893

 [Chapter 222]

[A Handful of Light (3)]

If Eun-ha's myth is special.

Baek Seo-jin's myth is unique.

Baek Seo-jin, who contributed to rebuilding this country, embodied that entire process as a myth.

Therefore, everything born in the country he rebuilt is under Baek Seo-jin's control and inevitably lower in rank than Baek Seo-jin.

"The reason you enjoy your current life is all because I built the country based on darkness."

Limited to within the country.

No one dares to challenge Baek Seo-jin's myth.

This was also the reason he came to fight the decisive battle leading a small force.

"That's why your myth couldn't properly resist mine and was withdrawn. In the land I rebuilt, your myth is nothing more than a part of my myth."

In a sense, Baek Seo-jin's myth could be called the creation myth that comes first among all myths.

"It took a long time to obtain this myth. And now finally, there's no one who can defy me."

Baek Seo-jin spread his arms.

His cloak fluttered and dozens of hidden weapons revealed themselves in the darkness.

They rush in.

Eun-ha tried to dodge using Thunder Step.

...I can't use Thunder Step?

But Eun-ha was flustered by the unexpected situation.

He couldn't use magic.

"Kuk...!!"

In the end, the method Eun-ha chose was to block the incoming hidden weapons with his sword.

Of course, he couldn't block dozens of hidden weapons without using magic.

Moreover, it was difficult to find hidden weapons flying in from hiding in the darkness.

"...Twilight Sword."

[Hmm, an interesting phenomenon. It's not that you can't use mana, but you can't use magic... It seems his myth is breaking the formulas.]

At least he could use mana.

Eun-ha manifested his internal mana.

He heals wounds made by the hidden weapons, and the principle in his body continuously destroys the invading poison.

But unable to use magic, the speed was inevitably slow.

"You seem flustered that you can't use magic. It can't be helped." "..."

At that moment, Baek Seo-jin spoke.

He resolved the question.

"How were the magics you've used so far created? Were they made entirely by your hands? Where do you think the foundation that constitutes the basis of that magic came from?"

"..."

"It's this country. The theory of magic, ideology, technology, resources, all came from the country I rebuilt."

Baek Seo-jin shouted emotionally.

Eun-ha bit his lip.

He understood his myth to some extent.

[Hooh, so it controls not just physical elements but mental ones too. To think of creating such a myth, it could be called an incredible obsession.]

As the Twilight Sword commented.

Baek Seo-jin's myth prevents the use of anything originating from the country.

It's only possible with Baek Seo-jin's permission.

How annoying.

Eun-ha clicked his tongue.

Unlike himself who couldn't use myth and magic, Baek Seo-jin seemed able to use them freely.

Rain Step

Baek Seo-jin's figure disappeared.

Eun-ha had no choice but to respond to Baek Seo-jin relying on instinct.

[No, it's the left.]

"...!!"

It was difficult to respond to Baek Seo-jin just by enhancing physical abilities.

Eun-ha's sword cuts through the air.

And a sword digs in from the left.

He hurriedly twisted his body.

But Baek Seo-jin's sword was faster.

His sword cut Eun-ha's side.

"Damn it..."

Eun-ha cursed.

Poison again.

The principle of Violent Venom writhes to destroy the poison, but the process was somewhat painful.

Eun-ha, who had widened the distance, checked his cut wound.

The wound wasn't very deep.

The problem was that even with enhanced physical abilities, healing was slow.

The bleeding won't stop.

Eun-ha noticed that besides deadly poison, something else was mixed in the previous attack.

"It's magic that causes bleeding. That can't be called poison. It seems that works on you."

Baek Seo-jin raised the corners of his mouth.

Eun-ha glared at him.

Hiss!!

If it's magic that causes bleeding.

He just needs to forcibly stop it.

Eun-ha borrowed Buldak's power and immediately cauterized the wound area.

Despite the terrible pain of burning flesh, he endured with willpower.

"...Crazy bastard."

[He's a crazy bastard.]

Baek Seo-jin frowned at that sight and spoke.

The Twilight Sword conveyed the same words.

Eun-ha ignored their words.

I need to find a way to break this myth somehow.

There's no such thing as a perfect myth.

Because myths made by humans are imperfect, they must have weaknesses somewhere.

Eun-ha knew this.

No matter how powerful Baek Seo-jin's myth was, he thought there must be a gap in his myth too.

...I can't see anything.

But what about the surroundings?

Darkness, darkness, darkness, darkness...

It was all darkness.

No gaps could be seen, and it was impossible to know how far the space extended.

His myth was extremely unique.

Since the boundary between the existing world and the myth couldn't be seen at all, there was no way to escape.

As if reading his mind─

"─You won't be able to find the boundary. When could darkness ever find boundaries?"

"..."

