Chapter 29: Chapter 29

Chapter 29: Flower (3)

I had heard he was the lord who ruled the Enox territory and that he was deeply versed in the sword. That had been the wrong idea.

I felt an aura from the Count of Enox. By martial-world standards it was on the level of being able to wield sword-ki. It made no sense. That a mere count’s accomplishment surpassed most mercenaries — it could not be explained away as being “well versed.”

I thought that man couldn’t be the Count of Enox. If he could handle aura like that, he would have been able to single-handedly defeat the Basilisk. There would have been no need to call Kazan.

A green light of aura rolled across his whole body. The murderous intent spilling from his razor-sharp gaze was chilling enough to call to mind an asura.

Moreover, the power I felt from the count exceeded imagination. To exaggerate only slightly, he reminded me of Reinhardt.

Was he something else wearing the count’s skin?

That thought hit me just then.

“Long time no see, Count. Ten years, was it? You look like you’ve been doing well.”

Gehenna said it lightly, wearing an alluring smile.

“I apologize for entering your territory. Someone had meddled with my things. I’ll finish it quickly and leave.”

The count nodded. One line from her seemed to have let him read the whole situation. He glanced around.

At the wounded, the dead bodies, and the blood and organs strewn about. After he surveyed everything thoroughly, he spoke.

“I’ll say it again. My territory has been sullied.”

“...Do you have to come out ?”

“Do you want to avoid a clash? Then simply step back. I don’t have much time either. I know very well wasting time scrapping with someone like you would be a waste.”

Gehenna glared at him with eyes full of killing intent. The count stood with confidence. He seemed to be saying with his body:

Surprise spread over my face.

Gehenna was a leader of Flower. A mere count’s house could not handle her. There was no way the Count of Enox did not know that. Might there be a method? The count I saw looked clever. He must have some leverage.

At that moment a voice entered my head. It was Retina’s voice; she seemed to be speaking to me by magic.

—Don’t worry about the Count of Enox. He’s a famous magic swordsman. They say he’s strong enough that knights can’t easily defeat him. Don’t step in to help. You’ll only get in the way.

Magic swordsman. It was a term for someone who used both magic and swordsmanship at once. From a martial-world perspective, it was like someone who practiced both martial arts and sorcery together.

“He didn’t flinch at Kazan’s display at all. Was it because he was a magic swordsman?” I thought, feeling hopeful. As in the martial world, those who used both sword and magic were rare in this world too.

It would be a fight between masters who could wield two powers. I wanted to watch it with my own eyes.

The count and Gehenna glared at one another and stalled. Meanwhile, Retina and I led our companions and edged farther away. This was a battle of the strong — staying nearby would mean getting dragged in.

They both took a single step forward at the same instant, as if on cue. One step thunderous, the other a soft pad.

I felt the calm before the storm. Their resolve emanated from their footsteps. A fight to kill or be killed would soon erupt.

Each of them revealed a will that would never bow.

Their forms vanished.

When they reappeared, a collision had already occurred. It was a crash that felt like a catastrophe. A terrifying upheaval radiated out from the point of impact. My body staggered from it.

“Amazing!” I thought.

Count Enox was proving worthy of being a magic swordsman. He used magic to defend against Gehenna’s whip-like claws and swung the sword in his hand to press the attack.

At a glance their fighting seemed simplistic. But looked at deeply, it was not.

A refined, crane-like elegance in his gestures; slight, dance-like sways in his body. Each motion carried the subtleties of martial technique.

“He’s similar to Kazan.”

From repeated experience he’d developed his own martial art. It was extraordinary. He had elevated a swordsmanship that was little more than form and repetition to such a level. I could do nothing but think how impressive it was.

—Leon, let’s retreat.

Retina sent me a telepathic message then.

—Count Enox can handle Gehenna with ease. Let’s regroup. The fight isn’t over. Flower’s remnants might be hiding nearby.

I nodded. She was right. I could still see enemies moving nearby. If there were hidden ones, it would get complicated.

A chill crawling over my whole body made me frown.

My body had reached a considerable level as a warrior. Sometimes my instincts picked up danger before my head did.

“Am I in danger now?”

I sharpened my senses. Proud of my own body, I couldn’t let what I had just felt pass unnoticed.

“Strange. I’m feeling nothing at a specific point.”

My senses still detected a threat, but it was not coming from anywhere I could sense.

“I wouldn’t be sensing something useless.”

My eyes turned toward the battlefield. The count and Gehenna were fighting as if intending to kill one another.

Then I realized by the smile on Gehenna’s lips that the threat I’d felt had been coming from her.

“Persistent,” I thought, clicking my tongue.

“Tricky claws. Her arms are flexible, making it hard to predict her stances. She’s reached a considerable level.”

The world believed I matched a knight in strength. That I could handle both magic and the sword. It was a natural assumption. But the truth was different.

My power was modest. My swordsmanship was meager compared to a knight’s, and my magic was small fry beside a great mage.

Yet the reason I’d earned the reputation of being knight-comparable was purely my combat sense. I’d become adept at creating variables on the battlefield.

Because I could use both sword and magic, my strategic options were countless.

And so I understood: if the fight lengthened, I would be at a disadvantage.

“Her martial level is higher than mine. If I don’t finish her before she adapts to my magic-sword technique, I’ll be the one to fall first.”

