Chapter 213 – A New Landscape (2)

Korea Monster.

He had heard the news—that an incredible monster of a hunter had emerged from Korea.

It wasn’t just Danny; countless global hunters had seen the dragon hunt video.

If that battle footage was truly unedited, with no element of chance, then they were literally witnessing the birth of a legend.

Ian Kruger.

That was what Danny McGuire had felt when he first saw him.

Something that transcended humanity itself.

The most perfectly crafted superhuman stood there.

Danny had a premonition.

He knew he could never surpass that monster.

Ivan Sergey.

The Russian Bear was a monster of the same caliber as Ian.

‘I don’t feel it.’

Danny looked at Hyunbin.

His muscular build was solid, reminiscent of the Russian Bear.

But well-trained muscles didn’t necessarily equate to strength.

After all, in a street fight, a martial artist would overwhelm a gym rat.

“You can go all out here. No one can see from the outside.”

“So it seems.”

Danny left the cafe and headed for the Hanul Guild—or more precisely, to Hyunbin’s private training ground, which had been built nearby.

‘What in the world are these marks?’

The place was so thoroughly wrecked it was almost embarrassing to call it a training ground.

The deep gouges in the floor were, without a doubt, the marks of a sword.

‘What kind of skill could possibly do that?’

Danny never imagined it could be the result of Hyunbin’s normal attacks.

“You probably don’t need a referee, but I’ll be one. Dan, it’s easier if you just give up. Remember that.”

“I suppose I need to see for myself why our bald friend fell head over heels for you.”

Danny didn’t understand.

What had made his friend believe so blindly?

He felt it was his duty to shatter his friend’s illusion.

“Korea Monster. Shall we begin?”

“Anytime.”

He was completely unfazed, even as he faced the 10th-ranked global hunter.

‘Confidence is good, but this is excessive.’

Danny decided he needed to correct him a little.

He walked slowly toward Hyunbin.

“I’ve seen enough of your hand-to-hand combat skills. This time, I’ll test your weapon techniques.”

“Go ahead.”

Danny pulled a gladius from his inventory.

It looked like a simple short sword, but that changed in Danny’s hands.

He switched to a reverse grip and attacked Hyunbin.

*Fwip!*

Hyunbin blocked Danny’s wrist.

‘Good reflexes.’

As expected, his athletic ability was second to none.

He moved like he was gliding, aiming for Hyunbin’s neck.

He had an HP shield, so a single blow wouldn’t be fatal. This was his chance to treat it like a real fight and teach him a lesson.

*Clang!*

But his attack was blocked again.

Kali Arnis.

The martial art, made famous by a certain movie, aimed for Hyunbin again with speed and precision. But each time, it was met with a parry.

‘What is this?’

Danny confirmed that Hyunbin was seeing and dodging every move.

*Thwack!*

A one-two jab flew like lightning.

Startled, Danny dodged backward. But he had already seen his HP shield ripple and distort.

‘I dodged, but it still hit me?’

He felt a stinging sensation through the shield. It was rather bewildering.

‘Time to get serious.’

The Korea Monster was clearly no ordinary foe. Danny stepped in quickly and hooked.

It was a speed that most people wouldn’t have been able to react to.

*Thwip!*

“!”

Danny’s arm was caught by Hyunbin.

*Smack!*

He immediately felt his vision flip.

After a half-spin in the air, Danny planted his hands on the ground and retreated.

“…!”

Danny realized why he had spun a half-circle in the air.

He must have been hit by Hyunbin’s low kick. His leg was tingling.

‘A low kick sent me flying?’

And it didn’t even look like he’d used a skill.

-I risked my life just to land a single hit.

Only then did Danny realize Henri hadn’t been exaggerating.

“Can I use my skills?”

“By all means.”

As soon as he got permission, Danny drew a pattern in the air.

This was no time to worry about his pride as a ranker.

He was a monster, but a different kind from Ian or Ivan. He was only just now starting to feel it.

“Focus Weapon.”

He poured a massive amount of mana into his gladius.

The crimson-glowing gladius began to hum slowly.

*Swoosh!*

Danny vanished.

