Chapter 218: Garrand the Sword Emperor (3)
QZfqPresident Redic Georgio was a man who had somewhat gone through the same generation as the Sword Emperor.3CjEsI2
7g7qP3In his childhood, there was a time when an infamous monstrous bull was rampaging around in the West. All the powerful guardians that tried to stop the bull were killed, and right when that demonic beast was getting closer to the royal capital was when he showed up.gu5iTut
0HmaThe young swordsman Garrand Arden, who had been gaining fame as a rising powerhouse, came to provide support as a representative of the Arden Household of the East.3LC2
wH6fIt was a one-sided victory. The tremendous aura bulging out of his steel-like muscles flew the gigantic bull into the sky.nXdy
YujNHis fame only continued to rise after that.irz4c
1AHrI0Monsters of the decade were all sliced apart by his sword and countless swordsmen followed him out of respect.vxXAkk
j8MR5Even when Redic reached the age of 40 and became an executive of the Association, the Sword Emperor never grew old.w7uRmgY
pBBqH9Actually, his body which had been as big as the mountain had shrunk, and he no longer had the ridiculous amount of aura flowing out of him. Because of that, Redic lamented once, thinking that that was the downfall of his hero.2kJq
BOqHowever, the Sword Emperor did not become any weaker.W2v
cgmAWhen a gigantic bird was scorching a city to ashes from the sky, he simply slashed once to drop it onto the ground.gO2NJj
39lxqIt was hard to fathom how a swordsman standing on the ground could possibly be able to do that, but that was exactly why the Sword Emperor was a living legend—he was the pinnacle of the Guardian Association and the swordsman representing his generation.dH2I
MfuA target of utmost respect and admiration for all knights.XHJpB
8JMaeSTherefore, the Sword Emperor personally suggesting a duel was a great honor that anyone should immediately bow to… And yetjQT25P
sS63“…Me? Why would I? I don’t want to.”oBf
z1knKorin Lork turned him down in a flash.LkJ
aVpf9GThe silence continued for a long time.N3KqPY
FnrtThere weren’t that many people present in the first place, but even then, it was so silent that not even the sound of a breath could be heard.FJ8
lbFTA“Are you trying to avoid my test?” The Sword Emperor was the one who broke the silence.dzgH
MnF5F“A duel against the Sword Emperor just isn’t a fair deal.”hIJHg
rAI8kTY“It’s just a friendly spar to test your skills.”wrozlAT
6ov“I don’t think it’ll end there.”xKVcSiH
InReALmWhen Korin looked at him with a gaze suggesting, “Are you sure you’ll be content with just that?” the Sword Emperor curled one of the corners of his lips down like a child whose lies had been seen through.6uiR
JyfHzZ6“What a boring man.”8oL
PVLtJThere was no way a duel between people like the Sword Emperor and Korin would just end as a normal duel.OIctU
9YVmWCtEven Alicia tended to sometimes unknowingly cross the line in her utmost concentration, so how would it be any different with the Sword Emperor? It wouldn’t be strange for it to become a life-or-death battle.i1Dtpo
w9pThat damn old man. He never has a middle ground.6GC
VzFzOtzIn fact, Korin had a history of almost losing one of his arms in a duel against him in the last iteration. His arm was dangling until he put it back together.mAUWU
VkMfsX『Magnificent. Another 10 years and it’ll be a sight to behold. Go embrace Lunia as soon as you recover from your wounds. You have this old man’s permission.』fZf87r
03rSGIt seemed to have been his way of testing his granddaughter’s partner.KXS
Upm0j“You need to strike a deal if you want to fight me. You can’t just have it happen with a few words.”YtdwQLn
qknm1r“Huhahaha…! What a daring young man! There are thousands who bring their entire fortune just to see my sword.”YKYD
G7RR“More importantly, can I ask you a question?”nLYKe6
Ljj“Hoh. How shameless after turning down my offer in a breeze.”SSl
Cd5Px“Chairman Eriu Casarr recommended I have a chat with you.”MfXgh
WLITWv1Eriu Casarr.1lAod
I2zXqK1The old man’s face went through an immediate change the moment he heard the name of the former chairman of Merkarva Academy, who was pronounced dead.bTHf
MAPv“Eriu Casarr, huh? Met him a few times when I was young. They say he died recently but well, that’s utter nonsense.”e6E
