## Chapter 154 – 154. Wavele (6)
#154. Wavele (6)
The 4th Circle fire magic, ‘Flare Rain.’
A rain of flaming arrows poured from the ceiling, sweeping through the hall.
The assassin tried to escape the magic’s range with their signature speed, but they couldn’t evade all the widely scattered magic. In the end, they were pierced by fire arrows all over their body and died instantly.
The gentleman also tried to block the magic with a barrier, but it seemed impossible to stop a 4th Circle spell, as the barrier shattered and burned away.
However, the bronze-skinned greatsword master was different.
He seemed to have endured the magic with an incredibly strong protective aura.
‘A B-rank using a protective aura?’
Contrary to my expectations, the situation began to unfold strangely.
“Kkeueuk…!! Damn sorcerer…!!!”
Perhaps he hadn’t completely blocked it, as his entire body was covered in burn marks.
But his fighting spirit and murderous intent hadn’t diminished at all. Rather, they seemed more intense than before.
In an ominous atmosphere, steam rose from the greatsword master’s skin, and an unidentifiable tattoo began to cover his skin.
“My name is Predegard Kubel! A warrior of the great plains!! I won’t be defeated by a mere sorcerer!!”
In that instant, murderous intent, as if materialized, washed over me.
I felt goosebumps from the suddenly ferocious energy and the instinct-stimulating killing intent.
Of course, that wasn’t the only change.
Not only his pupils but even the whites of his eyes were stained with dark red blood, and the muscles throughout his body swelled up as if he had been injected with drugs.
‘…Did he forcibly break through the wall?’
It wasn’t just his appearance that had changed.
His martial prowess had also risen to a level beyond those guys I met at the villa last time.
What bloomed on his greatsword wasn’t sword energy. It was a dark red aura.
In this world’s terms, it would be an Aura Blade.
Bang! The guy, who had briefly lowered his stance, kicked off the ground powerfully and rushed toward me.
He flew straight in a straight line, but his speed was tremendous, comparable to the assassin.
It was too late to dodge now.
I drew up mana and deployed a barrier of maximum strength.
Clang! The barrier, upon touching the aura, shattered like glass.
‘Crazy.’
It wasn’t for nothing that knights who could wield aura were said to be one of the mages’ natural enemies. Aura actually cuts through magic.
The guy wore a grotesque smile at the instantly shattered barrier. He seemed to think that the momentum of the battle was in his favor after that first exchange.
I hated that look, but it was urgent to use the recoil from the broken barrier to distance myself from him.
“I won’t let you get away!!”
No sooner had I created distance than he leaped again and followed me. Even though he despised me as a sorcerer, he seemed to know how to deal with mages to some extent.
Certainly, closing the distance is important when fighting a mage.
But that’s only if you know your opponent.
[Thought Acceleration]
Against a mage who can use no-chanting or high-speed chanting, recklessly closing the distance is actually more dangerous.
I cast a spell in the infinitely slowed time.
[Earth of Fire]
The moment the guy closed the distance, a pillar of intense fire pierced the ground and engulfed him.
“Kkeuaaa!!!”
Swallowed by the ultra-high-temperature flames without a chance to dodge, the guy flew backward without being able to resist. He seemed to have defended his body with a protective aura, but he couldn’t stop his body from flying backward due to the recoil.
Aiming at the guy, who was defenseless in mid-air, I deployed magic again.
For reference, even without using ‘Thought Acceleration,’ I can deploy spells below the 2nd Circle at a speed close to no-chanting.
[Fire Spear]
The spear of fire that appeared in the air wasn’t just one.
Five, seven, ten. It was still increasing.
The guy’s expression instantly distorted as he looked at the spear of fire filling the air. With a light wave of my hand, dozens of spears flew toward him, cutting through the air.
“Dodge them all if you don’t want to lose to a sorcerer.”
“…I’ll kill you!!”
