Not All Heroes From Earth Are Bad [EN]: Chapter 103

His powerful legs pumped, driving him forward.

The muscles beneath his red skin rippled and writhed, as if alive.

They were magnificent muscles, worthy of being used as a textbook example.

‘That’s the place.’

Reidrun spotted his target.

‘Byron Hane, the Hero of Gatrein.’

A newly emerged hero from the Holy Empire, a mere sprout of 25 years old.

The hero’s youth was proof of his exceptional skill, which Reidrun actually appreciated.

‘It’s best to crush sprouts early.’

Byron Hane was arrogant.

That much was clear from his decision to move through enemy territory with only a thousand-man unit.

‘If I take care of Byron Hane, the rest of the soldiers won’t be much trouble.’

No matter how many ordinary soldiers gathered, they couldn’t stop Reidrun.

It would be a little annoying if commanders or knights were mixed in.

‘I’ll have to put up with that much.’

The 8th Division was in crisis.

He couldn’t afford to choose the safe path.

“It’s the enemy!”

“The Red Nightmare has appeared!”

The humans seemed to have spotted Reidrun and began to scramble.

Reidrun increased his speed even more.

The best ambush was a strike delivered before the enemy could react.

Just like now.

“Stop him…!”

A figure who appeared to be a commander shouted.

Ignoring him, Reidrun gathered his magical energy.

Wooong!!!

Jet-black magical energy coalesced thickly on his red fist.

Reidrun-style martial arts:

7th Form – Crushing Wave Strike.

After a deep inhale, he struck with all his might.

Kwaaaaaaa-!

The ground buckled and shattered.

***

The ground cracked, and fragments flew in all directions.

The rising dust obscured the view. Annoyed, Byron Hane, the Empire’s hero, twisted his lips.

“A fool with only brute strength.”

In this operation, Byron Hane’s role was bait.

He was to hold Reidrun in place.

Taking advantage of the opening, the hero Worston Gesred, disguised as a commander, would join the battle.

Finally, knights disguised as soldiers would capture Reidrun with magical tools.

Victory was already assured.

Reidrun alone could never win.

But Byron was dissatisfied.

‘It’s overkill to use this much force to catch one ignorant brute. I’m good enough on my own.’

Deploying this much strength against a single cadre [military rank] of the Demon King’s army felt excessive.

He didn’t like it.

Byron planned to deal with Reidrun alone before anyone else intervened.

“I am Byron Hane, the Hero of Gatrein!”

Byron swung his sword.

Whoong!

A gust of wind erupted around him, blowing away the dust and revealing a scene of devastation.

The blue meadow had been overturned as if bombed.

The soldiers near Reidrun had been blown to pieces, leaving no trace.

It seemed that over fifty people had died instantly in a single attack.

A giant red demon stood alone amidst the destruction.

Reidrun looked at him.

“Die.”

A single, short word.

At the same time, Reidrun rushed forward.

“You’re the one who’s going to die!”

Byron was not intimidated.

He gripped his sword and charged.

The two men closed the distance and swung their weapons at each other.

Paang!

A deafening roar erupted as sword met fist.

‘It’s foolish to fight a brute like that with strength.’

Byron wasn’t foolish enough to engage in a battle of strength after witnessing Reidrun’s tremendous power.

His forte [strength] was technique, not brute force.

Taaht!

Using the reaction force, Byron stepped back and gathered his magic power.

Gatrein Holy Swordsmanship:

2nd Form – Holy Ascension.

He drew his sword from bottom to top, spinning his body in a circle.

A clean, fluid movement.

Following the path of the sword, magic power erupted like light.

‘Die!’

A subtle technique that exploited the blind spot at close range.

Byron had no doubt that blood would spurt from the enemy’s chest.

However, Reidrun blocked the attack with his fist.

‘He hit the flat of the sword…?’

In the instant the sword was swung, Reidrun accurately struck the flat of the blade, deflecting its path.

The corner of Byron’s mouth twitched.

‘So he’s not just a strong fool.’

Monster-like reflexes.

He possessed excellent senses, as expected of a demon.

‘But that’s not enough.’

Even though the attack failed, he had no intention of breaking his flow.

Byron continued to channel his fighting spirit.

He planned to secure an early advantage, even if it meant consuming a little too much magic power.

