Chapter 83
Chapter 83
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 83
Chapter Title: Clash with Gairodeus
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A fairly spacious indoor area.
It was a private training room assigned at the academy's request.
It wasn't all that large, but Seo Woo-jin figured it was sufficient as he took a seat.
"Let's see."
He opened the monster compendium.
Then he began quickly scanning through it one by one.
"Troll? Skip. Ogre? Pass on that too."
What Seo Woo-jin was looking for wasn't your average monster.
At least something on par with Burtel or stronger—a monster or demonic beast of that caliber.
Only then would it aid his growth.
'Derka. Demonic beast in wild boar form.'
It possessed considerable brute strength.
But Seo Woo-jin flipped the page with a reluctant expression.
It was a decent opponent in its own right, but this beast relied mainly on charging attacks.
In an indoor training room like this, a proper fight was impossible.
What Seo Woo-jin wanted wasn't just experience points—he craved real combat, so there was no reason to choose it.
"Not this one either. This one's kinda meh too."
Seo Woo-jin spent quite a while flipping through the monster compendium.
With over a thousand entries described in detail, even just selecting an opponent took a fair amount of time.
"Ah, this one's good."
One name caught Seo Woo-jin's eye.
"Gairodeus."
A high-danger humanoid monster that occasionally appeared in the Demon Realm's Ilverunt region.
Its defining traits were speed far surpassing that of a senior knight and exceptional physical durability.
It primarily attacked using claws nearly a meter long.
Its body was so tough that ordinary swords couldn't inflict wounds, though research revealed that the navel area was notably softer than the rest.
Recommended to flee unless you're a hero level 40 or higher.
"Level 40, huh..."
Seo Woo-jin's current level was 23.
Nearly double the recommended level.
But Seo Woo-jin didn't pay it much mind.
After all, he had even triumphed over Baek Si-woo, who was past level 50.
"Right now, only the elite kids are level 40 or above anyway."
Most were in the 30s, with a few low-rankers still in the 20s.
"Alright, this one for starters."
Seo Woo-jin gripped the 'summoning stone.'
He took a deep breath and opened his mouth.
"Summon Gairodeus."
Woooooong—
A white magic circle began to etch itself onto the training room floor.
"Oh, so this is summoning magic?"
Seo Woo-jin eyed the unfamiliar phenomenon with curious interest.
Indeed, tremendous magical power was gathering.
Likely to activate the summoning magic.
As the influx of mana intensified, the magic circle on the floor glowed brighter and brighter.
Blinding light filled the training room.
And shortly after.
Pop—
The light vanished as if it had never been, replaced by something with glossy red skin that revealed itself.
"Humanoid, my ass."
Seo Woo-jin let out a hollow chuckle.
Two arms, two legs, and one head.
A body structure just like a human's.
But it didn't look human in the slightest.
"Killing intent's practically vibrating off it."
Even standing still, the murderous aura emanating from it made his body hair stand on end.
This single entity's power was overwhelmingly superior to a Drakeas—beyond comparison.
Its eyes slowly opened.
Red irises matching its skin gradually came into view.
They locked eyes with Seo Woo-jin.
It didn't even growl—not a sound—just stared silently.
Yet its ferocious killing intent swelled, growing larger as if to devour him.
"...Most folks wouldn't last against that aura alone."
He wasn't talking about knights.
Even heroes would turn into mice before a cat in its presence.
That was how thick the killing intent was.
Now he understood why the monster compendium recommended fleeing for anyone under level 40.
"Not my problem, though."
Naturally, the creature's aura had no effect on Seo Woo-jin.
He had faced foes far too formidable to be intimidated by something like this.
Shing—
'Rune Dea' slid free from its sheath.
The pure energy emanating from the snow-white blade cleaved through Gairodeus's killing intent.
"Watch your damn eyes, you bastard."
He swung the sword down.
With light footsteps.
But the momentum packed into it was anything but light.
Kakakak—!
A sound like metal scraping echoed from its skin.
As the compendium stated, everywhere except the navel boasted exceptional durability.
'Ordinary swords can't even scratch it, right?'
That sounded about right.
But...
'Rune Dea' was no ordinary sword.
No skills, no aura unleashed.
Yet Gairodeus's red skin began to split.
Kraaaaaah—!!!
A scream erupted.
From shoulder to waist.
Solely with the blade's sharpness, he rent its flesh.
Thin black blood sprayed from the wound, blooming like flowers in the air.
Flowers the color of its blood.
But Seo Woo-jin's expression wasn't all that bright.
'Shallow.'
Perhaps because he hadn't infused a shred of mana?
The wound on Gairodeus was merely skin-deep.
Whoosh—!
The enraged beast's claws tore through space toward Seo Woo-jin.
Snap—!
'Speed's its specialty, huh!'
Its movements surpassed Seo Woo-jin's expectations by a wide margin.
"Acceleration!"
Startled, Seo Woo-jin swiftly activated his skill.
