The World's Greatest is Dead

Green Forest.

That meant there were people nearby who seemed to be Green Forest bandits.

I tilted my head at Freak Demon’s report. Was there any reason for Green Forest bandits to be around here?

They’re mountain bandits, so they could be anywhere, I guess.

Still, hearing they were in this area felt strange.

“Is the location far?”

“At my speed, it is about half a quarter-hour away.”

“So there’s some distance.”

Freak Demon was fast. If we were comparing speed, he was probably faster than me. Half a quarter-hour for someone like him? It was safe to assume they were fairly far from here.

“What will you do?”

“We’ll go.”

There was only one choice anyway. If Green Forest bandits were nearby, there was no telling what they might do. And now that I knew they had ties to Sky-Crushing Palace, I had to go that way in the end.

At my answer, Freak Demon smiled. I did not know why, but he looked satisfied.

“I will guide you......!”

“Uh, yes.”

I did not know why he was so satisfied, but that did not matter. The important thing was going to them first.

*****

I crossed the forest following Freak Demon’s guidance.

It took longer than half a quarter-hour. Probably because Freak Demon had matched my speed.

—It is around here.

He switched to voice transmission.

My energy sense was catching something too. I could feel people.

Their number is—

Roughly ten or so. Not a bad number.

What is this?

There was something among them.

Freak Demon stopped walking. I did the same.

At that moment—

Whooooong—!!!

Freak Demon’s energy wrapped around my body.

It was sudden, so I was slightly startled. But there was no killing intent, so I did not react.

—Excuse me.

I could feel faint tension in Freak Demon’s voice.

That madman was tense. That meant something was there.

This energy seemed to be a device for suppressing our presence.

—There’s something here.

—Yes. There is something. This energy is......

Freak Demon frowned. He narrowed his eyes and looked somewhere. I also tightened my gaze in the same direction, but I saw nothing.

That meant I was still not at a level where I could clearly see that far.

—Fortunately, it does not seem strong enough to pierce through energy sense.

In other words, it was enough of a master to make him tense, but not beyond that. At those words, I steadied my breathing.

In any case—

A master was here.

A Green Forest master, at that.

What reason would such a being have to be in a mountain valley like this?

I did not know.

So now I had to find out.

—I will close the distance a little more.

Freak Demon moved. As he moved, the energy tied around my body also swayed. I followed him without letting it scatter.

Before long, the distance closed.

The figures of the Green Forest bandits came fully into view.

There are more of them.

There seemed to be more than ten or so.

That was—

They’re in battle formation.

They were not simply getting ready. What was that? Why were they acting like that?

I watched them with that question in mind.

Muttering voices reached me.

—They should pass by soon, right?

—Not long now. Stay alert.

—If the Palace had given us a little more help in the first place......

Palace.

My ears perked up at that word.

Look at these bastards.

As expected.

Was this connected to Sky-Crushing Palace again?

As I was watching them—

—My Sky.

Freak Demon spoke to me.

—Something is coming from the northwest.

Northwest?

I turned my head. My energy sense moved along with my gaze. Just as Freak Demon had said, something really was coming from that direction.

A carriage?

Two carriages were traveling up a steep road through the mountains at night.

Were they insane? They were moving carriages at that speed at a time when they could barely see an inch ahead?

They were brave people, if nothing else.

I was watching in curiosity when—

Hm?

I had to frown when I saw the flag fluttering on the carriage.

That......

It was a flag I knew.

Not from a side I particularly liked, though.

Why are those people here?

Why were they suddenly here? They were unexpected.

While I was staring in surprise—

—They’re here.

The Green Forest bandits reacted to the carriage.

And then—

—Attack!

They leaped down from the cliff and ambushed the carriages at once.

Kuuung—!!! Neeeeigh!!

A horse screamed along with a loud crash. They had probably killed the horses first.

Kwaaaang—!!

Rough noises burst out one after another. The smell of blood brushed through the air. It seemed the battle had begun in [N O V E L I G H T] earnest.

Whooooong—!!!

Energy flooded out. Within it, I sensed an energy I had felt somewhere before.

“So it really is them.”

It seemed my sense had been right.

Seeing that, I moved.

“Will you intervene?”

“Yes.”

It was a familiar face, after all. I could not just let it pass.

Of course, it did seem as though he would be fine even if I did not interfere.

But something about this—

Felt unpleasant.

Shing.

I drew my sword and leaped straight into the battlefield.

Kwaaaaang—!!!!

My body landed, bursting pressure outward.

“Gaaaah!!”

Several Green Forest bandits were blown away by the impact. I saw them fall off the edge of the cliff. Watching that, I raised energy in my hand.

Whooosh—!

Radiant Moon Flash Aura gave off light.

“Oh. Who do we have here!”

Crunch.

Ahahahaha—!!!

A fierce-looking young man laughed as he crushed a Green Forest bandit’s head.

“Isn’t this our Moon Hero?”

“......It has been a while.”

A giant young man.

The one smiling at me while dressed in ink-colored clothes was none other than—

“Young Master Peng.”

Black Greatblade Peng Dojun.

He was the great talent of the Peng Family, called the Heavenly Martial Body.

*****

Crack—!

“Gaaaah!”

Screams rang out one after another as a sword moved between them.

Black lines rose in succession, cutting through a Green Forest bandit’s arm.

Whirrrr!

Every time the massive blade swept in every direction, one of the Green Forest bandits was cut down. His grip strength was tremendous.

