Chapter 82 – Retonicalus-Style Combat
‘Is this the end for now?’
Fenry crossed her arms and looked up at the black cocoon, where her opponent was trapped and subdued.
Judging from his strength, it didn’t seem like he could escape unless she released him.
Uncrossing her arms, she checked the condition of her body.
Her limbs still felt heavy, and her senses were dull.
Fenry recalled the faded arrow.
The mont it struck her, an oppressive lethargy overwheld her entire body. And whatever magic he’d used, the arrow had been impossible to avoid.
When she had fought Arena, she hadn’t noticed because she had been the one attacking. But now, having experienced it herself, she understood.
‘What a devastating ability.’
For a fleeting mont, she had been overwheld by soone at 4-star strength.
It felt like fighting with her arms and legs bound.
On the other hand, the human had only grown stronger.
What if, by so slim chance, he reached 5-star?
‘The divine-na holders would find him to be a significant threat.’
A Divine Hunter.
Experiencing it firsthand, Fenry realized just how remarkable his ability was.
‘It’s certainly an amazing power, but…’
There was sothing lacking.
His potential enemies would almost certainly be divine-na holders.
That ant his targets were exceptional beings by nature.
While his weapons were extraordinary, the hunter wielding them lacked the skill to match.
Nella might have been confident in him, but Fenry was a leader responsible for an entire faction.
Forming a blood pact was akin to an unbreakable vow. Fenry needed to be absolutely certain before committing.
She had been hoping to see sothing more from him.
‘Perhaps my expectations were too high.’
The feats he had shown in the Laup Forest were so beyond the norm that they were astounding.
Even the Black Market seed to place great importance on his divine na.
“His potential for growth is certainly impressive.”
From the first ti they t, he had been barely at 1-star. Yet in less than six months, he had broken through to 4-star.
His growth rate was terrifying. If given support, even that ti could be shortened.
Overall, Fenry judged that he just barely crossed the minimum threshold she considered acceptable for a blood pact. It was a grudging pass.
Fenry sighed briefly and began to unclench her fists.
If she left things as they were, he might suffocate. She decided to release the pressure holding him down. As she loosened her grip, the oppressive force of her shadow sorcery eased.
But then—
“…Huh?”
Gluuump—!
The black cocoon rippled before her eyes and began stretching forward.
A shadow extended toward her face.
It was a sign that he was about to break free.
‘Does he still have strength left?’
With an intrigued expression, Fenry reversed her motion and clenched her fist tighter again.
She intended to ramp up the pressure once more.
Let’s see how long he can hold out…
“Ugh…!”
The pressure was forcibly broken.
Her clenched fist stiffened as if paralyzed, then slowly began to open against her will.
It wasn’t Fenry’s doing—the phenonon was caused by her opponent.
The incredible recoil pushed back her sorcery.
Her trembling fingers gave the illusion that the shadows themselves were screaming. Gritting her teeth, Fenry instinctively leapt backward.
At that mont—
CRAAAACK—!
The cocoon tore apart, and a fist shot out violently.
BOOM—!
The blow shattered the ground, splitting the earth beneath them as debris scattered everywhere.
It was as if a bomb had gone off.
Amid the flying fragnts of stone,
“Gghhaaaah!”
The human tore through the sorcery, crouched low, and scread. He clutched his shoulder, his face contorted in agony.
‘It’s broken.’
His shoulder bone was twisted grotesquely.
The force of his punch had been so imnse that even his own shoulder couldn’t endure it.
Fenry let out a scoff and assud a combat stance.
“You’re not human. You’re a damned troll.”
The human reset his dislocated shoulder and began rotating his arm widely. His regeneration had already surpassed human limits.
Their gazes locked.
His bloodshot eyes glistened red.
He mumbled sothing under his breath, but at least his eyes were still focused. He seed to be in his right mind, though the atmosphere around him had completely changed.
He stomped the ground.
Thud—
“…!”
His figure vanished.
No—he charged at an insane speed. In the blink of an eye, he appeared behind her as if he had leapt through the air.
He was fast.
Her dulled senses made her reaction slow, but Fenry was still faster.
With sharp precision, her claws pierced his thigh and rcilessly tore through his Achilles tendon.
The injuries were severe enough to make him collapse the mont he tried to put weight on his legs.
And yet—
BOOM!
“…Ugh!”
A vicious kick sent Fenry flying backward.
Sitting on the ground, her arms trembled violently as if paralyzed.
She had blocked the kick, and yet it still did this much damage?
Looking up, she saw him limping toward her.
His ankle was twisted, and his shinbone had pierced through his skin. Blood poured from the gaping wound in his thigh.
And yet he kept walking.
No—he was slowly picking up speed.
“…This crazy masochistic bastard.”
Despite her cursing, Fenry wore a grim expression.
Every blow was dangerous.
There was no defense, only attacks that traded flesh for lethal strikes.
For the first ti, Fenry felt the pressure of being truly overwheld.
This wasn’t an opponent she could take lightly.
If this went on, she might really end up killing him.
As she debated how to subdue him—
Thud—
“….”
The human, who had been walking toward her with such nace, suddenly collapsed headfirst onto the ground.
Having experienced his troll-like regeneration firsthand, Fenry cautiously withdrew her weapon and threw a small stone at his head.
Thwack—
The rock hit hard enough to split the back of his skull, causing blood to trickle out.
And yet he didn’t move.
Was he unconscious?
Fenry used her shadow sorcery to carefully drag him toward her.
The sight of his limp body confird he had passed out.
Looking down at him, Fenry’s expression shifted.
She now wore a faint smile tinged with excitent.
‘What was that power just now?’
