The emperor heard the roar of the dragon right in front of him and there wasnât the usual boredom on his face. No, his exact facial expression couldnât be read. It was because the light emanating from the emperorâs eyes covered more than half his face.
âI would believe it even if it is a real dragon.â
The emperor marveled in a tone that was higher than usual. The sight that Hyeonu created was amazing.
âThere is nothing? This doesnât work either?â
Hyeonu bit his lip as he saw the emperorâs strange face. He thought it was just a possibility. He didnât expect it to work properly. However, he thought there would be a bit of impact because it was upgraded under Callioraksâ blessing.
âThen this is right.â
Hyeonu let go of all expectations. Debuffs were meaningless. It just purely had to be combat.
âLetâs just believe in Manifestation of the Chaos Dragon.â
The dragon floating behind Hyeonu quickly moved through the air. The dragon flew in and was absorbed by Hyeonu, who then started to move in earnest. It was incomparably faster than when he received any buffs. He went in and out of the space dominated by the emperorâs magic power like it was his own house.
The Mixed Sky Sword crossed through the air in an instant. The Mixed Sky Sword flew so fast that it couldnât be seen properly but the emperor held out his sword toward it. Just before the Mixed Sky Sword and the emperorâs sword collided, a seven-colored membrane appeared at the end of the emperorâs sword and blocked in front of the emperor.
Hyeonu felt that the attack was blocked, so he grabbed the Mixed Sky Sword with both hands and swung it like an axe. His intention was to break the membrane made by the emperor.
Just then, the emperor moved. He stepped forward and raised his sword. It was a blow that didnât look fast or strong. It was like watching an elegant dance. However, the result was shocking. The Mixed Sky Sword rose back to its original position as quickly as it had fallen.
The emperor naturally rotated in place and swung his sword horizontally. The emperorâs sword struck Hyeonuâs empty side. A sharp metallic sound burst out. The emperorâs sword shouldâve cut Hyeonuâs side, but it was blocked by something.
âA spear?â The emperorâs eyes widened when he saw the spear in Hyeonuâs hand.
Hyeonu didnât respond to the emperorâs words as he caught the Mixed Sky Sword, which was spinning in the air and falling. Suddenly, the spear disappeared again.
âYou use an interesting thing.â The emperor realized that the spear that appeared in Hyeonuâs hand wasnât made by magic power. It was a weapon that actually existed.
âI have to keep the spear in mind.â
The emperor remembered the word âspearâ in his mind and lightly kicked off from the ground. The emperorâs body approached Hyeonu like he was being pushed gently. Yet unlike the smooth-looking movement, the speed of the charge was very fast. It felt like a ghost was approaching.
Hyeonu extended his left hand, which wasnât holding the Mixed Sky Sword, toward the emperor. Then he used Mixed Sky Steps and rushed at the emperor. The emperor felt the magic power scattered around Hyeonuâs hand. This was a magic power operation that the emperor knew well.
âLand of Mirrors.â
It was a secret technique only passed onto the commander of the Knights of Keon. The emperor also knew of its existence. He had to know about it. It was because his teacher was John Blake, the former commander of the Knights of Keon.
âI donât recommend using such a technique in a fight with a powerhouse.â
The gliding emperor lifted his sword. Seven-colored magic power rose on all sides. Right behind the spots where the seven-colored magic power sprang up, purple magic power had gathered together to create huge walls. Then continuous explosions occurred between the seven-colored magic power and the purple walls. It continued to explode non-stop.
âHe is using Land of Mirrors backwards?ân/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Hyeonu was horrified by the sight of the emperor. Land of Mirrors was a skill to create mirrors with magic power, raising walls with it, and attacking the opponent trapped inside. Meanwhile, the emperor used it backwards.
âThat isnât the point.â
Hyeonuâs eyes widened as he saw the emperor approaching right in front of him. It had been a while since Land of Mirrors had returned to nothingness. The important thing right now was the emperor at hand. The emperorâs sword moved in a smooth trajectory. It wasnât flashy. It was a beauty that came from neatness.
Hyeonu carefully blocked the emperorâs sword, which was like a rose.
âWhere is it going next? Above? Below?â
Hyeonuâs eyes contained only the emperor. It felt like he would be cut by the emperorâs sword if he lost concentration for even a moment. Hyeonu instinctively swung his sword toward the emperorâs flying sword.
An explosion and powerful shockwaves filled the imperial palace. This conflict didnât end with just one time. It happened again and again. No one was pushed back. No great skills were used in the battle between the two people. There was only melee combat.
The emperor slashed with his sword. Hyeonu raised the Mixed Sky Sword with both hands to block the emperorâs sword. Hyeonu endured the heaviness that wanted to bury him in the ground and shook off the emperorâs sword.
âA counterattack...â
Then he swung the Mixed Sky Sword toward the emperor. The Mixed Sky Sword was instantly covered in magic power. At the same time, the figure of the Mixed Sky Sword disappeared for a moment. It was the secret move that Hyeonu had hidden. It was Cutting the Moonlight.
The problem was that the moment Hyeonu used Cutting the Moonlight, the emperorâs sword also disappeared. The vanished weapons belonging to Hyeonu and the emperor came into contact. Then the ground of the imperial palace split around Hyeonu and the emperor.
Blood flowed from between Hyeonuâs closed lips.
