Chapter 217

When the moonlight was obscured by clouds, a giant golem made of skeletons swung its massive arm toward the stone bridge. “Stop it from destroying the bridge!” At Saila’s shout, a man with a shield charged in. The trajectory of the golem’s arm was disrupted by the man’s weighty shove. However, due to its immense size, completely defending the bridge was impossible. Bang! A portion of the stone bridge was shaved off as if bitten away. The man with the shield clicked his tongue and voiced his opinion. “We can’t stop this with strength! We either sever its arm or cut off its life force!” A woman wearing glasses responded. “Golems have cores. That’s their weak spot. But it’s crucial to figure out whether there’s one or many. The more there are, the more skilled the summoner.” Saila asked with a puzzled expression. “…Ense, you speak as if you’ve fought a golem before.” “No. It’s all part of the second-year combat curriculum — how to fight against golem summoners.” At that moment, mocking laughter echoed from above. “Such naive little ones.” A woman inside the golem’s mouth spoke as she opened a crimson spellbook. Then, blue light flickered between the bones forming the golem. Only the skulls shone brightly. Ense adjusted her glasses and broke out in a cold sweat. “Wait, 27, 28… 39? I can feel mana in all of those!” “That means…” “Yes, Saila. All of those must be cores.” “Revealing its weak points — is it underestimating us?” At Saila’s irritated reaction, Elena sneered. “Why? Do you want it to take you seriously?” Just then, Selberton urgently shouted at Saila. “Don’t answer, Saila!” “I just hate being underestimated.” As if that statement triggered something, the skulls began to burn with a deep blue light. Selberton frowned and bit his lip. “…You always make things harder.” “Always assess the enemy’s strength, Selberton. Nothing is more dangerous than an unexpected attack.” “Do you ever think about swiftly finishing them off while they’re off guard?” “We often disagree, don’t we?” Saila dashed forward in an instant. With agile footwork, she climbed onto the golem’s arm. Following behind, Selberton shouted. “The arm might strike the bridge mid-fight. Se, use your shield to protect the carriages from breaking.” “Leave this to me. The rest of you, go after those cores!” Se struck his shield twice, signaling others to join. They climbed the treacherous bony surface with ease. Weapons in hand, their aura blades ignited, causing Elena to tense up internally. ‘Who are these people? At first, they seemed flustered, so I thought they were nothing… But their quick commands and fluid movements say otherwise.’ Crunch! Skulls were shattered by swords, spears, and hammers. Even with some destroyed, the number was overwhelming. Elena manipulated countless skeletal hands hidden within the golem. As their movements slowed momentarily, Elena’s gaze turned to Luon. Shing! On the stone bridge, Ares stepped back, deflecting Luon’s sword. Crack! Frost clung to the blade. Ares narrowed his eyes. The frost and residual mana emanating from the sword hilt were unmistakable. “This isn’t ordinary frost. Are you a magic swordsman as well?” Luon answered by sending a slash through the air. Sharp icicles shot toward Ares like arrows. Ares swung his sword, ripping through the air. Bang! Breaking through the powdered ice with sheer wind force, Ares closed the gap. Luon’s mouth opened slightly in astonishment. Not giving Luon a chance to recover, Ares pressed his blade against Luon’s neck. Luon’s eyes shifted toward the sword. Clang! His sword had already intercepted Ares’s strike. Ares pushed forward with his blade, advancing a step. Luon mirrored his movement. As their crossed swords neared each other’s throats, both stepped back, resetting their stances. Ares glanced briefly at his comrades battling the golem. He decided to quickly defeat the man before him and finish things. Ares’s sword vibrated. The swirling mana around it caused his cloak to flutter. Luon stroked his chin and remarked. “Hmm, a mana blade?” The frost on Luon’s sword thickened. As the surging mana resonated with the air, hail began to fall around him. Once the energies calmed, his sword gleamed with a white light. Ares’s eyes glinted at the sight of the mana blade. Luon made the first move. He swung his sword as if to cleave Ares’s waist in two. Ares easily dodged by ducking his head. Luon’s sword then aimed for Ares’s foot. Ares