Chapter 65 : Chapter 65
Chapter 65. Odekerkh's Fury
“Disgusting.”
Michelle said, looking down as she leaped from roof to roof.
Gwanju’s subordinates, dressed in pitch-black clothes, were swarming like a tide of rats, chasing after Michelle and her comrades.
“Don’t let them esca……”
Michelle’s arrow pierced the forehead of the man commanding the troops.
“There!”
But Gwanju’s subordinates did not stop their pursuit.
“Damn it!”
Nigues, who was running ahead, stopped.
“The path……”
The continuous line of buildings came to an abrupt end. In front of Nigues, a wide road, spacious enough for four carriages to pass side by side, unfolded.
“The roof! Get to the roof!”
Gwanju’s subordinates began to climb the walls.
Nigues gathered his remaining mana and created a water bomb.
Adellian also slashed at the water pooled on the roof, shooting it at the enemy like sword energy.
“If only Odekerkh was here.”
Adellian said, looking at the building on the opposite side.
‘G, go on ahead. I have something I must do.’
She recalled the look in Odekerkh’s eyes.
A strong will had been conveyed from Odekerkh. She had tried to persuade him, saying that since they came together, they should move together, and that Maxim had told them to do so, but Odekerkh had firmly refused.
“Still, we should have brought him……”
Kukwang!
Just as Adellian was about to express her regret about Odekerkh, a light that brightened the dark night flashed, and an explosion loud enough to shake their bodies echoed.
Everyone looked at where the explosion had started.
“Is he really going to be okay?”
Nigues asked.
Michelle and Adellian just let out empty breaths and mumbled, their lips quivering. Because they had seen Gwanju’s power with their own two eyes and had fought him directly, a positive picture did not come to mind.
Kwagwang!
A bright red flame shot up in succession.
“Let’s go back. Shouldn’t we lend even a little of our strength?”
Nigues said.
But no one voted in favor of his idea.
“No. What we have to do is get out of here.”
Adellian announced that they would act as Maxim had said, cutting down the approaching enemy.
Kwaang!
The most powerful explosion occurred.
Nigues, Adellian, and Michelle stopped what they were doing and looked at the giant pillar of fire. Not only them, but Gwanju’s subordinates also looked at the same thing with stupid faces.
***
Gwanju’s sword persistently aimed for Maxim’s chest.
Maxim twisted his small body and blocked Gwanju’s attack with all his might.
‘What kind of guy is he?’
Gwanju looked at Maxim’s face. He scowled every time he parried the sword, but no pain could be read. Rather, it felt like a war cry to squeeze out strength.
‘Let’s not drag this out. The Moonlight Festival is just around the corner.’
He added weight to each and every sword strike. He twisted the flow to create an opening in Maxim, and even spewed fire with the power of Ignia, pushing relentlessly without giving him a moment to breathe.
But Maxim took it all. Even though his face had turned pale from lack of breath, even though the hand gripping the sword that was as big as his own body was trembling, he took it all without any retreat or hesitation.
‘Annoying. Very annoying.’
Gwanju took a step back. Then, he assumed a stance for stabbing his opponent.
“You really are from Uresra, huh?”
Maxim, who saw Gwanju, reacted as if he was dumbfounded.
At this, Gwanju’s eyes narrowed.
‘How? Don’t tell me he figured it out from my stance? No. There can’t be a human in Poinus who knows this.’
Gwanju ignored Maxim’s words and fully opened the passages through which mana flowed.
A larger amount of mana than before ran unfiltered through the paths of mana. One mana circle glittered. Two mana circles glittered.
“Piercing Flame ”
A red light tinged Gwanju’s pupils. Flames erupted from the Pioneer’s Sword and engulfed his entire body.
Pak!
The roof Gwanju was standing on shattered, and small sparks blazed on it.
As its name suggested, a giant spear made of flames flew towards Maxim.
Kwagwagwang!
Explosions erupted every time the Pioneer’s Sword cut through the air.
Maxim, seeing Gwanju’s thrust flying at him, held Dawn in a reverse grip.
A scene of life and death unfolded as a giant flame engulfed Maxim.
“Ma, Maxim!”
With a loud shout, stone walls were stacked layer by layer, blocking the path in front of Maxim.
