Chapter 88
Chapter 88
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 88
Chapter Title: Power Shot
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“……!”
In that instant, Helm furrowed his brow and loosed an arrow.
Ping!
The arrow streaked through the air like lightning, knocking the dagger aside.
Next, Arthur aimed the weapon he had summoned at Helm, and something with immense power fired from its small barrel.
Tudatudatudatuda-.
Pea-sized aura blades shot forward like thunderbolts.
“What the hell!”
Helm panicked at this attack he had never experienced before and drew back his bowstring without even nocking an arrow.
Aura flowed from his hand and transformed into an arrow.
Pang!
The aura arrow rocketed away.
Kwang!
An enormous explosion blocked Arthur’s attack.
Arthur kept pulling the trigger.
Tudatudatudatuda-.
“Damn it!”
Helm threw himself sideways with lightning speed.
Puffpuffpuffpuffpuff-.
Aura blades riddled the spot where he had stood.
Helm quickly ducked behind a boulder and steadied his breathing.
Arthur unleashed a relentless barrage.
It had the momentum to shatter the boulder into dust, not just fragments.
‘Impressive.’
Helm calmed his excited heart and prepared a counterattack.
He drew his bowstring, waiting for an opening.
Puffpuffpuffpuffpuff-.
When the boulder was nearly half-destroyed, Arthur’s attack paused briefly.
‘Now!’
Helm rolled sideways and released his bowstring toward Arthur.
Paat-!
An aura blade sliced through the wind.
But Arthur dodged it calmly, as if he had anticipated it, and counterattacked.
Tudatudatudatuda-.
“Shit!”
Helm sensed he had fallen for Arthur’s scheme from the reaction.
He sprinted toward the next cover.
“Not a chance!”
Arthur pursued with the eyes of a predator stalking prey, pulling the trigger as he ran.
Tudatudatudatuda-.
This was a battle to gauge each other’s strength, so they avoided targeting vital spots like the head or heart that could cause lethal injury.
But the sheer volume of aura overwhelming his body created tremendous pressure.
“No choice.”
Helm concentrated mana in his legs and stomped the ground hard.
Kung-!
A powerful shockwave erupted outward.
This was the “Mana Wave” skill, usable only by masters, employed to repel nearby enemies.
“This is!”
Arthur was flung backward like he had been hit by a tidal wave.
In the meantime, Helm fled far away and hid behind a massive boulder.
The distance to Arthur was about a hundred meters.
At this range, he could launch a proper attack.
“As payback for everything so far.”
Helm drew his bowstring.
Deep blue mana poured from his hand, twisting like a corkscrew to form an arrow.
It was more than twice as thick as the previous one, with mana blazing like flames whipping in the wind.
Even as Arthur’s aura rained down, Helm closed his eyes and calmly waited for his chance.
The sounds of aura hitting the boulder grew fewer, then stopped.
A heavy silence fell.
Arthur moved slowly to the left, silencing not just his footsteps but his breathing entirely.
Helm did the same, creeping cautiously in the opposite direction.
‘Just a bit more.’
Tension hung thick in the air.
Millerph and Skevin, watching the duel, gripped their hands tightly in suspense.
That was when about ten seconds had passed.
Crack-.
Arthur accidentally stepped on a twig while moving.
The silence shattered in an instant, and Helm burst out from behind the boulder.
“Power Shot!”
Pang-!
The arrow flew with a heavy whoosh.
The moment Arthur saw the lightning-fast arrow laden with immense power, alarms blared in his mind.
“Shit!”
He pulled the K1’s trigger.
Tudatudatudatuda-.
It hit the arrow, but it deflected all the aura and kept flying straight at him.
“What!”
Arthur’s eyes widened.
At the same time, his superhuman senses activated instinctively.
Time seemed to freeze, flowing so slowly it created an illusion.
The incoming arrow felt agonizingly slow.
Swish-.
