Chapter 3

[Durandal Online.]

Superweapon.

To combat the powerful extraterrestrial beings that modern weapons cannot even scratch, humanity combined science, magic, and the new materials and lost technologies of other worlds to create a new era of strategic weapons.

In this world, the standard for distinguishing between hunters and heroes is the presence or absence of the talent to handle superweapons, known as 'compatibility.'

'Just another third-rate light novel setting.'

I grumbled to myself, recalling the original setting.

Super weapons against monsters that modern weapons can't harm?

It's absurd, but in this world, that absurdity is the truth.

It's a world that's just like a dog's light novel.

"If you really want it."

Swoosh.

Olivia draws her sword, her expression calm and composed.

Her sword glows with a platinum light, and white flames rise from the blade.

Whoosh.

Olivia's personal weapon, Flamberge, enters combat mode.

A dazzling platinum light envelops her entire body, revealing a platinum full-body armor and a magical field.

The platinum knight princess, holding the wavy-bladed longsword Flamberge, speaks coldly.

"I'll yield. You go first."

Instead of answering, she injects mana into the repulsion device on the chest of her armor.

Rumble!

Durandal's repulsion device emits a black light, greedily absorbing mana.

My chest hurts.

[Synchronization]

[Raul Napoleon Bonaparte]

The first ability of the Transcendent Weapon Durandal, Synchronization, is activated.

The information of the previous owner, the Black Prince Raul, stored in the repulsion device is forcibly injected into my body.

"Ugh."

Are the blood vessels in my eyes bursting? My vision turns red.

Blood flows from my mouth.

It hurts. It fucking hurts.

I want to collapse, but I can't.

I must survive in this hellish world.

Somehow.

By any means.

A black line appears in my red vision.

A new sensation awakens.

The moment the ability Synchronization brings the experiences and senses of the Black Prince Raul into me.

"Ah."

I instinctively realize how to use Durandal.

Naturally, I slowly grip and swing Durandal.

The Durandal in my hand moves along the black line.

A black mana light leaves a trail in the air.

Swoosh!

A chilling sound of air being torn apart echoes.

[Black Light Sword Technique]

It is the unique sword technique of the Black Prince, said to cut even the sky.

The sword of the great hero who saved the world by slaying countless extraterrestrial beings, the enemies of humanity, on the front lines of the Great Disaster.

The sword that saved France 30 years ago is now in my hands.

"!!"

Olivia's eyes widen.

She raises her sword. White platinum mana flames rise from the blade of Flamberge.

Boom!

Black mana and platinum mana clash and intertwine.

A deafening explosion resounds.

"How can you use brother's...!"

Olivia's always calm voice wavers.

She thought the Black Prince's sword technique was lost.

She seems shocked that I can use it, but unfortunately, this was my plan from the beginning.

If she uses the same amount of mana as me, Olivia can never defeat me.

Flamberge, a personal weapon, cannot defeat the Transcendent Weapon Durandal.

The main heroine, who admires the Black Prince, cannot win against someone who borrows the Black Prince's power.

"You don't need to know."

Boom!

I swing my sword again.

A loud noise erupts. Mana waves sweep through the hall.

Mana fragments fly. The blade of Durandal glows with a sinister black light.

Olivia's eyes widen in shock.

Silver and black clash again.

A series of attacks and defenses continue in a short time.

Olivia swings her sword.

A perfectly beautiful sword.

She was the best talent in France, but that's all.

The battle sense of the Black Prince, who has crossed countless battle lines, makes her sword easy to handle, even for me who has acquired a fragment of it.

"Shut up and get ready to kneel!"

I grit my teeth.

I overwork the mana circuits. The repulsion device emits black light.

My chest feels like it's being burned by a furnace.

It hurts. It fucking hurts.

Shit, it hurts like hell.

But I have to endure.

To take the dogeza from that damn woman who injected me with a lot of sweet potatoes.

I have to win.

I force the extracted mana into Durandal.

Durandal greedily consumes the mana. The black mana of Durandal's blade flickers as if it's overflowing.

[Synchronization]

Durandal, having consumed the mana, draws a new black line in my vision as if satisfied.

The repulsion device imprints new information about the Black Prince into my mind.

Rumble!

The black blade vibrates. Mana condenses as if it's burning.

I raise Durandal.

[Black Light Sword Technique]

[Ultimate Technique]

[Full Moon Descent]

A black sphere floats at the tip of the blade.

A full moon made of black light.

The black moon in the ceiling falls toward Olivia.

Olivia's pupils dilate.

She raises Flamberge. The white platinum flames from her sword form a giant shield in the air.

[White Flame Sword Technique]

[Third Form]

[Platinum Shield]

Olivia's skill.

The noble-looking flame shield seems to be able to block anything, but in reality, it's a last desperate attempt.

"Goodbye, main heroine."

I send a farewell in Korean.

I laugh.

The black full moon mercilessly shatters the flame shield and engulfs Olivia.

