Chapter 116
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: Clash with the Fallen Emperor
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Luna, who had unleashed her full power the moment she opened her eyes, was far stronger than the "useless" label she always wore around her neck like a badge.
She moved with light, playful steps.
Swinging a hammer casually with one hand, each effortless swing unleashed massive shockwaves that obliterated the giant stone demonic knights entirely.
The real issue was that the shattered ones weren't getting back up.
And that made sense—neither Leon nor Sullivan spared even a glance at the stone demonic knights.
"Why... why aren't they reviving?"
Rebecca, utterly baffled, voiced the question, but the mercenaries had no answer to give.
Only one person among them had pierced the truth of the situation.
"That knight they call the Emperor has no spare attention to revive those stone demonic knights right now."
"What do you mean?"
"Those two might look like they're just standing there still, but..."
The instant even one of them moved first.
Craaaack!!!
Unable to tolerate the tense standoff any longer, it was Sullivan who snapped first.
The very moment he twitched, Leon's sword flashed in an instant, unleashing a colossal sword aura that engulfed his entire body and shattered part of his armor.
Not satisfied with that, it carved a massive sword scar into the ground behind him, like a gaping crevasse.
This feat required an insane amount of aura, leaving those who grasped it belatedly with expressions of utter disbelief.
How could a boy who looked barely into his teens wield such vast death spirit mana and aura? It defied all reason.
"To take a hit like that..."
"My god... what in the world is that porter guy's deal...?"
"That's exactly what I want to know, Rebecca. Who the hell did you bring with you...?"
It had been Rebecca who'd hired Leon in the first place, after all.
The young elven prodigy Repel muttered under her breath as well.
"That guy's one thing, but what the hell is with that girl? No magic, no aura—how's she pulling off that insane strength with just her bare body?"
Leon’s momentary sword aura had stolen the spotlight, but Luna—smashing the stone demonic knights with every strike—was equally incomprehensible.
As shock rippled through the group, Sullivan glanced at his shattered armor and gripped his sword in a poised stance.
Leon sheathed his blade and assumed his own battle stance.
In the next instant, they clashed.
The colossal shockwave sent onlookers flying, tumbling several rolls—it was that ferocious a collision of power.
Moreover, their blades lashed out at each other so swiftly that no one else could even track the motions.
"You... that swordsmanship..."
Right after their first clash, the king of the fallen kingdom, Sullivan, spat out his words laced with mad fury.
"The realm of your swordsmanship is similar, but somehow... subtly weaker. From what I've seen of you, it looks like you twisted it even further from there."
Leon betrayed a flicker of surprise. This was the first entity in Labyrinthos that wasn't an exact duplicate of one he'd encountered before.
What the hell was Labyrinthos, anyway? And what were the versions he'd fought there? None of it made sense.
Sullivan, too, was stunned.
Even if some other force had been at play during their clash, the swordsmanship they revealed at the final moment of impact was precisely the same.
In a duel between the strong, even the briefest opening was fatal.
That was why both Sullivan and Leon, instinctively recognizing each other's might, hadn't moved rashly.
Yet Sullivan was the first to lose his composure.
Leon didn't miss the split-second gap, twisting his blade ever so slightly.
Sullivan countered with a swing of his own, but Leon's form accelerated as if time itself bent for him, delivering a brutal kick to the man's gut that sent him flying.
This was Leon's unique sword art: the Nameless Sword.
BOOOOM!!!
"...How dare you... steal my swordsmanship?"
Leon then gazed into the empty air, waggling the fingers of his free hand as if manipulating something invisible.
"Black Sword Art? So that's what you called it. Sorry, but watch your words."
Leon nonchalantly emitted a sword-scarlet energy flow similar to the one rising from Sullivan's blade, shook it off, and pointed his sword tip back at him.
"Don't compare that trash to this."
It's not just an insult to me—it's an insult to the mighty you once were.
Sullivan's mad rage deepened at Leon's cryptic words.
His face twisted like a furious clown's mask as he leveled his massive sword tip at Leon.
"State your name, traitor."
"Leon. That's all you need to know, Sullivan."
"...I am the Emperor."
"Emperors my ass. Weren't you the King of a Fallen Kingdom?"
BOOOOM!!!
Leon and Sullivan's sword arts clashed once more, etching massive sword scars across the battlefield like ricocheting bullets.
By now, Sullivan's minions had been mostly subdued and destroyed by Luna and the black phantom wolves.
The absurd number of magic circles Leon had conjured had overloaded the Soul Eater.
The chains that followed had fully bound the stone demonic knights, who then crumbled to dust under Luna's strikes without even a chance to revive.
