Survival Story of a Sword King in a Fantasy World

Know thy enemy and know thy self (2)

A beautiful black-haired woman disguised as Kybriel’s incarnation and a female Valtara warrior repeatedly appeared and disappeared from time to time, taking advantage of the Holy Punishers’ wriggling.

Hollien wanted to leave the palace immediately to track Kibie down.

Nevertheless, She remained immobile.

It was because the Fairy King Loflan did not allow it.

-It’s none of your business, my Queen.

If the Queen of a country came forward to such a subtle issue, the royal family’s authority would fall.

There was a saying, ‘Just because a powerful person took the initiative doesn’t mean that his authority fell.’ Sadly, the reality wasn’t like that.

If the powerful took the lead in handling everything, the wise would surely praise him or her for being a great leader.

However, the majority of the followers would complain about why the leader pushed himself or herself forward.

She couldn’t even hope for rational thought from ordinary people.

Of course, if that were just a king’s order, she would’ve ignored it.

Hollien, the strongest Spiritist on earth and the first blessed by the Goddess, had the power and reputation to look down on the King’s authority.

However, Loflan didn’t order her as a King.

-How can your precious self be swayed by such rumors, my Queen? Please bear it.

She couldn’t ignore her beloved husband’s dissuasion.

Hence, she calmly waited at the palace, and only her subordinates moved to chase the incarnation.

However, since the situation had gone that far, ignoring the situation would mean losing authority for her.

At the moment, the Fairy King and Allendia’s royal family hoped that Hollien would come forward.

Hollien shrugged.

“Then there’s no reason to miss her, right? She’s hard to find, not hard to catch.”

Garhan agreed.

“Good. Take care of it quickly. This troublesome situation needs to be over soon.”

Genovia, on the other hand, seemed to remain nervous.

“Are you going to be okay, Hollien? I’m sure they have something to rely on since they created this situation on purpose.”

They knew for sure that the opponent had prepared a trap. It wouldn’t be proper for her to get caught.

“I have a rough idea…”

The Valtara warrior, Felard Bean, was chosen as the Apostle of Kybriel.

He was strong.

Although his exact level was unknown because no Alien came back alive, it was enough to match the Baotolt of his youth just by looking at the previous record he had shown.

Leon Hart, the third blessed by the Goddess, was also one of the strongest on the continent.

It was estimated that the Incarnation of Darkness and her colleagues also exceeded level 90 at the minimum.

What if the Templar Lords of the six churches and the High Templars were involved, and the churches gave all-out efforts to make the trap and fight against a lone Hollien?

“… But I don’t think I’m going to lose.”

It was indeed an arrogant remark, but it was also true.

The gap between the Top Three and others was that wide.

Still, Genovia had some doubts in her mind.

“I heard that the Valtara warrior took on Kybriel’s sacred item.”

“Then what’s the difference?”

Hollien was certain that the Valtara warrior would’ve become way stronger than before.

Nevertheless, he had a long way ahead of him before he could catch up with the Top Three.

Unless he was the Sword King, she didn’t have to care about other Latnains even if they merged with the sacred item.

“And Baotolt is dead.”

Even the sacred item of darkness was just an old-fashioned relic that the Top Three didn’t need to be wary of.

Of course, if the Top Three took the sacred item, they might have benefited a little, but…

“We can’t help it. We didn’t know the exact location of the sacred item until the incarnation moved. All we could do was guess.”

Hollien, who was constantly replying, suddenly squinted her eyes.

“Oh, why don’t you two move together with me if you’re so worried?”

If the Top Three flocked together, their opponents wouldn’t be able to do anything.

It was the safest method.

Genovia and Garhan looked nervous.

There was no problem leaving the sanctuary if the incarnation had already been caught.

It was over anyway.

However, in reality, they needed to look for the incarnation of darkness all over the world.

They didn’t know how many days it would take.

And their lifespan would also be reduced that much!

