STM 135

Thud.

A young man wielding a sword threw an old man to the ground like a sack of potatoes. He then called out to a woman in her mid-to-late fifties standing before him.

“Master.”

Sarne Bayan, who had been gazing up at the sky, turned her eyes.

“This man claims he saw someone he believes was Black Bear.”

After reporting, the disciple kicked the old man’s body. The old man trembled and opened his mouth.

“My, my wife was almost attacked by a wolf, but she, she saved her. She swung a huge sword…”

“How big was the sword?”

At Bayan’s question, the old man flustered and spread his arms wide.

“This… this big… Ugh!”

“Speak properly.”

The disciple kicked him again, and the old man forced himself to remember.

“It… it seemed to reach below the chest. She stood with the sword planted in the ground, so it was almost that long…”

“Which direction did she go?”

“She… she went north, but the only way that leads there is toward XXX…”

Once again, the old man couldn’t finish his sentence.

Srrng.

With the sound of a sword being drawn from its scabbard, the old man’s throat was sliced in one swift stroke. In the blink of an eye, his head separated from his body and rolled across the floor.

Though a life was lost in an instant, neither Bayan, who had committed the murder, nor her disciple spared it a glance, continuing their conversation as if nothing had happened.

“XXX is the gateway to Kun’s territory. Why would Black Bear have gone there?”

“What reason could a soon-to-be rotting corpse possibly have?”

Bayan muttered expressionlessly, then commanded her disciple.

“Gather the children. We’re entering Kun.”

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The bear… Sarne’s divine beast spread both arms wide to the sides and splayed its short, barely noticeable legs apart. ‘ㅈ’. I’d already guessed it. Even the motion of lowering its jaw was painfully slow, but I watched without complaint. The answer to the question I’d carefully chosen was finally coming.

‘Why didn’t you give her strength, even though you stayed by Black Bear’s side for so long?’

After a long wait, the divine beast signaled it had finished speaking by slumping to the floor. The advantage of its slow movements was that I had ample time to infer its answer without Mo’s help. And Mo confirmed my prediction.

[Die.]

Though the subject was missing, I slowly turned my head. Black Bear was still kneeling before me, despite my frantic attempts to stop her. So, to help her rise, I had to give a hopeful answer.

“What did the divine beast say?”

“Get up. Only then can I answer.”

Black Bear reluctantly bowed her head before rising. Now at eye level, I told her flatly.

“It said ‘die.’”

Fortunately, she seemed to grasp immediately that the subject was herself. Her eyes wavered briefly, but Black Bear soon accepted it.

“I had suspected it since I held its hand and felt the divine beast’s power briefly earlier.”

“But isn’t it because you were the most suitable person that it stayed by your side for so long? No matter what the Sarne people did to try and reclaim the divine beast.”

But my consolation seemed to have instead touched upon her painful past. However, she took a breath, swallowing the pain and returned to her usual blunt tone.

“I’ve heard that the power of a divine beast is too immense for humans to bear, so even the chosen ones must undergo long training. Accepting the power recklessly could kill even the chosen.”

So that’s why Borhumi divine beast kept shouting about training. I turned back to Sarne divine beast, wondering if…

“Can you tell us how to accept your power?”

The answer was simply two actions.

‘ㅇㄱ’

[Human.]

Damn it. I faced Black Bear. Unlike her eyes, brimming with desperate longing, she stared at me with a determined expression.

“It seems you have to learn from humans.”

“……You mean the Sarne family.”

Well, that’s probably the only place. Since each divine beast possesses different powers, they must have spent ages mastering their own methods to wield that power.

But that doesn’t mean she can ask an enemy for help. Black Bear’s gaze fell to the floor.

Her expression was blank, but her slumped shoulders betrayed her disappointment. She must have thought she was finally getting the power to take revenge.

“Let’s look for another way first. If it’s alright with you, may I inform my sister and request her help? Lantuya has excellent intelligence networks.”

