Chapter 136
Chapter 136
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 136
Chapter Title: A Desperate Gambit
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With a barely audible sound, a grayish-white aura drew a graceful curve.
What I had just unleashed was the Heaven-Severing Annihilation, but its path was entirely different from usual.
A direct confrontation would have been too much to handle.
While the piercing power of the Heaven-Severing Annihilation was formidable, that bastard's aura was simply too massive.
‘This feels like trying to poke a wooden pillar with a needle.’
The vast difference in size made it appear that way on the surface.
Krol Karim watched me, a smirk filling his face.
He knew what I was aiming for, but he pressed on with his attack regardless.
He seemed convinced that prodding with such a tiny aura would be useless.
Either that, or he was confident he could counter it this time.
‘But what if that needle was laced with a deadly poison?’
A great tree could wither and die from the prick of a tiny skewer.
That was exactly the situation now.
Zzziiing!
The Heaven-Severing Annihilation pierced precisely into the side of the pillar of aura.
With a high-pitched sound that threatened to tear my eardrums, the trajectory of the descending attack changed abruptly.
It slammed into the wrong spot.
But even as the pillar of aura crashed into the ground, the noise wasn't loud.
Pssh—!
Like air hissing from a small balloon?
It was a sound completely unfitting for its immense appearance.
I instantly understood why.
‘The cohesion is broken.’
I could feel the aura collapsing right in front of me.
The Heaven-Severing Annihilation was a technique that concentrated energy into a single point, maximizing its piercing power.
The aura remained tightly condensed until it broke through the surface.
After that, it would burst outward in a radial pattern, tearing apart the inside.
That's why the area around the point of impact would crumble to pieces.
“Hah!”
Krol Karim took a step back, an expression of disbelief on his face.
The aftershock of the Heaven-Severing Annihilation was about to travel up his arm.
“You look slow, but you’re damn quick on the uptake.”
I voiced my disappointment and readjusted my grip on my sword.
My opponent had nullified the damage by boldly abandoning the pillar of aura.
Still, it wasn't a total loss.
To create something that massive again would require an immense amount of power, even for someone like Krol Karim.
Compared to me, who could still use the Heaven-Severing Annihilation a few more times, he had definitely taken a loss.
‘Besides, I haven't even released the Seven-Joint Face-Changing Technique.’
Which meant I wasn't fighting with my full strength yet.
It was a given that I would have the upper hand in the battle to come.
Just then, my opponent scowled and swung his butcher knife from side to side.
It seemed creating another pillar of aura wasn't so easy after all.
“Hup!”
I let out a suppressed shout and thrust the Black Dragon Sword forward.
An extreme upward slash that curved at an exquisite angle.
It was the third form of the Heaven-Severing Demonic Chain Sword: the Heaven-Severing Demonic Moon.
A blow aimed perfectly at the opponent's moment of hesitation.
A grayish-white crescent slash shot toward Krol Karim's neck.
‘Got him!’
For a moment, it felt as if my eyes flashed open.
A sensation of time slowing down around me took over my entire body.
I was on the verge of finishing off one of Korinth's finest.
But in the very next moment.
I couldn't hide my shock.
Twoong—!
A heavy shockwave erupted as a massive aura burst forth from Krol Karim's blade.
“You have to be kidding me...!”
Kwwaaaaang!
The pillar of aura, formed in an instant, collided head-on with my Heaven-Severing Demonic Moon.
“Kugh!”
A low groan escaped my lips.
The impact that shook my entire body was truly immense.
Sent flying far back, I barely managed to stop myself by plunging the Black Dragon Sword into the ground.
Screee—! Thud.
I struggled to lift my head, and Krol Karim's figure seemed to have split into three or four.
The furrow I'd carved in the ground looked like more than ten lines.
‘As I thought, taking that thing head-on was impossible.’
Even if I had used the Heaven-Severing Annihilation just now, the result wouldn't have been much different.
The immense force would have swept me away before I could even properly pierce the target.
—Serves you right. Feel like drawing Calipe now?
As if being dizzy wasn't bad enough, Alkheim's nonsense echoed in my head.
Does this useless Dark Spirit King always have to chatter so fiercely at times like this?
Then again, my moment of weakness is probably the best time for him to take over my body.
“Just shut up.”
—While you're wasting time, the attacks continue. That bastard's sword is probably falling on your head right now.
“...Dammit.”
I shook my head once, and my vision cleared somewhat.
Just as Alkheim said, I had to move immediately.
“Khahahaha! You're caught!”
Krol Karim was swinging the pillar of aura again with a maniacal laugh.
This time, there was no sign of any change, like a fierce vibration.
It was a very straightforward blow, as if he intended to simply crush me with brute force.
‘I can see it, but I can't do anything to counter it.’
It was a swift slash, but not so fast that I couldn't parry it.
But I couldn't keep running forever.
His attacks grew tighter, like a closing net, and there was a limit to the patterns I could use to deceive him.
