Chapter 270

Chapter 270 – You, Three Moonlight Stones

Shine did not hesitate for a second before sprinting forward.

……Boom!

Following a colossal crash that reverberated through the air, a wyvern hung limply from his grasp.

“You overgrown lizard.”

[Me, dragon. Magnificent.]

……What absolute nonsense.

Holding back the retort that would have crushed the creature’s dignity, Shine spoke once more.

He possessed no real interest in the true lineage of the wyvern. Having personally transformed from a death knight into a vampire, encountering a talking lizard was hardly a shocking event.

Far more critical matters required his attention.

“Is that cunning bastard actually in trouble?”

[Yes, correct.]

“Who is he fighting?”

[The adversary…… aged human.]

“An old man?”

Elderly humans were common throughout the lands. Naturally, those possessing the strength to push that cunning bastard into a corner were exceptionally scarce.

Among that select group, those capable of bringing him to the brink of death could be tallied on a single hand.

Though he loathed to acknowledge it, that cunning bastard’s power had reached a level where finding a worthy rival was practically impossible.

Yet, he was currently facing a lethal threat……

‘……Who on earth could it be?’

Carrying the wyvern beneath his arm, Shine had already vanished from the Black-White Slums and was hurtling across the open fields, his expression frozen into a mask of cold determination beneath his disguise.

If that cunning bastard was unable to flee and had been driven so close to demise, his opponent was certainly no common foe.

Consequently, rather than recklessly pushing for extreme speed, Shine forced his mind to remain sharp.

‘An adversary at least at the transcendent level.’

No, given that the cunning bastard had achieved transcendence himself, it was far safer to assume the enemy surpassed that realm entirely.

Shine tore through the fields, his awareness stretched to its absolute limit. He refrained from asking further questions about the foe’s identity. Their brief exchange was restricted to the bare minimum required to maintain the proper course.

How much time had passed as he traversed the open terrain?

……Crack.

……Crunch.

The faint sound of fracturing air drifted into his ears.

Shine gradually lowered his pace, maximizing all of his perceptions.

As expected, far ahead in the distance, bursts of radiance erupted as a pair of combatants exchanged strikes.

Fortunately, he had arrived in time.

[Parasite, assist. Urgent, please.]

“Be quiet for a second.”

Shine halted his advance and retrieved his blade from his spatial storage.

Shing—

The metal gleamed brilliantly, catching the silver beams of the moon.

In that exact instant, Shine’s figure dissolved completely into the shadows.

He believed he had discovered a vulnerability—or so it appeared—but the momentum of the engagement remained largely unaltered.

Aster persisted in launching himself forward, while Aebiron effortlessly deflected his advances.

Having tumbled across the dirt repeatedly, his garments were ruined by a mixture of blood and grime, and it was a minor miracle that his facial concealment remained intact.

“You possess remarkable endurance. Yet are you certain you can sustain this? You appear thoroughly drained.”

“……”

Aster stared back at Aebiron with blood-flecked eyes, his breathing heavy and uneven.

In truth, his physical form was approaching its absolute breaking point.

Shattered breaths, a hammering chest, internal mana channels groaning out of alignment. Everything was fracturing.

Even so, his determination remained unyielding.

Ping—Pibibibibit!

As if giving shape to that unbending will, incantations bloomed into the sky.

A vast multitude resembling the constellations of the night, yet Aebiron confronted them with an air of complete relaxation.

“Mere quantity cannot change the outcome.”

Pashuk, pajijit……!

The magical constructs dissolved as rapidly as they materialized. The consequence of a casual wave of a hand.

Yet Aster did not falter; he instantly propelled himself forward once more.

Deep down, Aebiron felt a flicker of genuine respect for that desperate stubbornness.

‘Ha, look at this…….’

The youth undoubtedly understood better than anyone that this conflict was entirely futile.

No one comprehends a massive disparity in power more clearly than the person enduring it.