Even through the eyes of a Sword Master, the clash between these two transcendent beings shattered all common sense. The mercenaries—and even unit leader Albion, recovered by Luna's healing—could only mutter in a daze.
"I've never seen just watching something affect me this deeply..."
"What do you mean by that, Captain?"
A grizzled mercenary nearby asked cautiously.
Albion gave a curt reply.
"A Sword Master is one who has forged their own world. That's why I once said that merely observing something won't easily shake that world."
But.
The swordsmanship and aura control of those two were so refined, profound, and above all, overwhelming that they planted doubts even in a Sword Master with a firmly established world.
"Mind Master..."
The realm that wielded swords transcending mere blades, through sheer force of transcendent will.
No realm a boy who looked barely into his teens should possess.
Scour the continent's history—no one had reached even Sword Master at that age, let alone Mind Master.
So what in the world was this boy's true identity?
Albion marveled at the impossible feats from the man he'd hired as mere baggage handler, yet he kept his eyes glued to their swordplay, unwilling to miss a single moment.
In cold assessment, Sullivan was markedly weaker than an intact Kraken.
His level was Mind Master tier—beyond Sword Master.
He looked more like some inhuman otherworldly race than a human; I had no clue about his true species.
I'd just learned this time that he came from some "other dimension."
Plus a few other reasons, the fight hadn't ended in a flash.
Because he was overwhelmingly strong? True, he was Mind Master tier.
But the bigger issue was my realm.
Sword Master tier wasn't weak, and I could wield Mind Master-level power with my vast aura reserves—but fully manifesting a Mind Master's unique strengths was practically impossible.
It wasn't like the old days, imitating aura blades as an Expert or Master.
Stronger than Sword Masters, maybe, but against a true Mind Master...? Eh.
Luckily, my aura overflowed, so I wouldn't lose. Still, I lacked the decisive blow.
Just driving him off would suffice, but that magic core attached to his armor...
And the Fate Load ring he presumably carried—that was the snag.
He didn't seem to be wearing it.
"Luna, got an exact location?"
Honestly, scanning his exterior, I didn't spot the Fate Load she'd shown me before.
But this guy didn't strike me as the type to cherish and safeguard a ring like that...
"When the black spear appeared just now."
Ah. Inside that?
That simplified things.
Killing him outright might be tough, but repelling him would do.
In the process, I'd snag the magic core on his armor and the Fate Load from his sub-space.
He still had no idea what we were after.
Claaaang!!
"Can you yank it if I create an opening?"
"Easy if you pin him. Sub-spaces interfere best with sub-spaces."
"Then I'll pry the door open when the chance hits—grab it."
"But he's crazy fast."
"I'll slow him down."
With that, I accelerated the necromantic mana circle, now showing faint signs of overload.
Next, I unleashed the prepared spell.
[2nd Circle]
Slow
"What is this? This simplistic, feeble power?"
Sullivan sneered as the slow effect hung on his body.
Sure, a 2nd Circle Slow might mean nothing to anyone Sword Master tier or above.
But.
I'm currently at 6th Circle. My necromantic mana reserves are transcendent—Death Lord tier.
In other words.
Even the same spell hits different when your capacity does.
In an instant, dozens of identical magic circles materialized throughout the air around us.
[60 Stacks]
Multi-casting too tough? Crank the casting speed to the extreme.
Thud!!!
The Slow that had barely been a nuisance exploded in potency, binding him utterly, and bewilderment flashed in his eyes.
Yeah, when I fought this guy before, I stuck to the sword alone.
I get he's strong, but why limit myself now? No reason to trade pure sword for sword.
Plus, I had sword arts and aura techniques that held a matchup advantage here.
Myriad Heavy Pressure
Ruuuumble!!!!!
Simultaneously, explosive aura flooded the area, generating an intangible pressure that crushed everything.
"Guh?!"
"Urk?!"
The mercenaries flinched at the unforeseen pressure, but it was concentrated squarely on Sullivan.
Even at just past Sword Master threshold, this much was feasible against his level—for a while.
The gap after that? Experience, aura volume, and insights from my methods would bridge it.
Ever played a game?
After slaying the same boss hundreds of times, the initial thrill fades into pure familiarity.
That's mastery.
In that sense, he had to treat me like a first-timer.
But against him? I'm the veteran.
Power short? Pull from elsewhere.
No more talk—we dove at each other like lightning, without hesitation.
Plus, that nagging notification since earlier stoked my experimental itch.
[Adaptation beginning.]
[Body synchronizing with soul's trajectory.]
No joke. My body had subtly diverged from a normal human's.
Man versus man.
Well, one side's a hulking figure with blue skin—not exactly human.
Either way, the battle between Leon and the self-proclaimed Emperor Sullivan left everyone baffled.