Chapter 227: The Best Skill (2)

CLANG!

“Kuh…”

At Duke Schweiker’s light swing, Jerome staggered backward.

“I’ll keep going.”

And as Duke Schweiker moved to continue to aim for his neck…

CLANG!

Jerome leaned so far back that he was almost horizontal with his horse, but managed to push Duke Schweiker’s sword away from him. He judged that he didn’t have the strength to block the attack head-on and had instantly moved to hit the side of Duke Schweiker’s sword and pushed it away. Thanks to that, he had been able to dodge Duke Schweiker’s attack but because of it, his form crumpled and he fell off his horse.

“Good.”

Duke Schweiker smiled at the sight and got off his horse as well. As long as Jerome had fallen off his horse, it’ll be difficult for him to escape. Not to mention, it was better to fight on the ground than on horseback to make full use of a Master’s ability and skills.

‘Is he treating me like I’m some kind of entertainment?’

Jerome felt anger boiling inside him as he looked at Duke Scheiker’s smile. With his skills, there was no way Jerome didn’t know that Duke Schweiker was currently treating him like a toy. Of course he was outraged. But he managed to calm down his anger and regain his logical coldness.

‘It’s better this way.’

Was it possible for him to stop Duke Schweiker with his current level?

‘No, that’s almost impossible.’

Maybe it would be different if they met 10 years from now, but right now, it was difficult. Although Jerome didn’t have the ability that Milton had, he could still feel with his whole body that there was a large gap between himself and Duke Schweiker.

If he wanted to protect Milton from Duke Schweiker, then all Jerome could do right now with his current skill level was to stall him. He was like the mouse who had become a cat’s toy, but it couldn’t be helped.

If there was one thing he had to put ahead of his own honor, then it was...

‘The safety of My Lord.’

Having resolved himself, Jerome once again rushed towards Duke Schweiker. It wasn’t to win. He was charging towards Duke Schweiker so that the man wouldn’t lose interest in himself. Jerome was staking his life…

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

After dismounting from their horses, the two men’s fighting pattern definitely changed. Ordinary knights would be much more powerful when they fought on horseback, but it was different for Intermediate or Advanced Experts. They rode horses to lead the cavalry and maximize their charge, but it was a means of increasing efficiency when targeting multiple soldiers. It was much more effective to dismount from their horse if they were fighting against a truly strong opponent. 

No matter how good a knight was with horses, it was easier to control his center of gravity on his two legs than on a horse. And unlike horses, a human’s two legs gave them a surprisingly diverse range of movement that allowed them to freely move back and forth while attacking at close range.

Jerome furiously attacked Duke Schweiker like waves coming at him from all directions. He attacked from the right and before the first even ended, he rotated and attacked from the left, and then feinted right again only to leave behind a faint afterimage to attack Duke Schweiker from the back.

“Good. Very impressive.’

Duke Schweiker smiled widely as if he was becoming more excited by Jerome’s desperate attacks. Then, he struck Jerome’s sword, just once, but Jerome lost his grip and the sword flew out of his hands. Duke Schweiker lifted his sword saying, “Either block it or avoid it.”

The distance between the two of them was more than 5 meters, but Jerome felt a chill go down his back at that warning. Then…

“Hup!”

With that short exhale, a wave of Aura was pushed out from Duke Schweiker’s sword.

Kakakakaka!

Destroying the ground as it rushed forward, the wave hit Jerome in a flash.

“Jerome!”

Milton had been retreating, but at that, he shouted out in shock. Thankfully, after the dust had settled, Jerome appeared looking okay. 

“Hu…”

After getting his breathing under control, Jerome gulped as he looked at the crack in the ground next to him. Just looking at that was evident of the destructive power in that single blow.

‘He’s a monster.’

It had never occurred to him that Aura could be sent out from a distance, but Duke Schweiker had done it easily. For the first time in his life, Jerome felt terror on the battlefield. He had thought he wasn’t afraid of death, but the overwhelming difference in skill inevitably caused him to feel both despair and fear. 

It was the same for the other Masters. Not only the Masters of the Lester Kingdom, but the other Masters of the Empire all looked shattered by it. But, there was one exception. 

“Die!”

With a sharp shout, someone charged towards Duke Schweiker from the side.

CLANG!

“Ooh… That’s pretty sharp.”

Duke Schweiker smiled faintly as he blocked the attack. But that relaxed smile only made his opponent even angrier.

“Piss off, you monstrous bastard!”

The opponent attacked Duke Schweiker again. Violent and sharp attacks poured down on Duke Schweiker. 

The only person who hadn’t been overwhelmed by the difference in their skills was Violet, Milton’s wife.

‘Why now?’

Milton looked troubled after checking her stats.

Recklessness LV.9 (MAX): Able to fight while ignoring your own injuries during battle. However, your rational judgement will be greatly reduced. 

Fierce Combat LV.9 (MAX): Activates when you are in a precarious situation. Brings forth an ability up to 100% higher than normal. 

Two of Violet’s Special Traits were being exercised to the fullest right now.

