The expressions of the people who’d been laughing and joking just a moment ago hardened like it was all a lie. In unison, they raised their weapons and began closing in, surrounding the two of us.

Gu Hyeonwoo glanced around at the sight, clicked his tongue softly, and muttered.

“Figures that fat bastard wasn’t here. If he heard I made a fortune, he’s the kind of guy who would’ve come running faster than anyone......”

I flicked my eyes toward Gu Hyeonwoo, whose face was growing paler by the second, and asked,

“Can you fight? If it’s too much, you can just lie down.”

“I want to tell you to quit screwing around, but...... I won’t be able to perform like I usually do.”

Gu Hyeonwoo slowly bent down, picked up the dagger Park Gwangtae had dropped, and gripped it in his left hand.

“Still, I won’t be dead weight.”

The man who looked like he could collapse from exhaustion at any second changed in an instant the moment he held a blade—turning into a swordsman with a razor-edged presence, like nothing about it was a lie.

“......”

Just as the tension between both sides peaked, a middle-aged man stepped forward, slowly, from among the ones radiating killing intent.

“You’re sharp. Then again, you’ve got something extraordinary about you—otherwise you wouldn’t be able to stay sane while holding that cursed sword.”

Tall and heavily built, the middle-aged man carried a dense, powerful internal energy. Feeling how far from ordinary he was, I took a step forward and asked,

“Are you the Tamra Alliance alliance leader?”

The moment I spoke the title like I was calling out some neighborhood punk, his eyes began to spill thick killing intent.

“A little brat gets a bit of talent and turns arrogant. Were you never taught manners by your parents?”

“They taught me it’s being a sucker to show manners to people trying to kill me.”

“I wasn’t planning to kill you. I told them to only suppress you so you couldn’t resist.”

The man glanced once at Park Gwangtae’s corpse on the ground, then clicked his tongue.

“A money-grubbing idiot. Useless.”

“You were going to kill him to shut him up anyway, weren’t you?”

At my words, the middle-aged man gave a short, amused snort and drew the greatsword strapped to his back.

“It’s obvious you keep talking to stall for time. Are you waiting for reinforcements?”

“.......”

When I didn’t answer, he continued, smiling cruelly.

“The rats who broke in to help you are all dead. I handled them myself.”

Gu Hyeonwoo flinched and looked at me.

On the way out of the cave, I’d told him there were allies outside.

In that moment, my voice turned icy.

“......You killed my brothers?”

They screamed and begged me to spare them. I showed mercy and killed them cleanly in a single stroke.”

As he grinned like he was provoking me, I pulled one corner of my mouth up, crookedly.

“Then I guess you didn’t meet them. If you had, you’d at least know they aren’t my brothers.”

“.......”

The middle-aged man went blank for a heartbeat, then scoffed and lifted his greatsword, aiming it at me.

“I’ll catch you and kill you soon enough. It’s only a question of time—whether you die first, or they die first!”

“Aren’t you afraid of the aftermath after pulling something like this? Like you can see, I’m a martial artist from out of town. Even now, if you go to the Martial Alliance branch and confess your crimes honestly, there’s room for leniency.”

Despite the words sounding like negotiation, I stepped forward again, releasing fighting spirit.

“And you aren’t even the Tamra Alliance alliance leader, are you? More like a right-hand man.”

I raised my voice, sweeping my gaze across the people surrounding us.

“You’re the same! Why are you loyal to an alliance leader who hides somewhere and drives only his subordinates into a dead end? Can you really be sure you won’t be silenced later?”

I did what the middle-aged man had been trying to do to me—only better.

Shaking the other side’s mind with words.

The eyes of the martial artists forming the encirclement wavered, just slightly, but I could see it.

“Shut up! You think we’ll dance to your cunning tongue?!”

As the situation started to tilt in a strange direction, the middle-aged man’s expression twisted and he barked an order at his men.

“Cut off the host’s arm and suppress him, and retrieve the cursed sword! If he resists, cut off all his limbs. As long as he’s breathing when you bring him back, that’s enough.”

