Chapter 160
Chapter 160
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 160
Chapter Title: The Apostate of Choice
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A short distance down from where they had teleported.
Do-jae gazed at the golem standing motionless.
"How did you find it so well?"
*Thump, thump—.*
Do-jae stomped on the ground.
Though it seemed like solid earth on the surface, the tips of the Golem's Nerves extending through the soles of his feet told him there was an empty space below.
The golem that found it had an unusually high mental stat, just like Magol, and perhaps because of that, it was adept at detecting the faint energy flowing beneath the ground.
"Well done."
Do-jae praised the golem, patting its head.
The creature showed no movement or reaction, but patting it was still somewhat satisfying.
*Shing— Shing—.*
He recalled all the golems into his Subspace and placed his palm on the ground.
Stone and earth crawled up Do-jae's hand.
*Rumble—!*
In an instant, Do-jae's arm grew beyond the size of Harkes's forearm, becoming as thick as an ancient ginkgo tree.
It was as if his arm and shoulder had been absorbed into a pillar rather than being an arm at all.
*Whoosh—.*
*Crash—.*
Do-jae carefully shook his arm, pulling out the stone pillar, and a tremendous amount of rubble was extracted along with it.
He repeatedly cast and dispelled his Golem Armor.
Had he removed enough earth and stone to say a new hill had been formed?
"This should be enough, right?"
Do-jae said, looking at the massive hole he had created.
The hole was wide enough for even Harkes to fit through.
"Magol, go down."
Do-jae sent Magol, who was standing next to Herteias, down first.
He didn't sense any particular life energy below, so he planned to have Magol light the way.
*Thud—!*
Magol leaped without hesitation, reaching the bottom in an instant, and a loud crash echoed up through the hole.
Next was Harkes's turn.
"Then I shall go down as well."
Harkes slowly entered the hole.
He dug his fingers into the wall and slid down steadily.
After a moment, Harkes's figure disappeared into the darkness. A few seconds later, a small light appeared, and his voice drifted up.
"It's not as deep as I thought! Come on down!"
Harkes's shout came from the bottom.
Do-jae also prepared to jump down.
Just as he placed his foot on the edge of the hole, ready to descend.
*Tap—.*
Herteias grabbed Do-jae's shoulder.
"What's wrong all of a sudden…"
Do-jae turned toward Herteias.
The moment he was about to ask what was happening, a man came into his view.
"Havik…"
That's right.
A handsome young man with brilliant blond hair fluttering in the snowstorm, standing with a noble air.
Havik of Choice had finally revealed himself.
***
Havik of Choice.
If Ridirian was the first Apostate created by Gellahan, Havik was the last.
He was born human, hailing from the most powerful empire of a prosperous human civilization before the Hundred-Year War.
And not just an ordinary citizen, but the emperor's one and only son.
As the sole prince in an era of peace, Havik could have anything he desired.
Even if he did nothing, he was destined to be the next emperor, and the human world was as good as his.
But he was never happy.
The castle was always filled with laughter, but Havik could not join in.
‘How boring.’
Havik did nothing.
Even without him doing anything, the world ran peacefully.
There was no need to command anyone, no need to make any decisions.
He simply enjoyed the prosperous life promised by the Ascetics.
From a certain day, the smile vanished from Havik's face.
‘Why do I live?’
A single question began to occupy his mind.
The curiosity about 'life'—the reason for his birth, the reason he had to live—never left Havik's thoughts.
‘There is nothing I can do of my own will.’
Until then, Havik had never done a single thing according to his own will.
No, there had never even been a situation that required him to show his will.
He just went with the flow.
He had lived as was destined, as the world was meant to be.
‘No. There is something I can do.’
One day, the thought of death suddenly occurred to him.
No one else had ever had such a thought, but Havik was different.
He realized that while his birth was not his choice, death was something he could choose for himself.
To die, Havik headed to the top of the castle tower.
As the prince made his way to the top of the tower, not a single courtier asked why.
They just smiled; no one wondered what choice Havik was about to make.
‘At the very least, I can choose the day I die.’
The moment he opened the tower window and climbed onto the ledge, Havik was overcome with emotion.
At this moment of choice between life and death, an inexplicable, ecstatic feeling surged from deep within his heart.
And that was when a gloomy-looking man appeared.
‘You have realized the distorted truth.’
The man who suddenly appeared in the sky spoke in a warm voice to Havik, who was clinging to the windowsill.
He introduced himself as the Ascetic Gellahan.
‘Lord Gellahan.’
Havik was surprised.
The Ascetics had not shown themselves for several hundred years.
Their existence was still talked about, and the power of the gods had continued to flow through the continent, but this was the first time he had seen an Ascetic in person.
‘Come here.’
Gellahan slowly opened his arms, and Havik floated into the air, landing in Gellahan's embrace.
And Gellahan whispered softly in Havik's ear.
‘Child deprived of freedom. From now on, live as you will.’
***
*Whoosh—.*
*Stop—.*
As if it had never been, the fierce snowstorm ceased in an instant, and silence fell all around.
Havik's fluttering hair settled calmly.
"Oh-ho! Your presence feels much more solid now!"
Do-jae immediately drew his sword and cast Golem Armor.
And without preamble.
He shot out Black Scale, aiming for Havik's neck.
*Fwoosh—.*
Havik dodged it lightly.
