Chapter 59

Chapter 59. The Gap in Caliber (2)

The Eye.

It had existed at some point.

Drifting through a crevice of an unknown dimension, it simply existed.

Along that crevice, memories — or perhaps fragments of fallen worlds — began flowing in.

The Eye saw them.

Death.

The Eye had died.

Tens of thousands of times, repeatedly.

Despite gazing upon continents, devouring countless sacrifices, and plunging worlds into despair.

It had met death at the hands of different beings each time.

"We did not grant permission for you to look upon him."

The Eye sees.

It perceives.

And thereby, it reshapes the world.

——[The Eye] saw.

Among the countless deaths, the woman who accounted for the greatest number.

A throne drenched in blood.

A crimson dress dragging behind porcelain-white bare feet.

And…

Tok————.

A drop of blood fell.

A voice was heard.

"Haha! You saw something you shouldn't have."

A small child's feet.

That was all it had seen.

Thwack——!!!

The Eye did not physically exist on this world called Earth.

Across dimensions, across worlds.

Just now, it had died once.

An unmistakable death.

———The Eye———

It could not comprehend.

It had merely been 'observing' this world.

Yet itself — in another dimension — had died.

Tok———.

Another drop of blood fell.

The Eye shifted its gaze.

That was instinct.

[The Eye], rooted in the demonic and the evil.

The desire to gaze upon the deepest, darkest abyss.

The Eye saw.

"Ahh."

Its own dimension.

The point where [the Eye] was looking.

A drop of blood had fallen there.

Tok.

The blood slowly spread.

The woman who had killed it from an unseen place had crossed over — into the very abyss where it resided.

Blood overflowed.

And so—

——The Eye saw.

Seated upon a throne of blood.

Cradling an intensely crimson and chilling greatsword.

A small girl.

"It's the outside. The outside."

She turned her head.

She looked upon a world of nothing — where nothing existed.

In that world watched only by a colossal [Eye], she existed with absolute clarity.

She spoke.

"The wall that barred Us has vanished."

The world of the Sword Master, where Iris Ruzbella lived.

That was a quarantined world.

The place where the Eye resided functioned in a roughly similar manner.

Iris understood the instant she saw it.

If it did not affect [Earth]—

"This is a separate world."

She had certainly been a small child.

But at some point she had become a girl.

Then, before long, a woman tinged with crimson.

That woman was looking down upon the Eye.

"Only one being may look down upon Us."

An enormously vast [Eye] — rivaling a small asteroid in size.

The Eye looked down upon all things.

And yet, it found itself looking up at the chilling woman.

That woman—

"Do you know something?"

The woman, who could kill [the Eye] at any moment, seemed to be in the mood for conversation.

The Eye rejected her.

——Die.

Atop the enormous eyeball, countless pupils surfaced.

Pupils that summoned death.

[The Eye] had been observing Earth, so it knew the power of that woman — the crimson greatsword.

A being who commanded terrible demons.

It had to prevent her from summoning them.

Tens of thousands of eyes stared at the crimson woman.

And the Eye—

"Where are you looking?"

—lost her.

She was standing in the exact same spot.

But the Eye had unmistakably lost track of her movement.

"Our sword is the strongest. Then what would the one who wields it be like?"

[The Eye] itself knew the answer best.

No — it had just learned.

She did not need demons.

"The demons are merely subjects. They exist for Our comfort."

Zzzeok——.

Its vision split into hundreds of thousands of fragments.

Through the shattered, crushed field of sight, a crimson, languid smile was visible.

And a blade glowing vivid red, leaking spectral energy.

"My, the more one looks at you, the weaker you seem."

It had seen, so it knew.

An existence beyond resistance.

[The Eye] rummaged through the fragments of memory that had drifted in.

Most were the Eye's deaths, but a few hopeful fragments were mixed in.

From among those, it forcibly extracted moments when the woman had weakened — or when similar beings had faltered.

And so, the Eye looked at the crimson woman.

Intent was carried in the gaze.

"Haha! A million lives were offered to you as tribute, you say?"

Iris Ruzbella.

The eyes of the Death Star curved like a crescent moon.

"How generous. We shall dine well."

[The Eye] lost every offering it had received.

Even so, it thrashed once more.

Recalling the Earth it was still 'observing.'

There, a man stood frozen — having locked eyes with it.

A man standing alone in the darkness.

