Zich and Glen clashed far away from their companions, where they had a low possibility of getting bothered by other people. They sent a flurry of attacks, each one a dream for an ordinary knight to make toward an enemy. Glen sent a current of mana into Tornium, and although his body ached with the mana he couldnât withstand yet, the pain was still endurable. Glen knew that although it was only aching right now, the side effects of this power would soon inflict greater injuries on him. Yet, Glen didnât care. He was only focused on crushing Zich right now.
Baaam! Glen swung Tornium, and Zich backed away while wavering. When Glen swung once more, Zich hurriedly escaped as he was almost rolling on the ground. Then, Zich barely managed to block the next swing with his sword.
âWhat is he thinking? Was he really just bluffing?â Glen wondered. Zich confidently said that he would be fine alone, but now that they were fighting one on one, all Zich did was evade with all his might. Zich didnât even defend himself well, so a large part of his body was full of injuries. Glen enjoyed seeing Zich struggle to protect himself against his attacks, but in a corner of his heart, he couldnât help but worry.
âHe could also have something up his sleevesâ¦â However, Glen soon decided to push away his worries. He needed to focus on crushing Zich at this moment.
âWhatever trick he has planned, I will crush him before he can use it!â Then, He would take Zich to his main base and torture Zich until Zich spat out information. If he did that, Glen was sure that everything would turn back to how it was beforeâto the just, calm world where he had control over everything.
Baam! Glenâs attacks became fiercer. He had an intense drive to finish this battle no matter the critical injuries he suffered. Accordingly, Zichâs hands became busy, but he continued to endure relentlessly. He blocked, deflected mana, and let his body bear the non-critical attacks.
âDamn it!â Glen exclaimed in an outburst as Zich kept looking like he was about to fall but didnât. âJust fucking die!â
Bam! As Glen cursed, he swung Tornium down on Zich, but Zich also managed to block this attack in the end.
âWhy would I do anything that benefits you?!â Zich said while licking the blood dripping from his cheeks and spitting it out.
âYou canât beat me with your skills! Your father will also soon meet his end too! Stop your futile resistance and give up!â Glen yelled.
âThatâs what I would do if you were actually right, but I have all means to beat you, and my damn dad will not meet his end here.â
âStop your nonsenseâ¦!â Glen swung Tornium again.
Boom!
A huge explosion rose from the allied forcesâ territory. Glen quickly looked in the direction of the explosion. There had been plenty of explosions up until now. Both sides had elite soldiers who could use mana and the Steelwalls had mages who specialized in fire magic and caused frequent explosions on the battlefield. However, this explosion was on another levelâit was as if it belonged to the leader of the Pulru School of Magic, the past master of the magical tower, or the Demon Lord of Magic before the regression, Walwiss Dwayne.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
âI thought that guy went to block the Bellid guys,â Glen thought. Although the Bellid troops that struck the Steelwall army from the rear was few in number, they were of considerable quality. Even if Til and Walwiss were strong, it wasnât a force that could be so easily defeated. Yet, reality was cruel.
Baaaam! Fire magic struck the allied forces once again. Those within the vicinity of his attacks were shredded apart, and everyone in the surroundings suffered severe burns. The allied forces were shaken up. For some reason, their enemyâs greatest mage had come back.
âCan you spare time to look away?â
Glen flinched in surprise and raised Tornium.
Bam! Zichâs sword pressed down on Tornium. It wasnât an attack that endangered him greatly, and the difference in their levels was still quite large. Yet, Glen felt chills on his back as he saw Zichâs face beyond his sword. With blood all over him, Zich was still grinning.
âIt seems like Walwiss has come back. Til is going to come back soon, and the troops that left to take care of the rear will join us once more. What did you say before? That my father was going to meet his end?â Zich asked.
Glen pushed Tornium angrily, and Zich let himself be pushed. Yet, his lips didnât rest. âOne of your great predictions has been proven wrong like this. The rest of your predictions will also soon go to hell.â
âHow could the Bellids be defeated already?â Glen couldnât believe it. His eyes burned with doubt, but Zich was the type of person to free others of such distrust.
âI already know you are great buddies with the Bellids. If I mentioned that I might have regressed in any way, I knew that you would lose your mind and would use any means to capture me. Thus, it was easy for me to predict that you would bring the Bellids to attack.â The precautions they needed to take were simple.
âSo, Iâm sure you know who the Bellidsâ worst enemies are?â At Zichâs question, light exploded out from the Steelwall army. The light felt holy, and it softly caressed the Steelwall soldiers crying in pain on the battlefield. The soldiersâ injuries began to heal in an instant, and Glen could immediately tell who had created such a miracle.
âAine,â Glen said.
