Chapter 64. The Hundred Steps Ritual (6)

The momentum of the sword master unfolded within the hundred-step interval.

It was a wave that was unbearably solid.

The waves raised by the sword master surged layer upon layer.

In front, behind, to the sides.

From the ground, from the sky.

The waves assaulted him without a single gap.

Naturally, the closer one got to the sword master, the faster and more intense they became.

And the malevolent force that Yurie summoned.

Rumble—

It began to create a gap, piercing through the solid waves.

With it, Yurie's upper body twitched again.

Crack—

Every time his already strained body screamed in pain, his body, his head, began to rise, little by little, very little by little.

"Huh?!"

"Again?!"

"…Trying to get up again?"

Could he really get up again?

At this point, hasn't that kid done enough?

The shock was evident in the eyes of the tens of thousands of spectators who thought it was truly over.

Thud—!

With his temples bulging.

Roar—!

Yurie roared as he stood up.

The resounding roar made the audience clench their fists involuntarily.

And finally, Yurie straightened his back.

"Huff…"

As he exhaled deeply, the pallor in his face began to return.

'So… I might live.'

His physical limits had long been surpassed.

There was no part of him that didn't hurt, no part that moved properly, but it was still much better than before.

Most importantly, the pressure that had been pressing down on his entire body had significantly decreased.

"Huff— Huff—"

With each short and long breath, his mind became clearer.

Moreover, everything around him felt vividly real.

The intense gazes of the tens of thousands of spectators watching him.

Their rough breathing.

And most importantly,

The change in the sword master's gaze toward him.

All of this was vividly perceived in an instant.

'Finally…'

A very subtle change in the sword master.

It was a change that was hard to notice, but Yurie was delighted.

'…Finally, you’re looking at me properly.'

Until now, Yurie had probably been just one of many insignificant beings to the sword master.

Like a tiny bug struggling to move its legs in a bucket of water, trying to survive.

This was likely a scene the sword master had seen countless times.

The sword master probably thought that Yurie, this little bug, would soon sink to the bottom of the bucket, among the countless dead bugs.

But when Yurie, who had been struggling, managed to crawl out of the water alive, the sword master couldn't help but show interest.

Seeing the sword master's eyes, which had been resting on his chin in boredom, light up, Yurie smiled.

'I might be a bug, but I have a bit of poison.'

So if you get stung, it will probably hurt quite a bit.

Then, the smile on Yurie's face disappeared.

'Let's go.'

All he had left was a handful of mana.

It was a power far too weak to navigate this storm.

But as that handful of mana transformed into a malevolent force, the situation changed.

Thud—

Yurie took his eleventh step.

It seemed even lighter than the tenth step.

Thanks to this, the next step followed immediately.

Thud—

"…Eleven."

At the moment someone in the audience counted Yurie's steps.

Swish—

The sword master's chin detached from his fist.

He straightened his head and stared at Yurie, who was walking toward him.

Thud—

And the moment he took his thirteenth step perfectly.

"Grunt!"

The pressure pounding his entire body made Yurie's face turn bright red.

'Is this… a real person?!'

The malevolent force, a technique that interferes with and controls the flow.

Until now, Yurie thought he had controlled the flow well.

But once he was pushed to the extreme, he could clearly realize:

'Until now, I’ve only dealt with controllable flows!'

The malevolent force he barely managed to summon with the last of his mana.

Even with this insufficient power, the intense storm was trying to break free from the malevolent force's control.

The counterforce was so strong that controlling just one stream of the malevolent force made him feel dizzy.

'If I had known, I would have saved a bit more mana!'

He thought that with just a handful of mana, he could summon the malevolent force and that it would be enough to navigate this storm.

But this complacent thought was shattered after just three more steps.

Yurie gritted his teeth.

Crack—

The storm's waves became even more intricate, dense, and solid as he approached the sword master.

'The most astonishing thing is that the sword master was finely tuning this level of power, step by step.'

The sword master's power was truly astonishing.

So Yurie quickly acknowledged that with just a handful of mana, he couldn't navigate this storm to the end.

'But… I’ll go as far as I can!'

Just as he had done until now, he pushed himself and took another step.

Thud—

"…Twelve."

The voice from the audience informed Yurie of his step count.

And then,

Thud— Thump!

"Thirteen."

Yurie took his thirteenth step.

In response, a series of disbelieving voices emerged from the audience.

"Thirteen… steps?"

Even ten steps were hard to believe, but thirteen steps were a record no one had ever imagined.

The audience was stunned because this great record was unfolding right before their eyes.

And that was as far as it went.

Thud—

Yurie's knees buckled again.

"Grunt—!"

He tried to get up, but his upper body was pushed even further forward.

Those watching Yurie now clearly realized:

The kid who had miraculously kept getting up had finally reached his true limit.

His march of great records had ended at thirteen steps.

Yurie knew this better than anyone.

'Is this it…?'

He had summoned the malevolent force with a handful of mana, and now only a speck remained.

If even this were to run out, he wouldn't be able to get up again.

And that moment came sooner than he expected.

Sizzle—

The last of his mana dried up, and the malevolent force that had been keeping him upright dispersed.

'It’s over…'

Just as he thought it was truly over,

Whoosh—

A fierce wind swept in front of Yurie.

