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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
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Relics.
Among them, 4-star and 5-star relics possessed immensely powerful abilities. However, not just anyone could become stronger simply by possessing them.
‘In the first place, ordinary people can’t even use them.’
Relics were essentially objects imbued with the power of gods.
Lower-grade relics contained minuscule amounts of power, allowing anyone to use them, but as the grade increased, the requirements for the user became stricter.
Most 4-star and 5-star relics required specific holy stigmata to even be usable.
‘The Reedval family’s Rose Sword and the Lodreim Royal Family’s Royal Sword are prime examples.’
Those two were relics that couldn’t even be used without their respective family’s holy stigmata. And that was Yuseora’s biggest problem as a swordsman.
‘There are almost no sword-type relics she can use.’
From a game perspective, it was only natural, as Yuseora was originally designed as an archer character. But this world wasn’t a game.
It was more accurate to say that the fact that Yuseora’s family wasn’t originally a combat-specialized family had a greater influence.
‘That can’t be helped.’
If she couldn’t use 4-star or higher relics, she had to acquire lower-grade ones.
Of course, she could use 3-star relics without any burden, but unlike 2-star relics, which had many of Heinz’s replicas, 3-star relics were already in short supply.
It would be impossible to receive a steady supply of 3-star relics for her to use freely.
‘Then the target should be 2-star relics.’
And among the 2-star relics, excluding special cases like Gravitus Replicant, there was one sword that came closest to a 3-star relic in terms of pure ‘grade.’
That was the Sacred Replicant Yuseora had just broken.
‘There’s just one problem…’
Because of its versatile and well-rounded performance, most of the 101 Sacred Replicants already had owners. But he would probably be able to overcome that problem.
This gamble was for that very purpose.
“There aren’t just 101 Sacred Replicants, are there?”
He clearly saw it. Heinz Armanus’s expression hardened for a moment.
‘As expected.’
He felt a little sorry for Heinz. This was probably a secret he had been hiding. But he had to do this for Yuseora.
Heinz, trying to hide his surprise, asked,
“What do you mean? There are only 101 Sacred Replicants.”
He seemed to be trying to deny it, but Allen had already read his expression.
“Mr. Heinz, I already know.”
It wasn’t certainty derived from Seo Yoo Rang’s knowledge. At first, it was just a guess. But he had some conviction in that guess.
‘The 101 swords themselves were contradictory from the start.’
There might be someone who attempted something 100 times, but no one would only attempt something 101 times.
‘Especially since replicating the holy sword was a kind of proof for Heinz.’
It was similar to how Seo Yoo Rang was nurturing Allen Blake.
The Sacred Replicant was a sword created by Heinz, who couldn’t create a relic exceeding 2-stars no matter how many relics he replicated, in an attempt to overcome that wall by replicating the holy sword, known as the strongest sword.
That’s why, unlike other Replicant series, there were as many swords as the countless replication attempts he had made. Attempting 100 times was difficult, but not strange.
And attempting 101 times was also plausible if there was a special reason. But what was more difficult was stopping at 101.
“There are more than 101 Sacred Replicants.”
So he took the gamble. And…
“I suppose it can’t be helped.”
Heinz sighed and shook his head.
“A total of 125. That’s the number of all the Sacred Replicants I’ve created.”
The gamble paid off. But the number was a bit unexpected.
‘125?’
It was less than he had anticipated.
“It’s different from what’s publicly known. The attempts after the 101st were done unofficially and secretly.”
Unofficially? Secretly?
Was there a reason for someone like Heinz to do that?
Heinz answered his question,
“I’ll reveal the truth here. My 125th attempt was successful, and I finally succeeded in creating a 3-star relic.”
That was the opposite of what he expected.
‘A genius is still a genius, huh?’
He had assumed Heinz was reluctant to reveal the attempts after the 101st because they were all failures.
“Thank you for being honest. And I apologize for my rudeness. But could you tell me why you kept it a secret until now?”
He bowed his head respectfully. Heinz nodded, accepting his apology, and replied,
“Because if I reported it to the church, they would take it away under the pretext of safekeeping.”
Ah.
It was a surprisingly simple reason. Of course, it wasn’t that he couldn’t understand.
‘Then all that’s left is to solidify the victory?’
Even if there were more than 101 Sacred Replicants, it was meaningless if Yuseora couldn’t inherit them.
He gestured to Yuseora. From here on, it would be better for the inheritor herself to step forward.
‘You can do this on your own, right?’
Yuseora immediately knelt on one knee. It might not have been as perfect a posture as Elsie’s, who had the ‘Court Etiquette’ skill, but it clearly conveyed her earnestness.
The Sacred Replicant was the last piece for her to achieve her goal of reviving her merchant guild as a swordsman.
‘Then I should probably leave now.’
Yuseora’s match was almost last. As soon as the graduation competition ended, the official meeting between the candidates and the heroes would begin.
So he needed to return to being Seo Yoo Rang before then.
“Please, grant me the inheritance,”
Yuseora’s earnest voice echoed behind him as he left the arena.
“Hmm… now that it’s all out in the open, I suppose I can’t keep holding onto them. It was pointless to keep them anyway, now that I think about it.”
And he heard Heinz’s voice, which sounded somewhat relieved.
“I will bequeath all 24 Sacred Replicants, excluding the 101, to Hero Candidate Yuseora.”
Not enough, but not a small number either. And unexpectedly, it included a 3-star Sacred Replicant.
With this, he had accomplished everything he had planned for this graduation competition.
‘No, there was still one small thing left.’
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A forfeit, rare in the graduation competition. And because of that, a match between a hero candidate and a High-ranking Hero.
The repercussions of that match were significant, and even now, after the graduation competition had ended, people were still buzzing about it.
