Disciple of The Three Kings [EN]: Chapter 197

Claaang! The clash of the Team 3 leader’s sword and the enemy leader’s body echoed with a deafening roar. The enemy leader, who had almost blocked even the sword strikes of the Jongnam Divine Maiden, Baek Cheong, Crack! Crack! With a grating noise, he was slowly pushed back. Thwack! Finally, unable to withstand the sword strike, he burst apart. Even though his martial arts were restricted, he was an enemy who had exchanged dozens, even hundreds of blows with Baek Cheong. Thud. Yet, with just a single exchange. The sight of the battle being decided with just that one blow filled the team members’ faces with shock. But soon, they could sense something was amiss. “Not yet!” At that moment, as Baek Cheong shouted, noticing the enemies’ lack of panic. Fwoosh! The severed flesh transformed into long blades and shot towards the Team 3 leader’s chest. A speed that was impossible to react to. Moreover, if one didn’t expect the severed fragments to turn into blades and be launched, it was normal to be caught off guard by their bizarre trajectory. Clang! Clang! Clang! The sword held by the Team 3 leader accurately blocked the enemy’s attack. The sparks flying from the blade melted once more. Squirm. Something wriggling on the ground devoured the fallen fragments and began to regain its form. The enemy leader returned to his original appearance. He once again transformed his right arm into a sword and glared at the Team 3 leader. Clack! Clack! Clack! The large two-handed sword clashed against the sword-like blade. Their eyes met across the two swords. “You guys aren’t just players.” The enemy leader’s cracked voice was heard. “Even if you don’t use martial arts, if there were players with this kind of skill, there’s no way I wouldn’t know about them.” Even the number of Rankers was limited, and the number of High Rankers could be counted. Just because one uses magic doesn’t mean they’re all players. “I’ve heard of it. The Tang Clan created a device that converts inner energy into magic, right?” Crack. The enemy leader’s mask cracked, unable to withstand the impact of the sword strike. “You’re a martial artist. And a master at that.” Crack! Crack! “Judging by the fact that you’re not using martial arts, it seems like you’re people who shouldn’t be exposed. How long can you keep that up? Use your martial arts.” The eyes revealed from the cracked mask flickered with madness. “No matter how much you struggle, you won’t be able to win….” Crack! “I’ll show you the power of a player!” The enemy leader’s attack, with his remaining arm also transformed into a blade, came sweeping in. The Team 3 leader, already blocking one arm, had no free hand. He smiled as he looked at the enemy leader’s face through the broken mask. Swoosh! The remaining arm cut through the air. In that fleeting moment, the Team 3 leader knocked away one arm and retreated, dodging the attack. The series of concise and short movements looked almost like a dance. “I knew it.” The Team 3 leader opened his mouth and spoke. “Ahn Chi-ho. It was you guys.” “You… ?” *** The Team 3 leader. Lee Rowoon originally had no intention of moving until they reached the Einheart territory. He sensed that the other team leaders and members were ignoring him, but he had no reason to care about such things. Even the position of team leader was just something he obtained for his own comfort. The special forces’ mission or purpose was something that had nothing to do with Lee Rowoon from the start. However. “You guys.” The train’s derailment and explosion. And the appearance of the enemy. Lee Rowoon moved. He watched and observed. Whether they were just people who had been ‘influenced’ or if they were directly ‘involved’. And the conclusion he reached was the latter. “You’re mutants.” The moment Lee Rowoon finished speaking. “You!” Whoosh! The enemy leader, called Ahn Chi-ho, rushed in as if consumed by madness, rapidly swinging both arms. Clang! Clang! Clang! His attacks were blocked far too easily. Swish! The moment his arm was cut off by Lee Rowoon’s sword strike. Whoosh! Multiple blades shot out from the severed arm, covering Lee Rowoon. But Lee Rowoon was no longer there, and Ahn Chi-ho urgently searched for his opponent. “Who are you?” Ahn Chi-ho asked. “Who are you… to… me….” His identity was a top secret. Raised as a weapon since childhood, and a specialist chosen among them. -From today, you will be reborn for the sake of the cause. He was born sacrificing everything for the cause and liberation. He abandoned his past name and took a new one. -Grizzly. That will be your name from now on. He was born as Grizzly. Yet, the opponent knew his original name. “Where are you!” Fwoosh! Fwoosh! Fwoosh! Spikes erupted from Ahn Chi-ho’s body, covering all directions. “Don’t hide!” He needed to know. How the opponent knew his name, and what his identity was. “Where…!” “Who’s hiding?” Behind. Ahn Chi-ho’s back squirmed, and spikes were about to burst out, but. Thwack! Lee Rowoon was faster. The already large two-handed sword pierced straight through his abdomen. “Kuh-uk!” “Is Kwon Cheol doing well?” “……!” “I cut off his head, but it seems he’s still alive.” “You…!” Ahn Chi-ho tried to pull his body away, but his body, impaled on the two-handed sword, wouldn’t even budge. “I thought as much. A proper mutant doesn’t die even if their head is cut off.” “You….” “Ah, do you want to get out?” Ahn Chi-ho felt a chill run down his spine at Lee Rowoon’s smile. But it was already too late. Crack! Crack! Crack! The two-handed sword was lifted, splitting Ahn Chi-ho’s upper body in half. Ahn Chi-ho, who was about to smile as if it was a relief. “Cough!” Instead, he spat out blood. Shock filled Ahn Chi-ho’s head, barely attached to his split upper body. “Surprised that you can’t regenerate?” “How… did….” “Did you think Kwon Cheol’s ability had no limits?” Thwack! Lee Rowoon forcefully drove the two-handed sword into Ahn Chi-ho’s throat. “Kuh-uk!” “If that were the case, he would have already achieved