457

Episode 457 Now You Can Shine. (1)

Melkir, who had quickly distanced himself and dodged, slowly looked back.

Doo doo doo doo doo!

After a while, a group of people emerged from the burning forest. Melkir recognized them at a glance.

"Earl Fenris."

Melkir licked his lips with his tongue as he watched Giselle, who was giving off such a strong aura that his whole body felt tingling.

"You're finally here."

Heeeeeeling!

"Giselle," said the Black King, pulling on his reins to stop him.

"Gillian, take the knights and head to the castle. Find all the remnants and kill them."

"All right."

Gillian rode again with the knights.

Melkir did not stop them as they passed him. Instead, he gave them a little step to go their way and even extended his hand as if to show them the direction they should go.

Gillian furrowed her brows in displeasure, but shot him a quick glance and rode off.

As Gillian and the knights disappeared, Melkir laughed, tilting his neck from side to side.

"Are you so sure you're sending all your men? No, you left one behind. Are you two going to fight me?"

Belinda, who remained next to Giselle, continued to glare at Melkir.

The face was wrapped in bandages and was difficult to recognize. However, the face was not the only distinguishing feature of the person.

Eyes, lips, atmosphere, voice. Belinda, who was comparing the features of the person standing before her and the person in her memories while searching through her memories, closed her eyes tightly and spoke.

"You really are alive, Melkir the Traitor."

Melkir raised one eyebrow and looked at Belinda.

"What? A traitor? Do you know me?"

Belinda opened her eyes slowly. A tear fell from her eye.

"There's no way I'll forget you, the one who betrayed and attacked Lady Annette."

Upon hearing that name, a great energy emanated from Melkir's body. The murderous intent in his eyes was clearly visible through the bandages.

"You know that girl. What are you? Where is that girl now?"

"He passed away. From the injuries he received the day he fought you."

Melkir paused for a moment and then suddenly burst into laughter.

"Ha, hahaha! Are you dead? Are you finally dead? Hahahaha! Then I won, right? Hahahaha!"

Melkir was overjoyed. The one who had left him in this state of neither life nor death had finally died because of him.

It felt like all the stress and anger that had been building up for over 20 years had just disappeared.

Belinda laughed at Melkir, who was bursting out in laughter.

"Win? You brought hundreds of assassins to surprise us and we were all annihilated. Do you really think you won? You struggled so terribly. Aren't you glad that the thing you were afraid of is gone now?"

When Melkir heard those words, sparks flew from his eyes.

"You b*tch… … who are you? How on earth do you know that?"

Only the Duke and a few members of the Salvation Church knew of his shameful past. It was information that absolutely no outsider could have known.

Melkir, who had been glaring at Belinda, soon opened his eyes wide.

"Could it be you… Belinda?"

"Yeah, I'm glad you remembered."

"Hahahaha! You b*tch! You b*tch is alive!"

Chaang!

Suddenly two daggers appeared in Melkir's hands.

"Yeah, yeah. The little girl was lucky to survive. Did Annette run away with you?"

Belinda didn't answer. She just raised her mana with a cold gaze.

As her robes fluttered, dozens of daggers attached to her body rose up, writhing like snakes.

Melkir saw that and laughed again.

"It's similar to the techniques she used. It seems she learned a lot while hiding. I'm going to kill you today and erase all my shameful past. You two, come at me."

The two men glared at each other and raised their voices.

Jiselle, who had been listening to the conversation absentmindedly, asked.

"Belinda, did you really know her? And who is this Annette?"

Belinda bit her lip. She hesitated for a moment, then said with a regretful look in her eyes, as if she had made up her mind.

"Annette was my teacher and the leader of the group I belonged to. And… … ."

Giselle asked her, urging her as she hesitated.

"and?"

"She was the master's mother."

"… … ."

Melkir's head suddenly turned towards Giselle. Giselle also looked bewildered by the secret she didn't know about.

Jiselle, wondering if she had misheard, stammered and asked again.

