#273
Re-war (2)
Hesperon quickly looked around and assessed the situation, even using “Nervousness”.
‘A slum outside of Jeron. There’s no one else around… Is this a barrier? It looks like they planned it from the beginning.’
No matter how bustling a city is, there is bound to be darkness where the marginalized gather.
That’s exactly where he is right now.
It was a crime-ridden area with a poor environment and public safety, located on the outskirts of the capital city, like Daeshinjeon, but quite a distance away.
‘It wasn’t something I prepared spontaneously. If you were waiting in a place like this to set a trap, it means you anticipated all my moves.’
Then his gaze turned to the thirty or so masked men surrounding him.
Even Hesperon’s senses, which had not yet fully developed, could clearly sense the sharp momentum and the scent of those living in the shade permeated the air.
‘Assassins? No, not just you. It seems like there are also wizards among them, as well as those who have mastered Aura.’
There’s no way anyone could command people like me.
Even though it is a slum, it is even more so if they are planning an attack that even mobilizes the barrier in the so-called capital.
Finally, he turned his gaze to the only man not wearing a mask.
In fact, he was the one who was causing the most trouble in this place.
“It’s been a while, Sir Starve. … No, it’s not even Sir anymore?”
Stave, a master-class unmanned unit and former captain of the Imperial Guard.
I thought Riley had been dealt with and buried long ago since she hadn’t said anything, but it looks like she managed to escape somehow.
“Huh—yes, it’s nice to see your face after such a long time. I really wanted to see you. Thanks to you, I had a very precious experience.”
Stave responded with a laugh to Hesperon’s cheerful greeting.
I could easily guess what kind of experience he was talking about just by looking at his appearance.
‘It certainly seems like you’ve had a hard time.’
His strong body, once filled with solid muscles like that of a knight on the pole, was now shrunken and pitifully emaciated.
Her complexion was extremely haggard due to rapid aging, malnutrition, and fatigue.
And above all···.
“Phehheh— When I see this, it’s like a comedy. It’s become very funny.”
The right arm was cut off from the shoulder area and a leather blindfold covered the right eye.
In addition, there were traces of various tortures all over his body.
It seemed like he had been treated somehow, but the physical damage was so severe that the resulting defects and aftereffects were clearly visible.
“It doesn’t look like he got out on his own. Maybe his friends helped him?”
Hesperon casually remarked at the sight of someone who looked like they had been imprisoned somewhere for a long time and had barely escaped.
I have a rough idea of the situation, but I’d like to make it more certain.
“···I wonder if it’s really the same guy as before. The power is also unique. It’s not black magic or the abyss, it’s a pure curse.”
But Stav just looked at him with a strange gaze and talked about something else.
Srrrrung—
Then he brought his left hand, which had only three fingers left, to his waist and slowly drew out his sword.
“I want to kill you right now, but I have to hold back because I made a promise.”
Then, a black aura rose up like flames from his sword.
It was a destructive and eerie energy, black magic, completely different from the aura he had used before.
“······!”
And the moment I felt that flow of energy.
Hesperon moved instinctively.
He twisted his body and stretched his right hand forward.
As the arm with the black energy coiled around it turned towards the front—.
Kwaaang—!
“Huh!”
It collided with the black magic that had rushed up to its nose, sending out strong shock waves in all directions.
“Tsk, I was thinking of cutting off the shoulder. I guess I’m not used to this.”
A one-armed dark knight who mutters in discontent.
Hesperon frowned as he quickly retreated, adding the body strengthening auxiliary magic he had secretly prepared.
I managed to block the surprise attack, but the impact was greater than I expected, and my arm that had blocked the attack began to tremble.
To begin with, because black magic itself was such an aggressive energy, his “Right Arm of Longing”, which was also specialized in attack, was unable to offset all the impact.
‘Is it true that even a rotten tooth is a good tooth?’
It seems that the Aura Hall was damaged and took in black magic instead…
Even though he was a strong player who was ranked high in the extreme level, his adaptation period probably wasn’t that long, and yet his power was incredible.
