Future Knight

Chapter 21

Kang Chan couldn’t help but acknowledge the Keremion before his eyes.

His skill was entirely different from a year ago.

Of course, he had been strong back then, but now Keremion had become terrifyingly powerful.

However, it wasn’t just Kang Chan who was surprised.

Keremion also felt a hint of fear as he faced Kang Chan in a match that was neck and neck.

A year ago, even though he didn’t know how to handle mana, he had been the one to knock him out with a kick.

Thus, unlike before, he brought out all his skills from the start and launched a fierce attack.

Yet, even now, he still hadn’t gained the upper hand.

Moreover, the continuous use of the Aura Sword left him feeling severely drained of mana, making him increasingly anxious.

‘Damn it! After suffering that humiliating defeat, I endured a year of bone-crushing, blood-spitting pain just to master swordsmanship and crush you. Why! Why can’t I defeat you? I cannot lose again. Never, ever lose! Ugh!’

He kicked Kang Chan in the abdomen and swung his saber, filled with powerful mana, aiming to slice him in two.

In response, Kang Chan crossed the blades in both hands, blocking Keremion’s sword as it drove toward his waist.

Sparks flew as Kang Chan twisted and aimed a back kick at Keremion’s face.

However, Keremion anticipated his kick and easily dodged by twisting his body.

Then, he swiftly swung his Aura Sword at Kang Chan’s remaining leg, exploiting the opening.

‘Oh no!’

Kang Chan tried to leap into the air to avoid Keremion’s surprise attack, but he wasn’t quick enough, and his calf was slashed by Keremion’s saber.

Swish!

“Argh!”

As Kang Chan screamed in pain, a smile spread across Keremion’s face.

“Hahaha! Finally got you! I’ll finish this now!”

Keremion’s fierce attacks continued toward Kang Chan, who was bleeding profusely from a severe calf wound and rolling on the ground.

To anyone watching, it seemed the fight was already decided.

At that moment, a gleam flashed in Kang Chan’s eyes beneath his black helmet, which covered his entire body.

– Disconnecting pain receptors.

– Combat suit power at maximum.

– Activating stealth mode.

Despite the pain from his wounded leg, Kang Chan sprang to his feet without hesitation.

He effortlessly blocked Keremion’s continued attacks, then jumped back to create some distance.

Kang Chan’s black suit gradually became transparent and eventually disappeared from Keremion’s sight.

‘What, what is this? Disappearing suddenly, could it be invisibility?’

Keremion, bewildered as he watched Kang Chan disappear, shouted in frustration.

“Coward! Using magic! Let’s fight fairly with swords!”

“It’s not magic. It’s science.”

As the sound of a blade cutting through the air approached, an invisible sword rushed at him, and Keremion instinctively raised his weapon to block Kang Chan’s attack.

However, the unbelievable force transmitted through the saber sent him flying.

He soared nearly six meters, crashing into a tree, with the wind knocked out of his lungs.

“Ugh!”

Blood spurted from Keremion’s back as he crumpled to the ground.

A broken tree branch pierced his back, inflicting a deep wound.

As Keremion lay on the ground, coughing up blood in agony, Kang Chan deactivated stealth mode and slowly approached him.

Fear gradually crept into Keremion’s eyes as he watched Kang Chan.

To him, Kang Chan looked like a black reaper from hell coming to take him away.

‘You’re too strong! This is impossible! This is impossible!’

With Kang Chan’s final strike, Keremion lost his will to fight.

The force behind that strike was so immense that he couldn’t block it even with his own power.

‘I’ve lived solely to master swordsmanship and seek revenge against humans, yet here I am, unable to defeat a single human and feeling fear. How can I avenge my sister, who suffered and died at the hands of humans, when I’m this weak? Damn it!’

Overwhelmed by despair, Keremion shed tears and unconsciously dropped his saber.

Dropping one’s sword in a duel was akin to acknowledging defeat.

Seeing this, Kang Chan stopped and slowly turned away, walking toward Jaina.

There was no need to continue fighting an opponent who had surrendered.

As he staggered and struggled to stand straight, Kang Chan felt a sense of relief.

‘Thank goodness. That last strike used all my remaining strength.’

The final blow that broke Keremion’s spirit combined the remaining power of his suit with his physical strength, pushing his body to its limit.

After being cut in the leg, he had shut off the pain, used stealth to hide, and then poured all his remaining strength into a final, desperate strike against Keremion.

But it was Keremion who first gave up the fight.

It was a great relief for Kang Chan.

His suit’s battery was at zero.

Not only that, but Kang Chan had also exhausted all his physical stamina.

As his suit powered down, Kang Chan’s face, pale and ashen, slowly became visible.

His ear, pierced by a blade spear, was hanging by a thread.

Kang Chan grabbed Jaina’s hand and spoke with difficulty.

“Let’s go, Jaina…”

They needed to quickly find a safe place to recover his exhausted body using mana cultivation techniques.

Otherwise, he would have to sleep for several days straight.

Jaina, who had witnessed everything, looked stunned and unbelieving, while Kang Chan, leading her by the hand, began to escape the forest.

Suddenly, Jaina came to her senses and, seeing Kang Chan’s half-torn ear and the deep gash in his leg, screamed and cried out.

Kang Chan paid no attention to his ear or leg.

