Chapter 71 – Hero Registration

Lord Ten’s reaction prompted the Priest Beatus to ask.

“Do you know him?”

“Haa, that’s my useless son. He squandered half a month’s worth of the territory’s operating funds on gambling and got kicked out.”

Recalling what Dice had said, Hanna made a dumbfounded expression.

“…A little?”

Half the operating funds for a territory of the Ten family’s scale would likely match the annual operating budget of the convent she had lived in.

She had expected he wasn’t just a simple bandit due to his somewhat aristocratic appearance, but she never imagined he was actually a noble.

“Ahaha…”

“What are you laughing about as if you did something good, you rascal!”

“Guhk!”

As Dice gave an awkward laugh under Hanna’s gaze, Lord Ten, unable to bear it any longer, delivered a kick.

Only after stomping on the fallen Dice several times did his excitement seem to subside, as Lord Ten regained his composure and looked at Hanna.

“Oh dear, I showed you an unsightly scene. My apologies.”

“It’s fine. Family matters can be like that.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“Then we shall head to the church.”

At that moment, Lord Ten stopped Beatus, who was about to head to the church.

“Ah, wait a moment. There’s something I haven’t told you yet.”

“What is it?”

“Well, there’s currently a troublesome Golden Holy War hero in our territory.”

“What does that have to do with…?”

At the mention of a Golden Holy War hero, Lee Hanseong allocated a bit of the consciousness he had focused on Hanna to his other half.

As expected.

He sensed that Duren, whom his other half had possessed, was in this city.

‘Ugh…!’

And when he became aware of what the other half had been doing all this time, which he hadn’t paid attention to, his head throbbed.

If Hanna’s one year was compressed into about three days of experience for this side.

Then Duren’s one year, even compressed similarly, required nearly a month’s worth of perceived time.

No wonder the two consciousnesses divided by the Yang Will Divine Art were barely connected.

‘What on earth did he do? The other me.’

The perceived time for each side had been different.

* * *

The half of Lee Hanseong possessing Duren, just as his other self had done, could use Primordial Chaos Gang Qi to weave Pheidippides’s Taiji Constitution and rapidly progress Duren’s history.

The skills he could use also underwent changes once again when Duren became the main subject.

【Duren Spirit (★★☆)(Guarantee of the Righteous Will Active)】

General Skills: <Slash>, <Thrust>.

Rare Skills: <Unwavering>, <???>, <???>

General Awakening Skills: 《Sky Splitter》, 《Sun Stab》, 《???》.

【Lee Hanseong (★★★☆☆)(Transcendence, Guarantee of the Righteous Will Active)】

Unique Skill: <Unyielding Indomitability>, <Absolute Sword Art>

Legendary Skill: <Primordial Chaos Gang Qi>

……

However, it wasn’t just Lee Hanseong’s skills that had changed.

Duren’s skills had also been integrated under the influence of Primordial Chaos Gang Qi.

It seemed the same integration that had occurred once in reality was repeated within the History Alteration, as they were skills that had already been integrated before.

“Split the sky, stab the sun. What’s next?”

But Duren, who had completed the Pinnacle of the Thrust in the previous History Alteration with the mental image of stabbing the sun, now faced a wall regarding the next realm.

Sssak! Zzzeng!

Both the slash and thrust unfolding in his hands were perfect, but that was all.

The sword of Duren, who had done nothing but train for decades, was dead.

A sword only effective against stationary, inanimate objects.

“This isn’t it.”

Of course, by deploying the Awakening Skills Single Flash and Rope, which transcended space, he could slash and stab moving targets as much as he wanted.

But that wasn’t what Duren desired.

Relying solely on Awakening Skills wouldn’t increase his swordsmanship prowess.

—How about learning my Absolute Sword Art?

With Duren’s consciousness at the forefront, Lee Hanseong, who had been observing him from within his subconscious, spoke up.

Absolute Sword Art was originally a swordsmanship formed by the integration of skills evolved from Duren’s Slash and Thrust, oriented towards the Sword Demon’s swordsmanship.

It was a swordsmanship suitable for Duren to learn in the same way.

Since he already had Slash and Thrust, acquiring Absolute Sword Art would be sufficiently possible by using just one of the two Rare Skill slots that appeared upon reaching Three-Star.

“That wouldn’t be bad either. However, I refuse.”

But Duren firmly refused.

“That is not my path. Even if you are a being similar to me, you are ultimately another. I will forge my own sword myself.”

—Alright. If that is your will.

Lee Hanseong respected Duren’s will.

