The 9th Class Swordmaster: Blade of Truth-Chapter 323: The Platinum Dragon’s Lair (4)

Bzzz...!!

Lakna’s blade crackled with violet energy as it came down, pulsing with arcane power. The force of the swing bent the blade under its own power, cutting through Rael before slamming into the distant wall with a deafening crash.

“...”

Karyl’s assault didn’t stop there. He twisted before unleashing a second slash, this time upward. The violet energy emanating from Lakna shifted into roaring crimson flames as the blade carved its way up.

Whoosh...!!

For a brief moment, the torches along the walls flickered wildly. Karyl’s flames burst into an explosion, filling the corridor with blazing heat and scorching even the ceiling protected by magic.

“Hmph!”

Karyl stopped his blade at its apex, sheathing it as he turned. The once fiery sword was now coated in a layer of ice, the blue-tinged blade piercing through Rael’s body.

Crack...!

Icy tendrils extended from Lakna’s hilt, stabbing into Rael and pinning her to the wall.

“It’s useless,” Rael’s calm voice rang out, shockingly unphased by the barrage of strikes.

Kzzzz...

Despite her words, Karyl pushed his mana even further. The sword’s blade glowed a familiar silver-gray—the same spectral power that had cleaved the Chimera in two moments earlier.

“My true body isn’t here. I am merely a projection left behind to carry orders. An imprint of my memory. Even if you attack this projection, you cannot harm my true form,” Rael explained.

“I know,” Karyl replied coldly. “But leaving a memory behind requires magic, and that mana is linked to the one who created it.”

Rael remained expressionless, her eyes locked onto Karyl’s.

“I may not be able to kill you right now, but if I deal enough damage, it will reach the one controlling you.”

Rael questioned him, “Are you suggesting you can trace the faint remnants of mana to find me, wherever I am in the world? Not even a Great Sorcerer could manage that.”

“I may not find exactly where you are,” Karyl admitted with a smirk, “but I can follow the trail.”

BOOOOM!!!

At that moment, Karyl slammed his sword down with full force. The walls of the lair shook violently as a massive X-shaped crater formed in the wall.

“...”

Rael’s form flickered, becoming less tangible than before.

“How does that feel? A bit rattling, isn’t it?” Karyl taunted.

“That’s... impossible...” Rael’s voice wavered, though she tried to maintain her composure.

“You claim it’s impossible,” Karyl said, his voice laced with confidence, “but your reaction says otherwise.”

Indeed, he hadn’t missed the change in Rael’s demeanor.

“Now, let’s start tracing. Unfortunately for you, we possess mana that even a Great Sorcerer cannot use.”

With that, Karyl snapped his fingers, and a vortex of energy swirled before him, parting to reveal a single floating eye. As the eye split open, a scene unfolded within its gaze.

“...!”

Miliana recognized it immediately—the Superior Vision, a forbidden spell that granted supreme sight.

As the swirling vision settled, a familiar landscape took shape.

“It’s Heim,” Karyl remarked, looking at Rael. “That’s where the trace of your mana is strongest. So, you’re connected to the Church, aren’t you?”

“...”

“I don’t know what your exact relationship with the Platinum Dragon is, or why he’s keeping you close, but now I know for sure—the Church and the Platinum Dragon are working together.” Karyl’s words were cold, and for the first time, a slight tremor passed over Rael’s face.

“Not that it’s surprising,” he continued. “We already saw the dragon helping the empire in the north. It’s only natural he’s aligned with the Church that’s been backing the empire all along.”

With that, Karyl pulled his sword from Rael’s illusionary form.

“But if you’re with the Church, that changes things. I’ve heard of you from Nain Darhon. Your appearance here only proves that the Church is tied to the Wooden Cloud.”

“...Nonsense,” Rael muttered, her voice cracking for the first time.

“Your reaction only confirms it.” Karyl’s voice turned into a growl as he aimed Lakna at Rael’s throat.

“I don’t care if you’re the Platinum Dragon’s right hand or just another one of his pawns. You have two choices: keep hiding in the shadows, or come face me on the battlefield. I’ll even allow you to cower under Narh Di Maug’s wings,” Karyl offered with a wicked smirk. “In the end, I’ll finish every one of you.”

“You think I’ll be intimidated by such empty threats?” Rael scoffed.

“Believe what you want. But if the Platinum Dragon was so confident I wouldn’t be able to follow his traces and track him down, he would’ve left his own memory behind. Why would he go through the trouble of using you instead?”

Karyl’s tone turned razor-sharp. “That’s because he knows about the Superior Vision of the Magical Era, and he doesn’t want to be found.”

“...”

Rael’s expression hardened for the first time.

“So get lost.”

Whooosh...

At Karyl’s command, the torches lining the corridor flickered as if stirred by a gust of wind. Rael glared at him.

Voom—!

Without another word, Karyl swung Lakna, and Rael’s form dissipated like smoke, leaving no trace behind.

The one I couldn’t find in my past life came to me of her own accord. Karyl shook his head.

He hadn’t shown it, but even he was surprised that the infamous leader of the Blue Roar was such a young girl. But before she vanished, he had seen something chilling in her eyes—something far too cold, far too ancient for a mere child.

A woman with Nephilim and elven blood... She looks like a young girl, but who knows how old she truly is, Karyl reminded himself, vowing not to underestimate her based on appearances.

He had fallen for illusions and tricks before. In his past life, he had been deceived by Olivurn’s smiles and the Platinum Dragon’s seemingly benevolent gestures.

But this life was different. Karyl wouldn’t trust anyone so easily again.

“Where did you learn that trick? Attacking an illusion to trace the mana of its conjurer...?” Miliana asked, her gaze shifting from where Rael had stood back to Karyl.