With it, the storm that had been pounding him from all sides vanished as if washed away.

The arena, which had been so tumultuous just moments ago, now seemed incredibly peaceful.

In the sudden silence, Yurie, barely holding on, managed to lift his upper body.

Grunt—

Even though he thought it was over.

Even though he could lie down now.

Yurie stood up.

For some reason, he felt he had to.

Thus, Yurie finally succeeded in kneeling on the arena floor.

Shake—

His body, which seemed to fall over with the slightest touch, trembled violently as Yurie lifted his head.

Through his blurred vision, he saw the absolute ruler of this era, dressed in white, standing before him.

The sword master, Luke Ryder, who had been far away, 85 steps away, was now right in front of him.

Seeing him, a surge of emotion welled up inside Yurie.

'I did it…'

That sword master.

'I made him get up from his chair.'

That sword master!

'I made him come to me, a mere bug!'

This undeniable fact gave Yurie a sense of achievement that could not be compared to anything else.

Because of this, when Yurie's lips curved into a faint smile,

Shake—

The sword master, seeing Yurie who seemed about to fall over, asked:

"What is your name?"

A low but thick voice.

The question that softly spread around made Yurie's trembling upper body stop.

And then,

Creak—

He used all his strength to stand up.

Beyond the limits of his limits, his body, already drained of energy, did not easily comply.

Nonetheless, Yurie tried to push himself beyond his limits once more.

One minute, two minutes, three minutes…

Despite the prolonged struggle, the sword master waited for Yurie.

After an intense battle of five minutes,

Once again, pushing beyond his limits,

Yurie finally stood up.

Drenched in cold sweat, he looked straight at the sword master and answered clearly:

"Yurie Holland."

His golden eyes, revealed as his sweat-soaked hair fell back, shone brightly, as if demanding to be remembered.

Seeing those clear eyes, the sword master spoke for the second time:

"State your desire. I will grant you a reward befitting the fifteen steps you have taken."

At the sword master's words, a murmur spread among the tens of thousands of spectators.

It was extremely rare for the sword master to have a private conversation with a mere initiate.

In fact, over the past few decades, such a situation had never occurred.

Moreover, he was offering a reward himself.

This was an opportunity to receive an outstanding reward, something the sword master could provide in this cradle.

Thus, everyone's attention was drawn to Yurie.

The new talent who had set a record that would be remembered in the history of the cradle.

Curious and envious gazes were fixed on Yurie.

Amidst the attention from the surroundings, Yurie opened his mouth.

As if nothing else was needed as a reward for today's efforts,

He answered without hesitation:

"Let's do a few more rounds."

When Yurie said this, his eyes were not as clear as before.

They were burning with a fiery passion that had ignited deep within his golden eyes.

"I want to participate in the Hundred Steps Ritual every year until I leave this cradle. That's… what I want."

It was a look that said, "This year, I only managed this much, but next year… the year after, it will be different."

It was a look of a challenger that the sword master hadn't seen in a long time.

Moreover, it resembled someone.

'That kid.'

Johan Redner.

His eyes had been the same.

The unquenchable flame of a challenger.

It was evident in Yurie Holland as well.

'Johan Redner, you really picked someone like me.'

And this fact made the sword master pleased.

The corners of his mouth curved slightly.

"As you wish."

And that was the end.

Yurie, who had delivered his message to the sword master, fainted with a slight smile, as if he had received the answer he wanted.

Thud—

His body fell backward.

* * *

Thud—

Yurie, who had delivered his message to the sword master and then fainted, fell.

The sound of his fall echoed through the arena.

Despite the dense crowd, the sound of his fall was particularly loud because even the sound of breathing was inaudible.

In this situation, Duran inwardly sighed.

'Today, there are many surprising things happening.'

The Hundred Steps Ritual had been held annually, but the sword master always sat there, bored and listless.

As far as he could remember, even when Mei Winchester set a record of nine steps 35 years ago, the sword master showed no particular reaction.

But now, for the first time since the ritual began, the sword master had descended to the arena.

Just to have a private conversation with a mere initiate.

Moreover, he had asked for a reward and granted it.

This made Duran's eyes gleam with joy.

His gaze followed Yurie, who had fallen at the sword master's feet.

'I knew this kid would cause trouble someday, but I didn’t expect him to cause such a major incident right away.'

Actually, this was more of a great achievement than an incident.

A great achievement that would be remembered in the history of the cradle.

From now on, no one in the cradle would be unaware of the name Yurie Holland, except for the 50 initiates who had already collapsed.

Moreover, his name would become a hot potato.

'Those kids must be quite troubled.'

The cradle was in a highly entrenched state, dominated by the power structures built by the existing initiates.

But now, Yurie Holland, a monstrous fish, had suddenly jumped into the calm lake.

This meant that the lake, which had been stagnant and even boring, was now in turmoil.

'Many things will happen over this kid.'

People who will try to pull Yurie to their side.

Those who will try to check him.

Or those who will try to eliminate him.

Whether they will swallow or spit out this hot potato,

They are probably racking their brains over it.

And as Duran predicted, the eyes of a few initiates in the audience grew heavy.

Especially the blond, bald man who had made a bet with Teresa.

"…Yurie Holland."

Muttering Yurie's name, his eyes, which were looking at the sword master, were filled with a complex emotion.