NOVEL NEXT Chapter 159
The Hero of All Times.
The strongest hero in history.
The reason Maximilian Argon Hohenberc has garnered absolute support and praise from the Emperor of the Empire and the rulers of the Holy Kingdom is due to his unwavering strength.
He skillfully wields all kinds of weapons in the world.
His martial arts and fighting skills, trained to the extreme, are on par with his weapon mastery.
He can also use magic, albeit clumsily.
Although not his specialty, he occasionally utilizes Sacred Magic, including emergency treatment and detoxification.
The merciful Creator Deity loves all humans who worship Him equally. But Maximilian alone was the exception. An immaculate being was born as if all the providence and reason of the world favored one single human.
“…Regnas.”
Golden Radiance flashed.
But that wasn’t all.
Black, white, and gray sword energies were unleashed in succession.
As Aldebaran swung, the three Holy Swords flying in the air also moved simultaneously. Unlike the autonomous attacks granted to the Seraph’s Holy Relics, these acted according to Maximilian’s will.
-……
The sword hilt gripped by the Abyss Knight shook.
Clang!
It deflected Aldebaran’s blade.
The ensuing swing knocked back the blades of Altair, Procyon, and Heila.
It was invisible to the naked eye.
Only the fleeting gleam of the blade was all that could be perceived.
The sword saint’s strikes boasted the pinnacle of sword speed beyond visual capture. The only way to keep up with the sword speed was to rely entirely on instinct.
It felt like stepping onto thin ice.
If one’s intuition dulled or reflexes lagged, death was the only outcome.
A moment’s carelessness only robbed one of their life. Confronted with the fear of death, Maximilian gasped for air, sharpening his instinct.
Swoosh-! Swoooooosh!!
Invisible blades fled in from all directions.
The white chill of the cutting edge aimed at Maximilian with graceful trajectories.
He felt it.
All the sword strikes were flying towards his vital spots.
“Right, you’re aiming for a one-hit kill.”
His four Holy Swords all mobilized and met the incoming sword saint’s onslaught.
Then, the undead’s tranquil, bluish gaze slightly flickered.
-……!
Aldebaran’s blade aimed for the Abyss Knight’s lower abdomen.
That was the location of its core.
The armor was in tatters, leaving the lower abdomen completely exposed.
The chill of death trickled down the blade’s tip.
The strike Maximilian unleashed shattered the Abyss Knight’s bones, but regrettably, it did not penetrate the core. The deeply plunging blade was deflected by the sword saint’s counterattack.
Crack-!
Shattered bone fragments spilled out.
The Abyss Knight took a step back, reorganizing its stance.
‘The only chance of victory has just gone to waste… Although it’s now a pile of bones, the sword technique is still intact.’
Caw! Caw! Caw!
Five consecutive slashes.
One sword made five simultaneous golden slashes.
Snow and ice dispersed like a hazy mist. The momentary obscured view didn’t cause Maximilian to lose track of the sword saint’s blade path. The incoming sword trajectory twisted into a curve, creating a harsh metallic sound.
-Not bad, I like it…!
A graceful and pure sword trajectory.
Despite being reduced to bones, the sword saint was never rusted.
Power and skill.
And experience honed through countless battles.
As the undead continued to swing its sword, Maximilian’s stamina was relentlessly drained. Although his skill still boasted the level of his prime, the most pressing issue now was the accumulated fatigue in his body.
Cling-!
Gradually, Maximilian was being pushed back.
Even with all four Holy Swords dedicated to defense, he couldn’t deflect all the slashes.
The effects of power accumulated.
Like blood droplets trickling from wounds, his strength was exhausted.
How many more times could he endure this-?
It was hard to guess.
Perhaps he might collapse with the next strike.
A shining brilliance of the Holy Sword began to fade, reflecting the perilous state. All the Holy Swords he clutched, including Aldebaran, were in a state akin to candles flickering just before extinguishing.
-……
The undead took a step forward.
At the same time, it gripped the sword hilt with both hands.
“Damn.”
Vwoosh-!
Following the sharp blade, a stream of crimson energy spilled forth.
Blood Shadow Sword.
The pinnacle of blade energy that had slain numerous arch devils of the demon realm.
The blade energy, which once demonstrated its might against Edanant in the Immortal Fortress, emerged. Seeing the swirling red energy at sunset like shadows on the ground, Maximilian spat a short curse.
*
The red shadow twisted in a spiral and spread along the sword’s tip.
There was no way to escape.
The shadow had already surpassed the speed of sound and would soon catch the flash.
There was only one method.
To somehow block the sword saint’s incoming blow head-on.
────!!!
The trajectory of the blade was surprisingly straightforward.
