Chapter 151 – Nuia (４)

Gijun cast Fireball toward the approaching direction, illuminating the path ahead.

“Those bastards must be his men.”

“Seems that way.”

Klaim and Amalta spoke as they watched the three Nuia closing in.

“Is that right?”

Gijun asked the Nuia youth.

He’d already guessed they were Bodge’s underlings, but he needed confirmation.

Striking recklessly only to find out they weren’t Bodge’s men would be a disaster.

“…Yes, that’s correct.”

“Understood.”

Gijun confirmed that the three approaching figures were indeed the enemies they needed to take down.

“What’s the plan?”

He asked the other two.

Three on three — it was perfect symmetry.

Each of them could take one down.

“I’ll take the one in the middle.”

Amalta pointed at the Nuia approaching in the center.

“Doesn’t he look the toughest?”

That was Amalta’s reason for choosing the middle Nuia.

Even at a glance, it was obvious.

He was the largest, carrying a massive axe in one hand.

He wasn’t even wearing armor.

His torso was completely bare, his lower body only covered by leather trousers.

“Those muscles, ready to burst — they stoke my fighting spirit.”

Amalta licked his lips as he spoke.

“Then I’ll take that one.”

Klaim pointed to the Nuia on the far left.

“That one seems like a good match for me.”

He was right.

The leftmost Nuia was clad in thick armor.

He was equipped most like Klaim, a Holy Knight.

Though his weapon was a massive greatsword, not a sword-and-shield combo.

‘Then my opponent is that one.’

Gijun looked at the remaining Nuia.

The one on the far right.

At first glance, there was nothing particularly remarkable about him.

A set of light armor of moderate thickness, and two daggers of appropriate size.

His physique, too, seemed the most ordinary of the bunch.

“Alright, let’s begin, shall we?”

With Gijun’s words,

“Fine.”

“Yes.”

the two answered, and the three of them started moving toward the approaching Nuia.

*

Hak, Polka, and Dos.

The three Nuia under Bodge’s command.

And they were warriors clearly favored by Bodge.

‘That’s the one.’

Hak, standing in the middle, watched the three approaching from the front.

Among them, his gaze locked onto the man who looked the most diminutive.

‘That must be the one they call the Seeker.’

What confirmed it for him was the ball of flame flickering atop the smallest man’s hand.

‘Light.’

Light radiated from that flame.

It wasn’t the light of ordinary fire.

It was light literally imbued with a sacred aura.

‘…A fierce light.’

A light so beautiful it could mesmerize even him.

If that man weren’t his enemy, he might have run straight to the mage and sworn his allegiance.

‘And he’s the most troublesome one for us to deal with.’

They were weak to light.

Especially to light as intense as that.

Of course, warriors were different from ordinary Nuia.

Their innate bodies were different, their talents were different.

No matter how unfamiliar the environment, they possessed the ability to adapt and overcome it quickly.

‘Still, I was told to be careful.’

That’s what the Lord’s underlings had relayed.

Saying that if he ever encountered the Seeker, he must be cautious.

‘I argued it didn’t matter, time and again…’

Of course, they’d pushed back without laying down their warrior pride.

Claiming there was no reason to bow to something like light.

Saying they weren’t Nuia so weak as to yield to something so trivial.

But in this moment, it was unmistakably clear.

That light was dangerous.

Especially for them, who had lived their whole lives in darkness — that light held a power that could weaken their combat ability several times over.

‘But there’s no problem.’

A strange smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

‘Because Bodge has already finished all the preparations.’

It was true.

They had completed their preparations for facing the Seeker.

If you know, you prepare.

Bodge was a thorough and, at the same time, ruthless man.

He had raised warriors specifically to counter the Seeker.

“Dos.”

“Yes.”

“He’s yours to handle.”

“Understood.”

Dos.

The warrior with the smallest stature among the three, a relatively slight build.

He was the trump card for dealing with the Seeker.

Then he began to move.

Toward the place where the light was felt.

*

‘…As I thought.’

Gijun swallowed hard.

A single Nuia was approaching him now.

And the moment he faced that Nuia, Gijun had to feel a strange sensation.

‘He’s covering his eyes.’

He meant it literally.

The Nuia approaching Gijun now had its eyes covered.

And then—

“Your light is useless to me.”

The Nuia said.

“I plucked out my own eyes to bring you down.”

“…!”

Gijun flinched.

‘No way….’

Hadon’s words surfaced in his mind.

Bodge would stop at nothing to win—any means, any method.

He’d throw his own subordinates under the wagon without a second thought.

‘So he gouged out his man’s eyes just to face me?’

A chill crept over him.

What struck him harder was that the bastard’s voice carried not a shred of regret or hesitation.

“I feel no fear.”

The bastard said then.

“I serve my lord with all my loyalty. Whatever the order. That alone is my joy.”

“….”

Gijun’s guess seemed right on the mark.

This creature had forfeited its own sight to take Gijun down, and now stood before him.

‘Chilling. Terrifying obsession.’

Gijun thought so.

Then he steeled his mind again.

He’d assumed victory was certain.

