The Indomitable Martial King

[ Chapter 54 ]
A middle-aged man with a rugged appearance lunged forward, wielding a scale spear.

“Ughhh!”

With a cry too embarrassing to be called a battle shout, the spear flailed through the air. Tilting his head to dodge lightly, Repenhardt effortlessly grabbed the scale spear. The middle-aged man exerted force in both hands, trying not to lose his weapon, but Repenhardt simply lifted both the spear and the man with one hand.

“Ughegh!”

Lifted bodily into the air, the middle-aged man screamed a strange shriek. It was reminiscent of the mandrake, a herb used by magicians that screams when uprooted. Repenhardt tossed the man aside and sighed.

“Ah, this is maddening.”

The activation of a string trap rang a bell, which in turn triggered an alarm spell connected to it, causing the alarm sound to reverberate throughout the castle. Those who were sleeping woke up, and everyone started heading towards where Repenhardt was.

Once the opponents were alerted, it was impossible to avoid their gaze by merely sticking to the ceiling. The only option left was to knock down those who were in the way.

‘Ah, why did I have to fall for such a foolish trap after overcoming all the difficult ones…’

Repenhardt bitterly regretted his complacency. If he had even a little experience in thievery, he might have avoided such a simple trap. No matter how powerful a mage or aura user he was, he wasn’t a professional thief. Having abilities but lacking knowledge was a predictable outcome.

‘Indeed, thievery is a job for thieves.’

Dealing with the soldiers swarming towards him, Repenhardt crossed the courtyard of the inner keep. Most of the soldiers now gathering were civilians drafted by Viscount Kelberen from his domain, mainly tasked with guarding. Although they were somewhat strong, they were not properly trained in martial arts and stood no chance against Repenhardt.

However, this was more troublesome for him.

‘If I hit them carelessly, they might die…’

Since punching them would surely kill, he was swinging an awkwardly grabbed spear handle in reverse, striking down the approaching soldiers. But even this was causing them to scream in pain, breaking bones here and there, making Repenhardt worry about potentially crippling someone.

These were truly innocent people. Moreover, they weren’t those who had staked their lives on the sword, so taking their lives, whether as a magician or a warrior, was something his conscience could not allow.

“Catch the thief!”

“Grab him!”

“Woahhh!”

Viscount Kelberen seemed to be well-respected, as his comrades continued to rush at Repenhardt in a rage, despite falling one by one, rather than fleeing. Carefully, paying attention to every swing of the club, Repenhardt continued to retreat towards the outer wall. After all, he had already obtained the voice of Elucion he wanted, so he had no more business there.

Then, a group of soldiers appeared from the direction of the outer wall. They were knights, properly armored and armed. It was the standby force of the Tenes Knight Order, who had been guarding the outer city, now mobilized.

Unlike the ordinary soldiers, they quickly formed a surrounding net and encircled Repenhardt. The formation was so tight that Repenhardt couldn’t find an escape route for a moment. As he hesitated, a middle-aged knight from the knight order appeared. It was Sir Lot, the deputy commander of the knights.

“Halt, you villain!”

Sir Lot yelled with a deep voice, pointing his sword at Repenhardt, who twisted his lips.

‘No, I mean, I sneaked in without killing anyone, trying to be somewhat humane, and I’m called a villain!’

Well, a thief will have his excuses, but he’s still a thief. There’s no point in feeling unjust about being unmasked.

Smirking bitterly, Repenhardt surveyed the encirclement. Knights were at the forefront, and behind them were ten mages and six priests. Their quick coordination suggested they were part of the Elucion ruins exploration team.

Though momentarily taken aback, he soon regained his composure.

‘Eh, I hadn’t considered such a situation? There’s no need to panic. Since it has come to this, although it’s regrettable, the best option is to knock them all down and flee before the Golden Knight arrives!’

“Haah!”

Suddenly, Repenhardt let out a loud cry. More of a roar than a cry, it momentarily made the knights flinch. At that moment, he kicked off the ground and dashed towards one side of the encirclement.

“Oh no!”

Sir Lot exclaimed in surprise. Repenhardt was already delivering consecutive side kicks towards two knights constructing the encirclement. Both knights managed to defend with their shields but were sent flying through the air as if hit by a siege ram. The force was monstrous. Alarmed, Sir Lot shouted.

“Maintain positions! Mages, form a circle!”

The mages had already begun chanting. They conjured lightning, flames, and icy arrows, shooting them towards Repenhardt, who frowned at the barrage of various magics before glaring at a knight beside him.

“Really, really sorry about this!”

“Eh? What for?”

The knight was taken aback for a moment. What exactly was there to be sorry about? However, he soon realized the answer.

As soon as Repenhardt finished speaking, he suddenly approached the knight, grabbed him by the back of the neck, and lifted him up. It was a technique from the tradition of Gym Unbreakable, known as the ‘mother cat carrying her kitten style’.

Having lifted the knight, Repenhardt then thrust him towards the incoming magic. The knight, clad in armor, was used as a shield.

“Ugh!”

The knight screamed as he was hit squarely by lightning, scorching heat, and ice arrows. However, the magic dissipated upon touching his armor, activated by the anti-magic blessings the clerics had bestowed upon him to counteract the mages’ spells.

Sir Lot shouted in anger.

“Using a person as a shield, what kind of atrocious act is this!”

‘Well, I did know about the blessing on the armor.’

Repenhardt made excuses internally, but that didn’t change the fact that he had used a living person as a shield. The knights, filled with rage, charged at him. Repenhardt retreated repeatedly under the attacks of knights who thrust their swords with shields in front.

