Chapter 100: A World Never Experienced Before (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 100: A World Never Experienced Before (4)
Heat exploded.
Flames erupted from Edwin Hector's hands, spewing in all directions like a dragon's breath.
Whoosh.
Whoooosh!
The heat was so intense it felt as though it could melt skin upon contact.
Roman pivoted.
Despite his forward momentum, he stopped on a dime, dodging the searing heat to target Edwin Hector's flank.
"Where do you think you're going?!"
Flash.
Edwin Hector's eyes glowed blue.
Memorize.
The magic engraved in his circles manifested instantly.
"Entangle."
Crack!
Thud, thud, thud!
The ground erupted.
Seeds buried deep within the soil germinated at an unbelievable speed, sprouting into thick, torso-sized wooden vines that lunged to coil around Roman's body. They writhed like giant anacondas. Moving like living creatures, the massive roots possessed devastating strength, easily capable of crushing a human body in an instant.
Every single vine was a lethal threat.
Roman channeled his mana, slicing through the encroaching roots in a single sweep.
Right then, a powerful impact crashed in from the side.
Boom!
Rumble!
"How dare you touch the Prince!"
It was a man he had never seen before. A middle-aged man.
With his hood pulled low to hide his face, his stylish mustache fluttered in the wind as he fiercely pressed his attack on Roman. An explosive aura erupted from the man's sword. It was on an entirely different level from the aura Jackson used. This aura, intense enough to distort the surrounding air, was the most powerful force Roman had experienced since arriving in this world.
A 5-Star Swordsman.
The man's name was Butler.
The Knight Commander of the Royal Knights, ranked second in the Hector Kingdom.
He had finally appeared.
The Hector Kingdom had truly committed their entire strength to this operation.
"You can run no longer!"
Crash!
Boom, boom, boom!
Butler's aura explosively pushed Roman back.
The forest shook.
The powerful, swift combination of attacks was so fierce that it wouldn't have been surprising if Roman's head was severed at any moment.
And then.
"Wind Blade."
Swoosh!
Edwin Hector did not miss the opening.
The wind whipping around his hands transformed into sharp blades, striking at the gaps created while Roman defended against Butler's onslaught. It was an attack that could not be blocked even if one saw it coming. Even Edwin Hector believed that, this time, the strike had succeeded.
Whoosh.
By a hair's breadth, Roman instinctively threw his body aside.
Evading the wind blades, he immediately raised his sword to intercept Butler's incoming strike.
Clang!
His head rang.
Edwin Hector.
He had laid a perfect trap.
By disguising the situation to make it seem like he had few guards left after Jackson's departure, he had secretly kept Butler waiting nearby. No matter how outstanding Roman Dmitry was, he shouldn't be able to withstand a pincer attack from a 4th Circle Mage and a 5-Star Swordsman. This was a trap that defied common sense. Just as they had been repeatedly caught off guard by Roman Dmitry, Edwin Hector had orchestrated a counterattack that defied common sense.
They believed it.
This time.
They could truly put an end to Roman Dmitry.
* * *
His head spun.
Under the relentless barrage of attacks, a wave of nausea welled up from deep within him.
Spit.
He spat out a mouthful of blood.
Even as Butler charged at him like a madman, Roman did not lose his focus for even a fraction of a second.
'As expected, they prepared thoroughly.'
Right before his initial strike, Roman Dmitry had sensed it.
He had sensed the mana swirling in Edwin Hector's heart, as well as the presence of a powerful individual pretending to be an ordinary soldier. He knew Edwin Hector had anticipated his attack and laid a trap. Yet, he had played right into his opponent's hands. Even knowing it was a trap, he had revealed himself and attacked Edwin Hector anyway.
Why on earth did he make such a reckless choice?
He wanted to test himself.
Since waking up as Roman Dmitry, he had never once experienced what could truly be called a crisis.
Blood Fang.
Barco.
Even this guerrilla operation.
Compared to the life-and-death struggles of Baek Joong-hyuk's past life, these were laughably easy tasks.
To rouse his heart, which was growing soft from comfort, Roman had deliberately stepped onto the line of death.
Clang!
He blocked the attack.
A 5-Star Aura.
It was powerful enough to make his brain rattle.
Although Roman Dmitry's body had grown leaps and bounds stronger after undergoing Shedding Bones and Rebirth, he was not yet at a level where he could easily withstand a 5-Star Aura. Furthermore, Butler's swordsmanship was highly orthodox and systematic. As if demonstrating how a sword should truly be wielded, he pressed Roman relentlessly, refusing to grant him even a moment's respite.
Clang!
Clash, clash, clash!
Sparks flew.
As their auras collided, a powerful shockwave swept through the surroundings.
In that instant, Roman felt a chill.
Sensing another rapid surge of mana, Roman realized that the formless attacks were not yet over.
Swoosh—
Wind Blade.
A sharp blade of wind grazed past.
Blood splattered across Roman's cheek, and before he knew it, Butler was right in front of him, swinging his sword.
It was a critical moment.
He was running out of breath.
Under the continuous onslaught, Roman's physical stamina was reaching its limit. Yet, he stared straight into Butler's eyes.
'Heavenly Demon Sword Technique - Third Form.'
The mana in his Dantian boiled.
A powerful explosion.
Like an erupting volcano, his mana blasted in all directions, manifesting as an aura that surged directly toward Butler.
"..."
Boom, boom, boom!
It was an overwhelming force.
Faced with a strike that tore through the air, Butler hurriedly raised his sword and channeled his aura with all his might. Even so, he could not escape completely unscathed. Blood trickled from Butler's nose as he was blown backward, rolling roughly across the ground.