“Just how strong is Allen Blake to block that attack with a 1-star relic?”
“But he only blocked it. I didn’t even see him attack.”
“That’s true, but… he’s probably stronger than you, right?”
Students lined the arena. The heroes descended from the audience seats and interacted with them. Among them, Yuseora was attracting the most attention.
“She was quite impressive.”
“And to break a Sacred Replicant in front of Master Heinz… has she lost her mind?”
Surrounded by the gathered heroes, Yuseora just gave an awkward smile. Of course, they weren’t here to pass down their relics to her. Their purpose was to recruit Yuseora into their parties.
“How about it? Want to join our party?”
“We happen to have an opening for a swordsman.”
But Yuseora had to decline all the offers. She knew her swordsmanship wasn’t suited for the role of an ordinary swordsman. In the end, there was only one person who could maximize its potential.
‘Seo Yoo Rang.’
She glanced at the black-haired man in the distance. She personally wished he would help her in this situation, but she knew it was impossible. She had to handle this on her own.
“I apologize, but I’ve already decided to form a party with my classmates from the academy.”
That line, too, was something he had taught her to use when she was in a difficult situation, and it seemed to be working well.
“Well, you’re still young, so you might prioritize that.”
“I understand, but… remember that a hero’s retirement age comes sooner than you think.”
They were mostly graduates of the Hero Academy, so they understood. There were bound to be bonds between classmates who fought together in mock battles at the Hero Academy.
But they didn’t back down so easily.
“Then forget about that. Where are you from, young lady?”
Yuseora’s face paled.
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‘I’m so envious.’
Elsie watched Yuseora and thought to herself. Unlike Yuseora, there were no heroes around her.
‘Well, that’s only natural.’
Following Allen’s instructions, she hadn’t shown any useful abilities like Optical Modulation during the competition.
However, driven by her desire to win, she had resorted to biting her opponent’s arm with her teeth. There wouldn’t be anyone who would readily approach her after seeing that.
‘I expected it, but it’s a little lonely.’
Seeing the crowd around Yuseora made her feel even lonelier.
‘Should I ask Allen to stop by the lake one last time after this is over?’
Relieving stress with food was always a good idea. This situation was partly due to Allen’s instructions.
As she was thinking that, a voice called her name.
“Elsie.”
She turned her head.
“It’s been a while, Master.”
Gwen nodded.
“It has. Almost a year.”
They had exchanged glances in the audience earlier, but this was their first proper meeting, so they decided to ignore that.
However, a long silence followed. It had been a while since they last met, and Gwen was usually quiet.
“Your swordsmanship has improved quite a bit.”
Surprisingly, it was Gwen who spoke first.
“Hee hee… if you’re complimenting me, then I must have improved a lot. But I still can’t catch up to you, Master.”
“That’s only natural.”
“But I’ve already surpassed you in another area, haven’t I?”
“Huh?”
Elsie had a shy expression on her face. Gwen, momentarily stunned, followed Elsie’s gaze and realized.
“Elsie, you’re mistaken. I don’t have those kinds of feelings.”
“You looked quite pleased earlier, though.”
“That’s…”
That girl was incredibly perceptive.
“Yes, I was pleased. But I’m not so desperate that I would steal food from my disciple. Men will be lining up for you once Precociousness is undone.”
“Hmm…”
“Well, not all men are the same. You have to choose carefully. He should be kind, have a sense of justice, and be somewhat good-looking…”
Elsie said to her, “Thank you.”
“Huh?”
“Just… something I wanted to say to you as your disciple. You taught me, and you came to see me today.”
She would have been lonely otherwise. At some point, she had no one to talk to besides her constellation. Although not to the same extent as Allen, Gwen was precious to her.
“Elsie.”
Gwen placed her hand on Elsie’s head. Elsie had grown a bit taller, and Gwen now had to reach up. It was a somewhat comical sight.
“Gwen?”
“I truly hope you find happiness first.”
“What about you, Master?”
“Don’t worry. I’ll be happy soon too. It’s just not my turn yet.”
Gwen smiled faintly.
“You’ve become quite womanly. It must be thanks to him.”
Although Elsie had just been biting a sword with her teeth, she looked beautiful in Gwen’s eyes.
However, knowing that she shouldn’t say such things directly to Elsie, who carried as many scars as Gwen herself, she forced those words back down.
‘I envy you.’
She removed her hand from Elsie’s head and turned around.
“Then, I’ll see you again later.”
Elsie already knew from Allen that Gwen would be heading to the Central Archipelago first. Elsie would head there after resolving the Lodreim Kingdom issue with Allen, so they would meet again then.
There was only one thing Elsie could say to Gwen.
“I’ll consider it, regarding that guy.”
“What?”
“Perhaps I might turn a blind eye for you, Master?”
Gwen’s cheeks flushed slightly.
“Wh-What…?”
“Just kidding, of course.”
“Elsie, there are jokes you can tell and…”
Elsie quickly changed the subject before Gwen could continue.
“I’ll try my best to visit you as soon as possible.”
A swift change of topic. But those words were also sincere. This was probably what Elsie originally wanted to say.
Noticing this, Gwen calmed her emotions and replied calmly,
“Yes, I’ll be waiting for that day.”
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‘Elsie met with Gwen.’
Well, they had spent a long time together, so they had a special bond. Elsie herself had said that Gwen was the most precious person to her after me.
Since they wouldn’t be seeing each other for a while, it was good that they said their goodbyes.
‘Also, Yuseora seems to be having a bit of trouble… but I don’t think I need to help.’
She should be able to handle that much on her own. And more importantly, I had something I needed to do. It seemed that it was about to begin.
“Seo Yoo Rang.”
It was Lyudmila.
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