At the order, the encirclement tightened faster.

These weren’t random thugs—at a glance, they were refined martial artists, their internal energy trained cleanly.

I lightly ran my left hand along Phantom Dream’s blade, then took a sword-ready stance.

“I was going to make this easy...... but it ends up like this anyway.”

Should I do it for you?

Phantom Dream’s aura squirmed in my grip, like it wanted to fight directly. I clenched the hilt hard and warned it.

“Not a chance. Just lend me your energy.”

Ssssssh......

A red aura spread from Phantom Dream, running up through my palm and flowing through my entire body. In my emptied lower abdomen, a faint ember sparked to life.

Take out the leader first—fast as possible.

I didn’t hesitate. I’d been narrowing the distance little by little for this exact moment.

KRAAANG—!

I kicked off like I was going to shatter the ground and burst forward in a single dash.

The enemies jerked in shock, raising weapons to stop me, but my movement far outstripped their reaction speed.

SHAAAAK—

Thin red lines sliced across two throats. As their heads lifted into the air with stunned expressions, my body was already past them.

“He still has strength......?”

They hadn’t expected I’d have anything left, not when I’d looked ready to collapse. I could feel their panic.

I rushed the middle-aged man with a chilling smile.

“If you want to take my sword, you’ll have to stake your life.”

“Arrogant bastard—!”

Phantom Dream crashed into the man’s greatsword.

KRAAANG—!

A shockwave burst out, blasting us apart in opposite directions.

Blood surged up my throat and I spat it out—while the middle-aged man only stiffened his expression for a moment, without losing his composure.

The difference in advantage was obvious.

But instead of risking a one-on-one against a wounded beast, he chose to hunt safely.

“Everyone—hit him!”

“Tsk. Coward. Cut off your balls and come at me.”

Even my crude taunt didn’t matter.

His subordinates poured into the space he’d stepped back from, lunging in from both sides.

KRA-KA-KANG!

I used my biggest advantage to the limit.

Every time an enemy weapon met Phantom Dream, it cracked—or snapped. Anyone who hadn’t reached the level of blade aura couldn’t even bear the impact of colliding with it.

This gear really is unfair.

After punching a hole through one enemy’s chest as he stared at his broken blade in disbelief, I twisted away without even taking a breath, dodging an attack that grazed my cheek.

Then I swung again, splitting his chest open along with his weapon.

FWOOOOSH!

Drenched in blood spraying like a fountain, I must’ve looked like a demon crawling up from hell.

“Crazy...... Just wear him down! Don’t force a head-on fight!”

The middle-aged man stared at the crack in his own greatsword and never met me straight on again.

He deflected my attacks, creating gaps for his men to strike.

“He’s just going berserk for a moment with the cursed sword’s aura! Time is on our side!”

He was cunning.

And his judgment—against me—was close to correct.

“Huff, huff.......”

Even the body I’d already thought was at its worst kept stacking fresh wounds, one by one.

When I glanced back, Gu Hyeonwoo was fighting too, dagger in his left hand.

Our eyes met, and he shouted,

“I can protect myself, so stop worrying about me and fight!”

“......Stay alive. If you get taken hostage, I’m not saving you.”

The words were curt, but I fought even more brutally so the enemies couldn’t spare attention for him.

CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!

With Phantom Dream’s red aura flooding through me—and with blood soaking me—I fought and fought again, mindlessly.

Like a wolf baring all its teeth before tearing into prey, I swung my sword like a madman, as if I’d shred anyone in my way.

“Heh-heh-heh—.”

I was drenched in blood in no time, but I let out a laugh.

It wasn’t to frighten them.

Right now, I was genuinely feeling a sharp, electrifying exhilaration.

I think I’m starting to understand.

Taking Phantom Dream’s aura in, all the way up to my body’s limit.

That thrilling sensation of syncing my breathing with a sacred weapon ran up my spine.

Phantom Dream was just as excited by the desperate fight.

This is insane! Fight more! More! Kill them all!

