NABC Chapter 41 One Move to Defy Fate
Chapter 41 One Move to Defy Fate
"How has everyone been? Nothing major happened while I was gone, right?" Aiden joked as he entered the tent and sat down.
Everyone looked at him with curiosity, waiting for the results of his meeting.
"Don't worry, Jace. The discussion went well," he said confidently.
"What... what did you do, Master, to make that possible...?" Jace asked hesitantly.
"Vera, I have a favor to ask," Aiden said as he gestured for her to step forward with his large hand.
Without a word, Vera walked over and stood in front of him.
"Three moves, Vera."
"...Pardon?"
"You must not take more than three moves to defeat Dylan. That's my request."
At that moment, everyone understood. A gamble had been made.
Their master had wagered them as stakes.
"Master, was that even allowed?" Noah was the first to raise an objection.
Aiden laughed heartily.
"In a world full of desires, what can't be traded?"
"So you mean to say that you wagered on whether Dylan can withstand Vera's three moves...?" Even Marcus was astonished.
If Aetheris had been the one to propose such a deal, it would have been shocking enough. But for Aiden to approach him and initiate it?
"...Master, what if Aetheris denies the wager ever happened?" Jace asked nervously.
Aiden, sharp as always, responded with a knowing smile.
"That's why I ensured we had a witness."
"...Who in their right mind would witness a gamble like this?" Marcus asked, incredulous.
"My grandmaster himself, Elder Thorne."
At the mention of the name, everyone froze.
Thorne, also known as the Sword Emperor of Mount Suncrest, was one of the most revered elders of the sect. He was counted among the legendary Three Sovereigns of the Martial World, alongside the Sect Leader.
Only Vera tilted her head curiously. To her, Thorne was simply a kind and gentle old man she had met before due to her unique destiny.
"Did... did he agree to such a request?" Even Marcus seemed at a loss for words as he looked at Aiden in disbelief.
Aiden merely smiled.
"You don't yet understand Thorne, do you?"
"Master, we've hardly ever spoken to him, let alone met him..."
"He is far beyond me," Aiden said, patting Vera's head fondly.
"When I first brought Vera, the Sect Leader was opposed."
"Why?" Marcus asked, confused.
After all, with such extraordinary talent, one would expect nothing but praise.
Aiden looked at Vera, who nodded in silent approval, granting permission to reveal the truth.
"Because our Vera was born under the Celestial Blade Star."
A heavy silence descended upon the tent.
No one spoke, unsure of how to react.
The Celestial Blade Star was an omen of bloodshed, chaos, and calamity. Those born under it were destined to turn the world upside down, leaving a trail of blood, screams, and tears.Nôv(el)B\\jnn
Finally, it was Marcus who broke the silence with a solemn nod.
"...The Celestial Blade Star."
"Yes, that's right," Aiden confirmed, looking down at the trembling Jace with an icy gaze.
His usual gentle demeanor was gone, replaced by a cold and calculating intensity.
It was the same piercing gaze he had used when pressuring Aetheris into the deal and when proposing to Vera that they target the Sword Sovereign.
It was the gaze of a man daring to defy the heavens.
"Vera," he called.
"Yes, Master."
Unthinkable.
Only after much self-assurance did the wild determination return to Dylan's eyes.
Confidence that she could win.
There was no way she could lose to the frail-looking girl with hollow, empty black eyes.
"Introducing the two rising stars of Mount Suncrest Sect, who have climbed to the semifinals with unstoppable momentum!"
The crowd erupted in cheers before quickly falling silent, their attention focused entirely on the Arena.
"Dylan and Vera!!!"
As soon as the announcer finished speaking, the two combatants assumed their stances.
Dylan raised her dull, black Iron Sword, while Vera held her radiant, multicolored Falling Blossom Sword aloft.
The two swords pointed at each other, each wielder brimming with confidence.
They could see it in each other's eyes.
The wild determination in Dylan's gaze was unmistakable.
Vera acknowledged it:Dylan was indeed talented.
Jace was the same, but their natures were different.
Though Jace often wore a mischievous mask, his heart was calm, flexible, and gentle.
Dylan, however, burned with a fierce hunger for victory, driving her forward with fiery determination.
'But ultimately, they are both mortals bound to the earth.'
The enemy she must one day face was the heavens themselves.
A figure standing atop the highest mountain, commanding all beneath them.
To defeat such an opponent, she would have to transcend humanity, calling upon something beyond the mortal realm.
She could not falter here.
She could not be stopped by someone who had yet to even touch the edges of Peak Mastery.
Kiing!
Dylan's sword let out a fierce, resonant cry, like the roar of a wild beast.
The sheer intensity of the sound was enough to shatter an ordinary blade that lacked a hardened core.
In contrast, Vera's sword remained silent.
She closed her half-lidded eyes and awakened the black dragon coiled in her core.
Her inner energy surged, imbued with the power to extinguish immortality itself.
In that moment, a glint of light flickered in her otherwise empty, black eyes.
The Celestial Blade Star.
The star destined to bleed the heavens dry.
"Dylan, Senior Sister," Vera said quietly.
As her words fell, the celestial constellations engraved on her Falling Blossom Sword lit up one by one.
The previously dark blade now gleamed with radiant energy, infused with her inner power.
A dazzling light emanated from her sword—far brighter and more brilliant than before.
It was a sign that Vera's level had transcended overnight.
She now stood on the threshold of the Supreme Peak, challenging the concept of distance itself by grasping Sword energy in her hand.
"...This can't be real," Dylan whispered, her voice trembling.
"I hope you understand, Senior Sister, that this is for your own good," Vera said, her tone calm and unwavering.
"What... are you talking about...?"
Her confidence wavered, her eyes filled with doubt.
But even so, Dylan could not afford to lose.
She owed everything to Jace, who had endured countless hardships for her sake.
If her loss meant his suffering, she would be consumed by guilt.
From afar, Sect Leader Gideon watched the duel with a smile.
He reveled in the sight of young lives struggling within the hell he had crafted, much like a child gleefully tearing the wings off a dragonfly.