Black Dragon squad Leader Kun.
He was watching everything from a hilltop where the prisoner-of-war camp was visible. When five soldiers of unknown strong power faced a deadly crisis, Kun noticed Hyun-soo coming towards them in a brown coat.
A decisive factor in bringing peace between two nations.
When he controlled the entire 70 members of the Black Dragon squad with telekinesis, he was impressed in a small way. However, Kun mocked him.
‘He is floundering.’
Endlessly foolish.
Being a blacksmith, does he not know the basic elements of combat?
The grape that he put in his mouth. It must have been a precious grape grown from the Minor World Tree.
‘It should have been applied to an offensive skill.’
At that thought, a pitiful arrow was created around him.
Watching his subordinates, he flicked his coat and suddenly aimed at the sky, placing an arrow on the bowstring.
“The end.”
That arrogant and absurd voice.
As he shot the arrow and turned to walk towards his subordinates, that’s when Kun saw it.
A single arrow turned into about seventy arrows hitting the Black Dragon squad members.
However, the damage from these arrows was pitifully low.
But soon, as if a 1,000 kg weight was attached to their ankles.
Like a bomb, they crashed to the ground.
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwang-
Around Hyun-soo, who was walking towards his subordinates, about 70 members of the Black Dragon squad rained down from every direction.
Each time they struck, the ground heavily cratered, and dust clouds rose thickly.
The dust momentarily obscured Kun’s vision, and when it finally cleared, Kun was horrified.
All 70 members of the Black Dragon squad were writhing on the ground.
“Arghhh…!”
“Gahhh…!”
“Ughhh…!”
Fortunately, there were no fatalities.
But he knew their HP had dropped by nearly 40% from this single attack.
Even if they didn’t die, receiving such a strong impact in one go usually results in unconsciousness.
Several were foaming at the mouth and had passed out.
“……!”
Kun was shocked.
‘Did he find the most efficient way to attack in that short time?’
He is no ordinary person.
However, Kun soon saw the Black Dragon squad members raising themselves with a high degree of mental strength.
Even so, Hyun-soo is doomed to die here.
Except for him, essentially, most of the forces were incapacitated.
“1 vs 70?”
Soon Kun chuckled.
“No, soon it will be 1 vs 110.”
Black Dragon squad Leader Kun was a proactive man.
He plans for contingencies in advance.
70 members of the Black Dragon squad.
He thinks this number is sufficient.
However, just in case, he really prepared for a contingency.
Among the foreigners in this land, there is a group that will do anything for money.
The Murderer Guild.
Among them, the Red Bandana Guild consisted of high-level, ill-mannered guild members, with about 90% being archers. They were typically deployed in massacres because they could kill the most people in the shortest amount of time by quickly drawing their bows. Kun had hired them with money, and soon they would arrive here. Of course, Kun anticipated that Hyun-soo and his soldiers would all be dead before their arrival. The Black Dragon squad members were his valuable subordinates after all.
Kun descended the hill and quickly moved towards the camp.
***
Khan and the members of the Gale Squad couldn’t believe the scene before their eyes. Seventy assassins were embedded in the ground. Their Lord had given each one of them a potion to drink, which restored only about 15% of their health. It was barely enough to breathe life into those dying. Assassins with one or another broken part in their bodies were rising from the ground.
Grunt
Crack
They set their own dislocated bones. Then, all seventy surged at once. They stormed from all directions, targeting only Hyun-soo.
Pip, pipipipit-!
Wounds quickly multiplied on Hyun-soo’s body. Khan and his members intervened to lessen the damage as much as they could. And Khan knew. If he remembered his lord correctly, he wouldn’t last long. In that moment, eight assassins charged at Hyun-soo from all directions.
“Lord…!”
Khan’s head spun, knowing his lord would be instantly killed if attacked from those eight directions.
‘What…!?’
A chill ran down his spine. Khan finally realized. It had been almost a month since he last saw his lord’s strength, except when fighting giants in the realm of Arham. But that month was merely a brief moment in time.
Suddenly.
“Ghost Step.”
In a fleeting moment, Hyun-soo moved among the assassins gathered around him like a ghost. With every move, his afterimages were etched into the air.
Craaaack
Thump!
Sssshhh
Crack!
Whooshuck
Bang
Crack
Bang-!
Exactly eight assassins.
In 1.4 seconds, eight assassins were slashed, broken, and slaughtered.
Moreover.
Keiiiiing-
The sword he wielded moaned as blood spurted from the bodies of other assassins emerging elsewhere.
Whooshooshooshooshuck-
Blood gushed out.
Flurrruck-
With his coat fluttering, Hyun-soo moved freely across the battlefield. At times he seemed like a Sword King, at other times like the Spear Heaven.
Pwhaaaaack-
As he slashed down another assassin, his eyes bore an arrogant gleam.
At this moment, Khan and the members of the Gale Squad realized.
‘…Have we not seen him grow endlessly even in moments unseen?’
At that moment.
“Ultimate Kill.”
In an instant.
Leaving a trail of dark energy, Kun forcefully plunged a dagger into Hyun-soo’s solar plexus.
[Ultimate Kill]
[Automatically reduces HP by 80%.]
[Afflicted with bleeding status.]
“Kugh!”
Hyun-soo staggered.
He saw Kun, the man who had thrust the dagger into his solar plexus and then swiftly withdrew it.
[Black Dragon squad Leader Kun Lv.351]
“It’s all because of you. You and your subordinates will be the last ones I kill.”
Kun vanished in an instant.
