Chapter 69: Vitalianus vs. Atawolf

The dazzling golden aura cleaved through the Black Mist.

The solid shell shattered, finally revealing the fierce battle raging within.

An inflexible knight and a peculiar mage.

And…

“An old, detestable friend.”

A massive energy burst forth explosively from Vitalianus’s body.

It was a deadly intent so intense that the golden mane of the lion whipped mercilessly, and his eyes were dyed a shimmering gold.

–

Vitalianus.

Atawolf’s gaze likewise fixed on Vitalianus.

–

Yes. Still the same. That disgusting golden glow.

His eyes shifted past Vitalianus to what lay behind him.

–

Still the same, Vitalianus.

In the distance, the approaching knights came into view—those called the Royal Knights.

Countless people cautiously following behind them.

You’re still a hero, still held in high regard. Yes.

A dark murderous intent flickered in Atawolf’s eyes as well.

It was not the calm demeanor he had shown against Hio but a flood of strong excitement and hatred.

“Don’t think you can fool around, Atawolf.”

That gaze, that hatred, was blocked by a golden aura.

“Fooling around? Yes. When I do it, it’s fooling around. When you do it, it’s heroic.”

KWAANG!

Golden aura clashed against the Black Mist.

The sound was louder than before.

The tension was immense—a collision of titanic forces.

Atawolf too fought with all his strength against Vitalianus.

The area of the mist shrank, focusing the force that met Vitalianus’s sword head-on.

KWAANG!

Of course, there was another knight he had to face.

…Annoying…!

Theodore swung his sword, spewing deathly aura in torrents.

A death knight returned stronger, powered by the thick morale.

KWAANG!

Though he couldn’t break through the absolute shield protecting Atawolf directly, it was enough to irritate him.

He had to constantly keep an eye on Theodore and maintain the mist barrier.

Still, killing Theodore was impossible.

He was already a dead knight.

No matter how many times he was killed, that damn Hio Pavlenko resurrected him again.

“This stubborn bond might end today, don’t you think, Atawolf?”

Vitalianus spoke while calmly parrying the mist.

“Heh heh heh.”

Atawolf chuckled.

“Yeah. You’re still arrogant. Deciding everything your way, even that.”

KWAANG!

“I decide. Since it started because of me, I must be the one to end it.”

KWAANG!

“That’s arrogance and that’s annoying, Vitalianus.”

KWAANG!

Massive bursts of power erupted nonstop.

Among them, Theodore’s black aura struck while looking for openings.

KWAANG!

Relentless series of devastating blows.

Golden aura breaking through the mist, the sticky fog clinging tightly and slipping through gaps.

KWAANG!

A clash of powers.

The earth trembled and the sky quaked.

“Damon, stop doing pointless things.”

***

Without looking back, Melissa spoke, and Damon smiled his usual smile.

“Hahaha. The budding young ones are curious. It won’t hurt to let them know this much.”

“You create problems where there are none, Damon.”

Despite Melissa’s cold tone, Damon merely chuckled unconcerned.

“But well, I didn’t really have anything to say. You have to know something to speak.”

“You have no knowledge? I heard you single-handedly ended the war.”

Ten Royal Knights including Damon Lieefte.

Their first assigned mission was that.

Bring the Imperial Guardian Knight.

Since it was Sylvia’s first external order as the newly enthroned Empress, even a simple task like this required the Royal Knights and the Sword Saint to act personally.

To show that they recognized Sylvia as the new Empress.

And to announce to the world the still-strong imperial authority.

“Have you seen this new Guardian Knight they’re talking about?”

Damon asked Melissa, but she didn’t answer.

She’d grown tired of it.

Knowing she had already indulged in far more conversation than usual, Damon poked the knight beside him.

“Hm? Mathis. I heard he’s a bit of an eccentric… You don’t know either?”

Mathis, a knight significantly taller and bulkier than Damon, gave no reaction.

Still, Damon waited patiently, and after a while.

