Chapter 230: 014: Of the same kind

Lynch also didn’t know why he cared so much for this mischievous niece—perhaps it was out of guilt.

For years, Gerald had never given up on searching for him, even traveling alone to the Royal Capital multiple times. This was something Baron Acate had informed him of before his passing. No matter how much Lynch tried to persuade him, this brother would never give up.

Lynch wondered if his focus on himself had inadvertently led to negligence in his children’s education. Regardless, since it was an easy thing to do, as an uncle, he decided to spoil her just a little…

And to teach her some lessons while he was at it…

With Lynch’s guidance, Lilith only grew braver and more unstoppable in battle, crushing her opponents one after another.

The mastery level of “Direct Death Without Advance” wasn’t something ordinary people could achieve. Lynch himself had spent over a decade practicing relentlessly, even with the help of the system, to reach this level.

In fact, across the Seven Kingdoms, those with such swordsmanship skill wouldn’t exceed ten in number.

Even at Lorent’s tournament, while it couldn’t be called a complete tier suppression, it was still rare to encounter a worthy opponent.

“Rose Sword! Rose Sword!”

“Invincible! Invincible!”

The crowd’s earlier disdain and ridicule turned into loud cheers for Lilith’s title, a name destined to resound throughout the Seven Kingdoms starting from today.

Effortlessly defeating over a dozen opponents in succession, Lynch advanced to the finals without any obstacles.

Initially, he assumed he would claim the championship smoothly and exit with glory, but unexpectedly, he encountered an opponent here.

And it was a strange opponent…

The final match.

Lilith stepped onto the arena and bowed to her opponent on the other side, saying, “Rose Sword, at your service.”

After over ten consecutive victories, she had become the frontrunner for the championship and no longer faced the initial mockery; every opponent she encountered now gave her the respect she deserved.

Strangely, however, this opponent didn’t even glance at her, responding to her courtesy with a flat, indifferent remark: “Let’s get this over with quickly.”

This was an old man with silver-white hair like frost and a sunken, weathered face. Rarely did anyone of this age come to the arena to compete, let alone possess such overbearing arrogance—even more than most brash young men.

Lilith curled her lips in dissatisfaction and said, “Tsk~ What’s with the attitude? You’ll regret it soon enough.”

She had breezed through her matches so far, and at critical moments, her body had consistently performed outstanding swordsmanship. This led Lilith to begin suspecting she might possess some extraordinary talent, fueling her inherent cocky streak and making her somewhat complacent.

“Clang!”

With a metallic ring, the battle commenced.

The seemingly decrepit old man quickly surprised Lynch as soon as they crossed swords.

The elder moved with lightning speed, darting across the arena in several flashes, appearing before Lilith in an instant. With a swift raise of his arm, more than ten flashes of cold light streaked through the air, hurtling fiercely at Lilith.

Lynch hurriedly controlled Lilith to lower her body and stabilize her stance while swinging her sword to block the attack. In the next moment, the two Cross Swords clashed violently.

“Ding ding ding!”

“Ding ding ding!”

The continuous ringing of clashing metal echoed incessantly, sending sparks flying into the air. The two Cross Swords exchanged blows in eye-dazzling sequences, with each brilliant swordsmanship maneuver leaving the audience breathless.

Cheers erupted endlessly from the crowd, and the entire venue became ablaze with excitement.

In the audience, Lynch furrowed his brows.

He had encountered a proper opponent.

His confusion grew—after all, this world didn’t follow the concept of age improving ability. Once humans passed their physical prime, their abilities inevitably declined irreversibly.

Many Knights and Great Knights who had made their names in their youth couldn’t even lift a sword in their old age, let alone step onto an arena.

Logically, someone of this elder’s age should have bones bordering on osteoporosis, yet here he was, maintaining equal footing with Lynch in combat, moving with the agility of a young man. It was simply inconceivable.

Seeing that he couldn’t defeat his opponent quickly, Lynch’s competitive spirit flared up. His puppet-controlling actions became faster and more intense, as though he wished to jump into the arena himself.

However, he overlooked one critical point—Lilith’s physical condition.

Swordsmanship and the Knight’s own body complemented each other. Each fluid sword technique was the result of countless painstaking drills, causing the muscles and body to develop memory.

But Lilith herself lacked this muscle memory, her physique entirely untouched by such rigorous training.

