Return of The Martial King

Chapter 237

“Hah… I was foolish, Iniya.”

Repenhardt sighed deeply, his shoulders slumping. Surprisingly, he readily admitted his mistake. Iniya’s complexion grew darker.

She was indeed angry. No matter how much she thought about it, this wasn’t something to simply let go. She had spoken up, fully prepared to be resented.

Fortunately, Repenhardt didn’t become enraged. Instead, he earnestly listened to her advice and acknowledged his fault.

But it didn’t seem like he was genuinely mourning Kadamyte’s death. Rather, it felt more like he was reflecting on the fact that he had violated his principles.

It wasn’t the response of a person with ordinary sensibilities. Even to Iniya, an elf, it was unsettling.

‘…Something about this man is fundamentally off.’

There were still points to question later. About that black-haired man and the female mage—what their relationship with Repenhardt truly was.

‘They seemed to be well-acquainted, somehow…’

If Repenhardt had become defensive, she intended to press him further. But now that the atmosphere had shifted, it felt awkward to do so. For a moment, the two simply stood there in silence. While her anger had dissipated, the awkwardness still lingered.

“Anyway, we should get moving. We need to catch up to those ahead of us.”

This wasn’t a situation where they could afford to linger and chat. Sensing the mood, Iniya tried to shift the conversation.

“Ah, yes, you’re right.”

Repenhardt finally regained his composure and turned his gaze beyond the walls of Zeppelin. Both of them pushed off the ground, leaping into the air.

As she soared over the city walls, Iniya turned her head back.

The dim cityscape of Zeppelin, still shrouded in the remnants of night’s darkness.

Even now, others were somewhere within those streets, doing their best to lead their kin to safety. Among them, some were likely engaged in desperate battles, blocked by the human armies, just as she had been.

Recalling the peril she had faced, she couldn’t help but worry for the others.

“I wonder if the others are alright… They must be safe…”

*         *         *

The ruined southern district of Zeppelin.

In that place, a golden knight burst into wild laughter as he faced off against a blue swordsman.

“Hahahahaa!”

With a thunderous laugh, Eusus continued to swing his greatsword.

Eldran unleashed successive flashes of light. Wherever the trails of light passed, the roads melted, releasing hot steam.

Russ trembled as he watched Eldril’s Light blaze past him more than twenty times.

“Argh! When in the world will that guy’s mana run out?”

Russ, also a member of the Tenes family, knew a fair bit about the Eldrad magic armor.

Typically, with Eldrad’s mana reserves, using Eldril’s Light around five times was the limit.

‘That’s why I thought if I kept dodging, my chance would eventually come…’

Dodging the relentless rain of Eldril’s Light with nimble footwork, Russ kept evading. Each flash struck where he had just been, echoing with explosive force.

Eusus taunted him with a sneer.

“How long do you plan to keep running, Russ?”

“Tch!”

Even as he was mocked, Russ focused solely on avoiding the attacks.

Eusus’ movements themselves hadn’t changed significantly. Landing an attack on him wasn’t particularly difficult.

However, no matter how much destructive force Russ channeled into his Blade Aura, that ridiculously thick golden armor, practically like a solid ball, absorbed every blow effortlessly.

With his counterattacks proving useless, Russ had no other choice.

Another Eldril’s Light shot past Russ’s left side. As he dodged, he stabbed forward with his sword in rapid succession.

“Seven Stars!”

Seven strands of Aura shot forth like meteors, embedding themselves into Eusus’ chest like stars. Just as the seven stars connected and triggered an explosion, Russ immediately followed up with another attack.

“Gigantic Blade!”

The blue Blade Aura extended sharply, aiming for Eusus’ breastplate. Russ planned to compound the destructive force of Gigantic Blade with the explosion of Seven Stars, creating devastating power several times over.

But things didn’t go as Russ had hoped.

Even with the blue Aura stars lodged in his chest, Eusus continued advancing. Swinging his greatsword through the air, he unleashed another blinding flash.

“Roar! Eldran!”

Eldril’s Light was Eusus’ ultimate move. Even without deploying the Spiral Guard, it was a fearsome technique that had once left Repenhardt gravely injured in a single blow. Gigantic Blade alone couldn’t possibly counteract it. Clicking his tongue, Russ was forced to throw himself to the side.

