Chapter 103
His two legs moved powerfully.
The muscles under his red skin writhed as if they were alive.
The muscles were so magnificent they could be used as teaching material.
‘That’s the place.’
The target began to appear in Reidrun’s eyes.
‘Gatren’s hero, Byron Hane.’
A new hero from the Holy Empire, just a young man of 25.
While being a hero at such a young age proved his exceptional skills, Reidrun was rather pleased.
‘Best to stamp out sprouts early.’
Byron Hane was arrogant.
This was evident from how he moved with just a thousand men in enemy territory.
‘Once Byron Hane is dealt with, the remaining soldiers won’t be much trouble.’
No matter how many regular soldiers gathered, they couldn’t stop Reidrun.
It would be a bit troublesome if commanders or knights were mixed in.
‘I’ll have to accept that much.’
The 8th Division was currently in crisis.
They couldn’t afford to only take safe paths.
“Enemy!”
“The Red Nightmare has appeared!”
The human side began moving busily, having spotted Reidrun.
Reidrun increased his speed further.
The best surprise attack is one that strikes before the enemy can respond.
Just like now.
“Block…!”
Someone who appeared to be a commander shouted.
Ignoring this, Reidrun drew up his demonic energy.
Woong!!!
Black demonic energy gathered thickly over his red fist.
Reidrun-style Fighting Technique
Form 7 – Crushing Strike Wave
After taking a breath.
He struck with full force.
Kwaaaa-!
The ground flipped over.
***
The ground split and debris scattered everywhere.
Rising dust clouds obscured visibility.
Imperial hero Byron Hane twisted his lips while irritably waving his hand.
“Just a fool with nothing but brute strength.”
Byron Hane’s role in this operation was to be bait.
He would hold Reidrun in place.
Taking advantage of the opening, hero Worsten Gesred, disguised as a commander, would join the battle.
Finally, knights disguised as soldiers would capture Reidrun using magic tools they brought.
Victory was already assured.
Reidrun alone could never win.
But Byron was dissatisfied.
‘This is overkill just to catch one brainless bull. I alone would be enough.’
To deploy such forces against a mere Demon King Army executive.
He didn’t like it.
Byron planned to handle Reidrun alone before anyone else could act.
“I am Gatren’s hero, Byron Hane!”
Byron swung his sword.
Whoosh!
The wind stirred around him clearing the dust, revealing a devastating scene.
The green meadow was overturned as if bombed.
Soldiers near Reidrun had burst apart leaving no trace.
Over fifty seemed to have died instantly from a single attack.
The large red demon stood alone in the middle of the carnage.
Reidrun looked at him.
“Die.”
A brief word.
Simultaneously, Reidrun charged.
“You’re the one who’ll die!”
Byron wasn’t intimidated at all.
He charged forward with his sword.
The two men closed the distance instantly and swung their weapons.
Paang!
A thunderous sound rang out as sword met fist.
‘It would be foolish to have a battle of strength with this brainless bull.’
Having just witnessed Reidrun’s tremendous power, Byron wasn’t stupid enough to engage in a contest of strength.
His specialty wasn’t power but technique.
Tat!
Using the repelling force to step back, Byron drew up his magical power.
Gatren Holy Sword Technique
Form 2 – Holy Ascension
Spinning once, he slashed upward with his sword.
A clean movement flowing like water.
Magical power shot like light along the sword’s path.
‘Die!’
A subtle technique using the blind spot at point-blank range.
Byron had no doubt blood would spray from his enemy’s chest.
However, Reidrun blocked the attack with his fist.
‘He hit the flat of the blade…?’
In a split second, the sword was swung.
Reidrun accurately struck the flat of the blade to alter its path.
One corner of Byron’s mouth twisted.
‘So he’s not just a fool with nothing but strength.’
Monster-like reflexes.
As expected of a demon race, his senses were exceptional.
‘But that alone isn’t enough.’
Though the attack failed, he had no intention of letting go.
