Act 50

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After the “Opened Eyes” manifested, Alphas was completely overwhelmed.

A deep purple haze, symbolizing “fear”, continually emerged above the grimacing Alphas, who was in severe pain.

Still, showing a will to counterattack, he clutched at the severed end of his arm, looking around, presumably… searching for his dropped sword.

Alphas, preoccupied with finding his sword and thus completely unaware of showing his back to me, kept scanning the surroundings.

“To show your back in front of me, even demons wouldn’t dare such an act.”

With a cold smile, I seized the moment and slashed at his back with my sword.

“Aaaaargh!”

I barely suppressed a snicker at the sight of him collapsing.

Deep within, the malevolent instinct of ‘Julian’ was budding.

If I were to fully embrace all these emotions intensified by the “Opened Eyes”, an uncontrollable situation would ensue.

“Huff… Huff…”

Alphas gasped for air as he lay fallen.

Now, seemingly having spotted his sword, his blurred gaze fixed on the severed right arm holding his weapon, within a barely reachable distance if he lunged.

“Aaaaaaah…!”

“To wield a sword in front of me, you need my permission.”

Of course, I had no intention of granting it.

I stepped on his abdomen, putting my weight on him.

Alphas, desperate to survive, attempted a joint lock on me with his left arm and right leg.

He also tried to knock me down by squeezing mana from his mana vein for a momentary physical enhancement.

But to me, his actions felt as slow as a turtle crawling.

“Ugh……..!”

“Is this the best you can do?”

I sneered, slowly driving my sword into his solar plexus, where the ‘major mana vein’ or ‘main artery’ was located.

As the mana vein was damaged with intense pain, Alphas’s face turned pale.

Trying to pull out the sword embedded in his chest with his remaining left hand, only his fingers got sliced off by the aura surrounding the weapon.

“Kuh, kuhuk…”

Realizing he had no other options, he loosened the grip of his hand and looked up at me with a bloodied smile.

“Just because ArchBishop Tenellon favors you… don’t act as if you own everything, Julian!”

Ignoring Alphas’s words, I began to twist the handle of the sword.

To ensure his breath was cut off for good.

“Bi, Bishop… and the future… Ugh! The bishops… most… Ugh! They, they don’t favor you… Ugh!”

As I exerted more force, a rough cough along with a mouthful of blood came out of Alphas.

“Monster… wait for you in hell… Ugh… JJ… “

As he cursed, Alphas’s head dropped to the side, hitting the ground.

Looking down at his slumped body, I felt an indescribable emptiness.

Whether it’s because of the “Opened Eyes”, I never expected such a gap to widen even though it was always distinct.

“Wouldn’t this level of power be enough to kill a ‘Sword Saint’?”

I was shocked by the words that unconsciously came out as ‘Julian’.

Did anyone hear?

“Cough… Cough!”

Startled by the coughing sound from behind, I quickly turned around.

‘Ah, Linne had collapsed.’

At first glance, there didn’t seem to be any major injuries.

It must have been the internal injuries caused by using ‘aura’ that had left her in this state.

A father’s revenge.

The girl who ended up powerless in front of her enemy.

However, there was something else to worry about than the pity arising from Linne right now.

‘Did she hear…?’

It was uncertain whether she was still unconscious or had regained consciousness.

If she had been awake, she might have heard the conversation between Alphas and me about the Dawn Society.

‘With a little deduction, she could infer that I’m part of the Dawn Society from our conversation.’

Of course, if she was unconscious, she wouldn’t have heard anything, but it’s foolish to hang on to such uncertainty.

‘Hmm. What to do.’

While I don’t wish for the protagonist to die, there are priorities.

With a hardened expression, I slowly approached her and gripped the sword handle.

Just like with Alphas, ‘to eliminate a future threat.’

Hesitation.

At that moment, I stopped the sword aimed at Linne.

‘What am I doing?’

This train of thought had gone beyond ‘acting’.

Isn’t what I’m seeking perfect ‘acting’, not ‘assimilation’?

As these thoughts reached this point, noises from outside began to be felt.

People were rushing in due to the loud noise.

“What in the world!”

Academy officials who entered the annex were dumbfounded by the brutally dead bodies, the destroyed interior of the annex, and the scattered bloodstains.

Some of the officials, failing to grasp the situation properly, showed overt hostility.

“Knight Julian…?”

Fortunately, there was no deepening of misunderstanding.

Because Vice Principal Allom Chorni, who pushed through the crowd urgently, recognized me.

“Ah.”

***

Linne woke up with a short sigh, regaining consciousness and opening her eyes.

What she saw were the white ceiling and wallpaper, and bottles emitting a sharp scent of alcohol.

‘Ah, it’s the infirmary… Ouch.’

As she tried to get up, a slight pain covered her whole body.

‘What happened?’

Grasping her foggy, blurred consciousness, Linne faintly remembered why she had ended up in the infirmary.

-Thought your face looked familiar. Derain Londebell’s little parasite of a daughter, weren’t you?

During her encounter with Alphas, a member of the Dawn Society and one of the assailants who attacked her mansion and killed her father.

-Such a sorry state. If this continues, you’ll tarnish not just your own reputation but mine as well.

