Chapter 262
Chapter 262
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 262
Chapter Title: Red Axe Droxxy (1)
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‘Ha… This is something.’
He had been the one to misspeak first, so there was no room for excuses.
But regardless, seeing the dwarf come out so aggressively was irritating in its own way.
“I, Red Axe Droxxy, will show you what happens!”
‘Even in the heavens, my reputation here is still insignificant, so it makes sense. But I’m not the type to back down from a fight that’s walking right up to me.’
“Mm. We doing this here?”
“Hah…! Fine. Follow me!”
Despite Rokan making his stance clear, the dwarf bristled again at his refusal to cower or retreat.
The place he led them to was none other than the arena.
There were cleaner ways to PK, but the reason he chose this spot was simple.
It was free from the consequences of ‘death,’ and you could set ‘conditions’ for sparring matches.
“Hearing my name and still following me here? You must be new around these parts. I’ll beat some manners into you today!”
[Red Axe Droxxy has challenged you to a duel. Do you accept?]
“Accept.”
No reason to hesitate now. Rokan approved the duel first and set the conditions.
“Conditions?”
“Hmph! Anything!”
The guy seemed focused solely on smashing Rokan flat, signaling he’d accept any terms.
‘No reason to hold back, then.’
Rokan smirked inwardly and wrote in whatever he pleased.
[Duel Condition: The loser becomes the winner’s slave for one month.]
It was a wildly extreme condition.
The moment you lost, you’d have to obey the winner’s every demand for a full month.
“Grr! Fine, I’ll work you like a dog!”
[The opponent has accepted the conditions.]
[This duel is notarized by the God of Duels.]
The God of Duels’ notarization was nothing special—just like an item contract.
Droxxy accepted with a hot snort, and the battle began shortly after.
[The duel begins. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1… Begin!]
“Throwing!”
Droxxy struck first, hurling his battle axe like a boomerang to pressure Rokan.
He still thought he had the upper hand by a mile, but Rokan wasn’t about to let him have three free swings like in some wuxia novel.
“Impatient, aren’t you? Deflect!”
Thung.
Rokan couldn’t help but snort as he responded, though he had no room to talk.
He considered dodging but grew curious about the dwarf’s next move.
Using his Creation skill, he lightly flicked the battle axe away and watched the guy straight on.
‘Ho?’
A battle axe wasn’t meant for throwing.
It was a main weapon.
So Rokan figured he’d try to retrieve it—but no.
Droxxy’s face flickered with surprise, but as if it was within expectations, he unhesitatingly pulled out another axe and threw it.
This time, one at the legs and one at the torso. It was as if he was forcing Rokan to dodge, but Rokan had no intention of playing along.
He lowered his stance and gathered the power of Charge.
“Rampaging Chariot!”
Kwoong, kung.
The skill boosted both his charging power and defense, enveloping Rokan.
He deflected the incoming axes and shot straight toward the dwarf instead.
“You dare try to overpower me?!”
At that moment, the dwarf’s body glowed red-hot.
It wasn’t just mana—it radiated scorching heat even from a distance.
Kwaang!
The two bodies collided at one point.
A powerful shock rippled out, shoving them both back.
“Kh.”
But Rokan couldn’t claim a clean win.
He had the edge in raw strength, but the dwarf unleashed no small amount of power himself—likely from a Creation or Combination skill.
Chiiik!
Worse, the point of impact glowed red-hot.
It felt like slamming into a red-hot iron ingot.
“My turn! Master of Volcanic Flames!”
Then Droxxy moved first again.
He activated a Master skill to press Rokan.
Rooaaar!
Crimson flames surged around him, splitting into four serpentine streams that surrounded Rokan.
They swirled around the ground where Rokan stood, forming a circle. They crossed paths, creating a magic circle.
“Kh.”
Chiiik.
Whip-like flames burst from the circle.
The elongated tendrils snaked out with eerie motions, seizing Rokan’s arms and legs.
His flame resistance kept the damage minimal, but they yanked hard, restricting his movement.
And then, the heat enveloping Droxxy’s body gathered in his hands and axe.
A single-edged axe like a lumberjack’s glowed red-hot.
Kwaang! Kwang! Kwang!
[You have been struck by Red Axe. The temperature at the impact site rises sharply.]
[Accumulated strikes may cause significant durability loss and amplified damage.]
The skill that earned Droxxy his fame exploded across Rokan’s body.
‘So that’s it.’
Surprisingly, the red-hot axe could melt enemy armor and the struck area.
The Lion King’s breastplate shrugged off most damage with its insane durability, but a skill like this could surely fell even the tankiest foes.
But that was as far as it went.
Rokan had seen all he needed to see. Time for a counterattack.
“Gale Deity Manifestation!”
“Huh?!”
Crackle!
In his giant deity form, Rokan shattered the bindings with overwhelming force.
Even without flame resistance, his current strength alone could have broken free.
“What, first time seeing something like this?”
Puk!
Rokan flashed a grin as he casually swatted away Droxxy, who’d been pounding on him.
