Chapter 10
#10
"What's that noise?"
The deliberation was fleeting. Lucy hastily put on her coat, gathered her long, flowing hair, and wrapped it around her neck.
Although it wasn't too cold since it was autumn, the chilly mornings and evenings were the same as any other season. She put on gloves, slipped her feet into boots, and finally put on a hat before leaving the cabin.
"Ugh, it's cold."
A faint white light seemed to rise from the horizon, and the darkness that filled the sky gradually receded from the light.
She waved her white breath away with her hand and turned toward the sound.
The closer she got, the louder the sound became. A dull thud, like something being hit, and the sound of wind tearing through the air echoed intermittently.
What on earth could it be?
With her hands clasped tightly together, she cautiously turned her steps. That's how she discovered the source of the sound in front of the woodshed where firewood was piled up, west of the house.
Walter Heiberg was wielding a sword in front of the woodpile.
"General. What are you doing here at this hour?"
She was so dumbfounded that she gaped for a moment before finally managing to speak.
Walter, who was about to swing his sword down, glanced at her, recognized Lucy, and stopped moving.
"Have you awakened, Princess?"
Walter twisted his wrist, twirled the sword, checked the blade with a perfunctory glance, and then stuck the sword into the ground as it was.
She almost admired the flawless, graceful gesture for a moment.
"I was splitting wood because there didn't seem to be much left."
Lucy lost her words and stared blankly at him.
The person splitting wood was holding a sword, not an axe. And that sword was the famous sword!
That wasn't all. Walter was shirtless in this cold weather.
His well-built chest was soaked with sweat, so aside from looking good, it was a perfect recipe for catching pneumonia if the sweat cooled down.
Lucy, who had been staring at his roughly rising and falling chest, stammered and moved her lips.
"The axe is over there."
"I know."
"You'll catch a cold if you stay like that."
"I've trained in colder places than this. Don't worry."
"No... it's just a little embarrassing. I'd appreciate it if you could put on some clothes."
Only then did Walter lower his eyes and realize what state he was in. Lucy, looking around, found his clothes on a pile of dry branches and quickly handed them to him.
"It seems I woke you up. I tried to keep the noise down as much as possible, but I apologize if it was loud."
Walter, dressed, scratched the back of his neck and approached Lucy.
Lucy set up an unsplit log and gestured for him to sit down. After telling him to wait a moment, she ran into the house and brought out some warm mushroom tea.
"Here, drink this. You'll warm up quickly."
Walter was about to say he was fine, but he took the cup obediently after seeing Lucy's displeased expression.
Beyond the rising steam, the sun, which had already risen, shone brightly, announcing the sunrise. Walter narrowed his eyes at the unfiltered sunlight and tilted his teacup.
Lucy pretended to watch the sunrise while moving her eyes to observe him.
She felt it when they first met, but he really had a face that didn't suit the job of a soldier.
His softly fluttering hair, his dark eyelashes that created deep shadows, and his unusually large eyes gave off a clear aura as if he couldn't kill a single ant, let alone a person.
Above all, unlike other soldiers who carried a rough atmosphere, she couldn't feel any atmosphere or presence from him.
No matter how she looked at it, he was someone who didn't suit being a soldier.
Feeling uneasy and strange, Lucy quietly watched him before swallowing a hollow laugh and dismissing her thoughts.
Not suitable?
His precise movements and the way he didn't even make a sound when he walked were his history in themselves. He was born a genius, yet he had silently repeated his training to become a human who could even hide his presence.
Besides, that sword.
It was hard to even imagine what would suit the man who became the owner of the sword that had been worn down and considered only a myth, if not a soldier.
"Is it okay to stick the sword in the ground like that?"
The sight of the sword stuck in the cold, frozen ground like a toothpick felt pitiful. Unlike her worried question, Walter nodded with a nonchalant face.
"It's okay because it's a sword that doesn't damage the blade."
"I've heard it's a very unique sword. Still, what if someone steals it if you leave it out like that?"
"It's okay because no one but the owner can easily touch it, but if you're worried, I'll take it back."
Walter sipped his tea and stretched his right hand forward. He opened his hand wide and shook his wrist once, and the sword stuck in the ground trembled.
Ping-!
It cut through the wind and landed in his hand.
"...Oh...."
Lucy looked back and forth between Walter and the sword with wide eyes.