âI canât do strength vs strength at all.â
He belatedly realized it. However, this was unavoidable. Hyeonu hadnât expected that Cutting the Moonlight could be blocked with another Cutting the Moonlight.
âIâm glad I have the buffs.â
Fortunately, his health that was shaved off was quickly restored thanks to Tang-Eâs buff. It was just that Hyeonuâs decreased fighting spirit didnât rise again. He was feeling the limit bit by bit. The battle with the emperor was like a swamp. No matter what attack he used, it was blocked. On the other hand, the emperorâs attacks ate away at Hyeonu.
âHow the hell is he programmed?â
It was hard to understand. What made them create this monster?
âUwahh!â Hyeonu shouted and rushed back at the emperor.
âDonât lose your dignity. Maintain your dignity until the moment of death.â
The emperor shook his head at Hyeonu. The emperor should always be dignified. That was the basics.
âIf you die, then you die. Does dignity matter?â
Hyeonu laughed at the emperorâs words. It was to keep his dignity as long as possible. Everything was unnecessary after death.
âIf this was shown on the live stream...â
It was a terrible thing. He was stressed as he thought about how much he would be teased by the viewers.
âNo matter what I say, it wonât work.â
Additionally, every time Hyeonu said anything, the viewers would mention the battle with the emperor.
âSo... I have to win.â
Hyeonu gritted his teeth tightly and swung the Mixed Sky Sword. The emperor still managed to fend off Hyeonuâs attack with a neat motion.
âThe important thing isnât what is seen, but what isnât seen.â The emperor stopped Hyeonuâs wave of attacks and continued speaking.
âWhat?â
Hyeonu felt a sense of strangeness as he wielded the Mixed Sky Sword. An alarm bell rang in his head. At the same time, a foreign sensation rose in his body.
âWhat does this feel like?â
It felt like something was crawling on his body. It was subtle but very unpleasant. He was very nervous. His concentration that had been fully devoted to the battle with the emperor was gradually dispersed. His scattered concentration immediately affected the battle. An attack that wouldâve previously been casually blocked passed right by his face.
âAnnoying. It is too annoying.â
Hyeonu was cornered. His reaction to the emperorâs attacks became slower and slower.
âI canât lose here like this!â
A storm-like fighting energy flowed out of Hyeonuâs body. At the same time, the strange sensation in Hyeonuâs body disappeared. Hyeonu confirmed that his body had relaxed and pushed toward the emperor like a bulldozer. He didnât know when that thing would happen again. He had to end the battle before that. Otherwise... he wouldnât even be able to fight properly.
The moment that Hyeonu rushed at the emperor, an explosion occurred in Hyeonuâs body. Hyeonuâs body helplessly soared into the air. Then it literally fell to the ground.
Just then, the rankers who were tied by the rope opened their mouths and started to talk.
âHe canât get up?â
âDid he fall down?â
âIt ended in such a vain manner.â
They literally just stood up. The ropes around their body fell to the ground. In the first place, they werenât tied up. They just wrapped the rope around their bodies.
âHe is definitely very strong.â
âEven a guild will lose when facing him, right?â
âThere are health recovery items... of course they will lose.â
âI just think his health and magic power are infinite.â
They were horrified to see the battle between Hyeonu and the emperor. They had been constantly watching Hyeonuâs fight, but this was the first time they had ever seen a battle like this. Hyeonu poured everything out. Hyeonuâs strength could be seen better because they were rankers, so it came to them as an insurmountable wall.
âThen what should we do?â Gang Junggu carefully spoke to Suped.
âLeave the imperial palace and act as usual.â Suped waved his hand and pointed outside the imperial palace. The players sneaked out of the imperial palace with Supedâs permission.
There was something the players couldnât see because they were blinded by the thought of surviving. It was that Hyeonu didnât disappear.
âDuke Suped, you should also go back to work. Donât you have a lot of things to do?â
The emperor waved his hand at Suped. Suped bowed to the emperor and left.
The emperor, who was left alone, grabbed Hyeonuâs leg and started moving. Hyeonu was dragged away and disappeared into the great hall.
***
Hyeonu was covered in sweat as he came out of the cube. Hyeonu ran to the kitchen, opened the fridge, took out a bottle of water and drank it. Hyeonu emptied the large bottle at once and shook his head like he finally came to his senses.
âHey, are you crazy? Whatâs wrong with you?â Yeongchan saw all of Hyeonuâs actions and looked at him like he was pathetic. He couldnât help speaking when he saw Hyeonu running around the room and drinking 2 liters of bottled water at once.
âHey, what would I be doing?â
Hyeonu walked weakly and collapsed on the sofa.
âWhat did you do? Speak properly. That way I can understand it,â Yeongchan said with a distorted expression.
âI lost.â
âYou lost? Who did you lose to? Donât tell me... did you lose to the emperor?â Yeongchan asked with wide eyes. That shouldnât have happened.
âI lost to the emperor. I donât even know how I died at the end. It was dark in front of me, so I logged out right away.â
Hyeonu recalled his last moments. He used Fighting Energy Emission and rushed at the emperor, but his body suddenly became weak. At the same time, his health plummeted to the bottom. Therefore, he just logged out. He didnât want to see the message that he died.
âYou logged out? Didnât you die?â Yeongchan cocked his head slightly to one side. There was something strange about Hyeonuâs words. âYou canât log out when you die, you idiot. You have to look at the message window before leaving.â
Hyeonu heard Yeongchanâs words and rushed back into his room.