Chapter 239:


    Chapter 239: First Movement


    Like the notes filling the sheet music, like the music filling the concert hall, all sorts of sword energy flew towards n.


    “Be still.”


    n blinked slowly and drew three lines in the air. Like underlining a favorite phrase in a book, neat blue lines were inscribed on the music sheet.


    “There’s no time for that!”


    Vi, raising her sword high, swung it down vertically with all her might. As if slicing tofu, the six lines were neatly split in half.


    However, it was as if n had anticipated this, as if he had needed the six lines from the beginning, using them all at once.


    Swish─!


    The six lines took the form of wedges.Bang!


    The tightly woven mana wedges targeted Vi’s vital points from six directions. It was a wless strike, but Vi did not permit even that.


    Just as the wedges were about to touch her skin, in that fleeting moment, Vi’s sword emitted a wave that repelled them all.


    “You use shallow tricks, n.”


    And at the moment the wedges were deflected, the refrain began again. Countless of Vi’s sword attacks pressed n back.


    ─!


    ─!


    Despite the impact that could shake the entire arena, no loud noise was heard. The auditory elements of this space had long since defiedmon sense.


    ‘n! Look here!’


    ‘n.’


    ‘n?’


    ‘n~’


    ‘Save me!’


    ‘That, that’s!’


    .


    .


    .


    Even though n had temporarily abandoned his sense of hearing, countless voices continued to resonate endlessly. The melody that immersed his body in ecstasy also continued.


    “So, this wasn’t sound to begin with.”


    “Not sound? It’s merely a sound that reaches even the soul.”


    “Haha.”


    Receiving blows that could only be described as ‘infinite,’ n burst intoughter.


    It was a sight that captivated the audience, who were already deeply focused on the match, to the point they couldn’t even blink.


    Vi’s symphony. A series of relentless attacks that would crush a person to the point of leaving no trace of their form. In such a moment, n suddenlyughed, causing the melody to momentarily break.


    However brief that moment might have been, what mattered was that a gap had formed. n did not miss that tiny opening.


    Swish!


    n floated like a feather into the air, cing his hand on one of the music sheets inscribed in the air.


    “…!”


    It was as if a pianist, filled with emotion, ced their hand on the piano, a deep resonance filled with emotion, causing Vi’s eyes to widen unconsciously.


    ‘What are you doing?’


    Even if it looked like an ordinary music sheet, it was a trap. Each one was a precise sword strike, so if touched, the future where one’s hand would be cut was all too clear.


    Vi’s eyes instinctively focused on n’s hand, which had intervened in the melody. Originally, the hand should have been shredded without a trace, but something extraordinary began to unfold.


    Ting─.


    As soon as n ced his fingers on the music sheet, a new sound began to emerge. It was not the sound Vi had intended; it was a discordant note that ruined the entire flow.


    “Damn…!”


    A vein stood out vertically on Vi’s forehead.


    The fact that n’s hand was intact despite touching her sword’s trajectory was secondary. She was primarily furious that n had interfered with her melody.


    And then, once more.


    Ting─!


    n’s discord shattered the melody again.


    Vi, who had spent her entire life researching melodies that would enthrall people, and who had only ever listened to beautiful sounds, found this element disturbingly fatal.


    “Ugh!”


    In the end, unable to ignore the disturbance, Vi stepped back slightly.


    Strictly speaking, the sound produced by Vi’s sword strikes was not a sound. It was transmitted directly to the brain’s nerves, so it could be heard even if one abandoned their sense of hearing.


    However, because it had been used against her, Vi also had no choice but to hear the discord.


    “…You’re lucky.”


    Vi muttered as she readjusted her stance.


    ‘Could it be he intended it in that brief moment?’


    Had he realized how her sound was perceived and immediately exploited it? Unfortunately, she had no time to ponder even that.


    Bang!


    As if to urge her to focus on her own performance, n, still floating in the air, ced both hands on the music sheet.


    Soon, the melody flowed in apletely different direction.


