The Regressed Mercenary’s Machinations

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Chapter 615: Now, in this dream. (2)

Ghislaine was more deeply immersed in the fight between the two than ever before.

It definitely felt different from her own improved Mana Circulation Method or swordsmanship. In some ways, it even seemed superior.

‘Could it be… that person is the founder of the House of Perdium?’

Or perhaps that man’s descendant established the House of Perdium. At this point, nothing could be definitively concluded.

Memories of a conversation she had with her father while improving the Mana Circulation Method came to mind.

— After all, it’s the Mana Circulation Method that has sustained our House for a thousand years! What guarantee do you have that what you improved is better than the family’s?

— Honestly, does it make sense that our family is a thousand years old?

— …That’s true, isn’t it? Oh, the year you were born was the thousandth year of our family. It was truly a momentous day.

— Do you have proof?

— …I also heard it from your grandfather.

At that time, she had just laughed it off. She couldn’t believe that their family was that old.

She thought it was just something made up to instill pride in the family.

But lo and behold.

Someone was fighting using the swordsmanship of Perdium from a thousand years ago during the great war.

The thought that this person might be the founder of Perdium crossed her mind strongly.

‘For real… does our family go back a thousand years? Starting with someone who fought in that great war?’

Ghislaine gazed at the man’s sword in a trance. This was her chance to uncover the practical applications of the Perdium family’s techniques.

However… it was incredibly hard to concentrate.

The man’s fighting style was downright ridiculous.

“Ura-chachachacha!”

The man swung his sword while babbling incessantly, chatting away as he fought.

“How’s that! My overwhelming swordsmanship! Aren’t you dying? Can you feel the difference in strength? Doesn’t it feel like an unstoppable foe has appeared?”

“……”

The opponent didn’t say a word. He simply appeared to be trying hard to concentrate.

Despite that, the man continued to jabber while attacking.

“Fighting you brings back memories of my archrival, whom I fought day in and day out. I was so young back then.”

“Hey, I’m curious about your face. Can’t you show it to me? I don’t care about gender if you’re pretty. I might even run away with you.”

“This sword I wield has a tragic legend behind it. What? Curious about the legend? Hmm, sorry. I don’t believe in legends. If you’re curious, pay me 5 gold.”

“……”

‘……’

The opponent remained silent, and so did Ghislaine. The man’s tongue was as free as his sword.

The atmosphere was entirely different from the other three. Was this how Claude would behave if he learned swordsmanship?

Ghislaine inhaled deeply and thought.

‘He’s not an ancestor of our House.’

There was no one like that in Perdium. No matter how long ago, she couldn’t accept it. In any case, he must not be an ancestor of the family.

On the contrary, the opponent seemed more impressive. He was calmly responding to that mental assault.

Their skills were on par. The fight between the babbling man and the silent opponent seemed like it would never end.

Ghislaine scrutinized the man’s face. Once again, the area around his eyes was shrouded in shadow.

It was even worse than a knight. The more she tried to look, the more the outlines of his face and hair became unclear, rendering her unable to recognize him.

The scruffily grown beard indicated that the man didn’t care about appearances and had a free-spirited nature.

‘Hoo…..’

The more she tried to know, the more frustrated she became, so she decided to give up. There must be a reason he wasn’t revealing himself, so she tried to think comfortably.

In the end, she only saw the face of one magician clearly. There was one more clue to guess the identity of that magician.

It was a line that the saint had spoken in the dream.

— Did that help you? I heard it would definitely help.

— I don’t know you well. But I’ve heard a lot about you from my magician friend.

— A friend from the future.

‘Magician friend.’

The one who was a friend and companion of the saint and the hero must refer to that magician.

Yet the words of the saint remained ambiguous. Even though she was witnessing the past from the future… could that be called ‘friend’?

What kind of meaning did that magician convey to the saint? How could anyone in that era know that someone from the future was watching over them?

