How to Survive as a Genius Spy in the Game Chapter 285 - Preliminary Battle (3)

Ignette drew his sword in the air four times. Flames rose up on the plain ahead. It was like a curtain of fire. The night brightened.

Like my moonlight, Ignette’s red flame Sword Energy was not simple either. I narrowed my eyes.

He wouldn’t have raised flames over the plain for no reason. The wall of flames wasn’t simply a straight line. Though it soon subsided and stopped around knee height, it was an intentional action.

Observing the battlefield with winds, it was a path that Ignette had created. I wondered what it could be.

The flames drawn on the plain wouldn’t move on their own, and knee-high flames weren’t a major obstacle to movement.

I could immediately see the answer, as Ignette began running towards me.

‘Oh no.’

I ran to meet him to avoid being pushed back, but I had to dodge his sword as it swept up from the ground.

In addition to the original Sword Energy, the flames that had settled on the plain rushed at me as if to engulf me.

It was a technique of controlling flames with sword wind. Honestly, I was surprised. Even I had never seen this before. I had fought with other Sword Masters, but nothing like this.

For example, sparring with Rudehrn felt like facing waves. In the distant past, I even felt like actual waves were coming.

‘But that wasn’t really waves crashing.’

Each of his attacks felt like a huge wave crashing towards me from a vast ocean.

Of course, it could be called a bit of a trick, but it wasn’t just about controlling flames with sword wind.

There seemed to be little difference between the red flame Sword Energy on his sword and the flames rising from the ground. I turned my body and parried his sword.

I drew moonlight again. Come to think of it, it wasn’t entirely unfamiliar. It was similar to when I became a Sword Master.

I kept drawing crescents to maintain the moonlight, and through that, I created a full moon. In a way, it was a similar technique to his.

Of course, the afterimage of moonlight I drew couldn’t directly damage the opponent like Ignette’s flames.

‘This is worth trying.’

It’s possible to send out moonlight Sword Energy. However, unlike in the past, now that I’ve grown a bit, I might be able to do more.

For instance, it’s entirely possible to use the moonlight drawn in the air to hinder the opponent’s movements.

It was difficult to move far away in the flames that filled the surroundings. Ignette was pressuring me to prevent that.

The practice followed immediately. I drew moonlight whenever I had the chance while blocking Ignette’s sword. Of course, Ignette approached more aggressively to interfere with this.

Nevertheless, it wasn’t difficult. Even on the plain lined with flames, my winds acted as another weapon.

Blue moonlight spread over the flames. Small moons rose one by one with each stroke of the sword. It was difficult to see the effect from the start.

‘It doesn’t give an immediate impact.’

Like Ignette’s flames, it’s closer to restricting the opponent’s movements. However, as the exchange continued, other methods became possible.

Just as he controlled the flames, I was able to swing my sword while moving to send out the moonlight that had risen beside me. It was growth during battle.

He gave a bitter smile. It was disbelief at how quickly I had imitated his method. Honestly, I was satisfied.

It was something else I had learned despite the short battle. Ignette sighed.

“As expected of Carl Schurtafen? I guess it wasn’t for nothing that you became the youngest Sword Master.”

“What nonsense is this all of a sudden.”

I frowned at the unexpected words. It wasn’t meant as a gesture of reconciliation in the middle of the fight. He smiled.

“I mean it sincerely.”

His eyes hardened once again. Well, I had expected him to give it his all even before… but I thought the method might have changed.

No matter how much of a Sword Master I am, my experience is short. He must have been trying to push me with that trick earlier.

Now that it wasn’t working, I guessed he was trying to engage in a pure sword-to-sword battle. My guess seemed to be correct.

Ignette charged forward. It was a different recklessness than before. The sincerity was the same, but…

In this charge, I could see a glimpse of Denif. The will to inflict damage on me even at the cost of injuring himself.

‘This isn’t easy.’

To be honest, I don’t prefer this style. I’ve experienced it many times with Denif from the old days. It’s too dangerous.

It was the same with sparring. Although Denif was less skilled than me, dangerous moments came up often enough. It’s because of attacks that disregard self-harm.

I didn’t engage in a head-on clash. Meeting such an opponent with equal force is playing into their intentions.

Rather, I should evade and operate cowardly. That’s how the impatient side shows openings.

‘Though the probability is low.’

The chances of someone at the Sword Master level doing that are not high. Even Ignette, who was momentarily excited by the talk of family, quickly regained his composure.

He might even pretend to be shaken. With the goal of drawing out my attack. The best move is to wait for Denif.

Bang-! Crash-! The flame and moonlight Sword Energy collided. Unlike before, the impact sound was enough to shake eardrums. It was because the force behind it had changed.

I blocked the reckless attacks while retreating little by little. Denif would arrive if I could hold out a little longer.

‘Huh?’

That’s when the change occurred. Strange movement was detected from Mondegreen’s side. In the midst of the intense battle, the Sword Master there started running towards me.