    “…?”


    Vi had experienced countless battles in her life. In other words, she had used her unique ability many times.


    But.


    She had never faced a melody simr to her own.


    Why is a unique ability called unique? Because it is unique to the individual. She had never encountered an attack that even resembled her own, let alone ovepped.


    And it seemed that n had once again read her thoughts.


    Boom…. Boom─ Boom─!


    The discord grew more intense.


    An unpleasant sound that could only be considered noise drilled into Vi’s head, ransacking her mind.


    The impact was so strong that the arena’s floor cracked like a spider web.


    “….”


    First, she was enraged by the interference with her melody. Second, an unprecedented agony engulfed her entirely.


    “It’s my melody!”


    Vi began swinging her sword again. She intended to overwrite n’s sound with her own.


    However.


    Tiiiing─


    No matter how much of her melody she produced, n’s sound did not disappear. It clearly existed and firmly lodged itself in Vi’s mind.


    “Don’t interfere, how dare you. How dare…!”


    Gritting her teeth, Vi swung her sword. By destroying her own melody, she shattered all the music sheets that still floated in the air.


    Crack!


    Each wave generated by her swings caused cracks in the ground and sent fragments flying.


    In this situation, Vi began to produce a melody stitch by stitch again. If the previous one was a score that immersed the listener in ecstasy, this time, the aspect was different.


    The audience erupted with shouts.


    “The music sheet is strange…!”


    “Is that even a music sheet?”


    Even those who had never studied music instinctively knew that the sheet was dangerous. This was because it was filled with notes crammed in without any apparent order.


    “Haa… haa… hahaha….”


    Vi, panting, nced downward. Although she hadn’t allowed a single attack to hit her and every part of her body was intact, oddly, her wrist holding the sword was slightly trembling.


    The arm and hand are the most crucial parts for a swordsman.


    No matter what, the tip of the sword must not waver. It is the most basic yet most important principle….


    As if making a decision, Vi raised her head and looked at n again. As she had suspected, n retained his initial appearance.


    Drip.


    A bead of sweat rolled down Vi’s jaw and fell to the floor.


    If one had tobel one of the two present here as ‘desperate,’ it was clear in the eyes of the spectators who it would be.


    However, Vi knew better.


    ‘Compared to the beginning, his mana has significantly diminished.’


    Even if n appearedposed to the audience, he couldn’t deceive Vi’s eyes. At least to Vi, n was certainly not at his initial strength.


    ‘Is he only concerned with appearances?’


    As she thought that far, Vi suddenly found n amusing. It seemed like strength was welling up from somewhere within her.


    “I’ve never gone this far before….”


    Vi sneered with a face twisted in frustration.


    “This will be heard by only you. Consider it an honor.”


    And then it happened.


    Tuk! Tukduk! Tududuk!


    Mana began to take shape in the air.


    If a cruel music sheet was floating above Vi’s head, something blue emerged above n’s head.


    ‘A music sheet? No, that’s not it.’


    She wondered if he was copying her sheet, but it wasn’t that. What was drawn above n’s head was a small stick.


    It wasn’t even a magic wand, just a conductor’s baton.


    Due to its somewhat absurd appearance, Vi continued to observe.


    One, two… more things started to appear above his head.


    Vi soon understood what they were.


    ‘Instruments?’


    Violins, pianos, cellos, oboes, horns, contrabasses, tubas… the parade of instruments seemed endless.


    They even formed a fan shape, aligning in front of Vi as if setting up an orchestra.


    Swoosh.


    “This should be quite entertaining.”


    Muttering softly, n quietly grasped the baton.


    The slow motion of raising his hand was… beautiful.


    “I’m not particrly fond of this kind of performance… but I have no choice.”


    Until then, Vi hadn’t fully understood n’s words.


    Perform? What? Even if he were to perform, what would it be?


    “First movement.”


    As soon as n muttered those words.


    Ba-bam─.


    Vi’s music sheet began to be yed by n’s hand.