Energy gathered richly along the wind. It was the same Peng Family energy I had felt before, but—

It’s thicker.

Far thicker and more intense.

I could feel that Peng Dojun’s realm had risen. Quite a lot, at that.

In just those few months.

How much training did he have to devote himself to in order to become that strong?

It was not really something I should say, but I found it impressive.

“Ahahahahaha—!!!”

The way he laughed while fighting seemed unchanged.

He wiped off blood and swung his blade. It looked as if ink were being painted through the air.

Looks like there’s no need for me to cut in.

I stood still with my sword in hand and watched. Peng Dojun was cleaning up most of the Green Forest bandits by himself.

Then, just as the battle finally started to settle down a little—

“What? That’s all? Then this is a bit disappointing!”

Peng Dojun spoke with his face covered in blood. He looked truly terrifying. He might as well have been a ghost.

“Urgh.......”

“This bastard......!”

Only six remained out of sixteen. The Green Forest bandits clenched their teeth.

“What are you people? You picked a fight knowing who I am, didn’t you?”

“Black Greatblade Peng Dojun. The monster of the Peng Family.”

“Oh. You know me well.”

Hwaaaaak—!!!

Like shadows pouring out, energy rippled around Peng Dojun’s body.

“Then you must also know you’re dying here.”

Shak.

Peng Dojun shook the blood off his blade, his eyes blazing.

Just as he was about to charge—

“Wait.”

I stepped in front of Peng Dojun.

“Hm?”

Peng Dojun widened his eyes at me. Then he seemed to realize something and nodded.

“Right. Moon Hero should get a taste of blood too. It’d be a shame if I killed them all myself. I was being thoughtless.”

“What taste are you talking about......?”

What was this madman saying? Why would I taste blood?

“Calm down a little. The real one hasn’t come yet.”

“The real one?”

Peng Dojun tilted his head at my words.

A moment later, strength filled his eyes.

“Oh.”

He raised the corner of his mouth and looked up at the cliff.

The spot from which the Green Forest bandits had jumped down.

Something was there.

Thud.

A crushing pressure.

My gaze and Peng Dojun’s converged on the figure that had appeared.

“This is unexpected.”

A rough voice. Something about it felt unpleasant.

“I thought I only had to catch one brat from the Peng Family. What’s that bastard doing here?”

“Vice Chief......!!”

Vice chief?

Along with that word, something plummeted to the ground.

Kwaaang.

A heavy impact and fragments burst outward.

Thud, thud.

With that sound, a middle-aged man rose. His body was only slightly smaller than Peng Dojun’s.

But—

He’s a master.

I knew it as soon as he appeared.

He was a master.

A considerable one, at that. Definitely enough to make Freak Demon tense for a moment.

And if he was the vice chief—

Does that mean he’s right below the Green Lord?

The Green Lord was supposedly controlling the Green Forest bandits right now. This sounded like he was one rank below that man.

“White hair and blue eyes. And that martial uniform. Hey. Are you Moon Hero?”

“Yes. This friend here is that great and mighty Moon Hero!”

“No, why are you—”

Why were you introducing me?

Ridiculous.

I let out a hollow laugh at having my introduction stolen.

“I didn’t think Moon Hero would go out of his way to get involved in this.”

The man called vice chief spoke as if he found it strange. Hearing that, I said,

“We know each other.”

“How odd. There should have been quite some distance......”

Look at this.

Hearing that, I narrowed my eyes.

He knew I had been here. He even mentioned the distance?

That meant he knew more deeply than I had expected.

“Looks like you have some kind of objective.”

“This will be troublesome.”

Thud.

The middle-aged man abruptly pulled out an axe.

Twin axes.

I drew the Divine Sword and raised my force.

Peng Dojun also raised his energy as if he intended to join in.

I identified Freak Demon’s location.

This was a fight worth trying.

Just as I was reminding myself of that—

“This is...... yes. This won’t do.”

“What?”

“I’ll see you next time.”

With those words, the bastard called vice chief slammed his twin axes into the ground.

Kwaaaaang—!!!

“Ugh!?”

The cliff collapsed.

The man dropped down with it.

“Insane.”

In that situation, I had to cling tightly to the cliff wall. I could not just fall like this.

While avoiding the fall, I looked down at the bastards who had dropped away.

I had not expected him to strike the ground and disappear like that.

“He ran......?”

I thought he would fight head-on because he was a Green Forest bandit, but he had vanished just like that.

“What the hell.”

Should I chase him?

Just as I was thinking that—

—I lost him.

Freak Demon sent a voice transmission.

—He used some kind of method. I cannot sense his presence.

If Freak Demon had lost him, that meant I would not be able to chase him under ordinary circumstances either.

Damn it.

To think we lost him like this.

I was biting my lip in regret when—

“O-Older brother.......”

“Hm?”

A sound came from the direction of the carriage Peng Dojun had been riding.

It was a delicate, powerless voice.

What was that?

The moment I looked that way—

“Cough....... Cough.”

Someone with black hair appeared from the carriage as if collapsing out of it.

“Yeon!”

At the sight, Peng Dojun urgently ran over and embraced the girl.

“Are you all right?”

“I’m...... fine.......”

“This is.......”

She looked terribly weak.

Seeing that, my face twisted.

That’s.

I did not know who the woman was, or what her relationship with Peng Dojun was.

The important thing was—

She’s possessed by a deity.

The girl was suffering from a divine possession.

And an extraordinarily great deity was attached to her.