NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 110
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We often forget this due to his usual laid-back demeanor, but there’s one undeniable fact.
The man right in front of me is a legendary figure who single-handedly repelled the Knights.
Of course, the Knights had their excuses at the time. They had been building up fatigue for a month in the unfamiliar Forbidden Forest, and visibility was poor due to the fog.
But that doesn’t change the fact that they lost.
Even under those bad conditions, Yor was in the same boat. In fact, his situation was more dire.
Unlike the Knights, he was alone, and his opponent had Holy Water as a counter.
Yet, against all odds, he survived.
I knew he was impressive and expected him to be strong, but…
‘I didn’t think it would be like this…’
Odelia marveled as she watched the battle unfold.
The monster that the Knights couldn’t even push back was being forced back by a single human. It even managed to leave a pretty deep wound on his forearm, though not a fatal one.
Thinking back, when Yor fought the Knights, he couldn’t utilize most of his abilities because of the presence of Holy Water. But this time, he was free to unleash his full power.
Clang- clank-!
The blades clashed with each other. Each time, it was the demon, Andras, who faltered slightly.
Hiss-!
“Ugh…”
Of course, that didn’t mean Yor was constantly on the offensive.
After all, his opponent was a demon, and the flames surrounding that guy’s sword were incredibly menacing.
When the sword brushed against Yor’s arm, he frowned and quickly pulled back his foot.
It wasn’t like his skin got sliced, but even a mere touch left a burn mark on his arm. The pain was significant enough to prevent him from relaxing his brow.
“Huff.”
At that moment, Odelia regained her focus and joined the battle.
“All injured ones, fall back! Be careful with throwing Holy Water; he might get hit! Instead, focus on slowing his movements.”
The tide of battle shifted in an instant. Odelia thought they might be able to capture him with minimal casualties.
*
“Hmm, this guy… has quite the Blood Magic, huh? Who taught you?”
Blood Magic… literally refers to the technique that uses blood as power.
Not a bad name. I’ve been struggling to put a name to my most commonly used ability, and now I’ve decided to adopt his naming sense.
“Do you think they’d believe me if I said I learned it all by myself?”
At that moment, the Knights began to act. The second commander, Odelia, started to pressure him with the others.
It was getting tough, and finally, they moved in.
It’s true that demons are never easy to handle alone.
This one was particularly tricky, as flames were literally engulfing his sword, making it more daunting with each passing moment. Even now, the heat emanating from the blade was intensifying.
Of course, it didn’t seem limitless. I could feel an immense amount of magic being consumed in real-time.
Once his magic runs out, the heat from the sword should diminish.
‘The real problem is not knowing when that will happen…’
But before that heat reaches its peak, I just needed to take him down.
So, I joined forces with the Knights and began to pressure him.
Attacks that could be disastrous if they hit were dodged with ease, and whenever someone restricted his movements, I seized the moment to strike.
Having already wounded one arm, he couldn’t block all the attacks.
Little by little, his flawless skin began to accumulate injuries.
Gang-up attacks truly are the best. I was furious in the position of being attacked, but now that I was in the role of attacking, it felt this comfortable.
“Damn these bastards…!”
By this point, he started to roar with indignation. Anger enveloped his beautifully expressionless face.
“You’ll turn to ashes with a single breath when Lord Amon arrives! How dare you filthily prance around without knowing your place! Ah, how I lament that this isn’t a furnace!”
My attention sharpened on the word “Amon.”
‘Could it be Dantalion? I heard that guy kept summoning Paimon…’
This time, the name Amon popped up. I cautiously speculated he might be the ruler of his faction.
After a bit of ranting, he made a bold move.
Slash-!
He violently swung his sword, digging it into the ground briefly, then threw dirt towards us.
It was a childish attack, but the dirt he scattered was heated to scorching temperatures by his burning sword.
“Ouch-!”
That way-too-hot dirt made us flinch momentarily.
And taking advantage of that opening, he began to escape. Be it demons or anyone, they know when to run if the situation turns unfavorable.
“Catch him!”
Of course, we weren’t just going to stand by and watch.
We kicked into gear and started pursuing him.
“Phew, finally caught up… Wait, where did he go again?”
“Seriously…!”
Because of that, Chaerin and Haneul, who finally caught up, fell behind again. But there was no helping it; it wasn’t just them, even the Knights were trailing behind.
Though he wasn’t particularly sturdy, his mobility was distinctly different.
As a result, only Odelia and I could keep up with him.
The landscape of the territory whooshed by at breakneck speed. I frowned for a moment.
‘…This isn’t good.’
With this level of strength, we might be able to corner him, but catching him was another question.
But still, we couldn’t let him slip away like this, so I immediately activated my ‘Blood Magic’ and began attacking.