deflected it with the flat of his blade. Thud! The sword struck the ground. Ares retaliated with a thrust toward Luon’s chest. But his strike only managed to graze Luon’s side as Luon twisted his body. Luon grabbed Ares’s sword arm with his own and clamped down on Ares’s elbow with his hand. For a brief moment, one of Ares’s arms was restrained. Bang! With a sound of air bursting, blood sprayed from Luon’s side. Ares blinked slowly and spoke. “Judging by the fact that you’ve been cloaked in aura all along, it seems this was within your expectations.” Luon, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth, replied. “Realizing it now won’t change anything. It’s already too late.” Ares glanced down with a sidelong gaze. His foot, along with his shoe, was frozen solid. Despite the aura enveloping him, a biting cold seeped through, leaving his leg feeling slightly sluggish. Ares quickly swung his sword. The rebound from Luon’s parry caused his frozen foot to break free from the ground. Sliding across the icy surface to create distance, Ares unleashed his killing intent. “Killing you is going to cost me a lot of effort.” This wasn’t a fight where flesh would be traded for bone. Rather, it was one where both gave flesh to take flesh in return. But with the enemy intent on killing him, Ares had no choice but to fully commit. Ares sharpened all his senses. At that moment, Luon made an unexpected move. Clank! He sheathed his sword and turned his gaze toward the woman inside the golem’s mouth. “Elena, let’s retreat for now.” Ares asked with a puzzled expression. “You’re retreating just like that? Why? I thought you believed you had a chance to win.” Luon cast a dull glance, his expression devoid of enthusiasm. “I simply thought it wouldn’t matter if I let you go with all your limbs intact. After all, you’ll just call it a defeat anyway.” Ares asked, his tone slightly excited. “Are you talking about the Integrated Tournament? You’re confident I’ll lose? To whom exactly?” Luon smirked faintly and answered. “Hersel Ben Tenest.” With that, Luon turned away. A black mist appeared beside him, gradually taking the form of the woman who had accompanied him. Together, the two vanished. As they left without further resistance, Saila, who had been battling the golem, shouted. “Ares! What are you doing, letting them go without killing them?” “Calm down, Saila. The priority is the Integrated Tournament.” Injuries here would only complicate matters. Besides, there was no time to waste anymore. But Saila pointed at the golem and shouted. “Then hurry up and help us deal with this thing! They left this monster behind!” Ares glared at the golem and drew his sword. The heightened senses from his duel with Luon hadn’t yet faded. “I’ll handle this quickly.” Ares answered nonchalantly and unleashed a charged strike. Swish! A sharp wind cut through, sparing only his allies perched on the golem’s body, slicing through the glowing blue skulls. The golem was dismantled in an instant. Leaving the speechless Saila behind, Ares boarded the carriage. The assailants had retreated, and the soldiers returned. Ares sat quietly, deep in thought. Hersel Ben Tenest, who had shattered Roan’s wrist with aura alone. Given that Luon had mentioned that name, the assault was undoubtedly aimed at securing Frost Heart’s victory. Their retreat was simply because Luon had foreseen his loss and deemed further efforts meaningless. A newfound interest in Hersel stirred within Ares. Then, a sudden thought struck him, and Ares tilted his head. “…But isn’t the Integrated Tournament a team competition?” What’s the point of excelling alone? Reaching the finals required the support of the entire team. After all, it’s a team event. *** In a makeshift hut deep within a forest, Luon returned to their temporary base and was being treated by Elena. At that moment, a man entered, brushing aside the tent flap. It was Hetherson. Luon, half-opening his eyes, questioned him. “What were you doing while we were carrying out the assault?” Hetherson smirked and fiddled with his staff. “Well, just preparing something. Just in case.” “Preparing for what?” “It’s about time.” No sooner had Hetherson spoken than a deafening explosion echoed all around. Boom! The fierce wind blew away the tent. Suddenly exposed to the outside, Luon realized that the explosion’s origin was the stone bridge. The severed bridge, along with the carriages, plunged into the