Genius Wizard Hides His Sword Skills [EN]: Chapter 20

20. Adonis Khan

The gathered wind instantly compressed before my eyes.

Thump!

I stepped on it to rise, simultaneously condensing new air.

‘It’s not easy.’

Stepping on that, then creating the next step—a simple process. It was a repetition of the same process, but I couldn’t afford to lose focus for even a moment.

The presence of the condensed gas was so faint that it felt like I might sink down below at any moment.

[Looks just like aerial walking.]

Oberon, who had dismissed it as a trick, was now watching with a look of wonder.

‘It’s still too difficult to use.’

Crossing the three-meter-high barbed wire fence was my limit.

Thud.

Finally, I stepped onto the ground on the other side. Had the ground I always trod on ever felt so welcoming?

‘I think I’ve used up more than half my mana.’

It was only a few steps, but my whole body was drenched in sweat.

‘Still, it’ll be quite useful later.’

Oberon didn’t deny it any longer. Having a variety of movement techniques meant that the attack routes increased exponentially.

[Yeah, yeah. You’re so great.]

I chuckled at Oberon’s sulky behavior. How could something that looked like a gorilla act so childishly?

[Why are you laughing? Hurry up and check this place out.]

‘Let’s do that.’

The surroundings were dim. Only the sporadically placed lights illuminated the inside of the barbed wire fence.

‘What are all these?’

Large tents scattered here and there obscured my view. Seeing is believing.

Rustle.

I pulled back one of the tents in front of me.

‘Huh?’

There was nothing there.

‘This is a bit suspicious.’

[Indeed. Setting up tents like this.]

‘It feels like they’re hiding something.’

There were dozens of tents set up. Surely, it was to divert attention. There might be something they were really trying to hide among them.

[Those mages are capable of anything.]

‘The problem is when are we going to search all this…’

My head began to ache. It meant I had to check all these tents one by one.

[Even a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.]

‘Right. Let’s just take a look around for now. It’s not like today’s the only day.’

I shook my head and carefully took a step forward.

* * *

Perhaps because it was quite late, I was fortunate enough not to encounter anyone. Just when the tension of lifting the tents was about to fade.

‘Huh?’

My steps stopped beneath one tent.

[What’s that?]

What greeted us in the newly opened space were some metal scraps lying on the ground.

‘Could this be…!’

As I got closer, my suspicion turned into certainty.

‘These are mine, right?’

[Are they? I don’t quite remember.]

Oberon’s memories were from a thousand years ago, so they might be hazy.

‘I’m sure. These are the things I gave to Dolph as gifts.’

It was only a few years ago for me.

[Dolph, you say? Ah! That butler?]

‘Yeah. The things I gave him as thanks.’

My anger flared up.

‘…How dare they.’

They weren’t valuable items, but the fact that they were touching something related to me infuriated me.

‘Haa.’

But the anger soon turned into a voice filled with regret.

“Dolph…”

I knelt down in front of the items. The metals were rusted and faded, showing how long they had been buried. I felt them with my hands.

‘I’m sorry. I said I’d be back soon, but a thousand years have passed.’

After being chased by the Ominous Star, I left this place in his care, but I never expected that path would become one I could never return to.

‘Why didn’t you foolishly seek freedom…’

The fact that these items were found meant that Dolph had been protecting this place until the moment of his death.

‘If I had known it would turn out like this… If I had known I would be killed by the Ominous Star… I would have told you to live your own life. I’m sorry. I’m sorry…’

I couldn’t get up, feeling guilty towards the guy who had waited for me for so long.

I sat there for a long time. Time was needed to soothe my dazed heart. Oberon silently stood by my side.

I slowly scanned the metal scraps. None of them were in complete shape.

‘…I should at least take this.’

My gaze stopped on a dagger. The scabbard was covered in moss, making it seem like it wouldn’t even function.

Swish!

The blade of the dagger, revealed to the world, was still radiant.

[I remember this one. It was made of eternal iron, right?]

‘That’s right. I gave it to Dolph to use for self-defense.’

The dagger made of eternal iron. Only it still retained its value.

‘Hoo. Even after a thousand years, Dolph, you’re still only giving to me.’

I was about to pick up the dagger and stand up when.

Rustle.

A sound tickled my ears. The sound of a tent being lifted.

‘Was someone there?’

Fortunately, it wasn’t the tent I was in.

[Sounds like it’s right next door?]

The sound came from the tent across from me. I slightly lifted the tent to take a look, and four people wearing robes were coming out from right next door.

‘Mages?’

The appearance of mages, not workers.

“Haa… Can we really solve that?”

“I know, right? This is the first time I’ve seen a barrier like that.”

“Seeing the ancient language, it seems like something great is hidden.”

And even their conversation.

[A barrier?]

It was certain that something unusual was hidden inside the tent they came out of.

‘I’m sure I set it up.’

I had set up a barrier to hide my hideout.

‘This smells fishy.’

A smile was about to form on my face when.

‘Smells… Smells.’

A real musty smell.

‘What is this smell?’

At that moment, someone tapped me on the shoulder. I almost screamed in surprise.

[What’s this now?]

A beggar was smiling, showing his yellow teeth.

‘Isn’t that the guy I saw at the restaurant earlier?’

A beggar in a restricted area. Moreover, the boy had approached me without making a sound. But that wasn’t the important thing right now.

‘Shh!’

I quickly raised my index finger to my lips. I couldn’t let this guy make a noise and alert the mages.

The beggar, who had been grinning, stretched out his palm.

[What’s with this kid?]

Then, the beggar interlocked his index finger and thumb on the other hand, making a circle.

‘Does he want money?’

[What a robber.]

There was no choice. First, I had to appease him to avoid being discovered by the mages.

