Sword King Baotolt (2)
Hidden inside the building, Ryu Han-bin took a closer look at Kruse Murg.
It certainly looked dead on the surface.
Nevertheless, they couldn’t move around recklessly.
‘My Guideline isn’t normal. I can’t believe it blindly.’
But the more they looked at it, the stranger it looked.
At that moment, there was no movement.
No matter how deep the monster was asleep, there should’ve been slight fluctuations as long as it breathed.
The results were similar even after trying everything they could.
They couldn’t feel anything, let alone the four powers.
‘… I can’t just stay here.’
It didn’t matter if they go closer or step away from it. They had to make a choice.
After careful consideration, Kibie made a decision.
“Let’s check it out.”
Han-bin’s group approached Kruse Murg cautiously.
They slowly covered the distance, hiding as much as possible and keeping their movements quiet.
Its appearance was getting clearer.
The entirety of Kruse Murg was covered in blood and wounds.
What looked like spots in the distance were all dried up bloodstains.
They had to be more courageous. Han-bin’s party moved to the front of the monster.
Facing the giant lion, he noticed its eyes were closed.
Ryu Han-bin, who was nervous beyond humanly possible, stretched out his sword.
“It’s dead, isn’t it?”
He breathed a sigh of relief.
“It’s dead.”
Kruse Murg’s skull was split in half.
Of course, that didn’t mean he was dead.
Many of the monsters had strong regenerative abilities.
Nevertheless, there was a reason to be sure of its death.
Kruse Murg’s chest was tremendously split, and an empty hole was at its center.
Its Spirit Stone had been removed.
Spirits Stone were the heart of the soul. Monsters couldn’t live without it.
Kibie spoke in front of the dead body.
“… Baotolt did it.”
Artis had a frightened expression on his face.
“Oh, my God, even though he is the Sword King…”
Only then did he have time to look around.
There were certainly signs of destruction everywhere.
It was clear that the Sword King and the Divine monster had fought.
Artis mumbled.
“So, where’s the Sword King?”
“Time to find out.”
Enthusiastically, Kibie walked toward the Kruse Murg’s corpse.
As they came closer to the Sword King, she couldn’t help but feel even more motivated.
Before she could use her Shadow-Reading skills, Ryu Han-bin suddenly grabbed her shoulder.
“Wait, Kibie.”
“Is there another monster?”
Kibie nervously got up.
Han-bin shook his head.
“No, it’s not…”
“Then, don’t bother me. You’re disrupting my concentration.”
She wondered instead of frowning.
Ryu Han-bin’s expression was strange.
He might’ve seen something very absurd and ridiculous.
He pointed toward the ruins’ collapsed wall, a little away from the party.
“I think there’s something we need to look at first.”
There was a round mound made by stacking stones under the wall.
It was too round to be just a trace of the debris collapsing, and it seemed too artificial.
There was a large sword in front of the tomb. A tombstone was even erected crudely.
Here lies the soul bearer of the great Valtara.
A true warrior, Baotolt Tel Leord.
He has achieved his lifelong aspiration and sleeps here without regrets.
Kibie’s jaw dropped.
“… What?”
* * *
The Sword King of Valtara, Baotolt Tel Leord.
Even though he was old enough to be a part of the elderly, he had always been young and strong.
It was thanks to the ‘blessing’ from the six Goddesses 33 years ago.
Technically speaking, the blessing of the Goddesses wasn’t just non-aging.
The six Goddesses said:
“Give our blessings to great heroes. You will return to your most desired youthful and powerful days, and your death will come without your body aging!”
Blessed, Archmage Genovia became a young and beautiful woman in her 20s from her normal 60s body.
However, the situation was a bit different for the other three strongest ones.
Hollien, who was in the early stages of life and death, didn’t make much difference before or after the blessing.
She was a Nymph whose life expectancy was several times longer than humans.
She was still young, 33 years ago.
The Sword King Baotolt and the Thunder King Garhan went back to their 40s.
For most people, youth meant their 20s.
However, for masters like the Sword King and the Thunder King, their 20s were just a time of immaturity.
Back in the period when his body and mind were most active, Baotolt continued to pursue his lifelong aspiration, rejoicing in his amazing luck.
It was the dream of every Valtara warrior and the long-cherished desire of the Sword King.
It was to become a true warrior.
Baotolt followed his dream and did his best.
He continued to train, become strong, fight with the strong, and seek the struggle.
It was a pleasant life.
One day, as he enjoyed his life without caring about the time that had gone by, his old friends, Thunder King Garhan and Archmage Genovia visited him.
Garhan handed over what he had found with a frightened face.
“Do you know how many years you have left in your life, Baotolt?”
Baotolt knew.
Although he was a Valtara warrior, who was considered simply ignorant, and even when the Sword King himself admitted that he wasn’t very smart, he was intelligent enough to know the answer to that.
