Late that night, I threw on a suitable coat and left the inn. The nights in Perma, the steel city, never seemed to quiet down, no matter how late it grew. Once I passed beyond the streets reeking of alcohol, the voices all around gradually faded. Their heated cries died away, slowly giving way to the stillness peculiar to night. Amid little more than the chirping of insects and the rustle of wind, the majestic 「Arena」 came into view.

After gazing at the Arena for a moment, I walked to the left and came upon a wall decorated with antique patterns. It looked like an art gallery filled with collected works. But what was displayed here was not art. These were not creations made by artists, but the traces fighters had left behind.

I quickened my steps, and the many swords displayed along the wall caught my eye. Countless names were written beneath them in scrawled cursive.

The Hall of Fame.

A glorious place that housed the equipment of fighters who had accomplished great things in the Arena.

It was a dull place visited only by young dwarves with vague romantic notions about weapons, blacksmiths with unusual tastes, and scholars who enjoyed exploring the history of arms. Those who came to the steel city seeking its feverish excitement rarely ventured this far.

Today, however, a man stood there with his hands clasped behind his back. It was the first time I had seen another visitor here besides myself. Perhaps sensing my approach, he slowly turned.

"Oh. We meet again."

A perfectly bald head without a single hair, kindly eyes, and a warm expression. The unfamiliar man, who nevertheless felt somehow reassuring, greeted me in recognition. I could not return the gesture.

After all, I had no idea who he was.

"... I'm sorry, but who are you?"

"Ah, I was wearing a mask then, so you wouldn't recognize me."

He smiled amiably.

"It's me. Helen, the fighter you tested your skills against recently. Would calling me a Monk jog your memory?"

"Ah."

The moment I heard the word Monk, I remembered.

The fighter who had fought with such appalling tenacity.

"You've recovered quickly. You must have had quite a few injuries."

"Isn't that an odd thing for a Monk to say? You were hurt far worse than I was."

"Ha ha, I'm quite all right. So long as the goddess is with us, we can hardly call such things injuries."

What a revolting bunch they were.

I remembered piercing him squarely through the chest, yet he was already perfectly fine.

I looked at Helen with a touch of revulsion and asked, "But how did you recognize me at once? I was wearing a mask then too."

"Because we do not judge people with our eyes. We judge them by their energy."

Energy?

I had no idea what he meant.

Reading my expression, Helen laughed heartily.

"It must be difficult to understand. Many of the things we say are hard to grasp unless you are a practitioner."

"Ah, yes."

Honestly, I did not want a detailed explanation either.

I had no desire to shave my head and hole up in the mountains to pursue ascetic training. If I kept listening for no good reason, who knew whether they might drag me off against my will?

"I take it you came here to look at the weapons."

"To look at them? Yes. But I was examining the energies held here rather than the weapons themselves. Every one of these energies belongs to someone who burned themselves up until their final moment. Our goddess loves such fervor. And we who serve her feel the same."

It was exactly the sort of thing a religious ascetic who trained in the mountains would say. Experience had taught me that listening quietly was always the right answer to such remarks, rather than peppering the speaker with questions. Religious folk all had a knack for talking without pause; the instant I got the conversation going, hours would vanish in a flash.

"... Liam the Little Gladiator. That was your name, wasn't it? I understand you recently acquired a new nickname: Sword Demon."

Helen spoke after I had stood silently for quite some time.

"I saw a splendid energy in you as well. I have spent my whole life training in the Sky Mountains, so it has not been long since I entered the secular world. But even in the Empire, there was no human who held steel as solid as yours within them."

"..."

"I feel we will meet again someday in the Sky Mountains. Come seek us out when you do. Those who serve the sun will welcome you. We love those whose strength will not bend."

"..."

"It has grown quite late. I shall take my leave now, mysterious fighter."

Still smiling, Helen gave me a slight bow.

"May eternal day be with you."

