Episode 203: Duel (2)
When people first encountered Myeonheuk, they often mistook it for a destructive form of black magic.
In reality, Myeonheuk was a curse-based black magic. What appeared to be droplets were actually highly concentrated curses.
These curses would seep into the body upon contact, but even without direct touch, they dispersed into the air and were absorbed through the lungs.
Once a certain amount of the curse accumulated, it would absorb a large quantity of life force and mana, transforming into spikes that erupted outward.
The complex structure of Myeonheuk was designed specifically to kill high-ranking knights.
High-class knights had mastered a protective aura that shielded their bodies with mana.
This aura was so robust that ordinary black magic couldn’t penetrate it.
However, Myeonheuk bypassed this by being absorbed into the body and destroying it from within. It was a black magic that rendered the protective aura useless.
Myeonheuk’s disguise as a destructive spell was a ploy to make knights lower their guard, allowing the curse to infiltrate more swiftly.
Yet, even Myeonheuk was ineffective against a master-class knight.
Even if the curse accumulated within them, the sheer force of a master-class knight suppressed its effects.
Thus, Demian decided to amplify Myeonheuk’s curse with the power of wrath.
However, the power of wrath could only amplify what it touched.
So, Demian waited for an opportunity to get close to Javier, to amplify the curse with his wrath.
“Ugh… Ugh!”
For the first time, Javier let out a groan filled with pain.
The life force and mana that had filled his body evaporated in an instant. Spikes erupted from deep within him.
His organs, muscles, and bones were all pierced by the spikes. His entire body was riddled with them.
“Aaargh!”
It was a wound that should have been fatal. Yet, the unique resilience of a master-class knight defied death.
But it was only a matter of time. Javier’s insides were shredded, and his body was riddled with dozens of holes.
Even a master-class knight couldn’t survive such a grievous injury.
“You… you bastard…! You bastard!”
Javier’s eyes were bloodshot with rage.
Had he ever suffered such humiliation since reaching the master-class?
Fury surged within him. He wanted to kill Demian Haxen immediately. But his body wouldn’t obey.
“You should have been more cautious.”
Demian opened a pocket dimension and drew out Dawn. The blade was enveloped in a cold, blue aura.
“What… what are you planning to do?”
With Myeonheuk activated, Javier couldn’t survive.
But the opponent was a master-class knight. He needed to ensure a definitive end.
“Spare me.”
Javier pleaded desperately.
“If you spare me, I’ll give you anything! My swordsmanship! My secrets! My wealth! My status! Anything!”
Demian didn’t bother to respond. Instead, he stood beside Javier and raised Dawn.
”…Heh, heh.”
A twisted smile crept onto Javier’s lips.
“Go ahead, kill me. It won’t be boring. Your comrades will join you soon enough.”
Demian’s hand hesitated at those words.
“By now, my subordinates will have killed all your comrades. I’ll see you in hell with them.”
Javier’s lips twisted with a perverse glee, his eyes filled with twisted delight.
“Dead?”
Demian asked, puzzled.
“The knights of the Duflin Kingdom were all mid-class, except for Joshua. Mid-class knights can’t handle them.”
Demian had faith in Michael and Veronica. No knight of the same rank could defeat those two.
“Ha, not all mid-class knights are the same. My subordinates are elite, personally trained by me.”
Pride shone on Javier’s face. Demian tilted his head, looking at him with curiosity.
“It won’t matter.”
Demian looked at Javier with an expression of disbelief.
Was it possible that a master-class knight couldn’t recognize their extraordinary talent?
“I know who you’re relying on. That young boy and the woman. They were exceptional.”
A sneer appeared on Javier’s lips.
“But even geniuses have limits. It’s hard to face dozens of seasoned mid-class knights at once.”
The knights from the Apple Kingdom numbered less than ten. In contrast, the Duflin Kingdom had over thirty.
“They’ll all die! Those two brats you boast about, and even the servants!”
Javier shouted confidently.
Only then did Demian realize what Javier was relying on.
He was counting on sheer numbers.
“Well.”
Demian chuckled. To think he believed mere numbers could overcome those two.
“Turns out you’re just a blind fool.”
It wasn’t really Javier’s fault. He had judged based on his own experience.
In his mid-class days, he couldn’t have faced over thirty mid-class knights. So he assumed those two couldn’t either.
But Michael and Veronica were among the top ten geniuses Demian had ever seen, in both his past and present lives.
Their talent far surpassed Javier’s.
To judge them by such meager standards was laughable.
Demian clicked his tongue in disdain.
“Piece of cake.”
Egg Morningbutter, a knight considered Javier Silva’s right-hand man, thought as much before the battle began.
The Duflin Kingdom had brought over twenty knights. The other side had less than ten.
“While Sir Joshua keeps Liam Bluegreen occupied, we’ll clean up here.”
But once the battle started, everything changed.
The knights of the Duflin Kingdom were decapitated in an instant. In the blink of an eye, a dozen corpses littered the ground.
And it was all the work of a single knight.
“Kya-ha-ha! A sword fight! I’ve been waiting for this moment!”
A red-haired woman chased after the knights. With every swing of her twin swords, blood splattered and limbs were severed.
“Aaaargh! Aaaah!”
“Run! Run away! The witch… the witch is coming!”
The brutal swordplay of the woman threw the knights of the Duflin Kingdom into a panic.
“Hey! Where do you think you’re going? Get back here! I’ll let you live if you let me cut off an arm!”
Already outmatched in skill, their morale plummeted. The knights were helpless against the woman.
“Who… who is that woman…?”
“Do you have time to be distracted?”
A greatsword descended from above. Egg barely managed to deflect it with his longsword.
