Ch.608Something Demian Can’t Do

As Orhan came flying through the air like a human cannonball, kicking and tearing through empty space, I could only stare in amazement. His method of movement was so absurd it went beyond shocking to almost impressive.

“HUOOOOOH!”

But there was no time to be stunned. Even now, Orhan was flying toward me with the speed of a comet.

There was no way to shake him off when he approached like that. Even if I cut down every warrior blocking my path and ran, how could I possibly move faster than someone flying through empty air?

And worse—

“The Kagan is coming! Capture the traitor woman and offer her to him!”

“Charge! Even if you die, grab her ankles!”

“Take up maces and flails! She may be hard to cut, but she’s not invincible! Strike her with blunt weapons and break her stance!”

Perhaps their morale had soared thanks to their flying Kagan overhead, but the Blue Banner soldiers were no longer trying to kill me—they were throwing away their lives without hesitation to hold me back even for a second, charging like madmen!

“GET OUT OF MY WAY!”

I unleashed the full might of a hero with a savage roar.

Vacuum blades erupted from my sword tip, dismembering dozens, and with each swing of my limbs, human bodies burst like watermelons. The blade of Karma of Murder swept through everything like a storm.

At a rate of ten per second, those who had been people became chunks of meat, piling into hills of corpses.

…Nevertheless, my footsteps grew increasingly slow.

“KUGH…! Long live Aishan! Long live the Kagaaaaan!”

“Got her! Now’s our chance!”

A warrior with his heart pierced tried to embrace me with my sword still embedded in his body, while those with their waists cut in half crawled forward on just their upper bodies to cling to my ankles.

Many others leaped at me in near-death states, their bodies riddled with holes, grabbing at my clothes or hair while swinging blunt weapons.

Such attempts only resulted in them being struck by my counterattacks and scattering like blood spray, but each time, I had to stop for a moment. And no matter how many I shook off, other warriors rushed in without giving me a moment to breathe.

The Blue Banner soldiers who had been my shield moments ago had now become my shackles.

“KYAAAAH…! You bitch, I’ll take you as my traveling companion!”

Some even threw themselves at me while burning and melting, determined to burn me along with them. Crazy bastards. Even moths weren’t this extreme.

With warriors throwing away their lives to cling to me, I couldn’t advance easily. Even when I unleashed wide-area techniques to sweep them away, it only created a momentary gap—like cutting through flowing water, the empty spaces were instantly filled.

It felt like being swept away by a tsunami of flesh. No matter how many I slaughtered, there was no end, and if I showed even the slightest opening, all manner of blunt weapons hammered at my body.

The blunt weapons wielded by ordinary warriors weren’t a major problem unless they hit my head directly, but continuous impacts on bare skin would inevitably leave bruises.

Besides, being beaten like a dog on a hot summer day was mentally unpleasant beyond words.

“Haa… haa… persistent bastards. Just back off!”

“Not a chance!”

As I swung Durandal widely in frustration and urgency, a middle-aged man approached like lightning, seizing the opening to swing his steel flail.

Champion Parigiyen. The one who had ambushed me on horseback with his flail, smashing me into the mud. If not for him, the weakness of the Blessing of Fire to impacts wouldn’t have been revealed so easily.

“You again!”

I extended Frosting to grab the tip of the flail aimed at my head. But the moment I caught it, Parigiyen abandoned his weapon without hesitation, throwing himself backward to hide among the warriors.

He’d been doing this the whole time. After witnessing me kill three Champions in an instant, the two remaining Blue Banner Champions strictly avoided direct confrontation, only rushing in to attack when I showed an opening, then immediately retreating.

‘Ah, that cowardly bastard, seriously!’

[You’re one to talk? More importantly, look up! Orhan is coming!]

Hersella’s warning was unnecessary. I had already detected the mountain-like presence approaching from above.

Entangled in the crowd throwing their lives away like chips to hold me back, my footsteps had gradually slowed until I was finally caught by Orhan.

“HA-SCHAL-RRRR!”

A thunderous roar echoed. I couldn’t tell if the emotion it carried was hostility or excitement.

Turning my head to look up at the sky, I saw a middle-aged man with a boulder-like build swinging down a crescent blade toward me. There was no way to avoid him anymore.

Damn it, is this the end?

I gritted my teeth and glared at Orhan as he rapidly approached.

The plan had gone awry. I’d killed about nine hundred enemies, but they were still as numerous as ants, and Orhan had started flying before I could buy enough time.

Both stalling for time and reducing enemy numbers had ended up half-done.

…No, I hadn’t even bought time. Had even five minutes passed?

It was woefully insufficient for reassurance. To ensure the safety of the detachment heading for the Wall, I needed to buy at least two hours.

That now seemed impossible.

“Try and take this!”

Orhan, smiling with the same expression as his daughter, brought down his red crescent blade like a guillotine.

Lamenting was pointless now. With that monster having mobility exceeding mine, evading as I had been was no longer possible. I had no choice but to fight head-on.

And I’d have to do it while being hindered by Blue Banner warriors who wouldn’t stop clinging to me even as Orhan descended!

Of course, that’s impossible. There’s no way such a thing could work. I could clearly envision being one-sidedly beaten as my counterattacks were blocked by the warriors’ interference.

