Chapter 253
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 253
Chapter Title: Utopia's Domain
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The hammer gripped in my hand. The Spirit Sword Utopia whipped through the empty air, unleashing a massive shockwave.
What they had restrained was aura and mana.
They couldn't suppress the spirit energy used to wield the spirit sword.
"That guy's up to something! Stop him!!!"
The man who shouted that swung his sword with an aura blade, as if to cleave me in two in one stroke.
But just before his sword could reach me, the space between us warped like an illusion, and in an instant, the surrounding scenery transformed.
Three of the other Sword Masters sensed the danger and swiftly escaped the range, aside from the one swallowed up into Utopia's domain in a flash.
So even Master-level powerhouses don't go down easily.
Not all the enemies were trapped inside the range, but for now, this would do.
Overwhelmed by the desolation of the changed landscape around him, he glared at me with wide eyes.
"What... what the hell is that?"
"Just a way to keep you from running."
I spoke calmly and stepped toward him.
In response, he tried to counterattack somehow...
"Hmph?!"
He staggered, his face twisting in grimace.
"What is this...?"
"Strange, right? It's like your body's senses are moving on their own."
The Utopia in my hand scattered light.
When training the academy cadets before, I hadn't let them suffer real injuries from monster fights.
Instead, I'd used a method that made their bodies tingle like they'd been shocked.
In other words, it meant I could affect those swallowed into the range to some degree.
It wasn't overwhelmingly powerful, but it was more than enough to grotesquely twist the senses of the two Sword Masters trapped inside, along with dozens of mages, sorcerers, Expert-level knights, and archers.
Of course, it consumed a massive amount of spirit energy in the process, but the debuff inflicted on me had no effect on my spirit energy expenditure.
Now that I looked at it, even suppressing the death spirit mana didn't seem to eliminate the undead I already had stored in my shadow.
Their recovery would be slow...
But their numbers wouldn't be overwhelmed. It didn't matter.
I tossed the hammer, Utopia, into my subspace as I faced the Sword Master who didn't hide his hostility toward me, even through his disrupted senses.
"This changes nothing. You're all dying here today. The crime of blocking the path of His Majesty, who bears the divine bloodline, will not be taken lightly."
Even inside this illusory space, the direct interference of aura and mana against me lingered.
It must mean Utopia's power wasn't that strong yet.
Maybe these Master-level foes could even break through and escape the space.
But.
That was only if I just left them alone.
With my hand in my pocket, I asked,
"Curious why I created this illusory space?"
"What?"
"To keep you bastards from running away."
At my command, my shadow rippled massively, and a gigantic shadow wolf over five meters tall emerged.
Muyeong, the first named phantom undead. He'd grown to possess Master-level power.
And following him, an enormous number of Forest Wendigos and wyverns appeared.
"Undead?! You bastard!! Were you a necromancer after all!!"
"Something like that."
Sword Master? I knew they were strong. But how long could they last in this space?
"Go on, boys. Trample them."
At my order, the massive horde of undead I'd looted from the previous Stampede Gate charged forward at ferocious speed, like warriors high on stimulants.
By the time Utopia's domain fulfilled its role and began to fade, the two Master-level powerhouses had already become corpses. The bodies of numerous Expert-level knights and mages were scattered everywhere.
Most of the escort team's cargo had been burned away, and the Eastern Continent forces who had swiftly retreated to safety when Utopia's domain expanded had already withdrawn.
-Szzz... Leon. Can you hear me?
"Loud and clear."
-What the hell did you say to the Holy Kingdom and the Elf Forest?
Out of nowhere?
I replied, puzzled.
"What are you talking about? I only sent Varil to the front lines."
The Shadow Dragon Varil was practically the strongest undead in my possession. Especially against crowds of weaklings—he could unleash savage power.
I'd sent him just in case the front-line situation turned sour.
-The moment the siege began, the Holy Kingdom's Holy Knight Charge appeared on the left flank. And on the right, the Elf Archers showed up and slaughtered Coral's forces.
These guys were doing unasked favors.
In truth, neither the Holy Kingdom nor the Elf Forest could have good relations with Coral.
The Elves were furious upon learning of the plot against them from Coral, and the Holy Kingdom worshipped gods.
The Coral Kingdom was unique in claiming their king himself bore the divine bloodline.
Deification of the royal family.
The problem was that this deification was used solely to bolster central authority, so from the Holy Kingdom's perspective—which truly revered gods—it was like, "What kind of cult is this?"
Because of that, Coral rarely saw Holy Kingdom priests set foot in their lands.
Coral was in a pretty dire spot right now.
"How long since the siege started, and still no news?!"
Of course, I knew the Bata Kingdom had reinforced their fortress after the previous Dragon Soldier incident.
Plus, their main forces hadn't even mobilized yet.
