#78 One Hundred Million Straight Punches
A tense atmosphere hung in the air. Agares inhaled the alien air of Earth. Crisp, invigorating air utterly devoid of any demonic energy. His gaze locked onto a single human in the distance.
[......]
The overwhelming power emanating from him. Yet, there was something off. He was clearly the master of an Eternal Crystal, but he hadn't awakened its strength.
[Interesting.]
A smile slowly spread across Agares's lips.
[Looks like there's quite a haul to take from this dimension.]
At Agares's words, the lion-headed Marbas standing beside him nodded.
[I'll prepare to wrap things up.]
[Hm...?]
Suddenly, Agares tilted his head slightly. Amid the humans, one man caught his eye. He knew the name of the man standing next to the overwhelmingly powerful figure all too well.
[Theo Itilurg Gamigin...?]
* * *
People were murmuring. The gathered Awakeners, each in their formations, were visibly tense. Theo grumbled as he pushed through the crowd.
[Fuck. It's really Agares.]
King shot back, “Agares?”
[Yeah. That guy's standing over there—Demon Realm ranking 2, Warlord Agares. Never thought I'd see him here too...]
Theo glanced to the side. The pale-faced man next to Agares was another familiar face.
[That's rank 3, Bassago. A magic scholar who runs all sorts of bizarre experiments. Annoying bastard... And over there—]
Theo pointed at the lion head.
[Rank 5, Marbas. A musclehead stuffed full of brains made of muscle too.]
Flanking the lion head were:
[Rank 6, Valefor. And that's 7, Amon. What the hell? It's Baal's crew.]
Theo ground his teeth. He'd once been driven to the brink of death by Baal. Naturally, his feelings toward Baal's minions were pure hostility.
“Ah ha... Wow, the demonic energy they're giving off is no joke.”
King counted on his fingers beside him, then tilted his head.
“Huh? But rank 4's missing.”
[Uh, rank 4's me.]
“Pardon?”
[Huh?]
Suddenly—
BOOM!
An explosion echoed from the distance. In a motion like instant teleportation, Agares was suddenly right in front of Kang-ho.
Agares stared at Kang-ho with expressionless eyes. His gaze soon shifted to Theo beside him.
[Long time no see, Gamigin.]
The demonic tongue from his mouth was conveyed through interpretation magic.
[......]
Theo crossed his arms and glared at Agares.
[Where's Baal, and why'd only you scraps show up?]
Agares smirked at the question.
[Lord Baal has gone to the Demon Sea.]
Kang-ho gauged Agares's level.
He's strong.
Stronger than anyone he'd met so far. His demonic energy was perfectly contained throughout his body, and the sheer pressure radiating from him felt like it was squeezing his heart. Just standing there exerted immense pressure.
“Ugh......”
Cold sweat beaded on King's forehead. His whole body shivered coldly, teeth chattering.
—Maybe a small elite force could minimize casualties.
Epsilon's prophecy flashed in his mind.
That's why.
King swallowed hard.
At this level... guys like us are pointless...?
Absurd power. Yet Kang-ho didn't flinch in the slightest. As always, he spoke in a quiet, composed voice.
“What's your purpose?”
[......]
Kang-ho glanced down at Seol-a in his arms. She'd shifted to fox form, ears perked, eyes narrowed sharply. Fearless little one. Her sharper fangs gleamed menacingly, three tails stiff and raised.
[White Fang subspecies... You're here too.]
Agares looked intrigued.
Arrr-!
Wak! Seol-a bared her teeth with a snarl.
Kang-ho realized how they'd crossed dimensions. They must have gotten their hands on one too.
How...?
His gaze shifted to Bassago in the back. Strange magic pulsed from the pale-faced man.
He's the problem.
He spoke again.
“What's your purpose?”
Agares answered.
[Eternal Crystal.]
“Hand it over and you'll leave?”
[If you're prepared to offer your life too.]
Agares's eyes pierced straight to Kang-ho's heart. He wanted the heart Kang-ho possessed as well.
“That's a problem.”
Kang-ho replied, taking a swig from his pocket whiskey.
[......]
Agares eyed him curiously, then slowly nodded.
[I see... You haven't awakened it. That's why it's hidden.]
“......”
BOOM!
Suddenly, the lion-headed Marbas charged from the distance. Grinning wickedly, his bulging muscles swelled as if about to burst.
BOOM!
In just two leaps, Marbas closed in. His fearsome fist rocketed forward with a sonic boom. Not as strong as Agares, but still imposingly powerful. His fist hurtled toward a cluster of mid-sized guild members right in front of him. In this frozen moment of crisis, no one could even move!