"This is my independent world. Everything I don't allow is swallowed by darkness. Probably people swallowed by my darkness can't recognize each other and are wandering alone in the darkness. As time passes, their minds will collapse from loneliness and fear. And─"

Baek Seo-jin drew out his words.

He snapped his fingers.

"─Since stopping bleeding like that isn't interesting, I should take measures. I forgot to erase it in the first place."

Hiss!!

Buldak screams.

Eun-ha flinched.

The cloak of flames on his shoulders was captured by darkness and disappeared.

"Your beast transformation was also born in the world I created, wasn't it? If I hadn't created this country, perhaps your beast transformation wouldn't have been born either. So you should be careful too."

"..."

"The moment your mana resistance lowers, you too will be eaten by darkness and disappear."

"Kuk..."

"But it seems that beast transformation isn't disappearing. Ah, I see. It was born in Uijeongbu, wasn't it? The current country doesn't include Uijeongbu, so it's natural."

Fortunately, Kang remained.

The iron chains floating around Eun-ha let out a cry as if angry when Buldak disappeared.

Growl

Now he can only handle the power of lightning.

Even that, he can't use magic.

That was all Eun-ha could rely on.

No, there was more.

The Dawn Sword and Twilight Sword.

"I was going to surprise you by erasing devices and artifacts too... Hmm, they're not all disappearing. You said those swords were made with Taiji grade treasures, is it because of that? My, my... Even now I don't know what Taiji grade treasures really are." "..."

"Why isn't Mangosu erased? Could there be materials not from this country inside it?"

The reason the Twilight Sword wasn't erased was probably because it used a sword obtained from Japan as material.

It was fortunate in misfortune.

But Eun-ha swallowed his saliva without answering Baek Seo-jin's question.

He had to find a breakthrough somehow.

☆

At that time, in Baek Seo-jin's secret chamber.

There too, myths were clashing and a fierce battle was taking place.

──!!

The collision of pure white snow and pitch-black darkness.

The battle that was evenly matched at first soon began to tilt as one side lost momentum.

The momentum of the snow was fierce.

Darkness was being pushed back.

Myth Manifestation

Frozen Ice Cold Snow

<Divine Spear> Ryu Yeon-hwa.

She was proudly battling <Abyss > in the world of darkness with the world of snow on her back.

A uniform made of snow crystals.

Yet when the uniform that couldn't be defined as material fluttered, snow crystals scattered in the darkness.

"To think you received Nam Gung Seong-un's myth, this is absurd..."

<Abyss > couldn't properly defend against the skills she was showing.

Even he, who had regained his prime strength, couldn't overcome Ryu Yeon-hwa's myth in the end.

One of his arms was cut off.

The arm cut off by the spear floated in the air.

Before <Abyss > could grab that arm and reattach it to his body, the winter wind blowing from behind her snatched the arm.

The arm freezes.

Soon the arm shatters like ice and disappears.

"Kuk..."

He couldn't do anything even with two arms.

There was no way <Abyss > could face Ryu Yeon-hwa with one arm.

He was barely avoiding attacks.

As a result, the world of snow and wind rapidly invaded the world of darkness.

It covers the whole world in snow.

Snow piles up in the abyss that seemed bottomless.

"Where is there such a myth! Why, why won't you die!!"

<Abyss > exerted all his strength.

His magic seemed to succeed.

But whenever Ryu Yeon-hwa was hit by an attack, she scattered into snow crystals and disappeared.

<Abyss > couldn't understand that sight.

To this, Ryu Yeon-hwa said─

"─Because I am the world itself."

Such an arrogant statement.

She said that and cut <Abyss >'s chest.

Ice grows from the trajectory.

The diagonal trajectory made from top to bottom is engraved on <Abyss >'s body.

His body freezes.

<Abyss > resisted.

He flees to avoid freezing.

Ryu Yeon-hwa calmly watched him.

"I see. So the main body of your myth isn't you but the world itself behind you!!"

"..."

"Then the response is simple."

With those words just now.

<Abyss > was able to find a clue about Ryu Yeon-hwa's myth.

Ryu Yeon-hwa is in unity with the world she created.

She doesn't die even if attacked.

As long as snow crystals exist, Ryu Yeon-hwa can restore her body anytime.

Then─

─I just need to blow it away.

<Abyss > spread his hands.

He declared to his world.

Dozens of magic circles appear.

It was possible because he wasn't restricted by internal mana in the world he created.

Then <Abyss > wove dozens of magics into one magic.

"This is the magic Armageddon researched! Do you dare claim you can block even magic that annihilates space itself!!"

<Abyss > shouted confidently.

Ryu Yeon-hwa calmly looked up at the magic circles he spread in the sky.

That was the end.

"...What?"

<Abyss > was visibly flustered.

That's because the magic that was about to activate stopped.

Even when he interfered with high-level control techniques, the magic didn't budge.

"It's useless."