‘It’s clear that they’re weaker than before, so I think I might be able to hold out. The problem is those guys.’
At that moment, several of the masked men surrounding him began to show signs of moving in sympathy with Stab.
Most were still holding their ground, blocking any escape routes, but any further interference in these dire circumstances was hardly good news.
‘「Footprints of the Hero」cannot be used yet. Then the only way to evade it is to unsummon it.’
It was only a short while ago that I sent Harley to Tarak to hunt revolutionaries, let her cool down, and then sent her back south.
However, since the “Summon Otherworldly Transmission Circle” still had more than a day of cooldown left, I was reluctant to unsummon it carelessly.
While he was thinking about how to respond.
-Heron? Is there a problem?
Riley’s signal was transmitted through the “Chain of Oath”, ignoring the barrier installed by the Masked Ones to block teleportation and communication.
He seemed very worried, as if he had vaguely sensed something from the violent clash that had occurred a little while ago.
-Ah! Riley. We’re in trouble here!
And Hesperon.
Without a moment’s hesitation, I quickly told her about my current situation.
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‘Riley is a party to this too, so of course she should know! I was the one who got caught up in this.’
The attack occurred as soon as she left, and judging by what Stave had said, the goal was to take Hesperon hostage.
Then isn’t it obvious what their intentions are?
-Stab is there?
Her voice grew cold as she heard the whole story so quickly.
A cold demeanor that had never been shown to Hesperon before.
-So, you’re saying that guy wasn’t dead, but alive?
-Uh… His body was pretty badly injured, but he’s still alive.
-Ha! ···This is embarrassing. I thought I had it under control, but there are still rats hiding. Well, if you think about it, it hasn’t been that long since I took the initiative, so maybe that’s natural. ···There’s a lot to deal with in the future.
Apparently she knew that Stab was already dead.
A trick to sneak in while interrogating a guy who was hiding in an unofficial location to vent his anger, and then taking advantage of the gap created when his power suddenly grew.
Riley’s annoyed sigh flowed in from the other end of the connection.
-But Heron, are you really okay? Stab being there…
Then suddenly, she asked urgently in a worried voice.
No matter how much your body is damaged, the level you have achieved will never go away.
Moreover, had she not personally seen Hesperon barely escape from the man, barely surviving?
Because of that, not only did he develop problems with his eyes and arms, he also had to be hospitalized for a while, so it was natural to be worried.
-Well, that’s it.
And in his response to that concern:
-Contrary to expectations, it’s bearable…?
There was a sense of confidence that was out of place in the situation.
***
Wedge-shaped—
Stab rushed in with fierce momentum.
I felt it when we first encountered it, but it was still dangerous to confront it head-on.
‘Then just don’t confront it head on.’
The bracelet on Hesperon’s arm gave off an ominous glow.
His reflexes surge past their limits as if he’s going wild.
It was an item with a curse as deadly as the one he had used before, but he had no hesitation in using it.
‘Wow, this is awesome.’
Because the “cursed predator” he possessed was devouring them all and turning them into his own power.
But it was impossible to shake off the dark knight who had reached a high level with just that.
A sword imbued with black magic flew in front of his nose in an instant.
Kwachang—!
It shattered the shield that appeared in the air just before the impact, failing to cut through his body and leaving only a shockwave.
“Ugh!”
Hesperon, caught in the aftermath, flew backwards and frowned.
The shock of having my insides flipped over made my stomach churn, but it was much better than being cut directly by that vicious knife.
Having gained a brief moment of respite from Stave’s pursuit, he lightly snapped his fingers again.
Dozens of black threads materialized in an instant, vaguely reflecting in the air, and his body quickly rose upward as if it had been pulled by something.
“Ugh— Again! You’re bothering me! This clown!”
Stab, who had missed his chance this time as well, gnashed his teeth and swung his sword nervously.
Contrary to Stave’s feelings, Hesperon sighed in relief as he watched the protective ring disintegrate into dust after its usefulness had been exhausted.