“......”
But Kang-ho merely watched impassively. As King desperately moved to intervene—
KWAANG-!
A fist met the incoming punch.
SHWOOOOOSH-!
The mere clash sent massive vibrations rippling outward.
—Aaaah!
—Uwaaak!
Filming equipment shattered, drones rained from the sky like precipitation. Beneath the falling drones, a massive man rose to his feet.
—Iron Fist King!
Someone shouted.
* * *
The quiet log cabin at the foot of Cheorwon mountain. Woof woof- Warmonkey, visiting to spar with Seol-a again today, scratched his head. The house was eerily silent today. From an empty corner of the vacant home, two baby Thunderbirds clucked as they waddled out to greet him. They'd grown quite a bit now. After a lively play-fight, hunger struck, and they wandered familiarly into the log house. Only the TV flickered, easing the silence.
Weeeoooowooo— A war siren, the kind heard only in wartime, blared from afar.
Warmonkey tilted his head and poked randomly at the remote.
Beep-
It switched to a monster documentary channel. Warmonkey and the baby Thunderbirds plopped down, quite pleased.
"The wild is full of unique wonders. Take this long-tailed hornet, for example. Small in size, but no one underestimates it."
Warmonkey rummaged vaguely in the fridge.
"Today, an intruder has entered its territory. A top predator, but unaware of its terror. He's about to pay dearly for invading the long-tailed hornet's domain."
. . . . . .
[......!]
Marbas stared at the human who'd blocked his fist. A hulking man whose entire body writhed with muscle. Immense magic churned within him. Noble in its purity, his staggering magic power and perfected physique were evident at a glance.
[Hoh...!]
Marbas's face lit with surprise. Cheol-bae cracked his neck side to side.
Crack crack. Eerie bone snaps echoed.
—It's Mercenary's Im Cheol-bae!
[To think a human has this much power...]
Marbas sneered. Cheol-bae said nothing, steadying his breath. Artifacts across his body began emitting mana. Power surged into his arms.
Riiip-!
His clothes tore, revealing his colossal upper body. His back, fat-free and packed with dense muscle, evoked logs. Massive arms like tree trunks, thick fists almost reverent.
* * *
"The long-tailed hornet hones its body over a lifetime. Time never betrays it. Fangs sharpened through endless training pierce vital points with devastating bite force."
* * *
Cheol-bae's fist drew back to his waist.
“Too many people here. Back off.”
Power coiled into his casually clenched fist. Legs bent slightly, hips twisted fluidly.
Kwajik-!
A front kick. A lifetime of training slammed into Marbas's solar plexus.
Marbas instinctively righted himself after flying far back.
[......!]
Pop! But Cheol-bae was already upon him.
Whoosh-
He twisted his body.
Kwajik-!
A roundhouse smashed into Marbas's face. Marbas hastily raised his arms to guard and counter—but
Kwajik!
A downward heel kick crushed his crown.
[Graaah!]
No breath for respite—a second roundhouse blasted his solar plexus.
Kwak!
Agony choked him. Shwoooosh-! Marbas flew back again, crashing into a ruined building.
Kugugung-!
Piercing three pillars, he slammed inside as the structure collapsed atop him.
Kwaaang-!
[Grrrh... Insolent bastard!]
Marbas burst from the debris with a beastly roar.
Krraaah-!
He charged. Cheol-bae's body boiled with mana as his ability, Iron Fist, activated. Gray armor like iron plating covered him. His bulging fist drew to his waist.
* * *
"The top predator's been humbled by sharp fangs. But the hornet's ordeal isn't over. Its ultimate weapon remains: the massive, needle-sharp stinger honed over a lifetime."
Shudder! Warmonkey flinched at the sight.
* * *
Marbas bared his fangs in a ferocious grin. He rushed like the wind. Cheol-bae before him moved in slow motion.
[Kekekeke. What are you doing?]
Marbas closed in. His massive fist hurtled toward Cheol-bae.
Then—
Whoooosh-
[......?]
Suddenly, Marbas felt a mountain looming in his vision. What was this oncoming mass? A fist? Too late to dodge. Block it then—
Whooooosh-
Huh? Before Marbas could react, a colossal, heavy fist filled his view.
Kwajijijik!
Five thousand times a day. A lifetime of training. The strike born of one hundred million straight punches exploded into Marbas's face.
Kwajijijik!
Marbas rocketed backward.
[Kraaaak!]
His scream erupted belatedly.