How much time had passed?
When the sun hung high in the sky, the battlefield had been so fierce that blood splattered everywhere. But as dusk fell and twilight cast its dim veil, the chaos gradually began to subside. The blood that had soared into the air now soaked the earth, flowing like rivers. Those who had shouted and fought with all their might lay scattered across the plains, cold and lifeless, friend and foe alike.
As the battle edged toward its end, only three remained: the pursuer, the pursued, and the rescuer.
At this point, Han So-young was another who played the role of rescuer alongside Kim Soo-hyun. After Kim Soo-hyun left, she hadn’t retreated with the group but quietly slipped away alone to return to the battlefield. She had kept silent then, not wanting to hold Soo-hyun back, but she never intended to escape so easily on her own.
Because Han So-young was, after all, a lord of her own clan.
Perhaps fortune favored her, but after wandering through the chaos, she managed to find part of the Istantel Low Clan and summoned the queen’s forces to rescue them.
They immediately headed north, but even after successfully regrouping, safety was far from guaranteed. Whenever they saw allied forces fleeing from the enemy, they rescued them; when enemies swarmed to encircle them, they fled swiftly. They judged a full-scale battle impossible and instead operated the unit in a guerrilla-style hit-and-run fashion.
After a long time of weaving through the battlefield, striking and retreating repeatedly, Han So-young finally found a moment to catch her breath.
By then, about five or six hundred followers trailed behind her—half of them rescued allies. For the Istantel Low Clan, which once boasted over a thousand members in a single clan, this was a pitifully small procession. Yet, given the circumstances, gathering even this many was a testament to Han So-young’s skill.
As she caught her ragged breath and scanned her surroundings, a flicker of confusion crossed her face. A few hundred enemies were hastily running somewhere not far off.
“…?”
No matter where she looked, the same scene repeated. The scattered enemy forces across the battlefield suddenly moved in groups. Some even passed by her own group without so much as a glance.
Watching closely, a sudden intuition gripped her—especially sharp given her heightened senses.
Come to think of it, things had been strange from the start. When she returned to the battlefield, she never expected things to go her way. She had even prepared herself for the worst—death. Yet somehow, she met with the Istantel Low Clan and managed to gather a small force.
Could it really have been just luck?
“No, no way.”
Han So-young shook her head firmly. Unless it was some bizarre priest with a title like “Radiance,” she knew her battlefield success couldn’t be chalked up to mere chance. Besides, some enemies had glanced at her and passed by without attacking.
Something was wrong. Deeply wrong.
At that moment, Kim Soo-hyun’s image flashed through her mind like a ray of light.
Without hesitation, Han So-young surveyed her surroundings and ordered her group to disguise themselves. Helmets or anything to hide their hair, smearing themselves with blood, and donning enemy gear scavenged from the many corpses around them—both friend and foe. The disguise was quick and effective.
Blending in, they stealthily followed the enemy and soon spotted them passing through a warp gate. Their numbers were nearly in the thousands. Near the portal stood an old man with a white beard, waving his hands frantically and shouting urgently.
Han So-young instinctively slowed her pace and sharpened her hearing, quietly activating a translation spell.
“Quickly, cross over! We must not let them escape!”
“Damn it! Shadows again? What? Some kind of spirit we’ve never seen before? Hundreds of them?”
“Go to Satan—no, Erwin—and request reinforcements immediately!”
“They’re putting up more resistance than expected! We’re going to lose them! Hurry!”
Han So-young’s face twisted into an expression impossible to describe. Her sharp mind pieced together the situation from just those few words.
For some reason, the enemy had realized that the group with the psychic had fled and were now trying to pursue them. The mention of shadows and spirits confirmed it. A fierce battle was likely raging even now.
As this thought settled, a deep conflict flickered across Han So-young’s face. As she’d said before, her force numbered only about five or six hundred—wounded and constantly on the run.
To be blunt, the enemy’s attention was elsewhere. If they retreated now, there was a good chance they could slip away.
Of course, there was another option. If they could break through to the warp gate, they could close the distance quickly and join the group protecting the unconscious psychic, aiding their escape.
But she knew that was just a desperate rationalization.
Only one thing held her back.
“Please… I value my brother’s life more than my own.”
“If he dies again… I won’t be able to bear it. I might go mad and follow him in death.”
Those heartfelt words she’d overheard earlier clung to her feet like chains.
Then—
“Hey, you there! What are you waiting for? Move it!”
A booming shout rang out from ahead, and Han So-young’s resolve hardened almost instinctively.
While everyone else hesitated, she calmly raised her hand.
“Round House.”
Her tightly pressed lips parted softly.
Without another moment’s hesitation, Han So-young pushed off the ground and plunged into the warp gate.
Meanwhile, at the same time—
Kim Soo-hyun, flying swiftly through the air, suddenly faced a dozen or so winged demons approaching head-on. Judging by their wings, they were at least mid-level demons. But Soo-hyun, busy searching for the source after the rescue, lazily extended his blade.
The enemies screamed fiercely, baring sharp teeth, but a dazzling flash of steel passed between them. Within a second, five of the lead demons suddenly collapsed, plummeting to the ground. Half of the attackers were wiped out in a blink.
With no time to deal with the rest, Soo-hyun didn’t slow his flight.
Then, suddenly, a terrifying gust of wind surged from below, carrying a deadly intent. Reflexively, Soo-hyun spun his body and swung his blade.