river below. Hetherson clicked his tongue. “Damn. They won’t die. If only the current had been stronger, they’d all have drowned.” Elena glared at Hetherson, dumbfounded. “Be honest. If you thought it might fail, you were planning to blow us up along with them, weren’t you?” Hetherson looked away, making a half-hearted excuse. “Of course not. I care about you guys so much.” His tone was shamelessly insincere. “This guy… He’s been getting too cocky lately.” Elena picked up a rock and hurled it at Hetherson. Hetherson frowned and shouted irritably. “If you failed, then shut up!” “What? Luon, let’s just kill this guy.” “Don’t talk nonsense. Do you know how much money went into this plan? If we return empty-handed, even I, as an executive, will get beaten to death!” Luon let out a sigh and said. “You wasted your efforts, Hetherson. Even without this, Frost Heart will win.” Hetherson, looking dumbfounded, leaned toward Luon. “What do you mean by that?” “Ares is destined to lose.” “Oh, really? And the rest?” Luon blinked and asked back. “The rest?” “To reach the finals, you need six wins. If it’s Frost Heart, they’d have to beat two academies and secure six wins against Valient. Surely, you knew that, right?” Luon’s expression grew serious. “I thought the structure rewarded the strongest competitor.” “…Are you kidding? Did you seriously not know?” “I haven’t paid much attention to such tournaments.” “I knew it, you bastards. Destroying the carriages was the right move. At this rate, we can only hope they don’t make it on time.” Luon ignored Hetherson’s rant and reflected. The core members of Frost Heart were likely the ones he’d fought in the corridor back then. Despite putting in little effort, they had been soundly beaten. Looking at the river, Luon stroked his chin. “Hmm. Should I finish the job now, just to be sure?” Hetherson fumed. “It’s too late, idiot! They’ve already been swept away!” *** Berckel Thermes was a mountainous region where the steam never dissipated. The warm thermal waters always radiated comforting heat. As I warmed myself on the hot stone slab, I called for an attendant. “It’s about time to take them out.” “Ah, yes.” The attendant disappeared momentarily and returned with a basket. Inside were eggs. Mircel, his face full of curiosity, asked me. “Why are you looking for boiled eggs here?” I handed him one and said. “You’ll understand when you try it.” “I don’t like the fishy taste…” “Then at least peel it. You might find it interesting.” Mircel, looking as though he’d humor me, peeled the egg. Soon, his face turned to one of surprise. As expected, he must have assumed it would be white. “What’s this? Is this egg spoiled? Why does it look like this?” As he went to toss it away, I quickly snatched it, dipped it in salt, and popped it into my mouth. The taste of the baked egg was exactly as I remembered from sauna days. “It’s not spoiled. When boiled under certain conditions, it turns this color. And you said you dislike fishy tastes? Don’t worry, there’s none. Just take a bite.” Peeling another egg, I handed it to him. Mircel sniffed it cautiously. Finding no fishy smell, he dipped it in salt and began to chew. “You’re right! There’s no fishy taste. This is pretty good!” “Right?” “But it’s a bit dry…” I handed him the drink I had prepared. It was milk I had stored in my inventory, so there was no chance of it spoiling. Sweetened with a fruit that resembled bananas, the milk was rich and delightful. Mircel gulped it down. “Whew, this tastes like melted ice cream.” I chuckled and continued to enjoy the hot springs with her. *** “That was a good sweat. Let’s get some fresh air.” Leaving the heated room, I headed to the lounge with Mircel. The space was filled with rare plants. They all thrived exclusively in the Berckel Thermes region. I closed my eyes. For a moment, I savored the refreshing scent of grass and the cool breeze. But soon, the slightly rising heat told me someone was standing in front of me, blocking the wind. I thought it might be Mircel, but a refined voice rang out. “Can we have a little chat?” It was Dorosian’s voice. To read Chapters ahead ???? CH 216-220 (Integrated Academy Tournament) $3 CH 221-225 (The Underdog) $3 CH 226-230 (Who am I?) $3 CH 231-235 (Frostheart Vs Wisdom) $3 CH 236-240 (I want to lose) $3 CH 241-245 (Finals) $3 CH 246-250 (Vs Valient) $3 Prev I TOC I Next Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook Like Loading...