Chapter 263
Gerard, now a strapping young man standing at an imposing 2.3 meters tall, sought out his parents first.
It wasn’t out of longing for them. Having already adapted perfectly to the atmosphere of Gym Unbreakable, Gerard was set on walking the path of a cool-headed man. He simply thought it was his duty as a son to at least show his face.
However, returning to his family after ten years left him disappointed.
It wasn’t that the family had fallen into ruin or corruption. Then, as now, they remained an ordinary noble house, governing their territory well.
What disappointed Gerard was his parents.
Despite having sold off their own child, his parents were living well. The tales of grieving parents wasting away in sorrow after losing their son, such stories turned out to be just that, mere stories. Both of them were as lively as ever. His father, in particular, was so full of vigor that he had even taken on a concubine.
Surprisingly... he didn’t feel much anger.
Only his master’s words echoed in his mind, the world was always like this.
With indifference, Gerard visited his family. The moment they saw him, an Aura User returned from the dead, his family welcomed him with open arms. Even the vassals rejoiced, thinking that at last, the Proteis family would rise to prominence.
But Gerard could no longer feel any attachment to them. Seeing them again made it certain, his real family was Gym Unbreakable.
After staying for three days, Gerard left without hesitation. He then set out into the world.
Like the previous successors of Gym Unbreakable, Gerard quickly earned the title of Fist King. His overwhelming physique, combined with the domineering aura that radiated from it, secured his place among the continent’s greatest warriors in no time.
He explored dungeons to hone his skills, took on noble commissions to amass wealth, and lived fully as a martial artist. His height, which had been 2.3 meters, continued to grow until it reached 2.5 meters.
Thus, twenty years passed.
By the time he was in his early forties, Gerard was protecting a noble family in the Duchy of Lastil, having accepted a request from them.
That was when he met him.
A fledgling Aura User, Banatel, who, despite possessing nothing but laughably crude swordsmanship, had still managed to awaken his aura.
* * *
Continental Year 963. The County of Rikaid, a provincial territory in the Duchy of Lastil.
On a field at the outskirts of the territory, two opposing forces stood in a tense standoff. One side consisted of mercenaries hired by the Tezen Trading Company from the Duchy of Chatan, while the other was made up of soldiers from the House of Count Rikaid.
At the forefront, two Aura Users locked eyes, exchanging sharp gazes.
“It is an honor to meet the renowned Fist King. I am Banatel of Basutalon.”
With his sword held upright before his chest, Banatel introduced himself in a tense voice. The giant standing before him was already a living legend by the time Banatel was still wandering the world as a mere mercenary. How could he not be nervous?
Gerard gave a brief nod toward the serious-faced man before him.
“I am Gerard of Gym Unbreakable.”
Though he responded politely, in truth, he was looking down on Banatel. Having built his reputation over nearly two decades, Gerard saw Banatel as nothing more than a fledgling. They might be of similar age, but the difference in their experience as Aura Users was like heaven and earth.
Banatel lunged forward.
“I’m coming!”
“Suit yourself.”
Snorting, Gerard puffed out his chest and charged forward to meet him head-on.
The battle began. Banatel’s crimson Blade Aura relentlessly struck at Gerard. Meanwhile, Gerard calmly wrapped his forearms in Aura, deflecting the attacks as he threw out powerful punches and kicks in response.
The two exchanged blows multiple times. As they clashed, Gerard became increasingly certain.
“His fundamentals are solid, but he hasn’t been an Aura User for long. His aura control is sloppy.”
After a few more exchanges, Gerard was sure, Banatel wasn’t his match. Just as he was about to finish things.
Banatel suddenly let out a wild scream.
“Uwaaaaaaah!”
Gerard’s brows furrowed. An unnervingly intense aura erupted from behind Banatel.
“Hah!”
Banatel’s body blurred like mist before surging forward in a blinding flash. The sheer speed and pressure sent chills down Gerard’s spine. Instinctively, he raised his defenses to the utmost limit.
