Episode 109: A Strange Visitor (1)
The day had finally come for Damian to set off for the Order.
After bidding farewell to his family, he mounted his horse and left Spring Castle behind.
The journey to the Order was long, so he needed to keep a steady pace.
After several days of travel, Damian reached the border of the Apple Kingdom.
He needed to cross the border, but with the sun already setting, continuing was out of the question.
“There’s no village nearby.”
He extended his senses to check, but there was no sign of life.
In the end, Damian had no choice but to camp in the forest.
Fortunately, he had anticipated this and packed his subspace with camping supplies.
He gathered dry branches and lit a campfire, placing a kettle over it to boil water.
While the water boiled, he snacked on biscuits and jerky. Then, he brewed some tea with the hot water.
Sipping his tea, Damian watched the sunset. It had been a long time since he felt this at peace.
“Never in my past life did I imagine a day like this would come.”
Being alone like this brought back memories of his time as a Death Knight.
Those days when he was trapped in his own body, a slave to Dorgo, forced to massacre people.
At first, he tried everything to regain control of his body.
But no matter how hard he tried, nothing changed. He could only watch helplessly as his body killed.
Crunch.
Thinking about the past still filled him with rage. It was as vivid as if it had happened yesterday.
The torrent of emotions was so intense that he felt he might lose his mind.
Damian had to take deep breaths for a long time to calm himself.
“Damn it…”
He needed to destroy that cursed archlich Dorgo as soon as possible.
Otherwise, he would never find peace for the rest of his life.
“To kill him… I need to become stronger, much stronger.”
Realistically, Damian knew he couldn’t defeat Dorgo as he was now.
Among dark wizards, those with exceptional skills were called high wizards.
When high dark wizards surpassed a certain threshold, they were known as grand dark wizards.
Only a select few grand dark wizards could transform themselves into undead and become liches.
And Dorgo was the pinnacle of liches, an archlich.
Throughout history, Dorgo was the only one to reach the level of an archlich.
His power was beyond imagination.
“It’s just a matter of time. I just need to get a little stronger.”
Damian was no ordinary knight.
In his past life, he had killed countless masters and had the talent to bring humanity to the brink of extinction.
No genius born so far could compare to Damian.
He also had the memories and experiences of his past life, along with the dark magic knowledge Dorgo had implanted in him.
Not to mention, he possessed powers.
In his past life, Dorgo had tried to make Damian an absolute being.
To do this, he extracted seven powers from ancient relics and bestowed them upon Damian.
Each power was so immense that even Dorgo struggled to control them.
That’s why Damian could confidently say that with just a bit more strength, he could kill Dorgo.
Not just kill, but erase him without a trace.
“If I can just elevate my current state a little more, Dorgo won’t be a threat. But…”
He had learned in his past life.
Always assume the worst.
Otherwise, complacency would lead to fatal mistakes.
To eliminate Dorgo perfectly, without any risk, being a high-class wasn’t enough.
“A master. I need to reach that level.”
Damian had the heart of a spirit he bought at an auction and the core of a sea serpent given by the king.
Absorbing these would bring him a step closer to the level of a master.
However, simply increasing his mana wasn’t enough to reach mastery.
He needed to complete his own mana cultivation method as soon as possible. Only by establishing a foundation could he ascend to mastery.
That’s why Damian continued to collect mana cultivation methods.
“I need to be ready before Juan comes looking for me.”
Dorgo was constantly on the move, making it impossible to pinpoint his location.
In his past life, Damian had encountered Dorgo while on a mission with Juan’s mercenary group.
So in this life, he had asked Juan to inform him immediately if he ever took on that mission again.
“I will kill him.”
While Damian quietly suppressed his hatred, a noise began to echo from afar. It sounded like a large monster approaching, shaking the ground with each step.
“What’s going on?”
Damian looked in the direction of the sound, startled.
Soon, he witnessed an unbelievable sight.
Trees in the forest were toppling one by one from a distance.
Something unusual was knocking them down.
“It’s coming this way?”
Damian realized that whatever it was, it was heading straight for him.
“Hyaah!”
With a shout, the tree right in front of him fell. Beyond it, he saw a girl and a young man.
“David, see? I told you there’d be someone here.”
The girl turned to the young man behind her, her golden hair swaying with the movement.
Her hair was so well-kept that each strand shimmered as it moved.
“Oh, miss. You can’t just wreck the forest like this.”
The young man rubbed his forehead as if he had a headache. He was carrying a backpack twice his size.
“We were lost, so we had no choice! But thanks to that, we found the light, didn’t we?”
The girl strode confidently toward Damian.
“Don’t be afraid! We mean you no harm!”
She placed her hands on her hips, exuding an air of arrogance.
“Just want to ask for directions! We’re trying to get to the Apple Kingdom. Can you tell us which way to go?”
