Chwaaak!
The axe cut through his chest.
Carving out a deep wound.
The long gash stretched from his shoulder to the navel.
The breastbone was clearly exposed, along with pale pink internal organs. Red blood spurted into the air.
‘I got careless.'
He could only curse his own complacency.
There was regret.
If only he'd used Other Shore Flower properly.
If it'd been a little more perfect, this wouldn't have happened.
But regrets are always late, and missed opportunities never come back.
‘Can I live?'
Impossible.
He won't be able to survive.
His wounds were deeper than even Elburton's.
Besides, the orc warlord in front of him didn't seem satisfied with a single attack.
The axe, that had already tasted his blood, fell again.
It was all over –
『Death Verse Composition activates.』
Enlightenment that comes from being at the very precipice of death.
It ruled over every fibre of his body. But this time it was of no use.
Even if you feel enlightenment –
『Divine Power』 – 0/6251
Your consumed divine power would not come back.
No matter how strong a Pilgrim may be, if he doesn't have divine power, he's nothing more than a seasoned knight.
Even if he has a vision sword, it's just a waste, like a pearl necklace on a pig's neck.
‘He's coming.'
But unlike the brain that calculated the outcome –
His body creaked again, and he raised his sword.
The movement was instinctive.
He'd only been holding a sword for a mere three years.
But he'd practiced swinging it like his life depended on it.
Teetering at the edge between life and oblivion, overcoming certain death time and again, grinding and polishing his unsightly talent inch by painstaking inch.
‘I'll just die like this.'
However, contrary to what he thought in his heart, slowly, sluggishly, his sword rose.
"Callius no!!"
On the battlefield, setting everything aside, Emily shouted and ran.
There was no disputing that Callius was in very condition.
The way he still raised his sword made him look like someone out of an epic tale of a hero, but he would still die if it continued like this.
Really, die.
‘No!'
The orcs blocked Emily as she tried to force divine power into her legs and run.
She rolled between their legs.
Dodged by the side.
‘Late!'
Late.
It was obvious that Callius' sword would once again be broken in two.
"Uh…?"
However, the situation turned out completely different from the girl's expectations.
The warlord's axe was cleanly parried by Callius!
The sound of the weapons clashing was so faint that Emily could hardly hear it. She wondered if the orc general, who'd been attacking with a natural rhythm like flowing water, might've just paused attacking for a moment.
But seeing the surprised expression on the warlord's face, it wasn't intentional.
"Callius!"
Callius staggered as if he had no strength left in his body. The orc general also felt it strange, so he raised his axe and attacked again.
Although he only had one remaining arm, it was still a powerful blow.
But –
Oddly enough, Callius dodged his axe again with only a slight movement.
One step.
By only moving one step at a time, he was completely dodging the warlord's axe blows.
At the same time, he gently lifted the Storm Sword as if he might drop it any moment, and drained their destructive power.
Forgetting that she'd been coming to his rescue, Emily watched Callius' movements as if possessed.
While resisting the attacks of the orcs who rushed at her one by one.
As if fascinated, Emily's eyes engraved every single aspect of Callius' movements into her mind.
The fingers resting on the sword.
The joints moving.
She didn't miss a single inch of it all.
"Ah."
It was a strange feeling.
And yet, familiar.
‘Death Verse Composition.'
Realization brought by the characteristic.
Action arising from the awakened five senses.
The senses, blurred.
But the mind, rather clear.
Callius felt the warlord's attacks even though he couldn't see them.
‘How did I do that?'
He didn't remember.
He tried to analyze, but in vain.
His eyes turned towards the sword he was holding.
But his body still avoided the warlord's axe.
He couldn't counterattack.
He didn't have the power necessary.
So he evaded and let it go.
‘No need to think.'
You just have to feel it.
He couldn't even feel himself holding the sword or putting strength into his hands, but the aura of his opponent resonated clearly through his being.
A hair-raising sense of momentum.
Sharply stinging on his skin.
Maybe that bastard would be the one to survive.
‘I'm feeling alive. Why is that?'
Is it because of the characteristic of Death Verse Composition?
Is it because of the awakened senses?
He worried a bit, but couldn't come up with an answer.
‘Now that I think about it, I got too dependent on the three colours.'
The Tricolour Eye is a very convenient characteristic.
It detects danger and selects the right course.
But because of that, he'd had little opportunity to train his danger sense in battle.
After reaching the North, even more so.
‘I did something stupid.'
Callius raised his head.
Without activating the characteristic.
His eyes, weary of seeing nothing but red until now, were slowly finding their own hues.
‘Maybe because I'm not putting any power into them, it feels more comfortable.'
Don't counterattack, just avoid.
Move a step, make a turn, break away along the axe's edge.
