Episode 158: Duel (2)
Just as the sword was about to slice through her neck, Athena vanished.
Transformed into a bolt of lightning, she retreated far back before returning to her original form.
It was then that Athena felt a sharp sting on her neck.
When she touched it with her fingers, a faint trace of blood came away.
”…”
Athena looked at Damian with a startled expression.
She thought she had dodged completely, but she had been just a fraction too slow.
“Wow, did you see that? Lady Athena is wielding lightning power!”
The mercenaries erupted in cheers. The exchange they had just witnessed was enough to excite them.
“When did she become so adept at using lightning like that?”
“It’s incredible. It’s like watching the Mercenary King in his youth.”
Athena was mastering the “Thunderous Sky Technique,” a mana technique that allowed her to convert magical energy into lightning power.
This power stimulated her muscles and nerves, enabling her to move with incredible speed. By surrendering her body to the flow of lightning, she could move like a bolt of lightning itself.
Even among the children of the renowned Mercenary King, few had learned this technique due to its complexity.
“But who is that man? Where did such a monster come from?”
“Reacting to the speed of lightning is impressive, but how did he deflect it?”
Yet, the skilled mercenaries, especially those of the master class, were in awe of Damian Haxen.
The Thunderous Sky Technique was a mana technique that overwhelmed opponents with its sheer speed and destructive power.
Damian Haxen had nullified all of that in an instant.
“As expected, you dodged it.”
Damian Haxen spoke to Athena.
Being the subject of his appraisal, Athena couldn’t help but smile.
“You’re interesting.”
Most of her previous opponents couldn’t even react to her attacks.
But not only did he react, he counterattacked.
“My instincts were right. This is a score.”
A smile spread across Athena’s lips, both alluring and somehow joyful.
Damian Haxen rested his sword on his shoulder, looking at Athena with a crooked gaze.
“You keep talking about scores and points. What exactly are you scoring?”
“I can’t tell you now. I’ll let you know when it’s over.”
The wound on her neck had already healed completely.
All the children of the Mercenary King possessed such rapid recovery abilities. However, they couldn’t regenerate from severe injuries like fractures or deep cuts instantly.
“Now that I know you’re no pushover…”
Athena drew more lightning power. White currents enveloped her body, soaring into the sky.
“I won’t let my guard down anymore.”
Athena launched herself at Damian Haxen, thrusting her spear.
Transformed into lightning, her spear was so fast it was impossible to track with the naked eye or even by sound.
Yet Damian blocked it effortlessly with his blade.
Athena wasn’t surprised. She expected no less from Damian Haxen.
She continued to swing her spear at him, and Damian met her attacks head-on.
Spear and sword clashed repeatedly in mid-air, sparks flying with each collision.
“Impressive, but you won’t be able to keep blocking forever.”
Athena drew even more lightning power.
Her spear thrusts became faster, appearing as if multiple spears were being launched simultaneously.
“What? How…?”
“How is he blocking all of that?”
The mercenaries’ faces slowly filled with shock.
Damian Haxen was deflecting every single one of those countless attacks.
Using the blade, the hilt, and even the pommel of his sword.
Athena hadn’t landed a single effective strike.
She was just as taken aback.
She had intended to overwhelm Damian Haxen with her attacks, but he blocked them all.
It felt as if he could read her mind.
“You’re really something.”
Her initial surprise quickly turned into childlike delight.
Athena was born with overwhelming talent. She had never found a true rival.
Her peers were far weaker, and those much stronger were quickly surpassed.
To her, others seemed like mere beasts. Only her father was different.
But today, she had met another “person.” Damian Haxen.
“It’s been so long since I’ve had this much fun. So… can I get a little rougher?”
Athena’s movements changed.
She transformed into lightning, wrapping around Damian.
With each move, afterimages of lightning formed around him.
When the number reached ten, the afterimages charged at Damian Haxen.
Though they had no physical force, they were made of lightning, capable of electrocuting with the slightest touch.
“What a troublesome technique.”
Muttering to himself, Damian Haxen swung his sword at the afterimages.
‘Looks like this is it.’
Athena felt a pang of regret.
The afterimages were designed to explode with lightning when cut.
In other words, Damian Haxen’s chosen method of countering them was incorrect.
Just as Athena made this judgment, something unexpected happened.
The afterimages Damian cut did not explode but dissipated into the air.
”…What?”
She hadn’t seen wrong. The afterimages he cut did not explode.
He had sliced through the center of the afterimages so precisely that the lightning dispersed without detonating.
”…Wow.”
A smile spread across Athena’s lips.
She had never encountered anyone who could fight her like this. Her heart swelled with joy.
She wanted to continue enjoying this as long as possible. It was the first time she could go all out against someone.
But this battle was about her father’s honor. She had to end it and claim victory.
Athena prepared her final technique.
Gripping her spear with both hands, she infused it with lightning power. The spear glowed red-hot, saturated with energy.
“This is the end.”
Athena thrust her spear. The compressed lightning within the weapon was unleashed in an instant.
Final Technique - Thunderous Annihilation.
The released lightning split into six bolts, converging on Damian. Each bolt carried immense power.
Just as she was certain of her victory, Athena saw it.
Damian Haxen’s entire body glowed red. At the same time, his form vanished.
The first time she blinked, the six bolts of lightning had become four.
