The Heavenly Demon Can’t Live A Normal Life [EN]: Chapter 168

In Cairo, everyone knew one name: Richard Nicholas. He was called Cairo’s greatest swordsman.

Everyone agreed Richard Nicholas was the best swordsman in Cairo. But they also said they didn’t want to live like him.

“What does Count Nicholas live for?” they wondered. “He reached the top a long time ago. But instead of enjoying his wealth and fame, he just goes back and forth between his training and his house every day. What a boring man! If I had Count Nicholas’ skills, I would work with Marquis Benedict and live a comfortable life.”

There was a time when Count Nicholas’ life seemed bright and full of hope. But that was long ago.

It was truly boring.

His servants said he spent all day at the training ground, except for a short time in the morning when he meditated.

He practiced everything from the basics of swordsmanship to advanced techniques.

Count Nicholas reviewed his swordsmanship every day, sweating a lot. He always made sure to spar with his subordinates.

That was his whole day, from morning to night.

As a Royal Knight, Count Nicholas focused only on swordsmanship training. He even ignored his other duties.

He was over 60 years old.

Even though he was still a great swordsman, spending all day at the training ground didn’t seem right for someone of his status.

But Count Nicholas lived the same way every day.

No matter what people said, he always had his sword in his hand from the moment he woke up until he went to sleep.

Why did he do it?

Was it just because he loved it? Because he was crazy about swords?

No.

Count Nicholas forced himself to close his eyes at the end of the day because he felt sick inside.

‘I don’t want to live so intensely,’ he thought.

He had lived for 60 years.

He had spent his whole life working for the royal family.

Count Nicholas had been pushed hard since he was young for being lazy in swordsmanship training. He had become the main support for the Cairo royal family.

He knew that if he became even a little weak, the Cairo royal family would fall apart like a sandcastle because of the evil forces trying to take the throne.

He couldn’t let that happen.

The Cairo royal family was everything to Nicholas.

His blind love for the royal family was deeply rooted in his mind. It became everything to Count Nicholas, even though people thought it was boring.

So he gritted his teeth, feeling the pain but pushing forward.

When Count Nicholas heard the rumor that Roman Dmitry had defeated Butler, he went to the training ground and swung his sword all day, fighting against imaginary opponents.

Daniel Cairo and the previous king, Nicholas found the meaning of life in their smiles and kind words.

In the end, the person people called great believed in and followed the value of his life as a simple human being.

One day, his son, who lived a normal life unlike him, asked,

“Father, why do you push yourself so hard?” His son’s face showed concern.

His father was exhausted every day.

His father came home looking worn out, not like the great man everyone talked about.

Count Nicholas smiled sincerely at his son, who had given up the sword because he didn’t want to live like that.

“Son, I am Cairo’s greatest swordsman. People call Cairo a weak country and look down on it. But at least in this small place called Cairo, I must be someone no one can dare to challenge. That is my purpose in life.”

And today, people didn’t know that Count Nicholas had been preparing to face the young challenger since he announced the public ranking match a year ago.

Cairo’s greatest swordsman, Richard Nicholas, was very different from the people Roman had defeated to get here.

Rumble! The ground shook.

The sandstorm roared around them, a thick, yellow cloud that stung their eyes and filled their mouths with grit. The wind howled like a wild animal, making it hard to hear even the clang of swords. Amidst the fiercely raging sandstorm, Count Nicholas pushed Roman Dmitry hard.

Clang!

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

The fight had changed.

At first, Roman Dmitry had attacked, but now Count Nicholas was attacking like crazy.

‘Roman Dmitry isn’t running away,’ Count Nicholas thought.

Over the past year, Count Nicholas had gathered a lot of information.

He studied Roman Dmitry’s battle against Homerus, the fight on the southern front, and the reports of when he defeated Butler.

He put all the useful facts into his head.

People might wonder why the best swordsman in Cairo would worry about someone in his mid-20s, but Count Nicholas did his best every moment.

Roman Dmitry’s talent was amazing.

If Count Nicholas couldn’t beat him with talent, he would crush him with experience.

Wham! An explosion happened.

Knowing that Roman Dmitry wouldn’t run away, Count Nicholas deliberately used his aura to the fullest.

Since the aura distorted the air and couldn’t be blocked just by avoiding it, Roman also raised his sword to block the attack.

Clang!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

That was the start.

Count Nicholas attacked with move after move. He was attacking in the best way he could imagine Roman Dmitry would fight.

Instead of watching and deciding with his eyes, he attacked like crazy, sure that Roman Dmitry would block the attacks.

If he attacked the right, he attacked the left. If he attacked the left, he attacked above his head.

He kept changing his attacks, blocking all chances so Roman Dmitry couldn’t have any clever ideas.

One breath.

Taking the lead had a big cost.

The attack of Cairo’s greatest swordsman completely took control with one flow.

“Wow.”

“…That’s Cairo’s greatest swordsman.”

People in the distance couldn’t help but be amazed.

Even though the sandstorm made it hard to see, Count Nicholas showed an amazing presence.

It was clear that Count Nicholas was on a different level.

Oscar, who was ranked 2nd, wasn’t even close to being on the continental ranking, but Count Nicholas was ranked 80th five years ago.

Even after that, Count Nicholas trained every day, and people said that if he tried for the continental ranking again, his ranking would go up.

He was in his 60s.

He was starting to get old physically.

But he clearly showed why he kept Cairo’s power strong.

Wham!

Rumble!

Aura exploded.

Count Nicholas went through the sandstorm.

He wanted to protect the Cairo royal family and show the strong challenger that he still had a long way to go.

He knew he could die if an attack went wrong, but he never hesitated.