Duren taking a different path was also good for him.

A new skill would grant him another possibility.

‘Moreover, thinking about it again, Absolute Sword Art would be too burdensome to perform with Duren’s body.’

Duren’s age was already well past 70.

Thanks to consistent training and Awakening, he wasn’t frail like an ordinary old man, but neither did he have a body as healthy as younger people of the same Star Rank.

It was almost embarrassing to compare it to Lee Hanseong’s body, which had undergone Body Reformation with the aid of Demon Armor and the skills of other Spirits.

‘He’s only holding on due to his unique mental strength; he could collapse at any moment and it wouldn’t be strange.’

Originally, he should have reached 4-Star when Pheidippides took residence, but he stopped at 3-Star due to aging.

No, rather, because the Holy Light Body was a burden on his weak body, he couldn’t even borrow Pheidippides’s skills like Hanna could.

‘In that case, there must be a separate swordsmanship suitable for Duren.’

But just because he decided to respect his will didn’t mean he intended to let him continue fruitless training like this.

—You must know too, but you can’t advance further by just swinging your sword at empty air alone. To progress from here, you need real combat.

He advised, recalling the experience of Hundred-Man Slaughter.

“I know. It’s about time to descend the mountain.”

Duren didn’t stubbornly insist on training more.

The moment he decided to descend the mountain.

[The Golden Constellation bestows the trial ‘Hundred Duels’.]

A new trial from the Golden Constellation descended upon Duren.

“Hundred Duels?”

Duren was puzzled, but Lee Hanseong somehow felt he knew why this trial had come down.

‘Could it be that the Golden Constellation took notice of the Hundred-Man Slaughter currently progressing in reality?’

Of course, unlike Hundred-Man Slaughter, this trial didn’t necessarily have to be Life-and-Death Duels.

And as long as the opponent’s level was equivalent, it was fine.

“Indeed…! I see. So the Constellation also knows that what I need is real combat experience.”

With even the Constellation pushing him from behind, Duren descended the mountain with an excited heart and headed first to the Golden Holy War before the duels.

* * *

If the Sun Kingdom’s knights were in each territory’s lord’s castle, and the Church of Radiance’s priests were in the church halls.

Then the Golden Holy War’s heroes were in the arenas present in every major city.

Arriving at Hundred Territory, the major city closest to the mountain valley where he had been training, Duren immediately visited the arena.

“I’ve come to register as a hero.”

“Excuse me. Elder Sir? You want to become a hero at that age?”

The receptionist frowned at Duren’s white-haired appearance, sighed, and advised.

“You seem tempted by the word ‘hero,’ but you’ll die if you do that.”

“I am prepared.”

Seeing Duren’s resolute gaze, the receptionist seemed to think persuasion by words was impossible and shook his head side to side.

“Haa, alright. Tell me your name and number of Awakenings. Also, if you’ve received any trials from a Constellation or have already passed any trials, please mention those too.”

“Understood.”

Duren answered everything truthfully.

“…You really passed a trial? And you have another trial in progress too?”

“It’s all true.”

“It would be better to confess if you’re lying, even now. They say real heroes can see the trials others hold.”

“Then you can call another hero to verify.”

The receptionist gave Duren a suspicious glance and then handed him an Iron Plate with the answers he just gave written on it.

“Alright. From now on, Mr. Duren, you are a hero. A hero is an existence who explores unknown dangers as an adventurer, performs quests as a mercenary, and is a gladiator who stakes their life on combat.”

“But what is this number written here?”

At the very top of the Iron Plate Duren received was written the number 98,347.

“That’s your hero ranking. You can raise your ranking by accumulating Adventure Points, Quest Points, and Duel Points. At first, it’s good to build up Quest Points by taking on simple quests…”

Duren, who had been listening to the explanation, cut off the receptionist and asked.

“I want to duel right away. How do I do that?”

“Even if your trial is duel-related, you want to start dueling immediately?”

“I’m in a hurry, you see.”

“Alright. I’ll register you in the arena first. If you wait inside, they’ll soon assign you a suitable opponent.”

“Thank you.”

* * *

A short while later, with a duel opponent assigned, Duren began his first duel inside the arena, which resembled a colosseum.

His opponent was a 2-Star hero with a ranking in the same 90,000 range.

A duel conducted using only swordsmanship, without using Single Flash or Rope.

The result was victory.

But the process was miserable.

“Elder Sir. It seems like you’ve been holed up in some mountain training alone, but with that swordsmanship, the best you can hope for is a Copper Plate at best.”

