Academy’s Genius Swordsman

“You failed again, Hyung.”

Abel spoke, addressing his brother. Like Cain, Abel had grown into a young man in his twenties. In his well-trained hand, he held a longsword smeared with blood and oil.

“Hyung?”

When he received no response, Abel asked again. Both of their faces, exposed to an intense light, glowed like freshly forged blades. Cain, who had been staring blankly ahead, murmured softly.

“It seems so…”

His voice was as hollow as a dusty cutting board. On the horizon, dozens of mushroom clouds were rising. These pillars of fire, dust, and radioactive material looked like enormous towers connecting the sky and the earth.

Ashes, like volcanic fallout, drifted gently to the ground. As one mushroom cloud dissipated, new ones sprouted nearby, sweeping away everything in their path.

The air they inhaled tasted like metal. Cain clenched his fist in silence. He remembered the names of every city and village disintegrating in the flames.

“Now that you’re awake, I should tell you. While you were asleep, countless nations sent their armies. I thought they were coming to offer help, but no—they were after your powers. Do you know which nation was the most aggressive in sending troops?”

“Yes! The country you cherished and loved so much. You even used your wish to prevent its destruction from natural disasters, and look what’s become of it!”

As he spoke, Abel drove his sword into the ground. *Crash!* The sharp blade pierced through a mechanical device, causing sparks to fly. Beneath them lay a mountain of heavily armed soldiers and combat machines.

All of them had been slain by Abel to protect the defenseless Cain during his slumber. Once again, Cain could not respond.

As Abel mentioned, Cain had just awoken from a centuries-long sleep—a consequence of his effort to prevent a supervolcano that would have otherwise annihilated most life on Earth.

*KABOOM!* Another mushroom cloud erupted from where the empire’s capital once stood. Once again, humanity had brought about its own destruction. Abel brushed his hair back with a sigh.

“Hyung. Let’s stop this.”

Following Cain in these meaningless acts of charity had reached its limit. No matter how many people they helped, no matter how much they tried to revive civilization, it always ended in self-destruction. Cain shook his head.

“Let’s move as soon as the explosions subside. There must still be survivors in the bunkers.”

“…Are you serious?”

“Yes. We can’t just leave them. Where the fire dies, new life will sprout again.”

Cain had dedicated his life to the advancement of humanity since he left his homeland. His actions stemmed from his desire to find a way for people not to lose their loved ones so tragically.

To achieve this, war, disease, and accidental deaths had to be eradicated. Cain believed that the answer lay in the community known as the nation. Abel scoffed incredulously.

“Hyung, Deinhar conquered 70% of the world and launched metal into space. How long do you think it will take to reach that level again?”

“It will be quicker than before. We’ve gained experience.”

Cain nodded. The Deinhar Empire had been the closest to his ideal nation. They had conquered most diseases, developed clean energy, and launched spacecraft.

They were also the first to gather people from around the world for a global assembly. Cain was convinced that if peace had lasted a few hundred more years, his goal would have been realized. Abel, scratching his head, spoke up.

“Listen, Hyung. I came across something remarkable about forty years ago.”

“Something remarkable?”

“Yes. It was observed by Deinhar’s last expedition team. Want to see?”

With that, Abel pulled a small device from his pocket. A video of a city being destroyed played on the flat screen. Winged giants flew freely through the sky, hurling spears of light at the ground.

The civilization, which seemed to have just reached the modern era, couldn’t resist the giants at all. People, presumably citizens, screamed as they fled. The video ended with a giant throwing a spear at the recording expedition team.

“This is…!”

Cain gasped at the horrific scene. It was undoubtedly a giant—something he hadn’t seen since he left his homeland ages ago.

“Amazing, right? But the important part starts now.”

Abel nudged him with his elbow. Just then, the giants that had annihilated every living thing in sight spread their wings wide.

Simultaneously, a pale gas began to rise from the corpses, being absorbed into the giants’ bodies. It wasn’t hard to recognize that these were souls. Cain spoke.

“They’re absorbing souls?”

“Yes. After some personal research, I found that those things are made of souls. They invade planets inhabited by sentient beings and absorb their souls to grow stronger.”

Abel laughed. He had already completed some research on the giants. With his eyes gleaming, Abel looked like an excited child.

“This is the answer, Hyung. We need to become higher beings. We should cast off our worldly desires along with our bodies and become overwhelming predators, roaming the sea of stars.”

“You’ve picked up a sense of humor over the last few centuries, Abel. But what you’re suggesting is to kill everything on this planet.”

“So what? It’s just a step toward reaching paradise. It’s the world you’ve always wanted, a place without meaningless deaths.”

Abel spread his arms in protest. Another nuclear explosion behind him cast his silhouette into sharp relief. Cain was about to respond when Abel interrupted.

“Oh, and there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you.”

“Hm?”

“Why can you and I use the giants’ power?”

For a moment, Cain’s face stiffened. Abel pointed his finger skyward and concentrated his energy. Glimmering mana gathered like dew, forming a sphere imbued with the blessing of the stars.

