The Cornflower Witch

Chapter 75: The Oath of the Sword

Step by step, she ascended the steep mountain slope. Occasionally, Sylutia had to use her hands to support herself on rocky outcrops to climb onto the stones and continue upward.

After more than half an hour of climbing, Sylutia finally reached the last Colored Bubble. The grass here held a faint verdant hue, different from the static, withered weeds of the gray-white world.

The rocks on the mountain were weathered by the wind, shedding fine particles of dust. The view here was open and empty, with no space for monsters to hide and no areas of abnormal Distortion.

Overall, it was quite good, Sylutia thought with a sigh in her heart. Then, her gaze turned to a sword thrust into a rocky crevice on the cliff face.

The sword's body was gray iron, like weathered rock. It should have originally been inscribed with some characters, but they were now blurred and illegible.

Sylutia slowly walked towards the sword and grasped its hilt. The solidified Aspect power of 'Castle' within instantly spread out, once again washing over this area and pushing back the gray-white world a few degrees.

So, this is how this Colored Bubble was formed? It was all thanks to this sword. Sylutia focused her mind to observe.

【Weathered Iron Sword】(Castle): An ancient longsword in stone. A king of the past once thrust this sword into the stone to make a vow. Where its cold light shines, all shall be the kingdom's land. (Solidifies environment, expels other Aspect powers.)

Her palm caressed the hilt. The 'Castle' Aspect power emanating from it periodically diffused, making Sylutia feel as if bathed in a breeze, dispelling her previous fatigue. The unique way the strange power contained within the sword operated also slowly became understood and memorized by her.

About forty minutes later, Sylutia slowly released the hilt. A moment of clear comprehension surfaced in her mind.[Sword-Vowing Method] (Castle): Those possessing the Aspect 'Third Tier - Castle' can vow by the sword, encompassing the surrounding land, turning it into a fief, and isolating it from the erosion of other Aspects.

Although she couldn't use it, this kind of secret technique knowledge must be exceptionally precious.

Because it was already weathered, she couldn't take this sword with her. If she forcibly pulled it out, the result would likely be it breaking on the spot, and the concentrated 'Castle' Aspect within would dissipate extremely quickly.

Having found such a rare, safe place, Sylutia decided to rest here properly for a while and get some sleep.

...

Not far from the sword in the stone, she tidied up a clean rock platform. Sylutia leaned back and slowly lay down, recovering from the exhaustion of trekking through the gray-white world and the expended Aspect power.

In her dream, she seemed to see a very distant past. A group of people also came here, wearing surcoats and chainmail, their faces weathered as if they had just come down from a battlefield.

"Sir Knight Horlin, should we continue forward? This is already deep within the Shadow World," one attendant asked the leading knight.

"We press on."

This knight clad in black armor spoke with resolute certainty, forcing the wavering few to abandon thoughts of retreat.

They were all warriors possessing the 'Castle' Aspect. The leading Knight Horlin was likely at the Fourth Tier, immensely powerful. Sylutia saw him wield a massive two-handed greatsword, effortlessly slaying a monstrous creature as tall as a mountain. The black blood that flowed out was enough to drown a pond.

Emerging from the seething black mist, this knight's resolute expression remained unchanged. On his arm was a Badge bearing a 'Fir' pattern, signifying his affiliation with the 'Fir Knight Corps.'

This team passed through one Colored Bubble-enveloped domain after another in the gray-white world. Every monster they encountered along the way was slain by them. Among them were flying multi-headed serpent monsters, bird-footed humanoid creatures that could speak human words, and one-eyed flying slugs. Most were grotesquely distorted in form, with bizarre and varied abilities.

But none of these abilities could affect that Knight Horlin. His powerful 'Castle' Aspect covered him like armor, protecting him as he step by step overcame these strange creatures.

Thus, they won victory after victory, but they also grew increasingly weary.

Traversing the gray-white world was a tremendous drain, even for a 'Fourth Tier - Castle' knight like Horlin.

