Chapter 565

Wooooong. Wooooooong!

The Divine Sword was vibrating at my waist. I gripped it and frowned.

It suddenly let out a sword cry. Just as I was wondering why it was acting like this—

[Why is that here?]

The Heavenly Demon spoke. At his words, I looked at the sword Yu Yeon had picked up. A shabby old scabbard, and a sword that looked just as unremarkable.

At a glance, it looked so plain there seemed to be no need to think about it.

What is it?

My gaze was fixed there as well. I was not merely looking.

Moon Eye. I put strength into my blue eyes and examined the sword.

...That thing.

Through Moon Eye, I could see energy soaked into it. And even without that—

Spiritual energy has seeped into it.

A spiritual sword filled with spiritual energy. It felt similar in form to the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword or Full Moon, which Yoo Cheongil had used.

That thing.

It looks special-grade.

To borrow the Tang Family’s terminology, it was a sword worthy of reaching special grade. For some reason, something like that was sitting there.

“What? Are you going to choose that one?”

The craftsman asked when he saw the sword Yu Yeon had grabbed.

“...”

Yu Yeon gave a short nod. It seemed she had made up her mind on that sword too.

“That... isn’t even worth putting up for sale, so where did she find something like that? Was there even a sword like that here to begin with?”

“...You can choose something else, you know?”

Woo Young Jin cautiously stepped in. I had used his name to enter this place, but when she picked up a sword like that instead, he seemed flustered.

“No. If you like it, go with that.”

“...”

Yu Yeon must have already decided, because she held the sword firmly.

No matter how I looked at it, that was special-grade. The fact that the craftsman failed to recognize it was one thing.

Is it a problem with the iron?

I was puzzled because I had not seen the blade itself, but from what I could tell, that did not seem to [N O V E L I G H T] be the case either. More importantly—

The Divine Sword is trembling.

The Heavenly Demon Divine Sword was trembling as if resonating. That had to be important.

What is that sword?

I asked the Heavenly Demon. I remembered that, after seeing it, he had reacted as if he knew it.

At my question, the Heavenly Demon answered with a hollow laugh mixed in.

[No-Sword.]

No-Sword?

No-Sword.

A sword with nothing in it. It was a strange name.

[Since nothing was left in it, it should have vanished as it was. How did it remain there? And of all things...]

The Heavenly Demon had no body. His soul-form also remained in the sword and inside me, so I should not have been able to feel anything like his gaze.

For some reason, however, I felt as if he was looking at Yu Yeon.

[...Did it go there? How pointless.]

He said it was pointless, yet there was a peculiar fragrance in it. Was it longing? Surprisingly, that evil-ghost-like soul was longing for something.

[You seem to have forgotten that I can hear all of that.]

As if I would.

It had blatantly been an insult to his face.

Leaving that conversation with the Heavenly Demon behind, Yu Yeon seemed to have already decided, so we prepared to leave with the sword.

“I will pay. How much is it?”

Since I had received some money from the Alliance, I tried to pay the price of the sword.

“...How much should I take for that? Hm.”

The craftsman who had guided us fell into thought. It seemed like an object whose price was extremely awkward to determine.

“Still, I should take at least a few coins—”

“Just take it.”

“Hm?”

A voice cut in. I had not sensed his presence. Was he an expert? The moment I widened my eyes and looked back—

“Oh! M-Master Craftsman...”

The craftsman dropped to his knees and faced an old man. The old man’s back was deeply bent. What was more—

...His innate vitality.

I understood why I had not sensed his presence. There was almost nothing left to sense.

He felt virtually no different from a dead man. The old man did not have much of his remaining life left.

“W-What brings you all the way here...?”

“The iron kept wailing so much that I came to see what lunatic had arrived.”

“What do you mean?”

“Turns out it wasn’t a lunatic, but a lass. Kekekeke.”

He said that while looking at Yu Yeon. Then the old man’s gaze turned to me.

“...”

“...”

What was he staring at? Just as I was receiving his gaze head-on—

“That boy is awfully good-looking. It feels like I’m looking at myself in my youth.”

“You flatter me. I do hear that from time to time.”

It was just a compliment on my looks. Hearing it, I chuckled and shrugged.

Then the old man approached me.

His hand naturally moved toward my waist. Toward my Heavenly Demon Divine Sword.

“...”

The hand that had been about to touch it stopped. Then he looked at me again.

“It has been well refined. Whose handiwork is it?”

“There is someone I know.”

“They are skilled. It feels like something I have seen from time to time.”

It was the sword repaired by the Tang Family. He had probably asked because it was currently not retaining much of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword’s original form.

To begin with, there were not many people who knew the Divine Sword either.

From the looks of it, he seems like an incredible craftsman.

His innate vitality was leaving him, but the quality of his soul was unlike ordinary people’s.

Putting one’s soul into one’s work.

It was the trait of those commonly called true craftsmen, and he possessed that.

It meant he was truly an outstanding craftsman.

“And as for that sword, just take it as a gift.”

“Master Craftsman... How could you?”

“You do not seem to be from here. Am I right?”

Ignoring the craftsman’s question, the old man asked us.

“Yes.”

“Where did you come from?”

“Henan.”

“Henan... Ah... I see. You must be those orthodox martial artists everyone is talking about.”

“Yes. That is correct.”

“Kekekeke... The times have changed a great deal... To think orthodox martial artists can walk around here unharmed.”

“Could they not originally?”

