TOP 22

Chapter 22.

 Assault (2)

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“…Huh?”

Before the head that had just been severed from its body could even hit the ground—

Slash—! Shhhk—!

Two more charging Iron Fang hunters lost their lives.

‘Good.’

The time spent in the special training ground hadn’t been wasted.

Even I was surprised at how clearly I could now read the enemy’s movements.

“Kill that bastard!”
“Uaaahhh!”

Even though three of their comrades had just died in an instant, the rest didn’t stop their charge.

It was the adrenaline rush from the battlefield.

That frenzy made them feel rage rather than fear.

But, in the end, they were just small fry.

Puk!
Shhk—!
Clang! Thud!

I tore through the battlefield, cutting down enemies without pause.

Stabbing, slashing, blocking, kicking, punching—

“M-Merciful heavens!”
“What is that thing…?”

Everywhere I passed, enemies collapsed like autumn leaves.

“Was the deputy leader always this strong!?”
“At this point, isn’t he stronger than the guild master?”
“…He might be.”

Behind me, my teammates’ astonished voices rang out.

It felt good, but I let the words pass in one ear and out the other.

‘Focus on the fight.’

To an onlooker, it might have seemed as if I was butchering enemies with ease, but it wasn’t that simple.

‘Right.’

I stabbed the neck of the enemy before me, then swung the blade sideways to the right.

Clang!

A flying hand axe was deflected away.

【Seven o’clock! Dagger strike!】

Following Prill’s warning, I twisted my body.

A dagger grazed past my vision.

I grabbed the enemy’s dagger arm and broke it.

Crunch!

“Gaaahhh!”

‘Well done, Prill.’
【Hehe.】

During the last two weeks in the special training ground, I hadn’t just trained in using aura.

I had sparred with virtual opponents, and I had practiced making full use of Prill.

‘With precise briefings, it’s so much better.’

Instead of vague warnings, Prill now told me the exact direction and type of incoming attacks, making it easier to defend.

‘Of course, I can’t rely on her completely.’

No matter how accurate the briefings, the most important thing was still my own senses.

There was no way a warning given in such a short window could surpass instinct.

Still, having her cover my rear allowed me to focus more on the front, and that was an undeniable advantage.

Step by step, I cut down the Iron Fang hunters who had stormed the Hyunwoong Clan’s base.

Then—

Whoosh—!

A steel sword came slicing down diagonally.

I raised the Permafrost Blade and blocked.

Clang—!

My arm tingled.

The impact was completely different from the 1- or 2-star hunters I’d been fighting so far.

“This is where the rampage ends.”

The lesser hunters backed off, and three 3-star hunters stepped forward to block my way.

“Finally decided to show yourselves?”

They were Iron Fang’s team leaders.

“A mere porter gets a bit of power and thinks he’s hot stuff. What a sight.”
“Old man, step aside if you don’t want to die.”
“You…!”

One of the older ones nearly burst a vein.

A nice opening move.

“Brother, calm down. We’ll deal with him.”
“Don’t pretend to be noble. If that’s how you felt, why did you come at me three-on-one in the first place?”
“Why, you—!”

That jab stung the younger one’s pride.

“And you? Got nothing to say?”
“…I’ll just kill you.”
“Yeah? Try it. If you couldn’t even step up to lead and just watched your subordinates die, your strength can’t amount to much.”

“……”

To the last one, I gave a blunt truth.

If these 3-star team leaders had stepped in earlier, the Hyunwoong Clan wouldn’t have held out this long.

Maybe they wouldn’t have lasted until I arrived.

But instead—

‘They shoved their underlings into the most dangerous spot first.’

They hadn’t stepped up, either out of arrogance or cowardice.

A leader should lead from the front.

But these men only cared about maintaining their status.

Their combat ability was as clear as day.

“Brothers, let’s kill this bastard!”

The one I’d insulted last came charging at me first.

I dodged lightly and slashed his side with the Permafrost Blade.

“Urgh.”

Shhk—!

The frostbite effect triggered.

“You bastard!”

Another swung his steel sword at me, but I parried with the Permafrost Blade.

Clang!

Sparks flew.

The clash turned into a contest of strength.

Naturally, I was stronger.

These so-called 3-star hunters barely trained.

“Die!”

Another hunter tried to attack from the side.

‘Prill!’

【Ice Arrow!】

“Wh-what the—!?”

Prill’s ambush disrupted him.

The ice arrow didn’t hit, but it broke his momentum.

Then—

“Hup!”

I shoved away the steel sword and thrust my blade into his heart.

“Ghhkk!”

“Brother!”

A scream rang out.

3 against 1 became 2 against 1 in an instant.

And one of them was slowed by frostbite.

“You guys never practiced team coordination, did you?”

I taunted them.

It was true—my advantage came from exploiting the gaping holes in their teamwork.

“Bastard!”

The healthier one cursed.

Dash—!

I lunged, swinging fast.

Clang! Clang!

A fierce exchange of blows.

“Die!”

The frostbitten one tried to join in, but it didn’t help much.

I pressed them hard, constantly gaining the upper hand.

I could feel it—I really had grown stronger.

Then—

Stab!

“Ghhkk…!”

Another fell.

“Now you’re alone.”

“U-ugh…”

The last one staggered back in fear.

I moved to finish him—

【Nine o’clock! Eugene, danger!】

Heat surged from the left.

I aborted the kill and turned.

‘A spell!?’

A fireball the size of a human head was flying toward me.

【“Chilling Shield”!】

Prill summoned an ice barrier.