Kwaang!
With the collision, condensed air was blasted in all directions.
The shattered stones blazed in the scorching heat. Then, the Pioneer’s Sword, which had broken the wall, reached Dawn.
Peong.
Since there had already been one explosion, the impact transmitted to Maxim was not that great.
Maxim righted his grip on Dawn and tried to slash Gwanju’s wrist.
“Tch.”
Gwanju twisted his body and shot a round fire at the roof Maxim was standing on.
“Ow! You annoying mage bastard!”
Maxim quickly withdrew his sword and rolled backward, cursing Gwanju. Then he looked at Odekerkh, who had created the stone wall.
“Why are you here? I told you to go earlier!”
“I, I have something to do!”
“What?”
Odekerkh pointed at Gwanju with his sword in hand.
Gwanju snorted as if he was dumbfounded.
“Another insignificant one has joined.”
At Gwanju’s words, Odekerkh’s face crumpled deeply.
“D, do you remember who I am?”
And he threw a question with a voice full of anger.
“Why should I remember someone like you?”
“……A, Alfonso Nicola! Do you remember this?”
“You’re noisy.”
Gwanju shook his head and swung the Pioneer’s Sword at the empty air. With a chwareureuk sound, the blade extended long and transformed into a bladed whip.
“I need to retrieve the stolen merchandise, so let’s end this quickly.”
The whip shot up into the air.
Odekerkh ran to where Maxim was, creating several stone pillars.
“What on earth are you trying to do?”
Maxim asked Odekerkh, who had come to his side.
“R, revenge.”
“On whom? That thing?”
As soon as Maxim spoke, the whip struck a stone pillar.
Kwazik!
Peok!
The stone pillars that had been standing here and there collapsed powerlessly.
“Y, yeah.”
Odekerkh, who was watching Gwanju’s attack with Maxim, answered.
“What revenge? Why?”
“R, revenge for my b, brother. That man killed my brother. I, I’m sure. It was him.”
Kung!
Another stone pillar collapsed.
“Is Alfonso Nicola your brother?”
Odekerkh nodded.
At that moment, Gwanju’s attack flew fiercely towards Maxim and Odekerkh.
Kang! Kagagagang! Kang!
Odekerkh’s sword and Dawn frantically blocked Gwanju’s whip. The flames that the whip held scattered in all directions.
Maxim said he would listen to the details later and told him to focus on the battle.
‘I can’t see an opening to get in.’
The whip, writhing like a living snake, mercilessly pulverized even the ricocheting stones. In addition, it was wreathed in fire, making the places it struck burn.
Kwazik.
As soon as Odekerkh erected a stone pillar, it was shattered. He surrounded himself with a stone wall to defend against a deep attack, but this also collapsed after a short while.
“Doesn’t that thing ever get tired!”
Maxim grumbled as he frantically deflected the traces of the whip, stones, and fire.
Odekerkh was no different from Maxim.
Pik, pik.
As the time spent defending grew longer, the number of wounds on Maxim and Odekerkh’s bodies increased.
“Do not fear death. It is to become a sacrifice for the Moonlight Festival, so it will be an honor for you. So die quietly!”
Gwanju shouted with eyes full of madness.
The speed of the whip increased.
Maxim and Odekerkh were pushed back little by little.
“S, shut up! You swindler bastard!”
Odekerkh shouted and circulated his mana. A green light enveloped his entire body.
Maxim, who was blocking Gwanju’s attack, looked at Odekerkh.
‘Oho? Here?’
Maxim looked at Odekerkh’s heart. A new circle was faintly appearing over a single circle.
“Odekerkh!”
Maxim erased the flames with Dawn and pushed the whip away, stepping forward.
He looked at him, who was breathing out white steam.
“Don’t hold back and bite him.”
At Maxim’s words, Odekerkh gripped his sword. He scowled as he looked at Gwanju.
‘The one who deceived my brother.’
Alfonso had been a good person.
Odekerkh’s parents had always been busy with the merchant guild’s work. At those times, the one who had taken care of Odekerkh was Alfonso.
‘I wish you would grow up slowly. I think I’ll be sad when I can no longer carry you on my back.’
Always a warm person, a person like a lighthouse, a friend, a teacher, and a parent-like figure.
