Chapter 92 : Hestia Empire (2)
Chapter 92: Hestia Empire (2)
Yohan checked his status window.
[Kang Yohan]
Class: Magus of the Void
Star Rank: 2nd Moon (月), 12th Star (星)
Unique Ability: Hour of the Extinguished Moon
Strength: 25 Agility: 33 Mana: 75 Blood Vessel: 2
Physical Defense: 80
Magic Defense: 115
Traits: [Sacred Flame] [Blood Vessel]
After the bloody battles against the Orcs.
The Gravedigger of the Gray Tomb.
And even Gluttony.
He had continued to grow at a dazzling pace.
A 12-Star Rank of the Second Moon.
This was the result.
'Tsk. These stats are definitely absurd, but it's still ridiculous that my Star Rank is about the same as his.'
Normally, a regular knight possessed combat ability comparable to an A-Rank Hunter.
Only a Knight Commander could stand on equal footing with S-Rank Hunters.
However, at this point in time, even if truckloads of S-Rank Hunters attacked together, they still wouldn't stand a chance against a Knight Commander or a Royal Mage.
That was because those who had crossed over through the Second Impact, such as those from the Empire or the Martial World, were granted high Star Ranks during the early stages of the episode.
'On the other hand, people who originally belonged to this dimension, like me, Seo Changhee, and Ashvalt, started off with low Star Ranks.'
In exchange, they grew much faster and were far less restricted by the system.
In fact, more than eighty percent of the characters who shined during the middle and late stages were existing Hunters.
'Though surviving long enough to reach that point isn't exactly easy. But that can't be helped.'
A peerless powerhouse in the early game.
Or a late bloomer who dominated in the endgame.
That was the only difference.
“So, after all these years, I never thought I'd hear something like that from some insignificant mage. Are you saying you can surpass a knight using nothing but your physical body, without even casting magic?”
Bridman stared at Yohan with murderous intent.
Crackle.
Blue Aura gathered around his gauntlets.
Infusing Aura into armor instead of a sword was impossible without tremendous skill.
“Hahaha. Come on now. You didn't think I was serious, did you?”
“Tch. At least you haven't completely lost your mind—”
“But.”
“……?”
“I might be able to beat someone like you. A fragile little man who gets worked up just because I poked him a little.”
“You bastard... How dare you mock me!”
BANG!
The stack of crates in the corner of the alley exploded into splinters.
His killing intent was terrifying.
His anger had reached the very top.
Naturally, he'd become even more violent.
“You'll keep your promise, right?”
“If I fail to cut you down within ten seconds, I'll issue you an entry permit. If you want, I'll even prepare one for distinguished guests with the Knight Commander's official seal.”
“Hmm. I wasn't expecting that much, but... if you're offering, I'll gratefully accept.”
BOOM!
The moment Yohan thanked him, Bridman lunged forward.
A gale rushed straight toward him.
He really was fast.
But—
Overconfidence.
No matter how strong someone was, looking down on an opponent while consumed by anger always created an opening.
The instant Bridman's sword descended—
'Willow Body Fist.'
A gentle breeze wrapped itself around the raging gale.
The sword, which had slashed diagonally, suddenly wavered up and down.
'Willow Grove.'
An immortal martial art that flowed with the opponent's strength instead of resisting it, then turned that strength against them.
Be honored.
After all, this was the martial art of an old man who had been preparing to ascend to immortality.
Thud!
Bridman's arm twisted into an awkward angle as he crashed to one knee.
“……!?”
Completely subdued, Bridman stared blankly.
He had definitely been the one attacking.
His timing had been flawless.
The precision of his strike had left no room for a response.
Yet what was the result?
He couldn't even understand what had happened.
“H-How is this possible...”
“Sir Bridman was defeated so easily....”
“Magic! Didn't he use magic?”
“No. Just in case, I even activated a Detection Scroll, but... I found no traces of magic being cast.”
The soldiers watching were thrown into an uproar.
A mage overpowering a knight through physical combat alone.
It overturned thousands of years of common sense.
“Ten seconds.”
Yohan smiled faintly.
“Time's up.”
“GRAAAAH!”
[Bridman activates his Unique Ability, ‘White Blade’!]