"My mother… … is an assassin?"

"He's a little different from a typical assassin. He's more like a righteous assassin."

It was the first time in her life that she had heard the term 'righteous assassin'. Jiselle tried to calm her complicated mind.

To be honest, I don't have many memories of my mother, because she passed away when Giselle was young.

All he knew was that his mother was a little sickly, and that she did not live long and passed away.

Because of that, I still remember my father being sad for several years.

"Uh, so… … my mother's health was weak… … is it because of that guy?"

"Yes. You were seriously injured fighting that vile bastard, and your mana core was shattered."

"Even with those injuries… … you married my father, had me and Elena, and lived for several more years? Does that make sense?"

If your mana core breaks, it will be difficult to live normally. Your body's balance will be disrupted and your life force will continuously leak out, making you weaker than a normal person. The usual ending is to suffer and soon pass away.

It is possible to extend one's lifespan by being born with a strong constitution or by using other methods to store mana and vitality instead of a broken core. However, such cases are extremely rare.

But Belinda nodded with an expression of obviousness.

"Yes, the captain was someone who was born with divine powers. He was truly a strong person."

"wow...."

Those born with divine powers are several times stronger and stronger than ordinary people. In fact, among the seven powers of the continent in her previous life, there was someone with divine powers, so Jisel knew that well.

If your mother was born with divine powers, it makes sense that she lived for several years even after her mana core was destroyed.

"I see. I used to wonder why my mother was so sickly when Elena and I were so healthy. It was because of a serious injury."

There was something suspicious about her mother's origins and Belinda's past, who came to Ferdium with her mother. Now that the secret of her birth(?) had been revealed, Giselle nodded.

"Yes. In fact, he wasn't that weak. I can't understand how someone born with divine powers could survive such serious injuries that they would suffer such serious aftereffects. I don't know how he survived."

"I see. That's true."

If what Belinda said is true, then the fact that the bastard is still alive and well means that he must have done something.

Judging by the black aura that leaked out with every breath, it was clear that the Salvation Church was doing something.

"That guy is Annette's son?"

Melkir looked back and forth between Giselle and Belinda, as if he was really embarrassed, and then asked.

"Yes, he is a great man who conquered the North and became a master."

"Ha, haha… … As expected from the son of that woman who was called the strongest in the kingdom. Yes, yes. Now that I look at it, even her hair color and appearance are similar to that woman's, not Marquis Ferdium's."

"You look a lot like Annette."

"Could it be that the reason he got so strong so quickly was because he was born with divine powers just like that girl?"

Melkir had a slightly tense expression. When someone with divine power learns mana, their own power is amplified several times over.

Belinda shook her head with a proud expression.

"No, the young master was not born with divine powers, nor did he learn Annette's mana cultivation methods and techniques."

"What? Then how did you become a master at that age?"

"We didn't teach him anything. It was because Lady Annette wanted him to. The young master only learned Ferdium's mana training method and swordsmanship."

"That's nonsense! That bastard got so strong so quickly because his secret energy and strength went to him!"

"아니, 도련님은 스스로 노력해서 그 자리에 오른 거야. 그리고... 그만 좀 그년, 그년 거려. 네 상관이었던 사람한테 예의는 지켜라. 이 싸가지 없는 새끼야."

Kwaaang!

Belinda's eyes lit up and she disappeared in an instant.

She appeared behind Melkir and sharply shot her dagger, but her target had already disappeared.

As she turned around, Melkir's bandaged face appeared before her.

"You dare attack me as a trainee… … You've grown a lot."

Kaang!

Melkir's dagger swung towards Belinda's abdomen. She barely managed to ward it off and stepped back.

Paaaaah!

Dozens of daggers flew towards Melkir, writhing. They were attacks that took over space in an instant, but Melkir dodged them all.

Ssuk.

Belinda's body became blurry and soon disappeared. Melkir's body following her also became blurry.

Kaang! Kaang!