Thanks to her Recklessness, Violet didn’t see anything else in front of her and because of her Fierce Combat, she was twice as powerful than usual. With how Violet was right now, it might even be possible to win against Dominic Florian. However, the opponent she was fighting against right now was too difficult. The one in front of her was acknowledged as the continent’s strongest man.

“Then, it’s my turn now.”

Duke Schweiker had been on the defensive this whole time, but now, he swung his sword to face her.

“Kuh…”

Cha Cha Clack Clack Clack CLACK!

Violet had to step back at Duke Schweiker’s attack.

“You motherf*ing monstrous bastard…”

“Hahaha… What an unruly girl.”

Duke Schweiker laughed out loud as he bore down on Violet. 

His current attacks were different from when he had been attacking Jerome. Before, he had fought against Jerome using traditional swordsmanship with each strike containing strength and power, but right now, he was attacking her with a series of breathtaking attacks that were so fast that it was difficult to even see his sword. When he fought against Jerome, he used Jerome’s forte, when he was fighting against Violet, he was using her’s. But nonetheless, he still held the upper hand.

In the midst of a dizzying flurry of attacks, Duke Schweiker’s sword entangled with Violet’s.

“Ugh…”

Violet looked troubled as she looked at Duke Schweiker’s sword that wouldn’t release her’s. Then…

“Still a long way off. Too practical that you don’t know the beauty of a sword.”

After saying that, Duke Schweiker moved his sword oddly. His sword began to climb up Violet’s sword like a living snake.

“Gah…”

Violet freaked out. At this rate, it seemed like it would take her hand that was holding her sword. But thankfully...

BANG!

Duke Schweiker backed down before his attack succeeded. Trike’s Aura Arrow had stopped him.

“Marquis Taker! Take the Grand Duchess and retreat!”

Having shouted that, Trike placed another arrow onto the bowstrings.

“Hahaha… The Lester Kingdom is like a treasure chest. There’s a lot of interesting people.”

Duke Schweiker’s attention moved from Jerome to Violet and now to Trike. He had met many strong people before, but he had never seen a person able to put in this much power into an arrow. According to Antras, there were people in the Southern continent who had reached the level of a Master using a bow, but this was the first time he had seen one in his continent.

‘I can’t miss an opportunity like this.’

Schweiker targeted Trike like he was a food connoisseur who had finally discovered a delicacy after a long time. 

***

“Whooo…”

Trike was calm. Despite the continent’s strongest man running towards him, Trike remained calm. Even he thought it was surprising.

‘Based on the distance and his speed, I can only fire one arrow. If the first shot misses, that’s it.’

If he thought about it, life was certainly odd. He had just been the leader of a mercenary corps but had become a knight, then received a title and was now confronting the continent’s strongest man.

‘I’ve lived a wonderful and fulfilling life.’

Trike gritted his teeth and concentrated his power on the arrow.

Whoowhoowhoowhoo!

Trike’s bow sucked in more of his life force than usual.

“Kuh…”

Trike’s complexion deteriorated dramatically as his red hair gradually turned white.

“Trike! Stop!”

Milton knew right away what Trike was about to do. The bow Trike used was originally made out of a parasitic tree called the Dryad that sucked in the user’s life force, but after training, Trike was able to utilize it properly. But right now, Trike was deliberately allowing it to suck his life force. Trike believed using his life to take down the strongest man on the continent would be profiting.

“I owe you a great deal, My Lord!”

“Stop it, you son of a bitch!”

Milton shouted furiously at him, but Trike had already released the arrow.

BOOM!

The moment Trike let the arrow go; there was a tremendous roar. For the first time, the relaxed look on Duke Schweiker’s face disappeared.

“Hup!”

Duke Schweiker held his sword in both hands. Then, he struck out with all his might in the direction of Trike’s arrow. 

Chachahchacha...

“Ugh…”

It was a battle between power vs. power.

Duke Schweiker managed to block Trike’s arrow, but he was slowly being pushed back. The arrow contained the history, the life, and the will of the genius archer. It was so powerful that it even pushed back the great Duke Schweiker, but…

“Piss off!”

BANG!

It wasn’t enough to claim Duke Schweiker’s life. 

“Damn it…”

Trike collapsed when he saw his arrow break. He didn’t have any strength to pull his bowstring, let alone stand on his two feet.

“How remarkable.”

Duke Schweiker sincerely praised Trike. How long had it been since he went all out? Jerome, Violet, and even Trike… Every single one of them might have been inferior to him, but he still respected them for giving it their all to fight him. 

And Duke Schweiker knew who was responsible for them fighting so vigorously.

“Weren’t you going to retreat?”

“Tsk, I was going to.”

This time, the opponent standing in front of Duke Schweiker was Milton. The moment Duke Schweiker had entered the fight, Milton had ordered the army to retreat. But in order to help Milton retreat, Jerome, Violet, and Trike had remained behind to fight desperately. That sight had haunted Milton and he couldn’t bear to retreat.

In the end, Milton turned his horse around and was standing in front of Duke Schweiker now.