Starting With an SSS-Rank Swordsmanship Talent

The light in Rin Aspen’s eyes slowly vanished as he collapsed to the ground with a ‘thud’.

Yskaela turned away from his corpse and looked towards the left wing. She could sense intense fluctuations of mana from that direction.

Min Taehyun! I need to help him!

She grabbed the demonic sword before bolting towards the left wing.

…

“Benedict Agma, how dare you betray your god?! Have you no fear?!” Min Taehyun was breathing heavily as he glared at the old priest.

He had been wounded after being caught by a surprise attack. His abdomen was pierced with a spear so he had to stop the bleeding with mana.

The old priest stared calmly at him, looking completely unbothered by his words.

“I did believe in Him once, but He has never answered my prayers. Is it wrong to turn my back on someone who doesn’t care about me?” He responded.

“Nonsense! You are just making an excuse for yourself! You were a respectable priest of the church, so I’m sure you have seen many miraculous things in the past.” Min Taehyun respected this old priest so he felt betrayed when he learned that Benedict had joined the heretic cult.

Bendict Agma suddenly smiled and said. “I tried to believe in Him, but your so-called benevolent god couldn’t change my ill-fated destiny. Why am I even saying this to a dead man?”

He shook his head. He then gathered his mana and controlled the power of darkness to summon a hideous-looking spear.

With a quick leap, he stabbed out his spear.

Whoosh!

Min Taehyun tried to defend himself, but the old priest was just too fast.

Khshk!

The dark spear pierced through his neck.

Min Taehyun grabbed the spear and attempted to extricate himself, but he realized that his strength was gradually slipping away.

He looked at the calm-faced Benedict. He wanted to say something, but he could only emit unintelligible sounds.

“If you see the benevolent god in the afterlife, ask him why he gave me this kind of fate…” Benedict muttered before he pulled the dark spear.

Whoosh!

Min Taehyun staggered. He blocked the wound on his neck and used his mana to stop the bleeding, but it was useless. It was only delaying the inevitable.

He fell on his knees and gasped for breath, his life slowly slipping away.

The wound on his abdomen had opened up after he lost control of his mana. His innards burst out, looking incredibly gruesome.

Min Taehyun was still alive so he saw all this happening. He tried to move his arms, but he was slowly losing control of his body. His entire body became numb.

What a horrible end… Well, at least I lived a long fulfilling life…

At this moment, Benedict swung his spear to cut off his head.

Whoosh!

Min Taehyun’s headless corpse fell to the ground.

“Lord Min!” The empress’s furious voice echoed.

Benedict turned his head and saw the empress charging at him.

He waved his hand and summoned thousands of dark arrows and fired them at the empress.

Suu! Suu! Suu!

Yskaela roared as she deflected the dark arrows with her sword.

Clang! Clang!

After blocking all the dark arrows, she pounced at the old priest and released a slash that severed the land!

Benedict Agma snorted upon seeing this. He manipulated the darkness, summoning a wall in front of him.

Booom!!

The earth shook as the empress’s attack ruthlessly struck the dark wall.

The wall collapsed, but Benedict who was behind it was completely unharmed.

With a nonchalant smile, he mumbled.

“In this kind of environment, even Your Majesty can’t beat me.”

Yskaela’s eyes burned with rage. Another one of her subordinates had died and he had died in front of her.

“Aru will never forgive you for this, Benedict! I will kill you and send your soul to hell!” She bellowed as she released a flurry of attacks.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Her attacks caused fierce explosions that rocked the landscape. More cracks and fissures appeared on the ground, looking like a strong earthquake had occurred.

Benedict calmly faced her attacks. He was slightly weaker than the empress, but because of his Darkness Manipulation trait, he managed to stand on equal footing against her.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

They fought fiercely, causing massive destruction around them.

“You shouldn’t have come here, Your Majesty. This wouldn’t have happened if you stayed in the palace.” Benedict said, trying to shake her mind.

The empress ignored him and continued her relentless attacks.

“We are here to help, Your Majesty!” A sharp, domineering voice drifted into their ears.

The old priest frowned as he looked at the newcomer. It was Alaric, holding a pair of swords, waving them with great mastery.

“Young man, you shouldn’t interfere here! I advise you to leave if you don’t want your country to be involved in this mess!” Benedict could feel a threat from Alaric.

“Shut your mouth!” Alaric sneered in response. He brandished his swords and delivered a combination of attacks.

Benedict found himself at a disadvantage after Alaric joined the fray.

This guy isn’t that strong, but his sword technique is so precise… I need to get rid of him first!

With a fearsome glint, the old priest focused his attacks on Alaric. He summoned tens of thousands of darkness arrows at him.

Suu! Suu! Suu!

Alaric activated his ice domain and manipulated the ice to defend himself.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Meanwhile, the empress pressed forward, stopping Benedict from targeting Alaric.

She leaped into the air and released a terrifying sword slash that punctured the air.

Whoosh!

Seeing this, Benedict was forced to abandon his attacks on Alaric.

He quickly summoned his domain, the Darkness Domain.

Empowered by his domain, Benedict blocked the empress’s slash.

Boom!

A devastating explosion rang out.

Alaric was blown off by the impact. He turned his body to quickly stabilize his footing.

How powerful!

From that clash, he realized the incredible power of the two.

When the dust subsided, he saw the empress standing still, staring intently at Benedict who was completely unharmed.