âW-What does that mean...?â Hyeonu stuttered.
âHe has never been cursed?â
It was a shocking statement. The emperor said he was fine from the beginning. In other words, the appearance he showed the last time was made up.
âWas it to trap me? Why?â
Hyeonu couldnât grasp the emperorâs intentions. Why dig a trap for Hyeonu?
âCome outside.â
The emperor passed by Hyeonu. He didnât even give Hyeonu a proper look. Hyeonu stared at the emperorâs unguarded back for a moment before following after the emperor.
âThere is no point in attacking now.â
Fighting in a confined space was too disadvantageous for Hyeonu. If the space was narrow, then the effect of Mixed Sky Steps couldnât be exerted to the extreme. It was like throwing away one of his biggest advantages in a fight.
âOutside... I have to fight.â
The die was thrown already. It wouldnât work even if he pretended nothing happened.
âThe emperor isnât a fool...â
There were people he could lie to and people he couldnât lie to. It was said that Suped had just come, so it was obvious that those outside wouldâve been caught.
âAdventurers covered in buffs entered the imperial palace... it doesnât make sense to pass over it.â
It didnât matter what the intent was. The result was that adventurers entered the imperial palace with buffs used in battle. This was a big problem. There was no way that Suped, a loyalist of the empire, could ignore it.
âPlease return alive.â
Hyeonu followed the emperor out of the great hall, only to be greeted with an unbelievable sight.
âDo you see?â The emperor stretched out his arms and pointed somewhere.
âHuh?â
Hyeonuâs gaze followed the emperorâs finger. There were people sitting down while bound by rope.
âWere they all caught?â
Hyeonu was clearly flustered when he saw them, but he didnât show it on the surface.
âI donât think anyone is dead.â
Hyeonu quickly checked the faces of those tied up with rope. Fortunately, all the faces that he had seen before setting off for the imperial palace were present.
âThose people over there. Do you know why they are bound?â The emperor placed his hand on Hyeonuâs shoulder and turned Hyeonuâs body toward those tied up by rope.
âI know.â Hyeonu couldnât give the emperor an answer. He swallowed it down instead. He couldnât say that they came with him to take the emperorâs position.
"You don't know? Then Iâll tell you.â
The emperor flicked his finger. Then from a distance, a black figure ran toward the emperor.
âTell me why they came.â
âBased on the result of the investigation, they seem to have set up a conspiracy.â
âThey seem?â The emperor raised his eyebrow like he didnât like the man in blackâs answer.
âThey aimed for Your Majestyâs throne and invaded the imperial palace.â The man in black quickly came up with the correct answer.
âAiming for the throne. This means a rebellion.â The emperor talked to himself and stuck his head out over Hyeonuâs shoulder. âDuke, how do you think I should deal with those who attempted rebellion?â
The emperorâs face was strange. He should be angry, but he didnât look angry. Rather, he was smiling.
âJust be angry.â
Hyeonu felt very uncomfortable due to the emperorâs expression. It felt like he was sitting on a thorny cushion.
âIf it is right that they tried to rebel... they should be driven out of the empire.â
Hyeonu came up with nuanced words to protect the rankers who followed him while not deviating from the principle.
âThey are going to just get kicked out?â
The emperor cocked his head slightly as if Hyeonuâs answer wasnât satisfactory.
âThey are adventurers. Killing them once doesnât make a difference. Rather, it might cause greater damage for them to be removed from their forces.â
Hyeonuâs words were true, but also not true. Being expelled outside the empire was definitely a loss. However, there were plenty of hunting grounds outside the empire and endless ways to interact with players. It was a greater benefit to not die here.
âReally? Well, that could be a good method.â
Hyeonu sighed lightly at the emperorâs words. It was because he extended the lives of the rankers for a short time, albeit it was just short.
âBy the way... there is one more thing to think about. It is good to deal with them, but it is also important to fundamentally figure out why this happened,â the emperor spoke as he slowly moved away from Hyeonu, âWhy did the adventurers over there suddenly want to take power? We need to know the cause. This way, it wonât happen next time.â
The emperor left Hyeonu behind and approached the rankers tied up by the rope.
âDuke, do you perhaps know? Why did they aim for the throne?â
The more the emperorâs words continued, the heavier Hyeonuâs heart became. The ending was the same anyway.
A fight. It was something that was inevitable.
âYou donât seem to know based on the way there is no answer. Then I will let you know.â The emperor didnât care whether Hyeonu answered or not. He continued with what he wanted to say. âSomeone mustâve been a central point. Otherwise, they wouldnât be able to do such a thing. Duke, you must find the central point from now on. Can you do it?â
The emperor held out his hand with his palm pointed at the sky. It was as if he was asking Hyeonu to take his hand.
Then Hyeonu reached out to the emperor. The problem was that his hand was holding the Mixed Sky Sword.
âI gave you a chance to escape... are you giving it up?â
The emperor wasnât surprised at all by Hyeonuâs sudden behavior. He just looked at Hyeonu with a strange smile.
âIt is my people who looked at me and came out to help. To betray them now... I donât think so. I want to keep at least the minimum of morality.â
All those who were tied up by rope were the ones called by Hyeonu. He asked them directly to help him. It was impossible to abandon them just because the situation had become unfavorable.
