NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 257: Ganeth Avelant
Chapter 257: Ganeth Avelant
“Who are you?” Ganeth asked cautiously.
“I am Karyl, the ruler of Tatur, here to assist Fran in the principality’s civil war.”
Ganeth tilted his head slightly, processing the response.
“Tatur...? I heard that the Free City has become an independent nation, but I didn’t expect the king himself to come here. So, is she also from there?”
Karyl glanced at Serica and nodded.
“So, Sir Fran has involved external forces in an internal matter?” Ganeth responded with a bitter smile.
“The same could be said for your side,” Karyl retorted.
“What?”
“This civil war isn’t just about internal power struggles within the principality. The Wooden Cloud is involved, after all.”
Ganeth wasn’t surprised by Karyl’s words.
“The Wooden Cloud has been a secret organization within the principality for ages. Their involvement can’t be considered external; they exist for the principality’s sake.”
“Is that so? Then whose side are they on?”
“...What?”
“It seems even you, the top knight of the principality, don’t know. Well, it’s not all that surprising, considering even someone of Lurein blood has been deceived.”
“...”
“It won’t take long for the truth to be revealed. Once this civil war ends, you’ll see.”
Karyl locked eyes with Ganeth.
“Sword Master Ganeth, it’s time to put down your spear and face reality.”
BOOM—!!
Ganeth pulled the halberd from Serica’s shoulder and slammed it into the ground with force. The snow beneath them erupted into a blinding white storm.
“Are you telling me to abandon the battlefield?”
“Your battle is already lost.”
“I doubt that. Even if Yoman falls, the White Bunker will not. And besides...”
A sharp Mana Blade surged from his halberd.
“Do you think you can just pass through here while I’m still standing?”
Karyl smirked.
“Are you talking to me? I’m not like this one lying over here.”
BOOOOM—!!
Suddenly, Ganeth staggered and was thrown backward.
“Ugh?!”
He quickly plunged the halberd’s shaft into the ground to stop Karyl’s momentum.
Crack...!!
Screech...!!
The shaft bent like a bow and scraped violently against the ground as he was pushed back several meters before finally coming to a stop.
“...”
Ganeth’s face was frozen in shock, and he wasn’t the only one—Serica, who normally would have made a snide remark at Karyl, wore the same tense expression as Ganeth.
The concentration of mana is much denser. Is it because of that snake mark? He was a monster back in Tatur, but now he’s on a completely different level.
Serica, ever observant, noticed the blue snake tattoo on Karyl’s arm that seemed to move as if it were alive. Occasionally, it looked as if the scales of the snake shimmered on his hand.
“Hmm...” Karyl muttered to himself, lifting and lowering his arm as if testing his equipment, the arm that held his sword.
“Maybe I should increase my mana a bit more,” he went on.
Crackle... crackle...
Crackle...!
As he concentrated his mana, the blue snake tattoo on his arm slowly took a faint purple hue. The Freezing Talon emanated an even more intense, sharp energy, seemingly enjoying the frigid atmosphere.
I’ve never seen a Mana Blade like that before...
Ganeth tensed up as he gazed at Karyl’s Arcane Blade, taking up a defensive stance. As he looked at Karyl, he could literally feel cold sweat running down the back of his neck. In spite of the fierce blizzard and icy air, Ganeth was sweating. That was how intense the pressure coming from his opponent was.
Is he a Sword... Master?
Why had it taken him so long to realize? He finally understood why he had been uneasy when he had first laid eyes on Karyl.
For so many years, the idea of the Ten Greats of the continent had become firmly established, and at some point, the belief that there could only be five Sword Masters had become widely accepted as something natural.
That sense of familiarity wasn’t something that applied only to ordinary people. The complacency that came from being a Sword Master—a belief that no one stronger could possibly emerge—had taken root in Ganeth’s mind.
“You... Are you a Sword Master?” Ganeth asked carefully, a quaver in his voice.
Karyl noticed the shift in Ganeth’s demeanor, which was vastly different from that of Gordon Fabian.
Of course, it’s different for him. He’s a knight of a principality. The burden of responsibility that comes with his position must weigh heavily on him.
