Chapter 77

I gripped the sword hilt tightly.

As if in response, the blade began to wail.

Weeeing–! Weeeeeeeng–!

A sound that ordinary people could not hear.

But to the ears of those present on this battlefield, it would probably pierce through viciously. The sound cut through all surrounding noise, striking the eardrums with a sharpness that could make even the heart tremble.

A strange energy gathered around the blade.

As if smoke were rising.

A translucent shimmer, born from the blade, melted into the air. Then it began to burn brightly in crimson light. I could feel the heat little by little.

The crimson light tangled with the shimmer, radiating a mysterious glow—power reminiscent of the “aura” that appeared in fantasy novels.

‘But this isn’t magic or aura.’

A blade constructed at less than 0.1 nanometers.

It vibrated tens of thousands of times per second, slicing through surrounding air molecules.

The severed molecules interacted with others nearby, creating shockwaves and producing new substances like ozone (O₃) or nitric acid (HNO₃).

The constant collisions with air molecules generated frictional heat, heating the blade until it burned red, as though it had been dipped in molten metal.

‘A blade that can cut even air.’

This was the Arcane Module [Lv.5 Techblade].

It possessed cutting power beyond the [Cloud Spider], but forcing its unstable structure to hold together made my body’s nanomachine overload rate spike rapidly.

“Hoo…”

Even in Aaron Stingray’s body, designed as a human weapon, this blade was extremely taxing to operate properly.

‘The last time I used it, I didn’t even bring out its full performance.’

That was when I faced the Stingray Chairman’s elite ninja unit. At the time, I had used it in tandem with the [Cloud Spider], so I couldn’t fully draw out this blade’s sharpness.

But now was different.

With the [Cloud Spider] lost, my focus was entirely on this sword, pouring all my energy into maintaining its unstable structure.

Thump–! Thump–!

The temperature of the blood coursing through my veins rose, and my heartbeat grew faster and faster. No wonder the Aaron in the original story had only used this as his final, desperate move while sick.

“…”

Aaron’s brow furrowed slightly.

Then he muttered,

“This module doesn’t suit you.”

I didn’t respond.

I simply raised the blade, pointing its tip toward him—as if to say I would cut him down with this sword.

Smirk.

Aaron laughed.

To him, this entire situation was probably nothing more than a fleeting bit of amusement.

While for ‘me’ it was a trial I had to overcome, staking my existence and identity, for ‘Aaron’ it was nothing but a passing event.

The mindset of an apex predator.

And so, he accepted it. Probably just for fun.

“Come at me, then.”

There was nothing more to say.

I kicked off the ground.

Closing tens of meters in an instant.

Aaron’s fingers moved.

Smooth motions, like playing the piano. In an instant, the [Cloud Spider] threads captured by his ocular scanner spread out into a web, trying to block me.

But it didn’t matter.

Even those seemingly invincible threads were nothing more than strands of silk before this blade.

Swish.

Not even the sound of cutting could be heard.

The taut, opaque threads were severed in a single slash, losing all strength and sagging as they dissolved into the air.

And in the next instant—

Krrrrrrrk!

Aaron reversed his grip on the Dwarf-made replica [Techblade], blocking my strike. The moment our blades clashed, an intense shockwave and heat brushed my cheek.

Sparks flew madly from the point where the blades met.

Even without applying much force, the blade kept vibrating minutely, trying to dig into his weapon.

[System Warning]

Overload rate rapidly increasing

A warning window appeared in one corner of my vision.

The nanomachines in my body were straining to repair the damage to my blade in real time.

That was the strength and weakness of equipment generated through a Combat Module. It could maintain peak condition without separate maintenance, but once damaged, the overload rate would spike temporarily.

‘Should I turn this into an overload rate contest?’

If we kept our blades locked like this, the one whose body broke down first would lose. The idea flashed through my mind but was soon discarded.

Even if he still had the [Cloud Spider], my overall module output level was higher right now.

That meant my replacement rate and physical abilities were superior, but my overload rate also climbed faster.

‘I just need to stall until the Dwarf-made [Techblade] breaks.’

If I prolonged the fight a bit, the fake sword Aaron wielded would soon be destroyed. Then, he wouldn’t be able to block my blade with the [Cloud Spider] alone.

‘But I can’t drag this out for too long.’

Aaron Stingray was a human weapon.

Though our physical stats were similar, his innate combat sense was unmatched. Thanks to the memories I had inherited from him, I could fight to some extent, but against someone who had truly become the real “Aaron Stingray,” I was no match.

And indeed, even now—

“Hm.”

He suddenly halted the Techblade’s vibration.

The moment the sparks briefly subsided, I instinctively paid attention to it.