3Q7HGarrand said in reminiscence of his past.7Hg3c
r2pThere was a part of his response that piqued Korin’s curiosity.AJft
exi3“What do you mean?”RdXJJ6e
xBeEriu Casarr was a rune puppet that Erin Danua had made in order to look after the Academy in her sealed state.tEKaqlq
L7hH7enKorin obviously knew she wasn’t dead, but why was Garrand so certain about it, despite not knowing the connection between the two?9xJ73T
WCtotP“That lofty spearman dying to some randoms from the Tower of Mages? Absolutely no chance.”OuD8
ytWvYWy“…I see.”p3cmmo
1q1et“Young man. You seem to know something.”piPfV22
TYaal6“No comment. But… he seemed to believe that you would be able to teach me something.”XGp0u
Stn4“Haha. Just what I would expect from him. I’ve learned a lot of great lessons from Eriu Casarr, so it would serve me right to pay that back to his disciple.”XzRRy
Hb1fwpvThe Sword Emperor opened his palm and reminiscently gazed down at it.EllX
hD6He was reaching 60 years of age and his body was showing signs of it. Although he was still healthy, and he would most certainly go past 100 years with the aura he had built up… his body was still incomparably weaker than how it was in his prime.zqVIzvi
9U5A“Ever since I began walking down the path of swords, I had been drowned in an unsatiated thirst for power.”hPev
GDvJBorn as the oldest son of the Arden Household, he trained his innate talents as well as his strength to the extreme. Urged by his hunger for more power, he enhanced his muscles, strength, and devoured elixirs to amplify his aura.fol4
Exsu“Everything; be it parents, siblings, status, authority, belongings…! All of that was meaningless. I pursued power alone and was intoxicated by it.eec
uT57“I remember the time I met that crazy bull from the West. He was pretty big. He was as big as a house so I tried stopping him with my bare body and tossed him away. What I realized then was that he was way too light.ku6a
7MvmlF“There was no one back then to fight against me, and I was strong enough to be left behind in the annals of history. Some even called me a god.”bg2CEa
wjPSk1God of Strength.feoo
GQtCoHe was no longer in the realm of humans; he had way too much strength and power, and the young swordsman back then had the right to dare call himself a god.avLqm
EZq5mHThe Sword Emperor declared.n7qi
tfuuh“I cut down more than a hundred thousand demons! I’ve protected territories beyond what you could possibly see! And I saved at least a million!wmg
mh1“I was the strongest being in existence! Second to none! I had no doubt that I was invincible!lxgK
FLHt“And that was when I met your master.”9QCR0O
7UxK3tKHe lifted his sword. Looking at the gleaming blade reflecting the sunlight, he seemed bewitched by the sword as he recalled each and every single thing that happened in the past with utmost concentration.vyvPZeN
wYfyHe was re-manifesting the shocking scene from back then in his mind.v02hv
BRao“He was weak. I was looking forward to meeting the chairman of an Academy, but the power residing in his physical body was a fraction of the Great Witch following behind him.”ViAuBq2
9Hy6uEFThat was natural because Eriu Casarr was a puppet created with runes that only moved with a small amount of aura and mana.cBge7
wGO“However, it was my defeat. The strongest attacks of my sword couldn’t reach him, and my earth-shattering explosion of aura was unable to shake him.6An
jklN“I finally met the real one.gcK9sL
i12“Six Ways of the Spear – hidden within that divine spearmanship was a profound truth that I couldn’t grasp.”u75l7
7VoCwzrAfter that encounter, Garrand Arden took a completely different route.Yj0i4ok
YqsQmThe downward strikes that he had been practicing for greater output, as well as elixirs for more aura… He gave up everything.dr6NPKT
OI3He simply went back to training the way of the sword.ndIkI
EtSH4lAll to find that hidden “truth”.wKcD
DyK“And at last, when my muscles deteriorated and when my aura was no longer enough to cover the earth.”BYKwz
4DpEGThe Sword Emperor carried his sword,SwnRt2
Ifv5jYAnd slashed down.CIRVQEH
ti7pcIIt was a swing as gentle as the mountain breeze but—DlT8W67
5HCTR“Ahh…”FqwFbkh
x0g2aa“Uahhh…”Ofe
Dhu“…”P5kp
