Who would win in a contest between a swordsman and a mage?

The question had been debated for quite some time. As the steel city’s 「Arena」 alone made clear, the question of who was stronger excited everyone, regardless of age, gender, or race. Moreover, swords and magic were tools wielded by countless powerful figures throughout history. They inevitably came up in any debate over what was strongest.

The conclusion reached over that long history of debate was this.

“The conditions are what matter most.”

Just as swordsmen had five ranks, mages had ranks of their own. If the two stood at different ranks, the higher-ranked combatant would naturally win. A fair contest required assuming they were of equal rank. So what happened when a swordsman and a mage of equal rank fought?

Even then, there were conditions to consider.

“It will depend on whether the swordsman’s rank is above or below 「sword walker」.”

That was the conclusion countless scholars reached after much debate.

“If an apprentice who has only just learned magic fights a sword beginner, the apprentice wins overwhelmingly. The same applies to sword walkers. However experienced and seasoned a knight may be, victory against a mage is impossible unless the knight has grown wings.”

It was a statement repeated ad nauseam in books on swords and magic. A swordsman below 「sword walker」 could never defeat a mage.

“The 「path」 exclusive to sword walkers grants swordsmen superhuman strength. But its effects go no further than influencing the body and expanding the senses. Mages manipulate external Mana to produce phenomena. If swordsmen cannot interfere with their magic, they ultimately become nothing more than idiots with blades.”

This was common knowledge. Naturally, the dark mage Jerry Selpit knew it too.

He had even experienced firsthand just how true those words were. Jerry Selpit, who had never participated in a war or received instruction in battle magic, had killed a seasoned mounted knight in an instant. That imposing knight had been helpless against his magic.

Swordsmen who remained at 「sword walker」 could never be a match for mages. They could only begin to compare once they crossed the lofty threshold of 「sword runner」. That was why Jerry Selpit simply could not believe what was happening.

“What in the...”

That blade flashing in the darkness was cutting down every one of his spells.

“What the hell is that?!”

* * *

When I entered the hut, the mage staying there, Jerry Selpit, looked like an ordinary old man. He wore filthy rags, but he did not look pathetic. The sinister Mana surging around him proved that he was a mage.

Rather than draw 「Fang」 and kill him in an ambush, I chose to confront him head-on. That was what I had always done, and what I intended to keep doing.

But there was no talking to him. The mage was the sort of person impervious to common sense, someone who simply could not be reasoned with.

‘I seem to be meeting a lot of people I can’t talk to lately.’

Seolyun was one, and so were the orcs I had met in the mountains. Had Seolyun read my thoughts, I would probably have received a hefty smack to the back of the head. In any case, the moment I sensed Mana rippling ominously around me, I drew my sword.

But then—

“...?”

The moment black Mana rippled from Jerry Selpit’s body, a 「path」 flashed before my eyes. It was not mine. A path starting from his body headed toward me. Just before it reached me, I swung my sword and cut it down.

“Uh—”

The old mage’s face froze, as though something that should never have happened had occurred.

“Wh-what?”

Jerry Selpit chanted something and gestured through the air again. Each time, I saw paths branching in several directions. Before they could take shape, I swung my sword and cut them down one by one.

After cutting down three or so, I realized what had just happened.

「Oho. Here is where your talent shines.」

“...”

「Reading the trajectories of magic, young descendant.」

What I had just seen were the trajectories of the spells Jerry Selpit was trying to construct.

「Your Suspicion is astonishingly sensitive. Those changes must be minuscule, yet you perceive that fleeting opening and destroy them.」

Apparently, what I had done instinctively was a special talent.

「Of course, not just anyone can do it. Ordinarily, a sword walker’s blade cannot touch magic.」

“Then...”

「It is possible because what fills your body and sword is the path of steel.」

Liam grinned.

「The sturdiest path in the world, a steadfast path that never bends no matter what it collides with, has combined with your Suspicion to give birth to such a sword.」

I looked at the wide-eyed Jerry Selpit.

