It Wasn’t Healing, It Was Training Magic

Sword Masters, a group of only 5 people.
Their mere existence is considered a calamity.

They split battlefields with swords and divide land and sea.
No attack or magic is effective against them.
With just one sword in hand, they are monsters beyond comparison.

It’s the goal of every swordsman.
However, most people give up quickly.

Because there’s no path more honest than the way of the sword,
and because they become disappointed in their own talent and give up.

Can I really become like that?
The sense of frustration that comes from seeing an actual Sword Master.

It’s a taste of heaven and earth.

That’s why they can only be revered as the pinnacle of swordsmanship.

If there’s someone who has painfully climbed to that position, they’re one of two types.

Either someone born with insane talent that the world would acknowledge,

Or someone who has honed their skills with insane effort, prepared to die.

Neither is easy.

Emilia didn’t have much choice either.
In her 4th year of walking the path of the sword.
She couldn’t even use simple sword energy.

She knew without being told that she lacked talent.
She had to compete with effort alone.

Most people would have given up long ago and found another path.

Because effort isn’t as simple as reading about it in writing.
You have to show steadfast consistency while believing in an unguaranteed future during a time when no one recognizes you.

It’s easy to fall into the temptation to give up when it seems like you’re pouring water into a leaky jar, with no sign of it filling up no matter how much you pour.

In fact, Emilia felt the same way.
She just turned her head and looked away, but she was reaching her limit in enduring solely on the belief that she could become a Sword Master.

Vaguely aware that achieving her dream was impossible,
but stubbornly holding on because she absolutely didn’t want to admit it.

She met him.
Or more accurately, she realized.

Why she swings a sword.
She swings a sword to become an excellent tool for Zick.

And Zick said.

That she could become a Sword Master.
She firmly believed those words.

And then she obtained it.

Kugung—!

Sword energy that could split mountains.
Now with this sword, she was ready to gain recognition from the world,
and to go meet Zick.

“Young Master, please wait. I’m coming.”

Emilia left the Barbavar family without regret.
This was a place she had been indebted to for a long time.
It would be a lie to say she hadn’t grown attached during the 3 years.

But there was only one place Emilia should be.
By Zick’s side.

“Z-Zick-nim, let’s go before it’s too late!!”

After hearing the gambler’s information, Soho headed to the gambling house without hesitation.
It was to place a bet.

She checked the odds as soon as she arrived.

“F-four to one?”

Had rumors already spread?
Unlike what the gambler said, the odds had fallen from 5 to 1 to 4 to 1.

“It’s not too late yet.”

As Soho said, the odds were still quite high.
She started searching for money pouches not only from her chest but from various parts of her luggage, seemingly planning to bet all the money she had.

“Wait a moment. Soho-nim, is it right to go all in? Isn’t it too large an amount to bet based on a gambler’s words?”

I tried to stop her.
What made her go all in based on a gambler’s words?
I thought it was too extreme.

Of course, I trust Emilia,
but I didn’t know about her skills.

Even though the gambler praised her skills, the last image I had of Emilia was of a novice who couldn’t even use sword energy.

Rather, because I know Emilia well,
I felt I would feel sorry for Soho if she couldn’t win the money.

“I’m not betting based on the gambler’s words.”
“Then?”
“My intuition, this heart! My chest is telling me. This is the moment.”

Soho said firmly, beating her chest.

“If that’s the case…”

Once Soho’s eyes had turned into money, it seemed impossible for me to stop her.

“Proprietor, here’s the money!”
“Miss, who will you bet on?”

The gambling house proprietor pointed to the tournament bracket.
There were 64 players remaining.

The preliminaries had already progressed a lot, just about to start the round of 64.
Among those many players, Soho chose without hesitation.

“Emilia of Brook.”
“The upcoming match has odds of 3.7, how about it miss, will you bet?”
“No.”

I tilted my head at Soho’s answer.
What does this mean?
Wasn’t she going to bet on Emilia?

The question was quickly resolved.
Soho spread her five fingers and said.

“I’ll bet on winning all 5 remaining matches.”
“What…? Crazy.”

I was surprised by Soho’s reckless spirit,
and so was the proprietor.

If even one match ends in a draw or defeat,
even if she wins money in between, it all becomes meaningless.

To bet on that without hesitation?
How strong-hearted is she?

No, this looked like nothing but groundless confidence.

“50 gold… alright, miss, I’ve certainly received the money. The odds are 499.5 to 1. If you win, it’s 24,700 gold after fees. Are you sure?”
“Of course.”

The deal was made.
50 gold, it’s a small amount if you think it’s small and a large amount if you think it’s large, but at least for Soho it was a large sum.

Because it was her entire fortune including her emergency funds.

‘I didn’t think she’d be this reckless.’

If Soho doesn’t win the money, I’ll feel sorry since I have a connection to Emilia.
So I decided to place a bet too.

I handed over half of the money I had on hand.

“I’ll bet 50 gold too.”
“What? Young master, gambling? Are you sure that’s okay?”

She had a puzzled expression.
An expression that said, “A man gambling?”
I nodded despite such looks.

Since it’s come to this.
If we’re going to fail, it’s better to fail together.
We can always earn money again anyway.

“Zick-nim, you seem to know something…!”

Soho smiled brightly and rejoiced.

“Zick-nim, you’re cool.”

Akasha also admired,
but judging by her expression, it seemed she had given a thumbs up without understanding what was happening.

“Well then, I wish you luck.”

The paper received from the gambling house proprietor.
It was a ticket proving the bet amount and odds.

