Chapter 66

“Haha!”

Camille laughed.

“Hahaha!”

Kairos also laughed.

“...”

“...”

“...”

The swordsmen didn’t laugh; they remained silent, their mouths tightly shut.

“These guys...”

Oto glared.

“Laughing? Just wait and see! I won’t let you off!”

Oto shouted, but no one showed any sign of fear.

Why?

Because Oto had never really used authority or violence to suppress his subordinates.

But it seemed that Amukan saw it differently.

“Was it Kairos?”

Amukan spoke.

“Control your subordinates. Why are you just standing there while a lackey acts up like that?”

“Hahaha! That’s my oversight, so you should be understanding! He’s slippery and doesn’t listen at all! Hahaha!”

“Why do you just let a disobedient subordinate be? If they don’t listen, shouldn’t you beat them?”

“I was already planning to give him a good beating.”

Oto, hearing Kairos and Amukan’s conversation, became so angry that he lost his cool.

“These guys are really going crazy!!! Who’s the subordinate here!!!”

Oto shouted.

“I’m the king! I am!”

“Hmm?”

Amukan tilted his head.

“Are you the leader? Not him?”

“Yes!!!”

“How ridiculous.”

Amukan smiled coldly.

“A leader who can’t earn the respect of his subordinates. In the grasslands, you would have been killed long ago. The grasslands don’t tolerate weak leaders. Your subordinates would have overthrown and beheaded you.”

This was a statement befitting a strongman from the Habur grasslands, a world of ruthless survival of the fittest.

“Who’s weak.”

Oto drew his sword.

“I’m the strongest here.”

“...?”

“I’m the strongest! I am!”

“No way.”

“Y-You...!!!”

Oto was furious that Amukan so easily dismissed his claim.

But in a way, it was understandable.

To Amukan, strength meant having a monstrous physique, so it was natural for him to see the small-framed Oto as weak.

Ironically, Oto was actually 183 cm tall and weighed 85 kg, with a muscular build...

“Nobody interfere.”

Oto declared.

“This one is mine.”

Oto, despite his anger, was determined to show Amukan that he was not weak.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ericson carried the fallen Edham to the dwarves.

“Chief! Are you alright?”

“Ericson... How did you get here...”

Edham was clearly surprised by Ericson’s appearance, as dwarves, by culture and law, never returned to a place they had been exiled from.

“I happened to spot these barbarians planning to invade our tribe...”

“Hmm.”

“I know it’s against the law, but I couldn’t just stand by, so I asked these humans for help.”

“Is that so...”

“Even though I’ve been exiled, the Red Anvil tribe is where I’ve spent decades. How could I stand by and watch the tribe fall to these barbarians?”

“Indeed!”

“If you punish me according to the law, I will accept it gladly.”

“No, I won’t punish you. Your loyalty to our tribe is so sincere, how could I punish you according to the law?”

“Chief...”

“Let’s talk about the details later. For now, let’s crush these barbarians.”

“Understood!”

Ericson handed the injured Edham over to the dwarves and gripped his axe.

‘We just need to get through this crisis.’

Oto’s words echoed in Ericson’s mind.

‘Even though I was exiled, I’ll become a hero who saved the village. Then the exile will be canceled, and we’ll be able to mine new minerals.’

Dwarves never forgot a favor.

If they could defeat these barbarians, Oto’s words would become reality, no matter how conservative the dwarves were.

* * *

With Oto’s group’s appearance, the battle took a new turn.

The dwarves were out of the picture.

The battle between Oto, Camille, Kairos, the Kuntaichi family’s swordsmen, and the Kongirat tribe warriors led by Amukan began.

The battle unfolded with Oto’s group’s overwhelming victory.

“Pirates, scram! Hahaha!”

Kairos, befitting his past as an absolute ruler, easily <crushed> the Kongirat tribe warriors with his overwhelming skill.

Although he could only use about one-tenth of his former strength, it was more than enough.

His overwhelming experience and combat skills, honed over countless battles in his lifetime, remained intact despite his lack of mana and strength.

“Gah!”

“Choke!”

The Kongirat tribe warriors fell helplessly before Kairos’s seasoned prowess, collapsing one by one, their heads shattered by heavy blunt weapons.

The situation for the Kongirat tribe warriors facing Camille was not much different.

Camille’s sword, having started to master the <Lightning Speed Sword> technique of the Kuntaichi family, was incredibly fast.

“...!”

“...!”

The Kongirat tribe warriors fell, pierced through the forehead or heart, without even knowing how they died.

The swordsmen were no exception.

As elite warriors carefully trained by the Kuntaichi family, the swordsmen’s combat power overwhelmingly surpassed that of the Kongirat tribe warriors.

Moreover, the swordsmen’s greatest contribution was their easy disposal of the dozens of wolf spirits summoned by Amukan.

The wolf spirits had extremely high resistance to physical attacks.