Boom!

Amidst the billowing smoke of the explosion, Russ strained to clear his vision, muttering in frustration.

“Ugh, there’s just no opening.”

The destructive force of a single strike wasn’t enough to break through Eusus’ armor. Russ had planned to break it by accumulating damage with successive heavy blows, but even that wasn’t going according to plan. Every time he launched an attack and prepared for the next, Eldril’s Light would come flying his way.

‘If only he attacked with more variety like before, I’d have some openings…’

Eusus had originally been a fighter who employed a dazzling array of magical techniques, blending them into flamboyant, continuous assaults.

Flamboyant attacks often created vulnerabilities for the one using them. With Russ’s current level of skill, he could easily exploit the gaps in Eusus’ complex and varied techniques.

But Eusus’ current strategy was absurdly simple. It was as though he had sold off the swordsmanship and magic armor expertise he had honed over a lifetime. All he did now was charge forward while repeatedly unleashing Eldril’s Light.

If Eusus had been using simpler magic or successive Blade Aura strikes, Russ could have both dodged and counterattacked. But with Eusus relentlessly deploying his strongest technique, Russ barely had time to avoid the attacks, let alone retaliate. Each strike packed such immense destructive power that even its aftereffects inflicted considerable damage.

Dodging another attack, Russ yelled in frustration.

“Eusus, you lunatic! Where’s all that swordsmanship you’ve spent years learning? What’s with this mindless rampage?”

Eusus, his eyes glinting with madness, shouted back.

“Swordsmanship exists to secure victory! This is the best way to take you down!”

Russ’s face twisted into a grimace.

“Ugh… well, you’re not wrong.”

He had to admit it was a sound strategy. If Eusus relied on finesse, no matter how skilled he was, he wouldn’t stand a chance against Russ.

Currently, Russ’s swordsmanship was at an exceptional level. His natural talent, combined with extensive experience, had been further sharpened in recent months by observing a new realm of technique, in other words, diligently “borrowing” Iniya’s swordsmanship. As a result, his skill had reached an even higher peak.

Compared to Russ, power-focused Aura Users like Repenhardt, orcs, and dwarves were naturally no match when it came to technique. Even a technical fighter like Stalla, while boasting extensive experience and diverse Aura manipulation, fell short of Russ’s mastery of pure swordsmanship. Troll Guru, Attila surpassed Russ in technique but was not an Aura User.

Aside from Iniya, Russ was now the most skilled Aura User in swordsmanship within the Duchy of Antares.

‘Though honestly, everyone here is more about brute strength than finesse… so rankings don’t really mean much.’

But against this kind of mindless, boar-like tactic, finesse meant nothing.

It was a “try and hit me if you can, it won’t hurt me anyway” approach.

Though Russ had been dodging skillfully so far, it was only a matter of time before one of Eusus’ reckless strikes landed. And if that happened, just one hit would spell disaster.

Right now, Eusus’s tactics looked just like that, a strategy that defied common sense yet became feasible through the absurd power of his artifact. It wasn't just its durability; despite having unleashed his ultimate skill, Eldril’s Light, more than thirty times, the brilliance of the flashes showed no signs of waning.

Laughing loudly, Eusus continued pressing Russ.

"Ahahaha! Is this all it takes for you to call yourself the Sword of Tenes? You wretched fool!"

Dodging the relentless attacks, Russ retorted sharply.

"Boasting while relying on the power of an artifact, are we, Eusus? Have you no shame?"

Eusus's face twisted.

As a sword mage, it was a criticism he had heard countless times. However, hearing it from Russ made his blood boil, his face flushing red. Whether it was from embarrassment or rage, even Eusus himself couldn’t tell.

"Hmph! If you're going to criticize me for using tools, then you should have discarded your sword too!"

Forcing himself to shrug off the insult, Eusus swung his sword again and again, maintaining a relentless barrage of strikes.

Russ's expression grew increasingly pale. Being pushed to this extent, his breathing became labored.

“Hah… huff…”

He was losing the luxury of evasion. He had to find a way to hold Eusus back and catch his breath.

