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Chapter 31
“Enemies! Imperial bastards have entered the ravine!”
“Over there! They’re running away!”
No one had expected the Kar Tribe warriors to move this quickly.
‘…Artheon hasn’t been discovered.’
Isaac slid down the slope of the ravine, swiftly scanning his surroundings.
Just moments earlier, two Kar Tribe warriors had been climbing up here.
He had succeeded in silently dealing with them. It was just that the aftermath hadn’t been handled perfectly.
“I—I’m sorry.”
“Forget what’s already happened. We need to draw their attention toward us, no matter what.”
Ponlaron bowed his head with the expression of someone who had committed a mortal sin.
While moving to deal with the Kar Tribe warrior waiting below, a tiny fragment of stone had been brushed by his foot and fallen.
It was bad luck.
That was the only way to describe something so minute.
Or perhaps it was proof of just how well-trained they were.
“Where do you think you’re running!”
There was no time to think further.
A Kar Tribe warrior suddenly burst out from the side, and Isaac’s sword left a crimson arc.
Slash!
“Ghk…!”
The Kar Tribe warrior, his neck severed in a single strike, collapsed on the spot.
He was only a regular warrior, but the sword had been so fast that he hadn’t even been able to react.
“Maintain a proper distance from them and move in the opposite direction of Artheon.”
“Yes!”
The unit members following behind answered loudly.
Since they’d already been discovered, there was no reason to remain silent.
But…
“…This is as far as we go.”
Kar Tribe warriors had surrounded the special unit from both front and rear.
There weren’t that many—likely just those who had been standing guard nearby.
‘…About thirty.’
Isaac’s gaze turned cold.
The numbers were similar.
In that case…
“We break through. Each of you kill one.”
“Yes!”
Fabat!
The moment Isaac gave the order, the special unit scattered in all directions, attacking the Kar Tribe warriors.
Every single one of them had reached at least the first-star rank.
Some had even already reached the second-star level.
Even if Kar Tribe warriors possessed superior combat power compared to Imperial soldiers, that was only true for ordinary troops.
As the situation was resolved in an instant, Isaac let out a quiet breath and turned his gaze.
Toward the direction Artheon had gone.
‘…Hurry, Artheon.’
Seeing more than a hundred Kar Tribe warriors charging after them from behind, Isaac clenched his lips tightly.
Fabat!
If there was any silver lining, it was that Isaac was drawing more attention than expected.
Thanks to that, Artheon reached his destination without any interference and leaned out to look beside the cliff wall.
“This is it.”
He clearly remembered this fissure in the cliff wall.
In the past, when Artheon had been occupying the Helikel Ravine, it had collapsed, causing him immense trouble.
Thinking of the soldiers who had died back then, it was a crack he could never forget.
Wooooong!
Artheon drew up his mana and grasped a steel stake with both hands.
Without a hammer, he couldn’t drive it in completely, but—
“Hraaah!”
Holding the stake with his left hand and pressing his right palm on top, he slammed it into the ground.
Kwaaang!
With a thunderous boom, the area shook slightly.
Normally, he would have to grip it with both hands and twist it as he drove it in, but he didn’t have the time.
With a single strike, the stake sank more than a span deep. Artheon focused mana into his palm and struck it once more.
Kwaaang!
In an instant, the stake was driven more than two spans deep into the ground. Artheon forcefully pulled the rope looped around it.
Twang! Twang!
Preparations were complete.
Artheon immediately wrapped the rope around his waist, tied it, and leapt down below the cliff.
Shraaaash! Shrrr!
Artheon ran as if sliding down the steep slope.
Without the rope tied around his waist, he would have fallen straight to the ground.
Clench!
Reaching the position of the fissure, Artheon gripped the rope tightly and swiftly tied a knot.
“Here! I heard something here!”
“Where is it! Where are you!”
Voices echoed from above the cliff wall.
Artheon looked at the crack in the ravine before him.
Numerous fractures were visible inside the frozen ice wall.
‘…There’s not even a stable place to stand.’
Forcing a spear into it like this wouldn’t produce any impact at all.
‘The chance is…’
Only once.
Judging by the distance from where the Kar Tribe warriors were shouting, it would take them less than a minute to reach this spot.
Artheon exhaled deeply.
“Hooooo….”
As he slowly inhaled the breath he had released, Artheon focused his mana.
And with that—
Pakaang!
Iglis revealed its true form, emitting a blue glow.
As Artheon concentrated all his mana into Iglis, it began to thrash wildly, as if it had lost control.
Wooooong, grgrgrg!
It felt as though it might explode at any moment, but Artheon’s gaze remained calm.
In his past life—
He had never possessed spear techniques capable of overwhelming others.
Nor had he learned high-level mana cultivation methods or possessed vast reserves of mana.
Just ordinary Imperial spear techniques and ordinary mana cultivation.
Artheon had been nothing special—but even so, there was one ability in which he excelled.
Mana control.
Talent was necessary, but in Artheon’s case, he had reached this level purely through effort.
The reason someone who had only just surpassed the second-star rank could display his current level was precisely because of that.
And now—
‘I can do it.’
Artheon’s eyes flashed.
Even with cracks inside the ice wall, collapsing a part of this massive ravine would be impossible through ordinary means.
