Solo Swordmaster - Chapter 1107
# Side Story 76. The Witch Blessing the End (1)
* * *
Silence.
Quietly.
As the pages turn.
What is seen is the distorted writing.
What is smelled is the scent of old paper and ink.
Not even using a printer, each letter written by hand is difficult to recognize due to the unique handwriting.
The paper, smelling not only musty but almost moldy, feels like it would crumble just by turning the pages due to its age.
Most documents are not physical, but are created and preserved in the electronic world.
In an era where even the remaining books have mostly perished in the crisis of extinction.
Silence.
But ironically, that’s why.
She liked the book.
In these handwritten books, each letter carries the taste, emotions, and interpretations of the writer, making it unique.
Unlike electronic documents where important knowledge becomes trivial as it can be replicated indefinitely, even the most trivial knowledge is cherished for being carefully contained.
Above all, the fact that paper has withstood the test of time without decaying.
Silence.
Yes.
That’s right.
The fact that it was old.
It had value in itself to be respected.
Just as gold and jewels that remain unchanged over time are considered precious.
Even bone fragments or pottery become fossils or antiques and gain value just because they have aged.
Enduring the scythe of Chronos that reaps everything equally was such a surprising and remarkable feat.
Silence.
That’s why.
She liked old things.
Especially if they were rare.
Regardless of their practical use as magical artifacts, the rarer they were, the deeper the mystery they held.
To the unique existence that had survived alone for centuries, there was an incomparable magic.
“―So you were here.”
That was why.
Although her rare reading was interrupted.
Without feeling bad at the sudden voice that came from her, she instead held a faint smile.
“You found your way here even though I didn’t send an invitation.”
“It’s not that surprising, is it?”
“Huhuhu, is that lie that the Sword Master can’t escape from?”
“It’s not a lie.”
“Well, at least it’s true for you, my dear.”
Lamps and candles.
Books and scrolls.
Pots and glass bottles.
Everything old and musty, making it feel like it had returned hundreds of years.
The flow of time made ambiguous by the laptops, coffee pots, analog telephones, and other items scattered around.
Sitting in front of the mysterious fireplace, the woman with long crimson hair, her face hidden behind a veil, greeted the uninvited guest.
“Welcome, dear.”
“……”
“Hmm, even if I’m your slave, you won’t even greet me now?”
Having taught Yunagyeong magic and played a significant role from the fight with the Liberation Corps to the final war, the witch who had quietly withdrawn after breaking the Law of Immortality that she had maintained by force.
Even to Sir’s greeting.
Limon remained silent.
Just staring at her with heavy golden eyes that sank…
Najik asked.
“Why did you do that?”
At that sudden question, Sir tilted her head slightly as if she didn’t understand the English.
“What are you talking about?”
“……”
“……”
The silence lengthened.
The gaze deepened.
As time passed and the golden eyes cooled, they met firmly.
As the head that had been tilted straightened.
The witch’s lips, which had gently curved, bent slightly.
“―Did you catch on?”
“Thanks to Nayoung.”
“Ah, so that’s how it was?”
Seemingly a bit unexpected.
But not really surprising.
Sir, nodding at Limon’s answer, spoke lazily with a faint smile.
“Well, I guess I made a mistake in choosing my disciple in my old age.”
“……”
“I thought at least another witch would not be
Whether it was admiration.
Or regret.
Or perhaps both.
Letting out a faint sigh that didn’t distinguish between them, Xir finished speaking with a chuckle.
“―I never thought that you’d fall for a man and end up throwing your so-called teacher away like a used rag.”
I thought you’d at least come to check with me beforehand, but you told me straight away.
For Xir, it was truly a pity.
Not because her last disciple ultimately didn’t trust her, but because she had ended up taking in Lemon all of a sudden because she was much smarter than she had thought.
“I’ll ask you again.”
But her regret.
Lemon didn’t necessarily notice it.
As if he had believed without a shred of doubt the words of the bluebird who had told him the truth that he had realized after so much hesitation and worry.
He simply looked at Xir with eyes as cold as ice and asked again.
“Why did you do that, old hag?”
And then…
Swish.
A sharp metallic sound.
A blade sliding out of its sheath.
The movement was slow rather than fast, so slow that it was possible to observe the entire process.
However, Xir only realized that the blade had been pointed at her neck after she felt the cold touch of metal in the air.
Even for Lemon…
No, rather, for Lemon, who had always called her an old hag but had respected her in his own way, it was an unbelievable outrage.
However, he too.
Even she.
Didn’t find it strange.
Lemon had a good reason for doing so, and Xir also knew it.
Because…
“―You’re asking me why I cursed my teacher.”
Pretending to help him achieve Buddhahood, she cursed her teacher, whom she respected and revered more than anyone else in the world.
She bound him to this world with black magic.
She even deceived herself.
It was only natural for the guardian deity of mankind to reveal his true colors to the cunning and wicked witch who had used him as she pleased.
“There are many reasons.”
But Xir didn’t even bat an eyelid even as she met his gaze, which would have terrified even the most powerful absolutes, not to mention the constellations.
She simply took out a long pipe from her bosom and lit it.
Clack.
“First of all, the fact that the little swordsman became a ghost was originally an accident.”
Yes, that was true.
The fact that the soul of the Sword Saint remained in this world was an accident.
It was something that had happened when the Sword Saint had cut down the Gate of Valhalla and the power of the stars that had collided with it, and then reversed the aftermath.
