Chapter 16 - The Next Sword Saint

<p>Reniel Estim fumes at the scrawny boy's ignorant question. 'Is he really asking who I am?? The great Raze, unknown by some maggot?!'<br/> <br/> The hot-blooded man takes a deep breath. 'No, no, he must just be simply living under a rock. Yes, that must be it, he must be in the likes of barnacle scum!'<br/><br/> "I see you are highly uneducated, boy, but worry not; the next Sword Saint has enough grace to inform you of how great I am." A wide, condescending smile spreads on his face as he spreads his arms open wide, before reattaching the sword onto his hip, so that he may stand. His sword was crafted in perfect likeness to the previous Sword Saint, who knelt behind him with a benevolent smile. The statue had miraculously grown said smile as he entered earlier that day, after wandering up the stairs. He had just conquered a small town not far to the south, and they were so weak all they could do was cry out to the Sword Saint for help. This had highly angered Reniel; after all, he was clearly the Chosen Disciple, and yet the townspeople had called him delusional for gifting them with his presence.<br/><br/> And so, he killed them. Each and every one.<br/><br/> 'We shall see if this boy is smart enough to realize greatness.'<br/><br/> "Uh, me?" The boy's sharp amber eyes cut into Reniel, eyeing him up and down with a small hint of disdain from behind gleaming white bangs. "I'm quite educated. Maybe you're just not savvy enough to be known."<br/><br/> A vein upon Reniel's forehead pops out. He didn't know what 'savvy' meant, but the intention was clear. Still, he attempted to maintain his patience. 'Ah, he's clearly an idiot.'<br/><br/> He wouldn't kill him yet; it wasn't his fault he was raised without proper learning.<br/><br/> "Kid, do you even know who the Saints are?"<br/><br/> "Like the people who follow God…?"<br/><br/> "Which God do you mean?"<br/><br/> "Uh…"<br/><br/> Reniel sighed. This kid was worse off than he thought.<br/><br/> "There's seven Gods in the world of Puria," Reniel starts grandly, pacing back and forth as he recalls what he himself learnt long ago. "The most superior of Gods is the God of Life and Light, Luzieni, of course. That is the patron God of the top Saint here, Alyphia. Alyphia was said to have been the leader of the Saint's party, who were granted powers by the God of the People, Simulrise. They traveled a great distance across this very land of Peino to reach the Far Outlands, where the Demon King resided."<br/><br/> "That's some cliché ass shit."<br/><br/> The corner of Reniel's mouth twitch slightly. He wasn't sure what was up with this boy, but the strange words and the attitude of the boy was irking him greatly. "You ought to watch your tongue in Alyphia's shrine, boy."<br/><br/> "I'm just being my true self. Wouldn't a Saint prefer that over pretending to be better than everyone?"<br/><br/> The square jaw of the well built tall man clenches tightly; the boy may be uneducated, but his mannerisms were simply inexcusable. His left hand rests calmly on the scabbard of his sword; if need be, he was ready to strike him down in an instant, and the boy wasn't even armed, unless he somehow knew how to use Inventory, a high-level Skill.<br/><br/> The more he thought about it, the more tempted he became.<br/><br/> "Hey, boy. If you grovel on your knees and apologize, I may think about being merciful. After all, I'm a well-known figure, and my strength will continue to grow until I become the Second Sword Saint!" Reniel laughs loudly, eyeing the boy to see how quickly he would submit.<br/><br/> "Eh. You don't seem all that great to me."<br/><br/> Reniel's face grows cold. "Well. You've asked for it, boy. You shall feel the wrath of Raze!"<br/><br/>- - -<br/><br/> As the weird man went to draw his sword, I activate Analyze, and began to realize that maybe once, I had pushed a little too far.<br/><br/>[Name: Reniel Estim]<br/>[Age: 24]<br/>[Lv: 34]<br/>[* Warning! Extreme Lv difference!*]<br/>[Health: 87/87]<br/>[Mana: 105/105]<br/>[Stamina: 87/87]<br/><br/>STR: 52 MAG: 24<br/>AGI: 20 DEX: 22<br/>VIT: 26 INT: 18<br/><br/>ACC: 21<br/>DEF: 39<br/>POW: 21<br/><br/>[Skills: Fury (Rare), Slash+ (Uncommon), Sprint (Common)]<br/>[* Warning! You can't really win here…*]<br/><br/>The last warning made me push away the message in spite, but caused the man — Reniel — to pause.<br/><br/> "Did you just set a trap?"<br/><br/> "…Huh?"<br/><br/> "The mana in your eye and that hand movement… What was that?"<br/><br/> I blinked. Something had happened with my eye? I could feel something changing with it when I used Critical Eye, but I didn't know it happened otherwise.<br/><br/> "…Ah. Yeah. Wanna come find out what it was?"