Chapter 73

After sending off Martha and the remaining trainees at the right moment, Raon still did not reveal himself. He hid his presence even more, reducing his breathing to the level of a wild animal or a branch swaying in the wind. The trainees, bolstered by Martha's support, regained their courage and will, and began to sweep away the Green Ghouls.

'Now.'

Raon exhaled lightly, further relaxing his body. It was the moment of victory, but it was also the most dangerous time.

'The Green Chieftain hasn't appeared yet.'

The Green Chieftain, a lower-ranking officer of Eden, who had given the attack orders to the Green Ghouls, was definitely up there.

He approached the thicket where everyone was fighting, moving very slowly and quietly.

Just as Burren, Lunan, and Martha were about to strike the remaining Green Ghouls with their swords.

The creature appeared.

'The Green Chieftain is here too.'

The Green Chieftain, a subordinate of Eden, who had inherited the strength of an orc warrior, approached with a terrifying aura.

Kwaang!

With a single blow from the enraged creature, Burren, Lunan, and Martha were simultaneously thrown back. The three were overwhelmed by the Green Chieftain's aura and could barely move.

Thump.

Raon synchronized his heartbeat with the Green Chieftain's breathing and moved his feet.

His footwork was the Shadowless Step, a technique he had learned with his life during his assassin days. Moving as stealthily as a shadow, he positioned himself behind the Green Chieftain.

Kugugu!

Hiding his own killing intent from the Green Chieftain's murderous aura, he raised his sword as the creature was about to strike Martha with an axe.

"Die now!"

At the moment the Green Chieftain was about to strike with the axe, Raon activated the Flame Dance technique.

Hwirrr!

Flame Dance One Flower. The flame that bloomed from the tip of the sword fell toward the Green Chieftain's neck.

"You!"

The Green Chieftain's eyes widened in shock as he turned around. In that instant, he tried to redirect the trajectory of the sword by emitting a surge of aura from his back.

"Stop resisting and die."

Raon split the Green Chieftain's aura with the flames of the Flame Dance and struck with his sword.

"Kraaaaaa!"

As the sword, like a bolt of lightning, was about to slice the Green Chieftain's neck, the creature instead lunged inward.

Pukak!

Bright red blood exploded, and something fell to the ground.

Raon glared ahead, frowning.

"Kuhuhu…."

The Green Chieftain, with his left shoulder completely severed, was laughing as he spat out blood.

"You didn't expect me to come in, did you?"

"Madman."

Humans, in moments of crisis, try to escape, not charge in. To come in and offer an arm instead of a neck was an action that could only be described as madness.

That's why I don't want to fight these guys.

Raon clicked his tongue.

"Kuh!"

As a red aura surged from the Green Chieftain's shoulder, the blood that had been gushing out like a dam breaking began to stop.

"You can't move either, can you?"

"..."

Raon did not answer. As the creature said, he had invested a lot in the previous strike and was temporarily unable to move.

If he had the freedom of movement, he would have immediately rushed forward and cut off the creature's head.

"Are you the one in charge here?"

While rotating the ring of fire to recover his body and aura, he spoke.

"Would you think that a higher-up from Eden would come to such a small village?"

The Green Chieftain, gripping the axe with his remaining arm, saw the red aura rise again after it had subsided.

"Who knows? You guys are madmen."

Raon released his qi through his breath and slightly bent his knees. He filled his lungs with fresh air, ready to spring at any moment.

Thud!

The Green Chieftain kicked the ground, emitting a chilling aura and swinging the axe.

Hwirr!

Raon raised his sword. The flames of Flame Dance One Flower reignited, wrapping around the blade.

Kyaahh!

The sword and the double-bladed axe collided, producing a sound like steel bending.

Hwaah!

Bright red sparks spread, beginning to burn the ground.

"Can you withstand that?"

The Green Chieftain glared and swung the axe horizontally. The intense wind pressure made it difficult for his hands to move properly.

"If I can't withstand that, I shouldn't be a swordsman."

Raon struck with his flame-covered sword.

Kwaang!

In the second clash with the Green Chieftain, his grip felt like it was about to tear, but he hid his expression and raised his sword again.

"You know the mindset of a warrior! Sigurd's brat!"

The Green Chieftain burst into a strange laugh and swung the axe down.

"Even if you know, I won't let you live!"

"I never asked for mercy."

Raon parried the axe with his sword and took a step forward.

Kyaahh!

The sword trembled as if it might break under the powerful aura on the axe's edge.

'I have to endure.'

With his current strength, he couldn't crush the creature. He had to let the axe's aura flow and fight.

Kwaang!

Raon, using the sword techniques he learned at Sigurd, instinctively blocked the Green Chieftain's wildly swinging axe.

Raon and the monster, wrapped in the instincts of an orc, exchanged countless blows of sword and axe at close range.

* * *

"What, what is this?"

Burren's eyes widened, and his jaw trembled.

'What is this...?'

He couldn't breathe as he watched the two monsters exchange blows with their swords and axes right in front of him.

'How many times have they swung now?'

He couldn't even see the trajectories of the sword and axe. It wasn't just a difference in skill; it was a difference in class.

Whoosh!

The Green Chieftain's axe fell like a bolt of lightning.

Gulp.

He involuntarily swallowed a dry mouthful of saliva.

If that axe had fallen on his head, his body would have been split in half. The thought made the hair on his arms stand on end.

But Raon drew a semicircle with his sword and deflected the axe.

Kwaang!

The fallen axe crushed the earth. Red energy burst from the cracked ground.

"That, that..."

Burren extended his fingers and scratched the ground.

