Chapter 8: You messed with the wrong person (1)


    In an instant, one man was dead.


    “You, you bastard!”


    Another man hurriedly swung his sword down at Ghiin. Ghiin easily dodged and tapped the side of the de with the back of his hand.


    Tang!


    With a light sound, the man’s arm, still gripping the sword, was flung upward, exposing his upper body.


    Grab!


    Ghiin seized the man’s face and mmed him into the ground.


    BANG!


    A thunderous sound echoed as the back of the man’s head became half-buried in the dirt. Blood started to seep out, possibly from a cracked skull slowly.


    However, Ghiin didn’t stop. He continued to grab the man’s head and pound it into the ground.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! BANG!


    After repeating this several times, the man’s head waspletely smashed.


    Crunch!


    Even the front of his face was utterly crushed by Ghiin’s fist.


    Ghiin slowly stood up.


    When their eyes met, Frank’s face stiffened. It had all happened so quickly that he was left dazed, unable to respond.


    ‘What kind of look is that…?’


    Ghiin was staring at him with a nk expression.


    Frank felt chills run through his entire body. Ghiin resembled a beast, starved for blood. Frank had killed many people in his time, but he had never seen anyone exude such terrifying intensity.


    ording to the n, this shouldn’t have been difficult. They had assumed that once Jamal and Philip were dead, no one would be left to interfere.


    ‘Tsk, the intel waspletely wrong.’


    For a brief moment, Ghiin had clearly used mana. There was no other way he could have moved with such strength and speed.


    ‘To think someone that young can already use mana.’


    There’s a vast difference in power between those who can use mana and those who cannot. A de infused with mana is solid and sharp enough to cut through even the most rigid steel.


    ‘Even so, those two went down far too quickly. Were they careless?’


    Frank narrowed his eyes,paring the information he had with the scene unfolding before him.


    ‘He didn’t even hesitate to kill someone. That’s rare for someone his age. So, despite his reputation as a wastrel, was he always this cruel by nature?’


    ording to the rumors, the Grand Duke of Ferdium had never killed anyone and had spent all his time in his territory. Yet, here he was, ruthlessly taking lives as if it were second nature.


    If this really was Ghiin Ferdium’s first time killing, then he was undoubtedly a born murderer.


    ‘When I return, I’ll have to deal with the intel department myself.’


    Despite his reputation for ipetence, Ghiin had just taken down two knights who could use mana in the blink of an eye.


    It was an unbelievable situation, but Frank could only conclude that the information they had was entirely wrong.


    Elena, too, stood there in shock, unable to believe what she had just witnessed.


    I shuddered at the cruel sight unfolding before my eyes, but more than that, I was astonished by the fact that my brother had such skill.


    ‘Did he really get that strong after just a few days of training? Does that even make sense?’


    Elena was momentarily shocked but soon felt relieved.


    ‘Well, at least it’s a relief. We’re alive for now.’


    No matter how he had honed his abilities, survival was what mattered most right now.


    Frank swallowed nervously and slowly opened his mouth.


    “Grand Duke Ghiin of Ferdium. This doesn’t match the information we had. Were you hiding your skills?”


    At that moment, Ghiin straightened his posture fully and drew his sword.


    “Whether I was hiding my abilities or not is irrelevant. Let me ask you once more—who ordered this?”


    Frank shook his head at Ghiin’s question.


    “There’s no need for you to know. Your skills are quite impressive, but you’ll die here anyway.”


    Though surprised, Frank knew he had to manage the situation.


    He hadn’t expected Ghiin to possess such force, but he didn’t think it would be enough to make him a real threat.


    Ghiin nodded.


    “Right, I didn’t expect you to talk so easily. Viins usually don’t.”


    “Don’t get cocky just because you beat my men. I’ll admit your skills are remarkable for your age, but you won’t defeat me with that level of experience and maturity.”


    Ghiin let out a dryugh. Who was this guy to talk about experience and maturity?


    “I’ve probably lived more days than you have.”


    “You’re quite the foolish one.”


