Chapter 13
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 13
Chapter Title: Awakening of the Absolute
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The body of the armored knight crashed to the ground with a heavy thud.
Thud!
Only then did the other knights realize something was gravely wrong. They raised their weapons, eyes locked warily on Ruyan.
"You bastard! What did you do to Jake?!"
"They said you were the son of an evil mage, and sure enough, you're wielding some freakish power!"
The knight who had just died must have been named Jake.
But Ruyan let the name go in one ear and out the other.
After all, these scum hadn't bothered remembering the names of the villagers they'd massacred.
"Evil mage, huh... If the man you slandered is the one I know..."
Ruyan steadied his breathing as he scanned the knights. Then, slowly, enunciating each word like he was chewing it out, he spat,
"You won't die easily. I promise you that."
Ruyan no longer bellowed.
With a perfectly ordinary voice, he quietly burned with rage.
Fierce beasts don't bark savagely. They don't bare their fangs easily.
The only time their prey sees those fangs is in the final moment of death.
But the dull-witted knights didn't take his threat seriously.
They had no idea an absolute being from another world lurked within the body of this fifteen-year-old boy.
"Ha! Listen to this punk."
The vice-captain even smirked as he approached Ruyan. Despite losing a subordinate, he showed no sign of agitation.
"Losing Jake is a shame, but this works out better. I was worried you'd run off—now I don't have to hunt you down."
Ruyan's eyebrow twitched at the vice-captain's nonchalant attitude.
"So you've found me?"
"Yeah. Figured you'd know about Blanc's research. Thanks for showing up so conveniently."
Those words let Ruyan grasp the situation instantly.
These bastards had done this to steal Blanc's new magic theory.
Which meant Blanc was in danger!
Ruyan's rage finally breached the walls of his reason, seeping out uncontrollably.
"What did you do to my dad?"
"Who knows? Probably dead by now? Idiot didn't cooperate. If he had, he could've died nice and easy without the hassle."
Thud.
Ruyan's heart sank.
Each of the vice-captain's words stabbed painfully into his chest.
'No! That can't be!'
He wanted to deny it.
He couldn't believe it, accept it, or understand it.
It was something that absolutely must not happen.
'No way! He can't go like this! I won't allow it!'
Ruyan's eyes shook violently. His whole body trembled.
His clenched fists dug his nails into his palms, blood trickling down.
His wavering gaze blurred. Slowly, the blue irises faded.
And finally...
Flash!
Sharp, piercing eyes gleamed as black pupils took their place.
It had awakened at last.
The terror of Murim!
The man once called a god.
The knights on the frontier of the Sobles Continent had awakened a being they should never have stirred.
"Don't kill that one—capture him alive. Slaughter the villagers; I don't care."
As Ruyan shuddered with uncontrollable fury, the vice-captain issued his order.
All the knights unleashed their mana at once, swarming around Ruyan.
Whoosh.
Mana thick with the stench of blood whipped up like a storm.
But ironically, the denser the mana grew, the more Ruyan's trembling subsided.
"I'll make you the same promise. I'll let you live."
A sinister sneer curled Ruyan's lips.
It was so chilling, anyone who saw it would want to gouge out their own eyes.
"But don't get the wrong idea. It won't be any kinder than death."
With that low warning, Ruyan lightly kicked off the ground.
Tap.
And vanished.
"What?! Where'd he go?!"
"Find him!"
As the knights frantically searched for the suddenly disappeared Ruyan, a sharp metallic clang pierced their eardrums.
Clang!
One knight, his abdomen completely pierced, collapsed with eyes wide in shock.
His sturdy steel armor was torn open like it'd been clawed by a beast.
And beside him stood a demon with one arm drenched in blood, radiating ferocious killing intent.
It was an unbelievable sight.
The opponent was just a fifteen-year-old boy. No armor, not even a weapon.
How could he produce such horrific results?
"Snap out of it! He's no ordinary kid. He's that evil mage's spawn."
The vice-captain's shout snapped the knights back to their senses.
When faced with power beyond comprehension, people always dismiss it as "sorcery."
The knights bit their lips and gripped their swords tightly.
Fwoosh.
Faint auras shimmered from their blades.
Sword auras!
Not fully formed yet, but these knights could indeed wield mana.
Ruyan clicked his tongue at the sight.
'Tch. So they're at least first-rate level.'
In the Central Plains, those who could infuse inner energy into weapons were classified as first-rate warriors.
Not enough to make a name, but respectable enough as martial artists.
By comparison, Ruyan couldn't manifest a sword aura yet.
His inner energy stores were insufficient.
Just five years' worth in his dantian. Even adding the mana from his circles, it barely exceeded fifteen years.