“It was a lie.”

“What?”

Miliana blinked in confusion as Karyl snapped his fingers casually.

“Superior Vision is just a spell that lets you see multiple locations at once through familiars. It doesn’t let you trace mana back to its source. Besides, I can barely use the spell myself. I can only catch glimpses through Israphil’s power.”

“Then what was all that earlier...?”

Karyl smiled and snapped his fingers again. “It was nothing but a simple 4th Class illusion spell. I used it to show her an illusion of Heim’s landscape. Luckily, I’ve been there before, so it wasn’t too hard to pull off.”

“And what if she wasn’t actually connected to the Church?”

“I was already pretty confident she was.” Karyl shrugged.

“And what if she had caught on?” Miliana pressed on, raising an eyebrow.

“Listen, I thought it through,” Karyl said calmly. “If she’d come in person, it could’ve been a problem. But since she was just a projection, she couldn’t confirm whether the image I showed her was real or an illusion. It was a gamble, but I figured the odds were in my favor. Looks like I was right.”

“That’s unbelievable...” Miliana chuckled in disbelief. Karyl had made a dangerous gamble, but the fact that he had calculated the risk for something like that in a split second, while swinging his sword, was what truly astonished Miliana.

He’s more cunning than I thought, Karyl mused to himself, considering the unexpected connections he had uncovered.

Though Karyl had suspected a link between the Platinum Dragon and the Wooden Cloud, discovering that the childlike Rael had a direct connection with the dragon surprised even him.

Could she have been raised by the Platinum Dragon? If that’s true, there’s a chance the fanatical cult called the Blue Roar was being backed by the Platinum Dragon all along. But why? Why let them spill so much blood?

Karyl’s expression hardened as his thoughts spiraled.

Or what if the cult wasn’t merely left unchecked but was actually created by Narh Di Maug?

In his past life, many had died fighting the forces of corruption, their last breaths taken with honor as they sacrificed everything to defend the continent. But those killed by the fanatics of the Blue Roar cult? They had died senselessly, without the honor of battle, sacrificed to twisted beliefs.

Karyl’s fist clenched involuntarily at the thought of the fanatics. The Blue Roar had believed their salvation lay in offering human sacrifices to their gods. They had tortured and maimed their victims in grotesque rituals, some even fed to monsters.

Narh Di Maug... If you were truly behind it all, you’ll bear the weight of all those senseless deaths. In this life, I’ll make sure justice is served.

Miliana, sensing the growing intensity in Karyl’s aura, cautiously asked, “So what now? Are we heading back?”

“No,” Karyl responded coldly. “Now that we’re here, we’re going deeper.”

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“But didn’t she say there’s nothing left?” Miliana pressed.

“And you believe her?” he flashed her a dark grin.

“...What?” Miliana blinked.

“The way she talked made me believe there’s something so important down here that it must stay hidden at all costs,” Karyl explained, glancing back at the wall he had shattered with his sword.

A hidden passage, lined with mysterious inscriptions, had been revealed behind the shattered coffins and debris. It was the same path from which the Chimera and Rael had emerged.

Without hesitation, Karyl walked toward it.

“Wait, hold on!” Miliana called out, rushing to follow him deeper into the unknown.

***

“...Nothing. Absolutely nothing. No matter how hard we look, it’s just an empty lair,” Miliana groaned, knocking on the sturdy cave wall.

“Would a dragon really lie? Especially one as powerful as the Platinum Dragon? If he could wield such mighty magic, he likely took everything with him, don’t you think?”

“Maybe,” Karyl muttered.

Time had passed, and despite their thorough search of the lair, they found nothing of significance. As Rael had said earlier, beyond the experiment chamber was nothing but a massive empty cavern.

“I agree that dragons shouldn’t be trusted, but this time, we might’ve come up short. The Platinum Dragon wouldn’t have left things in disarray. After all, we’re talking about a being that wields 9th Class magic, something far beyond human comprehension.”

Allen materialized, his voice filled with resignation as he swept his hand over the wall, causing a thin trail of black smoke to rise in response.

“To be honest, I initially thought you came here hoping to score some legendary dragon weaponry. I figured you were planning to get your hands on something valuable,” Allen went on, clenching and unclenching his hand.

“Or maybe even a stash of gems to fund your army. You know how dragons are—hoarding riches in their lairs. I thought grabbing a few would be a nice way to deal a blow to him.”

Karyl chuckled softly.

“You’re not wrong. That’s exactly what I was hoping for. But that slippery lizard was a step ahead, clearing out everything long ago and leaving only his messenger behind.”

“Not to mention the sentinels left to kill any intruders.”

“Exactly.”

“Still, I don’t understand why you’re so obsessed with this empty lair. If Narh Di Maug anticipated your arrival, how could he leave all those bodies and coffins like that...? He wouldn’t have left anything important behind.”

“You think so too, huh? You really believe the Platinum Dragon left nothing of value behind?” Karyl smirked, continuing to inspect the wall, tracing the trail of black smoke with his hand.

“Hmm? You’ve figured something out, haven’t you?” Allen raised an eyebrow, intrigued by Karyl’s calm persistence.

[I’ve fought alongside him, just like you’ve fought humans. We’ve faced the Platinum Dragon in battle, so I know his nature. He’s not the type to hide things or be deceptive.]

[We’ve met him on the battlefield, same as Allen.]

“So you believe you understand him because you’ve encountered him?”

Karyl smirked at Ramine and Duaat’s comments.

“Then I probably know him better than anyone,” Karyl replied, a hint of amusement in his voice as he kept tracing his hand over the wall Allen had touched.

“I need to verify something. Mael, send your Divine Power through this wall,” Karyl ordered in a low voice.