I nodded and handed him a few gold coins from my pocket. His mouth widened into a large arc.

“Thank you.”

At the beggar’s words, I quickly covered his mouth.

‘What are you doing!’

I gave him money to keep quiet, but he immediately made a noise.

“Mph! Mph!”

But the beggar shook off my hand and opened his mouth again.

“It’s okay! Those people are already gone.”

He pointed to the mages who were far away.

“There might still be people inside!”

I whispered, pointing to the tent the mages had come out of, and the boy shrugged.

“There’s no one inside. The people who just left were the last group.”

“How do you know that?”

Then, the beggar smirked.

“This is where I used to live. They’ve just been putting up strange tents for the past three years under the guise of excavating relics. I’ve been watching them every day, so I know their routine like the back of my hand.”

“You lived here?”

“Yes. You might have thought you chased me out, but I’ve been watching for three years without getting caught once.”

I was puzzled. No matter how familiar he was with the area, it would be impossible not to be noticed by the mages for three years.

“Did you have a place to hide?”

“Of course. I have a secret space that only I use. Well, I’ll gratefully accept the money, so you should also be careful not to get caught, young master.”

Then, the beggar limped away, heading towards the tent the mages had come out of.

‘A secret space? Could it be…’

I shouted at his receding figure.

“You don’t live underground here, do you?”

At those words, the beggar stopped. The boy slowly turned his head and approached me. The limping gait was already completely gone, and a coldly hardened expression watched me.

“Who are you…?”

That was what I wanted to ask. The underground of this place. That was my hideout. The place protected by the barrier that the mages were studying.

‘So that guy broke through my barrier?’

The existence of the underground space could not be known without breaking the barrier.

[Erasing his presence just now, too. Seems like he’s no ordinary guy.]

‘That can’t be…’

The barrier that I had painstakingly created a thousand years ago. A barrier made unbreakable with the help of the Guigwang Clan, who were masters of spellcasting.

The beggar, who had quickly approached me, glared.

“What are you? How do you know about this place?”

I naturally placed my hand on the dagger I had on my waist.

“I should be the one asking. How did you break the barrier?”

If things went wrong, a bloodbath might occur. How dare someone live in my abode.

“This is my home. It’s a place we’ve protected for generations!”

Suddenly, his body moved in an instant.

‘…!’

He only kicked off the ground once.

Whoosh!

Already, the guy was throwing a punch from my left. It was a speed that was hard to keep up with even with my eyes.

‘What?’

I quickly bent my upper body.

Swoosh!

This time, he twisted his body to the right and hooked his foot low.

[Look at this guy.]

There was no Aura, but it was definitely martial arts at its peak.

‘This is for real!’

I rolled backward, getting out of the guy’s trajectory. Thanks to that, I showed a ridiculous appearance, but I didn’t care about face. If it wasn’t for this method, I would have been helpless.

‘This is definitely…!’

A movement technique that explosively moves the body as if bursting muscles. Using the centrifugal force of the attack to circle around the opponent’s body and launch a follow-up attack.

[It’s similar to the martial arts you used.]

Of course, it was so much more clumsy compared to mine, but the lineage was definitely the same.

‘Did he steal and read a martial arts manual from my abode?’

That was the only possibility I could think of.

‘If that guy could handle Aura, I would have been in big trouble.’

Of course, that wouldn’t happen. I had no thought of being defeated. If he was using my martial arts, the guy’s movements were in the palm of my hand.

The brief thought made me even more calm.

“You’re no ordinary beggar.”

I scanned the beggar with a calm gaze.

“Weren’t you the child of a magic family?”

The beggar’s eyebrows twitched, as if it was unexpected that I had avoided his attack.

‘If I drag this out, it’ll get difficult.’

If other mages gathered due to the commotion, it would become troublesome. I had to reverse the situation with a single mistake.

I focused on the beggar’s appearance. Neck, shoulders, pelvis, thighs. If I couldn’t respond with reaction speed, I had to read the guy’s movements in advance.

‘How is he going to come…’

At that moment, the muscles in the guy’s right thigh twitched.

‘Right!’

Thwack!

At the same time as the guy’s figure blurred, I swung the dagger to the right. It was a dagger swung without even looking.

“Kugh!”

Blood splattered in the air. The guy’s fist had come into contact with the dagger.

Clang!

However, my dagger was also thrown to the ground by the impact.

“You wicked brat! This is the end!”

His kick, returning from the left, was extending towards my waist.

‘Yeah. This is the end.’

But I had already anticipated the guy’s next move. What greeted the guy there was a group of thunderclouds.

Pazzzzz!

A rough lightning strike was shot down onto the beggar’s leg.

“Crazy!”

The panicked guy hurriedly twisted his body. But he couldn’t be faster than the speed of lightning.

“Kyak!”

He couldn’t avoid the lightning from grazing his leg.

[Nice shot!]

The beggar was rolling around, clutching his leg. I picked up the dagger and held it to his neck.

“What’s your identity?”

“…It doesn’t matter. Just kill me. You’ll never be able to figure out how to break the barrier.”

The beggar closed his eyes as if resigned. Although there was dirt on it, the face I saw up close was quite young.

‘Is he about eighteen?’

It was a rare determination for a boy of that age.

‘At that age, that level of martial arts…’

Moreover, he was a guy who had broken through my barrier and came in and out, so it was natural to be curious.

“You said you’ve lived here for generations?”

The beggar opened his mouth with his eyes still closed.

“Yeah.”

“What’s your name?”

After letting out a regretful sigh, the beggar continued.

“Alright. I’ll tell you. I’ll curse you mages forever even in death. Don’t forget this name.”

I had no choice but to put down the dagger I had picked up at that voice.

“Admoon… Admoon Dolph.”