At my words, the old man’s laughter stopped for a moment.

“They could not. Had they done so, the Cult Leader would have cut off their heads the moment he saw them.”

“Ah.”

What a terrifying man.

[He is not talking about me. He must mean the previous Cult Leader.]

The Heavenly Demon spoke as if slightly wronged.

The previous Cult Leader?

[My father. I cut off his head with my own hands.]

...Ah, yes.

Thank you for that extremely bloody information.

“This is a gift for letting me see something rare.”

“Rare?”

“Your face is rather rare.”

“Thank you.”

My face does fetch a decent price. The only thing worth salvaging from my family is these genes, after all.

“Kekekeke... I like how straightforward you are. Take it with you.”

“Yes. I hope you remain in good health as well, elder. Shall we go?”

“...Uh. Ah, uh...”

Woo Young Jin was stammering, unable to adjust to the whirlwind of events.

Then I took him and went outside. Yu Yeon carefully followed along.

“Ah. Child.”

“...?”

The old man called Yu Yeon.

“Use it well. It is a precious sword.”

“...”

Yu Yeon lowered her head as if thanking him.

Like that, we left the smithy.

*****

After all the guests had left, the old man called the Master Craftsman looked at the entrance through which the young people had departed.

“...”

His eyes made it impossible to tell what he was thinking. While he sent that gaze after them, the craftsman asked as if he found it strange,

“Why did you simply let them go?”

“Why? Should I have charged them an expensive price?”

“Normally, you would. You always say that if a work is sold, one must receive money for it, no matter what.”

If one made and sold a sword as a craftsman—

No matter how cheap the price, one had to receive money. That was the value of effort.

That had been the belief of the old man known as the Master Craftsman.

“And yet you gave it away for free.”

“I did not give it away.”

“Pardon?”

At the craftsman’s question, the old man thought of someone. The woman who had taken the sword.

“I returned it.”

“...Returned it?”

“Yes. It merely went back to its original owner.”

A very long time ago, there had been a lord of all demons born as though a god had descended from the heavens.

Beside him was a woman.

Unlike her husband, she had wanted a nameless sword, and the old man had made that sword for her.

Not long after, the sword had returned belatedly, stained with blood, but the old man had simply placed that sword anywhere.

He had thought no one who was not its owner would be able to take it.

“She looks exactly like her.”

The woman who had taken the sword and left just now looked exactly like its former owner. As if it were a miracle.

And along with that—

That boy.

He thought of the handsome young man beside her. The sword at his waist.

“...”

He recalled a sword someone once carried. Along with it—

Was it my imagination?

Around the time the young man left, he had felt an illusion as if someone were following behind him. A man dressed in black martial uniform.

As though—

The Cult Leader.

It was a figure that reminded him of the one once called the god of this place. Even though he did not resemble him at all, so there should have been no room for confusion.

And even more—

One more.

Behind him, even more faintly, it seemed as if one more person was following.

“Kekekeke. Now I truly ought to go out and die.”

“What frightening thing are you saying...?”

It seemed his time had come.

The old man once called the master craftsman of the Holy Cult said that and laughed.

*****

“Is that sword enough?”

“...”

As we came out of the smithy, I asked Yu Yeon. She seemed to like her sword.

“Is it fine to throw away the sword you received from Mount Hua like that?”

“...”

Well, true, it would be a little much not to throw it away. It was a wreck, and they said it couldn’t even be repaired.

It did feel a little unpleasant that she had abandoned it in the Demonic Cult, but I thought that could happen.

If Yu Yeon said it was fine, then it really was probably fine.

That sword is the problem, though.

A sword even the Heavenly Demon knew.

Had he called it No-Sword? Seeing Yu Yeon draw the sword made it clear.

That isn’t ordinary iron.

The sharply honed blade made me realize it had not been made from ordinary iron.

...What on earth is it?

What was its true identity? Since even the Heavenly Demon knew it, it had to be an incredible sword. But it was strange that something like that had been wedged among junk.

“I have nothing else to say, so I will go first.”

Woo Young Jin tried to quickly leave, as if his task was done. Exhaustion was clear on his face.

“Thank you.”

“...”

He did not even answer my thanks. He was giving off an obvious air of not wanting to get involved with me anymore.

But that wouldn’t do.

I need to make use of him a little.

He had his own uses, so I intended to keep using him.

After seeing Woo Young Jin off like that, it was about time for us to go back as well.

It’s about time.

There was also something I needed to properly look into.

That old man of the Yu family’s master.

Yoo Cheongil’s master. I needed to learn how that being was here, and how he was still alive.

Where should I go to find out?

It would be ridiculous to suddenly go around searching for someone from the Azure Moon Sect. Just as I was reminding myself that I needed to build up information—

Tap.

“...”

I turned my gaze. I had felt something in a place with few people.

Clink.

Yu Yeon tried to draw her sword.

That was when—

“Do not.”

Along with a voice—

Thump!

“...!!”

Yu Yeon’s body was flung back. Someone had slipped in between us. I turned my gaze to identify him.

Tap. A finger stretched out. The hand pressed down firmly on the end of my sword hilt and stopped it.

Under the intense pressure, my sword could not be drawn.

“...That’s a rather rough greeting, isn’t it?”

I frowned and looked at the owner of the hand.

He was—

“I came because I have something to say.”

Black-Iron Demon Sword Gye Mun.

The current number one of the Demonic Cult, whom I had met before.