But that was the extent of it.
Though he had sustained a significant shock, Butler did not collapse.
"...Just where on earth did a monster like this come from?"
His voice trembled.
A pincer attack by a 4th Circle Mage and a 5-Star Swordsman.
Even if their opponent had been a fellow 5-Star Swordsman, he should have fallen by now.
Yet, the flow of the battle defied all expectations.
Roman's fierce martial prowess and relentless counterattacks were completely shattering the scenario they had envisioned.
Furthermore.
'Roman Dmitry is only in his mid-twenties.'
Goosebumps broke out across his skin.
He himself had only reached the 5-Star Realm after turning fifty, yet this young man was already showing enough power to trade blows with him. Perhaps that was why Butler actually felt relieved. Encountering Roman Dmitry now presented the perfect opportunity to eliminate a monster that would undoubtedly threaten the Hector Kingdom in the future.
Roman was not yet on equal footing with him.
And.
He cast a glance.
At Edwin Hector.
Meeting Butler's gaze, Edwin Hector channeled his mana with a grim expression.
"This is truly the end. Break. Hold."
Double casting.
The energy of mana surged toward Roman.
Break.
A spell that crushed objects with intense pressure.
Hold.
A spell that restrained the target, rendering them completely immobile.
The two spells had a clear purpose.
They intended to shatter Roman's sword and leave him defenseless and paralyzed, allowing Butler to strike the finishing blow.
If he did not possess a magic-immune artifact, the fleeting opening Roman was about to expose would lead directly to his death.
'I don't sense the energy of any magic artifact on Roman Dmitry. Therefore, he cannot block this attack.'
Edwin Hector was absolutely certain.
However, an unbelievable sight unfolded before their eyes.
Whoosh!
Butler's attack.
Roman dodged it.
His sword was perfectly fine, and as if the Hold spell had absolutely no effect on him, Roman's movements remained completely unrestricted.
Flash!
He launched a counterattack instead.
Blood splattered across Butler's face.
Because it was such an unexpected counter, even the 5-Star Swordsman could not react quickly enough.
They did not know.
Roman's secret.
The moment Edwin Hector cast his magic, Roman instantly realized what his opponent was planning.
'They are trying to suppress me with magic.'
The power of Hold.
He felt an invisible force invading his body, attempting to bind his muscles.
Although magic was a power he was experiencing for the first time in his life, Roman had thoroughly researched it during his stay in Dmitry. An intangible force. A divine realm that created something from nothing using mana. Magic did not exist in Murim. However, he was intimately familiar with a similar yet different domain: sorcery.
For the past six months, Roman had prepared for war.
He had begun his research under the assumption that he might encounter a mage on the battlefield, and he had achieved a measure of success.
'Magic and sorcery are different, but their fundamentals are the same. If they try to restrict my body by invading it with mana, just as with sorcery, all I have to do is circulate the Heavenly Demon Divine Art to instantly purge that foreign power.'
It was not as simple as it sounded.
The mana invading his body would cling stubbornly like a virus, refusing to leave. But Roman's peak-level qi control resolved all such issues. It was a feat possible only because he was the Heavenly Demon, Baek Joong-hyuk. Without exerting any special effort, the energy surging from Roman's Dantian completely evaporated the power of Hold.
And there was no need to worry about Break in the first place.
Roman's sword.
The blade named Yeomhwa, which he had newly forged after giving away Salamander, was not a weapon that could be shattered by mere magic.
The magic had been dismantled.
It wasn't that he had prepared specifically because he knew his opponent was a mage.
Ahead of the war, Roman had simply prepared for every single variable.
An unexpected turn of events.
Edwin Hector and Butler were thrown into confusion.
And Roman did not miss that opening.
Whoosh!
"..."
Roman Dmitry closed the distance in an instant.
This time, even Butler could not react.
Though the Knight Commander tried to give chase with wide, horror-stricken eyes, Roman's sword was already sweeping toward Edwin Hector's neck.
Slash!
It was a perfect strike.
If things had gone as expected, Edwin Hector's head should have flown off.
However, the power of magic did not allow for such an outcome.
"Blink."
With a single flash, Edwin Hector vanished.
He reappeared some distance away from Roman, his face deathly pale, as if he had overexerted himself to cast the spell.
"You son of a bitch!"
Butler exploded in rage.
The Prince of Hector had almost died.
Unleashing an explosion of aura incomparable to before, he charged, intent on slaughtering Roman.
And then.
Fweeeet—!
Whistles echoed from all directions.
The troops pursuing Roman.
They had finally arrived.
Seeing the Hector forces flooding in with Jackson at the lead, Roman had to make a decision.
'If I drag this out any longer, I will die.'
In the distance, Edwin Hector stood panting.
Roman looked at him and spoke in a fierce, chilling voice.
"Remember my warning. Do not let me catch you. If we meet again, you won't walk away alive like today."
With those final words, Roman kicked off the ground.
Even Butler could not catch up to him.
As Roman activated his Lightness Skill, he distanced himself in an instant. The moment he reached the pitch-black shadows of the forest, his figure vanished without a trace. It was the martial art of the Dark King. The Hector soldiers hurriedly tried to illuminate the darkness to search for Roman, but if he were someone who could be found so easily, their comrades wouldn't have been dying all night.
Everyone stopped in their tracks.
Into the darkness.
None of them dared to follow him there.
In the wake of the passing storm, a single thought crossed everyone's minds.
'It is Hector's defeat.'
It was a reality they simply could not accept.
Especially Edwin Hector. For a man who had lived a life of universal acclaim, he could not tear his eyes away from the darkness where Roman had vanished.