Chapter 181
Chapter 181
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 181
Chapter Title: Tree and Iron
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"Four down."
The Radiant's neck snapped, and his body went limp. Judah wanted nothing more than to hurl the dead weight from his hand, but with his arm going numb, he forced strength into it, hoisting the corpse up as he spun his body around.
Puk! Puk!
The lifeless body jerked as arrows pierced through it, emerging shyly alongside sprays of blood. He tried to fling the corpse away immediately, but his grip failed him, and it simply dropped with a thud. As he backed away from the falling body, arrows rained down on the spot where it had been. They hit harder than before, burying so deep into the ground that even the fletching vanished. One of them fully skewered the dead Radiant's head.
Thud—
'?'
Something caught at his toe. Glancing down, he saw a small glass vial rolling around—an empty potion bottle. Looking aside, he spotted a man who had just finished emergency treatment, now crawling desperately to escape. His ankle had been severed clean off, leaving him unable to stand or wield a sword properly. Another arrow whistled in. Judah moved toward the crawling man, Yakal in hand.
"And five."
From between the man's legs up to his head, Judah slashed with his sword. Unfortunately for the man, the blade didn't cut deep enough—it would have been more merciful if it had killed him outright. The tearing scream made Judah's ears ring. Blood spraying everywhere, the man thrashed in agony. He wouldn't last long—excessive blood loss would finish him soon. Unless a highly skilled priest arrived or a legendary potion like the <Elixir> was used, there was no saving him. Staring at the sight, Judah kicked off the ground and leaped upward.
"Where do you think you're going?"
"Huh!?"
He had pushed off the earth to climb into the trees, but someone was waiting above, perched in the branches. Shadow Deployment only revealed those standing on the ground. It couldn't detect people on tree branches or anything stepping on shadows—or flying. His heart pounded in shock.
The man waiting on the branch dropped down with a cold, murderous voice, glaring at Judah as he thrust his sword.
"You killed my comrades—go join them and atone!"
Seeing the fierce thrust coming, Judah realized he was in trouble. It was too late to block with Yakal, and his stance wasn't right for dodging. His left hand was still too numb from paralysis to summon Altemia. But he wasn't out of options.
Shadow Heresy Arts 4th Form, Phantom Sword
Judah's body snapped back in midair, replaced by an illusion. His left hand, clad in a shadow gauntlet, extended to block—but in that brief moment, an arrow flew in and pierced the illusion's head. The man stomped on the fading phantom, yanking his sword free. Then, swinging toward Judah, a sharp slash cut through the air.
Landing on the ground after rebounding, Judah dropped Yakal.
No need for Shadow Sword Arts. He swung Yakal in the same motion, unleashing a slash. Despite using minimal mana and a simple action, it surpassed the man's slash by a full level.
Kwah-kah-kah-kak!
The difference between a Spirit Sword wielder and a non-wielder was immense—an unchanging truth. The moment the slashes collided, the weaker one vanished.
"Urk!"
Pulled down by gravity, the man saw it and paled, raising his sword. As blade met slash, the air tore like a whirlwind, shoving him upward. If his feet had been on the ground, maybe—but without wings, he had no way to withstand the superior force in midair. Watching him fly back, Judah's eyes flashed as he activated his heresy art.
Shadow Heresy Arts 8th Form, Punishment - Hound of Execution.
The shadows thick on the ground boiled like simmering water. Then, like a shark breaching the ocean surface, a massive dog's head erupted. Its jaws stretched wide, shadows dripping like viscous saliva between its teeth.
Kaooooo!
"What!?"
The sudden emergence from below startled the man on the branch.
'No, that's not a dog!?'
Inside the gaping maw was another mouth, and inside that, yet another. A horrific sight—not a dog, but a monster. No dog in this world had mouths within mouths. The ascending beast drooled greedily, its shadowy saliva melting into the air before touching the ground. The monster in canine form was incredibly fast. Before its target could touch branch or earth, it closed in. In panic, he infused his sword with mana, firing multiple slashes—but the hound pressed on, even as it was struck and torn.
'Can't dodge…!?'
His eyes widened, pupils shrinking. As the jaws engulfed half his body, they snapped shut.
Thump!
No scream. Just before the hound swallowed him, Judah faced a sudden assault from two more Radiants. Sensing mana gathering at his feet, a hand of earth and stone burst from the ground.
