Chapter 186: 186

Wham, wham—

Whoosh—

Ifrit was thrown into the air by Su-hyeun’s punch, then hurriedly spread his wings made of fire . He tried to keep his balance in the air and brushed his one cheek with his hand . Su-hyeun had punched him in the face . It was unbelievable .

Ifrit looked at Su-hyeun with puzzled eyes . Su-hyeun had hit fire, which was immaterial . That was supposed to be impossible . Hitting or cutting space was a really high-level skill . Ifrit, who had been very confident a moment before, became very confused . Su-hyeun drew his sword and walked toward Ifrit .

“Give up…”

Thump, thump—

Su-hyeun’s steps were very leisurely . He lifted his sword and went on, “…or my next move will be to cut your neck . ”

“Bullsh*t!” Ifrit spread his arms .

Whoosh—

At the same time, his body turned into flame again . The devil that appeared from the fire had wings on his back and flew into the air . Su-hyeun just stood still and watched him . The air around Su-hyeun became hotter, as if it would burn Su-hyeun down .

Snap—!

Whoosh—

Su-hyeun snapped his fingers and a dark blue flame swept through the stadium . Soon, Ifrit’s red flame trembled .

“You aren’t the only one who can use fire,” Su-hyeun said .

[Flame – Phoenix . ]

Caw, caw—!

Dozens of huge dark blue birds flew into the sky .

“I can, too . ”

Flap—

The dark blue birds pecked at the red flame . The red flame shook as if it was about to go out . The phoenixes that had jumped into Ifrit’s red fire were swallowing his flame . Ifrit’s flame expanded to cover Su-hyeun’s body .

Whoosh—

“Is that your last shot?”

Stab—

Su-hyeun stabbed the floor with his sword . And, at that moment—

“Aaargh!”

—with a scream, Ifrit’s body was revealed about ten paces away from Su-hyeun . His foot was bleeding .

“I touched you again . ”

“Damn it…”

“Just accept that you’re not suited for me because I can see all . I can see where you are and where to attack . ”

Crack—

Su-hyeun’s third eye opened . And when Ifrit met that eye, he finally realized…

And it wasn’t just simple sight . Su-hyeun could see beyond appearances and attack him . Above all, Su-hyeun was very fast, so Ifrit didn’t even have enough time to run away . He held his breath .

[Third Eye – Predator . ]

Rumble—

Behind Su-hyeun, a huge snake appeared .

But that wasn’t it . Highly-concentrated magic began to swallow Ifrit . And Ifrit remembered that Su-hyeun had stabbed the top of his feet, instead of cutting his neck .

Ifrit thought .

Thump—

“You pounced on me first before, right?”

Rumble—

Su-hyeun just took one step, but Ifrit felt like the whole stadium was shaking . Su-hyeun’s presence was so significant .

Flop—

Ifrit stepped back unwittingly and fell on his buttocks .

“Oh…no…”

“I’ll go this time,” Su-hyeun said and took his feet from the ground .

Swish—

“S-surrender!” Ifrit shut his eyes tight and raised his arms . Su-hyeun’s sword, which was rushing toward Ifrit’s neck, stopped midswing .

“The third game of the quarterfinals is over . Siegfried is the winner!”

The host declared Su-hyeun the victor . It was an overwhelming victory .

***

Su-hyeun came down from the stage . He couldn’t see Chun Ha-jin, but Luslec was waiting for him .

“Did you really mean to kill him?” Luslec asked, grinning .

He was asking if Su-hyeun would really cut Ifrit’s neck if he hadn’t surrendered . Su-hyeun didn’t answer . It was obvious .

“I thought I knew you,” Luslec said, “but I guess I didn’t . You’re usually so kind, but you change when somebody oversteps the line . And what just happened was the same . You tried to not kill him…but you changed your mind quickly . ”

“I guess you do know me well . ”

“I’m good at reading people . ”

“I need to rest . Let’s talk about it later,” Su-hyeun said .

“From the stage?”

“…Yes . ”

Su-hyeun turned his body . Then, he sat on one chair, put on a blindfold, and tilted his head back . He tried to empty his head . He had no time to think about Luslec .

Su-hyeun pictured Chun Ha-jin in the dark under his blindfold . He thought about the other players that had died because of Chun Ha-jin and his hand . He didn’t feel any particular ill will toward Chun Ha-jin . Moreover, it wasn’t like Su-hyeun felt pity for the other players that had died, or he had been fond of them or something .

Su-hyeun was only thinking one thing .

He could hear the host announcing that the final game of the quarterfinals would begin . And, after more than a half-hour of fighting, one person was left standing . The quarterfinals ended .

***

“Gasp, gasp—”

Puff—

From his naked upper body, a hot dark smoke soared . All the lights were broken and scattered on the floor, as was the furniture . In the corner of the dark room of broken things, Chun Ha-jin was sitting cross-legged .

Puff, puff—

Sizzle—

The sweat that flowed down Chun Ha-jin’s body turned black and evaporated into the air .

“Cough!”

All of a sudden, Chun Ha-jin spat up blood . It was dark-red . Chun Ha-jin, who spat out the poisonous blood, smiled .

“Awesome!”