The guy swung his greatsword at the spears flying toward him. The greatsword, clad in aura, deflected a considerable number of spears, but it was not enough to block all the endlessly pouring spears.
Bang, Kwaang, Bang!
The spears of fire collided with the guy’s protective aura, causing a chain explosion. Perhaps because he had already blocked the 3rd Circle magic ‘Earth of Fire’ once, cracks began to appear in the guy’s protective aura.
But that also meant that he hadn’t broken through the protective aura.
The guy blocked the attacks with his protective aura and leaped toward me.
It was a reckless fighting style that abandoned defense and focused on offense.
‘Even after pouring that much magic, the protective aura is still maintained; is it related to that tattoo?’
A strange tattoo that glowed red whenever he blocked magic caught my eye.
It seemed to be a unique magic of this world.
I couldn’t help but feel curious, but that wasn’t my priority right now.
[Mega Flare]
A giant fireball, burning and created beyond the magic circle, flew toward the guy.
“Huuup!!”
The guy, who was running straight ahead, didn’t dodge. Rather, he swung the greatsword he held firmly in both hands and bisected the fireball.
Kwaaaang!!!
The fireball, cut by the aura, exploded, and the guy, entrusting his body to the aftermath of the explosion, approached me at an even faster speed.
‘Once again, with Earth of Fire…’
At that moment, the protective aura covering the guy’s body visibly thickened.
“Today, I will take the head of a cunning sorcerer in this place and accept an honorable death!!”
“…You ignorant bastard.”
“Kuhahahaha!!!”
Even though his entire body was tattered with burns, the guy burst into hearty laughter and swung a huge aura at me with a ferocious speed.
I couldn’t block that strike no matter what.
Moreover, there were many limitations to using magic because of the risk of the hall collapsing. In particular, I had to intentionally lower the power of 4th Circle magic.
I evaded the guy’s attack by raising my physical abilities with Diamond Body, auxiliary magic, and skills.
Kwaaaang!! An explosion occurred from the sword strike colliding with the ground, and the floor was sliced like tofu.
“Finally, a sword!!”
As soon as I picked up the sword, the guy laughed gleefully and swung his greatsword at a terrifying speed.
If I tried to block the sword strike clad in aura, Gillemium might be sliced in half.
For now, I had no choice but to keep dodging.
Thump, thump, thump!! But because the guy was running while slamming the ground, my footwork kept getting disrupted, and dodging was becoming increasingly difficult.
‘…First, I need to do something about that troublesome protective aura.’
The guy’s original skill is B-rank.
He’s at a level where he can’t even use a protective aura, let alone aura, but the guy is now glimpsing the next level for a moment in exchange for burning his life.
Perhaps the tattoo engraved on the guy’s body is also playing a role in drawing out innate true energy.
His noticeably rough breathing and the increased wrinkles all over his face were evidence of that. His lifespan was rapidly decreasing.
If I just stall for time, I’ll win.
But I couldn’t do that for the sake of that day that would come someday.
‘Yeo Hwa.’
To meet Chun Yeo-hwa again, I had to defeat the elders of the Demonic Cult, who were masters who could use aura like that guy.
But the fact that the opponent could use aura also meant that I might not be able to defeat them with magic alone.
To face such masters, I needed to raise not only my experience but also my martial arts level along with magic.
‘…The reality is that there hasn’t been much progress in martial arts since reaching the 2nd level of the Imperishable Diamond Body.’
My master always said that my sword energy was half-baked.
But he never explained the reason in detail. Instead, he would create sword energy himself and show it to me over and over again.
As if telling me to notice the difference between him and me.
‘What’s different?’
There was no time to think deeply.
“How long are you going to keep dodging!!”
Bang, Kwaaaang!!
The heavy greatsword, which almost made my body fly away, was relentlessly poured down, aiming for my life.
A situation where even a moment’s mistake was not allowed.