“What the hell is that?!”

The old mage raised his voice in disbelief. Instead of answering, I charged at him with my sword. Standing awkwardly, he hurriedly chanted an incantation. Rather than heading toward me, his Mana began wrapping around his own body.

“Why do you obstruct my noble path?!”

Black darkness rose around him. Since spells directed at me did not work, was he planning to wrap himself in magic and fuck me up instead?

His body slowly grew. The small old man cloaked himself in darkness like armor and transformed into a hulking monster. Rather than approach recklessly, I glared at him.

Suspicion.

Jerry Selpit was now within my 「path」. That meant I could read information about the changes in his body.

‘He hasn’t merely grown in appearance. His actual strength has increased. And not just his strength. His body has become as hard as the golems I fought earlier. It’s like he’s covered himself in another creature’s shell.’

I stared intently at Jerry Selpit.

Like a wild beast.

* * *

Though Jerry Selpit had transformed into a hulking monster, he did not charge mindlessly. The darkness cloaking him seemed less intended to crush me directly than to serve as armor against anything unexpected. It made no difference. I was a swordsman, and to win, I had to close the distance.

Keeping my distance would put me at a disadvantage. First, I had to get close.

I lunged without warning, giving Jerry Selpit no time to react. At that moment, something strange happened. No matter how hard I ran, the distance did not shrink. Frowning, I looked around. The small, cramped hut had somehow expanded into something as vast as a plain.

Jerry Selpit, who had seemed only moments away from my reach, was now far in the distance.

Was it an illusion?

「It is not an illusion.」

“Then?”

「It is similar to what the orc elder did before. That orc banished you to the spirit world last time; this old mage has temporarily turned this place into an environment resembling it.」

“...”

「This is why you should not carelessly enter a mage’s dwelling. It seems this hut was something like that old bastard’s labyrinth.」

Apparently, Jerry Selpit had already made all sorts of magical preparations in the hut. Far away, the old mage moved his lips, chanting. I ran toward him before he could complete another spell. Once again, I saw a 「path」. Before the faint path could become distinct, I swung my sword and cut it down. Jerry Selpit’s face immediately twisted.

The force with which I kicked off the ground was astonishing. Even a wild horse could not have run as fast as I did. My transformed body’s sprint was excessively powerful and swift. As the distance shrank in an instant, the floor beneath me suddenly warped, pitching my center of gravity forward.

“Hup!”

I lost my balance and nearly fell. Hastily making a low jump, I spun once and used a breakfall technique to land. Jerry Selpit’s laughter rang out.

“You can only dispel magic directed at you, can’t you?”

“...”

“Of course. You are merely an insignificant 「sword walker」.”

His red eyes glared at me.

“You cannot see magic directed at your surroundings rather than at you. You can prevent a direct spell from taking shape, but you cannot even notice that any other magic is being cast. Once exposed, your little trick is nothing special, you lowly swordsman.”

He was a clever mage. In an instant, Jerry Selpit had worked out how my trick functioned.

He was right. I had failed to react to the spell he had just used to warp the terrain. Forget reacting—I had seen nothing at all. My sensitive Suspicion only sharpened in response to magic headed directly toward me. My limitations had been laid bare.

“Now I understand everything! You startled me briefly, but no longer! Instead, you arouse my curiosity. Are you part demon? Or perhaps a bastard with the blood of one of the five great families? Your body interests me.”

“...”

“Well, there is no need to answer. Mages find answers for themselves.”

Jerry Selpit’s cracked laughter echoed.

“I will tear you apart, kill you, and lay you out in that manor’s courtyard. Then I will dissect and analyze every part of you to discover the secret of that talent. I will have some thoroughly enjoyable research to occupy me for a while. Truly, most enjoyable...”

He strutted as though he had already won. I disliked that attitude.

