Chapter 329: And It Was Winter (5)

Even while lost in her thoughts, Henya saw everything, including Eslow toying with the Titans, armored war machines infused with divine power. The output of the level-six Titans wasn’t insufficient. Eslow still toyed with them, even without divine power. It wasn’t a problem of output—it was a gap in pure technique.

Eslow had just proven that when the level of technical perfection and experience differed by an immeasurable amount, even a gap in power that everyone believed to be absolute could be ignored.

Eslow turned his gaze to Henya. The Titans he had been fighting were already beneath his notice.

“Those aren’t the eyes of someone who’s given up.”

The Green Tower she trusted was annihilated, and the Titans were ineffective. And yet, Henya was more alive than before.

“Before we fight, I want to ask just one thing. Were you planning to turn Ryze and me into weapons?” Henya asked.

She had fled the palace because she believed the possibility was extremely high. But now, she wanted to hear it from his own mouth. No matter how terrible the situation had become, Eslow was still her biological father.

Eslow stared at Henya like he didn’t understand.

“You are my daughter, and Ryze is my son. What is the problem with making my seeds into weapons?”

“...!”

“There is no reason to be sad or angry. I am not singling you and Ryze out. I created you only because I needed weapons.”

Eslow thought that must be why Henya was angry—that he was leaving the other children alone and only turning them into weapons.

“Or are you resentful about becoming a weapon? But the reason you were born was to become weapons. If I had not needed weapons, you would never have been born in the first place.”

“...Do you truly believe you are right?”

Swallowing her boiling rage, Henya continued questioning, stepping half a step closer to Eslow each time.

“I do not see this as a matter of right or wrong. Rather, you should feel honored to become my weapon. You should be happy that you can be with me forever.”

“We clearly speak the same language and look similar, yet we are completely different.”

Now right in front of him, Henya removed the white glove she wore and threw it at his chest.

“As a knight, I challenge you to a duel.”

“If you stand before me as a knight, then you would already no longer be among the living. But I acknowledge that spirit.”

Eslow extended his right arm. Space distorted, and five things appeared. They were the ultimate armaments, created through Eslow’s Authority, weaponization. This was proof that Eslow genuinely accepted the duel, and this was the exact moment Henya had been waiting for.

Bzzz...

The five armaments began to tremble. Eslow’s eyes slowly widened.

“...Don’t tell me.”

Whoosh!

Of Eslow’s five weapons, three flew toward Henya, and that was not by Eslow’s will. Formless Sword—the bladeless sword—settled into Henya’s right hand, Red Spear—the crimson-flamed spear—into her left, and the Glass Shield, which absorbed and reflected magic and special abilities, attached itself to her right arm.

* * *

In the blink of an eye, Eslow had lost three of his strongest armaments. He reached toward Henya, trying to reclaim what had been taken, but the armaments themselves resisted and refused.

“Have you mastered this Authority?”

There was no reason to answer, but Henya responded anyway to shake his composure.

“No. I can only hear the voices of weapons. I guess you can’t hear them, can you? Their cursed voices, begging you to die—begging to be freed from you.”

“A pity. It would’ve been even better if you had mastered it.”

Henya had stolen three of the strongest armaments from Eslow, yet she didn’t feel advantaged at all. Above all, the Wooden Armor and the Double-Headed Axe of Darkness were still with Eslow. Those two had no souls. Too much time had passed, and they had become nothing but weapons themselves.

Whoosh.

That was when Eslow threw his remaining strongest armaments at Henya. The Wooden Armor and the Double-Headed Axe of Darkness flew toward her. Henya tensed, thinking it was an attack, but it wasn’t.

“Use them. This is enough for me.”

In Eslow’s hand, a single sword had appeared, one created by his Authority.

Henya focused her senses. It was clearly a fine sword, but it had no soul, meaning it had no special powers—it was just a hard, sturdy sword.

“...”

Henya took the Wooden Armor and pressed it to her chest. The branches of the armor expanded and contracted on their own, fitting perfectly onto her. She ignored the axe. She knew how to use it, but merely knowing how wouldn’t work on Eslow.

Henya stood with her feet shoulder-width apart, rear foot angled. The tip of the spear was aimed at Eslow, and her sword was lowered. This was the optimal stance to begin battle.

Unlike Henya, who assumed a starting stance, Eslow took no stance at all. Henya knew it wasn’t arrogance or ease. He was at a realm beyond being bound by physical form, meaning he could attack, defend, and evade freely in any situation.