Byron continued using sword techniques.
He planned to decisively seize the early advantage even if it meant excessive magic consumption.
Gatren Holy Sword Technique
Form 6 – Fanatic’s Punishment
Fanatic’s Punishment.
The fastest and most spectacular technique in Gatren Holy Sword Technique.
This overwhelming technique chains 5 to dozens of sword strikes depending on the user’s proficiency.
Byron’s maximum consecutive strikes was 67.
Among the top handful in the Empire.
Imperial legends were said to chain over 100 strikes, though no one had actually seen it.
Kwaaaa!
Magical power erupted from Byron’s body.
Then the bombardment began.
Shwaaaa!
Over 5 sword strikes per second.
Endless sword strikes too fast for the eye to follow.
Wheek! Tak! Chaeng!
Reidrun didn’t back down.
Dodge, block, dodge again.
The fierce exchange continued.
‘How dare…’
Byron was displeased.
How dare a demon with nothing but brute strength respond to his techniques.
‘Let’s see how long you can keep up!’
Byron increased his speed further.
The sword that seemed it couldn’t go faster accelerated even more.
Shwaaaaa!
The wind swirled from the swinging sword.
34 strikes. 35 strikes. 36 strikes.
Though Reidrun stepped back, he calmly blocked the attacks.
He was bleeding from wounds here and there, but they were shallow.
Not fatal wounds.
49 strikes. 50 strikes. 51 strikes.
Reidrun now stood still.
He blocked all attacks without moving.
He no longer even took wounds or bled.
62 strikes. 63 strikes. 64 strikes.
Reidrun smiled.
The sword’s flow was completely visible to him.
In that moment, he reached out his hand.
Tak.
Before the sword could swing.
He caught Byron’s wrist.
His face turned to bewilderment.
“If this is all, I’m disappointed.”
“Wh-what…”
Byron doubted his own eyes.
Over 60 sword strikes.
Taking less than 10 seconds to execute.
Not just quick swings.
A sword path refined through countless training and real combat.
A sword swung along lethal paths impossible to counter.
The demon before him not only dodged everything but even found and exploited an opening at the end.
He had perfectly grasped Byron’s technique in that brief moment.
“No matter how excellent, petty techniques remain petty.”
“P-petty techniques!?”
Byron’s molars ground together.
His effort and talent.
To call the Holy Empire’s historical sword techniques mere petty tricks!
“Don’t get cocky! Worthless demon!”
Byron swung his sword again.
Gatren Holy Sword TechniqueÂ
Form 7 – Holy Halo
A technique striking a wide area at once.
A massive cross of magical power flew forth.
“…!”
Reidrun twisted his body to dodge through the blind spot.
A flexibility that seemed mismatched with his muscular bulk.
“This can’t be! What are you!”
Byron felt like going mad.
The opponent was a demon.
Just a brute demon with nothing but strength.
Meanwhile, what about himself?
‘I am a sword genius. Byron Hane who became an Imperial hero at just 25!’
Byron had exceptional talent.
But that wasn’t all.
He trained through bone-breaking pain daily to become a hero.
Yet such a person couldn’t defeat one mere demon.
“Impossible…”
Byron’s pupils shook unsteadily.
Reidrun walked forward step by step.
Matching those steps, Byron backed away.
“Let me show you what’s real.”
“This can’t be…!”
“The real thing is quiet and plain. No need for flashy decorations.”
He raised his fist.
Thick demonic energy flowed along his solid muscles, gathering in his fist.
“And…”
The fist pulled back.
Though a simple action, every muscle in his body swelled as if about to burst.
“The real thing is strength.”
Like releasing a spring pulled to its limit.
Reidrun’s fist shot forward.
Reidrun-style Fighting Technique
Form 1 – First Battle Kill
A storm of demonic energy flew forth.
Impossible to dodge or block.
Byron Hane didn’t move.
No, he couldn’t move.
No matter what he tried, he couldn’t escape that massive storm.
