Chapter 385
Chapter 385
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: EP.80 – The Knight Sets Out on the Journey Once More (2)
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...No matter how fearless a person might be, there has to be at least one creature that disgusts them on some level.
Some people might despise rodents or parasites, or feel repulsed by slimy, grotesque mollusks.
That's not wrong.
Physiological disgust is an instinct for humans, shaped by one's life experiences and values.
In that sense, Lee Han too had creatures he instinctively loathed and recoiled from.
None other than 'spellcasters'.
These beings, also known as [mages], were utterly repulsive.
How repulsive, you ask?
Believe it or not, a wriggling mass of maggots would look cute by comparison, while spellcasters appeared far more horrific.
...And this wasn't something he could help.
It was the result of countless mental shocks, phobias, and aversions intertwined from living as a spellcaster's lab rat from a young age before his sense of self had even formed.
Things had improved now, but embarrassingly enough, in the past he'd jump in fright at the mere sight of one of those mage folk.
Still, for all his hatred of spellcasters, Lee Han was a civilized man, so he didn't outright 'despise' or seek to 'exterminate' them.
Hadn't he spared that spellcaster professor who picked a fight with him back during his instructor days?
That alone proved he was a fine upstanding citizen.
But today...
'Ah, my disgust is flaring up again...'
The aversion he'd thought cured was surging back.
And for good reason...
"That's a spellcaster."
One of the most horrific kinds he despised...
......
...Squelch, squelch.
"How rude. We haven't even exchanged greetings, and you attack out of nowhere. Isn't that a bit much, even for someone like the Mercenary King?"
Is that a human or a demon beast—?
The creature that prompted such thoughts opened its mouth.
The mage's body, which had crumbled like chunks of meat before Kaiser's strike just moments ago, began to regenerate.
It wasn't regeneration.
If anything...
"These are spares, after all..."
It was closer to hatching.
Dozens of eggs were embedded tightly in the cross-sections of his torn limbs.
Like the hundreds of tiny eggs you'd find inside a fish's belly—those eggs were hatching, rebuilding the mage's arm.
And furthermore...
Plop, plop, plop!
The eggs spilling from the creature's body hit the ground and began to grow, gradually taking shape.
Crunch! Crack!
Tearing through the eggshells were demon beasts in the form of cockroaches.
Even experts on demon beasts would find their grotesque forms unprecedented, and watching dozens of them multiply in an instant was utterly terrifying.
...By common sense, anyway.
"Don't you know it's common sense not to dump weird crap in the mountains?"
Tak!
The knight advanced with an expression showing not a shred of fear, and the moment he took a slow step forward...
Whoosh—.
[Krr!?]
[Kaa...!]
Something bizarre bloomed from the demon beasts' bodies in an instant.
Swish.
Vines and flower buds in the most beautiful colors imaginable wrapped around the demon beasts' forms.
—Lotus flowers bloomed.
Incomparably beautiful ones.
"Ho, that's an interesting technique. Making lotuses bloom, of all things."
"It's not a finished product yet."
The day before, it had succeeded thanks to the holy relic's aid and various strokes of luck, but now it was deployed solely with the energy he dubbed Panya Daesu.
Thus, fully blooming large flowers was still beyond it, but even so...
"Well, unfinished or not, it's more than enough to clean up trash like them."
[Lotus Precepts]
Derived from the Buddha's gait—Lee Han's original martial art
Whoosh!
—Dozens of demon beasts were engulfed in lotuses and utterly annihilated.
It was an overwhelming demon-banishing force that completely eradicated anything demonic, and in the end...
Krunch!
"!!!"
...it even tried to devour the very caster who'd unleashed it.
"Ho, it's trying to swallow the host too."
"I didn't know it could do that..."
"You didn't know?"
"Just found out today."
"Heh."
Even the technique's user was marveling at this newfound function.
Despite nearly being erased from existence, they remained utterly calm, and just as the mage's vision blurred amid excruciating pain...
—Slash!
The arm that had been turning into a flower was cleanly severed.
"Pathetic fool. I told you not to provoke unnecessarily."
"Grrgh..."
The mage writhed in agony, but the one who'd cut off his arm showed no expression.
If anything, he looked like he should be grateful just to be alive.
And with that...
"My apologies. I was late, so this fool was rude. I'll make amends for it, so please sheath your killing intent. We only came to meet you because we need to talk."
