Ch.297EP.63 – A Knight’s Valor Contains No Recklessness (8)

……I was fortunate.

BOOM!!!

That this training hall was truly sturdy and isolated from the outside world.

If it weren’t, the foundation would have collapsed long ago.

Well, a space that remained intact through thousands of monster raids wouldn’t be affected by just two tremors….

RUMBLE-!

…or would it?

The training hall shook.

Despite being isolated from the outside world, the massive weight crashing into the ceiling seemed to disturb the spatial balance, and cracks appeared to form somewhere.

Perhaps it was the effect of the Celestial Bull’s pulverizing mystery.

But either way.

“W-what did I just see?”

“…Thanks to that knight, I don’t think any natural disaster will surprise me anymore.”

“Indeed, that knight is already a natural disaster himself.”

“Is, is that even human…?”

“????”

It was beyond overwhelming—a “superhuman strength,” and the Modred soldiers who witnessed this superhuman power were not only dumbfounded but also filled with soaring morale.

At their first meeting, he had become a letter carrier and moved them emotionally. Now he was showing them one impossible ability after another in battle, giving them a sense of reassurance, and finally displaying such superhuman prowess!

Though Modred’s warriors had never met an Aura user or a true superhuman before, to them now, Ihan was like an Aura user! He seemed equal to or greater than a superhuman.

“I thought he wasn’t an ordinary person when I heard he overwhelmingly defeated Lord Felix…”

“To think he can transform from that handsome appearance into such a monster…! He might not be human, but another species.”

“Are there other species capable of transformation?”

“Must be a new species, there are many mysterious races yet to be discovered.”

“Is that… even possible?”

The commotion was extraordinary, and while the soldiers were properly excited, no commanders reprimanded them.

Rather.

Clench!

They were struggling to calm the excitement in their own chests.

All of Modred’s warriors looked at him with thrilled eyes.

At his magnificent back!

“????”

…However, unlike others who considered him magnificent, the actual person who had displayed superhuman prowess was tilting his head with a foolish expression.

He had used every ounce of strength he could muster, worried that the bull’s power might harm the kid outside….

‘Was I always this strong?’

Ihan was simply dumbfounded at the monstrous strength he didn’t even know he possessed.

He thought merely knocking it over would be a success, yet he had sent that mass—larger than most buildings—flying to the ceiling.

‘How did I really do that…?’

Woong!

“…Hah.”

But do you know what’s even more absurd?

‘I think I could do this a few more times.’

Despite displaying such monstrous strength, far from being exhausted, he still had energy to spare.

…Absurdly.

* * *

Come to think of it-.

‘It’s been a while since I properly used my strength like this.’

After reaching the realm of mental cultivation and indestructible diamond body, Ihan rarely had proper fights.

He’d only fought a few minor battles to deal with vampires, so he hadn’t clearly gauged how much his total strength had increased.

In his training with the Sword Master, he was one-sidedly defeated without even getting to use his strength, failing to realize his own development. Moreover, until recently—no, until just ten minutes ago—he had been living in his Santa Rihan Form for dozens of days, constantly focusing on controlling his body’s repulsive force.

In that sense, Ihan had only properly used his strength today, and thanks to this, he could realize quite a lot.

To name two representative realizations…

—The duration of his mental cultivation had increased, and the flow of his internal energy felt as natural as breathing.

“Talk about accidentally catching a mouse while the ox backs up…”

It seemed that while he was playing the playful character of Santa, the [basic level] of his mental cultivation and internal energy had increased unbelievably without him intending it.

It wasn’t an incomprehensible phenomenon.

It was like carrying a bomb that could explode at any moment for dozens of days, requiring constant use of internal energy flow and mental cultivation, which greatly increased his basic abilities.

His basic level was already high, but if his previous level was like wine aged for just 1 year, it had suddenly matured to a 10-year level.

One might question if such exponential maturation is possible, but…

Thump thump!

The flow of power couldn’t be explained otherwise.

‘It’s changed, no. More precisely, the utilization has become more sophisticated.’

Ihan was now not just using physical strength, but also finding it much easier to utilize internal energy by leveraging the surrounding terrain and objects.

Whether it was thanks to mastering mental cultivation or because his proficiency with internal energy had increased unbelievably…

Clench!

“It feels good.”

It was a moment of confirming his steady growth, and moreover…

[Th-the Celestial Bull…!]

It was an incredibly refreshing achievement while fighting such a malicious spirit.

Ihan looked at the Great Archfiend with sharp eyes, deliberately wearing a mocking smile. As if saying the face looking in dismay at the bone mass stuck in the ceiling was quite a sight to see.

Perhaps seeing this provocation.

The Great Archfiend…

[Hueeeeeng! M-my Celestial Bull is broken, hueeeng!!]

…began to cry sorrowfully.

“??”

He had expected it to get angry or irritated, but instead the Great Archfiend suddenly started crying, making Ihan frown in bewilderment.

It wasn’t that he was softened by the female-appearing Great Archfiend’s tears.

Whoosh!

…He tensed because he sensed an ominous flow.

Ihan urgently clenched his fist and took a stance.

A straight punch stance.

It was the stance for the Hundred Step Divine Fist, and as he extended his fist…

-[Don’tcryMyDivineLordWhenYouCryItMakesMeSad.]

CRASH!!

…This time, contrary to before, Ihan was the one smashed into the ceiling.

-[I’llEliminateTheVillainWhoMadeYouSad.]

