Samimi mentally reviewed the original plot, and the more she thought about it, the more something felt off.
In the battle against the Magic Sword Reid, most of the original Hero Party members had actually contributed.
Kingdom Marshal Fabiana and the Wind Hero Laegias were the main combatants on the front lines; the White-haired Witch Bemore was the hidden MVP, having deciphered the Magic Sword Reid’s abilities with her special Magic Eye; and even the Zombie Priest Samimi’s Support Techniques could penetrate the Air Wall, providing crucial support.
Only one person—the Phantom Dream Arrow Cross—had been practically useless from start to finish, a pure “slacker.”
And now, Niubao had taken Fabiana’s place in this battle. In the original plot, it was Fabiana who had been responsible for tanking the damage, buying time for Bemore to analyze.
“Even if we know his ability, it’s meaningless if we can’t find a way to break it,” Samimi analyzed seriously. “Can you see anything else? Can you locate the Magic Source?”
She couldn’t say it outright, but she had been guiding Bemore step by step closer to the truth.
As long as Bemore voiced the key conclusion, Samimi could then proceed to set up the formation.
“Magic Source?” Bemore was slightly taken aback, but she continued observing along that line of thought.
Usually, the Magic User themselves was the Magic Source, with magic power generated from within.
But when she focused and observed closely, she actually discovered an anomaly.
—The Magic Sword Reid’s magic power was not generated by himself.
In other words, he himself was not a Magic User, but more like some kind of “Driver.”
“How can this be?” Bemore murmured softly.
All Demon Humans were Magic Manipulators, that was beyond doubt. She had naturally assumed the Magic Sword Reid was the same.
But now, it seemed that wasn’t the case.
She observed further and discovered that the inside of the Magic Sword Reid’s body was densely packed with “Magic Fiber Threads,” spreading throughout his entire form like blood vessels.
These “magic blood vessels” were almost impervious to physical attacks—even if severed, they would reconnect in an instant.
Their structure was extremely intricate, compressed to a high degree, and astonishingly strong.
If she had to make a comparison, it was somewhat similar to her own “Flame Fish Iron Gate.”
However, these magic blood vessels had completely abandoned defense—or rather, they didn’t need it.
Because this body itself was a Zombie, impervious to damage.
Then, these magic blood vessels would transmit a certain “Time Reversal” ritual throughout the entire body restoring it to an uninjured state.
Following the flow of these magic blood vessels she could finally locate the place where the magic power was most concentrated.
—That was the sword in the Magic Sword Reid’s hand.
“The Sword of the Hero… is the Magic Source,” Bemore said, shocked. “All the magic power is transmitted from the sword to the body. Which means… the time magic… is also the power of that sword?”
“The real enemy was never that body,” Samimi said calmly. “It’s that sword. That body is just a puppet being controlled.”
“A sword is just a weapon; the true will should belong to the person,” Steve frowned, objecting.
“Precisely because a sword cannot distinguish good from evil that we are fighting it,” Samimi said with a bitter smile. “If it could tell who was the Hero and who was a Monster, we would have stopped fighting long ago.”
“It’s executing the last will of the wielder. But that will has been corrupted by the Abyss—so now it attacks friend and foe alike.”
Everyone fell silent, struggling to accept this reality for a moment.
And at the same time—
Niubao was still fighting.
Her head was covered in bumps. She was knocked down again and again, only to stand back up. After dozens of rounds, she finally couldn’t hold on any longer and was knocked unconscious.
The next moment, Laegias rushed into the Light Dueling Arena and carried the unconscious Niubao back.
Samimi’s heart tightened.
—Her Niubao, when had she ever suffered such humiliation?
But she understood very well—
In this world, pain was part of growth.
A non-lethal battle like this was actually the best opportunity for tempering.
What was even more absurd was—
Niubao had almost no wounds that needed healing.
Because those injuries had already healed on their own.
She had just—been knocked out.
“You worked hard, Niubao,” Samimi said softly, gently stroking her head. She could only cast a Clear Mind Technique to let her rest properly.
“It was only because she held on that I could decipher the enemy’s secret,” Bemore said with emotion.
But Laegias, who had rushed into the barrier to save her—could no longer get out.
She was locked inside the Light Dueling Arena.
—It was her turn to fight.
If even the Wind Hero Laegias failed, then the remaining Priest, Mage, and Shield Axe warrior stood no chance in a one-on-one fight.
The hopes of the entire team—rested entirely on her shoulders.
“Mimi, little Bei, what’s the final tactic?” Laegias asked from inside the Air Wall.
“Don’t call me that,” Samimi replied coldly. “The solution is simple—”
She paused, then slowly spoke:
“Knock the Sword of the Hero out of his hand.”
—That was the key.
“Your Wind Energy can manipulate all swords. While you can’t directly take the sword, you can at least interfere with his grip,” she continued.
This conclusion was “borrowed” by her from the original plot.
But now, she was saying it following Bemore’s deduction so it wouldn’t arouse suspicion.
The Wind Hero Laegias was naturally a counter to the Magic Sword Reid.
If the Magic Sword Reid had any awareness, he probably would have run away long ago.
As long as the Sword of the Hero was knocked loose—
the time magic would be severed.
Samimi continued explaining:
“Remember when you used Sword Energy to steal someone else’s sword before? You can use Wind Sword Control, even detonate weapons.”
“That’s because—your Qi has a dominating relationship with ‘swords.'”
“In a sense, you are—the Master of Ten Thousand Swords.”
It was a bit of an exaggeration, but the core idea was correct.
Laegias possessed the ability to “control swords”—
This was the power that naturally countered the Magic Sword Reid.
This world didn’t operate on hot-blooded power-ups.
Nor could you turn the tables on a Boss by shouting a few slogans.
What mattered here was Restraint Relationships.
No matter how strong you were if you were countered, you died.
And Samimi who clearly knew the Complete Walkthrough, couldn’t say it outright.
She could only guide step by step, and go with the flow.