< 151. Malerun of the Thousand Spire (3) >
*
The thick sea fog and heat made it impossible for soldiers to set foot on the city walls. When Abel’s breath poured out, the entire reserve force preparing for battle on the fortress had evaporated. Even the navigators, and even the Wild Princes, dared not climb the walls.
“Fools! The enemy’s ships are right before us, and not a single warrior stands guard on the watchtower!”
“Hah, but sir. Th-there’s a dragon!”
“Our ancestors would weep. Back in their day, even dragons were common! Our ancestors commanded the world even then!”
If you’re so confident, why don’t you go up there yourself? The navigators frowned as they watched the Wild Prince shouting at the top of his lungs. Then, a strange sound echoed from the silent walls.
-Swish. Thud.
It was the sound of chains clinking against the Sacred Vessel. The elf’s keen ears soon picked up movement. The Wild Prince placed his hand on the sword hilt and narrowed his eyes, glaring through the fog.
“They’ve boarded. Prepare for battle!”
“Mages, what are the mages doing? How much of the ship’s defensive barrier is left?”
“90% complete!”
Hearing the mages’ shouts, the Wild Prince smirked. If they could repel the rabble attempting to board now, the enemy without a capital ship stood no chance.
-Whistle.
Before the sound of the horn could be heard, the Wild Prince couldn’t stop laughing. That’s why he met his death with a smile on his face. A dagger was lodged right in the center of his forehead, wobbling slightly.
“W-what the!”
“All hands, prepare for battle!!”
With a sharp cry, the navigators shouted in unison. The mages hastily summoned wind to push away the sea fog. As the rough wind blew and the thick fog momentarily cleared, a pair of a man and a woman could be seen walking through.
*
Throwing a dagger was a skill honed to near instinct. But Fernandez frowned as he felt the sting in his shoulder muscles. It was too rough a movement for someone with the strength of an ordinary person.
‘This isn’t getting any easier.’
-Haha, feeling like you’re back in the old days?
“Yeah. It feels just like the old days.”
Fernandez laughed and walked alongside Faijashi. Countless enemies glared at him, holding spears and swords. The magical energy flowing through the entire ship had thickened to the point where its flow was now visible to the naked eye.
Countless soldiers, powerful mages, threatening adversaries… It felt like he was back in those old days. Even the tired and weakened body. The only differences were that the glorious magic of the past was no longer with him, and…
The undefeated hero was by his side.
“Drop your weapons and surrender, strangers! Your allies will not arrive!”
It’s always been like this. Fernandez smirked and took another step forward. The enemies rattled their swords as if in warning. Yet, not a single soldier drew their blade. It meant they all had trained in elven swordsmanship.
Fernandez whispered as he continued walking.
“I’ll start conserving my strength now. Kirhas. I leave the blades that touch me to you.”
“I shall be Your Excellency’s shield.”
Fernandez ran as he heard those words. The elves’ swords were quickly drawn and flew at him like arrows. And at the same time—
-Clang!
Five blades were severed mid-air. Kirhas ran alongside him, continuously swinging her arms. Deflecting swords, breaking spears, ensuring not a single attack reached Fernandez.
-Clang! Crack!
Deflecting blades, breaking spears, cutting through enemy arms, kicking stomachs, quickly shifting positions, and swinging her sword three more times. All Kirhas needed was a mere ten seconds.
‘The shield of the Great Wilderness. Truly living up to the name.’
-The more amazing thing is, this isn’t even the end.
It had only been a few months since the soul of the undefeated Kirhas had merged with her. In that short time, her growth had been astonishing. Every time Kirhas’ eyes gleamed, the enemies crumbled, opening a path.
Blood and flesh spilled everywhere. Kirhas was literally carving a path through the elves. Her wrists ached, and her body burned from the intense movements.
But in her eyes, she saw a blue path. A path to victory. What she once thought was simply an instinctive sense of ‘a path leading to Fernandez’ had evolved into a trajectory leading to victory as she led the Federation of Nobles in the Great Wilderness.
Which way to draw, which direction to swing for the best outcome. What movements to make, how to evade enemy attacks to stay safe. Her innate talent, instinctive senses, and the experiences accumulated in her soul now revealed the optimal solution.
On the battlefield, and in combat. Kirhas didn’t possess the qualities of a commander. But she had the talent to become humanity’s greatest field commander. Now, she could see the flow within the chaos of battle.
-Clang!
This was the result. Twisting the blade to deflect, striking the throat of another soldier who had come within reach, spinning halfway to…
The spear blade approaching Death was deflected in a single motion.
“She’s not human… That, that woman is not human!”
The soldiers screamed. They were now feeling a vague sense of unease they had never experienced before, even while hunting gods. They wondered if all this would someday come back to haunt them.