In the end, I had no choice but to strike the side of the aura pillar.
Klang!
‘Ugh!’
Nausea rose in me each time, but I had no choice but to grit my teeth and endure.
Thud!
Pushed back continuously, my back finally hit the edge of the castle wall.
There was no room to escape without breaking through the thick stone wall.
The time for a decisive battle was upon me.
Crack! Creak!
‘The Seven-Joint Face-Changing Technique is...’
Perhaps due to the accumulating internal injuries, my transformed face began to revert to its original form.
The situation was so dire that I couldn't even spare the aura needed to maintain the transformation.
As it faded, I felt a little better inside.
It was because I was using that aura to suppress my internal injuries.
“Hoo.”
Krol Karim gave me a moment to catch my breath.
Of course, it wasn't because the monster-like man had a merciful heart.
He, too, was simply feeling the strain of unleashing so many attacks.
Furthermore, he seemed to judge the situation as being well in his favor.
“I think I've seen enough of your little tricks. This is getting boring.”
Krol Karim averted his gaze, his eyes filled with disinterest.
But I didn't fall for his cheap trick.
The one who claims to hate money is always the one most obsessed with it.
‘This is the same principle.’
He's probably waiting for the moment I charge at him.
As I just stood there staring, Krol Karim's head tilted to the side.
He looked me over with fresh eyes and said.
“You have good instincts, at least.”
“You’re a terrible actor. Who would fall for that?”
“Most do. When defeat seems imminent, they struggle to do something, anything.”
“I’m not feeling that at all, so I guess I must be winning.”
“Puhaha! That stupid-looking face and rough way of talking are quite to my liking... Huh? Why did this bastard suddenly get handsome?”
It seemed he had only just noticed my appearance had returned to normal.
Seeing him scowl and glare, he looked quite displeased.
So he doesn't like handsome faces, is that it?
“I heard being average was in vogue these days, so I tried a disguise. Doesn't everyone do this?”
“What kind of madman goes around making himself look worse?”
“Ah, my apologies. I guess you would think that way. Being at rock bottom, you have no room to lower your standards any further.”
“What did you say, you rotten bastard?”
Krol Karim's reaction was quite intense.
It seemed his rugged appearance was a bit of a sore spot for him.
‘Oh? This is working?’
In battle, composure is a weapon.
An emotional disturbance was tantamount to revealing a weakness.
Look at him now.
That bastard is pissed and charging in mindlessly.
And yet, his movements held a surprising degree of precision.
So class is permanent, is that it?
He was truly a man worthy of being called one of Korinth's top fighters.
‘But now I see it. A clear opening!’
Krol Karim's movements were now slightly larger than before.
He had swung his butcher knife dynamically before.
But back then, he had thoroughly covered the gaps between his movements, making him incredibly difficult to attack.
Now, however, a clear crack had appeared.
It was more than enough to attempt a counterattack.
‘Yes. This is the moment to make my move.’
I used Soul Shadow Evasion and twisted my body to the side.
Whoosh.
It was to create even the slightest disturbance in my opponent's vision.
After all, even the smallest opening would be enough.
Just as I expected, Krol Karim's butcher knife, which had been plunging vertically, shifted subtly.
Thinking I had dodged to the side, he had changed the trajectory of his attack.
But I had only turned; I hadn't moved from my spot.
I had used psychological warfare to draw out his reaction.
“...!”
Realizing his mistake, he widened his eyes and pulled his arm inward.
The pillar of aura, which had been about to fly off, was forcibly pulled back, drawing a sharp curve.
But I was already thrusting my sword toward the opening.
The ultimate secret sword art that only the Head of House Riverune could master.
Nine-Ring Annihilation.
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
The solid rock that made up the ground shattered into pieces and shot upward.
Along with a tremendous vibration.
Then, a dazzling flash of light filled the area.
Vwoooom!
The brilliant blue energy erupting from the tip of my sword was like a beam of light.
Only an instant had passed, but it had already reached its target.
‘Got... No?’
But Krol Karim's response was just as formidable.
Even though he was caught in a checkmate he couldn't possibly escape, he managed a dramatic counter.
As he changed his attack's trajectory, he sliced off his pillar of aura, leaving only about twenty percent of it.
He increased the speed of his recovery and somehow managed to block the Nine-Ring Annihilation with his butcher knife.
Klaaang—!
As the two types of blazing aura collided, an incredible flash of light exploded outward.
It was so intense that the blue-white light from the Nine-Ring Annihilation couldn't compare.
Even I was momentarily blinded.
If I hadn't shut my eyes quickly, I would have had to fight relying on my other senses for a considerable time.
Finally, as the light began to fade, I squinted and opened my eyes.
“Huh?”
At that moment, my eyes met Krol Karim's, who had recovered his vision at the same time.
Whoooosh—!
Just then, a gust of wind blew past, caressing the back of the giant's crumbling hand.