Chapter 155
Chapter 155
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 155
Chapter Title: The Third Night (6)
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The moment he crossed the finish line, Park Chan-woo shrugged as he gazed at the flurry of messages overwhelming his vision.
'Shatiros's Shoes. Their performance is certainly top-notch.'
Thanks to them, he had saved time on a fatal scale.
Honestly, it was far shorter than he had anticipated.
Without the 300% movement speed boost and the no-stamina-consumption option, he never could have made it in under an hour.
Yet even accounting for all that, it was still incredibly fast.
The reason for this overwhelming result wasn't solely due to the options on Shatiros's Shoes.
'I poured every ounce of mana solely into boosting my speed.'
His mana was completely depleted.
He had used mana as a propellant.
His agility was around level 70.
Even with an additional 300% movement speed, covering 500 km in 51 minutes was impossible.
He would have needed at least 150 to even attempt it.
He filled that gap with mana.
By infusing mana into his body.
'Realizing the Talent of the Sword taught me more than just how to swing one.'
From the start, what allowed him to surpass the wall was his talent as a Magic Swordsman.
Sword and magic.
The one-of-a-kind class balancing both perfectly.
Naturally, he could redefine the method of imbuing mana.
He learned how to customize the properties of mana to his will.
And so.
He had created magic.
'Movement speed buffs are limited to wind-attribute spells like Haste.'
But the 'Gradual Acceleration' he created was different.
True to its name, it kept accelerating without stopping.
It didn't grant high speed from the start, but by the time he arrived, he was sprinting at speeds his body could barely withstand.
Depending on usage, it ranked far above 'Haste'.
Body and mana.
It was magic that couldn't be properly wielded without balancing both.
'I created magic.'
This was already the second time.
The first was turning Azos into a shadow warrior.
Even that had required numerous conditions to barely succeed.
'But this one, I created purely with my own power.'
This time, the significance was even greater.
He couldn't have done it without awakening his Magic Swordsman talent.
Moreover, creating the exact magic he needed at the precise moment—if he didn't forget this sensation, he could walk the path of a true 'Magic Creator'.
Like Dragon God Sepiro.
Though incomparable to the absolute magic that monster produced, stepping onto the starting point properly was what mattered.
'Too shocked to speak?'
At the destination, Park Chan-woo looked at Gula.
Was he stunned by the early arrival?
"……."
Gula stared at Park Chan-woo in silence for a long while.
The reason Gula stared at Park Chan-woo.
It wasn't because he arrived 'too quickly'.
'His fame stat is at an incomprehensible level.'
The famed knight could instinctively recognize an opponent's 'fame'.
Even after joining the Legion of Death and becoming a Death Knight, Gula was originally one who valued 'honor' above all.
The continent's most praised, strongest knight.
Memories of his living days were faint, but he hadn't forgotten his core essence.
And so, he could see it.
Whoosh! Whoooosh!
The honor enveloping Park Chan-woo in radiant splendor.
A fame stat well over 100,000 even gave the impression of a star.
Fame.
The benchmark for how much living beings revere one's reputation.
Once it reaches a certain level, fame becomes hard to increase further.
Yet the human before him had pushed it to an unimaginable extreme.
However, the honor Gula cherished—true greatness—was far more complexly intertwined.
'After accepting death, I truly understood honor.'
The 'fame' visible in the status window, quantifiable as it was, was merely a fragment of 'karma'.
A small piece comprising honor.
High fame alone couldn't manifest in such a golden form.
True honor was karma itself—the culmination of one's deeds.
Only after death did Gula come to know and see it.
'This isn't the level of karma a single lifeform can accumulate.'
A human lifespan was at most around 100 years.
There were limits to the karma one could build.
Yet the human before him had leaped far beyond those limits.
He bore deeds no mere 100-year human could ever amass.
Moreover, Gula had never seen karma shining so brilliantly.
No one who stubbornly walked only the hero's path across multiple lives could.
In short.
'Impossible…….'
……No such being could exist.
Not even Gula, hailed as a great hero, had accumulated that much in life.
After joining the Legion of Death, it was naturally impossible.
Karma accumulated only as memories of life, from the living.
And so.
"……."
Gula lost himself in awe.
At first shocked and disbelieving.
Gradually, he could only stare in speechless wonder.
Only after death could he truly see it, yet it was the one thing he could no longer accumulate since.
His honor.
He had grown incomparably stronger than in life…….
And mocked the frail humans at will…….
"Won't you impart your teachings?"
"……Ah."
Finally, Gula snapped back to reality.
Come to think of it, the man before him was a participant in the 'night'.
A human, a challenger.
Having arrived within 24 hours, he qualified for Gula's teachings.
Shing.
Gula drew his sword.
"...Let me see your skills first."
His sword mastery.
A being with such honor should overflow with talent, but Death Knight Gula had swung his blade through eons.
His skill was among the top handful even in the Temple of Death.
'I'll confirm if honor matches skill.'
A strange competitive spirit stirred.