    Frank raised his sword and took a stance. It wasn’t in his best interest to stay here for long, so he was determined to finish this quickly and return.


    Ghiin also raised his sword, a smirk tugging at one corner of his mouth.


    “Then, let’s begin.”


    Pahng!


    Ghiin was the first to make a move.


    Frank quickly blocked the attack and immediately attempted a counterstrike.


    Kwaang!


    The two swords shed violently.


    Elena, her heart pounding with anxiety, sped her hands together tightly. If Ghiin lost, she was as good as dead, but she could do nothing to help. She could only shuffle her feet in panic.


    ‘Sh-should I run?’


    Maybe going to call for help would be the wisest thing to do. But the thought of leaving her brother behind weighed heavily on her. Plus, she didn’t know how many more enemies lurked around.


    ‘If I act on my own, I could end up in even more danger.’


    Unable to decide, Elena slowly began to back away, trying to stay unnoticed. She figured that if things didn’t look good after watching a little longer, she’d rush back to the castle and ask for help.


    Kaang! Kaaang!


    As Elena wrestled with her decision, the battle between the two men grew fiercer.


    ‘Of course, Jamal and Philip would’ve been easy opponents.’


    From Ghiin’s perspective, Frank was an outstanding knight. The amount of mana he emitted and how he utilized it was far superior to most knights.


    No wonder he had been confident enough toe all the way to the Ferdium estate.


    ‘The longer this drags on, the worse it’ll be for me.’


    With only a week’s worth of umted mana, it wouldn’t be easy for Ghiin to handle Frank.


    Ghiin,cking physical abilities and mana, could only hold his ground thanks to his exceptional swordsmanship.


    Frank was thinking along simr lines.


    ‘What kind of swordsmanship is this?!’


    Ghiin’s swordsmanship was so brutal and practical that it went beyond frightening— almost awe-inspiring. His sword wasn’t like the typical knights’ swords, nor did it follow the techniques of the Ferdium family. It was ferocious, filled with a thick killing intent, and its movements were unpredictable. Just when Frank thought he had blocked an attack, the de glided along his own, aiming for vital spots from unexpected angles.


    No knight would wield such a cruel sword.


    ‘This is definitely not the Ferdium family’s swordsmanship. How on earth did he master such techniques at his age?’


    To Frank, Ghiin’s swordsmanship was a few, if not several, levels above his own. If it weren’t for his body, which was greatly strengthened by his superior mana, he would have been torn apart and killed long ago.


    ‘But I’ll still win.’


    Frank drew more mana to hasten the battle’s end. As time passed, wounds began to umte on Ghiin’s body.


    Kaang!


    Ghiin barely managed to block the iing de, his eyes locked onto Frank’s. He was trying to gauge whether his family’s enemies were involved in this incident.


    “Shall I guess who’s behind this? The Duke of Delfine? No, it’s more likely Count Desmond.”


    Count Desmond managed the northern territories under the Duke of Delfine’smand. No matter how powerful the Delfine Duchy was, it was difficult for them to handle every estate personally. Attacks on smaller territories were often delegated to other families loyal to the duchy.


    It was possible that the Duke of Delfine had directly sent underlings, but Ghiin doubted they would have cared enough about Ferdium to intervene personally. Either way, whether it was the duke or hisckeys, they were all in league together.


    Frank’s eyes widened in shock at Ghiin’s confident tone, but he quickly recovered, masking his expression as if nothing had happened.


    “You’re a dangerous man.”


    Without saying more, Frank swung his sword again.


    But Ghiin had already seen enough from that reaction.


    “Heh, I knew it. So it was you lot.”


    “Shut up.”


    As expected, his family’s downfall resulted from those bastards’ scheming. It confirmed his suspicions that all the conspiracies had begun with Elena’s death.


    Now that he had his answers, it was time to stop them before they could make another move.


    ng! ng!


    Their swords shed violently, filling the air with the unpleasant screech of metal. Ghiin gritted his teeth and smirked.


    “There’s nothing left to confirm. Let’s end this.”


    “Don’t be stubborn. Your swordsmanship is impressive, but you still can’t defeat me with that amount of mana. Whatever you think you know, it won’t matter once you’re dead.”


