Sword Saint's Reincarnation-Chapter 80: Semifinals (1)

In his room, Regis stared fixedly at the ground, head in his hands. Lillia stood next to him, also completely silent.

“…What now, Regis?” she asked after almost ten seconds.

He didn’t reply.

“I don’t know of a way to mess with a Scrying Crystal, and if there is one, the odds of Rylan being capable of it are almost zero,” she continued in a low and dragged-out tone. Her voice was tinged with disbelief, as if she were having trouble believing her own words.

“The Sword Saint,” Regis suddenly said. “A man who reached the peak but died because of his brother. Therefore, Rylan wants to make up for his mistakes. Doesn’t it all fit too nicely?”

He looked at Lillia. She furrowed her brow.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s a story that fills all the gaps, almost to the point of being too good to be true, but…”

Regis’ chest was filled with a mix of emotions. Outrage, confusion, and fear merged into a mass that threatened to overwhelm him. Could he really believe Rylan’s words? Somehow, the idea that Rylan was a Reincarnator was more believable than him changing out of nowhere. It explained everything.

But I can’t trust him.

Even if everything were true, he had sworn never to trust Rylan again. Lillia probably felt the same way. The pain they had suffered wouldn’t disappear just because Rylan had changed. The past couldn’t be changed.

“…Let’s see how he acts from now on. He’ll fight Jasmine Lamollet tomorrow,” Lilla said with a frown. “We’ll be able to see his combat ability. If he was a Sword Saint, he’ll fight like Rylan never should be able to.”

Regis nodded and clenched his jaw. In his mind, he already knew both of them were running from the truth. They were trying to latch onto anything they could to dismiss Rylan’s words, but the fight tomorrow could be the final nail in the coffin.

Lost in his thoughts, Regis despaired.

***

The day began like any other.

Rylan woke up before sunrise. He stretched his body. Only a few minutes later, Sarah stepped into the room with a tray of food. He looked at it and clicked his tongue.

“I miss my strict diet.”

“I think that’s the sort of thing no Mage would ever say, young master. As expected of the Sword Saint.”

“Don’t make fun of me, Sarah.”

She chuckled as he frowned and walked up to the table, then placed the tray on it. Rylan pulled two chairs closer to it, side by side. He glanced at her. She was still smiling. For some reason, she looked a bit brighter than a few days ago, before the reveal.

“You look happier,” he said.

She gave him a perfect, bright smile. After hesitating for a second, as if questioning what she was about to do, she spoke.

“Of course I am. I’m eating with the Sword Saint.”

Rylan immediately picked up a small grape from the tray and flung it at her. It hit her square in the forehead, making her close her eyes. Without missing a beat, he threw another right at her nose. A second later, she sneezed.

“That’s your punishment for defying the Sword Saint. Now, let’s eat.”

Rubbing her forehead, Sarah grinned at him and sat down next to him.

I didn’t think she still had a playful side.

It had been too long since anything like this had happened. Was it when he was a child? He always used to play different games with her and tell her jokes. His chest felt warm at the fact that at least part of that had returned. Revealing the truth to her had been worth it.

This time, they talked while eating.

After the meal, Rylan waited a bit and then got started with his daily physical training. His body weight alone was no longer enough, but some training was better than none at all. After he was done, he went into his magical and mental training.

The sun rose over the horizon, breaking dawn over the massive capital city of Caer Rhelon. The orange and yellow rays pierced the darkness, entering through the window and bathing the bedroom in their glow and warmth.

It was only after the sun had almost reached its peak that Rylan left the hotel, Aelfric and Sarah in tow. They waded through the busy streets that had become familiar in such a short time. Rylan felt like he was getting more stares than usual, but he ignored them.

They moved closer and closer to the central parts of the city. In the distance, their destination could already be seen. The stone stadium towered over the nearby buildings, only paling in comparison to the royal castle at the very heart of Caer Rhelon. Even at a glance, it was capable of housing more than ten thousand spectators.

There was a steady flow of people toward the arena. They laughed and talked, walking progressively faster. Rylan heard his name many times. Some revealed that they had gambled on the results, while others merely speculated and discussed his odds like professional commentators, nodding seriously with their arms crossed.

The closer they got to the stadium, the more packed the streets became. A long procession of carriages formed a line to stop at the arena’s entrance. Couples in expensive-looking clothing and followed around by private guards mixed with excited teenagers in groups. There was a fair number of young men and women wearing the same robes as Lillia and Regis.

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“…There’s way too many people,” Aelfric said with an uneasy tone. Next to them, Sarah nodded.

Rylan grinned.

“Don’t worry. This much is nothing.”

Even if there were ten times more people, it wouldn’t be enough to make him feel pressured. Roland had gone through too much of it during the early days to be affected by it. Still, he understood his brother’s worries. In the middle of a crowd of this size, it was too easy to suffer a sneak attack. Escape routes were also limited.

After arriving at the entrance, Rylan parted with Sarah and Aelfric. They made their way toward the spots Regis had gotten them, while Rylan entered the corridor that led to the battleground proper.

The whole structure shook around him, forced to tremble before the combined might of thousands of voices and steps. A single voice was much louder than the others.

“I’ve just been informed that Rylan Flameheart has arrived, almost exactly on time! How reliable! Are all of you ready?”

The corridor shook even more. Rylan shook his head and reached its end. With a straight back, he walked into the circular area in the middle of the stadium. The deafening noise, which had been partly blocked by the stone, hit him in full like a wave. Words and cries combined to create a rumbling atmosphere. Rylan tried to get a grasp on his surroundings in an instant.

The arena’s paved floor was spotless, despite its size. Instead of a table by the side with the judges, there was a special section on a higher floor where six people sat on elaborate thrones, each different from the next. He looked at them, and they stared at him back. Thousands of people filled the seats and the stands, waving their fists in the air and yelling. The two frontmost rows were packed to the brim with blue-robed young people, from teenagers to adults.

