Chapter 52: Pavane For A Dead Dwarf (5)

***The spell replaced the fuse, and the twisted mana took the place of gunpowder.As Yeomyeong aimed his sword at the horse-headed man and the corpses littering the ground began to swell simultaneously, a flower bloomed.Petals made of blood unfurled, and pollen made of flesh and bones scattered.Watching the world dyed in red, the horse-headed shepherd was convinced of his victory. He quickly chanted a new spell as a new protective wrapped around him.Immediately after, the translucent shield turned red.Feeling fragments of bone clattering against the blood-soaked shield, the horse-headed man gathered more mana to reinforce the shield.And due to the sheer number of corpses, the explosion continued for quite some time.Only after the shield had become dangerously thin did the explosion finally cease.The final act of the explosion was the sound of trucks being overturned and crashing.Feeling the ground tremble, the horse-headed man deactivated the shield. However, the very next moment, his face twisted in disbelief."...How are you…?"Yeomyeong did not die.Even though his combat gear was in tatters and his body covered in wounds visible through the torn fabric, he was still alive, holding his sword, and walking toward the horse-headed man.Thick blood trailed from his toes, and with each step, his wounds healed at a visible pace.Blood stopped flowing down his forehead. The hole in his thigh closed up, and his hollowed shoulder was restored.His vitality was beyond belief.Wasn’t that the very power every shepherd had longed to obtain, even at the cost of forsaking their humanity?What the hell was this guy... No, that didn’t matter. Whatever he was, he must be killed here and now.Tinged with a hint of jealousy and respect, the horse-headed shepherd raised his hand.A red light flickered as twisted mana condensed at his fingertips.“O King of the Undead—! Please, lend me a hand!”A burst of red beams erupted from his hand as the spell was completed.Having finished regenerating his leg, Yeonmyeong leaped as the sky turned red.The amount of mana infused in that short leap was immense. Starting from his toes to the tip of his sword, the mana stretched long, undulating like a wave.The sword sliced through the beam as it descended—a clash of opposing forces.Seeing that, the horse-headed man gathered even more mana at his fingertips and poured it all into the beam."—!"The moment the thick beam succeeded in pushing the sword back, Yeomyeong let go of his sword. The weakened beam shot high into the sky, and Yeomyeong threw something from his waist.Seeing the grenade falling toward him, the horse-headed man was at a loss for words. Since he was not a Superhuman, it was impossible for him to avoid it.And before he had the chance to deploy his shield, the explosion pushed both him and Yeomyeong away. The horse-headed man was flung into the air and thrown backwards.""Rolling on the ground, the horse-headed man began chanting his next spell.Although the pain from the grenade fragments lodged in his chest and thigh made it hard for him to focus, he managed to deploy the protective shield spell just in time.Yeomyeong’s sword struck down on the protective shield. Even though they were both hit by the same grenade, Yeomyeong managed to retrieve his sword and run to where the horse-headed man was while he was still in the middle of casting his spell."What… the hell are you?"The horse-headed man asked while looking at Yeomyeong through the shield. Despite the intense battle, there wasn’t even a hint of fatigue on the young boy’s face.On the contrary, Yeomyeong’s eyes grew fiercer as he pressed down with his sword. The blade and the spell clashed, scattering mana in all directions.Only then did the horse-headed man realize the source of Yeomyeong’s limitless vitality.The depth of his mana was shockingly high.The mana radiating from beyond the shield far exceeded that of the horse-headed man, who had already forsaken his humanity, by an even greater margin.How was that even possible?Although he knew that Yeomyeong was the one who had cut the rib of the dragon, he never imagined that he was hiding such an ability.And the judgment of the higher-ups was no different. They believed that the only reason Yeomyeong had managed to survive the battle against the dragon was due to the Saintess' and the blessing of god, as well as the Dragon's capriciousness.It was a reasonable assumption. Who would even imagine a rookie mercenary possessed such power?A rookie mercenary... the Saintess... what if they were in cahoots right from the start?Just as something clicked within the horse-headed man’s mind, the shield shattered. And the blood-stained sword came down on his shoulder.Blood splattered as his right arm was severed. The horse-headed man screamed as he staggered back, but Yeomyeong didn’t let up his assault.He raised his sword high, ready to end the horse-headed man in one blow. The shadow of death loomed over the horse-headed man’s nape.However, the next moment, his sword failed to strike the horse-headed man’s neck.* * *

