Episode 117

No one knew exactly when Sherard had made his pact with the demon. But it couldn’t have been long ago.

Once he gained the ghoul-eating trait, he would become a monster beyond anything he was now.

‘Maybe… now is my chance.’

Chris narrowed his eyes.

Beating Sherard head-on was impossible.

And it wouldn’t be any easier in the near future.

But here, on the borderlands?

‘Here, I can create countless variables.’

Fortunately, Chris had prepared something.

A precaution against the possible arrival of the Marquis Langham’s assassins.

A method Sherard couldn’t counter.

‘If I play my cards right, it might just work.’

As Chris pondered his plan, Sherard spoke, sounding troubled.

“You don’t look well. I get it. I’m upset too. I don’t want to kill you this quickly. But my father… even I’m afraid of him.”

“……”

“You don’t know how terrible my father, Marquis Langham, really is.”

Chris listened silently.

Sherard’s voice took on a hint of madness as he chuckled darkly.

“Grandfather has no idea what my father’s been doing behind the scenes. I’m crazy, sure, but my father’s even crazier.”

“……”

“Even I find it hard to disobey his orders. Someday, I plan to kill him with my own hands, but not yet. You have to understand.”

He was telling Chris he intended to kill him now.

But Chris stayed calm and said quietly,

“Do you really have to kill me right now?”

“Huh? Didn’t I say I have no choice?”

“There’s still a month left before the spot to the Dark Maga reopens, right?”

“??”

Sherard tilted his head in confusion.

“You want me to kill you a month from now? What’s the point? You want to live a little longer like a bug? If that’s the case, I’m disappointed. Or should I cut off your limbs and keep you alive for a month before killing you?”

“No, that’s not what I mean.”

Chris shook his head and said coldly,

“In a month, I’ll be the one killing you.”

“!!”

Sherard’s eyes widened, then a slow, dark smile spread across his lips.

“That’s an interesting story. But you know it’s impossible for someone like you, right?”

“Why do you think it’s impossible?”

Chris smirked deliberately, oozing arrogance.

“You know I’m a genius, don’t you? For a genius like me, a month is an eternity where anything can happen.”

“……”

“If you’re afraid to fight the me who’s grown in a month, then kill me now.”

Sherard was silent for a moment, then chuckled again—this time with madness in his voice.

His blood-red eyes gleamed fiercely.

“Ah, see? I told you it’s a waste to kill you now. An opponent as interesting as you deserves to be savored before I kill you.”

“……”

“Fine then. As you say, I’ll kill you in a month. Until then, work hard to give me a good show.”

Sherard lifted the corner of his mouth.

“I’ll be looking forward to it.”

With that, a drop of blood fell, and Sherard vanished.

He had used hematomancy to teleport away.

‘He’s probably watching me nearby.’

Chris let out a low sigh.

‘Well, this works out.’

In truth, even after a month, facing Sherard head-on was impossible.

But that didn’t matter.

There was no need to be fair when dealing with a mad dog.

‘A month is enough time to prepare to catch a mad dog.’

Chris’s gaze darkened.

For the promised month, he would prepare to strike Sherard down.

But there was a prerequisite.

‘I have to establish a perfect foundation of willpower.’

The plan Chris had in mind couldn’t be attempted without a solid will.

In the end, nothing had changed.

‘Get stronger.’

Chris drew his sword.

And so, day after day passed in a flash.

---

How many brushes with death had he survived?

He fought until he collapsed, then fought again.

His body was in terrible shape from repeated exhaustion.

If not for the holy relic he’d received from Ruina, he would have died long ago.

The Cloak of Nine Deaths.

When the wearer’s condition deteriorates to near death, it activates a concealment effect, hiding them from demonic entities.

Thanks to it, Chris barely survived every time he teetered on the edge of death.

‘Damn it. This kind of suffering really isn’t my style. How did I end up in this mess?’

Chris frowned deeply and placed his hand on his wounded side.

A bright light burst forth from his palm, healing the wound.

Another reason he’d survived so far was his medical qigong.

He had been steadily mastering the intermediate volume of the medical qigong manual given by Duke Huam of the Poisonous Maga clan.

Now, Chris could perform healing techniques comparable to those of the official disciples of the Medical Qigong sect.

“Really… it’s amazing.”

Suddenly, Sherard’s voice cut through the silence.

“How on earth can you use the power of light?”

“……”

Chris’s eyes darkened.

Given the situation, his secret had been exposed.

But it didn’t matter.

‘He’s not the type to blab my secrets.’

