Even in the midst of a sudden standoff, Ihan wasn’t the least bit flustered.
Hadn’t he predicted this from the mont he entered?
‘I knew they’d show up eventually.’
It was absurd that half-breeds had been disguised as paladins in the temple before, but now, the appearance of suspicious figures wasn’t a big surprise.
There was just one thing that bothered him...
"Owl, let ask you sothing."
[What?]
"You said you’re a Gatekeeper, right? Shouldn't those kinds of things not be allowed to pass through the gate?"
It was a question that naturally arose.
How could those creatures have been allowed here? Ihan was genuinely puzzled and even suspected that this owl might be incredibly incompetent.
[Ah, that? Of course, I didn’t want to let them in either. But what can I do? Unlike you, those ominous ones ca in with a 'key,' so they were allowed to enter legitimately. That’s why they didn’t go through the gate like you did.]
“......”
[At least they can’t touch the holy relics without my permission, so that’s one saving grace. The problem is, I’m just a Gatekeeper, not a manager, so I can’t harm intruders freely.]
“...This is insane.”
[Sorry.]
“No, I wasn’t talking to you... Sigh, forget it.”
The fact that those creatures entered by holding the ‘key’—the permission granted by the temple to access the Sacred Vault—was maddening.
That ant...
‘The temple bastards are clearly allied with them, aren’t they?’
It was hard not to curse at that realization.
"...When we get out of here, I’ll have a lot of people to hit."
Ihan muttered with irritation, and upon hearing his words...
"Maybe that's not a conversation for after we leave alive."
“......”
"What? Do you think we’re that easy to deal with?"
“......”
"How arrogant. Though I suppose it’s justified."
A woman with bleached-white hair and eyebrows smiled at him. She seed attractive at first glance, but there was sothing off about her smile—it was stiff, as if her facial muscles were locked in place, making it seem awkward.
It was the kind of face that looked like she wanted to smile but couldn’t.
Ihan recognized the woman.
She had been a senior of his in his past job.
“Number 7...”
"Ah, you recognize ? Right on target, heh! Oh, but I have to correct you. I’m no longer number 7, I’m Number 7 Apostle now. Call that, okay?"
“......”
“And how is that guy? The one from before, is he doing well?”
"...?"
"Stop pretending. Number 8, the traitor, is with you, right? Heh, I’d love to see his face. He was cute back in the day, I wonder how he turned out."
“......”
"Call him here. Oh, don’t lie. The [Prophet] already told . He’s here."
“...Hmm.”
"You won’t betray your comrade, right? He must be a good ally, heh heh."
"No, that..."
"You don’t want to talk? —Kill him."
Whoosh!
Without hesitation, the command from Number 7 Apostle was given, and imdiately, half-breeds charged at Ihan.
Ihan, still stunned and feeling unjust, had to swing his sword before he could process everything.
Even so, the question lingered in his mind...
‘Have I really changed that much?’
The last ti he t Number 4, they didn’t recognize him either.
...It wasn’t like he had changed that much since childhood.
He hadn’t even been trying to hide his identity, which made it even more frustrating.
***
“—That knight is strong.”
Number 7 Apostle, Daina, shuddered as she observed the knight's power.
It was strong.
Incredibly strong.
Crack!
...Can a human’s head really be crushed that easily?
And it wasn’t just anyone—it was a half-breed.
Most half-breeds had strength that surpassed thirty strong n combined, and their fighting techniques, along with their mastery of various sword skills and combat techniques, made them formidable—capable of taking on one knight by themselves.
And yet, this half-breed had been completely crushed, unable to fight back.
Even if there had been fifty or even a hundred of them, they wouldn’t have been able to handle this knight.
An overwhelming display of power!
Number 7 Apostle, Daina, nodded.
“Number 4 Apostle deserved that. We wouldn’t have been able to handle him.”
She knew that the knight had defeated Number 4 Apostle, and also killed the half-breeds and the giant Mother Worms that the Black Moon had spent so much ti nurturing.
She also knew about the destruction of the Magic Tower...
In conclusion, Daina evaluated the knight.
This knight was...
“...A monster.”
Clearly soone no one but the Oracle user could handle.
But...
“Did they get scared before even engaging?”
“Number 11 Apostle...”
“From now on, call Yan, Daina.”
“Sorry, I’m still used to calling you by the number.”
“No need to apologize, I’m the sa.”
Number 11 Apostle Yan chuckled and approached, followed by others who spoke up.
“Don’t worry too much, sister. We’ll make sure you get out safely.”
“And our goal isn’t to kill that knight, is it? Let’s stick to the plan.”
