Chapter 157. Growth Verification (4)
As time passed, the Demon King’s sword gradually sped up.
It was as if acceleration upon acceleration had been added; the sword’s shape was no longer visible, leaving only a red afterimage in the air.
Even a moment’s distraction could lead to a fatal situation where one’s head would be severed.
Yet, for some reason, Yuri found this perilous situation exhilarating.
Swish-!
The red trajectory aiming for his life.
Sssk-.
This very moment of evading such a deadly attack.
It felt like a moment that validated the efforts of the past few months.
Crack-.
Yuri’s body, shrouded in lightning, dodged the red trajectory.
‘How many times… have I used Thunder Wing now?’
He estimated it had been at least seven times.
‘And I still have energy left.’
When he first learned Thunder Wing, he could barely use it two or three times before collapsing.
Even when he faced Greta during the leather gathering quest, he could only use it a maximum of five times.
Now, it felt almost unbelievable that he had used Thunder Wing seven times and still felt light.
In his current state, he felt like he could use Thunder Wing another seven or eight times.
‘I wasn’t wrong.’
Repetitive training to harden the body.
The elixirs he acquired with painstakingly gathered points.
The resulting growth of his physical strength and increase in mana had exponentially increased the number of times he could use Thunder Wing.
This proved that everything Yuri had been doing was not in vain.
But that wasn’t all.
Swoosh-.
The greatsword slid through the air like a snake, approaching.
Just as it was about to slash Yuri.
Yuri’s body flickered like a mirage, evading the greatsword’s attack.
The faster the red trajectory became.
Yuri’s movements matched its speed.
The acceleration of the greatsword.
The Cloud Step that Yuri had trained in the Breakthrough Quest Hall, almost as if he had lived there.
These two ultimate skills seemed to be testing each other’s limits, displaying hair-raising maneuvers.
Sss-.
As Yuri dodged the red trajectory, a broad smile spread across his face.
‘My method works.’
To be honest, he had been half-doubtful.
How much would his training have improved him?
He didn’t know exactly what level he had reached.
But after facing the Demon King today, he felt like he was starting to understand.
‘It was only a short while ago when I nearly died after taking about ten attacks from Aunt Hopi.’
But now, here he was.
Although weaker than Greta, he was facing a certified 5th-grade opponent.
He had become strong enough to fight like this.
And that realization…
‘Is exhilarating!’
It made Yuri excited.
Sssk- Clang!
Yuri’s spirited sword dance intertwined with the red trajectory continued.
As she watched Yuri, whose image had become a blur, Theresia’s pupils shook.
‘He’s… gotten faster.’
When the fight first started, she could somewhat keep up with the speed.
However, as time went on, Yuri’s speed increased to the point where it was difficult to follow.
At first, it was a 2-to-1 fight, but at some point, it shifted to a battle between Yuri and the Demon King.
All she could do was occasionally aim for the openings of the Demon King.
The problem was that even this cost an enormous amount of her stamina and mental strength.
Grit-.
Theresia clenched her teeth.
‘Yuri…’
When she first met Yuri in the Forest of Beginnings, he was certainly strong, but not vastly different from her.
They had been at a similar level.
However, as their sparring began in earnest, Yuri’s skills improved day by day.
As time passed, the skill gap between them widened.
Now, the gap was so large that it seemed impossible to catch up.
Huff- Huff-.
Her breathing grew labored.
But Theresia couldn’t rest.
No, she didn’t want to rest.
If she stopped now, she feared she would lose sight of Yuri, who was already running far ahead.
She gritted her teeth and thrust her spear.
The Winchester family’s secret spear technique.
Chwisung (Pursuing the Star).
Theresia’s spear pierced through the gaps of the Demon King’s sword.
The expression of the Demon King, who had been focused solely on Yuri, noticeably stiffened.
But his shock didn’t end there.
What happened next surprised not only the Demon King but Theresia as well.
Srrrk-.
Yuri’s sword, targeting the Demon King’s opening.
Its movement looked similar to Theresia’s spear technique.
‘…Chwisung?’
Theresia’s face froze as Yuri’s attack resembled her own Chwisung.
Her shock caused her movements to stiffen for a moment.
The Demon King seized this opportunity to escape from Theresia’s attack.
However, since the Demon King had been preoccupied with Theresia’s Chwisung, he was too late to evade Yuri’s ‘fake Chwisung.’
Swoosh-.
A sound of tearing fabric followed by splattered blood.
At the same time, the Demon King managed to break free from Yuri and Theresia.
Blood trickled from the long wound on his shoulder, dripping down his hand.
Drip drip-.
The Demon King slightly lowered his head, staring blankly at the red blood on his fingertips.
Various emotions flickered in his eyes.
First, surprise.
Then, intrigue.
Finally, excitement.
“……”
The Demon King swept back his bangs with his blood-stained left hand and lifted his head.
Then, the corners of his previously expressionless mouth twitched.
“Heh… Heheheh.”
Soon, he burst into laughter.
“Hahahahaha!”
The Demon King laughed, his shoulders shaking as if something amused him greatly.
But only for a moment.
