Your Commander-in-Chief – Chapter 218

The refreshing downpour seemed to cool the heated battlefield.

Raindrops falling on my face blurred my vision.

Even when I raised my hand to wipe around my eyes, new raindrops would just fall down again.

Tap-tap-

I lightly kicked the ground beneath my feet.

The solid support that always held me felt absent.

The once dusty ground that kicked up clouds of dirt had turned into a sticky mud pit.

The soldiers’ movements were erratic.

They were rolling around in the mud, tangled up with enemy soldiers, and in some severe cases, they even tripped while running alone.

The smell of wet earth felt far too real.

“Blood Demon King…!”

Just then, I heard the voice of the Snow Mage.

Her voice was thick with warning, alerting us to the enemy’s approach.

The spacing of the incoming enemies was different from the previous match.

Were they trying to avoid tumbling over each other?

I frowned and said to my teammates,

“We should maintain a wide distance as well.”

The sound of rain pouring from all directions muffled my ears.

Feeling the heat leaving my body, I drew my Nodachi from behind.

The approaching enemies slowed down as they neared a certain distance.

However, their gazes glinted sharply, as if they were ready to fight at any moment.

Could it be because it was the finals?

There was an unfamiliar sense of tension in the air.

The pressure was so intense that I couldn’t tell whether the moisture in my palms was sweat or rainwater.

There was no signal to announce the start of the real fight.

Suddenly, my drawn sword cleaved through the rainwater.

This attack was anticipated.

As I perceived the enemy’s strike, the surrounding time seemed to slow down.

The rain’s sound that had filled my ears faded away, and I could see a raindrop suspended in the air.

Silence engulfed the battlefield.

Time had stopped.

Feeling the solitude of being left behind, I glanced around.

With Wild’s surprise attack as a starter, the others were also swinging their weapons.

Their attacks were aimed not so much at targeting someone specifically, but more to gauge the opponent’s skills through exchanges.

The real attacks would surely come afterward.

What should I do then?

In that moment of pondering how to respond, my gaze fell upon the mud thickly accumulated on the ground.

It was no ordinary dirt; it was mud.

Uniformed soldiers who had rolled around on the ground were covered in mud.

Those hardened clumps stuck to their bodies refused to shake off.

Whether it would work or not was uncertain.

However, it was definitely worth a try.

Once I had made up my mind, I had to act.

As time slowly flowed again, the rain’s sound returned.

Swish!

The refreshing rainwater washed over my entire body.

My chilled body moved instantly as I swung the Nodachi down towards the ground.

Slash!

I didn’t need much. Just enough to cover the gaps in the opponent’s helmet. That’s all.

As the blade of the Nodachi touched the ground, I tightened my wrist and flicked it.

With that bizarre movement, the blade’s tip shot up slightly, and the mud that clung to it was flung into the air.

The broad expanse of mud flew faster than the approaching enemies and successfully stuck to the helmets they wore.

“Ugh!”

“What the…!”

Short yelps of surprise burst from the enemies and sank alongside the sound of the raindrops.

Wild, who had been charging towards me, twisted his head to dodge the mud, but the other players closest to him weren’t so lucky.

Out of the five players, two were blinded.

The advantage gained from this single move was significant.

But before I could take advantage of it, I had to roll on the ground.

Wild’s attack hadn’t ceased.

Whoosh!

I quickly dropped the Nodachi and rolled on the ground, narrowly avoiding a rumbling sound above me.

Had I been just a moment late, a huge hole would have formed right in the center of my forehead.

Feeling a frightfulness behind me, I sprang up quickly.

After the first strike, Wild no longer pursued me.

He moved to protect his teammates, who were limited by their visibility, creating distance.

I watched, licking my lips.

He seemed smarter than I had anticipated.

I tried to separate Wild from his team, but he didn’t move as I expected.

Despite having rolled in the mud, I shook my head and moved immediately.

My body rushed forward, skidding over the muddy ground as I picked up the fallen Nodachi.

There wasn’t a moment to lose. I had to pressure the opponent right away.

It seemed that my team was thinking the same as they charged towards the retreating enemies.

Don’t stop. Keep charging.

I kicked off from the ground and swung my Nodachi.

However, this was no ordinary ground.

The battlefield had turned into a slippery mud pit.

As I unleashed my powerful kick, my leg slipped slightly, altering the trajectory of my Nodachi.

Clang!

The mighty swing successfully parried the sword of a Knight User who was beginning to retreat.

Thus, the torso of the enemy was exposed.

The Snow Mage didn’t miss that gap.

“Hyah!”