No, he had used quick footwork to instantly close the distance and get inside Hyunbin’s guard.

“Deadly Blow.”

The pre-drawn pattern materialized in the air, and the skill’s effect erupted.

Normally, he wouldn’t use an attack like this. It was, quite literally, an attack meant to kill.

But against Hyunbin, it felt acceptable.

No, he would be able to block it. Definitely.

*Clang!*

Hyunbin had somehow drawn a longsword and blocked the attack.

*Screeeech-!*

The gladius ground against the longsword’s blade, sending out sparks as if it were being welded.

Danny didn’t stop, unleashing a continuous barrage of attacks.

*Clang, shing! Thwack!*

Sparks flew in every direction. Danny threw a low kick to break his opponent’s balance.

*Thud!*

But his opponent didn’t even budge. A jolt of pain shot up his leg, as if he’d kicked solid iron.

Danny didn’t let it faze him. He immediately threw an elbow blow.

Hyunbin blocked the attack and simultaneously delivered a body blow.

*Wham!*

Struck in the abdomen, Danny gasped for air.

“Kuh…!”

The impact felt like being hit with a sledgehammer. He wondered if this was really a human’s punch. The damage stiffened his body, leaving him open to a flurry of hits.

*Crack!*

Another low kick flew at him.

For Danny, who relied on high-speed movement in combat, taking hits to his body and legs was starting to affect his mobility.

‘Ha.’

It was absurd. He was holding a longsword, yet he couldn’t even match Hyunbin’s hand-to-hand combat.

A monster. A true monster.

“You fail.”

Hyunbin muttered leisurely.

What did he mean by that?

“It’ll be a problem if this is all you’ve got.”

“…!”

Hyunbin spoke as if he were disappointed.

There were few people in the world who could provoke him—a global ranker and one of the most famous hunters—like this.

He should have been furious.

But instead, a laugh escaped Danny’s lips.

“Dan, get serious!”

I am being serious.

I’m trying to take his head. Though I haven’t even grazed him.

“I’m using my ability.”

“Well, I’m not expecting much.”

Hyunbin continued to taunt him. But Danny didn’t feel offended. On the contrary, he could feel his heart pounding.

“Binnie, don’t let your guard down!”

Henri shouted, sounding amused. But Hyunbin calmly waited for his opponent.

‘Such a high wall.’

To Danny McGuire, Hyunbin felt like a colossal wall.

And the moment he looked at that wall, his heart fluttered.

Danny drew a pattern in the air.

As the mana-drawn pattern was completed, auto-casting began, and magic circles started appearing all around.

The ability that had earned him the name Archon. The legion summoning had begun.

Dozens of Roman soldiers appeared in the training ground, uninvited guests.

“Aren’t you a little old to be playing with dolls?”

“We’ll see if it’s just playing with dolls.”

About fifty Roman soldiers formed a phalanx and began to charge toward Hyunbin.

Hyunbin sheathed his longsword. He then switched to a two-handed sword.

*Vwoom-!*

A blue light coated the blade of the two-handed sword in Hyunbin’s grasp, swirling around it once.

The roar of the Roman soldiers. A forward charge with sturdy shields and sharp spearheads.

Anyone else would have retreated when faced with such a massive number of enemies.

But Hyunbin didn’t. Instead, he charged forward.

Hyunbin clashed with the Roman soldiers.

*KRA-KOOM!*

When Hyunbin swung his blade horizontally, a terrifying roar ripped through the air, accompanied by a blue flash.

*BOOM, KRA-BOOM!*

One swing, a recovery, and then another swing.

The Roman soldiers were sent flying in all directions like toy soldiers.

Watching the scene, Henri whistled.

The summons Danny created were by no means weak.

Each one possessed B-rank mana or higher.

But it was also true that they were no match for Hyunbin.

‘Finally, there’s hope.’

Danny thought to himself as he watched Hyunbin overwhelm his soldiers.

Ian and Ivan were perfect superhumans.

Danny had felt the wall between them. No, it wasn’t just him; all hunters were equal before them.

Ian Kruger was the one responsible for the current mess in the Union.

Overwhelming power and a charisma that made everyone submit.

-I’m just a little short on experience points.