Sherard was a madman obsessed with killing his opponents with his own hands.

He wouldn’t make things difficult by revealing Chris’s secret.

Besides,

‘One of us is going to die here anyway.’

Of course, it would be Sherard.

Still, there was one problem.

‘Establishing the foundation of willpower is dragging on longer than I thought. It’s been almost a month, and I’m so close yet so far.’

It was frustrating.

To anyone else, it might sound ridiculous.

Chris had been here less than a month.

In that short time, he had made remarkable progress.

In terms of his rank, he had risen from low 4-star to mid 4-star.

It was like leveling up in a flash.

Even more astonishing was his achievement in his aura.

He had reached the very end of low 5-star.

He was now facing the wall of mid 5-star.

It was incredible.

As often said, the gap between low, mid, and high grows wider the higher you climb.

This really kicks in starting at the 5-star Elder class.

Raising your rank within those tiers becomes much harder than before.

And yet, Chris had reached the mid-level wall at a breakneck speed.

Only someone like Chris could pull off such madness.

But he wasn’t satisfied.

‘It’s not just about leveling up fast.’

To be honest,

Chris wasn’t happy with his aura achievement.

It wasn’t a matter of speed.

It was a matter of quality.

‘My aura blade isn’t perfect.’

Not that it had flaws.

Chris’s aura blade was on par with any Elder Knight in the alliance.

But it lacked something truly exceptional.

Like the aura blades of the rising stars—the “Knight of Salvation” or the “Knight of Oblivion,” for example.

Those destined to become top-tier knights.

The problem was his will.

‘I should have established a perfect foundation of will before manifesting my aura blade.’

Chris had reached the 5-star alliance rank by accident.

While researching how to infuse will into his black sword, he unexpectedly manifested the aura blade.

Because of that, his will wasn’t fully formed.

The good news was it wasn’t too late.

Whether as a knight or a mine,

‘I have to build a perfect foundation of will now.’

This was a crucial step.

Establishing perfect willpower didn’t just strengthen his weapon’s power.

Will was the foundation for future abilities—mental control, miracles, domains, transcendence.

What kind of will he forged now would completely shape his future growth.

‘I have to build a will that never breaks. One that can crush any opponent.’

The problem was, it was elusive.

The faintest clue danced just out of reach.

At that moment, Sherard approached with a snort.

“Aren’t you being reckless?”

“What?”

“You’re trying to refine your will, right? But willpower can’t be artificially honed.”

Sherard tilted his head, clearly baffled.

“I’ve never seen anyone worry about the next step before even climbing the current wall.”

He had a point.

No one worried about the distant future like Chris did.

Usually, people just push through the walls as they come, then refine their will later.

“That’s the story for ordinary people.”

“!!”

“For a genius like me, it’s different.”

Others focused only on overcoming the next hurdle because that was the hard part.

Chris was different.

For him, climbing each step perfectly was essential.

‘Honestly, I could just let things flow and still get stronger.’

He’d reach the 9-star rank without trouble.

Faster and better than anyone else.

But that wasn’t enough.

‘Even at 9-star, I’d just be another mediocre demon lord-level mine.’

To face the enemies he would meet in the future—

To stop the coming destruction—

Demon lord-level power alone wouldn’t cut it.

He needed overwhelming strength.

Power to rise to the top of the Mage Empire and crush everyone beneath him.

That was why, from the start, Chris meticulously planned his growth, considering every future step.

Of course, it wouldn’t be easy.

“You can do it. Absolutely.”

“Anyway, just get your ugly face out of here. I don’t want to see it anymore.”

“Hmm. That’s cold. I only came to help because I was worried about you.”

Sherard shrugged.

He wasn’t just saying that—right now, Sherard was actually holding off the monsters swarming around Christian.

The monsters, intimidated by Sherard’s presence, were lurking at a distance, watching for an opening.

So, in a way, Christian had received some help—but he wasn’t grateful at all.

‘He’s supposed to kill me, but instead he’s worried I might get hurt by the monsters. What a disgusting bastard.’

“Get lost. You’re disgusting.”

“Heh heh. Alright, alright. I’ll be going then.”

Sherard turned his back but shot a glance over his shoulder.

“Try a little harder. At this rate, you’re not going to live up to my expectations.”

“!!”

Flash!

A spray of blood appeared as Sherard vanished, and the monsters growled as they began to close in on Christian’s empty spot.

Christian lowered his gaze, eyes sharp as he stared down the monsters.

‘Sherard’s right. I can’t keep going like this.’