C912
"Hmm..."
Krein kicked a stone on the ground and let out a groan as if he were in pain.
"I'm so anxious..."
He pulled at his hair as he looked at the silver sphere hidden behind the statues of the five heroes.
"Hey, are you alright?"
Krein nodded to Dorian, who was leaning against the statue.
"Why are you acting so serious, unlike usual?"
He narrowed his eyes as if he were perplexed.
"How could I be alright...?"
Dorian shook his head, gasping for air.
"I feel like I'm going to puke. Not food, but my guts..."
He blew his nose, trembling not only his hands but also his entire arm.
"Why did the Palace Master entrust this place to us?"
Dorian closed his eyes, saying he felt like he was suffocating.
"...Because he trusts us. That's why he entrusted it to us."
Krein looked up at the sky and exhaled softly.
"If it weren't for that, he wouldn't have sent us to such an important place."
He clenched his fist, saying he didn't want to betray that trust.
"I guess you're right."
Dorian nodded in agreement, but his trembling gradually spread throughout his body.
"I think five tranquilizers weren't enough. The tremor won't stop..."
Just as he was about to slap his cheek and reach for another tranquilizer, a chilling scream echoed as the shadows of the surrounding buildings darkened.
"He's here!"
Krein stepped forward, pressing his lips tightly together.
"Be careful..."
Dorian warned Krein and moved away from the statue. His fingers, resting on the hilt of his sword, trembled pathetically. As the two stood in front of the statue, the sky, the earth, and the buildings were suddenly bathed in a dark, ominous light, as if they were splattered with black paint.
"What's going on?"
"Why did it suddenly turn night...?"
"What's happening right now?"
The people around the statue were surprised by the sudden situation and couldn't move from their spots. As the black darkness filled every space, a white-haired old man in a black robe approached with the dull sound of his staff hitting the ground.
"That old man..."
Dorian frowned as he looked at the old man's wrinkled face.
"Don't you know? He's the one from the statue you've been leaning against."
Krein pointed to the statue behind them. As he had said, the old man's face was identical to the magician on the far right of the statue of the five heroes.
"His name was Foreshon, the Archmage."
Krein mentioned the title and name of the old man as he unsheathed his sword.
"I'm glad the young friends recognize me."
Archmage Foreshon stroked his white beard with a kind smile.
"If you hand over the sphere behind the statue, I won't harm you."
He shook his head gently, saying he would make a concession.
"What nonsense."
Krein snorted, tilting his chin to the side.
"If you were truly so benevolent, you wouldn't have left the suffering children alone."
He moved his finger as if trying to provoke Foreshon.
"What a pity."
Foreshon raised an eyebrow and let out a low sigh.
"To refuse a reward and choose punishment..."
"Drink your own punishment! I don't know why all the villains say the same lines. Did they all go to villain school or something?"
Krein clicked his tongue, saying it was a cliché.
"How rude."
Foreshon seemed genuinely angry, with blue veins emerging amidst the wrinkles on his forehead.
"If you rely on the children around you, you will regret it."
"Has the old man gone senile? What do you mean around us?"
"I can see everything. All of your qualities are similar. It means you were raised in the same family."
He twisted his lips as he looked at the people trembling in the darkness.
"You have a pretty sharp eye."
Krein gritted his teeth, tapping his foot on the ground.
"We've been discovered! Prepare to fight!"
With his gesture, the Wind Light Palace swordsmen disguised as tourists and residents revealed their true forms.
"So, in the end, it was Zieghart."
Foreshon nodded calmly as he looked at the swords and uniforms of the Wind Light Palace swordsmen.
"Being all Masters is undoubtedly an advantage, but it will mean nothing to me."
As he struck the ground with his staff, the darkness that colored the earth twisted and rose. Hundreds of shadow beasts emerged, their glowing red eyes twinkling.
'He's strong.'
Krein frowned as he looked at the shadow beasts summoned by Foreshon.
'Each one is at least comparable to a great monster.'
Of course, dealing with them would be much more difficult. Unlike monsters with known strategies, these shadow beasts were completely unknown. It was obvious that they would be strong and agile, making them challenging even for Masters.
