Chapter 375: Villain (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 375: Villain (2)
It was a fierce battle.
The enemy surged forward, refusing to give them a single moment to breathe. Chris cut down the leading foe and roared.
"Maintain formation! Do not get swept up in their pace! Hold your designated positions in squads of ten, exactly as we trained!"
Their past training.
They had prepared extensively for chaotic, free-for-all melees just like this.
Usually, Dmitry’s battles followed a simple pattern: Roman Dmitry took the vanguard, and the soldiers cleaned up the battlefield in his wake. Against ordinary enemies, this was more than enough. However, they were now facing the Valhalla Empire. Charging in recklessly would only lead to massive casualties; they would be swallowed whole by overwhelming numbers.
That was why they formed a defensive line.
It was a tactic straight from the Heavenly Demon Cult.
By dividing the battlefield into small sections, they formed squads of ten. Standing back-to-back, they organically switched between offense and defense. While five launched an attack, the other five defended against the enemy's counter. When the defenders stepped up to counterattack, those who had been attacking fell back to catch their breath and switch to defense. The ten moved as a single organism. Furthermore, these ten-man squads stacked to form a hundred, which in turn formed the positions of a thousand.
It was a highly defensive tactic that prioritized absolute stability.
Although it was a passive style meant only to counter incoming enemies, Dmitry's soldiers had absolute faith in Roman Dmitry's martial prowess.
Boom!
Rumble!
Explosions echoed across the battlefield.
With Roman Dmitry indiscriminately sweeping through the enemy lines, operating completely independent of the formation, Dmitry's soldiers had no trouble advancing steadily. If anything, it was the Valhalla Empire that was in a desperate rush. They needed to quickly eliminate Dmitry's soldiers to isolate and corner Roman Dmitry, but with tough opponents everywhere, their numerical advantage wasn't working as well as they had hoped.
And...
Flash!
Swish-sh-sh!
Chris was an exception.
He was not part of the ten-man squads. Every time his sword flashed, Valhalla's warriors sprayed blood without even having the chance to scream. Chris deliberately targeted enemies he deemed to be experts. Since foes the ordinary soldiers couldn't handle would disrupt the formation, he moved swiftly, assassinating those high-risk threats.
Kevin was the same.
Dmitry's demon was running wild.
Although he couldn't treat the entire battlefield as his personal stage like Roman Dmitry did, Kevin was relentlessly clearing a path at the very front of the formation. Dmitry's underlying strength was truly formidable. Bringing only a few thousand troops to face hundreds of thousands was absurd in itself. Yet, as time passed, Chris's expression grew grim.
'There's no end to them.'
The enemies surged in endlessly.
Their numbers were far greater than expected.
Although Dmitry always trained to prepare for any variable, they had never expected to face a situation like this after dealing with the former Valhalla Emperor. Moreover, their opponent was the entire Valhalla Empire. People who had been praising Roman Dmitry just a short while ago were now throwing their lives away to charge at them. There was no guaranteeing how long they could hold out.
Thud.
His sword pierced an enemy's heart.
Casting aside the trembling, collapsing corpse, Chris surveyed the battlefield, his face stained with blood.
'To prepare for any contingency, we installed a Warp Point at the border of the Southern Jungle. If we can reach that location, we can at least escape. Due to the limitations of the Warp Point, we won't be able to teleport directly back to Dmitry in one go, but shaking off the pursuing forces will buy us some breathing room. The problem is the sheer vastness of the Southern Jungle. There are hundreds of thousands of enemies in sight. If Valhalla summons more troops, the situation will only worsen.'
The Kronos Empire.
This was entirely different from when they fought them.
This was Valhalla's home territory, and the warriors of the Valhalla Empire were far superior to ordinary soldiers. In fact, some were even able to react to Chris's attacks. These wildmen, unleashing their beastly instincts, did not fall easily, and the repeated clashes were gradually wearing him down.
For now, they still had some leeway.
However, time was not on Dmitry's side. Chris frantically searched for a way to resolve the immediate crisis.
But just then—
"Help Dmitry!"
"We cannot let the Savior of the World Tree die!"
The Dark Elves.
They had begun to move.
*
The sudden series of events had left the Dark Elves deeply confused.
Roman Dmitry's act of killing the Valhalla Emperor was not something they could easily view in a positive light.
"...Lord Darkan."
"Please give us your orders."
The ordinary elves urged him.
The authority to command lay with Darkan.
This was an extremely grave matter, and logically, the correct course of action was to assist Valhalla and attack Roman Dmitry. The Dark Elves and Valhalla coexisted. The Valhalla Empire recognized the territory of the Dark Elves who had settled in the Southern Jungle, and the Dark Elves helped them in return, fulfilling the ancient promise of their ancestors.