Ian, smacking his lips as if disappointed he couldn’t level up, looked at the family he had just saved.

-Good thing the experience points are just right.

The family that caught Ian’s eye died instantly.

He couldn’t tolerate someone who saw innocent people as mere experience points playing the hero.

“Is that it?”

Hyunbin said.

Danny readjusted his grip on the gladius.

“I know.”

After the fifty soldiers were annihilated, Danny made his move.

*Swoosh!*

Danny’s sharp attack aimed for Hyunbin.

Hyunbin blocked his attack and simultaneously threw a body blow.

*Whap!*

Hyunbin saw Danny parry his punch.

His gladius danced through the air, aiming for Hyunbin.

Hyunbin raised his longsword to block the gladius.

Due to the difference in weapons, he should have had the advantage. But for a moment, Hyunbin’s sword was pushed back.

The gladius flicked out, aiming for Hyunbin’s neck.

*BOOM!*

Hyunbin reflexively dodged and simultaneously launched a surprise front kick.

Danny tried to dodge, but realizing it was too late, he raised his knee and arms to defend.

But his body was pushed straight back. No, he was sent skipping away like a flat stone on water.

‘Even with my ability, this is the result?’

Danny summons soldiers. And as those soldiers fall, he can absorb the mana they possess.

In other words, the more soldiers that disappear, the more buffs he himself acquires.

That is the ‘Power of Rome’ he possesses.

Of course, it isn’t infinite. There’s a limit based on his own mental strength.

But today, for some reason, he wanted to push himself.

“Let’s make this more interesting.”

This time, Danny summoned a hundred soldiers. Then he raised his hand again and summoned a hundred more.

Henri whistled at the sight.

Two hundred in total.

Danny’s mental energy was so depleted he felt he could collapse at any moment. But in this instant, he had surpassed his limits. The opponent before him was more than worth it.

The soldiers who did not fear death marched toward a single monster.

*KRA-BOOM!*

He imbued his two-handed sword with mana and swung it once, and the soldiers fell like autumn leaves.

Danny laughed at the absurd sight.

*Wooooo-!*

The soldiers’ war cry. And the Korea Monster mercilessly crushing it.

Danny felt it.

The Korea Monster was stronger than Ian Kruger, stronger than Ivan Sergey.

He had said it would take him ten years to bring down the Union.

But he had been wrong.

With the Korea Monster, it might be possible to destroy the Union in a year, or even less.

His strength was that overwhelming.

The mana of the vanishing soldiers was converted and amplified into Danny’s own power.

“Ballista.”

Danny extended his hand to use the 30-second buff he’d gained from his soldiers’ demise.

A greatbow, flickering with light, formed in his hand.

He loaded the gladius he had been using into the greatbow.

The gladius glowed and transformed into an arrow.

A single shot.

Pouring the Power of Rome into it, he let it fly.

*KRA-KOOOOOOM!*

With a roar that seemed to grind the air itself, the arrow of light—no, a spear—was fired.

“Damn it.”

Danny cursed.

He had used the most powerful technique at his disposal. It was a skill he’d been saving to land a blow on Ian Kruger, but it seemed it was useless against the Korea Monster.

When he swung his sword, the spear of light shattered spectacularly.

“Indeed.”

Danny was glad.

“I can see why Henri is so taken with you.”

There was no need to struggle to gather allies or build a faction.

“I’ve lost.”

Because here stood someone who could be a symbol for everyone.

It was a pleasant defeat.

Danny was smiling, but Hyunbin was still advancing.

For some reason, Danny felt a sense of dread.

He took a step back without realizing it.

And still, Hyunbin came at him like a buffalo.

“I lost. Is the translation system malfunctioning?”

“Yeah, it’s bugged.”

“Didn’t you just understand me…?”

Danny fled.

Right now, in this moment, being a world-class ranker meant nothing.

There was only predator and prey.

Danny looked back. Hyunbin was still chasing him.

He urgently tried to open the door leading out of the training ground.

At that moment, a voice message played.

-Beep! Fingerprint does not match!

The door didn’t open.

“Hey, open the door.”

But it didn’t look like he was approaching to open the door for him.