Unlike Gordon Fabian, who was a mercenary without national ties, Ganeth and Kuwell, as knights bound to a nation, naturally had different reactions to Karyl. The appearance of a new Sword Master was more than just the emergence of a new peer; it was the potential rise of a new threat to their country.
“Why? Are you surprised? I guess being stuck in a place like this has kept you out of the loop. Five Sword Masters? That era ended long ago.”
“...What?”
Ganeth’s face hardened at Karyl’s words.
“A new generation has begun. There are already new Sword Masters, and even more powerful individuals will emerge in the future.”
Indeed, the Sword Masters he had helped establish—Miliana, Greys Fanpinel, Randol MacGovern, Suan Hazer, and Aidan Hamil—stood ready to aid him in the impending Oracle War.
“And they will follow my lead.”
Karyl placed the Freezing Talon on the ground, folding his hands over the hilt as he spoke.
“So what do you say, Ganeth Avelant? Will you join me?”
“You’re mad. After all you’ve done, you have the nerve to ask that? And to a knight of the principality, no less. Unbelievable.”
“I hear that a lot.”
Karyl realized there was no point in continuing this conversation. Just like with Gordon Fabian and Miliana, discussions among those at the pinnacle of power were conducted with swords, not words.
“...”
“...”
After what felt like an eternity, Ganeth was the first to move.
“Hyaaah!!”
Remembering the power of Karyl’s initial strike, Ganeth knew instinctively that standing still and trying to block another of his attacks would be dangerous. Thus, he swung his halberd with all his might.
The spear blade, crackling with yellow lightning, arced through the air, aiming directly at Karyl.
Zap...! Zap!! Zzzang—!!
However, Karyl moved faster than Ganeth. While the halberd was swift enough to be nearly invisible, Karyl’s evasive maneuvers made it seem almost sluggish.
Whoosh...!! Whooosh...!!
Kraack—!!
The lightning Mana Blade that surged from Ganeth’s halberd unleashed powerful energy slashes, but Karyl dodged each strike effortlessly. As he moved from top to bottom, right to left, the slashes missed their mark and crashed into the shattered wall behind him, creating a cacophony of destruction.
The echoes of the impact didn’t fade after the first strike.
However, the more Ganeth attacked, the more his expression hardened. Despite his relentless barrage, none of his attacks were landing on Karyl.
“Even among Sword Masters, the differences between individuals are clear. To think you’re considered the strongest in a nation, yet you’re not even as formidable as Gordon Fabian,” Karyl mocked him as he dodged yet another strike.
Despite his taunt, Ganeth was more surprised at the fact that Karyl had met Gordon Fabian at all.
Gordon Fabian...? Could it be that he’s crossed swords with that man... and survived...?
Ganeth knew well who the leader of the Guidance Mercenary Gang was, and he couldn’t believe that someone had challenged Gordon Fabian and lived to tell the story. This meant one of two things: either this boy before him had defeated Gordon Fabian or he had earned his recognition. Either way, it was undeniable proof of Karyl’s immense strength.
“Hmph...!!”
The ground beneath Ganeth shook as though an earthquake had struck. He drew upon his mana, lifting his halberd high above his head.
KABOOM!!
Suddenly, a bolt of lightning descended from the sky.
“Krrrrr...”
A wyvern flapped its wings in alarm, soaring into the sky, startled by the blinding flash of lightning.
Does he have a technique like this?
The oppressive aura Ganeth now exuded was far beyond what he had displayed against Serica, making her acutely aware of the vast difference in power between them.
Kra-KRACK...!!
The blade of Ganeth’s halberd turned from golden to a blazing white as it emitted an intense, crackling surge of electricity. This was a full-power strike, a blow so formidable that it could easily overpower even Gordon Fabian.
“...”
Yet, unlike before, Karyl didn’t move to dodge the incoming lightning-infused blade. He just stood there, calmly watching the incoming strike.
“Frost,” he muttered.
As Karyl opened his palm, a thin layer of frost formed over his hand, enveloping it like a glove.
“Frostbite.”
The frost particles on his hand began to coalesce at his command.
“Frost Ring,” Karyl chanted once more, and the small ice fragments split into three, forming a circular ring.
What is he planning...?
Serica watched in confusion, her brow furrowed. All the spells Karyl had just cast were basic, low-tier 1st Class magic.