But what if they stood by? Or worse, what if they helped Dmitry?
They would no longer be able to live in Valhalla's territory.
The warriors of the Southern Jungle would turn their blades on the Dark Elves, sparking a conflict they could not hope to survive.
"...Damn it."
He swallowed hard.
The order to attack Dmitry rose to the tip of his tongue.
But he couldn't do it.
Neither the promise of their ancestors nor the fate of the Dark Elf clan was more important than the will of the World Tree.
To the elves, who maintained a close relationship with nature, the World Tree was absolute. Since the World Tree had bestowed its blessing upon Roman Dmitry, he could never be a being that brought harm to this world. It was a simple matter of black and white. If Roman Dmitry was justice, then Valhalla, who opposed him, had to be evil.
He gritted his teeth.
His mind was in turmoil, but his heart had already made its decision.
"The Dark Elf clan follows the will of the World Tree! Roman Dmitry entered the Southern Tomb to uncover the truth. There must be a profound reason why he killed the Valhalla Emperor, and we will risk our lives to ensure Roman Dmitry escapes the Southern Jungle alive!"
"We follow the Chief's will!"
"Attack!"
The tide turned.
They raised their bows.
Swirling mana gathered in their hands, forming arrows of black light that they fired simultaneously into the enemy ranks.
Thwip! Thwip! Thwip!
Thud! Thud!
"Aaargh!"
"T-The Dark Elves have betrayed Valhalla!"
"Kill the Dark Elves too!"
The volley of arrows was fierce. As the black strikes pierced even solid steel armor in a single blow, Valhalla's warriors charged toward the Dark Elves with bloodshot eyes. However, their advance was immediately blocked by Dmitry. Chris quickly assessed the situation, shifted his position to protect the Dark Elves, and raised his voice.
"We will hold the line! Support us with ranged attacks!"
No more words were needed.
Dmitry's soldiers locked down a stable defense, while the Dark Elves relentlessly rained down arrows from the rear.
And...
Boom!
Rumble!
Darkan was also an exceptional warrior.
The dark Aura swirling from his blade cut down Valhalla's warriors, and he too swept through the battlefield independently of the formation. The light, springy movements unique to elves were a sight to behold. Even as attacks poured in from all sides, he deflected them with fluid grace, instantly piercing his opponents between the eyes with his long, thin sword.
Thud.
Behind him, the Dark Elf mages unleashed their magic.
With spells exploding in all directions, Valhalla's warriors eventually had no choice but to yield ground.
Dmitry seized the momentum.
The warriors of Valhalla filling the stage of the trial began to split to both sides. They risked their lives trying to block the advance, but under the fierce resistance of Roman Dmitry and his soldiers, corpses piled up like mountains, carving out a bloody path. Seeing this, Dmitry's soldiers and the Dark Elves following Darkan began to harbor a sliver of hope. They might actually make it out of this perilous situation alive.
Finally, they entered the jungle.
Even though the sun was still high in the sky, the densely packed canopies of the giant trees refused to let a single ray of sunlight filter through.
And...
Flash.
Above, resting on the thick branches of the trees, countless red lights flickered in the shadows.
The warriors of the Southern Jungle.
Following the imperial decree, they were gathering here.
*
He was a man with the appearance of a monkey.
Looking down at the ground from a high tree branch, he spoke to Roman Dmitry.
"My name is Muroro, Roman Dmitry. I was genuinely pleased when I heard you passed the stage of the trial. Though you were not born in Valhalla, I believed that someone who proved himself on the grand stage of the festival and even took part in Valhalla's civil war was worthy of entering the Southern Tomb. So why? Why on earth did you kill the Emperor of Valhalla?"
He clicked his tongue.
His face, briefly revealed in the dim light, was covered in scars from countless battles.
A tense standoff ensued.
After entering the jungle, Valhalla's warriors did not charge recklessly, instead waiting for Muroro's command.
Roman Dmitry spoke.
"In the Southern Tomb, I found evidence that Duke Vieto was a dog of the Kronos Empire. Valhalla's warriors could not hear the conversation between Duke Vieto and me due to magic interference, but he admitted the truth and provoked me. I merely killed him when he claimed I could never kill the Emperor of Valhalla."
"You spout amusing nonsense," Muroro said, his expression turning cold.
He was the chief of the Monkey Tribe.
He wielded considerable influence in the Southern Jungle.
It was said that within this dense jungle, no warrior could defeat Muroro.
"I will believe your words. Of course, that is on the condition that you cooperate fully with our investigation under custody."
The negotiations had broken down.
The moment Roman agreed to be taken into custody, it would be no different from walking to his own death.
Even if he told them the truth, Muroro and the other warriors of Valhalla were not ready to hear it.