"Magic?"
The hand gripped his ankle, dragging him down. As it held him, a man approached from behind with sword raised. Judah used False Slash to sever the earthen hand trapping his foot. Freed, he thrust his right foot forward, lowered his upper body, spun, and summoned Altemia to his left hand.
"Tch!"
Had he stayed still, his neck would have been severed. Seeing the sword whistle over his head, Judah clicked his tongue at the man, then hurled Altemia to the left, activating <Release>. Red lines sprayed from its blade, slicing through everything they touched—including arrows flying at Judah at tremendous speed.
"Hoo—!"
The frantic maneuvers made Judah's heart race. He'd get used to it eventually, but this was his first time in such combat—a natural reaction. Watching the man devoured by [Shadow Heresy Arts 8th Form, Punishment - Hound of Execution], he muttered.
"Six down."
When the hound vanished, only a body riddled with bite marks and gushing blood plummeted to the earth. Tearing his gaze away, Judah fully turned to face the man behind him. No time to rest. He pulled Yakal back into a thrusting stance. The man retracted his sword, then suddenly gripped it in reverse grip. The odd reverse hold drew Judah's eye.
Shadow Sword Arts 3rd Form, Single Point
Activating the technique, shadows enveloped Yakal's long blade, instantly forming a magical lance. Toward the astonished man, Judah thrust the spear-shaped sword.
"Seven."
It shot like a bullet, piercing the man's gut. Coughing up blood, his face twisted in pain. Then, abruptly, he grinned.
'Why's he smiling?'
The question formed as mana pooled heavily beneath Judah's feet, a magic circle drawing on the ground. He tried to pull Yakal free—now back to sword form—to retreat, but the man stepped forward despite the gaping hole in his body, slamming his reverse-gripped sword down on Judah's instep. Intense pain shot through; Judah gritted his teeth.
"You're not going anywhere!"
Together, then!
The magic circle erupted in flames, exploding.
Kwaaaang!
Arrows flew into the blaze. The fire pillar lasted about four seconds, with explosions chaining continuously. When the blasts finally ceased and dust rose, Judah exhaled inside it.
'…Hoo—'
His mind blanked. His body was singed, clothes charred black. Idly touching his head, he wondered if the flames had burned off all his hair—thankfully, it hadn't. Relieved not to be bald, Judah breathed out.
The magic resistance from the fragments <Carpediem>, <Valentine>, and <Yakal>, synergizing with his own high anti-magic constitution, had kept him unscathed. He wasn't sure if it extended to his gear, but his clothes were more intact than expected.
The real threat had been the arrows. Without Shadow Heresy Arts [Guardian Shadow Wall], they'd have pierced him. Staring at the shadowed wall impaled by arrows in the dust, Judah gritted his teeth and yanked the sword from his foot. Whether from Yakal's [High-Speed Regeneration] or Altemia's [Life Force Absorption], the wound was healing fast.
Judah stared ahead. The man who had shared the fire pillar glared at him in a gruesome state, unable to endure the flames and blasts. Clutching Yakal to the end, unwilling to let Judah go, the man took a final kick. Judah didn't want to see the flesh stuck to the blade.
Inhaling the dust-choked air, Judah looked toward the mage. He couldn't see through the explosion's smoke and debris, but he knew the position. The archer was too far…
'Eight for you.'
Judah activated Shadow Heresy Arts once more. Though new techniques, he knew their effective range and effects well. Shadows rose from his body like smoke.
Shadow Heresy Arts 8th Form, Punishment - Scythe of Execution
Whoosh—the dust blew away in an instant. Above, a black-robed reaper held a scythe like a baseball bat. The watching Radiants gasped.
As the reaper swung, a black line etched across the ground 20 meters away—precisely where the mage stood. Glancing down, the mage reflexively raised a barrier. But something razor-sharp erupted from the line, cleaving through the shield and the mage alike.
The Radiants' skills were far from poor.
They had excellent coordination and the resolve to sacrifice comrades for an attack. They just picked the wrong opponent.
Had they known he was a Spirit Sword wielder with multiple fragments, they never would have charged so recklessly. He finished off the distant archer and the last remaining Radiant.
Shluck!
Pulling Yakal from the pierced heart, Judah let out a long breath. His heart still pounded. But there was no time to savor the battle's afterglow. He had to return to the elves fighting the Wraith Knights alongside the Radiants.