novelraw Chapter 108 : Chapter 108
Chapter 108 : Chapter 108
Chapter 108: Verbon Fortress (6)
“Everything doesn’t go according to plan.”
This was a belief Evan had held close since his past life.
Indeed, most of his strategies succeeded, but unforeseen variables sometimes threatened his life.
Thus, he never let his guard down.
‘Come. Come at me, all of you.’
Two levers, each opening one side of the gate.
Evan took one, and Gaiard the other.
To reach the levers, one had to pass through the stairs leading to each.
Evan and Gaiard defended their respective stair entrances, blocking the enemies’ charge.
The Rockturtle warriors surged up from below.
“Gaiard! Handle your side! It’s just two paths, so you can hold them, right?”
“Worry about yourself, not me! These guys are defense specialists.”
Unlike other tribes, the Rockturtle warriors carried shields in one hand.
“Simple attacks won’t pierce their shields.”
“Don’t worry about me. And I’m warning you—don’t use that power yet!”
“I know!”
Gaiard could dominate in chaotic melees, but he couldn’t reveal his identity to the Kandahr Tribe yet.
Thus, he had to fight using only his weapon and body.
‘Still, I can hold them. The gap in raw strength is clear.’
Evan swung his sword.
―Clang!
But the Rockturtle warrior’s buckler shield, boasting incredible durability, perfectly deflected Evan’s attack.
‘Tch, ridiculously tough.’
Evan swung again, this time infusing his blade with sword aura.
―Clang!
The shield-bearing warrior staggered, but the shield itself remained intact.
‘Black iron? If I try to shatter each one, I’ll tire out first.’
Evan targeted the legs, which the buckler couldn’t cover.
But…
‘Look at these guys?’
Warriors in the rear shielded their front comrades’ legs with their own bucklers.
Four shields moved as one, a perfect shield technique.
They organically protected each other, advancing steadily.
‘These guys… their shieldwork is no joke. Being this practiced means they’ve fought like this countless times.’
Truly befitting the Rockturtle name.
They climbed the stairs slowly, one step at a time.
When Evan tried to push a shield back with his foot, an axe flashed like lightning from the side.
‘I could leap up and stab their heads, but… they’ve likely planned for that.’
They might be aiming for that momentary opening.
‘But aren’t they mistaken? Even if they can block my sword aura, do they think they can fully absorb its force? That’s arrogant.’
Evan drew qi from his core.
The intangible energy flowed from his abdomen, through his arm, to the tip of his sword.
The aura emanating from the blade was now visibly clear.
“Hup!!!”
As Evan swung his sword widely, a powerful sword wave exploded outward.
This wasn’t a sharpened attack.
It wasn’t meant to cut the black iron bucklers, but to knock back the warriors behind them with the recoil.
―Boom!
Though the shields blocked it, the shockwave from the sword wave hit directly.
“Argh!!!”
The front Rockturtle warriors were pushed back, tumbling down the stairs.
Even those following lost balance and staggered.
Seizing the moment, Evan unleashed consecutive sword auras, slicing sharply into the stairs.
―Crunch!
Gaiard, who had been holding back enemies with brute force, cast a puzzled glance.
‘Why waste energy? Did he miss by mistake?’
Contrary to Gaiard’s thoughts, this was Evan’s precise intent.
“Climb back up!”
“Raaah!!!”
The warriors, regaining their footing, charged up the stairs boldly.
But as they tried to ascend, they slipped, losing balance.
“Ugh?”
Beneath their feet, deep grooves had been carved into the stairs by the sword wave.
‘An opening!’
Not missing this fleeting moment, Evan thrust his sword through the gap in their sturdy shield formation faster than anyone.
―Stab!
“Guh!”
Evan’s precise thrust halted the warriors’ advance.
While Evan pierced tiny gaps to dismantle their defense, Gaiard blocked enemies with sheer strength.
“Push!”
“Even stabbing doesn’t kill them!”
“Why won’t they die?”
Ignoring the stabs and slashes, Gaiard held the line with raw power.
Evan had only told him not to use ‘that power,’
but his regeneration wasn’t something he could control at will.
Still, he restrained his strength, pushing back enemies to buy time.
‘It’s working. Gaiard’s holding up. Just a bit longer, and the duke will arrive.’
Everything was going according to Evan’s plan.
But, as his long-held belief warned, not everything goes as planned.
―Rumble.
The sound of the gate closing.
Evan whipped around, startled.
He saw the lever moving on its own.
‘What? Are they closing it by force? Those brutes!’
The lever was a mechanical device designed to easily close the gate.
This meant closing the gate by pushing it directly was nearly impossible.
Yet the Rockturtle warriors were making the impossible reality.
They were trying to close the gate with sheer physical strength.
The massive gate was slowly being pushed shut.
‘If this happens, everything’s for nothing.’
Evan’s mind raced.
Making a split-second decision, he shouted to Gaiard.
“Gaiard! I’m going down. Hold at least one side!”
“What? What are you doing?”
“I’ll stop them down there! Please!”
With that, Evan leaped down the stairs.
“What the… Huh?”
Only then did Gaiard notice the lever moving on its own.
His expression hardened.
‘Damn, they’re planning to push it shut by force!’
