Chapter 50
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: The Forge of Duermyure
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The ashen sky held neither sun nor moon. Luon opened his eyes in an unfamiliar space, his vision hazed by a gray dust that matched the indifferent heavens.
As soon as the flames had engulfed his body, he had felt his consciousness drift away. Unflustered, he quickly surveyed his surroundings.
“What is this?”
His eyes fell upon countless ownerless weapons thrust into the pale earth. Each and every one was scorched black, looking as though they could no longer serve their purpose.
It was then.
With a soft roar, a vermilion glow began to rise from the cracks in the earth. The light that began to illuminate the desolate land looked like lava surging up from its depths.
And it seemed it wasn't just for show. A rusty helmet at Luon's feet began to glow red-hot. At the same time, the superheated air expanded, scattering the dust that obscured his vision.
Through his now-clearing vision, Luon could see the vermilion light shooting up from the earth like flames.
The light danced through the air before falling to the ground. Emitting steam, it began to solidify in an instant, soon taking on a form.
From within the steam, something slowly rose to its feet.
“Welcome.”
A heavy voice was accompanied by the thud of massive footsteps.
“O warrior, come to face the trial of the forge.”
Luon unconsciously muttered at the sight of the man who had appeared.
“Duermyure?”
The massive upper body with muscles like solid rock, the piercing red eyes that glowed like embers, and the hair and beard that blazed like fire.
The man looked exactly like a scaled-down version of the Duermyure statue he had seen in Roberduc's square.
Then, the man threw his head back and laughed heartily. His shoulders shook with mirth, and hundreds of sparks flew from his body.
The man said.
“Warrior, you speak the words I love to hear most. But unfortunately, I am not Duermyure. My name is Volkan. I am a being sculpted in his image.”
The giant who introduced himself as Volkan looked at Luon with interest.
“Hoh, a human? It's been a very long time since we had a human challenger.”
Luon retorted bluntly.
“So what exactly is this trial?”
Hearing that question, Volkan's fiery eyebrows flared fiercely. It looked as if he were raising them.
“Hmm? You mean you grasped the holy relic without even knowing what trial you were taking? No, that's not important. What's important is the fact that you and I are facing each other.”
Volkan spread his arms wide and shouted.
“This is the forge of the great Duermyure. It is a massive mold that tempers souls, and at the same time, the tomb of countless warriors.”
As if in response to his words, the vermilion light that looked like lava surged up from the cracked earth.
Amidst the swirling heat, Volkan continued to speak.
“Warrior with a soul strong enough to maintain its form even within the forge. I, Volkan! As the gatekeeper who presides over the trial of the forge and as a warrior, I shall test you.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Volkan kicked off the ground and charged. Seeing the massive body rushing toward him explosively, Luon instinctively reached for his waist.
The hand that should have gripped the hilt of the holy sword hesitated in the air for a moment. Luon, having organized his thoughts in an instant, immediately struck Volkan's face with his clenched fist.
At the same time, Volkan's fist slammed into Luon's side.
It was a blow that took his breath away, but Luon gritted his teeth and took a step forward. Bending his arm, he turned his body to the right and drove his elbow into the space between Volkan's eyes.
Instead of a stream of blood, a tremendous amount of sparks flew out. His head snapped back, but Volkan, without looking, shot out both arms and grabbed Luon's shoulders. Then he pulled Luon in and delivered a headbutt like a thunderbolt.
*CRACK—*
An earth-shaking sound rang out as the two men's heads collided.
Struggling to ignore the ringing bell in his head, Luon kicked up hard with his right foot. The tip of his rising foot struck Volkan's chin.
As his opponent's grip on his shoulders loosened, Luon quickly shook him off and stepped back. As soon as he had secured some space, he pummeled Volkan's stomach with both hands, then roughly kicked the man's chest with his left foot.
The giant who resembled the god of anvils and flames went tumbling to the ground.
“Incredible! Truly magnificent!”
With incredible core strength, Volkan sprang to his feet without using his hands and clapped. He spat a fist-sized fireball from his mouth and said.
“I don't know how long it's been since I rolled on the ground! After only meeting weak-souled riffraff who can't even handle the heat of the forge…”
Volkan couldn't finish his sentence. Something was rushing toward his face with a sound that tore through the air.
He hurriedly ducked, successfully dodging the projectile, but he couldn't avoid Luon's knee that flew at his head immediately after.
With a sickening thud, Volkan's body was pushed back. But even in that brief moment, he shot out a fist and landed a fierce counterattack on Luon's abdomen.
“Kuh!”
Clutching his stomach from the pain of his insides being shaken, Luon slung the bowstave he was holding in his other hand onto his back and asked.
“…What happens to the trial if I kill you?”
Volkan grinned.
“Tough warrior, you ask an interesting question. Unfortunately, I, born from Duermyure's breath, will not fade as long as the flames of the forge live. Do not forget that I am always the one who tests, and you are the one who proves.”
Saying so, he reached his hand into a crack in the earth. Pulling out a double-bladed axe with a red-hot blade, Volkan asked.
“Warrior, what is your name?”
“Luon.”
“Not bad.”
Watching Volkan twirl the axe in his hand and begin to close the distance, Luon furrowed his brow.
This is getting complicated.
Until now, Volkan had attacked bare-handed, so he too had fought bare-handed, but now that his opponent had drawn a clearly extraordinary axe, he couldn't keep his sword sheathed forever.
What hastened Luon's decision was Volkan's double-bladed axe. Against the red blade that flew toward him leaving a crimson afterimage, he drew the holy sword from his waist.
A sharp clang rang out from the two clashing weapons. A tense struggle for dominance ensued, and their gazes locked in mid-air.
