Chapter 185
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 185
Chapter Title: Not a Miracle
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The longsword that blocked the punch let out a high-pitched ring.
'Heavy...'
Just swinging his fist had made his arm go numb.
If not for Jun's support magic, his palm might have been torn open.
"At least level 7 strength. Be careful!"
At Jun's shout, Terdin inwardly shook his head.
'No... that's not level 7.'
Terdin himself had been stuck at level 7 for quite some time now.
Yet the opponent had casually blocked his aura with bare hands.
Without Jun's support magic, he wouldn't have even scratched the man's arm.
"Benefactor, you're quite strong."
"......"
"I'd love to enjoy this longer, but now's not the time. I'll have to go all out."
A dark crimson energy swirled around the Slaughter Monk.
And as his words implied, it was clear he hadn't been using his full power until now.
'Fast...!'
The moment the Slaughter Monk vanished, Terdin's sword swung to the right.
But Terdin gave up on blocking.
[Shield]
[Granting: Enchant Supporter]
[Granting Magic: Strength Convergence]
The [Shield] Jun summoned was reinforced, blocking the Slaughter Monk's fist for a brief moment.
It shattered like glass in an instant, but that was enough for Terdin.
He landed while retreating, then charged forward again.
Convinced he'd caught the Slaughter Monk off-guard before he could fully recover, Terdin swung his sword.
Thud!
But incredibly, the Slaughter Monk stopped Terdin's sword with just two fingers.
"What?!"
"Your sword is heavy, benefactor, but not as heavy as the grudges I carry."
Jun was stunned inwardly at the sight.
'That monster... how many has he killed?!'
He didn't need eyes to see souls like Eleanor or Maya—he could tell.
The Slaughter Monk had returned with his [Blood Mountain Samsara] far more developed than before.
Power like that couldn't be easy to contain, yet here he was.
Tat!
But Terdin wasn't just standing there gaping.
He was a knight who hunted and executed Blackout's worst criminals.
Always ready for any variable.
He drew the dagger from his waist and hurled it at the Slaughter Monk's eyes in a flash.
"Hm."
The Slaughter Monk stepped back, creating a brief standoff...
But it didn't last long.
"First, I'll deal with you, benefactor. Then settle the score with that mage behind you."
Jun's support for Terdin had been bothering him from the start.
Meanwhile, Jun had read the Slaughter Monk's intent perfectly.
'I have to protect Captain Terdin somehow!'
Good thing Terdin's skills were top-notch—otherwise, the Slaughter Monk would've split Jun's head open ages ago.
'Captain Terdin's struggling more than expected. Did that monster finally reach level 8?'
But he didn't seem fully there yet.
Which made sense.
He hadn't built a solid foundation of pure mana to reach level 8 legitimately.
He'd forcibly crossed the threshold by growing his [Blood Mountain Samsara].
'So he has weaknesses too.'
Without killing, the Slaughter Monk's [Blood Mountain Samsara] drained his power rapidly.
And this wasn't a grudge-filled place like the monastery.
'Drag it out.'
Big spells to hurt him needed serious prep time.
Asking Terdin to buy a full minute against him was impossible.
'Alright, hold the line.'
Help from the prince's side? Might as well forget it.
Besides the distance, the siege's outcome was still up in the air.
Let a bigger crisis erupt there to handle this? That'd be putting the cart before the horse.
'If only Eleanor were here...'
Unfortunately, she wasn't.
Draining the Slaughter Monk's power was all on him.
Kwarung!
Even now, Terdin and the Slaughter Monk clashed repeatedly.
'Phantom. I'm counting on you.'
Chwarararak!
From here on, Terdin's protection was fully on 'Phantom'.
Using its summoned [Shield]s to buy time against attacks Terdin couldn't handle.
Jun prepared other spells.
[Enhancement: Memory Boost]
He cast thought-acceleration magic on himself and multi-cast.
Focusing on timing to snare the Slaughter Monk's ankles.
[Detecting Target]
[Mana Guidance]
[Target Lock]
Modified spells to track viper-fast foes—he cast them on the Slaughter Monk, then unleashed magic at inescapable timings.
[Lightning Whip]
[Ice Spear]
[Fireball]
[Earth Burst]
[Air Bomb]
[Grease]
But the Slaughter Monk lived up to the monster label, dismantling every spell.
He grabbed and tore the lightning-charged whip with his bare hands.