MTMEveryone there felt something. They felt with their skin the vibration in the atmosphere.20em
dxQg20Turning around, they saw that the clouds, the sky, and the world… had been cut into two.0yemr
2o7d“My sword reached the heavens, thus completing my Heavenly Sword.”vxov9T7
rSm3gCutting the sky. After nonchalantly completing that nonsensical feat, he pointed the tip of his sword at Korin.0MidjB
9sVCaBm“What ‘truth’ will you embed in your spear? What is the ‘Domain’ that you wish to reach in your life?”nfvpG6
C9Kfr“…”SYoaoqH
PXyBZIxKorin knew of 4 different Domains.wdt7z
VzxOFSword Fiend. Thousand Dancing Hands.z6LXKN
4o6yDCA sword that cuts everything within a radius of a kilometer.sdR
ah2OAlicia Arden. Infinity Exceeding the Domain.uME
bUtaYrQA teleporting sword that ignores the limitations of distance.oavP8
MMaNrojErin Danua. Void.ySXNF
76ie1txA divine spear with no gaps.IbGBMXc
A9IsCGarrand Arden. Severing Heaven.ziKCIG
DYUA divine sword that could cut through the sky.01wm7qg
GkhCzWhat is so different about their swords and spears, that they reached a realm transcending the Domain?Jmo2
IUDfRGx“There is only one answer. It is to pursue the ultima.”Opck
rLJ“The ultima?”oZ4Z
UHB1mdb“Think about just one thing and one thing alone. Combine all of your future aspirations and the Domain into your profound ‘truth’. Only through a harmony of the heart, mind, and body added with your perception, realm, and truth will you reach the ultima.”FNfcF
Sn1CZ0M“…That is a very ambiguous explanation. Can you make it any simpler?”1wvX
lcSeRk“How can you seek an easy answer forward from where you are already at? This is not something that can be learned; you must be enlightened to it yourself.”Srb
nxCBDYou must be enlightened to it yourself.1J0
qJPBGCThat was the same thing that Erin had said, and Korin was reminded that he had to pursue the answer himself.NvZqGn
71t“If you don’t want to fight, that’s fine too. I was intrigued by the prospect of someone else that can see the Domain, but looks like you’re not there yet. Show me that Sun of yours already.”Brf3XIV
t0O“…If you wish.”4ErM
9X3Korin manifested the Sun as he wanted.qlo
Y4nGA tremendous amount of mana filled the world as a ball of blazing heat appeared above them.l6aL
dXQhzmPIn front of the comparatively small yet massive Sun that was heating up the world, Garrand Arden muttered with a click of his tongue.8P5Jm
bva“The Sun, huh? I’d been wanting to cut it down for a while.”WALn
OKgAs soon as he sliced down with the sword…WOAmtyz
8Pk9n“Huaak…!”apy
vXJ“M, my word…!”2N8r8fq
GkKThe Sun was bisected into halves.GqjTvg
5Pnu20r“That’s it for the test. You can do whatever you want for the evaluation, President.”pPrQN
FtPunIGarrand Arden turned around after finishing his words. But before disappearing off, he said as if he suddenly remembered something.dn5
gkVZd4“If you want both of my granddaughters, you must complete your ultima beforehand. Then I will lend a hand with your marriage to Lunia and Alicia. I don’t mind giving you Arden.”hbZLO
0937xmc“…I swear there is something wrong with all of your views on marriage.”m2JgwT
q06Pgqq“Hahaha…! Heroes love women! Having an abundance and seeking even more is the right and duty of the strong!”429
zf0iHe walked off after leaving those words behind, and that was when Alicia approached from a distance.SuY
KeNda9L“H, huu… Mr. Korin. Are you going to do it?”vg6L153
wXOb“Huh? Yeah, of course.”1TN
iJno2N3Korin had to become stronger; even stronger than Garrand the Sword Emperor and Erin Danua, his master.hGga
8COQBecause his final goal was the worst enemy, Tates Valtazar; and if embedding his profound truth into his spear was a requirement to defeat him… Korin had to definitely make it happen.g6V7kq
0hW“H, hmm… I, I see. To receive permission… from grandpa… Mhmm~. N, not bad.”5J99U
IP4r5Hb“Alicia?”LVKkj
BwlhJzf“I’m cheering for you! Good luck!”ubw0
6zWL5B“Umm… R, right.”KtE
6dNNmKorin was really afraid of the Arden Household.yYPeC
To3hSHe was reminded once again how Sophia, who married into the household, was the only one sane person there.XKjha
R4p***Eq94nk
Zsk1Korin Lork officially became a Unique Grade guardian.uS8
CSyHua Ran and Marie also became one, and Alicia received the evaluation of a semi-Unique Grade.brRYV
