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Chapter 347

“…Huh, you’re a totally different person than you used to be?”

Slurp, hot blood gushed out. Beyond the heat that gave a sense of life, a tingling pain spread through me. The torn flesh felt fiery. Flames were slithering in between the cracked skin, licking like a hungry tongue.

It was like a blast furnace. The ground was melting away, flowing like magma. Yet, Christopher stood on top of it all, completely unfazed. Raising his head, he extended his arm towards the sky and asked,

“Hey, what about setting up a sauna? The temperature is just right.”

Kiiing──!!

The sound pierced the air as if the sword was slicing through it; it rang crystal clear. Yeonwoo’s blade, having fallen from the sky, slipped right out of Christopher’s grasp. A few drops of blood splattered.

“By the way, it’s fascinating. How did you change so much in just two years?”

“I’m here to kill you.”

With Yeonwoo’s words, a chilling aura began to flow all around. Even Christopher took a deep breath from the sheer intensity of it.

“Is it okay? For a so-called hero to emit such a killing intent?”

“Can’t you see how I look?”

Yeonwoo snorted, as if in disbelief, before thrusting his sword. A deep diagonal slash. Instinctively, Christopher’s hand shot out to deflect the sword, but failed to grasp it. It grazed the surface of rejection lightly, not firmly denied.

While listening to Yeonwoo’s reply, Christopher regarded him. Yeonwoo’s figure, revealed amidst a cloud of dust, defied description.

Wings protruded from his skin, with veins visible within. If one were to call him a dragon, he certainly looked the part, but Christopher couldn’t bring himself to find it anything but repulsive.

“How about calling yourself a demon instead of a hero?”

“I don’t want to be treated the same as those guys.”

Yeonwoo muttered coldly, taking a deep breath. In an instant, the space fragmented and shattered.

While it wasn’t an outright threatening attack, he still needed to dodge the arm sliced by the rejection magic. Aware of this, Yeonwoo persistently targeted Christopher’s arm.

Staggering back, Christopher dodged a flurry of attacks and raised his leg.

His careless kick, reminiscent of a street thug, stirred up a cloud of dust in a circular formation. In the wake of a loud boom, a shockwave slammed into them.

“…Hah, are you even human?”

Christopher’s kick passed right through Yeonwoo’s oddly contorted body without issue. It slipped past him like a mirage or a shadow.

“If I can kill you, it wouldn’t matter if it’s just a little, right?”

With a hasty step, Yeonwoo landed on the ground with legs that swayed like a mirage. Could such a transformation be used at will? If so, the drain on mana must be heavy. He couldn’t consistently use such abilities. It seemed to be a method to offload attacks at crucial moments. That would fit the situation right.

He shattered the aura that had been swinging wildly into finer pieces. If the intent was to whittle down his opponent using numbers, then Christopher had to act more aggressively.

Common misconceptions aside, Christopher swung his power without reservation, not because he couldn’t control it or lacked the ability to do so.

There simply wasn’t a need for restraint. There was no reason to increase the number of attacks to suppress his opponent or to carefully gauge their strikes.

After all, if one blow was enough to kill, why would he need to do more?

“Alright, let’s see what we can do?”

Until now, all Yeonwoo had seen of Christopher’s true intentions had involved raw fists. His palms swung wide, while his fists focused the impact.

Spreading wide was the palm, and concentrating power was the realm of fists, which was superior in that respect.

In other words, it was a reflection of how much respect he held for his opponent. Needing to concentrate force in one point meant his opponent held significant strength.

So, if he recognized his opponent more than just fists, what would he use? It was very simple. Christopher clenched both fists tightly and thrust them forward. Leaning his body at an angle, he drove his left side forward.

It was clearly a preparatory stance for martial arts. If one were to guess, it resembled a mix of Muay Thai and kickboxing. Though executed without much intent, the form should have been clear from the moment he made that gesture.

However, Yeonwoo did not hesitate. There was no reason to back down just because his opponent was ready. It would be better to strike first while there was time.

In response to Yeonwoo’s attack, Christopher caught the blade with the back of his hand. Casually, as if tidying up a desk, he brushed Yeonwoo’s sword aside and forcefully slipped a thrust inside the opening he created.

Surprised by the softness of the motion, Yeonwoo yanked back his sword to block.

It was vastly different from before. It felt like it could be blocked. At worst, he thought, he’d only be pushed back a bit. It was the weakest force Christopher had exerted thus far.

But if you were to ask whether he could block, the answer was no. Those two notions were utterly different.

The shock value of each strike being lower and the trajectory of the attack being tricky were not the same at all.

“Gah…!!”

The ebb and flow of power, the timing of penetration and withdrawal, was extremely delicate. He didn’t think of Christopher as someone completely devoid of martial knowledge, but he had not expected it to be at this level.

He was a master of the art of combat, rivaling Hyuk Mu-ryeon.

If he were to compare feelings, it was quite similar to Kai. Along with the fact that he was a body capable of withstanding exchanges with swords.

