NOVEL NEXT Chapter 95
Chapter 95: The End of a Bitter Tether (3)
“The Lord has given the Black Night Knights a direct order—to tear you to pieces the moment we see you, Martin Adalbert.”
Rudolf Büst, the deputy commander of the Black Night Knights, stepped forward and spoke.
Only then did Martin take his gaze off Kalain and look at his new opponent. A smirk tugged at his lips.
“You? Really?”
“…Seems beating a few mediocre grunts has made you cocky.”
“It’s truly amusing. No matter where I go, I always run into guys like you. You take pride in swarming together, barely managing to capture a few elves or dwarves. Does that make you think you’re something extraordinary?”
“I’ll teach you there’s pain worse than death!”
“Sorry, but that’s my specialty.”
“Kill them, now!”
Rudolf roared in fury at Martin’s mockery.
Swish!
At his command, twenty members of the Black Night Knights charged all at once.
They, too, had their pride wounded and looked visibly angered.
“Tsk. Real gems, aren’t they?”
“Those poor fools who lost to him. Losing wasn’t bad enough—they got thoroughly humiliated too.”
Sien and Adel chuckled bitterly, foreseeing the grim fate that awaited the knights.
The two women unleashed their aura, then pushed off the ground and dashed forward.
In contrast, Martin remained still, simply watching the four knights heading toward him.
Flick.
At the slight motion of Martin’s left index finger, a blade of wind shot forward with terrifying speed.
“Dodge it!”
Having gained extensive experience fighting various beings, the Black Night Knights reacted with impressive reflexes, dodging every blade of wind.
‘Good reflexes,’ Martin thought.
Their swift response in those few seconds was commendable, though it didn’t alter their fate.
Martin extended his left hand, activating Omni Distortion.
In an instant, the distance between him and one of the knights closed sharply.
“What?!”
The knight screamed, caught off guard by the unexpected shift.
It would be his last sound.
Crunch!
Martin gripped the knight’s neck with his left hand and twisted, snapping it instantly.
Then, he flung the body at another knight who was charging from his right.
The corpse hurtled like a cannonball, but the other knight evaded it by spinning like a top.
He then lunged at Martin with his sword.
But he wasn’t alone.
The remaining two knights coordinated their attacks, charging from Martin’s left and behind, creating an inescapable assault.
‘Victory feels most certain at the most dangerous moment.’
Unfazed, Martin flicked his left finger once more.
Boom!
“Aaagh!”
“Ugh!”
“Gyaaah!”
A powerful pressure crushed all three knights simultaneously.
They were slammed to the ground, their bodies instantly mangled under the force.
Martin glanced at his comrades, utterly unperturbed.
Sien and Adel were each engaged with a squad leader and other knights.
“As expected, no need to worry.”
Martin smiled in satisfaction.
Sien, with her powerful physical endurance, shrugged off even the harshest attacks.
Adel, using her unique ability, Illusion Form, bypassed all physical hits effortlessly.
Each of them had formidable defensive capabilities and handled multiple opponents with ease.
Satisfied, Martin turned his attention to Rudolf.
“Hey, are you going to just stand there looking smug?”
“I was just assessing the situation.”
“Not that seeing it will change anything.”
“Your mouth’s as sharp as a 10th Circle.”
Fwoosh!
An intense aura surged from Rudolf’s body, and an ash-gray aura blade appeared along his sword.
Martin’s eyes glinted sharply.
‘His swordsmanship at the 4th Circle, and his unique ability’s at the 2nd Circle…’
While Rudolf’s level was lower than Martin’s, underestimating him was unwise.
He still hadn’t determined Rudolf’s unique ability.
Swoosh!
Rudolf finally moved, and the distance between them closed in an instant.
Then, something surprising happened.
The air shimmered momentarily, and Rudolf’s body vanished completely.
Martin frowned.
‘Not teleportation.’
He was certain—there was no spatial distortion in the air.
In that fleeting moment, Martin’s mind raced.
A new hypothesis formed in his mind.
‘So, invisibility, perhaps…’
Yet it wasn’t a simple invisibility.
Though invisible, his presence was undeniable. Normally, movement would produce sound, but there was none.
Even after channeling mana into his nose to heighten his sense of smell, he caught no scent. His instincts, sharpened to the 7th Circle, couldn’t detect anything.
Not even the mana he spread like a spider web picked up a trace.
However—
Boom!
Martin swung his holy sword Karadyl to his left as if he knew exactly where Rudolf was.
The golden aura blade clashed against an ash-gray one, creating a thunderous explosion.
“W-What did you do?!”
Rudolf shouted, his earlier confidence replaced by shock.
And who could blame him?
His unique ability wasn’t simple invisibility—it was Perfect Concealment.
An advanced form of invisibility, it completely negated all detection, beyond the five senses and even surpassing instincts.
With it, he had captured countless nonhumans and had never once been detected.
But now, for the first time, his flawless ability had been seen through.
The shock created a brief opening, and Martin was not one to miss such an opportunity.
Crunch!
“Urgh!”
Blood spurted from Rudolf’s mouth.
He looked down in disbelief at his own chest.