The two continued their fight, disappearing and appearing everywhere. Their movements were so fast that it was difficult for anyone to keep up.

Jiselle was following it all with her eyes and thinking about it.

'It's still too early for Belinda to win.'

Melkir was definitely strong. He only looked weak when he fought openly, but if he made a proper ambush, he would be able to deal a great blow to any superhuman.

And I felt a sense of leisure in every movement.

'You're not releasing all your power.'

I don't know if she was confident that she could handle Belinda without using all her power, or if she was saving her strength because there were two opponents, but she still seemed to have some strength left.

'Hmm, what should I do… … .'

If it were normal, I would have teamed up with Belinda to quickly catch and kill him. I was still a bit taken aback by the sudden appearance, but he said that he was the culprit who caused serious injuries to his mother.

But it was a bit awkward to get involved in this fight.

'It's not often that Belinda shows such resentment and emotion... ... .'

She now wants to defeat Melkir with her own power. She wants to break the bad relationship with the past on her own.

Boom! Kaaaaang!

Wounds began to appear all over Belinda's body. Poison must have been present, as acrid smoke rose from the wounds.

Pfft!

Belinda, who had been fighting head-on, retreated, putting some distance between them, as if she was exhausted.

Melkir took a moment to catch his breath and smiled at her.

"This, this… … . It's been 20 years since Belinda, who was called the best knight in the history of the 'Shadow Knights', has become this much? Annette, that girl lacks the ability to judge people."

"shut up."

Belinda bit her lip in anger. She wanted to cut off the bastard's windpipe with her own hands, but it was still difficult to overcome the superhuman barrier.

Melkir, who had been mumbling, glanced at Giselle.

"Do you think I look funny now that things are going well? I was a Master before you were even born."

"so?"

"How long are you going to just watch? Are you going to move only after this bitch dies? You have so much free time."

"Belinda seems to want to kill you on her own. Is that right?"

Belinda nodded at Giselle's question.

"Yes. I feel sorry for you, Master, but I must kill this guy."

Melkir shrugged his shoulders as if he found the conversation between the two amusing.

"Hehehe, so you're just going to watch? Looks like you'll regret it after you die. Well, then let's keep watching."

Whirlyrick.

Melkir twirled the dagger between his fingers and grumbled.

He didn't believe that Giselle wouldn't interfere. She would definitely move when Belinda's life was at stake. Then he planned to use his secret weapon to attack in return.

"Should I finish it?"

His body, which had been grinning, disappeared. Then, he suddenly appeared behind Belinda.

"Tch!"

Kaang!

Belinda twisted her body and barely managed to block the attack. The two began fighting again.

Kaka kaka kang!

Get it! Get it! Get it!

From all sides, darkness rose up, created by the two people.

The fights of the assassins were certainly different from those of the knights.

The two of them did not use excessive force. They focused their sharp energy on one point and aimed only at the opponent's weak points. That is why the strong shock wave did not spread.

Kagagak!

Belinda's daggers, unable to withstand Melkir's auror blade, began to lose teeth one by one and the string broke, falling to the floor.

Even though she had absorbed the Dragon Heart and accumulated powerful mana, the level of power she concentrated was clearly different from Melkir.

So, even if you put too much mana in, the dagger's teeth would come out or the string would break.

Melkir continued to grumble without ceasing.

"You still haven't gotten over the wall? You can't even use that bitch's secret properly. What the hell have you been doing all this time? Have you been playing?"

"… … ."

Belinda simply bit her lip and didn't answer. No, it would be more correct to say she had no time to answer.

It was hard to win. I wanted to punish this traitor with my own hands, but I was angry that the possibility of that happening was so low.

Although he had absorbed the Dragon Heart and his mana had already reached a superhuman level, he was unable to overcome a single wall and was unable to advance further.

It was a natural thing. Belinda knows why. But she doesn't regret it.

'Because that was my whole life.'

Jiselle looked at her with slightly pitiful eyes.