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“Now, Knights of the Round Table, heed your king’s command!” (Muramasa)

[Holy Sword Technique Activation]

When Muramasa waved his wand, the aura of the Knights of the Round Table shifted. They began channeling mana into their swords, their entire bodies poised to strike at Lanpeach.

[Soldier, it looks like the enemy can use special skills depending on the command!] (Libra)

[I can see that. Can you give me some more useful support?] (Lanpeach)

Even a child could tell that they were about to unleash a powerful attack.

[Don’t expect too much from me! All I can do is analyze and stand firm! Hurry up and do the Divine Spirit Fusion so I can be useful. I’ll even start calling you master!] (Libra)

[I respectfully decline.] (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach sighed and observed the enemy from god eye view, ignoring Libra’s fuming and smacking his head. It seemed that Muramasa could control all the knights with a single command, as the mana gathered into the swords of every Knight of the Round Table.

[Holy Slash]

A divine light infused the swords, and they launched their attack as if to vanquish evil. 

Three knights struck simultaneously, aiming for Lanpeach’s head, arms, and legs, while another trio prepared to follow up with a downward slash from behind.

“I can’t dodge this.” (Lanpeach)

Calmly assessing the attack, Lanpeach realized that evasion was impossible. 

The knights’ perfectly coordinated and swift attack left no room to escape. Even if he managed to dodge, the remaining six knights were ready to cover any gaps, a level of skill that made it clear they could defeat even stronger opponents.

Lanpeach remained unperturbed despite this, his face calm as he activated his psychic abilities.

[Psychic Body]

[Psychic Blade]

Lanpeach enhanced his stats, let his arms sway, and smiled fearlessly.

“Let me show you that this spirit armor is on a different level than what you find in the Surface Districts.” (Lanpeach)

[Sword Saint]

He activated the unique skill of his spirit armor, Sword Saint, white platinum particles shimmered like bubbles from the Sword Saint’s Garb, imbuing Lanpeach’s arms with its power.

[Sword Saint: 100% increase in melee combat damage. 20% increase in evasion rate.]

“If I can’t dodge, I’ll just overpower them.” (Lanpeach)

[Manifestation of Spirit Gauntlets]

A mystical light took form as gauntlets, and an overwhelming force began to surge.

“Hyuh!”

Lanpeach lightly shifted his right foot on the ground with a sharp exhale. His body blurred with blinding speed, creating afterimages as his hand swept across the bodies of three Knights of the Round Table, leaving a radiant trail.

[First Flash]

The knights, in the midst of their thrusts, were sliced clean in circles, their armor falling apart as they crumbled to the ground by his side. Without a second glance, Lanpeach spread his arms and spun, the momentum carrying him into the next attack.

[Second Flash]

The next three knights, ready for a follow-up strike, were also sliced through before they could even swing their swords.

Lanpeach fixed his gaze on the remaining six knights with a cold smile and, with just a single step, closed the distance between them.

The knights, realizing Lanpeach was upon them, tried to block with their swords…but found their bodies split vertically. Their swords were left hanging uselessly as the bisected knights fell to the ground.

The Knights of the Round Table, unknowing of fear, rushed at Lanpeach with their swords even as their comrades fell.

Lanpeach lightly swatted the first sword aside, casually slipping past the knight. Without hesitation, he sliced the knight in half at the waist as he passed, and then shattered the next knight’s helmet with a precise thrust. As he stepped forward with such speed that afterimages trailed behind him, he deflected the simultaneous diagonal slashes from two knights with his hands, only to cut them down in a reverse diagonal slash.

The final two knights halted their advance, bringing their swords up defensively.

“A wise decision, but far too late.” (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach slightly crouched and then dashed between the two knights, leaving a flash of silver in his wake.

With a loud crash, the finely sliced metal remains of the knights clattered to the ground as Lanpeach grinned and turned to Muramasa, waving his hand mockingly.

“Let’s go for seconds. You can revive them, right? Go ahead and do it.” (Lanpeach)

Lanpeach teased Muramasa, whose face had turned pale. Lanpeach showed a confident smile and a commanding presence.

◇◇

“This… This is impossible… You’re too powerful… Who are you? The armor of the Knights of the Round Table is made of Adamantite, reinforced by my support magic. Even an Orichalcum sword shouldn’t be able to make more than a scratch…” (Muramasa)

Muramasa couldn’t believe the sight before him. It was so far beyond reality that his mind refused to accept it.

“Was that Orichalcum sword even real? Maybe it only had 1% Orichalcum and was just falsely advertised?” (Lanpeach)

“Don’t mock me! Knights of the Round Table, revive!” (Muramasa)

[King Arthur’s Blessing]

Muramasa revived the Knights of the Round Table with a pained groan. The remains on the ground were engulfed in flames, returning to their original forms. The knights stood up once more, unflinching and fearless, and resumed their assault on the man who called himself Michibiki.

The Knights of the Round Table were top-tier swordsmen. Clad in Adamantite armor with near-invincible defense, they fought without fear of death, allowing them to use tactics that living beings would never dare.

Additionally, they had their holy swordsmanship, honed to the level of heroes of legend, combined with the sharpness of the holy sword Caliburn, which could slice through even enchanted metals like butter. The twelve knights fought with such perfect coordination that they seemed to move as one.

When Muramasa claimed he could defeat Star 9 explorers, it wasn’t a bluff. He truly possessed the power to do so.

“I should be winning… I should be winning! What’s going on here?!” (Muramasa)

Blood dripped from Muramasa’s bitten lip as he stared at the battle in dread.