The warlord was startled again when Callius, despite looking so feeble, shook off his attack, but he quickly calmed himself.
But he was one step late.
"Bastard!!"[1]
An old man wreathed in blue lightning –
Bernard, had reached his side.
Pajijijik!
Kwang!
"Drink it, Callius! Kuhk!!"
Kuung-uung–!!
The Blue Thunderbolt Sword blocked the general's axe.
However, it didn't look like it'd last long.
Within that brief moment respite that Bernard had earned –
Callius fumbled, took out the last remaining vial of holy water, drank it, and sprinkled it over his wounds.
His vitality slowly began to refill.
The consumed divine power also slowly began to replenish itself.
The bleeding stopped, and the wounds started healing.
But glacially slow.
Because the injuries he had suffered were quite heavy.
Callius threw down the snapped in two Strong Sword, and clasped the Storm Sword with both hands.
‘Once more.'
With this moment of enlightenment –
If you strike once more –
He thought that a more perfect Other Shore Flower might bloom on this battlefield.
‘I don't need Tricolour Eye.'
He didn't require the assistance of the three colours for this battle.
He'd been depending on it too much.
Rather, he needed to feel it.
With Death Verse Composition activated, he'd be able to feel it more accurately.
‘I don't need to use Raging Flower Wave.'
He didn't need to ignite a White Haze, either.
It was possible now.
It seemed possible to coalesce them all into one sword strike even without unfolding the skills in advance.
No, it was definitely possible right now.
"I can do this."
The gray eyes gleamed.
He'd always unfolded Raging Flower Wave and White Haze beforehand to aid in the intricate operations of this skill.
But now he didn't need that kind of help.
He was confident in fully capturing the truths of Raging Flower Wave and White Haze within a single sword.
One foot forward.
The shoulder of the main arm holding the sword pulling back.
The sword rising high overhead.
Callius struck.
The sword blade, like the scales of a dragon, became stronger and transformed.
The surface of the blade becoming smoother, the rigidity multiplying, and unifying.
Not a single drop of divine power overflowed.
But the scattered divine power all around it changed with the sword.
Transforming sword qi into a tangible shape[2], and accepting the truth of the Other Shore Flower.
"… What the hell is that?"
Ramatu of Krasion.
He looked at the battlefield with a stiff expression on his face.
It'd been a long time since the walls had broken, but the human knights were still fighting.
The orcs, who should have never hesitated to charge ahead, were faltering.
But that's not all.
The orc warlord, who had even defeated the Supreme Ruler of the North, was kneeling down with one knee, missing an arm.
A sight he'd never expected to see.
The wall should have been broken long ago. The orcs should have already been roaring victoriously, standing over the corpses of their enemies.
"Did one single idiot overturn the battlefield?"
The cause was simple.
The Pilgrim in his front.
One Callius von Jervain, messed everything up.
"This old man is amazed."
The man was almost a corpse.
Most of his divine power had been exhausted, and the wounds the warlord had inflicted on him were still spitting out blood.
A dreadful yet precarious figure that looked like it'd collapse with a single hit.
"Damn it. He's a nuisance."
Ramatu did not stand still.
Having lived for a long time, he had a clear insight into Callius' condition.
‘Sudden enlightenment.'
Realization.
Some sort of awakening.
If one survives being in such a state, he will definitely become stronger.
A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Becoming stronger by turning a crisis into an opportunity, through enlightenment in battle, was the stuff of legends.
Ramatu's eyebrows furrowed.
His old and sick body, on which the passage of time had carved out deep wrinkles, made him jealous of the possibilities of a young man.
But more than that, the attack he was germinating didn't look average.
‘Other Shore Flower… To think I'll see that swordsmanship again in my lifetime.'
The chances of him surviving were already very slim.
But what had to be done, should be done cleanly.
Ramatu raised his staff.
As soon as it hit the ground, a small shockwave spread.
"I can't just leave things be."
Awls made of rock protruded from the ground at Callius' feet and aimed at him.
‘A young flower yet unbloomed, nipped in the bud.'
Words that carried regret and remorse.
"Callius!!"
A small child ran.
The child, nothing more than a small sprout, flew through the battlefield to the side of that bloody almost-corpse.
She put aside her sword, which she treated no differently than her own life, and tried to save Callius.
"Master Callius!! Avoid it!"
Not just her.
The boy who wore an eyepatch, and the priest with blue hair.
There was also a man with a dagger and a large cloth bag.
All of them threw themselves down to protect a single Callius.
"You're doing something useless!"
Kwagagagagaga!
The ground shook, and Ramatu's staff blew them away.
But they were not alone.
"Protect Master Callius!!"
"What are you doing! You all owe him your lives!!"
All the northern forces were running out to rescue Callius.
