Chapter 412 – The Final Battle (7)

“Hand it over.”

I felt as if a massive abyss was gazing into me, filling me with a paralyzing sense of fear. I stared at the ‘King’s Favor.’

【 You are arrogant. 】

The center of the colossal wall of flesh parted. He muttered through his densely-packed, jaw-like teeth.

【 You are merely a vessel. Know your place. If it weren’t for her help, you would have already perished. 】

“Which woman?”

【 …… 】

An eerie sensation enveloped my entire body. It was so bizarre that it barely felt real.

However, it seemed my body reacted to the malevolence. I tried to force myself to swallow, but my throat had tensed up, rendering any movement impossible.

– Drip, drip.

Every possible defense mechanism I could attribute to a living being was activated within me. Cold sweat trickled down, and I experienced a terror bordering on despair. Yet, my smile remained.

“…Haha.”

【 Why are you laughing? 】

“No, it’s just…something.”

The reason was inconsequential.

‘The King’s Grace’ posed a greater danger than anyone I had ever faced, yet curiously, my body showed no signs of trembling.

“Position makes the person. So, when will you stop avoiding the fight? Or… can you accomplish nothing on your own?”

【 Wordplay, indeed! 】

The voice of a defiant monster.
The ground bubbled and seethed.

Thorns sprouted in greater numbers than before, and my inner world increasingly fell under the control of ‘Grace.’

-Thunk.

As I took a step forward, innumerable thorn bushes greeted me.
Blood flowed, tinging the small stream beneath me crimson.

‘Why do such things sprout from the ground?’

Thorns.
I captured the monster’s form in one glance. The thorns on the ground were gradually piercing the monster’s flesh from below.
Had it been ‘Grace’s’ power, it likely wouldn’t have allowed thorns to erupt near itself.

‘Is this the consequence of mirroring my own thoughts?’

It’s impossible to know. In truth, I didn’t even have much time to think.

-Whooosh!

I felt the wind on my right cheek. As I turned my head, a massive chunk of flesh was hurtling toward me.

I reacted swiftly, but at this point, I couldn’t use the status window, King Mokryeong’s power, let alone the Heavenly Demon Demonic Art.

There was no avoiding it. One of the numerous arms struck my body.

-Thwack!

The sound of bones snapping and flesh bursting at the point of impact.

My body was sent flying through the air.

I tried my utmost to defend myself, but the difference in size and strength was glaringly apparent. From the center of the expansive mental realm, my body was propelled toward the left wall.

-Crash!!

“Ugh…”

A fist continued to stretch toward me without stopping. My limbs were contorted, and my body was already incapable of combat.

-Crash, crash, crash, crash.

A series of short, explosive sounds echoed several times. The walls crumbled, and dust rose. Broken blocks and droplets of blood scattered and fell.

When the fierce onslaught subsided and the dust settled, I knelt upon the pulverized wall.

【A pitiful human. 】

Nevertheless, even if it’s been taken away, this domain originates from me.
Water overflowing from a shattered vessel cannot be collected.

“……”

【 …Still getting up, I see. 】

I stood, supported by the shallowly risen water’s surface.
White flowers and thorns bloomed on plants extending from the floor.

—
Thistle flowers.
—

Why does information surface just by looking at them?

– Flicker.

My eyes reflected on the water’s surface… They resonated once and were overlaid in red.

【 ……. 】

He did not speak.
Instead, he revealed the countless arms he had concealed behind his back and now employed both horns and hands.

I moved my hand. I lashed out at him with a crimson fist that had not yet regained its skin.

– Crash!

But this time, it wasn’t merely a standoff.

The fist of ‘Inja,’ aimed to strike me, hit the empty wall instead. Pretending to confront, I smoothly sidestepped and evaded the blow.

【 Futile resistance… 】

I immediately rose and walked on a treacherous path, moving in a circular motion. Even a lowly gnat possesses the skill to fly. Occasionally, vanishing before human eyes is possible.

– Thump, thump, thump.

Three consecutive punches grazed my back and embedded into the thorns.

【 Don’t be presumptuous. You’ve reached this point much faster than others. 】

The man spoke nonchalantly. I managed to close the distance.

