“-An axe?”
Iliad tilted his head in confusion.
It was hard to comprehend why his opponent had suddenly discarded his sword and grabbed an axe. It made no sense at all.
“Why? Is the axe laughable?”
“...It’s not that it’s laughable, but isn’t it an unsuitable weapon for a knight?”
“So you’re looking down on it.”
In the Pendragon family, axes were not commonly used weapons.
The reason being that they appeared too crude for a knight.
It wasn’t a prejudice against woodcutters, but rather a general perception that axes were to be used by bandits or mercenaries. Since the potential for mastering an axe was limited, using it as a primary weapon was seen as an admission that the knight was declaring, “I am unskilled, so I’ll use a simple weapon!”
Of course, people wouldn’t openly mock someone for wielding an axe, but there was an underlying current of disdain, and the axe was not a respected weapon.
Yet here was someone who had reached a significant level, and that person was now wielding an axe. Iliad couldn’t hide his disappointment.
“I’m disappointed. A swordsman should fight with a sword until the very end. How could you pull out an axe?”
“Disappointed or not, I don’t care. I’m neither someone who’s attached to weapons nor a swordsman.”
“...This is pointless.”
It was evil.
“Don’t regret it.”
Perhaps it was the overwhelming sense of disappointment, but Iliad’s blade flashed without the faintest hint of laughter.
With his willow sword, Iliad had earned the title of [Sword Saint] by the age of twenty.
“This is called the ‘Radiant Sword.’”
The Radiant Sword style.
A new swordsmanship style that Iliad had devised in his teens and perfected by his twenties.
Whiiish!
The sword energy spread naturally, flowing outward and rapidly expanding.
Inspired one day by sunlight, the swordsmanship became an extension of Iliad, with the sword energy surrounding him like a sun, eradicating everything within its reach. It created a vast swath of sword energy that multiplied by the dozens, impossible to count, instantly cutting through the surrounding area.
Swish!
Everything within a 1-kilometer radius centered on Iliad was cut down.
Trees, rocks, and hills—everything.
Even if an iron wall stood in his way, Iliad’s sharp sword energy would slice through it, demonstrating formidable cutting power.
Boom—!
...That’s how it should have been.
“—The name sounds grand, but it doesn’t seem that impressive.”
“!!”
The next moment, the light from the sword energy was shattered like glass by the axe.
It shouldn’t have broken so easily!
But no matter how shocked Iliad was, he still—
“First, let me land a blow.”
Whoosh!!
Ihan’s axe struck Iliad squarely on the chin.
“Ugh-?!”
The crowd instinctively winced.
They weren’t the ones getting hit, but when they heard something from Iliad’s chin that shouldn’t have been there, they shut their eyes tightly.
As for Felicia...
“Ahh...!”
She nearly teared up watching her son get struck, her mental state crumbling like a fish out of water, her hands shaking in distress.
Despite all that, she couldn’t bring herself to intervene.
“Ah!”
...Because her grandson clenched his fists in joy at the sight, she couldn’t do anything.
‘Is this right?’
Somehow, it felt like witnessing an unfilial act, and Felicia couldn’t hide her discomfort as she swallowed hard, trying to think positively.
‘This means Iliad will recover, right?’
It was the small faith that her son’s treatment would go well that made her believe in this outcome.
Thus...
“Hi, hang in there...”
Felicia, with a pained expression, had no choice but to offer her support.
***
Ihan genuinely wanted to ask.
Huuuuk!!
‘What kind of audacity does he have to disregard an axe?’
Boom!
“Ugh!?”
What a shame it would be to suffer like this.
“You blocked the sword so casually, but why are you struggling so much against the axe?”
“What the hell...!”
“Why are you so good with an axe? It’s obvious.”
This was my livelihood, you fool.
Back when I was a mercenary, I’d take on construction jobs as a side gig. As a soldier, I had to wield an axe to build fortifications, including stockades. Even as a knight, I worked in construction to earn a living, and I became quite skilled at it.
After more than ten years of chopping, of course, I became proficient, and I never half-assed a single chop.
‘An axe is about delivering a single, powerful strike.’
Sure, an axe is a weapon that would suit bandits or mercenaries. However, the reason they use axes as their primary weapon is because an axe is inherently a powerful weapon, capable of shattering even a sword with ease.
In that sense, the axe and I are a perfect match.
Whoosh!
Ihan’s back muscles rippled, swelling with power.
Focusing all the strength of his well-trained body on destruction, he poured his full force into the axe. His strike was simple, but because of that simplicity, it was incredibly deadly.
The Northern Black Lion was born with the power to summon the strength of a mountain, but Ihan’s power was more like the sheer strength of an ox.
After a lifetime of hard work and persistence, Ihan had gained the kind of immense strength that could move mountains, bit by bit.
—Great strength unleashed!
Though it didn’t have an official name, if the leader of the bandits called the Green Mountain King existed, this level of strength would be the bare minimum required. This was the philosophy Ihan had developed through years of axe work, and it came crashing down in one powerful swing.
“!!?”
So what if there’s a technique that nullifies all others?
‘I’ll just keep swinging until it splits!’
Crash! Boom! Crash—!!
Ihan’s axe strikes kept coming.
It didn’t matter if his opponent blocked or countered, if the sword grazed his body—he simply kept swinging, mechanically, again and again.
