Chapter 121 : And So (2)
And So (2)
A clear and warm voice echoed from somewhere.
"Lux Aurea. Sanctum Descendat."
The girl's voice pierced my ear.
Wait—"Lux Aurea"—I've definitely heard that phrase before.
As I ran, I looked around to find the owner of the voice.
At that moment,
"Oh!"
From beneath my feet, a white light erupted.
"Levitipe, Ian."
Suddenly, a surge of energy filled my once-weary body and muscles.
This was a type of buff completely unfamiliar to me—not one of my own food-based buffs.
Sensing the greatness of buffs themselves, my running speed increased immensely,
and not just my muscles—my brain felt invigorated too.
Just then,
"!!"
The identity of the chant flashed across my mind like lightning.
Goosebumps ran all over my body.
'Lux Aurea.'
Meaning "the light of Aureon",
it was a phrase mainly used by the monks of the Light of Shizua!
'No way?!'
Only then did I notice a strange movement in my vision.
Far off, beyond the battalion commander and Schutmann, towards the direction of the beasts' garrison, I saw a small figure running.
Immediately, I curled my index finger and thumb to use the Mana Scope.
"Crazy."
I was probably smiling.
In my hand was a short spear, not the six-section staff,
and the girl was so short she barely reached my chest.
'She has red hair and rabbit ears.'
But I knew.
Those rabbit ears weren't real—they were just a headband.
Feeling overwhelming joy, I shouted,
"Legion!!"
A girl with the same face as Zaiya was running toward us.
Perhaps hearing my shout, one corner of Legion's mouth lifted ever so slightly.
Though the reunion was joyous, it signaled that greetings should wait until later.
'I agree.'
Thinking this, I focused on running.
In order to support the battalion commander and strike Schutmann even a tenth of a second faster.
Yet—
'Even with my body partially recovered, why can't I catch up to Zaiya's speed?'
The distance between Zaiya and me wasn't shrinking.
Even with Legion's buff, was my body just not fully restored?
That theory ended the moment Zaiya swung her short spear at Schutmann.
"Haaap!"
With a heavy shout, Zaiya swung her spear widely.
A torrent of indescribable emotions could be felt on her face.
Excitement, happiness, relief, reassurance, anger—
All these were mixed together, and she filled her strike with energy.
Whoosh!!
'My god.'
The spear's energy extended outward, flying toward Schutmann.
It was an emission of spear aura.
And what that meant was—
'Zaiya became a 4th-rank?!'
Surprise and a bit of bitterness surged within me.
After registering her as an employee and even awarding her Employee of the Month, her rank shot up,
and in no time, she reached the 4th-rank with ease.
'Some people try everything to reach the 4th-rank, but feel like they're getting nowhere!'
Rather than joy over having another 4th-rank on the team, I was flooded with resentment and jealousy.
But those feelings didn't last long.
"?!"
That's because I saw Zaiya's bloodshot, tear-filled eyes.
Right now, Zaiya wasn't rejoicing at becoming a 4th-rank.
Rather, she seemed completely filled with relief that Legion had returned alive and a thirst for revenge against the one who decimated the special operations corps.
How could I not focus in a moment like this?
'For now, just focus on killing Schutmann, Ian!'
I gripped the kitchen knife of Blood Iron in both hands and released a strong sword-style Sword Energy.
But damn, having held the kitchen knife with both hands for so long, it felt awkward.
I worried that I'd just be a hindrance among these fourth-ranks—
But as Schutmann agilely dodged the Sword Energy, the battalion commander's sword clashed with his.
Clang!
Aura met aura head-on, unleashing another shockwave.
Both sides lost their stance.
Of course, the battalion commander took three steps further back than Schutmann.
As Schutmann bent low, preparing to leap toward the battalion commander,
Zaiya's short spear flew at his face.
Chang! Kagak!
Schutmann's sword and Zaiya's spear collided.
Even for Schutmann, he was only a 5th-rank, not a sixth.
He couldn't keep unleashing strong aura attacks.
'So, the battalion commander wears down Schutmann's aura, and when there's a delay before he uses his next aura, we attack!'
I circled around Schutmann and Zaiya's flanks, unleashing quick sword-style Sword Energy in quick succession.
Schutmann immediately flicked Zaiya's spear upward,
then dodged, blocked, and slashed through my Sword Energy. Chang, kik!
At that moment—
"O sacred light!"
Legion, the red-haired girl, had already joined the fight, her short spear aiming for Schutmann's calf.
The spearhead shimmered with holy light as it sliced through the air.