Sir Lot shouted again.

“Fire the arrows!”

Repenhardt was unconcerned about the arrows, knowing they wouldn’t affect him. But when he was hit by one, he realized these were no ordinary arrows.

“Ugh! What is this?”

The arrowheads were attached to chains, and the tips were coated with a sticky liquid. It was the sap of the Kali tree, known for its strong adhesive properties, applied to the arrowheads and connected to chains. The Tenes Knights had such weapons in their arsenal, knowing that many powerful demons from ancient ruins were impervious to mere spears and swords.

Dozens of chain arrows hit Repenhardt, the sticky liquid securing the arrows in place, and knights pulling on the chains attached to them. Suddenly, Repenhardt’s movements were restricted.

Flames appeared in his eyes.

“Hmph! This is nothing!”

Repenhardt swung his arms violently, intending to swing around the knights holding the chains. However, it seemed the knights had anticipated this as well. They had already released the chains and were charging towards Repenhardt. The purpose of the chain arrows was not to bind him, but to momentarily restrict his movement.

The knights approached again, shields in front. Repenhardt attacked over the shields, but this time, he couldn’t send them flying back as before. The clerics’ blessings had significantly enhanced their physical abilities.

“Sir Gahar! Forward!”

“Jod! Provide support!”

Under the command of Sir Lot, the knights had established a surrounding network and were attacking in turns. Chains and arrows flew between them, attempts were made to bind arms and legs with iron chains, and occasionally, large nets were thrown. Of course, Repenhardt destroyed and tore everything apart with his unique monstrous strength, but this only served to gradually exhaust his well-trained body.

Repenhardt broke out in a cold sweat.

“These guys are not to be underestimated, are they?”

These knights differed in style from those of the Altion Marquis Family they had encountered at the Falton Ruins. The capability of the knights, whether from the Altion or the Tenes Knights, was not much different. However, these were followers of the magic knight, Eusus. Therefore, they were less hesitant to rely on the power of tools. They did not possess precious magic weapons, but they freely used nets and binding chains, which are normally used by hunters.

If it had been someone else’s concern, he might have praised it as a flexible and excellent attitude. But when it happened to himself, it naturally made him grit his teeth.

“Damn it! To think knights would resort to this!”

Thus, Repenhardt continued to battle against the Tenes Knights. Despite being tactically superior, Repenhardt, an aura user, could not deliver a decisive blow to the Tenes Knights. All they could do was maintain the siege and drag out the time.

In fact, this was also a typical tactic of the Tenes Knights. When facing powerful demons in ruins, they would drag out the time while minimizing casualties, waiting to give Eusus a chance for a fatal blow. Now, they were treating Repenhardt as if he were some demon of the ruins.

Facing opponents skilled in dragging out time, Repenhardt found it difficult to find the right moment to escape. It was then, when he was growing anxious.

Suddenly, from one side of the siege, a young knight threw away his shield and charged with only his sword in hand.

“This evil fiend! Face the sword of Tenes!”

“Huh? What’s with this idiot?”

Breaking through the perfect siege to charge in? Even Repenhardt was taken aback by such foolishness. But nonetheless, it was a welcome situation for him. He quickly charged towards the young knight.

It was then. Repenhardt’s expression changed strangely when he saw the face of the young knight.

“Huh? This guy looks familiar, but who is he?”

He felt an odd sense of familiarity, but couldn’t pinpoint who it was. From a distance, the frustrated shout of Sir Lot was heard.

“Russ! Maintain the formation!”

It was a name he had never heard before. Was it just his imagination? He pondered briefly in that moment. The young knight, Russ, targeted him and slashed down with his sword.

“Taah!”

In an instant, Repenhardt’s expression hardened from the casual thought he had before.

“Gasp!”

The knight had seemed ordinary in movement, breathing, and stepping. But that single slash was far from ordinary. Compared to the aura user Lantas, this movement was in no way inferior!

Flash!

The sword light cut through the air with the momentum to split the world itself.

The description might sound impressive, but ultimately, it means the attack missed. If it had hit properly, it would have split Repenhardt, not just the air.

With a simple twist of his body, Repenhardt easily dodged the attack and immediately landed a middle kick to Russ’s side. Of course, Repenhardt had launched this strike as a feint. Given the previous sword strike, he hadn’t expected such a simple attack to hit. But then…

“Keugh!”

The attack landed squarely. Repenhardt’s mouth fell open in surprise at the sight of Russ spitting blood and flying away.

“What the, this guy?”

The slash had been perfect. Thus, Repenhardt had faced him with a sense of wariness. However, it seemed that the subsequent actions were once again unremarkable.

“Truly an unbalanced fellow.”

Thanks to this, he managed to escape the encirclement. Repenhardt’s face brightened as he ran towards the city walls. He couldn’t miss this chance.

“Now, for the escape!”

Just as he was about to leap over the wall…

“The Blade of the Sky, tear through the void!”

With a booming shout, a powerful blade of wind flew towards him and struck him directly. While the attack was not strong enough to injure Repenhardt, it was sufficient to break his momentum as he was about to rise. Struck in midair, he had no way to exert force. He fell back inside the walls, managed to land on his feet, and gritted his teeth.

“Damn it!”

He knew who had launched the magic without needing to see. The sense of an aura user was more accurate than sight in identifying an opponent.

“The Golden Knight of Graim…”

A knight clad in armor shining with golden light, Eusus von Tenes, stood in front of him, wearing the magical armor Eldrad.