Chapter 13
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 13
Chapter Title: Solitude Amid Cheers
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Meanwhile, the faces of the students in the stands watching their duel were slowly stiffening.
Dianes hadn't noticed, but they knew exactly what the body of Chiron—spewing smoke and rampaging wildly—signified.
Chiron's ultimate technique. Equus Furo.
Even the nymphs and half-humans who had lived the longest in this forest had only witnessed Chiron's absolute combat stance a mere two times.
"I-is that really okay?"
"Master Chiron getting this excited..."
"He went for the spear earlier and did something, but is that really enough to get Master all riled up?"
Those not aspiring to be warriors, or those whose skills hadn't caught up yet, voiced their doubts.
"Using the spear like that? Without a shield?"
"Is he ignoring his life and focusing only on offense?"
"Nonsense. Didn't you see the clash earlier?"
"He read Master Chiron's trajectory perfectly and defended with his spear shaft. And at the same time, he counterattacked."
"Oh.... So Master's lower body getting grazed earlier wasn't just luck?"
"Unifying attack and defense like that. What kind of life has he lived?"
Those who could read it expressed their awe.
"Controlling the wind so freely—could he be the son of Zephyrus?"
"Are you blind? Wild boar? That's not divine power; it's something else. And have you ever seen Zephyrus's sons do that?"
"Uh.... No?"
And then there were the rare few in this forest who could at least somewhat match Chiron—they tracked Dianes's movements precisely, gripping their hands in suspense.
Unfamiliar spear techniques accompanied by swirling winds and bizarre maneuvers.
The relentless barrage of offense in that duel was igniting flames in the hearts of these boys dreaming of heroism.
While they couldn't tear their eyes away from the fierce clash between their master and the new student, the flow shifted in an instant.
"Whoa?! Mad Horse Spear?!"
"Hey, hey, Master hasn't used that except when that wild boar went berserk!"
".....Damn it, emergency team! Get ready!"
In the long history of the Hero's Forest, Chiron had unveiled his master's killing move only twice.
That ferocious assault, which pulverized anything blocking its path, was said to terrify even the Titans.
"....."
While everyone else gasped in shock at the centaur's signature killing stance, Heracles alone watched the situation silently.
He had faced Chiron's killing move once before.
The half-human's attack forced a brutally unfair frontal clash—it was nothing short of an outrage.
"Well.... What will you do?"
In this forest where countless heroes were raised, Heracles alone had withstood Chiron's charging spear.
And now, that final killing blow on top of it.
In other words, this frail-looking newbie's martial prowess and movements rivaled Heracles's own monstrous strength.
With all eyes fixed on their standoff, the two finally crossed strikes.
-Boom!!
* * *
Block it, and it shatters. Fail to shatter it, and it annihilates.
Thus, the mad gale.
The insane wind's spear that overturns rivers and topples mountains.
"Especially against a rampaging steed."
-Whoooooom!!
The wind howled and snarled.
Questioning why it was bound.
How it dared to be shackled, flowing from their past to their future.
They were the warm spring breeze, the sail wind from distant seas, the typhoon sweeping all before it—and now they raged in unison, berating me.
Fine. It's almost time. Go ahead, run wild.
When the mad wind charges in all directions, even flowers and moons distort.
Mad Wind Shredding Horn Spear - 7th Moment
"Flower Moon Brush."
Point and line, line and plane.
The massive wind spear sweeping in all directions warped the surroundings as it lunged toward the half-human.
"Hahaha!! What a splendid spear!"
The old horse bellowed with laughter.
Like a landslide sweeping everywhere, his time-honed technique and unyielding might drew a single line, halting the mad wind's advance.
-Kugagagagak!
Horizontal strike versus linear strike.
No—storm versus giant rock.
The insanely charging wind and the massive boulder blocking it.
The two spears never touched, but between them, their opposing energies clashed fiercely.
"Kiryahaaa!!"
"Uaaaaah!!"
The centaur's bizarre cheer and the young boy's shout mingled into the earth-shaking roar and vanished.
Thrill and excitement raced up my spine like lightning, my brain pumping adrenaline so wildly it felt ready to burst.
Since when? The moment I started laughing while clashing swords with masters, not even knowing the first stroke of battle.
The moment life and death intersected felt exhilarating, and spurting blood and flesh seemed beautiful.
To feel that again in this young body.
This alone made the long journey here more than worthwhile.
-Kwung!
But the ecstasy didn't last long.
