I Became A Thief Who Steals Overpowered Skills - Chapter 92

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 92. The Dark Lord, Agaresh

Beneath the Black Sky.

The Jucheong Knights galloped forward with tense expressions.

Agaresh was an opponent against whom death itself held no sway—a foe they had to fight.

Though their primary aim was to buy time, they couldn’t help but feel the weight of it—at minimum, they needed to hold for two days.

Of course, Krash at the front had no intention of merely stalling.

‘About time.’

His mind burned with only one thought: to bring Agaresh down.

“Krash, what do you know of Agaresh?”

Krash, who had spoken with such confidence about standing against Agaresh, now opened his mouth at Lilish’s question.

Lilish asked, and Krash answered.

“I understand that the moment the Black Sky became visible, he began to see us as well.”

The Black Sky was Agaresh’s eye.

And beneath that Black Sky, the Erosion Species wielded power unlike anything before.

Within Agaresh’s domain, their bodies swelled to twice their size, and their inherent demonic characteristics grew fierce and amplified.

“And we must avoid meeting his gaze directly—I’m aware of that too. One look, and we’d be cut off from sight, then chained by cascading Curses.”
“You understand well.”

Lilish nodded lightly.

“Agaresh is a troublesome Erosion Species precisely because of the Curse characteristics he possesses inherently. That’s the main reason I brought you along at all.”

Lilish’s rational judgment was sound.

Had Krash not deliberately brought up the Curse himself, she would have dismissed it as recklessness and left him behind.

Krash had spoken precisely because he understood Lilish’s nature.

“Yes, I can break that Curse.”
“…There’s no danger involved, I hope.”
“None whatsoever.”

Being worried over by Lilish felt strange, but Krash shrugged it off.

But when it came to World Erosion, Krash was the true Expert—more so than Lilish herself, at least for now.

At this point in time, World Erosion was still something humanity could stand against.

“Then, if we break that Curse, what are our odds of bringing Agaresh down?”
“Fifty-fifty.”

At Krash’s firm declaration, a slow smile spread across Lilish’s face.

“Quite high,” she observed.

High indeed.

Even assuming they all made it back alive, the odds were still fifty-fifty.

But Krash didn’t say that part aloud.

Lilish would only call it wishful thinking.

“I should clarify—we’re focusing on buying time, as originally planned.”

Krash had no objection to that.

He simply knew that Lilish would naturally turn her thoughts toward dealing with Agaresh regardless.

“Lilish.”

Darbiang, who had been keeping pace alongside them, spoke up.

Darkness had appeared directly ahead of them as they ran.

The same black that shrouded the sky hung thick and heavy before them.

Lilish came to a halt.

Running further would serve no purpose now.

“All units, prepare for combat.”

At Lilish’s command, the knights drew their weapons in unison.

They released the breath they had been holding from the run, and their faces hardened.

“They’re coming.”

The instant Lilish spoke those words—

Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump!

The earth itself began to shake as though a tremor had struck.

Simultaneously, countless presences surged from the darkness all at once.

“Everyone, focus on reducing the number of Erosion Species under the Black Sky. Nothing else.”

As the knights roared their affirmation, the creatures burst forth from the shadows.

Each had a form entirely its own.

Yet they shared one unmistakable trait: dozens of crimson eyes glowed from places where eyes should never have been.

And they were far stronger than their original forms.

Stronger, in fact, than any but the highest-tier Experts could withstand.

It was Agaresh’s unique ability—the Lordly Command.

And dealing with these creatures was the most crucial step to bringing Agaresh down.

‘The more eyes that take root, the more Agaresh’s power surges. That’s how it’s structured.’

So all of Agaresh’s servants had to be brought down, every last one.

Once Agaresh truly began to manifest, the Nokhaе Knights would take over that duty.

That was precisely why they’d been brought here.

But Agaresh hadn’t appeared yet.

Krash took his stance with the Ureongseong slung at his hip.

The moment he drew a sharp breath, World Erosion ignited within his body, and Myeolhwa Chimshik began to activate.

His body heated naturally, warming from within.

Scorching heat seeped slowly from between his lips.