Count Nicholas burned fiercely.

The more he showed his presence, the more Roman Dmitry also began to burn.

Count Nicholas was strong.

Roman Dmitry had met many people, but he could say for sure that there was no stronger swordsman than Count Nicholas.

‘He is better than Butler,’ Roman Dmitry thought.

His blood boiled. Roman Dmitry’s blood boiled. He had waited a year for this moment.

For a whole year, Roman Dmitry had been quiet, waiting for this fight.

Clang!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

He swung his sword.

He met every attack head-on, refusing to be pushed back.

He confronted everything head-on.

Without retreating even a step, Roman Dmitry met his opponent head-on, no matter how they charged.

Rumble!

An immense impact echoed.

Some might think fighting head-on was foolish, but neither fighter would give way.

Was he showing respect for Cairo’s Finest Sword? No. That wasn’t why. Count Nicholas, known as Cairo’s greatest warrior, faced Roman’s relentless advance.

The stronger the opponent, the better. Roman Dmitry wanted to crush them completely, to prove his own strength.

Count Nicholas is strong. However, he is really only strong by Cairo’s standards. There are dozens of beings on the continent considered stronger. Therefore, for my future plans, I must defeat someone like Count Nicholas.

He acknowledged his opponent.

If Nicholas was as weak as Oscar, Roman Dmitry would have finished this fight quickly.

A flash.

Nicholas’s attack.

A sword enveloped in aura fell like a meteor from the sky.

Roman charged forward.

Following his opponent’s intention, he also unleashed his aura to meet the attack head-on.

Wham!

Rumble!

It was a series of clashes.

The two continued to collide.

As if the fight would end if either retreated even a step, they did not yield an inch to each other.

Wham!

One clash.

Count Nicholas’s expression twisted.

It was a subtle difference, but he felt himself being slightly pushed back by the impact.

Wham-!

It was the same this time.

He had increased his power even more than before, but he was pushed back even further.

Wham!

Wham! Wham! Wham!

With each successive clash.

Count Nicholas was gradually pushed back.

Clearly, he had the upper hand at first, but as he clashed head-on with his opponent, an unbelievable reality unfolded.

Like getting soaked in a drizzle.

The results accumulated layer upon layer.

He realized slowly that he was being pushed back. Count Nicholas sensed that something was wrong.

‘I am being overpowered.’

It was from that moment on.

People began to recognize that the flow of the battle was strange.

This battle. People had a certain picture in mind.

If Roman Dmitry were to cause an upset, they thought it would not be by winning a head-on confrontation.

Roman Dmitry is only in his mid-20s. No matter how great a genius he may be, there’s no way he can face Count Nicholas’s aura head-on, after 60 years of training. With Count Nicholas overwhelming in every aspect, Roman Dmitry would have to find a trick to win, because he couldn’t beat Nicholas in a straight fight.

It was a logical judgment.

However.

The reality before their eyes was different.

Wham!

Count Nicholas was pushed back.

At first, he was pushed back so slightly that it was barely noticeable, but now, it was clear to see him being pushed back a step.

Wham!

This time, a step behind.

Count Nicholas gritted his teeth.

The more he blocked Roman Dmitry’s sword, the more a sickening feeling arose within him.

‘This can’t be happening.’

He was in shock.

He was no different from the others.

Nicholas had trained for a year to fight Roman Dmitry. But he never expected Roman to be so strong.

It wasn’t arrogance. It was confidence in himself.

Having lived for 60 years and experienced much, he was certain that his aura, honed over decades, would be stronger than that of a mere 20-year-old.

Everything Nicholas thought he knew was wrong. This Roman Dmitry was a monster.

People called Count Nicholas a genius, but even among geniuses, Roman Dmitry was an otherworldly existence.

Wham!

Screeeeeech.

He was pushed back.

“Cough.”

In an instant, he vomited blood.

The continuous clashes had accumulated impact, and his insides seemed to be in ruins, with thick blood dripping from his mouth.

Red droplets capturing his gaze, Count Nicholas smiled as if in vain.

He had struggled so desperately to stop himself from failing as the most important warrior for the Cairo royal family, yet he was being defeated not by the aristocratic faction he had been wary of, but by a new rising star.

If. What would happen if he were defeated?

Roman Dmitry professed neutrality, but it didn’t seem like he would help Daniel Cairo.

According to what he had learned so far.

His opponent was a practical person.

Unlike Nicholas, who had always believed in loyalty and honor, even if it was foolish, Roman Dmitry was practical. He wouldn’t risk himself for the royal family.

‘I absolutely cannot lose.’

He gritted his teeth.

He swallowed the blood.

Suppressing the disgusting fishy smell, he looked at his opponent.

It was laughable.

Roman Dmitry.

He was giving him time.

It was like Roman was saying, ‘Calm down, Nicholas. Show me your best.’

The sight of a mere challenger acting with the arrogance of a champion caused Count Nicholas to draw his aura to its full potential.

‘Very well. I will gratefully accept your time to prepare.’

Rumble!

He raised his sword.

This was the end.

If even this failed, there would be no way to defeat Roman Dmitry.

Tap.

Rumble!

He kicked off the ground.

Roman Dmitry, once again meeting him head-on.

He exploded his aura.

Count Nicholas’s secret technique.

As the power that had made him Cairo’s greatest warrior showed itself, the aura swirling around his sword blazed like an erupting volcano.

‘This is the end.’

It was then.

Count Nicholas saw it clearly.

Nicholas’s aura blazed, ready to destroy everything. Roman saw it all, understood Nicholas’s desperation, but still, he didn’t move aside.

Wham!

Wham! Wham! Wham! Wham!