The one called 'Master' of this unmanageable woman.

The Eye looked at the crimson woman again.

——Sword Master, Shin Si-woo.

The Eye dared to utter that name.

Iris Ruzbella's eyes narrowed.

"A lowly thing dares invoke the name of Our Master?"

Iris Ruzbella.

She merely flicked her crimson fingertips.

From that gesture, the demons that poured forth devoured everything that constituted [the Eye] in a single instant.

Just like that, [the Eye] vanished.

"Haha! Insolent, yet quite a plump one."

From the collapsing world, cackling laughter spread.

She did not worry about Shin Si-woo.

"With swords like Us in such abundance, how could there be any danger to the Sword Master?"

Sinking into the blood.

Iris murmured softly.

'May the Sword Master one day gaze upon the same world as this maiden…'

* * *

The battle in the sky was fierce.

Yi Sun-sin was doing everything possible to maintain the bombardment of North Korean soil.

The monsters emerging from North Korea's darkness were shooting down Yi Sun-sin's bombers.

They dodged the railgun interceptions, or split and fused between themselves, continuously resisting.

Attrition was severe.

"Lord Patriot is returning. Everyone, exercise restraint."

Yi Sun-sin swept his gaze across the [command center].

At that, the President, Kang Mu-jin, and every other dignitary clamped their mouths shut.

Ziiing——.

A portal opened in the carrier's [command center].

The Patriot emerged.

"Why are the Chings sending so many gnats?!"

"Bomber attrition is severe. Patriot, your help is needed."

Yi Sun-sin draped the Taegukgi cape over the Patriot and asked.

"Patriot, do you have a plan?"

"You need my plan? Yi Sun-sin should be able to do this, obviously."

"Do what?"

The Patriot recalled that Yi Sun-sin's memories were incomplete, and gave a more specific answer.

"It's Yi Sun-sin's carrier — guided functionality should be standard."

"Guided?"

"The railguns have a function that tracks targets at ultra-high speed and shoots them down!"

"I see."

Yi Sun-sin nodded.

With this, his carrier became a bit more complete.

Because the Patriot believed that a carrier belonging to THE Yi Sun-sin should naturally have guided railguns.

Ziiiiing————.

BANG BABABABANG!!!

The polluted beasts in the sky were instantly intercepted by the railguns.

No more bombers would be lost.

"As expected, it is your power, Patriot."

Starting with Yi Sun-sin's praise, the President and government officials broke into applause.

Clap clap clap clap!!!

Amid the clamor, the Patriot's cheeks twitched.

What, it was obvious!

Time to crack wise.

'I wonder if junior will be impressed by the guided railguns too?'

Wanting to show off, the Patriot checked the [radar].

But…

"Shin Si-woo — why is he like that?"

Shin Si-woo, standing stock-still.

Yi Sun-sin rapidly analyzed the radar.

"What on earth…"

All manner of monsters were converging on the stationary Shin Si-woo.

On top of that, an unidentified, unprecedented calamity was trying to consume his body.

But—

"That Great-Korean-Empire wannabe."

The Patriot realized.

Nothing could breach Shin Si-woo's body.

That was a power called [invincibility].

An ability even he himself could invoke temporarily.

'Maybe those imperial clothes provide the invincibility effect…'

The Patriot watched Shin Si-woo.

The invincibility aside, a fundamental question nagged at him.

Why was he standing still?

No matter how he looked at it, it made no sense.

"Has he lost consciousness?"

As he muttered that bewildering question.

<[The Eye] has been killed.>

Suddenly, the World spoke.

A voice everyone could hear.

But it was a strange, unfamiliar statement.

What was the Eye, and why had it died?

A curt, unexplained announcement — no details given.

A situation that warranted universal confusion.

But what followed was even more shocking.

"The r-radar is…"

Beep beep beep beep—.

The carrier's radar went dead.

Then, an enormous darkness began surging in around Shin Si-woo.

That darkness was trying to swallow [invincible] Shin Si-woo whole.

Darkness in name only — it was a calamity that could not even be 'perceived.'

Endlessly ominous and dark.

What was that?

Nobody knew.

Nobody could know.

Only that it was a colossal catastrophe beyond human capability — that much was certain.

That was when.

"———."

Shin Si-woo's lips moved.

It was, unmistakably, someone's name.

Kuung——.

The spot where Shin Si-woo stood.

