The stars above seemed to radiate malice. The clear night sky above the Nomadic City, unobstructed by the usual pollution, was dotted with clouds, but the falling meteors were unmistakably visible.
"It won't end with just one shot! Larin, get ready!"
Yujin shouted instinctively. At that moment, another star broke from its orbit in the distance and plummeted toward them.
「 Halt! 」
Language transformed into will. Raquelamalin, having rolled across the ground, inscribed a word with her bone-whistle. Her power gripped the world, causing the falling arrows to shudder and lose momentum.
But their speed was only reduced. They were still hurtling toward Yujin. Seeing three arrows raining down, Yujin raised his bare hands.
'Dammit, if only I had my sword...!'
What he manifested was not his own innate power, but the legacy of the Sarkaz—a race condemned to endless wandering and exile in a distant past.
His raised hands were dyed in platinum light. In a blur of motion too fast to track, his hands struck out like lightning, shattering the arrows mid-air.
"Hmph!"
If he had a blade, he could have parried them easily. Taking the impacts directly made his hands tremble. If this bombardment continued into a battle of attrition, defeat was inevitable.
Yujin scanned the sky where the trails originated. The arrows had been fired from an immense distance. If the shooter were on a nearby rooftop, Yujin would have spotted them instantly. These projectiles had arrived in a parabolic arc—indirect fire.
But to maintain this much power over such a distance?
"It's not over! Yujin!"
Larin‘s scream snapped him out of his thoughts. This time, dozens of arrows fell like a meteor shower, each glowing with malevolent intent, aiming to erase Yujin and Larin from existence.
This isn't just one shooter.
At least two, maybe three, coordinating their fire...!
It was too late to dodge. Even slowed by Larin‘s words, each arrow carried absurd destructive power.
[Knight, here!]
At that moment, PRTS‘s voice echoed in Yujin‘s ear from above.
A drone descended, dropping Yujin‘s sword. It should have been stored safely at the mansion; how the AI retrieved it was a mystery for later.
Yujin didn't hesitate. He threw his body forward, catching the falling blade mid-air, and looked up at the sky.
The Nearl style wouldn't be enough to block all of this.
His Master had warned him against using it often, but this wasn't the time to be picky about techniques. If it were just him, maybe. But he had to protect Larin.
Crunch. The sound of muscles shifting under extreme tension. His eyes traced the trajectories of the falling arrows, predicting their impact points. In a split second, Yujin thrust his sword.
He only needed to block the ones falling on him and Larin.
「 Destreza — Thunderbolt 」
A style derived from a single swordsmanship school, a branch created by Yujin himself. His strike shook the earth and unleashed the roar of thunder. Larin covered her ears as the sound tore through the sky. Platinum energy branched out like lightning, shattering the arrows into dust.
Sparks flew as the last arrow disintegrated. Only then did Yujin lower his sword. As his heightened senses returned to normal, he knew: there would be no more attacks. Firing Darkiron arrows like rain wasn't something even the Union could sustain indefinitely.
Now that he had a weapon, he could counter anything they threw at him.
"…Ugh."
A pained groan escaped his lips. Yujin opened his hand and stared at his trembling arm. His right arm, having unleashed that strike, was shaking uncontrollably, pushed to its absolute limit.
"Sigh. This is why I don't use it."
His body couldn't handle it. The reason he stuck to the Kazdel Military Forms or the Nearl style? Simple. Those were the only techniques his fragile body could withstand without breaking.
Looking at the ruined road, Yujin sighed.
How are we going to get back? The car is gone.
"…Are you okay?"
"Just a sore arm. I'm fine."
Larin approached him, the hem of her torn dress fluttering in the wind. She looked shaken, unable to believe what had just happened.
"I didn't think they‘d do this in the middle of the city."
"That was the point. They definitely have backing to cover this up."
The Armorless Union. A cabal of insane archers.
They were more dangerous than he thought. If there had been just a few more archers of that caliber, Yujin might have died.
Looking around, he realized that despite being on a main road, no other cars had passed except theirs. The road must have been blocked off.
"…By the way, where did you go before coming back?"
Yujin looked up at the hovering drone. PRTS had vanished and reappeared just in time to save him.
[That is not important right now. There was an attack on the mansion.]
"What?"
[I identified the hostiles and initiated evacuation protocols. Fortunately, all intruders have been neutralized. The butler and the guards handled it...]
"The kids? Daniel?"
[Unharmed. Though they seem a bit shaken.]
It was a meticulously planned operation.
They struck when Yujin was unarmed and away from the mansion, targeting the strongest assets when they were separated.
The words of the man he met earlier flashed through his mind.
There is a limit to stalling for time.
"Whew..."
He understood now.
The leader of the Sport Knights had wanted to recruit Yujin. He saw Yujin as a useful card. Because he coveted that power, he had likely told the Union to hold off.
But once he realized Yujin couldn't be recruited, he abandoned him. The result was this: the leash was off, and the Armorless Union was free to hunt.
"I guess casual outings are off the table."
From now on, either he or Larin had to stay at the mansion at all times.
Yujin touched his sword, unable to shake the ominous feeling.
2.
"Sister! Old man!"
"…Why is she 'Sister' and I'm 'Old Man'?"
Yujin grumbled at Kisha‘s stubborn naming convention. Kisha ran into Larin‘s arms, while Kiril let out a sigh of relief.
"I‘m glad you‘re safe... Master."
"Yeah, kid."
Yujin, Kiril, and Kisha were unharmed, but Daniel and the butler were not so lucky. Their clothes were disheveled, and they were bleeding from minor wounds.
"Sigh. I didn't think they‘d be bold enough to storm the mansion..."
"And through the front gate, no less."
Daniel had clearly used a sword. Yujin looked at him.
"So you did know how to fight."
"I told you. I studied the blade in my youth, not trade. Those memories don't just disappear."
Daniel smiled bitterly at his reflection in the blade. He seemed to be recalling the days when he trained as the heir to the Nearl family, before giving up due to lack of talent.
"The guards..."
"No fatalities. Some injuries, but... what about the friend who went with you?"
Yujin couldn't answer. The driver had been pierced through the heart by a spear-sized arrow and died instantly. They hadn't even been able to retrieve the body.
"…I see."
Daniel‘s eyes darkened. Yujin had only met the man today, but he was likely someone Daniel knew well. Yujin stayed silent.
"It can't be helped. We must give him a proper funeral. When he joined me, he knew the risks... whew."
The weight of death was never light. Seeing Daniel wipe his face wearily, Yujin turned away.
From now on, more people might die. It could be Yujin, or it could be Daniel. They had accepted this when they started.
After a brief meeting, everyone dispersed to their rooms. Daniel and the butler went to treat their wounds, and Larin took the children. Yujin entered his room and gripped his trembling arm.
"If I can't even handle this much..."
He couldn't do anything. He had deceived Daniel. He claimed he was limiting himself to the Nearl style to hide his strength, but in reality, he couldn't even mimic it properly without paying a price.
His body couldn't handle it.
He knew it in his head, but copying a sword style had a cost. Perfectly replicating techniques written in books or passed down through legends was impossible for his frame.
He could handle decent opponents, but against true masters at the peak, he couldn't win. He was filling a leaky jar with water—using Arts to patch the gaps in his physical capabilities.
While others used Arts to amplify their power, Yujin used them just to function at half capacity.
Some might think that was enough, but not Yujin. He could see higher heights. He felt he could reach them if he just pushed a little harder. But his body wouldn't let him extend his hand.
"Dammit."
There was nothing he could do yet.