Lowering my body and quickly rolling to the side, the greatsword deeply cleaved the ground where I had been standing a moment ago.
The moment the opponent picked up the sword to attack again, I jumped forward without hesitation. In the current situation where my footwork keeps getting disrupted, continuing to stall for time was not good for me either.
I took a step with all my might and thrust my sword toward his heart. At that moment, Diamond Body was concentrated at the tip of the sword.
Even the surrounding air vibrated, and the sparkling energy swirled above the blade, then the energy that stretched out from the tip of the sword spread out like an explosion.
Formless Sword Art (無相劍訣) Light Dragon (光龍).
Kaddeudeuk- A dragon made of golden sword energy collided with the guy’s protective aura.
The overwhelming power that split the ground and distorted the air swallowed the surroundings, but the guy’s protective aura remained firm.
“Kuhahaha! Kalapatusa!! I, the great warrior of the Kalf tribe, acknowledge this battle as a sacred battle dedicated to the gods!!”
The guy lifted his greatsword, ignoring the recoil generated by the collision of the protective aura and Diamond Body. Madness could be seen in his eyes as he looked down at me.
I had no choice but to try to pull my body back for now.
-What do you think sword energy is?
My master’s question, which he once threw at me as if casually, flashed through my mind.
[Thought Acceleration]
At the same time, ‘Thought Acceleration’ was activated regardless of my will. Thanks to that, my head throbbed, but my thoughts continued.
To my master’s question, I had answered that sword energy was a condensation of energy focused on increasing the cutting power of a weapon by concentrating mana or internal energy.
After hearing the answer, my master passed by without saying anything, but I had always wondered why he had asked such a question.
In the first place, is it even possible for there to be a half-baked sword energy, which is a condensation of energy?
The worries continued to pile up.
It was strange from the beginning that some kind of trigger was needed to reach the realm of creating sword energy.
In the first place, I was able to use sword energy naturally without such a trigger.
So, did I reach the realm through a proper process?
‘…No, I just made up for it with massive mana and internal energy.’
But if you ask if that’s an improper process, that’s not the case either.
Even if the process is correct, if a proper result is not created, it will not be a proper completion.
Even if the process was not correct, I can be sure that the result I created was not wrong.
Then it was time to complete the process.
Until now, I had considered sword energy to be just a condensation of energy. But that was a wrong process.
There was no need to think deeply from the beginning.
Like hunters who exert their abilities with mental strength alone, like mages who use magic based on mental strength and mana.
What I lacked was will (意), the reason why my sword energy, which contained nothing, had to be half-baked was there.
At the moment when the thought was established, it was as if the last piece of the puzzle was being put together.
Crack, I heard something cracking.
“?!!”
Cracks appeared in the guy’s protective aura that was in contact with my sword.
The panicked guy hurriedly tried to swing his greatsword.
Peoeok-
Before that, the battle ended with a sound as if something was being crushed.
***
Tuk, tutuk, debris fell from the ceiling.
It was almost a miracle that the ceiling hadn’t collapsed in that chaos.
Of course, if it had been the Light Dragon I used at the villa, the ceiling would have collapsed long ago.
Sword energy containing will (意), and martial arts.
The power concentrated on one point changed a lot.
“…It’s stiff.”
I lightly stretched and checked my condition.
Surprisingly, except for stiff muscles, there were no major injuries.
In fact, the end was dangerous in many ways.
If the protective aura had not been cracked due to blocking magic in succession, I would not have been able to pierce it even with sword energy containing will (意).
I looked down at the greatsword master sprawled on the floor.
“Are you alive?”
“Kulk…”
“He’s alive.”
He was constantly spitting blood after being pierced through the heart.
It was a serious injury where it wouldn’t be strange if he died at any moment.
“Can I ask you just one thing before you die?”
The guy, who had aged rapidly, looked at me with indifferent eyes.
“Do you happen to know where the elves who were captured today are? They said they would be auctioned off tonight like you.”