Then, from the surface of ‘Inja,’ long iron bars burst forth.

– Plunge.
– Papabat!

Bars cascaded down from the sky like a downpour. With no chance to dodge, holes were pierced into various parts of my body.

【 Does it make sense now? 】

“….”

【Though merely a vessel, you are inherently inept.】

It’s lodged in my throat, making speech impossible.

Staggering for a while, I use both hands to twist and remove the bars stuck around my neck.

-Pahak!

Gushing blood. My skin covers the wounds as I barely regain consciousness.

“Ph… kgh, khkh. Cough, cough.”

I can’t tell if I’m laughing or crying right now.
My entire body is drenched in sweat.

With one hand, I grasp the iron bars I was holding and swing them in a semicircle.

-Hwoong!

A bright yellow flower blooms beneath my feet.

“Haah… Hss, haah…”

After shaking my head several times in pain, I use the iron bars as support, sticking them into the ground and resting my forehead against them.
Following labored breaths,
A will that remains unbroken.

“……”

A smile refuses to leave my lips.
I pull out the iron bars I used as support and drag them along.

—
Moonlit Blossom
—

Petals lay strewn along the path of the sword that sliced straight across the floor. In the once purely crimson space, a new hue emerged, causing the ‘Entity’s’ body to twist with agitation.

-Agh!!

A fist reached out toward me.

【 Meaningless- 】

With all my strength, I swung the iron bars I had been dragging.

-Crack!

【 …!? 】

Still, I was pushed back. But the memory of wielding the sword remained.

Taking a single step forward here, I replicated the twist of the wrist. A motion well-practiced and ingrained in my body. During the time when I was helpless… one of the numerous sword techniques I had honed through repetition.

My wrist undulated like a wave, effortlessly deflecting the attack. Though it didn’t result in a counterstrike, there was value in having resisted for that instant.

-Thud!

My deflected fist embedded itself into the wall.

【 …Why? I should have mastered that swordplay. 】

-Clang.

The iron bars slipped from my grasp. With a single stroke of the sword, both my arms were stretched out.

【 ……No, it can’t be. 】

– Koo-goo-goo!

The assault didn’t cease. He casually plucked his fist from the wall and swung it at me.

A forearm as large as a chariot, bent like a whip, crashed into my body.

– Ugh –

Instinctively, I leaned downwards. My intention was to at least minimize the damage. I bowed my head, sensing the odd texture on the floor.

A single thorn touched my finger from the floor. I picked up the thorn and pressed the blunt end against my heart, like a tack.

– Puck! –

A small hole was punctured in his monstrous forearm. Blood flowed along the hole, from which tree branches sprouted.

—Laurel—

– Kkuudeuk, kkudeudeuk!

It was inevitable that my body would be pinned against the wall once more. However, I had managed to inflict some damage on my opponent.

I found myself once again on the brink of death, yet I couldn’t suppress my laughter.

【Now, just a bit-】

-Crash!

My neck twisted and my head contorted.

【Begone!】

Like a spider with a crushed body, I moved my slender arms to touch the floor. Raising my head through the cracks, I gazed at my opponent.

“…”

Stubbornly.

-Pop!

I bore the pain.

【Do you feel the agony? Give up. The pain you experience will only grow, multiplying by hundreds, even thousands!】

-Plunk.

Teeth fell from my mouth, and my torn ear rolled across the floor.

【Even if you accept this power as a vessel, greater pain awaits you!!】

-Squish!

I was pushed onto the floor and rolled like a burst persimmon. The walls and floor sustained damage, cracks widening until the ceiling finally crumbled.

-Groan!

The remnants of walls and ceilings swallowed the immense ‘essence.’
As the walls of the ‘essence’ crumbled, the black moon in the sky grew larger.

Though it won’t make me any stronger.
It’s just a feeling. For some reason, today I have the intuition that I can fight a little better.

“…”

I awoke with a lucid expression. The corners of my mouth were less tilted than before, and even my teeth were sporadically bare.
I can fight.

– Trembling.

My fists quivered.
It felt as though each knuckle of my fingers would fall off, and instead of regenerating, my fingernails were oozing blood.
Still, I managed to raise both arms.