Unfortunately, Damian couldn’t respond.
From the moment the girl appeared, he was in shock.
‘Why is the Sword Empress here?’
The woman who had vied for the title of the strongest with the Empire’s greatest swordsman was standing before him.
The Sword Empress.
As the name suggested, it was an incredibly arrogant and haughty title.
Who in this world could claim such a title as the Emperor of Swords?
But those who had actually fought the Sword Empress had no choice but to abandon such thoughts.
Her skill was so overwhelming and awe-inspiring that it left no room for doubt.
‘She was an incredible force.’
During his time as a Death Knight, most masters who fought Damian perished in their first battle.
But not the Sword Empress. Their initial encounter ended without a conclusion. They clashed several times after that.
Even when Damian had seen through all her techniques and stolen her level, the Sword Empress didn’t fall.
But in their sixth battle, she finally lost her life.
The girl before him looked exactly like the Sword Empress he remembered. Just a few more years, and she’d be perfect.
‘She looks just like she did in my past life.’
The girl in front of him was a spitting image of the Sword Empress he remembered, except much younger.
“Excuse me? Why aren’t you saying anything?”
When Damian remained silent for a while, the Sword Empress tilted her head and asked.
“Aha! I get it. You want compensation, don’t you?”
Damian was taken aback by the sudden remark.
“Compensation?”
“No need to pretend! My father taught me well! If you want someone to do something, you have to pay them!”
The Sword Empress gestured, and the man behind her sighed, pulling out a leather pouch.
“Here, take this.”
She flicked a gold coin toward Damian. It spun in the air before landing at his feet.
“Now that you’ve been paid, tell us. Which way to the Apple Kingdom?”
“No need.”
Damian tossed the coin back to her. She caught it with a puzzled expression.
“Why are you heading to the Apple Kingdom?”
“I’m looking for someone. Do you know Michael Ryanbloom?”
At her words, Damian felt a strange sensation.
In his past life, Michael Ryanbloom had grown complacent without a worthy opponent and was defeated by the Sword Empress. Afterward, he dedicated himself to training and reached the level of a master.
Seeing the Sword Empress searching for Michael, it seemed this was that time.
“What do you plan to do once you find Michael Ryanbloom?”
“Isn’t it obvious? Why else would a knight seek another knight? To test our skills against each other!”
The Sword Empress raised her clenched fist high into the air.
‘I’m curious. Who would win if they fought now?’
In terms of talent, the Sword Empress far surpassed Michael. In his past life, Michael never defeated her.
But unlike before, the current Michael had awakened much earlier thanks to meeting Damian.
He was growing rapidly, fully embracing Damian’s advice.
“I originally came to fight Michael Ryanbloom, but… I heard some strange rumors along the way.”
“Strange rumors?”
“They say a man named Damian Haxen defeated Michael Ryanbloom.”
The Sword Empress continued with a face full of intrigue.
“That’s not all. They say he helped the Order defeat dark wizards, reached the middle class in record time, and other unbelievable stories.”
“Well, he sounds like quite the remarkable person.”
“Isn’t that right? So naturally, I got curious. Just who is this person? How strong could they be?”
Before he knew it, the Sword Queen’s gaze was fixed on Demian.
“You’re Demian Haxen, aren’t you?”
Demian finished his tea and replied, “You’re quick on the uptake.”
“So I was right. I mean, it’s not every day you meet someone this powerful.”
Demian could easily hide his abilities if he wanted to, but he chose not to. He was curious to see how the Sword Queen would react.
The Sword Queen Demian remembered was someone with an intense competitive spirit, despite her dazzling appearance.
“Demian Haxen! Today, I’ll finally defeat you!”
“Retreat for now! We’ll fight again next time!”
“This time won’t be easy! I’ve developed a technique to take you down!”
She was someone who never gave up, no matter how many times Demian defeated her. She always genuinely aimed to win.
”…In the end, I never managed to beat you.”
“I had fun all the same. I don’t know about you, though.”
Even in her final moments, the Sword Queen’s attitude remained unchanged. She didn’t fear death, nor did she blame Demian.
“I’ll be waiting in the afterlife. Let’s fight again then. Maybe we can finally have a real conversation…”
Before her head was severed, she boldly promised another duel with Demian. It was a fitting end for the Sword Queen.
After killing her, Demian was haunted by a terrible feeling for quite some time.
“If you’re Demian Haxen, there’s only one thing to do.”
The Sword Queen stood up, stretching her limbs.
“Are you challenging me to a duel?”
“Of course. What else would we do?”
Demian burst into laughter at her words. She was indeed the Sword Queen, just as he remembered.
“Sounds good to me.”
He was curious, after all. Just how skilled was the Sword Queen at this point in time?
“Might as well test out some new techniques.”
Cracking his knuckles, Demian rose to his feet.