As if receiving the exact humiliation that the Great Archfiend had suffered…

* * *

– According to Modred’s investigation, the Great Archfiend was a being that ruled as a god in some ancient kingdom of the western continent.

The Margrave, who had acknowledged Ihan, generously shared the information about the Great Archfiend that Modred had discovered over the past 300 years.

Although it might not matter much whether he knew it or not, the Margrave said knowing was better than not knowing, and Ihan, aware that knowledge could be helpful, decided to listen attentively to what he had to say.

– Great Archfiend Inanna. That pest, who ruled as a human-god in an ancient kingdom, was said to govern abundance and war.

– …Abundance and war?

– Meaning she was both an agricultural deity and a war deity.

– Hmm, sounds like she would have been quite popular.

– That’s right. However, the problem was that shortly after bringing abundance, all the soil’s fertility would be consumed, turning the entire region into a land of death for nearly a hundred years, and in exchange for victory in war, hundreds of young human men and women had to be sacrificed as offerings every year.

– …….

– Well, it’s not that unusual a culture. Even looking at ancient national mythologies, human sacrifice was a relatively common practice.

– …It just sounds insane to me.

– From a modern perspective, it does.

This sufficiently explained why she was driven from her position as a god.

Claiming to provide abundance while actually bringing centuries of famine to the descendants of her followers, and demanding hundreds of young people as sacrifices every year in exchange for victory in war, to the point where surrender seemed preferable…

Wasn’t she literally no different from a [disaster god]?

– Yes, a disaster god. In reality, humans would naturally want to abandon such a god, yet despite this, it ruled as the deity of that ancient nation for a thousand years.

– …Insane.

– Yes, it’s insane. But I think even the ancient humans had no choice. That pest was a terrifying existence.

– Terrifying?

– More precisely, the [beings] that followed that pest were terrifying.

– ?

– Great Archfiend Inanna, it is said to possess ‘two mysteries.’

One is a mystery obtained by killing the husband of a sibling deity who might have been her brother or sister.

– The Celestial Bull. Also called [Gugalanna], according to records, it’s a powerful mystery that causes famine and eliminates all living things on earth.

– …And the other one?

– The other is said to be the soul of a warrior who fervently followed that pest in life.

– A warrior?

– The records we found indicate it was the soul of the strongest warrior in the ancient nation, also called the most beautiful warrior. According to records, that warrior was undefeated and the primary reason why that pest was called the god of war.

– Then, isn’t it actually the warrior’s soul that’s the god of war, not that pest?

To Ihan’s remark, the Margrave nodded as if in agreement.

– You’re saying exactly what my father said.

– I am?

– Yes, my father said the same thing. No, he actually fought the pest and faced the warrior’s soul, so his words carry more credibility.

– Hmm.

– My father said that if you ever have to fight it and the warrior’s soul, you must flee.

– Why?

– Because it’s strong.

– …….

– Too strong, impossibly strong, beyond what you can handle.

– …….

…The reason was simple to the point of being direct, and at the time, Ihan could only blink.

The old knight Ganok he had met was a powerful knight.

Yet the fact that all he could do was flee made Ihan tilt his head in confusion.

And now…

──It wasn’t a lie?

“…Damn it.”

Ihan couldn’t help but laugh bitterly as he fell from the ceiling to the floor.

Feeling that there wasn’t a shred of falsehood in what that man had said.

Whoosh!

Ihan quickly twisted his body and kicked the air.

If he fell limply, it would result in greater injury, so he quickly balanced himself with air-walking, and even while balancing, his eyes and ears were focused solely on the opponent who had kicked him.

-[AreYouAlrightMyDivineLordI’mSorryIShouldHaveComeOutSooner]

[You’re too late! Why did you come out so late! You slug!!]

-[I’mSorryI’mSorryI’mSorry.]

While the Great Archfiend’s voice was unpleasant to the point of being offensive, this was an alien voice that sounded like an 8x speed video playback.

However, the owner of that voice was nowhere to be seen, only the voice could be heard, but…

“She was nurturing something strange ‘inside her body.'”

Ihan soon realized that the alien voice was coming from inside the Great Archfiend’s body, and sure enough.

[Apologize later! More importantly, quickly kill that blasphemous human! Hurry…!]

-[YesMyDivineLordIWillFollowYourOrders.]

Whoosh.

In an instant, the atmosphere emanating from the Great Archfiend’s body changed, and gradually the color of her eyes changed, and then

“─By my divine lord’s command, I shall eliminate you.”

CRASH!

It approached Ihan’s face in an instant.

The one who made the Great Archfiend reign as the god of war, in a sense the true god of war.

“-Ninshubur.”

“I have never granted permission for a lowly human like you to use my name.”

Whoosh!

Ninshubur, the ancient great warrior, struck Ihan’s face with bullet-like speed, and Ihan’s body fell head over heels.

CRASH!!

Shaking the ground…

The ancient great warrior displayed a truly earth-shattering strike, and emotionlessly looked at the insolent one buried in the ground.

How dare this blasphemous one not only wound his divine lord but also make her cry!

Crack!

“……?”

…What?

Ninshubur involuntarily widened his eyes at the rising pain.

“My striking arm…”

It was broken.

“-For a so-called god of war, your body is quite weak.”

Ptui.

Ihan spat out the dirt in his mouth and got up easily.

Rustle.

Though he was briefly buried in the ground, it was a much better situation than when some spellcaster had flipped the earth to bury him in the past.

Moreover.

“…Not only is my strength impressive, but my body has become ridiculously tough.”

It seems that ordinary strikes will no longer be able to wound this body.