A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

Bray could no longer sense any sadness from the monster.

"..." Bray held his sword horizontally in front of him, blocking the monster's fierce attack.

But suddenly, the stone bricks beneath Bray's feet shattered, causing him to lose his balance in a brief moment.

In battles of this caliber, even the slightest influence will be magnified infinitely.

“peng——”

Bray was thrown violently into the air by the monster, smashing through the brickwork of the ceiling.

Bray stepped onto a brick in the ceiling, preventing himself from flying upwards any further.

A ray of light fell through the crack that had been smashed open in the sky.

For the first time, light from the outside world appeared in the dimly lit arena.

The ceiling that had sealed off the arena for countless years was pierced!

With nowhere to grab onto, Bray could only helplessly drift in free fall.

As the ray fell again from mid-air, it quickly regained its balance, and then the whistling wind reached its ears.

Out of the corner of his eye, Bray saw the monster leaping up beside him.

In mid-air, Bray and the monster clashed wildly, waves of energy radiating outwards from the sky.

"Do you see the light?" Bray asked weakly, despite the constant back-and-forth.

The monster roared in response to Bray's roar.

"Swordsman, this prison has been breached."

Bray was viciously slashed by the monster's claws, and three horrifying wounds were slashed across his chest, with blood gushing from the sky onto the ground.

But there was still no fear on Bray's face.

"Hey—"

“If you can’t see anything clearly right now—” Bray looked calmly at the twisted, black swordsman.

"GUAAAAA!!"

"If all you can do is use brute force—" Brelian's left hand, the last thing he could hold a sword, was also shattered by the monster's power.

"GUAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!"

“If you can’t even use a sword—” Cold sweat broke out on Bray’s forehead. Enduring the excruciating pain, Bray put “The Last Echo” in his mouth with his left hand.

“GUAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!”

"Then you've already lost."

The moment the roar rang out, a glint flashed in Bray's eyes.

In an instant, the colors of the world seemed to fade, leaving only black and white.

A long white line lit up in the sky, bringing color back to the world.

The arena looked as if it had been slashed by countless sword blades, with dense sword marks appearing.

The stones were neatly cut into squares, and the stone pillars were perfectly hewn with smooth cross-sections.

Then the ceiling was sliced ​​open vertically, and countless bricks fell from it.

"Eighteen Styles of Style" "Eighteen Slashes Through the Void"!!!

The monster's body was being slashed and torn apart by eighteen swords, and blood was scattered like rain on the arena.

"dong!!!!!!!!"

As blood rained down, Bray and the monster fell to the ground together, raising a cloud of dust that obscured the view of what was happening inside.

Light streamed in through the enormous crack in the ceiling, illuminating Bray and the black-clad swordsman.

As if by fate, Bray and the Black Swordsman ended up in the center of the arena.

As the dust settled, two people were revealed.

Bray had "The Last Song" clenched in his mouth, his hands hanging limply at his sides, and blood trickling down his forehead and right eye.

The black-clad swordsman's twisted body now lay sprawled on the ground, his armor shattered into pieces, his body disappearing bit by bit like sand.

The disappearance was very slow, but it was undeniable that the black-clad swordsman's body was gradually vanishing from the world.

At this moment, the magic circle that had sealed off the entire arena quietly dissipated, freeing everyone.

However, no one cheered for regaining their freedom or for surviving.

The countless corpses and the blood-soaked ground weighed heavily on my heart.

“Sir…” Nisha struggled to her feet and called out to Bray.

But Bray did not respond to Nisha's question.

Bray's gaze remained fixed on the black-clad swordsman from beginning to end.

"Ping—" Bray released his grip, and the sword fell to the ground.

"You should be dying soon. I've done what I promised you." He completely ignored the blood flowing from the corner of his mouth.

--"Thanks…"

An extremely indistinct sound entered Bray's mind.

For some reason, Bray's lips curved into a smile.

"You're still here."

"...It...can't hold on for much longer..."

"what your name."

—"Ka...Kalogaris."

“Carlogaris, I’ve got it.”

"Please...please...please don't repeat...my tragic back..."

"No matter how many times... I hope... you can... stay that stubborn..."

"Is it really okay for you to call me stubborn? I'm a murderer and a benefactor, after all."

"Hmm... my benefactor..."

"In the very end, what do you want to say? I'll be your final listener."

