Chapter 51

Chapter 19. Banquet (6)

Sharp and solid ice crystals enveloped Sirius' blade.

Though it was merely a power to kill her opponent, the sight of her unleashing the unique ability of the Endorma lineage was breathtakingly beautiful, enough to make one's breath catch.

Every time she extended her sword, small crystals shattered and reflected light.

The intricate web of cold crystals, which shone so brilliantly that one might want to reach out and touch them, were, in themselves, deadly weapons capable of tearing a person apart.

Crack!

When the two swords clashed, the sound of ice chunks being crushed echoed. If he hadn't instinctively wrapped his blade with aura, it would have shattered into pieces.

'Is this the rumored Manbingjian?'

Normally, encountering such a rare power as the Manbingjian would have thrown him into a panic, but Jin's expression remained unchanged.

"You're surprised too early, Jin Runkandel!"

There, I wasn't surprised at all... but her expression was so triumphant that it was hard to respond.

Jin didn't answer but calmly dodged her sword strike. To Sirius, it was a close call, but to Jin, it was a relaxed evasion.

As Jin adjusted the distance and stepped back, a smile spread across Sirius' lips.

"You will tell me everything about that day."

"Perhaps, but I could have killed you if I wanted to."

It wasn't a lie; with the use of spirit energy, it was entirely possible.

"Not only your sword skills, but your arrogance has also reached the fifth rank, it seems?"

Sirius swung her sword boldly again.

Even in a pure sword skill duel, a fourth-rank could sometimes defeat a fifth-rank. Moreover, with the Manbingjian, she was confident she wouldn't lose, and her combat experience was also superior.

Swoosh! Swoosh!

The air froze wherever Sirius' sword passed.

It was indeed a dangerous power. The rumors that the Manbingjian could freeze the sea when pushed to its limits weren't unfounded.

"I didn't expect you to bring out your secret technique from the start, Sirius. What am I supposed to do, a junior who hasn't even received the family's secret techniques yet?"

"It's none of my concern!"

Seeing Jin focus solely on defense without a significant counterattack, Sirius believed she had the upper hand.

Straight, downward, and diagonal.

Sirius' sword strikes, fierce yet flexible, were relentless. Jin only dodged and deflected them, moving his body in various directions.

Though it seemed he was being pushed back, he was actually looking for opportunities. Perfectly blocking or deflecting all attacks also proved Jin's superior skills.

After a while, Sirius realized her opponent was more composed than she had thought.

'Fifth rank is fifth rank. At first, it seemed he was desperately blocking, but as the exchange continued, his true strength became apparent.'

Geniuses recognize other geniuses.

Sirius admitted she had underestimated Jin. His sword skills were clearly superior to hers.

'But that's all. With the third form of the Manbingjian, I can make up for this difference.'

The third form of the Manbingjian, known as 'Avalanche' by the Endorma lineage, was a technique Sirius could use only once. Due to the extreme consumption of aura and cold energy, it was reserved for decisive moments.

'In terms of physical strength and power, I'm at a disadvantage, so there's no need to prolong the fight. The moment he reads my pattern and starts his counterattack, I'll end it!'

Clang! Clang, Swoosh!

The chaotic exchange between the two gradually became more organized. They were becoming more familiar with each other's swords as time passed.

There was no need to prolong the fight.

This wasn't just Sirius' plan. Jin, who had started to advance slowly, shared the same mindset.

'By now, Sirius must have acknowledged the gap and is preparing a decisive move to break the flow. She'll use a secret technique, but I can't gauge its power well.'

Having never faced someone using the Manbingjian, he couldn't estimate its strength.

So Jin decided to choose the strongest of his many 'secret techniques.'

Reading dozens of secret manuals at the Storm Castle wasn't just for amusement. Of course, Sirius was completely unaware that Jin also had a secret technique.

As soon as Jin made his decision, Sirius boldly lunged forward. A downward slash aimed at his shoulder cut a few strands of her long silver hair.

"It's over, Jin!"

Whoosh!

Suddenly, a small blizzard formed from the center of the dueling arena where Sirius stood. Unlike natural blizzards, the sharp wind from Sirius' blizzard cut into Jin's forehead, causing a drop of blood to spurt out.

He was cut by the wind's edge. Simultaneously, the cold that seeped through his shirt collar made his neck stiffen.

Third form of the Manbingjian, Avalanche!

As Sirius completed the move, the blizzard turned white. Then, with a dull thud, the ice crystals burst, and the condensed white aura inside rained down like snow.

A scene that could only be seen in the snowy mountains of mid-winter unfolded. The aura that burst like snow obscured the view, and the white energy that surged like waves made it hard to breathe.

In the midst of this, for a moment, Sirius' excited face, confident of victory, was revealed.

And Sirius also saw Jin with a similar expression, the flushed face of someone who believed they had already won.

'What is this?'

