Chapter 1454. Continental War (34) [Illustration]

Spluuuuuuurt!

I had never really imagined seeing Sung Ji-Hoon awaken in some dramatic fashion.

Of course, I also never imagined him becoming like Kim Hyun-Sung, who—upon returning from the dream world—suddenly brandished a sunset-colored sword light to send Donovan to the afterlife.

The idea that effort yielded results was supposed to be an unchanging truth, a universal constant. The many years of painstaking buildup and the countless incidents that he had gone through paid off in spades, resulting in the so-called Sunset Swordsman.

To suddenly wish that Sung Ji-Hoon would become the Moonlight Swordsman was probably far too cruel.

I had been with Sung Ji-Hoon for less than a year. He hadn’t experienced countless deaths like Will of Rohen, nor had he been in a special situation like that jerk Hyo-Yeol.

In other words, there was still far too much time and effort needed before he could

awaken.

‘Still... he did grow a little.’

His growth curve was trending upward. Sung Ji-Hoon had accepted that this continent was reality; he wanted to try to become stronger. He even produced tangible results, and both mentally and physically, he seemed better than before, at least in my view.

‘But when actually looking into it, I can’t tell what changed, damn it.’

His performance was so bad that I had to bite my lips hard. He hadn’t even shown half of what he possessed. Had he completely forgotten that elegant and noble swordsmanship? All he did was leap around and flail like a monkey.

‘He’s too worked up.’

He showed no signs of calming down, and perhaps his young age was also an obstacle to fighting rationally. I even found myself thinking that, if he had treated the battle like a game, his performance would be better than the sight before me. The thrill of combat, the fear of death, tension, anger, and excitement... all these were working together against him.

Above all, the most dominant factor was likely his raw, unfiltered rage toward Ryu Han. Unfortunately, anger didn’t seem to be a good driving force for him.

He had lost his Nameless Hyung, so I had expected more from him, but the sight of his chest being torn open within just thirty seconds made me sigh.

“Yuriel!” Sung Ji-Hoon shouted.

Of course, the wounds on his chest healed instantly, thanks to Yuriel. Before Sung Ji-Hoon could even hit the ground, every injury was healed, as if time itself had been rewound.

“

Yaaaaaaahhh!

”

‘All that’s impressive is the loudness of his battle cry.’

'Does he really think opening his mouth that wide helps? Or maybe he believes that shouting a battle cry somehow deals critical damage.'

I had no idea if he had unknowingly stumbled into some strange worldview or trained in some mystical martial art, but he shouted nonstop, seemingly trying to fuel his fighting spirit.

Fwoosh! Fwoosh! Fwoosh!

His limbs and even his neck were injured, but every wound healed up in an instant.

‘If that’s the case, he might as well be a tank.’

“

Yaaaahhh!

” he yelled again.

Ryu Han still swung his sword with a blank expression, but...

‘I have to give him credit that he didn’t lose his head in one blow.’

The presence of the Holy Sword was the reason this one-sided battle had yet to end, but if he hadn’t crossed a certain threshold in the first place, the fight wouldn’t have lasted this long.

If his head were severed or his heart was pierced, there would be no healing those injuries.

Sung Ji-Hoon knew that too. He was prepared, defending himself so his head would never get taken in a single strike. Honestly, even that alone deserved three rounds of applause.

‘He seems to be keeping up, at least to some degree.’

After all, I could hear the sound of metal clashing against metal.

He had definitely grown, even if it was only a bit. He was following Ryu Han’s tempo, even though Ryu Han was completely ignoring the idea of properly wielding a sword.

“Damn it! Yuriel!” Sung Ji-Hoon called out.

“...”

“

Yaaaaaahhh!

”

Fwoosh!

“

Aaaahhh!

Damn it! YURIEL!!” he shouted again.

“...”

Fwoooooosh!

“

Aaaaaaah!

Heuk... Yaaaaahhh!

”

I was sure it was starting to hurt. He was definitely in pain. At some point, he even began to look wronged. Perhaps feeling powerless, tears welled up in his eyes.

“

Heuuuk... heuk... Yaaaahhh!

” he roared.

Bang! Kaboooom!

𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

“YURIEL!!!” he exclaimed.

‘Just stop calling for Yuriel.’

Booom!

“Yuriel! Holy Sword!” he added.

Fwoosh!

Clang!

“I-I’ll never forgive

you!!!

” he shouted.

“...”

“YURIEL!!! Heuk...” he cried.

By now, his face was streaked with tears. As Sung Ji-Hoon became more and more accustomed to Ryu Han's movements, the same could be said for the latter.

Once Ryu Han realized that Ji-Hoon had extreme regeneration, his strikes grew even faster. He decided to deal damage faster than Ji-Hoon could heal. Rather than trying to sever his head in one strike, it seemed like he wanted to test just how much Ji-Hoon could recover.

