Chapter 61: Citadel (1)
“Keep this in mind. You must not touch the liquid that cos from those creatures’ bodies. It’s a substance that ages everything that lives and breathes.”
With Gaiard’s advice, the battle began.
It was revealed that the thing slowing the monsters’ movents was causing aging.
Countless sludges filling the fortress charged at them all at once.
Contrary to the claim that they’d be annihilated by the hydra and unable to penetrate the island’s interior, the fortress was quickly overrun.
“I won’t help you. So survive on your own!”
The two split in opposite directions, dividing the sludges between them.
Gaiard floated in the air, avoiding the sludges’ approach, and hurled spears of blood.
―Thud! Thud!
While taking them down one by one, he subtly glanced at Evan.
Unable to fly, Evan was surrounded by sludges but broke through, cutting them down.
‘What in the world is that guy’s deal…? He’s definitely human, so he’s likely just past twenty or even younger. Yet he has such seasoned skill?’
His flexibility, balancing offense and defense in harmony,
and the deadly sharpness of each attack.
Evan faced the sludges, opponents he was seeing for the first ti that day, without a hint of panic, felling them one by one.
‘I can’t figure him out at all. When he fought , he attacked relentlessly, but now he moves like flowing water. What is your true nature?’
Even after sparring with Evan, Gaiard couldn’t fully grasp his essence.
But one thing beca clear: Evan never fought a battle he would lose.
You can’t always win.
But you never lose.
Not a warrior of a hundred victories, but one undefeated in a hundred battles.
That was the kind of existence Evan Lafard was.
And in truth, when Evan’s past life, Mikhail Reverk, was renowned, the enemies of rival nations evaluated him similarly:
―Mikhail is one who does not lose. So even if you think you’re winning, doubt it twice. Are you truly winning?
Naturally, Gaiard, unaware of this context, simply judged Evan as an incomprehensible, extraordinary monster.
Even if he knew the full story, his assessnt likely wouldn’t have changed.
“I’m done.”
“Finished here too!”
The two cleared the sludges in an instant.
The filthy black liquid was slowly absorbed into the ground.
It would be nice if this were the end, but the sludges would keep coming until they, along with the hydra, were dealt with.
That was their purpose, after all.
“Is there anywhere else we could hide? The fortress doesn’t seem safe anymore.”
“Not certain, but while passing through the forest, I noticed traces of monsters coming and going in a few spots. Following those might lead to a place to hide.”
Gaiard took the lead, leaving the fortress.
He slowly scanned the island, now completely different from his mories, and began tracking the traces.
Deep in the forest near the island’s center, a small cave entrance hidden by vines ca into view.
“This seems to be a kobold habitat. It’ll sll a bit, but there’s no better place to hide.”
Indeed, the cave reeked of a strong dog-like odor, so Evan held his nose as he entered.
“Now, let’s refine our plan.”
“Is there much of a plan? All I need to do is bite the hydra, right?”
“That’s true.”
“But before your reckless plan, there are two insurmountable problems.”
“What are they?”
Gaiard held up two fingers.
“First, to spread the clan’s power to it, simply biting won’t do. Its blood is mixed with all sorts of impure energies, so the clan’s power might be diluted.”
“Then what?”
“I’ll have to inject my blood directly. But that’s not so simple. Considering that creature’s size, it’ll take at least a minute.”
This was a necessary condition to let vampire blood circulate in the hydra’s body.
“Got it. And the second?”
“The second is even harder. Even if I manage to latch on, we need to hold the attention of all nine heads. Do you think you can do that? It’ll take at least three minutes.”
“Three minutes, and the plan could work?”
“You could say that.”
Three minutes to hold the hydra’s attention.
Even if sludges sward around the hydra, to it, they were re dust to be swept away.
They’d be obliterated by the aftermath before their liquid could even touch it.
In the end, Evan would have to take on everything.
Gaiard declared it absolutely impossible,
but Evan raised his sword confidently and said,
“With an undying body and Venus, a magic sword that absorbs elental power, it’s worth a shot.”