Naturally, I knew they wouldn't fall in one go.
But unlike the original plan to either capture the castle or inflict equivalent damage in this offensive, reports came in that half the besieging forces had been lost, forcing a retreat.
Bang!!
"Useless fools!!"
Coral's king growled, not hiding his extreme rage.
"I never imagined the Holy Kingdom and Great Forest would send reinforcements. We had solid intel that both were busy consolidating internally..."
Bang!!
The king hurled his golden goblet and caught his ragged breath, turning his gaze to an elderly man sitting primly on the side, sipping tea.
"I heard the supply escort was completely wiped out. Didn't the Sacheon Clan and Nakmyeong Clan promise to catch that damn fly?"
Nakmyeong Clan and Sacheon Clan.
The clans of the Eastern Continent weren't on the scale of mere noble houses.
The two clans of the White Tiger Territory weren't nation-sized, but they were massive, like dozens of ordinary families combined.
"Speak up!! You boasted so confidently!!"
"That brat was hiding far more than the info Coral provided. Regrettable, but true."
It was blatant buck-passing.
Damn old coot...
The king clenched his fist until veins bulged.
Even during the all-out war, they'd taken the vanguard to claim a slice of Bata post-conquest. But as things dragged, the Eastern Continent's subtle pressure became a headache.
And now, the escort they were guarding got utterly smashed.
A situation where trust eroded bit by bit.
They hadn't allied for mutual benefit from the start.
The goals were twofold.
First, Bata's territory. And just as they pondered halting the war after losing Dragon Soldiers at the border, another piece of news arrived: the second goal.
A massive mithril mine discovered in Cascadia territory.
Rumor had it orichalcum—the ultra-rare stuff—was buried there too.
Orichalcum! A resource that made hearts race just hearing the name. Cascadia was said to be the only place mining natural orichalcum.
And they failed?
Even with far stronger forces than before?
Dragon Soldiers were unusable. The enemy had the horn flutes to control them.
"Worry not. No matter how they struggle, once our prepared weapon is complete, even a dozen Sword Masters couldn't beat us."
The king fell silent, watching the old man stroke his beard leisurely.
The Holy Kingdom and Elves' intervention was unexpected, but at least the Empire hadn't joined.
With unrest in the Phainas Archipelago west of the Central Continent, the Empire couldn't intervene recklessly either.
"Speaking of which, what the hell is that monster? Where'd you get it?"
"Do you remember the kid Ma-cheon that Sacheon Clan brought before?"
"That monster you're talking about?"
"Yes. Ma-cheon was half a failure, but the weapon succeeded. Though it couldn't even maintain a human form."
The monster born from the two clans' combined power. They pinned their faith on it devouring even a dozen Sword Masters.
The king had no choice but to believe.
He'd felt its tremendous might firsthand, if only briefly when it opened its eyes.
"We must complete it soon."
"No worries. Once that monster's done, even Sword Saint Osberg Mielephon of the Pascalia Empire couldn't stop it."
The old man chuckled and rose from his seat.
"We'll handle the kid causing chaos on this land."
"Wasn't that the deal from the start?"
"Honestly, didn't expect Coral's intel to be this incompetent. But rest easy. We've grasped his forces. We'll deploy our assassin squads, the elder corps as main force, and test the weapon."
"Rumors about that guy are no joke, but can you win?"
"Assassin squads are experts at killing. Plus, with the secret weapon activated, no matter how talented, he'll be crushed unilaterally."
Even the Divine Dragon of the Eastern Continent—a genius of immense talent—had been thrown in with dozens of assassins against the secret weapon and slaughtered without resistance.
Coral's king narrowed his eyes.
After sending four Master-level experts and still letting him escape. Big talk from them.
The king scoffed inwardly. Sure, they'd underestimated his power, but leaving him be was too risky.
"Bring good news. Capture him alive or bring his head."
"As you wish."
The old man vanished as if teleporting with mystical movement.
Left alone, Coral's king drew a short breath.
Right. No need to rush. How strong could a punk like him be? Humans have limits. He wasn't some monster in human skin. This time, he wouldn't hold out.
So he thought.
Couldn't breach Bata's border fortress yet? No matter. Once they beheaded the annoying pest disrupting the rear and pushed through, it'd be fine.
And at the same time.
Leon was facing an unexpected figure.
"The bio-weapon Coral and the Eastern Continent clans are preparing. The core nucleus came from us. It shouldn't be controllable normally, yet they solved that issue from an unexpected angle."
"Guess I need to rip you apart then."
"W-Wait, wait, wait!!! We're not here to fight you! We came to tell you how to counter that monster!!! And who handed them the tech to complete that bio-weapon!!"
The heretics and Leon.
The king had no idea these two factions—who should clash on sight—were meeting.