"Formation! In the High Wind style!"
At Krein's command, the Wind Light Palace swordsmen formed a small wind formation in front of the statue of the five heroes.
"Are you going to opt for a defensive battle? It's not a bad choice, but how long can you hold out?"
As Foreshon struck his staff downwards with a mocking smile, the shadow beasts he had summoned simultaneously sank into the ground. Emerging right in front of the statue, they bared their sharp teeth towards the necks of the Wind Light Palace swordsmen.
The Wind Light Palace swordsmen attacked with their sword techniques without hesitation.
The shadow beasts couldn't withstand the wind-energy-infused sword strikes and melted into a black mist.
"Hmph!"
As if Foreshon had anticipated this situation, he moved his staff, and the beasts that had been cut by the wind blades revived, opening their jet-black mouths again.
"We'll kill them again!"
Krein, also unfazed, cut down the revived shadow beasts.
"How about this?"
As Foreshon raised his fingers, condensed black demonic energy shot from the tip of his staff towards the statue. Just as the dark magic was about to erase both the hero statue and the silver sphere, Dorian jumped from within the sword formation. He swung his sword downwards, launching himself at the demonic energy to prevent the swordsmen from being injured.
Dorian's sword strike, infused with insight, split the center of the dark magic, even calming the explosion of demonic energy.
"Ugh..."
However, he seemed exhausted just from that, with his hands trembling and drool dripping from his mouth.
"Well done!"
Krein patted Dorian on the back, saying it was impressive just to have held out.
"You have some skill worth mentioning. But it's still irrelevant."
Foreshon frowned and revived the beasts again, pressing the Wind Light Palace.
"Whether it's significant or not, we'll have to see it through to the end!"
Krein snorted, saying they could come as much as they wanted.
"Alright. I'll show you your end."
As Foreshon's demonic energy exploded and the Wind Light Palace swordsmen's sword strikes flashed, a war of attrition began between the two forces.
* * *
"Hmm..."
Foreshon frowned as he watched the Wind Light Palace swordsmen desperately protecting the sphere.
'This is taking longer than I expected.'
He thought he could subdue the Wind Light Palace in about 10 minutes, but those youngsters were supporting each other, blocking both the beasts' charges and his magic.
Their mental fortitude, physical endurance, and practical experience were superior to their raw power.
'Is the energy contained in the sphere getting stronger?'
The artifact they were currently protecting had the power to erase Montiro's barrier. It seemed that the time for the barrier to break was not far off.
'I have no choice.'
If Montiro's barrier broke, many things would collapse. He had to take that sphere away, even if he had to move directly. Foreshon shook his head and struck the ground with his staff. The demonic energy surrounding him became thicker, spreading a black darkness in which not an inch ahead could be seen.
"Stay focused! We win if we just hold out!"
Krein encouraged the swordsmen, shouting that they shouldn't abandon their positions under any circumstances.
"Ugh..."
On the other hand, Dorian was trembling not only in his hands but also in his legs, as if he was feeling fear in the darkness.
'This should be easy enough.'
Foreshon licked his lips as he watched the Wind Light Palace swordsmen trembling in the darkness.
'It's impossible for them to kill me anyway.'
Against an opponent who has deployed an obsidian barrier, one's only weakness is in one place. No, they wouldn't even be able to find him in this darkness, let alone hit his weakness, so breaking the sphere would be as easy as eating cold porridge.
'Hmph.'
Foreshon chuckled as he looked at the green-haired swordsman with puffy cheeks.
'If the strongest one looks like that, this fight is already over.'
His ability to block his demonic energy was decent, but he was too scared, reacting slowly. He had never seen such a pathetic type before. Foreshon moved through the darkness, digging behind the statue. Taking advantage of the moment when the Wind Light Palace swordsmen were cutting down the beasts, he reached for the silver sphere buried in the ground.
Just when he thought it was perfect and was about to destroy the silver sphere, a blade glowing with blue light pierced his flesh.
'It's impressive that you noticed me, but something like that won't cut... Gah!'
