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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Demon God]
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Chapter 99 - Sword Sheath (3)
“I let you fools go last time because you seemed like a bunch of nobodies… Should’ve gone home and taken up farming. But you came back? Guess you’ve grown a pair.”
“...!”
Sylvia gritted her teeth, extending her hand.
From Aslan’s mouth, the hilt of the sword emerged with a slithering sound.
As she pulled, the long blade continued to slide out of his mouth endlessly.
“Mmff! Urghgh!”
“…This is embarrassing, so please be quiet.”
Aslan let out muffled grunts, as if trying to say, “Slowly! Slowly!” but Sylvia paid no attention.
Her focus was solely on dealing with these ingrates.
With the sword now firmly in both hands, Sylvia shot forward, launching herself off the ground.
“M-Mage! Put up a barrier!”
“The mage already ran away!”
“What!? When!?”
The moment the bandits saw Sylvia charging at full speed, their formation crumbled.
They remembered that masked figure from before, who had ambushed them and taken down dozens in a matter of moments.
The terror that had been imprinted in their minds began to resurface.
“Don’t just stand there! Fight back!”
“Aaahh!”
But if they retreated now, who would feed their families?
The recent years of poor harvests had left their children starving.
They had no choice but to make a big score today.
They had prepared so diligently for this very day, clearing the muddy roads, repairing the broken sections—
All so that nobles would pass through.
The time had finally come for their hard work to pay off. They couldn’t give up now.
“Grab someone! Just catch one, and our lives will turn around!”
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“…!”
Just as the bandits tried to scatter, Sylvia reappeared right in front of them, having closed the distance in an instant.
“Flash!”
With a quick incantation, a bright light appeared in the center of the group.
“And now, sparkle!”
“Arghhh!”
In the blink of an eye, Sylvia’s follow-up spell scattered a blinding light in all directions, causing the bandits to scream in pain as they clutched their eyes and fell to the ground.
Sylvia swung her sword effortlessly.
Even without using mana, the sheer force of her swing created an explosive sound, sending splinters of wood flying everywhere.
“Gah!?”
When the bandits finally regained their vision and opened their eyes, they were greeted by a scene of utter devastation:
Every tree in the area had been cleanly cut down, toppling over in waves.
They had known from the start that Sylvia was a highly skilled swordswoman, but this… this was beyond belief.
How could a mere sword fell an entire forest like this?
If they had dared to lift their heads, they would have been decapitated on the spot.
The bandits stood frozen in place, some trembling so violently that they wet themselves.
By the time Yuri rushed over to catch up with Sylvia, the battle was all but over.
“Yuria. Bind them all.”
“Y-Yes!”
Yuri, who had been momentarily dumbfounded, belatedly replied.
She had known Sylvia was strong, but this… this was something else entirely.
To cut down everything in the vicinity, even beyond the sword’s direct reach?
Such power, just from a sword’s wind pressure…?
‘If a Sword Expert is this powerful, then how strong must a Sword Master be…?’
Wow. So this is the full strength of a Sword Expert.
As Yuri stood there in awe, lost in admiration, Sylvia herself was staring at the sword in her hand, unable to hide her own bewilderment.
‘This isn’t just a well-crafted sword… is it?’
She was stunned.
The moment she gripped the sword, her body felt lighter and faster, as if it was an extension of her being.
That could be written off as a mere sensation.
But the moment she swung it, Sylvia realized this sword was in a class of its own, far beyond any other so-called “fine swords.”
No matter how hard she swung, or at what angle, it felt unbreakable.
The blade didn’t seem like it could dull, no matter how much it cut through.
Anything in its path was effortlessly destroyed.
And even if something wasn’t directly in the path of the sword, the sword wind itself tore through the surroundings.
There was something more to this blade—something beyond just mana-powered coating.
‘A sword wind capable of devastating an entire area… This feels almost like an aura…’
As embarrassing as it was to admit, this kind of power wasn’t something a Sword Expert should be able to wield.
Sylvia had always been considered far stronger than most Sword Experts but still below the level of a Sword Master.
But with this sword in hand, it felt like she was just barely dipping her toes into the realm of Sword Masters.
She had heard rumors that holy swords could enhance their wielder’s abilities.
Now, having experienced it firsthand, she wondered if this was even fair.
Wasn’t this practically cheating?
It looked like a holy sword, but honestly, it felt more like a cursed blade.
