Chapter 172
Chapter 172
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 172
Chapter Title: 71. Starry Night (2)
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Yuri held his breath and concealed himself among the bushes.
A group of knights passed by.
Watching their retreating backs, Yuri gripped Guilty tightly.
He was fighting in a state akin to drunkenness.
He battled when he chose to and hid when necessary.
Every step flowed with effortless ease.
"Hoo..."
Yuri gazed down at his sword.
The blade, shadowed and stained with clotted blood, looked dim and murky. Yet in the realm of heart-soul that Yuri perceived, it was different. Guilty reflected the swirling radiance of the stars in the night sky.
It was dazzling enough to hurt the eyes.
Yuri took a long, deep breath, closed his eyes, and then opened them.
With each blink, strange visions painted themselves before him.
Then, as light returned to his pupils, reality enclosed him once more.
Yuri struggled to hold onto his sense of reality.
"Get it together."
He took stock of the situation.
He was alone, hidden amid a horde of enemies.
The foes hadn't spotted him.
Those who had mastered the Mana Circulation Method relied less on sight and more on other senses. To them, Yuri—who could erase his presence and mana at will—must seem like he was teleporting.
In the 9th Knight Order now, scarcely any group had a full complement of eight.
Yuri's arrows or blade had picked them off one or two at a time.
This had drastically reduced the order's fighting strength.
Retreating at this point wouldn't be a bad idea.
But Yuri wanted to kill Elpeso, the knight order's commander, if possible.
Doing so would send a clear warning to the Empire.
"Let's give it a shot."
Yuri revealed his presence.
The reaction was immediate.
"Enemy!"
Standing still, he watched the foes approach on their own. Eight of them together.
After several exchanges, two knights staggered, wounded by Yuri.
"Just stall him!"
One knight shouted.
"We can't hold him off! Just endure!"
Their response was purely defensive.
The 9th Knight Order no longer cared for pride. They acknowledged Yuri as a formidable foe and aimed only to tie him down.
This was inconvenient for Yuri.
Exploiting the openings of aggressive enemies was easy, but striking huddled defenders was hard.
Yuri muttered.
"So that's your play..."
Those seeking to encircle and annihilate had switched to group defense. Yuri couldn't help but chuckle.
The counter was simple.
Just run.
The situation had always been like this; there was no regret.
He wanted to kill Elpeso, but if they were this defensive, Yuri saw no need to force it.
Yuri began to back away.
"Huh?"
As Yuri dodged, the knights facing him panicked.
"W-We can't let him go, can we?"
"True, but..."
Pursuit was for the weak. Chasing a stronger foe wasn't wise.
While the knights hesitated, Yuri pulled farther ahead.
"What do we do?"
"Keep our distance and follow!"
"Yes!"
Calling out to gather nearby allies, they trailed Yuri loosely.
Yuri glanced back and smirked.
Too tempting to let him slip away, it seemed.
Naturally. A mere three—or really one—had mauled their knight order. Letting him go would tarnish their reputation irreparably.
"Obsession dooms men."
Yuri suddenly accelerated.
The knights faltered.
"Don't let him escape!"
To close the sudden gap, they pushed themselves recklessly.
Yuri ran exaggeratedly, shaking bushes to announce his path.
The dark mountain landscape blurred past on either side.
Then, ahead, he spotted a massive, ancient tree.
It looked centuries old.
Perfect.
Yuri kicked off the ground and leaped, landing on the tree.
Bending his knees and waist to absorb the impact, he then sprang upward like a coiled spring.
A sudden reversal.
The tree cracked and collapsed in the aftermath.
The distance between the speeding knights and the airborne Yuri shrank rapidly.
"What?!"
Upon clash, Yuri swung Guilty.
Their loose formation made defense sloppy.
Armor tore, flesh sprayed.
Yuri's blade spared no one.
Then came a metallic clang.
A few skilled knights had blocked his strike.
"Hold on!"
The one-against-many clash continued.
Metal rang repeatedly.
Yuri deflected every incoming sword trajectory in his blurring vision and struck at openings. Attacks rained from all sides, yet he felt no tension.
Time itself seemed to slow.
Gripping Guilty, Yuri pondered.
Where had he reached now?
One thing was clear: he was stronger than when he'd killed Yalta.
Had he attained the Ten Strong's level?
No, not yet.
Chaos hadn't fully become his own.
He needed to advance further.
Yuri arched back and swung Guilty wide, bisecting a knight from waist to armor in a crumple.
In this skirmish, Yuri killed one knight and crippled two more.
The survivors huddled like turtles in their shells.
Yuri turned without regret.
The bereaved knights merely watched him leave.
"Hoo..."
Yuri quickened his pace. Their grouping in eights had loosened the encirclement, granting more freedom than before.
The 9th Knight Order's formation had shifted upward along the mountain.
This opened a path to Rolang and Jared's position.
He could retreat like this.
Suddenly, Yuri sensed a sharp killing intent aimed at his back.