That instant—

Aaron exploited the blind spot in my awareness to redeploy the [Cloud Spider].

By calculating precisely how much overload rate the [Techblade] consumed, he adjusted its output to free up power for the [Cloud Spider].

“…!”

But I wasn’t going to fall for such a mind game. The [Lv.4 Weapon Recognizer] I had installed could easily bypass tricks of this level.

And what it couldn’t cover—

I could just make up for with something else.

[Haaat!]

Iri intercepted the threads attacking from behind me once again. She pressed the shield tightly to her shoulder, putting her full weight into receiving the blow head-on.

Crunch!

The shield she held was etched with a deep scar, as if clawed by some massive beast.

It had been a shield Miyu had personally crafted, even mixing in the Essence of Titan—yet, with just one strike from Aaron, it had become ragged.

[Uuugh!]

Even with the added weight of the Lv.4 Powered Armor, Iri was losing in the contest of strength, gradually pushed backward. The recoil even lifted her body into the air.

Just before she was completely blown away, she immediately activated the [Thousand Pound Weight] at maximum output, anchoring her legs to the ground.

Kwaaaang!

[Uaaaahhh!]

Iri put all her strength into withstanding Aaron’s attack. At present, the only modules she had equipped besides [Thousand Pound Weight] were the [Cellular Regeneration Enhancement] Module.

No matter how high her pure specs were, she lacked the raw strength to withstand Aaron’s strikes. Even with the assistance of the Lv.4 Powered Armor, it was the same.

Yet, she blocked Aaron’s attack. In the end, the threads Aaron had fired could not penetrate Iri’s defense and bounced away.

[Huff… huff…!]

Of course, the fact was that just enduring a single strike had left her completely exhausted. As if frustrated by that, Iri panted heavily, clenching her teeth.

It wasn’t only me— even Aaron couldn’t help but admire her.

Because he, more than anyone, knew the difference in specs between himself and Iri Elisbell.

‘Impressive.’

Iri likely couldn’t even see most of the Cloud Spider’s threads. She relied solely on her judgment— that “trained instinct” I had praised so much— to flawlessly fulfill her role.

Two seconds.

That was the time she had bought.

Too great a span to call “only.”

‘I can’t expect more from Iri than this.’

But it was fine.

The momentary distortion she created was enough for me to seize the initiative.

I readjusted my grip on the sword hilt.

Then, following the module’s guidance, I traced my sword’s path. With optimized movements and steady breathing, I steadily pressed Aaron back.

Once, twice, three times…!

Our blades clashed countless times, sending shockwaves outward. I kept as close as possible, denying him any chance to deploy the [Cloud Spider] again, and continued the assault.

Kaang! Kaang! Kaang!

The relentless blows forced Aaron a few steps back—he was trying to open distance, and I pursued immediately.

“Tsk.”

Seeing me stick to him persistently, Aaron clicked his tongue, a hint of ‘annoyance’ in his eyes.

In that moment, he deployed a module he’d kept hidden. His shoulders and wrists opened up, revealing gun barrels.

‘What—?!’

Had I been mistaken thinking I’d destroyed all his general modules?

I instinctively leapt back to gain distance, and Iri quickly filled the gap.

[Get back!]

Jumping in beside me, Iri raised her shield to block the incoming hail of bullets. Meanwhile, Aaron redeployed the [Cloud Spider], and this time it was my turn to act.

‘Techblade!’

Maximizing the sword’s cutting power, I sliced through every incoming thread. Using the brief gap created by our widened distance, the soldiers’ gunfire rained down once more.

Tat-tat-tat-tat-tat!

But Aaron cut down every bullet aimed at his vital points, deflecting them with his sword. As a bonus, the shoulder-mounted gatling turret he had deployed drilled bullets into the soldiers’ heads with deadly accuracy.

Of course, it didn’t last long— the gatling module was soon corroded by the virus and destroyed. He discarded the charred remains and swiftly mounted another hidden module.

Then it happened.

A black figure suddenly emerged from behind Aaron, thrusting a blade toward him.

Silence—who had been hiding at the edge of the battlefield all this time, watching for an opening—had finally found his moment.

“…”

Aaron had anticipated Silence might appear, but it seemed he hadn’t known the exact timing or position.

He frowned, as if slightly troubled, and with astonishing reflexes barely dodged the strike.

“[Tch…!]”

Silence clicked his tongue in frustration.

Aaron quickly widened the gap between them, and Silence, realizing his ambush had failed, withdrew once again to bide his time.

In the meantime—

Gunfire poured toward Aaron again.

He sprinted across the battlefield, evading every hail of bullets.

Whoosh!