In Odekerkh’s world, Alfonso was everything.
‘Alfonso is our future!’
The people of the Nicola Merchant Guild also liked Alfonso.
Alfonso was full of intelligence. He was bright with numbers and had an excellent ability to read and grasp situations. People praised Alfonso’s intelligence until their mouths were sore.
Saying that it wouldn’t be unreasonable for the Nicola Merchant Guild to become the best when Alfonso became the head.
However, their hopes soon collapsed. Alfonso fell ill.
‘I would do anything if I could just cure him!’
Samir Nicolo, the father of Odekerkh and Alfonso, prayed every day to the god he served.
For Alfonso, whose illness was worsening, he even put down the merchant guild’s work and moved in all directions. But he could not find a way to cure Alfonso.
Then one day.
‘They say the Phoenix’s Heart has appeared.’
A rumor had spread that the Phoenix’s Heart, a mysterious medicine that could even revive the dead, had appeared in the Black Market.
Samir Nicolo, who had harbored hope, was frustrated. As the owner of a large merchant guild, his name and face were known, so entry into the Black Market was impossible. So, he declared that he would give as much money as they wanted to anyone who could just obtain the Phoenix’s Heart.
‘I will go myself.’
Alfonso, who could not just watch Samir’s unreasonable declaration, had said he would go himself. Saying that protecting the Nicolo Merchant Guild, on which the lives of many were at stake, was more important than his own life.
Everyone tried to stop him. Odekerkh also actively tried to stop him, saying he shouldn’t go.
‘I’ll return healthy, so don’t cry. When I come back, I’ll carry you on my back and stroll along the river. Wait for me with a smile.’
Alfonso had soothed Odekerkh. And he headed to the Black Market with a guard knight and a doctor. That was the last image of Alfonso that Odekerkh remembered.
“If, if that bastard hadn’t lied!”
Odekerkh ground his teeth as he looked at Gwanju.
Kwang! Kwang! Kwagwang!
He squeezed out his mana and created stone pillars. But they turned to dust as soon as they rose.
“I couldn’t even find my brother’s body!”
The whip grazed Odekerkh’s cheek, shoulder, chest, and leg. His clothes were torn and blood flowed. But Odekerkh did not stop heading towards Gwanju.
Gwanju retracted the whip and turned it into a sword. Then, he performed a thrust towards Odekerkh.
A thick stone wall was created. Gwanju’s sword broke through it and aimed for Odekerkh’s neck.
“If you! Hadn’t deceived my brother!”
Odekerkh swung his sword. A pointed stone pillar stabbed Gwanju’s hand. Then, Odekerkh’s sword cut Gwanju’s chest.
“If you hadn’t said something that didn’t exist existed, this wouldn’t have happened!”
Odekerkh stared at Gwanju’s face.
“So you’re that guy’s younger brother.”
Gwanju’s pupils turned to Odekerkh.
The person who had given Alfonso the entry pass to the Black Market was Gwanju. The person who had spread the rumor that the Phoenix’s Heart was in the Black Market was also him.
“Information creates money. People use it to gain profit. I only gave the opportunity to do so.”
The moment his chest was cut and his clothes were torn, Gwanju sneered at Odekerkh.
“The one who wanted the information was your father, the one who seized the opportunity was your brother. He came to me and said so. That he wanted to live forever. So, I made him live as a sacrifice for the Moonlight Festival. His soul will be remembered forever in the history of the festival.”
At Gwanju’s words, Odekerkh’s face crumpled to an indescribable degree.
“Uwaaaak!”
Odekerkh readjusted his grip on his sword and tried to stab Gwanju’s heart.
“Step back!”
Maxim shouted. But Gwanju’s hand was faster than his voice.
“Rage.”
Kwagwang!
A tremendous pillar of fire engulfed Odekerkh. The blazing air burned the dust.
Gwanju looked indifferently at the burning Odekerkh.
Peok!
For a moment, Gwanju’s face contorted. Odekerkh’s sword had pierced through the pillar of fire and stabbed him.
“This is revenge for my brother!”
From within the pillar of fire, two green mana circles flashed.
Odekerkh, surrounded by a mound of earth, pushed through the pillar of fire and glared at Gwanju.