Whoosh—!!
In that instant, Karyl vanished, leaving only a faint afterimage behind as he accelerated. Just before Ganeth’s halberd could strike, Karyl lifted one of the ice rings onto his palm and deflected the attack.
BOOM!!
Ganeth’s halberd wavered for a split second. If Karyl had tried to block the blow with pure strength, his wrist would have been completely shattered by the sheer weight of the halberd. But the round ice ring absorbed the impact and altered the trajectory just enough to veer Ganeth’s strike off course.
The ring shattered at once, but it had already served its purpose, causing the halberd to miss its target by a crucial margin.
KRAAAANG—!!
The heavy halberd slammed into the ground with a deafening crash, and Karyl didn’t waste a single second; he ducked low and flung the other two rings toward Ganeth's ankles.
“Ugh?!”
As the icy rings wrapped around Ganeth’s ankles, Karyl yanked them hard. Though the rings shattered from the strain, the force was enough to destabilize Ganeth, who was already off-balance from his powerful swing. The scattered ice shards provided just enough opening for Karyl to strike.
Swish—!!
Karyl’s Freezing Talon sliced through the air, curving like a snake’s fang as it cut into Ganeth’s ankle. The blade didn’t stop there—it continued up his leg, slashing his thigh and then his side, leaving deep wounds as it ascended.
Ganeth’s armor, once strong and impenetrable, was sliced through as if it were made of soft tofu, blood flowing from his waist.
“Urgh...!”
Ganeth staggered, reeling from the injury, but Karyl’s assault didn’t relent. Unlike Ganeth, who hadn’t landed a single effective blow, every one of Karyl’s strikes targeted his vital points with deadly precision.
Crash! Crash!! Crack—!!
Ganeth’s thick armor began to crack and shatter under the relentless onslaught.
Meanwhile, the spectating soldiers, stunned by the Sword Master’s apparent defeat, failed to notice the deeper implications—except for Serica, whose eyes widened with a different kind of realization.
“That man...”
Karyl wasn’t fighting with his usual style—rather, he was using hers. The seamless transition from magic to swordsmanship, using magic to create openings and then exploiting them with his blade, was the fighting style Serica was trying to hone.
Karyl had deliberately used her own techniques to defeat Ganeth, showing her just how much further she had to go.
He’s done this on purpose...
Serica clenched her fist tightly in place of her broken staff. After finishing her training in Antihum, she believed she had become stronger, but now Karyl was intentionally showing her an even higher wall. And he did so using her own style, executing it better than she ever could.
“Damn it...”
Serica clicked her tongue in frustration. While she had indeed led the victory at Yoman, the fact that she had lost to Ganeth in their duel, and that Karyl had defeated him using her tactics, only fueled her competitive spirit.
“Time to end this,” Karyl declared as darkness suddenly spread around the Great Wall.
“Krrrrr—!!”
“Kaaaar—!!”
Piercing roars echoed all around. Ganeth looked up at the sky, and for the first time, he felt his resolve waver as a heavy sigh escaped him.
There was more than one...
He realized, looking at the dozens of wyverns filling the sky, that further resistance was futile.
“I assume I don’t need to explain what those wyverns mean, right?”
The presence of the wyverns here meant that the entire 1st Wyvern Squadron had been wiped out. Furthermore, it signaled trouble at the Binfredo frontline, the core of the principality's defenses.
What happened...? Why didn’t Lady Tuli react sooner...?
But what Ganeth didn’t know was that Karyl had acted faster than any reports from the Binfredo frontline could reach the White Bunker.
“If you want to waste the lives of your soldiers, feel free to keep fighting. But do you really think you can handle not just me, but all of my wyverns as well?”
Karyl raised his hand, and as if understanding his command, the beasts began circling in the sky above, ready to unleash their fiery breath.
Rumble...
The sight of the dozens of wyverns overhead, capable of reducing the battlefield to ashes in an instant, made Ganeth drop his halberd with a resounding thud, the sound echoing in the ears of the soldiers below.
“...I’ve lost. If you intend to take my life, do as you will.”
Karyl looked at Ganeth, a familiar smirk spreading across his face. By now, his subordinates knew exactly what that smile meant.
“Why would I kill you? You still have work to do.”