【 I have shattered innumerable vessels thus far. But you… what on earth are you… 】

Broken knees and twisted ankles, do you know how many times I have teetered on the brink of death?
There’s no reason for me not to stand here.

【 Why. 】

I set aside my worries and focused solely on my opponent.
The newfound clarity of mind was rather welcome.

The ‘entity’ spoke.

【 …Won’t you die? 】

My eyes, stained red. The whites now tainted black.

-Pababat!

My whole body leaned forward, and it wasn’t until I was on the verge of collapsing that my legs moved.

I propelled forward. I stepped on the fallen debris and crushed his fleshy barrier underfoot.

-Thud!

【 Be gone, you fiend! 】

Countless fragments had already buried and immobilized him, rendering the ‘factor’ powerless. Yet, he did not remain idle.

A hailstorm of iron bars rained down upon us. Ignoring the piercing pain in his own body, he exerted all his strength to kill me.

-Huung!

The iron bar targeting my forehead was the first. I lightly twisted my head, and it grazed my cheek as it flew past.

-Huung!

The world seemed to slow down. My hands moved as though they were accustomed to it.

I gripped the iron bar.

-Pabak, pababak!

Countless sword images flashed before my eyes. He moved nimbly, repeating the wrist motions he had performed long ago.

Iron bars clashed against each other, altering their trajectories.
Natural bodily movements.

“One.”

*Clang!*

He gripped the sword in reverse and swung it upwards.

“Two, three.”

*Thwack!*

One he dodged lightly, the other he struck away.

He batted away everything that poured down like rain.
By the time he had deflected more than forty bars, the iron bars could no longer withstand the impact and snapped.

*Crash!*

A body left utterly exposed to danger, having lost its weapon. The final iron bar hurtled towards me.

I reached out my hand.

*Thunk!*

The bar that pierced the back of my hand and relentlessly approached my forehead came to a halt just in front of my eyes. After pulling the iron bar from my hand, I let it drop.

The blood in my hand soon vanished. Clenching my fist, I continued to run.

【 ……! 】

To be honest, I’m uncertain how far I can go.
If this battle continues indefinitely, of course, there will come a time when it collapses.

It’s just not now.

– Kwajik!

The debris that fell from the sky landed on the body of the ‘Being’ and became a foothold.

– Woong woong!

Arrows rained down. My mind grew foggy, and unbearable scenes flashed before my eyes.
It’s a mental assault. I ignore it and press forward.

Step by step.

At times, I made progress, only to slip on the body of the ‘Being’ and have to climb back up again.

During that process, my body was pierced, and the smile vanished from my lips.

But ultimately, I reach my destination.

– Thump!

【 Kuck! 】

Stepping on the bricks of the floor, I leaped with all my might.
Sand and dust scraped off my calloused bare feet, and my body soared into the sky.

“…….”

The moon,
My fist,
And the eyes of the ‘Being’.

In a straight line.

【Why-】

Black magic blossomed from my hand.

It was brief, but it felt long.
I had ample time and energy to utter a single word before my fist reached him.

As the word slipped from my lips, he closed his eyes.

“…I have to live.”

-Bang!

The colossal beast’s body tilted heavily with a single punch.

Flesh scattered across the sky.
My blood-drenched form teetered on the edge of collapse, yet I still held myself up with my own legs.

The dark energy that filled my eyes receded. A small crown of thorns began to sprout above my head.

“……”

I must live.

Even the faintest glimmer of hope would do.

―I pray for your fortune. You are a king.

Even if my once-tarnished beliefs are insulted, or if someone scolds me as an existence that must die, it doesn’t matter.

I refuse to despair over my shattered life.

I’ll relinquish my resentment if you ask it of me. If you need me, then use both my heart and body as you see fit.

Even if the path may crumble. I will bear it.

I accepted the crown of the ‘Benevolent One’.

“…Hush.”

One question, I ask of the king.

In this desolate land, do you believe there is a chance for even a cotyledon as small as a fingernail to sprout?

**【Destiny】**

If you claim to exist.

Then I, too, shall embrace it. I had intended to sow a seed.