Screeech!
The magical beast whose arm had been severed let out a horrific screech as it staggered backward.
At the same time, Zeke unleashed a sword strike that cleaved through the beast's neck.
Thud!
With its head tumbling to the ground, the beast's body collapsed, revealing Zeke who stood behind it with Roland in hand.
He shouted at Duke, who stood there dazed with his sword at the ready.
"Behind you!"
At Zeke's warning, Duke instinctively swung his blade.
Slash!
The sword sliced through the neck of the charging magical beast.
But he could not fully evade the whipping tail that followed.
The beast's tail pierced into Duke's side.
Crunch!
"Urk!"
The beast's rigid tail punched through his armor and embedded itself in his body.
As if the tail carried venom, Duke felt a sudden dizziness and stumbled.
That was when Zeke charged forward from behind, his sword raised.
"Duck!"
Duke immediately dropped to the ground, and Zeke extended Bahamut long and swung it wide.
Slaaaash!
In a single stroke, the bodies of the gathered magical beasts were bisected.
He then approached the fallen Duke and cast an area buff for healing.
Sizzle . . .
In an instant, Duke's wound closed up.
"How is this even . . . ?"
He finally lifted his head and looked around.
All the magical beasts were dead, their corpses strewn across the ground.
"How are you holding up?" Zeke asked.
Duke stared at the Zeke who had suddenly appeared, his face etched with confusion.
"Draker uniform . . . Could it be the family head dispatched additional personnel?"
Hearing Duke's words, Zeke realized from his memories that this version of him did not know who Zeke was.
'To delve deeper into Master's memories, I should play along for now.'
Zeke nodded and replied.
"Yes. It seems the current numbers were insufficient, so they sent more knights, including me . . . But the others all perished, leaving me to find you alone, Sir Duke." Duke slowly rose to his feet upon hearing this.
"That recovery earlier . . . Was that healing?"
Zeke pondered how to respond before nodding.
"Yes."
"Huh, a knight who can use healing. I've never heard of an outstanding young knight like you. Impressive."
"I mainly handle special missions, so I rarely show myself publicly. The healing is actually magic embedded in this sword. It's a family heirloom with various recovery abilities." Zeke held out Roland for Duke to see as he explained.
Duke nodded, seemingly convinced by the explanation.
He turned to gaze sorrowfully at the bodies of the fallen knights.
Duke slowly stood and stomped the ground to create a pit, then placed the corpses inside and piled up a mound over them.
"Thank you all. I accept your wills—I will survive and return no matter what."
Knowing it was meaningless in this memory world, Zeke watched as Duke buried his comrades and offered a prayer.
Once Duke rose, Zeke spoke.
"It'll be dark soon. We should find shelter first."
At Zeke's words, Duke replied with a weary expression.
"Everywhere here is crawling with magical beasts. Fortunately, the ship we came on has protective magic to keep them away. We need to head there."
"Where's the ship?"
Duke pulled a crudely drawn parchment map from his pocket.
He pointed to their current location and slid his finger toward a distant coastline.
"It's here. What about the ship you came on?"
"It nearly made it but hit the reefs and broke apart. We lost many comrades before even arriving."
Zeke lied smoothly without a hint of hesitation.
Unaware, Duke believed him and nodded.
"I see. Let's head to the ship together. If we reach it, we can escape this nightmare and return to the Central Continent somehow."
Duke sheathed his sword on his back and set off toward the coast with Zeke.
Though Zeke had healed his wound, Duke was still quite fatigued.
He collapsed after not going far.
Zeke looked at Duke, who leaned against a tree gasping for breath.
"When was your last meal?"
Duke chuckled bitterly at the question.
"I can hardly remember. Here, nothing—trees, grass, even water—is edible."
Zeke pulled water and dried provisions from his inventory and handed them to Duke.
"Drink the water in sips, and chew the rations slowly."
Duke was stunned that Zeke would give him such precious supplies.
"What about you if you give this to me?"
"I've got my share set aside, so don't worry."
Duke sated his hunger with the water and rations Zeke gave him, then quickly fell asleep.
Zeke kept watch over the sleeping Duke, extending his qi sense to scan the surroundings.
He could feel magical beasts lurking, waiting for an opening to attack.
But they cowered from the intimidating aura Zeke deliberately emanated and did not dare approach.
Less than an hour later, Duke jolted awake.
"Huh, did I fall asleep?"
"You seem exhausted. Have you gotten any proper rest since arriving here?"
"With those damned magical beasts swarming from all sides, how could I? But they're quiet now. Strange."
With his strength restored, Duke stood.
The two hurried along and reached the coast.
Occasional magical beasts charged, but Zeke and Duke repelled them easily with combined attacks.
As Zeke followed Duke's memories, he sensed something off.
'There were many beasts and he was fatigued, so it must have been tough, but I wouldn't think it broke Master's spirit this much. Maybe I shouldn't have intervened . . .'
Lost in thought while walking the coast with Duke, Zeke spotted a ship anchored offshore.
"Sir Duke, is that the ship?"
Duke's face lit up as he looked where Zeke pointed and nodded.
"Yes! Thank goodness—we made it to the ship alive!" They immediately dashed toward it.