Flash.

A bright light erupts.

Boom!

An explosion resounds.

The hall, designed for both practice and combat, shakes as a whole despite being resistant to most impacts.

The aftermath engulfs my entire body.

I plunge Durandal into the ground.

"Ugh."

My chest is hot. My whole body hurts. My mana circuits scream.

My mana is depleted.

The limit of my operational time has been reached.

Hiss.

Steam rises from the blade of Durandal.

The full-body armor and mana field quickly deactivate.

[Durandal Offline]

Durandal switches from combat mode to standby mode.

My consciousness is fading.

Slap.

She slaps me. I snap back to my senses.

"No... I can't..."

I have to win to receive the dogeza. Shit.

I hold on to my wavering mind with superhuman willpower.

The aftermath subsides.

The hall is a mess.

In the center, she lies on the ground.

The platinum knight princess.

Olivia Napoleon Bonaparte.

Her beautiful face is a mess, and she sits on the ground, breathing heavily.

Her mana field and full-body armor are completely deactivated.

I walk to her with all my strength, using the transformed Durandal as a cane.

"...Hey..."

Olivia's gaze meets mine.

"...I won. Shit."

She says something. I can't hear it.

What? The world looks upside down.

My vision is suddenly plunged into darkness.

It seems my mental operational time has also ended.

Whatever.

Defeat is a word not found in Olivia's dictionary.

To become the best, to follow in the footsteps of her deceased brother, she repeatedly made bone-crushing efforts.

The best talent in France.

The top student at Shuohou Hero Academy.

The platinum knight princess.

All the titles she holds are the result of her own hard work.

That's why.

The first defeat was that much of a shock.

'Did I lose?'

Olivia's hands tremble.

She lost cleanly.

There's no need to make excuses about the mana handicap.

She was treated as a promising candidate to lead France's future.

Losing to a candidate from a small country in the Far East, Korea, is scandalous, not to mention Japan, another hero powerhouse.

"How...?"

Olivia's voice trembles.

She can't lose to someone who has forgotten the threats of the other world and the responsibility of a hero.

She was confident that there was no stronger candidate at Shuohou Hero Academy.

But her confidence was shattered from the first day of enrollment.

The image of their battle just now comes to mind.

Black mana light, black full-body armor, and the Durandal in his hand.

And the unforgettable Black Light Sword Technique.

His appearance in combat mode was like her brother, who died 10 years ago, had returned...

"No!"

Olivia shakes her head violently.

No.

Her brother is dead. He died protecting her from the threat of an Omega-rank extraterrestrial.

He left a will entrusting the future of the country and the royal family to her before dying.

There's no way back.

"..."

Olivia bites her lip.

Her cheeks tremble.

He is different from her brother.

Even with the same mana light, the same weapon, and the same sword technique, he is a different person.

She doesn't know how he can use the Black Prince's sword technique.

"He looks different... My brother was handsome."

They can't be the same.

Thinking of Kim Deok-sung's despicable thug-like appearance, Olivia mutters.

"He's crazy. Really..."

She wipes her face.

She feels ashamed for momentarily overlapping him with her brother.

Right then.

Knock knock.

Someone knocks on the dorm room door.

"Princess. It's Bella."

Bella, Olivia's shadow and personal maid, has arrived.

Hearing her voice, Olivia straightens her posture, clears her throat, and says,

"Come in, Bella."

Creak.

The door opens, and a brown-haired beauty in a maid uniform enters.

Click.

The maid, Bella, closes the door with a blank expression and respectfully places the documents in her hand on the table in front of Olivia.

"Here is the information on Kim Deok-sung you requested."

"Thank you."

Olivia smiles faintly and looks at the documents.

Kim Deok-sung.

A hero candidate from the small country of South Korea in the Far East.

Compatibility: C-rank. Owner of black mana light and the Transcendent Weapon Durandal.

That was all the information she knew from the guarantee he presented.

She thought she didn't need to know more.

Until the shocking defeat.

"Who are you, really?"

Olivia flips through the documents, questioning.

The documents, written in French, contain all the information about Kim Deok-sung.

'Orphan, difficult upbringing...'

Kim Deok-sung was a foundling and had a difficult childhood in a poorly equipped orphanage.

At school, he was bullied for being an orphan and fought back, but he always suffered the consequences.

Because he was an orphan.

'...The only hero candidate in South Korea.'

His life changed when he received a C-rank in the compatibility test at the age of fifteen.

In a country without a single hero, South Korea.

In a world where a country's power is measured by the number of heroes it has, South Korea is one of the weakest.

South Korea has many ability users, but no heroes.

Currently, South Korea entrusts all Zeta-rank and above gate defenses to the United States and Japan.

The birth of the only hero candidate in such a country.

"This is..."

Rustle.

She flips through the documents.

The next page's records are almost fanatical.

The South Korean people sent Kim Deok-sung fanatical support and expectations.