blue gem that seals the will of the Lycanthrope is the power of the wind spirit king, the Mad Wind Samiad.”

“You knew that much?”

“It’s not difficult to notice that when you have spirit power. Of course, Hwarin couldn’t use that power.”

[After the defeat in the Divine Spirit War, it’s not uncommon for spirits to be used as a means of sealing as a price…]

[Honestly, it’s humiliating.]

Duat and Laminue crossed their arms and shook their heads slightly. At the same time, they glanced at Etheral, as if trying to read her expression.

Especially since her ice was used in many ways for sealing.

“Well, it’s not bad. If I get two powers at once, it means I don’t have to search for them.”

[Anyway, you talk about encountering the wind spirit king so casually.]

Perhaps out of consideration for the Queen of the Tides, Karil said it as if it were a good thing.

“If Hwarin could handle the wind spirit, things would have been different. She would have been able to use Rakna, and she would have been able to learn about the Blader through Samiad.”

“We had suspicions, but no evidence. For decades, no, for hundreds of years.”

“So Hwarin sent Liliana, unlike the other leaders. The first time I met the Jannabi tribe was in the Imperial Palace. Even then, even if she didn’t know about the existence of the Master Key, she would have noticed the existence of Samiad.”

“That’s right.”

“Is that your idea too?”

“The Jannabi tribe has guarded that necklace for generations. Even if they didn’t know it was a Master Key, Hwarin agreed that it was right not to show the necklace she had easily.”

Altemann shrugged slightly and answered Karil’s question.

“I see. Then let me ask you just one last thing.”

“What is it?”

“If you have so much affection for the Otherworlders, why didn’t you become their leader?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“They may not know, but you can’t fool me. If you were waiting for a leader with magic power… why didn’t you, who have been respected by the Otherworlders for so long as the Northern Teacher, come to the surface?”

Karil said coldly.

“You have magic power too, don’t you?”

“……!!!”

“……!!!”

The air in the cave became heavy for a moment at his words. But Altemann was still waiting for his words.

“I think I need an explanation about that before I receive the title of Great Warrior for the last time. Or should I call all the leaders outside? It seems like it would be noisy enough.”

“Ha, hahaha…”

Altemann shook his head as if he couldn’t handle the words.

“You’ve been deceiving them well so far. The Otherworlders don’t have magic power, so they wouldn’t know if you have magic power or not.”

Swish—

Karil raised Rakna and pointed it at Altemann.

Whoosh…! Flamelick…!

Clang—

At the same time as the three spirit kings standing behind him disappeared, Rakna’s blade sprouted.

The blade was purplish, like looking at an Arcane Blade, and lightning flashed around him.

“This is it… Amazing. You can even do spirit synthesis in that short amount of time? It’s not perfect, but it’s enough to use Rakna as a medium and condense it into a simple form of a blade. Truly worthy of a Sword Master who has reached the ranks of the 6th class. No, even so, it would be impossible. A talent to be called a genius.”

Altemann didn’t seem too surprised even after seeing Karil’s Vision Sword.

“Shut up and answer the question I asked.”

Karil said without taking his eyes off him.

“Who the hell are you?”

Swish—!!

It was then.

Altemann pulled on the belt he was wearing around his waist, and surprisingly, the flexible belt became a sharp blade.

Karil chuckled at the sight.

“What does this mean?”

Altemann raised his chain sword and slowly raised it above his head, taking a stance.

“…….”

At that moment, Karil’s face hardened.

“……!!”

Then, the magic power that had been rising from him, who had felt relaxed until just now, surged.

Clang——!! Clang—!!

Karil’s Rakna and Altemann’s chain sword collided so fiercely that the cave shook.

Altemann’s sword, which had been stretched straight, bent and wrapped around Rakna, then changed the trajectory of the sword and deflected the blade.

Clang—! Bang!!

The moment Karil’s center staggered, Altemann’s chain sword was once again straightened and aimed at Karil’s back.

Whoosh—! Clang!!

But Karil, as if he already knew it, raised Rakna from below without hesitation, blocking Altemann’s attack.

At the same time, he gripped the Ice Claw in reverse with his other hand and slashed horizontally.

Clang!! Clang……!!

The sharp sword energy scraped the walls of the cave, and the elders hurriedly retreated as the falling stone dust fell.

“…How did you?”

Karil glared sharply at Altemann, shaking off his sword. Altemann, unlike Karil, leaned against the wall and stopped, wearing a faint smile.

The sword stance he had shown by raising his sword a moment ago.

Surprisingly, it was the first of the five sword stances created by Karil, the Crown Posture.

“It’s not easy. There are countless changes contained in one stance. If an ordinary person saw it, they would just see it as basic continental swordsmanship.”

Altemann said, putting away his chain sword.

“I just tried to imitate the swordsmanship you did at the Sword Festival. If you created it, your talent is truly amazing.”

“You followed the swordsmanship I showed at the Sword Festival?”

Karil glared at Altemann with a dumbfounded expression at that moment.

What kind of swordsmanship were the five sword stances?

It was the ultimate skill he had completed after wielding a sword for countless hours in Parell, going back in time.

Even Kwell McGovern, called the best swordsman on the continent, could not follow his sword stance just by seeing it once.

‘He put away his sword, but he didn’t just imitate it clumsily. He even grasped the meaning contained in the stance.’

“Are you… perhaps an elf?”

“Why do you ask that?”

“Otherwise, it doesn’t make sense. Unless you’ve devoted yourself to the sword for the lifespan of at least an elf, you won’t be able to understand this ultimate skill.”

“You have great pride in that swordsmanship.”

“I just thought that rumors like ‘the Northern Teacher is older than the elders’ or that ‘the Northern Teacher has existed since the birth of the Otherworlders’ were just adults’ jokes to make children feel awe.”

“But?”

“Now that I see this, I think that those words might be true. Very strongly.”

Altemann chuckled at Karil’s words.

“You followed my swordsmanship at the Sword Festival? Even if I concede a hundred times that you, called the Northern Teacher, are excellent, the Crown Posture is not something you could simply imitate.”

Unlike him, who was smiling, Karil glared and said coldly.

“Because it’s nonsense to try to fool me.”

Swish—

Karil raised his sword.

“I didn’t take the Crown Posture at the Sword Festival. Tell me the truth. Who the hell are you?”

[Karil.]

It was then.

[I understand now.]

Alrn’s voice sounded somehow uneasy.

‘What is it?’

Karil replied in his head so that Altemann couldn’t hear.

[I’m talking about the reason why I felt strange when I first saw your swordsmanship.]

‘What do you mean?’

[I don’t know if you remember, but you first took the five sword stances when you killed the demon from the Demon World that you first met in the Twin-Headed Eagle’s nest.]

‘Agma?’

[Yes, I asked you then if that sword style was really made by you.]

Karil recalled his memories.

At that time, it was a question that he didn’t think much about, so he didn’t care much.

‘Certainly… At that time, you felt something was amiss. Why is that?’

[The reason I asked you then was because I felt like I had seen your sword style somewhere.]

Alrn emphasized his voice.

‘You…?’

[In the Magic Era when you weren’t there.]

“…….”

Karil’s face hardened at Alrn Zabiuss’s words.

[Why did I miss this? I remember now. It was a being that remained only as a faint story because it was so old even in the Magic Era… Yes, his name is…]

Alrn uttered a name as if sighing.

[Sword Demon (劍鬼).]