Sword Master With One Strike Kill - Chapter 243

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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One-Strike Kill Swordmaster Episode 243

Episode 243. Battle of Vilopozy (1)

“….”

Zahhar’s eyes wavered.

Everything had been unexpected from the moment he first encountered Gaon.

He looked insignificant on the surface, so how could he have caught the attention of the ancients and been chosen as a Sword Master?

‘What’s even more incomprehensible is….’

It was Gaon’s mental fortitude.

The way he endured the killing intent of a pure-blood dragon clan member without batting an eye.

He had overcome the pressure that even Sword Masters like Tyrant Dragon found difficult to bear.

That wasn’t all.

How could a mere human absorb a Dragon Heart? Moreover, one belonging to the Ancient Dragon who was supposedly already dead.

That bastard had even killed Camillo von Taribas and Puppet Master Batu. It meant his actual skills surpassed most transcendents.

However.

A reality more bewildering than all those questions was unfolding before his eyes right now.

‘…The nature of his mana changed in just one day.’

Yesterday and today.

Though it was clearly the same being, Gaon’s mana wavelength had subtly changed.

To someone else, it might be a trivial change, but not to Zahhar.

An imprecise plan.

An unpredictable situation.

All of this was what he, who was obsessed with ‘perfection,’ despised most.

He couldn’t know what effect such a minor change might have on battle.

It meant the plan made yesterday might not work today.

‘Damn it.’

Crack-.

Displeasure surged up from deep within his chest.

But Zahhar deliberately ignored it and took a deep breath.

As cold air filled his lungs, his uneasy mind gradually began to settle.

‘It’s already begun.’

He had led an army toward Vilopozy and even completed his declaration of war.

There was no turning back now.

Swish-.

Having finished his thoughts, Zahhar turned to Dorico Shiro beside him.

“Don’t forget, Dorico Shiro.”

“….”

“As I said before, you must leave Tyrant Dragon to me.”

“U-uh, okay. Got it.”

First, he would kill that damn half-wit.

Then he would subdue Gaon, capture him alive, and work with Atalaxia’s Black Mages to resolve all his questions one by one.

How he absorbed the Dragon Heart. Why the nature of his mana changed. By thoroughly uncovering all those secrets.

“Now.”

Zahhar extended his hand.

“Go and destroy Vilopozy, my children.”

Kugugugugugu-!

At his command, the chimeras let out monstrous cries and rushed toward the entrance of Vilopozy’s ravine.

The earth trembled.

Dozens of chimera monsters had begun moving all at once.

Groooooooo-.

Behind them, the massive dragon bone skeletons also slowly raised their heads.

* * *

Kugugugugugugu-!

A wave spread across the horizon began rolling in.

It was similar in scale to the monster wave I had faced when I first came to Vilopozy. But the intimidation was on a different level.

The aura emanating from each individual was tremendous.

Kieeeeeek-!

Monstrous cries echoed through the ravine.

Bizarrely twisted chimeras kicked off the ground and charged toward Vilopozy.

“E-everyone prepare for battle…!”

As the Village Chief’s shout rang out, those waiting at various positions in the ravine began moving all at once.

Archers on the damaged watchtowers nocked arrows to their bowstrings, and dwarves beside catapults began groaning as they loaded explosives and rocks.

Hastily constructed weapons creaked as they aimed at the chimera army.

Cha-cha-cha-cha-cha-chang──!

Simultaneously, the sound of metal rang out from all directions.

Armored dwarves came pouring out through the narrow ravine.

Clad in thick armor, they looked like moving chunks of iron.

Clank-!

Thud-! Kwaaaaang-!

Large shields slammed down on the ground, beginning to block the ravine entrance.

The dwarves’ small frames were completely hidden behind their shields, with spear tips protruding here and there between them.

A solid defensive line was quickly completed.

But the four of us didn’t enter the safe zone.

We simply stood in front of the defensive line, at the position where enemies would strike first.

“Tyrant Dragon, Adelia, Mangnyeom.”

I spoke in a calm voice.

“We’ll proceed according to the original plan.”

“….”

“….”

“….”

Hesitation-.

At those words, everyone in the party showed worried expressions.

Tyrant Dragon furrowed his brow.

“Really going with the original plan? Even after seeing those numbers?”

“Yes.”

Nod-.

I nodded as if there was no problem.

The plan we had made in advance was simple.

Namely, each member would face enemies according to their characteristics.

Adelia was skilled at one-against-many combat thanks to the Meteor Sword’s properties. So her role was to face Atalaxia’s chimera legion alongside the dwarves.

Mangnyeom would face Dorico Shiro.

And Tyrant Dragon had to take on Zahhar. Both for revenge and to overcome his trauma and surpass his past self.

─What?

When I first explained this plan, Tyrant Dragon had asked the following question.

─So what are you going to do?

─I’ll take on the most important role.

─So what the hell is that supposed to be…!

“I’ll carve out a path.”

I declared firmly to everyone, partly to remind them of the plan.

There was no problem with Adelia handling the chimera legion at the front lines.

But the real enemies were hiding in the rear.

Dorico Shiro, Zahhar, and even the massive Bone Dragon.

‘The key is to let Tyrant Dragon and Mangnyeom face their respective opponents in peak condition.’

To do that, we had to break through Ataraxy’s chimera army.

I would single-handedly cut through the monster wave to create a path, leading the two Sword Masters into the heart of enemy territory. So they could conserve their strength as much as possible.

“I’ll face the Bone Dragon at the very back alone.”

“…”

“…”

Silence fell.