The Avalanche had already been unleashed, and even a genius who reached the fifth rank at fifteen couldn't break a secret technique of the Inner Palace.

A foreboding sensation briefly crossed her mind, but Sirius didn't consider any unexpected changes. This power was the driving force behind why the Runkandel and Zephi had failed to conquer the Inner Palace.

Stagger.

Exhausted from pouring all her strength into the move, Sirius' knees buckled. Though she had avoided vital points, she wouldn't die, but after today, the Runkandel's junior would surely fear her.

However, she couldn't savor her victory.

A sword, like a needle, pierced through the white vision.

'What? What is this!'

Sirius hastily tried to correct her collapsed posture. But she couldn't withstand the fatigue after using her secret technique. She could only accept the uncertain outcome with her disheveled stance.

Swish!

A single streak of sword light tore through the avalanche.

It wasn't a sword blessed by divine power like Sirius'. The sword didn't even have the most common force used by knights, aura.

Just a plain steel sword.

Sirius couldn't accept that this plain steel sword was tearing through the avalanche.

"Lie."

The last word didn't leave her lips.

Because Jin's steel sword, which had approached to a close distance, was about to explode.

Crack! Bang! The steel sword crumpled and expanded, clearly visible like a slow-motion scene. Before she could fully comprehend what was happening, a more intense voice pierced her ears.

"Bow down!"

The voice of the man who had just been fighting with his sword.

Sirius had no intention of complying. Rather than die or suffer a serious injury, relying on the opponent's mercy to survive was a humiliation worse than defeat.

Boom...

Jin's steel sword, compressed to the size of a finger joint, exploded.

The sword shattered into thousands of pieces like broken glass, each piece glowing with aura.

The steel sword that initially tore through the avalanche was not just a plain sword; it was filled with aura.

It was the final technique of the famous swordsmanship school, Attila, known as 'Blade Storm.' With Attila now extinct, there were no proper records left, making it a true secret technique.

It was the most powerful of the secret techniques Jin had learned from the Storm Castle's basement. The destructive power was far beyond what a fourth-rank like Sirius, who used the Manbingjian, could handle.

'Damn!'

Had he overestimated Sirius' Manbingjian, or was Attila's secret technique even more outstanding than expected?

Jin regretted using the Blade Storm. If she couldn't dodge, Sirius would either die or become crippled.

Jin was worried she might kill Sirius.

Sirius clenched her teeth to suppress the instinct to survive by accepting the opponent's mercy.

That one second passed.

'Ah!'

'Ah...'

As soon as the Blade Storm subsided, both of them exclaimed inwardly.

One was a sigh of relief, the other a silent groan of humiliation.

Sirius followed Jin's command and bowed.

"Are you okay?"

Jin threw the hilt of his broken sword to the ground and grabbed Sirius' shoulder. She seemed dazed, her eyes wide with shock.

It was her first defeat since she had taken up the sword.

'I... bowed out of fear for my life, out of fear of being hurt. Me, Sirius Endorma?'

The moment her instinctive victory turned into a confirmed defeat, she had decided not to dodge the Blade Storm. She believed she wasn't weak enough to rely on the enemy's mercy.

But no matter how strong her pride and how important her honor, she was still just a fifteen-year-old girl. It was too young an age to suppress the instinctive desire to survive.

"Phew, I almost killed you. I'm sorry."

Jin sighed in relief, confirming Sirius was okay.

He could clearly see the intense sense of defeat in Sirius, who hadn't responded for a while. No matter how he tried to console her, it wouldn't help.

'I should have just let her win, after all, she's just a kid.'

By age, he was already well over forty. The thought of almost killing a headstrong girl made him feel dizzy.

Moreover, she might become a future rival or a good ally.

Jin paused, looking at her, organizing his thoughts. It didn't take long.

"In the same situation, I would have dodged too. And you would have shouted for me to bow. So I won't say anything more."

He knew any consolation would be futile. He wasn't in a position to comfort her.

With that, Jin turned and walked away. It was better to let her be alone at such times.

"Jin Runkandel."

Sirius, who had regained her composure, looked at Jin with a deep gaze, having undergone a significant inner change.

"The cut on your forehead is still bleeding."

Sirius, who had approached Jin a few steps, took out a small handkerchief from her pocket.

She silently wiped Jin's forehead and applied healing resin, the same one she had used on his shin in Mammoth.

"I'll consider this as payment for the life you saved."

"Isn't that undervaluing your own life? The value of the sole successor of the Inner Palace can't be compared to just healing resin."

"Since it's a life I received as a favor, I'll consider the healing resin a fair exchange. From now on, I'll become a valuable person again, and when the time comes, I hope I can save your life."

As they stepped out of the dueling arena, Sirius added one more thing.

"By the way, we're now acquaintances who met for the first time today."

"Anyway, I won the bet. See you tomorrow."