Throwing his blade like a spear, he pierced the heart of a soldier sniping from hundreds of meters away in the air. Before the body could even hit the ground, Aaron charged at other soldiers with inhuman speed.

[W-what the hell! How is he this fast?!]

[His modules should all be destroyed!]

The soldiers panicked.

They hastily activated their aerial mobility devices at full output to escape from Aaron.

Aaron skillfully retrieved a module from the soldier he had just killed, and, using the corpse as a springboard, leapt toward another.

‘Damn it—he’s planning to replenish his modules…!’

I also kicked off the ground and managed to intercept him before he could reach the other soldier. I swung my blade at his arm to stop him from using the retrieved module.

At that instant—

Aaron twisted his body midair to evade my strike. After landing, I pressed my attack, and he calmly parried.

Then, all of a sudden—

Clang!

The “fake module” Aaron had equipped reached its time limit. As he blocked my last strike, the sword he held suddenly shattered into glass-like fragments.

“…!”

Aaron’s brows furrowed again.

Instead of defending with a sword, he deployed the real [Cloud Spider]. I’d anticipated this and easily cut through the tens of thousands of threads flying at me.

By then, Silence and Iri had joined me again. While their presence didn’t offer much tangible help, it was enough to distract Aaron slightly.

“…Annoying.”

For the first time, he spoke aloud, actively moving to push the two students out of the battlefield. But I wasn’t about to let that happen.

‘Dragging this out any longer is dangerous.’

If Iri and Silence were geniuses—

Aaron Stingray was a monster.

Even now, with my physical specs surpassing his, our one-on-one duel was dead even—proof of his terrifyingly honed combat sense.

‘He’ll adapt soon enough.’

His [Techblade] had broken, but it was only a matter of time before he found a way to counter me.

‘This is a monster who slices bullets with the naked eye. If he adapts even to my top-tier module-enhanced movements, there will be no chance of victory for me.’

So, I steeled my resolve.

I had hoped to finish this before it came to this point, but as expected, Aaron Stingray was no easy opponent.

‘It’s an artificially created body anyway. Even if it breaks down a little early, it doesn’t matter.’

Keeping the fight going, I gripped the spine of the blade—now burning bright red—with all my strength. My other hand clenched tightly around the hilt.

Thump–!

Just taking this stance made the back of my neck feel feverishly hot. My heart felt as if it were heating up along with the blade.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t due to the thrill of battle. The overload rate, already high from deploying this weapon, spiked violently as I drew out the blade’s “true” form.

“Iri, Silence! Fall back!”

Sensing something strange from my tone, the two students withdrew from the battlefield. Aaron, too, looked at me with an intrigued gaze.

“Oh-ho… you’re really going to use it?”

“Better than failing without trying.”

“You’re a replica. Your hastily made body won’t withstand it.”

“Weren’t you the one who made it for that?”

“…Heh.”

Aaron chuckled as if amused, and I also smiled. Then, in the next moment, I drew the sword from its “scabbard.”

Fwaaaaaah—!

[Techblade].

Why had this one sword been granted the same grade as the [Cloud Spider]?

Compared to the [Cloud Spider], which could control tens of thousands of threads freely—sometimes like blades, sometimes like ropes, sometimes like whips—this seemed far too plain.

It was just a “blade that cuts well,” wasn’t it?

But that was a misconception.

More precisely, it was a lack of imagination.

If the [Cloud Spider] was an Arcane Module rated Lv.5 because of its overwhelming power and versatile adaptability in any short- or mid-range combat scenario…

Then the [Techblade]…

Was something rated Lv.5 for one thing only—“sharpness.”

And if that was enough to earn it Lv.5—

What kind of weapon must it truly be?

“Ah…”

An involuntary sigh escaped my lips. Even the visible sharp blade that had wrapped this weapon was nothing but a scabbard to conceal its real sharpness.

Formless Sword.

The hilt I drew out was attached to nothing. Or rather, nothing that could be seen.

It couldn’t be detected by normal eyesight.

Even with my military-grade scanner-equipped eyes, all I could make out was something dark, like static interference, flickering at the hilt.

As if the blade were made of black mist.

It was meaningless to define its length or width. Its structure was so unstable that merely keeping it in a specific state was an enormous strain on my body.

Aaron muttered as he looked at it.

“At last…”

At last?

What could he mean?

I had no way of knowing. Perhaps, with more thought, I could figure it out—but unfortunately, I didn’t have the luxury of time.

“…Here I come.”

The overload rate surged.

This hastily built body began to break down.

The heat melted the skin from my fingertips, peeling it away, and the weaker extremities outright dripped like jelly.

Even so, I didn’t let go of the hilt.

I swung it at him—

To fulfill the purpose I had been created for.

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