'It's a flexible sword!'

The flexible sword, the basic sword technique first learned at Sigurd. Raon was blocking the powerful axe with just that flexible sword.

He was so amazed that his mouth couldn't close.

'I thought I had caught up a lot...'

After being impressed by Raon's efforts, he had trained his body and mind to the fullest. He thought he had almost caught up to Raon, but he was wrong.

The sword that had cut off the Green Chieftain's arm and the power Raon was showing now far exceeded the level of a trainee.

"Did you see that?"

He turned his head at a sigh-like breath from the side. Martha was approaching, breathing heavily.

"That's his real power."

Martha narrowed her eyes as she glared at Raon, who was fighting the Green Chieftain on equal terms.

"What he showed us was just the tip of the iceberg."

She had known that Raon had been hiding his power.

'But...'

He had never imagined that Raon would show the same level of skill as the Green Chieftain, who had overwhelmed them with a single blow.

'I have to admit it now.'

Martha clenched her fist. This mission. Everything was in Raon's hands. The situation had moved as he said, and things had happened as he wanted.

Now, all that was left was to defeat that monster.

"Haa..."

Lunan, who had regained her composure, approached with a broken sword. In her blue eyes, Raon, who was struggling, was reflected.

Grip.

Biting her lip, she was about to join the battle when Martha blocked her path.

"Back off. You'll be torn to pieces the moment you enter."

"I can help."

"You'll die before that."

"I don't care."

Lunan shook her head. In her eyes, only Raon, who was barely dodging the axe, was visible.

'This kid...'

Martha narrowed her eyes. The fact that she was willing to enter despite knowing the danger suggested that she wasn't just following Raon around.

"Then wait a little longer."

"What?"

"That kid..."

Martha pointed at Raon. His eyes, which looked like a red bolt of lightning, were the same as when he defeated her in sparring.

* * *

"Kuh!"

The Green Chieftain bared his teeth, emitting aura.

"Looks like you're running out of strength, huh?"

"..."

Raon did not answer. He focused only on using his sword techniques and blocking the axe.

'His killing intent is getting stronger.'

The creature, who had taken the orc warrior's armor, was overflowing with strength even with a quarter of his upper body missing. It was a resilience that could be called madness.

'I should have finished it earlier.'

Raon clicked his tongue. It had been a long time since he had assassinated, and he couldn't completely hide his killing intent. The situation was regrettable.

"You're special. Considering your age, you could be called the greatest genius on the continent. But..."

The corners of the Green Chieftain's mouth curved into a crescent.

"I'm also a special existence."

The flames on the axe the creature held burned even brighter.

Whoosh!

The force behind the falling axe was faster and sharper than before.

Sssss!

Raon set his sword sideways to push the axe away. Just as he was about to use the deflection technique, the edge of the axe rotated and pressed down on the sword.

"I've figured out all the sword techniques you used. They were a bit difficult because they were variations of basic techniques, but it's over now."

The Green Chieftain was not lying. He could predict the direction of Raon's sword and prevent him from using defensive or deflection techniques.

Kwaang!

The sword and axe collided, producing a different roar than before. It was a clash of strength.

"Kuh..."

A suppressed groan escaped Raon's lips. The force behind the axe was so great that his arm trembled uncontrollably.

"Do you know? Eden's officers have special abilities."

"..."

"Mine is a sense. A sense that can see where and how your sword will move."

The Green Chieftain grinned and swung the axe horizontally. The aura on the axe's edge created a strange flow, blocking the direction Raon could dodge.

"You're quite talkative, like someone else."

Raon smiled coldly and raised his sword.

Kiiing!

With a sound like a gear grinding, the Green Chieftain's axe grazed the sword and headed for the ground.

Kwaang!

Raon kicked the crumbling earth and lunged into the Green Chieftain's embrace, drawing his sword toward the creature's surprised eyes.

Swoosh!

A terrifying amount of blood spurted from the left side of the Green Chieftain's chest.

"Kuh!"

The creature swung the axe wildly and took a step back.

"Tsk."

Raon clicked his tongue. He had tried to completely cut off the creature's body this time, but his strength and distance were insufficient. Fighting with an underdeveloped body was indeed difficult.

"You, you. How...?"

"Just as you read my sword techniques, I figured out your attack patterns."

"...Is that supposed to make sense now?"

"Why not? What you can do, I can do too."

It was not a lie.

While fighting the creature, he had used the ring of fire to predict the direction of the axe. It wasn't perfect, but he could grasp about half of the movements.

"Huff..."

The blood from the Green Chieftain's chest began to stop. Flames of aura burned across his entire body.

"What is your name?"

"Raon Sigurd. Nameless enemy of Eden."

"Golden hair, red eyes. I felt uneasy from the moment I saw you..."

The creature's eyes emitted a red aura as if it were materializing.

"You strongly inherited the blood of Glen Sigurd."

"What?"

"You're dangerous. I have to kill you here, by any means. For Eden's future."

Kwaang!

The aura spreading around the Green Chieftain gathered on the double-bladed axe. It looked like a mace made of red blood rather than an axe.

"I'll crush you and the Sigurds behind you."

The Green Chieftain gritted his teeth and raised the axe.

Raon did not step back even when he saw the immense power. He adjusted his shaking sword, affected by the massive aura.

"Perfect for testing."

He extended his knee forward and pulled his sword back.

Goo!

A single flame on the tip of the sword, like a wave, surged and flowed down the blade.

Flame Dance Ten Flowers.

The second gate of the Flame Dance opened, and ten flowers bloomed on the blade, dancing.