The Villain has Perished



"This is the first time I'm coming here."

The Phantom Series was given to me by my mother when I was a child. It was the reason I never tried to find a different sword series until today.

I was floating inside a library. The archaic shelves were levitating in a similar fashion, the smallest being larger than 5-story buildings and the largest simply too big to quantify it.

At the same time, the book racks were flying around, their position continuously changing. 

The sight in front of me was chaotic, yet calming. It was as if I was standing inside the eye of a storm of bookstands.

Navigating through this strange space, I flew towards the location of the librarian of this dimension. 

The Celestial Sphere was directly connected to the Records of World of Magic & Sword. The space inside was probably larger than the world itself.

Thankfully, this world didn't follow the laws of physics, allowing me to fly at breakneck speed with a single thought. 

As I reached the librarian's desk, I found that 'she' wasn't here.

"Where is Beatrice?"

Beatrice, the World Spirit of the World of Swords & Magic, was the librarian that managed the sword series of Celestial Swordsmanship.

Thinking a bit more, I realized her disappearance wasn't unwarranted. In the novel, Jae-sung entered this place twice and he encountered Beatrice both times.

But Beatrice had to manage the Records of the world along with the Celestial Sphere. It was a given that she couldn't be here all the time. 

Probably, Jae-sung was lucky to find her both times he visited the Celestial Sphere.

"I need to find the sword series myself?"

Sighing internally, I went behind the librarian's desk and opened the book, storing the location of the sword series along with their shelf number.

This was going to take a bit of time.

…

..

.

"You can enter now."

I spoke to Jae-sung seconds after leaving the Celestial Sphere.

In the end, it didn't take long to find the sword series I was searching for. I was lucky to have the Star Slaying Series near me.

Earlier, when I touched the book with the Star Slaying series, the book disappeared into a stream of light and flowed into my head.

I saw a man practicing the Star Slaying Series after that.

The sight of the man swinging his sword at the stars in the night sky on top of a lonely mountain was still fresh in my mind. 

'This would help in the fight against Qantal, the Illusive Dragon King.'

I haven't started practicing the Star Slaying Series yet. Naturally, I couldn't use it at all. Nevertheless, I was never going for a head-on battle against Qantal.

Our already low chances of survival would disappear if I was to try something stupid like that. 

'I can't let the Dream Tree bloom, or it will spell our end.'

Qantal was invincible inside the Dream Tree. Allowing the tree to bloom was the same as signing the seal of our defeat.

Reaffirming my goal, I turned to Jae-sung.

"Once you are inside, search for the Ghost Series."

The Ghost Swordsmanship had never been found to this date. But Jae-sung didn't need to know this.

There were a few hours left until the ball event starts and Qantal moves. I needed to make sure Jae-sung didn't interfere tonight.

This was why I gave him the name of swordsmanship belonging to the First Lionel Family ancestor. It would keep him busy as he searches for a sword series that doesn't exist.

Jae-sung nodded. 

We placed our hands on the Celestial Sphere and I used the blood pill again.

⟪ Lionel Blood Detected ⟫

⟪ Do you wish to allow Jae-sung ??? access to Celestial Sphere? ⟫

Suddenly, Jae-sung spoke before entering the Sphere.

"I almost forgot! Sir Sol, under the bed you were sleeping, Lady Setsuna left something for you. I don't know what it is, but she said only you should open it and you'll know its use."

I nodded.

A white light engulfed Jae-sung for a few seconds before disappearing. 

Watching Jae-sung, whose eyes had grown hazy, I knew that his soul had entered the Celestial Sphere. 

Now, even if Dream Tree blooms, Jae-sung won't be sucked into the Qantal's unique skill as long as he doesn't leave the Sphere.

I could also hide inside, but then I would lose this chance. 

Illusive Dragon King was a curse and a blessing at the same time. The battle against it would be the most dangerous fight I've encountered but the rewards would be more than worth it.

"Don't come out, or you'll become my enemy too."

I said to Jae-sung even though he wouldn't be able to hear me.

This was a test for Jae-sung, too. I still didn't believe that the price for my wish was my reincarnation in the 1st timeline – it was too straightforward. 

Moreover, I knew Jae-sung, this bastard, was hiding something.

"Status" I opened the Status Screen.

————

Name: Jae-sung ???

Level: 53

Rank: 3-star Grandmaster [ Quasi Saint ]

Hearts: 05

→ Stats [Expand] 

→ Achievements [Expand]

→ Equipments [Expand]

→ Skills [Expand]

→ Quests [Expand]

————

1 F rank skill meant 1 star Master and 5 F rank skill meant 5 star Master.

Similarly, 1 E rank skill was what one meant by 1 star Grandmaster rank, while 5 E rank skill equaled 5 star Grandmaster, the peak of Grandmaster rank.

The same was for Saint rank that had D rank skill, C rank for King rank and B rank for Emperor rank.

One has to reach the peak of one rank before moving to another rank.

But what happens if one has 2 E rank skills and 1 C rank skill?

Such an ascender hasn't fulfilled the condition to rank up from Grandmaster rank. But it is undeniable that they possess a C rank skill.

In these conditions, their rank would be 2 star Grandmaster [ Quasi King ].

It meant, while Jae-sung possessed 3 E rank skills, he also had at least one D rank skill. This wasn't something that happened in the novel.

Jae-sung shouldn't have reached Saint rank until fighting against the boss monster inside the Port of World of Ancients.

Clearly, something was wrong.

'I can't let you interfere tonight, Jae-sung. The situation is already precarious. A single variable can topple my entire plan.'