15
My Villain Chapter 15.
5-1. The Murderer's Debut Stage(2)
I leaped in front of the pirates and swung down my falchion while shouting.
Crack.
"Oh—"
A pirate wearing an iron mask blocked with his axe, but I forcefully pushed the falchion forward.
"Kuk, krrrk!"
The roughly pushed falchion half-split the guy's neck.
Leaving the staggering man clutching his neck behind, I turned and thrust the falchion.
"Keurk."
The falchion pierced the belly of another iron-masked man. The blood blade, now tasting the man's blood, gleamed with an even more ominous light than before.
"Hu, huaaagh!"
The iron-masked man with his stomach pierced let out an indistinguishable scream-shout and swung his axe.
"Oh—"
I quickly leaned my upper body back while kicking up my foot.
His groin was crushed, and as the falchion was pulled out, he curled up and collapsed.
Was it because I was covered in hot blood? It felt like my body was heating up too.
I immediately pounced on another pirate. I rather liked how his eyes, visible through his dirty hair, were glistening with fear.
Once again, the falchion was swung without any technique.
Shuk!
The heavy blade swung almost horizontally, digging into the bare pirate's armpit.
"Heuk, huerk!"
The falchion split the chest bone and collarbone as if cutting through tofu.
I swung the ominously glowing falchion while shouting like a madman.
A head with an arm attached soared into the sky, and shocked gazes gathered.
That's when I realized.
The life of a murderer that would unfold from now on.
This moment, this place, was the true debut stage for that life.
As the thirst that had dominated my entire body was momentarily satisfied, an intense pleasure enveloped me. I gritted my teeth at the sensation climbing up my spine.
"Kuuh..."
Barely swallowing the groan that was about to escape, I looked around.
"Uwaaagh!"
The emboldened mercenaries were pushing back the enemy.
"Hahaha! Why did you come only now!"
"Heh, there was a small problem."
The angel guy welcomed me with a hearty laugh.
He was wearing leather armor studded with occasional rivets, which was already soaked in blood as if he had been through a fierce battle.
Our small talk was cut short as some bastard pirates wielding spears approached me.
It seemed they were trying to keep me in check after seeing me cut down two iron masked pirates in an instant.
As soon as I saw them, the thirst rose again from my lower abdomen. Just before an intense hunger struck, my thoughts became clear.
A fleeting thought.
Kim Seung-soo knows nothing about swordsmanship.
Of course, he doesn't know how to handle a shield either.
He learned Taekwondo, but since becoming an adult, he hasn't even been in a fistfight.
Phoenix probably learned swordsmanship. He must have learned shield techniques too. Sword and shield are the basic setup for a Blood Knight.
So there are some basics ingrained in the body.
But that's Phoenix's story, and I don't know it. I'm still completely ignorant about swordsmanship or shield techniques.
Then how should I fight?
The answer was in the stats.
Strength 20, Agility 16, Health 18.
Since I didn't invest in magic at all, there couldn't be better physical specs for level 11.
Add to that the unique item, the Dragon Slayer's Ring's abilities?
Strength 23, Agility 19, Health 18.
These are more powerful specs than most level 20 melee characters.
From the moment stats exceed 10, one becomes incomparable to ordinary people.
Exceeding 20 makes one superhuman.
I had to use that.
Being stronger, faster, and tougher than the enemy.
The answer was to kill instantly without giving them a chance to display technique or use martial arts principles.
I charged forward, clearing the spear shaft with my falchion. There was no shout, no battle cry.
Puk—
"Keuruk."
The blade, brutally driven sideways, crushed some of the neck bones, pulverized others, and broke the rest.
The pirate with a broken neck died, foaming blood at the mouth.
An iron-masked guy hiding behind the spear-wielding pirates jumped out and swung a two-handed axe.
It was a fierce attack with his full strength behind it.
I raised my buckler to block.
Jeng!
"Kuk—"
Blocked head-on, the heavy two-handed axe bounced back along its original trajectory. My arm was nearly numb.
Even while blocking the axe, I slashed the falchion sideways, cutting off another bastard pirate's arm.
"Kueoeo— kek"
His sharp scream ended as a sharp blade pierced his throat.
Oh, my kill was stolen.
The one who stole my kill was that female warrior from before. The warrior with auburn hair wasn't very tall but had a sturdy build.
She wore a leather vest over chain mail that covered her shoulders, and wielded a large round shield and a straight sword that looked like something a Roman soldier would use.
"Group up!"
At the female warrior's call, about six or seven mercenaries gathered around.
Meanwhile, she pounced on an iron masked guy.
"Uwooeo!"
Just as the guy was about to bring down his axe with a shout, the female warrior extended her round shield and struck the iron masked guy's armpit with the shield's edge.
"Kuk."
The pirate still tried to bring down his axe, but the round shield digging into his armpit at an angle interfered with the axe swing.
Kagagak.
While the axe scraped the surface and middle metal piece of the shield.
Puk!
The female warrior thrust her sword up into the guy's chin.
As I smashed a pirate's head with my buckler, I watched the female warrior's movements from the corner of my eye and inwardly marveled.
So that's what skill looks like.
The female warrior's combat was beautiful.
Her blade climbed up the opponent's sword like a snake and sliced the neck.
Her sword pierced an eye through the guard opened by her shield.
While her sword locked the opponent's weapon, her shield edge struck the neck.
She seemed to act as if she had a solution for every situation.
While the female warrior dealt with three pirates, the mercenaries huddled tightly together, forming a defensive formation in the midst of enemy lines.
As for me?
"Uwaaagh!"
I spun around widely with three spears tucked under my armpit.
"Damn, what a strength."
"Eok!"
The pirates holding the spears rolled on the ground, collided with other pirates, and were thrown back, pathetically losing their spears.