As if it had never happened, the smile vanished, replaced by a horribly twisted expression.
“…You little brat!”
Crack-.
The Demon King’s gaze, filled with chilling killing intent, fixated on Yuri.
An electric shiver.
As if the previous killing intent had been a mere preview, the overwhelming intensity now made it hard to breathe, causing Yuri to break into a cold sweat.
‘Is that… really the same person?’
It seemed he had hit a nerve.
Until just a moment ago, the Demon King had been as composed as could be, yet now, he was overflowing with uncontrollable emotions and killing intent.
Yuri let out an awkward laugh.
“It seems… this is the real you?”
Perhaps until now, the Demon King had been in a restrained state.
Of course, that restraint was not for himself but for the 49th batch participating in this quest.
But moments ago, Yuri’s successful strike had removed the Demon King’s restraint.
Whoosh-.
Long red hair rose into the air, moving as if alive.
A red aura, filled with killing intent, shimmered behind him.
And the man with the face of a demon.
It was a scene that made it instantly clear why the author had cast him in the role of the Demon King for this quest.
Without a doubt, there was no one who fit the image of the Demon King in a fairy tale better than him.
Yuri tensed up.
‘Now, it’s the real deal!’
Yuri swallowed hard and shouted.
“Tesha! Focus!”
At his cry, Theresia, who had been frozen in shock at the fake Chwisung, snapped back to her senses and assumed her stance.
And at that very moment.
Bang-!
With a massive explosion, the Demon King charged forward.
‘Finally, he’s coming at me first!’
The Demon King, who would never charge first, no matter how much provoked, was now lunging of his own accord.
And with his eyes rolled back in rage.
Whoosh-.
Aimed solely at Yuri, as if Theresia didn’t exist, the greatsword flew toward him.
Crack- Boom!
Yuri, dodging the sword that tore through the air, broke into a sweat.
‘This… this is a miscalculation.’
Yuri had thought it would be easier to find an opening if the Demon King lost his composure and charged first.
But he was wrong.
Until now, the Demon King’s chain of attacks had been structured and steady.
But now, they had grown rough and unpredictable in an instant, making them even harder to anticipate.
In short, the Demon King’s attacks had become reckless, like the crazed slashing of a madman.
The problem was that this frenzied slashing was growing faster and more erratic.
It had reached the point where even Theresia, who had been able to exploit the Demon King’s openings with her spear, was now unable to find a single gap, her mind going blank.
So, what about Yuri, who was directly exposed to the brunt of these attacks?
‘This… I can’t last long!’
Given the accelerating nature of the Demon King’s attacks, if this continued, it was only a matter of time before a moment would come when he couldn’t evade.
If even one strike got through, broken bones would be the least of his worries.
Therefore…
‘Before he speeds up further… I’ll cut it off.’
Yuri’s eyes gleamed as he activated Cloud Step.
His clear golden eyes read the flow of the Demon King’s chaotic slashes.
The flow created by the Demon King’s mad slashing was just as insane as its master.
The mana swirled like a crazed ripple.
Its flow shifted dozens of times per second, a form of erratic movement Yuri had never seen before, despite his ability to read flows.
‘Can I… deflect this?’
But Yuri quickly shook his head inwardly.
‘Just deflecting it won’t be enough!’
Merely deflecting the attacks would only result in repeating the current situation.
To end this and win, just deflecting wouldn’t suffice.
He needed to land a decisive blow against this mad Demon King.
‘Can I do it?’
The Demon King, previously estimated to be of a certified 5th grade.
But with his crazed state, he was proving to be beyond Yuri’s expectations.
Perhaps he was of a certified 6th grade.
Ordinarily, just surviving this long would be commendable.
But Yuri wasn’t satisfied with that.
‘…I can do it.’
With the growth he had achieved over the past few months.
The counterattack he couldn’t even attempt against Greta should now be possible.
‘I’ve grown, and the opponent is weaker than Greta. Then I can do it!’
If anyone heard Yuri’s thoughts, they would have called him insane.
Yuri had just completed his Double Sword technique, placing him at a certified 2nd grade.
Yet, his opponent was possibly a certified 6th-grade powerhouse.
The difference in their abilities was insurmountable.
But Yuri had a means to bridge that gap.
The Redner family’s secret body technique.
Magic Flow.
The ultimate skill developed to confront overwhelmingly strong opponents resonated through the air.
Wuuung-.
Simultaneously, Yuri’s sword moved forward.
The white blade weaved through the Demon King’s chaotic slashes, disrupting the flow.
Every time Yuri’s sword cut through, it rang out like a conductor’s baton guiding an orchestra.
Woom- Wooong- Woom!
Yuri gathered the chaotic flow of slashes.
“Hah!”
With a short shout, his sword slashed diagonally, lifting the Demon King’s greatsword.
A clash between a 190 cm two-handed greatsword and a mere 110 cm single-edged sword.
To anyone watching, it seemed certain that the single-edged sword would snap instantly, but the outcome defied expectations.
Kuwaaaaang-!
Ziiing-!
Puhwang!
A massive explosion resounded, sending out a wave of force that stirred a gale, sweeping over the onlookers.
