Chapter 120: A Clash Between a King-Kong and a Hybrid Species (8)

Derrick was well aware of just how nonsensical the power of Lv. 8 hero was.

However…

Knowing something and actually seeing it are different things…

Bang-!

Boom-!

The ground began to crack while the ceiling was starting to collapse—actually, more than 90% of it had already collapsed. It wouldn’t be strange if everything just came crumbling down at any moment.

Derrick could feel the dizziness strike him at the fact that this was just the aftermath of a collision between those two, and nothing more.

Is this really the power that humans could show…?

“Heh, I knew it, I’m good at reading people. I always knew that you’re strong, but still, I never expected that you’d be able to block my ‘Lightning Strike’.”

“What’s with that childish name?”

“C-Childish? N-No, that’s a good name, no?”

“Not really…?”

“Ugg…”

However, as if ignoring the natural disaster that they had reproduced with their hands, the two knights kept on attacking each other.

It was all because they had no ‘trust in each other’.

“Why don’t we stop? Aren’t our goals aligned?”

“They are, but that doesn’t mean our side would just let someone who struck us first go away without consequences.”

“…That… I have nothing to say…”

It was just as Lee Han said. Regardless of his reason, it was Maximus who first showed his hostility towards them, that was why Lee Han prepared a counterattack and struck him with all his might in the first place. Besides, if he hadn’t responded that way, he’d have suffered a lot.

“However, I have an excuse, Rahan. The spirit you give off is so fierce that I actually mistook you for a monster. Can you show some understanding towards me?”

“It’s true that I got angry and acted recklessly… But, that’s not my name.”

“Ah, right, Lihan.”

“…I’m going insane.”

Lee Han once again realized that someone with ‘no malicious intent’ was indeed harder to deal with than someone who simply couldn’t understand anything. He couldn’t feel any malice from the guy as he said those words, just his innocence that was as pure as snow.

But…

Tingle-!

Fuck, it hurts!

Lee Han couldn’t help but crease his brows as his arm collided with his. The pain even spread through his shoulder.

He’s like a human gorilla—no, a King-Kong…!

Lee Han made a tired expression as he thought so.

Maximus.

The first time Lee Han saw him was during the Academy’s midterm exam, just before he had a conversation with Archduke Lionel.

Even back then, he had a vague feeling about him. The knight called Maximus was…

How could someone like him exist?

Incredibly threatening.

Was it because he had grown through pains himself?

Lee Han caught a glimpse of Maximus’ strength that he hadn’t seen that day.

What an incredible body.

He could tell just by looking at his body. It had such perfect proportions that, if someone had said that it was something that a famous sculptor had carved, people would believe it.

As a sort of gym rat, on top of him being a knight himself, he was well aware of how great Maximus’ body was. In order to have that kind of body, not only did someone have to put in tremendous work, but they also had to be ‘innately different’ from the rest.

He’s like a living example of how unfair life is…

For people who were born with a poor body, he was an object of envy. But they wouldn’t be repulsed by him or felt inferior to him or anything whenever they saw him. Instead, they’d be so impressed by him and so motivated to work hard to have a body like him.

But…

He’s not the type of person that someone wants to be close with.

Lee Han had thought about it back then too, but this man really wasn’t the type of person he wanted to stay close with.

Just look at him.

“I wish you could understand! I just felt happy to find a strong enemy after dealing with only weaklings! That’s why I attacked you by accident! Don’t worry, I won’t make the same mistake twice, hahaha!”

Maximus said those words with a tone that made Lee Han wonder if he was apologizing or picking a fight with him. This made Lee han think that it wouldn’t be surprising if the guy pissed off a bunch of people.

After all, his personality was the one that could piss people off as easily as breathing.

But Lee Han…

“…Hoo.”

Deemed that arguing with him was pointless.

If he were to keep talking with him, he’d be the only one who’d suffer from the mental damage.

“Let’s stop here.”

“Huh?”

“We are already in a hurry, so what’s the point of arguing with you? It’s better if we just go our separate ways.”

“Hmm, you’re so cold-blooded.”

Judging how disappointed the guy looked when he put down his axe, it was clear how much he was itching for a fight.

This bastard would fit right in the Demonic Cult…

It reminded Lee Han again that he was a person that he should not get close to.

At that moment…

“Hmm, I guess I should still apologize. But, as a knight from the north, how can I show my sincerity just using my words? Hmm… That’s right!”

Wooong-!

“I’ll deal with them as my show of apology.”

As soon as Maximus finished talking, shadows rose up around them.

Whoosh-!

The black-clad men, revealing their terrifying murderous intent, immediately swung their daggers as soon as they spotted Lee Han. Because there’s so many daggers floating in the air aiming at Lee Han, it was hard to guess where the assassins were hiding.

Bang-!

“How dare mere assassins target an honorable knight!”

A strong gust of wind came from the sword that Maximus swung without hesitation, and all the daggers lost their strength and fell to the ground. He didn’t use any technique. It was just a normal hard swing, but it was enough to knock all the daggers away.

Using the momentum, he…

Bang-!

Shot his body forward, leaving deep footprints on the ground. In an instant, his figure disappeared.

Crunch-!

“One.”

“!!!?”

When he reappeared, the black-clad men were left astonished. One of their comrades had his waist separated from his legs. Everything happened in an instant. His movements were just too hard to be followed with naked eyes.

But, what was even more amazing was…

“I knew it, it’s inconvenient to use a sword.”

Crunch-!

Maximus’ sword—probably one that he picked up from somewhere in the tunnel—reached its limit and was on the verge of breaking. It failed to withstand his immense strength.

“Mm, it’s easier to fight with bare hands.”

“…Such arrogance!”

