Lynn could be said to be truly witnessing the power of Valyrian steel weapons for the first time.
The wight horde that had originally clustered together, making it impossible for the Light Cavalry Corps to tear open a breakthrough, was utterly helpless when faced with Rodat's and Vayne's weapons—like infants bound hand and foot.
Whenever a steel blade pierced a rotting corpse, those blue-eyed beings would collapse like scattered sand, disintegrating at the slightest touch, without the slightest chance of survival.
This was simply the wights' natural nemesis.
One by one, the wights that had seemed like undead war gods let out shrill howls, only to turn into piles of ashen remains.
Rodat and Vayne attacked from the flanks.
The Light Cavalry Corps advanced head-on through the center.
A battle that had been locked in stalemate for a long time finally the first glimmer of victory.
The long-haired Other was likewise filled with dread toward the cold, gleaming luster of the Valyrian steel blades. On his ferocious face, that once expressionless mask finally cracked.
In less than half an hour, the wight horde was completely wiped out.
Now, only Lynn's forces remained on the field—along with a single, towering Other standing alone, blue light flickering in its eyes.
Lynn had been standing ten paces outside the core of the battle the entire time. At this moment, he drew the short blade at his waist, the one he had named "Chuanyue."
Facing the long-haired Other's chilling gaze,
he stepped forward slowly.
Rodat and Vayne exchanged a glance, understanding the unspoken combat rhythm in each other's eyes, and raised their blades as they struck toward the long-haired Other.
The long sword in the Other's hand looked as though it were sheathed in ice—grayish-white from hilt to tip, faint mist drifting around it. The burly Other instinctively raised his weapon to block.
Clang!
The metallic clash echoed through the ship's hold.
But now stripped of its undead advantage, and under Rodat's and Vayne's pincer attack, the long-haired Other gradually fell into a losing position.
Vayne's swordsmanship was sharp and precise—clearly something she had been rigorously trained in since childhood. Her small frame danced as she wielded the Valyrian steel blade, every move crisp and refined. Soon, she seized an opening, and with a beautiful arcing blade-lift, she sliced across the Other's wrist.
A long, narrow wound appeared on the Other's gray-white skin, and from it immediately flowed a searing red groove of blood.
This was a wound that could not heal.
The Other threw back its head and let out a miserable howl, its gaze icy and savage.
Immediately after, Rodat's next strike chopped down onto the Other's calf.
The Other screamed in agony. Staggering, it dropped to both knees, the never-before-felt, bone-piercing pain causing the icy weapon in its hand to fall clattering to the ground.
Lynn stepped out from between the ranks of the Light Cavalry soldiers who had parted from the front, looking down at the long-haired Other kneeling with its head bowed.
The latter raised its head. Its eyes still glowed icy blue, but within those hollow pupils, there seemed to be a trace of despair.
Lynn looked down at it and smiled, softly uttering two words.
"Goodbye."
Then, a flash of silver-cold light.
Puchi.
With that sound, the short blade "Chuanyue" was unsheathed for the first time—its maiden edge offered to the head of the long-haired Other.
Ding!
The familiar chime of the Troop-Explosion System upgrade sounded right on cue.
[Congratulations, Host, for completing the Troop-Explosion System main quest: Kill 1 Other]
[Reward: Silver Bull Command Horn]
After obtaining the Other's head, Lynn let out a breath and looked at the "Chuanyue" short blade in his hand, his eyes bright with spirit.
Valyrian steel was forged in the dragonflame of the ancient Valyrian Freehold.
Its true wonder lay in its unique forging process. During refinement, magic and incantations were infused into the metal, and it was precisely this arcane craftsmanship that gave Valyrian steel its miraculous qualities.
Thus, after the Doom of Valyria,
very few Valyrian steel swords still existed in the world.
From what Lynn knew, they included:
Widow's Wail: the shorter of the two longswords reforged from the Stark family's ancestral blade Ice. Currently in the hands of King Joffrey.