“Spiral Guard!”
Flash!
A crimson line appeared across Gerard’s thick chest. A moment later, it split open, and blood began to flow.
Banatel’s slash had sliced through the Spiral Guard’s fierce rotational force, pierced through Gerard’s Aura Defense, and even wounded his steel-like muscles!
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Blood dripped from Gerard’s chest. A hollow chuckle escaped his lips.
“…Ha…?”
The wound itself wasn’t that deep. It had merely torn the skin and slightly split part of the muscle. It wasn’t a fatal injury, nor could it even be considered a serious wound, just a shallow cut.
However, Gerard simply stared at his chest, unable to even think about stopping the bleeding.
“This is…….”
When he had first set out into the world, he had suffered injuries here and there. No matter how indomitable his body was, there had always been Aura Users more experienced than him, and at the time, he had yet to become a fully accomplished warrior.
But ever since he passed the age of forty, ever since he had achieved Calamity Horn at the sixth level, Gerard had never once seen his own blood. No one had been able to harm his tempered body.
Not even Sword Star Wikia, who, along with his master Lastal, was revered as the strongest on the continent. Sword Star’s swordplay had been dazzlingly brilliant, almost blinding in its spectacle, but from Gerard’s perspective, it might as well have been a mere switch for disciplining children. As long as he deployed Spiral Guard, he could withstand every attack.
Of course, that didn’t mean Gerard had defeated Sword Star Wikia. The man’s dazzling movements had been so fast and refined that Gerard hadn’t even managed to graze the hem of his clothing. Their paths were simply too different. They hadn’t been able to land a single real hit on each other. If one had to put a label on it, perhaps it was a draw? Well, the rest of the world certainly didn’t see it that way.
One side had danced around effortlessly, raining down a flurry of attacks, while the other had done nothing but take the hits and chase after him. To any onlooker, it was clear as day, Gerard had lost. Even if he had taken the beating and shouted, "That didn’t hurt at all! That means you lost!", it would have just made him look desperate. So Gerard had never bothered arguing against that perception.
Regardless, his body and Aura were now so perfected that not even Sword Star Wikia had been able to harm him.
And yet, now, that very body had been cut?
In terms of sheer force, wasn’t this attack even greater than Sword Star’s?
And it wasn’t some foolish, brute-force attack that left one’s stance completely broken. It was a simple, yet fundamentally solid strike. There hadn’t even been a moment for him to use Death Counter.
“Huff, huff…….”
Banatel’s shoulders heaved as he struggled to catch his breath, having poured everything into that single strike. Flames flickered in Gerard’s eyes.
“This bastard!”
Enraged beyond measure, Gerard hurled himself forward with all his might. It wasn’t just the sight of his own blood that had angered him.
The indomitable body that would never fall had been slashed! This was the fury of Gym Unbreakable, whose pride had been cracked!
“I'm gonna crush you!”
For now, Gerard’s full-powered skill was at a level that Banatel, who had only awakened as an Aura User five years ago, could not possibly handle.
He was beaten just enough to not die.
There is a common misconception people have, Gym Unbreakable’s warriors do not actually enjoy killing. Unless absolutely necessary, they do not seek to take lives. It’s just that, even when they hold back, most opponents still end up dead.
Though he was furious, Gerard didn’t go as far as to take Banatel’s life. After all, both of them had been acting on a commission. There was no particular resentment between them. So, he simply used him to vent his anger, thoroughly beating him.
With a solid foundation, Banatel managed to endure all of Gerard’s attacks and barely escaped with his life.
* * *
“At that time, you lost to me. Trying to pretend it never happened?”
At Gerard’s sneering words, Banatel’s face turned bright red. He jabbed a finger as he retorted.
“Th-that was before I was even called Sword Star! You just happened to meet a good master and became an Aura User at a young age!”
From the tip of his pointing finger, streams of aura shot out, stabbing at Gerard’s entire body. It wasn’t an intentional attack, he was simply so agitated that his internal aura was leaking out uncontrollably.
