Reinhard stood up and turned around, the Axiom of Virtue held firmly in his left hand.
Immediately, he was met by the curious gazes of Sunless and Nephis.
On further note, I should have thought more about how I would explain this to them.
Just as he was considering the matter, something shocking interrupted his train of thought.
It was as though the sword were speaking directly to his mind. No words were exchanged, yet Reinhard instinctively understood what it was attempting to convey.
The Axiom of Virtue could be unsheathed against Sunless and Nephis.
What? Why are they worthy?
Under normal circumstances, Reinhard would have spent several minutes contemplating the possible reasons behind this. However, the situation right now gave him no such luxury.
His attention had to remain focused on the task before them.
At the same time, another thought surfaced in his mind.
I hope the sword displays a similar reaction towards the carapace centurions.
Making a mental note to examine the matter later, Reinhard turned toward Sunless and spoke.
"I will scout past the ridge where the two centurions are; you should collect the soul shards of the scavengers by then."
Having realized that Reinhard had no intention of discussing the peculiar sword for the time being, the two 'worthy' Sleepers allowed the matter to rest. Instead, they focused their attention on the battle that was about to happen.
After receiving a nod of confirmation from Sunless, Reinhard silently made his way toward the ridge.
He soon began climbing.
The rocky slope was not particularly tall, so it took him less than a minute to reach the top.
Once there, Reinhard looked down.
Directly beneath him, only a few meters away, stood a dark silhouette outlined against the surrounding rocks.
The creature was considerably larger than any scavenger.
Jagged spikes protruded from its thick carapace, while black-and-crimson chitin covered its body like ancient armor stained with fresh blood. In place of pincers, two terrifying bone scythes extended from the joints of its arms.
Each blade was long enough and sharp enough to cleave a scavenger in half.
Reinhard shifted his gaze and searched for the second monster.
A few meters away, he discovered another carapace centurion resting motionlessly while facing the first.
The sight of the two Nightmare Creatures filled him with a degree of unease. After all, he was not too confident in his ability to defeat them.
Yet what troubled him even more was the sword in his hand.
The Axiom of Virtue remained completely still.
No reaction came from it.
The strange sensation he had experienced earlier against Sunless and Nephis wasn't there either.
With a sliver of hope, he raised the sword before himself.
Then, while facing the nearest centurion, he placed his free hand on the hilt and attempted to draw the blade.
As he pulled—
Something moved.
Yes!
The sword was emerging from its sheath.
The movement had a tinge of reluctance to it, as though the weapon itself had tried resisting being drawn, but it was undeniably happening.
Second by second, more of the blade revealed itself.
Then, only moments later, it was completely unsheathed.
For the first time since obtaining the Axiom of Virtue, Reinhard was finally able to see the blade in its entirety.
The extravagant golden hilt extended partway into the blade itself.
The center was a faint blue, while the sharpened edges gleamed silver.
For several moments, Reinhard simply stared at the sword.
He was looking at the weapon in much the same way a child might stare at an enormous candy bar.
Maybe I am actually sword-sexual.
Not that beautiful swords somehow turned him on. Rather, they were simply pleasant to look at.
In fact, he found himself almost unwilling to avert his gaze.
Reluctantly, Reinhard forced himself to focus and summoned his runes.
He wanted to inspect them for any possible changes.
As it turned out, there were indeed changes.
Recalling the sword's [Unyielding Defiance] enchantment—which suppressed flaws while the blade was unsheathed—he immediately focused his attention towards his flaw.
What he saw left him stunned, even though it should have been expected.
Aspect: [Instrument of Inevitability]
Innate Ability: [Scarred Adaptation]
Aspect Legacy: [Divergent Precept]
Flaw: -
Flaw Description: -
His aspect remained exactly as before.
However, where his flaw should have been, there was simply... nothing.
The flaw had vanished completely.
This is so fucking cool.
While he was still appreciating that discovery, his eyes drifted toward his attributes out of habit.
Attributes: [Fated] [Battle Master] [Favored by Fate] [Nocturnal Vision] [Assassin] [Nameless's Blessing]
That's new.
The first four attributes belonged to him naturally.
The fifth, [Assassin], had been created through his own ability.
As for [Nameless's Blessing], it had only appeared after the Axiom of Virtue was unsheathed.
Reinhard quickly examined its description.
It was identical to the description of the sword's enchantment.
In other words, the moment the weapon had been drawn, that strange enchantment had transferred itself onto him in the form of an attribute.
Creepy shit.
Unable to figure out the purpose of the new attribute, Reinhard stopped thinking about it and turned around, preparing to return to the others.
At that moment, as if realizing he had no intention of fighting, the sheath vanished from his hand and reappeared around the blade.
The Axiom of Virtue was sheathed once again.
A brief glance at his runes showed that [Nameless's Blessing] had disappeared. His flaw had also returned.
Just what would you lose by staying unsheathed for a few more seconds, huh?
Stingy bastard!
In truth, having the sword unsheathed for a little longer wouldn't have brought him any benefits.
Nevertheless, seeing how quickly it had sheathed itself and become useless again left Reinhard feeling annoyed.
***
This chapter was a bit short because the next will cover the whole fight.
So thanks for reading, cya.