Chapter 575
Chapter 575: You Will Become a Legend (2)
Aiden bared his teeth fiercely as he faced Ghislaine with his sword.
“Duke of Penris, I’ll admit it, you’ve pushed me this far.”
The 2nd Corps had been utterly decimated. Aiden had not been able to drain his opponent’s strength sufficiently.
The priests might have weakened the Duke of Penris a bit, but he himself had expended considerable energy fighting Vanessa.
In other words, both of them were currently in a state of equal exhaustion.
However, he was the most noble and beautiful man in this world. A trial like this was something he could overcome.
Aiden pushed his sword a bit further forward and said, “Duke of Penris, there are two types of men in this world.”
At those words, Ghislaine chuckled. He had heard the same line in his past life.
Ignoring Ghislaine’s laughter, Aiden continued, “It’s me and all the other men.”
“……”
No one could display self-assurance like Aiden did.
Regardless of anything else, he deserved credit for his confidence. He had attained the realm of a superhuman through his endless attachment and assurance in himself.
Of course, he did wonder if he could still say such things after seeing Yulien.
Aiden bit down hard. An immense energy began to surge from his body.
“Today, I will become a legend.”
His allies had perished, but the enemy was still intact.
And he was left standing alone.
In this situation, the Duke of Penris’s challenge to a one-on-one duel was the best opportunity.
If everyone had rushed in together, he would have fought to exhaustion and ultimately died.
However, if he could kill the Duke of Penris…
And if he could break through the enemy army and survive…
Then he would truly become a legend.
This was merely a small trial sent by the heavens out of jealousy. No, it was a stage set for him to become a legend.
Brrrrr!
Aiden’s momentum began to envelop Ghislaine.
The thrill of potentially becoming a new legend swept away all his worries and concerns.
He focused all his concentration solely on killing the enemy before him.
Ghislaine also gritted his teeth and raised his momentum in response.
‘He’s indeed quite extraordinary.’
Look at that focus. They were acting as if only the two of them remained on this battlefield.
No one could act so freely when left standing alone.
Aiden was truly filled with confidence that he could catch and return alive.
His confidence stemmed from the fact that his skills were equally matched.
But Ghislaine was just as certain about his own victory.
‘I will win.’
He had never fought with thoughts of defeat in his mind. He never doubted victory, no matter the situation.
Especially in a one-on-one duel.
‘I have prepared so much to capture you.’
Aiden’s fighting style was something Ghislaine had experienced thoroughly in his past life.
This guy would throw in countless soldiers and knights to drain the enemy’s strength, then step in at the end.
In his past life, Ghislaine had wiped out Aiden’s army and the White Silver Knights, but he had ultimately collapsed from exhaustion.
Knowing this, he had acted differently this time, refraining from rushing in from the beginning.
He had let the Mobile Army, armed with artifacts and Galbarium, confront the enemy forces, while the Knights of Penris faced the White Silver Knights.
‘I’ve always thought about how to fight when I meet Aiden.’
And with the overwhelming strength he had prepared until now, he had ultimately been able to isolate Aiden.
In fact, he could just push Aiden away right now and win easily.
‘But that can’t be done.’
If he did that, the Mobile Army and Knights would suffer significant damage. Aiden was that formidable.
Of course, that wasn’t the only reason.
An ill-fated connection that had continued since his past life.
An opportunity to fight against one of the few strongmen on the continent.
The boiling desire for victory forced Ghislaine to make a singular choice.
‘I will kill you with my own hands.’
How long had he waited for this day? How much had he wanted to meet this guy again?
Now, it was truly time to settle who was stronger.
Boom!
Ghislaine’s eyes glowed red. The fifth-tier core activated, releasing tremendous power.
That energy roughly consumed Aiden’s momentum. Soon, the swords of the two began to move, targeting each other’s vital points.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The red lines moved erratically, constricting Aiden from all sides.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The blue lines deflected them all, putting pressure back on Ghislaine.
With every clash of their swords, shockwaves radiated intensely. The ground trembled and erupted.