An inexplicable zeal boiled within.
Perhaps envy and jealousy toward one who possessed what he lacked.
After accepting death, Gula's honor had all evaporated.
He could see others' honors now, but possessed none himself.
That was the fate of those living in 'death'.
"Come at me. I'll only defend."
"What if you can't just defend?"
"……What?"
"I'm asking what happens if you attack or lose to me."
……Had he ever seen such a brazen fool?
Did immense honor inflate his arrogance too?
Gula replied in a tone of disbelief.
"I'll grant one request of yours."
"Good. Let's begin."
Park Chan-woo assumed a stance.
Gula nodded at the sharply angled form.
'His posture and balance are solid. He has the basics down.'
An optimal stance for wielding a sword.
Seemed properly trained in fundamentals.
'Now, what about his swordsmanship?'
But that alone wasn't enough.
Only a blade tempered by countless battles and experiences could satisfy Gula.
Whoooosh!
A blue light enveloped Park Chan-woo.
His depleted mana was swiftly restored.
Back in peak condition, Park Chan-woo lunged forward swiftly.
Swoosh.
Flash!
Like a streak of light, he closed in with short strides into Gula's guard.
Clang!
The first clash was easily parried.
The level gap was obvious, and Gula's superior stats made the approach predictable.
But Park Chan-woo had also gauged the difference.
'I can't win in a straight fight.'
Of course, he didn't need to win head-on anyway.
Gula had only promised to 'defend'.
Breaking through or forcing an attack meant victory for him.
'Can't pierce him with calculations alone.'
Park Chan-woo cleared his mind.
Entering a state of no-thought.
Becoming the sword once more.
Swoosh!
Clang! Clang-clang-clang!
Swords clashed repeatedly.
He poured everything into full power.
Every strike was blocked, but Gula was equally flustered.
'...He changed suddenly?'
It felt like a completely different entity in an instant.
Pressing Gula with swordplay incomparable to before.
And.
His movements were ceaselessly accelerating.
Getting faster and faster.
Layering speed upon speed, inching closer.
'What the hell is this guy…….'
He's catching up.
Despite the vast gap he shouldn't bridge.
Just defending wouldn't halt this acceleration.
And it wasn't merely speed.
'What swordsmanship is this?'
The blade scattered wildly.
Not even a novice learning swordplay would be this erratic.
Not even a drunkard's flailing swings were this chaotic.
Gula panicked.
He was a formal knight, versed only in prestigious schools against similar foes.
Even as a Death Knight, he had triumphed over countless swordsmen.
But never one like this.
So utterly messy.
Shiiiing!
Slash!
……The problem was getting hit by such a one.
It happened after perhaps a thousand exchanges.
At the end of relentless acceleration, Park Chan-woo's sword finally grazed Gula's chest.
But it didn't pierce.
Gula's defense was far too high.
'To wound me, he'd need at least 5,000 attack power.'
Whether to call it fortunate or not, no injury occurred.
Still, the blow to his pride was the same.
He never dreamed human swordplay would land on him.
Crack!
It was in that instant.
A slight fracture in the bone.
"……Penetration?"
Gula muttered in disbelief.
If damage succeeded despite lacking attack power, the only possibility was 'penetration'.
Yet penetration couldn't be obtained through ordinary means.
Shieek!
Clang!
No time to think.
The human was rampaging like a madman.
'Can't just defend anymore.'
Gula grew urgent.
But no solution.
If it accelerated further, defeat.
He had to break the acceleration.
"……!"
Stab!
Gula's sword pierced Park Chan-woo's side.
Hurk!
Park Chan-woo spat blood simultaneously.
Yet by then, a smile crept onto his lips.
"You... just attacked."
"……."
"I win."
"……!"
"Time to keep your promise."
The promise.
'Ah.'
Only then did he remember.
He had forgotten in the heat of desperation.
"……What do you desire?"
"Stand still for one minute, no matter what."
"Just stay still for one minute?"
Nod!
Park Chan-woo nodded.
…An easier wish than expected.
Even with penetration, he couldn't erase Gula in one minute.
"Hah, fine. Do as you please."
Gula set his sword on the ground.
And truly stood motionless.
Park Chan-woo said.
"Boksil."
At the same time.
Kyuuu!
Boksil emerged from his waist pouch and climbed onto Gula's chest.
Gula inwardly tilted his head.
'What is this tiny furball?'
Familiar yet unfamiliar.
But soon, even Gula had to realize Boksil's true nature.
Whirrrrr!
…Because the 'Flower of Life' bloomed atop his chest.
Gula had seen something similar before.
'W-wait. This flower is the death flower wielded by Anubis……!'
The monster all 'death' minions feared most!
The ability of Anubis, 'death incarnate' guarding the temple entrance.
But this was its complete opposite.
Not death, but life.
The flower awakening life!
In that instant, Park Chan-woo intoned.
"Holy Guardian Knight Gula of the God of Light 'Ahe'."
"……!!!"
"Awaken."
Shudder shudder shudder!