Chapter 195
Chapter 195
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 195
Chapter Title: 79. Solitude (3)
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Sword.
A weapon to cut down enemies.
Fiore had reached the pinnacle of it.
Whether it was the demonic arts unleashed by Dan So-cheon or the black magic cast by Cedric, everything crumbled into halves beneath Fiore's blade.
All the two of them could do was keep swinging their sword and piling on black magic to slow his advance.
Nothing could stop him.
"No way out, huh."
"Who knows."
"You were so confident."
"Didn't expect it to be this bad."
"Even your calculations can be off sometimes."
Cedric smiled.
"Father's tangled up with that guy too, after all. It wouldn't be strange if he exceeded predictions."
"Damn it..."
"They called you the Heavenly Demon, but that's all you've got?"
"No one could match me in the East."
"Just hold out a little longer."
"And then?"
"Didn't want to waste it here, but I'll have to use more power."
"How long do I need to hold?"
"No idea."
Dan So-cheon took a deep breath and stepped forward again.
Fiore's figure, walking onward unperturbed despite being seized by countless hands, was nothing short of terrifying.
Did all those human grudges and screams mean nothing to him?
"Hoo, hoo..."
Dan So-cheon took deep breaths.
He had wanted to clash with the strongest man in the West, but the gap was overwhelming.
Now he was just struggling to survive.
He glanced sideways at Cedric.
As a madman who had obtained the Dark Angel Commander's Secret Manual, his evil forbidden arts were the real deal. Somehow, he'd stop that monster, so all Dan So-cheon had to do was buy time.
Dan So-cheon unleashed his most powerful demonic art. His qi and blood twisted throughout his body. The stronger the demonic energy, the greater the backlash, but no one who feared such things could become a Demonic Cultist.
And he stood at its peak as the Heavenly Demon.
"Come."
Fiore raised his sword.
It was an unremarkable motion.
Not smooth or elegant—far from such impressions.
He pulled the sword back naturally, as if holding it for the first time.
Then he swung.
Within that rough motion lay sword intent honed to perfection.
Dodge it.
But that was impossible.
The moment Fiore swung, Dan So-cheon was no different from a fish on the cutting board.
So he had to block the strike with everything he had.
Heavenly Demon God Sword.
Heaven Breaker.
Dozens of sword qi strands shot out in unison, forming an arch to oppose Fiore's blade.
The two forces collided.
Dan So-cheon gritted his teeth.
Fiore's sword was viciously sharp.
A line of infinite compression sliced through his defenses and invaded inward.
Once the barrier cracked, everything after was helpless.
The Heavenly Demon God Sword shattered.
Dan So-cheon collapsed to the ground, wounded by the sword.
"Kuhk..."
Fortunately, he didn't die.
The sword qi had absorbed one impact, and the black hands clinging to Fiore's body had hindered his movements to some extent.
Dan So-cheon rose again.
But he had no will to fight on.
"Kuhk..."
He glanced back again.
An unidentified ghostly energy swirled around Cedric. But it wasn't complete yet.
"Where are you looking?"
In that instant, Fiore's sword was already closing in on his throat.
Dan So-cheon shut his mouth. He slowly turned his head. Blood trickled from his neck.
Fiore's impassive eyes met his.
That gaze was identical to Cedric's.
"You..."
With Fiore right before him, Dan So-cheon could see the clutches of the solitude—Cedric's gu poison—even closer.
Just from the proximity, chills ran through his body.
The wretched emotions of humans eaten alive after turning into zombies manifested with substance, gripping Fiore's limbs.
The surface of those hands touched Dan So-cheon's body. Even he, accustomed to demonic energy, held his breath at the intense curse that spread.
His insides churned.
"As expected... not an ordinary human."
Dan So-cheon muttered.
The hands blocking Fiore now reached out toward Dan So-cheon's body as well. His pupils turned black.
Fiore thrust his sword at Dan So-cheon without hesitation.
At that moment, Cedric spoke.
It wasn't human speech. Something far more horrific.
In that instant, Dan So-cheon felt the grudges spreading through his body recede.
The solitude obeyed Cedric.
No, not Cedric—it obeyed the deeper darkness he commanded.
Fiore also shifted his gaze from Dan So-cheon to Cedric.
Indescribable sounds continued from Cedric's mouth. The language was incomprehensible, but its meaning transmitted directly to the mind.
And a massive hand appeared.
Unlike the ones wrapping Fiore's body.
If the hands from the solitude were a cluster of black-dyed darkness sprouting forth, the hand Cedric summoned had substance.
It had five fingers with long nails, mane-like protrusions extending wildly, and glimpses of pus-oozing, wound-covered skin between them.
The arm of a creature that shouldn't exist in this world.
That massive hand gripped something faintly glowing.
Fiore stopped.
Fiore silently stared at Cedric.
He could tell some other entity was speaking through his mouth.
While Fiore halted, Cedric formed hand seals again.
The hands wrapping Fiore's body bound his limbs tighter. The hands that had looked like they were dragging baggage regained vigor and enveloped him once more.
Fiore remained silent.
The massive hand approached Fiore. The glowing something it held returned to him.
At that moment, Fiore swung his sword.
In response to the sudden action, another anomaly unfolded.
