The Indomitable Martial King

Chapter 156

Eusus and Russ moved. With his long sword covered in blue aura, Russ stood calmly in front of Eusus.

“Brother…”

Eusus glanced at Repenhardt and then turned his head.

“…It seems you will be first.”

Although his grudge against Repenhardt was deep, Eusus’s top priority was the bastard in front of him, Russ, who had awakened his aura despite his lowly birth.

“This time, I will wash away the disgrace of our family!”

Eusus aimed the demon sword Eldran at Russ, his voice filled with murderous intent. Russ shook his head.

“As far as I can see, it is you who are the disgrace of our family now.”

Russ wore a complicated expression as he looked at the ‘brother’ he once respected and strove to be acknowledged by. The face of the once esteemed golden knight Eusus, now twisted by jealousy and malice, was unrecognizable.

What he saw was the face from his last memory, the one filled with vile desire as he thrust a sword into his stomach.

Russ sighed and muttered.

“Where has the proud brother who pursued chivalry gone?”

“Shut up!”

Eusus shouted, raising his sword.

“Awaken, Eldran!”

As he unleashed the power of the demon sword Eldran, Eusus simultaneously drew upon the strengthening magic from the armor Eldrad, enhancing his body. Russ tightened his grip on his sword with a tense face. Despite having awakened his aura, the golden knight of Graim, Eusus, was the only person capable of facing an aura user as a magic swordsman. There was no room for complacency.

“I will show you the true sword of Tenes!”

Grinding his teeth, Eusus charged at Russ. Russ also leaped forward, shouting his battle cry.

“Take this!”

The golden brilliance of Eldran clashed with the blue blade aura, filling the stone chamber with dazzling light. In the midst of this flash, Sillan swallowed hard.

“Gulp…”

His greatest concern at the moment was neither Repenhardt’s childhood friend nor Russ’s half-brother, nor even the strangely stronger Stefan who had reappeared after a few months.

What terrified him more than anything in the world was the large woman approaching him with a beaming smile.

“Sillan, this time I will rescue you from that evil!”

Christine’s statement went exactly as expected, and Sillan quickly hid behind Siris.

“I’m counting on you, Siris!”

“Alright, alright.”

Siris sighed, letting her scimitar hang loosely as she blocked Christine’s path. Christine drew her sword, her eyes blazing with fury.

“How dare a mere slave stand against one blessed by the gods? Know your place.”

“In the past, I wouldn’t have gotten angry, but hearing that now, it’s starting to piss me off.”

Siris smirked coldly, narrowing her eyes. A deadly glint appeared in her gaze. The two women, armed with icy determination, launched themselves at each other.

“My friend, Sylph! Protect my sword!”

“Seiya! Let your sword shine!”

The scimitar, enveloped in spirit power, clashed with Seiya’s holy sword, causing the air to ripple. Pure white light spread out, and a gust of wind swept through the cave.

Whoooosh!

Philena swiftly assessed the situation as she retreated from the wind blowing through the cavern.

‘I should support Stefan first…’

She was a mage, and a mage’s duty was to protect the warriors on the front lines while delivering critical blows. Philena smiled grimly at the large orc warrior fighting Stefan.

‘Teslon mentioned that orcs are especially vulnerable to magic, didn’t he? I’ll start with that one…’

Having chosen her target, Philena quickly began chanting a spell.

“Gel Tarn Illendi Phil, air of hell, descend upon this land! Become the spear that strikes my enemy! Hell’s Spear!”

At that moment, Sillan made the sign of the cross, immediately interrupting her spell.

“Philanence! Grant me a holy shield to oppose this evil power!”

A pink holy light appeared in the shape of a shield, intercepting Philena’s spell. The clash of magical and holy forces resulted in a loud explosion.

BOOM!

Amid the smoke, Philena clicked her tongue. She had heard plenty about Sillan from both Eusus and Russ. She knew well that he was a high-ranking priest not to be underestimated.