Was she truly part of Flower’s leadership? Gehenna was no pushover. Her martial level seemed to have reached that of a knight.

As proof, there was something alien to aura layered over Gehenna’s body — something fused with holy power, an energy also called “gang-gi” in the East.

There was a definite strong’s energy superimposed on Gehenna’s body.

“What am I going to do?”

Gehenna said it aloud. The light in her eyes, full of exultation, had a trace of madness.

“It seems I’m about to kill the lord of Enox. He’s weaker than I thought. You didn’t reach the level after all.”

“I understand. To reach mastery in both sword and magic requires backbreaking effort. You were too greedy. If you had focused on just one, you might have reached the realm by now.”

“You speak as if you’ve reached that realm yourself.”

Enox looked at Gehenna. A faint mockery shone in his cool, sunken eyes.

“Flower is famous for increasing their mana through human sacrifices. Let me ask one thing—why is that all you amount to after stealing others’ lives?”

Gehenna’s face hardened. Her roughened attacks revealed her agitation.

Enox and Gehenna exchanged no further words. In the midst of such a fierce battle, there was no room for talk.

The Count of Enox thought to himself,

‘Good. The provocation worked. Now I’ll wait for the opening she’ll give me.’

Every master, no matter how great, always exposed a gap—if only for a single breath. Enox was a man who never missed that gap. Had he reached the true realm of mastery, it might have been different—but he hadn’t.

He could only aim for a small flaw and turn it into a variable.

At that moment, a man caught Enox’s eye. Someone he hadn’t seen in a long while—someone he liked, and whose future he looked forward to.

‘The fight will end quickly now.’

Kwa-ga-ga-ga-kwang—!!

A deafening roar exploded all around. And not only that—each collision sent out a shockwave strong enough to cause internal injuries to anyone who hadn’t trained their body extensively.

Dust rose, the ground overturned, and every thunderous impact was followed by a blinding flash. It made one doubt whether they were even human.

Leon watched the battle intently.

‘As expected, the Count of Enox is at a disadvantage.’

His body had reacted beforehand because of Gehenna. Just as he’d sensed, Count Enox was being pushed back slightly. If he fell, Leon would be next.

His body had probably foreseen this danger in advance. Even he found it hard to believe—had his body become so honed that it could foresee danger?

They said that those with the Crown Point fully opened could sometimes glimpse the future—but in Leon’s case, his body had simply reacted first. It defied reason.

‘Either way, I have to help.’

At this moment, he was the only one who could withstand Gehenna’s assault. His comrades had exhausted too much of their stamina.

‘She mentioned my blessing earlier—that bothers me, but still, I have to act. No one else can aid the Count.’

Leon’s foot struck out, stepping into the Dawn-Drifting Falcon Step. It was the evolved version he had refined through comprehension—his movements now far smoother than before, as though gliding across clouds.

Leon’s Infinite Void Heart Fist struck Gehenna’s claws. Her claws contained an energy similar to gang-gi. The recoil left Leon’s hand cut open.

Gehenna cried out in shock, then drove her foot into Leon’s abdomen.

Leon’s body flew backward. He felt his organs twist; a few bones might have snapped. The blow carried such power that, had Retina or Kazan taken it, they would have died instantly.

‘As I thought—it had to be me.’

Leon’s brief interference paid off greatly.

Count Enox’s blade cut through Gehenna’s arm. But he didn’t stop there—his other hand unleashed a spell.

Flames burst forth from the Count’s hand, sending Gehenna flying. The fire was so fierce that even looking at it made my face burn. She had definitely suffered burns.

Smoke rose from Gehenna’s body; her flesh was seared by the fire.

It happened in that instant—Gehenna let out a feral roar. At the same time, an ominous haze began to rise from her entire body.

It was not an unfamiliar energy. That foul, repulsive aura…

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Leon hurriedly retreated. That energy could erase blessings—it was naturally terrifying.

The mere sound of her scream made his body tremble. It wasn’t a cry—it was a wail of pure agony.

From Gehenna’s entire body, black energy began to seep out. Goosebumps prickled across my skin. For such a cursed aura to pour from a human—was that even possible?

‘This isn’t right. Should I retreat now?’

At that moment, Count Enox’s sword pierced Gehenna’s heart. He had seized a single instant of defenselessness as his one chance.

Gehenna bit her lips and screamed. I could hear the bubbling of blood from her throat. Her heart had been pierced—she was fatally wounded.

The Count didn’t stop there. He raised his sword upward—splitting Gehenna’s head clean in two.

Her hands trembled violently. The trembling carried fear. Perhaps she foresaw what was coming. A deep sorrow flickered in her eyes.

“In a battle between the strong, carelessness means death.”

The Count cut her off coldly.

“Do not be too afraid. Until now, countless people have begged you for their lives. Now it’s simply your turn to beg. You already know what my answer will be.”

Despair filled Gehenna’s eyes, tears tracing down her cheeks.

Looking at her pale, drained face, the Count said,

“Don’t even dream of it. Your sins have crossed the line.”

The Count’s sword swept through Gehenna’s neck. Those who practiced sinister arts couldn’t be trusted to die easily—piercing the heart wasn’t enough. He only felt at ease once he completely severed her head.

Count Enox quietly looked down at the corpse. Then he turned to Leon.

“It’s about time we leave.”