He only regretted not being able to show his full strength against Keremion in their duel.

‘I wanted to face him sword to sword…’

He didn’t know how much longer he would have to keep hiding his true abilities, but he quietly vowed to one day show Keremion his real skills.

He had truly become a warrior now.

After that, Kang Chan devoted himself to swordsmanship as if possessed.

He didn’t sleep or eat, focusing solely on his swordsmanship.

Even his master, Elradian, was astounded by his dedication.

8. Gale Sword Urkanta

A year had passed since the Continental Alliance was formed around the Bismon Empire, but the situation had not improved at all.

Countless lives were lost in the fierce battles that took place almost daily.

The number of Green Elves entrenched deep within the continent continued to increase due to their incredible reproductive ability, while the number of the Continental Alliance forces dwindled.

The Continental Alliance was losing territory day by day, suffering repeated defeats.

The war had been going badly for a year now.

The desperate situation of the humans, which had been gradually collapsing, began to improve thanks to unexpected reinforcements.

The orcs had started to support the humans.

The Green Elves, who had been pushing the humans back daily with their numerical superiority, began to retreat slowly as they were confronted by the vast number of orc warriors who arrived.

The number of orcs was astronomical.

As he watched the retreating Green Elves, Duke Saxon sighed and expressed his gratitude to the orc leader who had helped them.

“Thank you, Urkanta.”

“Pfft! There’s no need to thank us. We only joined because you were next in line after the humans. Grrr.”

“Even so, gratitude is still gratitude. Today, we could pass safely thanks to you, but those we see now are only the tip of the iceberg, Urkanta.”

“Grrr, I confirmed that while riding a wyvern. When will reinforcements from other races join us?”

“We’ve been continuously urging the Elves and Dwarves to join the war, but they keep saying it’s not the right time and are refusing to participate.”

“Kuaaak! Cowards, grrr! I’ll go and drag them out myself!”

Duke Saxon stopped the excited Urkanta, who was snorting furiously.

“Calm down, Urkanta. I heard that the two races are preparing for war together, so they’ll probably join us soon.”

Urkanta, calming down at the mention of the Elves and Dwarves uniting for war, spoke in a low voice.

“Grrr, I can’t believe we’ve formed an alliance with humans, our mortal enemies. I can’t face my ancestors. Grrr.”

Duke Remiel Saxon, the commander-in-chief of the human army, looked equally ambiguous as he stared at Urkanta, whose expression was hard to read, whether he was laughing or crying.

‘That’s my line. How will I face my ancestors, having to rely on inferior beings like you? Kalitz, where in the world are you and what are you doing? Your country needs you…’

Kalitz Garman, currently the world’s greatest swordsman and another duke of the superpower Bismon Empire.

He was the only human capable of confronting the Green Witch.

It had already been ten years since his sudden disappearance. Duke Saxon sighed deeply, thinking that if Kalitz had been by their side, they wouldn’t be pushed back by these wicked Green Elves.

While Duke Saxon was lost in thought, Urkanta stood up from his seat and left the command room with a parting remark.

“Ssshh! I’ll go and meet them!”

* * *

The news that the humans and orcs had formed a united front quickly reached the Elves, who, along with the Dwarves, were passionately discussing the matter.

“We felt a crisis seeing the humans collapsing, but it’s a relief that those foolish orcs decided to help the humans. We’ve gained some time.”

“Yes, it’s really fortunate. The Elf Knights almost joined the battle without properly learning how to operate the Elven Knights provided by the Dwarves. Craxion, how is the production of additional Elven Knights coming along?”

“Hmph! It’s taking more mithril than expected, so it seems difficult to produce more with the current stock. Not only mithril but also cronene is in short supply, and there’s no amandatium left, which is essential for the frame. We need to secure materials to produce more Elven Knights.”

“I see. If you lack materials, our Elven forest will provide them. Don’t worry and gather the miners.”

At Arteon’s words, all the Elves in the room were startled and strongly opposed.

“Arteon! That’s not possible! How, how can we destroy the forest!”

“Please reconsider, Arteon. We cannot destroy the forest under any circumstances!”

The elders strongly objected, especially Amari of spirit magic and Laseon of summoning magic.

However, Arteon’s resolve was already firm.

“There is no other option. This is a decision made to protect our forest, our children, and the Dwarves who are helping us so devotedly from the greedy Green Elves. Of course, we will not destroy the forest. If we work together with the Elves, it can be done. Isn’t that right, Craxion?”

“Hm, of course, if we use magic and spirit magic without explosives, we can extract the minerals with minimal damage.”

“As you heard, we will not destroy the forest but only extract the underground minerals. For that, we need Laseon to take charge.”

“I understand. I’ll take responsibility for it.”

Realizing that Arteon’s resolve was too strong to oppose, Laseon reluctantly accepted Arteon’s request.

With Laseon’s spirit magic, it would be possible to move the surrounding trees and mine without destroying the forest.

“Thank you, Laseon. Now, for the next agenda…”

Just as Arteon was about to move on to the next topic, an Elven sentry burst into the meeting room with good news.

“Arteon! A group of orcs’ wyverns has appeared! It looks like Urkanta himself has come, bearing his banner!”

“What? Urkanta?”

The meeting room was instantly thrown into another uproar.