What was certain now was that, like the saint said, this dream was indeed proving to be a great help to Ghislaine.

The hero and the adversary.

His companions and the opponent.

The fight they displayed continued to elevate Ghislaine’s own skill set.

‘You guys…’

Why do you keep showing me this dream?

From the saint’s words, it seemed this dream was only being shown to her.

— It might be confusing, but don’t doubt it. You must believe in us. There isn’t much time left.

— Only you can.

— You can ‘save’ us.

Ghislaine mulled over the saint’s words. The dream was gradually fading again.

She opened her eyes naturally and stood up. The scenes she had witnessed in the dream still vividly swirled in her mind.

“Hmm.”

After a moment to collect her thoughts, she asked Dark,

“Did you see it too?”

— I did. A thousand years ago, there were monsters everywhere. The master and Yulien over there would probably just turn into a pile of poop, and not just any poop, but dog poop.

“……”

This guy either resembles Ascon or Alfoy; either way, his mouth was getting filthier by the minute.

And honestly, they weren’t that weak. The troops of the Seven Greats of the continent could certainly contend in that era.

‘If anything, perhaps just a notch below the apostles…?’

Sure, it might be a bit tough, but they weren’t so weak as to be unable to fight. You wouldn’t know until you tried, right?

Ghislaine spoke in a curt voice.

“The times are different, you know?”

Not only the strong but the level of soldiers a thousand years ago was much higher.

After all, according to Ereness, hadn’t they been fighting against the Demon Realm for a long time?

It was an era when they just ate and fought. The overall skill level had no choice but to rise.

Thanks to that, Ghislaine also understood why Ereness was getting stronger over time.

As she said, the Golden Period must have prevented her from regaining her powers during her prime.

“Hmm, I suppose in my past life, Ereness might have been the strongest on the continent.”

Of course, Yulien was a monster who grew stronger with every breath, so who knew how he would turn out.

With such monsters around, she could not afford to relax. She had to become stronger than this.

Ghislaine chuckled and organized her thoughts about the battles of the knights from a thousand years ago.

‘The Radran royal family’s sword focuses on defense. It’s undoubtedly the unwavering sword of a king and a knight.’

That steadfast image still vividly lingered in her memory. Having directly experienced the royal family’s techniques, understanding it wasn’t difficult.

Looking at the knight’s sword would show her what direction she needed to take. Ghislaine planned to analyze that part and apply it to her own swordsmanship.

‘Mother’s technique is the same.’

Belinda had shown her a book that recorded it. Although she hadn’t trained formally, it was already ingrained in her mind.

Coincidentally, she had a technique suited for applying that.

Swish.

Spear-like arcs of magic formed around Ghislaine. Until now, she had only been shooting them at the places she desired.

‘It looks the same on the surface, but it’s not actually the same.’

Just as Belinda had, the techniques displayed by the masked woman truly seemed as if each dagger had its own will and was alive.

This meant it wasn’t just about shooting in the desired direction.

‘To reach that level would require considerable effort. It would take quite some time.’

The technique she had been learning so far had a different orientation, making it hard to delve deeply into. But if she practiced whenever she had the chance, it could become a trump card.

After moving as the masked woman had shown her a few times, Ghislaine recalled the swordsmanship of the House of Perdium.

‘I think I know what’s missing.’

She had found the lost piece. With a foundation to work from, it wasn’t hard to guess.

No, more than that, she could instinctively understand how to move.

Whether it was thanks to the saint’s help or because the essence of the Perdium swordsmanship remained, she couldn’t say.

Ghislaine took up her sword and moved. The swordsmanship of her family unfolded once again in her hands.

The blade, which had been cutting through the air roughly, suddenly halted.

‘Normally…’

The subsequent sword techniques had not been passed down. But having grasped the principles, Ghislaine naturally executed the next move.

The Mana Circulation Method, which had seemed a bit lacking, began to move and support her sword techniques.

Swoosh!

What had simply been a rough northern sword became a stream of free wind.