One by one, the voices of Number 6 and Number 5 Apostles joined in.
Hearing them, Daina couldn’t help but laugh.
“...Right, of course.”
Their goal wasn’t to win the fight.
While they were ordered to kill the knight, the true aning of the command was understood in a different way.
‘Your lives will be used to stop him.’
Though the resources and ti spent raising them weren’t insignificant...
“It’s a necessary expenditure, isn’t it?”
She laughed cruelly.
***
Crack!
‘Ah, this?’
Boom!
‘...Hmm.’
Crunch!
‘Am I... being manipulated right now?’
Ihan didn’t hesitate to strike, beat, and slash at the enemies coming at him, but he furrowed his brow.
It was a situation he didn’t like.
‘I’m being dragged around.’
From the perspective of a third party, it would likely look like Ihan was dominating the battle, but for the person actually in the fight, it was far from ideal.
There were two main things that bothered him.
First...
Crunch!
‘Speed.’
His fists weren’t landing clean hits. Normally, his punch should have pierced through the enemy’s side, but instead, it only left them severely wounded.
It wasn’t a one-hit kill—it required multiple strikes.
‘...The surroundings feel heavy.’
The intense energy radiating from the holy relics was pressing down on him, causing minor discrepancies in his movents.
While it was manageable pressure, it was still a hindrance when fighting enemies.
A 0.5-second delay kept occurring, and every ti he had to strike multiple tis to bring down an enemy he could have defeated in a single blow. The stress was increasing rapidly.
Though his physical stamina was holding up, the ntal stress was beginning to take its toll, draining his focus and energy.
[Oh, sorry for not ntioning it earlier, but those guys ca in with a key, so unlike you, they’re not affected by the pressure of the holy relics. Keep that in mind.]
“......”
Rustle!
‘Now you tell ?’
Ihan was taken aback. No wonder those guys had been moving faster than expected...
“Whew!”
But Ihan didn’t get angry at the owl.
There was no point in getting angry. He had faced situations far more frustrating in the past.
What did this an?
Boom!
“Ahhh!”
“...This is it.”
Given ti, he didn’t need long to adjust.
One of the half-breeds that had rushed him was left with a gaping hole in its back, and now he could gauge how much force to use.
But no sooner had he adapted than...
“For our god...!”
Whoosh!
Without hesitation, a half-breed lunged at him, tearing at him with a bloody scream.
Ihan stabbed his sword directly into the creature, and it...
Whooosh!
...Offered its chest to the blade, and even in the state of being stabbed, it let out a twisted laugh.
“...Heh, heh, heh!”
"..."
Gripping the sword handle tightly, it seed like the half-breed was laughing in a deranged manner, as if it knew there was no escape.
This was the second thing he didn’t like.
These creatures...
‘Aren’t they afraid of dying?’
Were they brainwashed, or did they have no humanity left?
In a typical scenario, this would have been impossible to win, but it seed they had no qualms about sacrificing one of their own.
It was as if they would do anything to defeat him if it ant their victory.
Shing!
Seeing the half-breed hold onto his sword, the rest of them charged toward Ihan, eager to strike while they had the chance.
However...
“—Why split?”
Ihan had no intention of moving as they wanted and decided to relieve his frustration, even if just for a mont.
Whooosh!
“!!?”
“If you wanted to catch , you should have used sothing like a thousand-pound pull.”
Crack!
Ihan grabbed the wrist of the one who was happily holding onto his sword and forcefully swung it.
It was a full-force swing, and then...
Whoooooom!
The sword vibrated intensely, releasing a burst of energy as it turned red.
Boom!
The plum blossom sword technique, empowered by the sword’s might, blossod like flowers, unleashing its full strength.
The petals exploded like fireworks, releasing more power than ever before!
It was the Plum Blossom Sword—though this wasn’t the sa technique as before. It had grown exponentially stronger since the previous day.
And then...
Crack!
The petals pierced through the necks and chests of the half-breeds.
Shink, shink, shink!!
Their weapons were sliced as easily as paper.
Shing!
In the next mont, their bodies were shredded into pieces.
Most people might not realize that human bodies and weapons can be cut as easily as paper, but if anyone had witnessed the scene, they would have understood. Human bodies can indeed be sliced cleanly.
...However, there was one flaw.
Drip, drip...
The pieces of paper—the color was only red, a major issue.
Thunk.
The sword, now devoid of power, turned to dust, and the sword handle itself crumbled into sand. A single hand fell to the ground.
“Lucky.”
At least one hand was left.
Crunch!
Ihan stepped on the paper-thin pieces of the half-breeds, not leaving any remains except for the hand.
There were still many more pieces to crush.
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