It was certainly not a choice that the Holy Sword Hero would welcome, and it almost felt like he wanted to thoroughly crush Sung Ji-Hoon. Every clash of their sword devastated the surroundings, and the resulting sword energies destroyed the terrain as well.

In an effort to avoid being caught in it, the “arena” in which they fought kept expanding.

Since most of the sword energy was being sent out by Ryu Han, Sung Ji-Hoon was effectively standing in the middle of a storm, but...

“

Yaaaaaaahhh!

”

'Damn it, our Holy Sword Hero isn't stepping back.'

Even though it would’ve been better to keep retreating and blocking, he was moving forward instead.

“

Yaaahhh!

”

He let out a pathetic battle cry while doing that.

‘Ji-Hoon, damn it, that’s what I’m talking about.’

“

Heukk... kgh...

COME AT ME!!!” Sung Ji-Hoon screamed.

‘He already is!’

“Come on! Attack me! Do it!” he said, provoking him.

‘If he gets any closer, you really might die.’

What was most impressive above all were his eyes.

‘You’ve changed a lot.’

He looked as if flames were burning inside them, which was completely different from that strange psycho look he had when I first saw him. It felt like conviction was slowly settling into his gaze. He displayed straight and unwavering eyes and a will that refused to retreat. It was the kind of eyes one would see on a

Shonen

protagonist.

He was soaked in blood from head to toe, but his two eyes were still shining clearly.

And then...

“...”

Ryu Han’s sword seemed to twitch for a moment. It felt like it would make for a pretty dramatic reversal if things turned around from this point, but Sung Ji-Hoon was already at his limits.

Before I could even sort out my thoughts, my body instinctively moved first.

I could see Sung Ji-Hoon’s head flying away in just a few strokes.

No, if Ryu Han hadn’t been drawn in by that look in his eyes, the Holy Sword Hero’s head would have already flown away.

The only reason that guy was still alive had to be that this insane killing machine had seen something in Sung Ji-Hoon’s gaze.

Sung Ji-Hoon was using Yuriel as a cane while glaring at Ryu Han.

Ryu Han looked shaken as he faced me, Light Ki-Young, who had spread both arms wide to shield the Holy Sword Hero.

For a split second, I couldn't help but think about the possibility that this bastard would actually chop off my head, but I knew very well that wouldn’t happen.

The psychopathic killing machine was staring at a gaze that couldn’t even be compared to Sung Ji-Hoon’s gaze. It was an unwavering look filled with conviction—something straight out of a

Shonen manga

.

He was staring at eyes that only those who lead others and those prepared to sacrifice themselves for someone else could possibly have.

Since I didn’t know exactly what point would spark his curiosity, I first shot him a look leaning toward righteousness. I stared straight at him as if I weren't afraid of having my head chopped off and as if sacrificing myself meant nothing at all.

I was truly a bundle of conviction.

‘I will not back down no matter what.’

'I won’t flinch, not even once, even if a sword is held to my neck.'

“...”

“...”

He had to have sensed it, too.

He had to have sensed the fact that the Keepers of the Moonlight were actually following the light in Light Ki-Young’s eyes.

Boooooooom!

Just as expected, his sword stopped right in front of my head. Instead, if one could even call it that, the wind created by the blade brushed past me. In an instant, my hair and clothes billowed out, and I almost keeled over backward.

However, it was imperative that I remained unflinching. I kept staring at him.

‘I’m not going to take even a single step back.’

It felt like time itself had frozen.

‘If I die, I die, but I’m not backing down here.’

Ryu Han’s eyes trembled slightly. Was he feeling irritated, or had I reminded him of Commander Jin from the tutorial? The latter was unlikely, as Commander Jin had little to do with upright conviction, but if it was him, he would surely find some similarity I myself couldn't see.

He slowly turned his head, not as if he was avoiding my gaze out of discomfort, but as if he was checking the eyes of the others.

The other soldiers fighting alongside us on this battlefield. Not all of them were as pure, righteous, or good as we were, but to him, they would likely all appear to have similar eyes.

The gaze of those who believed without doubt in what they had chosen to believe definitely contained conviction in it.

Strictly speaking, it was the product of continuous indoctrination, but he wouldn’t care about that. What mattered was that everyone was fighting for the same goal and had the same mindset. Their eyes all resembled mine.

It was obvious that Sung Ji-Hoon and the surrounding soldiers were inspired and influenced by it.

The Saint could lead and change others. Many things were different, but in that aspect, he was probably the same as Jin Cheong.

In the strangely quiet battlefield, I heard his deep voice.

“Who... are you?” Ryu Han asked.

“...”

He was speaking casually to me as he asked, “Who the hell are you?”

‘That’s what I should be asking.’