In a world where magical power shaped kingdoms and destroyed civilizations, there were those who walked a different path. A harder path. A more painful one.
While mages elevated their circles with the natural flow of mana and chanted spells that tore the sky, there existed a class of warriors that walked against the tide of the era. They were called Soul Knights.
To nobles and scholars, they were just stubborn fools trying to imitate the brilliance of mages with handmade swords.
But to those who had witnessed a true Sword Master, the comparison was absurd—for those swords could cut through the very continent.
Unlike mages, knights are not born with the ease of manipulating the mana of the world. Instead, they shape power with their own bodies, muscles, bones, blood, and pain. They forge their own magic circles through training, discipline, and combat.
And when they finally reach the sixth circle, something changes—not just in their bodies, but in their souls.
"When my blade first cut, I felt my heart burn. But when I infused my soul into it... I felt my existence scream."
That's what most knights said when they reached this power.
From the sixth circle onward, knights awaken the Soul Ability. It is not a technique, nor ordinary magic. It is the ability to fuse one's very soul with the wielded weapon, making each strike carry the entire life of the knight.
"That's the path you're following, right Kai?"
Kai nodded, as it was his father's path, so following in those footsteps was what Kai wanted to do.
"Knights have three classification levels."
Magic Knight: At the beginning, they are nothing more than soldiers with hardened bodies and weapons enchanted with basic magic. Their swords are bathed in mana that matches each user, and can strike enemies with considerable force—but they are limited to the sixth circle and do not yet understand the true weight of becoming a soul knight.
Vice-Captain or Soul Sword Bearer: Only when the body's limit is reached does the spirit manifest. Upon becoming a soul knight, the warrior's sword is covered by a living aura, pulsing with the energy of their soul. The weapon vibrates with emotions, grows with experience, and can cut magical defenses as if they were paper.
But everything has a price. Each strike drains the soul. Each slash brings the warrior closer to madness.If the sword breaks... part of their soul dies with it.
"My soul is cracked... but if this is the only way to protect them... then let my blade shatter with me."
That was a phrase spoken by the third user a thousand years ago and that every knight must know so as not to surpass their own limits.
And the last is Sword Master, also called the one who breaks the law. Only one in thousands of knights achieves this rank. It is not just strength. It's not just technique.
It's necessary to break "the Law of the Sword," an invisible barrier placed by God himself in the human mind—a limit to prevent the Supreme Sword from emerging and threatening the balance of the world.
The first Sword Master, who trained for more than 50 years to develop this technique, said
"The sword was not made to dominate creation... And that's exactly why I will dominate it."
By breaking this Law, the knight ascends to a plane where their weapon becomes the pure manifestation of their soul, an instrument that can fight against eighth-circle mages and even survive before a ninth circle. Even if he loses, his existence will have already become a living legend.
Liam and Elian seemed excited while Valença wanted to understand more.
"This is amazing... but there must be risks, right?"
Enrico nodded and began to explain.
"Yes. Each use of the soul damages the user's essence. It can be recovered over time, but if the weapon is destroyed, part of the soul is lost forever, and knights can lose their sanity or become Voids—soulless warriors wandering in search of battle."
Kai also mentioned another problem.
"Besides, there's another issue: the soul sword evolves according to the knight's will. But... if that will is weak, the weapon refuses to fight."
Enrico nodded and smiled, shaking his head.
"That's why I'm a fan of knights. Because among mages who can blow up mountains or the world with words, the knights walk the battlefield with sweat from battles."
Kai smiled at Enrico's words while Serenya listened, though she had doubts.
"But like I said, isn't this supposed to be for those stuck in the sixth circle and who follow the knight's path?"
"Yes, that's true. But just like knights fought to reach this level, why don't we use that to develop ourselves too, follow in their steps? I know mages have their pride, but if we use this the same way they use mages to evolve, wouldn't we be stronger?"
Kai nodded quickly, wanting more people to follow his path. Besides, this is an idea the protagonist had upon reaching the eleventh circle at the end by combining both, though dying before going further—and this time Enrico was advancing that idea.
"There are two ways to acquire a soul weapon, where knights place their souls and they evolve, being able to acquire a new magic. Well, we can acquire other magics without this, but we'd be even stronger."
[You talk too much.]
Enrico completely ignored the system and its nonsense—and besides, that joke already passed in chapter 3.
"The first way is placing the soul into an already prepared weapon, like what kai father did with the sword he always carried."
Everyone looked at Kai surprised while he got embarrassed, scratching his neck.
"And the other is creating it from magic out of nothing, which is what I'm doing with the bow."
Kai had starry eyes while everyone looked at Enrico, not just surprised but realizing he was far ahead of them—at least, that's what they thought.
'Damn, I can't let the subordinate get too far ahead of me.'
'I didn't expect this from my rival, but we shouldn't be surprised—he's a genius.'
'I have to get stronger fast and have my rematch.'
Elian, Caelan, Liam, and Sílvia all thought at the same time that it was good to have someone like him on their side.
Virelle and Damian wanted to go in and talk to Enrico but didn't want to seem weird.
Meanwhile, an insect made of ice was on top of a box, and the one watching them was Elaris, the student council president who learned about them rising in rank and was now planning how to get Enrico to join her.
She placed her hand on her chin, watching through the insect's eyes with great interest.