“…Nope.”

Mathis slowly shook his head.

Damon sighed deeply.

“Well, that’s a quicker answer than usual. Must be something good?”

Seeing Mathis about to drift back into thought, Damon quickly waved him off.

“No, this isn’t a question. You don’t have to answer!”

Mathis nodded slowly and moved on.

“Tch. Only weirdos gather together.”

The empire’s strongest military group led by the Sword Saint.

Despite not receiving titles, they are the most honorable knights serving only the Emperor and his commands.

‘What would people who think this way say?’

To Damon, they were nothing more or less than a group of eccentrics.

Take their captain, Sword Saint Vitalianus, for example—a sword-obsessed monster…

“Hurry up and come!”

“Yeah!”

Hoping this new Guardian Knight they were about to meet would be somewhat normal and obedient, Damon dashed off.

Ten Royal Knights.

***

Different in height, build, gender, personality, and ability, but one thing in common.

Strength.

KWAANG!

“…So that’s the sound of our captain fighting right now?”

Even they trembled at the roaring noise.

They felt the tremendous power contained within.

“There was a reason he ran off alone all of a sudden.”

The closer they got, the clearer the scene became—fierce beyond measure.

Black Mist covering the sky, streaked with flashes of golden aura.

KWAANG!

The powerful shockwave from the clash of forces.

“That Black Mist… I thought as much.”

They had heard from evacuating Academy students.

That the Black Mist had attacked.

And when Vitalianus had suddenly dashed off, they had doubted it at first.

There were few reasons for him to rush like that.

But the black mist shrouding the sky was undeniable.

The continent’s strongest—and worst—criminal.

Atawolf of the Black Mist had appeared.

“That is… the power called the strongest in the continent.”

When even Melissa muttered that, Damon couldn’t hold back any longer.

How could he stand by while the worst criminal he’d only heard about was right before his eyes?

How could he watch such a magnificent battle unfold without acting?

So.

“Hoo.”

Gripping the hilt of his sword at his waist, he lowered his stance.

Eyes closed softly, focusing his mind.

“…Damon, I clearly said don’t do pointless things…”

Melissa turned back to Damon, sensing something suspicious.

“Hah.”

Damon was already gone.

His brown hair, fiery with competitive spirit, suddenly appeared in the sky, right in the middle of the battlefield.

More precisely, right next to Atawolf in the Black Mist.

“Hahaha! So you’re Atawolf!”

Simultaneously, their quick draw swords flashed.

So fast it looked like a sudden burst of light.

Damon Lieefte.

A knight who mastered the ultimate Quick Draw Sword Technique and the Occupying the Rear skill.

A strong fighter who had almost never lost in one-on-one combat thanks to his tricky abilities and barely visible sword technique.

Therefore, it was extremely rare for his sword to be stopped…

KAANG!

But it was caught too easily by the Black Mist.

“Eh?”

Atawolf didn’t even glance his way.

The Black Mist clung to Damon’s leg like a bothersome insect.

“Ugh!”

He was violently thrown toward the distant ground.

Watching the rapidly approaching earth, Damon curled up, wrapping himself in a thick aura.

Tensing his muscles to brace for impact.

And then a quiet voice came.

“Feather Fall.”

His falling speed drastically slowed, and by the time he reached the ground, he softly sat down.

Damon dropped butt-first, looking bewildered.

“What was that?”

He looked around from that position.

Their eyes met.

Someone calmly watching from a rooftop high above.

He immediately recognized the figure.

Standing at the heart of the battlefield.

With a strange hat and an ornate staff.

That was…

“A weirdo.”

Clearly not normal.

“So the Royal Knights have arrived.”

It seemed the Sword Saint hadn’t come alone after all.

***

For whatever reason, they were heading to the Academy this late at night.

But this was a definite opportunity.

With the Royal Knights’ strength, they would surely help in battle.

It was the perfect chance to kill the heavyweight that was Atawolf.