Kraaang!
A piercing metallic clang rang in his ears.
Soo-hyun glanced at what he’d just deflected and swallowed in surprise.
“Eldora?”
Eldora was thrown back through the air but kept her gaze fixed on Soo-hyun, eyes burning with hatred. More surprising than her sudden appearance was the fact she was still alive.
“This is… quite unexpected.”
At that moment, a majestic and beautiful voice echoed from somewhere nearby. Straightening up quickly, Soo-hyun looked down and gasped. Hundreds of users had already taken aim with bows from the ground.
And that wasn’t all. Whether they had arrived earlier or not, a force of over ten thousand was steadily closing in from all directions—users, demons, even fairies and spirits. The sky and earth were completely occupied.
Why the fairies were here was another question, but Soo-hyun couldn’t resist the overwhelming pressure and began descending. No matter how great a swordmaster he was, breaking through such a massive encirclement was practically impossible. Besides, he was more confident fighting on the ground than in the air.
“To easily parry a strike from Eldora awakened by the Shard of Thanatos… impressive, as always.”
As he landed lightly, a fairy greeted him with a relaxed smile. Thanatos, the Great Demon, and the Demon Lord were all gathered there. All forces except those from the Western Continent focused solely on surrounding Kim Soo-hyun.
A moment later—
“So you’re still alive.”
Soo-hyun growled at the smiling fairy, quickly identifying her through his third eye.
“By the way, why the tone? Erwin? Or is it Satan?”
“Huh? You know me?”
“What? You know me? Has living in a woman’s body softened your manner? Ha ha.”
“Heh. You speak as if you know me well.”
Despite the crisis, Soo-hyun smirked, but Erwin shrugged calmly, his expression unreadable—as if watching the last desperate struggles of an insect caught in a spider’s web. Soo-hyun gritted his teeth.
“Well, this is an honor. To send this many just to catch me.”
“The war is over. It’s better to focus on capturing the king than chasing after scraps. You know that, don’t you?”
Erwin replied smoothly and stepped forward slowly. Soo-hyun immediately pointed his blade at him, but Erwin stopped at a safe distance.
“Given the circumstances, let’s skip the arguing and get straight to the point. If you want my personal opinion, I’m done dragging out this pointless war. I’m sure you feel the same.”
“What exactly are you trying to say?”
“It’s simple. Just hand it over, and we’ll call off the war right here and quietly withdraw.”
“…?”
With that, Erwin suddenly extended his slender arm, palm wide open, as if urging him to hand something over immediately. Kim Suhyun stared blankly for a moment, then smirked faintly and spat into Erwin’s palm. Erwin quickly pulled his hand back, but didn’t look particularly fazed.
“That little stunt just now…”
“You’re insane. You expect me to trust you?”
“You don’t really have a choice, do you? You’re not planning to handle all this on your own, are you?”
“We’ll see when we clash. Come on, try and take it.”
Kim Suhyun said calmly, gripping the spear in his left hand tightly. His confidence was unmistakable—this wasn’t just bravado. Surrounded as he was, most would feel intimidated, but Suhyun’s expression remained steady, burning with determination.
Erwin observed him slowly, folding his arms with deliberate slowness.
“Or maybe…”
He gave a sly smile and let the words hang in the air.
“You don’t have the Zero Code on you right now, do you?”
Despite the direct hit, Kim Suhyun barely managed to keep his reaction in check. He knew the reason they were surrounded was because of the Zero Code.
Meanwhile, Erwin continued.
“That’s quite possible. Actually, I just got a report. A group, including the Brain Lord, fled north.”
“…”
“But did you know? We sent out a team early on to search for the Radiant Priest who disappeared on our side.”
“…”
“Where do you think that team is now?”
“…”
Up to this point, Kim Suhyun’s face hadn’t changed at all. He maintained the same steady expression, as if daring them to keep barking.
Then—
“Erwin!”
A desperate shout called out from somewhere.
“A message from Melinus! Among the fleeing group heading north, shadows and a new spirit legion have appeared! They’re requesting reinforcements…!”
As soon as Kim Suhyun heard this, his eyebrows twitched sharply. The words he’d thought were just probing turned out to be true.
Erwin caught the subtle shift in that instant. He glanced sideways, then unfolded his arms and spoke.
“That’s what they say… What will you do?”
It wasn’t so much a question as a near-command.
A cold silence fell.
But moments later, Kim Suhyun’s eyes flickered violently, and then a vacant, almost hopeless look settled over them.
“…Hah.”
Slowly lowering his spear and sword, he tilted his head back and let out a long, heavy sigh—one that seemed born of utter despair and resignation.
Erwin, assuming he’d given up, lifted the corner of his mouth in a slight smile and took a step forward.
And then—
---------------------------= Author’s Note ---------------------------=
(Chapter 933 Afterword)
Royujin: Hehehehe! Unstoppable battle!
(Comments on Chapter 933)
Cheon Gwang Hyeun: The author seems to have lost their mind now that the ending’s near…
(Seeing this, Royujin)
0ㅁ0…
Yes! That’s right!
Since the ending is finally here, I’m going to show you the side of me I’ve been hiding all along, with the mindset of the world ending! You can look forward to it!
Hoohoohoohoo! Chiki chiki chaka chaka choco choco choco!
Fly, Super Board! Ahahaha hahahaha ha ha ha ha ha!