At the same instant, Krash scattered black flame across the golden Aura blade dancing above the Ureongseong.

Lioné shaped itself like a scabbard around it.

This was the opening strike to end all preliminaries.

If he had to fight anyway, he’d make it count.

Crack!

Within the erupting lightning scabbard, Krash’s black flame burned fiercer still.

When the black flame reached its threshold and the lightning scabbard screamed in resonance—

Krash unleashed the black flame he’d been restraining.

Myeolhwa Chimshik.

First Form.

Roooaaaaaaaaarrr!

Black flame poured forth in a torrent, consuming everything in its path.

The Erosion Species that had rushed forward ignited all at once, burning away into nothing.

Those stationed in the rear, though farther from the Annihilation Draw’s radius, fared no better.

The black flames that had caught hold of them burned through their bodies with ferocious intensity.

Black flame forged from Igneus proved devastatingly effective at consuming World Erosion.

Those Erosion Species that survived writhed on the ground, shrieking.

The knights found themselves staring blankly at Krash, who now stood towering above the Erosion Species.

The high-powered strike they’d just witnessed was a technique none of them could perform.

Knights prioritized stability above all else; they would never master a technique that burned the body itself the way Krash had just done.

So an attack that disregarded such caution was certain to carve itself into their minds.

Krash Balheim.

The fact that he was a direct descendant of Balheim.

“Snap out of it, all of you! More are coming!”

At that, Lilish cut through the moment with a sharp rebuke.

The knights had momentarily lost their senses to Krash’s Annihilation Draw.

They hurried back into combat.

Just as Lilish had warned, a fresh tide of Erosion Species poured forth.

Even after slaughtering so many in that first assault, to see their numbers still so vast.

With Agaresh’s strength diminished, it seemed hopeless to think they could kill them all.

“You’re making quite a showing of it, Krash.”

Watching him with an expression surprisingly unshaken, Lilish spoke those words.

She had seen Krash fell Harpa.

To that extent, she understood his combat style at least in rough terms.

But understanding and witnessing it firsthand were different matters entirely.

‘An extreme, ultra-high-output assault.’

Without a thought for the aftermath that would follow, he simply unleashed his full power for the sole purpose of killing—a technique beyond reason.

To be honest, Lilish wanted to restrain him.

No matter how she looked at it, his techniques were deployed without any consideration for what lay ahead.

As if to say: if you don’t give everything now, there will be no future.

Each of his moves was the best option possible, his body’s limitations cast aside.

For now, it was fine.

Krash was still young, with many days left to live.

But when time passed, the toll taken now would leave scars upon his future.

‘Does he know that?’

Lilish severed an Erosion Species’ head even as she glanced toward Krash.

The sight of him weaving through the creatures with such ease struck her as terrifyingly precarious.

‘…Is this too a consequence of being born a direct descendant of Balheim?’

Was it truly Balheim alone that drove Krash to hunger for power with such desperation?

Lilish had the nagging sense that something more than that was weighing down his shoulders.

‘When I go back.’

I’ll ask her.

I’ve left him abandoned for so long now, in a way I can hardly call myself an elder sister.

But now—as an elder sister still.

She had finally understood by now that nothing changes if she simply stands idle.

* * *

Hours had already passed since they began fighting the Erosion Species.

In that endless cycle where their numbers would shrink only to swell again, then shrink and swell once more—

Thud!

For the first time, the darkness shook violently.

At the same moment, the dormant darkness began to expand and surge toward the knights.

“Captain of the Nokhaе Knights! Retreat now and engage only those Erosion Species that emerge from the Darkness Domain!”

At Lilish’s command, the Nokhaе Knights abruptly ceased their assault and began bolting toward the edge of the darkness.

Venturing deeper into the darkness meant certain death.

Agaresh’s darkness was like black rain.

Those caught within it would slowly be cursed by the darkness seeping into their bodies, dragging them toward annihilation.

“Krash.”

Lilish turned to look at Krash.

Enduring the darkness required at least a Master-level cultivator.

Krash was upper-tier Expert.

So Lilish asked him, just in case there was a chance.

