Explanation of Knight Leader's Hrunting

Hrunting is a spiritual item in the form of a sword wielded by the Knight Leader. It is primarily based off a sword used by Beowulf, though several other European legends are used as the basis for many of its effects. Hrunting is meant to become tougher and sharper from the blood of slain enemies. The Knight Leader has Telesma, supplied by the Curtana, act in place of blood to gather a large amount into it, giving it tremendous destructive power. Pattern Magic is a form of magic that is used by the Knight Leader in conjunction with Hrunting, which adds the ability of a particular pattern in swordsmanship, based on different mythologies and legends. In constructing Hrunting, the Knight Leader analyzed the patterns and laws behind various legendary weapons from different mythologies, such as the Norse Gungnir and Mjölnir, the Celtic Fragarach and Brionac, and others. He then combined and condensed them, refining them into single attack patterns which he can use, and constructing completely new spells in the process. The way in which the laws and powers have been combined and condensed to produce this evolution and power has been compared to what happens when a star grows too large, undergoing gravitational collapse and forming a black hole. The Knight Leader can only use one pattern at a time because each one of the attacks follows one of the directions to its limit. Patterns used with Hrunting are as follows. Attack Range which produces cutting attacks which can hit the enemy from any direction no matter where they are. Slicing Power which allows the blade to cut through anything. Weapon Weight which gives the sword tremendous destructive power. Movement Speed which enhances the wielder's speed so no one can catch up with them. Enduring Solidity which makes the sword indestructible. Special Use which is a rare pattern meant to slay certain monsters. Lastly, Precise Accuracy which automatically guides attacks towards vital points.

“I mastered the many paths of knighthood and thought I would compensate for each one’s weakness by unifying them, but it seems the more complicated the combination gets, you have to simplify it down to a single strike. I suppose it is similar to the demise of a star like the sun. When a star grows too large, it finally explodes and gives birth to a black hole. ...It becomes a mere gravitational field. It becomes something that is theoretically simple but still produces a great power.” It was a single strike born from combining all sorts of spells. As such, magically interfering with it or cancelling it out was incredibly difficult. To find the solution, one had to head down every one of the paths Knight Leader had taken. “However, this is not the kind of complete demise that turns the star into a black hole. There are many ways for a star to meet its demise. If the star’s mass is not at a certain level, it can apparently turn into other things such as a neutron star or an interstellar cloud. It seems my strike gained the characteristic of the sword due to this imperfection.”
(Toaru Majutsu no Index Volume 18, pg 23)

Knight Leader’s slim fingertips tightly held his dark-red sword. “Theoretically, this level of characteristic can be divided into a few categories instead of being lumped together in a single category. Simply put, there is the Slicing Power that can cut through anything, the Weapon Weight that creates tremendous destructive force, the Enduring Solidity that cannot be destroyed, and the Movement Speed that makes no one able to catch up to me. There is also Special Use, a rare pattern necessary to slay particular monsters, Precise Accuracy that automatically has me move toward the vital points, and the pattern I just used against you.” “...The Attack Range, you mean?” He had reanalyzed the laws behind the Norse Gungnir and Mjölnir, the Celtic Fragarach and Brionac, and other weapons, combined them, and then condensed them. His evolution had constructed completely new spells much like a black hole being created from the death of a star that grew too large. And the similar legends from around the world other than the European ones that Knight Leader loved and so put into his spell could also be added into the birth of this black hole. “I realized something when I reanalyzed all the spiritual items and weapons from various cultures and legends in order to create this Attack Range. I realized that all kinds of humans wish to win by unilaterally pouring powerful attacks on their enemy from a position their enemy’s attacks cannot reach. I do not like giving affirmation to that boring society of guns, but I cannot deny that it is quite effective.” (And the actual materials he used to make this a reality are...) “Heh!!” William used Ascalon to repel a “long range” strike approaching his temple from the side. A blade that looked like dark red rust only a few millimeters long struck the thin wire held on like a coping saw creating sparks and then pierced into a nearby tree trunk. “It is a fragment of the sword.” Knight Leader easily revealed the trick that he should have kept hidden and continued swinging around his sword. “The fragments of some excellent weapons and spiritual items still display the power of the original. For instance, the sword used by King Charlemagne had the fragment of a sacred spear inside it.” “So someone who is about to fight against France is using the legend of one of its kings?” “That was a surprisingly pointless comment coming from you.” Knight Leader grinned. Guided by his sword, a few dozen blades of rust targeted William. “I will use anything I can. If you want to go down that path, even the name ‘Curtana’ comes from a French word. I believe it means ‘short sword’ due to its broken off tip.”
(Toaru Majutsu no Index Volume 18, pg 23-24)

By creating that phenomenon, Knight Leader had proven what he had said. He could use more than just Attack Range. He also had Slicing Power that could cut through anything, Weapon Weight that created tremendous destructive force, and Movement Speed that made it so no one was able to catch up to him. Although they hadn’t been seen yet, he most likely also had Enduring Solidity that made the sword unable to be destroyed, Special Use that was necessary to slay particular monsters, and Precise Accuracy that automatically had him move toward the enemy’s vital points. 32 By condensing the legendary spiritual items and spells appearing in the Norse, Celtic, Charlemagnic, Germanic, and other warrior and knight cultures and then condensing them further, he had simplified them down into attack patterns. And by making them his own, he could freely use them as means of attack.“You are going to die,” quietly reported the man holding the dark red “weapon” as he looked at the blood flowing from William. What Knight Leader held was no longer Hrunting. It wasn’t even a sword. “I have seen all you have. As you are now, you cannot overcome my blade.” It was merely a weapon. It was a tool that should not have been created that annihilated all of its enemies whether they were man or monster. Its strike was overwhelmingly sharp, overwhelmingly heavy, overwhelmingly fast, overwhelmingly tough, and overwhelmingly long, it held specialization to slice in two even monsters that could not be pierced by swords, and it even led its aim towards the enemy’s weak point that would cause the most damage. Previously, Knight Leader had compared his attack to the explosion of a star. While everything up to that point had been like a star with insufficient mass that instead became a neutron star or an interstellar cloud, that attack should perhaps be referred to as the ultimate black hole born from a star that grows too large. Attack Range and Movement Speed did not allow it to be avoided, Slicing Power and Weapon Weight did not allow it to be blocked, and Enduring Solidity did not allow it to be destroyed. If Knight Leader went all out, he could end the fight in the next strike. William Orwell would definitely be sliced in two.
(Toaru Majutsu no Index Volume 18, pg 32-33)