Gatrein Holy Swordsmanship:

6th Form – Fanatical Punishment.

Fanatical Punishment.

The fastest and most flashy fighting spirit in Gatrein Holy Swordsmanship.

This technique drove the opponent back with a flurry of sword strikes, ranging from 5 to dozens depending on the user’s skill.

Byron’s maximum number of consecutive strikes was a whopping 67.

He was one of the best in the Empire.

The Empire’s legends spoke of those who could perform more than 100 consecutive strikes, but no one had ever witnessed it.

Kwaaaaaaa!

Magic power surged from Byron’s body.

Soon, the barrage began.

Shoaaaaaaa!

More than 5 sword strikes per second.

The sword strikes, too fast to follow with the naked eye, continued relentlessly.

Whoosh! Tak! Chaeng!

Reidrun did not back down.

Dodge, block, and dodge again.

A fierce battle ensued.

‘How dare…’ Byron was growing frustrated.

How dare a demon, strong but seemingly ignorant, react to his technique.

‘Let’s see how far you can follow!’

Byron increased his speed even more.

The sword, which seemed to have reached its limit, became even faster.

Shoaaaaaaaaaa!

The wind swirled from the force of the swinging sword.

34 strikes. 35 strikes. 36 strikes.

Reidrun took a step back but calmly blocked each attack.

He sustained shallow wounds in places, drawing blood, but none were fatal.

49 strikes. 50 strikes. 51 strikes.

Reidrun stopped moving.

He stood his ground and blocked every attack.

His wounds no longer bled.

62 strikes. 63 strikes. 64 strikes.

Reidrun smiled.

The flow of the sword was now completely visible to him.

At that moment, he reached out his hand.

Tak.

Before the sword could swing again, he snatched Byron’s wrist.

Disbelief flooded Byron’s face.

“If this is the end, I’m disappointed.”

“Wh, what…”

Byron couldn’t believe his eyes.

More than 60 sword strikes.

Delivered in less than 10 seconds.

It wasn’t just about speed.

A sword path that incorporated countless hours of training and combat experience.

A sword swung along a fatal path that the enemy couldn’t possibly react to.

The demon in front of him had not only dodged them all but had even exploited a gap to counter at the end.

In that short moment, he had perfectly grasped Byron’s fighting spirit.

“No matter how outstanding the tricks are, they are just tricks.”

“Wh, what did you say about tricks!?”

Byron’s teeth ground together.

His efforts and talent.

To call the swordsmanship, in which the history of the Holy Empire was condensed, just a trick!

“Don’t mess with me! You insignificant demon!”

Byron swung his sword again.

Gatrein Holy Swordsmanship:

7th Form – Holy Halo.

A fighting spirit that strikes a wide area at once.

A giant cross made of magic power hurtled forward.

“…!”

Reidrun twisted his body into an empty blind spot and dodged.

It was a display of flexibility that seemed impossible for his giant, muscular frame.

“This can’t be! What the hell are you!”

Byron was losing his mind.

His opponent was a demon.

Just a strong, ignorant demon.

What about him in comparison?

‘I am a genius of the sword. Byron Hane, who became a hero of the Empire at just 25 years old!’

Byron possessed outstanding talent.

But that wasn’t all.

He had trained every day, enduring bone-shattering pain, to become a hero.

How could he, of all people, be unable to defeat a single demon?

“It can’t be…”

Byron’s eyes shook with uncertainty.

Reidrun walked closer.

Byron stepped back in response.

“I’ll show you the real thing.”

“This can’t be…!”

“The real thing is calm and simple. There’s no need to decorate yourself ostentatiously.”

He raised his fist.

Thick magic power flowed along his firm muscles and gathered in his fist.

“And…”

The fist was pulled back.

Despite the simple act, all the muscles in his body swelled as if they would burst.

“The real thing is strong.”

As if releasing a spring pulled to its limit, Reidrun’s fist shot forward.

Reidrun-style martial arts:

1st Form – Initial Battle Annihilation.

A storm of magic power erupted.

Impossible to dodge, impossible to block.

Byron Hane did not move.

No, he couldn’t move.

Because no matter what he did, he wouldn’t be able to avoid that giant storm.

‘A nightmare… is it?’

He wondered if he was trapped in a terrible nightmare.

But this was reality.

