Chapter 117: The Second Coming (3)

At Hector’s question, Herarion smiled awkwardly.

“Haha, there is a way…”

He had anticipated this reaction, but before taking a course of action, Herarion decided to take a short break. Even a king couldn’t work like a machine, no matter how great a healing potion was.

“I’m starting to get hungry, so would you like to eat?”

“I don’t really mind.”

“Oh, food! Even though I can’t eat it, I’d still like to look at it.”

“Okay. Then let’s move to a different location.”

They served food not long after. Hector sat at the table. “Oh wow…! It’s been so long since I’ve seen food!”

Herarion had made food that suited the tastes of the people from the empire.

As Hector admired the food, Henry said, “Are you really that excited?”

“Of course! Hurry up, I’m dying to taste the food through whatever method you have in mind.”

“Haha, I’ll hurry.”

The entire situation was strange. Hector belonged to the underworld, but since he was present in the world due to the power of Janus, he didn’t have to worry about the causality of his situation and could stay on as a spirit without paying a price.

‘I guess he technically has eternal youth and immortality,’

He was like a lich. However, the difference was that he didn’t need a life support device like the life force vessel, which could be said to be a lich’s weakness. However, it didn’t mean that Hector was invincible.

Hector was a spirit, so he couldn't make physical contact with anyone without a special set up. He needed people like Herarion, who could help him get a body that he could use. Otherwise, he would be little more than a lonely bystander who couldn’t participate in the world.

‘He’s also vulnerable to magic.’

Although he wasn’t affected by physical attacks, magic, Aura, or spiritism would affect him.

‘He’s hard to handle in a lot of ways.’

If Hector didn’t have the highest level of a swordmaster’s Aura and excellent swordsmanship, his resurrection would be meaningless and as insignificant as a fly’s life.

Soon the meal ended, and everyone was in a friendly mood. When tea was served, Hector couldn’t help staring.

“Your Majesty, can I ask you a question?” asked Henry.

“As long as it’s not a royal secret, I can answer anything.”

“It’s nothing that important. Since Benedict is dead now, isn’t the seat of La’s Sword vacant?”

“Yes?”

“La’s Sword is reserved for the best warrior of the desert, so how will you select the next warrior?”

“I’ll have to follow tradition. If nothing unusual happens, I plan to hold a martial arts tournament.”

“That means Your Majesty will also be participating?”

“Me? No. I’m not capable.” Herarion waved his hand.

Henry smiled and asked, “Why do you think that?”

“What?”

“Wasn’t Herabola Khan, the previous Khan, both La’s Son and La’s Sword?”

“Yes, but…”

“Shouldn't Your Majesty do the same?”

“...I’m not as talented as my father.”

“That’s not true. Your father was the best warrior of the desert, and Your Majesty was born with the same qualities that Benedict could never even compare to.”

Nothing could beat the power of bloodlines. Herarion hadn’t trained because he wasn’t interested in swordsmanship, not because he didn’t have the skills.

“Can it be that Your Majesty isn’t interested in swordsmanship because you didn’t meet a good master?”

“A good master… you say?”

“That’s right. Learning something only becomes truly interesting when you have a good master.”

“...Is that so?”

Henry continued to persuade him and eventually, Herarion began to nod in agreement.

‘He’s almost convinced.’

Henry’s reason for encouraging Herarion to take up swordsmanship was simple. Like Herabola Khan, Herarion was also La’s Son and Henry also wanted to turn him into La’s Sword to strengthen his royal authority.

‘There's no need to separate power, plus, the stronger Herarion becomes, the more my power grows.’

Herarion hadn’t even fully awakened the power of La, so Henry blamed Herarion’s laziness. Henry thought of using La’s Sword as an excuse to train him as much as possible so that Herarion could realize the true powers of La.

“Lord Henry, I appreciate the suggestion, but now that the rebellion has been suppressed, no one in this country is qualified to teach me swordsmanship,” said Herarion.

“Is it because people are afraid of Your Majesty?”

“Yes.”

“There’s no need to worry about that.”

“What?”

“We should stay here for a while to help Hector adjust to a normal life anyway, right?”

“Yes but… Can it be?”

“That’s right. Although Hector’s swordsmanship is not the same style as Shahatra, he is still called the Sword King. Hector taught me, too. So, Your Majesty, why not learn swordsmanship from him?”

“What, me?”

Hector had been listening, and he pointed at himself and asked, “All we have is time, so why don’t you do some work in the meantime?”

“Teaching isn’t hard, but… Okay! I’ll just think of it as training another disciple.”

There were always talented people around. If Herarion learned Hector’s swordsmanship and not Shahatra’s, it would be helpful when dealing with imperial forces in the future.