Smashed the ice spear with a piercing fist.
Used the point-blank fireball's explosion as propulsion to press Terdin.
And more:
As mana gathered in the earth, he stomped, bursting it underground to shatter the pattern.
Air explosions in midair? Neutralized with mana-infused gusts.
'Moving that violently and [Grease] doesn't even faze him?'
A true monster.
Jun gritted his teeth, but the situation wasn't bad.
Terdin showed no fatigue yet, and seemed to have regained his composure.
They were buying time against the Slaughter Monk, just as planned.
"You're a nuisance. Stalling for time, eh, benefactor?"
Of course the Slaughter Monk knew.
His mission was to escalate this incident.
'Sword Soul. Shame I can't face you directly.'
He'd wanted to clash with him personally, but Sword Soul was busy guarding the royals up front.
Getting stalled by just these two was unacceptable.
"Hoo..."
The Slaughter Monk began channeling his [Blood Mountain Samsara] again.
"Asura Salvartha."
Killing karma oozed stickily over his massive fists.
Sensing danger, Terdin leaped back to widen the gap.
Ignoring him, the Slaughter Monk focused on the energy building in his fists.
A killing karma ability forged from the [Blood Mountain Samsara] that elevated him to level 8.
[Slaying Without Regret]
An agonizingly slow fist extended.
In that instant, Terdin felt death incarnate descending before him.
'Th-this...'
Even from afar.
Far enough for arrows, yet the fist felt right at his nose—his whole body tingled.
This fist, laden with sins worse than death, seemed unstoppable.
A technique born from unyielding killing intent fused into aura, mastered by the Slaughter Monk's murderous expertise.
Terdin bit his lip until it bled.
"I'll take it...!"
No dodging it.
Like Vice Captain Tobias's Reverse Aura Explosion from the Heavenly Dragon Knights—his body felt bound.
A sorcery-like principle; Terdin surged his mana to counter.
"I'll show you there's no unavoidable death!"
The level 7 wall that had held him so long.
Lately, watching Tobias fight up close had left him feeling powerless.
But if a mere gap like that broke him, he never could've become Blackout's Black Guard Captain, slayer of fiends.
Aura flowed into his gripped longsword.
Not just that—he poured his very imagery into the blade.
Normally impossible.
The gap between level 7 and 8 was manifesting imagery.
Beyond a mere level 7 like him.
But now, cracks appeared in the level 8 wall blocking him.
Not some fleeting coincidence.
Years yearning for level 8, the effort to shatter it, rage over his fallen squadmates.
And finally.
'Steel...!!'
Jun, influencing the area, clearly sensed it—his gaze locked on Captain Terdin.
Metallic mana swirling around Terdin.
'Infusing metal into imagery? Even Captain Terdin's skill shouldn't allow that!'
And sure enough.
The illusory imagery of Terdin flickering around him was hazy, like noise.
'I need to support him!'
If that imagery collapsed, Terdin could suffer fatal injury.
Jun racked his brain at full throttle for ways to assist.
'Mana with a density unlike Vice Captain Tobias's...!'
Tobias crushed with compressed weight.
Terdin's was unyielding steel.
Imagery born from his unshakable position.
Jun amplified the granting and enhancement magic on Terdin, then chanted to spread metallic essence around.
[Iron Rampart]
Steel walls erupted from the sand, encircling everything.
[Iron Fist]
[Multi-Chant]
Drawing even on Phantom's power, he conjured dozens of [Iron Fist]s in a blink and launched them at the Slaughter Monk.
The Slaughter Monk shattered them with stomp shockwaves.
But it didn't matter.
Terdin's blade-unified imagery blended with Jun's metallic mana like water and paint.
[Will Manifestation - Iron Path]
Terdin took one step forward.
A mere footfall, yet the result was worlds apart.
The Slaughter Monk's eyebrow twitched.
It had to.
Terdin, who'd seemed a step below even with Jun's help, was breaking free of [Slaying Without Regret].
Steps rejecting death amid the Slaughter Monk's killing field held profound meaning.
And as both swung sword and fist simultaneously.
Their forms crossed as if always meant to—like a natural dance.
Even Jun, mana focused in his eyes, lost them for a split second in the blinding speed.
Soon, a victor emerged between them.
"Golem!!!"
The golem Jun summoned charged at the Slaughter Monk.