Sword Saint's Reincarnation

Book 3 Chapter 53: Imminence (3)

Rylan stared at the scene in front of him with narrowed eyes.

He and his group stood at the edge of an enormous clearing with a diameter of over twenty meters. On the other side, closer to the middle, was a large group of Gnolls, including an abnormally big one in the middle. He did a quick head count.

“Fifty-eight enemies,” he said to the others, unsheathing his sword and taking a step forward.

The Gnolls reacted almost immediately, with quite a few grabbing their own weapons and baring their fangs. The giant Gnoll, clearly the Boss, stood over six meters tall, towering over even the tall, ordinary Gnolls. It wore pieces of leather armor that matched its size and wielded twin swords, each of them longer than a human, to the point where they could be called greatswords.

“…We have to fight fifty-eight enemies at the level of the Fourth Circle plus the Boss?” Regis asked with a shaking voice from behind Rylan.

Rylan looked over his shoulder at his older brother and smiled.

“Don’t worry. I’ll handle this. You guys are free to help in the middle, however. Philip, Melvin, Cecilia, and Krysta will protect you if it comes down to it. Of course, you can just stay out of it. This is my fight,” he replied before looking back ahead.

The Gnolls were shifting in place, lowering their stances, with a few more grabbing their weapons. They snarled and growled as they traded looks, looking as if they were about to dash forward.

It’s coming.

Still, none of them was the first to move forward. They all looked at the Boss, as if awaiting its orders. Meanwhile, the monster only stared at Rylan, looking him up and down as it shifted its swords’ weight in its hands.

Does it realize the gap between us?

The Gnolls had already proven themselves as more intelligent than the average monster. It was likely that the Gnoll Boss could feel the difference in power between itself and Rylan. However, this ability seemed to be limited, seeing how it hadn’t given Mar’s Mages a second glance.

Is it measuring us based on our mana?

If so, it made sense. Since Rylan was in the Fourth Circle, it was right for the creature to be wary. As if on cue, the monster looked at Gerard and frowned, taking a small step back. It added weight to Rylan’s theory. Why not test it out? He remembered what Krysta had taught him and started the process. Gathering the mana that flowed throughout his body, Rylan then concentrated it all in his Mana Core, burying it within the Core’s confines. The Boss looked back at him and frowned, looking a bit confused.

Yeah, I was right.

Not that it really mattered. From the start, he would be the one doing most of the fighting in this battle. It would be good if his enemies underestimated him, but it wouldn’t change the result.

Slowly, Rylan walked forward. The reaction was almost immediate. The Gnolls got into their stances and snarled at him, while the Boss got ready to dash forward.

“Alright, let’s do this,” he said.

Both he and the Boss shot forward at the same time. All of Rylan’s senses sharpened, allowing him to clearly perceive the incoming enemy, despite the speed at which they were getting closer to each other. At the same time, some curiosity bloomed within him as he looked at the beast’s swords. It had been too long since he had been in a swordfight. What kind of swordsmanship would the Boss be able to show him?

With the next step, the Boss sank its feet into the ground, slowing down as it raised both swords above its head. At the same time, Rylan’s mana crawled over Silver Twilight to gather around the blade, extending its range. In the next moment, the Gnoll Boss brought down its blades like a guillotine, while Rylan swung upward. Silver Twilight’s edge clashed with the twin, giant swords with a loud, resounding noise of steel upon steel. The Boss’s entire body shook, a ripple going through its muscles and bones. Rylan only took another step forward and put more strength into his weapon, easily pushing back the monster.

The Boss stumbled backward as it was forced to raise its swords again. Rylan grabbed Silver Twilight’s hilt with both hands and readied himself for another swing. Once the Boss looked into his eyes, it almost immediately opened his mouth. A loud cry left it, piercing through the previously still atmosphere. The earth shook as Rylan looked behind it. All fifty-eight Gnolls were charging at him, growling and barking in a blade-filled stampede.

Now, this really begins.

He could end everything with a single Sword Art, such as Sunset’s Glow, which attacked everything around him in an omnidirectional offensive, but he wanted to enjoy this swordfight a bit longer.

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With backup incoming, the Boss seemed to regain its confidence. It recovered its balance and swung its twin swords again. In response, Rylan only slashed horizontally. Once the blades met, the creature shook from head to toe once more. This time, however, Rylan put more strength into the attack, forcefully pushing back the Boss for several meters. Instead of letting up, he quickly closed the distance between them again and deliberately slowed down his next slash, giving the Gnoll time to react. Matching his expectations, the Boss tried to avoid the attack, its left sword piercing at Rylan’s throat. With a single step, without even channeling Snowstorm, Rylan dodged the thrust, letting it pass him by.

He and the Gnoll exchanged blows several more times as the wave of other creatures drew ever closer. By the time the ground was shaking heavily and Rylan could see the Gnolls’ bloodshot, violence-filled eyes, he had come to a single conclusion.

Its swordsmanship is primitive.