everything he wanted. In the end, there are always limits.” Ahn Chi-ho’s pupils trembled. The power he had gained through a lifetime of effort. He had worked and strived, never satisfied. He thought he could finally step forward for his cause. “I can’t say I don’t have ill feelings towards you.” Lee Rowoon twisted the hand holding the two-handed sword. “Farewell.” The twisted two-handed sword. In the end. Thud. Ahn Chi-ho had to lose the most important part of his human body. And as if that wasn’t enough. Whoosh! Flames engulfed his body and blazed. Smoke rose with a crackling sound. The enemies seemed to have already started to flee, disappearing. * * * -Lee Rowoon. His face was filled with resentment. That guy had no friends or anything. -Keep your head straight. That guy, who always spoke with a complaining face. -Do you think you can monopolize the director’s attention forever? Jealous of things he didn’t even need, he always hated him. He was young, so sometimes he came across as excessive. -Die! One day, his malice reached its peak, and he did something he shouldn’t have. That guy, who had disappeared into the depths of memory. That guy who had disappeared because of that incident had reappeared. ‘Ahn Chi-ho.’ He was a peer who had grown up in the Saebom Orphanage. “……..” Their identities were obvious. “They’re the Enemy Faction.” Those who stood in opposition to Lee Shinwoo’s Blue Faction. Unlike the Blue Faction, which adhered to its own methods and believed that force should be the last resort, the Enemy Faction believed that force was the only solution. And their leader. ‘Kwon Cheol.’ He was the director of the Saebom Orphanage where Lee Rowoon and Lee Shinwoo had grown up. Enemy Demon, Kwon Cheol. He had clearly had his head cut off by Lee Rowoon. ‘I didn’t think he would die that easily.’ Or rather, to be precise. ‘I can’t kill him.’ Kwon Cheol was not someone who could be killed easily. His hidden job, Mutant, gave him a life close to immortality. That’s why what happened back then was just a simple warning and. ‘He’s doing well, that human.’ It was just something he did for tracking purposes. That Kwon Cheol had started to move. If he, a perfectionist, had started to move, it meant that he was somewhat prepared. “Team 3 leader.” At that moment, they approached. “What are you doing?” The deputy commander, Number 2, glared at Lee Rowoon with a fierce look. “What?” “……Did you forget that you’re not supposed to use martial arts?” The deputy commander’s eyes looked at Ahn Chi-ho’s burning corpse. “Martial arts?” “What are you pretending not to know?” The items provided by the association were meant to convert inner energy into magic and allow them to use coatings instead of sword energy or sword aura. Skills were unique to players, so they were impossible to use. Even starting a fire was…. “Does that look like martial arts to you?” “What?” “I didn’t use inner energy.” “Then….” Number 2 examined the situation. And soon, he realized. “How….” Number 5, the Team 3 leader, was right. That fire was not created with inner energy. He had clearly thought it was a type of Samadhi Fire, but. There was no way he could burn a highly regenerative enemy leader without that level of fire. “It’s Samadhi Fire, unleashed using magic.” “……!” It was easy to say. But in reality, there were only a handful of people who could do it. The inner energy used by martial artists and the magic of players were different in nature. That’s why, if one used a magic conversion item, no matter how much they had learned sword techniques or martial arts, they couldn’t use them. Samadhi Fire was also one of those things. To be able to use it with magic. ‘An unbelievable level of understanding and perception.’ In other words. -A genius among geniuses. It was something only they could do. Crunch. He wanted to deny it, but he couldn’t. He had already seen Number 5’s skills and confirmed that there was no inner energy in the fire before his eyes. “Enough with the pointless fault-finding.” Baek Cheong approached. “You’ve worked hard, Team 3 leader.” “These guys are the Enemy Faction.” “Enemy Faction…?” Baek Cheong’s face contorted at the mention of the Enemy Faction. There was no way she, a high-ranking member of the association, wouldn’t know the name of the Enemy Faction. “…….” Moreover, unlike the Blue Faction, which was focused on activities within South Korea, the Enemy Faction appeared and operated everywhere in the Silver Territory. Their activities were also extremely destructive and troublesome, and they also circulated the items they created. ‘Red Bomb.’ That thing called a bio-bomb. There had been several incidents in China, where Jongnam was located, because of it. They had finally advanced to Russia. “This is something that needs to be reported to the association.” Baek Cheong said, recognizing the seriousness of the situation. Even though it was the work of the Enemy Faction, they were a special forces unit on a special mission. They didn’t have much time to spare for this. “It seems like one of us needs to reveal their identity and visit the association’s branch.” Baek Cheong’s eyes scanned everyone. A rather attractive mission. It was just a matter of reporting, but providing information about the Russian terrorist group could be a way to gain merit. “Number 2.” The one called was the deputy commander. “You should go.” “But….” “Are you going to disobey an order?” Baek Cheong’s charisma dominated the entire special forces unit. In the end, Number 2 had no choice but to nod. “I will rejoin you at the midpoint.” “We’ll wait there.” Number 2 disappeared, glancing at Lee Rowoon for a moment before turning his head. “Until Number 2 rejoins us, Number 5 will take over as deputy commander. Of course, you’ll also be in charge of the Team 3 leader’s role. Anyone have any complaints?” The answer to that was. “No, sir.” It was immediate. The changed gazes were fixed on Lee Rowoon, making him feel uncomfortable. “Number 5, can you come see me for a moment?” It was Baek Cheong’s call.