Chapter 19: vs. Sealed Labyrinth Guardian α ①
In the wilderness of a thousand swords stood a lone man. He had a strikingly handsome face and golden hair. His armor was similar to mine, crafted from high-quality materials that provided protection without hindering his movements.
“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”
The man lightly waved his hand toward us. I didn’t need to ask, “Who are you?” I already knew.
“Long time no see.”
We exchanged casual greetings as if we were old friends meeting after a long separation. I had only seen someone with such an aggressive Sword Qi once before. It seemed that Eris finally recognized him.
“No way! You’re that Dragonbone Swordsman from back then—!!”
She exclaimed in shock.
“Fufu. So you finally figured it out, my rival.”
It wasn’t surprising that Eris hadn’t realized it sooner. Although we called him the Dragonbone Swordsman, his body was no longer composed of the dragon bones from our encounter in the Blade Labyrinth.
“What’s wrong? Are you curious about my body?”
His demeanor was casual, as if he were speaking to an acquaintance.
“Of course. Without that ridiculous Sword Qi, I wouldn’t have believed you were the same person as back then.”
In response to my words, the Dragonbone Swordsman nodded thoughtfully.
“That’s true. But regardless, please call me No-Skill.”
That name rang a bell. He was the swordsman who had faced the ultra-disaster-class monster, the Unbreakable Dragon, in a small town, sacrificing his life in a mutual defeat. Originally a term of derision, “No-Skill” had become synonymous with the hero who saved the town out of a sense of duty.
“No-Skill is not only my nickname but also the name of my only Skill.”
I had heard of his story. He was originally a man without any Skills. However, he persevered through ridicule and hardship, honing his swordsmanship without relying on Skills. After extraordinary training, he eventually became a master-class swordsman. Then one day, perhaps by the whim of a God, a certain Skill manifested that would make him a legendary swordsman.
“If I use the Skill called No-Skill, my opponent will be unable to use any Skills other than those I acknowledge.”
In other words, to fight him, one would only need pure combat ability.
“The real me no longer exists in this world.”
He began to speak in a somewhat melodic tone. As if reading my thoughts about who he was now, he continued.
“The me here is merely a copy born from the Labyrinth.”
A copy? He had self-awareness, so—
“Self-awareness is like a small boat drifting in a vast ocean. The information, including my self-awareness—” At that moment, No-Skill fell silent, unable to continue.
“It seems there’s a security measure in place, so I can’t go into too much detail. But, well, this sword of mine—”
He raised his sword. Illuminated by the starlight, his sword looked remarkably similar to my Gram.
“—is the same sword you have. Both are merely copies of the Demon Sword Gram that I cherished.”
Aside from the fact that my sword had a more pronounced black hue—meaning the color was slightly different—it indeed appeared to be an exact replica.
“Since it’s confusing to call them both Demon Sword Gram, I’ll give them names. Since they’re both fakes… my Gram will be called Gram Copy, and yours will be Reprint Gram—how does that sound?”
“‘How does that sound?’ Well, I don’t really mind, but…”
It seemed a bit convoluted; couldn’t we just call them Black Gram and White Gram instead? That might be too simplistic.
“Well, yes, I think you’ve understood that I’m merely a copy of the original, given that two identical swords exist. So, regarding the previous me, the Labyrinth mixed together ‘the Unbreakable Dragon I defeated’ and ‘me,’ resulting in that ugly form. While I was absurdly strong, I couldn’t think straight, couldn’t use Skills, and my techniques didn’t perform as expected. A sword isn’t just about brute strength, you know.”
Whether he was explaining this to us or talking to himself, it was hard to tell from his nonchalant tone.
“Once again, the Labyrinth tried to summon me, but this time I managed to appear in my own body instead of that ugly one.”
He laughed as if he had accomplished something great.
“And there’s a reason I called you two here. The little lady over there defeated me before. And that boy is clearly a superior swordsman compared to the lady back then.”
The Sword Qi he emitted intensified further.
“Well then, shall we begin?”
He pointed his sword at us.
“Anyone can go first! Come on!”
It seemed he was eager for a one-on-one duel.
“Let me go first.”
Eris bowed her head to me.
“I’ve only been able to serve as a mere foot soldier in this Sealed Labyrinth…”
I listened silently to her words.
“Of course, it’s due to my lack of skill, but I still want to contribute to the conquest of the Sealed Labyrinth. Please give me this opportunity once more.”
If she were simply eager to claim credit, I would have refused. However, she didn’t seem to have such shallow motives. On the contrary, she appeared to be deeply troubled by something.
“Understood. I leave it to you, Sword Saint.”
In response to my answer, she replied with a tense expression.
“Leave it to me.”