The lycans’ formation crumbled instantly under the impact of the falling ice. Many were crushed to death, and countless others were wounded by the debris’s aftershocks. But the biggest problem was that the order and discipline they had maintained from the very start of the pursuit were completely shattered.
Of course, the users weren’t about to let that opportunity slip away. Seizing the lycans’ confusion, each swung their weapons wildly and charged in, quickly becoming entangled in a chaotic melee.
At the forefront was a towering man.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Gong Chan-ho spun his Surama spear like a windmill, crashing into the lycans. He no longer thought about how to fight or move; he surrendered everything to his primal instincts, swinging the spear indiscriminately as his instincts commanded. The ill-omened Surama spear sliced through the air with a fierce, exhilarating force.
Crack! Crack!
Heads were crushed in a single blow, and even a glancing strike tore open ribs. The spear’s tip, like a venomous snake, pierced through bellies like a skewer. Twisting it fiercely, Gong Chan-ho flung a lycan aside with a sickening thud and a spray of blood. Seeing his comrades’ bodies reduced to pulp, the surrounding lycans leapt back in terror. The chaos caused by the falling ice hadn’t even settled, and now this monstrous figure had appeared out of nowhere. It was no wonder they panicked. The orderly formation they had shown earlier was gone, replaced only by the image of sheep fleeing from a lion.
“Ha ha ha ha ha ha!”
Without pause, Gong Chan-ho burst into a mad, wild laugh.
“What are you waiting for? Come at me! Attack with the will to die!”
His booming voice rang out, his eyes blazing brighter than ever. A faint red gleam flickered within them, as if looking into the eyes of a madman. The demonic aura radiating from the Surama spear intensified, causing the lycans to feel an inexplicable tingling all over their bodies.
“Guh ha ha ha!”
As the lycans faltered, Gong Chan-ho charged forward like a raging beast. With his incredible strength stat of 102 points, he crushed and shattered his foes with overwhelming force. Four or five enemies caught in his sweeping strikes bled out all at once. The electrifying sensation transmitted through his hands kept his nerves on edge, and the battle quickly turned into a massacre rather than a fight.
At this point, one might even feel sorry for the lycans. But the situation on the left side of the hill was no better.
Well, there was one slight difference. While individual skirmishes erupted chaotically across the field, one particular spot remained eerily quiet—as if someone had deliberately silenced it.
Grrrrr…
In the center of a circle formed by dozens of lycans stood a woman, calm and composed. She wore armor that shimmered with a cold light and gripped an ice sword that dripped with chilling frost.
Suddenly, she tilted her head slightly.
“Not coming any closer?”
Of course, the lycans couldn’t understand her words. But the reason they couldn’t move wasn’t just because of the aura she exuded. Around her lay nearly twenty of her fallen comrades, scattered across the snow-covered ground. The scent of spilled blood filled the air, assaulting their senses. Lycans were quick learners; fear, not revenge, came first. The situation was far beyond anything they had imagined when they were chasing down fleeing prey earlier.
“I’d rather they attack… but I guess it can’t be helped.”
Nam Da-eun muttered softly, her body suddenly radiating a brilliant light. Her unique ability as a sword queen, “The queen never lets go of her sword,” activated. The surge of pure, divine energy overwhelmed the lycans, making their bodies feel as if they were stiffening into stone. At the very moment their vision was blinded by the light, Nam Da-eun moved like a flash.
She darted forward like a ray of light and swung her sword. Startled, a lycan instinctively ducked and dodged, but Nam Da-eun smoothly adjusted her trajectory and brought the blade down vertically. The lycan effectively sacrificed itself, its skull splitting open.
Nam Da-eun immediately pulled her sword back up and cleanly sliced the back of another lycan standing awkwardly nearby. In the next instant, she spun suddenly and thrust straight into the forehead of a lycan sneaking up behind her. A neat hole appeared between its eyes.
Three lycans were wiped out in three seconds, but the real attack was just beginning. As more lycans charged desperately, she danced lightly on her feet. Sliding diagonally as if flying, her lips moved softly like petals.
“Direct Cut.”
Her special ability, “Direct Cut.”
Swish!
Her slightly tilted ice sword sliced through the air like a biting winter wind. A faint afterimage flashed, cutting diagonally through a group of enemies before vanishing. Then, a violet-tinged cold light gleamed, and long gashes appeared across the lycans’ bodies, causing them to spew blood in torrents.
Screams erupted, shattering the silence. But Nam Da-eun casually kicked away falling lycans and calmly sought her next target. When her gaze fixed on one spot, her body slid again like a skater on ice.
With each swing, lycans tumbled. Whenever they gathered, the cold light flashed relentlessly. She dodged sharp claws with a slight tilt of her head and struck upward with her sword. When one bit at her calf, she lightly kicked its jaw and drove her blade down.
Nam Da-eun’s movements were truly fluid and natural. Unlike Gong Chan-ho’s wild rampage, she sought maximum efficiency with minimal motion. It was the pinnacle of grace and power befitting the queen of swords.