<br/><br/> I hold up my middle finger with a grin, causing the blondie to fume. I thought the vein on his forehead might pop.<br/><br/>[Enemy in sight.]<br/>[Critical Eye Skill activated.]<br/><br/> 'Ah, shit.'<br/><br/> Without regard for any 'trap' I had set, Reniel dashes forward. I knew he had 20 Agility, but the difference between my and his stats were near incomparable.<br/><br/> And the main issue would be his Strength.<br/><br/>[Underdog Skill activated.]<br/>[All stats increased by 12%.]<br/><br/> With the minimal increase of my Agility and Instinct, I barely manage to pull out an Upper Canine and block the slash of the man. As soon as his blade touched mine, the Canine shattered in a shower of white, throwing me back from the force of his blow.<br/><br/> I tumble several feet, but I was used to something like this. Quickly regaining my posture midair, I pull out the other Upper Canine. <br/><br/> "Interesting. You CAN use the Inventory. That takes quite a bit of knowledge to gain. Does that mean you were lying before?"<br/><br/> The man stood in a poised, yet elegant stance. I, on the other hand, had a relaxed posture, ready to react to an attack from any direction.<br/><br/> "He already broke one of the Upper Canines… He doesn't know the trick, does he?"<br/><br/> "Why on Puria are you muttering? It's so unsightly."<br/><br/> This time, with my eyes locked on him, I could see the windup of his movements as he flew in to attack me once again. I swing my blade in an upwards arc, deflecting his own sword. Although I had redirected most of the force, my arm still ache from the impact. I swing back down, but the self-proclaimed 'next Sword Saint' easily steps back, avoiding the blow.<br/><br/> "And your movements. They're extremely ugly. Were you never properly taught how to handle a blade? If so, you have no chance against—"<br/><br/> "'The next Sword Saint.' Yeah, I know," I cut him off in a mocking voice, causing him to stomp angrily at being cut off. At this point, his face was nearing beet red, and I was all for it. 'Anything to get him off his game.'<br/><br/> I watch the edge of his blade carefully. Sure enough, when it began to swing, I began a deflection for the blow I knew was coming.<br/><br/> SHHH-TING!<br/><br/> The attack flew uselessly to my left, but after only two attacks, my hands were beginning to grow numb. Still, I push forward. "Just need one good blow."<br/><br/> "Would you quit that muttering!"<br/><br/> Ignoring the childish man, I twist my body, supposedly swinging for his head. He brings his blade up to block it, potentially because the anger that was still growing could be seen on his face and he wasn't thinking straight. Grinning, I curve the blade, carving a narrow S shape in the air as the attack was redirected to his knee. Still, the difference in Agility was too great, as he jumps back, But, it had caught him off guard, allowing the tip of the Canine to nick his knee.<br/><br/>[Critical Mark has been hit. Dmg was adjusted to 350%.]<br/><br/> Slick!<br/><br/> The small sound grew louder suddenly as a large cut appeared over Reniel's knee. It buckled, and I quite literally leap at the opportunity.<br/><br/>[Target in sight.]<br/>[Critical Eye Skill activated.]<br/>[Slash Skill was activated.]<br/><br/> The tooth that had been made into a weapon filled its empty insides with purple Mana, and the edges followed suit. Keeping this new momentum, I swung at Reniel's side. He hastily swung up to intercept my blade, but mine changed direction suddenly. It slid against the side of his as he tried to block it anyway, but I got an even smaller cut onto his left shoulder. <br/><br/>[Critical Mark has been hit. Dmg was adjusted to 350%.]<br/><br/> Fwip!<br/><br/> Reniel's cry of anguish echoed out in the shrine as a decently-sized cut appeared in his left shoulder. In anger, he swiped out quickly, causing me to block at an awkward angle. I braced my sword with my left arm for extra support, but his Strength far outmatched mine, chipping the edge and cutting into my forearm as I was sent flying once again.<br/><br/> As I landed, I stopped my momentum with my heels as I slide a few feet on my back. Looking up, I see Reniel struggling to his feet and sigh. If my hands weren't nearly blue from how numb they had already gotten, I might have properly felt the cut on my arm, but I didn't thanks to the mix of that and adrenaline pumping through my system. An unsettling grin begins to take over my face. <br/><br/> "For a Sword Saint, all you got going for you is Strength, huh?" I call out mockingly, swiping my left arm out to splatter the blood growing on it upon the floor.<br/><br/> "…What the fuck did you just say?"</p>