Overgeared

"Biban! Biban!"

The curtain of sword energy that surrounded Biban and Zeratul—countless blades and blade fragments intertwined, and the scene of them reflecting and absorbing each other's light was reminiscent of a galaxy. It was beautiful like art. However, it was a cruel reality to Grid. His hands were bloody as he hit, scratched, and tore at it, and bone could be seen through the torn skin.

"Your Majesty!"

"C-Calm down!"

The women who were once candidates to be Rebecca's Daughters—originally, they were destined to be puppets of the church and driven to the extremes. Thanks to Damian's rescue and Grid's care, they were able to regain a normal life. The main reason they were willing to devote themselves to Lord was because Grid and Damian hoped for it. Their heart toward their benefactors was deeper than imagined.

They didn't know precisely what the relationship between the person called Biban and Grid was, but it wasn't easy to watch their benefactor calling out Biban's name anxiously and going wild. They wanted to run over, grab him, and comfort him immediately.

However, Grid's identity was the noblest one on the continent. He was the king of the Overgeared Kingdom and a god. They didn't dare touch his jade-like body. The 300 women simply cried as they looked at him.

Lord, who was taking care of Isabel and Bland, also remained silent. Lord admired Grid the most in the world. He couldn't make a guess recklessly. Thus, he had no choice but to watch.

"Dammit!" Grid collapsed to the ground and let out harsh curse words. He failed to keep his dignity in front of those who regarded him as a parent, king, or god. He felt as if he would go crazy if he didn't release the emotions filling his heart right away.

Grid was angry. He was furious at the situation where Zeratul broke in at random. He was also annoyed by Biban's choice. There was a better chance of winning if Biban had fought with him. Why did Biban go in alone? It was over once he died. Why...

"Why give me such a present at the end?"

He was a really stupid human. Why did he always give without wanting anything back? Was this the temperament of all the tower members who locked themselves in the tower for humanity? Was it natural and easy to give up their lives for others as they had sacrificed all their lives?

...It was too harsh.

"Shit!" Grid desperately got up again and pounded on the curtain. He seemed to be screaming. He was remembering his most painful memory. It was the memory of when he said goodbye to Khan. Hadn't he decided when holding Khan in his arms as Khan scattered to ashes? He wouldn't let a precious person be taken away twice.

It was different from Khan, who was like a father, but Biban was also a precious relationship. He had many grateful memories. He always thought that he would definitely repay Biban's favor one day. He promised to make Biban a sword.

"Yet because of me..." Grid's body staggered. He felt dizzy due to the blood rushing to his head. His body collapsed and the blue sky filled his vision.

He looked at the clouds flowing slowly and felt his mind calming down. Grid took a deep breath. He calmly reviewed the current situation.

The curtain of sword energy? It could be cut with the Falling Moon Sword. The problem was that the Falling Moon Sword was a secret weapon. It was too greedy to want to win against Zeratul when the Falling Moon Sword had already been consumed. Destroying the curtain would just make Biban's work of locking Zeratul away meaningless.

The deciphered language of the dead—Grid assessed the value of the gift Biban left behind. He identified the usage and measured the results.

'Maybe Biban...' It was the moment when Grid recalled something and came up with a hypothesis.

"Please give us a command." A clear voice entered Grid's ears.

He suddenly heard a voice coming from the blue waves in front of him and looked up. He made eye contact with Mercedes. The large eyes were still and her expression was calm. Her appearance was the same as usual and it vaguely reassured Grid.

"I will carry out My Liege's will."

[Your apostle 'Mercedes' has created a new chivalric code.]

Mercedes' hands were very cold as they wrapped around Grid's hands. It was because she was armed with metal gauntlets. However, Grid's heart melted from the warmth.

Sariel descended next to him with her four pairs of wings spread open as he relied on Mercedes to raise his body. Piaro and Asmophel also arrived. Piaro's healthy teeth were especially shiny today. "The enemy of My Liege is nothing but fertilizer to make the territory more fertile."

Asmophel's eyes, reminiscent of a frozen pollack's eyes, were deeper and more transparent than before. "Please watch me as I face myself."

"......"

A faint smile appeared on Grid's face. His body and mind, filled with anger and anxiety, stopped shaking. He coolly grasped the situation and made a quick judgment.

"Mercedes, analyze the curtain with Keen Insight."

"Yes."

"Sariel, destroy the curtain as soon as Mercedes' analysis is complete."

"Leave it to me."