I could immediately sense the change as I was observing the battlefield with winds. Mondegreen followed, gritting his teeth.

“Schurtafen!”

“Yes!”

As I hadn’t been paying attention at all, I suddenly found myself trapped from front and back. I immediately changed direction. To break out of the encirclement and engage with Mondegreen.

I clicked my tongue inwardly. It was a threat I should have anticipated earlier. Ignette had said they would release the hostages if he caught me.

If the two Sword Masters prioritized their families over their own safety, they could have tried to deal with me through a joint attack. This is a separate issue from trusting Mondegreen.

Sword Master versus Sword Master. Even with a difference in skill, there are certainly times when the weaker side gains the initiative in a fight.

‘This is close.’

Mondegreen, following behind, gritted his teeth and sent out Sword Energy, but the other was also a Sword Master. I also increased my speed. That’s when it happened.

Huh? Just as I was raising my sword in awareness, the Sword Master on Mondegreen’s side turned and started to flee. It was a sudden escape.

I thought he might have pretended to attack me to divert attention because he was being pushed back by Mondegreen. Mondegreen also looked at his retreating figure as if dumbfounded.

He didn’t bother to chase. I faced Ignette, who was left alone. He had only one corner of his mouth raised. A hint of betrayal was visible.

“That person is leaving.”

“He’s a friend with many attachments.”

“And you?”

“I’ve staked my life on you.”

At first glance, it might sound like a good word agreeing with my intentions, but it wasn’t. Ignette expressed his will to capture me.

“It doesn’t seem like you’ll be able to catch me here.”

“Well. Are you thinking of getting someone else involved?”

He spoke provocatively. I shrugged my shoulders. Well, honestly, it might be worth trying one-on-one, but there was no particular reason to do so.

With the fight against the Great Devil ahead, I didn’t want to suffer even a minor injury. My condition had to be perfect.

“You don’t seem to know, but I’m not some honorable knight or anything.”

I am a spy, one who doesn’t discriminate in means and methods. In fact, I had learned a new way of fighting from the recent battle, so it was enough.

And Ignette isn’t the only Sword Master. I was also exchanging swords with those gathered in the empire.

I had no intention of fighting him while taking unnecessary risks now. I exchanged glances with Mondegreen. Mondegreen nodded at my intention for him to join.

“And judging by how you just chased me, it seems you didn’t prevent others from joining either.”

Ignette was silent. It was a situation where he had nothing to say. Instead, he turned his gaze.

“Mondegreen.”

“Ignette.”

Judging by their exchange of greetings, they seemed to know each other. Well, that makes sense. Mondegreen had been in the east for a while.

“It’s not too late. Whether you die here or not, nothing will change anyway.”

Using that familiarity as leverage, I made a final offer. It might be a cruel thing to say, but it’s not wrong.

Whether Ignette dies here or joins us, his family won’t be released.

Of course, whether we can trust Ignette who joins like this is another issue, but we’re at a moment where even one Sword Master is valuable.

“How about joining?”

Mondegreen nodded too. He was backing up my words. Ignette shook his head.

“That’s difficult. Suffering terrible pain and being captured are different issues, aren’t they?”

I understand. If the other side knows he’s become a turncoat, his family will end up in a state where simply dying would be better. Especially when the opponents are devils.

“Mondegreen, can I ask you a favor?”

“Go ahead.”

“If possible… could you look after my daughter and wife?”

“I will.”

The conversation didn’t continue after that. Mondegreen joined our fight. Denif came from afar but only watched.

And the ensuing battle was dull for a fight between Sword Masters. No, it felt shabby, you could say.

Was it because he had entrusted his family? Ignette didn’t swing his sword sincerely. Perhaps he had suffered great mental anguish even in this short time.

Just because he’s a Sword Master doesn’t mean his heart has become superhuman too. Mondegreen delivered his final blow.

There were some twists and turns, but the mission to capture the logistics base was successful. We had also dealt with one of the enemy’s Sword Masters.

However, as expected to some extent, the amount of supplies we obtained wasn’t very large.

‘It was only enough to support until the end of the time-buying defensive battle anyway.’

We sent word to Erendil through a dispatch that we had completed the capture. And we intentionally led the cavalry to circle around the area.

As we intended, the enemy troops gathered for the defense didn’t hold out for long. It was a forcibly assembled allied army.

As soon as there were signs of being surrounded from front and back, those in the two fortresses at the rear chose to retreat, and the first fortress fell to the empire. Soon after, the imperial army arrived.

In addition to the victory in the siege, the morale of the soldiers was quite good as they had passed through the next two fortresses without much trouble.

Having passed through the narrow passage, there weren’t many treacherous paths left until the northeast. The imperial army reorganized here for two days before resuming their march.

And three days later, we received bad news through ‘Star Cluster’. The Great Devil, who hadn’t shown itself until now, had appeared.