Oathkeeper: the longer of the two longswords reforged from Ice, bestowed by Duke Tywin upon his son, Jaime Lannister.
Heartsbane: the ancestral blade of House Tarly of Horn Hill in the Reach, possessed by the family for over five hundred years. Its current wielder is Lord Randyll Tarly.
Longclaw: gifted by Old Bear Jeor as thanks for Jon Snow saving his life.
Lady Forlorn: the ancestral blade of House Corbray of Heart's Home in the Vale.
Red Rain: the ancestral blade of House Drumm of Old Wyk in the Iron Islands.
Nightfall: the ancestral blade of House Harlaw of Harlaw Island.
Vigilance: the ancestral blade of House Hightower of Oldtown in the Reach.
Orphan-Maker: the ancestral blade of House Roxton of the Reach.
Aside from these, there were also a few Valyrian steel swords whose whereabouts were unknown, and only a very small number of Valyrian steel daggers still remained in existence.
Moreover, before this, there had never been Valyrian steel forged into steel sabers in this world—only swords and daggers.
Swords symbolized knighthood and honor, while daggers were exquisite treasures favored by nobles. Though these weapons were still formidable, they were burdened with too much external prestige and empty renown.
The three steel weapons in Lynn's hands, however, truly existed for one purpose alone—
killing.
Walking out of the ship's hold and back onto the beach, Lynn also discovered a drawback of the Valyrian steel blades he had exchanged from the system shop.
Once they moved beyond a fifty-meter radius from Lynn, the Valyrian weapons purchased from the system shop would lose their legendary effects,
degrading into ordinary weapons forged from fine steel.
This was something Rodat discovered while cleaning up the battlefield inside the ship's hold, after Lynn had returned to the shore with Vayne and the guards.
It seemed that the usage instructions for legendary weapons applied only within his vicinity.
To this, Lynn could only smile bitterly—sure enough, the world never offered such perfect deals.
Otherwise, a Valyrian steel weapon that could be exchanged for just 100 points would be absurdly overpowered.
It was the stuff of every warrior's dreams. In the great castles and fortresses, a single such weapon could fetch tens of thousands of gold dragons—and even then, only if one could find a buyer.
"Hand it over," Lynn said, extending his hand toward Vayne.
Vayne lovingly stroked the hilt of the Valyrian steel blade, blinking innocently. "What?"
"You know exactly what."
Vayne sighed reluctantly and said, "I'll give it back to you when we return, alright? Didn't you see how I killed those blue-eyed monsters just now? In front of it, they had no power to fight back at all."
Seeing that the female swordsman had no intention of returning it,
Lynn stated once more, "I know. Valyrian steel weapons are indeed powerful—but it's mine."
Vayne lowered her face, her head drooping as if she had recalled something painful, and said flatly, "If, on that day at the docks of Widow's Watch, I had possessed a Valyrian weapon, my knightly squad wouldn't have all died there."
Lynn felt a headache coming on. A woman's emotions could shift far too easily—you could never tell when she was speaking from genuine feeling.
So, Lynn chose to ignore it.
In the end, he sighed and said helplessly, "Your duty is still to protect me, not to charge in at the front. As for the next two ships, if there are no new Others present, you won't need to fight. However, in consideration of your contribution in subduing the Other just now, you're permitted to wear it for a while longer. Before we return, you must hand it back to me."
Vayne swiftly hung the sheathed blade at her waist, a hint of a smile returning to her face. "Of course, my lord."
It seemed that an unparalleled weapon held an absolutely fatal attraction for a swordsman-warrior.
Lynn shook his head with a helpless smile.
Rodat discarded all the wight corpses from the first Ironborn ship, sinking them into the depths of the sea.
Then he came before Lynn to report.
Lynn nodded and praised him with a brief "Well done."
His gaze shifted toward the second and third Ironborn ships not far away.
With the experience just now, he was filled with confidence about personally slaying ten wights to complete the side quest.
"Order the soldiers to rest in place and prepare to clear the merchant ships behind us."
"Yes, my lord!"
...
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(End Chapter)