They absorbed 90% of the physical damage they received, making them very difficult to defeat in a straightforward fight.

However, they were vulnerable to magical damage due to their low resistance to magic.

The swordsmen focused on this weakness.

Flame!

The swordsmen cast fire spells, creating blazing flame swords, and used them to fight the wolf spirits.

As a result.

“Kee!”

“Keekeekee!”

The wolf spirits were powerless against the swordsmen’s flame swords.

While they were terrifying beasts when facing the dwarves, they were just large dogs in front of the Kuntaichi family’s swordsmen.

“I won’t let this go!”

“These guys!”

With the dwarves also joining the fight, the Kongirat tribe warriors had no chance of holding their ground.

* * *

Oto and Amukan faced off in a one-on-one duel without any interference.

‘I will win.’

Oto’s mindset in facing Amukan was much more serious than usual.

This was the first proper duel between rulers.

Of course, he had fought Nazrak, one of the 100 rulers, before.

But that was far from a normal duel.

At that time, Oto was cursed to be -99 level and was so weak he couldn’t even run properly, let alone fight.

He was a complete and utter waste.

But now, with the curse lifted and the power of the Invincible Emperor, the situation was different.

In a practical sense, this fight with Amukan was his first real combat as a ruler.

“I will cut off your limbs after I win.”

Amukan swung his massive sword wildly at Oto.

“I’ll boil you in a pot.”

A truly horrifying statement.

But it was not a threat or a bluff; it was a 100% serious statement.

The Habur grasslands were a brutal place where such terrifying execution methods were commonplace.

It was not uncommon to conquer another tribe and boil their leader alive.

Swish! Swish!

Amukan’s dual swords swung terrifyingly.

Chill!

The terrifying momentum and brutality were such that even a seasoned knight would hesitate to face him.

‘If I clash, I die.’

Oto knew all too well what would happen if his sword clashed with Amukan’s two large swords.

The difference in strength and weight was so great that Oto’s sword would shatter upon impact.

‘If it just shatters, I’ll be lucky.’

Oto knew all too well that Amukan’s sword would not only shatter his sword but also decapitate him.

Therefore, instead of blocking Amukan’s attacks, Oto focused on evasive maneuvers with precise and efficient movements.

“You little rat! How long do you think you can keep running!”

Amukan, seeing his attacks repeatedly miss, became furious and pressed Oto even harder.

“Shouldn’t you help!”

On the other hand, Ericson, watching the scene, was so shocked that he grabbed Camille and Kairos and shouted.

To Ericson, it looked like Oto was about to be cut in half at any moment.

“Why are you just watching! If you leave him...”

“Hey, dwarf.”

Kairos interrupted Ericson.

“Just watch if you don’t understand.”

“What? Dwarf?”

“You dwarves are great with hammers, but you’re terrible with swords. And your eyes for combat are even worse.”

“You dare...”

“He’s not losing; he’s winning. What’s so dangerous about this?”

“...?”

“It’ll be over in 30 seconds.”

Kairos said it as if it was a foregone conclusion.

And it soon became reality.

‘Now.’

Oto, focusing on evasive maneuvers, spotted an opening.

Flash!

A gray flash shot from Oto’s eyes, activating the <Stone Gaze> skill.

“...!”

Amukan, fully exposed to the <Stone Gaze> skill, hesitated and stopped moving.

Amukan, being one of the strongest in the Habur grasslands, had quite high magic resistance.

Thanks to this, he avoided being turned to stone.

However, he couldn’t avoid the powerful slow effect.

He didn’t have enough magic resistance to be completely immune to the <Stone Gaze>.

As a result.

Swish!

Oto’s sword sliced a straight line across Amukan’s chest.

Splat!

Blood gushed out.

“Gah!”

A perfect counter.

A single counterattack inflicted a fatal blow.

“Spit!”

Immediately after, the <Dishonorable Death Orb> shot out like a bullet, piercing Amukan’s thigh.

“Gah...”

Amukan, who had barely managed to stay on his feet despite the fatal wound to his chest, collapsed.

The sight of his massive body falling was like a mountain crumbling.

“...This is unbelievable.”

Amukan, sensing his impending death, muttered in disbelief.

Oto’s sword would soon decapitate him...

“Kill me. As a warrior of the grasslands, I won’t beg for my life.”

Amukan didn’t make excuses or blame his carelessness or bad luck.

Why?

Because in the grasslands, there was no such thing as a fair fight.

If you lost, you lost.

If you won, you won.

The process didn’t matter.

Win or lose.

Live or die.

That was all that mattered.

“Sorry, but.”

Oto smiled coldly.

“Who said I’d kill you?”

“...?”

“Dying is easy. Living is hard.”

“What do you mean?”

“The price for making me angry.”

“Price...?”

“Pay the price for making me angry.”

The next moment.

Whirr!

Kairos threw his mace to Oto.

“Let’s see you take it.”

Oto, swinging the heavy mace like a club, began to approach Amukan.