When a pirate sneaked up behind me, I quickly turned and kicked away the shield he was holding.
Kudangtang.
The guy tumbled down hard, and I ran over and stomped on his head.
Then I immediately stabbed another nearby pirate in the back.
"This, crazy..."
The guy staggered, cursing. The mercenary who had been facing that pirate seized the opportunity and thrust his sword, finishing him off.
A female pirate was charging towards me when suddenly a spear appeared out of nowhere and pierced her side.
Puk.
"Heuk."
Seeing her crumple forward, I wanted to finish her off, but another enemy was already rushing at me.
I swung the falchion at him, but—
Bwoong!
"Damn."
It fell short. The distance wasn't ingrained in my body yet.
Bang!
I rammed my shoulder into the pirate, pushing him back. He flew through the air briefly as if hit by a car, then rolled on the ground. A nearby mercenary finished him off.
"Damn, stolen again."
In this chaotic melee, securing kills was no easy task.
I grumbled to myself as I looked at the mercenary who had snatched my kill, and...
Oh, it was that angel guy from before.
"Huhh O--, -----”
The man looked quite exhausted. Upon closer inspection, his side appeared to be deeply cut, with his armor split and blood streaming from the gap.
I immediately rushed over and cut down the pirate who was aiming for the man's back. The heavy falchion sliced through the leather armor and shoulder, digging into the solar plexus.
Thud.
After kicking away the fallen one, I dispatched the nearby ones in succession.
I beheaded one, gutted another, and cut off one's leg before stabbing his neck.
Even the vicious pirates grimaced at the horrific sight.
"What the hell is that?"
"Surround that crazy bastard!"
My fighting was not beautiful at all.
There was no technique or skill.
Instead, those who fell to me were either dismembered or cut in half.
Perhaps due to the cruel sight, no one dared to rush in, and I had to move actively first.
"Avoid him, we need to avoid him!"
"Someone bring a net or something!"
Some of them forced out shouts, but most of the pirates had been slowly backing away since earlier.
"Keu, euheu..."
During a brief lull, another intense rush of pleasure surged. I shuddered for a moment, trying not to make an unsightly sound.
Suddenly looking up, I felt dozens of terrified gazes upon me.
Wow, a feeling I've never experienced in my life... Like being the protagonist of the world.
Trembling with a sense of superiority, I shouted, "Come at me, you cowards!"
However, regrettably, my shout became the declaration of the battle's end.
"We can't fight something like that!"
"Run away!"
As the pirates turned their backs, the mercenaries' eyes gleamed. Then, abandoning their cautious fighting stance, they began thrusting their weapons as if hunting.
More lives were lost in an instant than all the pirates who had died until now.
I didn't stay idle either.
From the moment they turned their backs, I started collecting heads. Of course, I didn't cut heads from the corpses rolling on the ground.
Instead, I beheaded the fleeing ones.
That's how I gathered twenty heads.
The battle was over before sunset.
The pirates were in disarray, and less than half of their many ships managed to escape the port.
Of the two hundred soldiers in charge of the center and right wing, about fifty died, but they killed two hundred pirates.
The losses were significant, but it was an excellent military achievement.
Of the sixty militiamen in charge of the left wing, twenty died. The number of pirates they dealt with was as many as two hundred.
Thirty-three of those were killed by one person.
As he was savoring the victory and watching the battlefield being cleaned up, the officer suddenly frowned.
"What's this?"
Looking at the mercenary who had killed thirty-three pirates, the officer showed a peculiar expression on his face.
"I had a promise with some sergeant earlier. But I can't see him..."
The mercenary was noticeably tall, and his entire body was stained with blood.
He was holding a steel buckler, and in the same hand, he was gripping a crudely-shaped falchion in reverse.
The falchion's white blade was exposed, perhaps having lost its sheath, but strangely, there wasn't a single drop of blood on it.
"What kind of promise made you do something like this...?"
"Well, I made a small mistake... And you said you'd forgive me if I brought twenty heads."
Saying this, the mercenary wiped his face.
As the blood that clearly belonged to others was wiped away, dark eyes and a handsome face were revealed.
His sharp eyes and distinct features gave him a fierce impression, but he wore a gentle expression that didn't show it.
"I don't know what mistake you made... But I can't punish you."
"Ah, is that so? That's a relief."
At the feet of the mercenary, who was scratching his head with a polite expression, twenty heads were rolling around.
Their hair was braided and tied together for easy carrying, making them look like potatoes pulled out with their stems.
The officer, trying hard to swallow his nausea, said to the mercenary, "You should rather be rewarded. I'll inform the lord of your accomplishments."
"Thank you!"
As the mercenary bowed his head politely, the officer waved his hand.
"For now, go over there and receive your reward. The lord's message will come soon, so wait."
"Yes, sir."
As the mercenary walked away, the officer unknowingly let out a sigh of relief.
'...Somehow, he's creepy.'
But that thought was short-lived.
The mercenary, who had started walking away, slightly turned his upper body and head to look at the officer.
To the breathless officer, the mercenary said with a grin, "By the way... You don't know my name or where I'm staying, so how will I receive the message?"
Instead of saying, 'By tomorrow, there won't be anyone in this city who doesn't know your name, so what does it matter?', the officer asked, "...Come to think of it, that's true. Then, would you tell me your name and where you're staying?"
The mercenary, still grinning, answered, "Phoenix. I'm Phoenix, staying at the Ship's Horn Inn."
Seeing the blood-soaked smile, the officer unknowingly gripped the handle of his flail tightly.
Whether aware of this fact or not, the tall mercenary who had already moved quite a distance away was now bowing his head politely while receiving his reward.
He showed a broad smile upon realizing he had received three times as much silver as others.
Someone to keep an eye on, the officer thought.