He twisted aside.
An arrow whistled past, embedding in a tree.
"Knew you'd come this way."
"Huh?"
It was Elpeso's voice.
Yuri tilted his head.
His presence hadn't registered; he hadn't realized Elpeso was so close.
"How?"
"You're not the only one with tricks. Jared."
He was with the knights Yuri had seen from the tree earlier.
One was missing—likely pierced by Yuri's arrow.
Yuri scanned Elpeso and the others. Their auras were extraordinary.
"Can't let you go now."
Elpeso and three knights activated their Mana Circulation Methods.
It was volcanic in intensity.
Expending full power before the fight even began. A mark of respect for their foe.
"..."
The old Yuri would have fled. But embracing chaos, he no longer saw crises as mere threats to evade.
Like a tightrope walker, fear was just another challenge to conquer.
Decision made, Yuri moved.
"Jared!"
Elpeso charged with a yell, the other three guarding his flanks and pressing Yuri.
Four swords thrust at Yuri's blind spots in unison.
A coordinated assault.
Time slowed again.
How to counter?
Among countless possibilities, Yuri spotted a tiny chance to turn the tables.
But executing it was like threading a needle at full sprint.
He questioned himself.
Was it worth it?
Retreating and adapting might be safer.
But Yuri shook his head.
That wouldn't advance him.
The sword advanced through spilled blood.
Merely surviving wasn't enough. Yuri sought to leap this razor line, ascend higher, beyond their reach.
And above all.
Yuri smirked.
He would succeed, after all.
Embracing chaos filled him with a mad euphoria. He understood the heart demon Muyongchan had described.
Yet Yuri felt no fear.
Such shackles could never subdue him.
Whether the Heavenly Demon died or Erich Brioll whatever—it mattered not.
He was Yuri Brioll.
And he would press on to the end.
"Die!"
Facing the four swords, Yuri stamped forward.
Scattered pebbles lifted from the ground.
He swung Guilty.
A stone fragment collided impossibly with the advancing blade face.
It rocketed toward an outer knight's face.
Guilty then smashed Elpeso's incoming sword.
On impact, Yuri released his grip.
Guilty flew, its ricocheting blade whipping another knight.
Now, only one sword remained, slicing toward his side.
Yuri sucked it in under his arm, struck the wrist.
The joint buckled, loosening the grip. Yuri seized the sword, rolled over the knight's body.
Instantly behind the foes.
A brief moment before they turned.
Yuri stabbed the disarmed knight's back, shoving the corpse into Elpeso.
The two tumbled entangled.
Yuri looked up. Guilty, which had struck a knight, spun high in the air.
He leaped from the fresh corpse, snatching it mid-descent.
Below, another knight gaped up blankly.
Falling, Yuri drove Guilty down.
It cleaved helm and armor completely.
The body split.
Two dead, Elpeso pinned under a corpse, one standing.
That knight stabbed at Yuri's back.
He twisted, but back and side were gashed.
Blood flowed.
Yuri swung Guilty.
Blades clashed.
The foe retreated.
Yuri slashed down again.
Outmatched in strength, the knight crumpled to his knees. As he hastily raised his sword, Yuri kicked dirt into his eyes, blinding him, then switched targets.
He lunged at the rising Elpeso.
"Kuh!"
Off-balance, Elpeso yielded ground with every exchange.
"You bastard!"
Elpeso's agonized roar dripped with blood.
After one clash, Yuri pulled back.
"Jared! I will have your..."
"That's a lie."
"What?"
"I'm not Jared."
"What trick is this?"
"A ruse. Now, my true name."
"For real?"
"Yes."
"..."
At a distance, they glared.
Yuri eyed Elpeso's armor.
Battle-worn seams had loosened.
"I am..."
Yuri continued, casually swinging his sword as if warming up, thrusting the air a few times.
Blood burst.
One-Point Thrust.
"Uh...?"
It rarely worked on the strong.
But exhausted from endless night fights and cowed by Yuri's prowess, Elpeso had his attention stolen by mere words.
He couldn't react in time.
Yuri's blade pierced the seam between breastplate and helm.
His throat.
Elpeso could speak no more.
Only bloody froth from his mouth.
Ignoring the falling Elpeso, Yuri finished the last knight.
All done.
"Guh..."
Elpeso clung to life. Yuri approached for the coup de grâce.
Elpeso's eyes clouded.
Yuri said.
"I'm not Jared. I'm Yuri Brioll."
A flicker of life returned to the dying man's gaze.
"So... that's it..."
Yuri peered into Elpeso's eyes.
He no longer saw Yuri, just stared blankly at the night sky.
Fortune in misfortune: facing death, Elpeso beheld a similar sight. Not a bland sky, but one rippling like waves, with swirling moon and stars.
A bizarre glow emanated from his eyes.
He murmured.
"The stars are beautiful..."
His final words.
Yuri crushed Elpeso's chest underfoot.