Ending Maker

Chapter 309: Grand Sword Master (2)

CORRECTIONS

Explanation:

SORRY! This was a translation mistake of mine. The problem started because ‘faith’ and ‘thunderbolt’ used the same Korean words, but their Chinese characters were completely different.

Back when Twelve Faith Steps was first introduced, the author himself did not use any Chinese words in the raws, so I assumed it was ‘Faith’. But when Jude used it in his first fight against First Sword, the author used the Chinese characters for ‘Thunderbolt’, so I assumed that it was a different technique. It was only when I was translating this episode did I finally come to a realization that these two were actually the same.

So everyone, I’M SORRY! Really, really sorry. I’ve corrected all the chapters that called it ‘Twelve Faith Steps.’

In Legend of Heroes 2, the best footwork technique used by Jude was the Twelve Thunderbolt Steps.

A fast thunderbolt.

But in fact, Twelve Thunderbolt Steps was not just a footwork technique.

Because aside from being a footwork technique, it also had a cultivation technique and its fundamental principles in it.

It was not originally like that.

The Thirty-Six World Steps that was the beginning of everything was close to a pure footwork technique.

As it progressed to the Twenty-Four Gale Steps, the fundamental principles of cultivation techniques were added to it.

The black gale became a golden whirlwind and eventually led to the Black Wind’s Advent.

It was their main means of transportation in the wild lands.

And again, the Twenty-Four Gale Steps became the Twelve Thunderbolt Steps.

The first step of the Twelve Thunderbolt Steps was Hyper-Fast Thunderbolt, a footwork technique that gave its user the ability to accelerate in an instant.

The second step, Thunder God Invokes Lightning, was a technique that made the Hyper-Fast Thunderbolt faster, and it was also a cultivation technique that allowed him to handle the power of lightning.

And the third and final step was the Black Lightning Covers the Sky.

Black lightning covered the area.

Jude disappeared with the lightning, and reappeared with the lightning.

An instantaneous acceleration ability that transcended Hyper-Fast Thunderbolt and Thunder God Invokes Lightning.

No, it was not just that. The current Jude actually leapt through space.

Comparing it to magic, it was like a spell and not a spell.

Baaaang!

Lightning struck. Jude’s sword-like hand appeared behind Elune and flew like a flash of light, and Elune quickly twisted her body and let Jude’s sword-like hand flow along her sword. It was a surprisingly smooth response despite the sudden attack from behind.

But the lightning was not over.

Black lightning covered everywhere, and Jude appeared from everywhere as he launched an onslaught of attacks towards Elune.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

His attacks were unbelievably fast.

Moreover, it was not just about being fast. Because he leapt through space like the spell, the range of his retreat path became much wider.

He began to use paths that easily let him advance and retreat, something that Jude couldn’t do when using Hyper-Fast Thunderbolt or Thunder God Invokes Lightning, and his attacks appeared to be extraordinary from the perspective of an ordinary swordsman.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Scarlet was in a daze at the continuous sounds. She was not directly fighting and was only watching from a third person’s perspective, but she could not grasp all of Jude’s movements.

Nevertheless, Scarlet could grasp some of it because she was immensely talented too.

The elven knights watching from the top of the wall could not even properly see Jude’s movements.

Black lightning covered the sky.

It fell and suppressed the enemy.

Elune also could not fully read Jude’s movements.

But she was a Grand Sword Master.

At the same time, she was like the embodiment of a sword who was born and lived in the way of the sword.

If she could not see it, then feel it.

She utilized all her five senses in response to Jude’s movements.

Elune did not understand his attacks.

She did not think with her head and only responded with her amazing intuition.

Just like Cordelia.

Her sword and his sword-like hand interlocked.

She moved with her entire body in the midst of Jude’s onslaught.

Elune did not use force to resist Jude’s attacks that were like raging waves.

She received Jude’s attacks with the lightness of a feather flying through the sky and wind.

Her dance-like movements looked dangerous yet relaxed.

While watching, Cordelia realized one thing.

Elune’s movements resembled those of Jude’s.

It seemed completely different at first glance, but it was not. There were clear commonalities between the two.

One origin.

Jude realized it too.

Valencia whispered in a joyful voice.

[This is my swordsmanship.]

The swordsmanship used by Elf Sword Valencia until she got Sword Origin.

How did that happen?

Valencia replied with a smile at Jude’s question.

[My successor, I had a lot of disciples.]

