Ch.175Chapter 175: Orc King (6).

# Chapter 175: Orc King (6)

Crack! The sound of bones and flesh being crushed, the final scream of fading life struck Jerdin’s ears.

With the “Seventeen-Star Formation” broken and the elite troops fallen in vain, all that remained was blood, flesh, and despair.

Before Jerdin’s eyes, the scene from the past when he lost his father overlapped with the present.

The image of his father fading away helplessly, the screams of comrades, and the shadow of the demon that devoured everything.

Despite becoming a Grand Master, despite being the ruler of the East, he once again felt powerless before a demon.

[Grrrr…]

The Death Knight stared at Jerdin with empty eyes devoid of any emotion.

This monster, now beyond communication, was nothing but an incarnation of slaughter.

Ominous magical energy still flowed from its regenerated body, appearing remarkably composed for something that had just delivered a fatal blow.

The Death Knight reached out toward Gauwel’s Fang that it had just thrown.

The spear embedded in the ground pulled itself out and returned to his hand.

“Co-Commander…!”

The remaining Masters and Experts gathered around Jerdin.

Their faces showed a mixture of shock, terror, and faint determination.

They knew that retreating meant death for everyone.

But at the same time, they were crushed by the question of what they could possibly do against such an overwhelming being.

Jerdin gripped Black Light with trembling hands.

Though trauma was gnawing at his mind…

He was a king.

He was the Supreme Commander of the Eastern Alliance.

If he fell here, everything would end.

“…Regroup! Mages, focus on defensive and healing magic, knights cover me and look for openings! Never… give up!”

Though his voice cracked, the dignity of a king barely remained in his eyes.

The soldiers began to move desperately according to his orders.

But their movements lacked the spirit they had before. Despair had already taken hold of them.

The Death Knight, as if mocking their efforts, slowly raised Gauwel’s Fang.

The monster was preparing for another throw.

That alone would be enough to end this battlefield.

It was at that very moment, as everyone held their breath anticipating the coming destruction.

From the sky above, an entirely unexpected being began descending with intense momentum!

“KROOOOOOOOOO!!”

A primal and powerful battle cry echoed from the sky, seemingly pushing back even the malicious energy that covered the battlefield!

BOOM—!

With a tremendous impact that shook the ground, someone landed roughly between the Death Knight and Jerdin’s troops.

As the dust cloud rose and then settled, there stood a muscular man in academy uniform with clenched fists instead of a massive greatsword or axe.

Behind him, a small bat flew in and transformed into a girl.

It was Valt and Lilith.

“What… what is this…”

Jerdin muttered in disbelief at the sight before him.

Valt’s appearance was nothing short of miraculous.

His battle cry alone seemed to calm the soldiers’ confusion somewhat.

Valt quickly surveyed his surroundings.

The nauseating smell of dark magic, the soldiers fallen in misery, the survivors gripped by fear, and above all… the black magical armor emanating an overwhelming presence, the Death Knight.

Valt immediately grasped the severity of the situation.

“Lilith, go to the wounded. I’ll buy us some time.”

“Yes! Valt!”

Lilith immediately wrapped herself in blood magic and rushed to where the injured were.

Valt slowly turned toward the Death Knight.

His golden eyes gleamed coldly as he beheld it.

“So it’s you. The source of this disgusting energy.”

The Death Knight briefly observed Valt who had appeared so suddenly.

A very faint emotion, something like curiosity, seemed to pass through its empty eye sockets.

[Grrrrrrrrrr…]

The vibration of magical energy was still chilling, but something different could be felt from before.

Perhaps it was intrigued by the tremendous vitality emanating from Valt, which radiated energy opposite to that of death.

“You can’t even speak. This can’t even be called a warrior. Just a puppet that sold its soul to a demon for whatever reason.”

Valt provoked the Death Knight as he clenched his fists again, covered in magic gauntlets.

Without taking his eyes off the monster, he shouted to Jerdin behind him.

“King Jerdin! Please fall back for now! I will handle this one!”

Jerdin hesitated for a moment.

How could he trust this barbarian prince?

Would it just be another meaningless death?

But Cheonrak was the ultimate annihilation technique.

Even for a Grand Master, it was a skill that placed a great burden on the user.

Jerdin needed time to recover now.

And above all, the aura emanating from Valt was far from ordinary.

Valt didn’t bother waiting for Jerdin’s answer and blocked the Death Knight’s path.