She had heard so much about Demon Sword and Master Sword that she thought she would be fine, but when she actually witnessed it, she was so surprised that she couldn't speak.
Walter, who had put away the sword, belatedly looked at her and smiled awkwardly.
"I apologize if I startled you."
"The sword... comes back on its own? How... uh, um. That's really amazing."
"It's very convenient because it comes back on its own even if I throw it far away. It has many tricks, but I personally think this is the most useful function."
"Are there other tricks?"
Walter, who had been silent and lost in thought, took out the sword again.
He put down his teacup, got up from his seat, looked around, picked up one of the pieces of firewood he had split, and stood far away.
Walter, who was looking at the firewood with a cautious gaze, threw the firewood into the air without any signal.
The firewood that had flown straight up lost its power at some point and fell down along the trajectory it had flown up. At that moment, it was plummeting toward Walter's crown.
"Gasp...."
At the same time as a bluish light appeared on the blade, the firewood stopped in mid-air.
Walter slowly reached out his hand toward the firewood. As he tapped it, the firewood was pushed to the side.
The firewood was still floating in the air.
"...Oh my god."
Was that what they meant by Demon Sword?
Lucy stared at the sight as if possessed, unable to even blink. Walter slowly turned his head, met her gaze, and pushed the firewood hovering in the air a little further to the side.
"It's a function that I can't use for long because I lose Ki, but it's great for boosting the morale of the soldiers."
The blue light that had been coloring the sword went out in an instant, and at the same time, the firewood floating in the air fell to the ground with a dull thud.
Walter kicked the firewood with his toe, floated it into the air again, and naturally snatched the firewood. Then, with an indifferent face, he sat down next to Lucy again.
Lucy, wondering what kind of reaction she should have, decided to be true to her instincts. So, she clapped and cheered.
"Wow! That's amazing. It's really amazing. What kind of... that, what kind of...."
"Are you asking what kind of structure allows it to stop objects?"
When she nodded, Walter frowned and made a sound.
"I concentrate my mind on the sword and emit Ki. Then I can temporarily stop surrounding objects or creatures. Of course, I can't do it in a wide area, but it seems to be within a radius of about 3 meters."
"......"
That's a complete cheat ability.
Lucy muttered inwardly and fiddled with her lips.
"Don't tell me... no, then can the General charge into enemy lines alone? Like beheading the enemy commander."
"Unfortunately, I can't use it that effectively. 3 seconds... 5 seconds at most. Any longer and my Ki will be disturbed."
Lucy opened her mouth and nodded, "Ah."
Unlike her agreeing attitude, she didn't actually understand anything. Only the mystical scene from before came to her mind, making it impossible for her to escape from the shock.
Besides, concentrating her mind and emitting Ki were all sentences that only existed in fantasies, so they didn't really resonate with her.
The only thing that was certain was that the words legendary general and reincarnation of the God of War were not excessive.
So that's why the Crown Prince was so wary of Walter Heiberg.
"You're amazing. Really."
"You flatter me."
"It's not flattery. For someone with such great martial arts skills to have such talent, it's honestly a waste to be in Parnassus."
Even though he was born in a small country like Parnassus, his status was widely spread throughout the continent. If Walter had been born into a powerful family in the Empire, the course of history might have been reversed.
That's right.
Maybe he would have overthrown that unlucky Crown Prince and opened a new dynasty.
But what ifs were just what ifs, Walter had become a representative of Parnassus and was now recommending her to ascend the throne. An ambiguous smile, neither good nor bad, appeared on Lucy's lips.
"General."
"Yes."
"I've been thinking about what you said yesterday."
She trailed off and looked down at the teacup she was holding. She carefully chose her words as she spun the cold teacup around.
"No matter how much I think about it, I don't understand. Why are you trying to make me the king? I have no foundation and my legitimacy is insufficient, so it would be impossible to persuade the lords."
"Princess, you are clearly of His Majesty's bloodline."
"I think you know very well that that reason alone can't even convince me."
Walter stroked his chin and fell into thought. He stared at his feet with a consistently indifferent face, then stroked his lower lip with his thumb and opened his mouth in a serious tone.
"It's a decision I made after much thought, but when I try to express it in words, I'm worried about how to start. I'll just... put it in my own way, I think I like this situation where you're committing illegal acts."
...What is he talking about?
Lucy made a troubled face, wondering what answer to give, and unconsciously let out an "Ah."
