Inheriting the Novel

Chapter 86 : Sunwheel Ascendant Heaven Sword(日輪至天劍) (1)

Sunwheel Ascendant Heaven Sword(日輪至天劍) (1)

[Plausibility has been achieved.]

[Deliver the finishing blow to Lugal Necris (achieved).]

[Moon Severing Divine Sword has been added to the profile.]

By now, I had grown accustomed to the appearance of the silver pillar.

As if it didn't matter that I was deep underground, the silver light enveloped my whole body, and soon, a message appeared in the air stating that I had acquired the Moon Severing Divine Sword.

'I did it.'

I truly succeeded in learning the Moon Severing Divine Sword.

The two conditions I thought impossible—I managed to meet them both in time.

A stronger sense of accomplishment filled me than with any profile I had attained before.

Likely because it had taken both the longest time and the greatest effort so far.

'But.......'

I slowly descended to the ground and gazed at Damian, who stood silently.

He was quietly watching Lugal's body turn into black dust and scatter.

Lugal, who had once been a friend, and a fellow member of the Seven Heroes.

The end of one who set his sights on Damian, fell to corruption, and became a monster.

I couldn't even begin to imagine what Damian must be feeling right now.

'It's not over yet.'

Lugal had been defeated.

But the story entwined with Damian was not yet finished.

"Clay! Are you all right?"

Just then, Riya hurried up to me and spoke.

And behind her, Maria, who trailed after, caught my eye.

Maria was trying her best to remain calm, but perhaps because of the recent situation, her complexion wasn't good.

"Oh, I'm fine. And you, Riya?"

"Hehe, of course. At most, all I did was chatter a bit."

She looked composed, but her hands were trembling slightly—telling me she had used considerable strength just now.

It was only natural; she had forcibly suppressed the magic of Lugal, a member of the Seven Heroes.

Had it not been for Riya, this ordeal would've undoubtedly been several times more difficult.

"Thank you, truly. You're always helping me."

"Oh, oh my. When you say things like that, it's embarrassing."

Riya bowed her head, her cheeks flushed at my words of thanks.

Then, as if her face felt hot, she fanned her hand and let out an excited sigh.

"C-Count Vanhart, it's over now, right?"

As I spoke with Riya, a few knights cautiously approached me.

They looked weary from dealing with the endlessly spawning undead until just now, but their eyes shone brightly.

'I've seen those eyes somewhere before.......'

Usually, Zelbin would look at me with that same gaze—as if seeing a legendary hero in the flesh.

A reverent, burdensome gaze.

"Yes, it's all over now. If you step outside, I'm sure the skies will have cleared."

"R-really?!"

The knights and soldiers embraced one another, cheering and raising their weapons sky-high.

"I never imagined the stories about you were all true, my lord! It is the honor of a lifetime to fight alongside you!"

Hearing the knight's emotional words, I felt a little embarrassed—after all, up until just recently, these were the soldiers of the Deoric family who had stood opposed to me.

"...... First, take care of the wounded and get ready to head up. I'll see to some business."

"Understood!"

The knights saluted me energetically and immediately ran toward Logan Deoric, who was still smashed into the wall.

"Maria."

"Yes."

While I watched the situation settle, I called Maria and gave her a slight nod.

She understood my gaze and quickly followed behind me.

"Sir Damian."

I approached Damian, who was quietly gazing into the void with Maria in tow.

He still hadn't spoken a word.

He simply stared blankly at the now-empty cavern, devoid of any remaining miasma.

The place created to imprison Lugal was now completely useless.

"Clay, I must say—you were magnificent. Thanks to you, we brought Lugal down easily."

"It was only possible because you drew his attention, sir Damian."

"No. If I'd been alone, I'd have probably used a mutual-destruction move just to block Lugal's final spell."

That was exactly how it had played out in the original story, so he wasn't wrong.

Normally, I'd just accept such facts with agreement, but perhaps because I regarded Damian as a mentor, I felt embarrassed somehow.

Clearing my throat, I tried to hide my discomfort.

"Ahem. Sir Damian, now... what will you do?"

"My role is finished."

He looked at me quietly.

"Now that Lugal is gone, there's no reason for me to remain in this world."

I had expected as much.

Damian had become a death knight and remained trapped here solely because of Lugal.

With that reason gone, he surely had no will to continue his existence as a death knight.

"I've passed on all the techniques and insights of the Moon Severing Divine Sword to you. All that's left is for you to comprehend them."

Damian, as if he held no lingering regrets, then slowly drew his sword.

"To be able to pass on my swordsmanship to you, even at the very end—I truly feel fortunate."

Just as the sword, imbued with white sword force, was about to pierce his own chest without hesitation—

"...... Don't you wish to complete the Moon Severing Divine Sword?"

My words were little more than a whisper, but Damian surely couldn't have missed them.

The sword force that targeted his chest trembled violently.

"What do you mean?"

