Chapter 249: Shadows Looming Over Dmitry (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 249: Shadows Looming Over Dmitry (3)
During the great upheaval of the Cairo Kingdom, Fernando had been swept up in the winds of change.
When he went to see Roman Dmitry, Roman had looked at him and said:
"My desire is clear. I want the man named Fernando to live for my sake."
That day, Fernando saw a ray of light.
People had mocked and insulted him. They called him the Gatekeeper of the 30th Rank, an insult to his stagnant talent. Yet Roman Dmitry had recognized his true worth and spoken of a grand future ahead of him. Perhaps Roman was just a man of empty words. But based on everything Fernando had experienced, he judged Roman as a lord worthy of his absolute devotion.
And so, he went to Dmitry.
There, he witnessed an entirely new world.
Finding such a wealthy, vibrant city on the northeastern edge of the continent was surprising enough, but the true shock lay in how Dmitry's soldiers trained. Fernando had spent his life desperately seeking knowledge to overcome his innate limitations. He had even studied renowned techniques imported from empires like Valhalla, but none were profound enough to trigger a dramatic change.
But Roman Dmitry's martial arts were different.
The moment Fernando manipulated mana using this new method, his existing common sense shattered to pieces.
To think such a technique actually exists in this world.
He was ecstatic.
Until then, he had always found mana manipulation highly inefficient. The mana scattered throughout his body refused to obey his absolute control, and much of it leaked away when manifesting aura. Yet, that inefficient method was the "orthodox path" everyone followed. Rejecting the historical path of aura swordsmen was no simple matter, no matter his regrets.
But Roman shattered those preconceived notions.
Fernando absorbed the new knowledge at a terrifying pace, correcting his flaws under Roman Dmitry's direct guidance.
At first, it was a grueling process.
Born with naturally narrow mana pathways, Fernando faced severe restrictions in manipulating mana, making the accumulation of qi in his Dantian inevitably slower than others. Even so, he did not lose heart. Having never let go of the possibility of growth—even while being mocked as the Gatekeeper of the 30th Rank—he found the current situation hopeful enough to endure with a smile. Though minuscule, results were definitely showing. During his time in Dmitry, Fernando devoted himself to training so intensely that others called him mad.
Finally.
Boom!
His mana pathways burst open.
The moment he carved out a new path for his mana, Fernando stepped into an entirely different realm.
People used to say:
"Fernando is a truly tragic figure. Seeing how he can manifest a 4-Star Aura despite his physical limitations, one can only imagine how far he would have grown with even average talent. The nickname 'Gatekeeper of the 30th Rank' signifies the absolute limit of effort, but it also proves his greatness for reaching that height through sheer will alone."
Now, that very man had shattered his limits.
On the day he bowed his head in deepest gratitude, Roman Dmitry appointed Fernando as the sword that would protect the Dmitry Royal Family.
* * *
Without a single signal, the Shadows lunged.
Facing the surging black wave, Fernando unleashed his aura.
"Stop the enemies!"
Rumble!
Crash!
His momentum was completely different from before.
An aura blazing so fiercely it warped the very air clashed head-on with the oncoming assassins. The Shadows attacked simultaneously, their combined auras exerting a massive, oppressive presence. But the moment their blades met Fernando's, their auras were instantly torn to shreds.
Crackle!
Mana violently dispersed.
As the bewildered Shadows tried to retreat, Fernando lunged forward, his blade tearing through flesh.
Flash!
Dark red blood sprayed into the air.
Fernando didn't stop. Exploding his aura, he dove straight into the swarm of Shadows. It was a perilous sight. Blades aimed for his life from all directions, but Fernando's swordsmanship deflected every single strike. No—even as he blocked, he cut down his attackers in the very same breath.
Splurt!
It was a strike the Shadows couldn't possibly block.
The explosive power of his aura was so immense that by the time the roar of his blade reached their ears, their heads were already spinning through the air.
Whoosh!
Swish!
The Shadows scattered.
Realizing Fernando was far stronger than expected, some attempted to bind him by manipulating the shadows themselves, while others tried to bypass him entirely to infiltrate the inner castle. This was never a fight to kill Fernando. To the Shadows, assassinating the targets on their list took absolute priority.
Suddenly— Boom!
Fernando kicked off the ground.
The shadow bindings instantly shattered. A tidal wave of mana erupted, throwing the assassins completely off balance.
And by the time they grasped the situation...
"Where do you think you're going?"
Flash!
More heads flew.
Fernando did not allow a single Shadow to pass. If they showed even the slightest intention of slipping by, he pursued them relentlessly and claimed their lives. Fernando's presence swelled to terrifying heights. The man once mocked as a "colorless and odorless" swordsman had met a master named Roman Dmitry and gained wings.
In this very moment, Fernando found the meaning of his life.
Seeing the purpose of his sword so clearly proven, he couldn't be happier.
A swordsman only truly exists when he wields his blade for a meaningful cause. Until now, I was nothing more than a weakling trapped in a quagmire, unable to overcome my innate limits. But from now on, it is different. If I live for Lord Roman Dmitry, the man who made me who I am today, I can exist as a true swordsman until my dying breath.
What a joyous realization.
His grueling efforts and his swordsmanship had finally acquired profound meaning.
A man who had wandered for so long had found his true path, all thanks to a single existence: Roman Dmitry.
Crunch!
He trampled the Shadows.
He fought even more brutally, showing absolutely no mercy to ensure these rats would never dare look up at Roman Dmitry again. Perhaps Roman had recognized this hidden side of him. That was why he had bestowed upon him the title of the sword protecting the Dmitry Royal Family. From that moment on, Fernando was no longer colorless and odorless—he possessed a distinct, vivid color.