The second time she blinked, the four bolts had become two.
The third time she blinked, there were no bolts left.
Instead, Damian Haxen stood right in front of her.
Despite her heightened senses from the lightning power, she hadn’t noticed his approach.
Before she could counter, Damian Haxen brought his sword down.
‘Remarkable.’
As he parried Athena’s attacks, that was the emotion Damian felt.
Of course, compared to the past, there were many areas for improvement. But considering her young age, her skill was terrifying.
‘Her eyes are just like in my past life.’
Athena’s eyes sparkled as if they held stars.
Looking into those eyes brought back memories of the past.
And it was painful.
Damian carried guilt for all the people he had driven into misfortune.
He wanted to atone for everyone who had died by his hand.
Strictly speaking, it wasn’t Damian’s fault.
As a Death Knight, he had lost control of his body, a slave to Dorgo’s commands.
But even knowing that, Damian’s heart found no peace.
‘Athena Hopper, you lost everything because of me.’
She, who would become the second Mercenary King, lost her father because of Damian.
She sought revenge but failed because of him.
And that wasn’t all. She was captured by Rubia, the one who destroyed the mercenary group, and suffered unspeakable humiliation before losing her life.
It wasn’t hard to imagine how bitter she must have felt at the moment of her death.
Damian had been in a similar situation.
One of the reasons Damian sought out the Fafnir Mercenary Group was his desire to atone to her.
“This is the end.”
Athena thrust her spear.
Five bolts of thunder converged on Damian. He briefly marveled at the powerful technique.
‘You’ve shown me something impressive, so let me teach you a lesson.’
Damian activated the Berserk Light Technique. His body glowed as his physical abilities surged.
He took a step forward, accelerating explosively, slicing through one of the bolts with his sword.
The lightning, which should have torn the ground apart, vanished into nothingness.
Damian advanced, cutting through the remaining bolts in succession. When all the lightning had disappeared, he stood before Athena.
He brought his sword down towards her.
But he stopped just before it could slice her neck. The blade halted beside her throat.
In that moment, a heavy silence enveloped the world.
Damian withdrew his sword and spoke to Athena.
“I win. Do you concede?”
Athena nodded blankly.
As Damian Haxen’s victory was confirmed, the mercenaries erupted in cheers.
Even as an outsider, the move Demian displayed at the end was enough to electrify the mercenaries.
Demian sheathed his sword, basking in the mercenaries’ cheers.
“Every time I see them, I’m impressed. What an extraordinary band of mercenaries.”
Just from their voices, one could tell how rigorously trained they were.
Suddenly, Demian noticed Athena’s face turning a deep shade of red.
Is she unwell? She couldn’t have been injured, could she?
As Demian looked at Athena with a puzzled expression, she muttered softly.
“Perfect… score…”
“What are you talking about?”
“How could I possibly say that out loud!”
With a high-pitched scream, Athena spun around and fled.
“This version of Athena seems to have some mental issues,” Demian muttered, shaking his head in disbelief.
Amidst the cheers, the Mercenary King was too stunned to speak.
“Athena… my greatest masterpiece… lost?”
The Mercenary King was well aware of his lineage.
A dragon.
The pinnacle of all living creatures under the sky.
His father, now long vanished, was one of those majestic beings.
Thus, the Mercenary King took immense pride in his bloodline.
He had gathered the most exceptional among his descendants and named them the “Sacred Blood.”
Yet, those very descendants he took such pride in had been defeated by a single man.
“This… this can’t be happening… it shouldn’t happen…”
The emotions swirling within the Mercenary King were complex.
He was shocked, astounded. Then, anger began to rise.
“Demian Haxen… you wretched…”
But the final emotion that surfaced was entirely unexpected.
”…I want him.”
Desire.
A longing to possess that boundless talent surged within him.
He had never imagined wanting a man, not like this.
The desire grew rapidly, swelling like a snowball, beyond even the Mercenary King’s control.
Dragons were inherently creatures of obsessive possessiveness. The Mercenary King, having inherited that blood, was no exception.
“How can I bring him into the mercenary band…?”
Considering Demian Haxen’s personality, he wouldn’t be easily swayed.
“Isn’t there a good way to do this?”
The Mercenary King stroked his chin, deep in thought.
“Ah, yes. There’s that.”
A sly smile crept across his lips.
Perhaps due to his youthful appearance, he looked like a mischievous boy plotting a prank.
At that moment, there was another person who had taken an interest in Demian Haxen.
Rubia.
The favored consort of the Mercenary King cast a peculiar gaze toward Demian Haxen.
“A genius surpassing the dragon’s lineage? Is such a thing even possible?”
She had approached the Mercenary King, drawn by the allure of dragon blood.
With dragons now vanished, the Mercenary King was the only one left with their blood.
Thus, the value of his lineage was immense. It was enough to lure numerous dark sorcerers from Pandemonium.
“At first, I thought he was just a madman…”
But with such skill, the story changed.
“He mentioned searching for a remarkable soul to create a Death Knight, didn’t he?”
He was traveling the continent, seeking a soul worthy of crafting a Death Knight that could lead any war to victory.
Offering a soul that satisfied him would surely earn immense favor.
Perhaps she could even learn dark magic surpassing her master’s.
“Handling a man… that’s easy for me.”
Desire flickered in Rubia’s eyes.