The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen - Chapter 182

Chapter 182 – The Will You Hold in Your Sword (7)

Rowen let out a hollow laugh as he looked at me.

“What have you nurtured, you?”

-Ka-ga-ga-gak….!

At the sight of Hanna relentlessly unleashing her sword aura, Rowen shook his head.

His daughter’s growth, far beyond what he had anticipated, came as a tremendous shock.

Rowen thought he knew Hanna’s weaknesses.

Swinging her sword earnestly as if there was a correct answer was one of Hanna’s chronic weaknesses.

In the past, Rowen observed Hanna’s sword. Not out of a father’s love, but to gauge whether his daughter’s sword could bring recognition to the name of Histania.

The answer to that observation was harsh.

Hanna’s sword lacked power.

It was straightforward with no elements of surprise, and if someone taught her one thing, she would fit herself rigidly to that one method.

There was no creativity.

No perseverance was visible.

Having watched Hanna closely, Rowen judged that he knew her weaknesses well.

So, he shared his strategy with Michail, thinking that by skillfully exploiting Hanna’s weaknesses, the battle could be won more easily.

No matter how awakened in aura Hanna was, her talent, as Rowen had seen, was lacking. To others, she might appear as a prodigy, but to Rowen, she was merely slightly above average, so he didn’t give much thought to Hanna’s swordsmanship.

To be honest, it’s fair to say he underestimated her.

-Ka-ga-ga-gak…!

Rowen clenched his fists and swallowed dryly.

“I don’t understand.”

Rowen wasn’t the only one surprised.

I was also rather astounded by Michail’s sword.

I thought it would end in a single move.

If Michail’s skill was stagnant, I believed one strike would conclude the duel, but he was enduring far better than expected.

I let out a hollow laugh while watching Rowen focused on the duel.

“What did you do exactly?”

“…”

The two of them had transcended each other’s expected limits and grown.

To others, it might have merely looked like swinging swords, but to our eyes, the growth in each was apparent.

To be honest, I wasn’t sure I could give a definitive answer about the outcome.

I clenched my fist, looking at Hanna.

*

The blade cutting through the petals narrowly grazed Michail’s shoulder.

In the silent flow of sword dance, Michail parried Hanna’s sword while Hanna continually prepared her next attack.

It was a sword that contained no aura.

As if to gauge the level of skill she had reached, Hanna’s sword approached without aura.

Michail, in response, didn’t avoid Hanna’s sword and accepted it. He needed to grasp the extent of Hanna’s skill too.

However.

-Ka-ga-ga-gak!

The weight of Hanna’s descending strike was much heavier than he had anticipated.

It was a hefty blow.

Unlike what the master had taught, it was heavy, and if he misplaced his strength, he might drop his sword in one go.

“Hold your sword properly, senior.”

“…Hup!”

“Keep your wits and fight properly.”

Hanna spoke quickly while moving her sword.

“I’ve staked everything on this duel.”

With those firm words, Michail met Hanna’s descending sword with a resounding ‘Kang’ and was pushed a step back.

Even as Michail found himself on the defensive, Hanna calmly continued swinging her sword.

-Don’t push too hard just because you have the momentum. Allow room for growth and drive them slowly.

Looking straight at her singular focus, moving her sword swiftly and concisely to prove her worth with the aim of victory.

Hanna took a step closer to Michail, raising the blade of her sword.

“That’s why I can’t lose.”

“…Neither can I!”

“No, senior, it’s different for you.”

“I have someone cheering me on.”

“So I…”

Hanna took a shallow breath and thrust her sword.

-Kaang…!

“I can’t lose.”

Michail had sparred with Hanna before. Not enough to fully grasp everything about Hanna, but enough to understand her weaknesses.

Before awakening his aura, he always defeated Hanna, and after the awakening, the results of their spars always ended in defeat.

Hanna now was strong.

And in the past, Hanna’s sword was weak.

Though focused on speed, Hanna’s sword lacked heft compared to others and had minimal destructiveness.

Instead of aiming for a critical blow, her strategy capitalized on small injuries to achieve victory.

A sword focused on speed.

This was Michail’s and Rowen’s evaluation of Hanna’s sword.

-Overpower with size.

Rowen had suggested one direction to Michail.

Leverage the advantage of size.

-No matter how skilled a swordsman is, overcoming the difference in size is not easy. Your sword is slower than Hanna’s but possesses robustness.

-I think choosing a sword focused on speed like Hanna would be right for you too, but suddenly changing it now isn’t easy. And besides, you don’t desire it.

-Go with a classic strategy. A crude but effective method.

Rowen advised him to receive Hanna’s sword.

No matter how quick and agile a sword may be, when it collided with a great wall, it would either break or transmit vibrations, causing one to lose grip. Rowen told him to exploit that gap.

Rowen was convinced Hanna wouldn’t easily react if he countered forcefully against her sword and conveyed his strategy confidently, which Michail adopted.

And the strategy crumbled.

Rowen’s strategy, which was supposed to ensure an easy victory, was falling apart.

The master’s plan to find vulnerability by clashing swords with Hanna crumbled against Hanna’s heavy blade.

Michail couldn’t understand. Overcoming the known weaknesses in such a short time seemed almost unfathomable to Michail.

And in the distance, he found the answer from Ricardo, who was watching with a stern expression.

