I Was the Strongest Sword God in My Past Life

part 14

They could easily bag over 300 SP points.

‘An incredible strategy that exploits the school’s rules and traps Isabelle… Zien is not just skilled, but a strategist. Considering how he persuaded Chris, he seems to have a good reputation too… I should recruit him first for group assignments.’

Eria was like a predator waiting to pounce, biding her time for the right moment.

‘If I can land just one hit on the witch in a critical moment? I could really win… no, I will win! The only thing that worries me is…’

The rock is too comfortable.

The moss under her belly is soft and cushy.

The posture of lying down with her arms as a pillow is more comfortable than expected. The sound of the rain is almost as monotonous as a lullaby.

‘I’m so sleepy…’

Using mana makes one tired, and being tired makes one sleepy. Sleep is the most basic need on the hierarchy of needs.

‘Should I just close my eyes for a bit?’

The Sandman whispered sweetly, tempting Eria. She almost gave in but shook her head to clear it.

‘Yawn, no, logically… what kind of fool would fall asleep during an exam… I’m not an idiot…’

* * *

As Zien swung down his sword.

Clang!

An intangible wall of mana blocked the way. The fight of Sabers using stigmata. Following Isabel’s gestures, blue flames danced in the downpour.

“You’re strong, aren’t you?”

Isabel spoke, standing tall as she had at the beginning.

“It’s an honor.”

On the other hand, Zien’s exhaustion was evident.

Zien marveled inwardly at Isabel’s talent, a mana potential of 9.7.

‘Experiencing it firsthand, I understand now.’

He had tried to overcome the difference in mana with stamina and experience, but Zien’s mana, which until recently was as good as crippled from residual mana, was no match for Isabel’s.

“Be sincere. Don’t be sarcastic.”

Isabel found her battle with Zien amusing.

How long had it been since she’d gone all out in a one-on-one? She was always the victor.

Victory was sweet, but sweetness soon grew tiresome.

“But the ending is disappointing, isn’t it?”

Isabel mocked Zien.

Her gaze was fixed on a rock. More precisely, on someone lying atop it, dozing off.

Nodding off.

In the gloomy forest where ash rose, Aria’s yellow raincoat was bound to stand out. And Aria’s head kept bobbing.

“You should have hidden your trump card better.”

Isabel clapped her hands with a ‘snap.’ Of course, Aria was on a rock quite a distance from Isabel.

Boom!

Isabel’s magic device blew up the rock. An explosion of fire amidst the downpour. Watching the shattered rock and the scattered pieces of the yellow raincoat, Zien thought,

‘Aria…’

After the exam, should he confront Aria for wearing the yellow raincoat or for dozing off? Zien clenched the black fragrance tightly.

– Aria has been eliminated.

– There are now two participants remaining.

Zien already knew, even without being told.

That he was truly alone now.

All he could trust was himself and the stigma engraved on the back of his hand.

“If only I could recover just one more skill etched in the stigma…”

At this moment, with mana too low to use magic devices,

Jien’s only recourse was his skills. Yet, the only skill available was sensory maximization.

“You look troubled. Have you finally given up?”

Ignoring Isabelle’s mocking tone, Jien closed his eyes.

Swoosh.

Rustle.

Crackle.

The slowing rain sounds ceased. As if time stood still, Jien, with eyes closed, accelerated his thoughts. The secret technique of [Sensory Maximization].

A second, a moment, felt like eternity to Jien right now.

“Focus.”

Memories of a past life unfolded like a puzzle. Among them, Jien picked out a particularly shining piece.

Level 7 Gate [Sun and Moon]

The setting was the commonly known martial world, Sector 3. Atop a high mountain there, the martial sect leader, Sword God, spoke to Jien’s past life.

“The moon is bright tonight.”

Indeed, the moon that night shone unusually bright. To speak of the moon’s brightness when facing an imminent showdown with the Heavenly Demon.

In the critical situation where the outcome within the gate could change reality,

Jien was desperate to kill the Heavenly Demon and clear the Level 7 Gate.

“How does it feel? To simply accept.”

Perhaps sensing Jien’s heart, the self-proclaimed master, Sword God, after a drink, spoke again.

“Isn’t the moon exceptionally bright?”

The moon shines by accepting the sun’s light. To shine is enough, even just by receiving. With those words, Jien found the last piece of teaching. He understood that swordsmanship isn’t all about strength.

With this realization, a skill was etched into Jien’s stigma.

A skill obtained from the 7th Gate.

It was incomparable to any skill he had acquired before.