“You… how did you…?”

Cain’s eyes widened. The power Abel was wielding was unmistakably that of the giants. Could it be that he found them and drank their blood? That couldn’t be.

“I’ve been able to use it for some time now. The power they wield is the same as the abilities we possess. That means we’re connected to the giants somehow.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“I’m asking you to tell me the truth if you know it. Unlike you, I have no memories before I was ten years old. What happened during that time?”

Abel stepped closer, gripping Cain’s shoulders. Cain could only breathe heavily, unable to say anything. Abel continued.

“We can do it, Hyung. We can make people into better beings. We don’t have to keep suffering like this.”

“You’ve changed, Abel.”

“No, Hyung, you’re the one who’s changed. I can tell you know something, so please, tell me.”

“I know nothing. And even if I did, I wouldn’t tell you.”

“Damn it, why are you hesitating? Just say it already!”

Abel suddenly shouted. His eyes were filled with a mix of millennia of madness and resentment. His grip on Cain’s shoulders tightened.

“You…!”

Cain could no longer hold back. Clenching his eyes shut, he threw a punch. Abel, startled, tried to draw his sword, but Cain’s fist struck squarely in the center of his face.

****

“So what happened next? Did you win?”

Ronan asked. The story had been filled with shocking details, but all that mattered to him now was that Abel had been beaten up. The Savior nodded.

“Yes. After spending about a year bedridden, he finally recovered enough to resume his usual activities.”

“Wow, that’s the stuff. You really showed him.”

“That’s when we started drifting apart. He never called me Hyung again.”

The Savior’s voice was somber. Only now did Ronan understand why Abel had treated the Savior with such deference in the mental world. He never expected such a history between them.

“Anyway… you should drink this. It’s fortunate it hasn’t dried up completely.”

The Savior gestured with his hand. His fingers pointed to the pool of blood beneath the giant’s foot.

The giant’s blood, once plentiful enough to be used as a hot spring, had dried up to the point where there was barely enough to fill a bowl. Ronan had only managed to extract this much by slicing open the giant’s heart with his sword.

“If I drink this, all my curses will be lifted?”

“Once the ritual is completed, yes. It won’t remove all five at once, but they’ll gradually disappear in a short time.”

“I see…”

Ronan knelt down beside the pool. His reflection stared back at him from the glossy surface of the blood. He really did resemble the Savior. Without looking away from the pool, Ronan spoke.

“I have to say this. Your way of thinking is wrong.”

“What?”

“Humans aren’t meant to live their entire lives as babies. In that regard, I agree with that bastard Abel’s opinion that we should let them fend for themselves. Sure, with your help, they might’ve progressed faster, but it wasn’t necessary.”

Ronan’s voice echoed within the hollow space. The Savior raised an eyebrow.

“What are you suddenly talking about?”

“I’m saying that even if I regain my strength by drinking this, I won’t live like you. My mission ends with killing those bald bastards and saving my sister.”

“…”

The Savior’s face hardened. After a long silence, he spoke.

“Yes… it’s true that you’re free to live however you choose after lifting the curse. But I can’t agree that I was wrong. Have you ever experienced losing everything that supported your life in an instant? Have you ever felt that despair?”

His voice trembled. He had never expected that his own beliefs would be rejected by his son. Ronan calmly nodded his head.

“I have.”

“What?”

“I have. I’ve lost everything before.”

Ronan turned his head. The savior who met his gaze flinched. The somber, sunset-colored eyes, so similar to his own, were not lying.

Ronan still vividly remembered the day when three giants descended from the sky. The moment when his beloved sister, his hometown, and the army he belonged to were annihilated.

The end of his first life had been nothing short of devastating. The savior asked Ronan.

“…If that’s the case, then why do you resist? Why not just leave it alone? Let all the life on this planet be absorbed by the giants as Abel wishes.”

“Sir, you can’t compare those things. It’s like comparing animals in a jungle fighting for survival to a sudden poacher wiping them all out. They’re entirely different situations.”

Ronan finished his words with a satisfied smile. It was an analogy he thought was quite fitting. The savior, at a loss for words, twisted his lips.

“And I think there’s some misunderstanding here. I’m not advocating for neglect. I’m just saying you shouldn’t treat people like children.”

“Treat them like children…?”

“I believe people are stronger than you think. With that kind of overprotection, you’ll never achieve the utopia you’ve dreamed of. Your intentions were good, but the direction was wrong.”

Ronan’s voice was filled with conviction. A heavy silence fell between them. The savior, after a moment of hesitation, finally spoke.

“Then, what do you think I should do?”

“It’s simple.”

Ronan paused, his past experiences from two lifetimes flashing through his mind like a lantern. He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them and chuckled.

“Just have faith. In people’s potential.”

Ronan looked ahead again. He clasped his hands together and brought them to his mouth, drinking the blue liquid that had started everything. It flowed smoothly down his throat.