“I think we have about ten years left. Why?”
“Why? It means you’re going to die in 10 years, Baotolt.”
“I suppose so. What I mean by my question is, why are you afraid of it?”
He was prepared to live as long as he did and die when he was fated to die.
“Why should I be afraid?”
Tired of Baotolt, who didn’t understand their concerns at all, his old friends left.
But from then on, Baotolt began to worry about things that he had not usually done.
‘I see. Is the end coming?’
He was not afraid of death.
For him, fighting to the death was the most enjoyable pleasure and entertainment.
If he were afraid of death and didn’t confront it, no pleasure would be gained.
But that led him to ponder.
‘Have I become a real warrior?’
It was his lifelong aspiration to be a true warrior.
He wanted to become the strongest warrior in the world and never succumb to anything in the world.
‘Is that what I am?’
Baotolt wasn’t confident.
He was the strongest man on earth.
In their respective areas, the other three reached the peak of supremacy, but they were one step below Baotolt.
But it had never been proven.
The strongest four had never fought against each other.
The three strongest, except for Baotolt, were not just strong.
Each of them was a high-ranking official who was responsible for numerous people and dominated the country.
Such people’s lives couldn’t be jeopardized simply because of their desires.
He needed a clear goal to prove himself.
It had to be strong and high enough to achieve his lifelong aspiration.
He found such a goal.
‘The Divine Kruse Murg.’
If he could defeat that monster, one of the three Gods of the Grand Maze, he would be able to boast that he was a true warrior. He would be able to look up at the sky without shame.
He stayed in Kaltan and prepared for the final battle in earnest.
He continued to build up his strength and gathered information about the Divine Kruse Murg.
It had been years.
A Spiritist named Gabe found him.
He claimed to be a servant, saying, “I was moved by the long-cherished desire of the Sword King.”
Although he was a weak Spiritist in his late level 70s, he was surprisingly helpful.
Thanks to that, quick treatment and recovery were possible.
At the age of 96, the Sword King finally sensed that all preparations were complete.
That was when he proclaimed it to Gabe.
“I will hunt the Divine!”
There were still about three years left in his life, but he didn’t care at all.
‘Don’t put off good things!’
He headed to the lowest floor of Kaltan and eventually met with Divine Kruse Murg.
A fierce battle ensued.
Indeed, the Divine was strong.
The indomitable body was devastated, and the sea-like Aura also bottomed out.
Nevertheless, he never gave up.
Finally, Baotolt’s sword tore deep into Kruse Murg’s skull.
With a scream of death, Latna’s strongest presence stopped breathing.
Of course, the reward was never small.
The cost of the Divine’s death was also his death.
“Dear Sword King!”
Gabe, who was hiding in the distance, hurriedly tried to heal him, but it was useless.
The energy of the Divine penetrated deep into the wound of the Sword King.
At his level, the energy was so formidable that he couldn’t even dare purify it.
Gabe cried out.
“I’m sorry! if only I were a little bit stronger…”
The Sword King laughed as he was dying.
“What are you sorry about?”
It was a warrior’s shame to die peacefully on the bed.
To die fighting against a powerful enemy was a death worthy of a true warrior.
The long-cherished desire of his life had been achieved.
“It was a life without regrets… I can’t help but wish for more…”
* * *
Since then, Gabe had built a tomb and laid the Sword King to rest.
It was Gabe who put Baotolt’s sword and a tombstone on his grave.
He wanted to move the Sword King’s body to Serkaltan, but unfortunately, he couldn’t afford it.
Kaltan, the Grand Maze, was a place where it was difficult for Gabe alone to escape.
So, he went outside with only the Divine’s Spirit Stone to prove the Sword King’s achievement.
“… That’s all I can get from here.”
Kibie finished the Shadow-Reading.
She then laughed.
“Baotolt is dead? I’d never think that he could die regardless of the circumstances.”
So did the other party.
“That’s the tomb of the Sword King.”
“I didn’t mean to…”
“What do I do now?”
They also expected that everything would be solved if they met the Sword King.
That was how much Baotolt’s achievement vibrated across Latna.
“What do I do now…?”
Kibie covered her forehead.
All her plans were centered on the Sword King.
Now she didn’t know what to do.
“Phew…….”
The Goddess sighed helplessly through the melancholic atmosphere.
As everyone was so enraptured, Effir suddenly turned her head.
“Oh?”
“What’s wrong, Effir?”
At Artis’s question, she pulled out her twin blades.
“Someone’s approaching!”
Han-bin and his party were nervous, but they were ready to fight.
Though Ryu Han-bin and Kibie were strong, Effir’s senses were much more sensitive.
If she felt something, it was very likely that it was true.
It didn’t take long before five people appeared on the other side of the ruins’ darkness.
A white-haired woman smiled brightly at Han-bin’s party.
“I found them.”
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