A blond youth wielded the greatsword. Egg frowned and spoke.
“Kid! Don’t get in my way!”
Egg charged at the youth. The greatsword and longsword clashed repeatedly in mid-air.
“You’re pretty good for a youngster!”
Despite his words, Egg was anxious. He needed to deal with this young upstart quickly and save his fellow knights.
“This is annoying.”
The young knight’s expression changed.
“Why are you calling me a kid, old man?”
The greatsword’s movements shifted.
They became faster, more aggressive. Yet, they were astonishingly precise.
Egg found himself cornered in an instant. He couldn’t help but retreat.
“You… you brat…”
“I told you not to call me that.”
The greatsword flashed. At the same time, the arm holding the longsword was severed.
“Ugh, ugh!”
Egg clutched his shoulder and staggered back.
“Another monster like Demian Haxen…?”
“Another?”
Michael Ryanbloom scoffed at the notion.
“Don’t compare my brother to someone like me.”
Without hesitation, Michael swung his greatsword.
Egg’s head flew off into the distance.
“Even if what you say is true… Joshua is there.”
Javier still spoke with confidence.
“Liam Bluegreen can’t handle Joshua.”
“That’s true.”
Javier frowned. It was strange how easily Demian agreed.
“Your son may lack skill, but he has an absurd amount of mana. You must have fed him every elixir you could find.”
The consumption of mana was extreme in a battle of flying swords.
Thus, in a duel between flying sword knights, the amount of mana often determined the victor.
“So I’ll lend a hand.”
Demian used dark mana to draw a magic circle in the air.
“What… what are you doing?”
“I’m casting a curse.”
“That’s ridiculous… You think you can curse a high-class knight from this distance?”
“I can’t cast a dangerous curse.”
Even Demian couldn’t curse a high-class knight without preparation.
But that only applied to high-level curses.
A grand curse wasn’t necessary. A minor curse would suffice.
Even a small mistake could be fatal in a battle between high-class knights.
“It’s done.”
A light emanated from the black magic circle.
Spikes made of aura rained down from the sky.
Liam Bluegreen swung his sword twice towards the heavens.
A massive slash carved a cross into the sky, erasing the spikes completely.
“Huff, huff.”
Liam Bluegreen panted heavily, having just expended a significant amount of mana to execute his technique.
“You’re holding up better than I expected,” Joshua Silva remarked as he landed on the ground. His nonchalant demeanor was almost laughable.
A kid who barely had any life experience, yet he acted as if manners were beneath him.
Even Damian Haxen seemed polite compared to this guy… Liam shook his head, realizing that wasn’t quite right.
“Sir Liam, it’s time to give up. Continuing this fight is pointless.”
Both were wielders of the ethereal sword, and in such battles, the amount of mana one possessed was crucial. Joshua’s mana reserves were double that of Liam’s, as if he had consumed something extraordinary.
“Don’t talk nonsense.”
Liam was the leader of this expedition. He had a duty to protect the other knights. He couldn’t abandon his responsibilities just because he valued his life.
“If you’re so eager to die, I suppose I have no choice.”
Joshua Silva raised his sword, mana swirling around the blade. The sheer amount of energy was hard to believe, even seeing it with his own eyes. The wild grass on the ground was pressed down by the force of it.
Joshua stepped forward and swung his sword. But at that moment, his ankle twisted.
“What…?”
“Huh…?”
He had stepped into a slight depression, causing him to sprain his ankle. As a result, he couldn’t complete his swing, and the mana he had gathered dispersed in all directions.
Liam seized the moment.
“Wait, hold on!”
Joshua shouted desperately, but it was too late. Liam’s ethereal sword sliced through Joshua’s neck.
“The conversation dragged on too long,” Damian muttered, gathering the remnants of the dark mana lingering in the air. There was only a handful left, depleted from his battle with Javier.
With the remaining dark mana, Damian dug a deep hole in the ground. Javier frowned at the sight.
“What’s that for?”
“I have my reasons for hiding my power.”
“What are you talking about…?”
“I never defeated you. You vanished while chasing me, so I never saw your body.”
Javier’s eyes widened as he finally understood Damian’s intention. He planned to bury him right here…
The dawn blade severed Javier’s neck. His head fell into the pit, followed by his body. Damian filled the hole with the last of his dark mana.
“Now all that’s left is to cover it up,” he said, turning away.
Just then, an explosion erupted from where his companions were. The ground shook with a deafening roar, and a black tower shot up into the sky. No, it wasn’t a tower—it was a mass of dark mana, towering like a pillar.
Few could wield such immense dark mana. Damian’s face hardened.
Damian rushed back to the scene. It was a nightmare. The knights of the Apple Kingdom lay on the ground, gravely injured. Among them were Veronica and Michael, bleeding profusely. But Damian couldn’t tend to them.
A figure stood before him, the reason he couldn’t move. The face was identical to Joshua Silva’s, yet something was off. A third eye had emerged on his forehead, and his hair was bleached white like an old man’s.
Most unsettling was his right arm, fused with a cursed sword.
-Oh?
The figure recognized Damian and spoke. It wasn’t Joshua’s voice. It was the voice of someone much older.
-I came because my host was in danger… and what a surprise guest I find!
Golden eyes curved like an inverted crescent moon.
-Damian Haxen! The man who embarrassed Slaha! To think I’d meet such a famous figure here!
Damian felt the same. He never imagined encountering this man here, in this manner.
The great evil of Pandemonium.
The master of the cursed sword.
The ruler of all weapons.
The man who had taken his father’s soul in a past life.
The Weapon Master had descended, using Joshua Silva’s body as a vessel.