    Frank responded with confidence.


    Ghiin had already suffered many injuries. If just a bit more time passed like this, Ghiin would draw hisst breath.


    Rumble!


    The two men red at each other, channeling mana into their swords with all their might. Ghiin’s sword was gradually being pushed back. Frank was sure of his victory.


    It was at that moment.


    “The fight’s not over until the end. Don’t you think?”


    Ghiin’s eyes suddenly shed red.


    Frank tried to summon all his strength to push Ghiin back, sensing an ominous premonition.


    At that moment.


    Wooong!


    A second core inside Ghiin began to spin, unleashing a torrent of mana. A vivid red light, iparable to Frank’s mana, enveloped Ghiin’s sword.


    “Ugh!”


    As Ghiin’s strength surged, a groan escaped from Frank’s mouth.


    “What… What the hell is this!”


    Frank shouted in disbelief.


    Ghiin slowly pushed his opponent’s sword back, a cruel smile spreading across his face.


    “You spent your life in regret, never knowing who the real culprit was. If only you had known, you would’ve done anything to hunt them down and kill them.”


    “What?”


    “You were one of my biggest regrets.”


    Frank couldn’t understand what Ghiin was saying. It didn’t matter, though.


    Even as the years passed and he grew older, this memory had never faded. Every time he thought of Elena’s death, he drowned himself in alcohol and stayed up all night.


    He always regretted it, but the past was something he could never change.


    “This time, it’s different.”


    Now that he had returned to the past, all that pain and fury had be pure ecstasy. He could barely contain his joy at the thought of severing the starting point of all his nightmares and exacting his revenge.


    Ghiinughed as he detonated his third core.


    Boom!


    He unleashed a power several times greater than the mana he had, driving Frank back relentlessly.


    “Argh!”


    Unable to withstand that overwhelming force, Frank was thrown backward.


    “What is this…?”


    Frank quickly regained his stance, but he staggered back in fear.


    No matter how much mana one drew out, it was impossible to amplify one’s power to such an extent. At most, it would make you slightly stronger than your usual capabilities.


    But the power Ghiin was disying far exceeded that level.


    ‘Was he hiding his strength from the beginning? No, then why did he endure all those injuries?’


    Frank was thrown into confusion, unable to understand the situation.


    Ghiin didn’t miss that brief opening.


    “Do your best.”


    Bang!


    Ghiin closed the distance instantly and swung his sword with tremendous speed.


    ng!


    Frank barely managed to block the strike, but another attack came before he could gather his senses.


    ng! ng! ng!


    Ghiin’s relentless sword strikes rained down without stopping. Frank had no choice but to give ground, overwhelmed by the man who swung his sword wildly, red light gleaming in his eyes.


    ‘This is impossible! How could he have gained this much power all of a sudden!’


    Now, regarding speed, strength, and skill, Frank was utterly overpowered by Ghiin.


    Boom!


    Ghiin continued his assault like a storm, driving his opponent back.


    The time Ghiin could sustain such immense power wouldn’tst for long—just a few minutes. He had to finish the fight within that time.


    ng!


    Ghiin’s sword came crashing down on Frank’s sword with tremendous force.


    Once again, Frank managed to block it, but Ghiin didn’t stop.


    Sizzle!


    Mana erupted wildly from Ghiin’s body, creating a tangible aura.


    His body, covered in blood from the wounds inflicted by Frank, began to emit a crimson mist.


    He looked just like a red reaper.


    ng! ng! ng!


    Their swords shed fiercely again and again.


    Crunch.


    At some point, Frank realized that something was wrong with his sword.


    But his head would fly off if he didn’t block Ghiin’s next attack. He had no other options.


    ng!


    As their swords collided once more—


    Crack!


    Frank’s sword could no longer withstand the force of Ghiin’s attack and shattered.


    Among the scattering fragments of his sword, Frank murmured in disbelief.


    “How… How could this happen…?”


    Ghiin met his gaze and spoke.


    “Don’t think you’ll die so easily.”