The Saintess, who had been persistently firing bullets at the bizarre figures on motorcycles, turned her gaze to the other side of the field.An inexplicable sense of unease washed over her.Just as she unconsciously bit her lip, a strong wind blew from the other side of the field, strong enough to make the Saintess' white hair flutter and cause her expression to harden immediately.The reason was the sickening smell of blood lingering in its wake."...No way.”The Saintess gulped as she turned to the direction the wind had come from. Amidst the scent of blood, she could sense an unfamiliar mana.A twisted, contaminated mana, unlike anything she had ever felt before.She couldn’t fathom what the person had done to generate such mana. Could it be that the mana belonged to a Necromancer she had only heard about in stories?Whatever it was, it definitely wasn’t good news for Yeomyeong, who had ventured ahead all by himself."Captain! I’m going ahead!"The Saintess shouted towards Captain Kwon, who was dealing with the bikers.One of the bikers aimed his pistol at her, but Captain Kwon’s machine gun instantly turned him into a Swiss cheese."Go ahead! Kim Mansoo! Gather those without rifles and follow the Saintess!"The Saintess nodded at Captain Kwon and then picked up one of the motorcycles lying on the ground.She started the blood-stained motorcycle. And as soon as the engine roared, she set off in Yeomyeong’s direction where.While the other mercenaries were looking for intact motorcycles to accompany her, she sped across the field, showing off the biking skills she had honed over the years.Fortunately, the distance to Yeomyeong wasn’t that far.And it didn’t take long before she saw an overturned truck and blood-soaked ground beyond the horizon.For some reason… there were only two figures standing on that ground.Yeomyeong, drenched in blood, and a strange Mage wearing a horse-head mask.Fortunately, it seemed that the battle was in Yeomyeong’s favor. The Saintess' sharp eyes, hidden beneath her blindfold, could see Yeomyeong pressing down on the shield.Yet, for some reason, the sense of unease didn’t go away. Instead, it only grew stronger.Why?The answer to her question came from above her.An inexplicable fluctuation of mana.The moment the Saintess looked up with her blindfolded eyes, an incomprehensible sight entered her view."...What the hell is that?"Dressed in a black winter coat, a person with short golden hair fluttering was walking through the sky... Were they a girl? Or A boy? Their androgynous appearance made it hard to determine their gender.The Saintess squinted, trying to figure out how they were walking across the sky.It was certainly possible to fly in the sky with magic, but... the issue was their speed.With each leisurely step they took, as if they were taking a stroll, their body surged through the air at an incredible speed.Although not quite at the level of the Divine Sky Steps that the Holy Sword was proud of, but fast enough for a motorcycle to struggle to keep up.Only after being overtaken did the Saintess realize the source of her unease.The familiar dwarf they were carrying, the incomprehensible wave of mana, and... the direction they were heading towards.Leaning forward to reduce air resistance, the Saintess pulled the throttle to its limits. The engine screamed, and the accelerating wheels kicked up a cloud of dust.

* * *Just as Yeomyeong was about to strike the neck of the horse-headed man, something flew toward the back of his head.

An attack with neither forewarning nor sign.The moment he sensed the intense killing intent, Yeomyeong immediately twisted his sword to deflect it.Was it magic? Or martial arts? As soon as he blocked whatever was made of mana, his sword vibrated.Yeomyeong quickly turned his head to identify the attacker.High above him in the sky, so high that he had to lift his head, someone dressed in a black winter coat aimed a palm at him."Oh, you managed to block it? Your Qi Detection is pretty."The clear voice was gender-neutral, but it made Yeomyeong frown nonetheless.The reason was the familiar dwarf hanging limply on the person’s left shoulder.Darulma Dune, the dwarf who should have been back in the mercenary truck—why was he here?Only two possibilities came to mind. Either the mercenary group had lost, or only Darulma was kidnapped... Neither situation was good.Yeomyeong took a deep breath and assessed his body condition.Although his body was fatigued from the consecutive battles, the increase in mana from absorbing the World Tree’s crystal sustained him.While Yeomyeong prepared to fight, the person descended to the ground gracefully, stepping lightly through the air."For someone from this world, you seem to have mastered some decent Kungfu..."A dissatisfied expression appeared on the face, and it was really hard to tell if it belonged to a male or a female."What a shame. I honestly don’t have much time right now.”As soon as they said those words, they moved their right hand. It was the same attack that had aimed for the back of Yeomyeong’s head earlier.When the mana-infused palm struck the air, a fierce wave of mana split the atmosphere as it flew towards him.It was a technique Yeomyeong was familiar with. For some reason, its structure was identical to the swordsmanship he had realized in the bunker.This time, instead of blocking it with his sword, he released mana from the blade. When the two forces collided mid-air, they neutralized each other and dispersed.Yeomyeong did not miss this opportunity—a new martial art, something that could stimulate his talent.Anticipating his opponent’s next attack from his opponent’s, he infused his sword with mana again.However, the battle he was hoping for didn’t continue. Instead, a baffled voice pierced his ears."The Surging Wave technique?""...""Someone from this world can use the Surging Wave technique??"The one who had seen through the martial art and the one exposed to it. The gazes of the two, hardened with tension, met in the air. Searᴄh the Nôvel(F)ire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.