Chapter 52
Chapter 52
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 52
Chapter Title: I'm Dying!
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"I'm dying!"
Kang Byung-gyu's mind went blank.
It was a powerful premonition unlike anything he'd felt before.
He had known fear and terror of death, but nothing this intense.
Even in that moment, he twisted his body and managed to thrust his dagger toward the dark elf's face—thanks to the countless battles he'd fought in Heldein.
But...
"Not bad. You put up quite a struggle."
The dark elf seized his wrist all too easily.
"Ah, ah."
It was over.
It wasn't his most powerful strike, but he'd thought it might get him out of this mess. What a delusion.
"If only I had some mana left."
He wouldn't have been caught this easily.
No matter how strong the dark elf was, the heroes' skills were no joke.
But he'd scraped together every last drop of mana to use Light Steps, leaving him without a single shred left.
And now his body was restrained too...
"I'm really going to die.'
No matter how hard he strained, his exhausted body couldn't break free from the dark elf's grip.
"If that's all you've got, just die already."
The hand around his throat tightened.
His sturdy hero's body held out, but that only amplified the agony.
As pain like his neck might snap overwhelmed him, Kang Byung-gyu gritted his teeth.
"Someone... anyone..."
That was when it happened.
A clear voice pierced through his fading consciousness.
"Acceleration, Aura."
Slash—!
Warm blood splattered across Kang Byung-gyu's face.
* * *
"You okay?"
Seo Woo-jin shouted as he saw Kang Byung-gyu collapsed.
But there was no reply.
In a panic, Seo Woo-jin quickly checked his condition.
"...He's fine."
Kang Byung-gyu had lost consciousness, but he was still alive.
His neck was a bit swollen, but no major injuries.
"Urk, ugh! What the hell are you!"
From behind Seo Woo-jin came the flustered voice of the dark elf.
The arm that had been gripping Kang Byung-gyu's neck was sliced clean off, black blood pouring from the stump.
"Luckily, not some monster like Gerald."
Seo Woo-jin had been startled at first sight of the dark elf grabbing Kang Byung-gyu's neck.
He'd even wondered if it was Gerald.
Fear had surged up, but he couldn't just watch Kang Byung-gyu die right in front of him, so he'd charged in.
Yet the dark elf couldn't even block his single strike, its arm severed. Just an ordinary dark elf, it seemed.
"I asked what you are! Some filthy imperial knight?!"
The dark elf demanded, not even trying to staunch the bleeding from its arm.
But the answer came not from Seo Woo-jin, but from someone else.
"The filthy ones are you lot."
When had he approached?
Ludein appeared suddenly behind the dark elf and swung his sword.
And that was it.
The dark elf met its end without even seeing the face of the one who'd slit its throat.
"How's that hero doing?"
Ludein approached Seo Woo-jin, flicking the black blood from his blade, and asked.
"Doesn't seem life-threatening, luckily. Though he has passed out."
"Then we should hide him nearby for now and keep moving."
Bringing Kang Byung-gyu along wouldn't help much anyway.
With him unconscious, they could stash him well, rescue everyone, and pick him up later.
Seo Woo-jin gathered nearby brush to conceal Kang Byung-gyu, then resumed moving.
"Dark elves, huh. The situation's graver than we thought."
Ludein said.
The two had assumed the red signal flare was from monsters overwhelming them.
That too many monsters had swarmed for the knights to handle fully.
But no.
If dark elves were involved, it was far worse than they'd imagined.
"For them to show up this far in... it's extremely rare."
Ludein tried to keep a calm expression, but inside he was burning.
The reason was simple.
"This is the second time already."
Every time they tried something at the academy, dark elves appeared to interfere.
At this point, it couldn't be dismissed as coincidence.
Which meant...
"There might be a traitor in the empire."
Only a select few knew the heroes were advancing to subjugate the Demon Realm.
It wasn't top secret, but not something that leaked easily either.
Yet here they were again, ambushed by dark elves right on cue.
It was enough to suspect Demon King followers hiding within the empire.
"I'll look into it when we get back."
Ludein vowed to root out the rats using every authority at his disposal.
But that was for later.
Right now, they had to deal with the battle unfolding before them.
"Ugh, where's that backup?!"
"Just hold on a bit longer!"
The knights had formed a circle, protecting the heroes in the center as they fought the dark elves.
Eight heroes.