Those around watched as Bray crouched down, sat down next to the black-clad swordsman, and quietly closed his eyes.

Time passed, and the entire arena remained quiet, a stark contrast to the previous bloodshed.

"It's really hard for me to hear the story told in such an old lady-like tone."

The effects of the "life-or-death battle" were still ongoing; Bray's body remained strong.

Bray's right hand is recovering over time, but his left hand still hangs limply to the side.

"Can I take it with me?"

"Sigh..." Bray sighed helplessly.

"Can I refuse?"

"Ha...ha...you really are...a hero...a brave warrior..."

"Don't talk nonsense. I am neither a hero nor a warrior."

However, Bray never heard Carlogaris speak again.

That body completely dissipated, returning to the world with the dust, leaving only a pile of black armor on the ground.

His strength suddenly vanished, and Bray collapsed to his knees.

Bray remained silent for a moment, as if waiting for Carlogaris's reply.

After a long silence, Bray finally broke it.

"I'm just an unlucky person."

"You are the hero."

With his right hand firmly supporting his body, which could collapse at any moment, Bray laboriously retracted "The Last Song" to his waist.

Then, dragging his weary body, he grabbed the greatsword scabbard from beside his armor and walked toward the greatsword stuck in the ground in the distance.

---

Beers

Type: Two-handed greatsword

Dimensions: 150 cm long, 40.5 cm wide

Special feature: Its weight will vary depending on the user's strength.

Overall assessment: One of the two greatswords used by the ancient human hero in the story. Some say this sword will never feel light; even with the strength of that ancient hero, one would feel its weight. If one is not the wielder of this sword, one will feel its mountain-like weight.

---

The amount of information obtained through identification techniques can vary, but the secrets behind them remain largely unknown to most people.

Bray felt that he was fortunate to have obtained so much information about the greatsword thanks to Tocarogaris.

Bray struggled to pull out the black greatsword, tearing and injuring the muscles in his right hand from the excessive force.

Despite this, Bray gritted his teeth and slung the greatsword over his back.

“Carlogaris asked me to take you away, but I’ll probably tarnish your reputation,” Bray murmured, walking alone toward the exit.

"After all, I am not a hero or a brave man."

The light shining down from above fell on the greatsword behind Bray, making it gleam.

Everything ended in Bray's hands—

It all happened so suddenly, but it ended just as suddenly.

Apart from Nisha, Blanche, Virginia, and an adventurer who still wanted to regain his senses, there were no other survivors.

"Is it all over...?" Virginia leaned against Blanche's chest and asked weakly.

“Yes, it’s over. That useless fish… that Bray has taken care of everything.” Blanche stroked Virginia’s hair, trying to respond to Virginia in the softest voice.

Nisha stared blankly in the direction Bray had left.

However, Nisha quickly came to her senses.

"Wait! Sir!! Please wait." The seriously injured Nisa struggled to her feet, hoping to call back Bray.

Unfortunately, no matter how much Nisha shouted, she couldn't get Bray to turn around. Bray, with his bandages in a sling, sat cross-legged in Clinton's Adventurers' Guild, drinking a beverage in his right hand.

After the incident at the ruins, Bray didn't concern himself with the aftermath and left Dale Knight, returning to Clinton on his own.

Although Bray looked quite dashing carrying a greatsword and a longsword at his waist, people glanced at him and then skipped over the "Beers" and "The Last Echo" brands because they didn't seem like anything special.

Bray was actually quite happy to have some free time; who knows what this D-rank adventurer had gone through?

As for Virginia and Blanche, Bray felt that he was not one of them, and in the end, he left alone without even saying goodbye.

"Hey, Bray, what kind of mission did you take to end up like this?! Hahaha!" A lewd man chuckled as he leaned close to Bray.

"Didn't you still have two beautiful female companions? Haha, did they abandon you?"

"..." Bray threw a backhand punch with his right hand, mercilessly smashing it into the sleazy man.

Bray wasn't actually very familiar with this man, but he was always the type to chat with people in a friendly, familiar way.

Barak, known as the know-it-all, is the person people usually ask for gossip and rumors.

As for why Barack knew Bray's name—

Barack could remember almost all of Clinton's adventurers.

"Ouch!! You bastard!!!" The lewd man glared at Bray.

"Don't pretend, I'm not that strong." Bray shook his fist and pursed his lips.

“But you mentioned Virginia and Blanche…” Bray stroked his chin, then sighed.