"Kami-sama!"
Kaelis turned at the call.
He'd just finished talking with Ikoma and the others when the young man he'd lent the sword to earlier approached, drawing curious stares from everyone nearby.
"Kibito? What's going on?" Kurusu asked, recognizing him.
"Forgive my interruption, Sir Kurusu," the young soldier said respectfully, bowing. "But I have something to return to Kami-sama."
Kurusu's brow arched slightly before glancing at Kaelis for an explanation.
Ignoring the looks, Kaelis crossed his arms casually. "What's up?"
"I wanted to thank you for lending me your weapon—and to return it properly."
The youth, kibito bowed while extending the sword with both hands, giving the Kurusu and the others a look at the sword.
"Sure." Kaelis said taking it back
He then unsheathed the sword and examined the blade.
It was still sharp, the blades not cracked… Though it's made from strong metal, it was still to be found within the confines of a normal world.
So periodical uses will eventually dull the blade.
Not to mention its attribute that would make the user stronger so more forces will be applied to it.
Fortunately the bushis have formal training with sword play, otherwise, the sword might be broken on the first few swings.
Seeing Kaelis examining the blade's condition, kibito got a little nervous.
"Um kami-sama?"
"Hmm?" Kaelis didn't avert his gaze.
Still examining the blade, Kaelis acknowledged.
"I, uh… didn't get to use it that much. Please forgive me!" the young man blurted.
"I don't mind you know? And I wasn't gonna punish you for not using it." He finally looked at him and calmly explained while sheathing the sword.
"Ah—thank you, Kami-sama!" Kibito bowed deeply in relief.
"Sure thing." Kaelis sheathed the blade, then looked toward Kurusu. "Hey—catch."
Kurusu blinked. "What?"
Kaelis tossed the sword, and Kurusu caught it smoothly out of reflex.
He decided to give the sword to Kurusu this time as from what it seems like, Kurusu's skill with a sword is exceptional.
"Why give me this sword? I already have one I got from the yamotogawa family?"
To him, it seemed like no more than an ordinary blade, it made no difference whether he has a new one or not.
"Draw it." Kaelis said.
"Hm?" Kurusu hesitated, but then slid the blade free.
The instant the steel cleared the sheath, his eyes widened. A surge of raw power flooded through him—his muscles tensed, his senses sharpened, and even his heartbeat quickened.
"What the—?"
"Kurusu! What's wrong?" Ayame called out, hurrying toward him in alarm.
Kurusu shook his head, still processing what he felt. "It's nothing… I just—my strength suddenly increased the moment I drew the sword."
"What you felt," Kaelis said casually, "was your physical abilities tripled."
"Huh?"
Kurusu blinked, unsure he heard that right. Strength tripling just from drawing a sword? That sounded absurd—impossible, even.
But then again… he got the sword from Kaelis. Ordinary clearly didn't apply here.
Shaking his head, he decided that contemplating will not solve any problems and just decided to straightforwardly ask Kaelis.
"Could you explain, please? So that I can get a clear picture of what's happening."
This was something that would not trouble Kaelis in the least.
"You see, the sword is made from Lonsdaleite, found in meteorite impact sites, 58% harder than diamonds so you won't have to worry about it breaking or getting easily dull." He paused, giving them time to understand before explaining the best part.
As for the power you felt," he continued, holding up a finger, "that comes from the attribute I imbued into it—[Boost], a support-type. It enhances the wielder's physical attributes—strength, speed, endurance, everything—by three times."
He further explained that it enhances the swords wielder's physical attributes, this one does it by the 3x.
Whether it's speed, strength, durability etc, all abilities gets a 3x boost.
"…" x5
They were all left utterly speechless. Even Kibito, who had the sword before, was bewildered.
He had felt the increase in strength before but he had not known it had increased by 3fold.
It's not his fault though.
If the amount of strength increase was not specified, only a true warrior or someone who lived in combat can accurately judge the amount.
And he, kibito, is not a full fledged warrior.
Kurusu, Ayame and the others though, were speechless for another reason.
A weapon that could triple a person's power
That was something nations would fight over. Kingdoms would fall for it.
Just the existence of such a sword could start wars, drag elders from seclusion, or shift the balance of power across the land.
The more they thought about it, the more terrifying that "3x" sounded.
Kaelis couldn't help but smirk at their stunned faces.
The [Boost] attribute—one of his earliest and hardest-earned creations.
It came from ten long years of dissecting and mastering a berserker's spell, one that traded sanity for overwhelming power.
He'd studied it, rewritten it, and shaped it into something stable—something people could use without losing their minds.
Funny thing was… he barely even used it himself.
'I should really start using it more often,' he mused.
Meanwhile, everyone's attention was glued to the sword like it was a holy relic. Their eyes practically tried to swallow it whole.
"I… I can't accept this!" Kurusu blurted, pushing the sword back toward Kaelis.
Though the surge of strength had been intoxicating, holding that weapon felt heavier than steel.
It wasn't just a blade—it was a responsibility, one far beyond what he felt worthy of carrying.
"You really don't want it~? I'm sure Ayame would want her knight in shining armor be extremely strong and valiant you know, hehehee~"
Kurusu's and Ayame's faces immediately became red.
"Just take it. I'm giving it to you so you can do whatever you want with it."
Seeing what's happening between the pair, kibito took his leave while mumei and ikoma stood there awkwardly.
"So you guys want a sword too?" Kaelis turned to them.
They shook their heads and voiced their reasons.
"I've got no skills with a sword at all. I'll make do with this…" Ikoma showed his gun.
"Got it. And you?"
"I prefer guns over swords."
"Cool, cool. By the way I got something to ask. I fought a kabane back there. It had swords and was proficient in swordsmanship. What's that about?"
Mumei blinked, caught off guard by the question. "A kabane… that could use a sword?"
Ikoma frowned deeply. "That's… not normal. Kabane don't fight like that. They're just… mindless."
"Yeah, I thought so," Kaelis replied, crossing his arms. "But this one wasn't. It fought with precision, almost like a trained soldier."
"That's impossible," Kurusu muttered, still gripping the [Boost] sword tightly. "No kabane has ever shown that kind of coordination."
Ayame looked troubled. "Unless… it wasn't an ordinary kabane."
Mumei's tone dropped lower, thoughtful. "There are rumors. Kabane that evolve, or… change. Some say they retain a trace of who they were before turning. They're called 'watazori'."
Kaelis hummed, rubbing his chin. "So you're saying if someone strong, like a samurai, got infected and…"
"…then they might keep their skills," Mumei finished.
"That's kinda interesting." Kaelis smirked. "Guess I'll have to keep an eye out for more of those."
Chapter 18 end.