novelraw Chapter 118 : Chapter 118
Chapter 118 : Chapter 118
Chapter 118: The Overwhelming One, Bakan (4)
Drenbalk, warrior of the Thunderbear Tribe.
Wielding a massive axe, his strength was second only to Bakan in the Kandahr Tribe.
No warrior could defeat him except Bakan, and without Hardan’s monstrous presence, Drenbalk would have claimed the title of Bakan.
But he had submitted to Hardan, becoming his right hand, annihilating all in his path as a vanguard.
It was a kind of inferiority complex, a desire to prove he was more suited for Bakan’s role.
He believed no one, except Hardan, could best him in strength.
But the world was far broader than he thought.
This kind of strength, even past his prime…
He was stunned that a human from the kingdom, which he had dismissed as weak, could match him in raw power.
“Not bad. To think an old man like you exists in this frail kingdom.”
“Old man? This body’s still in its prime!”
A surge of even greater strength erupted from Duke’s arms, pushing Drenbalk’s axe back slowly.
“Oh?”
Intrigued by Duke’s power, Drenbalk prepared to counter with force.
But their power struggle didn’t last long.
This was a battlefield.
Thunderbear warriors, seizing Duke’s distraction, swung axes from both sides.
“Hup!”
Duke quickly withdrew his hands, dodging the axes.
Seeing this, Drenbalk roared at his warriors in rage.
“Who asked for your help?!”
“It’s not that…”
“Shut up! No one interferes in my fight!”
At Drenbalk’s command, the surrounding warriors backed off.
“Anyone who meddles in our fight gets cut down.”
An invisible arena formed around the two, and the Thunderbear warriors stayed out.
With their stage set, Drenbalk planted his axe in the ground and beckoned to Duke.
“No interruptions. Come at me. I want to taste your strength properly.”
“You’re crazier than I thought. Fine, let’s do this right!”
They charged at each other head-on.
Two men who had never met their match in raw strength.
Testing each other’s power, their fists collided directly.
Boom!
The mere clash of their fists sent a shockwave, kicking up clouds of dust.
Both marveled at the other’s unyielding strength.
If I’d met this old man in his prime, how incredible would he have been…!
It’s like seeing myself in my youth.
Acknowledging each other’s strength, neither believed they would lose.
But gradually, Drenbalk began to push Duke back, forcing him to retreat step by step.
At least, until Duke spoke.
“One question. Were you really going to kill the kids too?”
“That’s what you care about now? Yes! I was going to slaughter every last one.”
“I see…”
At that answer, Duke’s retreating feet rooted into the ground like an ancient tree.
Drenbalk flinched, staring at his opponent.
What’s this? His aura suddenly…
A murderous intent, previously absent, radiated from Duke, so intense it sent chills down even Drenbalk’s battle-hardened spine.
Duke had been quietly building his rage while being pushed back.
“Then I trust you’re prepared to die.”
“What nonsense…”
At that moment, Duke’s muscles bulged explosively, and his overwhelming power crashed into Drenbalk.
“Urgh!”
The hand that had been losing ground now pressed down like a massive boulder, and Drenbalk barely avoided the humiliation of falling to his knees.
But the balance of power had shifted.
Duke advanced slowly but fiercely, overpowering Drenbalk, who gritted his teeth and struggled desperately.
This human… Was he hiding his strength all along?!
Drenbalk had given his all, yet Duke still had reserves.
Seizing the momentum, Duke pressed forward relentlessly, while Drenbalk tried to shake him off, to no avail.
Like a worm crushed under a rock, he suffered abject humiliation.
“Grrr!”
Breathing heavily, Drenbalk summoned explosive strength from his muscles.
But Duke, with a calm face, countered with even deeper, stronger force, crushing him.
“What are you waiting for? Didn’t you want to taste my strength? Feast on it!”
Pure, unadulterated strength, untainted by Qi or tricks.
The kingdom’s mightiest strongman brought the Kandahr’s top strongman to his knees.
Thud!
It was unbelievable.
Drenbalk, who had never lost a contest of strength, even against wild bears, knelt for the first time before a human of the kingdom in a pure test of power.
The Kandahr warriors watching froze in shock and horror.
“Chieftain!”
“Lord Drenbalk…”
Gazing coldly at the stunned warriors, Duke spoke in a low, resonant voice to the kneeling Drenbalk.
“Understand, pup? The world is vast, and there are plenty stronger than you. So don’t get cocky again.”
“Don’t make me laugh! No one but Bakan can defeat me!”