Volkan said.
“You possess an ominous weapon. That sinister power… Belducias?”
Luon, his head already throbbing from the holy sword's whispers—which had seized the opportunity to spout its ominous nonsense—replied coldly.
“Sorry, but I'm not in the mood for small talk.”
Putting strength into his arms, Luon pushed his opponent away and thrust the holy sword into the open space.
Volkan, who blocked the attack that shot out like a ray of light with the curved face of his axe, twisted his wrist.
The blades of the two clashing weapons slid against each other, sending sparks flying wildly.
Taking two steps back, Volkan let out a thunderous roar and swung down the axe handle he gripped with both hands.
The trajectory of the axe, swung while holding the end of the handle, was not something he could dodge just by stepping back, so Luon raised his sword at an angle without hesitation.
*BOOM—!*
Having succeeded in deflecting the immense power behind the axe, the ground beneath Luon's feet cracked open.
“Not yet!”
With Volkan's shout, a red wave pattern appeared on the axe blade, and then crimson flames poured out with ferocious intensity.
Volkan, who had been smiling with satisfaction at seeing the blazing flames engulf his opponent, felt his eyes gradually widen.
A dark red barrier was blocking the flames. From within the melting barrier, a tremendous light burst forth.
Volkan, startled, raised his axe defensively, but the holy sword, flying like a flash of light, had already pierced deep into his chest.
“Not enough!”
But as if that didn't matter, Volkan swung his axe without retreating.
The dark red barrier belatedly shattered with a crash, but Luon was no longer there.
Having already taken a few steps back, Luon now held a bowstave with no string.
A flash of light burst out and swept over Volkan's body. Exposed to a feast of light that poured out at a speed that the word 'rapid-fire' couldn't describe, Volkan quickly protected himself with flames conjured from his axe.
Luon, uninterested in a drawn-out stalemate, immediately kicked off the ground. His fist, extended with all his might, broke through the flames and successfully gripped the hilt of the holy sword.
“Keuk!”
The sword lodged in Volkan's chest slid diagonally, tearing through his right side as it came out.
Even amidst that, Luon narrowly avoided the persistently pursuing axe blade, but he was immediately engulfed in a torrent of flames and rolled across the ground several times.
Fortunately, the burning sensation did not last long.
Confirming that the flames covering his body were gradually dying down, Luon raised his head.
Clutching the wound that was gushing out crimson fireballs, Volkan asked.
“A sword swallowed by evil power, followed by a bow that shoots arrows of light. What a versatile warrior! May I ask why you challenged the trial of the forge?”
Despite his upper body being split more than halfway, he still maintained his piercing gaze. It seemed he wasn't a being personally sculpted by Duermyure for nothing.
“I agreed to the trial in exchange for fixing my sword.”
As Luon gave his short reply, dark blood trickled from his nose.
It was the delayed backlash from forcibly infusing divine power into the corrupted holy sword.
“For that reason?”
Throwing back his chin, Volkan laughed heartily and began to stride forward.
He's walking?
The gaping wound was gone, leaving only a long scar as if it had been soldered shut. Seeing Volkan walking toward him, Luon scowled.
He once again forcibly pushed divine power into the hand gripping the holy sword.
The holy sword let out a terrible scream and struggled, but Luon ignored its cries and forcibly drew out the sword's power.
He said.
“Let's see if you can recover even if your head is cut off.”
Looking at the holy sword surging with dark red energy, Volkan's lips curled into a smile.
“Warrior who has one foot in the realm of legends. Let us dance until the forge melts away!”
It was then.
Volkan, who was raising his axe, suddenly froze. After twitching for a moment, he spat a fireball onto the ground and let his arms hang limp.
“A shame, but this is as far as we go.”
Like firewood doused with cold water, Volkan's voice held not a trace of hostility. Luon, feeling the tension drain out of him as well, tilted his head.
“Ending it so anticlimactically? Who decided that?”
“Duermyure has said this is enough. It seems the Goddess of Mercy is quite angry with him… To receive the attention of them both, you truly are a magnificent warrior!”
Volkan chuckled, and his hair flared upwards.
“Luon, warrior who has overcome the heat of the forge and left a scar on the body of this Volkan. You have sufficiently proven your worth. May Duermyure's praise be upon your strength!”
He shouted thunderously and gripped Luon's shoulder firmly.
He felt a searing heat, but Luon watched the scene silently. He could feel an unknown, hot power seeping into him from the heat on his shoulder.
“Today was a bit of a mess… but let's have a proper bout next time.”
With those last words, Volkan's giant body began to crumble like ash. At the same time, the ground began to shake as if in an earthquake, and soon Luon's body was engulfed in flames.
And then, he opened his eyes.
“Sir Luon!”
“Luon!”
Hearing the voices from behind, Luon turned his head to see Igor and Kyle running toward him.
“What's all the fuss?”
Kyle retorted, his brow furrowed.
“Fuss? Do you have any idea how shocked we were to see you just standing there engulfed in flames for so long? And all the while, that dwarf just kept telling us to watch… I thought you were going to burn to death standing up.”
At his words, Luon turned his head to look at ‘that dwarf,’ Retol. Their eyes met, and Retol asked in a trembling voice.
“…Did you… really pass the trial?”
Luon, who nodded lightly, suddenly looked down at his tingling shoulder and let out a sound unconsciously.
“What's this?”
Through his burnt shirt, a tattoo of a hammer engulfed in flames was visible.
At that moment, Luon could clearly feel the stirrings of a great crest, blazing and rising from deep within him.
[Duermyure's Blessing]
Taking its place, larger and clearer than any other crest, ‘it’ emitted a brilliant light.