He was taking the energy and vitality he had taken from his opponents and making it his own . And, in the process, he sweated off the energy that didn’t suit him or spat it up as blood . Usually, he could absorb about 50% of the power, but this time he was able to absorb about 80% . That meant that his Force Absorption’s Proficiency and his own ability was getting higher .

Chun Ha-jin got up from his seat and looked around . There was a decorative flowerpot in the corner . Chun Ha-jin looked at the plants, as tall as an adult man, and reached his hand out to them . At that moment…

Rustle—

The moisture from the plants began to disappear . Soon, they turned to sand and scattered on the floor . Chun Ha-jin smiled at the instant change .

Force Absorption was a new skill that he had learned in his later years . Even before he had learned the Force Absorption skill, he had been proud and considered himself the best . And this skill gave him wings . Chun Ha-jin was sure that, once his skill reached the highest level, he would become a great man .

Chun Ha-jin put his clothes back on, thinking about his next opponent . And it was at that moment…

It was as if some sort of a wall appeared in his thinking . He could feel a tingle in his head . Chun Ha-jin staggered and put his hand on the wall .

Chun Ha-jin, who leaned against the wall for a moment, muttered with a blank face, “What was I thinking?”

He thought something was weird . But soon, he thought he must be getting absentminded in his old age, and shrugged it off . He didn’t think about it seriously and went back to the arena .

***

Four people were left after the quarterfinals: Su-hyeun, Chun Ha-jin, Luslec, and Arthur . The players were given about an hour’s rest . They all rested where they felt comfortable . Su-hyeun and Chun Ha-jin were supposed to play the first game .

“If a player does not arrive within 10 minutes, you will be disqualified . Let me repeat it . If a player does—”

In the middle of the stadium, the host announced the rules in a loud voice . Su-hyeun was standing on one side and looked at Chun Ha-jin’s waiting seat . Chun Ha-jin hadn’t yet arrived at the stadium .

Chun Ha-jin had been looking forward to fighting against Su-hyeun . He had even threatened Su-hyeun to not run away .

Moreover, this was the trial . Even though Su-hyeun was already qualified to move on to the next trial, it didn’t make sense for his opponent, Chun Ha-jin, to escape . And, as Su-hyeun thought—

Thump, thump—

—the sounds of heavy footsteps came from the waiting room . It was Chun Ha-jin .

“Hey . You’re early,” Su-hyeun said sarcastically .

At his comment, Chun Ha-jin grinned as he walked up to the stage . “You should thank me . I gave you more time to breathe in this world . ”

He seemed very confident, still . Su-hyeun could figure out the reason .

Chun Ha-jin got stronger and stronger through the games . He absorbed the other’s magic and made it his own using the Force Absorption skill . And he could expand his total amount of magic in the process . Force Absorption was surely a great skill .

“Then, please get ready,” the host said and stepped away .

Su-hyeun and Chun Ha-jin stood in their preparation positions . Su-hyeun drew Balmung, and Chun Ha-jin drew a red sword he was wearing on his belt .

“The first game of the semifinals will begin!”

The start of the game was declared .

Swish, swish—

Crack—!

Rumble—

The two people’s bodies moved quickly, leaving afterimages in their place . Their magic hit each other in the middle of the stage .

Crack, crack—

The ground in the middle of the stadium began to crack . Soon, the same shock happened again in many spots around the stage .

Clang, clank, clang—!

Craaack—

The floor of the stadium was cracked and cut in several places . Su-hyeun and Chun Ha-jin appeared and disappeared repeatedly .

Whiz—

Slash, slash—

The swords hit each other and cut through the air .

Swish—

Su-hyeun stabbed Chun Ha-jin’s shoulder . When Chun Ha-jin’s body began to tilt, Su-hyeun stretched his fist out to him .

Boom—!

Chun Ha-jin blocked Su-hyeun’s fist with his hand and aroused his Force Absorption . Su-hyeun could feel the sensation of the magic in his body disappearing . And, at the same time, he also could feel his body begin to weaken .

Whack—

Su-hyeun hit Chun Ha-jin’s hand away . Chun Ha-jin grinned under his mask and chased after Su-hyeun .

Clang, clank—

Crack, crack—

“You’re really something!” Chun Ha-jin laughed happily .

He enjoyed the fight . And he was pleased by the fact that soon he would eat up Su-hyeun’s power .

Whoosh—

A dark blue flame rose between Su-hyeun and Chun Ha-jin .

Rumble—

A high concentration of magic surrounded Chun Ha-jin . It was a skill called Energy Barrier, a skill that people used a lot Chun Ha-jin’s world .

Whoosh—!

Chun Ha-jin wrapped his body with Energy Barrier and broke through the Flame skill .

Slash—

Su-hyeun’s sword cut deep into Chun Ha-jin’s waist .

Grab—

And, at the same time, Chun Ha-jin grabbed Su-hyeun’s wrist . He gave up protecting his waist to grab Su-hyeun’s wrist . If this were a usual fight, that would be a significant loss . But Chun Ha-jin didn’t think it was a loss at all .

He sucked Su-hyeun’s power through his hand . But something weird happened .

“…What?”

Chun Ha-jin’s body was staggered by the intense dizziness in his head .