‘A nightmare… Is it?’
He wondered if this was a terrible nightmare.
But this was reality.
The only way to wake from this nightmare was death.
At that moment.
Paang!
Byron’s body flew away.
Simultaneously, the storm of demonic energy passed through where he had been.
Kwagwagwagwa-!
***
The one who threw Byron was another Imperial hero, Worsten Gesred.
He sighed looking at Byron Hane writhing on the ground.
“I planned to just watch, but didn’t expect things to turn out like this.”
“I thought you were just a commander. So you’re a hero.”
Reidrun turned around.
Who knew the old man who’d only been watching with surprised eyes was a hero.
“Why didn’t you attack together?”
“To be honest, I didn’t expect such a one-sided fight.”
Worsten spoke the truth.
He had actually predicted an even match between Byron Hane and Reidrun.
‘That monster doesn’t match a division commander’s average? Who spread such nonsense!’
Byron wanted to tear apart the Empire’s intelligence department.
The intelligence department had even said, “That’s actually an overestimate for safety. Internally, we rank the Red Nightmare at the very bottom of division commanders.”
He wanted to throw that officer who said such things straight at Reidrun.
‘Reidrun is among the upper ranks of division commanders. No, the highest rank.’
Looking purely at total demonic energy, it was true he fell below the average for division commanders.
As a long-serving hero, Worsten had considerable experience clashing with Demon King Army division commanders.
None had less demonic energy than Reidrun.
‘But I’ve never seen a demon so deeply versed in combat.’
Generally, demon-fighting was brute force incarnate.
Overwhelming demonic energy and physical abilities.
These alone left humans helpless.
But Reidrun was different.
He overwhelmed Byron Hane, considered technically mature despite limited experience, with technique alone.
‘Where did someone like him come from?’
The Red Nightmare.
They thought he was just a demon with cruel methods.
This was no trivial matter.
If demons like him multiplied, humanity would perish.
The battlefield’s balance was maintained because demons were stupid.
“What are you thinking about so deeply?”
Reidrun called out.
He was puzzled seeing Worsten standing still after stepping forward to fight.
“You. What are you?”
“How amusing. You set a trap without knowing my identity?”
“That’s not what I’m asking.”
Worsten swallowed and continued.
“Where did you learn combat techniques? The Gourmand doesn’t use fighting techniques. Did you learn from your clan’s leader, Corps Commander Ozges?”
“You know quite a bit.”
“Answer the question. Where did you learn combat techniques!”
Reidrun grinned.
Though there was no need to answer an enemy’s question, he decided to tell.
This much entertainment was fine as reward for his path of hardship.
“Do you think you can become the best through learning?”
“What do you mean?”
“Walking a path others paved. It’s comfortable. But comfort breeds laziness and insincerity.”
Reidrun was of the Cowden clan.
The clan led by Corps Commander Ozges.
Cowden had their own traditional fighting techniques passed down since ancient times.
But Reidrun wasn’t satisfied just learning clan techniques.
He endlessly modified and altered the clan’s techniques until finally creating his own named techniques.
Moreover, the techniques he created were a mess.
They naturally fell short compared to clan techniques built over hundreds, thousands of years.
“Reidrun. Stop this foolishness.”
âLearn the clan’s techniques now. You could become our clan’s greatest warrior.â
Others in the clan told him to stop his useless efforts and return to learning clan techniques.
Reidrun shook his head.
He didn’t stop what others saw as foolishness –Â
Agonizing daily and training repeatedly to perfect his techniques.
“In any era, the greatest of that era is predetermined. Do you know who?”
“…”
Worsten pondered but didn’t answer.
Reidrun continued without waiting for a response.
“It’s the one who pioneers new paths.”
Reidrun wanted to be real, not one of countless fakes.
At first, he too thought it was a distant dream.
There were times he thought being the best was impossible.
But now he knew.
His muddy path wasn’t wrong.
“I will become the best.”
He was getting closer to the peak, one step at a time.