With a death wail, the hand split in half.
And the light within broke free and was absorbed into Fiore.
Fiore swung his sword again.
The black hands of grudges retreated, and the massive hand summoned by Cedric fell to the ground, bleeding.
His sword showed no mercy.
Dan So-cheon, who had blocked the front, collapsed spraying blood.
Cedric continued forming seals, but all his black magic was destroyed.
Fiore and Cedric faced each other.
"A monster, Father."
"You seem more monstrous than me."
"Not to this extent."
"I've had some recent enlightenment."
Fiore swung his sword.
Black energy erupted from Cedric's body, forming a barrier.
But Fiore's sword qi tore through everything and burrowed inward.
One of Cedric's arms flew through the air.
Blood poured out.
Cedric didn't even scream; he bent forward and cackled.
"As expected. It's because of Yuri, right?"
Fiore impassively raised his sword. It now aimed not at the arm, but at Cedric's neck.
Fiore swung without dragging it out.
That was the moment.
Strange words leaked from Cedric's mouth once more.
Darkness billowed from his severed arm, transforming into tentacle-like octopus limbs that wrapped around Fiore's sword.
For the first time, his sword was blocked.
Fiore tried to retrieve it, but the tentacles wouldn't let go.
Cedric spoke.
"Father."
His pupils turned pitch black.
"Cedric."
Cedric laughed on in a drugged, euphoric state.
"Cedric."
Cedric smiled faintly. Reptile-like scales rose on his cheek.
At the same time, the hands of grudges fully infested Fiore's body. Cedric's tentacles wrapped around the black mass once more.
Fiore turned into a black sphere of tentacles.
Cedric murmured the indescribable language.
With each word, evil energy thickened. The ground centered on where he stood began to die. Weeds growing on the floor withered yellow and rotted all at once.
Cedric placed his hand on the sphere.
At that instant, a pure white blade pierced through the surface.
Blood flowed from Cedric's cheek.
Through the narrow gap, Fiore's eyes gleamed.
Cedric laughed.
Cedric clenched his fist.
The evil energy reached its peak.
The sphere containing Fiore contracted. It shrank and shrank until it was the size of a normal fist, rolling on the ground.
Cedric collapsed to his knees.
"Hahaha..."
The tentacles had fully hardened, now resembling a grotesquely carved stone.
"Hahahahaha..."
Cedric propped himself up with his remaining arm. The stump of his right arm, lost to Fiore, had gruesomely fused skin and healed.
"So this is the continent's strongest Swordmaster."
In the meantime, Dan So-cheon staggered to his feet and approached unsteadily.
"You okay?"
"No. You?"
"Not okay either."
Both were battered wrecks.
Around the ground where they sat, the scars from Fiore's sword qi clawing the earth stood out vividly.
"Sacrificed a whole city, placed the unbeatable Heavenly Demon from the East, and I joined in—yet we couldn't stop him."
"But we did, in the end."
"Used up another page of the Dark Angel Commander's Secret Manual."
"That serious, huh."
"Lost more than expected. Couldn't even kill him—just barely sealed him."
Cedric picked up the sealing orb from the ground.
"Still, we passed the biggest hurdle."
"What now with that guy?"
Cedric turned.
At a distance from where they fought, Rolang stood.
"Leave him."
Rolang had watched their battle and seen Fiore sealed by Cedric and Dan So-cheon.
From Rolang's perspective, it probably looked like Fiore had died to black magic.
"He'll handle himself."
Cedric tucked the sealing orb into his bosom.
"Now, to the Empire."
While Yuri lay unconscious, many things happened.
First, Brioll's king Fiore and Crown Prince Cedric went missing.
Franchese became complete ruins.
Some suspected the Empire, but there was no evidence. Even if there was, they couldn't hold the Empire directly accountable.
In the sudden crisis, Second Prince Joshua temporarily took over state affairs and signed a ceasefire with the Empire.
In exchange, Brioll had to cede Beijos.
But the Empire wasn't satisfied with that.
Though it was called a ceasefire on the surface, they stationed a large army in Beijos and began stockpiling massive supplies.
For Brioll, it was like having an Empire fortress right under their nose.
Meanwhile, the war between Burusen and the Holy Kingdom intensified.
Countless soldiers died.
With Fiore gone and Brioll kneeling, no nation on the continent remained to voice discontent against the Empire.
"Uuum..."
"Your Highness?"
"Uuh..."
"Your Highness!"
When Yuri opened his eyes, the face he saw was Ena's, brimming with tears.
"Ena...?"
"Yes, it's me, Ena."
"Where...?"
"The royal palace."
Yuri bolted upright and looked around.
It was his own room.
Familiar yet strange, just like when he regressed. He had lain there so long his body felt weak.
Yuri said,
"My brothers? And the Empire?"
"It's over."
"What is?"
"The war. We signed a ceasefire. So don't worry—just rest."
"Cedric?"
"Rest first."
Ena pushed Yuri's shoulders, laying him back down.
"I'll tell you slowly once you've rested more."
"Ena. How long was I out...?"
"A month."
"What?"
"You've been lying here for a month."
Yuri blankly stared at the ceiling.
A month.
It was a long time.
So profound that Yuri closed his eyes.