Ch.3333. Subjugation Order (3)

# King of Gyeongju

Even backed into a corner, Jo Sun-do refused to admit defeat to the Balhut Cult and Choi Yu-na.

Perhaps it was just an empty cry, an attempt to escape the reality of his own absurd downfall.

“Yes. You are a king. Just a naked king without a single follower.”

Yu-na responded to Jo Sun-do with a cold gaze, informing him of the harsh reality as if he were truly pathetic.

Even if he called himself king, could he truly be called one when no one followed him?

Having lost all power, Yu-na referred to his powerless cries as nothing but those of a naked king.

“That’s right. I am… I am the king! The king! The throne I earned with my own power… Wait. How are you still alive? No. How can you move around perfectly fine?”

Just as he was about to deny his defeat in a state bordering on delirium, Jo Sun-do finally seemed to notice Yu-na, staring at her as if he’d seen a ghost.

He had clearly shot Yu-na to subdue her.

He had given it his all, yet Yu-na didn’t have a single wound.

“I definitely used magic too. And hit vital points directly!”

Being an Awakened himself, he had aimed for her vital points with magic and bullets that would have been fatal to ordinary people.

Yet why didn’t she have any wounds?

Why was there no trace of her being attacked?

Why! Why was she standing before him, the King of Gyeongju, with such an arrogant demeanor and without a scratch?

“Excuse me? Is there a problem with me being alive?”

“Not a single wound. What kind of sorcery did you use? You witch!”

Yu-na responded as if there was nothing wrong, while Jo Sun-do, horrified by her appearance, demanded to know what sorcery she had used.

Seeing Jo Sun-do’s reaction, Yu-na proudly introduced the clothes she was wearing.

“I didn’t use any sorcery. Well, if you call it sorcery, I suppose I should thank the Awakened with tailoring skills who made my clothes.”

Just as Jeong Dong-geon and the subjugation team had received uniforms and protective gear, Yu-na, as the leader of the cult, had also received equipment from the cult.

Of course, being the most important person in the Balhut Cult, her priestly robe was crafted with utmost care, unlike the protective gear worn by ordinary soldiers.

Yu-na’s priestly robe, enchanted generously with Bahamut’s coins, granted her nearly invincible defense at this point.

“Thanks to the defensive power of the priestly robe and the blessing of the great dragon god Bahamut, I am unharmed. That explanation should suffice.”

‘Even though I knew about it beforehand, I’m still amazed that the High Priestess is perfectly fine.’

Having heard about this from Yu-na in advance, Jeong Dong-geon and the subjugation team weren’t surprised that Yu-na was unharmed despite the ambush, allowing them to respond calmly to Jo Sun-do’s attack.

Of course, since people couldn’t be completely calm, Jeong Dong-geon was secretly shocked that Yu-na was perfectly fine.

To be frank, the attack that Yu-na had allowed was a full-power attack from North Gyeongju’s strongest Awakened, and for an ordinary Awakened, it would have been a fatal wound or even instant death if things went wrong.

Although Yu-na was a healing mage and she herself had insisted on this operation, from Jeong Dong-geon’s perspective as her escort, it was essentially a failure in protection.

“Now look. Does anyone follow you, the king? Ah. Of course, your gang behind you is still following you. But will they continue to follow you now? You, who are nothing but a naked king? You, who has been defeated and exposed?”

“Of course they will! I am strong! I am the strongest Awakened in North Gyeongju! In today’s world, it’s natural and the law for people to follow the strong!”

Yu-na was now trying to make Jo Sun-do recognize the situation, mocking him as a naked king and saying that no one would follow him anymore.

The slaves who had been exploited in his base were looking at the fallen king with bloodshot eyes of hatred, and his gang deeply resented Jo Sun-do for forcing such a reckless operation.

As Yu-na said, no one was following Jo Sun-do anymore… but Jo Sun-do claimed that it was only natural for people to follow the strong in this world, as if he had no interest in the hearts of the weak.

“If it weren’t for that sinister new weapon, my subordinates and I wouldn’t have had to flee!”

Yes, if it weren’t for that unknown new weapon, he wouldn’t have had to flee so miserably.

He wouldn’t have been defeated so shamefully.

It was all because of the cult’s vile weapon.

Jo Sun-do had done nothing wrong.

“The collapse of my group wasn’t because you were stronger. It was only possible because that damn dragon helped you! In the end, you’re weaker than me!”

‘I can’t deny that.’

Surprisingly, Jeong Dong-geon didn’t deny Jo Sun-do’s almost forced claim.

Objectively, Jo Sun-do and his direct gang were incomparably stronger than the rest of the Balhut Cult’s Awakened, excluding Yu-na.

Though they now looked pathetic after losing the war, Jo Sun-do had received all the resources of North Gyeongju, making his abilities as an Awakened at least twice as strong as any Awakened in the cult, except for Yu-na.

It couldn’t be helped; for safe governance, the Balhut Cult didn’t concentrate support on specific Awakened to ensure equal growth among them, and because of that policy, there was a strong feeling that they had somewhat given up on the growth of the cult’s executives.