As Maximus threw away his sword without hesitation, the black-clad men were furious, thinking that he was doing so because he looked down on them.

“Arrogant? Me?”

Crack-!

Maximus’s two hands clapped and struck the one of the black-clad man’s head, making his head crumpled like clay and died.

That was how easily he could crush a man’s skull.

“…Gulp.”

Seeing this spectacle, the black-clad men hesitated, swallowing their dry saliva. They were terrified at this giant-like man’s appearance that was filled with ferocity, determination and strength. Their natural instincts prompted them to back away from him to preserve their lives.

However, a sharp glint appeared on Maximus’ eyes.

It was clear that he had no intention to let a single one of them leave.

“Arrogance is something that you guys have. How unsightly it is to rush in without even knowing the strength of your opponent?”

Whoosh-!

When Maximus stretched his legs again, his body disappeared. Despite his gigantic size, the speed at which he moved his body was instantaneous, like flowing water. It felt as if he was a mix of a cheetah—he had the speed of one—and a snake—the flexibility of his body as he manipulated all his body muscles was like one.

His movements defied the laws of physics, and anyone who had seen it would certainly wonder if they were something that a human could attempt.

And then…

Crack-!

Maximus’ fist exploded, and another black-clad man’s head exploded, while the other one’s body was torn apart.

The black-clad men were experiencing the horror of being annihilated by just one person.

─It was an experience that wouldn’t happen twice.

“Is he really a human?”

Seeing all this, Lee Han was left dumbfounded.

He thought that what Maximus just did was something that would happen if he taught martial arts and techniques to a gorilla.

His instantaneous acceleration is easily over 100…

He deemed it at the same level as his Bending Body Launch. Except that in his case, it was an active skill, while in Maximus’ case, it was a passive.

“With such strong people alive, how can an ordinary person like me live…?”

“…”

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“A-Ah, n-no… I-It’s just…”

Derrick was looking at him strangely, but no one could blame him over that. After all, the thing that Lee Han was grumbling about was…

Everyone who had seen you probably grumbled about the same thing, Instructor…

However, he didn’t say those words out loud.

After all, he didn’t want to be torn in half like those black-clad men.

Thud-!

“Hmm, that feels good!”

It only took Maximus about ten minutes to separate the heads and necks of around 30 men. Some might think that he won easily because they were weak, but actually, those guys weren’t any ordinary fighters. If Derrick were to open their Status Windows, he’d notice that all of them were Lv. 5.

In other words, they could be considered elite knights.

Considering how he had annihilated them all in an instant, it was clear how overwhelmingly powerful Maximus was. However, his expression didn’t show much emotion even after facing such threatening enemies. On the contrary, he was left with only regret.

For him, that fight was nothing but a futile confrontation.

“Since ancient times, a fight is something where blood and flesh should be shed…”

It was an extremely psychotic statement, but those words were precisely the mindset of the Northerners. For them, battles should be fierce, and it was considered an honor to die in battle. On the contrary, living in a cowardly manner or fearing confrontation was considered as humiliating by them.

Hmm, there’s a strong person in front of me that I could have a satisfying battle with, but it isn’t right to fight against him in this situation.

Maximus glanced at the young knight of Pendragon. Back when they first met, he had noticed this man’s unusual aura, but now it had grown even stronger.

It was to the point that his current state was incomparably stronger than back then.

I see. You’ve overcome the [Trial of Struggle], haven’t you?

The reason the warriors from the North always looked for hardships was because they believed that they would be able to grow by fighting and defeating enemies stronger than themselves. To them, such struggles were called trials.

Those who overcome such trials would grow stronger. Through victory they’d accumulate ‘karma’. However, accumulating such karma was extremely difficult. After all, no matter how brave a warrior was, it was still difficult to guarantee whether they would survive through a life and death duel.

That was why, For Maximus…

What a great guy.

This guy, a champion who had survived through the trial…

Was an extremely attractive opponent.

I really, really want to fight him…!

Back when he first met him, his aura could only stimulate his fighting spirit, but now, it was different. He felt like if he could defeat that man, he would be able to grow even stronger.

An endless desire to grow further.

His endless desire was one of the reasons why he was called the strongest warrior in the North—it wasn’t just because he was talented.

As his thirst for a fight surged like that…

[[Krrrrr!!!!]]

An intruder intervened.

It was the Mother Worm.

The giant Sand Worm that boasted a size of 120 m was running towards them with an angry roar.

“…It’s pretty big for an earthworm.”

Even after seeing Mother Worm approaching, that was all Maximus thought about it. Gigantic creatures were more than plenty in the north, so such a sight wouldn’t faze him.

On the contrary, what caught his attention more was…

“That guy over there is giving you a passionate look. Do you know him?”

“Hmm, he’s a former coworker of mine.”

“Hooo.”

The black-clad man who dashed out from the Mother Worm’s head.

Seeing Number 4, Maximus’ eyes lit up.

He could tell just by looking at him that he was higher in rank than the black-clad men he had fought just now.

And so…

“Can I fight against that former coworker of yours?”

He asked Lee Han’s permission, but he actually wasn’t really asking for it.

On the contrary…

“What if I say no?”

“Hehehe…!”

“…”

It was a declaration. His laugh was like an answer, but the reason why he let out that laugh in the first place was because he already knew what the other guy was going to answer. Lee Han shook his head and let out a snicker.

And then, they…

Baaaaaanngg-!

Threw their fists at each other without saying who would go first.

From the moment they  decided that they couldn’t leave their backs to each other, they were already ‘enemies’.

Who should fight against the Mother Worm and Number 4…

─If someone were not smart enough to calculate such things, they wouldn’t be able to live as a knight to begin with.