Chapter 49
Before engaging in this martial arts match, Verdandi remembered what her master Bing Yeon had told her. Even if the opponent seemed blind, the match could be decided in an instant if she let her guard down.
- Sieghart is someone who can turn everything in this world into a sword and use it.
At first, she couldn't believe those words. There were magic spells that could create weapons out of thin air using mana, but...
- Is that... really possible?
- Yes, it might be impossible now, but... when he reaches the perfect realm, that guy can even fold time and use it as a sword.
The idea of being able to use concepts like time and space as a sword seemed impossible no matter how she thought about it.
If it hadn't been for Bing Yeon's words, who had saved her mother with his ability to see the future, Verdandi would have dismissed it as nonsense.
'It definitely showed as truth back then!'
The blue-haired man in front of her now looked completely harmless. He seemed like someone who couldn't even kill a bug on the street.
- So, you probably have almost no chance of defeating Sieghart.
- What do you mean by that! A hero never loses!
Her master Bing Yeon had predicted Verdandi's defeat. In the original "A Hero Must Die," it was true that no one could defeat her corrupted self, but...
- You don't have the Holy Armor now.
This world was different from the novel. The real Verdandi had no means to block Sieghart's attacks without the Holy Armor.
Even if she tried to block with the Holy Sword, she couldn't win a war of attrition against someone who could replenish his weapons endlessly.
How on earth could she obtain the Holy Armor?
Her master Bing Yeon seemed to know the answer but was reluctant to speak about it.
'Instead, I've practiced the Six Harmonies Sword Technique tremendously, so I'll definitely be able to win!'
Verdandi, who had completely mastered the movements learned through mental imagery, recalled the possibility of her victory in her mind.
If you enter a match thinking you'll lose, you can never win in the world of competition. You have to aim for the highest position to even reach the middle.
"I heard you're the hero of this generation. Is that true?"
"Yes, it is!"
Verdandi answered Sieghart's question brightly. Although she could immediately judge him as a villain upon seeing him, she showed no prejudice based on Bing Yeon's example.
"From your position, I must look like a villain."
A boy who stained his hands with blood to protect his family. Sieghart spoke words that seemed to test Verdandi based on the information he had heard from Bing Seolhwa.
If her words were true, Verdandi would have been a mad hero intoxicated with justice, killing indiscriminately.
However,
"That's right! But I believe people can change!"
Contrary to Bing Seolhwa's expectations, Verdandi didn't show any killing intent towards Sieghart even knowing he was a villain. Rather, she was waiting for his attack as if wanting a fair fight.
"Even someone who has already killed before?"
"Those people might not have been truly bad people!"
"That's the first time I've heard such words."
Noticing this, Sieghart couldn't help but smile wryly. How many mad people in this world would say such things about someone who had killed?
It was a statement that only Verdandi, who had the purest and cleanest personality, and who had almost killed her own mother due to misjudgment, could make.
"...Well, they were bastards who deserved to die. There were some madmen who tried to lay hands on my sister because I was blind."
Sieghart spoke while opening his eyes wide, which he had kept closed. His sightless eyes stared into empty space.
His sister who had always guided and helped him despite his blindness. His family who steadfastly said it was okay even when they were pointed at by others for supporting him.
"It might sound like an excuse, but it was a situation where I had to step in."
He pretended it was nothing when he was pelted with stones by children for being blind.
He held back tears when people secretly tripped him or pushed him into the river.
He even forgave in his heart the peer who stole the cane his sister had made for him and ran away teasing that he would return it if caught, but...
"...If I hadn't killed them, those bastards would have tried to violate my family in front of me."
He couldn't just stand by when ruffians broke into his home and tried to touch his family. Robbers who even committed the atrocity of taking him hostage because he was blind.
At that time, Sieghart deeply regretted his powerlessness. It was a life of being robbed by the strong because he had no strength, couldn't see with his eyes, and was weak.
So he grasped a sword.
A sword in his heart, as hard as to never break and sharp enough to cut this entire world.
"I understand what you're saying! You're not lying!"
Verdandi nodded after confirming the truth of Sieghart's words. Her mother had experienced something similar at the hands of robbers.
If Verdandi had been in the same situation, she would have picked up a sword to protect her family too.