“Indeed, you and your gang are strong. You’re bound to be stronger than me, who sacrificed my own growth for the sake of my subordinates. I won’t deny that.”

However, conversely, the cult’s method was a growth approach that appropriately balanced the quality and quantity of subordinates.

Thanks to that, during the war, the average level of the Balhut Cult was higher, allowing them to quickly subdue the rest of Jo Sun-do’s subordinates, excluding his direct gang, without even allowing them to approach.

Even Jo Sun-do’s direct gang, who had received investment from him, were successfully overwhelmed by Jeong Dong-geon’s command and concentrated fire, crushing them with overwhelming numbers.

“But you are the loser, and we are the victors. So there’s no need to discuss further about who is right and which growth method is correct. Because we won.”

“Without the dragon’s help, you’re nothing but cowards!”

So in the current situation, it has been decided whose growth method is correct.

Jo Sun-do was defeated, and he was a loser who couldn’t accept his defeat and was just spewing excuses.

On the other hand, the Balhut Cult was the victor and had the authority to decide the treatment of the loser.

“You’re a coward too for running away.”

“I only fled because defeat was imminent! If I could have held out at my base, I could have won!”

So no matter how much Jeong Dong-geon stated the facts, they meant nothing to this inhuman monster.

Jo Sun-do claimed that he had only been defeated because he fell for the cult’s vile scheme, and if he had defended his base according to plan, the result would have been different.

Watching this pointless argument between Jo Sun-do and Jeong Dong-geon, Yu-na delivered a sharp rebuke to Jo Sun-do with a bright smile.

“From the beginning, you just didn’t run away because you couldn’t bear to part with the assets in your base, right?”

“That’s a lie! Would I, the King of Gyeongju, run away?”

To be honest, he was someone who couldn’t flee because he was reluctant to part with the assets in his base.

When Yu-na stated the facts based on information obtained from the reconnaissance team, Jo Sun-do made excuses that weren’t really excuses.

“What excuses does a loser have? From the beginning, you were just a coward who was afraid of Lord Bahamut and didn’t have the courage to fight head-on.”

However, Yu-na’s bright smile turned cold as she began to gradually pressure Jo Sun-do psychologically.

She denounced him as a coward, mentioned the god of the Balhut Cult, and slowly exposed Jo Sun-do’s base heart.

“If I hadn’t become bait, would you have fought us head-on, Jo Sun-do? No. No. You would have fled from Gyeongju like a coward. With your precious items from your base!”

Yu-na’s words were not wrong at all.

If Yu-na hadn’t shown herself to Jo Sun-do as bait, Jo Sun-do would likely have fled from Gyeongju without hesitation.

No matter how established he was in Gyeongju, if he lost this fight, his life would clearly be in danger, and a cunning person like Jo Sun-do would have known this.

Although he would have regretted leaving behind the vast wealth in his base, he could have reasonably concluded that if he took the most valuable items and fled, he could establish himself in another region.

“You’re not the King of Gyeongju. You’re just a gambling addict who ran on false hope circuits!”

“Shut up! I said shut up!”

So the Awakened before them didn’t deserve to be called the King of Gyeongju.

He was just a gambling addict who threw himself into a fight with no chance of winning, harboring false hopes.

“Let me give you, such a gambling addict, a chance.”

“A-a chance!?”

Choi Yu-na, mercifully offering a chance to such a gambling addict.

At Yu-na’s words, Jo Sun-do’s expression, which had been like that of a demon until just now, disappeared, and he immediately brightened up.

If he could just survive here, he looked ready to crawl between Yu-na’s legs right away.

“Let’s duel. How about a clean 1:1 match? Of course, your opponent will be me.”

A duel.

And a 1:1 match with Yu-na, who was well-known as a healing mage.

Naturally, it was a very favorable fight for Jo Sun-do, a melee warrior.

“Ah. Ahahahahaha! God hasn’t abandoned me! Good! Great! If those are the conditions, I can agree hundreds of times!”

Of course, with a brightened expression, he showed his willingness to accept.

And so, the 1:1 duel between Jo Sun-do and Yu-na was arranged.

Surrounded by soldiers of the Balhut Cult, Jo Sun-do harbored a false hope that if he could capture Yu-na, he could turn the tide.

“You’ll greatly regret that arrogance!”

So it was only natural that he immediately launched a surprise attack before Yu-na could pull any tricks.

“Hahaha. Arrogant, you say?”

Yu-na smiled broadly and slowly pointed her finger at Jo Sun-do’s solar plexus.

“Kuhuk!?”

“I’ve been several times stronger than you from the beginning.”

A beam shot from her index finger, piercing straight through Jo Sun-do’s solar plexus.

“She thoroughly crushed him.”

Jeong Dong-geon thought it was thorough as he watched Jo Sun-do collapse without much resistance.

However, he didn’t feel any pity for Jo Sun-do.

In the end, he just thought it was the foolish end of a wolf who had excessively claimed to be the King of Gyeongju.

“So. Do any of you wish to challenge the High Priestess as well?”

“No, we don’t!!”

As soon as Jo Sun-do collapsed, his gang shouted their surrender without hesitation.

It had been a futile resistance.