This resulted in seemingly simple sword techniques appearing stiff and awkward when applied to her, making it impossible to execute them smoothly.

Against weaker opponents, these shortcomings were insignificant due to the overwhelming advantage of her swordsmanship level. However, against an adversary of equal strength, these differences became glaringly apparent.

As the match wore on and the number of exchanges increased, Lilith’s inability to adapt to the rhythm became apparent. The flaws naturally surfaced.

In high-level duels, the outcome was obvious.

After several minor mistakes caused by poor coordination, the elder seized the opportunities instantly, launching two consecutive advances before delivering a powerful kick that sent Lilith flying over ten meters away, armor and all.

The heavy armor got stuck on the side, leaving Lilith sprawled on the ground, unable to get up.

At this point, victory was clear. Lynch gave up attempting to control the puppet further. Against such an opponent, there was no chance unless he fought personally.

Assured of victory, the elder approached and remarked, “Impressive, even among Body Refinement practitioners, very few train swordsmanship to this level.”

Lynch was taken aback.

As he spoke, the elder raised his Cross Sword and swiftly performed a few slashing motions above Lilith’s head.

Though it looked like a casual display of sword artistry, Lynch could see through the Elemental Vision the invisible Sword Qi composed of spiritual power bursting forth from the elder’s blade, severing the threads controlling Lilith.

Immediately,

The elder turned to gaze at the crowd, scanning the sea of faces until his sharp gaze locked firmly onto Lynch.

The elder said, “A fellow enthusiast—perhaps we should get acquainted.”

As he spoke, faint wisps of spiritual power began rippling outward.

Lynch raised an intrigued eyebrow.

So that’s it…

Turns out we’re the same kind…

…

Night fell, and in the outskirts of Lorent, a forest scene unfolded.

“Crackle!”

The crisp sound of firewood snapping echoed as sparks danced through the evening breeze.

By the bonfire, Lynch was roasting some food—several sparrows and two rabbits, all wild game hunted within this forest. With some special seasonings added, the golden juices glistening under the flame filled the air with a tantalizing aroma.

“Rustle…”

Suddenly, the bushes behind rustled slightly. Before long, an elder emerged.

His silver hair was impeccably combed back, and he wore a lightweight set of Swordsman’s Clothes, with a single-handed Cross Sword strapped to his waist—a quintessential swordsman’s attire. It was none other than the elder from the arena.

Upon approaching the bonfire, he sat down and sniffed the air, complimenting, “That smells wonderful.”

Lynch handed over a skewer of rabbit meat. “These are seasoned with a freshly-made spice blend. If you don’t mind, you can try my cooking.”

“Then I won’t hold back.”

The elder tore off a small piece with his hands and tasted it. Shortly after, he praised again, “Excellent, excellent. Among Wizards, it’s rare to find someone with such cooking expertise, especially someone with your level of swordsmanship. Few Wizards dedicate their time and energy to these pursuits.”

Lynch shrugged modestly and replied, “Your swordsmanship is equally exceptional. It’s fate that brought us together here—a delightful coincidence indeed.”

With that, he tossed a wine pouch to the elder.

The elder caught it effortlessly and took a sip before unexpectedly stating, “This isn’t coincidence.”

Pausing briefly, he poured some of the wine onto his left hand, then flung it upward. Instantly, the sound of rushing wind filled the air as a mass of Wind Elements materialized, converging from all directions like a group of eager drinkers, consuming the airborne wine in delight.

Lynch’s eyes widened in astonishment.

Elemental materialization…

This was knowledge at the Secret Technique Level, meaning the unassuming elder before him was actually a Mystical Wizard of Second Tier Level!

’Who is this? Where did this Second-Tier Wizard come from?’

In the Ancient Ruins, only a few dozen individuals had reached this level, all of whom were widely known, yet Lynch couldn’t recall this elder from any of the records he had studied.

Meanwhile, the elder turned his gaze back to Lynch and said calmly, “I’ve been tracking you from a very distant place, specifically commissioned by the Wind Elf to locate you.”

He placed one hand on the Cross Sword at his waist, stroking it lightly, as he added casually, “They’ve been assisting me in tracking my target.”

“A target to eliminate.”

With those simple words, the atmosphere around the bonfire instantly grew tense.

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