Chapter 328
With the appearance of the Gigantic Frost Giant, Yu-hyun became even more frantic.
The creature was stronger and larger than any of the previous Frost Giants.
Just dodging its attacks as it swung its arms in front of him was a daunting task.
The skin of the Gigantic Frost Giant was as tough as Georn’s, deflecting all but the most formidable weapons.
He had no more rune stones left to use against the giant. And without them, defeating these Gigantic Frost Giants seemed an impossible task.
“Uwoooaaargh!!”
The Gigantic Frost Giants began their full-scale rampage.
With each swing of their arms, Gardian warriors were scattered like leaves.
‘Where is Lean?’
In the midst of the chaos, he noticed Lean being held in Georn’s left hand by pure chance.
He didn’t know if Lean was dead, but even if he was still alive, he might soon die at Georn’s hands.
To make matters worse, another Gigantic Frost Giant was slowly approaching Ringug, who was sitting dazedly on the ground.
‘No.’
If he lost focus for even a moment against the Frost Giant in front of him, he would die. But he couldn’t just stand by and let others die either.
He needed help. But there was no one to help. Frechen, who had been a cornerstone of their strength, and Gondulbor were dead.
‘Is this… the end?’
After coming this far, was it really the end now?
Yu-hyun was the first to delve into the core of this story. He was the first in the past 32 years to stand before Georn.
Yet he failed.
The most crucial step. It ultimately did not reach the story’s end.
‘Now?’
Gritting his teeth, Yu-hyun thought.
So what if it did? Hadn’t he faced worse situations in his past life countless times?
Even though he suffered through those times, he survived until the very end.
Yes. He was still alive. He was still here.
He could feel the pain, but he could overcome it and move forward.
He saw the Gigantic Frost Giant clenching its fist before him. It moved slower than the others but was still fast enough to be deadly. If he didn’t react, he would die.
Blocking or deflecting wasn’t an option. He had to dodge. But his legs trembled and he couldn’t move properly.
At that moment.
Boom. Boom.
Heavy footsteps echoed from afar.
Another Gigantic Frost Giant? No. The stride was shorter and the pace quicker than a Gigantic Frost Giant.
The footsteps were approaching him. The Gigantic Frost Giant noticed it too.
As it turned its head.
Wham! A massive greatsword pierced the Frost Giant’s neck. The head of the 4-meter-tall giant spun like a top and tumbled to the ground.
Yu-hyun watched the scene, mesmerized.
“Pieldra?”
The one who helped him was none other than the gigantic statue, Pieldra.
A veil over her head, armor-like dress, and the greatsword in her hands.
Why was she here? And could she move in that state?
“Suddenly, why? The Key Sword? You were supposed to guard the magic circle…”
[Mortal.]
Pieldra did not answer Yu-hyun’s question.
[You have won.]
“What…?”
[You have chosen to trust Lean.]
Trust? Now?
Yu-hyun did not hide the rage welling up inside him.
“Don’t be ridiculous! Do you have any idea how many people have died until now?”
If you were going to give the Key Sword, why not do it from the beginning? Because of pride, or expectations for the future, many people who shouldn’t have died were killed.
Frechen, his subordinates, Gondulbor.
You can’t undo their deaths.
But Yu-hyun understood. Pieldra was just making her own choice. She had her circumstances, and she made her choice based on them.
He should be grateful that she came to help now.
But still…
[I am sorry.]
Pieldra sincerely apologized.
If she had made her choice even a day earlier, more than half of those who died might have survived.
Frechen, Gondulbor might have lived.
But it was because of their sacrifices that Pieldra could act. Frechen’s death ignited Lean’s determination, and Gondulbor’s presence allowed them to hold on until now.
[I won’t ask for forgiveness. I will perish after this battle.]
If she could stay and atone until the end, she would. But she had already resolved to die.
She was moving her body, consuming all the power her sisters had left her.
Now that she was out here, there was nowhere left for her to run.
[So, I will clear the path.]
Pieldra gripped her sword and charged towards the other Frost Giants. The Gigantic Frost Giants noticed her and approached her.
Wait. If Pieldra was here, who was holding the Key Sword?
As Yu-hyun tried to confirm, he finally saw a familiar face running across the battlefield.
“Hender?”
The young man who had once called her a witch, mocked those determined to fight, and declared he wanted to live.
He was running with a tearful face, carrying something wrapped in a cloth.
Hender was heading towards the dazed Ringug.
“Ringug! Hey, you idiot!”
“Hender?”
Ringug looked up at Hender with a blank face, wondering if it was a dream.
“What are you doing, you dumbass!”
“Hender? Is it really you?”
“Of course, it’s really me! Ringug! What is this mess?”
Hender glared at Ringug through his tears of fear. In this desperate situation, Ringug, who should be the one wanting to cry, regained his senses because of Hender’s tears.
“You said it yourself! An honorable fight! And that we’d come back victorious! But look at this mess! Look at you! If you vowed to fight honorably, you should fight bravely to the end! Isn’t that what a Gard warrior does?”
Hender didn’t want to see Ringug like this anymore.
Even if Ringug died, he would have understood if he died with a satisfied smile. But waiting for death with a foolish face like this was not the Ringug he knew.
“Snap out of it, you idiot!”
[Mortal! There’s no time for this!]
“I know! Damn it! Why do I have to suffer in a place like this! I just wanted to live!”
The reason Hender was here was simple. While he was sitting alone, killing time in the village, he heard a voice.
Following the voice’s guidance, Hender reached a shrine that no one in Gard knew about.