Gerard, his entire body wrapped in aura, scoffed.
“Hmph!”
The scarlet aura from Banatel’s pointing finger bounced off Gerard’s muscles, scattering in all directions, soaring and vibrating the air. Banatel’s aura reserves were so vast that even his unconscious leaks carried enough power to shatter great trees and boulders. But for Gerard, this was no different from an actual finger jab, it wasn’t nearly enough to faze him.
“So, do you think you would’ve become an Aura User sooner if you had met a good master?”
At Gerard’s question, Banatel scowled and shut his mouth.
“Grrr…”
To be frank, no matter who he had met, Banatel’s level wouldn’t have changed much. For better or worse, he was simply the type who didn’t need a master.
Banatel flared up and spoke again.
“But after that, it was always a draw!”
Gerard replied in the same teasing tone.
“That doesn’t change the past.”
The moment Banatel wounded Gerard, the Fist King, his name shook the continent in an instant. Gym Unbreakable was a nightmare to other warriors, no matter how much you struck, slashed, or stabbed him, he wouldn’t so much as blink. Losing to Fist King Gerard was different from losing to any other strong opponent. With him, you couldn’t even leave a scratch, you’d just be beaten into submission, a humiliation beyond comparison.
Yet Banatel had accomplished what no one else had ever done!
Some people described it like this:
This may be a small strike against one man, but for the Aura Users of the continent, it is the beginning of something great!
It was a testament to just how infamous Gym Unbreakable was.
However, that was how the world saw it. To Banatel himself, it was anything but an honor.
After being thoroughly beaten to the bone by Gerard, Banatel grit his teeth and threw himself into even more rigorous training. No matter how renowned his opponent was, he was still an Aura User himself. After suffering such a one-sided defeat, he couldn’t even sleep.
He trained and trained again. And three years later, he encountered Gerard once more. He hadn’t gone looking for him, it was just another chance crossing of paths, just like their first meeting.
But the Banatel who faced Gerard this time was no longer the same man. By now, he had gained far more experience as an Aura User, and his aura reserves had grown significantly. Gerard and Banatel clashed like madmen, exchanging relentless attacks for over half a day.
There was no victor.
In the midst of battle, an incident occurred involving the faction they were supporting, forcing both of them to withdraw. With exhausted faces, the two men ground their teeth at each other.
“Next time, I won’t let you live, Gerard!”
“Consider yourself lucky, Banatel! If I had ten more minutes, you’d be dead at my hands!”
It wasn’t an empty threat. Banatel had trained relentlessly, but it wasn’t as if Gerard had been idle either. Even now, Gerard was still the superior fighter.
Even so, compared to before, the gap between them had narrowed significantly. That alone should have been satisfying, but instead, Banatel grit his teeth even harder. From that day on, he abandoned even food and drink, throwing himself into training with unmatched fervor.
In the meantime, Wikia grew old and passed away, leaving the position of Sword Star vacant. The people naturally revered Banatel as the new Sword Star, considering him equal in skill to Fist King Gerard. After all, no one else had accomplished what he had.
By the time the two had passed the age of fifty, they met once again amidst the power struggles within the Teikan Kingdom. By now, Banatel was no longer beneath Gerard. Gerard’s master, Fist Emperor Lastil, who had lived for over a hundred years, had finally succumbed to old age and returned to nature. With that, the two men were recognized as the greatest warriors on the continent, Sword Star and Fist King.
They fought for an entire day and night, and in the end, the battle ended in a draw. Both were left covered in blood and had to be carried away by their comrades.
Gerard grit his teeth.
“That lunatic! He throws himself at me like he’s willing to die!”
Banatel also grit his teeth.
“Next time! Next time, for sure!”
If fate brought people together, then it seemed that ill-fate was also something granted by the heavens. From that point on, Gerard and Banatel continued to cross paths time and time again. And each time, they failed to determine a winner.