Ryu Yeon-hwa gripped her spear.

Now it was time to end it.

A snow storm blew centered on her, and when that storm disappeared, she had vanished from her spot.

And the snow storm blew again.

She was suddenly behind <Abyss >.

"...!!"

It was impossible.

To be able to move without even being noticed in a world where his myth was draped.

<Abyss > was surprised by the sudden situation and hurriedly tried to move away.

But he couldn't escape.

Why won't my body...

Why won't it move!

His body wouldn't move.

Before he knew it, his world had been completely encroached by her world.

Above all, he was already frozen.

He had been trapped in ice without even realizing it.

It's just like being caught in an illusion.

But regardless of <Abyss >'s thoughts, Ryu Yeon-hwa walked towards him trapped in ice with his eyes open.

Ah, no...! If I die like this, I won't be able to revive this time...!

As her spear pointed upwards, <Abyss > begged for his life in the ice, forgetting even his age.

But there was no way the sounds uttered in his mind could leak out.

Ryu Yeon-hwa didn't hear.

Even if she had heard, the answer wouldn't have changed.

Ryu Yeon-hwa's spear shattered <Abyss > along with the ice.

"Because my myth is a myth that freezes everything."

Frozen Ice Cold Snow, a myth that maximizes the meaning of <Ice Flower>.

Time, space, mana.

Even if it's a myth.

Everything freezes before her myth.

It was then.

──!!

<Abyss >'s darkness is torn to shreds and disappears from this world.

His myth is devoured by her myth, increasing her rank.

She moved on immediately after <Abyss >'s death.

There was still much to do.

She intended to kill the Slayers who had stepped into the area while her myth was manifested.

☆

Baek Seo-jin stabs his hand with a knife and sprinkles blood.

That blood spreads in the air and creates a magic circle.

[It's magic through a catalyst! Be careful!]

The Twilight Sword warned.

Eun-ha gritted his teeth seeing the magic circle emitting an ominous atmosphere.

A small amount of blood created a huge magic circle overhead.

Red light flashed.

Blood Flower Rain

A rain of thorns falling from above.

Magic enhanced by mixing magic madness with blood spewed out countless thorns to attack him.

Is it high-level control technique?

Eun-ha sank into thought.

The magic was attacking his mana circuits, shaking his insides.

It becomes difficult to step forward.

His head shakes and he loses balance.

Nevertheless, he barely came to his senses and swung his two swords.

Liger Chain

He also received help from Kang.

Kang, who had become iron chains, moved directly and struck away the pouring attacks.

Then Baek Seo-jin's magic dissolves into mana and melts into the darkness.

Eun-ha didn't miss that moment.

Twilight Sword

The Twilight Sword responds.

It captures the disappearing mana and traps it in its blade.

[Good, the magic has been absorbed.]

Eun-ha immediately swung his sword.

It was worth taking the attack.

He had obtained usable magic in a situation where he couldn't use magic.

The sword strike he unleashed spread evenly, shooting out a rain of thorns.

The rain of thorns that had attacked Eun-ha just now now assaulted Baek Seo-jin.

It's magic that attacks even the mind.

If this attack succeeds, it might shake his myth.

I'll aim for that moment.

But Eun-ha's expectation was betrayed.

Baek Seo-jin swung his arm widely and the rain of thorns was devoured by darkness.

"It was a somewhat surprising idea, but that's all. My darkness can swallow anything." "Tch..."

"Now, what will you do?"

The attack had failed.

Eun-ha clicked his tongue.

He was pretending to be calm on the outside, but inside he was getting anxious.

There wasn't much internal mana left.

Thump thump thump

At that moment, his heart beat loudly.

 Thump thump thump

At that moment, his heart beat loudly.

It's a sign that his gift is about to activate.

Eun-ha took a deep breath while listening to his heartbeat.

Nam Gung Seong-un's teaching came to mind.

'Remember that all fundamentals lie in that body.'

Nam Gung Seong-un had vaguely guessed about Baek Seo-jin's myth.

He predicted that no attack might work before his myth.

That's why he gave that advice.

In a moment of life and death, the only power you can trust is the power that comes from your own body.

The body you were born with.

Entirely your own.

The body that even Baek Seo-jin's myth couldn't interfere with.

"Are you giving up now?" "Who's giving up?"

Eun-ha sneered.

Being driven to this situation, he understood.

Nam Gung Seong-un was right.

In the most dangerous situation, the only thing to trust was his own body.

Not myth, not magic.

Only the body trained to embody those is the power you should truly trust.

With 32 years of efficiency added.

A body accumulated over 28 years.

Eun-ha was confident.

I can do it.

He won't be devoured anymore.

He will control it.

Eun-ha activated his gift.

It's not <Heroic >.

It's not <Brave >.

What's most needed in this situation is─

─Gift <Berserk >