Their swords could neither parry nor block the tentacles of Ramatu.
Still, they stopped in front of Callius and shouted with a roar.
"You ants…"
Kugugugugu–!
But now the Sanctuary of the Storm was gone.
Many of their allies were running towards the battlefield.
And the Master of the North was walking towards his son, even with his serious injuries.
"Go, Callius!!"
"Elburton! You half-dead bastard…"
Kugugung kwang!
Chwaaaak!
"Ahhh!!"
Bernard's Blue Lightning Sword was deflected upward.
A pair of hands rose high along with it. Even so, the severed hands were still clutching the sword.
"Let's die together, you monster!"
Kwajijijig! Kwaaaang!
Lightning bolts spread out from the Blue Thunderbolt sword that floated in the sky.
Popopopopopop!
Culminating in a series of explosions.
"Callius!!"
Bernard shouted as he hugged himself with his severed arms.
Hwiiing.
Surrounded by the explosions –
Callius clasped the Storm Sword with both hands and took a deep breath.
His vision was stained with blood.
He couldn't even feel his legs.
He held the Storm Sword like it was as heavy as the heavens themselves.
However.
‘Only once.'
Just this once.
He could swing this sword.
And so –
‘Forward…!'
Callius' form appeared through the haze of dust.
The Storm Sword leading him, seeking the orc warlord.
"Ես կսպանեմ!" 「I'll kill you!」
The warlord roared as he saw Callius, and the smoke dispersed.
But he didn't back down.
Callius struck a single sword blow as he neared.
A simple stab.
However, what it contained wasn't something as simple as that, so the warlord also fought back with all his might.
Kwaaang–!!
A flash of light, followed by a bizarre shattering sound that echoed across the battlefield.
"…"
"…"
A pounding sound intense enough to silence even the cacophony of the battlefield.
But soon, the sight was revealed.
"This, what…"
On the warlord's chest, where Callius had struck with his sword, green flowers were blooming.
"Waaaaaaaaagghhhh!!"
"Master Callius did it!!"
"Waaaaaaagghhhh!! The warlord's dead!!"
"The orcs have been defeated!!"
The collapsing orc warlord.
When his head touched the ground, the knights began cheering without hesitation.
In contrast, the orcs could only open their mouths in disbelief.
"Unbelievable…!"
Ramatu grabbed his staff.
If you leave it like this, it's over.
The morale of the orcs was dropping sharply, so as time went on, their defeat would only become more inevitable.
He didn't want to reveal himself, but there was no choice now that things had gotten to this point.
It wasn't just Lutheon who was risking his life and death here.
The enormous wealth and time that Krasion and the Empire had invested here would be wasted.
If this venture failed, it'd be a huge loss.
"It's not over yet!"
Ramatu appeared in front of Callius.
It wasn't over yet.
First, crush this idiot maniac. And then if he took Elburton and Bernard's heads as well, victory would again favour their side.
The moment he raised his cane and aimed at Callius –
"You've run out of time."
The man murmured.
"Time?"
"I saw it when I was flying."
What did you see?
“It seems that I've got some more stalkers chasing me.”
"What nonsense are you…"
That was then.
– Hiiiiing!
A horse's neigh could be heard.
No, not just one.
Ramatu, who was a student of the earth, felt vibrations approaching from the far away horizon.
The sound of horseshoes.
Quite a number of footsteps.
A large army running towards the setting sun.
Armor and cloak engraved with crossed red swords.
"Inquisitor Squad…"
It was the Heretic Inquisitor Squad, that was reputed to have high combat power even among the whole Valtherus Church.
"I thought it'd take at least two more days for support to arrive…"
He'd expected reinforcements to take at least two more days to arrive, no matter how fast they came.
Not only that, he'd thought the reinforcements would be the main Northern Army, but he was now faced with the Inquisitor Squad.
"…"
Ramatu gripped the staff tightly with an angry face.
His knuckles were white, so tight was his grip with rage.
"… This is our defeat."
But he couldn't delay any longer.
He clenched his teeth and covered himself back with his robes.
And looked at the man who had brought the situation to this point.
Callius von Jervain.
He'd thought him nothing but a pup.
Ramatu looked at him with heavy eyes and warned him.
"Krasion will keep an eye on you."
As he disappeared, the battlefield began to clear up quickly.
『Fatalite's Wheel – Complete』
<Reward Level> [S+]
[You have completed the main quest.]
[Special rewards are given.]
Editor's Notes:
[1] 이노옴 (inoom) is a curse word that an older uncle might say. Not sure how to translate it honestly, although I've seen suggestions that kisama is the Japanese equivalent.
[2] 검강 (geomgang), sword aura forming into a solid shape. See Namu Wiki.
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