-Clang!
Broken blades mixed with drops of blood poured down like rain, and a storm of blades slashed in all directions, forcibly opening a path to the battlefield. Fernandez could now see the gate leading from the deck into the ship’s interior.
‘Impressive.’
He hadn’t even drawn his sword once to get here. Fernandez briefly admired Kirhas, who was panting and running around frantically. The talent of a hero.
It was entirely possible to break through and incapacitate the densely packed soldiers with magic. In fact, it would have been easier. But to do such a thing with mere flesh and blood was closer to a miracle than magic.
The blessings of the gods, the fruits of effort, sheer luck, or the pinnacle of a species that had evolved over thousands of years. What should it be called?
Moreover, what should we call an era where even someone like her cannot confidently claim to be the ‘strongest’ in this material world?
Fernandez laughed as he walked through the narrow path littered with blood, flesh, and entrails. No more elf soldiers were coming at them. All the soldiers were pale, hesitating, and retreating.
Beside him, he could hear Kirhas’s ragged breathing. Her eyes were fiercely gleaming. Like the eyes of a beast, shining alone in the dark winter night.
‘I’d like to call it twilight.’
Such an outstanding, such a powerful hero. A shining hero so rare that only one might be born in a generation. An era where such heroes run rampant, and formidable enemies block their paths.
The pinnacle of what a civilized society has built. Never before has there been an era with so many talents, so many heroes. Therefore, Fernandez considered this era to be twilight.
Like the most intense and beautiful sunset. Fernandez glanced at the faint moon in the distant sky and walked into the ship’s interior.
‘At the end of twilight, night will come.’
The end of an era is approaching. The seeds of destruction he had thwarted were only a part of it. The true enemy, a great evil, still lurked behind this world.
But there is still time before our demise, and I believe it will not come tomorrow. Fernandez opened the door leading to the ship’s interior.
*
-Clunk.
Dozens of sounds intertwined with each step. The walls were adorned with intricate carvings, and the magical lamps reflected off colorful glass beads, creating a dreamlike atmosphere in the grand hall.
Fernandez stepped on the solid stone bricks as he advanced. His boots made a heavy sound as they hit the floor. With each step, Kirhas’s footsteps mixed in. And other sounds. The footsteps of the elf soldiers following slowly about ten meters behind him.
-They’re waiting for an ambush.
‘It’s useless.’
They should have done it earlier. When Kirhas was tired enough to slow down. But by slowing their pace, they gave Kirhas time to recover.
Fernandez thought this as he glanced at the ceiling. Assassins were hiding among the stone walls, chandeliers, and intricate beams, watching him.
-Clunk.
Are they hoping we take a wrong turn? Or is there some other trap ahead? Fernandez’s keen senses didn’t pick up anything like that. Moreover, he was reading the ship’s magical energy and heading straight for its core without hesitation.
The elves were panicking. A warrior who had slaughtered dozens in an instant and carved a path with blood, and the strange man commanding him. They were heading straight for the audience hall as if they owned the place.
Malerun’s flagship was nicknamed the Ninefold Palace. A complex terrain with countless doors and passages intertwined like a spider’s web. Yet Fernandez and Kirhas never once got lost, heading straight for the audience hall.
-Clunk.
How long had they walked? Fernandez stopped and looked ahead. A grand door with a relief of a massive tree with nine branches stood before him. The door was inscribed with ancient elven blessings and legends.
As he stopped, the soldiers and assassins following him also halted. Fernandez slowly lowered his gaze to the two giants standing in front of the door, holding spears. Two massive elves clad in brilliantly shining armor.
“No further approach is allowed, outsiders.”
“Those who came before you couldn’t ask twice.”
“This time will be different.”
-Swish.
The two elves almost simultaneously lowered their stance and sheathed their swords with a flourish. The blades slid into their scabbards, and their index fingers rested on the hilts.
A perfect elven swordsmanship stance. They looked at Fernandez with half-open eyes and said,
“Personally, I was curious. Your clan’s soldiers, and even the so-called Wild Prince. They were all of such poor quality.”
Fernandez took a step forward and spoke. He had already seen their blades when they drew them. He stopped just outside the range of the elven swordsmen.
“Malerun of the Thousand-Spire Tower. The great ancient mage’s private soldiers and the mages he personally trained. They were too weak, as if he had intentionally crippled his own limbs.”
Fernandez narrowed his eyes and glared at the tightly closed doors of the audience hall.
“What are you scheming, Malerun?”
With those words, the doors opened.
*
![[TS] Obsessed Gamer: The Ultimate Return](https://i3.wp.com/novelhitam.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/TS-Obsessed-Gamer-The-Ultimate-Return2.png?resize=85,105 "[TS] Obsessed Gamer: The Ultimate Return")