And Atawolf felt it too.

These vermin keep crawling at me.

Before him stood the Sword Saint and Theodore, who constantly radiated a formidable aura.

And now the ten new Royal Knights.

Everything was irritating, but only two posed a direct threat.

Vitalianus, rippling with golden aura.

His charged golden spirit could cut through the mist and strike his body directly.

An opponent that allowed no room for carelessness.

And the other was…

Hio Pavlenko.

For some time now, Hio Pavlenko had remained motionless.

Beside him stood the Red-eyed Reaper. Its eerie presence constantly bothered him.

‘What were they plotting?’

The Reaper’s scythe had clearly pierced through the Black Mist, aiming at his neck.

Despite the mist being a concentrated force, it pierced through playfully.

Nothing had happened since.

But because of that, he was certain.

Hio Pavlenko was preparing something.

Through that otherworldly Reaper, preparing something huge.

His heart raced.

He had to disrupt that. Had to stop it.

The Sword Saint here seemed to have noticed as well, persistently clinging close.

“Where do you think you’re going? Leave the mage alone and come talk to me, Atawolf.”

…Vitalianus.

That attitude from the Sword Saint only strengthened Atawolf’s resolve.

He had to stop Hio Pavlenko first.

Those vermin below were not the problem.

The death knight wielding black aura was no great threat either.

The real threats were these two.

He knew the Sword Saint’s abilities well, but what was Hio Pavlenko preparing?

How could he watch this place with such a relaxed expression?

And what was the Red-eyed Reaper standing by his side aiming for?

Under the name of magic, what were they about to do?

Unable to guess, Atawolf poured all his strength into overwhelming Vitalianus with a powerful pressure.

KWAANG!

Using that power, he created distance.

It was a bit, no—very reckless, but it was the only way.

His instincts told him.

This was one of the rare life-threatening moments he’d faced.

“Hio Pavlenko.”

For an instant, the mist thickened.

The range expanded even further.

From Atawolf’s body boiled up the Black Mist.

Behind him, the spreading dark fog covered the entire sky.

“Did you think I wouldn’t notice your schemes?”

A low, sharp rumble tore through the space.

A grotesque and chilling voice, as if rising from hell, shook the air through the Black Mist.

Along with the growing presence of the mist’s power.

“Insane…”

Though it had been immense before, the swelling force left Damon staring in horror at the sky.

All the Royal Knights braced themselves, raising their tension to the utmost.

“Royal Knights, retreat!”

Vitalianus’s thunderous shout awakened their spirits.

A kind of sentence declaring they wouldn’t survive the escalating battle.

“Captain, but—!”

No further words were spoken. Retreat and handle the aftermath. Protect the Empire’s people. This place—

“Myself and the mage are enough.”

He said.

As if to prove it, Vitalianus further amplified his presence.

The energy rising behind him was so intense that the golden lion shape formed by the aura was none other than Vitalianus’s spirit.

His path—what he had upheld, passed through, and must continue.

With that confirmed, the Royal Knights had no choice but to withdraw.

Though their pride was hurt and their teeth ground in frustration, it was their first time experiencing such a thing.

Here, they were clearly the weaker side.

Amidst that, a grim voice pierced ears again.

“Hio Pavlenko. Stop now or ruin is all that awaits.”

A solid golden aura blocked that echo.

“Mage, continue without worry. Though I may be old, can I not protect even one of you?”

“To rely on the mage’s power? What happened to the Sword Saint’s honor?”

“If I could kill you, there’d be nothing I wouldn’t do. The mage has that much strength and value.”

The Black Mist squeezed out endless power, spreading to cover the night sky in overwhelming presence.

Against it, the golden lion’s aura blazed brilliantly.

A sharp golden sword pierced through the darkening space without hesitation.

And in this explosive moment—

“Haa…”

Hio quietly muttered, pressing a hand to his forehead.

“Why are they like this… damn it.”

They suddenly caused a commotion, even though he’d done nothing.