I exchanged a quick glance with Chiron, and understanding passed between us—we withdrew our energies and pulled back our spears simultaneously.
One more step, and one of us would truly die.
"Hmmm!"
"Hoo.... Ugh!"
This body still wasn't fully matured, after all.
In stark contrast to Chiron, who neatly dispersed his energy and recovered his spear,
My scattered energy screeched like an untuned violin, and my immature muscles and bones throbbed and cracked from the overexertion.
'Bones and muscles are supposed to break and burst to grow stronger, but....'
Every time I saw how immature and weak this body was, I longed for the Heavenly Demon Supreme Emperor's body, honed to the limit.
"Sigh...."
"Hoo! That's the stuff! Got carried away and forgot my age! You okay?"
As the heat of battle faded, leaving a strange sense of loss and regret, I stared at my hands.
Chiron laughed heartily and slapped my back.
"Come on, I know what you're thinking. Lift your head and look around."
At his words, I snapped my head up and surveyed the surroundings.
The coliseum was eerily silent.
What? Why so quiet?
"Don't just stand there—wave to them or something."
As Chiron whispered, I slowly raised my spear.
Only then did the coliseum erupt in cheers.
"Woooaaah!!"
"Awesome, newbie!!"
"Ahh... inspiration for a tragedy strikes. The ballad of the black wind clashing spears with the great master Chiron!"
"Son of some famous god, maybe?"
"Controls wind, so maybe a son of the West Wind!"
"How.... He's so handsome...."
"Look at him sweating... *slurp*."
Thunderous applause and cheers.
Mixed in were some odd remarks, but it evoked the fervent adoration of ancient worshippers.
In response, I slowly turned, accepting the welcome, when Chiron raised a hand to quiet the crowd.
"In the name of Chiron, son of Cronos and foster son of the ancient goddess of abundance, Rhea."
"Today, I welcome Dianes of Pasos as a member of this forest of Karyklo."
"Any who object, step forward now and face my spear—and his!"
A name not unworthy of the teacher of ten thousand heroes. His dignified voice instantly silenced the coliseum.
Chiron scanned the crowd with stern eyes, as if challenging anyone to come forward, then nodded as none did.
"Very well! In the name of Lord Zeus and the twelve gods of Olympus, I declare Dianes of Pasos, from this moment, my disciple!"
As Chiron declared it and raised my arm, the crowd exploded in applause and cheers once more.
-Woooaaah!!
"Ha..."
Blazing sunlight, throbbing limbs, sweat-soaked face, pounding heart.
And this exhilarating thrill racing down my spine.
The sensation of reigning at the center of long-forgotten worship and adulation.
"Hahahahaha!!"
My inner energy was drained, and the arm held by the sturdy half-human throbbed,
Yet I laughed with all my might.
The supreme leader of the Hundred Million Demonic Cult in the Ten Thousand Great Mountains.
The living god of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, taught by twelve great demons in the rift between this world and the next!
Those fierce memories reviving.
And through that rift, a tune drifted like an auditory hallucination.
"The Heavenly Demon descended from the heavens to rule the demonic path."
"He unified the continent in his grand enterprise, thus the Supreme Emperor."
"The nine peaks knelt beneath the Hundred Million Mountains."
"The five clans bowed their heads to the Divine Cult."
"In his reign, a hundred years, a thousand, ten thousand shall pass."
⟨ Heavenly Demon Hymn ⟩
The martial conquest that now felt like a distant memory.
At its end, when even the emperor of the Great Ming Empire bowed to me, and I stood in the Grand Harmony Hall of the Forbidden City, where only emperors could tread.
The song chanted in unison by the civil and military officials and the demonic experts gazing up at me.
A faint nostalgia stirred by the cheers and fervor after so long.
But shaking it off and opening my eyes, the kindly half-human looked down at me,
And the fresh-faced young ones in the stands gazed at me too.
-Waaaah!!
"Ha, it's been ages since I've seen them cheer like this."
For some reason, it hit me all at once.
This wasn't the Korea with airplanes soaring and cars racing.
Nor the martial world breathing with fanatical followers and mighty experts cheering me on.
It was a completely different world.
The Heavenly Demon Supreme Emperor who once commanded ten thousand demons was gone; only the orphaned boy Dianes remained.
"A lone body, a single wild goose in the high sky.... Haha."
Amid those cheering for me, I could only smile bitterly at the inexplicable emptiness.
Though I'd only known her a day, I suddenly missed Nerig terribly.