Valhalla was an empire of pride.
Even if it were true that their Emperor was a dog of Kronos, they would turn a blind eye to the truth sitting right in front of them.
It was then.
[Chris.]
It was a Voice Transmission.
Chris's eyebrows twitched slightly, but he quickly regained his calm expression.
[Now that the Valhalla Empire has made its move, the Kronos Empire will not sit idly by. Dmitry is in danger. I will open a path, so take the troops and return to Dmitry. Secure Dmitry's safety, summon the Kingdom Alliance, and prepare for a total war against the Valhalla and Kronos Empires.]
It was a terrifying hypothesis.
Kronos had been keeping a low profile for a specific reason, but now that they had completely revised their plans and mobilized the Valhalla Empire, there was no guarantee they would remain quiet. They had to prepare for the worst-case scenario. The exact moment Chris sent back his acknowledgment via Voice Transmission, Muroro roared like thunder.
"Attack!"
*
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Projectiles were fired from all directions.
They were sharp, poisoned needles.
He did not dodge.
Facing the lethal barrage head-on, Roman Dmitry instantly exploded the mana boiling within his Dantian.
Tap.
Heavenly Demon's Sovereign Step, Seventh Step.
‘Heavenly Demon Sword Technique - Latter Half First Form.’
He skipped the preceding steps.
While executing steps out of sequence usually halved their power, it was a completely different story when combined with the latter half forms.
Flash!
The world was dyed in pure white.
All sound vanished.
The warriors who had rushed forward at Muroro's command could not comprehend what was happening. When the white-washed world finally regained its original colors, an ear-splitting explosion followed.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Rumble! Crash!
Annihilation.
Those in front of him were torn to shreds.
Hundreds of warriors were vaporized mid-charge, and even the giant trees that grew so densely they blocked the sun were completely erased. Thanks to this, brilliant sunlight poured down from the sky, illuminating the ground. Muroro, who had survived only by being slightly further away, stared at the scene before him in utter shock.
"...W-What on earth is this?"
This...
This was not the power of a human.
Faced with a destructive force he had never witnessed in his life, Muroro, who had confidently relied on numerical superiority, could no longer think rationally.
It was then.
"Now!"
"Follow the Lord!"
Led by Roman Dmitry, Chris and the soldiers pressed forward.
Roman Dmitry cut down the dazed enemies one by one, while Chris and Dmitry's soldiers abandoned their defensive formation and charged aggressively. The Dark Elves joined Dmitry's ranks as well.
Their intention was clear.
They wanted to carve out an escape route.
Seeing the sudden movement to extract Dmitry's soldiers, Muroro barked orders to his warriors.
"Do not block their path! Our target is Roman Dmitry. If we take down that one man, our revenge is complete!"
From that single strike, Muroro knew he could not guarantee victory. In that case, he judged it would be better to discard any potential obstacles and focus solely on taking down Roman Dmitry. Chris, Dmitry's soldiers, and the Dark Elves were no easy targets either. Letting them escape wouldn't cause any major issues. Since they absolutely had to prevent Roman Dmitry from returning alive, Dmitry's strategy was actually welcome news for Valhalla.
The path opened.
Chris and the soldiers forged ahead.
Even though he knew Roman Dmitry would be left behind alone, Chris did not look back.
He believed.
Just as he had followed Roman's orders even after Roman killed the Valhalla Emperor, he possessed a blind, absolute faith in Roman Dmitry.
Thud.
Roman Dmitry stopped in his tracks.
He, too, understood Muroro's intention.
Rather than fighting a pointless, chaotic battle, Roman made it clear that he would remain behind so his soldiers could escape.
It was a bizarre sight.
Valhalla's warriors opening a path.
Roman Dmitry standing alone.
Chris and the soldiers growing distant.
As Valhalla's warriors closed the wide-open path once more, Roman Dmitry was left completely isolated.
Muroro thought to himself.
Everything is going according to plan.
Roman Dmitry likely intended to secure his subordinates' safety first and then escape, but shaking off Valhalla's warriors in the jungle was impossible. Unless he slaughtered every single warrior in the jungle, they would cling to him tenaciously, hounding him relentlessly until his strength was completely depleted.
That terrifyingly powerful sword technique... even that had to have its limits.
After all, their opponent was not a god.
However.
"Let me tell you in advance."
Recently, Roman Dmitry had been lost in thought.
His past life and his current life.
He was walking the exact same path.
Yet, because his body was different, his environment was different, and his experiences were different, the results he achieved were also different.
Therefore...
"I have no intention of running away. So, I hope you maintain Valhalla's pride until the very end."
Through this opportunity, Roman Dmitry would test the absolute limits of his power in this current life.