Chapter 174. The Solaid Kingdom (2)

The Solaid Kingdom was a nation that revered strength.

They valued martial arts like fist techniques over scholarship, and in such a value system, someone like Karap naturally rose to a high position.

And his position also granted him the authority to access the kingdom's top secrets.

One of those secrets was Karnak.

However, this name was an absolute top secret known only to a very few in the kingdom.

Even the enemies who had fought the kingdom only called it Solaid's secret weapon; they did not know its exact identity and name.

Therefore, very few of the kingdom's own people had ever heard the name Karnak.

Yet, the stranger before him, and one who claimed to be from a kingdom across the sea, not even from the continent, uttered the name of this secret weapon so casually.

As his thoughts reached this point, Karap came up with a hypothesis.

Could it be that this man, instigated by the Empire, was trying to trick them into revealing Karnak's location?

—Shing!

As Karap slowly drew his sword, the soldiers who read his thoughts also raised their weapons in unison.

“Haa……”

Evan let out a short sigh.

It was his mistake to get straight to the point without controlling his pace.

But even if he had explained in detail from the beginning, he didn't think the people before him would have changed their attitude.

‘……Kailam, I’m sorry, but I’ll have to borrow your name.’

There was no time.

The Empire's wave attacks were getting stronger.

So, following Karnak, Evan decided to bring up another name that an outsider should never mention.

“I am one who upholds the will of Kailam Juan!”

Kailam Juan.

The God of Fighting of Solaid, one of the Seven Extreme Stars, and a legendary being.

The moment that name left his lips, Karap's expression hardened for a moment.

As the commander of the kingdom's defense force, there was no way he wouldn't know that name.

However, after that fleeting waver, anger rose on Karap's face.

“How dare you……!”

The fact that their hero's name had come from the mouth of a stranger enraged him even more.

The surrounding soldiers also stirred greatly at those words, their killing intent growing stronger.

“How dare an outsider try to tarnish the name of a legendary figure of our kingdom?”

It was an expected reaction.

But Evan wanted to prove that he was truly the one who inherited Kailam's will.

“Then watch closely. Whether I am the one who upholds his will or not.”

Evan regulated his breathing, moved his feet, and took a stance.

At that moment, Karap's gaze wavered greatly.

‘That's… Lord Kailam's fist technique stance?’

Evan was about to imitate the martial art that Kailam Juan had used in his lifetime.

However, that alone could not prove the truth of his words.

Kailam's fist technique was so famous that it was widely known even in other countries.

Anyone could imitate it if they just learned it.

But at the same time, a strange sense of unease brushed past Evan's presence.

It was something clearly different from simple imitation or mimicry.

‘……Could it be that he’s going to use that?’

There was one martial art.

A martial art that Kailam had not passed down to anyone in the Solaid Kingdom.

It was Sertuan, meaning the fist technique that parts the sky.

‘The Ashurat fist technique that Kailam taught me is probably known by skilled martial artists in this country. But this is different.’

Although he did not pass down this fist technique to his disciples, he had used it several times in his lifetime, so it was left in the records.

Based on these records, there were those who tried to imitate Sertuan, but none of them could properly reproduce its power.

Because it only became a complete technique when the method of operating qi, known only to Kailam, was added.

Otherwise, this fist technique was simply useless.

So, before his death, Kailam left these last words.

—It is unlikely to happen. The only one who knows Sertuan died before me. But if someone who uses it appears, he will surely be the one to save this kingdom, so treat him as you would treat me.

It was a difficult and abstruse last will, but those words were passed down in the kingdom for generations.

Even now, they revered it like a legend and believed that when the kingdom faced a desperate crisis, the one who would uphold those last words would appear like a savior.

And now, the one to succeed that will had appeared, the sole successor of Sertuan who was Kailam's close friend and had passed away before him.

It was Evan.

—Thwump!

As he took a step forward, dust scattered, and the surrounding air spread out like a wave.

‘The core of Sertuan is the operation of qi. And that method of operation is fundamentally different from other martial arts.’

Kailam's fist technique that no martial artist could reproduce.

Many martial artists tried with various theories, but none of them could fully draw out its power.

So, they all said in unison.

—The way of handling qi must be special.

That hypothesis became the established theory, but no one actually knew how to handle that qi.

‘It’s a given. It’s impossible just by reversing the flow of qi.’

Evan's eyes shone fiercely.

‘Sertuan is a martial art that uses the opposing flows of qi.’

The qi that flows in a person's body normally circulates in one direction, like the bloodstream.

Forward if forward, backward if backward.

That was the basis of operating qi.

However, after decades of studying the structure of the human body and martial arts, Kailam established a single, crazed hypothesis.

—What if the qi that flows in one direction is divided into positive and negative and made to collide at the same time?

That thought was the beginning of Sertuan.

‘I thought it was crazy then, and it’s not much different now. This really requires a lot of effort.’

The idea of making the flows of qi collide.

If the balance was off even slightly, the qi would explode inside, tearing the body apart, or at worst, shattering it and leaving one crippled.

But Kailam thought.

If he could perfectly orchestrate that minute flow, one qi could resonate and create a power beyond imagination.

And it was he who proved that theory to be true.

Just like the current Evan.

—Thud!

The flows of qi collided inside, creating a whirlwind.

And he sent that power to his fingertips.

What was created in his hand at that moment was no longer a simple physical attack.

