novelraw Chapter 23 : My Blade is Equal to All (3)
Chapter 23 : My Blade is Equal to All (3)
Chapter 23 - My Blade is Equal to All (3)
There was no reason for either of them to wait.
Snap.
Go-eun snapped her fingers. Flames shot up from her pipe like a waterspout.
The flames rose high enough to nearly touch the ceiling. Immediately after, they laid down horizontally and transformed into a single fire arrow.
And its target was.
“......!!”
Of course, it was Lee Taebaek.
Snap–!
She snapped her fingers once more. The fire arrow shot forward with a fierce momentum, as if released from a bowstring.
SWOOOOSH!
Lee Taebaek reflexively stomped down hard with his front foot. A loud bang and the creaking sound of wood grain splitting.
The wooden floorboards, breaking free from the screws that held them down, shot up vertically. The snakes of dust and sawdust that had collected underneath were swept up with them.
It was an instant.
The fire arrow, which had been flying toward the space between his eyes, stopped abruptly in mid-air. It had been blocked by the shield.
'It's too early to be relieved.'
This wasn't just a fire arrow. It was magic.
And a highly refined Samadhi True Fire, at that. He knew well that it wouldn't end here.
He pressed himself against the cover. He curled up his body, as if bringing his ribs to his chest. He had to get even lower.
It was to prepare for the explosion.
His prediction was spot on.
KWAAAAAAAANG–!!
The blocked fire arrow seethed in place, then exploded. The single flame split left and right, centered on the floorboard. Its firepower was enough to make you curse.
Sizzle.
The edges of the shield were scorched bright red. Then, it finally began to char black.
'This is what you call 'controlling your strength'?!'
He had narrowly escaped the flames. It was literally as if a bomb had gone off an inch in front of him.
His hands were sweating. It could have been a cold sweat, or it could have been from the heat. But the immediate problem wasn't something like that.
“Your reaction speed is pretty good.”
Go-eun smiled with the lips holding her pipe. An expression of delight.
Fuck, she's smiling? She's fucking smiling after she almost killed me?
“Are you trying to burn down your own shop?”
“Thanks for worrying about my meager belongings, but let's worry about your own body first. I'm aiming for a test that's like a real battle.”
I want to see that pretty face of hers crumple. An impulse close to murderous intent shot up his throat.
He had never lost his cool, not even against the most beautiful woman in the province, Team Leader Seo. That was the kind of person Lee Taebaek was. Sticking a knife in a beautiful woman with equal fairness was no big deal. Lee Taebaek was a man who was more than capable of doing so.
What's more, she had tried to kill him. She said she was controlling her strength, but one wrong move and he would have been a rotisserie chicken.
In a situation where the nightmare of the electric chair hadn't even faded.
Double wicks were lit in his eyes. A crimson glint like a neon sign in the dead of night. His hostility immediately translated into action. He poured a handful of killing intent into the hand gripping the sword.
Grip.
He wanted to grip the sword with both hands, but he had no free hand. He would have to carve his blade into her with the strength of his right hand alone.
But don't get swept up in emotion.
Be brave, but suppress your recklessness.
'The more the situation calls for it, the more calmly I must observe.'
In a fight of pure skill, I'm no match for her.
The woman has yet to go all out.
I have to save [Bullet Time] as much as possible.
'First, I'll draw out more of her moves.'
Save the trump card for the very end.
Soon, his momentary train of thought ended.
It was at the same time the floorboard turned to ash and crumbled away. He straightened his bent back.
Kwa-gwang!
Next, he kicked off the ground as if pushing it away. He pulled his body from what 'had been' his cover. With that, he moved, maintaining a certain distance from his opponent, as if circling to her flank. In every spot he brushed past, wooden planks stood up in a row.
A shadow fell over Go-eun's face. She scanned the instantly created wooden wall with quick eyes.
Her cherry-like lips pursed into an 'o'. Inwardly, she was marveling at Lee Taebaek's actions.
'So he's a strategist?'
The first attack was to gauge Lee Taebaek's ability to respond. He had brilliantly overcome it as if to show off.
'It was an attack meant to induce an evasion, but to think he would use the floor as a makeshift wall. He's more than what I heard.'
It was groundbreaking. There had been quite a few test subjects until now, but Lee Taebaek was the first to react like this.
The test subject's fighting power, how long they can last against a strong enemy, and the level of their underlying strength when they give it their all. That was the purpose of this test.
Lee Taebaek was a man who fit those three objectives perfectly.
This one's the real deal.
His reaction speed was a given, and as a bonus, his mind worked exceptionally fast.
Jji-rit.
Killing intent pierced through the wooden wall and stabbed into her skin. It felt as if magma were boiling on the other side.
Shudder.
This is the same guy I just saw.
And yet, faced with a killing intent as if confronting a mortal enemy, she felt her pores shrink on their own.
'If I get rid of one of the barriers, he'll stab me from a blind spot, won't he?'
That handsome face, like someone from the White Path, but with the cunning of a snake, is that of the Black Path.
And that's not all.