"......"
"Will you give us a chance to converse?"
"...Where do all these monsters keep coming from, seriously."
"Thanks for the compliment."
Lee Han shook his head in exasperation.
He'd known there was someone besides the spellcaster, but he hadn't expected such a powerhouse.
'Not a spellcaster or a swordsman...'
A clean strike severing the arm.
What was astonishing about it was that it had completely severed the Panya Daesu energy.
And it wasn't done with swordsmanship or magic— that energy was unmistakably...
"...A shaman?"
Yes, the power of shamanism, without a doubt.
But not the common variety—it evoked the monstrous spellcaster who'd once led the mage tower as its lord.
'There was still someone like that old monster around?'
Archmage Tur.
The blind shaman's forehead gleamed with a jewel-like eye reminiscent of that monster.
"A shaman with a jewel-like eye embedded in his forehead... Right, I remember now. There's a being called the Grand Shaman who has such an eye, isn't there? I thought it was just a legend..."
Kaiser's voice was low, and at those words, the shaman shook his head slightly.
"Legends are just empty flattery. And besides, a great one like you is right here, Mercenary King. I never expected a titan like yourself to be present."
"Heh, hearing that from the Grand Shaman is inflating my ego."
"You deserve all the praise."
"Hahaha! Well said. We get along splendidly. How old might you be, if I may ask?"
"Exactly eighty."
"My elder, then. Shall this little brother offer a drink?"
"I appreciate the thought, but I don't drink."
"What a shame! You're missing life's greatest pleasure."
The shaman and Kaiser conversed amiably.
Chatting and laughing like old friends, it seemed their minds were in sync at a glance, but...
Rumble...!
Krunch!
The intense auras emanating around Kaiser and the shaman mercilessly pulverized rocks and trees.
It wasn't killing intent or pressure—just the clash of their overwhelming presences, strong enough to crush even large beasts into mincemeat in real time.
Mercenary King and Grand Shaman.
If two strategic weapons like them truly collided in earnest, the forest and mountains would be reduced to rubble.
And perhaps this destruction irked it greatly...
Whoosh!
Rumble rumble!
...Dark clouds gathered, rain poured down, and thunder began to crackle.
Vulcan was 'enraged'.
Furious at the intruders trespassing at will and at those destroying part of its domain.
Boom!
The ground shook as if to prove this rage was on another level entirely, forcing Kaiser and the shaman to swallow hard.
"We both agree we don't fancy invoking nature's wrath, right?"
"I'd rather not die pointlessly before achieving my goals."
If Vulcan's fury grew further, they'd face nature's curse—and a harsh life ahead.
Thus, they eased their wariness toward each other, their powers calming as well.
In contrast...
"No rain falling over my head, huh?"
"...That's favoritism so blatant even I'm not jealous."
"?"
"Never mind. More importantly, you're awfully popular with weirdos."
"......Being popular with them doesn't make me happy at all."
Lee Han's face soured at the exchange.
Popular, his foot...
"Being liked by ominous freaks like that is just bad luck."
Lee Han stared straight at the shaman and mage, sighing as he demanded...
"...Introduce yourselves first."
Lee Han usually maintained politeness even with strangers, but now his tone was utterly harsh.
His hostility stemmed from having roughly guessed who they were upon meeting, yet the blind shaman's expression remained unchanged.
Instead...
"...First, allow me to thank you for permitting this conversation."
He greeted in a matter-of-fact tone, showing more common sense than expected, but...
"We've heard much about you from our comrades' lips, yet this is our first time speaking directly, it seems."
"......"
"Hm, you probably know the gist of us already, but I'll introduce anyway. That mage comrade there is named Kudan. He once had another name, but with each death, his memories fade, unable to retain his original name or self—a sinner indeed."
"?"
"No need to understand. It's just personal history."
"......"
Lee Han wondered if this blind shaman was mocking him.
No proper explanation had been given, after all.
...But the next moment...
"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Amos. Merely an old bag of a shaman, but within the organization, they call me [Prophet]."
Twitch!
Prophet—at that name, Lee Han's fists clenched involuntarily.
Surely...
"Correct. As you suspected, I am the one who burned the Grand Temple. And also..."
Whoooosh—.
—The one who summoned the Ghost King.
Bam!!
...Lee Han struck the opponent's face the instant the words ended.
Today, he resolved to cast aside all respect for elders!