âIf I am a person, then I shouldnât do that.â
Hyeonu added strength to the hand holding the Mixed Sky Sword.
âYour mindset is good. There must be things like good faith between people.â The moment the emperor finished speaking, a strong gust of wind started to blow around him. âApart from this, there will be a price to pay for the rebellion...â
A seven-colored light burst out of the emperorâs eyes.
âIt is terrifying.â
Hyeonu gulped and his body trembled as he looked at the emperor. However, there was no place to retreat. Now he had to fight unconditionally.
Hyeonu rushed toward the emperor without using any more buffs. Nevertheless, it was at a crazy pace. Only faint remnants could be seen in the air while Hyeonuâs appearance wasnât clearly visible.
In a situation where nothing could be seen properly, the emperor lightly thrust his palm forward. A seven-colored light burst from the emperorâs palm. A strong explosion broke out and Hyeonu, who appeared in the air where there was nothing, was pushed back.
âIt is a foul.â
Hyeonu frowned. It wasnât that the counterattack was strong. It was to the level of not being able to fight back at all. He couldnât endure it. There was too much strength.
âAcknowledged Giant.â
[Acknowledged Giant has been used.]
[All stats have increased.]
Hyeonu used a buff to fill the gap. He opened up the power of the giantsâ divine object.
Hyeonu kicked into the air again and rushed back to the emperor. It was the same thing as before but the results were very different. Now there were no remnants to be seen. He could only feel something faint moving.
âThis is enough to hold the emperorâs position for a while.â
âYes, yes. This is it.â
The emperor saw Hyeonu like this and smiled. He was happy that Hyeonuâs growth was taking place non-stop.
The emperorâs body shone with seven colors. The world started to be dyed with seven colors. Then Hyeonuâs appearance was revealed. It became clear where he was and how he moved.
The emperor extended a finger to point at Hyeonu. The seven-colored pure energy was fired like a bullet. It was really fast. It didnât fly, but seemed to jump through space.
Hyeonu raised the Mixed Sky Sword and bounced off the pure energy fired by the emperor. A sharp cry was heard from the Mixed Sky Sword. It also vibrated strongly in Hyeonuâs grasp.
âOuch...ân/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Hyeonu barely managed to catch the Mixed Sky Sword, which was about to fly away.
âI was pushed even with the giant buff?â
He couldnât believe it. The emperorâs attack that was thrown lightly contained such power.
âThere is no defense.â
Unconditionally attacking was the only answer. He shouldnât let the emperor attack. Hyeonu used Mixed Sky Steps and ran forward to avoid the flying pure energy. In an instant, the distance between Hyeonu and the emperor narrowed. It was a ridiculous speed.
Hyeonu approached the emperor and quickly swung the Mixed Sky Sword. The purple pure energy flew over the emperorâs head. The emperor waved his hands toward the pouring pure energy. Seven-colored pure energy rose along his hand and created a membrane in the air.
Hyeonuâs pure energy couldnât penetrate the emperorâs pure energy. It tapped harder than ever, but that was it. The emperorâs wall was that hard and thick.
Hyeonu wasnât satisfied with the current situation. He made a few attacks, but that was it.
âHis eyes are chasing me.â
He felt the emperorâs gaze continue to follow him. He knew better than anyone that it would be hard for him to launch an effective attack if he couldnât keep the emperorâs eyes off him. Even so, he didnât lose his composure.
âIt is because there was still something left.â
Hyeonu had a few more cards left.
âOne more thing... take it out.â
Just then, Hyeonuâs gaze shifted quickly. It shifted toward the rankers who were tied up by the rope. Then a golden bear and purple bear appeared among them. Hyeonuâs movements changed the moment Tang-E and Gom-E appeared.
He sped up once again. It was like the effect of two skills. It was Tang-Eâs Dancing with a Bear and Magic Spirit Creation. These two skills raised Hyeonuâs stats.
âThere are still some things hidden?â
The emperor looked at Hyeonu with an interested expression. He immediately grasped the change in Hyeonu.
âI think you deserve this much.â
The emperor extended his right arm. Just then, a vortex of seven colors started swirling around the emperorâs arm. The vortex continued all the way to the emperorâs right hand. Finally, the vortex became a brilliant sword.
âThe sword that killed Baler...â
Hyeonuâs eyes shook when he saw the sword in the emperorâs hand. Hyeonu knew the true identity of this sword.
âThe pressure is different.â
There was a huge difference between the emperor with a sword and the emperor without one. Hyeonu knew it because he had seen it himself.
âIâm not in a situation where I can save it any longer.â
Hyeonuâs intuition was frantically signaling danger. Now the exploratory battle was over. The time had come to finally pour out everything. Hyeonu took out the last card he had saved.
âManifestation of the Chaos Dragon.â
[Manifestation of the Chaos Dragon has been used.]
[The effect of all skills has increased.]
Purple magic power immediately spread out from Hyeonuâs body. The magic power that had spread out swirled into the atmosphere. The swirling magic power took on a form. The earth trembled as the giant dragon floating over Hyeonuâs head released a harsh cry toward the emperor.
âThis is my everything!â
Hyeonu thrust the Mixed Sky Sword toward the emperor.