Because she was the best swordmaster on the continent.

She did not have many disciples whom she taught and raised like Jude, but she had more than a hundred disciples whom she taught a part of her swordsmanship.

Therefore, it was not so strange that Elune, who inherited the blood of high elves, knew how to use the swordsmanship of Valencia.

[But it is surprising. It seems like she filled the missing parts with her own style and the changes are very interesting.]

Valencia praised Elune’s swordsmanship.

So did Jude.

Whenever he exchanged attacks with Elune, he felt wonder.

You could use the sword like that.

That kind of attack was also possible.

So this is what it meant by offense and defense becoming one.

A smile spread across Jude’s face. And it was the same with Elune.

The two understood each other in their fierce and high-speed battle that was hard to even follow with the naked eye. Only the two recognized it in the short moment that seemed to have violated the flow of time.

They had the same roots.

So they resembled each other.

Elune read the traces of Valencia from Jude’s sword, and Jude could glimpse the path he had to take from Elune’s sword.

Elune had a wide smile.

Her entire body seemed like it was screaming to catch up with the intense speed of Black Lightning Covers the Sky, but she kept smiling. She wanted to see it a bit more. She wanted to do it a bit more.

And so did Jude.

Each time he crossed swords with Elune, Jude’s swordsmanship improved.

Jude did not act like himself as he understood and accepted it intuitively instead of analyzing and calculating it.

Elune staggered.

Jude could no longer use Black Lightning Covers the Sky.

But the two did not stop.

Elune filled in the gaps of her sword.

Jude clearly knew which way he had to go.

Her sword and his sword-like hand crossed.

Their high-speed battle had stopped.

His black lightning and her splendid swordsmanship no longer collided.

Their swords interlocked, separated, and crossed again.

Elune eventually burst into tears.

She was so happy yet in despair that her present happiness would end soon.

Jude exhaled. He stopped and in respect to Elune, he showed off the best swordsmanship he could use right now.

Wind and Lightning Flurry Strikes.

Elune responded to the ravaging wind and lightning sword attacks. Likewise, she responded as best as she could.

Flowers bloomed.

Evening primroses fully bloomed.

Light shattered and scattered beautifully.

Thirteen exchanges followed.

Jude and Elune both stopped.

The staggering Elune collapsed due to her weakened legs, and Jude profusely sweated and roughly breathed.

He was somehow standing, but his limbs were numb and trembling, so he felt like he was going to collapse at any moment.

It came to an end.

On the surface, it seemed like Elune was defeated, but she was not.

Neither did it mean that Jude lost.

‘As expected of a Sword Saint.’

Grand Sword Master.

His swordsmanship advanced in the process of opening the seventh door, but he still had a long way to go.

He knew it because he witnessed her swordsmanship that was much closer to the horizon than Jude himself.

Elune trembled. She hugged her own shoulders and smiled again.

Jude’s swordsmanship.

A dazzlingly beautiful black lightning.

Elune thought.

If Jude used a swordsmanship similar to herself.

If he went further and reached the horizon.

It gave her the creeps.

So she smiled even more.

She wanted to see it.

She wanted to cross swords with such a Jude.

“I love it.”

Elune cried and laughed, and Jude eventually turned around and sat down. It wasn’t as much as Elune, but he also laughed.

“You, you use Master Valencia’s sword.”

Elune said. Jude nodded his head, not denying it.

“Yes, my sword contains Valencia-nim’s sword.”

Because both the Supreme Sun Divine Art and Twelve Thunderbolt Steps were reborn by Valencia.

Elune laughed like a child again. She raised her fingers as she fumbled her memory before looking at Jude and saying.

“Sword Origin. Am I right? Ultimate Sword. The one used by Valencia.”

“Yes, that is right.”

Jude nodded again, and Elune’s eyes were filled with envy and joy.

Pressing her hands on her reddened cheeks, she soon spoke with sparkling eyes again.

“Thank you, it was so good. You were very good too. I like you. I want to marry you. Let’s get married. Old man Vincenzo will definitely allow it.”

Jude had a bitter smile at her words that came pouring out in an instant.

Without any hesitation, he replied to her sudden proposal.

“Thank you for your offer. But I’m sorry since I already have a partner.”

Elune’s eyes turned. She looked at the standing Cordelia and pouted her lips, saying.

“I envy you.”

Jude bitterly laughed this time.

He knew too well that she only saw Jude as a swordsman to train with rather than a man, so he stretched out his hand to her as a swordsman.