At the same time, the tall Zaiya, firmly gripping the relodged spear, targeted Schutmann's shoulder.
"Haaap!"
Like mother, like daughter—they moved with perfect synchronization.
At this rate, Schutmann would be forced to take a blow from above or below,
but—
"?!"
Sutuck!
Schutmann performed a dazzling feat, stepping on the spearhead of the holy light flying for his ankle.
Being a holy-power based, not aura-based, attack, the strike itself was less destructive,
but still—
'He's using moves you'd only see in old Hong Kong martial arts flicks, actually in real combat.'
At the same time, Schutmann swung his beige aura at Zaiya's spear.
Seok.
Her short spear was sliced cleanly, like cutting tofu,
but fortunately, Zaiya must have been prepared, for she had already let go of the weapon.
'So now that she's a 4th-rank, she can sense and follow the flow of battle!'
Zaiya, having dropped her weapon in advance, struck at Schutmann's abdomen with her fist.
That was when—
'This body arrives!'
Half a beat later, I reached Schutmann's side and slashed with Quick Sword.
I caught a subtle twitch of Schutmann's eyebrow.
He seemed a bit startled to see me looking relatively fine after having been thrown far away,
but as he lifted his foot off the spear and retreated,
"Commander!"
Zaiya threw a collapsible six-section staff to Legion.
God knows when she had prepared that, but it was surprising.
Legion, in turn, threw her short spear to Zaiya and shouted,
"Don't let your guard down, ever!"
"Yes!"
Legion—a woman whose identity as a soldier overpowers even the joy of reuniting with her daughter—assembled the six-section staff in an instant and declared,
"Evil-Doer, designate!"
The tip of the staff pointed toward Schutmann.
Schutmann's shadow flickered and disappeared.
This must have been the "villain designation," a holy-power-based skill of the monk class.
This means the target is now judged as demonkin.
"With holy magic at this level... so it is really you. The real Legion, Special Investigator."
Schutmann's cold gaze pierced her,
and with that, I realized at once.
'As expected, Schutmann was the one who killed the fake Legion.'
So, it all connects like this.
Even the anomaly minor Demon Realm with Gardoc appearing as a boss—
'Chances are, Schutmann opened that, too.'
As I was piecing things together,
Legion ignored Schutmann's comment and said,
"Ian! From now on, don't step outside the area of holy power!"
The light at my feet vanished.
My body suddenly felt heavy again,
and Legion stabbed the ground between her feet with her six-section staff and began to chant.
Clack!
"Lux Aurea. Sanctum Descendat."
Golden light burst forth and illuminated the area.
A pleasant breeze softly blew.
It was the sanctuary skill I'd seen back in the minor Demon Realm.
While it mostly boosts allies' resistance to demon power—so its utility is limited—it also slows the movements of those judged as "villains" like Schutmann, so it's not bad.
More importantly—
'Because I received the Oath Prayer, I'm getting those buffs again!'
The buff I received before was the Oath Prayer skill used target-style with Sanctuary.
But now, Legion had her staff back and completed Evil-Doer Designation on Schutmann.
From now on, it was far better to use Sanctuary in this field-wide form.
'That's so Legion.'
Even back in the minor Demon Realm, I felt it—she's practically a combat machine.
Instead of panicking, she instantly judged what would lead to victory in the fight and executed flawlessly.
I was genuinely impressed—
Spot!
Suddenly, a blond man bleeding from his left cheek appeared.
It was Lantz, who had broken through the curse of 10 and returned.
Facing Lantz were Schutmann, the two women, and me. That was it.
"Legi...? No, where is the battalion commander?!"
The moment he broke free from the curse, he searched for the battalion commander first.
Given Legion's appearance, he should have been shocked,
but even amidst the sudden change, he was only looking for the route to victory—like a true soldier.
"Hoho. I'm right here."
Zhwaaang!
Having finished resting, the battalion commander passed by Lantz's side and charged at Schutmann.
Lantz's blond hair swayed,
but quickly, he regained composure and followed after the battalion commander.
But—
"Step back for a moment."
There were six eyeballs above the battalion commander's head, drawing out aura.
Beside them, a new eyeball was spinning madly. Spin.
'If I get caught up in this and 666 comes out again, I'll die.'
But for Schutmann, this was as much an opportunity as a threat,
and he burst forth, launching himself at Legion.
"I need to kill you first."
Just as Legion and Lantz were calculating and fighting for victory,
Schutmann counterattacked with the best possible strategy.
'If he gets rid of the Sanctuary skill, the tide turns in his favor!'
In other words, to raise our chances at all, we have to protect Legion.