Foreshon revealed his true form and coughed up black blood. He let out a dull groan as he looked at the sword that had pierced above his left knee.
"What is this...?"
In this state, his only weakness was the thigh above his left knee. Like a dragon's reverse scale. He couldn't understand how they had managed to stab such a small area.
"I... was waiting for you."
The green-haired swordsman who had seemed the strongest, but also the most scared among the Wind Light Palace swordsmen, shook his head, with tears running down his face.
"You... were acting from the beginning..."
Foreshon collapsed with a shocked expression on his face, as if he realized he had been tricked by Dorian's act. As his body sank into the black demonic energy, red blood gushed out. With Foreshon's death, the shadow beasts lost their power and melted into black mist.
"Hah..."
Dorian exhaled deeply and collapsed on the spot.
"Hey! What did you do?"
Krein approached Dorian with wide eyes, as if he couldn't believe it.
"Dorian!"
"Did you really kill that old man?"
"What happened?"
The other Wind Light Palace swordsmen also rushed towards Dorian, shouting in amazement.
"I... read him..."
Dorian shook his head, taking a deep breath.
"Just as we were fighting, that guy was also getting impatient."
It seemed that the effect of enduring Raon's infernal training had paid off, as Foreshon was disconcerted by his unwavering resistance and decided to move himself. As soon as he realized this, Dorian maximized his Mind's Eye to read the man's psychology.
The place where the vanished Foreshon would appear was obviously in front of the sphere, and by understanding his movements, Dorian was able to finish him off by stabbing not the human weak points like the neck, head, or heart, but the thigh a span above the left knee that he was trying so hard to protect.
"So you were really acting?"
"Acting my ass..."
Dorian shook his head coldly.
"I really thought I was going to die from so much trembling! Look! I'm still trembling!"
He pointed to his hands and legs that were still shaking.
"Then how?"
"Because I saw Rensia."
Dorian clenched his trembling hands into fists.
"If I can't move after seeing that girl, I have no right to wield a sword."
He nodded, saying that was the only thing that moved him.
"Oh! Dorian, you look pretty cool?"
Krein smiled and grasped Dorian's shoulder tightly.
"Now that I look at you, maybe you're more suited to be a swordsman than a merchant."
"I've been a swordsman all along."
"Huh? Weren't you a quartermaster?"
"I feel good, but bad..."
* * *
Runaan and Martha were pushed back, rolling on the ground.
"What the hell! Did those guys get stronger?"
Martha gritted her teeth in disbelief.
"Yeah..."
Runaan nodded, looking at the demonic energy burning from the tip of his sword.
"They've definitely gotten stronger..."
Just as they were about to have a small realization and try to break through the wall, Calob and Felix overwhelmed them with even stronger demonic energy. It seemed that the power they were displaying now wasn't their full strength.
"That was pretty dangerous."
Calob licked his lips, looking at the wound on his chest inflicted by Runaan.
"Same here. I almost got hit despite not letting my guard down."
Felix frowned, examining the sword marks etched on the shaft of his spear.
"They're stronger than we expected, but what we really need to be careful of is their practical experience. It wouldn't be strange if they grew even stronger at any moment."
He lowered his gaze calmly.
"We should finish this as quickly as possible."
"Yeah, I'm going with that plan too."
Felix lowered his stance, pointing his spear towards Rensia.
"So..."
Calob nodded as if he agreed with Felix's thoughts.
"Watch out."
Martha clicked her tongue and took a step back.
"It seems the real fight starts now."
"I know..."
Runaan nodded calmly and made frost flowers bloom around the fountain.
"From now on, I'll be the villain you want me to be."
Calob, covered in demonic energy from head to toe, shattered the frost and lunged to the right. Without a moment's hesitation, he swung his greatsword towards Rensia's head. Felix also intervened from the left, swinging the shaft of his spear that rippled with demonic energy. The blade of his spear was also aimed at Rensia.
Martha and Runaan urgently stepped forward to block Calob's sword and Felix's spear. Their eyes began to tremble violently as if they were being hit by waves. Calob and Felix, seemingly with no intention of diverting their sword and spear from Rensia, intensified their pressure by emitting increasingly dense demonic energy.
