Chapter 71

The Demon King's body was pierced all over with harpoons.

It looked as if he’d been turned into a grotesque floral arrangement with harpoons instead of flowers.

All thirteen harpoons had hit their mark.

Such precise targeting—no archer renowned for their skill could have pierced the Demon King so thoroughly.

Drip, drip.

Blood flowed profusely.

His thighs, forearms, even his chest were pierced.

These injuries were severe enough that the footsteps of death should be approaching. Yet, unfortunately, even the dead were too afraid to approach the Demon King.

In the face of his terrifying aura, even the dead would flee.

Above all...

“I... will... kill... you!”

The Demon King was not a being who would die from just these wounds.

Boom!

Though injured, his vitality had not dimmed in the slightest. For any other creature, a pierced chest and severed neck would spell a death sentence, but for the Demon King, these wounds didn’t even qualify as injuries.

“GRAAAA!!”

If anything, they only fueled his rage.

The Demon King’s fist descended toward Ihan.

CRASH!

A thunderous explosion shook the area.

The tremor was strong enough that it felt like an earthquake. Those in the vicinity of the Academy could barely keep their footing, with many falling.

The epicenter of these tremors was, predictably...

Thud, thud...!

The ground itself was crumbling under the force.

This was power on the scale to annihilate a nation.

Such power was proof enough of his existence.

In that moment—

"I’m right here."

“!!?”

At some point, Ihan had climbed onto the Demon King’s shoulder and mercilessly swung his sword. It wasn’t a named technique; it was simply—

Slash, slash!

A relentless assault.

His blade left countless marks as he hacked at the Demon King’s arm. Over ten strikes.

“Di...e!”

Yet, the Demon King's skin wasn’t so easily breached.

Even large harpoons had only barely pierced his flesh; ordinary means could hardly scratch him.

—That is, if he were at full strength.

SPLURT!

“!!”

The Demon King let out a pained roar.

“That’s what happens when you leave them stuck in your body.”

The sheer stupidity of ignoring the embedded harpoons was both frustrating and amusing. Stupid opponents are easier to deal with.

Focusing his attack on the parts where the harpoons had caused cracks, Ihan mercilessly slashed, tearing into the Demon King’s arm.

“Get... away...!”

With a powerful whoosh, the Demon King's fist struck forward.

Despite his massive frame, the blow was fast and accurate. Observers would think it looked like a massive boulder dropping from the sky.

For all his lack of intelligence, his physical prowess was formidable.

Whoosh!

“Hey, you’ve got some impressive physical stats, monster.”

But Ihan dodged the descending fist.

It was his own unique high-speed evasion technique, Gungsintanyeong.

Moving like a shot arrow, it allowed him to become a gust of wind, and each time—

Swish!

He would slice.

Back, legs, shoulders, knees, groin, neck.

He moved like a butterfly, stinging like a bee.

Ihan embodied this strategy, executing flawless hit-and-run tactics. However, despite his speed and precision, he couldn’t afford to be careless.

And for good reason.

“I... hate... it...!”

BOOM!

…Even a single mistake could lead to death.

“Heh, you damned monster….”

Ihan let out a dry laugh, sweat dripping down his face.

With every swing of the Demon King’s arms and legs, a crushing pressure engulfed him, numbing his body.

It felt as if he were being sliced by razor winds and pounded by heavy hammers.

‘How can this be called weakened?’

It was absurd.

This was supposed to be less than 30% of his prime strength. If he were at 100%, Ihan would already be dead.

‘Actually, even if he wasn’t in his prime, if he had more brains, this would be over.’

The Demon King’s mindless reliance on brute force was the only thing keeping Ihan in the fight. If he were even a bit more cunning, if he had decided to flee or attack another location, this battle would be pointless.

His intentional provocation had focused the Demon King’s hatred solely on himself. At least this way, the Demon King would stay here until Ihan was dead.

So...

‘I absolutely can’t die.’

If he died here, every student in the Coliseum and the Academy would be killed.

Whether by fate or duty, Ihan had taken on a burdensome role. With the Demon King adjusting to his movements and preparing a counterattack, Ihan braced himself with renewed determination.

He was resolved not to let his defenses be breached.

