Chapter 195
Chapter 195
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 195
Chapter Title: Red Sky Over the Mountains
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Swish, shoooosh—.
As soon as the selection ended, Hailz and the participants she had chosen vanished from their seats.
Naturally, the red dragon she had been riding disappeared as well.
They were transported to the true stage where the confrontation would unfold. Like a trial, the confrontation took place within a framework of a virtual, alternate world.
Thud—.
With Hailz's dragon gone, Soo-hyuk, who had been riding atop it, dropped lightly to the ground.
Just moments ago, he had been with Hailz, but now he felt the crowd's gazes converging on him.
'Been a while.'
Appearing alongside Hailz had quite the impact.
That said, most of those stares were negative ones, along the lines of 'Who the hell is that punk?'—which was a bit irritating.
The haughty looks didn't linger for long. Soon, a massive screen materialized in the sky above the arena.
"This stage is mountainous, huh."
"Not the ideal terrain for taking on numbers."
"Will numbers even matter?"
"There's twin grand spiritists among the mixed-in participants. Won't be a cakewalk."
The faces of Hailz and the other participants appeared on the screen.
The surrounding attention quickly shifted to the roster of those selected by Hailz.
Only one person approached Soo-hyuk with any interest.
"Didn't expect we'd cross paths here already."
It was a face he'd encountered once in his previous life and even in this one—not exactly a welcome sight.
"I recognize the face... but remind me who you are?"
"Jaun-yeop. In Murim, I'm better known as Heavenly Thunder Sword."
Heavenly Thunder Sword Jaun-yeop.
A high ranker affiliated with Shinryeon Castle in Murim.
Belonging to Shinryeon Castle, he had apparently entered the confrontation as a representative of Murim.
"You streaming right now, by chance?"
"Want me to mute it for a sec?"
"Appreciate it."
Soo-hyuk's eyes flicked to the chat window.
The chat exploded in protest, but Soo-hyuk wasn't one to pay it any mind.
"All set."
"...You checked."
Jaun-yeop nodded after confirming via his player kit that Soo-hyuk's stream had been muted.
"But this is odd. We're not exactly on chit-chat terms, are we?"
"I regret what happened back then."
He had once tried to abduct Unhyang on orders from Shinryeon Castle. Soo-hyuk's intervention had saved the day, but Unhyang still felt uneasy about it even now.
"I was just following my senior brother's orders, so try to understand. No hard feelings on my end."
"The hard feelings are all mine."
Soo-hyuk bared his fangs with his words. Regardless of the venue, Jaun-yeop had been his enemy ever since that incident.
"A shame. Though I get why."
With a wry chuckle, Jaun-yeop drew closer to Soo-hyuk and lowered his voice.
"Before long, we'll be going after that girl again."
Soo-hyuk's expression grew complicated beneath his mask.
It almost felt like a heads-up warning to watch out.
"Why the obsession with Unhyang?"
"Beats me. Probably only my senior brother knows. Maybe."
"...Why tell me?"
"What can I do? You're the only one by her side."
Jaun-yeop shrugged.
At a glance, he seemed like a thoughtful senior brother figure. It didn't feel like a lie—there was no gain in it for him otherwise.
"Which side are you on?"
"Shinryeon Castle's, of course."
He added,
"And that girl is the future of Shinryeon Castle."
"Doesn't seem like Unhyang's future lies with Shinryeon Castle."
"Then I must've misjudged."
Confusing.
Was he truly thinking of Shinryeon Castle's interests? Or was he concerned for Unhyang's safety?
Impossible to read. But one thing was clear: at least for now, he bore Soo-hyuk no ill will.
"One more question?"
"Shoot."
"What's the deal between Shinryeon Castle and the Heavenly Demon?"
Jaun-yeop's eyes flickered at Soo-hyuk's words.
Heavenly Demon.
His gaze drifted toward Jin Ha-ryeong in the distance.
"...Don't lump that devil spawn in with our Shinryeon Castle."
Not an evasive reaction.
Reactions from those connected to the Heavenly Demon tended to fall into one of two camps.
Fear or contempt.
Neither could be called positive. Jaun-yeop fell squarely into contempt.
'This guy's the real deal.'
So, no ties between the Heavenly Demon and Shinryeon Castle?
Yet Unhyang leaving with the Heavenly Demon nagged at him.
As these thoughts swirled,
the first match of the confrontation began.
Towering trees of the great wilderness pierced the heavens. The shadow-draped, windless mountain evoked not freshness, but an eerie chill.
The participants of the first match—spiritists Male and Nore—strolled slowly through the underbrush.
"Getting pitted against a grand archmage is kinda rough..."
"Map luck's on our side, though."
With silver hair and pallid, grayish skin, the two shared an identical appearance, like mirror images.
Despite their beauty, their inseparability instilled dread in onlookers.
Twin Grand Spiritists Male and Nore.
They had been randomly selected by Hailz onto this stage.
"Think we can manage here?"
"Think we can manage here?"