Whether he understood my talent or not, the fight was not decided. Seeing him wag his tongue like that over one minor discovery did not please me. So I decided to teach the old mage one fact.

Nothing was over yet.

「That is why I hate spell-slingers.」

Glaring at Jerry Selpit in the distance, I took a deep breath. I inhaled more air than usual, so much that my chest swelled and my lungs felt ready to burst. My heartbeat began accelerating. Over the rapid beating of my heart came the overlapping pulse of my second heart. The 「mana heart」 throbbed, and the 「paths」 extending like blood vessels grew denser. My entire body heated up, and the world slowed as though coming to a stop.

At the same time, the 「paths」 I had extended diminished. Those spread here and there vanished one by one. Only three or four remained, and they narrowed into lines.

Slowly, I raised my head and looked at Jerry Selpit. The moment our eyes met, I charged like a beast.

“Do you think that will work again?!”

He laughed confidently. But his confidence did not last. My charge was faster than he expected. Unbelievably fast.

My body shot forward like an arrow.

Jerry Selpit hastily chanted and formed a spell. Earth magic, directed at the ground rather than me. The floor beneath my feet warped, shaking my body. Then sharp spikes burst from it, piercing through my feet from sole to instep. A sharp pain shot through me. But I did not so much as flinch. Whether my skin was pierced, my muscles torn, or even my bones broken, I stepped forward.

“What—”

With wild abandon.

Like a certain orc Great Warrior who never fled.

THUD!

My footstep resounded. Jerry Selpit hurriedly chanted. The floor around him rumbled and shifted, then formed sharp spears that shot toward me. Not one reached my body. Before the heavy swing of my sword, all of them fell away helplessly.

“S-stop!”

He waved a hand, turning the floor into a swamp. Even that could not stop me. I charged mindlessly onward, heedless of my swaying body. My foot sank into the swampy floor, and I fell. Though I hit the ground hard enough to nearly break my nose, I rolled once, got back up, and ran again.

Spells poured out endlessly. But whatever stood in my way, I did not stop.

By the end of that mindless charge, the distance between us had closed. Now that I was right before him, Jerry Selpit stopped chanting.

“You beastly—!”

Instead, trusting in the magic cloaking his body, he reached toward me with a monstrous hand. Apparently, he believed his magically strengthened, grotesque body could overpower me.

That was a very stupid choice. What mage fought a swordsman at close quarters?

With a smooth swing, I cut Jerry Selpit’s awkwardly outstretched arm. Then I moved fluidly, carving into his body with my blade as though preparing food. Petel’s 「Twilight」. A knight’s swordsmanship grounded in orthodox technique unfolded.

Jerry Selpit’s arm flew into the air. I caught the arm he had thrust out, pulled it over my shoulder, and hurled him over to the other side. Sword wrestling. A grappling technique that could throw even a giant, provided one had the seasoned skill to turn an opponent’s strength against them and manipulate their balance.

THUD!

Jerry Selpit’s body slammed into the floor. The instant the powerful impact left him sprawled out, my blade pierced his throat.

“Gur...kh.”

A feeble groan echoed, and the intricately warped surroundings began returning to the hut’s original interior. The old mage’s magic was fading. His body, too, had reverted to that of a small, pathetic old man.

“H-human. Are you really... human?”

My reflection appeared in Jerry Selpit’s trembling eyes. In those murky eyes, I looked more like an orc than a human. A brave, savage orc Great Warrior who bared his tusks, held a sword larger than anyone else’s, and never fled.

“This... cannot be. It cannot... end like this. I must... live a noble life. I... deserve it...”

As life faded from his eyes, the old mage vomited blood and chanted one final incantation. I hastily drove my blade deeper to finish him before the spell could be completed. But the magic was completed first.

“I cannot... die to a mere... swordsman. I am... a mage. I will not die. I will never... die...”

Black smoke rose from Jerry Selpit’s body. With it came an overwhelming sense of menace. Instinctively, I sensed danger. Liam spoke.