By instinct, I stepped in front of Legion and faced Schutmann.
"Kuh!"
His overwhelming speed was intimidating.
Schutmann raised his sword.
It looked like he was ready to slash up from below diagonally across my body.
But—
'He won't kill me.'
Schutmann had already taken responsibility for Nash and insisted on dragging me along alive.
Would he really kill me just to get to Legion?
Thump. Thump.
My heart thundered in my chest,
and in the blink of an eye, Schutmann was right in front of me.
No, actually, there was still some distance,
but given his speed, it was practically right under my nose.
Thumpthumpthumpthumpthump.
My heart pounded.
What if, on a whim, Schutmann really does kill me?
If that happens—
'I can't let it.'
I can't die here.
While these thoughts swirled, Schutmann's sword moved.
Rising slowly from below, raising its angle,
he was trying to cut through my torso.
No—
'He's aiming for my very life.'
Damn it. Is this how I die?
I don't want to die.
I can't.
'Father, I'm sorry.'
Unconsciously, I squeezed my eyes shut—no, I stopped myself just in time.
'No. Don't give up.'
In the world of swordsmanship, lives can hang in the balance based on a thought or decision made in 0.01 seconds.
Jeros once told me.
In such a world, no matter what, you must never close your eyes.
― Still, at least you've got guts. Kukuk.
The taekwondo and martial arts experience I learned as a child gave me the ability not to flinch or close my eyes.
But I couldn't bear to just accept death and give up.
'Never give up, no matter what.'
Strengthening my grip with that determination,
I resolved not to disgrace myself by dying without doing anything, no matter how doomed I seemed.
With that resolve, I swung Black Vein as best I could,
as Schutmann's blade passed cleanly through my body.
"?"
From my right hip up to my left armpit.
The blade swept through.
But—
'Huh?'
My body was fine.
There should have been blood gushing out and my body splitting apart,
but none of that happened.
It didn't hurt at all.
Was this like some manga trope, "you are already dead"?
For a moment, I wondered—
'No way.'
With my gamer's knowledge, I realized what Schutmann had done.
"It's Phantom Sword!!"
At my 3rd-rank level, it was a fake so convincing it was practically real—a Phantom Sword.
'Damn it. He was saving this specifically for now?!'
Up through 4th-rank, you could only use one out of the three core sword styles: Quick, strong, or Flexible.
At 5th-rank, what changes?
Depending on your training, you can use all three sword techniques freely.
But the real key is something else.
After Quick, strong, and Flexible—the next-level skill is—
'Severing Sword becomes available.'
That's why the old man could use Severing Sword, and Schutmann could use Phantom Sword.
Damn it.
Realizing I'd been fooled only made me angrier.
'I should have just trusted he wouldn't kill me and swung for all I was worth.'
If I had, I might have found even a tenth of a second's opening.
But the River Jordan shimmered before my eyes, and I hesitated.
Though this stream of thought was long, my mind processed it all in an instant.
'Damn it! Even now, I have to stop him!'
Twisting my body, feeling the wind in Schutmann's wake as he passed beside me—
Schutmann, his sword imbued with beige aura, was slashing at Legion.
Zaiya, eyes bulging, stretched out her long arms toward Legion.
She looked like she was ready to give her life for Legion,
leaning in, trying to push her away.
But—
'Too late.'
Zaiya's hand hadn't even reached Legion,
and, just as I'd fallen for the Phantom Sword, Legion had let her guard down.
'Legion can't dodge that aura.'
Sensing this, Legion was swinging her glowing six-section staff at Schutmann.
If she had to go, she'd go down swinging—that was the determination in her strike.
Her eyes were resolute.
'Damn it.'
Bitter frustration rose within me.
Must we be separated from Legion as soon as we're reunited?
If only I'd become a 4th-rank instead of Zaiya—
If I hadn't fallen for the Phantom Sword and delayed him even a second—
Those thoughts churned as—
"?!"
A faint green fist aura struck Schutmann's wrist.
Pow-!!
Schutmann's downward strike was knocked off course.
Seok!
The beige aura sliced off Legion's rabbit ear headband and locks of her hair.
Then, it gouged out a chunk of skin from her shoulder and dug into the ground.
Sseuseug—,
In the game, aura that "ignores armor" also ignores substance hardness in reality.
Schutmann's sword, sinking into the ground like pudding, at 5th-rank, he couldn't keep his aura active like a passive effect forever.
Sseuseugeuk!
At last, Schutmann's aura faded, leaving his sword buried deep in the earth,
and a second fist crashed upward into his chin.
"I'll kill you!"
Hank's faint green fist aura flashed.