[Holy Slash]

The holy sword technique that can cut through magic and nullify spirit barriers was swung towards Michibiki at the speed of sound. 

Several rays of light trailed behind the slashes of the knights’ swords, creating a mesmerizing scene. Normally, these bands of light would dance through the air, leaving the enemy bleeding and dead. 

That’s how it should have been.

This singular, overwhelming technique, [Holy Slash], should have vanquished any enemy before it but…

The knights’ swords passed right through Michibiki’s body. It didn’t cut him. His form wavered as if Michibiki had become multiple afterimages, and the swords simply passed through them. 

The knights’ attacks never found its mark, only slicing through illusions, while Michibiki’s fists gleamed like silver flashes, slashing through the knights in turn.

A knight slashed down, but Michibiki sidestepped and cut through the knight with an upward strike. When another knight thrust its sword, Michibiki closed the distance before the sword could fully extend and crushed the knight with a punch. When multiple knights attempted a simultaneous horizontal slash, Michibiki spun even faster, creating a breeze as he sliced them into several pieces.

Each time the knights regenerated, they launched another attack, trying to overwhelm him with a barrage of blows. But they couldn’t even figure out where Michibiki’s real body was among the afterimages to begin with. 

Michibiki’s fists, moving with the speed of light, had already struck them down before they could even take up defensive positions.

Muramasa barely managed to catch a glimpse of him even with his vision and perception raised to superhuman levels by gathering mana into his eyes.

(Who is this man? Where did he come from? My dream… After decades of chasing the truth, a clue is finally within reach! And yet…!) (Muramasa)

Muramasa had once been hailed as a genius mage. He had traveled across the world in his youth despite this being considered practically suicide, risking his life to seek training and wisdom.

When he was satisfied with his own strength and felt like he had reached the pinnacle of power, he began investigating why this world had fallen into ruin.

Human civilization collapsed because the Element Powder was scattered across the Earth. That was the explanation given by all history books, as if they were copying from the same source. No one questioned it, yet Muramasa and a few other mages had sensed something was off.

Even pollution gives warning signs, and people take measures when the damage grows too great. Would the humans of the old world, with their vastly superior technology, really stand by and do nothing?

The residents of the Underground District claimed to be the inheritors of the old humanity’s wisdom, but when Muramasa went through great lengths to meet with them, they gave the same answer as the history books.

Muramasa wanted to talk to other people in the Underground District, but he was only allowed to speak with their diplomats, getting nowhere. The rule that surface dwellers could never enter the Underground District was absolute, enforced in every region. Anyone attempting to break in was killed, and even Muramasa couldn’t bring himself to try and infiltrate.

However, Muramasa discovered another way to uncover the truth. It involved the ‘keys’ and ‘altars’ held by the influential figures of each region. As a specialist in teleportation, Muramasa examined several altars and realized that they were connected to a shared area through teleportation magic circles.

After extensive research, he deduced that these were likely teleportation portals that once led to important facilities. He was driven by the desire to learn what these facilities were, believing that the truth lay within them.

Any one of these portals would have sufficed since they all led to the shared area. However, his attempts were thwarted. The keys were lost, the altars destroyed, and the ones in power were keeping everything secret, barring entry, etc…

For Muramasa, a mere mage, it was impossible to obtain the portal he sought.

—Except for one.

That was the altar and key at Tsurugi House. 

He quickly realized that the key was incomplete. But he believed that someday, someone with the other half of the key would appear, so he married his wife and chose to wait here. He was sure that another mage with the same goal would eventually come.

(But I never imagined it would be someone this powerful! I’ve grown stronger in magic since my youth, thinking there were no more enemies to challenge me -how arrogant I was!) (Muramasa)

The Knights of the Round Table were utterly unable to keep up against Michibiki, who moved gracefully, his clothing fluttering as his arms sliced through the air, leaving afterimages. In fact, Michibiki seemed to be getting more accustomed to the fight, increasing his speed in defeating the knights. 

At this rate, the mana of Caliburn will be exhausted.

“I’ve waited twenty years! I won’t give up now!” (Muramasa)

Screaming in desperation, Muramasa activated a ring with Item Box properties. He swiftly reached inside and pulled out a sword.

The sword crackled with stored mana on the verge of exploding. This was Excalibur, a holy sword capable of storing mana and releasing it in devastating attacks.

“I’ll use my trump card. Behold the sword of King Arthur!” (Muramasa)

He turned to face Michibiki, who was still battling the Knights of the Round Table…

“You were claiming to be King Arthur. I figured you had Excalibur.” 

Only to freeze as a cold voice spoke from behind him.

“Damn it, so you baited me… You’re from the Underground District, aren’t you?” (Muramasa)

He only looked away for a brief instant to retrieve the sword from the Item Box, and yet, the Knights of the Round Table had been defeated, and Michibiki had already moved behind Muramasa at a speed too fast to perceive. 

It was clear now that Michibiki had been buying time until he pulled out Excalibur.

From the beginning, Michibiki had never considered Muramasa a serious opponent. The difference in power was as vast as heaven and earth.

“Who knows? I’ll let you guess.” 

“…I’ve encountered five people from the Underground District before. So that makes you the second one within the people of the Underground District.” (Muramasa)

Muramasa tried to turn around as he spoke these cryptic words. He had met five people from various regions who claimed to be diplomats of the Underground District. But in reality…

The kind of power Michibiki wielded could only belong to someone from the Underground District. 

As Muramasa prepared to ask why they were taking action now and what the truth behind the altar was…

—A sharp blow struck the back of Muramasa’s neck, and his consciousness plunged into darkness.

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