But that didn't mean he was at a disadvantage.
Why bother with clumsy sword auras when he could concentrate his inner energy for maximum destructive power?
'I'll show you just how laughable that feeble power is.'
Ruyan wasn't intimidated by their sword auras. His eyes blazed sharper as he charged.
Swish.
His figure vanished without a trace once more.
The peerless martial art, Return Divine Step, had descended upon the Sobles Continent.
The knights were fully focused this time, but the outcome didn't change.
Boom!
With an explosion, one knight soared into the air.
His helmet bore a clear fist mark and was reduced to scrap; his neck twisted at an unnatural angle.
No need to worry about the fall—he was already dead.
"When did he..."
Three down already, yet the knights hadn't even swung at Ruyan once.
"Damn it! Form a mana sword encirclement!"
The desperate vice-captain abandoned pride for a defensive formation.
The remaining knights pressed shoulder-to-shoulder, swinging wildly.
Sizzle.
Mana pouring from their blades spread wide, forming a threatening wall.
A razor-sharp shield that could shred anything it touched.
"Advance!"
At the command, the encirclement contracted toward the center, charging fiercely to tear Ruyan apart.
Surrounded by blades of mana, Ruyan looked perilously trapped.
But his expression remained unchanged.
Could you call it encirclement just because mice surrounded a beast?
In his eyes, their charge was nothing but greedy moths to the flame.
'You chose death yourselves—don't beg for mercy.'
Ruyan eyed the approaching auras, waiting for a sword to pass, then exploited the brief gap to slip in.
Crack.
His fist grazed one knight's neck in an instant.
One strike, one kill!
If Ruyan's hand touched you, there was no after.
Starting with the knight crumpling, neck snapped, the encirclement collapsed in ruins.
Huddled shoulder-to-shoulder, they were little more than lined-up prey.
Ruyan dismantled their vital points with ruthless efficiency, no motion wasted.
Crunch.
The gruesome sounds of flesh, bone, and armor shattering echoed chillingly.
Just thirty seconds!
That's all it took for the sixteen knights, menacing with their auras, to fall.
They died with eyes wide, never knowing how.
No screams lingered after the fierce battle.
"How... how can this be..."
Left alone, the vice-captain trembled, sword hand shaking as he backed away.
A monster!
He wore human skin but fought beyond human limits.
All the vice-captain could do was cling to his sword.
When had he approached?
Ruyan, breathing raggedly, seized the vice-captain's throat.
"Guhk."
"I said I'd spare you. A promise is a promise."
As he spoke, Ruyan poured strength into his grip.
Crunch.
Fingers slipped into the gap between helmet and armor, crushing the throat.
His sharp nails pierced skin, threatening to pulverize the neck.
"Grrk... Why..."
"I told you already. It won't be merciful like death."
His voice murmured the horrific threat expressionlessly.
Facing those clear black pupils devoid even of killing intent, the vice-captain wet himself in terror.
"Speak. Where's my dad?"
"Mason! Mason Village..."
He couldn't defy that gaze.
Before primal fear, a knight's honor was powerless.
"What happened?"
"Guh... The Brighton Academy to the lord..."
Despite choking gargles of pain, the vice-captain spilled everything.
The absolute's eyes brooked no lies or hesitation.
Once he had the full story, Ruyan indifferently tossed the vice-captain aside.
Finally free of terror, he clutched his throat and rolled on the ground.
But he hadn't given up entirely.
As he writhed, his eyes slyly darted, seeking escape.
'Somehow, find an opening...'
He dared not fight back—only flee.
But before he could struggle further, Ruyan's hand returned.
Grab.
It roughly seized the vice-captain's face.
"A warrior's eyes discern commoners. Since they failed, they're worthless."
Hot flames erupted from Ruyan's hand.
Fwoosh.
The searing heat invaded the vice-captain's eyes without mercy.
"W-wait! Aaaagh!"
He screamed madly, but resistance was futile.
The war god's wrath didn't stop until both eyes were blinded.
"You drew your sword with corrupt intent—that power's worthless too."
Ruyan's hand moved to the vice-captain's chest.
Thump.
A shockwave burst from his palm, infiltrating the mana circles and shredding them.
"No! My mana circles...!"
The vice-captain couldn't finish his scream; he slumped unconscious, mouth agape.
His circles destroyed, the backlash crushing his heart.
Blind and powerless, only suffering greater than death awaited him.
"I said I wouldn't take your worthless life—not that it has meaning."
Ruyan left the fainted vice-captain and turned away.
'The lord and branch head? I'll head there now.'
Ruyan of the black eyes.
His footsteps brimmed with fury.