“No, that’s…”

“I don’t think so…”

Hollien smirked at the two, who were envious.

“That’s enough. Now that Baotolt’s gone, why in the world would the three of us go together to fight someone?”

Perhaps their opponents believed in the heir of the Sword King.

That was the only variable at the moment.

How powerful did the Valtara warrior need to be to put Hollien in danger?

“Even if Baotolt himself is there instead of him, I won’t be beaten. You both know that, right?”

If the Sword King was alive and dealt with Hollien, the result was obvious.

“I’ll never win.”

But she wouldn’t lose either.

If the Thunder king or Archmage went up against him, they would be beaten.

But the Transcendental was different.

At the very least, there would be no death or captivation.

“Because I have this.”

In the video, Hollien slightly raised her finger to give a faint glow.

Only then did Genovia’s expression ease.

“Yeah, you have your spiritual skill, don’t you?”

With her fingers crossed playfully, Hollien continued.

“As you both know, there’s no problem getting me out of this, no matter how bad it is.”

Even if the Holy Punishers’ trap was beyond imagination and Hollien was in danger, she could retreat and then try again in cooperation with Genovia.

There was no need to spend the time of the two whose life had almost depleted.

“The only thing that’s a little strange is that Kybriel would know about this, yet she’s still trying to dig a trap.”

Garhan shook his head at Hollien’s question.

“I’m not sure she would know.”

Curiously, she asked back.

“How could she not know? She’s a Goddess.”

Trapped in the human body at the moment, the former Kybriel was the only ruler who had looked over Latna’s entirety.

Genovia and Garhan took turns replying.

“It’s never been revealed to the world. We’ve been practicing against Baotolt.”

“All four of us gathered together only when we were targeting the Four Prohibited Areas.”

“It was always in the dungeon when we practiced, so it wouldn’t be strange if the Goddess doesn’t know.”

Hollien’s expression became strange.

“… I’ve never used anything outside the dungeons.”

They didn’t mean it, but they ended up deceiving the Goddess.

She nodded after emptying her glass.

“Okay, I’ll come forward myself.”

* * *

Allendia’s royal family had consistently ignored the Holy Punisher’s claims.

They thought that responding one by one would decrease the royal authority and the value of the Queen’s name.

However, it had reached a level that could not be ignored.

As the rumor that Aliens were hiding in the Fairy Kingdom’s regular army spread, more and more people thought their claims might be true.

The people murmured.

“It’s Hollien, the Transcendental, that caused the night’s big change.”

“We’re suffering like this because of her.”

Allendia’s royal family changed their minds.

‘If the Fairy Queen directly deals with the monsters created by the night’s big change, this false rumor will subside instantaneously.’

In response, the Fairy Kingdom made an official declaration.

“Tell the people of Allendia.”

“The one blessed by the great Goddesses and the mother of the noble Fairy Kingdom will calm the night’s big change, and everyone shall witness a true hero with their own eyes!”

* * *

Laihenau, coniferous forest on the northern outskirts of Allendia.

Han-bin and his companions were hiding in a small mountain cabin in the forest.

It was originally a hunting home for the Dwarf nobleman, Baron Lethuwal, the lord of the area.

It was perfect for hiding for a while because it was used only in summer and usually left empty.

They didn’t have to worry about being caught by the lord.

It was Baron Lethuwal himself who allowed them to use the place, anyway.

-Feel free to use it! What is more important in the world than setting the Goddess’s will correctly?

Baron Letuwal was a traditional aristocrat of the Fairy Kingdom, but at the same time, he was a faithful member of the Yessen Church.

He was also a long acquaintance of Lord Palmer.

When the Holy Punishers began fighting, he was the first to come and decide to be with them.

There was also a reason why he didn’t get along well with the Fairy Queen’s forces.

It was one of the reasons why the Holy Punishers could poke around the Fairy Kingdom without being caught.