“It’s fine. You know what my skill does.”

Krash replied to Lilish’s unspoken worry with calm assurance.

Igneus burned away World Erosion itself.

All he had to do was incinerate the curse before it could seep into his body.

Of course, such a feat required him to constantly burn his own insides with Igneus—a brutal cost.

But Krash didn’t care.

He was already doing it anyway.

‘If only Velokin had done the same back then.’

That one wouldn’t have fallen under the Cheonan Curse.

Krash thought of Velokin and clicked his tongue briefly.

A creature too afraid to burn its own body—he’d only earned this end.

“That’s as far as I go.”

As she spoke, watching the darkness surge forward, Crimson Garden addressed him.

Krash nodded, understanding the fact as well.

Even Crimson Garden’s raven wouldn’t hold up for long in Agaresh’s darkness.

“I’ll be out soon. Just enjoy the view while you wait.”

When Krash spoke lightly, Crimson Garden let out a heavy sigh.

“I should’ve made one of those knights into a servant.”
“Are you worried?”
“Worried? Not a chance. I’m just curious what stupid thing you’ll pull off.”

Her attitude toward him grew harsher with each passing moment.

But Krash heard the concern woven through her words, so he said nothing.

“Come back in one piece.”

As Crimson Garden flew off, Krash and the Jucheong Knights were swallowed by darkness.

Pitch-black darkness.

Krash examined his surroundings slowly, Myeolhwa Chimshik burning around him.

Light and sound alike had vanished.

The darkness had swallowed everything.

In this darkness, every sense deteriorates on its own.

And eventually, vague questions emerge—whether you truly exist here or not, whether you truly remain alive.

The effect of Oblivion, another curse woven into Agaresh’s darkness.

In that darkness of forgetting, a person collapses.

They forget to breathe, forget to let their heart beat.

Whoosh—

Of course, none of this mattered to Krash.

The moment the curse tried to seep in, he burned it away.

The same held true for the other knights.

They protected themselves from the curse using their Auras in the darkness.

Though their Auras would steadily wear away.

As Masters, they had no trouble moving about—limited vision aside.

“Krash, can you hear me?”

A voice suddenly bloomed in Krash’s mind.

It belonged to none other than Darbiang, the vice-commander of the Jucheong Knights.

This was his skill—Vikalis.

A skill that allowed him to transmit his will to all designated targets.

With the added ability to share senses, it proved invaluable for managing the order.

“I’ll share my senses with you now.”

Once he activated the sense-sharing, Krash would be able to perceive the positions of all the other Jucheong Knights.

This meant the order could move boldly into the darkness without hesitation.

Krash waited in silence. A moment later, a sharp tingle ran through his head as the sense-sharing activated.

The positions of every Jucheong Knight member became palpable to him—no Sixth Sense required.

Indeed, it was undeniably useful in this regard.

‘Tempting as it is.’

Not worth taking, though.

“Yes, loud and clear.”

Lilish raised her sword upon hearing Krash’s answer.

In that instant, a blue Aura coursed through her blade, burning with such intensity that it pierced the darkness itself.

For the Jucheong Knights, it was a beacon—a signal to follow.

“All units, prepare for battle.”

The moment Lilish’s command rang out, crimson eyes began to emerge one by one from the darkness that surrounded them.

Screeeeeeeeeech!

A sound like nails scraping metal tore through the air.

Splat—

With the sound of something dripping, a figure began to emerge from the distant gloom.

Its face was hidden in shadow, but the horns protruding from its crown marked it unmistakably as a demon.

And the two arms stretched long beneath its blood-red cloak bore little resemblance to any human form.

As the creature walked, darkness dripped from its path like ink, pooling and falling.

A chill ran down Krash’s spine.

Goosebumps rose across his arms at the mere sight of it, and he found himself holding back a trembling laugh.

The crimson eyes gleaming from within that shadowed form fixed upon them.

With that gaze, the surrounding darkness suddenly took form—countless blades of pure shadow, pouring forth like a deluge.

An Erosion Species of the eighth rank: Agaresh.

The Lord of Darkness had arrived.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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