He twisted his body, dodging it by a hair’s breadth, and his senses returned to normal.
Immediately after, an explosion roared behind him.
Kwang-!
Arthur looked back in shock.
A warehouse about ten pyeong in size had been utterly demolished.
“That’s insane power…….”
Skevin couldn’t hide his astonishment at Helm’s prowess, which he had only heard rumors about.
“Truly remarkable.”
In contrast, Millerph’s face hardened.
If the empire’s No. 8 was this strong, worrying thoughts flooded in about the seven above him.
All were formidable foes Arthur would have to face.
Unless he fully inherited Teheran’s power, it would be hard to handle them.
“My lord…….”
He looked at Arthur with a face full of concern.
Arthur stared at Helm, who stood boldly without cover.
“Changed your mind to a head-on clash?”
Arthur grinned and gripped the K1 tightly.
He wanted to use the double machine guns, but since this was just to test each other’s skills, it wasn’t necessary.
Nor did he want to reveal all his cards.
“Shall we start round two?”
Arthur kicked off the ground and charged, firing as he went.
Tudatudatuda-.
“Acrobat!”
Helm activated another skill.
This ultimate technique, exclusive to Bow Masters, dramatically boosted agility for evading ranged attacks.
His speed more than doubled in an instant, pushing his physical abilities beyond human limits.
His eyesight sharpened dramatically, as if enhanced by Hawk Eye magic.
Lightning-fast aura held no terror for him now.
“It won’t be easy from here on.”
Helm twisted and dodged the aura while drawing his bowstring.
An aura arrow formed, just like before.
They repeated evasion and counterattacks many times.
Pang-!
Arthur activated his superhuman senses to dodge as well.
Somehow, they ended up in a clash where they maxed out their abilities without landing fatal blows.
Helm tried to close in somehow, but Arthur gave no openings.
Meanwhile, Arthur sprayed attacks relentlessly, but Helm slipped through them like the wind, forcing Arthur to change tactics.
‘I’ll give you what you want.’
Arthur intentionally left gaps in his fire, subtle enough that Helm wouldn’t notice.
Tudatuda! Tudatududa!
‘Hm, I’m getting used to it now.’
Helm felt a bit of leeway and thought he was adapting to Arthur’s attacks.
He dodged left and right without Arthur noticing, inching forward bit by bit.
He had planned this ending before the duel even started.
To subdue him perfectly not with a bow, but with a dagger.
Using a bow to overpower a Sword Expert would tarnish a Bow Master’s honor.
‘It’ll be over soon.’
He narrowed the distance to his “death zone.”
Arthur smirked inwardly, waiting for Helm to approach.
‘You’re in for a shock.’
Each schemed in their minds as they traded fierce blows and dodges.
When the distance shrank to five meters.
‘Now!’
Both sets of eyes flashed simultaneously.
Helm dove into Arthur’s reach faster.
He swung the Death Bow like a sword and drew the dagger from his waist.
As expected, Arthur dodged, and Helm thrust a decisive strike with the dagger.
‘Got him!’
Then he caught sight of Arthur’s lip curling up.
‘No way?’
Helm furrowed his brow as Arthur’s weapon changed form.
“What!”
Helm’s eyes bulged.
Arthur whispered in his ear now that he had come right up close.
“This is gonna hurt.”
He pressed the Benelli M1’s barrel against Helm’s stomach and pulled the trigger.
Alarms blared in Helm’s mind at the same time.
“No!”
Pung-.
Puffpuffpuffpuffpuff!
Over ten aura blades riddled Helm’s stomach like a beehive.
Smog-like smoke enveloped them both.
Skevin’s face twisted as he watched.
In the end, his worst fears had come true.
No matter how strong Helm was, facing Arthur without knowing him was dangerous.
Moreover, specialized in ranged combat, blocking close-range attacks like this wasn’t easy.
“Millerph! Heal him quick!”
Skevin shouted urgently, but Millerph just stood still.
