[Translator - Pot ]

[Proofreader - Kawaii ]

Chapter 317: Averted Gaze

Verdzig’s forces began to crush the exhausted rear guard of Montera’s army with an unstoppable advance.

“Aaaargh!”

“Sh-shit! Who the hell are these guys?!”

“What the fuck were the scouts doing?!”

Watching the elite soldiers of Duke Montera’s army die screaming, Verdzig mused.

“They’re quite worn out.”

His own troops were also tired from the continuous forced march, but the enemy looked so depleted they resembled sick chickens.

“Cut them down like rotten branches.”

Of course, Verdzig had only sent in a hand-picked vanguard to maximize speed.

In terms of sheer numbers, Duke Montera’s side still had the advantage.

But there was no way for them to know that truth.

Skella and the Recrusa vampires had snuffed out the lives of their scouts in an instant.

“Young Master, they’re beginning to collapse.”

At his adjutant Harald’s words, Verdzig nodded.

“Increase our speed. We’ll cut them in half, and when the main force arrives, they’ll have no choice but to break completely.”

“As you command.”

Cutting through the crumbling Montera army, Allenvert came up alongside Verdzig.

“Brother, you sure took your sweet time.”

“I simply calculated the most perfect moment to make my entrance.”

Verdzig snorted.

“You looked like you were having a pretty tough time.”

“Well, yeah. I had to perform quite the sword dance all by myself to buy time.”

Verdzig asked, “You’ve done enough. What’s your plan now?”

“If I had my way, I’d rest, but the chess game isn’t over until you capture the queen.”

Allenvert spread his Black Wings and soared into the sky.

“Duke Montera will definitely try to open an escape route. If we can’t stop him, this is only half a victory.”

Verdzig watched his retreating figure, then once again unleashed the ultimate technique that had split the sea.

“Heaven-Conquering Flash.”

KWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG!

***

“Enemy attack!”

“V-Verdzig has appeared from the rear!”

At the report he never wanted to hear, Duke Montera squeezed his eyes shut.

“…Is this it?”

He threw away the sword he had broken with his left hand.

“While Allenvert tore apart our main camp and you all tied me down to buy time, the hammer you were waiting for has finally fallen.”

“My apologies, Duke. Our strategy was victorious.”

Ulbhild said.

She had replenished the broken half of her sword with ice and was still blocking Duke Montera’s path.

“Did you succeed in stopping me even as you were battered to pieces? For that, at least, I will praise you.”

Knut Eisenach had suffered multiple internal injuries, and both of his arms were broken.

Siena had also sustained numerous internal injuries and cuts, and Zamuel was in no better shape, having repeatedly thrown himself into danger to save his allies.

“…Damn it.”

Because they had blocked him, he had only managed to break through about half of their defensive line.

‘I have to admit it. We lost the battle against time.’

With a heart that felt like it was weeping tears of blood, Duke Montera made his decision.

‘I must accept defeat and save what I can to fight another day.’

“My soldiers!”

Duke Montera roared.

“My shortcomings have turned you into a defeated army. But I will personally lead the charge and open a path for us! We will avenge our fallen comrades then!”

“!”

The warriors, whose will had been on the verge of breaking, regained their fighting spirit at the voice of the one man they had trusted and followed their entire lives.

“Will you follow me!”

“As we always have!”

“Roar, you warriors of Montera!”

“UOOOOOOOOOOOH!”

Having raised their morale, Duke Montera drew out all of his remaining strength.

“Out of my way! I will kill anyone who stands in my path and forge our escape!”

Rumble-rumble-rumble-rumble!

This was the mana wave of an 8th-tier superhuman fighting with all his heart.

It was something the exhausted Ulbhild and Siena could not possibly block.

“Let’s go!”

“Yes, sir!”

Without looking back, they charged forward in unison to open a path.

But right at that moment.

“Oh my, where do you think you’re going?”

“!!!”

The Duke felt a chill run down his spine at the sudden appearance of Allenvert’s voice.

“You bastard!”

The startled Duke swung his sword, but Allenvert had left only his voice behind as he dropped low to stab the neck of the Duke’s beloved horse.

Heeeeeeigh!

As the horse collapsed with a mournful cry, the Duke had no choice but to kick off the saddle and land on the ground on his own two feet.

“Allenvert!”

“Present.”

The moment Duke Montera saw Allenvert’s eyes, drenched in the blood of his allies, he understood the price of his escape.

‘My head.’

Having made his decision, the Duke looked at the man he trusted most among his vassals, the commander of his knights.

“Darsereun. You will lead the men and escape.”

“Y-Your Grace!”

“That is an order.”

Duke Montera spoke with a dignity that permitted no argument.

“…This bastard’s target is me. Have you not already seen that he is a fox you cannot afford to ignore?”

“You are correct, sir.”

Allenvert chimed in.

“Trying to ignore me will only increase your allies’ casualties.”

“You hear that?”

The Duke said, seconding Allenvert’s words.

At the Duke’s urging, Darsereun bit his lip.

“Then I will leave ten guards behind. Please, just that much…”

“Permission granted.”

As the guards who had always protected the Duke’s inner circle took up their positions, Count Darsereun gave a military salute.

“You must return alive. Your Grace, I wish you luck in battle.”

“From this moment on, you will not look back. Go.”

“…I will obey your command.”

Darsereun was also a master who had reached the 7th-tier, a veteran warrior who had made the battlefield his home. As he began to open a path, Allenvert singled out one person.

“Zamuel. It seems I’ll have to leave the pursuit to you.”

“Leave it to me.”