“Next time, let’s cross swords again.”

“Okay, I’ll study everything that I’ve learned today.”

Elune brightly smiled and Jude smiled too.

As for everyone who was watching them.

The elven knights on the wall were so stunned that none of them could open their mouths, and so was Scarlet.

‘What the hell did you do?’

Jude was clearly strong when we were in the south.

But it was never to this extent.

I haven’t seen Jude for only a few months.

Is it possible to become this strong in that short span of time?

‘It’s possible.’

Scarlet answered her own question.

It was so ridiculous, but she thought that it was actually possible.

Scarlet had not yet reached Jude’s level. But with her brilliant talent, she could tell.

Jude’s sword had advanced.

He reached a higher level in his one match with Elune.

‘F*ck.’

She swore without realizing it.

It was so natural.

Scarlet herself was a genius, so she was confident in her talent.

He was beyond a genius.

No, perhaps a true genius was someone like him.

Scarlet had mixed feelings.

And whether or not Cordelia knew how Scarlet was feeling, she suddenly patted Scarlet’s shoulder.

‘Why?

She asked with her eyes instead of raising her voice, and Cordelia shrugged once and said with a giggle.

“He’s my Jude.”

My kind, nice, and handsome scammer.

Isn’t he cool?

Don’t you think he’s awesome?

Right?

Cordelia yearning for an answer was very cute and adorable, but Scarlet turned her head instead of giving the answer Cordelia wanted.

“F*ck.”

She sincerely exclaimed.

***

The Orange Gate was wide open.

Following Elune who seriously staggered, the party entered the gate, and the elven knights who had already been lined up were sending heated gazes towards the party, or to be more specific, towards Jude.

It was pure respect.

The elves of the empire were arrogant.

There were many cases where they looked down on humans who lived a very short time compared to themselves.

But they could not do it this time.

The fight between Jude and Elune made even those arrogant elven knights exclaim in pure admiration.

“Ahem, ahem, my goodness.”

Cordelia puffed her chest and mumbled, and Scarlet let out a sigh with multiple meanings.

And Elune turned around, saying.

“Elio will be put in jail. It’s late at night, but please tell me where His Imperial Majesty the Emperor is. The Shadow Knights will pick him up.”

Elune was so pure and innocent that she appeared to be a fool, but she was not stupid.

Her clumsy-sounding words and actions actually stemmed from her indifference and annoyance towards others.

She accepted Jude’s ridiculous conditions because of her desire to fight against Jude as soon as possible, but it also came from her confidence that she could do just about anything.

She was one of the 13 Lords of the Privy Council, and the strongest elven swordsman.

The name of a Grand Sword Master was never to be taken lightly.

“I understand. We will do that.”

At Elune’s words, Jude nodded his head.

Even at this moment, the Chancellor must be carrying out a plan to take over the entire empire, so they had to arrive with the emperor as soon as possible to the northern part of the empire where the Buckingham March was, the hometown of the empress dowager.

“Where is His Imperial Majesty the Emperor?”

“It’s a bit difficult to explain, so I will guide you.”

“Are you fine already?”

Elune asked with a worried expression at Jude’s words.

But Jude patted his chest as if nothing was wrong, saying.

“I’m confident in my physical strength.”

It was not only because of Black Lightning Covers the Sky that he was able to become equal to Elune in the first place.

His immense physical strength, which was no exaggeration to say that it was infinite, was the reason.

Besides, it was not just his physical strength.

Jude’s regenerative abilities were also exceptional.

It had only been around ten minutes since their match ended, but Jude had already recovered a significant amount of his physical strength.

“All right. Please guide them then.”

As Elune said that, the Shadow Knights dressed in black armor and cloaks approached Jude.

There were seven in total, and each of them seemed to be strong enough to rival Leon.

“Cordelia, I’ll be going.”

“Yes, be careful at night.”

Jude trusted Elune, so Cordelia also trusted Elune even though she was a swordmaster.

[Well, prejudice is not good.]

Melissa’s meaningless words rang out, and Cordelia lightly kissed him on the lips before saying goodbye. She took a step back and Jude turned around with some regret.

“This way please.”

Jude and the Shadow Knights left the Orange Gate.

And an hour later, when Jude and the emperor’s group met.

The number one person in the Privy Council that led the elves of the empire arrived.

Vincenzo Lombardi arrived at the Orange Gate.