Even in his transformed dinosaur state, the sheer force transmitted through his hands, arms, and shoulders made them quiver uncontrollably. It was obvious that the moment his skill deactivated, his body would surely be cleaved in half.
It seemed that when simple and brute attacks reached their zenith, techniques became redundant.
Kijung found himself on the defensive, with no room for counterattacks. Yet, the resolve in his eyes remained unbroken.
Inside the completely armored helmet of Toon, Kijung’s eyes were targeting something else.
‘Just once. If I can use it just once, and catch them off guard―’
As Kijung’s eyes moved, so did Bluebeard’s.
However, Bluebeard was not looking at Kijung.
“Hmm? Since when was that there?”
Bluebeard’s brow furrowed as he focused on something behind Kijung.
Curious as to what Bluebeard was seeing, but too overwhelmed by Ghibrid’s relentless assault, Kijung couldn’t turn his head.
At that moment, Rubini’s whisper pierced through.
—Someone is there, Master Kay! I saw a dot behind you a while ago......
—What?
A voice filled with rage suddenly echoed from behind.
“Must you always... take everything...?”
Whooooosh──────...
Despite the wind growing stronger, the voice remained clear.
“I’ve had enough of this―yay──!”
Boom──────!
A violent blow swept through the surroundings.
At that moment, Kijung realized why Bluebeard looked so surprised and who had suddenly appeared.
『Wh-what? How did you―』
In Kijung’s mind, Rubini’s voice echoed.
—It was Lee Jiwon! Lee Jiwon was following Master Kay! But how he managed to remain hidden on my radar...
Lee Jiwon had been tailing Kijung ever since Raphaela used her super wide-area skill, threading his way through the chimeras.
This was the result of his obsessive determination to locate his target, a target that had humiliated him, in the eastern part of the new continent where teleportation was not possible.
The user who was more furious than anyone about the Demon King’s Fragment! Rank 2, magic swordsman, Lee Jiwon, had stormed onto the battlefield.
* * *
There was no way the community would miss out on discussing the first-ever S+ grade achievement.
Even Lee Jiwon, who had logged out due to death, saw it.
The achievement holder was not Alexander, whom Lee Jiwon considered a rival.
It wasn’t the overwhelmingly active Ha Leeha, nor the Pioneer King Fernand.
From Lee Jiwon’s perspective, it was a fairly insignificant user, Master Kay.
The first cardinal user? Such titles held zero significance for Lee Jiwon.
How had the belittled Master Kay managed to obtain an S+ grade achievement?
“Pyrot-Cocri... you... I cannot forgive you.”
Lee Jiwon knew well about it.
Rumors had flown about how his body had been turned into an undead, and there were also sightings saying Pyrot-Cocri was behind it.
〈Title: LOL isn’t he dead, what a shovel〉
〈Title: Did he join the Demon King’s army like Chiyou?〉
〈Title: -re: Do you believe something without even a screenshot?〉
〈Title: -re-re: Bullshit, partner got system notifications when attacked〉
〈Title: -re-re: Yeah, the rumor about being turned undead seems true〉
〈Title: Did Lee Jiwon awaken Pyrot-Cocri?〉
〈Title: -re: Just a hilarious prank, lOL hahahah〉
“Ugh... Ughhhhh.......”
Once interviewed by foreign media, Korea’s number 1 rank and 2nd rank worldwide, the pride of Middle Earth’s strongest magic swordsman, was utterly trampled.
Tack, tack─ Tack-tack-tack─!
Lee Jiwon’s hands on the keyboard grew faster and faster.
On the three connected monitors, new windows popped up continuously, matching his frenetic keystrokes.
“Pyrot-Cocri... Demon King’s Fragment...”
Letting his trampled pride go just like that was not something the world’s 2nd rank individual would do.
Lee Jiwon’s glasses reflected the light from the monitor.
Within the glinting lenses, his eyes burned fiercely.
Bluebeard couldn’t even catch his breath. He hurriedly turned around.
Behind him, Lee Jiwon’s sword descended.
────────────......!!!!
The difference from an asteroid in space was that the black space surrounding him was entirely under Lee Jiwon’s control.
“Isn’t this fun? Haha!”
Bluebeard immediately swung his staff at Lee Jiwon, who disappeared into the black space.
“Curse you!”
Yet, Bluebeard couldn’t stop swinging his staff.
Lee Jiwon’s attacks poured in from angles and directions that Bluebeard couldn’t predict.
─, ─, ─, ─, ─, ─, ─.......
In a space where sense of distance couldn’t be grasped at all, Bluebeard’s staff and the invisible sword of Lee Jiwon continued their clash.
His shirt’s abdomen was turning blue.
The duel between Bluebeard, who had sustained a fatal injury from Bahamut, and the world’s 2nd rank, who had discovered a new aspect of his weapon, was heading towards a stalemate.
* * *
『This is amazing....... How on earth―』
“Are you getting distracted, Holy Knight?”
Kwaaaang────────......!
Unlike the infinitely silent duel between Bluebeard and Lee Jiwon, the battle between Ghibrid and Kijung was so loud that one could hardly feel anything else.
『What’s the big deal about getting distracted?』
“Hm?”
As the dust began to settle, Kijung spoke up.
Though the heaviness of the attacks was still overwhelming, Kijung was gradually able to react to them.
『It’s always easiest to face those who blindly trust their strength.』
The simplicity of the attack patterns.
One swing, and if Kijung retreated, they’d follow again with another swing.
Even the directions of the swings alternated between diagonal cuts, vertical slashes, and horizontal cuts in repetition.
Unless one was a fool, by the time he had parried his attacks through two cycles, Kijung had no reason not to react.
『A Strike of Conviction!』
This time, it was a vertical cut.
Kijung used a skill and twisted his body’s axis simultaneously.
Though Ghibrid’s attack had not yet started, Kijung was confident.
By taking a lateral step and rotating his axis, Ghibrid’s attack would inevitably lose its target.
Changing the direction of an attack recklessly was not feasible. At least, if one used ordinary muscles.
Thus, Kijung’s attack was supposed to pierce Ghibrid’s heart.
Cracken─────────......!
If Ghibrid’s muscles had been ordinary, that is.
『What the......?』
Kijung was flustered.
The sword of the “Nameless Paladin”, coated with Holy Power, undoubtedly stabbed into something.
Yet, it wasn’t flesh.
“... You underestimated me, Holy Knight.”
Ghibrid’s arm that slashed vertically remained in place.
However, a black mass that had ‘burst out’ of his forearm was blocking his chest region.
“At this point... This mere shell is only a nuisance.”
Indeed, as Ghibrid described wearing a human flesh. His facial muscles moved subtly.
Crack, crackle―
『Crazy...』
He began to peel off his ‘clothes’.
Tearing apart the human skin randomly, black masses started to reveal themselves.
It was the dreadful Ghibrid origin Kijung had once seen in Middle Earth, the most horrifying fusion.
The pure blackness of Lee Jiwon was completely different. Hundreds of eyes and mouths emerged from the filthy, sooty black mass.
TL’s Corner:
Ghibrid is like a slime. Hmmm.