‘Tch, his holy power is indeed formidable.’

Sillan immediately began preparing a blessing spell for Siris and Tassid. Though it would be of little use to aura users like Repenhardt or Russ, his support spells could greatly empower those who had not awakened their aura, such as Tassid or Siris.

“Philanence, grant your servant the strength of a lion…”

Just as Sillan was about to begin his prayer, he was startled and quickly stepped back. A small explosion erupted in the spot where he had been standing. Philena had disrupted his prayer with a spell.

“Not so fast, young saint!”

“Damn it…”

Clicking his tongue, Sillan prepared to pray again.

“Philanence! Do something about that woman!”

It was a long time since he had uttered such an impudent prayer. Fortunately, the gracious Philanence interpreted his prayer and bestowed divine power upon him.

Woooong!

A pink hammer materialized in the air and flew toward Philena. However, a priest’s attack power was not significant. It was absolute against the undead, but the physical force itself was negligible. Philena easily blocked all the attacks by erecting a barrier with her magic power.

“Hehe, no matter how high-ranking you are, you’re still just a priest.”

Philena, eager to demonstrate the high offensive power of a mage, confidently prepared an energy bolt. She conjured five energy bolts and simultaneously launched them.

“Mass Energy Bolt!”

The energy bolts flew towards not only Sillan but also Repenhardt, Russ, Siris, and Tassid. Unlike Sillan, a priest, Philena, a mage, could target multiple foes simultaneously. However, this time, Sillan smirked.

“Hmph! Philanence! Protect your ‘servants’!”

A shield of holy light intercepted all the incoming energy bolts. While a priest’s offensive power might be limited, their defensive capabilities far exceeded those of a mage. Despite their different roles, Sillan, being a higher-ranking priest than Philena, could easily block her spells.

“Damn it!”

Philena clicked her tongue and glared at Sillan. Sillan, equally tense, glared back at her. Both were vulnerable in close combat, leaving them at an impasse, merely keeping each other in check and engaging in a fierce staring contest.

* * *

“Chain Energy Blast!”

Repenhardt shouted as he thrust both fists forward in rapid succession. The golden aura formed projectiles that carpet-bombed Teslon from all directions.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The explosions continued endlessly, causing the cave to tremble. However, Repenhardt frowned. Despite the relentless barrage of energy blasts, Teslon had effortlessly dodged all of them.

“Such a simple attack, Demon King! My Chain Energy Blast is not like this!”

Since the technique originally belonged to him, Teslon had already comprehended the trajectories and destructive range the moment it was activated. Repenhardt muttered in disbelief.

“You’re dodging well. They say there is no evasion in Gym Unbreakable.”

Gym Unbreakable taught that a true warrior should face all attacks head-on. Consequently, Repenhardt had only learned the most basic evasive maneuvers from Gerard. Yet, here was Teslon, dodging his attacks like a slippery eel.

Teslon replied with a bitter smile.

“I am a bit embarrassed about that part. This body is too fragile.”

In his previous life, Teslon had absorbed most attacks with his body. However, doing that with his current body would send him straight to the afterlife. Fortunately, Teslon had accumulated extensive combat experience from battling numerous warriors in his previous life. His current footwork was not from Gym Unbreakable but from the evasion techniques he had learned from his opponents.

“It’s impressive that you can move like that with your body, but…”

Repenhardt sneered as he launched himself forward.

“Do you think you can accomplish anything just by dodging?”

Repenhardt closed in on Teslon, delivering a long middle kick. Even though his height had reduced compared to his previous life, he was still a towering figure of nearly two meters. The terrifying range of his kick swept across Teslon’s vision. Despite all his training, the physical gap between them was too vast. Unable to find an opening, Teslon retreated, forming hand seals in the air.

“Song of Destruction! Flash Strike! Ruin Song & Radiance Blast!”