"I know. That your Moon Severing Divine Sword isn't yet complete."

"How could you possibly......?"

"I was told by someone."

"Someone?"

I slowly raised my hand.

'Eye of Shimosha', a relic of the Saintess.

I carefully removed it from my finger.

"Grancesia Atell."

"......!"

At that, the sword force on Damian's sword vanished completely.

His face was hidden by his helmet, so I couldn't see his expression, but it was obvious he was greatly shocked.

"Grancesia told me. She said the Moon Severing Divine Sword is incomplete... that it seems something is being suppressed."

I handed the Eye of Shimosha, removed from my finger, to Maria, standing behind me.

Maria slipped it onto her finger with a practiced motion.

"Sir Damian, I'll ask one more time."

As Damian stared at me as if hypnotized, I spoke slowly.

"Don't you wish to complete the Moon Severing Divine Sword?"

His hand trembled.

The sword he held clattered to the ground.

That was more than enough answer.

"Maria."

"Yes, I understand."

Maria reached out to me with the hand bearing the Eye of Shimosha.

Then, extending her other hand, she offered it to Damian.

"......"

Until now, I'd always thought of Damian as the moon—aloof and cold.

But now, his eyes burned hotter than ever.

"Sir Damian."

I urged gently; Damian hesitated for a moment, then slowly took Maria's hand.

And the world turned white.

* * *

Damian blankly gazed at the pure white world and slowly blinked.

'My eyes blinked?'

It was a sensation he'd never experienced since becoming a death knight and losing his body.

Oddly, his whole body also felt out of place.

Originally, the armor and helmet were what he'd worn at first to avoid watching his own decaying flesh, though after several centuries, not wearing them would have felt empty—yet now, somehow, they felt uncomfortable.

"Sir Damian."

As Damian slowly examined his body, a familiar voice came from behind.

When he turned, Clay was standing there.

His outfit was a little different from a moment before. It was lighter and more comfortable.

"Clay, where... is this?"

Damian was startled by the voice that came from his mouth.

It was no longer a grating, metallic rasp.

"Look ahead and you'll see."

Clay's voice carried a slight hint of laughter, which made Damian a little perplexed.

He wondered what in the world this white space could be, but for now, he followed Clay's suggestion and looked forward.

"......!"

In that moment, he understood what it meant to have one's breath stolen away.

A world of white.

Barren, endless white ground with nothing remaining—except for one being standing alone.

In that wasteland holding nothing, only one being shone with color.

It was a golden sun.

"Damian."

Golden hair, golden eyes.

Grancesia, clad in white from head to toe, stepped toward him.

"It's been a long time since your training."

For centuries, memories of her had slowly faded.

All that remained was the impression she was like the sun.

His master, his idol—he had begun to forget what she had been like.

But now, her words brought it all rushing back.

Her confident and self-assured smile.

She, who had shone like the sun, was now standing before his eyes.

"Come at me."

As she fell into a familiar stance, Damian found himself drawing his sword reflexively.

He didn't even remember when or how he had done it.

But that hardly mattered.

She was standing right in front of him.

"Lady Grancesia."

Ah, it had also been centuries since he last spoke those words.

"Please, allow me to learn from you once more."

"Very well."

Grancesia nonchalantly gestured, as if he was being too wordy—just as in his memories.

She truly hadn't changed at all.

'Even though I have changed so much.'

Damian gripped his sword.

The sword that had always felt familiar now felt foreign.

Just like when he had first taken up a sword, long ago.

Bang!

With an explosive sound, he dashed forward with all his strength.

His body felt even lighter than during the fight with Lugal a moment ago.

It was as if he had returned to his prime—a member of the Seven Heroes, revered as the Sword God.

The white sword aura became sword force, stretching over several meters and dispersing like mist.

──Falling Moon.

As the first technique of the Moon Severing Divine Sword unfolded, the white sword aura spiraled and soared upward.

It blazed like a falling moon, pouring pale light across the ground.

"As expected, that's your limit."

Watching Damian's attack, Grancesia let out a small, mocking laugh.

As her right hand moved ever so slightly, the descending moon shattered into pieces.

Thud!

"Guh!"

Reflexively, his body twisted and Damian felt pain in his chest.

In an instant, he was flung back with a whoosh and his head spun dizzily.

If he hadn't twisted out of the way, it would've ended right there.

'I couldn't see it at all!'

Despite being in what should have been a perfectly controlled space, he couldn't see anything.

Grancesia did not pursue Damian.

She simply watched him intently.

"You too are still lingering in the Five Aggregates. Or maybe... you don't know yet."

At Grancesia's words, Damian recalled the information on 'Heaven's Holy Ultimate Art' stored in his memory.

'If she means the Five Aggregates...'

Heaven's Holy Ultimate Art is the way to perfect humanity.

The Five Aggregates is the second stage of that.

It is the realm of perfecting and fully controlling the flesh.

The stage where one completes the vessel before transcending beyond human.