From that point, an enormous blaze erupted.

Then, words were heard.

⦗Sword Master, you're a pain.⦘

A grumbling, rough voice.

Yet one that sent shivers down the spine — the timbre of a true powerhouse.

A middle-aged man's irritated voice, heard clearly even from the carrier in the distant sky.

The absolute feeling of someone who wanted to do nothing.

Yet contrary to his words, a change occurred.

Kurururung———.

Shin Si-woo was still standing motionless, but the shape of the sword in his hand began to change.

Above the jewel — which had been crimson — a gray light arose.

Then, abruptly, a blunt greatsword appeared.

Hwareureuk—.

Intense heat rippled around Shin Si-woo.

The darkness was pushed back.

No — it melted away entirely.

That melting darkness blended with lava and began forming a shape.

"That is…"

Yi Sun-sin murmured.

A colossal wall, clearly visible through the carrier's windows.

The darkness had melted into a wall.

The wall encircled Shin Si-woo and began transforming into an enormous structure.

Kurururung———.

The heavens and earth shifted.

The world trembled.

The lava surrounding Shin Si-woo had, at some point, consumed all of Pyongyang.

Atop that lava, the sound of hammering rang out.

CLANG——.

CLANG——.

CLANG——.

The earth warped.

And at a speed beyond human perception, something began to rise.

It was architecture, yet also a territory.

It was a castle forged from steel.

'That bastard's insanely strong even standing still.'

The Patriot watched all of this and thought.

Unless you were on the level of King Sejong, you wouldn't even dare try.

He grumbled under his breath but kept his focus on what was unfolding.

"…Is that a monster?"

Yi Sun-sin asked.

"How many powers does he have—"

Yulgok Yi I was aghast.

And…

"For real, holy shit. Insanely strong."

The Patriot's jaw dropped.

In the middle of North Korea, a castle as large as a city had been erected.

A castle the World had named the instant it appeared.

[The Inviolable Fortress]

None shall trespass upon this place.

* * *

My mind had gone blank.

I had seen something I should not have.

Perceived something I could not understand.

'And killed it.'

The cost, perhaps.

My mind went blank for a moment, but—

⦗Papa!⦘

The Baby Sword's voice snapped me back.

'My sword… called me papa.'

My heart swelled, and my mind snapped back into focus.

Was this what paternal love was?

In that distant haze, I traced my memories.

What had happened until now?

'I called Iris and killed the Eye.'

At that point, I had seen something I shouldn't have.

The cost of that — I'd been attacked by things that hadn't yet crossed into this world.

'And then…'

My consciousness had grown dim.

Even so, I had made the best choice to protect myself.

I didn't remember, but looking around, I could be certain.

'I called Muratan.'

Thanks to that, I'd regained my senses.

Looking around…

[The Inviolable Wall]

I had been enclosed in steel.

Walls Muratan had built surrounded me on all sides, layer upon layer, ultimately pushing away everything in the world…

He had built a castle solely for me.

'I see.'

This space was a structure Muratan had built to protect something.

That something was clearly me.

"Thank you."

I said so.

⦗Sword Master, I'm busy at the forge. Stop bothering me. If you die, I can't hammer my demons, can I?⦘

Muratan barked at me and vanished.

I calmly looked around and gazed at my sword.

The jewel glinted crimson.

Iris—

⦗This maiden was able to unleash her full power. Thank you so much!⦘

I could feel her joy and elation.

And a voice that wanted to be praised.

"Iris, you did well."

⦗This maiden merely followed the Sword Master's will — to never let things go. This maiden has prepared a gift!⦘

Iris smiled shyly.

I thought I knew what the gift was.

'I can grow stronger.'

My swords had gained new perspectives as they achieved milestones.

I too was walking that same path.

What was growth?

A journey of gradually expanding the range of what one could perceive, thereby broadening the scope of power one could manifest.

I knew that well.

'Killing [the Eye] yields something.'

That something was what I had never experienced.

But it was a path my swords had walked.

⦗The eyes this maiden received were a gift from the Sword Master. And so—.⦘

A path I had guided them down.

Iris was drawing on that experience to prepare a gift for me.

⦗—This time, this maiden shall give you the eyes.⦘

In [Raise a Sword], Transcendence had required conditions.

Everything began with seeing.

Transcendence was the same.

[The Eye]

One of the conditions for the swords to Transcend.

I had obtained the Eye.