Unless one could manifest aura, something only those who had reached the fourth-star realm could do.
But there was a way to imitate it, even if only momentarily.
Release.
Exploding compressed mana all at once.
It was pushing himself beyond his limits, but Artheon had no other choice.
If he failed—
‘Everyone dies.’
Artheon’s eyes gleamed.
Still hanging from the rope, Artheon kicked off the ravine wall and jumped backward.
Swaaash!
As his body traced a semicircle and soared backward into the air—
“There he is!”
“We have to cut the rope!”
“Throw the axes!”
The Kar Tribe warriors, having spotted Artheon, shouted loudly and sped up.
But with all his focus poured into Iglis, Artheon couldn’t hear the sounds around him.
All that filled his vision was the ravine and the ice wall within its cracks.
Swaaash!
As the rope snapped taut and Artheon flew back toward the wall, he tightened his grip on Iglis.
And at the very moment he collided with the wall—
“Hraaaaaaaaah!”
With a roar that poured out everything he had, Iglis pierced into the ice wall.
Kraaaack!
More than half of the spear Artheon thrust had penetrated deep into the ice wall.
Then, at the moment the mana concentrated in the spear was released in all directions and exploded—
Crack! Crackcrackcrack!
“Wh—?! Aaaaaah!”
“Th-the ravine is collapsing!”
“Aaaaaah!”
From the spot where the ice wall had been, both above and below—
Enormous cracks spread rapidly, and the surroundings shook as if an earthquake had struck.
Fabat!
Pulling out the spear, Artheon immediately cut the rope, pressed himself flat against the nearby wall, and looked upward.
‘Success!’
But if he stayed here, he would be crushed to death under falling rocks.
Artheon looked down.
It was dangerous, but—
“Fuck, it’s not like dying twice is an option!”
He scraped along the steep slope and leapt downward.
And at the moment part of the ravine wall collapsed—
“Ponlaron! Fire the signal flare!”
“Yes, Sir Isaac!”
Ponlaron quickly fired the signal flare he was carrying into the sky.
Piiiiyoooooong!
The instant the red signal flare shot into the sky—
Dududududududududu!
A powerful rumbling sound came from outside the ravine.
More than two thousand soldiers were advancing toward the ravine.
Isaac shouted.
“Go down and rendezvous with Artheon! We strike the rear of the enemy blocking the ravine entrance!”
“Yes!”
“Understood!”
Kwarrrrrr!
With the ravine collapsing, the Kar Tribe’s formation fell into utter chaos.
Even if it was only a very small portion, having boulders larger than a person fall from overhead was terror itself.
Isaac looked at the collapsing eastern cliff wall.
‘It’s far larger than expected.’
Could this battle really be ended in one stroke?
His heart was pounding wildly.
Blood surged through his body, and his vision felt sharper.
And then—
“Sir Isaac!”
At the shout from beside him, Isaac turned his head.
It was Artheon.
“Join up! We’ll immediately strike the rear of the enemy blocking the ravine entrance!”
“Understood!”
Blue mana shimmered like heat haze around Artheon’s body.
With tremendous acceleration, Artheon merged with the main force.
At that moment, Isaac’s eyes wavered.
‘This guy…?’
Had he always possessed this level of ability, or—
‘Did he grow in that short time?’
It wouldn’t be fair to say “barely,” but Artheon had originally seemed to be around mid–second-star level.
But what he had just shown—
‘Has he stepped into the third star?’
At the very least, he was knocking on the wall of the third star.
Questions tangled in Isaac’s mind, but he quickly dismissed them.
There was something that needed to be done first.
Isaac shouted.
“Artheon! Tertian! Take the lead and strike the left and right! Squad One follows me! Squad Two follows Tertian! Squad Three follows Artheon!”
“Yes!”
“Understood!”
With the resounding replies, the momentum of the special unit surged.
Like an enraged bull charging forward, the Imperial forces rushed in, and the Kar Tribe warriors couldn’t hide their panic.
“Wh—why from behind?!”
“The Imperial army is inside! Block the rear!”
“The Imperial army is attacking from the front of the ravine! Kill them before they arrive!”
Their feet were on fire.
With two thousand Imperial soldiers charging from the front while a small group attacked their formation from behind, they couldn’t focus on the front unless they dealt with the rear.
The Kar Tribe commanders urgently led their warriors and launched an attack on the special unit.
But there was one thing they had overlooked.
Fabat!
Artheon spotted a charging Kar Tribe commander.
Two feather tattoos etched on his left shoulder.
The man unleashed killing intent as he saw Artheon charging toward him.
It was infuriating enough that enemies had entered the ravine, but now such a young boy was rushing at him.
His blood boiled.
“I’ll cut you down in one— guh!”
“M-Marukku, sir!”
Artheon’s thrust knocked aside the axe of the mid-ranking warrior called Marukku and pierced straight through his chest.
Marukku, his chest pierced in a single strike, instantly became a cold corpse and collapsed to the ground.
Both the Kar Tribe warriors and the soldiers following Artheon stared in shock.
But amid the confusion—
“Squad Three, break through the enemy in one go.”
Artheon’s gaze was like a dagger, aimed straight at the enemy’s heart.