A lively shout erupted, slicing through the cascade of rain.

The Halberd in her hand swung with such force that it seemed to cut through space itself.

Whoosh!

Boom!

An outrageous power was packed into her strike.

The upper body of the enemy Knight User was sent flying and crashed into the mud.

This was a far better start than I expected.

I stood still and swung my Nodachi down toward the ground.

As long as the enemies didn’t remove their helmets, I would keep throwing mud at them.

Slash!

Just like before, I waited for the moment the blade of my Nodachi touched the earth, flicking my wrist.

The bizarre movement transferred to the tip, and heavy mud flew toward the enemies.

Thud-thud-thud-!

It looked like I was washing away the clumps sticking to them with rainwater, but I kept dousing them in more mud.

Eventually, they’d have no choice but to take off their helmets.

They wouldn’t be able to wipe off the mud that slipped into the tiny gaps of their helmets.

“Ugh!”

Unable to endure the frustration, the enemies hurled off their helmets.

They were a combination of three Knights and two Butchers.

If they had removed their helmets, it meant that I had a chance to attack too.

I charged straight ahead.

While running, I swung my Nodachi.

My feet struck the ground strongly, but that didn’t prevent me from slipping.

My body position slightly skewed, and the trajectory of my sword flew higher than expected.

Whoosh!

The long-reaching strike—

That attack cut through the rain as it flew, drawing a reaction from Wild.

Clang!

With all my might, I swung the Nodachi, but it was blocked by Wild’s sword.

He continued his assault before I could retrieve my Nodachi.

His leg stomped the ground hard.

Thud!

What kind of power was behind that?

The ground he stepped on caved deeply, with his leg sinking up to his ankle.

Wild was solidly immobilized.

Meaning, a big powerful attack was about to come.

As I had predicted, Wild spun dramatically at the waist and swung his Long Sword down heavily.

With a rough sound, space itself seemed to split as the rain scattered, launching a tremendous strike.

It was an attack I absolutely couldn’t stop with my current state.

I had no choice but to evade.

Instantaneously recognizing the opponent’s strike, I sprang from the ground.

Though it was slippery mud, I managed to barely slip past the attack range.

At least, that’s what I thought.

But the following strike managed to graze my arm.

Slash!

I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder as warm blood gushed out.

There was no way that should have hit. It shouldn’t have hit.

But it did.

The moment I used Acceleration and recognized Wild’s figure.

I saw it—the Long Sword he was holding.

The attack had likely started with two hands.

Yet now he was holding it with only one.

That too, by the end of the sword’s hilt.

With his upper body leaning forward and holding the sword with one hand.

A sword swung with one hand can cover a longer range than with both.

As soon as Wild registered that I was fleeing, he switched from holding the sword with both hands to one.

His judgment was quick, and he acted without hesitation.

He was extremely sharp. I could feel cold sweat trickling down my back.

Perhaps it was actually flowing.

I felt the rain falling down and let out a calm breath.

This wasn’t easy.

It was overwhelming.

It felt impossible to win.

It was reminiscent of the frustration faced when confronting a challenging raid boss.

But that was okay. It was actually better.

The thrill of taking down a raid boss that seemed insurmountable was immense.

This wouldn’t be any different.

I licked my lips and glared at Wild.

His gaze wasn’t on me.

But on his surroundings.

He was moving protectively around his teammates.

I didn’t like that gaze.

I wanted his eyes to focus solely on me.

A one-on-one duel.

Let’s make it happen.

Bisu said it wouldn’t work.

That the provocation wouldn’t succeed.

But was that really so?

I took a step forward and opened my mouth.

“Wild.”

Had my tone been too friendly?

Wild, swinging his sword, looked at me with a puzzled expression.

“Your skills are still as good as ever.”

“…What?”

A strange silence fell.

Wild’s eyebrows twitched.

“What do you mean…”

“Aren’t you scared?”

“So what…”

“Afraid of losing like last time.”

He must remember.

That day he was completely demolished by a small girl much smaller than him.

Bringing up an unbearable truth had quite the provoking effect.

Isn’t there a law against defamation that involves revealing uncomfortable truths?

People have memories they want to forget.

Wild’s gaze trembled.

His lips began to quiver.

The tip of the sword in his hand slowly turned toward me.

Wild hadn’t grown.

He just appeared to have grown stronger.

He was merely a young man in his early twenties living in South Korea.

“You still suck at this game.”

“This crazy girl…”

“Not going to call me ‘sister’ like last time?”

The provocation was successful.

Ignoring his teammates, Wild began to stride toward me aggressively.