As the left and right sides gradually came under control, the mages and priests in the center chanted spells without pause. No flashy offensive magic flew through the air; their spells were focused on support. Kim Soo-hyun had quickly relayed the crucial information he hadn’t had time to mention earlier: “The enemy has high magic resistance.” So they agreed to back up the melee fighters with supportive magic.
Of course, not all melee fighters had gone forward. As Kim Soo-hyun always emphasized the importance of keepers, two melee users remained behind just in case.
One of them, Lee Yoo-jung, was frantically turning her head from side to side.
On the right, Gong Chan-ho was rampaging like a fish in water under the reflective shield cast by Baek Han-gyeol. On the left, Ha Seung-yoon was steadily holding the line against the lycans with Ha Seung-woo’s support.
Watching Ha Seung-yoon neatly stacking bodies with precise form, Lee Yoo-jung bit her lip anxiously. The continuous screams made her restless, and her breathing grew heavy.
“Don’t get too excited.”
Someone placed a hand on her shoulder. Startled, Lee Yoo-jung blushed like a child caught doing something wrong.
“I get that you want to fight, but you’re a keeper right now. If you go out there, who will protect the mages and priests?”
“I know that. You don’t have to say it.”
“Then just stay put. No matter how favorable the battle, keepers are essential. Kim Soo-hyun always said that.”
“You’re always bringing up oppa…”
Lee Yoo-jung grumbled and turned away, her lower lip jutting out like a pout, still clearly displeased. Heo Jun-young sighed deeply and calmly watched the left side. Surely, even Heo Jun-young wanted to fight, but he had the discernment to know when to step up and when to hold back.
“If you really want to fight…”
At that moment, something gleamed in Heo Jun-young’s line of sight. It was a fleeting flash, but it was falling at a terrifying speed, as if targeting someone. Realizing this, Heo Jun-young shouted without hesitation.
“Cha So-rim! Sniper!”
“…!”
Hearing the shout, Cha So-rim, who had just skewered a lycan, instinctively threw her spear and twisted her body, leaping backward with all her might.
In that instant, she distinctly felt something cold and sharp graze the back of her neck.
And she clearly saw something glinting, trying to slip through the seam of her armor.
Thud!
“Ahhh!”
Claw-like blades tore into her soft flesh and twisted inside. The pain of her torn skin momentarily slowed her movements. She had managed to dodge one, but she never imagined there would be two hidden blades.
The lycans weren’t about to miss this chance. As if they had been waiting for this moment, they surged toward the faltering Cha So-rim from all directions, howling desperately. There was nowhere to run.
“Get down!”
The moment she clenched her teeth, a sharp, thunderous shout erupted. Instead of ducking, Cha So-rim chose to drop flat where she stood.
Screeeech!
Was that the sound a meteor makes as it streaks across the sky?
Everything happened so fast, and in such a split second, Cha So-rim couldn’t focus on the details. All she felt was a prickling sensation at the crown of her head—something had just grazed past her.
Thud, thud-thud-thud!
Then, in the next instant, the lycans that had leapt into the air with mouths agape were all sliced cleanly in half, their pieces falling apart. As Cha So-rim quickly gathered her spear and turned around, she saw Heo Jun-young crouched low, his right arm and leg stretched far forward. The long blade, which seemed to have sliced horizontally, was embedded deep into the hillside.
Lee Yoo-jung stood there, mouth agape.
“W-what kind of ability is that?”
“Foot sword technique. Meteor sword.”
Heo Jun-young replied nonchalantly as he sheathed his blade, but his narrowed eyes scanned the surroundings like a hawk’s. Though his swift action had saved Cha So-rim’s life, he suspected the sniper attack wasn’t over yet.
And he was right. On the cut surface of the left hill stood a lycan.
Its silver eyes were locked onto the trembling Cha So-rim—more precisely, onto her pale, slender neck. The hand gripping something behind it had already finished preparing a third shot. It shifted slightly from side to side, as if carefully measuring the distance.
Moments later, An Sol hurried over to the staggering Cha So-rim. At the same time, the lycan, having finished its aim, bared its teeth. Its long, fur-covered, muscular arm stretched forward.
Then—
Whirrrr!
Thud!
Just as the lycan was about to throw, half of its field of vision suddenly vanished. Before it could even scream from the sudden pain, another slicing sound cut through the air, and its vision went completely dark. A burning agony finally engulfed its eyes.
Kraaak!
The lycan let out a deathly scream, staggered violently, and collapsed, unable to hold itself upright. Someone calmly walked over to the shattered limbs sprawled on the ground.
“Don’t worry about retrieval.”
The man chuckling as he pulled the dagger from the lycan’s eyes was none other than Woo Jung-min. Cha So-rim realized that Woo Jung-min had taken out the monster that had been sniping at her. Though the lycan’s head had been severed, hitting a target so high up was nothing short of miraculous. She couldn’t help but bow her head in admiration.
