Chapter 173
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Translator: Prime Works
Chapter: 173
Chapter Title: Iron-Blood vs. Hell (1)
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Where the hell is Lord Lloyd?
That was the question Haviel had pondered most today.
More precisely, it was the one he'd desperately repeated over the last twenty minutes or so.
He wanted to find Lloyd.
But he couldn't.
It had started from the Namaran Count's mansion.
He'd left the guest quarters, dashed through the plaza, raced down the main streets.
No alley left unsearched, no door left unopened.
He'd shouted himself hoarse.
But there was no response from Lloyd.
All that echoed back were the desperate groans of the fallen citizens.
That only made his heart race faster.
He had to pass by the people collapsed in front of him.
He was driven by the mission to find Lloyd as quickly as possible.
His frantic footsteps matched the pounding desperation in his chest.
Then, at some point—
He sensed mana gathering.
A foreboding barrier encircling the city.
He felt the mana absorbed by that barrier converging on one spot.
He ran toward it.
Maybe Lloyd was there.
Clutching that hope, he arrived.
And came face-to-face.
"......"
With Kannavaro.
The culprit behind this disaster.
The moment he spotted him from afar, Haviel drew his sword.
Shing!
The blade in a Swordmaster's hand gleamed coldly.
At that instant, shock flashed in Kannavaro's eyes.
*How is that guy still fine?*
His heart sank.
That silver-haired knight who appeared in the distance.
From the moment their eyes met.
His instincts screamed.
Danger.
*The barrier's acting weird right now, mana absorption's stopped... but it was working fine just moments ago. That guy should've had all his mana drained too, right?*
Yet there he stood, unscathed.
Breathing slightly heavily from his rush over.
Eyes blazing as he drew a sword that shone even brighter.
*That guy's dangerous.*
The realization hit.
About a second after their eyes locked.
Kannavaro's hands moved swiftly.
"Hup!"
Fingers and palms intertwined.
Quickly weaving, unweaving.
Mana twisted and assembled in precise patterns and sequences, then released.
And flung wide open.
Whoooosh!
A portal tore open in the space before his outstretched hands.
Darkness within darkness.
Perhaps the edge of another dimension.
Or a sliver of hell itself.
Something shot out from beyond the gate.
Clatterclatterclink!
Thirteen chains launched forth.
Each one thick as the trunk of an ancient tree.
But that wasn't all.
Krrrrumble!
Everything in the chains' path crumbled.
By sheer force?
No.
It rotted and decayed in an instant.
As if time had been accelerated thousands of times over.
Anything the chains touched aged rapidly, corroded, shattered, collapsed.
Paving stones, dirt, carriages—nothing was spared.
Yet Haviel didn't even blink.
"......"
*No big deal.*
That was Haviel's thought as the chains surged toward him.
The next moment, his sword moved.
...!
No sound.
No flash.
Just a simple horizontal slash.
In that single motion, everything charging at him split apart.
The chains aimed at him.
The malice binding them.
All severed by one stroke.
A brilliant glow bloomed in the space his swordblade swept through.
Tzzzzz!
Aura erupted, slicing every chain. It swept the area, surging with even greater momentum.
Witnessing that—
Kannavaro turned and bolted.
Toward the city hall.
Without looking back, he fled.
He had no choice.
Lingering meant death.
He knew it clearly.
*Crazy! Is that thing a dragon?*
He kicked open the city hall doors in panic.
Such thoughts raced through his mind.
A Swordmaster?
No way.
Not even a Swordmaster could pull that off.
Not right after having their mana drained for dozens of minutes inside the barrier's domain—then erupting with aura to cleave his most powerful black magic with a single sword stroke.
*Whoever that is, he's no ordinary Swordmaster. Might not even be human.*
That was all he could think.
In truth, Kannavaro's misunderstanding was understandable.
He had no idea Haviel was even in the city.
Lloyd had come to Namaran unofficially from the start.