It was an incredibly reckless plan. The burden I had to shoulder was no small matter.

But no one doubted me or tried to dissuade me. They knew my capabilities.

Everyone believed in me.

“Right.”

Sring-!

Tyrant Dragon gripped Pokryeomdo tightly and answered with a vigorous voice.

“I’ll just follow behind you, Gaon.”

And…

Sring, sring-!

Mangnyeom also drew both her greatsword and rapier simultaneously, preparing to follow behind me.

“…”

Pause-.

Tyrant Dragon witnessed this and showed a bewildered expression.

It was a look of amazement at seeing Mangnyeom possessing two divine weapons.

Chuckle-.

I let out a small laugh at that sight.

Then I turned my gaze to look at the approaching enemies.

Kieeeeeek──!

The screams were getting closer. Dozens of chimeras kicking off rocks and charging toward the ravine.

Inhale, exhale-.

I slowly repeated deep breaths to calm my mind.

‘Stay calm.’

The grotesque forms of different monsters stitched together, raising dust as they ran, looked exactly like demons pouring out of hell.

Suddenly, the battle with Puppet Master Batu came to mind.

Right. When I faced hundreds of puppets with Soul of the Sword Master.

Back then, cutting the mana threads rendered all the puppets powerless. Simply severing the link was enough.

But now the situation was different.

Cutting the connection between chimeras and the Black Mage would be useless.

They were monsters that moved independently from the start.

In other words, to subjugate them, I had no choice but to cut them down one by one.

〔Consumption: 100 mana per second〕

The skill Soul of the Sword Master consumed 100 mana per second.

With only 1 MP, I was forced to use it for only 0.01 seconds.

Though it was an on-off type skill, I had essentially used it as a single-shot active.

〔MP: 10/10〕

Now with 10 mana, by simple calculation, I could use Soul of the Sword Master for about 0.1 seconds.

‘But…’

Whether 0.01 seconds or 0.1 seconds, both pass by in a flash just the same.

Even though my mana had increased tenfold, it didn’t mean I could use Soul of the Sword Master, which I’d used like a single-shot instant kill, ten times.

It was practically impossible to turn an on-off skill on and off ten times during that fleeting 0.1 seconds.

Ding-!

Of course…

━━━━━━━━━━━━

【True Ritardando: Skill Enhancement】

Time Fragmenter:

You can cast skills by dividing their duration into 3 uses. Each cast has an independent cooldown. (4-hour cooldown per use)

━━━━━━━━━━━━

…I had already solved that problem. I had used Growth Essence on True Ritardando.

The enhancement that created the greatest synergy with my tenfold increased mana was now firmly in my grasp.

‘The theory is perfect.’

Kieeeeeek-!

The screams grew even closer.

Now I could clearly see the hideous forms of the chimeras that had approached within dozens of meters.

‘Now I need to verify it in reality.’

Grip-.

Having finished that thought, I grasped Feather Sword and took a combat stance.

“Everyone!!”

Just then, the Dwarf Village Chief’s voice echoed thunderously through the ravine.

“Hold your shields tight! Prepare for impaaaaaaaaact──.”

At that very moment.

Ding-!

〔You have used the Authority Skill: 【True Ritardando】.〕

Tick, tick, tick, tick-.

The sound of a second hand began echoing from all directions.

The world gradually slowed down, then finally came to a complete stop.

A world where all sounds had transformed into a single long vibration. A silence like the depths of the ocean engulfed everything.

But I had no leisure to admire that mystical world.

〔MP 10/10〕

Tick-.

〔MP 9/10〕

I immediately deployed the 【Soul of the Sword Master】.

In the state where time had stopped, even a fleeting moment felt like eternity.

Though it was an extremely brief time, in the frozen world I could sufficiently control the on and off.

The minimum unit of mana 1.

0.01 seconds.

The next moment, when I came to my senses, my sword had already been swung.

The chimeras visible in my sight still looked perfectly fine. Frozen in mid-air in their charging posture.

The flow of time returned to normal.

At that moment.

Swooooosh-!

Kuguuuuuuuuu-!

Following the invisible sword line, the chimeras in the front row all collapsed at once.

Dark red bodily fluids splattered onto the rocks, and grotesquely twisted chunks of flesh scattered in all directions.

“Wh-what…!”

Bewildered voices burst out from among the dwarves.

Unable to properly grasp what had happened in an instant, they could only stare blankly at the battlefield.

But I couldn’t stop here.

There were still countless chimeras remaining.

With the first attack, I had only cleared part of the front line.

‘Still…’

━━━━━━━━━━━━

【True Ritardando】

(Available)

(2/3)

━━━━━━━━━━━━

It’s fine. I still have 2 more chances.

“Tyrant Dragon, Mangnyeom.”

I turned around and spoke briefly.

“Follow behind me. It’ll be over in an instant, so stay sharp.”

“What? What do you mean…”

Tyrant Dragon wore a puzzled expression, but there was no more time for explanations.

Ding-!

〔Authority Skill: 【True Ritardando】 has been used.〕

The first strike was disappointing.

In the past, I could just pour everything into 0.01 seconds and be done with it, but being conscious of having to cut it off quickly prevented me from perfectly unleashing the skill’s power.

However, thanks to that first attempt, I became accustomed to the sensation of time division.

‘I’ve got the hang of it.’

Now, finally.

I would be able to control the skill even more precisely.

The moment I used the 【Soul of the Sword Master】 once again.

〔MP : 9/10〕

Tick-.

〔MP : 8/10〕

…The tide of monsters was split exactly in half.

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