“It looks like we’ve got things sorted out.”

Henry had resurrected Hector and assured Herarion’s growth. They’d also made a decision on the goods they would buy, and it was time for him to move onto the next step.

“Your Majesty, can Hector and I leave for a minute?”

“Ah, of course. I can do the next steps alone, so there’s no need for you two to be here.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Henry immediately left the capital with Hector. However, it was obvious that if they left the capital the normal way, they would be the center of attention.

“Huh? Can I fly?”

“Yeah, everyone will be in an uproar if they see a person of your size.”

“I’ve never done it before, but I’ll give it a try.”

At Henry’s urging, Hector attempted to levitate and at the end of many attempts, they found out that only his soul could fly in the sky.

“...I’ll give your armor back once we get there.”

If Henry had enough mana, they could Teleport, but he was not in any state to do so at the moment. Even though it was a little troublesome, they decided to use Fly.

After they were far from the capital, Hector landed on the ground and shouted, “Come!”

Clank clank!

It looked like a robot coming to life.

“Anyway, what did we come here for?” asked Hector.

“What do you mean? It’s for training. Otherwise, there’s no reason for us to come all this way, right?”

“Right. Let’s see the results of your training so far.”

“Before that, I have something to show you.”

“Something to show me?”

Under the scorching sun, Henry drew his sword in front of Hector and…

Tzzz.

“...!”

Hector’s eyes widened. “You…!”

“Yes. I finally figured it out.”

It was the first time he had shown his Aura to anyone since mastering it.

Henry slowly revealed his green Aura, which radiated from his lower abdomen to his body. He transferred the Aura to his blade. The Aura moved like waves.

The Aura had an unrefined, raw appearance unique to experts, but the output didn’t match that of an expert user.

Hector closely observed Henry’s Aura for some time, then gently nodded and said, “How unusual.”

“What is?”

“I don’t know if other people can see it, but I do. Your Aura radiates from the Core in your stomach but passes through your heart before being released. It’s like you’re dealing with two Cores. Am I right?”

Henry heard the response he had been hoping for. He stopped the Aura and said, “You’re right. Like you said, unlike other swordsmen, my strength is connected not only to my Core but also my heart. I’m not sure, but if my theories are right, my Aura seems to be affected by the mana accumulated in my heart.”

“Are you talking about the Circle of wizards?”

“Yes.”

“That’s unheard of. However, there hasn’t been a single swordsman in history who has handled both Aura and magic at the same time; perhaps this is something very normal for a wizard swordsman.”

At the time Henry had first mastered the Aura, the situation was so tense that he didn’t have time to figure out how his Aura was even being released. However, now that the subjugation was over and he had free time, Henry decided to figure out the extent of his strength by showing his Aura to his sword master, Hector.

Henry took a huge two-handed sword from the Chest and threw it at Hector.

Thud.

The sword got stuck in the sand in front of him.

“Hector, draw your sword.”

“Are you requesting to spar?”

“No, I need to learn about my strength. So, release your Aura and cooperate please.”

“You’re not even at a level where you can think about fighting me.”

It was only a bit of teasing and Henry didn’t see the need to respond.

Hector lost interest in Henry’s reaction and raised the sword, saying, “It’s so small.”

The sword was very large, but Hector was now as big as an ogre. When he lifted it, the sword looked like an ordinary longsword.

Hector drew his sword and started to load Aura onto the blade.

Tzzz.

Blue Aura started to form on the blade.

“This is inconvenient. If I don’t have these metal parts, I won’t even be able to use Aura.”

“If you're dissatisfied, I can send you back to the underworld.”

“...Can’t I make a joke?”

“Haha, I was joking too. I’m going to attack first.” Henry closed the distance between them in an instant. Although he had trained with Hector, Henry had improved his swordsmanship mostly on his own, and his style was mixed with imperial swordsmanship.

However, Hector didn’t move at all and…

Clank!

Henry’s sword collided with Hector’s body, but Hector didn’t even flinch.

“Hmm.”

Instead, he let out a small exclamation like a gourmand tasting food.

𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Henry was flustered because he thought that Hector would at least take a defensive stance. His pride hurt, Henry started to swing his sword, releasing even more Aura.

Clank! Clank!

However, Hector’s attitude did not change. Like a solid castle wall, he took Henry’s rain of attacks unfazed. This happened several times until, finally, Hector started to move.

“This should be more than enough.” Hector raised his sword, which was covered in Aura that was as thin and smooth as glass.

Swoosh!

Henry thought that Hector was going to swing his sword, but instead, Hector disappeared from sight.

“Here it is.”

“...!”

Boom!

Hector’s sword split Henry in half.