And so—

‘I won’t give you the chance to adjust.’

FWOOSH!

He decided to up the ante even further.

Stagger!

The Demon King stumbled. He thought he’d finally caught Ihan with his full strength, but his opponent had suddenly vanished.

Except, Ihan hadn’t disappeared.

Only—

Swish! Swish!

“!!”

His movements became far more intricate.

Ihan’s techniques were unpredictable and confounding, evading any set pattern as he bewildered the Demon King. Ihan’s afterimages, created by Gungsintanyeong, disoriented the Demon King’s senses and triggered confusion.

“Increased... speed?”

“——”

Ihan couldn’t even make a sound as he clenched his teeth. Revealing his hidden trump card pushed his body to the edge.

But it was effective, and he used it to keep taunting the Demon King.

Originally, he had intended to reveal this technique to impress Baltar, not some monster.

Phantasmal Eight Trigram Steps (Hwan-yeong Palgye-bo).

Utilizing the principles of the eight trigrams alongside his maximum speed and afterimages created by Gungsintanyeong, Ihan unleashed his incomplete but mystical movement skill.

Despite his lack of full mastery, it was enough to bewilder a monster.

Snap!

…Unfortunately, it wasn’t a technique he could use for long.

The strain on his body was significant.

He couldn’t sustain it.

So what he had to do was—

“Hoo!”

While the Demon King was still dazed, he had to strike with everything he had.

CRUNCH!

“??”

The Demon King’s jaw twisted.

It hurt, but what confused him more was—

“Why—?”

The Demon King’s energy was down below, so why did his head just snap back?

The pain was secondary to his bewilderment.

Baekbo Shinkwon.

In boxing or martial arts, reach is a crucial factor in dominating a match.

When dealing with a monster whose reach was several times greater, Ihan’s use of Baekbo Shinkwon was perfect for overcoming the difference.

So, Baekbo Shinkwon.

Ihan had refined the technique to ignore his opponent's size and reach, pummeling the Demon King from all directions.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

“Gaaa!!?”

With Hwan-yeong Palgye-bo disrupting the Demon King’s senses and Baekbo Shinkwon nullifying range and direction, Ihan struck with reckless abandon.

Then, he added—

THUMP!

The essence of Weight-Increasing Techniques in his strikes.

Ihan was undoubtedly driving the Demon King into a corner.

...But to a third-party observer—

“He’s going to get himself killed like that!”

It looked as if he would collapse from exhaustion at any moment.

Though the Demon King was momentarily on the defensive, his regenerative power hadn’t faltered. His aura was as potent as when he first appeared, only momentarily fazed by Ihan’s unfamiliar techniques.

The moment he adapted—

“No, that’s unthinkable!”

The thought alone was horrifying.

[Even for him, using such intense techniques in succession will have consequences. Irene, you need to help him with magic!]

“There’s no opening to help him!”

Didn’t Irene want to help?

But the Demon King was immune to most magic.

Any attempt to use magic was nullified by the Demon King’s overwhelming magic resistance. That was why Ordwal had lost his will to fight as soon as he saw the Demon King.

But Irene—

“I just need to prepare one big attack….”

She gathered all the magical energy she could muster.

Facing strong resistance? Then she’d have to use an overwhelming amount of power.

With this, the young mage waited for a chance to release her spell, determined to help him in his hour of need.

“Just make an opening, then?”

“Yes, just an opening!”

“…How big of an opening?”

“Uh... just about a meter away from the instructor?”

“Got it. I’ll make an opening.”

“Thank you. But… who are you, exactly?”

“…You’re just asking now?”

The boy with gray hair looked at her incredulously, as if disappointed by her lack of perception.

Irene blinked, unable to understand why he seemed disappointed. The boy, instead of answering, muttered to himself as he stepped forward.

“…Just consider me a coward passing through. Useless until now, only able to make requests…”

“Hm?”

“Better late than never to lend a hand, though.”

With these cryptic words, the gray-haired boy moved forward, preparing his ultimate, life weapon. [Thief Class - Ultimate Skill] "...Full Blossom of Rain." Rain of flowers fills the sky (滿天花雨). Derrick unleashed a storm of hidden weapons from above.