He immediately grabbed the lever with one hand, holding it fast.
At that moment, warriors surged up the stairs.
But he remained calm.
Instead, he sneered, curling his lip.
“Is this all you’ve got? You’ll never get past me, even if you die and come back!”
If Evan held the gate, he only needed to hold here.
The answer was still simple.
At his words, the warriors roared and charged at Gaiard.
***
Evan leaped down the stairs.
The sight he witnessed was utterly absurd.
‘They’re actually pushing that with brute force.’
The Rockturtle warriors were using both arms to forcibly close the gate.
Seeing this, Evan gathered his strength to cut them down in one sweep.
At that moment, he felt a massive presence behind him.
Instinctively sensing danger, he unleashed a sword aura backward, not forward.
―Whoosh!
The horizontal sword aura shattered against two bucklers.
As the bucklers parted, Grumbak emerged from behind.
“You. Was the duel not enough? You’re courting death.”
Evan remained unshaken by his imposing aura.
“Me, die here? Sorry, that’s not in my plans.”
“Of course not. But your ignorance will cost you today!”
Grumbak wielded two bucklers on both hands.
‘Shield-based martial arts?’
It was a combat style that combined defense and offense.
The sturdy shields blocked enemy attacks like a wall, while also serving as weapons to pressure the opponent.
‘This feels familiar…’
Though this was his first time fighting the Rockturtle Tribe in this life, Grumbak’s shield technique felt strangely familiar.
Two shields.
An impeccable iron-wall defense with no gaps.
And at times, a sophisticated technique that moved the shields organically to create openings for counterattacks.
‘This is…?’
Before he could finish his thought, Grumbak swung his shield forcefully.
“Hrah!”
He struck Evan’s arm before he could swing his sword.
―Thwack!
Evan instantly spun his body to absorb the impact, leaping backward.
“Right. Now I get it.”
Evan realized the source of his déjà vu.
“Now I know why those twins used that shield technique.”
The twin shield soldiers he’d faced in Gaiard’s nightmare.
Their shield technique was identical.
The difference was that they used massive shields covering their entire bodies, while Grumbak used smaller bucklers.
“Your tribe was their origin. Or perhaps the other way around?”
Grumbak’s eyebrow twitched.
“What are you talking about?”
Evan smiled instead of answering and drove his sword into the ground.
He picked up two bucklers lying nearby.
His stance mirrored Grumbak’s.
Grumbak spoke in a rage-filled voice.
“What are you doing? Daring to mimic me?”
Evan secured the bucklers tightly and slowly assumed his stance.
“Yes. I’m not joking—I acknowledge your shield technique. It’d be hard to break with a sword.”
Right now, Evan had no time.
In Gaiard’s nightmare, he had endless chances to try, but now, he had only one.
Failure was not an option.
Thus, Evan chose a sure method.
‘Counter shield technique with shield technique.’
This was the confidence of Weapon Master Evan.
Unless the opponent was the world’s greatest master, the moment he wielded the same weapon, victory was assured—an absolute certainty born of that belief.
―Dash!
Evan, who had lived by that confidence, lunged at Grumbak’s lower body without hesitation.
“Not so fast!”
Grumbak slammed his shield downward.
But Evan instantly countered, striking upward.
“Guh!”
The two clashed fiercely.
―Clang clang clang!
The four bucklers collided, producing harsh metallic clangs.
Grumbak hid his shock, but inwardly, he was stunned.
‘This guy… he’s copying me. How is he mimicking my shield technique so perfectly after seeing it for the first time today?’
It wasn’t mere imitation.
Evan attacked faster, more efficiently, and more sharply.
‘At this rate, I’ll lose the flow. In that case…’
Grumbak clashed the bucklers, generating a shockwave.
―Boom!
As Evan was pushed back by the impact, Grumbak positioned himself with the gate at his back.
‘As long as I hold until the gate closes, that’s enough.’
Grumbak stood like an iron wall before the gate.
Now, whatever Evan tried at the gate, he’d have to get through him first.
“Come!”
Evan charged fearlessly.
Then, he suddenly threw the bucklers he was holding.
―Whoosh!
“Useless!”
Grumbak didn’t flinch as the bucklers flew toward him.
But Evan’s bucklers didn’t hit him—they sailed past.
Even so, Evan smiled leisurely.
“The thing the twins did better than you…”
In that moment, a chill ran down Grumbak’s spine.
“…was guarding their back.”
―Clang!
The buckler that flew backward struck the sword Evan had planted, redirecting its path.
And then,
―Crack!
It struck the back of Grumbak’s knee dead-on.
“Guh!”
The giant, who stood like a boulder, wavered.
“This petty trick won’t kill me!”
“I know.”
Grumbak maintained his shield stance, but Evan’s target wasn’t him.
Using Grumbak’s shield as a foothold, Evan lightly vaulted over him.
He yanked his sword from the ground and unleashed a sword aura in an instant.
Toward the warriors closing the gate.
“Dodge!”
Grumbak shouted, but it was too late.
Evan’s sword aura cut through the warriors blocking the way.
At the same time, the gate began to reopen.
Beyond it, the allied forces’ cavalry charged fiercely.
“By the way, I’m not the one who’ll kill you.”
At the forefront, Duke Heriel Theron held his sword high.