Interfering with it was impossible, even for the legendary Great Witch.
However…
“But you know that you could have helped my teacher’s soul achieve Buddhahood, but instead you cursed him and bound him to this world, old hag.”
“But I couldn’t help it.”
It was so easy, she thought again.
Of course, her disciple had opened his soul to her without reservation because he believed in her, even though he was suspicious.
And because he was so ignorant of magic, he hadn’t suspected the curse that she had cast on him little by little over the course of half a year.
Everything had gone according to plan.
As a result, she had achieved her goal.
That was…
“If I hadn’t done this, that little swordsman would never have become your bride.”
“…You’re saying that the reason you cursed my teacher and turned him into a ghost was to make him my bride?”
“That’s how it turned out in the end.”
“Old hag, do you really want to die?”
A jerk.
The blade moved slightly.
A drop of blood ran down his white neck.
It was proof that the murderous intent emanating from Lemon was no mere bluff…
“Hmm, it seems that this explanation alone isn’t enough to convince you.”
On the verge of life and death.
The demigoddess Great Witch, who had lived for thousands of years and experienced it countless times, still didn’t waver.
Instead, she took a puff of smoke from her pipe and exhaled it, then opened her mouth again in an even more languid voice.
“Then how about this explanation?”
And…
The moment Xir continued speaking.
Lemon’s face hardened.
“That it has something to do with the reason why you, my dear, have been unable to conceive a child or an egg despite having spent so many nights with your twelve brides?”
* * *
Before he left to fight the stars.
After he returned from fighting the stars.
Limonhadspenthumorousnightswithhisbrides.
Especiallyafterthecreationoftheroomoftimeandmind,theynormallymadelove47hoursaday.
AnditwasenoughforanhonorableDragonridertofertilizeanegg.
However.
Despiteitall.
Noneofthebrideshadconceivedhischildyet.
Itisnoteasytohavechildrenforanimmortal,letalonehavingdescendants.
Afterall,thelowerthesurvivalrate,themoreeggsanorganismlays.Thelongerthelifespan,theharderitbecomestoconceive.
Therefore,it’snaturalthatsuperiortypeslikeDragonsorimmortalshavealowreproductiveability.
Otherwise,theworldwouldhavebeenovercrowdedwithlong-livedspeciesandimmortals,leavingnowheretounderfoot.
“Itisespeciallysoifthebiologicallevelsofthepartnersaredifferent.”
“…….”
Itisdifficultenoughtoreproducewithinthespecies.
Interspeciesbreeding,therefore,isnaturallymoredifficult.
It’srareforoffspringtobecreatedthroughinterspecificbreeding,likehinnyormliger,andtheoffspringoftenlosefertilityorhaveotherdisorders.
Eveninthepastwhenincarnationsroamedtheearth,itishardtofinddescendantsofthemanygodswholefttheirseed.
“Butmydear.”
Andasoneofthelastsurvivingdemi-godsbornfromsuchmiracles.
Siraskedwithanalluring smile.
“DoyoureallyconsideryourselfequaltoaSwordMasterorDragonprincess?”
“……You’resayingthatI’mbecausetoostrongandhavebecomedifferentinfamily,soIcan’thavechildren?”
“It’snotcompletelyimpossible.Miraclescanhappenanytime,anywhere.”
“…….”
Inotherwords,itisimpossibleunlessmiracleshappen.
DespiteSir’smockingwords.
Limoncouldnotrefuteit.
Becauseheknewithimself.
TheeighthSaionic,whichonlythemostoutstandingwomenofDragonriderscouldaccept,eveninthepastwhenDragonsprospered.
TheSwordMasterwhohasnothadadescendantforhundreds of years.
AndthepoweroftheConstellationthatdevouredallthepossibilitiesintheworldandtranscendedintoatranscendent.
Acceptingandabsorbingallthat.
Andtheoutcomeofassimilation.
Hehadtranscendedhisrace.
Heisaperfectexistencewhohasreachedtheendofthesword,andheisalsotheDragonKing(Dragon King in the Sword)whocontrolsalldragons.
AnditisalmostimpossibleforSwordMastersortranscendentDragons to conceive a child of such a lemon.
Theonlyexceptionis……
“There’salsoawaytoforceupthepossibility,albeitwithsomegambling,ifwecombineitwithamagicalritual.”
“…….”
“―Ifyoupaythepriceofthelivesofyourbrides.”
Hisbrides.
Squeezeallofherpotential.
Andevenherlife,justtoraiseherstatustemporarily.
……Evenifshelosesherlifeaftergivingbirthtoaneggorchild.
“Butbychance,there’s abetterwaythanthatrightinfrontofmyeyes.”
“…….”
“Thesoulofapersonsuperiortoall,whocanraise’status’ofyourbridestoanastoundinglevel,eventemporarilythroughspiritualism.”
“…….”
“EspeciallywiththeDragonSlayer’sswordspiritthatcanhandleevenyourDragonSaionic…….”
As if he realized what was going to be said next.
Withhisfacecolderthanice.
Andwithveinsonhisbackashoughhewantedtokillhimrightnow.
Evenso,thewitch,whowatchedhermaster,whohadnotyetmovedthebladeagainsthisneck,withaloyalservantandwhodidnothavetoblessthosewhomadeawishtoher,alwaysfinishedherwordwithameaningfulsmile.
“Theonly’tool’thatcanhelpyouhaveachildwithout sacrificing your brides.”