“My son, do you know of the butterfly?”
My mother had asked me that once.
“You only ever see the beautiful ones that visit the garden, so you might not know, but they begin as humble caterpillars crawling across the forest floor, gnawing on leaves.”
“Caterpillars? Don’t butterflies fly through the sky the moment they’re born?”
“No. These tiny caterpillars, no bigger than a fingernail, chew on leaves and slowly grow their bodies while hiding from the eyes of predators. They live for a very long time as insignificant creatures.”
A butterfly with brilliant wings was perched on my mother’s hand.
“But if they endure those tedious, dangerous days—if they endure them over and over again—glory eventually finds them. They sprout wings that everyone envies, and they no longer have to hide. They spread those magnificent wings and soar toward the blue sky.”
Mother spoke in a gentle voice.
“Arhan, my son. One day, difficult and sad days may come for you as well. The world is much harsher and more unreasonable than the fairy tales you love.”
“…”
“The trials that find you might last a very long time. You might have to hide from the world like a caterpillar at its lowest point, enduring a long stretch of time all on your own, without anyone’s help.”
The sun was very bright that day.
It was a sweltering day, as summer should be.
“That is the life of men in this Iron Kingdom. Your optimistic father, who lives like a witless dreamer, once went through a bitter period, as did Demern at the smithy, who always has a bright smile. Perhaps it isn’t just men. This mother of yours was the same before I met your father. My childhood in the City of Blades was so horrific I don’t even want to remember it.”
“…”
“Perhaps it isn’t only men who live harsh lives. And perhaps it isn’t only those who live in the Iron Kingdom. It might be the same for everyone living in this world. So, Arhan, my son. You, too, will one day face the coldness of the world.”
It was a difficult thing for me to understand back then.
However, I could clearly feel the affection in my mother’s voice.
“Whenever that happens, remember the butterfly.”
Mother stroked my hair.
As I leaned into her soft touch, I saw the butterfly that had been resting on her hand take flight, its wings beating powerfully as it soared.
“Live without being broken. Do not surrender to the world just because things are hard right now; hold onto the promise of tomorrow. Live not for a painful today, but for a brilliant tomorrow.”
The butterfly, shimmering in the sunlight, was incredibly beautiful.
“Once that harsh period passes, you too will be reborn as a butterfly.”
Yes, it truly was beautiful.
“A butterfly with wings so beautiful everyone will envy you, capable of flying anywhere…”
Why did this memory surface now?
I didn’t know. The memory that rose like a shimmering haze was far too warm. I didn’t want to wake up. I didn’t want to return to reality. I just wanted to remain a young boy, surrendering myself to this prosperous estate and my mother’s embrace. I wanted to stay like this forever.
In comfort.
“…Gladiator.”
Ah, Mother.
The harsh period that has found me is far too difficult. It is too bitter for me to endure alone, young and weak as I am. I need you. I need you, who was always kind, and I need Father, who told me old stories with eyes as pure as a boy’s. I need the nanny who was passionate despite her clumsy cooking, and the butler who was slow but never made a mistake.
“Lit… tle… Glad… iator.”
I am still too young and weak to overcome this harsh time alone. So please, don’t leave. Don’t leave; stay by my side just a little longer. I’m not ready to let you go yet. I… I’m still…
“Wake… up. Wake up, little gladiator…”
It was hard to breathe.
It felt like I was submerged in water, slowly drowning. Beyond my fading consciousness, a voice called out to me desperately. Yet, ironically, being underwater felt both suffocating and comfortable. It was a contradiction. How could the sensation of slowly dying feel so peaceful? The strength was draining from my body.
And then…
「Young descendant.」
The lingering scenery before my eyes was suddenly engulfed in flames. The cherished images were scorched black and vanished, and in the next moment, countless blades sprouted sharply from the dark piles of ash. They looked like tombstones mourning the dead, or like abandoned swords that had lost their masters. In the midst of those innumerable blades stood a chair made of swords.
No, it looked far too grand to be called a mere chair. If one were to give it a name, it would have to be a throne. Since it was made of swords, it was the Sword Throne .
「It is not yet time for you to come here.」
“…”
「Did you not say you would have your revenge? Did you not say you would become a Swordmaster ? Did you not declare that you would be strong enough to kill a Swordmaster ?」
An old man who resembled a lion sat upon the great Sword Throne . It was a face I knew. But this time, he was not a translucent specter. He looked at me with a complete physical body, as a perfect being.