But stopping his advance, let alone slowing him down, was proving difficult with ordinary attacks.

‘Gigantic Blade doesn’t work, Seven Stars doesn’t work either…’

Watching Eusus draw closer, Russ, in a moment of reckless desperation, swung his sword behind his back.

Then, with a roar, he shouted.

“Uaaaaah!”

A blue blade aura exploded outward, radiating light. Russ swung his sword downward with all his might.

“Thunder Drop!”

The blade aura transformed into a streak of lightning, roaring with the sound of thunder. The blue flash twisted and struck Eusus directly at an odd angle.

Boom!

Yet Eusus’s golden armor remained unscathed. The unfocused blue lightning scattered harmlessly, repelled by the armor, and fragmented bolts struck nearby houses, causing explosions.

Clicking his tongue, Russ muttered in frustration. He had given it a shot, but...

‘Tch, this is even worse than Gigantic Blade.’

Kalken's Thunder Drop was a technique that merged aura and physical form, requiring intense training and perfect synchronization to execute properly. Even if Russ mimicked the aura technique, without Kalken’s rigorously honed physique, the full power couldn’t manifest. For a human like Russ, it was impossible to concentrate the energy into a single, devastating point like Kalken could.

‘I guess there’s still so much I can’t learn from my elder brother or Lord Kalken.’

Russ, whose strengths lay in skill rather than raw power, found little value in copying the brute force techniques of those two individuals. However, there turned out to be an unexpected use for them.

“Ahahaha! Now you’re resorting to pointless stunts too ugh!”

The misfired Thunder Drop caused the buildings on either side to collapse, and their debris buried Eusus. Like a landslide, the falling rubble cascaded onto his head with a deafening roar.

Clawing his way out of the pile, Eusus gritted his teeth.

“You bastard, using cheap tricks like that!”

Russ blinked in surprise.

‘Huh? That had an effect I didn’t even expect?’

Even so, it wasn’t like it had dealt a critical blow or any damage, for that matter. All it achieved was buying a little time.

Thanks to the temporary lull, Russ quickly caught his breath and assessed the situation.

‘How are things on the other side?’

Their battle had already reduced the surroundings to ashes.

The escaped slaves had scattered and were hiding throughout the streets, far from the square. Malroid and the Zeppelin Knights had also kept their distance, careful not to get caught in the crossfire of Eusus’s rampage.

Malroid was holding his own in his fight, but facing five opponents at once, he couldn’t easily gain the upper hand.

‘I can’t rely on Sir Malroid for support…’

With a grim expression, Russ turned back toward Eusus. The man had shaken off the rubble and was once again closing the distance.

‘Should I try to bury him under a building again? That’s the only thing that’s worked so far.’

Fortunately, the buildings in the vicinity seemed abandoned. Most of the residents had fled long ago.

It was common sense in this era: when aura users clashed, one should retreat at least three blocks away, ensuring not even their shadow remained nearby. The destructive power of such fights often left one or two buildings shattered as collateral damage. Therefore, bringing down another building wouldn’t risk additional casualties.

Yet, Russ quickly dismissed the idea. Earlier, Eusus had been completely unprepared, allowing the surprise attack to succeed. Now aware of the tactic, he wouldn’t fall for it again.

‘It’s not like he’s aiming for precision. He’s just charging forward recklessly, ignoring whether the buildings collapse or not. Even if the rubble falls, he’ll just plow through it.’

Eusus, holding Eldran firmly, sneered coldly.

“Your movements are slowing, Russ! No matter how tough you are, it seems even you are starting to wear down.”

Russ couldn’t argue. Although he had managed to catch his breath earlier, the flow of his energy was still unstable. His blade aura had lost much of its earlier intensity.

“Shut up!”

Shouting with desperation, Russ leaped forward. Eusus responded by unleashing another barrage of blinding flashes. The ground burned repeatedly under the relentless strikes, and Russ’s blue blade aura pounded the golden armor dozens of times.

The devastating light of Eldril’s Light began grazing Russ more and more as the fight wore on.

The explosions echoed without pause, and Russ’s body became gradually drenched in blood.