Despite the tremendous pressure, they couldn’t take their eyes off what was happening.
“……?!”
The thin single-edged sword, which seemed fragile enough to break at any moment, not only withstood the greatsword’s attack but was gradually pushing it back.
And finally.
“Haaap!”
Creak-.
Yuri succeeded in returning the gathered force back to its original owner.
Bang-!
A second explosion echoed as the Demon King was flung backward.
Crash- Crac-crash-.
Like a cannonball, the Demon King shot back, breaking through a couple of trees before disappearing into the forest.
The onlookers were aghast.
‘Oh my god…’
‘What the hell is that?!’
Yuri sending the Demon King flying was something that defied all expectations.
Thus, they were stunned, their minds numb with disbelief.
This included Yulia.
‘…What just happened?!’
Just as Yuri had, Yulia had been sweating nervously, realizing the Demon King’s true strength far exceeded her expectations.
At the same time, she became certain.
‘There’s no way they can defeat the Demon King.’
Yulia had calculated Yuri and Theresia’s odds of winning at 0%.
Simply holding out this long was already a near-miraculous feat that defied their skill difference.
That was how strong the Demon King had been once he revealed his true self.
Yet, the Demon King, who seemed unbeatable, had been sent flying by Yuri in a single strike.
And the strike that had sent the Demon King flying was evidently packed with extraordinary power.
‘What… was that?’
Yulia’s eyes sparkled excessively as she looked at Yuri.
Yuri clutched his right arm that held the sword.
“Tsk!”
A throbbing pain.
He immediately realized the cause.
‘My bones are cracked.’
Having reversed the flow of the Demon King’s attacks.
Deflecting and dispersing the shock on his body.
Just like when he deflected Mucci’s Ice Wall Splitting, Yuri managed to gather the chaotic force of the slashes and redirect it back at the Demon King.
However, the force was dozens of times stronger than Mucci’s Ice Wall Splitting, and Yuri’s physical strength hadn’t grown enough to fully withstand such power.
‘I wasn’t strong enough.’
Nevertheless, forcing the counterattack strained him, and his bones and muscles ended up injured.
Throb throb-.
Yuri frowned at the intense pain surging through him.
Theresia approached his side.
“Are you okay?”
“Just barely?”
“Let me see.”
Theresia reached for his arm to assess his condition.
But Yuri evaded her hand.
He quickly gripped his sword again.
When Theresia looked up in surprise, she saw Yuri staring tensely at one spot.
Following his gaze, Theresia’s face also darkened.
Their eyes were fixed on a spot.
Next to a broken tree trunk stood the Demon King, his hair disheveled, glaring at them with blood-red eyes.
Grrr-.
The Demon King let out a beast-like growl, as if he had lost his mind.
But what captivated the onlookers even more was the brilliant light radiating from the greatsword, as if it were made of a red gemstone.
Seeing this, Theresia whispered in a small, gasping voice.
“…A Sacred Sword.”
It looked slightly murkier than the one Greta had shown before, but there was no doubt it, too, had reached the realm of a Sacred Sword.
Yuri awkwardly smiled and asked.
“Tesha, if we surrender to that guy, do you think he’ll accept it?”
“You can still say that after seeing those eyes?”
“…He seems to have completely lost it, huh?”
“He’s more than just a little lost.”
Theresia’s cold analysis made Yuri shiver.
‘Can I block the next attack?’
There was no way the crazed Demon King would show any mercy.
To make matters worse, his arm was half-broken.
Even if his arm were intact, could he really deflect the frenzied slashes from the Sacred Sword?
The answer was ‘impossible.’
Just blocking the previous chaotic slashes had been too much, leaving his arm damaged.
Even if his arm were uninjured, the upcoming slashes from the Sacred Sword…
‘…Wait? Not enough strength?’
At that moment, an epiphany struck Yuri like lightning.
He whispered to Theresia.
“Tesha, hold out for 30 seconds… no, just 10 seconds.”
“…What?”
Before Theresia could finish her question, Yuri’s form was engulfed in lightning.
Crack-.
As Yuri, using Thunder Wing, moved.
Roar!
The Demon King let out a fierce roar and charged.
“……?!”
Theresia paled as she realized what Yuri meant by holding out for 10 seconds.
“Yu, Yuri!”
Despite her scream, Theresia did not retreat but stepped forward to block the Demon King.
Meanwhile, Yuri…
Flash!
Appeared at the spot where the fight had first begun.
Without delay, he kicked up the item he had placed there before the battle.
The object floated up into the air.
As it did, the cloth wrapped around it unraveled, revealing a lamp containing a red crystal.
One of the 49th batch shouted at the sight.
“See! I told you it was a Power Crystal!”
As if to prove he hadn’t seen wrong, the voice was filled with indignation, and the large Power Crystal captured the attention of everyone present.
In that moment.
Swish- Swoosh-.
Clang!
Yuri’s sword flashed white as it sliced the lamp.
Amid the scattering fragments of the lamp, only the Power Crystal remained, spinning in midair.
And then.
Leap-.
Yuri lightly leaped into the air…
“Chomp!”
Catching the Power Crystal in his mouth.