“…If you’re talking about elves, they’ll be locked up in the underground prison connected to the backstage.”
The greatsword master surprisingly answered my words obediently.
“…You have a face full of questions. You are a sorcerer, but a warrior who won with a sword. The winner is an honorable person who has the right to take everything from the loser. Answering your questions is also natural…Kulk!”
As if he was really at his limit, he spat out dark red blood and pieces of his internal organs. Blood was also overflowing like water from the vicinity of his pierced chest.
“…Take it.”
Tududuk, he tore off the necklace hanging around his neck and threw it to me with an indifferent face.
It was a necklace made of animal bones. It was quite high quality, as if someone with good craftsmanship had made it.
“What is this?”
“It’s a symbol of the winner. If you meet our tribe members, show it to them. They will welcome you.”
“…Not revenge?”
“Think what you want.”
His eyes were gradually blurring as he muttered, ‘You’re a sorcerer, so you’re suspiciously dirty.’
“…Thank you.”
Although it was too short for a last will, he closed his eyes with a faint smile as if he was satisfied.
But even until the end, he did not let go of the sword in his hand.
I silently mourned without saying anything and put his body in my inventory.
If I left the body where the black magician was the host, I don’t know how it would be misused in the future.
Thanks to this, I also realized how to put will (意) into sword energy, so I wanted to bury him in at least a decent place.
I went up to the chaotic stage. As the greatsword master said, there was a small staircase leading underground on one side of the stage.
“…I’m unlucky.”
At that moment, a familiar voice was heard.
It was the gentleman who I thought was dead.
“I didn’t know you were alive.”
I approached the gentleman sprawled on the floor to finish him off. When I looked at him up close, his condition was not normal. His entire body was covered in burns.
“I didn’t know that not one, but two monsters would come on the same day…”
“…What?”
With those words, the gentleman’s breath was cut off.
Still, just in case, I cut off his head and then burned him with fire for the last time.
It may be an excessive measure, but there was nothing wrong with being careful since the other party was a black magician.
The last story I heard was a bit unsettling, but there was nothing I could do right now.
I went down the stairs behind the stage, and I saw the underground prison that the greatsword master had mentioned.
There, not only humans but also people of various races were imprisoned.
While checking each one beyond the bars, I felt a strange sense of incongruity.
Not a single person was crying or shouting.
I checked the mana reaction because I thought it was black magic, but I didn’t feel anything special.
Maybe they injected something like a tranquilizer because it would be troublesome if they acted up for no reason.
After a while, I was able to find the elves in the last room.
Fortunately, all three of them seemed to be unharmed.
Seogeok, the moment I was about to cut the bars and enter the prison.
Shuuk- Pak! A dagger flew from somewhere, grazed my neck, and stuck next to me.
Blood was flowing down the wound, but it didn’t seem to be poisoned, so I turned my head to check the direction from which the dagger had flown.
At first, I thought it was a guard or a guard guarding the prison.
But there was an unexpected person standing there.
“…Elf?”
An elf with hair and eyes that shone white even in the underground prison where torches were the only lighting was staring at me with a subtle killing intent.
I was surprised by her beautiful appearance, comparable to Iris, but I quickly drew up mana at the killing intent and energy I felt on my skin.
“The sin of kidnapping elves and selling them as slaves.”
With a cold voice that made my bones chill just by listening to it, the elf drew a sword from the scabbard at her waist.
“Repay it with your life.”
She was clearly a higher-level expert than the greatsword master I had just faced.
“Haa…”
My head ached. I thought I knew what kind of misunderstanding she was having.
Maybe the two monsters the gentleman was talking about were me and that elf.
“…Will you believe me if I say that I’m not a slave trader but came to save the elves?”
It was a natural thing to say, but she didn’t seem to have any intention of believing me.
Rather, the more ferocious killing intent washed over me.
No matter how I thought about it, my fate was still fierce.