At the same time, she also remembered why she was still alive. The man who used the teachings of her master, Hayden Reich, solely for his own greed. Julian Crypart Frason. He had saved her in a critical moment.

Linne clenched the bedsheets tightly with her eyes shut.

‘…How shameful.’

Being saved by Julian? It wasn’t entirely incorrect, but more than that, she was disgusted with her own weakness. For not being able to avenge her father. For not being able to properly follow her master’s teachings. All kinds of negative thoughts swirled in her head. What was all her effort for until now?

“Have you awakened?”

Just as her doubts were about to spiral further, a familiar voice was heard from the entrance.

“Knight Julian.”

Normally, she would have glared and spat out insulting remarks, but Linne held back. It was a fact that this man had saved her. Expressing gratitude was the first step. As a disciple of the ‘Sword Saint’ and for the honor of the Londebell family, she could no longer tarnish their reputation.

“Thank you for your help, Knight Julian. I will definitely repay this debt someday.”

“I do not consider it a debt. Think of it as a mere act of mercy bestowed upon a weak fellow disciple.”

Linne looked up at him with wide eyes, but that was all. There was nothing wrong with what he had said.

“You’re unusually calm. I thought you would retort to my words.”

“…Because I am well aware of my situation right now.”

“Then, while you’re realizing your own abilities, consider this as well.”

With an emotionless tone, Julian took out a document from his pocket. It was an objection form. Linne had submitted it to the student office, asking for a reconsideration of Julian’s personal opinion.

“Lack of aura endurance is your flaw. To not recognize that and to submit such an objection, how shameless.”

“I, it’s not that I didn’t recognize it…!”

“Then instead of submitting such a form, you should have humbly accepted my opinion.”

Swoosh! 

Julian, with a slight squint and a bitter smile, tore up the objection form Linne had submitted. Placing the torn document on the table, Julian stood up. Adjusting the top button of his shirt as if he had finished what he came for, he turned to leave.

Linne, deflated, lowered her head with a dazed expression.

‘Is he right…? If I had humbly accepted his opinion as he said, I wouldn’t have raised such an objection. It was nothing but a rebellion against Julian, petty pride, and arrogance, intoxicated by the name of ‘genius. What have I been wasting my time for? Tarnishing the family name and failing to properly avenge my father, what was it all for?’

“Your mana vein holds more mana than others.”

Linne lifted her head to look at Julian.

“……Yes?”

“If we approach it with conventional concepts, problems are bound to arise. You shouldn’t only accumulate mana in the ‘main artery’ but also utilize the other major veins.”

Linne was so flustered by Julian’s words that she couldn’t give a proper response.

‘Is he giving me advice now? This man, who desires only power and luxury and sees compassion as something frivolous?’

She stared blankly at Julian’s back.

“Why are you suddenly telling me this?”

“Because we are fellow disciples.”

Fellow disciples.

Linne’s lips trembled at those words.

Upon reflection, those words weren’t meant for her benefit. Surely, it was a roundabout way of saying not to tarnish the name of the ‘Sword Saint.’ After all, it’s widely known that he is obsessed with the name ‘Sword Saint.’

“By the way… what happened to Alphas?”

“He’s dead.”

There was no emotion in Julian’s statement.

“Is that so…”

The revenge she should have rightfully achieved. As one fragment of it slipped from her hands, Linne felt a mixture of emotions.

“You must have been completely unconscious. Well, that’s fortunate.”

At his mention of ‘fortunate,’ Linne slowly spoke up.

“Actually… I vaguely remember the conversation between you and Alphas.”

Startled by her words, Julian slowly turned his head. The smile he usually wore had disappeared. As always, there was no sign of panic on his face.

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

Julian looked at her intently. Linne felt as though she was suffocating under his gaze, but she didn’t look away.

“I… have lost.”

Indeed, Linne was able to overhear some of Julian and Alphas’s conversation within her blurred consciousness.

“…after that incident, I… or rather, ‘Julian’ as a person would be considered dead.”

The unclear parts of their conversation that firmly stuck in her mind were:

“I’ve lost.”

“After that incident,”

“I’m as good as dead.”

Piecing together these bits, Linne concluded that Julian, like her, had lost someone important to him because of the Dawn Society.

“If I say it’s a misunderstanding, would you believe me?”

“What part… is a misunderstanding?”

“All of it.”

A lie.

Her intuition told her that Julian was lying.

“So, I hope you won’t speak of this to anyone.”

With those words, he moved to leave the room again.

…It’s a fact known to no one. Not extending kindness to others means not expecting kindness in return. Not understanding others means not expecting to be understood in return. Thus, he has cast his past into oblivion.

“Such a foolish person.”

Linne tasted bitterness on the tip of her tongue. She might not understand his values, but as someone who also seeks vengeance, she couldn’t help but admire his mindset.

“…I need to work harder.”

With that thought, Linne turned her gaze towards the window where her sword sheath lay.

***

Meanwhile, as soon as Julian left the infirmary, his steps gradually quickened.

‘She vaguely remembers the conversation between Alphas and me?’

Though his narrowed eyes hid his emotions, his quickened pace reflected his urgent state of mind.

‘Is this bad!?’

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