Enraged, Drenbalk forcibly shook off Duke’s arm and raised his massive fist.
But Duke already saw his next move clearly.
Drenbalk now reminded Duke of his younger self.
A brash, ignorant time when he thought strength alone could solve everything.
But someone had broadened his perspective.
Mikhail Reverk, the Weapon Master.
Though far inferior in strength and Qi, Duke had never beaten him.
He was beyond strength.
The pinnacle of technique showed another kind of power.
Through his teachings, Duke learned flexibility, depth, and true strength.
You’re like I was, drunk on strength, thinking it could solve everything. But the world isn’t that simple!
Duke deflected Drenbalk’s fist with his elbow, using its momentum to land a cold, precise punch.
Thwack!
Drenbalk’s fist missed completely.
Seizing the opening, Duke’s punch slammed into his abdomen like a cannon.
Thud!
“Urgh!”
Duke didn’t just overpower with strength.
Having honed martial arts his entire life, he perfectly blended power and technique, a top-tier fighter in both realms.
Thud! Thud!
His relentless barrage, swift as the wind, was anything but light.
Though Drenbalk’s bear-like physique was formidable, he was still human, and the critical blows to his organs wracked his body with pain.
“Guh!”
Clenching his teeth to stifle his cries, Drenbalk’s body instinctively recoiled.
Step!
The Kandahr’s vanguard retreated for the first time.
He himself was shocked to realize he had stepped back.
“What? Scared of getting hit? Why not trust that vaunted muscle and take it?”
“You… you…”
A humiliation he’d never experienced.
Even kneeling to Hardan hadn’t felt this degrading.
He had accepted that defeat as natural, given Hardan’s overwhelming strength.
But to be bested by a kingdom human, in the strength he prided himself on, and then thoroughly crushed, was an unbearable disgrace.
“Shut your mouth!”
Finally, Drenbalk yanked his massive axe from the ground.
“The fun’s over! I’ll kill you!”
He swung the brutal axe with rage and killing intent.
At that moment, he had effectively admitted defeat in their strength contest.
But it didn’t matter.
If he killed his opponent and survived, that was true victory in his mind.
Now the real fight begins!
Duke tried to deflect the axe with his fists, but the heavy weapon wasn’t something mere strength could repel.
Is it made entirely of black iron…? He’s not just swinging it with brute force.
Duke focused Qi into his fists, unleashing an explosive punch.
Clang!
The axe was momentarily knocked back, but Drenbalk used the recoil’s centrifugal force to swing again.
Duke gauged the distance and stepped back to avoid the axe’s reach.
At that moment, Drenbalk slid his grip to the end of the handle, extending its range.
Slash!
The extended attack caught Duke, slicing him.
“Ugh!”
A deep gash across his chest threw Duke off balance.
Seeing this, Drenbalk grinned triumphantly.
“Don’t feel too bitter. Look around. Your end is coming, sooner or later.”
While the two focused on their duel, the kingdom’s forces were steadily dwindling under the Kandahr’s numerical superiority.
Their retreat was also blocked.
Worse, the Red Dog Tribe’s feral dogs were closing in from the north.
Completely surrounded, Duke and the kingdom’s forces sank into deep despair.
Even from the south, the sound of galloping hooves grew louder.
Naturally, they assumed it was enemy reinforcements.
Even if I have to sacrifice myself, I’ll ensure the academy people escape!
Just as Duke steeled himself for death, Drenbalk, facing him, sensed something odd and turned around.
“What’s that?”
The approaching cavalry, kicking up dust, looked entirely different from their own.
They were even flying the kingdom’s flag.
“Those bastards, could it be?!”
As Drenbalk faltered, a figure at the cavalry’s forefront swung a sword from horseback.
Crack!
A massive sword aura tore through the earth, cleaving Kandahr warriors in one stroke.
The aura struck Drenbalk’s axe directly.
“Ugh!”
The powerful impact staggered Drenbalk, throwing off his stance.
“The duke?!”
At Drenbalk’s words, Duke turned as well, his face breaking into a smile of uncontainable joy.
“Evan!”
With Duke’s cry, everyone from Lansed Academy turned toward the figure.
“Is that really Evan?”
“He’s alive?”
They stared in disbelief at Evan’s arrival.
Leaping from his horse, Evan soared through the air, kicking Drenbalk’s axe hard and landing before him.
Thud!
As all eyes, friend and foe, focused on him, Evan smiled calmly and nodded to Duke.
“Long time no see, Dean.”