Even so, the ‘mage’ refused to relent. Acting as though he would obstruct the path even at the cost of his life.

Had that been the extent of it, Aebiron would have remained unmoved.

Such resolve was uncommon, but not entirely unique.

Indeed, it was a rarity only because this era enjoyed stability; during the ancient conflicts of old, such determination was frequently seen.

And what was the ultimate fate of those possessing such unbreakable resolve?

The select few who endured the hardships were anomalies; the vast majority saw their grand determinations reduced to worthless corpses rotting in the soil.

Thus, it was not the sheer will that caught Aebiron’s attention.

It was the evolution.

Despite a physical form pushed to its absolute limits, the methodology of the assault refined itself continuously, sharpening with every single exchange—to the point where one might doubt if this creature was truly mortal.

Furthermore, that was merely the preface.

Creeeong……!

Repelling Aster yet again, Aebiron shattered the magical formulation developing beneath the earth and narrowed his gaze.

‘……He has realized.’

The threat directed at the orphanage was a complete fabrication, and the youth had discerned that the current circumstances demanded a prolonged engagement.

He had not yet uncovered the underlying ‘motive’, but……

Unleashing incantations in such a manner indicated he was testing boundaries to discover it……

‘It will not be an easy task.’

No, even if the boy succeeded, it held no relevance now.

It would not bridge the chasm between them, and……

He had no intention of granting any further leeway.

Truly, there was no purpose in prolonging this. Every preparation had been brought to fruition.

Aster surged forward once more, bounding toward his target.

“It is time to conclude this affair.”

Aebiron struck the ground with the base of his weathered staff.

At that precise moment, mana rippled outward in perfectly aligned circles across the terrain.

Ziiing—

The distortions expanded outward, mimicking ripples cascading across a motionless lake.

A split second later, the surrounding atmospheric mana froze completely solid.

Kwaddduk—!

Simultaneously……

“Gahk!”

Aster sprayed crimson fluid from his mouth and collapsed to the earth.

Aebiron calmly stepped across the domain of frozen mana, coming to a halt directly beside Aster’s head.

“You endured far longer than anticipated. Highly commendable. Yet this marks the conclusion. Oh, and there is no requirement for you to reply. I have formulated my own deductions.”

Aebiron rolled Aster over using the tip of his staff. Facing the open sky, entirely unprotected, Aster lacked the strength to offer even a minor display of defiance.

From the very beginning, Aebiron had not been merely playing around. He had simply exerted the necessary effort to secure a transcendent individual without permitting any unforeseen complications.

“Tower Lord, allow me to gaze upon that celebrated countenance of yours.”

Aebiron nudged the edge of Aster’s mask upward using the staff.

Intending to claim the rewards of his triumph.

……That was precisely when it occurred.

Tszzit!

An unnatural, tearing sound pierced the air.

In truth, Aebiron had already pushed off the ground and retreated before the noise even registered.

Not due to any conscious awareness—it was a manifestation of unadulterated survival instinct.

And that split-second evasion preserved his life. Coming to a halt on the dirt, Aebiron touched his own throat as a cold sensation washed over him.

His palm was coated in thick blood. A laceration severe enough that a fraction of an inch deeper would have severed his main artery.

“……”

Stabilizing the injury with a quick mending spell, Aebiron cast his gaze forward.

Beneath the velvet, night-shrouded sky.

A monstrous silhouette stood waiting.

The entity’s unsettling crimson eyes blazed with light, the weapon in his grasp lowered casually, catching the silver moonlight.

Aebiron had only a fraction of a second to process this image.

Seokeok—!

A blade stroke ripped directly through the air.

Viciously precise.

“Hup!”

Lacking the luxury to comprehend the turn of events, Aebiron gasped and retreated with desperate haste as the follow-up strike pursued him.

Pashuk—!

He conjured a protective shield defensively, but this was not a strike that a rapidly deployed defense could easily halt.