“Thank you.”
“Hm? Ah, you should be thanking Heo Jun-young more than me.”
Cha So-rim turned her head immediately, but Heo Jun-young was casually scanning the area with indifferent eyes.
“Looks like it’s almost over…”
The hill was already thick with a metallic stench. Jin Soo-hyun quickly took Cha So-rim’s place, meaning all the monsters they’d been fighting had been dealt with.
In truth, they’d already taken out nearly half the enemies with falling ice at the start, and most of the remaining lycans were wounded. There weren’t many fully healthy ones left, so victory had been all but guaranteed. Gong Chan-ho, who had been holding the right flank alone, was already panting and looking around anxiously, and the left side was in a similar state.
Then—
Boom.
A sudden, distant explosion echoed through the gaps in the hill. The force was so strong it almost felt like the air itself was trembling.
Boom, boom.
The consecutive blasts couldn’t be ignored. Jegal Hae-sol bit her thumbnail nervously and spoke with a worried expression.
“What’s that sound? I only asked for some distraction, not a full-on assault.”
“Do you think something happened to Oppa?”
It was quite possible—no, certain—that something unexpected had occurred. If the main force wasn’t present, they would have come to help by now. But Kim Soo-hyun was nowhere to be seen. That meant something was happening beyond the slope…
The thought didn’t last long. The battle on the hill was essentially over. After exchanging glances, the group quickly formed ranks and moved off the hill. They reached the top of a gentle slope, and then—
“……”
Boom!
As the noise intensified, a fierce wind swept through, scattering everyone’s hair. After a brief blink, the group stared blankly down below. As if on cue, silence fell over them all.
Below the slope, a brutal battle was raging. Or rather, a one-sided massacre.
There were far more monsters than they’d seen from the hill—hundreds of lycans, it seemed. They were desperately fighting, encircling a single point as if protecting someone. But most couldn’t hold out and were being slaughtered mercilessly. Despite their desperate resistance, the defensive line was nearly broken. And all of it was the work of just one person.
Kra-kra-kra-bang!
He swung his sword just once. Only three or four lycans were caught on the blade. Yet the surrounding monsters were caught in the blast, exploding one after another. The air was dotted with torn, bloody corpses. It was almost absurd to watch.
Finally, Kim Soo-hyun extended the sword in his left hand. The tip pointed toward the lycans charging in a frenzy. Then, Victoria’s Glory glowed with a pale light, releasing dozens of blades of light.
Chachachachang!
Krararack!
The dazzling swarm of light swept through the pack, and about twenty lycans collapsed, spewing blood. But Kim Soo-hyun didn’t pause for a breath and pressed the attack relentlessly.
The scene was like a whirlwind. The encircling lycans howled in fury, but each one that charged was torn apart and shattered by the storm-like force. It was a sight beyond words.
“Insane…”
Gong Chan-ho muttered, saliva dripping from his mouth.
He hadn’t understood before, back when he was arrogant and lost in himself. But after awakening to Cheon Wae Cheon and shedding his inferiority complex to pursue pure strength, he now understood at least one thing: just how incredible Kim Soo-hyun’s charge truly was.
Without realizing it, he found himself thinking: “That’s so cool. I want to be like him.”
It was ironic. The thought Kim Soo-hyun had about Gong Chan-ho during their first encounter had now, in their second, reversed.
Of course, Gong Chan-ho had done well holding the right flank alone during the hill fight. But strictly speaking, he’d just been feasting on the meal Jegal Hae-sol had prepared. His situation was incomparable to Kim Soo-hyun’s. Surrounded by hundreds of enemies clinging desperately, he had no confidence in breaking through unscathed.
Perhaps Kim Soo-hyun was thinking the same.
“This is annoying!”
His irritated voice shook the sky. As he smashed a lycan with the back of his hand, the sword that had been pointed skyward spun 180 degrees to face the ground. He slammed it forcefully into the earth.
Kuuuung! A thunderous boom shook the nearby ground. The lycans’ balance faltered instantly.
It wasn’t just the sword being stuck in the ground.
The answer came a second later.
Suddenly, as if an earthquake had struck, the ground trembled violently.
Kkwaaang!
Like dozens of landmines detonating at once, the earth cracked and flipped over.
A tidal wave of energy surged upward, sending countless lycans flying helplessly into the air. Blood sprayed like a fountain, and torn limbs scattered everywhere.
The battle was rushing toward its climax.
---------------------------= Author’s Note =---------------------------
Apologies for the delay—I had to add more content. It’s been a while since I posted at 7 o’clock. I really need to get my daily rhythm back to normal.
Oh, by the way, an interview has been posted. If you search for “Joara blog” on Naver, two blogs will come up. Go to the one labeled “Joara Co., Ltd. blog.” I glanced at some comments and it made me happy. Though there aren’t many yet, it seems some readers are finally starting to recognize me as a male author. Haha.