“What are you…….”
Seeing Millerph’s rigid face, Skevin stopped mid-sentence.
At the same time, an immense aura washed over them.
“W-What!”
He whipped his gaze forward.
From the smoky haze of the aura explosion, a figure slowly emerged.
Helm, wrapped in pure white aura, glared at Arthur with fierce eyes.
“Mana Wall!”
Skevin gasped.
The Sword Master’s famed “Invincible Shield” skill had activated.
As its reputation promised, nullifying all attacks, Helm showed no damage whatsoever.
Arthur was equally stunned.
“I didn’t know aura could be used like that for defense. Let’s see how tough it is.”
Tudatudatudatuda!
He fired mercilessly.
Helm didn’t dodge, taking every hit head-on.
Puffpuffpuffpuffpuff-.
All the aura bounced off.
It felt like shooting at an impenetrable armored vehicle.
“Ha…… Unreal.”
Arthur shook his head and stopped firing.
Helm eyed the Benelli M1 and asked.
“What the hell is that weapon?”
“No point in more pointless attacks. Let’s end it here. Instead, show me your skills.”
Arthur pointed somewhere with his hand.
“You’ll see a white flag over there.”
“Where……!”
Helm peered intently where Arthur pointed and jolted in surprise.
He spotted the white flag, but even to a Sword Master like him, it felt distant.
He wondered why it was placed there.
Deciding to indulge him first and ask later, he drew his bowstring.
Aura flowed from his hand again, forming an arrow.
Unlike before, this one was extremely slender.
It seemed the arrow’s shape changed based on its purpose.
Helm’s eyes sharpened as he focused on the target.
Ting-.
With a heavy ring, the aura arrow streaked away and pierced the flag’s center.
He had hit a target nearly a kilometer away without a scope.
Truly godlike skill.
“Top sniper material.”
“Don’t know what that means, but I’ll take it as praise.”
“Highest praise there is.”
“Thank you. But I’m curious. Why put a flag there?”
“For training.”
Arthur swapped the Benelli M1 for the K1 and assumed a firing stance.
‘Unique stance.’
Helm’s expression turned serious.
From sparring with Arthur, he could tell Arthur was now focusing on the target.
Helm followed the barrel to the target with his eyes.
A moment later.
Tudatudatudatuda-.
With a roar, aura flashed toward the flag like lightning, obliterating it and the pole without a trace.
“……!”
Helm’s eyes rounded.
Arthur clearly wasn’t a Sword Master.
Yet he matched one in attacks and physical prowess.
The training ground was swarming with knights at Sword Expert upper level or higher.
By his knowledge, the count’s house was barely clinging to its legacy……
Doubts about Arthur and the Julius family piled up layer by layer.
‘What the hell?’
Questions filled Helm’s face.
Arthur nodded as if understanding.
“Everything must seem suspicious.”
“Could you explain?”
“I’ve inherited Teheran’s will.”
“……!”
Helm’s eyes widened.
Teheran Julius!
The absolute powerhouse called the “Empire’s Spear,” who unified the Oscar Empire and vanquished the Demon King.
Then that bizarre weapon must be one Teheran used.
All suspicions about Arthur and the count’s house vanished.
“Congratulations.”
Arthur holstered the K1 and added.
“And I’ll become a Sword Master not in ten years, but within this year.”
“……!”
Helm watched Arthur turn away with flushed cheeks, then bowed politely.
“I look forward to it.”
“Get stronger.”
Arthur walked off, continuing.
“You need to, to survive.”
Helm had lost his lord and seen his homeland burned and seized, plunging into despair.
But meeting Arthur brought a ray of hope.
‘If he becomes a Sword Master…….’
The Oscar Empire would enter a new era, without doubt.
The revival of the forgotten “Empire’s Spear”!
Flames of vengeance burned in Helm’s eyes.
‘I’ll have my revenge, no matter what.’