“That sword’s na is Venus? As expected, that guy’s arrogance knows no bounds, naming it after soone else’s island. Are you serious?”
“Why hesitate when we can try until it works? We just keep pushing until it does.”
If he had only one life, maybe he’d hesitate, but in this environnt, he could revive endlessly.
Evan had no reason to hold back.
“Your courage is admirable, but if you get dragged off by the sludges, I won’t save you.”
“Don’t worry. It won’t co to that. You should worry about yourself—don’t get eaten by the hydra.”
After exchanging pleasantries, they devised their strategy.
“So, how do we plan this? You’re not just going to charge in head-on, are you?”
“First, we need to draw in as many sludges as possible. Even if they vanish after a few swings, we aim for that brief mont. Our dear count should seize the chance from behind and latch onto its back.”
While Evan draws attention from the front, Gaiard injects his power from behind.
A very simple plan.
“My dignity’s in tatters. Clinging to its back like that, I’m no better than a mosquito.”
“Mosquito, huh… Anyway, while you’re injecting the blood, I’ll do my best to keep its attention.”
“Right. With that Venus, the odds of success might rise, even if just a speck. But rember, the hydra is no pushover to rely solely on the sword’s power.”
“That goes for too.”
After finalizing the plan, they sprang into action.
Evan, separated from Gaiard, circled the island, luring hundreds of sludges.
“Co on, line up and follow !”
Then, they charged toward the hydra entrenched in the island’s center.
“Saaak!”
Facing the nine-headed beast radiating hostility, Evan felt a surge of excitent.
‘All I’ve got is my sword and my skill!’
The ice head exhaled a freezing breath,
and Evan raised his sword, absorbing the cold entirely.
He swung, creating a hill of ice.
―Tat-tat-tat!
Climbing the hill, the steel head ramd into it.
―Crack!
Before the ice shattered, Evan leaped a beat faster.
As he soared, the thorn head fired pillar-like spines.
―Thwack! Thwack!
Evan’s strength wasn’t enough to parry them.
So, he dodged, deflected, or stepped on them to evade.
‘Man, this is no joke.’
While Evan exerted every ounce of his strength,
Gaiard, concealing his presence, landed on the hydra’s back.
He made a wound just deep enough for his arm to fit.
‘Damn, what a ss.’
Gaiard deliberately cut his own hand and inserted it deeply.
Then, he reversed his blood flow, letting it seep into the hydra’s body.
‘That guy’s holding up better than I thought.’
He glanced up, observing Evan battling the hydra.
‘With Venus, it’s certainly easier to face the hydra. But even so, wielding the sword like that is entirely his own skill.’
Even a sword that absorbs elents wasn’t omnipotent.
Defending with just a sword—not a shield or full armor—required near-divine reflexes.
And the opponent wasn’t one but nine heads.
The steel and thorn heads attacked physically, not with elents.
Dodging their attacks while holding their attention wasn’t sothing an ordinary human could do.
In fact, Evan sustained a critical injury, losing half his upper body while evading.
Yet, he never allowed a hit to his legs, the core of his mobility.
Even with regeneration, a brief mont of leg recovery could be fatal.
Everything was going according to his plan.
And now, the final piece fell into place.
“It’s done!”
At Gaiard’s shout, Evan unleashed the accumulated power of Venus.
“Sorry, the fun ends here!”
―Whoosh!
He obscured the hydra’s vision with a wall of flas and hid in the forest.
Gaiard flew toward Evan’s location.
“Now, we just wait a bit, and its power will go berserk.”
“You’re sure you injected it properly?”
“See for yourself.”
As the vampire blood circulated, the hydra froze.
Its eighteen pupils turned red, and cracks ford on its back as if an earthquake had struck.
―Crack!
Its skin tore, and wing bones protruded.
Flesh and hide ford soon after.
―Boom!
Massive wings, large enough to cover the sky.
As they unfurled, the resulting gust shook the forest.