「Go back. To where you belong.」
With those words, an unbearable, stabbing pain surged through me.
It felt as if I were being pierced by swords from head to toe.
And.
“Wake up, little gladiator—!”
The voice that had been echoing faintly finally became clear.
“ Gasp! ”
I exhaled a dry, ragged breath.
As I opened my eyes, I saw many people standing around me. Everyone was watching me. Amidst the countless gazes, I saw one face wearing a sly smirk.
「You dimwit. You certainly sleep a lot.」
There stood my Master, once again in the form of a ghost.
「The sun is high in the sky. Get up and do what you have to do.」
*
The winner of the first event of the Infinite Duel , the Species Duel , was the Dwarves. However, they did not receive much attention. After all, how could a race that put forward a Sword Expert garner much praise? Instead of being lauded as great, the Dwarves were criticized for fielding an excessively powerful fighter.
The balance had been shattered just when the fierce duels were getting interesting. It felt like being forced to see the ending in the middle of an engaging plot, or like a bolt of lightning striking and killing everyone in the middle of a knightly duel in a chivalric novel. Complaints like “it feels like being cut off mid-shit” poured out.
Since the reaction had been similar when the Orc Great Warrior appeared and slaughtered everyone, the Dwarves didn’t offer pathetic excuses; instead, they admitted their mistake. Since the Dwarves’ goal wasn’t victory but the promotion and sale of their products, they decided to use the criticism as a form of noise marketing. Consequently, the equipment the Dwarves had used so effectively in the Infinite Duel —the siege weapon “Lightning Bolt” and “Explosive Shells”—were put on the market at affordable prices.
Regardless of public opinion, high-quality goods at low prices are always loved. Thus, while the Dwarves took a hit in the short term, they secured future profits by selling a massive amount of new products and managed to quell the public’s dissatisfaction.
But aside from market logic and profit margins, there was one person who was the center of attention in Steel City .
“ Sword Demon Liam . He’s definitely someone who will achieve great things later.”
“Which academy is he from? The swordsmanship he showed was extraordinary.”
“I looked into it closely, and it’s similar to the sword arts used by the warriors of the Great Land . He might be a powerhouse from the Eastern Continent . There are plenty of elusive masters over there, aren’t there?”
The former ” Small Gladiator .”
Sword Demon Liam .
He was the hottest fighter in Steel City .
“I bet half my fortune on him and lost it all, but I have no regrets.”
“Indeed, it was an honor to watch.”
The reason he drew so much attention was simple.
He had provided several entertaining spectacles during the Species Duel , but more than anything, what he displayed was the kind of struggle that Steel City loved.
“If the Goddess Lefri had been watching, she would have done three backflips.”
“That sounds dangerously close to blasphemy…”
“It’s just a figure of speech!”
The bravery of a mere Sword Walker who never backed down from a fight. The brilliant skill with which he waded through a crowd of powerhouses to stir up the battlefield. The sheer audacity to overwhelm an Orc with his own logic, and the immense courage to face a Sword Expert head-on while being the weakest person there when everyone else was fleeing!
Combined with the so-called “underdog effect,” he embodied the “struggle” that Goddess Lefri preached. It was only natural for people’s hearts to burn with excitement. How long had it been since a true warrior like him had appeared!
“I’ve been a fan since he fought the Black Bride .”
“The Black Bride ? Why are you trying to compare some unknown girl to our ‘ Sword Demon ’? Do you think our Sword Demon , who went toe-to-toe with a Sword Expert , is a joke?”
“ Sword Demon Liam is a god. I will not accept any counterarguments.”
“Ah, so this is what they call the ‘hope’ of the human race…”
Thus, the name Sword Demon Liam spread far wider than ever before. Arhan, who was lying quietly in the Arena infirmary eating a peeled apple, had no way of knowing this.
Well.
“…Liam?”
As is always the case, “fame” wasn’t strictly a good thing.
“Why, of all things, did he pick such a shitty name…”
Regardless, time was passing.
*
“Fortunately, they say it’s not that serious.”
When I checked on my progress in the infirmary, the injuries weren’t severe. To begin with, Dwight hadn’t even swung a proper attack at me. If he had been serious, I would be in the afterlife right now instead of here. My body would have been blown to bits, and I’d be a ghost floating in the air like Liam .