Yv9KRPaThat was unavoidable because Alicia had lower specs in comparison to everyone else.WGUV
rrb0NUnique Grade guardians were so rare that some generations went on without a single one of them appearing, and yet three of them had appeared at once. This was enough to create an incredible commotion, but there was something else that called for even more attention.akRM
WqP8N“I will be the president of the Central Guardian Association from now on. Any objections?”vb6v0En
mYF“…”Jt8lJU
HR5yiZL“…”gBjjgJu
FZ2u3RNo one stepped forth, which was nothing abnormal.UjOqZD4
b0svjThe succession of the presidential position went on without any hindrance.21eP4
UttoZsPresident Redic himself was transferred into the position of a high-ranking executive of the South, and although Korin’s Sun had been cut into two by the Sword Emperor, not a single one that witnessed it doubted the destructiveness of the Sun.Z4FUp35
T0EThey might have had an excuse to raise an objection if there was a political method to stop him, but the new president was one who had the full-on support of the Dunareff to the South, and the Chapel of Zeon to the West.39q3d
4BPkGsnHe had the trinity of power, authority, and wealth, so who could possibly turn him down just because he was young?jQI
hIUmPV“I cannot allow this! You young brat!”9z960
eyzSb33Actually, there was one.jwuguAU
4kqThe man seemed discontent by the fact that the presidential position, which he had been eyeing, had been taken away by a random brat all of a sudden.RL7IR4u
qw8sWgM“And who might you be?”55d
glFX“Grade 1 Knight, Gale Bogman! I devoted my life to the Association for 30 whole years! Do you think I will allow a young kid from who knows where to suddenly become the next president? As if!”upL
kyr2o7“Why? What are you so discontent with?”o0jXqJ
OEbANv“I admit you’re strong! But what else do you have apart from that?”Ua0lQ1
74F73“For example, money? Authority? Connections?”ro1
Wt6e1e“Kuhk…!”nr7ko
5gnshGale couldn’t find the words to say.Pq41UP
CSb93FCThe new president would be supported by the New Faith and the Dunareff.0evd
ydzTlIn addition to that was how the previous president and the top executives must have received some kind of beneficial treatment; they didn’t disagree with an 18-year-old kid becoming the next president.nOQUp
9LgSWKThey were so quiet that it was unnatural. Even the royal court didn’t disagree and simply sent a messenger to congratulate him.QkWzC
wrT“B, but… Someone without achievements cannot become the…”ofDWK
KWN8HEOGale stopped his own tongue in the middle of his sentence.A0KW
WQ1WkIt was true that the new president didn’t have a heap of achievements, but the ones he showed until now were all significant.DV6ATEa
lGFGKing of Iron Mountain, saving the Saintess, as well as the might he displayed during the Mound incident. Every single one of them was a heroic legend.DmC
WCbHe had done things that hundreds of guardians might not be able to do, with a small group of people.gIE
UXU6There was no one who could deny the fact that this man was a Unique Grade and one of the strongest guardians in the history of the Association.KFwiY
6BrWHV“Marie Dunareff is the new president of the Southern Association, and Hua Ran is the president of the Western Association. You know that, right?”ppMkHK
5JqWZOf course.S56QMjL
LQUyExImmediately after becoming Unique Grade, they used their right to immediately become the presidents of each branch.2GbIHwN
fNZAWith just one document, it took them less than one week to shut everyone’s mouth using their wealth and authority.1sm
kH3DpdLOn top of that, because the branch to the East was practically under Sword Master Lunia Arden’s control, their group had basically taken over the entirety of the Association, except for the northern branch that had less authority in comparison due to their borders touching the Northern Kingdom.NTP
sPfmpWThat was also one of the reasons why the old executives didn’t dare raise a voice against Korin Lork.TtWL
k43eal1“I command in the name of the president. Tell each branch to pick out 400 to put on standby.”FPVXjA
fqhNlY“F, four hundred? It would be over a thousand then!”4aFb
WilR9“That is more than a quarter of our entire manpower! What are you trying to do with all those guardians…?”O88
xTFlKDK“It’s all~ a part of a big plan.”aiv3