It was a method that took some time. However, he needed to save the Falling Moon Sword to see a chance of victory. In the first place, the current Grid also needed some time. Biban should hold out sufficiently during that time. He had entered the curtain alone because he was confident he could hold on. Grid had no choice but to believe in him.

"The opponent is the martial god. It will be a tough battle like never before. Someone could lose their life. Still, we have to fight. If we can't do anything here today, we will be swayed by him for the rest of our lives."

"Yes!" Mercedes, Piaro, Sariel, Asmophel, Singuled, Amelda, Dante, and Kentrick—the strongest members of the Overgeared Kingdom responded vigorously by Grid's side.

It was a fearless attitude against a god—the martial god. They knew that there was a dignity that should be upheld.

Grid opened the gift he had received from Biban.

[Checking the contents of 'Deciphered Language of the Dead.']

[The notes written painstakingly by the Absolute will greatly help your understanding.]

[Your high intelligence has allowed you to fully absorb the knowledge of 'Deciphered Language of the Dead.']

[You can now understand the language of the dead.]

The aftermath of the new knowledge being injected all at once was great. Grid got a dizzying headache. It was painful, like someone's hand was digging through his brain. He barely managed to swallow the nausea that rushed to his throat and pulled out Madra's diary. He understood exactly what he had to do now and acted.

Grid's consciousness subsided as the unknown characters became words and sentences, writing a story. Once he came to his senses again, he was standing in the Behen Archipelago hundreds of years ago. There, he encountered Madra's death knight, who existed alone and went crazy. It felt like they became one. He felt like he was going to be swallowed up by a torrent of emotions.

'I'm sorry, but I'm not curious about your story anymore.'

He already felt empathy and sympathy for Madra's pain and anger in the past. The current Madra had lost his sense of reason, so it was hard to communicate. Grid took only what he needed. In order to protect his present relationship, he squashed the specter of the past.

'Have a good rest.'

[You have learnt a new skill.]

[The diary of Undefeated King Madra has disappeared into history.]

***

Sword Saint Biban was a person who had risen to the level of having a sword in his heart. His will was a sword and there was nothing he couldn't cut. It wasn't impossible for him to cut time and space. His sword energy curtain was completely out of the world and time had even stopped. The countless blades and blade fragments swirling in it contained a powerful will in each of them. It was killing intent toward Zeratul.

"Child." From the moment that Biban appeared to now—Zeratul, who was standing with his hands behind his back and staring at Biban, opened his mouth for the first time. "I really cherish combat talent. I watched you from the day you first held the sword to the moment you reached the peak of the sword. Look back. You must've felt my warmth."

There were no scratches on Zeratul's body as he talked at will. The red-colored fighting energy surrounding him was pushing away all of Biban's Heart Sword.

"How dare you forget my favor and point your sword at me?"

"Why are you saying that now? How do I know whether or not you have been watching me when you haven't told me?"

"......"

"Oho, I get it now. You were the devil who tried to seduce and corrupt me onto the easy path whenever I was distressed at being blocked by a wall. Are you crazy? How shameless are you to disguise that ugly past as a favor?"

"Aren't you who you are now because you overcame the trials I gave you?"

"It is sophistry. Don't expect respect. You don't deserve to be called a god judging by your current actions."

Many people were dying due to the demon invasion. At this time, the martial god, who came to the human world, didn't help the people. Instead, he invaded the Overgeared Kingdom and tried to hurt its ruler, Grid. It was a far cry from the gods that people believed in and hoped for.

Zeratul read Biban's inner thoughts and laughed. "Child, you are greatly mistaken. A while ago, I saved 230,927 humans. In response to their prayers before an unjust death due to helplessness, I came to the human world. I manifested in their dreams and gave them strength and opportunities. I saved 230,927 lives. Isn't it too much to deny me like this?"

The curtain of sword energy was Biban's mental world. It was safe to say it was Biban's mind itself. No matter whether he wanted it or not, Biban was communicating with Zeratul. He read Zeratul's heart and learned there were no lies in the claim.

Martial God Zeratul responded to people's prayers the moment he descended to the human world. The lives of the 230,927 people, who were swept away in the war, were saved and he gave them strength according to their wishes. It was true, but this made Biban feel a greater disgust. "You... you gave them your secret techniques. You made them worship only you, in pursuit of a dream that will never come true."

The followers of the martial god—they were different from ordinary humans. They didn't know who they were. They forgot their original lives completely and just wandered around searching for the martial god's secret techniques for the rest of their lives.