Martin’s fist had pierced directly through Rudolf’s chest, striking his heart with precision.
However, the greater shock was yet to come.
“I don’t know exactly what your ability is, but I’ll admit it was impressive. But your compatibility with me was… spectacularly bad. I almost feel sorry for you.”
“…H-How did you figure it out?”
“When everything else failed, spatial detection still worked. There was nothing you could’ve done about that. Anything alive has no choice but to exist in space, after all.”
“Damn… it all…” Rudolf muttered, letting his head fall.
As befitting a 6th Circle powerhouse, his life force had been strong enough to keep him standing a bit longer, but with his heart crushed, survival was impossible.
At that moment, Martin pivoted on his left foot and turned to his right.
In sync with his movement, the holy sword Karadyl rose from below, slicing through something.
“Aaagh!”
Clang!
The sword hit the ground, and Kalain Gustin’s scream filled the air as he clutched his severed left arm and collapsed.
Martin looked down at him with a slight smile.
Kalain, in contrast, was trembling all over.
He had executed spatial teleportation while Martin’s attention was on Rudolf, feeling sure he’d timed it perfectly.
To ensure his safety, he had even layered a triple spatial barrier around himself.
Yet all of it had been rendered useless in an instant.
“What were you thinking, Kalain? Did you honestly believe that pitiful ambush would work? Or maybe you thought your spatial barrier could block or even reflect my attacks? Whatever it was, it was an absolute failure.”
“P-Please… spare my life…”
“Wow. Your father risked his life for the family’s ambitions, yet here you are, the heir, begging for your life. Don’t you think that’s a bit much, even for you?”
“Ugh…”
Kalain was speechless at Martin’s rebuke, his expression filled with shame and fear.
Martin was deeply satisfied with the man’s humiliation.
‘What a poetic coincidence.’
While Kalain hadn’t been the one to personally take Martin’s left arm in his past life, it had been Kalain’s order that led to it. Now, Martin had severed Kalain’s left arm.
The irony wasn’t lost on him.
“But don’t worry too much. I won’t kill you… yet.”
Having taken his hostage, Martin intended to make full use of it.
Slowly, Martin reached into Kalain’s coat, pulling out a crystal communication orb and connecting to his target: Mateus von Gustin.
—
“Martin Adalbert!”
Crash!
Mateus von Gustin bellowed as he slammed his fist into the command room table.
But even that wasn’t enough to vent his fury. He began smashing and throwing every item within reach.
Neither Andreas Schneider nor Karsten Frings, the commander and deputy commander of the Red Dragon Knights, dared to intervene.
Elders Aren and Marius also remained silent.
They, too, had watched the broadcasted scene unfold—Martin crushing Kalain and demanding surrender.
And to top it off, Martin had threatened to kill Kalain if they didn’t surrender within the allotted time.
Staying calm in the face of such a threat seemed almost unnatural.
“I’ll go back to the mansion immediately and cut that bastard’s head off myself!”
“I understand your anger, Mateus. But if you leave, who will hold off Vincent?”
“Elder Marius is correct. The enemy may have the numbers, but they hesitate to attack outright because of our strong defenses and your presence, which poses a significant threat to Vincent.”
“Damn it all!”
Mateus unleashed a string of curses he knew by heart.
Every fiber of his being wanted to go and save his son.
But his reason held him back, warning that if he left, Vincent would seize the opportunity, and the fortress would be lost.
‘Sending others isn’t an option either.’
He acknowledged the abilities of the three 7th Circle warriors here, but the troubling truth was that no one among them could guarantee victory against Martin.
There was also no certainty Martin would remain at the mansion.
“…For now, I’ll focus on defending the fortress. But if my son dies, I swear I’ll burn every trace of the Adalbert family to ash.”
Mateus’ voice held a deadly calm.
No one dared to stop him; his threat was all too real.
“Thank you for your resolve, Mateus,” Elder Aren said, standing up from his seat.
Andreas Schneider looked at him curiously.
“Where are you going, Elder Aren?”
“Dawn is breaking, and the battle will start soon. I thought it best to check the spells cast on the gates and walls. The knights may have already inspected them, but it’s worth another look.”
“Thank you for your diligence, Elder.”
No one doubted Aren’s careful nature, having witnessed his bravery in battle the day before.
Thus, Aren easily exited the command room unnoticed.
Step, step.
He descended the stairs leisurely, heading toward the main gate.
A knight and mage on guard noticed him and hurried over.
“Is something wrong, Elder?”
“The battle is about to start. I thought I’d take a final look around.”
“A-ah, I see. Understood.”
The knight and mage immediately stepped back, deferring to Elder Aren’s inspection.
And then—
Slash!
Aren drew his sword and swung it in a swift arc.
In a flash of light, the knight’s head fell to the ground.
“W-What are you doing?!”
“Just following the young lord’s orders.”
Aren responded coldly as he slashed his sword again, cutting deeply into the mage.
“There’s no need to drag out a war like this.”
Hum.
An aura blade coated Aren’s sword as he moved quickly to destroy the main gate controls and the central magical circuit that regulated the spells on the walls.
Boom!
With a heavy thud, the fortress gates, which had been securely shut, swung wide open.
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