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How long had they fought so frantically? Both began to realize that they couldn’t go on like this. Countless sword strikes had been exchanged, yet neither had managed to wound the other. Only the unfortunate wasteland had been plowed enthusiastically like a barley field in spring.

‘I guess I’ll have to show my hand.’

Suddenly, Stalla threw her daggers into the air. She shouted, “Sethea! Randart!”

Calling the names of her cherished weapons, she awakened the spirits within the daggers. The bluish-purple aura transformed into a pure violet light, halting mid-air.

With that, Stalla spread her palms and assumed a martial stance.

Whirrrrr!

Auras extended from her hands, forming long blades. She bared her teeth in a fierce grin.

“Let’s go, my sisters!”

The violet daggers flew through the air, shooting towards Russ from the left and right like arrows.

* * *

The two daggers, imbued with a menacing energy, flew at him from both sides. Even without looking, he could feel their destructive force. Russ tightened his grip on his sword, his expression hardening.

‘So this is what hyung talked about.’

He had already seen this technique through Siris and Tilla, but facing it directly was a different experience.

Ever since he became an aura user, he could usually grasp the technique just by observing. The Dwarves’ methods, the earth resonance, he couldn’t replicate due to different physiology, but he had long since understood the principles.

But this technique was beyond comprehension!

‘Good grief…’

Russ made a bitter face. In truth, floating a sword in mid-air and manipulating it at will wasn’t a difficult task for an aura user. It was just a matter of overlaying the sword with aura and controlling it with willpower.

The problem was that it served no practical purpose. Who would focus on controlling a floating sword only to get stabbed? If a ranged attack was needed, simply hurling aura would suffice. There was no need to throw a sword.

However, this technique was different. As an aura user, Russ could tell for sure. There was no connection of energy between Stalla and her daggers.

Stalla wasn’t controlling them. The daggers were truly flying on their own. Naturally, she had no distractions.

‘As expected, it has nothing to do with aura, just as hyung said.’

Russ widened his aura field, sensing the movements of the daggers, and furrowed his brows. He recalled Repenhardt’s recent explanation.

-The orcs’ vision, Spirits Weapon, is said to communicate with the sword and awaken its soul. Well, that’s what they believe, anyway. My research showed something different.

While Tilla was fighting, Repenhardt took the time to explain to Russ in detail about the orcs’ vision. They couldn’t afford to make the same mistake as during Siris’s time. Tilla had been sent out due to urgency, but Russ had ample time to prepare.

Contrary to the orcs’ belief, a mere tool couldn’t possibly have a soul. However, when the orc warriors activated the Spirits Weapon, the weapons indeed seemed to move on their own, as if alive. Repenhardt, a mage, had naturally researched this irrational phenomenon. During his time as the Emperor of the Antares Empire, he studied Tassid and other orc warriors, gaining significant insight into their vision.

-It’s not exactly the soul of the sword, but rather the lingering thoughts of the orc warrior imbued into a weapon they have used for a long time. They project their consciousness over time, leaving residual thoughts, which in turn transform the weapon into a sort of semi-informational entity. It’s somewhat like artificial intelligence in magical terms. Although, compared to a mage’s creation, it’s quite simplistic.

When a rational being harbors intense emotions or consciousness, they leave a trace in the flow of the world. This is known as residual thoughts.

-Orcs are known to be one of the simplest species in the world, and their simple nature makes their thoughts intense. Their act of cherishing their weapons endows them with residual thoughts, resulting in the Spirits Weapon. They can even project their thoughts to tame beasts. That’s why orcs can tame fierce creatures like direwolves.

The true racial characteristic of the orcs wasn’t merely making weapons fly. It was the ability to let their thoughts embedded in objects directly affect reality.

Repenhardt trembled upon realizing the true power of the orcs through his research. If orcs fully understood what they were doing, they could move objects or control minds with mere thoughts.

Thus, during his time in the Antares Empire, Repenhardt once gathered his subordinate orcs and taught them his theory, training them to consciously activate their thought power. He hoped to arm the orcs with incredible weapons.

However, the result was a complete failure.

The orcs’ thoughts indeed possessed physical power, but their effect was too insignificant. Only with prolonged and intense concentration could these thoughts barely affect the physical world.

In other words, thought power had to be focused until it took the form of residual thoughts for any physical results to manifest. Moreover, residual thoughts wouldn’t remain unless it was an object cherished with an almost obsessive affection. Realizing this limitation, Repenhardt had to abandon his experiments, disappointed.

Anyway, Repenhardt couldn’t share his past life’s story with Russ. He only explained the practical parts.