His sword speed jumped to another level entirely.
Kak— Kakakak—!
Claws and 'Rune Dea' clashed dozens of times per second.
'Strong.'
Seo Woo-jin swung his blade frantically, inwardly marveling.
'Burtel level?'
At least that much, it seemed.
But there was no fear in Seo Woo-jin's expression.
No—rather, a smile was gradually forming.
'I really have gotten stronger.'
When fighting Burtel, even teaming up with Rudaine, he had faced death multiple times.
He'd been hard-pressed just to block its attacks.
Counterattacking properly had been a pipe dream; he'd simply waited for Rudaine to behead it.
But now was different.
Aside from 'Acceleration,' he wasn't using any special skills, yet the fight was dead even.
'Sure, part of it's the level-ups, but that's not all.'
Combat experience gained from battling Rosie Ruby.
Evolution of body and mana.
These two had fueled growth beyond mere leveling.
Seo Woo-jin swung his sword with a smile denser than Gairodeus's killing intent.
This time, he ignited his aura.
Elegant blue light soared into the sky.
Slash—!
The insanely tough claws sheared off like tofu.
Shock flashed in Gairodeus's red pupils.
It clearly hadn't expected its hardest body part to sever so easily.
Seo Woo-jin stared straight into its eyes, dragging his raised sword back down.
"I said watch your eyes."
Kaaang—!
'Rune Dea' collided with the crown of Gairodeus's head.
And cleaved right through.
Shwaaaak—!
No need to target the navel weak point.
'Rune Dea,' infused with destructive blue energy, sliced from head to groin.
In an instant, perfectly straight down the line without pause.
[You have leveled up.]
* * *
Baek Si-woo sat cross-legged, immersed in meditation.
It had already been two days.
Motionless, he replayed his duel with Seo Woo-jin.
'Why did I lose?'
Baek Si-woo couldn't comprehend it.
Rank, level, talent.
He surpassed in every aspect.
He'd thought Seo Woo-jin's only edge was real combat experience.
Even that gap had narrowed considerably now, or so he'd believed.
'But I lost.'
In the early stages of the spar, he'd clearly held the advantage.
His sword speed was faster, and while his swordsmanship didn't dominate, it was superior.
'Because of the aura?'
Seo Woo-jin's sword blazing black.
Real aura, not a skill.
Combined with other skills, it displayed far greater power than its base form.
But he didn't think that was the reason for his defeat.
He could ignite aura too.
Unfortunately, it still required skill activation, but the difference wasn't that vast.
'At least three skills at once.'
Was that even possible?
Unthinkingly, Baek Si-woo activated skills himself.
'Flash Thunder,' 'Falling Thunder,' and 'Wilderness.'
"Kuhk!"
Before he could fully manifest 'Wilderness,' agony like his body exploding wracked him.
Mana was ample, but his flesh couldn't endure it.
His hands trembled uncontrollably.
"I-impossible."
At least not now.
'Even after reconstructing my body...'
When Baek Si-woo hit level 15, his body had transformed for combat optimality.
Thanks to the passive skill 'Shedding Mortality.'
Post-transformation, he'd gained vastly superior speed and strength.
Yet simultaneously activating three skills remained impossible.
'Just what trick did Seo Woo-jin use?'
It had started as curiosity.
Seeing a D-rank hero, far below him, one-shot a B-rank in the 20s.
He couldn't help but take interest in techniques beyond their level.
Same with the Gerald incident.
He didn't know the details, but Seo Woo-jin had clearly done something.
It was why they'd survived.
The ruins.
Rosie Ruby.
Sharing disasters like those, his admiration for Seo Woo-jin grew.
But he'd never thought himself inferior.
Seo Woo-jin was exceptional, yet ultimately, he was better.
He'd believed that subconsciously.
He'd never lagged behind anyone.
He assumed the same this time.
But no.
Seo Woo-jin had sliced him with absurd skill.
Incomprehensible.
No matter how he pondered, he couldn't grasp it.
'What method did he use?'
One scene flashed in Baek Si-woo's mind.
The black-flamed aura.
The lofty stance looking down on him.
Ominous.
And unpleasant.
He didn't seem like a fellow hero at all.
'Demonic energy?'
Maybe that black flame wasn't aura, but demonic energy?
That could explain his easy defeat.
Baek Si-woo's thoughts were narrowing prejudicially.
He even forgot the priests of Aier were present.
No, perhaps he was deliberately ignoring it.
He had to, to salvage his wounded pride.
'Right. Seo Woo-jin might be treading a path heroes shouldn't. Probably.'
He needed that to be true.
Baek Si-woo's closed eyes opened.
Distrust, jealousy, envy, rage, madness.
Vile emotions dwelled in his pupils.
But Baek Si-woo didn't recognize them.
He was simply desperate to rationalize himself.
"Seo Woo-jin."
A voice cold as the depths spilled out.
"I'll expose your true nature."
A demon took root in Baek Si-woo's heart.