And so I ended up on the same boat as Soho.

“The winner, Emilia of Brook Territory!”
“Ooooh!!!!”
“Let’s goooo!!”

Was it because a considerable amount of money was bet?
Dopamine is bursting.

My heart bursts when there’s a crisis where the opponent swings their sword and seems to push back.
I get excited and clench my fists when Emilia subdues her opponent.

“Emilia! Emilia!”

Her name is heard from the audience.
It’s a cheer proving how amazing her performance was.

Emilia has already ruthlessly won in the semi-finals.
She overwhelmingly subdued her opponent without allowing even an inch of attack.

“Z-Zick-nim…”
“Yes?”

When Soho called with a trembling voice, I turned my head to look at her.

“Are we winning?”

Soho asked, stammering.
Now only the final match remains.

Just one match.

If we win this match, we’ll get 499.5 times the odds.
24,700 gold. It’s so sweet it’s almost rotten.

Calming my pounding heart, I said.

“We’ll win.”
“A victory declaration without hesitation!! I like it.”

At this point, it’s worth believing.
I could understand why the gambler recommended Emilia.

Her fighting style was simple.
If the opponent came at her with swordsmanship, she would exploit the weaknesses of their swordsmanship and subdue them,
and if they came at her with sword energy, she would subdue them with sword energy just the same.

No matter what method, she showed no hesitation.
It seemed like there was something hidden in that composure.

“The final match will now begin—!”

With the announcer’s shout, the final match began.

The opponent was a muscular woman with a huge body.
She was holding a giant blunt weapon in her right hand,
and outwardly, the opponent looked overwhelmingly strong.

‘Is she from the Seolha Empire…?’

The outfit she was wearing was similar to the kind Soho next to me was wearing.
An oriental style uncommon in the fantasy world.
It seemed certain.

“Win!! Emilia!”

Soho, who was enthusiastically cheering for Emilia next to me, didn’t seem to notice such things.

Even though it’s the preliminaries,
as it’s the final match that determines advancement to the main tournament, the opponent didn’t look easy at all.

Bang—!!

The opponent freely wields the giant blunt weapon and surrounds it with terrifying sword energy.
If even one hit is allowed, it would shatter bones and all.
A breathtaking sight.

But,

Kwang—!

Emilia didn’t allow any attack.
Rather, she meets the giant blunt weapon head-on with her small body.
She doesn’t yield at all.

And her counterattack began.

As the match dragged on, Emilia started to show her true strength for the first time.
What she emitted was blue sword energy like the sea.

“Could that be a Sword Master’s sword energy?!”

The blue sword energy signifies being a Sword Master.
It was the birth of the 6th Sword Master.

‘What kind of monster has she become…’

Great admiration arises.
What could have happened to Emilia in that short time?

Whether she gained some miraculous opportunity, she became unrecognizably strong.

“The victory goes to Emilia of Brook Territory!”

After that, the match ended.
The opponent, flustered by Emilia’s sword energy, crossed swords a few times and then declared surrender.

It’s understandable.
Sword Masters are called the strongest of humanity.

I would raise both hands and feet in surrender too.

“Zick-nim, we won!!!”
“Yeah!!!”

About 24,700 gold, which is about 250 million won in Korean currency.
It’s an incredible achievement.

Thank you, Emilia.
Thanks to you, we earned a lot.
I gave hundreds of thanks inwardly.

“We will now conduct an interview with the winner.”

An interview was conducted immediately.
The question was how she was able to become a Sword Master?

It’s a cliché question.

The answer is obvious anyway.
Talent, effort, luck.

Other Sword Masters consistently mention these three things.
Emilia would surely be no different.

“…”

The arena suddenly becomes quiet.
As it’s the birth of a new Sword Master, everyone is anticipating her answer.

“The reason I was able to become a Sword Master is simple.”

I could feel everyone present focusing.
Even though it’s the preliminaries, major figures from across the continent would be attending this event.

Those great people were maintaining silence just to hear Emilia’s answer.
I too waited for her answer with curiosity.

And finally.

Gulp.

Emilia swallowed once and spoke with a trembling voice.

“This is all thanks to Zick-nim. Because Zick-nim was there, I was able to become a Sword Master! That is all!”

—Woooooah!!!

Her following answer was an unexpected response.
And throughout the arena.

“Zick! Zick!”
“Emilia! Emilia!”

The names of the two people echoed.

Emilia’s interview brought about a huge paradigm shift.
This led to various interpretations depending on how her interview was understood.

Some people:

“Who is Zick? It sounds like a man’s name… Is he Emilia’s master?”
“So Sword Masters can be cultivated through training. I’m shocked.”
“I don’t know who he is, but find that master named Zick!”

After understanding that Sword Masters can be cultivated, they set out to find her master, Zick.

“Could it be the name of a new demon? She became like that after receiving power from demons.”
“Could it be… Then is this Zick a demon?”
“It might be. Anyway, we need to keep all possibilities open.”

Misunderstanding Zick as a demon, they set out to find him.
Also, the powerful figures of each country:

“I don’t know who Zick is, but it would be good to recruit him along with Emilia.”
“A Sword Master symbolizes a country’s power. We need to recruit those two before it’s too late.”

They entered a recruitment war.

And another person watching that match.

A woman with brilliant golden hair like sunlight and deep blue eyes reminiscent of the sea, looking exactly like Soho Baekya, smiled brightly.

“The name of the one who trained Emilia, who defeated my servant Jakan, is Zick…”

She repeated Zick’s name several times.
As if trying to remember it in her mind so as not to forget.