-The stronger the thought power imbued in a weapon, the more it moves as if it has a real life. For an aura user, it can almost be considered an extension of oneself. The more information contained in the residual thoughts, the more of one’s skills and experiences remain.

Sensing the movements of the flying daggers, Russ inwardly clicked his tongue.

-Indeed, these movements are on a different level compared to the orcs we faced earlier.

The two daggers, imbued with aura, glided through the air like dancers, skillfully targeting Russ’s openings. Each attack was astonishingly precise and delicate. Despite being a pair of daggers, they were vastly different from what Jalkato had shown. It felt as if there were two invisible Stallas attacking in unison.

-Ah, this is really troublesome.

Gritting his teeth, Russ continuously dodged the attacks. He had no chance to counterattack. Stalla, who had thrown the daggers, wasn’t standing still either. She kept wielding her aura-filled hands, causing the ground to crack and the atmosphere to tremble.

Boom!

Both the daggers and Stalla simultaneously extended three streaks of blade aura. The angles made it impossible to dodge. This time, instead of defending, Russ thrust his sword forward.

“Taaat!”

Just like before, instead of blocking each attack, he countered with his sword to force the opponent back. Stalla also withdrew her attack, crossing her arms defensively as she retreated. But this time, the outcome was different.

While Stalla retreated, her daggers, Sethea and Randart, did not.

Swish!

With a chilling noise, a flash grazed Russ’s shoulder. He groaned, letting his right arm drop.

Thud! Drip!

Red blood dripped down his right arm. He managed to twist his body to avoid Sethea’s attack on the left, but couldn’t dodge Randart’s aura on the right. Luckily, his arm wasn’t severed, but it seemed a tendon was damaged, rendering it immobile.

“Ugh…”

Holding his sword with just his left hand, Russ suppressed the pain, while Stalla let out a hearty cry.

“My victory!”

Russ’s eyes wavered.

He had already long acknowledged that his opponent was superior. In terms of experience, skill, and aura power, Russ was no match for Stalla. However, it was still too frustrating to admit defeat just like that.

He hadn’t shown everything yet!

Suddenly, Russ’s eyes widened as he shouted.

“Not yet!”

Boom!

The ground beneath Russ exploded. The force of his leap created a deep indentation in the earth. He charged forward, raising his longsword with his left hand above his head. He quickly closed the distance and jumped over Stalla, gritting his teeth.

‘I haven’t mastered it for actual combat yet…’

The sudden enlightenment at the Grand Forge, and the week spent in isolation to consolidate that realization, had given him a small yet significant breakthrough.

The fact that his opponent was an orc no longer mattered. Stalla was undoubtedly a great swordsman worthy of his respect. He wanted to show something to such a warrior.

As he swung his sword down, Russ inwardly screamed.

‘Please succeed!’

A thunderous cry erupted from him.

“Phantom Divide!”

A magnificent bloom of sword strikes filled Stalla’s vision, dozens of slashes flying towards her with terrifying force.

* * *

A storm of blades swept across her field of vision. Dozens of slashes imbued with a vibrant blue aura rained down from all directions.

Yet, Stalla found herself perplexed.

‘What is this?’

To the casual observer, it would appear as an immensely impressive technique, but in the end, it was just a barrage of sword swings. Such chaotic phantom swords might work against ordinary warriors, but she was an aura user. She could clearly discern which of those numerous slashes were real.

‘I can sense only three real strikes. The rest are mere feints.’

Against an aura user, an attack like this would only result in lost limbs and writhing on the ground. Her opponent, also an aura user, must have known this.

It seemed like he was making a desperate final attack, disregarding life and death. If a human warrior saw this, they would scoff at it as a foolish act of s*****e…

“A young lad with some promise!”

But Stalla, being an orc, actually welcomed it.

‘Indeed, a swordsman shouldn’t be concerned about losing a limb or two.’

Pleased, Stalla charged into the storm of blades. Ignoring most of the deceptive slashes, she used her aura-imbued hand to parry the real attacks. Her daggers intercepted the remaining two sword strikes in mid-air.

Boom!

The clash of auras echoed with a thunderous roar. After blocking all of Russ’s attacks, Stalla extended her aura blade with one remaining hand, aiming for his thigh—a spot that would not kill but would certainly wound enough to end the fight.

She was just about to swing her aura strike when…

Flash!

A blinding light flickered, and a sudden, intense pain erupted from her side. The longsword that should have been blocked by her strike had somehow moved to her left side and slashed through her.

“Gah?”

Groaning, Stalla quickly retreated. She looked up in shock. There had been no sense of presence in that direction.

“What on earth is this?”