He reappeared just 12 meters away and began a massacre among the soldiers of the camp.
In the blink of an eye, he slaughtered all the soldiers and moved on to slay the soldiers of Cradle of Hell as well.
[All camp soldiers have fallen.]
[A significant number of Cradle of Hell soldiers have perished.]
Hyun-soo felt dizzy as if his vision was blurring.
‘Reduce HP by 80% in one go?’
His condition made it difficult to keep his eyes open due to the abnormal status effects.
Hyun-soo, with a body intermittently trembling, hurriedly placed a grape from the Minor World Tree into his mouth.
[HP and MP are instantly recovered by about 60%.]
Although his HP replenished, Hyun-soo realized:
‘There is no chance of winning.’
He had managed to kill only about 10 of the 70 assassins.
Hyun-soo recalled the notifications he heard each time he killed one of the assassins.
[Negotiation skill increases.]
[Negotiation skill increases.]
[Negotiation skill…]
The death of the assassins was linked to a doubling of negotiation skills.
But more importantly.
‘I will lose all the members of the Gale Squad.’
Hyun-soo took in the sight of his men struggling against the overwhelming Black Dragon squad.
Even if they might be considered NPCs, they were precious people who were absolutely necessary for the Bright Future.
Then, Khan, nearly dead, approached him.
“Tear up the return scroll quickly.”
“…I can resurrect even if I die.”
Hyun-soo looked at Khan with incomprehensible eyes.
Khan knew he could be resurrected.
But why was he so insistent on his safety?
Moreover, Hyun-soo had heard a notification upon arriving here.
[Vassal Khan has surpassed his limits.]
[Vassal Berum has surpassed his limits.]
[Vassal Pelo has surpassed his limits.]
They had repeatedly overcome their physical and mental limits.
It would not be strange if they died.
Also, from the achievements in Cradle of Hell, Hyun-soo knew they had done their best.
Khan choked up.
“Lord, we are willing to die to protect you. The saddest thing now is that we could not protect you.”
Hyun-soo’s lips parted.
And though Hyun-soo did not understand, he was touched by the loyalty of Khan and the Gale Squad members.
The day the Gale Squad members arrived at Hyun’s forge, Nel had said:
“We’ve secured a room at the inn. For now, you will stay there.”
Her words, spoken as she conducted the minister’s duties, were cold.
But the Gale Squad members were satisfied.
Raised by the state and discarded by nobles, they had never known warmth growing up.
To them, even this was more than they could ask for.
Then Hyun-soo, who was a blacksmith, said:
“I will give you money, please find a big house for them to live in.”
“Hyun-soo, you haven’t even paid off your own hospital bills yet, how can you afford this…”
“Please do it, I now have confidence. At least the confidence to protect my own people.”
Hyun-soo, who had once said those words, smiled at them now.
“I am frustrated. It’s despairing that we want to protect but can’t protect ourselves right now. Our wretched bodies!”
Hyun-soo knew.
They were born with bodies that were maladapted to magic.
And even in moments of imminent death and inevitable defeat, they burned with willpower.
Suddenly, something flashed through Hyun-soo’s mind.
“Thank you, Khan.”
[All soldiers of Cradle of Hell have fallen.]
Only five allies remained.
Apart from the Gale Squad members, everyone else had perished.
Hyun-soo saw Kun and the assassins coming towards them again.
Khan couldn’t understand.
“Thank you?”
Hyun-soo smiled slightly and patted his shoulder.
“You have inspired me.”
Minerals surged up beside Hyun-soo.
Khan and the Gale Squad members staggered but positioned themselves in front of him.
Kun stood at the center of about sixty assassins.
He flicked his finger.
Khan saw sixty assassins advancing simultaneously.
Above Hyun-soo, a massive blade was formed.
The red-hot blade.
The massive blade merged with a handle.
Hyun-soo passed them and faced the enemies, saying,
“There was a great general in a small country.”
Khan and the Gale Squad members took in the weapon he had created.
Suddenly, a mysterious great sword descended to him.
“The enemy nation was far stronger, and the king felt the defeat in the war.”
Hyun-soo grasped the vertically descending sword with both hands.
Creeeak-
He boldly displayed the blade side to the enemies.
“The king of the small country knew.”
Characters filled the blade.
[To die is to live (必生則死)]
[To live is to die (必死則生)]
“We were defeated, but the small country, the great general said.”
Hyun-soo pulled the sword back with all his might.
At that moment.
Thump
Thump
Thump
All five members of the Gale Squad felt an unknown power surging within them.
A power warm like a mother, yet sometimes fiercely pulsating. And that great general Hyun-soo admired.
“There are still…”
Hyun-soo swung the sword he had pulled back with all his force forward.
Sssshhhh-
“Five vassals remaining.”
[Activation of To die is to live.]
[Applied to the vassals.]
[Magical power surges within the body.]
[HP is restored to 50%.]
[Surpassing limits.]
[Surpassing limits.]
[Surpassing…]
[Gale Squad members are comparable to knights, though they cannot wield magic.]
[Magic infuses within them, NPCs of Named level.]
[Level is being assessed.]
[Cannot be measured.]
[Cannot be measured.]
[System completes the assessment.]
Ding!
[Khan Lv.341]
[Berum Lv.336]
[Pelo Lv.339]
[Ganya Lv.330]
[Pon Lv.338]
A whirl of blue magic swirled around the bodies of Khan and the Gale Squad members.
When they regained their senses, fifty assassins had turned to ash.
Cliche Novel 