The Death Knight showed no reaction to Valt’s provocation and raised Gauwel’s Fang again.

This time, the target was clearly Valt.

“Going to try again? You foolish, pitiful creature who has turned your back on a warrior’s honor.”

Valt sneered as he stomped the ground hard.

BOOM—!

The muscles throughout his body writhed as massive physical power began converting into magical energy.

WHOOSH—!

At that moment, Gauwel’s Fang transformed into a crimson flash and flew toward Valt again.

Jerdin’s elite troops held their breath.

There was no way anyone could block that attack.

But Valt didn’t dodge.

Instead, he faced it head-on.

“Noise!!!”

Valt called out to his elemental spirit Noise, and immediately his arms and upper body were covered in massive armor.

DRRRRRRRR–

It looked like a legendary being wearing enormous metal armor.

The Earth Elemental Noise’s power combined with Valt’s physical strength—Magic Combat Method, Earth’s Magic Armor.

Its third form.

Gold-Blood Magic Armor.

Blood Magic Armor was the result of overlaying Lilith’s blood magic onto the original magic armor.

And coating it with metal that Noise could manipulate.

That was the Gold-Blood Magic Armor.

It consumed an enormous amount of magical power, but conserving strength now would be a luxury.

Instead, Valt showed his ingenuity by covering only his upper body with the Gold-Blood Magic Armor to reduce magical consumption somewhat.

And Valt had that.

A bracelet made of the divine metal Lupedium.

While artifacts came in various forms, most weapons and armor were made of Lupedium.

Gauwel’s Fang was a powerful artifact made from an ancient orc’s fang said to have touched divine power, but it couldn’t surpass Lupedium’s hardness.

In other words, the items were of similar level.

KABOOOOOOM—!

As Valt’s magic armor and Gauwel’s Fang collided head-on, they created a shockwave and roar incomparably greater than before.

“Prince Valt!!”

The one who called out urgently was Delfon Haines.

After losing the brief duel with Valt, Delfon had come to highly respect him.

No, he even felt grateful to Valt for making him realize how vast the world was.

Even he had fallen into fear after witnessing the Death Knight’s attack.

If Valt had flown in from the sky, he must have seen it too.

Yet Delfon felt awe at the sight of him jumping into the Death Knight’s attack without hesitation.

But courage and recklessness are separated by a thin line.

Delfon thought this brave barbarian had lost his life through recklessness.

However,

As the dust cloud raised by the shockwave settled.

An astonishing sight unfolded.

The Death Knight’s attack, which had slaughtered two Masters and numerous Experts with a single blow, failed to penetrate Valt’s defensive magic.

And Valt, having blocked the Death Knight’s terrifying attack, shouted:

“Look!! People of the East! The monster’s attack is not a death sentence! It is not insurmountable despair! So why are you sitting down? Is it to ask an outsider from the South to protect the East for you? If not, then stand up now! Show your warrior—no! Show the pride of knights that you cry out about so much!!!”

Something hot rose in Delfon’s chest at Valt’s cry.

“Yes… what am… I doing right now…?”

Delfon muttered as he painfully regrasped his sword. Then he screamed with all his might:

“RAAAAAAAH!! Everyone, raise your swords!! Can you still call yourselves the strongest of the East otherwise?!”

Valt’s defense clearly showed the demoralized soldiers that the Death Knight was not an insurmountable despair.

A spark of hope ignited from this outsider from the South, and soon it began to blaze.

“Yes… I am Gelion of the East…! I have no intention of dying in a place like this!!”

“I am! Iruaden of the East!”

“I am! Sholt of the East!!”

“I am! The East’s…”

“I am!…”

When one knight shouted his name, as if infected, all knights began to shout their names and raise their swords.

“Knights! Will you leave the protection of the East to an outsider?! We cannot! Will you show such a pathetic, kneeling sight to the Southern warrior who came to help us?!”

Delfon Haines was now holding his sword high, encouraging his comrades.

“No!! We cannot. Even if we turn into mere drops of blood here! We cannot surrender the pride and honor of having sacrificed our lives to protect the East! Isn’t that right, comrades?!”

WHOOSH—!

As Delfon’s speech ended, the knights who had been sitting down rose and released their aura and fighting spirit.

The sight of over 1,000 knights releasing their aura was truly magnificent.

And Valt, grabbing Gauwel’s Fang that had stopped in mid-air unable to penetrate his bracelet, smiled lowly.

“Time for the counterattack, monster.”