Even so, neither man budged an inch.
It was as if they were trapped within the lines of red and blue.
They were perfectly matched in strength.
Roar!
A storm of powerful mana surrounded them. The fiercely burning mana devoured even the air, creating a vacuum around them.
Aiden’s sword, wrapped in blue mana, flew toward Ghislaine’s head.
Ghislaine did not retreat, launching his sword, enveloped in red mana, right back.
Boom!
The two swords collided, creating a burst of light that scattered in all directions.
The onlookers gazed in shock, their expressions blank.
“W-wow….”
“I can’t even see their movements.”
“I can’t believe the enemy commander is this strong.”
To them, Ghislaine was an invincible lord. In a one-on-one duel, he believed he could easily capture even the strongest of superhumans.
Ghislaine had grown stronger after capturing Kaiyan, the Kingdom’s Greatest Sword of Ruthania.
Now he was easily taking down even superhuman priests. That meant he had significantly improved beyond comparison.
Yet to think there was someone who could fight evenly with him…
They were all taken aback. It sent chills down their spines.
If this man had charged into the battlefield earlier, half of those present would have already turned to corpses.
The shock among the Knights of Penris was even greater. Their perception of strength had risen alongside their own growth.
‘There really are incredibly strong people out there.’
Even they had grown strong enough to take down ordinary superhumans in groups. But the commander was not just any superhuman.
There was a massive wall they felt they couldn’t overcome even if they all charged together.
Everyone clenched their fists, gritting their teeth.
They must not forget today’s battle. They needed to strive harder and improve.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The intensity of their attacks grew stronger. They poured out their strength continuously, unsure of where their limits truly lay. It was astonishing how such power could be unleashed.
When their powerful forces clashed, the earth howled.
Boom!
A massive rift split the ground, sending rocks flying into the air.
The red and blue lines danced incessantly toward one another. Every clash of swords sparked blinding light and explosions.
Yet, this state could not last forever. Gradually, wounds began to accumulate on both fighters.
Crack!
Aiden’s sword slashed Ghislaine’s arm, producing a rough sound like cutting stone.
Swish!
In contrast, Ghislaine’s sword easily cleaved through Aiden’s arm.
As their swords grazed by, they created a distance between them.
Ghislaine glanced down at his arm.
Blood trickled from the deep wound, but thanks to his incredible regenerative ability, the injury quickly began to heal.
The techniques he had been training since before helped him. It was a technique inspired by Gordon’s novels.
The mana spreading within him gathered swiftly, allowing him to easily block the enemy’s attack.
Aiden’s strike had been potent, and he had ultimately been injured, but the wound was not severe. Though quite a bit of mana had been consumed.
“Hmph.”
Ghislaine flicked his sword and turned his body. He narrowed his eyes as he examined Aiden’s wounds.
While it had clearly cut deep, Aiden only had thin lines of injury on his arm.
However…
Splurt.
From Aiden’s uninjured opposite arm, a small wound burst open and blood began to flow. It was an absurd phenomenon.
Aiden smirked and turned away.
“Just as the rumors said, your skills are quite substantial. I never thought I would fail to injure you properly.”
What others could not comprehend, Ghislaine understood.
The secret of Aiden that people were unaware of.
Ghislaine knew it.
“It’s not just about bleeding. You’re dispersing the damage internally, aren’t you?”
At his words, Aiden’s eyes widened slightly. He had never expected anyone to uncover the secret behind his Mana Circulation Method.
Just as Ghislaine said, Aiden’s Mana Circulation Method possessed a unique effect.
It allowed him to funnel the damage from the opponent’s attack. If an attack was too powerful to keep bleeding, the shock would be dispersed internally.
Thus, Aiden hardly sustained injuries from ordinary attacks.
But now, Ghislaine’s attack was so powerful that it had resulted in small damage in other parts of his body.
Aiden looked at Ghislaine with a puzzled expression.
“How did you know? You couldn’t have figured it out with just a single look.”