I thought she might refuse, fearing her secret would be revealed. Yet, Black Bear nodded readily.

“Do as you wish, Master Salvation. I’m fine with it.”

No, constantly throwing around that “Master” title like that was what bothered me. It was already burdensome enough that I couldn’t do anything as a master in the Kun family.

If I could have lifted the curse, Tairok wouldn’t have had to go fight Sarne’s sword master… Huh? I stopped my thoughts mid-stream and spun around.

“Master, do you have something to say?”

“You said you’d take revenge on Sarne, correct? Does that include the sword master there?”

“Sarne Bayan is my primary target to kill.”

Ah.

“Then you’d be upset if someone else killed Sarne Bayan?”

“Of course. Bayan must die by my hand… Someone else?”

Blackbear glared angrily, eyes wide. She asked with the intention to eliminate anyone who dared touch Bayan first.

“Who is it? Which fearless human is it?!”

Grand Duke Kun.

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Though only through the communication device, I finally met Doctor Kim again after so long. But there was no time for pleasantries. The time I could use the device was limited, and I had an overflowing amount to say.

And as I spoke, Doctor Kim’s face visible through the device changed dynamically. When I finally finished the hastily organized content, she summed up her reaction in one word.

“Insane.”

“Right? There’s no other word for this situation but… insane.”

“Black Bear knelt before you and called you Salvation?”

What? I was bewildered and nodded first.

“Well, yes.”

“The stiff-necked woman who wouldn’t bow to me even after I saved her life is now bowing her head to you and using honorifics. ”

“Is that what surprises you now? Black Bear is the successor to the Sarne divine beast.”

“Ah, I did suspect that. Those petty Sarne bastards must have had something if they’d chase someone so relentlessly. But are you really Salvation?”

Why does she keep talking nonsense? Frustrated, I sighed.

“How could I possibly be Salvation?”

But Doctor Kim didn’t respond, she just briefly looked away.

“Doctor Kim? This isn’t the time for daydreaming. Tairok is about to die.”

“Him? No way.”

“Isn’t Sarne Bayan also a sword master?”

“That’s right. Shee’s skilled too. But Tairok’s aura is just so unusual.”

Aura? You mean those lightning-like beams he unleashed? As soon as I voiced my confusion, Mo offered an explanation.

[Sword masters don’t have ranks, but the degree to which they materialize their aura is typically used as a measure of their skill. Each sword master has a unique aura shape, but all sword masters who appeared in the past had a curved form. Kun Tairok is the first in history to emit an aura that isn’t curved.”

“……Insane.”

This time, the exclamation came from my own mouth.

“So Tairok is exceptional even among sword masters?”

“Probably. That’s why I’ve always wondered what would happen if that bastard Tairok fought another sword master. Especially Bayan, she’s an old fox who’s trained for ages. If she plays her cards right, it might be a close match.”

Doctor Kim’s eyes lit up with scholarly curiosity. I quickly stifled her interest.

“If Tairok gets injured and ends up bedridden for over a year, it’ll be the end of Earth.”

“…We must stop the fight.”

Yes, I nodded and gestured with my chin toward Black Bear outside the hut.

“So, Black Bear, please find a way for her to receive the power of the divine beast.”

“I’ll look into it, but don’t get your hopes up too high. Honestly, it’d be faster to just bring Tairok.”

Thinking she meant she’d stop the two from fighting, I nodded.

“I’ll try to find out where Tairok is too.”

“No. Call him home immediately.”

“Me?”

Doctor Kim pointed at me and gave me a pitying look.

“Didn’t the divine beast say you have to learn from humans? If someone knows about that power, it doesn’t matter if they’re not a Sarne, right?”

“But Tairok is a Kun family member. How could he know about Sarne’s power… Ah.”

Only then did I recall a forgotten fact. Tairok had once accepted the power of the Borhumi divine beast. It was a small amount, but he used it effortlessly.