But then.
Zeke's qi sense caught something.
'What is this aura?'
A sharp, piercing energy stabbed at his lungs.
He turned his head.
Atop the coastal ridge stood a mysterious figure wrapped in bandages around its face and body, clad in a black coat.
An ominous aura emanated from it.
Then.
"Grgh!"
Duke shuddered violently, clutching his head and collapsing.
"Ugh! No! No!"
Duke writhed in agony, struggling to compose himself but unable to rise.
The bandaged figure slowly approached.
Zeke drew his sword and faced it while checking on Duke.
Seeing Duke still collapsed and suffering, Zeke realized.
'This must be what gave Master his trauma.'
In reality, Duke had never mentioned this figure to Zeke.
He only recalled losing comrades to magical beasts.
That meant he could not recall this person.
The horrific memory, buried deep in his subconscious, had gripped Duke and gnawed at his soul.
Zeke pointed Roland at the bandaged figure and demanded.
"Who the hell are you?"
The bandaged man raised his hand.
Sizzle . . .
The bandages around his body gathered in his palm, astonishingly forming a sword.
He advanced with the bandage-forged blade.
Zeke unleashed the sacred radiance technique toward the bandaged man.
Crackle!
A powerful bolt of light surged at him.
But the bandaged man raised his left hand, and the bandages coalesced into a fullbody shield.
Zeke's light bolt was blocked by the bandage shield.
Seeing the sacred radiance technique vanish without a trace, Zeke was shocked.
'What are those bandages made of?'
This was a virtual world based on Duke's memories, so there could be differences from reality, but it stemmed from karma data, which was reliable. The fact that the sacred radiance technique failed suggested the bandaged man was not a mere beast.
'Then let's see if this works.'
Zeke activated his new skill, thunder and lightning.
Rumble . . .
As the skill triggered, clouds rose from Zeke's body.
The clouds enveloping him darkened, lightning crackling within.
Rumble . . .
Incredibly, low thunder rumbled from the dark clouds.
The clouds grew, and with thunder, bolts shot out.
Boom!
Crackle!
Dozens of lightning strikes lanced toward the bandaged man.
He formed another bandage shield.
Crackle!
The lightning struck the shield.
It held, but unlike the light, the bandaged man was pushed back.
Zeke grinned.
'Good, this works.'
Knowing the skill had connected, Zeke chained it with linked skills. Lightning hell, flame hell, and glacier hell poured relentlessly at the bandaged man.
Boom boom boom!
In moments, the area around the bandaged man was devastated.
Zeke gazed at the deeply gouged coastline with Roland ready.
'That should do it.'
He turned to Duke, who still had not fully recovered.
"Sir Duke, are you coming around?" Zeke helped Duke up.
"I took care of him, so don't worry and . . ." Then.
Sizzle . . .
The bandaged man, whom he thought he had destroyed with the skills, approached unscathed.
Duke muttered something upon seeing him approach.
". . . never climb the absolute tower. Never set foot here. Never come . . ."
Zeke glanced at Duke, who repeated the words blankly, then set him down and raised his sword again.
"Looks like you're not backing down easily." Zeke lunged, swinging Roland at the bandaged man.
Whoosh!
An aura blade surged from Roland.
It clashed with the bandage sword.
Clang!
Astonishingly, the bandage blade rang like metal.
But Zeke did not falter, immediately pressing with the infinite sword art.
Yet Zeke's eyes widened as the assault continued. The bandaged man parried every strike.
'His swordsmanship isn't ordinary.'
He wielded his blade freely, as if anticipating Zeke's every path.
Zeke retreated and said to the bandaged man.
"I don't know if you're real or a phantasm from Master's memories, but getting rid of you seems key to resolving his issue."
He gripped his sword and summoned the might of the full power technique.
Rumble . . .
Zeke infused his will into the blade.
The will of shattering that shattered all.
As he called forth the will of shattering, he unleashed the elemental sword's chamber of water power.
Hummm!
Zeke swung fluidly, like riding a wave.
Elemental sword
Chamber of water power
Wave sword
Full power technique
Solo spell
Will of shattering
Zeke poured both techniques into the sword simultaneously.
Boom boom boom!
The bandaged man raised his bandage sword to block the massive wave.
But waves could not be stopped.
Ultimately, Zeke's sword, laden with the will of shattering, pierced the bandaged man's body squarely.
Boom!
Waves of impact radiated from the strike point.
Hummm!
As the massive surge calmed, the bandaged man appeared on one knee.
He looked up at Zeke and said.
"A terrible curse will befall all who come here. Never come. Never come. Never come." Zeke realized these were the words Duke had muttered.
'You implanted that in Master.'
He approached the bandaged man.
"Who are you to command comings and goings? You're no magical beast—what are you? A guardian made by a dragon?" Rumble . . .
The ground shook suddenly.
Black flames rose from the bandaged man's body.
He transformed like a demon, screeching horrifically.
"The future for those who come here is death alone! Do not come! Do not come! Do not come!"
Zeke felt the memory world crumbling.
He raised his sword against the charging black-flame demon.
Hummm!
A dazzling sword light pierced the demon, erupting in a massive explosion.
With that, the memory world shattered.