Two spells completed simultaneously, shooting toward Repenhardt from both sides. Philena, watching from a distance, shouted in astonishment.

“My goodness, double casting?”

What Teslon had demonstrated was not merely the rapid chanting of two spells. It was ‘simultaneous’ double casting. Achieving this required computational power and magical intuition rather than mere mastery of magic, making it an exceedingly rare skill even among grand magicians. And yet, Teslon had done it.

Philena’s cheeks flushed as she admired Teslon.

“As expected of Teslon…”

Repenhardt, on the other hand, seemed far from impressed. In fact, he looked disappointed.

“Double casting? When I was your age, I could simultaneously chant four spells.”

For reference, during his reign as the Demon King, he could cast up to seven spells at once. Truly a monster among monsters.

The sonic wave and white flash struck Repenhardt directly. At that moment, Repenhardt spread his arms and summoned his aura.

“Spiral Guard!”

This outrageous technique, which made his already resilient body repel even the most formidable attacks, completely shattered the two spells. Teslon’s jaw dropped in shock.

“What… what is this? Why is the rotational force of the Spiral Guard so slow?”

Having deflected the spells, Repenhardt shouted angrily.

“With that excellent brain, is this all you can do?”

“That’s my line! How could you ruin a body like this after taking over?”

Philena and Sillan shared the same thought as they watched the two stop fighting to exchange fierce criticisms.

‘What on earth are they talking about?’

Both seemed extremely angry and resentful, but their words were completely incomprehensible.

Teslon then unleashed a barrage of double-cast spells, firing all kinds of magic. Fireballs, lightning strikes, and magical projectiles flew towards Repenhardt. This time, however, Repenhardt didn’t use the Spiral Guard.

“For this level of magic, there’s no need to use a technique that consumes so much aura!”

Instead of charging, Repenhardt repeatedly formed hand seals in the air.

“I am the one who disrupts the flow, intervening in the true words and striking at the critical point! Adran Linforce!”

Given his current computational capacity, double casting was beyond Repenhardt. However, he was someone who had comprehended the flow and core of all magic. Moreover, Teslon’s magical patterns were originally Repenhardt’s own. He knew exactly how to disrupt the flow of a spell as if reading it from the palm of his hand.

Despite casting the spells belatedly, Repenhardt’s magic field crushed all the incoming spells. Teslon’s eyes widened in shock. As he had suspected…

‘That fearsome Demon King can use magic even with my subpar intellect!’

Repenhardt launched himself forward again, throwing a punch. Teslon dodged the attack with nimble movements, muttering in admiration.

“With my brain, to this extent?”

Watching Teslon evade all his attacks, Repenhardt also expressed his amazement.

“With my body, to this extent?”

As they continued their heated exchange amidst the intense battle, Sillan shook his head.

‘What on earth are these people doing…?’

Their words matched so well that it was hard to believe they were mortal enemies. Sillan almost wondered if they actually got along well. However, the swirling aura of murderous intent around them suggested otherwise. Repenhardt relentlessly pressed Teslon, breaking his spells and pushing him back. Although Teslon dodged skillfully, once Repenhardt closed the distance, Teslon would not be able to match him!

“Uraaagh!”

Repenhardt charged like an enraged bull, using all his strength. Teslon, retreating, couldn’t keep up with Repenhardt’s physical prowess at full power. The gap between them closed rapidly.

As Repenhardt gathered his aura, preparing to deliver a decisive blow, Teslon suddenly stepped in, thrusting his sword forward.

“Take this!”

Of course, Repenhardt’s well-trained, steel-like body wouldn’t be affected by such a pitiful attack. He smirked and lunged forward.

At that moment, Teslon’s eyes gleamed.

“Got you!”

Woooong!

A yellowish aura enveloped Teslon’s sword, precisely targeting Repenhardt’s heart.

“Urgh?”

Repenhardt grunted in surprise.