"You believe me? I'm not sure if you're stupid... or just kind."
Sieghart spoke with the intention of testing her. Despite him saying he had committed murder to someone he was meeting for the first time today, she was showing an attitude of trust towards him.
Even in medieval times when people were dying left and right, murder was still a serious crime.
He had barely managed to survive thanks to Bing Seolhwa's arrangements.
"I understand well because I have a similar past!"
Contrary to the original "A Hero Must Die," Verdandi was understanding Sieghart's circumstances. Originally, she would have chosen suicide because no one understood her.
"I think I understand why that person called Bing Seolhwa ordered you to kill us."
Seeing Verdandi, Sieghart couldn't help but smile bitterly, and he opened his mouth while grasping at the air. Immediately, her body trembled greatly due to the surging killing intent.
"She must have thought it would be sufficiently threatening if that blade was turned against her."
Sieghart, who had grasped a cloud from the sky and turned it into a sword. A weapon characterized by its pure white handle and blade appeared before Verdandi.
"But my family is being held hostage."
As he spoke in a calm tone, the veins on his temples were bulging with tension. To save his sister and parents, he had to kill this hero called Verdandi.
Even if he were to side with Bing Yeon now and betray Bing Seolhwa, the chances of winning were very slim.
In exchange for losing the light in his eyes, Sieghart's mind, which could understand everything else, was screaming that he could never defeat her.
"Come at me with the resolve to kill me, or you won't survive."
Life and Death Battle.
Sieghart had judged that if he couldn't kill Verdandi here, he would rather die himself.
- The first thing you need to do is not to block, but to dodge.
Recalling Bing Yeon's advice to Verdandi, she moved to avoid rather than block Sieghart's incoming sword strike.
- Why should I do that?
- He will definitely create a sword by grasping clouds. There might be exceptions, but there's a very high chance he'll assume you have the Holy Armor.
He's trying to kill her before Verdandi can bring out the Holy Armor.
This was also a flow that existed in the original "A Hero Must Die." Sieghart's main strategy was to attack by grasping even the clouds flowing in the sky.
The advantage of making a sword from clouds was that it could immediately penetrate the opponent's defense and inflict wounds, but...
- If you dodge instead of blocking, he'll have no choice but to bring out his next move, Verdandi.
The disadvantage was that it couldn't inflict much damage if dodged.
'Master's words were right...!'
Verdandi, who had rolled to avoid the cloud that stretched out like a whip, was trying to grasp her opponent's movements.
She needed to figure out what kind of sword Sieghart would create next, as he noticed something was off when he felt nothing being cut.
"...Did you dodge? I didn't feel like I cut anything."
- If he feels that the cloud sword has been thwarted, he'll either grab air to throw like daggers... or create a sword by grasping light, and then try to stab you at a speed you can't avoid.
The next attack came exactly as Bing Yeon had said, immediately trying to grasp sunlight to throw.
That's when,
"......"
Verdandi immediately took off her shoes to move without making footsteps, and held her breath to prevent even the sound of breathing from being heard.
She even threw a stone far away to create noise, trying to hide even the sound of her heartbeat.
- There's a flaw in this tactic, which is to deceive the location before it leaves the hand.
Even with extremely developed senses and innate talent for handling swords, there were physical limitations that couldn't be overcome.
However,
"Is it there?"
"......?!"
A metallic sound rang out with a clang. Somehow sensing her location, Sieghart had immediately thrown his sword in Verdandi's direction.
If she hadn't preemptively blocked her vital points with her sword just in case, she would have been killed instantly by a stab to the carotid artery in her neck.
"How did you know?! I'm sure I hid the sound perfectly!"
Verdandi, whose position was continuously exposed, had no choice but to rush at Sieghart while using the Six Harmonies Sword Technique. Originally, it would have been best to look for openings from afar as Bing Yeon had said, but...
"...The pitch of the sound and the magnitude of the vibrations are different."
The method to counter Sieghart from the original work had already been solved by Bing Seolhwa. He was showing the composure to explain how he had detected her position while sensing victory against her.
"With just this level of skill, you'll never be able to defeat someone like Bing Seolhwa."
Sieghart said as he drove his sword strike into Verdandi's abdomen.