Many of the aristocrats, as well as the common people, were cooperating with the Holy Punishers.

In a small room at the corner of Laihenau, Han-bin’s group was taking a rest and reorganizing as usual.

Then the Templar Lords visited them.

Without hiding her joy, Angelica delivered the news.

“Finally, the Transcendental has moved!”

Lord Merdil, Preleu’s Templar Lord and an Elven Magic Swordsman, was also pleased to hear that.

“We’ve entered the second phase with this.”

However, it wasn’t possible to proceed with the third phase immediately.

Before that, there was something they had to do first.

“Now it’s time to figure out the exact skills of the Transcendental.”

Everything had been done as Leon Hart said.

“Don’t you think we should know exactly how strong the current Hollien is so that we can make the right traps to catch her?”

Of course, it was not as simple as it sounded.

It was unlikely that one of the Top Three would ever do her best.

“But you can check it out, right?”

Looking back at Ryu Han-bin, Leon Hart grinned.

Han-bin shrugged his shoulders.

“If I just have to measure her level, well, I can.”

It was really simple.

He just had to take a look at her.

“Then can’t I just sneak in and watch her level?”

“No, I’m coming with you.”

Ryu Han-bin’s Guideline could identify Hollien’s level accurately.

However, it was impossible to find out her unique way of fighting or how she utilized spiritual skills.

Therefore, an experienced person with great insight would be needed for a more thorough observation…

“We can’t expect that from Han-bin.”

Sadly, it was irrefutable.

Ryu Han-bin’s experience and insight were limited to when the enemy was more than 20 meters tall.

“Then you two should go.”

They just had to check the opponent’s level and skills. There was no rush.

With the skills of the two of them, even if a problem occurred, they could deal with it easily.

With Leon Heart, even if Ryu Han-bin, who didn’t know much about the world, made a mistake, it could be resolved.

Then Kibie raised her hand.

“Oh, I’m coming, too.”

Surprised, Leon Hart dissuaded her.

“No, Kibie!”

The incarnation of the darkness would scout one of the Top Three?

It was too dangerous.

There seemed no reason to do so.

Han-bin also stopped her.

“Are you trying to dig up some information? Then we’ll steal Hollien’s stuff. You don’t have to use the skill of shadow reading on her.”

“That’s not why.”

Kibie replied with a serious look.

“I know it’s dangerous. But I’ll have to check with my own eyes.”

Currently, the Top Three shared the divinity of darkness stolen from Kybriel.

“I need to know what the stolen divinity is like right now.”

When the divinity of the darkness was stolen, she sealed the wisdom of the Goddess.

But she couldn’t rely on it entirely.

“I’ve never thought I could be deprived of my divinity in the first place. But how can I guarantee that they’ll never touch me if I put a seal on it?”

Perhaps some of the divinity could be operated in other ways.

“They may not be immortal yet, but…”

If that were possible, they wouldn’t have to go looking for Kibie, and the situation would’ve already ended.

“They might have reached out to areas that aren’t meant to be available to mortals.”

If the enemy had an unexpected ability, she had to check it.

“We only have one chance, after all.”

Everyone couldn’t disagree anymore.

She was certainly right.

Effir and Artis rose up to the occasion as well.

“If you go, I’ll follow you.”

“Me, too.”

There was no reason to separate the two if Kibie moved.

It was safer to have colleagues who worked well together.

Well, it would be best for the other Templar Lords to flock to be safe, but if they were away, the Holy Punishers’ leadership would be empty, preventing them from responding to urgent cases.

When a conclusion was reached, Han-bin’s party began to prepare for the trip.

Effir and Artis muttered.

“We’d better disguise ourselves as unnoticeable as possible, but avoid people’s eyes just in case.”

“Yes, and if the atmosphere is even just a little off, we need to run away immediately.”

After sighing as if he was burdened, Leon Hart looked back at the group.

“Well, let’s move.”