‘Phew, this was a close call.’
Shh—
Every time you move your fingers, some of the energy scattered in all directions appears like a thread and pulls at your body.
It gave him not only speed, but also a variety of movements that allowed him to fly through the air at will.
‘Mobility using the lurking and materialization of the curse. This is the first time I’ve used it properly in real combat, but it’s taking up more mental power than I thought.’
From the beginning, the curse was an unrivaled ability in terms of secrecy.
Since it is not a physical entity, it cannot be broken by normal means, and even if the curse hidden in the air is removed with powerful energy, it can be continuously restored by the “Right Arm of Longing” if given just a short period of time.
‘You can somehow endure that brief moment with magic tools and status.’
In addition, the curses that are consumed little by little in the process can be refilled with magical tools.
‘It was worth it to work hard and secretly from the beginning.’
A little time given in a limited space.
This place was already a spider’s web he had woven with curses.
Of course, if it was a great magic that blew up an entire area at once, it would be a little dangerous, but since there was no great magician of that level here, there was no need to worry too much.
‘Here you go again.’
At that moment, Hesperon’s gaze turned to the side.
Although he was able to briefly shake off Stave with his superior mobility, he was not the only enemy he had in the first place.
Sigh!
As if predicting the path of movement, the masked man suddenly appeared and swung his sword.
He didn’t know he could do this, so he was more proactive than before, as if he had left it up to Stab.
‘But with an opponent like this…’
From the beginning, curses were fundamentally extremely aggressive and harmful in nature.
What I’m saying is that applying it as mobility like now is just an additional benefit.
The masked man is right in front of you.
He extended his right hand towards her.
He just clenched his fist.
“······!”
And at the same time.
Around the bastard, hundreds of black threads connected to his hand took shape.
And then.
Phew!
In an instant, it tightened towards the center and scattered a puddle of blood mist.
A curse that not only materializes physical power, but also drastically reduces resistance and defense.
It was a technique close to a fatal blow against an opponent who had not built up tolerance through a certain level or a supernatural defense.
‘Of course, it consumes that much energy.’
Hwaruk—!
Immediately after taking that one life, the black flames that had been coiling around Hesperon’s arm took on a certain shape.
A long, snake-like body with a head that juts out toward the shoulder.
A black dragon with a pair of horns towering upwards and a lush mane bared its teeth in satisfaction, its sharp eyes widening.
As if one life were eating away the resentment it had harbored until the end.
“Inom—!”
“Eek.”
Kkwadduk—!
Kwaaang!
And Hesperon quickly flew away to avoid Stave’s black magic that was rushing in with terrifying momentum and destroying the area.
Again, while wearing a bunch of cursed magical tools supplied by “Avatar Cloud”.
-Heron, are you sure you’re okay? Can’t you teleport like you did back then? No, I guess it’s better for me to go back…
At that moment, Riley’s voice, which had been cut off for a moment due to her concentration on the battle, was heard again.
That soft voice, as if it had never once had a murderous atmosphere, was filled with only worry and anxiety.
-No, if the representative does that, things will look weird. It’s okay for now. I guess I’ve grown a lot more than I thought. Maybe I can get out of this on my own?
As expected, it was worth it to drink the 『Growth Potion (7 days) (200,000)』 regularly whenever the time came.
How wonderful is capitalism, where even the most overwhelming differences can be replaced by reality?
Long live the Karma Shop.
-Whew— You said that location was the slums in the southeastern part of Jeron?
-Huh? Uh… But.
-Don’t try to force yourself to get out on your own. Just focus on holding on as long as you can. I’ll send someone soon.
But what brought back Hesperon’s confidence was Riley’s firm voice.
-As expected, they should have all been swept away a long time ago···.
After that, he thought he heard a murderous sound, but he was too busy dealing with Stab who had chased after him to notice it.
‘The growth speed is amazing because it has the effect of a leap and is accompanied by actual combat!’
I was too busy worrying about my skills increasing in real time to care about such trivial things.