The pair spoke in perfect unison, as if of one mind.
No need for responses. They understood each other better than anyone in the world.
Even against Hailz, their confidence stemmed from the terrain.
Spirits drew power from nature. Spiritists wielded multiples of their strength in potent natural environs.
In that sense, this map was tailor-made for the twins.
"If we can knock out the grand archmage here..."
"...we might even aim for second place."
Their homeworld, Elfrado, always ranked in the top five.
But never first. Thus, first place was always Elfrado's goal.
Hailz was the towering obstacle in their path. Eliminating her in the opener could open the door to victory for Elfrado.
"Heavenly Demon's a factor, but..."
"He's an individual, not guild-backed."
"Hailz first, then?"
Silence was affirmation.
On raw combat power alone, the Heavenly Demon outclassed the grand archmage, no contest.
Murim's last Heavenly Demon, Jin Ha-ryeong, was the undisputed strongest among all players—a fact beyond debate.
Yet the Demonic Cult no longer existed in modern Murim.
Demonic Cult: a perilous, decrepit group that worshipped and followed the Heavenly Demon as a god.
The Heavenly Demon's might had historically leaned heavily on the cult's vast forces. But the current Heavenly Demon, Jin Ha-ryeong, had personally eradicated it from the world with her own blade.
The grand archmage was different.
Not only did she possess the sole power capable of threatening the Heavenly Demon, she commanded an entire guild.
"Let's find the grand archmage."
"Agreed."
The twins aligned instantly.
And in the next moment.
Pling, pling—.
Green glows resembling fireflies bloomed throughout the forest.
Whoosh—.
The woods lit up brilliantly with countless lights. These were the smallest spirits the grand spiritists could summon.
Lowliest spirits ubiquitous in forests everywhere.
Thousands, even billions strong, they became the twins' eyes and ears.
Through the forest vista they revealed, the pair pinpointed Hailz's location.
"Huh?"
"...Right in front of us?"
Rustle—.
Pushing aside the nearby brush revealed familiar red scales.
A crouched red dragon, Vulcanus, with Hailz astride it, casually waving her staff.
"Oh? You got here fast."
"What're you doing out here?"
Male and Nore shot puzzled looks at Hailz's surprised greeting.
With no reaction, they'd assumed she was far off—yet here she was, practically nose-to-nose.
Moreover, Hailz was humming a tune like she was out for a leisurely stroll.
"Just prepping a bit."
"Prepping?"
"Yeah. If I'm gonna show something off, might as well make it spectacular, right?"
Show off?
Male and Nore's confusion deepened.
They'd never heard of Hailz caring about the audience's gaze.
"You two are Male and Nore, yeah? If you've got something, hurry up and do it. Time's not on our side."
"Was just about to."
As Male on the left spoke, Nore on the right moved.
Hummm—.
Light flowing from her fingertips seeped into the earth. The entire forest began to quake.
Crack, craaack—.
Trees around them uprooted in unison.
Roots buried deep in the mountainside whipped skyward like lashes.
The forest had become a monster. Male and Nore were spiritists who commanded its power.
"Wow."
Even Hailz marveled at the sight. She knew Male and Nore by name and face, and the twin spiritists' spirit arts were indeed formidable.
Whoosh—.
Splinter—!
A thick root hurtling toward Hailz shattered into fragments.
Nothing visible had blocked it. Yet Male and Nore intuited the presence of some invisible protective veil around her.
"This is why mages are so annoying."
"Opponent's the grand archmage. Stay sharp."
Mages boasted immense firepower. Their physical prowess, however, lagged far behind equivalent-level players.
Their solution to durability issues was barriers like Hailz's.
Mages capable of handling multiple spells at once invariably maintained such veils around themselves.
Whoosh—.
Krunch, crackle—!
Innumerable trees and roots assailed Hailz.
Some trees compressed under immense force, while others stabbed up from below, probing for barrier gaps.
Rawr—!
The red dragon Vulcanus tore into incoming trees with its fangs or incinerated them with blasts of flame.
Sweat beaded on Male and Nore's brows amid their relentless barrage. Cracks were spiderwebbing across Hailz's barrier.
"It'll break soon."
"Yeah. And looks like they've caught on?"
Sensing presences closing in, Male and Nore smirked.
"Exactly. This isn't just our fight."
Other participants, noticing the battle, were converging.
Support arrived right as the barrier teetered on collapse—perfect timing.
A spark of hope kindled in the twins' hearts.
"Timing's spot on."
The words that should have come from Male and Nore slipped from Hailz's lips instead.
"You two done with your show?"
Despite the crumbling barrier, Hailz remained chipper.
Only then did Male and Nore realize.
Since the fight began, Hailz hadn't cast a single spell beyond the barrier.
"I did warn you."
Swish—.
Hailz slowly rose from her perch atop Vulcanus.
"Time's short."
Plop—.
The hat atop her head floated upward about a foot.
Fwoosh—.
In an instant, as if the seasons had shifted, the air scorched hot and the sky flushed crimson.