Even so, Aebiron’s execution remained remarkably rapid.

Kwaddduk!

Multiple layers of shields materialized in an instant. The incoming strike shattered every single barrier before losing its momentum just inches from his nose.

An absolute, bone-chilling power.

However.

His astonishment was momentary; Aebiron swiftly reestablished his composure.

A standard combatant might lose their rhythm to the subsequent pressure following a hidden assault, becoming trapped in the assailant’s tempo—but Aebiron remained entirely focused on analyzing his rival.

His identity, his origin—numerous questions surfaced, but they were inconsequential at present.

Only a single reality mattered.

This monstrosity was actively attempting to end his life.

Pibibit, pibit!

Deflecting the unrelenting sequence of attacks without a single moment of respite, Aebiron methodically channeled energy into his internal core and settled into a firm stance.

The power of transcendence was on the verge of being unleashed.

Microscopic vibrations of mana radiated in every direction.

What Aebiron designated as his personal ‘domain’—a manifestation of transcendence that perceived every single localized movement. An ability refined enough to be considered a form of foresight.

……Though engineered specifically for users of magic, a notable limitation, it should nonetheless exert absolute dominance over a warrior.

With his transcendence fully active.

Aebiron truly comprehended just how lethal this charging monstrosity actually was.

‘……No ordinary adversary.’

Every element contained within the domain communicated the entity’s minor twitches back to Aebiron.

Much like predicting that an item will fall when dropped—the predictable consequences of physical action.

Yet this particular foe defied that logic.

To the left? No, incorrect. A rising strike then? No, not that either.

A single movement of the arm birthed dozens, even hundreds of potential paths, shifting rapidly in and out of existence.

Had this creature managed to bypass the domain?

‘……Impossible.’

It was merely that……

The entity was maintaining every single potential outcome simultaneously throughout his assault.

This signified that until the blade reached its destination—nay, even during the arc of the swing—one could not anticipate the final trajectory.

Recognizing that level of martial brilliance, Aebiron rapidly deactivated the domain.

This was not a variable that could be managed via the domain alone.

In that very fraction of a second—

The monster’s edge swung directly toward Aebiron.

Boom!

Aebiron intercepted the blow with reinforced barriers, then stared at the monstrosity standing just beyond them.

In that brief interlude, he understood.

In this passing moment, prior to the exchange of definitive strikes.

The monster had successfully analyzed him as well.

“Heh.”

At the absolute minimum, an individual possessing the caliber of a master knight.

Furthermore, his personal display of transcendence failed to intimidate the warrior. Meanwhile, the scope of the opponent’s own power remained entirely unmeasurable.

‘A problematic development.’

Yet, for what reason?

Aebiron maintained his composure. Indeed, he appeared almost pleased by the situation.

Because.

He had considered it a massive stroke of luck merely to uncover a scent tracking the Magic Tower. Yet what was the ultimate outcome?

The Tower Lord and……

‘……The Sword Circle Lord.’

Two legendary figures ensnared within his trap.

Though no definitive confirmation existed proving they were the true Tower Lord and Sword Circle Lord, Aebiron felt absolute certainty.

“The Patriarch will be thoroughly gratified.”

A grin emerged upon Aebiron’s features.

In the meantime, Shine retreated two paces, looking upon his weapon with an expression of dissatisfaction.

Only momentarily.

In contrast to his previous demeanor, his presence sharpened with lethal intent. Shortly after, a dark-red sword aura radiated outward across the entire area.

As though spoken communication held no value.

……And so.

A master knight and a grand mage.

A clash of pure geniuses.

Two legendary forces collided once more.

Shine initiated the engagement.

And observing this grand display from a safe distance was a stout lizard perched out of harm’s way.

The lizard supported Shine with every ounce of its being.

‘You, three moonlight stones.’

Three pieces as compensation—so please preserve the life of my companion.