That was the greeting of those who served Revrua, goddess of the sun. Awkwardly following his example, I brought my hands together and bowed in return. Leaving those meaningful words behind, Helen departed.

「The Sky Mountains, eh? You will have to go someday.」

"..."

「But not yet. That place is far too dangerous for you as you are now.」

I agreed with Liam.

The Sky Mountains.

Bordering Belma, the vast empire known as the 「Heavenly Empire」, they were the greatest and most magnificent mountains on the continent, a region said to hold all of the continent's arcane wonders.

Everyone living on the continent would have heard the legend at least once: whoever conquered the summit of the Sky Mountains could have any wish fulfilled. For that reason, countless explorers had risked their lives climbing those mountains over and over since ages past. All for radiant glory.

Yet of the seven races, only one had ever conquered their summit.

「Yes. Not yet.」

Dragons.

The place had another name: the Land of Dragons.

* * *

"It seems you've fully recovered now, young lord."

Just after my conversation with the Monk Helen ended, I was looking around the Hall of Fame when Tom, its caretaker, emerged from farther inside. Despite the late hour, his face was bright, without a trace of fatigue.

"Ah, yes."

"Did you come here to look around as soon as you got up? You truly are full of passion."

"Any fighter of the Arena should know how to kindle his fervor by gazing upon the traces of past struggles."

"You truly are the finest, young lord..."

Tom clapped his hands in admiration at the flattery that now flowed from my lips without a moment's thought.

"So, which sword would you like this time? Now that you wear a medal of a new color, you have the right to take one from here."

"I'm not sure. I'm considering which fighter I should take with me to become more courageous."

With a thoughtful hum, I studied the displayed blades. In truth, they all looked like much the same sort of antique to me. Half-used blades that seemed to have been made ages ago. Choosing a good weapon from among them was entirely Liam's job.

"Shall I explain them one by one? 「Fang」, which you took last time, is a fine piece too. It belonged to a nameless assassin who once operated in Crowd, the Free City."

"Ah."

"He was an assassin who fought ceaselessly in pursuit of freedom throughout his life. In his youth, he was also an enthusiastic participant in this 「Arena」. His declaration that he would fight for freedom until his final moment left such a deep impression on us that the 「Arena」 acquired his weapon at auction. An unavoidable struggle for freedom! And a fighting spirit that would not retreat even before tremendous injustice. Isn't that magnificent? The goddess Lepri must surely have welcomed him into her embrace."

"Ah, yes..."

"And what's more—"

When I said nothing, Tom eagerly launched into everything he wanted to say. As I listened to histories of weapons I had no interest in, I kept sending Liam pointed looks. Please, I wanted to stop the history lesson and hurry up and choose a weapon.

"This blade would suit you well too, young lord. It's the spear of a crippled fighter who kept entering duels without rest despite missing a leg. What do you think? Doesn't merely hearing its story make you feel as though you can hear a bard's song? Reality truly is more magnificent than all those chivalric novels. In that regard, I—"

Please.

At this rate, my ears were going to bleed.

Tom was a genuinely good man and a kind elder, but he talked far too much. The moment swords entered the picture, there was no sign that he would ever stop. Give him a single mug of beer, and he could probably explain every sword in this Hall of Fame straight through to the day the Endless Duel ended, with words to spare.

「Choose that one.」

As I forced a smile and nodded along with Tom, Liam's voice thankfully rang out. Beaming, I turned in the direction he indicated. But...

"...?"

「I haven't chosen the wrong one. That is the one, young descendant.」

The blade Liam told me to choose was a little strange.

Many of the swords he had selected for me so far had been unusual, but this one was especially peculiar even compared with those. Yet, as though he had read my mind, Liam spoke firmly.

「Choose that one. Right now, that sword will suit you best.」

If he went that far, I could not refuse.

Master was always right when it came to swords. Still doubtful, I stared hard at the sword he had indicated. Noticing my gaze, Tom broke off what he was saying.

"It seems you've fallen for that sword over there."