“Eek! You think size alone will win?!”
But true to his belligerent dwarf nature, Droxxy didn’t give up.
He’d confirmed he was outmatched in strength with one blow, but fights weren’t all about power.
He leaped back instead, reaching into empty air.
“Subspace?”
Like pulling from an inventory, he drew out another axe and gripped it.
A battle axe, just like the first one he’d thrown.
“Weapon Explosion!”
“...!”
Whiiik. Kwaang! Pububububuk!
What he did next was shocking. He hurled the battle axe into the air and detonated it mid-flight.
Like a cluster grenade.
It wasn’t the explosion’s raw power—it was the hundreds of shards that peppered Rokan’s massive frame.
‘Not bad.’
He’d seen similar skills on the ground, but this was on another level.
‘The difference in weapon grade?’
Likely tied to the user’s level and the destroyed gear’s rank.
Rokan blocked, but his HP still shaved off in noticeable chunks.
And Droxxy kept throwing and exploding weapons nonstop.
‘Crazy bastard!’
Even at a glance, they were at least Rare-grade. Selling them alone would net a fortune, yet he treated them like consumables.
‘Guess he didn’t realize I’m unkillable here.’
On closer look, Droxxy was inching backward with each throw.
From lack of strength? No.
He was terrified of Rokan—who’d tanked multiple hits from his ace skill, exposed to even more shards due to his size, yet kept advancing unfazed.
In truth, Rokan’s HP was dropping at an alarming rate, but sadly, the shards lacked the punch to destroy his heart or head.
“Steps of Valor.”
Kwaang!
Now it was Rokan’s turn.
Ignoring the incoming Weapon Explosions, he charged and unleashed devastating force.
He loosed a flurry of despair-inducing strikes at Droxxy, stiff from skill backlash and tension.
“Gale…!”
“Surrender!”
[Red Axe Droxxy has surrendered.]
[The winner is Rokan.]
[Duel conditions are now in effect. Violating them may result in soul destruction. Proceed with caution.]
Rokan’s battle axe halted mid-swing, just as he was about to carve into him.
A High Master would sense the power in Gale Slaughter, so it was perhaps inevitable—but Rokan felt a twinge of regret.
“D-Damn it. How the hell are you tanking all that? What kind of freak are you?!”
“Use honorifics.”
“What?”
“You need to use honorifics, slave.”
“Kh!”
Droxxy’s face crumpled as frustration boiled over.
He’d finally grasped his situation: one month as a slave, or soul destruction.
His body trembled with rage, but he couldn’t lash out. Refusing even minor demands repeatedly could invoke the God of Duels’ judgment.
“Damn… What do you plan to do with me… sir.”
Droxxy added the honorific awkwardly, unaccustomed to it. The way he startled and tacked it on suggested some internal warning had kicked in. The way he startled and tacked it on suggested some internal warning had kicked in.
‘Hmm. What should I do with him?’
Rokan hadn’t fully grasped the heavens yet, so Droxxy was a pure bonus.
An unexpected windfall.
Since he’d slapped on the condition without any specific plans, Rokan pondered now. Nothing particular came to mind.
So he sated his curiosity first.
“One thing before that. That Weapon Explosion skill… it must eat through money like crazy. What possessed you to spam it like that?”
“To win and loot your pockets… Eep!”
Rokan grinned wickedly.
Droxxy bit down hard, cursing his slip, and clapped a hand over his mouth.
But it was too late.
“Ah, I see. So you were prepared for the reverse too, huh?”
“N-No, that’s…”
“Right. A slave doesn’t need personal property.”
“Wait! Hear me out… sir!”
Rokan realized exactly what Droxxy had planned.
The dwarf flailed desperately, but Rokan’s mind was made up. If he’d lost, he’d be in the same boat—no need for guilt.
“Hand over everything you’ve got. Ten coins per hit if I have to shake it out.”
Rokan boldly extorted Droxxy.
“Uherung! You bastard… sir!”
It wasn’t just coins. Rokan cleaned out his entire subspace too.
Nearly thirty weapons, plus valuable minerals unseen on the ground.
“There we go.”
This revealed why Droxxy could toss high-grade weapons so freely.
He’d planned to extort Rokan post-victory, but more importantly, he was an exceptional blacksmith.
Given materials and forging conditions, Rare-grade gear was a breeze for this dwarf artisan.
Most smiths treasured their creations, but inventing something as brutal as Weapon Explosion showed he wasn’t normal.
“Hmph! Weapons are consumables for killing. Achieve the goal, and who cares… sir.”
Weapons as consumables. Fair point. There were throwing weapons, after all.
Though using main weapons as throwables was a twist, it made sense—main weapons had superior attack power.
“Got it.”
Rokan nodded in understanding.
‘Now, how best to use this guy?’
Lock him in a forge for a month cranking out gear? Solid profit.
But wasting a High Master seasoned in the heavens like that felt like shortchanging himself.
A wicked smile curled on Rokan’s lips.