This drain was extremely difficult to recover from in this world. Because of this, Knight Horlin also had to conserve his strength, no longer fighting as openly and expansively as at the beginning.

They were searching for a target, or rather, pursuing an enemy who had fled into this world—a powerful hag who had once ravaged the mountain forests.

These hags mostly excelled in the Aspect powers of 'Slumbering Winter' or 'Nightmare,' skilled in various strange secret arts. Some could easily bewitch and manipulate others.

After a long, arduous search and trek, Knight Horlin finally arrived at the deep mountain lair where the hag was hiding.

"You actually dared to pursue me here."

The hag's face was so thin the bones were visible, but her frame was tall and large, easily over two meters. Unfortunately, there wasn't much flesh on that skeletal frame, like a bird's limbs. One hand held a peculiar skull, while the other pinched some kind of powder.

The hag blew from her mouth. The powder transformed into crystalline dust that floated up, then coalesced into pitch-black pythons that slithered around her, occasionally flickering blood-red forked tongues, their hidden fangs also revealed from time to time.

Knight Horlin and his two remaining attendants drew their swords and charged at this last remaining hag. The other party let out a chilling laugh. Then, the black snakes burrowed into the skull in her hand, as if devouring something, before emerging again.

Suddenly, the black snakes swelled up, becoming enormous. Their plump snake bodies were thicker than water vats, their raised heads displaying pure ferocity.

It pounced down, directly swallowing the two attendants and clamping its jaws tightly onto Knight Horlin's body. The venomous fangs slowly eroded the black armor, gradually seeping into the flesh.

Knight Horlin resisted with all his might. Using every ounce of strength, he thrust his sword into the black snake's neck from the side and activated the power within.

The sharpness of steel manifested, severing the source of the black snake's power. Soon, the snake's head rolled away lifelessly, its entire skull torn apart by Knight Horlin.

This powerful knight lifted the massive black snake corpse with one hand, then dragged and threw it down the mountainside. He picked up his heavily damaged greatsword and once again walked towards the hag on the slope.

"You are at the end of your rope. No reinforcements, no one will care that you die here, no one will erect a monument for you. Your soul after death cannot ascend to the heavens. And in the end, you will become nourishment for my pet." The hag sneered, looking at the knight.

She beckoned once more. The black snake corpse that had fallen into the mountainside turned into a crystalline mist, then reformed into black snakes, once again coiling around her.

"See? This is true power, something you blockheads will never learn." She mocked the knight's foolishness.

"Fall down, you fool." Her black-purple lips blew out a breath, an invisible current of air rushing towards Knight Horlin.

At this moment, two slender black snakes erupted from the wounds on Knight Horlin's body where the black snake had bitten him. Half of their bodies were embedded in Knight Horlin's flesh, the other half writhing and flicking their tongues, looking exceptionally vicious.

The two black snakes fed on the flesh and blood power within Knight Horlin's body. Because the black snakes were born from his own self, even the protective power of the 'Castle' Aspect found it difficult to shield and isolate him.

The knight's steps on the mountain slope became increasingly unsteady and difficult. He stumbled from time to time, kneeling on one knee. His exhausted stamina made it hard for him to stand firm.

Just as the hag had said, he was at the end of his rope, walking his final path.

But...

So what?

He had long since made a vow, to follow that monarch, to cleanse the filth and evil spirits from these mountains.

To carve out a new kingdom at the edge of the Distortion-eroding mist.

The heavy greatsword was raised once more, then reversed and thrust downward, driven into the rock with the last of his strength.

'May our kingdom be as evergreen as the fir tree. May our knights' armor remain forever strong, their swords forever sharp.'

The ancient vow resounded. The knight's destiny within his fate shattered. The scattered fragments poured into this land along the sword's blade. An invisible radiance spread. A rising pillar of light, for the first time, dispersed the incredibly thick, sinking clouds. At the vast horizon's end, the enormous serpentine body writhed upon the sea of clouds. Threads of light pierced through the serpent's form, illuminating this forgotten corner.