Isn’t it common practice for swordsmen to unleash varied and unpredictable attacks from different angles to take advantage of their opponent? But ignoring such common sense, the sword saint’s strike was extraordinarily simple.
He could see it.
The swirling red shadow.
Facing it, Maximilian squeezed out every last bit of strength into the sword hilt.
*Bam!!!
The golden Holy Sword collided with the red shadow.
As soon as the forces clashed, the Holy Sword screamed, groaning loudly as it cracked.
He was wrong.
He lacked the power to topple the red shadow.
The brilliance that had once shone brightly was devoured by the red shadow. The divinity bestowed upon the Holy Sword of vanquishing demons met its defeat.
“Gah!!”
Having lost in close combat, Maximilian was swept away by the torrent, bouncing off the ground several times, crushed into the ice and snow before colliding with the wall.
Instinctively, he grasped the sword hilt.
He managed to keep hold of Aldebaran firmly, but the result was utterly dire.
*Crash!!!
The remaining three Holy Swords, fallen into the snow, lost all light.
“Huff, huff…!”
Not yet-.
It’s still far from over.
Though his body had been tattered like a rag doll, his fighting spirit didn’t wane even a little.
Maximilian gripped the sword hilt with all his might and leaned against the blade’s tip emitting a subtle golden glow.
-It’s over, intruder…! Now, sleep in the cold ground.
Did the disaster of death consume even his noble pride, not recognizing even his lifelong companions anymore?
The Abyss Knight lifted its sword tip.
Seeing such an undead, Maximilian forced a wry smile.
“……”
Death was right before him.
As if resisting that very death, the hero intended to brandish his golden Holy Sword.
“Maximilian!!”
Then-.
A wild and agitated call pierced through the icy air.
Hearing the familiar yet vexing voice, Maximilian instinctively frowned.
A blizzard raged.
At that moment, a Holy Knight of the Holy Kingdom appeared.
The sword tip imbued with blue divinity threatened the undead. Facing the noble Holy Knight with flowing blue hair from behind, Maximilian slowly rose, letting out a sigh.
“Sirelle…. You’re saving me? How humiliating.”
“Shut up, heretic!”
Maximilian sincerely expressed his regret.
In response, Sirelle’s voice pierced sharply, revealing their long-standing rivalry.
“You’re heavily injured, Maximilian.”
“…Master.”
A middle-aged man, neatly dressed in a colorless priest robe, joined soon after. Upon reuniting with his master, whom he had confidently declared he would never meet again, Maximilian wore an awkward expression.
Sirelle Beilred.
Ilkeron Nebiaku.
The invincible sword of the Holy Kingdom and the Black Cardinal came to the battlefield.
*Swoosh-!
The sacred cloth emanating a gentle gray flew in, capturing the undead.
As it clashed with the Holy Swords, the accrued divinity seemed to poison the Abyss Knight, displaying unnatural movements.
“Abyss Knight…!”
“Don’t let go of the Holy Cloth! It’s the highest-level undead born from the abyss!”
The Holy Knights of the Holy Kingdom, surrounding the Demon King’s Castle, served as a contingency.
Sirelle and Ilkeron, who led a few priests to the battlefield, managed to join Maximilian just in time.
*Crack-!
Kra-THUD.
The Holy Cloth summoned by Sacred Magic began to tear one by one.
To that, the priests looked aghast as they glared at the undead with bluish light.
-Intruders…! The filthy scent is vibrating… intruders!!
The gaunt hands tore through the Holy Cloth.
The Abyss Knight swung the crimson shadow blade and roared. To counter him, the warriors and Holy Knights of the Holy Kingdom tightened their grips around their sword hilts as they approached the undead.
*
The disaster of death possessing Elizaveta.
A monster that completely devoured Beatrice.
Should it be called a proxy battle?
Or should it be called a full-on battle in which they themselves participated?
The struggle between the disaster and the monster was like a tug of war. Which side would seize the divine status first was the crux of the battle.
“The divine status planted in the human girl will soon show its limits. A foolish struggle.”
-Well…! The perfect lord has never failed even once.
As if it had completely forgotten the dark history of being sealed after being thoroughly toured by the Saintess Party given the divine oracle of the Creator Deity. It seems forgetting unfavorable memories instantly is a specialty of theirs.
As the monster mocked, the disaster shrugged in response.
“You babble endlessly…! I’ll shut that mouth for you!”
*Crumble-!
The cold air froze and shaped into a spear.
It was undoubtedly the spear used by the Frost Giant aimed at Edanant. The beast wielding the spear rushed forward with white hair flowing down to its waist.
-Right, shall we start again?
The disaster gripped the sword hilt of the great sword with both hands.
And then charged toward the monster, leaving Edanant behind.