"Ah, yes."

"Falling in love with a sword is just like a man and woman falling in love. The moment their eyes meet, their hearts are stolen in an instant."

Tom looked at my expression and laughed heartily.

Apparently, he had mistaken my doubtful expression for that of a man struck by love at first sight.

"It's an unusual blade, but a sword with plenty of charm. Shall I give you this one?"

"Yes."

At my answer, Tom smiled and carefully lifted one of the swords from its display. The sword he handed me was extremely light. No, it could hardly be anything else.

After all...

"Please treat it with care."

Half the blade of the weapon I had chosen was missing.

To be precise...

"That sword is called 「Gale」."

It was a broken sword.

* * *

A broken sword.

None of the blades I had consumed so far had been damaged this badly. However old they were, most swords retained enough of their original shape to serve their purpose. But 「Gale」 was different. Not only was its blade broken, it was so thoroughly corroded that it seemed worthless even as an antique.

The fact that most of the other blades in the Hall of Fame were intact made it stand out all the more. However old the others were, they had been well maintained. But this sword had neither had its rust removed nor its broken blade restored.

Tom explained it this way:

"Because its damaged form holds the greatest meaning. That is the form that fully expresses the will of the fighter contained in 「Gale」. That is why we left it as it was rather than restoring it."

I could not quite understand what Tom meant.

After returning to the inn with the broken sword, I placed 「Gale」 in the blazing fire to heat it. The surging heat made even my skin grow hot.

「Young descendant.」

"Yes."

「You must focus your mind even more closely when digesting this sword.」

"Why is that?"

Liam had never gone this far before.

I voiced the question that rose within me, and his answer soon came.

「Because the will contained in that blade is powerful enough to swallow you whole.」

Will.

What sort of will did it contain to warrant such a warning?

Every blade I had eaten so far held a different life. Though her level had been low, the swordswoman Mary's 「Needle」 held the fierce life of a mercenary. 「Fang」 held the life of an assassin who yearned for freedom. 「Twilight」 held the life of Petel, my kind neighbor, while 「Wildness」 held the life of Berik, the great orc warrior who had fought to the very end.

All those lives had been intense.

I could not call a single one insignificant.

"I will overcome it."

Because I believed that, I could speak with confidence.

「... Very well. Keep a firm grip on your mind.」

And I said it without knowing what desperate life that sword might hold.

"Whew."

I lifted the thoroughly heated sword and put it in my mouth. I chewed up 「Gale」's blade and swallowed it, and a heat that seemed to boil my entire body surged through me. With it, memories crashed over me like waves.

『You told me.』

『That I was a person like the wind.』

『I agree with you.』

And then...

The smell of blood filled the air.

An extraordinarily powerful smell of blood.

『My life was like a passing breeze.』

『So too was my sword.』

* * *

Quite some time had passed since Arhan and his companions arrived in 「Perma」, the steel city. Seolyun followed a schedule similar to the one she had kept on Arhan's estate. It was familiar to her, since it was the same routine she had always followed back when she worked as a gladiator in the Arena.

With each passing day, more and more people gathered in the steel city.

Among them were many fighters whom even Seolyun could not take lightly. And they were not the only ones: people rarely seen in ordinary times appeared as well. Elves, the eternal race who never emerged from the Great Forest. Demonkin, descendants of devils who guarded the 「Wall of Despair」 on the northern continent. Various heroes famed throughout the continent.

They gathered together, making the sheer scale of the Endless Duel palpable. More people came, and then still more, until it was difficult even to walk the streets of Perma during the day.

At last, the day of the Endless Duel, which everyone had eagerly awaited, dawned.

And...

"You..."

"Ah, I almost ended up late. I made it in time, didn't I?"

Arhan, appearing for the first time in a while, had changed considerably.

It was not his looks.

His air had changed.

Yes, he was like...

"Let's go enter the Endless Duel."

A wandering swordsman roaming the continent.