It was not a noble act. It was nothing more than a distorted faith that strengthened Zeratul by increasing his name and merit.

"How can you call it salvation?"

"I gave strength to those who wanted it. I instilled hope that they can get greater strength so they can live forever. If this isn't salvation, then what is salvation?"

"Really... you truly believe that, you bastard." Biban pulled out a weapon. It was a short and narrow dagger. It was what he used when removing the skin of a beast. Of course, Biban was the Sword Saint, so even his bare hands could be treated as a sword.

However, the opponent was the martial god. A frail dagger meant he had to regretfully get close. Still, what could he do? It was unavoidable since the sword he originally used was broken in the spar against Grid.

"I don't acknowledge you as a god when you can't sympathize with humans and even distort their wishes. I also deny Goddess Rebecca, who gave birth to a monster like you."

This world was too harsh on humans.

Dragons—absolute beings who could destroy hundreds of thousands of human beings just by breathing. They were merely beasts obsessed with their instincts and desires, and it wasn't strange for them to wipe out humans suddenly depending on their mood.

The gods didn't care for the humans living in such a dangerous world.

Biban couldn't help crying. People were pitiful. Thus, he swung his weapon. His dagger contained a powerful will to cut down the irrationality of the world and the monsters that gave birth to that irrationality.

Blood gushed from Zeratul's chest. The red-colored fighting energy, which hadn't been penetrated by the countless blades, split in half. A hole also pierced Biban's stomach.

"Stupid. No matter how much you deny it, I am a god. Do you believe that humans can harm a god?"

Zeratul's wound was already recovering as he looked at the collapsing Biban. On the other hand, Biban's focus became blurry.

"......?" Zeratul stepped forward to try and destroy Biban's heart, only to pause. It was because he felt his presence fading. He had used the power of the humans' desires to come to the human world and secured time by fulfilling their wishes, but before he knew it, the time was approaching to return. "It has already been five minutes? This guy, don't tell me you planned this from the beginning?"

He didn't stop the passage of time by cutting through time and space, but instead twisted and accelerated it? The enlightened Zeratul frowned. He hurried to kill Biban and to destroy the Overgeared Kingdom. He should achieve his goal of descending to the ground.

Zeratul's hand pierced Biban's heart. Biban's dagger also pierced Zeratul's heart. However, both had an obvious difference. Zeratul's facial expression didn't even change, while Biban stopped moving. He lost the light in his eyes and his head lowered weakly.

Just then, the curtain of sword energy was shattered and scattered. Unfortunately for Zeratul, it was due to an external phenomenon.

"500,000 Army Annihilation Sword."

A single strike—the strike that was performed with the Falling Moon Sword shattered Zeratul's fighting energy and cut his wrist.

Zeratul was already moving in front of Grid. The moment his wrist was cut, he moved to minimize damage and attack Grid. The hand that was filled with concentrated sharpness touched Grid's neck. It pierced him.

Grid felt terrible pain, but he gave up on defending or counterattacking. He stared at Biban and used Shunpo. Grid's throat was torn and blood scattered. Grid swallowed down a groan. He held Biban in his arms and hurriedly pulled out the white peach. It was the 'perfect recovery item' obtained from the Peach Blossom Spring. A person could only take it once in their lifetime.

It happened the moment Grid tried to hold it to Biban's mouth...

"What are you doing in front of me?" Zeratul showed an absurd reaction and lowered his heel toward the top of Grid's head.

Mercedes, Sariel, Piaro, Asmophel, the God Hands transformed into magic machines, Noe, and Randy—he allowed direct attacks from them and the knights, but persisted in only pursuing Grid. It was because Zeratul had no time. Since this happened anyway, he was determined to at least take away Biban's life.

A chill went down Grid's spine as he sensed the impact heading toward the top of his head. Nevertheless, he didn't avoid it and acted firmly. He shoved the white peach into Biban's mouth. He was prepared for a great sacrifice. Before the full-fledged battle, he wanted to protect this close relationship even though he knew that his odds of winning would be greatly reduced if he was seriously injured.

However, his determination was meaningless. Zeratul's attack failed to reach Grid and he was bounced away.

"If you're done with that, step back." The low voice was so calm and clear that it didn't match this urgent situation. There was an aristocratic dignity to it. It was a powerful voice that flustered Martial God Zeratul, who was swept away by his emotions against humans.

"Hayate..." The ultimate transcendent and one side of the absolute—Hayate, the dragon slayer that even Zeratul found difficult to treat indifferently, descended and protected Grid's side.