Easy.

He’d been that confident in his own skill.

But maybe not.

Skill gap aside—obsession like that made the bastard a foe you couldn’t write off.

‘Good.’

And Gijun thought.

If anything, it had sharpened his alertness toward the enemy.

His inner smugness had settled a bit.

‘Let’s do this properly.’

This fight would be a yardstick—however rough—for the combat power of Bodge, who he’d face later on.

‘Two daggers, huh.’

Gijun began guessing the bastard’s fighting style.

‘Probably a speed-type.’

The weapon you used was tied directly to how you fought.

So it made sense that this two-dagger wielder favored speed over heavy-hitting power.

“COME OOOOON!”

Around then.

The fight had already started off to the side.

Amalta had begun, and so had Klaim.

Only Gijun and the Nuia in front of him were still sizing each other up.

Which meant the bastard was just as cautious as Gijun, if not more.

And because of that, he wasn’t giving an inch of ground.

Even though he couldn’t see in front of him, every time Gijun shifted his body, the bastard reacted instantly, ready to counter at any moment.

‘I can’t even guess how he trained for this.’

No.

There’s no way training alone could do this.

This Nuia must have been born with that talent.

Bodge must have spotted that talent and taken his sight on purpose.

‘He has no intention of charging in first.’

The bastard just kept his guard up against Gijun, never making the first move.

Because deep down, he recognized Gijun as the stronger one.

“If I make the first move, I’ll inevitably expose an opening.”

So when the weaker faces the stronger, isn’t it far surer to parry the enemy’s strike before countering?

‘Then there’s no helping it.’

Gijun decided he’d be the one to strike first.

Shiiing!

Gijun drew the Sain-geom.

In the same breath, a crimson aura surged over the blade, completing the Blaze Sword.

Then he pushed off the ground.

In a flash, his body launched into the air, flying straight at Nuia.

Sweeek!

Gijun’s sword moved.

At that instant, Nuia reacted to his motion.

Flash!

His own blade split the air.

Clang!

The moment it met Gijun’s sword, sparks flew.

Nuia had blocked Gijun’s attack.

And in the same beat, his counterattack came crashing in.

“!!”

Gijun’s eyes went wide.

It was a razor-sharp, lightning-fast riposte.

Thud!

Gijun hastily threw himself backward.

The instant he retreated, it was Nuia who surged forward, closing the gap.

‘Still, I can see it.’

The creature was fast—undeniable—and his daggers were keen, but the speed wasn’t beyond Gijun’s sight.

Of course, Gijun’s swordsmanship was far from polished.

No—he was practically ignorant of swordsmanship in any real sense.

Naturally.

He was a mage; at the Academy, he’d never received a single lesson in the blade.

But if he could see the blow coming, countering wasn’t that hard.

Gijun raised his sword, aiming to deflect the creature’s strike.

Yet—

Shwoosh!

“…!”

Gijun’s eyes shot wide open.

Because Nuia’s dagger twisted mid-strike, like a living snake.

And then—

Sluice!

“…Khk!”

The creature’s dagger grazed past Gijun’s collar.

Gijun recoiled, putting distance between them once more.

The creature pursued, lunging at him again.

Once more, the creature’s dagger arced toward Gijun.

Two daggers streaked in from both sides simultaneously, converging on him.

Gijun lifted his sword, attempting to block the assault again.

But it was the same story.

He’d read the creature’s attack—he was certain of it—and responded accordingly, yet the dagger still twisted as if it had a life of its own, veering toward him.

‘…Ghk!’

Gijun twisted his body urgently, moving his sword in the same motion.

Slash!

He somehow managed to deflect the blow.

But this time, the creature’s daggers carved across his forearm and thigh.

“Khk…”

A groan slipped from Gijun’s lips.

‘What the hell is going on?’

Gijun couldn’t make sense of any of it.

He’d seen the attack with his own two eyes, reacted perfectly, dodged—and still.

He couldn’t fathom how the creature had landed a hit on him.

‘There’s no way I was wrong.’

Gijun didn’t doubt his own eyes.

Hadn’t his reflexes and visual acuity been proven time and again?

It was Gijun who’d evaded impossible attacks and dismantled every gimmick — in Level 9 Dungeons, even in the Celestial Castle Raid!

“There’s something I’m missing.”

He was certain of it.

Something lurked in that creature’s attacks — something Gijun hadn’t yet grasped.

“No choice, then.”

And so Gijun prepared to use magic again.

Practicing swordsmanship here, of all places, was a wildly inefficient choice.

He could train anywhere, anytime, if that was what he wanted.

“Finishing this fight as fast as possible — that’s what matters now.”

The instant the thought crossed his mind —

Ding!

A notification chimed at his ear.

And a window surfaced before his eyes.

[A Sudden Quest has been triggered!]

The moment he read the quest details, a bitter laugh escaped him.

[Illusion Sword Break!]

– Evade the Nuia warrior’s Illusion Sword 100 times

– Completion condition: No magic allowed

– Penalty: Quest fails on first hit

– Reward: Nuia Illusion Sword Technique (Legendary)