The opponent, realizing from the first sword strike that Duren’s Slash and Thrust were not to be taken lightly, avoided clashing swords with him easily.

With stable posture and footwork, he easily escaped Duren’s sword range.

And as the movements increased, Duren’s stamina rapidly depleted.

“Hooooo… I’ll gratefully accept your advice.”

In the end, he won by knocking away the opponent’s sword when the opponent thought he had won and approached for the final blow.

But if just a little more time had been dragged out, Duren would have been the one defeated.

Upon winning the duel, Duren’s Iron Plate was updated.

98,338.

A number that had risen a mere nine ranks.

However, a long time was needed before the Iron Plate would update again.

Due to his stamina limits, he could only duel once a day, and…

Defeat.

Defeat.

Defeat.

After the first victory, in all subsequent duels, everyone knew Duren’s weakness was stamina and came at him with attrition tactics.

Of course, he could win if he used Single Flash or Rope, but for the sake of improving his skill, Duren refrained from using Awakening Skills until the end.

After all, even if he didn’t win, the duel count for the trial would still be filled.

“Mr. Duren. Another duel? You keep losing; why not try something else now?”

“Thank you for your concern, but I feel like I’m starting to see something, so I plan to try just a little longer.”

“Yes, yes. Of course. I wish you good luck.”

Exchanging a similar conversation with the arena receptionist, whom he had grown familiar with from seeing daily, Duren entered another duel.

This duel opponent was someone he had fought and lost to once before.

“Thank you, Elder Sir. I’ll be taking those victory points sweetly again today.”

And he lost again.

‘Huh? The duel count didn’t go up?’

It seemed duels against the same opponent were only counted once.

Since he had already dueled all the Iron Badge Heroes registered at the Hundred Territory arena, to finish the trial quickly, he should go to another city.

But Duren did not leave Hundred Territory.

—How long do you plan to stay here?

“Until I find the answer.”

He began sparring repeatedly with opponents he had already lost to, honing new techniques.

Acknowledging his lack of stamina, he restrained his attacks.

“Aren’t you coming, Elder Sir? If you won’t come, I will.”

If the opponent had come head-on, that strategy might have succeeded.

Tap tap tap.

But since his duel opponents deliberately circled around, targeting his sides or rear, Duren had to keep turning his body.

In this way, the opponent’s stamina consumption was greater, but Duren’s stamina would still run out first.

Clang!

Moreover, defending against attacks from the front wasn’t easy either.

It was the difference between controlled, personal training and real combat that changed every moment.

To swing his sword to deflect in time with the opponent’s sword speed and timing required intense concentration, and if the opponent engaged in a contest of strength, he was often pushed back by sheer muscle power.

Watching this, he realized.

‘Even if I had learned Absolute Sword Art, without Mind’s Eye, it would have been half-baked.’

Once again acknowledging that Duren’s choice was right, he cheered on Duren’s transformation.

While sharing the Sword Demon’s swordsmanship, which he remembered, into Duren’s subconscious via Primordial Chaos Gang Qi.

‘Since it’s called All Streams Return to Origin, I should be able to give him some inspiration, right?’

He thought that from the Sword Demon’s swordsmanship, which had reached the pinnacle of the sword, an answer other than Absolute Sword Art could be found.

And that thought hit the mark.

Duren’s sword, acknowledging his lack of muscle power, gradually began to change towards a soft sword that deflected the opponent’s sword.

Maximizing his concentration, he calculated all the minute adjustments in force and changes in direction occurring in an instant, and he had sufficient capacity to use the opponent’s force against them with minimal effort.

[Conditions met. Rare Skill <???> blooms into <Deflect: Parry>.]

Sssrrr— Ting.

“Elder Sir. Something’s changed, hasn’t it?”

“I’ve merely found the path I must take.”

And the day came when, for the first time, Duren did not get pushed back even after clashing with his opponent.

After that day, change came swiftly.

“Now it won’t be easy for me to win either.”

As his Parry proficiency rose, the time he could hold out increased.

Sssrung— Sssrung— Thud.

In a duel that took place in his third month as a hero, he finally overcame his stamina limit.

“I… lost?”

A blade stopped right before the opponent’s throat after deflecting every one of the opponent’s swords without taking a single step back.

It was his second victory.

[Conditions met. Rare Skill <???> blooms into <Counter: Counter>.]

After mastering Parry, victories continued one after another.

Victory.

Victory.

Victory.

And when he had defeated all 15 Iron Badge Heroes who worked as gladiators in Hundred Territory.

Duren’s ranking had become 84,628th.