“I’m done with this. Whatever that thing does now!”
The hydra had manifested the power of the vampire clan.
“Next plan!”
“Got it!”
Realizing its new wings, the hydra suddenly took flight.
Gaiard, despite claiming he’d never carry Evan, grabbed his hand and flew, barely catching the hydra’s tail as planned.
“Saaa!”
The hydra, annoyed by the pests, fled the island and flew aimlessly.
―Whoosh!
A single flap of its wings broke every tree in the area.
The hydra, like a typhoon, escaped the hellscape in an instant.
***
Sowhere in the black sea floated a fortress.
From the towering conical spire to the walls encircling the castle, it glowed green, so much so that a human soul crossing the gate might mistake it for a citadel of erald.
But this was no decorative gem—it was a mysterious substance, as hard as orichalcum, the super-tal of the human world.
The walls built from it protected the Citadel even today.
Atop the spire in the heart of those sturdy walls sat Hel, the ruler of this place.
A colossal god seated on a massive throne.
Even the oldest of the dead here had never seen the god move.
Yet, it felt alive, its re gaze piercing with overwhelming pressure.
Above the god’s head was a gate, through which humans, beasts, and monsters who had t their end passed even today.
Souls descended the Stairway of the Dead before them.
“I can’t be dead! This is nonsense!”
As expected, so souls denied their death.
Typically, those who’d been significant in life reacted this way.
“I’m not ready to die!”
“ neither!”
One soul’s chaos sparked a collective uproar, and they rushed to climb back through the gate.
And each ti, the enforcers of order appeared—the Reapers.
―Thud! Thud!
Winged soldiers blocked the gate.
All wearing identical masks, they held spears in silence.
“…”
“…”
Intimidated by their silent pressure, so rebellious souls stopped.
But most still charged toward the gate.
“Move! Do you know who I am? The one who made the south tremble in fear…”
One Reaper swiftly approached a soul and stabbed it with a spear.
No soul could track its movent.
Even the stabbed soul, a warrior who’d once defeated an aura-level swordsman single-handedly in life, was no match.
“Aaagh!!!”
Souls don’t normally feel pain.
But the Reaper’s weapon was different.
A special weapon that could wound souls directly, the stabbed soul felt pain worse than anything in life.
“Aaaagh!!!”
The Reaper lifted its spear, flinging the soul far away.
It fell into the black sea, flailing before sinking.
“Gurgh! Save…”
The other souls froze at the sight.
At that mont, a being with six wings descended onto the stairway.
More ornate than the other Reapers guarding the gate, it was clearly a figure of high status.
Its na was Nidra.
The commander of the Reapers, managing the Coast of the Dead on Hel’s behalf.
“Return. Those who disrupt order will be dealt with imdiately.”
A voice that pierced not the ears but the heart.
The souls, subdued, descended the stairway again.
Watching this, Nidra flew upward.
Then, it knelt before Hel’s throne.
“I apologize for the disturbance.”
Hel said nothing.
“O God, there are still those causing chaos. Please grant permission to march and make them pay the price.”
Again, no words.
But Nidra received the god’s will nonetheless.
“Understood. Imdiately…”
At that mont, it sensed a massive presence approaching.
Nidra flew high to identify it.
“What in the world is that?”
Nidra saw the hydra flying toward the Citadel.
The nine-headed beast charged with the montum to destroy the Citadel.
The indescribable power emanating from the Citadel’s core
was enough to provoke a beast like the hydra, a tempting prey.
“Saaak!!!”
“So, it was you.”
Seeing the source of the chaos it sought to quell, Nidra summoned the Reapers.
“All units, prepare for battle! Eliminate the target before us!”
At the commander’s order, the Reapers assud combat stances, and before the Citadel’s walls, a hundred Reapers and the hydra were about to clash.
“Saaa!”
But they didn’t know.
Two small figures were clinging to the beast’s tail.
“Second plan!”
When they were close enough to the Citadel, the two leaped off the hydra’s tail simultaneously.
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