That attitude of being determined to kill any enemy he sets his sights on was the model of a Demonic Cultist.
He was nothing less than a talent that encompassed the righteous, the evil, and the demonic.
Go-eun smiled, a look of excitement on her face. The man who had appeared out of nowhere had soothed her, who was weary with boredom.
“For once, the Commander-in-Chief has sent a proper one.”
At some point, a formation of wood had formed around her. It was as if she were trapped in a cage woven from wood.
“My plan was to check him out from the ground up, but it seems I'll have to show off my skills.”
Samadhi True Fire. A trick that any mage should be able to use. For a spell used by a mage who has reached a high level, it's an incredibly unremarkable magic.
Within the Kergel Mage Tower, it had long since been relegated to something for lighting cigarettes. However,
Go-eun used the principles of restriction in reverse.
A basic magic that no one even glances at.
By placing the restriction on herself of using 'only' that magic, she raised its firepower beyond its limits.
The power of the Samadhi True Fire squeezed out in this way is, one by one, comparable to a hand grenade.
The paradox where the more the caster is cornered, the more the explosive power skyrockets. This was the secret of magic and restrictions.
But she wouldn't be Go-eun if she were limited to just that.
She was one of the most promising mages even within the Mage Tower, which was teeming with all sorts of monsters.
Shhhk.
Go-eun took out the pipe she had been holding firmly in her mouth. Using the pipe as a brush, she drew a cross. The character was written in the air, one stroke at a time, with smoke.
Fwoosh...!
Ten fireballs began to float up around her. They looked like flower buds the size of baseballs.
“Still, I've lowered the output to about seventy percent of the original. Even if you get caught in it, you won't die, it'll just end with a burn.”
“...Crazy bastard...”
The voice flowed from beyond the wooden wall.
“My, my, look who's talking.”
Go-eun just smiled and brushed it off.
“Besides, once you've stepped onto the Demonic Path, you can't survive with a sane mind. You don't get it? It's fine. I'll teach you, little by little.”
The restriction that even she herself could be caught in the spell. Its power was almost that of dynamite.
Ta-ak!
One of the fireballs opened its heart and bloomed wide. One blossom. Then another in succession.
Five fireballs bloomed one by one. The flames blossomed in full glory, scattering like petals in a spring breeze.
“I might have overdone it a bit. But what can I do, I'm in a good mood. Since it's come to this, we might as well enjoy the flower viewing.”
It's not Samadhi True Fire.
Samadhi True Flower is more fitting.
BOOM!
After that, it was a series of explosions.
BOOM! BA-ROOOOM–! KRACK!
The flames tore the wooden walls to shreds. The formation made of wooden planks went beyond burning and was starting to melt.
The glasses on the bar table couldn't withstand the heat and burst. A miniature version of hell unfolded in Eunko Bar.
“Hahaha! Good. This is a good chance to change the furniture anyway!”
Thanks to the demon of fire, Go-eun's line of sight was cleared. But his figure was nowhere to be seen.
'In that case.'
Go-eun simply tilted her neck to avoid the blade stabbing from behind. If Samadhi True Fire was the foundation of magic, then a surprise attack from a blind spot was the textbook of assassination.
“Predictable.”
“I know.”
Lee Taebaek flicked his wrist-, changing the blade's trajectory to an upward slash.
Go-eun leaned back slightly and took a step back.
Swish.
The blade only managed to sever a few strands of her hair.
He let out a short breath. The seam between movements. He would shorten that gap. By buffing [Strength] and [Agility], it was possible to pull back the blade that had reached its apex.
Skng!
He pulled, as if slicing diagonally. This time, she thrust her pipe into the path of the falling blade.
Kiiiiik!
Sparks flew as the blade and the pipe clashed.
Go-eun's lips curved. Feints and variations, and above all, a tenacious persistence.
I like it.
“You know what people get wrong?”
In the middle of the standoff, Go-eun casually rolled her eyes back. Lee Taebaek was frozen in the posture of having pulled back his blade.
“The misconception that just because a mage gave up martial arts, their dynamic visual acuity also disappeared. The losing move usually comes from there.”
“......”
Hooo.
She exhaled slowly. Smoke, carrying her laughter, washed over Lee Taebaek's face.
Her finger moved. It looked like she was about to snap it, just like before.
“Confronting me head-on was a misjudgment. Still, you pass the test. I'll accept you as a boarder at Eunko Ba—.”
Lee Taebaek had no free hand, so he used his foot. His back foot shot up toward Go-eun's hand.
But unfortunately, her hand moved faster than his kick.
Ttak.
The five floating blossoms of flame were molded into the shape of fire arrows.
Immediately after, the fire arrows shot down like meteors.
Exposed to danger, Lee Taebaek lowered his kick. If he kept his leg extended, he would be defenseless.
Fortunately, his muscles were extremely elastic. Perhaps because his level had gone up, his athletic performance was excellent.
'Now is the time for the umbrella, which I've been stubbornly gripping in a reverse hold, to show its true value.'
It was impossible to block all the attacks pouring in from all sides. The saving grace was that four of the five were approaching from behind.