Thwack! Crack!
His skin tore, and blood poured out, but Ihan didn’t care. He kept attacking relentlessly.
And finally...
Crack!
“Gah...!”
His opponent crumpled first.
The twenty-ninth strike had shattered his opponent’s wrist and ankle simultaneously.
“Did I hit about thirty times? No, maybe it was only twenty-nine...”
“Y-You crazy bastard! What the hell is your body made of? Why is there only a scratch after all that?!”
“You’re not in a position to say that, are you?”
No wonder fighting against someone like him was so difficult.
His body was absurdly tough and resilient.
Even after all those blows, the wounds healed rapidly.
“Wow, so this is what talent really looks like. You just dodged or avoided most of my attacks, didn’t you?”
“There’s a limit to this mockery!”
“No, I’m not mocking. I’m being serious.”
“Wh...?”
Iliad’s expression cracked.
It had already been shattered, but it was a fresh feeling to see it collapse so openly.
Suddenly...
“To think that you can’t stop it even if you try to avoid or block it... This kind of ignorance... What is this...?”
“Ignorance? No, you’re right. I am ignorant. That’s it, haha!”
“......”
Ihan calmly accepted the insult and, with a grin, took it as a compliment.
“If you can still beat someone who thinks they’re better than you, then being ignorant is just fine.”
No matter how skilled or how hard his opponent attacked, he would keep hitting until they dropped.
What a simple strategy.
“If it takes ten hits to bring down a tough tree, then I’ll keep hitting it a hundred... No, a thousand, or even ten thousand times. If I have to break it, I’ll just keep trying.”
That’s the stamina I built, and the strength I gained to take down those so-called talented folks.
So Ihan wasn’t offended by being called ignorant.
It wasn’t because he was a pervert who took pleasure in insults.
“I just love seeing the so-called great ones break down.”
It felt good knowing his effort wasn’t in vain.
“You’re crazy...”
Iliad acknowledged it.
Ihan was crazier and more dangerous than he’d ever imagined.
So...
“Do you think you can break this as well?”
Shouldn’t I also go crazy?
Crack!
“?”
“You’d better be careful. From now on, I’m ready to face death myself.”
With that, Iliad purposely dislocated his joints.
He was preparing to use his arms more like whips.
The already fast and near-close sword strikes would now increase in speed. This caused the sword’s range to widen even more, pouring down with terrifying intensity.
“‘Midnight Sun.’”
—The dim light of the night will illuminate the world.
Iliad’s sword energy erupted like a volcanic explosion.
Whoosh!
The sword strikes from earlier seemed like nothing more than a joke now as rays of light exploded, blinding anyone who saw them. In the next instant, the sheer speed of the strikes might have decapitated anyone who was unlucky enough to be within range.
And it wasn’t just fast...
Whoosh!
With overwhelming penetration power, every strike pierced through everything in its path, distorting the very space itself.
Blocking was impossible. Even if Ihan tried to break through or withstand the attack like before, he would have no hope. Thousands, tens of thousands of piercing blows aimed at Ihan’s throat in an instant.
In the face of such an irrational display, a scene that seemed to prove that effort could never surpass talent, Ihan...
“...It’s not as fast as a hail of arrows, though.”
With a disappointed comment, he lazily rolled on the ground like a tired mule.
***
Ihan didn’t call something like this unreasonable.
‘War is far more unreasonable.’
By accident, he had served in a civil war in his past life, and in this life, he’d spent three years in the frontlines of a war.
Was the ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) danger posed by that more than the spray of bullets from modern machine guns, mines, Claymores, or snipers?
No.
Was it more lethal than a hail of arrows and the charge of tens of thousands in a massive army?
No.
Ihan, who survived such brutal and unreasonable circumstances, could say this:
‘In any crisis, if you don’t freeze up and keep fighting, you’ll survive.’
Whoosh!
Without hesitation, Ihan swiftly moved across the floor, crawling and rolling without a second thought.
Even though he had been devoured by a spirit, the noble fairy-tale writer still maintained his knightly composure—though in a way no one would expect.
“What kind of pathetic person is this!!”
Pathetic.
Yes, nobles who value their honor like their life don’t crawl around like this when they die.
They’d rather die than do this.
‘Like those damn righteous assholes.’
Ihan muttered an even worse curse in his mind than calling someone lower than a dog, letting out a bitter laugh.
Yes, this was certainly an embarrassing sight.
The crouching crawl and low, defensive movement.
It wasn’t the posture of a knight—it was clearly the tactics of a mercenary or soldier, a cowardly struggle for survival.
But.
‘As long as I’m proud of myself, that’s all that matters!’
What’s worse, if you only act high and mighty,
Crack!
This is what happens.
“I’ve got you.”
“...!”
Ihan occupied his opponent’s rear and threw his axe.
Iliad, trying to react quickly and attack him,
“I was faster.”
Whoosh!
The axe Ihan threw vibrated with his energy, emitting an ominous resonating sound as it turned red.
Like a forge heating up, it gathered more and more heat!
This chapter is updat𝓮d by freēwebnovel.com.
“-Isn’t this like a Clemoa or an open version of the Ten Thousand Heavens Fire?”
The axe exploded like a bomb, indiscriminately cutting down friend and foe alike.