As the fierce wind transformed into a soft river, Ghislaine’s sword danced gracefully through the air.

She closed her eyes and steadied her breath. Mana whirled within her, enveloping her entire body. It felt as if all her muscles were interconnected from the tips of her fingers to her toes.

‘This was it.’

With every swing of the sword, Ghislaine felt a boundless freedom.

Her movements became ever freer. The sword strayed from the rigid forms of swordsmanship, seeming to embrace endless possibilities as it danced.

At times, it was as fierce as a torrent; at others, as gentle as a leaf.

It felt like the strong winds blowing from the mountain peak or the feral rush of a beast crossing the wilderness.

Whoosh!

At a certain moment, Ghislaine’s sword came to a halt. Though still not perfect, she could understand what her ancestors had sought.

“Finally… I’ve regained the true sword of our House.”

Ghislaine grinned. She gained an unexpected yield.

The swordsmanship she had improved filled in the gaps from countless real battles. The Mana Circulation Method was inspired by a half-finished ancient magic book.

In comparison to the complete sword of the family, it was hard to say which was superior. The direction was similar, and the foundations were the same.

However, if Ghislaine’s swordsmanship emphasized explosive destructive power, the family’s swordsmanship sought a slightly freer variation.

“This is good, I can get even stronger.”

A new goal emerged.

She planned to merge what she had learned into a higher-level swordsmanship and Mana Circulation Method.

Of course, a bit more research was necessary. Even though she had seen the answers, she hadn’t fully grasped the process.

Nevertheless, she had glimpsed the level of the ancient strongmen. She would surely exceed them.

If she combined the power to manipulate wills with techniques that went a step further, she would definitely be able to elevate her own level.

“Was this the intent?”

She had felt similar sentiments before, but today she was certain. The ongoing dreams were helping to elevate her own capacity.

It was clear that it intended to guide her to become as strong as, if not stronger than, the strongmen from a thousand years ago.

As a bonus, the aspects she had been curious about were beginning to unravel as well.

“It seems like after the war, the hero’s companions each left something behind…”

The magician would have established the mage tower that Jerome had been at and developed new magic. As for Jerome’s descendant, it mattered little to Ghislaine; that story didn’t resonate with her.

She was far more interested in the knight and the masked woman.

“If the knight is the founding king of Ruthania… then the masked woman is likely the leader of the Shadow Knight Group… they might have together founded a new kingdom.”

There was enough possibility they could have done so as companions. Just as Berhem had said, they might have joined forces to protect the holy relic of the saint, or perhaps there was another reason.

“And… while he may not be an ancestor of Perdium, let’s consider him an ancestor for now. Did that person also join them?”

He was one of the hero’s companions as well. And the Perdium Territory had long defended the northern part of Ruthania.

Thus, it was more plausible that the three had established Ruthania together.

“Hmm, but it’s such an odd match-up?”

One became a king, while another ruled from the shadows.

But one… left behind a family that was like a beggar.

As that thought crossed her mind, Ghislaine’s expression turned sour.

“Aah, that doesn’t look good. Why did our family end up like this despite being a companion of the hero?”

No matter how unfit the other two seemed, this was a level of disparity that shouldn’t exist. She felt like she was being left behind.

Surely a being of that caliber wouldn’t leave behind a family like this…

‘Considering his actions, it might be possible, but.’

But even so, he probably couldn’t have been treated poorly in the kingdom—what could have happened in between?

“Generations only fighting with the northern barbarians… living like beggars due to a lack of money. No matter how much I think about it, a founding member wouldn’t receive that treatment…”

As Ghislaine mumbled to herself, suddenly something brushed through her mind.

It was something Ereness had said.

— The Demon Realm… is the Forest of Monsters.

“Oh no.”

Only then did Ghislaine realize.

The true mission of Perdium wasn’t merely keeping the northern barbarians at bay.

It was…

Monitoring the Demon Realm was undoubtedly their real task.