"As expected of a bunch of demonic bastards! They act so disgustingly! Do they want to target a girl!?"
Martha gritted her teeth as she pushed the shaft of Felix's spear back.
"It stinks..."
Runaan wrinkled her nose and raised a frost wall to block Calob's demonic energy.
"Even if they've figured out how to block demonic energy, they can't protect everything."
Felix lifted his chin as he pressed his spear against Martha's shoulder, with the blade of his spear burning with black demonic energy.
"Even if you can hold out, the ones behind you can't."
He emitted terrifying demonic energy as if trying to devour this entire space, not just Martha.
"That's right. It'll all be over if we just kill Rensia and Raon Zieghart."
Calob, seemingly agreeing with Felix, ruthlessly poured out the sword strikes. The demonic energy that Martha and Runaan couldn't completely erase scattered around the fountain, igniting black flames on the ground.
"Ugh..."
"It won't go out!"
"Damn it!"
The Wind Light Palace swordsmen tried to help in some way, but the power difference was too great for them to even get close.
"Ugh..."
Rencia trembled as if she were in intense pain due to the demonic energy spreading. Black, dead blood flowed from her mouth, as if the pain was on a different level than ordinary suffering.
"Rencia!"
Martha shouted as she saw the black blood staining Rensia's lips. However, she couldn't get close to Rensia, struggling just to block Felix's spear.
"Urgh..."
Runaan also tried to erase the demonic energy somehow, but she couldn't move properly due to Calob's interference.
"I had a hunch, but now it's certain."
Felix licked his lips as he watched Raon, who kept his eyes open calmly.
"You can't move a single step from that spot."
"Like I said before, I don't understand. Trusting your life to those beasts."
Kalob mocked how light the Transcendent's neck was.
"You make me repeat myself because you're stupid."
Raon shook his head calmly.
"I trust them because they are trustworthy."
"Will that trust be fulfilled even at the moment when you and Rensia die?"
Calob licked his lips, saying he wanted to see what expression Raon would make in his dying moments.
"I only believe in myself. That's why..."
Raon smiled faintly as he looked at the backs of Martha and Runaan.
"I believe in myself, who has taken care of those two."
He squeezed Rensia's trembling hand tighter, saying he had no intention of moving at all.
"Me too..."
Rencia opened her eyes with difficulty.
"I believe in my sisters."
Despite the terrible pain that caused her veins to bulge in her skin, she smiled brightly. It was clearly a sad situation, but her smile was so pure that it seemed to illuminate the world contaminated by demonic energy. Martha and Runaan's eyes, upon seeing Rensia's smile, were filled with images of their childhood.
A girl crying for her mother in a village filled with corpses, and a girl who couldn't even look at the world, held in her brother's grip.
Rencia, with a blue backpack, stood before Martha and Runaan, each carrying their own pain. The girl extended her hand to the two with a bright smile. Martha and Runaan extended their burned and blood-soaked hands towards Rensia's shining hand.
When the three children's hands joined, the burning village disappeared, and the gate of the cage made of blood opened.
The Titan's astral energy that surged up from Martha's fingertips spun diagonally, suppressing the demonic energy spreading in the air. The frost fragments that bloomed on Runaan's beloved sword, Snow Flower, formed a candelabra-like shape, freezing all incoming demonic energy.
“Could it be…”
“What the hell!”
Calob and Felix widened their eyes in disbelief at the simultaneous awakening of Martha and Runaan.
“Finish it now! Before their astral rings are complete, pour out all the demonic energy!”
Felix, so urgent that he spoke informally for the first time, exploded all the demonic energy he possessed.
“I know!”
Calob also gritted his teeth tightly and fired an astral ring of demonic flames towards Runaan.
“Runaan.”
“Yes.”
Martha and Runaan didn’t look at Calob and Felix. The two lowered their swords towards each other as they stood in front of Raon and Rensia. When the two swords, emanating frost and earth energy, clashed, a clear blue light erupted.
The black demonic energy that had covered the sky and earth melted like spring snow before the natural energy that seemed to contain a land of extreme cold, unable to even fight back once.
-
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