[Moon Blade]

Perhaps the skills faded from the stigma because the memories had faded. If he could recall that teaching, that moment,

“Could it be recovered?”

At that thought, the stigma on the back of his hand began to glow.

– A skill has been etched into the stigma.

– Acquired Skill [Moon Blade]

This was not a memory, but reality.

“I told you earlier, Isabelle.”

Gien opened his mouth.

Gien’s eyes, which had been closed for a long time in enlightenment, opened. To Isabelle, it seemed like a mere blink.

“What?”

“That I would win. Broadcast halt!”

Now, the reversal begins.

Showing his past life’s skill was enough for Isabelle.

Gien’s body rushed towards Isabelle. Until now, it had been impossible without the proper magic device or skill.

“Where do you think you’re going!”

Isabelle snapped her fingers with a ‘click-‘ sound. The explosion was swift due to the close distance.

Boom!

Gien’s left shoulder was caught in the explosion, but after all, this was just a virtual gate. There was no need to worry about injury or death.

‘It’s okay! I can reach her!’

It was a significant advantage for Gien.

Moon Blade is a skill that uses the caster’s life and energy as fuel. With no fear of death, Gien could pour all his strength into this one strike.

Tssstssstsss!

A light began to dawn on Gien’s Black Fragrance.

The light, faint as moonlight, grew stronger until it enveloped Gien’s sword, the Black Fragrance.

In the third zone, it’s called Sword Aura.

In the fourth zone, they call it Aura Blade.

Clang!

Gien’s sword struck Isabelle’s mana barrier.

Crack!

A fracture appeared in the wall.

Shatter!

It broke into pieces.

“It can’t be…”

Before she could finish her sentence, Isabelle was engulfed in light, and the destructive mana slaughtered the space.

– Isabel has been eliminated.

– There is now only one person remaining.

– The test will end in 30 seconds.

“Broadcast the footage.”

Hundreds of people, who had been anxiously awaiting the thrilling progress at Gate 1, could finally see the testing ground again. However, what they saw was the back of Zien, the only one left.

Zien turned his gaze to the lake and muttered briefly,

“…It’s over.”

That single phrase was laden with many meanings.

* * *

The commotion started first among the students.

“What? Did he win?”

“How did he win?”

It was the spectator seats where seniors and classmates sat.

“…He could survive even if thrown right into the gate.”

“Wow, what’s the total score?”

“Let’s see, 56 rewards of 5 points each…”

Words and people intertwined, and the noise began to grow.

“Move aside! Let me see the face.”

“Kyaa! Don’t push!”

“Wow, we have a group assignment soon, maybe I should coax him?”

Both upperclassmen and classmates tangled up for their own reasons to see Zien.

It wasn’t just corporate representatives scouting for strong students. Upperclassmen wanted to secure talented recruits for their clubs, and classmates wanted to form ‘parties.’

In Arcana, where group activities like assignments and extracurriculars were common, it was natural for people to flock to a capable student.

A person with talent was a precious blue chip, and everyone wanted a piece.

“Wow, his value is going to skyrocket, isn’t it? But then again, he’s too good a talent to waste on cleaning duties.”

Jackson said.

Jackson was a veteran who had rolled and tumbled through the ‘Sweep of Annihilation’ guild.

“Excuse me… senior?”

Irel pushed Jackson away from the ballot box with a creaking sound.

“Um, it seems like you’ve been hovering for a while, could you please go back to the guild? I’ll take care of all the scouting.”

“Hey, don’t push and calm down. We have to watch the rest of the team go too.”

“Why fuss about being a janitor? Those who fight well should be janitors. Slicing monsters with a sword, right?”

“Sure, sure, it’s not because you fancy their face, is it?”

As Jackson teased, Irell’s nagging grew louder.

“Who picks based on looks? Those kids are cost-effective. The ones inflated with magic without basics cost a fortune in potions…”

Irell’s eyes narrowed as she lunged forward, causing Jackson to step back, taming her like a wild horse with a ‘whoa, whoa.’

“Okay, do as you please, junior. You know the budget is tight considering the scouting costs for the graduating class?”

“Of course, I know that very well. But keep nagging, and even a senior will get angry.”

At Irell’s warning, Jackson just chuckled with a ‘pfft.’

With that, the number of scouting offers for Zien from the broadcasting station and guild increased to two.

* * *

The one who showed the greatest enthusiasm from the faculty side was Kashen.

“Amazing! Zien! Hey, did you see Romina? Zien won the number one spot!”

Kashen’s excited reaction was out of character considering his usual demeanor, but Romina looked at him with a pleased smile.

‘Kashen…’