âI think the Saintess would be displeased to hear someone like you calling her name.â
âYou brought in the Karuwimans, you bastard!â
âThe enemy of an enemy is a friend. Plus, I donât really have a bad relationship with them in the first place, so you could say we are best friends.â
âYou shouldnât have had enough timeâ¦â Glen muttered. Even if they had requested support from the Karuwimans as soon as they found traces of the Bellids at the Pinne residence, it was impossible for them to send reinforcements so fast.
âI told you. I could easily predict the Bellidsâ attack. I requested the Karuwimans for support before I even left for the Pinne residence.â
ââ¦Are you saying the Karuwimans moved without any evidence?â
âItâs because thereâs a Saintess who believes every word I say without any doubts. It really is good to have connections with people in the higher ranks. Well, they came on the condition that they wouldn't intervene in the battle if the Bellids didnât come, but as you can see, there werenât too many problems with that.â Zich looked at Glen like he was looking at a puppet.
âIt really is so easy coming up with plans against a predictable guy like you.â
âYou bastard!â Glen burst out in anger. But the situation had worsened.
âWipe those guys away!â
âThose guys dared to join hands with the Bellids! Kill them all!â
âIf you arenât connected with the Bellids, surrender immediately!â
Knights wearing pure white armor began to jump forward between the Steelwall forces. After seeing the insignia engraved on their armor, the allied forcesâ soldiers began to shake even more maddeningly than when they saw Walwissâ magic. It was the Karuwiman holy symbol. The holy army had begun to turn against them, and Zich glanced at them.
âLook at that. Thatâs the result of your simple thinking. Admit it now that you are a fool.â
âShut up!â Glen lost all previous composure, and he rushed toward Zich. âYou! I just have to defeat you!â
There was still time left. If he just defeated Zich and got information out of him, then everything would be over. He was going to turn back the time of this damn world. However, Zich knew exactly what Glen was thinking.
âNo, thatâs not going to happen.â He struggled to block Glenâs attack and continued, âI can clearly read your thoughts. Youâre planning to defeat me and regress after getting information out of me, right?â
Even though Zich mentioned regression, which was Glenâs most important secret, Glen wasnât fazed. He had already roughly guessed that Zich probably knew about regression, judging by how he knew information he should have never known. However, Zichâs next words were the most shocking words that Glen had ever heard in all of his lifetimes across all timelines.
âToo bad. The basis of your plan is fundamentally flawed.â Zich slowly and clearly enunciated each word so that Glen could catch everything he said. âYou canât regress anymore.â
ââ¦What?â Glenâs movement stopped momentarily. What was he saying? Glen couldnât understand him. He had heard every word since Zich kindly stressed each word for Glen to hear. However, the content of his words was the problem. âI canât regress?â
Regression was the special ability that allowed him to be called the Sun Hero and win the respect of everyone around him when he used to be among the lowest.
Once he began using his regression ability to the fullest, he never ever imagined himself losing his regression ability. No, he couldnât imagine it; just thinking about it was terrifying. However, it was also a meaningless worry. Even though Glen had regressed so many times that he couldnât even keep count, his regression ability had never failed him. But now he couldnât regress anymore?
âThatâs ridiculous.â Despite how shocking it was, Glen coldly denied Zichâs words and said, âI have never failed to regress so far.â
âSo did anyone who knows about regression ever appear like this?â
Glen couldnât answer.
Zich continued, âHasnât this timeline completely gone out of your expectations? A lot of things that youâve never experienced before are happening in this timeline. Is there a guarantee that you wonât lose your regression ability?â
ââ¦Donât make me laugh,â Glen murmured quietly, but it soon turned into a loud scream. âDonât make me laughhh!â
Bammm! Glen swung Tornium, and a huge amount of mana crushed their surroundings. However, the tip of his sword was wavering as if to represent his current state of mind. Glen couldnât break through Zichâs defense even when he was calm, so Zichâs swift tongue moved even faster as he gained some leisure. âDonât make me laugh? What do you know about regression? What about the Clowon Empire? The Brushel System? Do you know where the power you relied on so much originated and how it works?â
Glen was hearing these words for the first time. Of course, he couldnât answer Zichâs questions. âShut uuuup!â
Baaammm! The mana that erupted from Tornium left a deep scar on the earth. âJust you! I just need to kill you! Then this damn timeline and everything that didnât go my way will return back to their rightful place!â
âHahahaha! That would be nice too! But do you know this, Sir Hero?â Zich blocked Tornium and shouted, âNow that you canât regress anymore, this is really the end if you die.â
Glen had been swinging Tornium like crazy, but he stopped once again.
Zich continued, âThereâs no next time. I donât know if thereâs an afterlife like the Karuwimans believe, but your life in this world will at least be over.â Zich fixed his grip on his sword and pointed it towards Glen. âThen shall we dance with our swords again? With our one and only life on the line.â
Zich thought that Glenâs face was deathly pale. He looked at Glen and said, âHow was your long moment of hope?â