There, a giant statue awaited him with the Key Sword.
She introduced herself as Pieldra, the youngest of the Five Sisters, and asked him to deliver the Key Sword to Lean.
Hender still couldn’t understand why he accepted such an absurd request.
Even now, he wanted to collapse from exhaustion. But he couldn’t. He knew better than anyone that he couldn’t.
“Ringug! Where is Lean? Where is he?”
He had to deliver this sword to Lean. That’s why he came here.
That’s why Pieldra was sacrificing herself to defeat the Frost Giants and clear the path.
At that moment, the ground shook violently.
“What, what’s happening?”
Before Hender could even panic, a Frost Giant burst through the ice and swung its arm at him.
“Hender! Look out!”
Ringug grabbed Hender and they rolled across the ground together.
When Hender came to his senses, he was horrified by the blood on his hands. But there were no wounds on his body.
The blood was Ringug’s.
“Ringug! Hey! Wake up!”
“Hender…”
“You idiot! Why did you throw yourself? Look at your wound! It’s dangerous!”
“I don’t know… My body just… moved on its own…”
“Shut up! Shut up and don’t talk! You won’t die! You won’t die, so just shut up!”
Hender, crying and sniffling, pressed down on Ringug’s wound. Meanwhile, a Frost Giant lunged at Hender.
“Watch out!”
Bella swung her mace. The Frost Giant blocked it with one arm and sent Bella flying with the other. As the Frost Giant approached Hender and Ringug, Yu-hyun charged at it.
With his remaining strength, Yu-hyun thrust his sword into the Frost Giant’s neck and slashed sideways.
Wham! The Frost Giant’s neck was severed. Yu-hyun tumbled to the ground with the Frost Giant’s body.
‘Strength…’
He had used up all his strength in that moment. He couldn’t even hold his sword, let alone stand up.
But there were still enemies. Besides the Gigantic Frost Giants, there were still some Frost Giants who hadn’t fused and were approaching them.
They knew. They knew how dangerous the Key Sword was.
“Please…”
Lying on the ground, Yu-hyun raised his head. Hender, crying, handed Yu-hyun the sword.
“You’re the only one left. Please, save Ringug, save us…”
Even though he called her a witch, Hender had no personal grudge against Yu-hyun. He just hated the form she took. The sight of her in Kaira’s form reminded him too much of his deceased parents.
But now, he couldn’t worry about such things.
His friend, Ringug, was dying. And he could do nothing.
He didn’t want to lose anyone else.
If the Great Five Sisters sent her here.
If Yu-hyun could end this terrible nightmare.
“Please. I beg you…”
“…”
Thud.
Yu-hyun
silently took the Key Sword from Ringug.
* * *
Holding the Key Sword didn’t instantly flood him with great power.
It simply allowed him to carry it to Lean. The true ownership of the Key Sword belonged solely to Lean.
But Yu-hyun thought it was enough just to hold the sword.
As long as he could deliver it to Lean.
‘Stand up.’
Since the fight began, he felt an overwhelming exhaustion, as if he had been running at full speed without rest.
He had no strength left to draw aura from the sword or to stand up.
But still, Yu-hyun did it with sheer willpower.
‘Willpower.’
At that moment, Yu-hyun recalled a conversation he had with Seo Sumin, though he couldn’t remember when.
Like a screen projecting on the snowy field, he remembered Seo Sumin’s teachings, smiling and imparting her skills.
-If you lose all your strength and are left with just your body, can you use the Seven Demons Black Sky Divine Skill I taught you?
-That would be difficult.
-Why do you think so?
After a moment’s thought, Yu-hyun replied.
-No matter how well I remember the techniques and forms in my mind, my body won’t follow.
-Right. Even if you try to perform the moves, without the supporting internal energy, you can’t execute them properly. The body may mimic the motions, but without the internal energy, it’s useless. But is it really impossible without internal energy?
-What do you mean?
-Didn’t you see it too? How I faced the Divine Spirit with this frail body, with barely any internal energy. How was my strength then?
-It was incredible. It was amazing how you could use such power.
-That’s the power of Will.
Seo Sumin smiled and said to Yu-hyun.
-Willpower transcends even the limitations of the body and lacking internal energy. Human will is that powerful.
-You mean with Will, even when your strength is exhausted, you can draw it out?
-Yes. Even more is possible if you have the will to do something at any cost.
As I said, you could even grasp a star.
‘Yes. Unyielding will to win…’
Seo Sumin had said. To learn her techniques, one must first empty everything.
Yu-hyun understood why she said that.
The story Yu-hyun held onto, [Will Focus], shone brightly.
Yu-hyun’s vision expanded and his perception changed. He noticed the small, faint particles floating in the cold air. There were so many that they outnumbered the swirling snowflakes.
‘I see. And I feel what I need to do.’
Realizing that these particles were the essence of this world, Yu-hyun took his next action.
Even though he had no energy left, a vast force began to flow into his body.
Following his will, the stories that formed the foundation of the world created a massive flow and entered his body.
The stories transformed into pure power without any internal conflict. The power moved according to Yu-hyun’s will.
‘Seven Demons Black Sky Divine Skill.’
The energy flowing through him wasn’t the usual black aura.
Instead, it was pure white, like the surrounding snow.
The pure energy, not altered by the original owner’s temperament, manifested as pure power.
The white energy scattered like flower petals, swirling around Yu-hyun’s body.
The First Form.
Transformative Move Chaotic Whirl .
Behind Yu-hyun, a flower made of letters bloomed.