The reason I lost consciousness wasn’t because of injuries sustained in the fight with Dwight . It was the price of pushing ” Gale ” to its absolute limit, combined with a certain power I had unknowingly awakened at the final moment. A bizarre heat, as if my entire body were engulfed in flames. The moment it heated my heart and head, my consciousness had flown far away.
「It is the Omen of Wings .」
Liam explained the phenomenon to me.
「The path carved into your body has hardened, and now the power within is beginning to influence the outside world as your own Mystery prepares to awaken. In that process, your Mystery briefly surged out.」
Right.
Though it was only for a fleeting moment, I had tasted a glimpse of being a Sword Runner .
「Of course, that doesn’t mean you’ve become a Sword Runner . As I told you before, it is very difficult for a Caravan to reach the level of Sword Runner .」
“…Yes, I remember.”
「So don’t get cocky and full of yourself. You are insignificant, pathetic, a dullard with zero talent, and a man with a rotten spirit.」
“…”
Liam showed no mercy even to me while I was bedridden. Truly, the sword of a Master was sharp enough to pierce even a groaning patient.
「You remember, don’t you? The wings of a Caravan are completed using three blades as materials. You have only digested one so far, young descendant.」
Yes.
I still had a long way to go.
Well…
“Please give me one more apple.”
“Sure. I’ll peel it right now.”
So it should be fine to rest for just a little bit.
“Say ‘ah.’”
“Ah.”
Seol-yoon sat beside me, slaughtering an apple with a paring knife. Seeing this, the other fighters in the infirmary shot me stinging glares. It was a look I’d felt before. Their faces all said the same thing.
Who the hell is this bastard to be here with a lover?
Why are we stuck here with nothing but a bunch of sweaty men?
Why hasn’t anyone come to visit me…
I just lay there, looking at them and giving a little smirk.
“Peeling apples is fun.”
“Is it?”
“Yeah. It feels like I’m peeling off someone’s face. Or maybe carving out a heart? Either way, it’s not bad.”
“…”
I could only hope they couldn’t hear her terrifying words, spoken with such a naive face while she displayed suspiciously expert knife skills.
*
The Species Duel ended, the name Sword Demon Liam echoed fervently, and time passed slowly as I endured the stinging glares in the infirmary.
How much time had passed?
The Arena officials made a pre-announcement regarding the second event of the Infinite Duel .
The theme of the ” War Duel .”
Having recovered quickly thanks to the sturdiness of the Heart of Steel , I listened to the details of the event alongside Seol-yoon .
I had heard before that the War Duel was an event that reenacted historical wars. It was held to promote and remember the history of the Iron Kingdom , with large groups of people clashing in teams.
I listened to the announcement, hoping it would be a war from the history I knew.
However.
“…A conquest war that took place in the Great Land of the Eastern Continent ? I’ve never heard of this. Do you know what war this is, Seol-yoon ?”
“…”
“ Seol-yoon ? Why do you look like that? You look pale…”
Seol-yoon’s expression was unusually grim.
Her face had turned as white as if she had seen a ghost.
After a moment of silence, she spoke.
“…My home.”
“What?”
“It’s the war… that my home was caught up in.”
A war that Seol-yoon’s home was caught up in?
That was strange.
The War Duel was supposed to be held to promote and remember the history of the Iron Kingdom . If so, why was a war from the distant Eastern Continent being used as the theme? I didn’t understand.
But one thing was certain.
“…Do I know it? Of course I do. I’ll never forget it as long as I live.”
Seol-yoon was more furious than I had ever seen her.
“Because my homeland was destroyed in that war.”
While I was momentarily taken aback by Seol-yoon’s first display of rage, the Arena officials revealed the specific details of the War Duel along with the prize for the winner.
And with that, I understood why the War Duel had been structured this way.
It was a promotional stage to sell the artifacts of a fallen nation at the highest possible price. At the same time, their intention to draw people’s attention by flamboyantly showcasing historical weapons was transparent.
And.
Their intention to gather greedy fighters in one place was also clear.
“ Small Gladiator .”
Seol-yoon’s voice rang out, cold as ice.
I was certain of it now.
“It looks like I’ll have to win this ‘ War Duel .’”
This.
The War Duel wasn’t going to be easy either.