BOOOOOOM!
White blades erupted in every direction.
“How shameless! Are you planning to stain the solemn promise made between men?”
Rodbrock drew his axe.
“If you get hurt, tell me. I'll heal you!”
Lagerseh puffed out her cheeks as she gathered an enormous amount of Amilaza.
“Perhaps it would've been better to start like this from the beginning.”
“A knight's heart? Ooh... that's making me drool.”
Scarlet and Park Yeri also gathered mana at their fingertips.
Hmm.
Looking at them now...
Everyone on this side was just as insane.
Somehow, that was both reassuring and unsettling.
“That's enough. Stay out of this.”
Yohan drew the Elemental Spear, stopping everyone.
'So that's how you want to play it.'
His Magic Defense was high.
He also possessed the Magic Resistance trait, making him troublesome to fight.
But, looked at another way...
He was the perfect punching bag for testing magic to his heart's content.
Besides, he'd been wanting to synchronize the mana fluctuations of the staff he'd obtained from Ashvalt anyway.
[Low-tier Skill ‘Fire Arrow’ is activated!]
BOOOOM!
The flaming arrow struck Bridman directly, exploding against his shoulder.
The fact that Yohan had already damaged the ligaments in his shoulder and thigh while subduing him earlier made a huge difference.
He hadn't recovered yet.
Dodging would be difficult.
“GRAAAAH!”
Bridman roared and charged once more.
Wow.
He actually endured that.
In that case—
[Low-tier Skill ‘Blood Arrow’ is activated!]
In an instant, Yohan fused Bloodline Power with magic.
Thanks to the staff, his Casting Speed had increased by 3%, while Magic Damage had risen by 5%.
['Blood Vessel' optimizes the Bloodline Power.]
When combined with the Blood Vessel trait, a low-tier spell was no longer merely a low-tier spell.
The original Fire Arrow possessed an attack power of 120.
But the Blood Arrow, refined through this process, boasted nearly 300 attack power.
It unleashed power that ordinary mages of the same level could never hope to match.
BOOOOOOM!
“GAAAAAH!”
Bridman's waist bent into the shape of an 'L'.
Just looking at it made it seem agonizingly painful.
Blood dripped steadily from his forehead.
His breathing grew ragged.
Yet even that failed to break his spirit.
[Low-tier Skill ‘Area Freeze’ is activated!]
Crack!
His legs froze solid.
[Polar Bear of the Frozen Land activates ‘Guardian of the Glacier’!]
KABOOOM!
Even after taking a direct blow from the polar bear's massive paw, the knight continued to advance.
He looked like a legendary hero resisting the Devil himself.
“Sir Bridman!”
“You can do it! We all believe in you!”
The soldiers cheered him on.
Step by step.
He finally arrived.
Bridman gripped his sword with trembling hands.
“Prepare yourself... brat.”
From here on...
This was a knight's range.
The time of a mage specialized in long- and mid-range combat was over.
“I surrender. As expected, it's impossible for a mere mage to defeat a knight.”
Yohan calmly declared his surrender.
“Y-You... surrender?”
“According to the code of chivalry, you can't attack someone who's surrendered, right? Ah, of course, I already won our wager, so you'll still issue my entry permit.”
Unless he planned to massacre everyone here, he had to honor the agreement.
If word spread that he'd broken his promise, his career as a knight would be finished.
“P-Please... I'm begging you. Fight me properly just once.”
Bridman was on the verge of tears.
The knight, whose pride had been completely trampled, pleaded desperately.
“No thanks. I've already had my fill of using magic... I mean, I've painfully realized the gap between a knight and myself.”
Yohan rejected him without hesitation.
“Chivalry... be damned....”
Bridman tried to swing his sword again.
But at that moment—
“What exactly are you doing here? Sir Bridman, correct?”
A familiar voice interrupted.
It was Riley.
The Imperial intelligence agent he'd met aboard the Sky Ocean.
“I... was questioning... illegal immigrants.”
“They are acquaintances of Baron Helion. I'll escort them from here, so please withdraw, Sir Bridman.”
“Withdraw? After suffering this humiliation, you're telling me to stop here?”