Finally, he looked at the two people standing on the paved arena. The man, who seemed to be in his thirties and had a thin build, screamed with his wand close to his mouth. His amplified voice echoed throughout the stadium, overcoming the crowd’s rumble with brute force. Rylan disregarded him. What mattered was the girl.

Jasmine stood perfectly straight, blond hair in a ponytail. Piercing blue eyes much like his own stared at him, filled with determination and competitiveness. A purple robe covered her body, hiding her figure and clothes. Still, Rylan could tell her left hand was resting on a sword’s hilt. He smiled and kept walking toward her, only stopping when they were ten meters apart.

“Now, everyone!” the announcer said. The amplification likely made his voice reach even those outside of the stadium. “For the semifinals! A battle between an established favorite and a dark horse that took Caer Rhelon by storm!”

The audience cheered. The sound hit Rylan and Jasmine as a physical force, making him frown.

“But before we go any further, I would like to formally introduce our judges, who will also be the ones in the final match!” he pointed at the higher platform close to the stands.

Rylan took this opportunity to study the judges with critical eyes. There were three women and three men. The announcer first pointed to the one right in the middle.

“Above everyone else! His Royal Majesty, third of his name, ruler of this proud nation! King Henry Belmond, the kingdom’s greatest authority!”

The king was a handsome man with greying black hair and warm brown eyes. He waved at the stands to his left and right, still sitting down. A single staff rested on his lap; it was, by far, the most intricate one Rylan had ever seen. Completely grey, it looked like it had been carved out of stone itself. Engravings and drawings lined its body, their beauty obvious even from this distance. A golden crystal floated above its upper end, rotating and glowing. It was embraced by small structures that looked like curved columns or a tree’s branches.

That’s an artifact.

He couldn’t feel any magic or mana from the staff. It was as if it were an elaborate piece of decoration. That alone made him raise his guard. He eyed the king himself. The man’s calm eyes went back and forth between him and Jasmine. The purple robe that covered his body gave him a regal air, but Rylan could tell that there was leather armor underneath.

Two Mages with the same purple robe stood behind his small throne, one man and one woman. As expected, Henry brought bodyguards with him wherever he went.

The announcer continued to sing the king’s praises for almost three more minutes, throwing in the royal family’s achievements as well. Bored, Rylan looked at the sky, waiting for it all to end. Finally, the man moved on.

“Our next judge! The man who organized this very tournament! The Headmaster of the Royal Magic Academy and one of the strongest Mages in the Kingdom of Ceotha! A man whose achievements are unparalleled! Headmaster Damian Gassiec!”

Rylan stared at Damian carefully. The man was looking straight at him. The white hair and beard were the only things that made the Headmaster look like an old man; his green eyes blazed with liveliness and energy. With a body that had cleanly gone through training, he donned a curious expression, stroking his beard. A white staff floated next to him, rotating and moving around as if it were alive. He wore an elaborate black robe with a golden insignia that was reminiscent of the one in the student’s robes.

However, none of that was what Rylan paid the most attention to. Instead, it was the atmosphere around the man. The air around him vibrated with power.

Can I beat him?

He quickly reached an answer as Roland’s experienced gaze took over.

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No.

Roland’s instincts were screaming at him. Even if he drew his sword, circulated his mana, and used his Sword Arts, he would still lose. This was something he hadn’t felt even when facing Gerard during their spars.

“The third judge! The Family Head of one of the most influential noble houses in the Kingdom! A man who was invited to become a judge due to skill alone, regardless of his position! Standing at the pinnacle of both noble and military circles, Gael Astassier!”

Rylan narrowed his eyes as the announcer finished. This man was his grandfather. Brown hair and skin that reminded him too much of his mother, as well as the same hazel eyes. He was tall and well-built, but his handsome visage was marred by the coldness in his gaze.

The announcer introduced the three other judges, but they were professors of the Royal Magic Academy, famed for their ability in battle. Rylan identified Alice Carmesim as one of them.

Her hair is really eye-catching.

She stared at him with a savage smile. The announcer had introduced her as the professor responsible for Battle Fundamentals. He stared back at her for a few seconds.

Once the man finished, Damian waved his hand. A blue barrier appeared around the paved arena, crawling over itself and surrounding it completely. The crowd’s deafening shouts echoed.

Meanwhile, Rylan only frowned at the barrier.

Would I have been able to avoid being surrounded if I used the Falling Snow Steps?

He already knew the answer. The mana walls had been raised too quickly. Clenching his jaw, he looked at Jasmine, who was staring at him.

“Begin!” the announcer yelled using his wand as a tool.

Neither of the two moved even an inch. The seconds ticked by, but Rylan only looked at her, who met his gaze. The crowd’s voices died out as an atmosphere of confusion slowly took place.

“How do you wanna do this?” Rylan suddenly asked.

“…I heard a lot about you. I didn’t want to trust my own judgment. I’m sorry.”

The entire audience was silent. It didn’t matter if they could somehow hear the conversation or not. Rylan didn’t care either way. He shook his head.

“Everything you heard is probably true. I’ve just changed.”

“…I see.”

Jasmine took a deep breath. Her right hand grabbed the robe and pulled, ripping it away to reveal skin-tight pants and a black shirt. Some leather armor covered her, but not enough to slow her down. As Rylan blinked, she drew her sword out of the scabbard tied to her belt. The blade glinted in the sunlight.

“Show me your true abilities,” she said loudly. “I won’t be defeated so easily again.”

Rylan was dumbfounded for a second before smiling widely. In one smooth movement, he drew his sword.

This would be a battle between swordsmen, at least at the start.