Sylvia, who had always grown stronger through training and hard work, felt uneasy about such sudden power.
“How’s the sword?”
“It’s incredible. No… even ‘incredible’ doesn’t do it justice. It feels unsettlingly strong…”
Watching Sylvia’s reaction, Aslan gave a wry smile.
Most heroes or chosen warriors would jump at the chance to absorb such power from a fortuitous encounter, but Sylvia, who had built herself up from the ground through pure effort, seemed to find it unsettling.
“I’ll… I’ll put the sword away now…”
Ssshh.
As soon as Sylvia released the sword, it began to glow, its form dissolving into light before being reabsorbed into Aslan’s body.
Again. It happened again.
It seemed that the sword wasn’t just drawn out of Aslan—it was completely bound to him.
However, only Sylvia could draw it, and once she let go, it would automatically return to him.
“No matter what I do, the sword always returns to you when I release it… Maybe I should tie it to my hand with a cloth and just carry it around all day?”
“…Please don’t do that.”
Sylvia could no longer wield or even touch any other weapon.
The only weapon she could use was the one absorbed into Aslan’s body.
Though it wasn’t a huge issue since she was his bodyguard and always by his side, having to go through this strange ritual every time she drew her sword was… quite embarrassing.
They really needed to find a solution for this.
Aslan cleared his throat and stepped forward.
“Which one of you is the leader?”
“M-Me, sir! You can do whatever you want with me, but please spare my men…!”
“For crying out loud. Why do bandits always get so dramatic when they’re caught? Just answer my questions.”
“Y-Yes, sir!”
“I noticed that parts of the unpaved road leading from the capital to Ester had been repaired. I also saw that areas I expected to be mud pits after the storm were clean and clear. Was that your doing?”
“Y-Yes, sir…”
“Why?”
“Well, we… we needed to maintain the road so the carriages we planned to rob would keep coming…”
“And how exactly did you manage that?”
“We split the road into sections and had different groups take care of each one. We moved our homes to those areas and fixed the minor issues ourselves. When major repairs were needed, we called a meeting at headquarters and did the bigger jobs together…”
The bandit leader explained while trembling, and Aslan stroked his chin thoughtfully.
Who were these people?
Managing to clean up the mud and sinkholes caused by a heavy storm overnight—there was no way the construction company in charge of the roads could work that fast.
Yet, here it was. The culprits were bandits.
And based on the speed and quality of their repairs, they weren’t just patching things up; they were putting in real effort.
Hmm. These guys might be useful.
As Aslan grinned, the blood drained from the bandits’ faces.
“You’re aware that I could have all of you executed right here, right?”
“Y-Y-Yes?”
“And if I take your heads to the lord of this territory, I could even get a reward for eliminating troublesome bandits.”
“P-Please spare us! We’ll do anything! Anything at all!”
“Anything, huh? Then how about this? Let’s sign a contract for the next ten years.”
“A contract… sir?”
“You’ll be in charge of maintaining the Vermont highways for ten years. Once the contract is up, I’ll pardon all of your crimes and set you free.”
“…!”
Currently, the maintenance of the Vermont highways was handled by Arient Construction.
But they were drowning in debt, taking on every contract they could to repay it, leaving them severely understaffed.
Sure, Aslan trusted Arient to manage the roads well, but if they collapsed from overwork and couldn’t repay their loans?
That couldn’t happen.
Aslan wasn’t about to lose his golden goose, the source of his four-billion-a-month passive income.
He needed backup—fast.
“I’ll provide you with food, lodging, and a small salary.”
“W-We’ll do it! We swear we’ll do it! We’ll serve you with all our hearts!!!”
The bandits threw themselves flat on the ground, shouting at the top of their lungs.
Food and lodging? Aslan could have Arient cover that.
For Arient, this was a great deal—acquiring labor at a fraction of the usual cost.
With the bandits spared from execution and Arient getting the help they needed, it was a win-win situation.
A satisfied smile played on Aslan’s lips.
Just then, some commotion erupted behind him.
Aslan turned to see the kids watching with wide-eyed curiosity.
“That was awesome! The knight’s sword just went right into Aslan’s body!”
“…That sounds really weird when you say it like that.”
“Uh, how about this? Aslan is now the knight’s personal sword sheath?”
“…That somehow sounds even worse.”
Hearing it from the kids made it sound so much more embarrassing.
Aslan slapped his forehead and sighed deeply.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Demon God]
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