A wave-like shock that made even the air vibrate.

Among the attacks that could be manifested with a human's bare hands, it was the closest to the strongest.

—Thwump!

As Evan thrust his palm forward, the sudden gust of wind blew off Karap's helmet and swept through the fortress area like a storm.

The wind howled as if roaring, and the soldiers couldn't even breathe properly in the face of that overwhelming presence.

“Ugh!”

While the soldiers stumbled back in confusion, Evan, paying no attention, clenched his fist and stretched it up to the sky with all his might.

Just as its name, "parting the sky," suggested, his fist tore through the air, and the hazy clouds parted to both sides as if being split.

—Swoosh!

The soldiers were pushed back in a line by the pressure of the wind that exploded out from Evan.

If the wall hadn't been behind them, they would have been sent flying and would have fallen flat on the ground.

‘……Of course, this power is far from what Kailam himself displayed. But that’s not what’s important.’

The movement, the flow of qi, and the weight contained in the strike.

Everything was perfect.

This was not a simple imitation.

Sertuan.

It was the reappearance of the fist technique that only Kailam could use completely, and that was never passed down.

“Th-this can’t be… the last will… was true.”

Karap, who had witnessed that scene with his own eyes, inadvertently lowered his sword.

His fingertips were trembling.

“Ah……”

Karap looked up at Evan as if he were facing the incarnation of Kailam himself.

The suspicion he had harbored until a moment ago vanished like melting snow.

“H-how… how can you use that?”

At the sudden change in attitude, Gaiard and Rorn looked at Karap with uncomprehending expressions.

However, Evan, who fully understood his feelings, answered politely.

“I have merely followed the last will that has been passed down through generations.”

“Ah…… Lord Kailam indeed had a deep meaning.”

“That’s right. So please, trust me now and tell me the location of Karnak. There is no time.”

Karap looked at Evan for a moment and then nodded deeply.

“Of course! If you are the one who upholds Lord Kailam’s will, then I must naturally tell you!”

And so, Karap began to tell Evan the location of Karnak and the secrets surrounding it.

* * *

Around the time Evan had just reached the Ramacht Plains, a fierce debate was already raging in the capital of the Solaid Kingdom over the issue of supporting the Ramacht Plains.

Of course, it was more of a one-sided shouting match than a debate.

“Why don’t you understand?!”

The prince raised his voice.

“We are not just giving up the Ramacht Plains. If we do, it will eventually be like giving up the entire kingdom!”

In the king's audience chamber.

The king of Solaid, sitting on the throne, let out a deep sigh and pressed his temples.

He had an expression as if his head was throbbing.

“Even so……”

The king's voice was low and heavy.

“The situation on the central front, led by the Manoa Kingdom, is not good. Whether that place is breached or this place is breached, the result is the same. And since they have already put forth the power of the Seven Extreme Stars there, we can't just stand by, can we?”

“Then what are we supposed to do?”

The prince's eyes shook violently.

“The Ramacht Plains are, of course, important. I will dispatch reinforcements. However, sending our main forces there is out of the question.”

With the front lines being pushed back on all sides, the king's calculation was clear.

He would defend the plains with a minimum number of troops, but he would absolutely not allow the balance on the central front to be broken.

“Who knows? Perhaps one of the Seven Extreme Stars will also participate in the Ramacht Plains.”

“Nonsense!”

The king slammed his palm on the armrest of the throne.

“The movements of the Empire are already being thoroughly monitored. Two of the three Seven Extreme Stars are on the central front, and the remaining one is guarding the Emperor.”

“Even so, the Empire has plenty of skilled individuals on par with the Seven Extreme Stars!”

“We are strong enough too. Commander Karap will buy us time.”

However, contrary to his outward words, the king's inner thoughts were pursuing a completely different direction.

The army led by Karap was essentially a suicide squad.

He had judged it better to prepare a rear defense while they bought time with their lives.

“Once the central army starts pushing the front line, the Empire will have no choice but to concentrate its forces there as well.”

“We could be captured before that!”

“Enough!”

The king roared.

At that, the prince, unable to contain his anger, stomped his foot on the floor.

“Are the allied forces that important?! We’re about to die right now!”

The prince, who could no longer hold back, blurted out harsh words and turned around abruptly.

“Harashin! Stop right there!”

“I won’t stop!”

Prince Harashin raised his voice with his back turned.

“You can hang me or cut me with a sword later, do as you please. I must go to the Ramacht Plains!”

“I said stop right there! Seize Harashin!”

As the king's order was given, the royal guards protecting the audience chamber all drew their spears and approached the prince.

At that, Harashin's eyes flashed and turned cold.

“Do you think you can stop me? Then come at me, I don’t have time.”

“……”

The royal guards clutched their spears and could not take a single step forward.

In the meantime, Harashin lightly jumped up, passed between them, and quickly threw his body forward.

“Th-that!”

By the time the king jumped up from his seat, it was already too late.

The man called Harashin had left the audience chamber in an instant.

At that sight, the king collapsed weakly onto his throne.

“How am I supposed to pass the throne to that brat……”

Harashin Akarun.

The king's son and crown prince, and

‘The country is going to ruin, but why is my father and everyone else just engaging in armchair debates? Just smashing everything would be enough!’

a fighter who preferred to use his body over his head, simple but instinctive.

One of the Seven Extreme Stars who supported the current Solaid Kingdom.