'I can block them with the Para-Blade.'
I just have to do something about one of them. Just one.
There was no time to dodge. He had to strike it down with his sword.
But was that as easy as it sounds?
It wasn't. It was close to impossible.
Unless, that is, he could freeze time.
'Right.'
He just had to suspend the flow of time.
The woman wouldn't have any immediate means to counter it. For instance, due to the spatial constraints, and as she said, her control over her power.
'Now is the right time to pull out my last resort.'
There was no time to delay.
The moment he showed his killing hand, the woman would strike back immediately. Ceding the first move to someone stronger was what a stupid bastard would do.
Lee Taebaek closed his eyes, then slowly opened them halfway. His pupils, half-hidden by his eyelashes, glistened like glass beads.
[Operator activates Bullet Time.]
A flash of light in his brain spread to the tips of his toes.
[Spinal stimulation. Nervous system is accelerating.]
His spine, where nerves were densely packed, tingled.
[Duration: 8 seconds. Perceived Speed: 0.6x.]
His concentration gathered tightly to a single point.
Lee Taebaek opened his mouth, his voice low.
“You know what else people get wrong?”
After all, the best revenge.
“Is seeing a desperate expression and thinking the fight is over. Without even knowing that's the moment you let your guard down.”
Is to return their own words.
[Time Limit: ●●●●●●●●●]
Lee Taebaek swung his sword. The afterimage attached to the arc of his arm trailed like a continuous series of pictures.
Go-eun's eyes went blank. The man's movements and her perception did not match.
[Time Limit: ●●●●●●●●◐]
In the instant the thermal gradient, which had started at red, changed to violet, the final color of the rainbow.
The blade, gliding forward, precisely split the fire arrow, and at the same time, the umbrella spread its folded mouth wide.
BOO-OM– BOOOOOO– OOOOM–.
The sound of the explosions followed, stretched out long like a rubber band. Around the time the fifth explosion roared.
[Time Limit: ●●●●●●●○○]
Slender fingers rushed into his field of vision. A time-honored grappling technique of the martial world.
It was Qinna.
It was an unexpected attack she hadn't anticipated, and her hand had moved unconsciously. She too was a martial artist.
[Time Limit: ●●●●●◐○○○]
WHACK!
Lee Taebaek kicked Go-eun hard in the chest.
I'm finally getting my revenge for that failed kick.
She clutched her solar plexus and was pushed back. He couldn't miss this opening.
After throwing the Para-Blade, Lee Taebaek grabbed her retreating hand, interlocking their fingers.
[Nerfing the opponent's stats.]
With her hand caught, she staggered—, her balance broken.
Crr-ack.
Go-eun's fingers were bent back beyond their range of motion. Her five fingers were mangled.
[Time Limit: ●●◐○○○○○○]
[Neural acceleration stimulates the mind.]
Snap!
He broke her remaining fingers like chalk. Go-eun looked more dazed than in pain.
This must be a first for her.
Then this must be a first, too.
Splat!
Clotted blood splattered onto Lee Taebaek's cheek.
Once more.
The woman's back arched like a shrimp.
Her eyes rolled back from the gut-wrenching pain.
With her fingers bound, she couldn't even dodge.
[Time Limit: ◐○○○○○○○○]
He withdrew the fist he had shoved into her solar plexus.
The woman, her hand still held, collapsed to her knees.
[Time Limit: ○○○○○○○○○]
[Bullet Time has ended.]
He looked coldly at his blood-soaked fist. Then he let go of her hand and shook the blood off.
......
“And that's how it happened.”
“......”
Her hands were wrapped in bandages like sausages. Kang Hyunseong was listening to the story from Go-eun, who was lying in a hospital bed.
“His attacks were so fierce. I almost really got my solar plexus shattered, you know!”
“...So you're saying you lost? You?”
“It wasn't a life-or-death battle, so I didn't use my full power.”
Go-eun's smile was bright and cheerful.
“But letting my guard down was the cause of my defeat. So I lost.”
“No… what is this situation, haah.”
On the other hand, Kang Hyunseong's expression was strange. And no wonder; it was a story to which he couldn't choose a reaction.
“...Taebaek, I'm calling him back to headquarters.”
“No.”
Go-eun said firmly.
“That kid, I'm going to try raising him.”
“What......? You're going to live under the same roof with the kid who did that to you? Have you finally gone mad?”
“Compared to the scuffles between demonic people, this is just a bit of skinship. More importantly, I was the one who first used a killing technique...”
“Killing technique?”
“No, I was the one who used something like a killing technique.”
As Kang Hyunseong shot her a sharp glare, Go-eun tried to gloss it over. The sighs just wouldn't stop.
“Lighten up, my friend.”
“Friend, my ass.”
“In any case, I'm more comfortable this way too. A guy with a heavy hand is better than a guy who harbors insidious thoughts under the same roof.”
Kang Hyunseong covered his eyes. His frontal lobe throbbed. When he lowered his hand, he saw the white ceiling.
“Lee Taebaek… what in the world are you......”
Those were the only words that came out.