Crash—!

But weakened as she was, her shield couldn’t fully block it—just weakened it.

That was enough.

I split the fireball in two with the Permafrost Blade.

BOOM—!

The explosion still scorched me, but I endured.

“Cough… Hah.”

I waved the smoke aside and looked toward where it had come from.

“…A mage?”

A middle-aged woman in a robe, wand raised, stood there.

“Ugh, I just wanted to relax a bit, and this is what I get?”

She sighed and lowered her wand, then began walking toward me slowly—

Flanked by Iron Fang’s team leader hunters.

“What’s a mage doing here?”
“Getting tired of that question—”
“Never mind. You’re still my enemy, that’s what matters.”

“…Interesting young man.”

She studied me curiously.

I didn’t let it faze me.

However Iron Fang had recruited a mage, she was still just another enemy to defeat.

‘This won’t be easy.’

A properly trained mage was like a psychic with rules.

Honestly, I’d never fought a mage before.

Didn’t expect to, this early.

But one-on-one? I might manage.

The problem was—

‘She’s not alone.’

She had five 3-star hunters guarding her.

Taking on five of them would already be hard enough—add a mage, and it was brutal.

Even one stray fireball would be difficult to block perfectly.

‘Should I summon the golem?’

My thoughts turned to the mithril golem.

Stronger than me—its power was equivalent to a 5-star.

Until now I hadn’t needed it, and I wanted more real combat experience, so I’d held back.

‘And its power source is almost depleted.’

Until I found a way to recharge it, I couldn’t use it recklessly.

But in this situation, it might be worth it.

‘Even for a short time, it could turn the tide.’

Then—

“Deputy Leader Eugene!”

Three hunters rushed in behind me.

“Sorry we’re late!”

“…You are?”

I recognized one: the 1st Team leader of the Hyunwoong Clan, the woman I’d once seen with Ji Hyunwoong.

His daughter—Ji Younghee.

The other two were also Hyunwoong Clan team leaders.

All three were 3-star hunters.

Just three more allies, but it felt reassuring.

“Good. Please handle those 3-star hunters for me.”

I kicked off the ground, sprinting forward.

The mage’s wand was glowing ominously.

“Eh!? Wait—! Ugh, let’s go!”

Flustered, Ji Younghee and the others charged after me.

“Stop him!”
“Protect the mage!”

The 3-star hunters tried to block me.

Crash—!

I swung my blade with force.

Boom—!

“Ghhkk!”
“H-how strong is he…!?”

Their formation collapsed instantly.

3-star hunters?

So what.

I was 4-star.

Physically, I completely outclassed them.

“The rear is yours!”

“You’re rushing too much! Slow down—!”

I ignored Ji Younghee’s voice.

Now that I was closer, I could tell.

‘She’s casting something dangerous.’

The mage was preparing a powerful spell.

“Team leader! Is this okay…?”
“Doesn’t matter! Support him!”
“…Yes, ma’am!”

Luckily, they covered me well, keeping me from being surrounded.

I smashed through the enemy hunters—

Boom! Crash!

Not killing, just hitting hard enough to clear a path.

Because I had allies guarding my back, I could focus.

BOOM!

The last one went flying.

And finally, I stood face-to-face with the mage.

“You’ve got skill, boy.”

She tried to stall, buying time for her spell.

I didn’t answer. I lunged.

She smirked.

“But too late. Flame Wave!”

From her wand burst a roaring red inferno.

【E-Eugene, dodge!】

‘No. I’ll break through.’

【Reckless!】

Ignoring Prill’s protests, I charged straight into the fire.

Retreating now would only cost me later.

Whooosh—!

Flames engulfed my whole body.

‘Hot.’

Even drawing on my mana, the heat was immense.

My skin scorched, my lungs burned with searing air.

But—

‘I can endure.’

It wasn’t worse than when I fell into lava during training.

Back then, even knowing it was fake, I thought I would die.

【You idiot! “Chilling Shield”!】

Prill helped, reducing some of the flames.

It wasn’t much, but it made a difference.

‘Good. Now—’

The pain was immense, but brief.

In an instant, I burst through the wall of fire—

Right in front of the mage.

One strike would end this.

I swung the Permafrost Blade.

“Shield!”

Clang—!

Her calm incantation stopped me.

A sudden barrier appeared in the air, blocking my sword.

“You know why mages are tricky? We can cast a few spells instantly, without preparation.”

She laughed inside the barrier.

She wasn’t just a fragile ‘glass cannon.’

Even in one-on-one, a mage couldn’t be underestimated.

“And this Shield? Unless you use aura, you can’t break it. Didn’t you just awaken recently? Then you can’t use aura yet, can you?”

She giggled mockingly.

She was right—if I couldn’t break through, I’d be stuck.

And this was enemy territory.

Plus, I was already burnt and battered from breaking through the fire wave.

The longer the fight dragged, the worse for me.

Which was why—

I had no intention of dragging it out.

Hummm—

“Who said I can’t use aura?”

Mana shimmered like heat haze around the Permafrost Blade.

“Y-you…! You only just awakened!?”

The mage’s eyes widened in shock.

Too bad. She’d misjudged me.

“I went through some… special training.”

Maybe she’d heard of the Room of Time and Space.

My aura-wreathed blade came crashing down.

Shhhkkk—!

Cracks spread across her shield instantly.

Then it shattered.

BOOM—!

And the swing still had power left over.

“No…! Impossible!”

The strike split the mage cleanly in two.