The New Year festivities had ended, and as the month drifted toward its midpoint—
It was on a day when winter break was finally drawing to a close that the work reached completion.
"—Final Extreme Blade."
A viscous, pitch-black energy—clinging like thick slime—coiled around the edge of the Crimson Blood Sword I had forged. From the blade, now stained a deep, bruised red, I felt a definite surge of immense mana and raw destructive power.
Despite its appearance, the energy was stable. By forcing the Blood Sword to bear the brunt of the magical burden, the strain on my physical body remained within manageable limits. It was still heavy, admittedly—right at the edge of what I could tolerate—but if I gritted my teeth and threw my entire will into it, I could hold the form.
I had failed more times than I could count to reach this point. I’d lost track of how many times the sword had simply detonated in my hands.
"Is this right, Aristia!?"
"Yes, it’s perfect."
"...Time to see if it works."
I turned my attention toward a suit of full-plate armor standing at the edge of the training grounds. It was essentially a magical punching bag, designed to be slashed and blasted during practice. Since standard equipment would be reduced to scrap in seconds, this set was reinforced with mana to bolster its durability. It was strong enough to remain unscratched even if a master swordsman struck it with a mundane blade.
Gripping the Final Extreme Blade in one hand, I closed the distance.
I stepped in.
I swung the Blood Sword, wreathed in its reddish-black light, in a wide arc.
A single flash.
There was no resistance.
It was a hollow sensation, the feeling of swinging through empty space, as if I had missed my target entirely.
But the blade had hit. It had passed clean through the armor.
A soft, sliding sound followed.
The upper half of the suit shifted. It glided down a perfectly smooth cross-section until it slipped away entirely. A heavy crash echoed through the silent training grounds as the metal hit the floor.
It was like a hot knife passing through butter. This armor, capable of repelling even a master's strike, had been bisected effortlessly.
The sheer power was staggering. I looked over at Aristia.
"This is... something else."
Aristia’s face split into a wide, unsettling grin.
"Uhe! Uhehehe! Uhihihi! It’s done! We’ve finished it! The magic that will definitely kill Verdict!"
Despite the long and winding road it took to get here, we had finally reached the goal. This was a spell customized specifically for me—a specialized anti-Verdict weapon. Its sheer output was in a different league compared to the Thunder Emperor's Flash or Tria Petal. With this blade, I could finally reach him.
I had obtained my own might.
And I knew exactly who to use as a test subject. He was a master of absolute defense, someone who had brushed off my Thunder Emperor's Flash as if it were nothing. I wanted to see how my new strength measured up against him.
On the final day of winter break, I headed to the Royal Castle alone.
My goal was to access the Forbidden Library. The primary concern was that Princess Eliana, who had acted as my intermediary, was gone. I had feared that my permission to enter would have died with her.
"Before her passing, Lady Eliana left us with strict instructions," the attendant informed me. "Should Lord Albert ever request entry, he is to be granted immediate access at any time."
Eliana... even in death, that woman’s efficiency was something to be grateful for.
Once inside the Forbidden Library, I went straight for the tome titled Steel within the Heart. As I opened the pages and began to read, the world around me started to waver.
Yes, this was the sensation—the feeling of being pulled into the realm of Ancient Magic.
Before long, my surroundings had completely transformed. I stood upon a desolate, ruined landscape—an ancient battlefield littered with a mountain of corpses.
Standing before me was a towering figure clad in jet-black armor. He held a massive great shield and a morning star that looked heavy enough to crush boulders.
The will of Ancient Magic—Black Knight King Luxerion.
"I told you once before," he rumbled. "That the next time we met, you should show me your own might."
He slammed his massive shield into the earth.
"Am I to assume you are prepared?"
The pressure emanating from him was overwhelming, almost painful against my skin. These entities were always the same. They looked down on you just by existing, their silence screaming that you were a small, insignificant creature.
"Yeah, I’m ready, Luxerion. This time, I’m going to show you exactly what my might looks like."
"I shall hold you to those words. If you show me anything less, I will crush you utterly. Prepare for death."
Luxerion raised his shield and morning star, settling into a combat stance. I extended my right hand, manifesting the Blood Sword.
And then—
"Final Extreme Blade."
I unleashed my new power. The crimson blade was instantly swallowed by that reddish-black aura. The burden of sustaining such immense energy pressed down on me like a physical weight. I gritted my teeth, tensing every muscle in my body. If I flinched from the pain for even a second, this energy would swallow me whole. I had to dominate this power.
"...Hoh."
A small sound of genuine admiration escaped Luxerion’s helmet.
"So, this is the new power you have claimed?"
"That’s right! And this time, I’m breaking through that Iron Wall of yours!"
I lunged forward, driving the sword—now a concentrated mass of destruction—straight at him. Luxerion raised his thick, cliff-like shield to meet me.
During our last encounter, every single one of my attacks had been deflected by that shield. I wondered how it would fare now. Luxerion’s defense was likely the highest among all the Ancient Magic wills. If I could break him, I knew I had a real chance against Verdict.
Consider yourself my test subject, Luxerion!
A sharp, light sound rang out.
Again, there was no resistance. It was so effortless that I almost thought I’d missed. But I hadn't. Luxerion still stood there, and my blade had definitely passed through the space occupied by his shield.
So, what happened?
The top half of that massive, seemingly indestructible shield began to slide. It didn't stop there. The shield itself lost its support and toppled toward the ground. I threw myself backward to avoid the falling mass, which hit the earth with a deafening, heavy boom.
Something was still gripped to the handle of the fallen shield. A thick, log-like limb encased in steel.
Luxerion’s left arm.
"GUOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAA!"
The armored giant, a warrior who had likely forgotten the very concept of being wounded, clutched at his severed shoulder and let out a harrowing scream of agony that tore through the sky.