Michail firmly gripped his sword.

Hanna clutched her sword and shouted.

“Is this all…”

-Kaang…!

“Is this all Father was satisfied with?”

-Ka-ga Ka-ga-gak!

“Is this why he decided to kill me?”

In the midst of Hanna’s quietly reverberating cries, Michail held his sword straight and sought out a gap.

He had his own undeniable reason to win, as well.

While Hanna had bet a lot on this duel, he too had reasons this time he couldn’t afford to lose.

The Blue Window supposedly showed him the past he desperately wanted to know. Unbelievable, but still.

Just one time.

Just being able to see it once could offer him hope to escape the prolonged nightmare, a feeling laden with emotions heavier than Hanna imagined.

In the face of Hanna’s sword pouring down like a torrent, Michail’s wounds grew.

If he continued with the losing combat methods, Michail was bound to lose. The small injuries hindered smooth bodily movements.

‘I have to make a decision.’

The dismantling of the anticipated strategy didn’t mean victory wasn’t possible. It merely meant that the easy way to win had disappeared. The time he invested and achieved results remained. There was enough potential.

He hadn’t shown everything yet.

The sword imbued with aura.

The newly devised technique was still a weapon to display.

Michail gathered his aura.

He began channeling the will he held in his sword into aura.

Facing the heavy blow of Hanna’s sword straight on, Michail felt it.

Now was the opportunity.

As Hanna’s sword brushed past his shoulder, Michail immediately released his radiant aura, drawing a great line.

-Quaaak…!

An alien sensation brushed across.

For the first time, Michail’s sword left a cut across Hanna’s body and swept the ground.

In the dusty training ground, a foggy silhouette of a sword loomed, which Michail swung his sword towards again. Visibility was a large disadvantage for a swordsman focused on speed.

-Slice…!

In the moment he felt the sensation of cutting something again.

A blade with a faint brown hue parted through the dust cloud, grazing past Michail’s nose.

Hanna’s sword was stained with blood.

Blood from her left arm flowed down the blade, wetting the training ground.

Hanna spoke with a sardonic smile.

“Now I understand.”

Hanna reversed her grip on the sword and took a low stance.

“The weakness the butler mentioned about you, senior.”

After those few words, Hanna’s sword began to relentlessly whirl.

Once aiming for the side, then swiftly targeting the exposed chest with her sword.

It was as if her injured arm was of no concern; biting her lip, Hanna swung her sword as she spoke in a low voice.

“Now stay alert. I might actually kill you.”

Momentarily caught off guard by Hanna’s brief provocation.

Hanna charged with her sword infused with dark aura, slicing swiftly at Michail’s side.

With a thud, small droplets of blood fell from Hanna’s sword. In the brief moment unnoticed, Hanna discerned his weaknesses and targeted the gaps with her sword, causing cold sweat to drip down Michail’s forehead.

What the weaknesses were.

Precisely where the gaps were perceived.

Michail’s thoughts became tangled.

“Senior, you know, I liked you.”

“…”

“The sword you wielded for the weak looked cool and just. I wondered why I couldn’t wield a sword like that, sometimes raising my voice, striving to emulate you.”

Hanna’s sword no longer trembled.

The sword, which had trembled slightly with tension, now breathed deeply and exhaled smoothly in sync.

Hanna took a shallow breath, raising her sword.

“Not anymore.”

Michail looked at Hanna’s composed demeanor and thought.

‘Don’t get swept up in the pace.’

He couldn’t afford to be carried away like this.

Hanna’s sword was skillfully targeting his weaknesses. Under Hanna’s gaze, which seemed to know everything, Michail’s shoulders trembled, but he exhaled, regulating his breath.

‘Stay focused.’

Blood flowed.

Without realizing it, he had spilled quite a lot of blood.

At this rate, it was indeed dangerous.

He would lose disgracefully without showing what he had prepared.

He had to take control of the duel’s flow.

Being overwhelmed wasn’t an option.

He had to win.

There was a reason he must win, certainly.

Michail grasped his sword.

Enduring the pain, he bit his lips and held onto his blurry vision.

Just once.

If he could just find one opening, Michail believed he could seize the flow.

Michail gathered aura into his sword.

Though it would consume significant magical energy, he wanted to demonstrate the technique he created. Concentrating his aura, he focused solely on Hanna.

Seeing Michail’s resolute posture, Hanna swallowed and spoke.

“Give up.”

“…”

“Even standing is difficult for you.”

“I have to win.”

“You’ve lost too much blood.”

“I absolutely must win…”

Embracing the fluttering petals, Hanna held her sword and exhaled deeply.

“Now I don’t know.”

In the moment Michail’s sword aimed to find the combat flow, Hanna closed her eyes, swinging her sword in sync with the slowly passing time.

And then.

“Stop.”

The result of the duel was decided.

Michail looked forward with wide eyes, seeing the massive back that stood before him.

Red hair.

Familiar.

Irritating.

Annoying yet warmly familiar red hair veiled his view.

*

I spoke towards Rowen, who stood trembling, watching Hanna.

“Are you insane?”

I gritted my teeth, glaring at the standing Rowen.

And then.

“No…!”

Michail held onto my collar, crying.

“Please… please…!”

Pitifully so.

-[Quest failed.]

End of Chapter