Without fanfare, blending in with the Namaran Lady's entourage.
Quietly meeting the count and securing the construction contract.
So Kannavaro didn't know about the famous silver-haired Swordmaster staying in the city.
Nor that he was working at his free distribution center.
Nor that he'd finally come here to take his head.
He only sensed the danger clearly.
*At this rate, I'm done for.*
He was certain.
That was his most powerful spell.
Yet it was cut down in one strike.
No matter what he tried, he couldn't win against that silver-haired man.
*Then...*
Kannavaro's eyes darted anxiously.
To the center of the city hall's main exhibition room.
Toward the fallen angel statue placed there.
It was covered in the ritual markings he'd carved with his own blood.
"......"
Hell Knight.
Should he summon it now?
The barrier was faltering.
Not enough mana gathered.
Even if summoned, there might be issues.
*But if I don't summon it right now...*
I'll die.
The deliberation was brief; the decision instant.
Kannavaro's hand touched the statue.
All ritual preparations were already complete.
Only the final activation remained.
It was simple.
His hand on the statue.
A bit of mana infused.
That sufficed.
Kiiiiiaaaaa—!
The blood-red runes etched across the statue unleashed an eerie glow.
Dozens of bizarre illusions flickered around it. Writhed. Surged, rose, roared, convulsed.
Then the statue shattered under pressure.
Crackcraaaack—!
"Urgh!"
The exploding statue.
Fragments flying everywhere.
Kannavaro tumbled, struck by shards.
Blood poured from a gash on his forehead.
But he didn't even think to wipe it.
He looked up immediately.
To confirm what he'd summoned.
"Hell Knight..."
Fssshhh...!
In the spot where the statue had crumbled to dust.
Black mist flowed over the marble pedestal.
Red eyes gleamed within.
One breath to survey the surroundings.
Two breaths to dispel the mist.
Finally, hell's knight revealed itself.
But something was off about it.
"What the..."
Kannavaro's face twisted.
His eyes frantically scanned the Hell Knight from head to toe.
The Hell Knight emerging from the black fog.
But it had flaws(?).
No hellmount.
One arm missing.
One leg gone.
No mount, one-armed, one-legged.
"Grrraaah! What the hell!"
Kannavaro clutched his head with both hands.
Ruined.
As expected, the barrier's mana absorption glitch was the cause.
Not enough mana collected.
Far too little for a proper Hell Knight summoning.
*Even so!*
All the effort and funds poured in over long months.
The grand ambitions he'd vowed to achieve.
Clinging to those memories, Kannavaro despaired. He dropped to his knees. Gazed up at the incomplete Hell Knight with hollow eyes.
Then—
"Can't believe you caused all this just to summon that thing."
A voice echoed through the city hall.
Haviel was already inside.
Approaching warily, brow furrowed.
His gaze fixed on the Hell Knight.
"......"
As he stared at it, the Hell Knight stared back.
Blue eyes met red glow.
The next instant.
The silver-haired knight and hell's knight were already clashing swords.
They'd recognized each other as foes the moment their gazes locked.
Clanggg—!
Silver longsword met black two-handed sword.
Radiant aura clashed with corrupted curse energy.
An unrelenting power struggle between polar opposites.
The moment their swords collided.
The shockwave swept outward.
Haviel's eyes widened.
"......!"
Incredible power.
His sword nearly got pushed back.
But the surprise wasn't just the strength.
*From hands to shoulders. Bones aching.*
A fierce crease formed between the silver knight's brows.
He recalled the clash.
The instant blades met.
A chilling energy seeped along the blade.
Piercing skin in a flash, infiltrating muscles and marrow.
Crawling up his arm via veins.
If he hadn't spun his Mana Circle the moment he sensed it, hadn't repelled the chill with intense mana pressure—he'd have taken a heart strike in that split second.
*A formidable foe.*
Not some ordinary undead or skeleton soldier.
Certainly not one to underestimate despite missing an arm and leg.