It wasn’t difficult to bleed from a well-executed swordsmanship. Aiden’s own skill had reached that level, so his opponent would find it hard to notice the effect of his technique.
In the first place, he typically withstood minor injuries without using this ability, which made it even harder for others to piece together his secret.
Ghislaine smiled slyly in response.
“I know everything.”
In his past life, how absurd had he felt because of that ability? It was only natural he sustained injuries in strange places without any proper hits landing.
It was too bizarre to chalk it up to exhaustion. After a lot of pondering, he had finally figured out its effect.
“You madman.”
Aiden chuckled and resumed his stance.
The Duke of Penris certainly would have realized it. He was undeniably famous as a formidable talent across the continent.
“You’ve got a strange ability as well. How your skin is as hard as stone… Moreover, you recover so quickly. Is that the effect of your Mana Circulation Method?”
“It’s just a skill I’ve gained through training.”
Though he said it lightly, it was a power he had earned by embedding a dagger in his own heart, risking his life.
Many times, this ability had saved him from danger. It showcased overwhelming combat strength when fighting against weaker opponents.
But Aiden wasn’t particularly intimidated.
“That kind of thing can’t just happen. It probably consumes a lot of mana, right? I suppose if I just keep hacking at you until you can’t recover anymore, it should work. Or maybe I could just cut your throat or pierce your heart in a single blow.”
Ghislaine smiled. Just as Aiden said, sustaining his recovery ability required mana.
As expected, a madman is still a madman. To catch onto the weakness of that ability so quickly.
As they kept fighting, their mana would deplete and exhaustion would set in. Aiden’s ability was no different.
In the end, for one of them to secure victory, the two would have to strike swiftly to pierce the heart or decapitate the other.
But due to the comparable skill of the two, that seemed impossible.
There was only one path left.
They needed to continue injuring one another and depleting each other’s mana.
“Shall we see how it goes a little longer?”
Ghislaine grinned ferociously, raising his mana. Aiden mirrored his expression.
Now both men had forgotten everything. They had forgotten about the war, even the people around them.
All their focus was funneled into killing the enemy standing right before them.
Thus, they felt elation in this battle.
Boom!
Each time they collided, intense shocks erupted in all directions. Unable to withstand the shock, their bodies began to lurch.
Disordered stances were no problem. Neither had any issues maintaining their remarkable skills.
Before long, they resumed proper stances and launched their swords at each other.
Bang!
Neither speed nor force faltered. They matched each other to a perfect degree.
As if this battle was their last, both were pulling out every ounce of strength they had.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
At a certain moment, a red line appeared across Ghislaine’s cheek.
Numerous cuts opened on his shoulders, arms, abdomen, and legs, releasing fresh blood.
Aiden experienced the same. The internal shocks had built up to the point where they could no longer be properly dissipated.
Splurt!
As one was wounded, the other also experienced damages.
With injuries appearing all over, the once pristine armor was now stained crimson.
Hissss!
Red vapor began to rise from Ghislaine’s body. The fifth-tier power started to take a toll on him.
Aiden, too, was gasping for breath. Blood was seeping excessively from numerous gashes on his body.
Gripping the dizziness enveloping his mind, Aiden took a step forward.
Boom!
“I am a man destined to become a legend!”
That was the pride and goal supporting him.
He had always worked towards achieving that goal. He could not collapse here.
Boom!
Aiden’s sword plunged down toward Ghislaine. The blue aura surrounding his sword continued to shine brilliantly.
Ghislaine stepped forward as well.
Boom!
“You will die here today!”
Ghislaine’s sword surged forward, targeting Aiden’s blade.
Red smoke billowed from his gritted teeth. The red aura surrounding his sword was still fierce and ominous.
Clank!
In an instant, Ghislaine’s arm twisted oddly. The muscles and bones could no longer withstand the amplified strength.
The two swords collided once more.
Boom!
An exceptionally bright light erupted. The force they each exerted was tremendous.
“Cough!”
In the end, Aiden spat out blood and staggered back several steps.
And…
“Guh!”
Ghislaine, staggering and kneeling on one knee, collapsed.