「The damned spell-slinger is trying to take everyone with him.」

“What do you mean?”

「Get away. It seems he intends to sacrifice his life to turn this whole area into a land of death. A filthy trick used by those who dabble in forbidden magic.」

My eyes wavered at Liam’s words.

“This whole area?”

「Your estate will be caught in it too.」

Because I could read the flow of Mana, I knew. The spell Jerry Selpit had completed as he died held a horrific power. Though I had the orc elder’s wardstones, something this sinister would surely affect my estate as well. And that was something I absolutely did not want. It could not be allowed to happen.

“Is there no way to stop it?”

「Not at your current level.」

Liam looked at me coldly.

「Young descendant, do not ask for too much. Hurry up and escape.」

“...”

「Tsk. These fucking spell-slinging bastards. If you were at least a sword runner, I could have taught you how to cut down the darkness...」

As Liam continued lamenting, Jerry Selpit’s laughter reached my ears.

“Heh, khehehe... I... I will not die. I will seep... into this land forever and drive everything to death. I... I will be eternal.”

Apparently, the old mage had sensed the anger rising within me. Seeing my distress, he laughed delightedly. Rage boiled up. My heart raced with fury. I wanted to kill that old mage, already breathing his last, over and over again. But that would change nothing.

My unresolved anger turned inward. Because I was still lacking. Because I was no more than a sword walker. Because my sword was not strong enough to put down that mage’s final desperate struggle...

And then.

「Get away. At this rate...」

It happened as a tangle of emotions washed over me.

「You will be caught in it too... Ah, no.」

“What?”

「It is all right. You need not flee after all.」

Liam’s tone suddenly changed.

At the same moment—

“I will defile this land—ghk!”

Jerry Selpit’s head, still spewing those irritating words, exploded like a watermelon. As blood burst forth like a fountain, a chilling silence settled over the hut. His headless body slumped limply. The sinister presence that had filled our surroundings vanished entirely. Without a trace.

“... What just happened?”

As I stood blankly, unable to understand what had happened, Liam spoke.

「That orc must have taken quite a liking to you.」

* * *

“It is time for the ritual. Why have you not come out, Shaman?”

High in the towering mountains, the orc elder’s tent stood at the highest point of the orcs’ sacred ground. The Great Warrior guarding the elder urged him to emerge. Soon, the great shaman and orc elder Sherdik walked slowly out of the tent.

“I’m out now! You insolent brat!”

“Everyone is waiting. Please hurry. What were you doing in there?”

At the question, Sherdik chuckled.

“I was watching an amusing human I befriended recently! A nasty bug had latched onto my friend, so I quietly plucked it off for him. Puhahaha!”

Laughing heartily, Sherdik slowly looked up at the sky. Stars glimmered faintly in the black night. He could see the movement of the constellations and the clear future foretold by the stars’ flow. Having glimpsed the future soon to come, he bared his tusks and laughed again.

“Heir of steel, please endure a long time without breaking. The true darkness has not even arrived yet. Survive for a long time and show me an entertaining struggle. Just as the countless descendants of steel who vanished from history long ago once did...”

* * *

And so the imminent crisis was resolved.

The dark mage Jerry Selpit was dead, and the foolish stunt he had attempted just before dying had failed helplessly. I felt a little uneasy, but the outcome was good. I had eliminated the dark mage threatening my estate, and the estate had suffered no damage. It could not have turned out better.

Well.

“You r-really killed my master?”

“Yes.”

“Th-thank you. Thank you so much. But...”

There was still a matter left to resolve.

“Th-there’s one thing I’d like to ask.”

Haylin, the girl who had lived such a cruel life and now lost her master.

“Could I stay in this village? I have nowhere to go.”

She had asked to become our new neighbor.

“I-I’m good at washing dishes. And cleaning. I know how to cook lots of things too.”

“...”

“A-ah. And I—”