Her eyes glead as though she had discovered sothing remarkable about Arthur.
***
“…Guhhh!”
With a ragged gasp, I bolted upright from bed.
Looking around, I realized I was in the Blue Rose VIP room.
Damn it. Again?
I had another nightmare.
In it, I was being crushed by an enormous insect the size of a mountain, suffocating under its weight.
Last ti it was the butcher. This ti it was so monstrous bug that looked like Boom.
Sweating profusely, I checked my body.
My skin was unblemished, without a single wound.
The duel where my shoulder had been twisted and my leg nearly crippled now felt like a distant dream.
I jumped out of bed and walked over to the window.
Pulling back the curtains and opening the glass, I squinted at the harsh sunlight.
The brightness stung my eyes.
How long had I been unconscious?
Surely it hadn’t been three months again.
And damn Fenry! I didn’t expect her to actually try to kill with her claws.
If I’d been a regular person, I’d be dead for sure.
Cursing Fenry under my breath, I focused my gaze and peered outside.
It wasn’t hard to find my personal training ground among the nurous warehouses.
The ground was sunken in as if sothing had exploded, and workers were busy repairing the collapsed roof.
Seeing the aftermath of my battle with Fenry made sigh deeply.
“So, it wasn’t just a dream.”
The lingering evidence of the fight suggested that not much ti had passed since I fainted.
“The pain was real. If it were a dream, I would’ve woken up imdiately.”
The new combat style I had instinctively used during the fight…
It tore apart my muscles and shredded my nerves with excruciating pain.
It was a level of agony I never wanted to experience again.
As the mory of the pain resurfaced, I also recalled the source of it.
[“A host this weak?”]
The voice echoed in my mind, leaving a vivid impression.
It wasn’t so magical ssage sent by another person.
[“Let show you how to fight Retonicalus-style.”]
Retonicalus.
The voice knew the na of the heart—a na that even Dominic Huaton hadn’t been able to uncover. And it called "host."
My hand cautiously touched my chest.
There was only one culprit: the heart.
Could it… talk?
Hesitantly, I parted my lips.
“…Heart?”
Shit. What a la first line. It felt like I was an awkward guy at his first blind date.
But my nervousness was justified—this voice had never appeared in the novel.
The fact that it communicated with words instead of taking over my body was a massive variable.
Still, no matter how many tis I called out, there was no response.
I felt like a lunatic talking to thin air.
“Am I… crazy?”
Apparently, Nella thought so too. She walked in unnoticed and saw standing naked at the window, mumbling to myself.
“Why do you keep stripping ? Do you have so kind of nudity fetish?”
“When you’re covered in blood, it’s hard to tell where you’re injured. I was just checking.”
“As you can see, I’m fine now.”
“You weren’t three days ago.”
“Three days? I’ve been out that long?”
“You didn’t ‘sleep.’ You almost died.”
“…I almost died?”
“Yes.”
Her words didn’t make sense.
The combat style I used against Fenry—the mory of it was still vivid.
While my body had been consud by a burning instinct for destruction, it wasn’t a complete takeover.
My movents had followed an unconscious agreent, and though it hurt like hell, I could feel my body regenerating as I fought.
In other words, I hadn’t been in any danger of dying from the injuries themselves.
“Mana depletion?”
“More like complete mana exhaustion. You were like dried-up firewood—there was nothing left to burn.”
Nella explained that I had looked like soone suffering from a severe fever. Even Fenry had been startled by the unfamiliar phenonon.
Co to think of it, my mory had abruptly cut off near the end of the fight.
Was my consciousness snuffed out from mana depletion?
“Then how did I survive?”
“Ti.”
“Ti?”
“After a day or so, your face started regaining color. Oh, and here’s a ssage from the master: Don’t use that power carelessly. Unless you want to beco a cripple.”
I knew what Fenry’s warning was about.
A fighting style where you sacrifice your body for a single decisive strike.
Using it drained mana to the point of collapse and tore apart muscles, leaving behind unbearable pain.
It was dangerous.
Even I realized that, but the voice had left one last ssage.
[“When you surpass the limits your instincts resist, a new world will open.”]
‘The limits my instincts resist…?’
I had no idea what that ant.
It sounded like the cryptic wisdom you’d hear from old n waiting for death.
What if the heart was so ancient boor masquerading as wisdom?
Still, I was certain of one thing: it wasn’t trying to harm .
During the brief mont of unity when I let my instincts guide in battle, I felt no malice in the voice’s tone.
Instead of hostility or a desire for domination, it radiated lethargy and boredom.
Apathy, like that of a being worn down by countless ages.
And within that indifference, there was a faint spark of curiosity directed at .
Why would a transcendent existence insist on such savage, primal combat?
I wanted to know, to talk to it.
But for now, the voice remained silent, no matter how many tis I called.
It seed I would need more ti.
“Here, eat this.”
“Ooh, pancakes! You’re thoughtful as always.”
“I figured you’d like them. You won’t get to eat them again, though.”
“…What? Why?”
“Your entry is now banned.”
“…By Nella?”
“No, by you.”
Apparently, the master had banned from entering the restaurant.
Now, if I so much as approached the entrance, the Black Roses would stop .
What kind of nonsense was that? Taking away sothing already given was cruel.
If she had a problem, why didn’t she co find herself?
It was basically a demand to pay for my own food now.
I tried to complain to Nella with a pitiful look, but all I got in return was a pile of clothes thrown at .
Fancy garnts tumbled onto my head.
They looked like sothing a noble’s son might wear.
Buried under the pile of clothes, I blinked in confusion as the staff rushed over to forcibly dress .
…What the hell? What’s going on now?
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