The only way to wake up from a nightmare was death.

At that moment.

Paang!

Byron’s body flew away.

Simultaneously, a storm of magic power tore through the spot where he had stood.

Kwagwagwagwagwa-!

***

It was Worston Gesred, another hero of the Empire, who had blown Byron away.

He sighed as he looked at Byron Hane writhing on the floor.

“I was going to observe for a while, but I didn’t expect things to turn out like this.”

“I thought you were just a commander. So you were a hero.”

Reidrun turned around.

To think that the old man who had been staring with surprised eyes was a hero.

“Why didn’t you jump in sooner?”

“To be honest, I didn’t think you would be pushed back so badly.”

Worston spoke the truth.

In fact, he had predicted that the match between Byron Hane and Reidrun would be neck and neck.

‘That monster doesn’t even meet the average of the division commanders? Who spread such nonsense!’

Byron was ready to overhaul the Empire’s intelligence department immediately.

The intelligence department had even said this:

“That’s a high estimate considering safety. The intelligence department internally judges the Red Nightmare to be the lowest among the division commanders. Barely hanging on.”

He wanted to throw the officer who said such things at Reidrun immediately.

‘Reidrun is upper-class among the division commanders. No, top class.’

It was true that the total amount of magic power he possessed didn’t meet the average of the division commanders.

Worston had been active as a hero for a long time, so he had considerable experience clashing with the Demon King’s division commanders.

Among them, there wasn’t a single division commander with less magic power than Reidrun.

‘But I can say for sure that there has never been a demon with such a deep understanding of fighting.’

Generally, the demons’ fighting style was pure brute force.

Overwhelming magic power and physical abilities.

Humans were helpless against this raw power.

However, Reidrun was different.

Byron Hane, whose experience was limited but whose skills were considered mature, had been overwhelmed by technique alone.

‘Where did that guy come from?’

Red Nightmare.

All he knew was that he was a demon with cruel hands.

This was not a matter to be taken lightly.

If there were more demons like that, humans would be destroyed.

The balance of the battlefield was maintained because the demons were generally unintelligent.

“What are you thinking so hard about?”

Reidrun spoke, wondering why Worston, who had stepped forward as if to fight, was standing still.

“You. What is your identity?”

“That’s funny. You set a trap without even knowing my identity?”

“That’s not what I’m asking.”

Worston swallowed hard and continued.

“Where did you learn your combat skills? The Cowden tribe doesn’t use martial arts. Did you learn it from the leader of your tribe, Corps Commander Osges [likely a typo for Ozges]?”

“You know more than I thought.”

“Answer the question. Where did you learn your combat skills!”

Reidrun grinned.

He didn’t need to answer the enemy’s question, but he decided to indulge him.

This much entertainment was a fair reward for the hardships he had endured.

“Do you think you can become the best through learning?”

“What do you mean?”

“Walking the path that someone else has paved is easy. But comfort leads to laziness and insincerity.”

Reidrun was a member of the Cowden tribe.

A tribe led by Corps Commander Ozges.

The Cowden tribe possessed a unique fighting spirit passed down from ancient times.

However, Reidrun wasn’t satisfied with simply learning the tribe’s fighting spirit.

He constantly improved and transformed it, eventually creating his own unique fighting spirit, named after himself.

Even the fighting spirit he created was initially a mess.

Compared to the tribe’s fighting spirit, which had accumulated hundreds or thousands of years of history, it was naturally inferior.

“Reidrun. Stop this foolishness.”

“Learn the tribe’s fighting spirit now. If anyone can master it, it’s you. You can definitely become the tribe’s best warrior.”

The others in the tribe told him to abandon his useless pursuits and return to learning the tribe’s fighting spirit.

Reidrun shook his head.

He refused to abandon the seemingly foolish act of constantly agonizing and training to perfect his own fighting spirit.

“In any era, the best of that era is determined. Do you know who that is?”

“…”

Worston, deep in thought, didn’t answer.

Reidrun didn’t wait for an answer and continued.

“It is the one who pioneers a new path.”

Reidrun wanted to be the real thing, not a common imitation.

At first, he thought it was an impossible dream.

There were times when he doubted he could ever be the best.

But now he knew.

The muddy path he had been running on was not wrong.

“I will become the best.”

He was getting closer to that goal, step by step.