Even holding the ultimate defense of the Wooden Armor and two supreme weapons, Henya didn’t rush in. She simply stared Eslow down. She didn’t even blink, barely breathing. She could feel it through her skin that one tiny signal could lead straight to death.

Then, Eslow gave a warning.

“Right wrist.”

Clang!

At the same instant, sparks of aura scattered in every direction. Henya’s Formless Sword collided with Eslow’s sword. After that, Henya swung her sword and spear in a blur. The Formless Sword, with no physical blade, could change its length freely. The spear, pure flame itself, left burning trails along its arc, scorching only the enemy.

Meanwhile, the Wooden Armor defended against attacks on its own. True to Eslow’s favorite supreme armaments, all of them performed beyond ordinary artifacts. And yet, the one being pushed back was Henya.

“Abdomen. Back of the neck. Left shoulder. Both legs.”

Eslow even announced his target each time he attacked, but even knowing, Henya’s best option was still simply to block. Of course, if she could just hold out, she could give Keter the opening for an ambush, but Henya wasn’t the type to accept being a punching bag.

He thinks I’m defending mindlessly.

Henya gave up on the dream of counterattacking Eslow directly. Instead, she aimed for his sword, continuously building tiny fractures into it. And at the moment those fractures reached their limit, she switched to a full assault.

Hundred Paths of Two Hands. Left sword: River Control. Right spear: Buffalo.

Henya wasn’t just skilled at twin swords; she was skilled in fighting with two hands.

The Red Spear pierced through Eslow’s sword. His sword, which was already cracked, Eslow’s shattered on the spot. Through that opening, the Formless Sword forced its way in, driving toward Eslow’s heart. It was theoretically a perfect move, but Eslow’s fist was faster.

Blossoms in Wild Bloom.

A torrent of overwhelming force swallowed Henya. The momentum of her Formless Sword was crushed, and what remained was only a terrible pain. A high-pitched ringing filled her ears. She couldn’t even process what had happened. For a moment, she lost consciousness.

When she came to her senses, she was flying through the air. It felt like every bone in her body had been pulverized. If she wasn’t wearing the Wooden Armor, she would’ve been reduced to a mangled heap.

Henya landed and rolled, then immediately turned her gaze to find Eslow. However, a hand settled on her shoulder at that moment.

“It seems you’ve forgotten my teachings. True combat has no form.”

Hundred Paths of Two Hands. Left sword: Shadow Slash. Right fist. Blossoms in Wild Bloom.

Even with her back seized, Henya tried to strike. However, her sword and fist were stopped by Eslow’s knee and fingers.

“Henya, give up now. If you do, I’ll spare the life of that worm.”

He didn’t look, and he didn’t say the name, but Henya knew exactly who he meant. She trembled for a moment as her heart dropped, and Eslow, never missing such a slip, smiled and continued.

“You don’t need to fear becoming a weapon. If I want, you can return to being human again. If you listen well... I’ll let you live as a human most of the time.”

Eslow’s offer was like a warm fire offered to someone lost in the mountains in midwinter. But for some reason, Henya’s fighting spirit didn’t fade at all.

Seeing her eyes, Eslow frowned.

Clang!

There was no conversation. Henya kept attacking. Even she knew it wouldn’t work; the gap in everything—strength, speed, technique—was too obvious.

Eslow couldn’t understand it. He was certain Henya knew he was holding back. If he wanted, he could kill her instantly.

Is that why? Because she knows I won’t kill her, she’s grown bold.

It was true: Eslow had no intention of killing Henya. Even if he killed her, he could still turn her into a weapon, but the quality would drop.

I showed her the gap to make her despair... but she rationalized it with cleverness.

Eslow continued to think while receiving her vicious attacks: how could he push Henya into despair? Pain and death drove most humans into despair. But even after crushing her entire body with Blossoms in Wild Bloom, she hadn’t even groaned, so pain wasn’t the answer.

Only after dragging up memories from when he was still human did Eslow find the answer.

When something precious disappears, humans despair.

Eslow’s gaze shifted. Distance was meaningless to him. At first, he looked at Ryze. He was his son and Henya’s younger brother. He knew Henya cherished Ryze deeply, but he couldn’t kill Ryze, as Ryze had to become his weapon as well. Even if not on Henya’s level, Ryze would still become a supreme weapon.