Kka kka kka kka-!!

Following a series of blows, the swarm of punches continued. The advantage of unarmed combat over swords lies in the close-quarters brawling.

While all one had to do with bare fists was reach out and pull back, with swords there wasn’t enough room to swing them or time to recover.

He pressed in. He pressed in vigorously. Even attempting to block him resulted in failure. How was he to contain a monster that ended up with minor cuts despite exerting every effort?

The method Yeonwoo found was to simply retreat and restrict movement through magic. Fortunately, that method proved to be somewhat effective.

At heart, since Yeonwoo’s magical prowess was lacking, he found it easier to manipulate magic to obstruct opponents than to attack directly.

Nevertheless, it was set in stone that he was cornered. The problem lay in the fact that Yeonwoo needed to conserve his strength to face the Demon King…

“Damn it, is that really the only way?”

In this battlefield lay many masters. Namgung Seong, himself, and the likes of Delain or Na Yang-ho positioned in the back. Ray had probably joined in too, and there could have been other hidden talents.

In other words, it was a case of substitution on the battlefield. Handing Christopher over to another master while he advanced towards the Demon King. After all, the importance of the Demon King outweighed that of Christopher, so Yeonwoo couldn’t afford to reveal his trump card just yet.

It would have been possible to win with a decisive gamble, but in truth, he wanted to save such actions for the battle against the Demon King.

Initially, he too had held back his unique powers, and Christopher had only displayed his distinct mana. The signature abilities weren’t drastically different from usual, meaning that the information about him hadn’t shifted significantly either.

As Yeonwoo directed his gaze outward, Christopher smirked. What a bothersome smile.

“If you’re preparing a substitute, you better be careful. No one in this world is someone you can let go of easily.”

Though Kim Yoo-min would have been the best choice, that option vanished when she failed to reach Master status.

It was implausible that Christopher would lend a hand, so as merely an Aura Expert, she wouldn’t hold much meaning aside from stalling.

While thinking that, suddenly, someone landed with a mighty sound. It was a heavy aura, yet a familiar power.

‘…Why is this guy so angry?’

Yeonwoo’s curiosity was soon answered as Kim Hyun-soo calmly walked forward.

“I heard you’ve been bullying my little sister?”

Well, this was an unexpected scenario… But still, Kim Hyun-soo should make for a decent opponent for Christopher. After all, he could break through Christopher’s defenses.

…If anything, it felt closer to the previous scene in which Kim Yoo-min had been the one tormenting Christopher. No, wait, Kim Yoo-min had been swinging her fists while crying too, so it was a mutual situation, I guess…

*

“…Ah, I know who you are now. You’re Kim Yoo-min’s family, right?”

“It’s a strange experience. It’s been a while since someone said they didn’t know who I was.”

“…You’re not listening to me, are you?”

“No, I’m definitely listening.”

It had certainly been quite some time since he heard himself referred to as Kim Hyun-soo, rather than just the aura expert or brother of Kim Yoo-min. That’s why he said,

“My little sister can only be bullied by me, you bastard.”

Boom!

The mace swung with full strength smashed into the ground. The earth caved, forming a massive crater. A step back from the crater showed Christopher standing there with a dumbfounded expression.

‘…I just dodged that?’

It was instinct. A primal instinctual retreat he had never dreamed of, something he couldn’t have pictured even a past self wishing for death. The corner of the man’s mouth twitched.

“Haha, I’m glad we didn’t meet two years ago.”

Muttering that, Christopher once again assumed his stance. Underestimating him would mean death. Had they met two years ago, before regaining his senses, he would have surely died.

Facing the reincarnation of the Grim Reaper, Christopher threw a punch.

*

“What about that monster? Where did it come from?”

“The professor decided to handle it for us.”

“Then I can relax.”

Boom!! Lightning struck. Yeonwoo saw various flying undead plummeting to the ground from Namgung Seong’s blade, like clouds.

While they acted casual, the most lacking aspect among Hunters had always been airborne forces. Though he brought along his guards, the most significant strength—namely, his direct lineage—was solely Namgung Seong himself. Therefore, the enemies he had to face were exceedingly many.

“Yeah, hang in there. How are the others?”

“They’re gradually getting in sync; it looks like there aren’t any problems. You threw the balance off a bit by leaving, but Shar and the Lady are managing it somehow.”

“Ugh, I put them through trouble.”

As he listened to Namgung Seong speak, Yeonwoo landed among his friends. It was a space where countless undead were being purified. Just in case, he checked visually, but not a single undead was moving.

“So are we heading for the Demon King now?”

Namgung Seong asked Yeonwoo, who nodded and opened his mouth.

“Yeah, we’ll proceed straight to the Sacred Grounds…!!”

“That’s the spirit, my friend.”

While his friends displayed reactions suggesting they doubted their ears, Yeonwoo brushed them off. It’s fine, it’s fine. I won’t let any of you die.

(To be continued in the next episode.)

 

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