rgvQ“The branches won’t agree to…”mJUVeas
IK1DAOY“Wow~ what a coincidence. Marie, Hua Ran, and Lunia. They’re all part of my guardians guild. All of them are my friends. They’ll do something about it.”IYpkU
vHx“…”FCnq
Qzd“…”bnmKO2
LYtThe executives had no idea what this new president was trying to do. With all those guardians, it was possible to overturn the Kingdom itself.lte7pFI
2VufCWas he plotting a rebellion? But that couldn’t be. It wasn’t a secret that the Saintess, the one in line for the throne, was trying to court the new president.YGeaY
t3lujoFThis isn’t going to work!RSZ6
GpZfBOf course not! How much money will we lose from 1,200 guardians stopping their activities?!9SIgfSh
qGiRbdAll the branches are going to oppose him. There is no way they would agree to that when there’s not even a war happening…7HgQx
IaGchc“Oh, by the way,” Korin suddenly started. “I’m going to quit my post in 1 year’s time. I’m going to hand in my retirement letter to the royal court ahead of time. When I retire, I’m going to pick someone to become the next president. So… I’m counting on you all!”A8hjgMu
Ztbmr6“…”1bviwu
Cljfg“…Pardon?”eKUCDPz
oiux2X“What I’m saying, is that you better conduct yourself well.”usK2Qd
YP4R0mbIf you want to become the next president, that is.aaj7AO
ArekIy“…”IeN801d
gI1N1The conference room fell dead silent.DcPs
2H7G***O2LBd
mxF5kbUWe pretty much took over the East, West, South, and the center. All that was left was to wait until the end of this winter and prepare for the mythology-worthy battle.R1gg
OO6I was going to hand in the retirement letter ahead of time for the retirement in 1 year, so they would probably all work hard to become the next president.s1gRyA
IcZyAlthough I had to become a president because it was necessary, I didn’t have time to waste managing the Association. It would be better to finish what I had to do and leave the post to someone else.PCRO
IE0DcI did officially become the next president, but I still had to greet the royal family and receive their official permission.sQL
FYAK“Haa~. Everything you do creates a commotion.”lf3uK
eXhSEVi“My deepest apologies, Your Majesty.”lrCpjuz
ub1oMy rebellion to stop Miruam from destroying Mound, the use of my Legal Immunity, and now I had even become the president of the Central Guardian Association. King David looked three years older as he looked at me with a sigh.RN3b
7l77“I’ve heard the story from my oldest daughter. It’s hard to believe but… there is no way that child would lie about a ‘revelation from the lord’, so…”ro34GIQ
J24A“Haha…”oqlczq0
C2ySo that’s how Estelle explained it, huh?bAg6
CSQEhRecently, Estelle seemed to be busy traveling in and out, trying to idolize Danann. After killing a large number of cardinals and the pope to become the sole representative of the Order, she was now even meddling with their doctrine.coo45
9ihrAll with the excuse of, “This is what the lord said. I heard it.”SHoDMYH
AmzpfmxBecause she was the child of miracles that was said to be connected with the god, there was nothing they could do apart from going, “I see…”M5sh9
i8v3YX“A great evil is fast approaching. We must prepare for it.”7Wf
WOMOsX“Was Miruam… a part of that?”Lz4
tRue“Apologies for my frankness, but it is true that the 2nd Princess had been on their side.”eSZDph
NXkiE“…It must be thanks to you that she stepped out of that. I see… her hatred was that deep…”vj1z
NdhoapsKing David continued after a sigh.YYf
XvbO“Anyway, Baron Korin… Or should I call you President now.”2Lh
afSGSpC“Whichever you prefer, Your Majesty.”KiXh
FBYz9U6“Do you have any plans of marrying one of my daughters?”gKRQ7
NNUov“…Pardon?”pH6A
dHrFhpoW, what is wrong with everyone? Isn’t a father-in-law normally against marriage? Isn’t it normal for them to act like Duke Marde?mF7vZ
uazbw“Actually, just take them both. Just be the next king.”5dOg
3VJsU“Your Majesty!?”GlIoDbU
M0FQWhat in the world is wrong with everyone? Am I the only normal one here!?i8znIRg
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HaydenZeMan
VIP Qi RefinementHow can you be surprised Korin, not only are you insanely strong, but from the outside looking in you have sage level intellect allowing you to plan 30 steps ahead, who good be a better fit?