He shook his head and sighed deeply.
"This isn't my style. I don't enjoy fights without conversation. How about it? We haven't seen each other in months, we could at least exchange greetings…"
*Swish—!*
Before Havik could finish, Do-jae swung Black Scale once more.
Faster and with more force than before.
*Swoosh—.*
If he had dodged the last one with just a slight movement of his neck, this time Havik had to twist his entire body to avoid it.
He looked quite surprised.
Do-jae didn't stop there, unleashing a continuous barrage of sword strikes.
"Hoh. Hmph! Hah? Heh!"
Black Scale, saturated with mana, grazed past Havik's body by a hair's breadth.
He couldn't land a critical hit, but he managed to tear Havik's clothes and inflict minor wounds.
This meant that Do-jae's stature was now capable of reaching Havik's.
"Did you come at just the right time? I'm quite lucky! If you were any later, it would have been difficult for me to handle you alone!"
Havik instantly put distance between himself and Do-jae, then rose into the air.
He then crossed his hands at his waist and pulled, drawing out a pair of daggers that hadn't been there before.
"You think staying silent will solve anything?"
*Fwoosh—!*
The two daggers in Havik's hands instantly erupted in flames, radiating immense heat.
Then he threw them toward the ground, one by one.
The flames shot out like arrows.
Do-jae sensed that the mana contained within them was no ordinary thing.
‘If they hit the ground, they'll explode!’
*Whoosh— Whoosh—!*
One dagger headed for the hole, the other for Herteias.
Do-jae realized which one he had to block and immediately moved toward the hole.
‘If he's about to die, he'll use his power on his own.’
Herteias should be able to block a decent explosion.
But Harkes, down in the hole, would be roasted alive.
That's why Do-jae decided to parry the dagger flying toward the hole.
*Clang—!*
*Boom—!*
When Black Scale collided with the flaming dagger, a massive explosion of fire erupted.
However, it only managed to scorch Do-jae's Golem Armor.
*Trudge— Trudge—.*
Herteias, who had put up a barrier, walked out of the blazing fire.
As expected, the attack was insufficient to harm Herteias.
"Hey! How could you choose a single titan over me?"
Herteias approached, fuming.
A sense of foreboding washed over Do-jae at his words.
"Heltein…!"
Do-jae called out to Herteias while simultaneously turning his head toward Havik.
Havik was smiling.
He felt he had fallen into a trap.
Havik hadn't targeted the wary Do-jae, but the prideful dragon.
"A choice doesn't have to be made with words. Isn't that right?"
Another dagger was in Havik's hand.
He didn't know where they were coming from, but daggers kept appearing.
*Swish-swish—!*
‘So this is what it feels like when someone else sees a Subspace…’
Do-jae gritted his teeth and tracked the daggers Havik threw.
Though they seemed to be thrown randomly, all the daggers flew toward Herteias with uncanny precision.
*Clang—!*
*Thwack—!*
It had been a miscalculation to think that Havik's only ability was to bewitch opponents with words and force them into a choice.
Each dagger Havik threw was incredibly heavy, and sweat began to bead on Do-jae's back as he parried them.
*Crash—!*
Likewise, Herteias's double- and triple-layered barriers began to crack and crumble.
"Damn it, you Apostate!"
Herteias, furious, unleashed a barrage of magic at the airborne Havik.
He even cast high-level spells without incantations.
But before they could reach Havik, a single gesture from him caused all the spells to vanish without a trace.
"Child's play magic! How amusing!"
Do-jae continued to parry the incoming daggers while grabbing Herteias's collar and dodging.
"Heltein, is this really the time for this? Turn back to your original form, now. That bastard's scheme…."
"I can't."
"What?"
"I said I can't. The polymorph won't dispel."
Herteias's brow was furrowed in frustration.
It seemed the effect of Havik's 'choice' was affecting Herteias.
"You're really useless…"
"How dare a mere human say such a thing?"
"Enough! For now, we need to figure out how to take that guy down."
Do-jae parried the daggers raining down like a storm while moving with Herteias in tow.
If he left him unable to transform into a dragon, his barriers would eventually break, and he would die.
In the future battle against Gellahan, having an ally on Herteias's level was a significant advantage.
‘There's no end to this if we just keep running. Ascetics! Is there any way?’
*Ssssk—.*
Stones moved from Do-jae's hand along Herteias's collar.
It was to clad Herteias in Golem Armor as well, to boost his defense.
- Unfortunately, your stature is lacking compared to Havik's.
- Only slightly. But as they say, in a battle between masters, the slightest difference is like that between heaven and earth.
- Yep, yep! It's a shame, but Do-jae's stature falls just short of Havik's.
*Tremble, tremble—.*
The Ascetics answered Do-jae's question leisurely.
A surge of irritation welled up.
‘I'm asking for a solution!’
Once Herteias was fully clad in Golem Armor, Do-jae did a 180-degree turn and charged at Havik.
- If your stature is lower, what can you do? You have no choice but to lower your opponent's.
- How about you make a proposal first?
- It might be fun for him to be on the receiving end for once, after always being the one to make the proposals.
*Grit—.*
Do-jae bit his lip hard.
The Ascetics' answers were less than satisfactory.
But it was worth a try.
After all, Havik's ability was based on wagering his stature.
"Hey, Havik! Let's make a bet!"
Do-jae shouted as he rushed toward Havik.