The Gnoll was large, as were its swords, granting it a very long reach. However, it didn’t know how to properly utilize it and actually struggled when Rylan kept closing the distance. Its skills were rudimentary and revolved around using its size and strength to dominate the opponent with sheer power, with a distinct lack of finesse. It was fast for its size, but not nearly as quick as Rylan himself, even without using Aura.

I suppose the fifty-eight Gnolls are part of the Boss fight to compensate? Or maybe they just gathered after noticing what was going on.

Either way, he wouldn’t find a grand swordfight here. As such, there was no meaning in extending this encounter. He would use it to warm up his swordsmanship muscles and call it a day.

Rylan let out a breath. It was at that moment that the dozens of Gnolls arrived. They surrounded him with trained ease, and the front row rushed at him, but it didn’t matter. Rylan tilted his body back to avoid a spear’s thrust and lashed out with his free hand, punching through the wood to break the shaft in half. Splinters flew towards the second incoming Gnoll, which reflexively closed its eyes. Not missing this opening, Rylan took a step forward and slashed horizontally, taking advantage of Silver Twilight’s extended range. The mana-coated blade went right through the monster’s throat to destroy the blood vessels and sever the windpipe. The Gnoll was dead before it hit the ground.

Without missing a beat, Rylan twisted his body. A moment later, a steel blade went through where his heart had been, while a spear thrust just barely missed his head. He didn’t even blink before spinning in place, swinging his sword at the same time. Both weapons were severed before they could be pulled back. He looked ahead as the spin finished. The Boss’s attack was almost upon him. Instead of shying away, Rylan met it with a slash of his own. Despite the Gnoll’s size and weight, it was pushed back like it was a child. The monster gritted its teeth and snarled, then dashed forward again.

If I kill the Boss, the other Gnolls might run away. I should kill all of them before finishing off the Boss.

Given their level of intelligence, it was also possible that they would run away if the Boss got too injured. As such, there was only one path if he wanted to maximize the XP gain. Rylan looked at the Boss.

“You wait for a second,” he said.

The Gnoll narrowed its eyes at him and attacked again. This time, instead of meeting it, Rylan only avoided the blow and shot to the side, right into the middle of four incoming Gnolls.

He began his deadly dance of whirling steel and mana. With every step and swing, he reaped at least one life. The Gnolls fell to the ground one after the other, but as the Boss roared and tried to catch Rylan, they didn’t stop coming. Their blood flowed freely, drowning the grass-covered, soft earth. A metallic scent filled the space, carried off by the wind. The glassy eyes of the dead Gnolls seemed to be staring at nothing at all. Their bodies continued to pile up as limbs and heads were severed. In less than fifteen seconds, there were only thirty of them still alive.

The monsters unceasingly attacked, but Rylan weaved between their blows with mastery, parrying a few. Every slash met its mark and ended at least one enemy, often more than one. None of the thrusts or swings managed to reach his skin. He took the corpses on the ground into account, using his movement to corner and hinder the remaining Gnolls.

As he fought, all of Rylan’s senses expanded, allowing him to grasp everything around him. He smiled as he sidestepped a slash.

As expected, melee battles are different.

Because of his past life’s memories, they were what he was most used to. Of course, he had surpassed that level of power early on, but even at a high level, swordfights often involved melee combat, only on a much grander scale capable of leveling mountains and continents.

Let’s finish this.

Rylan twisted his body as he avoided a thrust and slashed. The attacking Gnoll’s head fell, separated from its body. It was the last one. He looked at the Boss. The creature had backed off and was staring at him with wide eyes, shaking. There wasn’t a hint of the bloodthirst it had started the battle with.

“You fought well,” Rylan said.

A heartbeat later, he channeled Snowstorm and shot forward, closing the distance between them. His sword flashed, and the monster’s head disappeared. Letting out a breath, Rylan sheathed Silver Twilight and turned around to smile at his group.

“It’s over,” he continued, then looked around.

Piles upon piles of corpses surrounded him, adorned by severed limbs and small rivers of blood. As expected, the kids were staring at all of it with wide eyes, while Mar’s Mages were shaking their heads at him.

“Is it even possible to become that used to fighting at that age?” he heard Cecilia say. “He didn’t even use a lot of strength or speed like back against the Lantern Warden, but they couldn’t even touch him.”

“I mean, we’re looking at it, so it is,” Melvin replied. “Doesn’t make it easy to believe, though.”

Rylan shook his head with a smile as he walked toward them.

“Don’t think too much about it,” he said. “It’s just how things are.”

He could tell that Mar’s Mages had been looking at him with increasing admiration, and this would likely only fuel that.

“Let’s leave the Dungeon and continue on,” he continued.

Everyone nodded. He approached his family.

“Good work,” Gerard said with a smile.

“You’re not hurt, right?” Elizabeth asked almost immediately after.

He smiled at her.

“I’m fine, Mom. Don’t worry,” Rylan replied.

“Can we learn to fight like you?” Lillia asked from the side as she looked upon the carnage.

Rylan nodded, keeping his smile.

“It’ll take time, but yes. I didn’t learn it overnight, as you know.”

After talking a bit more, they started making their way out of the Dungeon.

The journey went on.