“Has your anger deafened you? I clearly said they are acquaintances of Baron Helion.”
Riley deliberately emphasized the noble title once more.
Bridman flinched.
His movements stopped.
His hesitation didn't last long.
“Damn it... Get out. Get out of my sight... now!”
No matter how furious he was, he wasn't reckless enough to cut down people who had an appointment with a noble.
“I should've become a knight instead. Ah, why did I ever choose to be a mage? My body's so weak~ Ah, if only I could turn back time~!”
Yohan shook his head from side to side as he walked past Bridman.
Humming cheerfully while mocking him until the very end was just an added bonus.
Thus, the tense inspection finally came to an end.
Following Riley's guidance, Yohan returned to the main street.
“I knew you were a troublemaker, but I never imagined you'd provoke a knight. Do you even realize you're in the Empire?”
Riley immediately snapped at him.
“Well... he started it, so I didn't really have a choice.”
“Kuhahaha! Well said! That brat should be grateful we didn't kill him.”
The moment Yohan offered his excuse, Rodbrock immediately backed him up.
“Sigh... I believed you'd be a great help to the Empire, but somehow I have a feeling you're going to cause more harm than good. Please be careful. I've already got enough headaches as it is.”
“Headaches? What happened?”
“According to Intelligence, some lunatic has started a war between two factions. And just our luck, we've received information that the madman is inside the Empire. This place has become their main battlefield.”
Riley ground her teeth together.
Huh.
That story sounded strangely familiar.
“Um... about that...”
“Ah, don't worry about it. We'll find that bastard ourselves and tear him to pieces. We've already listed him as a Class-1 Most Wanted Criminal and put an enormous bounty on his head.”
“Hmm....”
It seemed he'd already missed the right moment to apologize.
“You know what, Jungbok! I know who the culprit is! Hehe!”
“Hoeee. The Sea Otter Counterintelligence Department has already identified the culprit too!”
The tactless summons suddenly chimed in.
Of course—
Thud! Bam!
“J-Jungbok sees stars. One... two...”
“Hoeee.... What a beautiful night it is.”
The traitorous little fools who had dared leak their own side's classified information were mercilessly punished.
At the same time.
The Korean Hunter Association was in an uproar over the unexpected appearance of a Gate.
Although Gate raids had become relatively less important because of the Episodes...
Everything changed when the estimated rank approached AA-Class.
“There has been no response for two days. Considering they've exceeded the agreed deadline... they're most likely....”
“They've been wiped out.”
The wrinkles on Han Sangjin's forehead deepened.
What kind of Gate was this?
Every raid force sent inside disappeared without a trace.
Five assault teams from mid-sized guilds had already been annihilated.
Even two assault teams from major guilds had entered, only to miss their deadline just moments ago.
At this point, S-Rank Hunters should normally be deployed.
However, the Five Great Guilds refused to send their top-ranked Hunters.
There simply wasn't enough information.
They couldn't afford to lose them for nothing.
In the current world, capable Hunters were more valuable than money.
“The fact that it's located in Goseong, Gangwon Province also played a major role.”
“The population there is almost nonexistent, so they're probably leaning toward simply abandoning it. It's not the first time something like this has happened.”
As countless conflicting interests intertwined, hope steadily dwindled.
Just as despair continued to deepen—
Rumble!
[The Boss Monster has been slain.]
[The Gate will close in 3 hours.]
The unbelievable happened.
“W-What?”
“The Boss is dead? Weren't all the raid teams wiped out?”
The conference room descended into chaos and shock.
Numerous theories and assumptions were thrown around.
Yet none of them explained the situation.
There was only one way to uncover the truth.
In the end, a fast-response special reconnaissance team composed of Rangers entered the Gate.
About an hour later, news arrived.
They had discovered the Boss Monster's headless corpse.
“Is that all? No other clues?”
“There was a maple tree growing there. And at the place where the Boss Monster had been, they found a flowerpot containing a yellow rose.”
A maple tree?
A yellow rose?
The mystery only deepened.
“There was one more clue. They found the words, ‘For the One and Only Great Star.’”
“Director. We just received information from overseas. They say something very similar has happened in their country as well.”
Strange and inexplicable phenomena were occurring all across the world.