But most were exhausted, sprawled on the ground, unable to fight.
It looked like they'd targeted the heroes when fatigue from repeated battles had set in.
"Twenty knights fit for battle. Against over thirty dark elves."
If the heroes had been in top shape, they wouldn't be pushed this hard...
"Like that one earlier, some are probably on watch, so even more."
At least ten more, it seemed.
"Think we can do it?"
Recalling the dark elf he'd just faced, it didn't seem impossible.
Ludein was here, and plenty of other knights too.
Plus reinforcements arriving soon—it felt doable.
But Ludein didn't move right away.
"Something's off."
Seo Woo-jin itched to jump in, but Ludein's grave tone made him hold back.
"What's wrong?"
"They already knew about us."
Not just the schedule, but the exact location.
Otherwise, they couldn't have struck so precisely.
Which meant they knew about the knights protecting the heroes too...
"They're pressing hard now, but that's their limit."
Once backup arrived, repelling them wouldn't be hard.
No way the dark elves were stupid enough to launch a suicidal assault with so little payoff.
"Feint to draw attention?"
Seo Woo-jin's mind jumped to diversion tactics.
Focus eyes here, strike at other heroes elsewhere.
That could cause fatal damage.
But Ludein shook his head.
"Dark elves in Heldein aren't that numerous."
Splitting their already few numbers would just weaken them.
From their perspective, concentrating for a quick decisive strike made far more sense than dividing forces.
"Then what?"
To Ludein, this screamed trap.
But without knowing the details, he hesitated to intervene.
"Better to watch a bit longer for now."
The knights were holding, though precariously.
They had a slight buffer.
"Then we'll wait here a—"
Mid-sentence, Seo Woo-jin clamped his mouth shut.
Ludein did the same.
Both turned toward the same direction.
"...Demonic energy?"
It was definitely demonic energy.
Not the low-grade stuff from the dark elves.
Far denser, more malevolent.
'Not quite that monster's level, though.'
Small mercy: not Gerald.
Much lower caliber.
If it were Gerald, the knights fighting there wouldn't have mounted any real resistance before collapsing.
'Still strong as hell.'
Whoever was emanating that demonic energy was no pushover.
"So it's you."
Surprisingly, Ludein seemed to know who it was.
"Change of plans. You focus on helping the knights rescue the heroes. I'll handle that one."
"Who the hell is it?"
Seo Woo-jin asked.
Judging by the quantity and quality of the demonic energy, he doubted even Ludein could take it.
No matter how elite a knight he was.
But instead of answering, Ludein shoved Seo Woo-jin.
"No time."
His expression was urgent.
Seo Woo-jin had no choice but to comply.
He wasn't about to troll out of curiosity.
"I'll be right back."
Seo Woo-jin glanced toward the demonic energy, then dashed forward.
'Need to wrap this up fast.'
He couldn't let the reasonable Ludein die.
Save the knights, regroup with them.
'Mana's plenty.'
Seo Woo-jin activated Acceleration.
Pairing it with Aura was more destructive, but mana drain was too high.
He needed to conserve strength for victory, so Acceleration alone this time.
'Should be enough anyway.'
Earlier he'd been desperate and used both, but Acceleration solo could handle dark elves fine.
"Hup!"
Seo Woo-jin shot like a comet into the dark elves' rear.
They were smug, buoyed by the sudden demonic energy.
So off-guard, even he could sense it from behind.
'One first.'
The dark elf finally noticed his killing intent and turned, but too late.
Slash—
Seo Woo-jin's accelerated sword beheaded it in a flash.
"Ambush!"
Only when the head floated up did the dark elves spot him.
"Too late!"
Seo Woo-jin's sword began to dance.
Swordsmanship half-forced into him by Ban Slaine.
Swish—slash—!
With every flourish, a dark elf body part flew.
Screams and shouts shook the forest.
The knights, bolstered by the arrival of aid, switched from defense to offense. The tide turned in an instant.
Leaving minimal knights to guard the heroes, they pressed the panicking dark elves.
The dark elves regained composure and countered Seo Woo-jin and the knights.
But nothing changed.
They couldn't block his sword.
Knights exploited their divided attention with fierce assaults.
Unprepared for the sudden shift, dark elves fell one by one.
How much time passed?
When surviving dark elves outnumbered the dead...
Rooooaaar—!
A roar laced with potent demonic energy slammed into Seo Woo-jin's eardrums.