Indeed, fighting Orhan like this would mean death.

If I had to fight, I needed to make it a one-on-one situation!

…But how?

[Give me control! If we unleash the Field of Mortality…!]

‘No. That would only kill a few hundred and then end!’

The Field of Mortality wasn’t the answer. While it was nearly invincible against a few hundred opponents, against these numbers, my strength would be depleted first.

So I rejected Hersella’s suggestion and bit my lip, racking my brain.

Seconds remained until Orhan’s blade reached me. Warriors continued to charge tirelessly. The instinct facing mortal danger raced through my nerves, exhaling fierce heat.

My whole body felt engulfed in flames, my skull splitting open. My boiling brain poured out memories like a kaleidoscope. Thousands of memories preserved like photographs beyond my consciousness.

Like fishing for jewels in a garbage dump, I searched through the memories flashing through my mind like lightning, looking for a means to break through this situation.

…And I found it.

Yes. There was exactly one method, low probability but worth trying!

“HAAAAP!”

Orhan roared like a tiger as our eyes met. One second until his blade reached me. The power imbued in that blade was something I didn’t dare try to parry.

So I had to dodge.

“KYAAAAH!”

In the next moment, I unleashed Defying Fate and kicked off the ground with both legs. My vision, which had turned monochrome, returned to normal in the blink of an eye.

With that momentary Defying Fate, I narrowly avoided the crescent blade and soared toward the empty air ten meters high.

KWAAAANG!

With a world-shaking explosion, the ground below shattered into powder.

The impact of my leap combined with Orhan’s strike. Like being swept up in the power of collapse, an area with a radius of over ten meters completely shattered into fragments.

…If I had tried to take it head-on, all my limbs would have been pulverized.

“So you dodged like that?”

From the center of the fragments shooting up like a fountain, Orhan, who had struck the ground with his crescent blade, looked up at me. A twisted smile spread across his beard-covered mouth.

[You idiot! Jumping into empty air—are you trying to die?!]

Hersella berated me in outrage.

Yes, she was right. Unlike Orhan, who could freely fly by kicking off empty air, I could only change direction once more using Cascador as a foothold.

After that, there was only a future of helplessly falling while being struck by the pursuing Orhan.

The problem would be solved if I could kick off empty air like Orhan to change direction, but that was impossible. The Blessing of Fire, weak to impacts, couldn’t withstand the shock of exploding Karma.

Though sturdier than an unprotected body, my hands and feet wouldn’t be completely blown off, but after using it a couple of times, all the bones would be shattered.

“Don’t dodge, come at me, Haschal!”

Orhan swung his crescent blade in a circle to disperse the dust, then bent his knees as he glared at me. At his feet, the ruined ground cracked under the pressure.

He was about to jump up and charge at me.

This was as expected. The problem was what came next. The gamble I recalled from my kaleidoscope of memories. If it didn’t work, I had no alternative.

“KAAAAP!”

Orhan kicked off the ground and soared toward me. The distance between us closed instantly.

[What are you going to do! Orhan is coming!]

‘This is what I’ll do!’

After answering Hersella, who clearly revealed her urgent state of mind, I focused my consciousness on my right hand and both legs and shouted.

“Kenaz!”

The fire seal engraved on my wrist. Responding to the activation word, the seal emitted heat, drawing in surrounding mana. Left alone, it would spew flames from my palm.

Before that, I infused Karma of Murder into the flowing mana, mixing them together. Karma Fire. To manifest blazing crimson flames by simultaneously drawing in mana and Karma of Murder.

[Karma Fire? Even that won’t burn the Unyielding Flesh…!]

‘I know that.’

Hersella seemed to think I was trying to burn Orhan with intensified flames, but my purpose wasn’t to spew Karma Fire at him.

That would only result in an endurance contest, with him withstanding it through Unyielding Flesh while we competed to see whose Karma depleted first.

HWARARR…

The seal, filled with Karma and mana, emitted tremendous heat. As if begging to be released, the flames trapped within the seal tried to burst out toward my palm.

That wouldn’t do.

I concentrated all my will on my wrist to twist the flow of heat contained within.

This would have been impossible with flames kindled solely from mana, but Karma Fire, burning with the power of Karma of Murder, could be controlled to some extent by manipulating the Karma power within it.

Instead of bursting out through my palm, it traveled up my arm to my shoulder, down my spine, further down, splitting in half to continue down my legs… finally reaching the soles of both feet. Sun-like heat condensed beneath my two feet.

‘If that bastard Orhan can fly by kicking off empty air…’

The heat of Karma Fire bubbled, trapped inside my feet. I condensed the enormous heat that had not yet become fire into a single point—

‘Then I’ll just fly too!’

Like exhaling a held breath, I spewed a torrent of Karma Fire toward the empty air beneath my feet.

KWAAAA!

Condensed Karma Fire erupted beneath my feet. With a sensation of directly defying gravity, the ground rapidly receded.

[What is this now?!]

‘Well, something Demian can’t do?’

Looking down at Orhan, who stared at me with an incredulous face, I burst into exhilarated laughter.

It worked.

The propulsive force of the flames, expelled as ultra-high-temperature beams of light, was shooting my body higher into the empty air!