A cluster of bright red blood shot through the air, turning into sharp blades headed right for him.
He tried to block them with his sword, but a few inevitably grazed his body.
Seeing that, Odelia spoke incredulously.
“What the heck are you? How did you… Ugh, never mind.”
It seemed my recent attack was indeed remarkable. I mean, you don’t see that kind of ability every day.
But even so, that didn’t shorten the distance between us. Even if he got injured, he still had his biological energy.
I thought silently.
‘Damn it, are those Lemegaton guys really coming or what?’
Isn’t it true that mentioning a tiger will get it to show up?
Fortunately, not long after I thought that, an anomaly occurred.
“Hoo-haa…”
Suddenly, a chill breeze swept in from somewhere.
For a brief moment, it was so thick it even pushed back the heat emanating from Andras.
As I felt the unexpected drop in temperature, a massive wall of ice appeared right in front of Andras.
Crack-!
Oof!
With the sudden appearance of the wall, he had no choice but to halt.
Turning towards where the chill came from, I caught sight of two familiar women approaching — Niki and Sephir.
It was Sephir who had cast the magic. I noticed the ice shards swirling around her.
“Well now… I was hoping to just observe since it seemed favorable, but looks like I have to help.”
She was definitely a powerful ally.
But before I could feel pleased, worries crept in.
Even though our goals aligned, they belonged to Lemegaton. Moreover, Odelia, the leader of the Knights, was right here.
“Hold on, Sephir? What the hell are you doing here?”
For a moment, Odelia wore a stunned expression. Instead of launching an attack, she defensively held her great sword up, on guard.
Given her position, it was understandable she could be worried about being attacked from both sides.
But it wasn’t an appropriate reaction for the current situation.
Andras was already smashing the ice wall, trying to melt it away.
“Please tell me you’re not here to rescue a demon again! Hah! Not this time!”
“Calm down. We’re here to take him down this time. How about we cooperate for a bit?”
“Quit lying!”
As things seemed to drag on, I decided I’d rush at Andras. It looked like this conversation was going to take a while.
“You think I’d believe someone who ditched their position as the head of the White Mage Tower to chase after demons?”
“…Don’t mention that again.”
And just before I jumped in, I caught a glimpse of Sephir’s face — usually expressionless, but it was now briefly scrunched up in distress.
‘What’s going on?’
It seemed like Odelia knew something about her past. She wasn’t mentioning her role as a faction leader, but something else entirely.
I was slightly curious, but ignored it for now as the ice wall continued to melt.
Even though it was a big, thick wall, it was still just ice. There was a limit to how much heat from his sword it could withstand.
Crack-! Splinter-!
Eventually, after a few strikes, the wall began to crack.
Feeling frustrated, I finally yelled at them.
“Stop holding back and attack him already! You’re not here to collect his head?”
Only then did they cease their standoff and start evaluating the situation.
Once they grasped the situation, they quickly prepared their attacks.
Odelia swung her great sword wide, aiming for Andras’ side, while Sephir conjured a spear of ice and shot it directly at his head without hesitation.
Sometimes, a single action carries more weight than dozens of words.
The more urgent and daring the action, the more genuine the intention behind it. And at that moment, there was no hesitation from Sephir as she targeted the demon.
A hit to the head was certainly a death sentence.
It would’ve been great if their attacks landed, but sadly, the timing had already slipped away.
No, to be precise, he had a hidden move left.
Finally, Andras pressed his sword against the cracked ice wall.
Not swinging or stabbing, he struck a bizarre pose. It looked as if he was about to launch something.
And my predictions were spot on.
“Fire!”
Whoosh-!
As he shouted, a terrifying flame erupted from the sword tip.
Like it was trying to devour everything around it, the red fire spread outwards.
Because of the visual intimidation, we could only step back momentarily.
“Ugh!”
When the flames subsided slightly, he had already disappeared from view.
Staring at the place he vanished with a look of dismay, the girls seemed to be in shock.
Growing irritated, I snapped at them.
“We lost him thanks to you guys.”
“…Umm.”
“….”
Nobody had a solid excuse.
*
Even though we were disappointed to have let him slip away, we couldn’t just give up.
We quickly gathered together to have a light discussion.
“He probably won’t go far.”
Currently, Sephir and Niki had temporarily joined the meeting.
It felt a bit out of place, but at least we shared the same goal of capturing the demon.
A kind of cooperation that wasn’t really cooperation. Of course, Odelia’s expression didn’t lighten; she seemed displeased.
Luckily, we soon figured out where he might head to.
“That demon was looking for a specific location.”
The male Knight the squad had rescued provided us that information.
“He mentioned something called Plauros… He probably went west for that.”
Thus, our destination was naturally determined. We were headed west, towards the place where the flames never extinguished.
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