As Zamuel skillfully mounted a horse and gave chase, Jeffrey, Zizek, and those who still had strength remaining followed him without needing to be told.

“…At last, it’s just the two of us, Duke.”

Allenvert declared, drawing Voyager of the Night.

“I have come to take your fame and all your glory.”

“Haha. This war has been truly exhausting.”

The completely drained Duke Montera decided to set everything right in his final moments with the martial arts he had built his entire life upon.

“Fine, let’s do it. Let’s see this through, leader to leader.”

Allenvert smiled.

“I was hoping you’d say that.”

***

Gulbark.

He was the Dark King’s right hand and the man who had led the Black Society for decades.

It was a law of the underworld that one could not rule without strength.

Though he was not born of the blood of the ‘old kingdom’s royals,’ he hailed from a vassal family that had served them for generations and was a man who possessed strength, wisdom, and political acumen in equal measure.

…Because the Dark King rarely showed himself from the shadows, Gulbark had long been the face of the Black Society.

“Absurd.”

The heights he had reached were so profound that he could look down upon even other 8th-tier martial artists.

That was why he couldn't help but feel a considerable sense of bewilderment that Georg Grunewald was fighting him as an equal.

“Why is Leszek still so vigorous, and why have you become so strong?”

It seemed Georg had already passed the midpoint of that high mountain peak known as the 8th-tier.

“It has been a long time since we experienced and surpassed your martial arts.”

Gulbark’s palm left a giant afterimage in the air.

A tower struck by the force of that palm strike was annihilated, leaving only dust.

But Georg had already moved behind Gulbark and swung his sword.

However.

Crack!

Georg’s sword broke.

But it was just the sword of a nameless warrior he had picked up from the battlefield.

Splat!

The real one was the sword drawn from his hip.

Georg unleashed a lightning-fast quick-draw, slashing Gulbark’s cheek.

“To use such a petty trick.”

“A petty trick, a fine art, they both become a martial art if you use them well.”

A frosty, sharp Sword Aura formed on Georg’s blade.

“You bastard!”

It was a simple event, just two swords swinging and meeting in mid-air.

That event… Official source is noveⅼfire.net

Kwagagagagagagaga!

…became a massive shockwave that erupted with ki, clawed at the earth, and vibrated the air, sweeping through the surroundings.

“Grunewald, Grunewald. How long do you intend to stand in our way?”

“That’s not something the invaders should be saying.”

Gulbark’s lip twisted into a sneer.

“You know it too, don’t you? That all of this is nothing more than meaningless resistance.”

Georg did not reply.

…Because what he said was the truth.

***

Zamuel was in pursuit of Count Darsereun.

KABOOM!

RUMBLE-RUMBLE-RUMBLE!

The sound of explosions from behind him tore through the air and shook the ground.

‘They’re like monsters.’

He himself was one of the greatest masters of the underworld, having reached the mid-7th tier, but the battle unfolding behind him was on a completely different level.

‘The boss really is something else.’

Look at him, standing up so confidently against an 8th-tier superhuman.

‘I have never seen a greater man than him.’

He had always surpassed his own limits.

‘…Even death itself.’

Now, if even Duke Montera fell before Karzan’s blade, wouldn’t the Dark King be next?

‘I don’t know how powerful the Dark King is.’

But he felt that the distance to that man was now, truly, not so far.

.

.

.

Siena Valkenhain.

She, along with Ulbhild, had become a spectator to the battle between the two men.

‘…This is a battle between superhumans.’

Each ultimate technique Allenvert unleashed was powerful, bizarre, and exquisite.

Using the abilities of the Light Star, Dark King, and Insight Star in concert, Allenvert wielded an invisible sword with superhuman explosive power, and he countered attacks that flew from unseen places and at unseen speeds.

“His skill with tricks is better than anyone I have ever seen.”

Even Duke Montera was forced to admit.

Not only did he mix flames, Dark Lightning, and Ice of the Darkest Night at the perfect moments…

“Hehehe, is this a new one for you?”

…his method of getting on Duke Montera’s nerves with the subtleties of Erosion, Stealth, and Penetration was truly masterful.

However.

“…He is incredible, the Duke.”

Ulbhild let out an unconscious gasp of admiration.

“To think that not even the Moon Dance works on him. That means he is completely reading the essence of the sword, the sword’s intent.”

The Moon Dance, a combination of stealth, phantom swords, and the subtleties of body protection, was an ultimate technique that was ‘impossible to counter unless you already know it.’

But Duke Montera foiled it with far too much ease.

That wasn't all.

“He isn't giving him an opening to use techniques that require gathering a large amount of power, like Profound Radiant Heaven Rend or Soul-Slumbering Black Moon.”

Duke Montera’s martial art was one that read the preliminary signs of an attack and intercepted it beforehand.

It was a world away from the kind of fighting that simply crushed enemies with power and momentum.

“…At this rate, he is in danger.”

Siena nodded at Ulbhild’s murmur.

“Yes. But I’m sure the Young Master will find a way to win.”

For Siena, she couldn't even imagine Allenvert losing.

“…Hah.”

As a sister, his earning such profound trust was nothing but a pleasant sight.

‘You are quite a sinful man, Allen.’

Her pleased smile was short-lived.

Allenvert was struck by Duke Montera’s power fist and was sent flying backward with a nosebleed.

“Aigoo!”

Wailing, Allenvert dodged a sword strike with a picturesque Falling Kite Spin and muttered as he got back up.

“Ah shit, he’s fucking strong.”

“…”

Ulbhild averted her gaze, choosing to ignore the pathetic sight.

[Translator - Pot ]

[Proofreader - Kawaii ]