One clash.
That was enough for Haviel to gauge the Hell Knight's full power.
*On my level.*
Beyond a typical Swordmaster.
Even ones like King Alicia would need two or three to match it.
But if that skeletal knight had all its limbs intact?
Even he might not have handled it.
*Not now, though.*
He could do it.
He was sure.
From that moment of conviction.
Fierce resolve ignited in Haviel's blue eyes.
His sword grew more precise—and savagely wild.
Katerterterclang—!
Iron-blood barrage like a storm.
No mercy.
Slash one way, then smash the opposite.
Smash, then uppercut; block that, and it thrust in unseen.
- ...!
The Hell Knight's skull shook violently.
*Are all surface-world humans like this?*
The hell knight felt confusion.
His first sword foe upon descending to this plane was Haviel, of all people.
- What...
I'd heard humans were weak.
Even in this incomplete form.
Even unable to exert a fraction of my true power.
I thought no one on this world could stand against me.
Sadly, that belief shattered in under a minute.
Along with ribs cleaved by the sword.
Crunch!
The silver longsword tore into the Hell Knight's chest.
Armor and ribs scattered pathetically to the floor.
Of course, the Hell Knight wasn't just taking it.
- ...!
Roaring in hell's tongue, it swung wildly.
Black curse-infused shockwaves engulfed the space ahead.
But Haviel didn't dodge.
He countered head-on.
Clanggg—!
His longsword thrust at invisible speed.
The next instant.
A drill-like pierce shot forth.
Puncturing the shockwave in one go. Extending further. Charging. Toward the Hell Knight's skull. Penetrating. Piercing through.
Splurt!
The Hell Knight's helmet front shattered from the pierce.
Skull pierced front to back.
Finally, utterly pulverized.
- ...!
The headless Hell Knight convulsed violently.
But only for a moment.
Clang!
It dropped its sword.
Its bones disconnected. No, disintegrated. Collapsing like a sandcastle.
Hell's knight, surpassing even Swordmasters.
Reduced to a pile of bones.
"What..."
Kannavaro gaped, unblinking.
Haviel versus Hell Knight.
An intensely intricate exchange.
But to the onlooker?
It lasted mere seconds.
From Kannavaro's view, the Hell Knight he'd labored to summon—defeated in seconds, crumbling to bone scraps.
*Am I... having a nightmare?*
His legs gave out unwittingly. He collapsed. Looked up blankly. Stared at the approaching silver-haired knight with empty eyes.
"For a grave crime, summary execution would be fitting. But your sins are too many for that. You'll face proper interrogation in the royal court, not here."
"......"
The longsword now aimed at him.
Kannavaro swallowed dryly.
*Where the hell did...*
This monster come from?
Even staring at Haviel, it felt unreal.
Understandably so.
Unscathed inside the Noctanium barrier.
Dispatching a flawed Hell Knight in one go.
All too surreal to accept, even with his own eyes.
*A dragon disguised as human? No, impossible. Dragons don't meddle in human affairs without reason. Then... wait, could it be?*
Kannavaro froze.
Desperately regaining composure.
Racking his brain furiously.
Then, one memory surfaced.
*Haviel Asrahan.*
He'd heard the name.
The young Swordmaster who appeared like a holy figure.
Rumored to surpass even the king.
Described as strikingly beautiful.
With silver hair like the Milky Way.
The monster approaching, sword at ready—matched perfectly.
*But why is he here?*
If Haviel Asrahan was in the city, he'd have known.
Had he come unofficially?
Had he foreseen their plot?
Unclear.
But despair didn't come.
In his despairing vision, something caught his eye—behind Haviel.
"Ha, haha."
Kannavaro's lips curled unwittingly.
His gaze fixed there.
Behind Haviel.
The black bone pile was regenerating on its own. Rising.
Kudududuk... Krunch...!
The Hell Knight's black skull helm restored in seconds.
Through it, its red eyes gleamed fiercer than before.