So you’re a born fighter too.

This was Phantom Dream’s first experience fighting together with someone.

Up until now, humans had only swung it around one-sidedly—or been devoured by it. It was enjoying how I was actually using its aura properly and dragging out something beyond that. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

The sword’s joy poured into me completely.

Just like when I first held a sword.......

I couldn’t keep this swelling emotion inside—I let it out.

“This is fun!”

It had been a long time since swinging a sword felt this purely enjoyable.

So I surrendered my body to that joy and swung like a madman, forgetting even pain and fatigue.

But as I repeated slashing and stabbing, my physical limit started to show, little by little.

“...What? Why aren’t you coming at me?”

The middle-aged man lowered his greatsword and stared at me like he was looking at a ghost.

“You lunatic. If I had a mirror, I’d show you. Do you think you still look like a living human?”

“...?”

I tried to charge him again, but my legs buckled and I dropped to one knee.

THUD.

A body that had gone far, far past its limit.

I’d barely avoided collapsing completely, but fighting any longer was impossible.

“It’s not... over yet......”

As I tried to push up again, bracing on my sword, the middle-aged man approached carefully and sneered.

“I’ll pay respect to your martial prowess. Though other than a few here, no one will remember it.”

“......”

He lifted his greatsword, about to bring it down on my arm—

—and I, still staring blankly up at the sky, suddenly laughed like I’d lost my mind.

“Hahahahahaha!”

It wasn’t hollow laughter from giving up or despairing in a life-or-death moment.

It was laughter bursting out because I was genuinely glad.

KRA-KRA-KRA-KRA!

Something thundered across the sky toward us, roaring loud enough to shake the air.

Everyone’s gaze snapped in the same direction.

Staring at the shape rushing closer in an instant, someone murmured dully,

“A helicopter?”

And then a voice boomed out, loud enough to cut through the helicopter’s roar.

“You crazy bastard—!”

A human body leapt out from a height well over ten meters, as if fear didn’t exist.

KRAAANG—!

A dust cloud exploded up like a shell impact, and from the center of it, Shin Kangheon rubbed at his knee, groaning.

“Ugh! My knee hurts......”

“Idiot. If you were fine after that, that would be the weird part.”

Meanwhile, Kim Bokja stepped down lightly onto the ground atop an anomaly. She took one look at the state I was in and shook her head.

“I knew it. I’m telling that man and woman everything when we get back.”

“Hey. Not that, at least......”

Seeing me flustered, Kim Bokja snorted.

And it wasn’t just the two of them.

Whoosh!

A woman landed with light footwork, glaring at me as she complained.

“A dawn flight, Jeju, and then a helicopter the moment we arrive....... It’s only because it’s domestic and the private jet could take off right away—do you know how much I went through to get here fast?”

“Thanks for coming, senior.”

“If you know, that’s enough. Still... it doesn’t look like we’re too late.”

She smiled wide, in a good mood.

It was Bu Yeonha of AZURE SKY SWORD GATE.

The middle-aged man looked shaken at the sudden appearance of my unexpected allies—but he quickly pressed his greatsword to my throat and barked,

“Don’t come closer! If you take another step, I’ll kill this bastard—!”

“Heh-heh. There’s one more here.”

“......!”

The middle-aged man felt chills ripple over his entire body at the voice coming from behind him.

He hadn’t sensed a thing until that moment.

“Put down the dangerous item for a moment.”

A terrifying internal energy—pushing the greatsword aside with a single finger.

The moment he slowly turned his head and confirmed who it was, his eyes widened in shock.

Because it was someone no martial artist in Korea could possibly not recognize.

“A-Azure Sky Sword Elder...... Why are you here?”

The sect leader of one of the Eight Great Sects—who had flown to Jeju Island on a private jet—Na Ilcheon, the Azure Sky Sword Elder, smiled gently.

“I came to Jeju Island to travel with my granddaughter. I’ve been in self-reflection lately, so I’ve been quite free.”

It was a silly joke—one that drained everyone’s will to fight.