So that left only one person.

Wid, was it.

His frown deepened. It disgusted him that he even remembered the name of such a lowly being..

I can’t understand why she took such a worm as a spouse. No talent, and his body is weak as well.

A mongrel stray dog—to Eslow, Wid wasn’t even a being worthy of being called human.

Boom!!

Eslow’s palm drove into Henya’s chest. Even with the Wooden Armor protecting her, half her chest collapsed inward. In a single blow, Eslow dropped Henya. Then, he slashed up her lower body, severing every tendon.

However, the Wooden Armor also healed the wearer. Thanks to that, Henya would recover within ten minutes, but what mattered was what would happen during those ten minutes.

“I’ll make you realize how pointless the hope you’re clinging to truly is.”

Eslow walked toward Wid. He could close the distance in one step if he wanted to. He could take Wid’s life right now, but he deliberately walked slowly, wanting Wid and Henya to drown in fear and despair.

“No! Don’t go! I’m not finished yet!”

Henya despaired exactly as Eslow intended. She crawled after him with both arms, but it was useless. Yet strangely, Wid remained calm, even with death steadily approaching him.

Seeing that, Eslow didn’t think much of it.

He knows nothing, so he doesn’t even understand death is coming.

Eslow could guess why Wid didn’t tremble, why he didn’t run. Wid was holding a sword. It wasn’t ordinary, even at a glance. It looked rusted, yet its edge was so sharp it felt visible to the naked eye.

He’s relying on an artifact and not running.

Wid’s sword was clearly an artifact, and a fairly high-grade one at that. However, it still wasn’t something Eslow needed to care about. He wouldn’t have cared, even if Henya was holding it. But the one holding it was Wid, clearly a novice.

Henya grew frantic. Ryze repeatedly fired off spells, trying to bind Eslow’s ankles, but he didn’t dodge, didn’t defend, and didn’t even slow his steps.

The powers who had gathered to fight Eslow were now just spectators, or perhaps they were waiting for a chance. Either way, none of them had any intention of protecting Wid.

Keter, this still isn’t the moment? How could there be a better opening than now?

Eslow’s attention was completely on Wid. To Eslow, Wid was like an ant. Henya had never seen the sword Wid was holding before, but that wasn’t the point.

Henya bit down hard on her lip, and blood ran down. Otherwise, she felt like she wouldn’t be able to endure it.

I have to believe in Keter. If I don’t, I can’t deceive Eslow completely.

Eslow finally arrived in front of Wid.

“I’ll cut off the parts of your body that stick out, one by one. We’ll start with your fingers,” Eslow announced, completely expressionless.

As if even drawing a sword for Wid would be a waste, Eslow extended his index finger. And in that moment, Eslow turned and snatched something out of the air.

Bzzzz!

In his grasp was a white arrow—White Cloud. The arrow appeared without sound or presence, yet the power inside it was enormous, enough to make even Eslow’s hand tremble.

But in the end, the ambush failed. Henya realized too late that the arrow had been fired and was crushed by the fact that it had been stopped.

“Haha. Henya, I was wondering what hope you were holding on to. It was Keter.”

Eslow had long been certain the Green Tower and Baen’s knights were only misdirection, and that the true trap lay elsewhere. It was obvious, as how could such small fry possibly face him? But he had never imagined it was Keter.

“It was a fairly fine arrow.”

Everyone thought the ambush had failed. But that was when something unexpected happened: Wid swung his sword. To be frank, it would be more accurate to say the sword swung Wid.

In terms of positioning, it was the optimal attack, as Eslow had turned his back on Wid. However, Eslow wasn’t going to panic at an attack from behind. Even without trying, he could block it with his innate divine power. It shouldn’t have mattered, but...

“...?!”

A sudden chill ran through Eslow. He reached out to defend belatedly, but the sword was faster than Eslow.

Slash.

A deep cut appeared on Eslow’s chest. The great Eslow had been cut by Wid’s sword, but it wasn’t accurate to say Wid had cut Eslow—the sword moved on its own and cut Eslow.

“This is...!”

Only after being struck did Eslow realize that the sword that cut him was no ordinary artifact.

The thin line on the flat of the blade, something that had looked like mere decoration, split open vertically, and an eye suddenly appeared. Aporphis, the Demon Sword that should have been with Keter, had taken Wid as its host and began to rampage.