Clang!
The beam that struck Luigi was blocked by his special sword technique.
The shattered beam split into countless tiny shafts of light that rained down on the arena below, triggering a series of explosions in an instant. The newly restored arena was once again destroyed beyond recognition.
As the beam attack ended,
Luigi—who had fully defended against it—still had smoke rising from his clothes, lingering aftershocks of the beam’s power.
"What a powerful spell!"
Luigi couldn’t help but praise.
"To meet a master like you at the same rank is truly a joy! I’m so glad I came to this festival! My swordsmanship will definitely improve greatly from this!"
"Is that so?"
Hulim replied calmly.
"Miss Hulim, forgive my intrusion. I’m going to give it my all now. Otherwise, at this level, I’ll never be able to defeat you."
"Giving it your all......"
"Yes," Hulim nodded. "Come."
"Forgive my intrusion——!"
As the words fell, Luigi suddenly closed his eyes. He slowly raised his sword to his chest, gripping it with both hands, as if brewing something momentous......
"?"
Hulim tilted her head, watching his preparation quietly without seizing the opportunity to attack.
In the next moment, Luigi suddenly opened his eyes.
A dazzling sword light illuminated the sky.
The 100,000 spectators only felt a flash of light in their eyes.
When they looked again, Luigi was no longer in his original position.
He had appeared a short distance behind Hulim, maintaining his sword-striking posture, his back to her.
"......"
"......"
In the sky, neither moved.
The spectators below were confused, completely unaware of what had just happened.
After a moment,
Luigi finally moved.
He relaxed his sword stance, slowly lowering his weapon, preparing to sheath it.
"There’s something I......"
"!!?"
Luigi’s movement froze abruptly, his body stiffening.
"......forgot to tell you."
Luigi turned his head with extreme stiffness, his eyes widened to their fullest, staring at Hulim’s back in utter disbelief.
"How is this possible......"
"You...... why are you unharmed?"
At that moment,
Hulim also turned around slowly, her face remaining as calm as ever.
"Swordsmanship——"
she said softly,
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"——I know a thing or two about it too."
"......"
Luigi was completely stunned.
In that instant, he suddenly realized something......
Had what he’d sensed earlier really been the truth?
Or could it be that
she had intentionally let him sense it? In reality, like the spectators, his judgment hadn’t been much better......
Boom!
With a gentle wave of Hulim’s wand, a giant flaming sword materialized in her right hand, centered on the wand.
And the moment that sword appeared,
Luigi—an outstanding swordsman—finally sensed it:
an extremely dangerous,
familiar aura of a fellow swordsman!
"Heyerar Swordsmanship—Fifth Form——"
Boom!
It was as if a clap of thunder had erupted in the sky.
"Thunderbolt."
A stabbing sense of danger prickled every nerve in Luigi’s body.
"Thousand Currents Swordsmanship—Sea-Severing Strike!!!"
A flash-like sword blade shot forth, crossing paths with the flaming thunderbolt.
Yet the moment they touched, the sword blade shattered instantly, while the thunderbolt continued toward its target.
In the next moment, the thunderbolt of flame struck Luigi’s body......
Thud!
Luigi’s body crashed heavily onto the arena floor.
At that moment, all combat ceased abruptly.
Hulim slowly descended from the sky, approaching Luigi.
Luigi lay on his back, staring blankly at the sky.
"......What kind of swordsmanship was that?"
"......"
"A family heirloom—Heyerar Swordsmanship."
"Heyerar Style......"
"I’ll remember it."
Having received his answer, Luigi smiled faintly, as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
"Master was right. The world is vast, and there are always strong warriors beyond my expectations......"
"I,"
Luigi slowly raised his right hand.
"lose."
Ding——!
The bell signaling the end of the match rang out across the entire arena.
"The winner—Hulim Heyerar!!!"
"No...... That can’t be? She actually won!"
In the commentary booth, Lore was dumbfounded.
Although she resented the Sword Saint’s disciples winning the championship right in front of her...... what was happening now? Why did he really lose! Didn’t this make the White Tower—her own faction—seem weak too!
Dammit! None of the Sword Saint’s disciples are reliable!!!
"Won...... She won? Hulim won??!"
The 100,000 spectators were equally shocked. This battle had completely overturned their expectations! They hadn’t anticipated such an outcome, nor had they imagined that Hulim was not only a hidden Rank B powerhouse, but an unimaginably strong one even among Rank B!
"She won......""She won!!!""Hulim won!!""Hulim won!!""Champion!""Champion!!""Champion!!!""......"
After a brief silence, the stands erupted in an unprecedented roar of cheers. Everyone chanted Hulim’s name in unison, shouting for the champion.
From this moment on, Hulim’s name would spread throughout the entire Indam Federation—and gradually to every corner of the world......
In stark contrast to the enthusiastic atmosphere, an ordinary-looking man slumped in his seat, as if drained of all energy.
"Lost...... We lost......"
He muttered these two words repeatedly, his soul seemed to have been sucked out of him.
"Why did we lose!""My money!!!"
Monroe held his head and screamed at the top of his lungs, his voice filled with heart-wrenching grief.
"It’s over, all over......"
"Oh no——"
Monroe, immersed in sorrow, suddenly remembered something. A chill ran down his spine, and his mind began racing.
After a moment, his eyes hardened with determination.
He owed so much money—he’d never pay it off in his next life!
Might as well follow his master’s example. Back in the day, to avoid debts, his master had built his dojo on an island in the southern sea, making it impossible for creditors to chase him. He’d outlived all his creditors, and the debts had disappeared naturally!
"Perfect! Time to run!"
Monroe stood up immediately and strode toward the exit.
Yet the moment he stepped out of the stands and into the corridor outside, a group of burly men suddenly emerged, led by a lean man with glasses.
They blocked his path.
"Hello there, Mr. Monroe~!"
The man with glasses greeted him with a smile.
"......"
"Mr. Monroe, you’re in such a hurry—where are you off to? Surely you’re not trying to avoid us~?"
"Heh...... Hehe...... Of course not! I just suddenly need to use the restroom."
Monroe replied, his lips twitching.
"Oh, I see. Speaking of which......"
The man with glasses patted Monroe’s shoulder and slowly pulled out an IOU.
"Mr. Monroe, shouldn’t you be repaying your debt? The due date on this has already passed~!"
"Uh...... Well...... You see, there was a slight unexpected incident. Do you think you could give me a few more days......"
"......"
The smile on the man’s face gradually faded. He removed his hand from Monroe’s shoulder, took off his glasses, and wiped them slowly with a handkerchief.
"Mr. Monroe......"
"You’re putting us in a difficult position~."
The man put his cleaned glasses back on, staring straight at Monroe.
"Surely you know the rules of borrowing money?"
"I-I know...... Don’t worry, I’ll pay you back as soon as I have the money!"
"Sigh——"
The man with glasses sighed.
The burly men around him closed in, surrounding Monroe completely.
"Mr. Monroe, I must remind you—we are a legitimate, state-licensed merchant guild! If you intend to default and run away, we will issue a national warrant for your arrest. You wouldn’t want things to escalate to that, would you?"
"Heh...... Heh...... Of course not!"
"Sigh, very well——"
The man with glasses sighed again.
"You clearly don’t have the money right now. Let’s discuss alternative arrangements for when you can’t repay the debt. Please come with me~!"
"......Can I refuse?"
"Hehe~!"
The man with glasses smiled.
"What do you think?"
Monroe glanced around.
The burly men all gestured toward the corridor with a "please" motion.
"......"
Why did things turn out like this?!
Monroe let out a tragic cry from the depths of his heart.
......