A raging fire.
Fernando's presence completely overwhelmed the battlefield.
The Kronos Empire's sudden, supposedly perfect plan was being dismantled piece by piece by the people of Dmitry.
Finally— Slash!
The last remaining Shadow stumbled and collapsed.
True to his word, Fernando had not let a single enemy pass.
At all three defensive points, the result was the same: the total annihilation of the Shadows.
* * *
Outside the castle walls.
Mystic wore a look of utter astonishment.
Through his communication link, he confirmed that the number of Shadows infiltrating the castle was rapidly dwindling.
"...Have even the Shadows failed?"
Beyond shock, the situation was downright absurd.
These were not ordinary assassins; they were the Shadows.
Even if the defenders had anticipated the attack, stopping them should have been nearly impossible. Yet, the Dmitry forces had accurately tracked the Shadows' movements and swiftly neutralized them. Dmitry possessed a brilliant tactical mind. Furthermore, the warriors capable of dealing with the Shadows must have worked in perfect harmony to purge the interior so quickly.
That was not all.
As Mystic stared at the still-impregnable castle walls, a subordinate approached, his voice urgent.
"Lord Mystic. A state of emergency has been declared across the entire northeastern region. Reinforcements have already departed from the territories belonging to the Dmitry Duchy, and the Cairo Kingdom is rapidly dispatching troops to the border. If we stay here, it is only a matter of time before we are completely surrounded. At the earliest, it will take twelve hours. Within that time, the enemy's reinforcements will arrive."
The response of the lords sworn to Dmitry was perfectly coordinated.
Upon hearing that Dmitry was under attack, they had organized reinforcements and marched immediately, without a single moment of hesitation. It was a testament to their absolute mutual trust. No matter their fealty to the Dmitry Duchy, they wouldn't have reacted so quickly if they didn't serve Dmitry with absolute sincerity. Yet, the northeastern nobles had deployed their troops as if they had been waiting for this exact moment. On top of that, even the Cairo Kingdom was mobilizing. Just a few years ago, Dmitry had been nothing more than a mere barony. Now, it stood tall at the pinnacle, commanding the trust of all.
"Dmitry... The more I learn about them, the more dangerous they seem."
Indeed, the Kronos Empire's judgment had been correct.
They weren't overreacting to a "mere" Dmitry; they had to nip this threat in the bud while it could still be dismissed as such.
Even behemoths like Kronos and Valhalla had humble starting points before they grew into empires.
Knowing that leaving Dmitry alone would inevitably pose a massive threat, the Kronos Empire had made its decision.
The one who had given Mystic his orders had said:
"This is an operation where failure is not permitted. Even with Roman Dmitry absent, we must use our full strength to crush them. If a force of one is enough to defeat Dmitry, we will deploy a force of ten to completely eliminate any variables."
He was a beast—a true predator that exerted its absolute utmost even when hunting a mere rabbit.
The orders had been absolute.
The Kronos army led by Mystic represented only three parts of that ten-part force, while the Shadows accounted for another three. Mystic gazed at Dmitry's castle walls with an unperturbed expression.
From the very beginning, this two-pronged assault was nothing more than a loud prelude designed to conceal their true objective.
* * *
The Dmitry Palace.
It was supposed to be safe.
Since the inner castle had not been breached, everyone was certain that the royal quarters where Duke Dmitry resided were completely secure.
But now, a scene contrary to all expectations was unfolding.
Thud!
Crash!
A Dmitry soldier was brutally slammed into the wall.
He had tried to send a signal the moment he spotted the intruder, but before he could even react, he was swept away by an overwhelming force.
"Insignificant pests," sneered an entity dyed in absolute darkness—a man who resembled a living shadow.
Kronos's desired outcome for this war was clear. They wanted to show the world the gruesome fate of those who dared oppose the Kronos Empire. To achieve this, they either had to tear Dmitry down and trample it into the mud, or assassinate Duke Dmitry, the "king" his people served.
For this exact purpose, a Shadow named Sven had stepped forward.
Even when aura swordsmen occasionally appeared to block his path, none could withstand a single one of his strikes.
Rumble!
His aura exploded outward.
It was the power of a 6-Star Aura.
Even among the elite Shadows, Sven possessed overwhelming, monstrous strength.
Rumors often spoke of the Three Shadows. While those who relied purely on physical assassination techniques were ordinary Shadows, those who wielded special, supernatural powers were known within Kronos as the Demons of the Abyss. Though Sven was officially a Demon of the Abyss, the rest of the continent simply categorized his kind as another terrifying branch of the Three Shadows.
Thus, there were two types of Shadows: the ordinary, and the extraordinary.
Sven strolled down the wide, opulent corridor.
Outside, the sounds of battle raged on.
If Duke Dmitry was waiting at the end of this hall, he would undoubtedly not escape Sven's grasp alive.
How long had he walked?
Suddenly, his footsteps ceased.
Standing a short distance from a massive set of double doors, Sven examined the face of the lone man blocking his path.
"A youthful yet fierce face, like a cornered wildcat. I heard there was a dog under Roman Dmitry who carries a venomous gaze and reeks of madness. I believe his name was... Kevin?"
Slide.
The young man in question, Kevin, slowly drew his sword.
While the fierce battle raged outside, Kevin had not budged a single step from this exact spot.
Sven grinned wickedly.
"Excellent. To have the chance to eliminate a high-priority target and Duke Dmitry at the exact same time... I shall butcher you right here."
Rumble!
Crash!
Sven unleashed his aura.
A 6-Star Aura.
It was a mighty, tyrannical power that—with the sole exception of Roman Dmitry himself—no swordsman in Dmitry could ever hope to block.