Kill the Emperor Chapter 96 : Chapter 96

Translator: AkazaTL

Pr/Ed: Sol IX

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Chapter 96 : After the Play is Over

Since the Draco Tail Tribe was a tribal nation located in a remote area near the border of the Empire's territory, Drak did not visit the Empire's capital, 'Akrishion', often.

However, there were few among the nobles of the capital who had not heard of Drak's na.

Drak's evil deeds were too great to be obscured by sothing like distance.

'Butcher Drak'.

Drak raided nearby tribes almost every week, and the day he left for a hunt beca a day of disaster for the nearby tribes.

He raped the won, killed their husbands, and enslaved the children.

The reason Drak could wield absolute authority within the tribe despite committing evil deeds that were hard to count was:

First, because he had Themia's support.

"Hryaa!"

Grrrrmble-

Second, because the spear he wielded while riding on a Bahmut's back was incredibly fierce.

Drak was a warrior with skills that no one within his tribe could match, at least.

'Arrogant bastard! Running wild without knowing your place? I will pierce that neck of yours today!'

Drak's confidence was at its peak with in front of him.

"Your Highness, preparations are complete!"

Drak, clutching the reins of the Bahmut carrying him, shouted.

"Likewise."

I also announced that I was ready to engage in the duel with my usual expression.

"Hey, Grand Duke. Drak is riding on the back of that huge lizard, but you are just bare-bodied. No matter how I look at it, it seems you are at too much of a disadvantage, shall I lend you one of my horses?"

"It is fine."

"Ah, it is fine?"

Although it was a rare kindness shown by Themia, I politely refused.

"Begin."

Themia signaled the start of the duel by nodding his head while sitting on the ivory chair prepared for him.

"Hyah!"

As soon as those words ended, Drak pulled the reins and thrust his spear vigorously.

Clang!

The spear Drak thrust and my two crossed swords clashed in mid-air.

With the already large-bodied Drak riding atop the Bahmut, the advantage and disadvantage according to position were bound to be clearly divided.

Grating-

'Look at this guy?'

However, seeing his spear unable to advance despite the overwhelming positional advantage, Drak shook his head.

'You look frail so I thought you were a complete pushover, but your bones are quite sturdy.'

Thud thud thud-

Drak pulled back the spear that was entangled with the swords and began to circle around .

'Judging by the look of it, it seems you received quite the treatnt in your own country with those clumsy skills, but it will not work in front of !'

Swish-!

Of course, he did not neglect to take out his whip and wield it even while circling around on Bahmut's back.

The whip, which was split into three ends and wriggled like a snake, stiffened and flicked its tongue aiming for my vital points, but,

Clang-!

It could not penetrate the sword curtain created by the swords held in my hands.

'The skills seem decent, but at best 7th Star.'

Unlike his dull appearance, Drak was quite delicate when it ca to battle.

My stage, grasped at the end of the initial skirmish, was roughly 7th Star.

And his current stage was 6th Star.

However, Drak was confident that he could sufficiently handle up to a 7th Star knight if he could ride on the back of his exclusive Bahmut and hold his cherished weapon.

'I didn't raise this guy with such care for nothing.'

Drak smiled with satisfaction seeing the Bahmut flashing its red eyes and repeatedly flicking its tongue.

"Iyaaa!"

Then, holding the spear and whip in separate hands, he imdiately attempted to charge toward .

Clang!

Watching Drak's charge with a calm expression, I raised my sword to deflect the whip and then blocked the path of the spear with Axion.

'Ha!'

In that instant, seeing Drak's spear blade flowing along Axion's blade and rushing to aim for my neck, the corners of my mouth lifted up.

Smirk.

Since an irreversible mishap could occur if a mistake was made, it is an unwritten rule of dueling not to aim for each other's necks.

Because of this unwritten rule, I also protected my wrist instead of the path where the spear would head to the neck.

But Drak's spear headed for the neck without hesitation.

Spurt!

A stream of blood leaked from my neck where Drak's spear blade had grazed past.

A dizzying blow where the neck could have been cut if the blade had gone just a little deeper.

"Oh my goodness!"

"To-to aim for the neck during a duel, what a barbaric act!"

Gasps burst out from the mouths of the people watching this scene.

Drip.

"Stop right there!"

Themia's Guard Knight, who was acting as the referee, witnessed the blood flowing down my neck and hurriedly tried to end the duel.

However,

"What are you doing?"

"Your Highness, an injury has occurred. Any further dueling is……."

"Why are you spoiling the mood when it was just about to get interesting? They say they want to do more, don't they?"

Themia restrained the referee's intervention.

"Drak, can you do more?"

"Of course. Your Highness, khehehe."

Whether satisfied by the fact that Themia's expression had clearly brightened, Drak burst into loud laughter and nodded.

Judging by that expression, it seed Drak had decided to focus only on catching Themia's eye, ignoring any diplomatic friction that might occur with Zodiac later.

"How about our Lord Grand Duke?"

"I have no issues."

I wiped the blood by pulling the hem of my cape and also nodded with the sa expression as when the duel started.

Thud thud thud-

"Hehehe."

Laughter repeatedly burst out from the mouth of Drak, who was once again circling around and looking for an opportunity to attack.

'This should be enough justification.'

I also smiled inwardly.

If it was a bloody battle where blood splattered and flesh was cut off, rather than a bland duel, it was what I had hoped for.

'Because a demonstration is better the flashier it is.'

Drak would never know that the bloody line drawn on my neck was not due to Drak's spearmanship, but because of my cunning acting.

Finishing my thoughts, I imdiately went on the counterattack.

Whoosh-!

The Family Sword held in my left hand was thrown toward Drak's chest without hesitation.

'Wh-what!'

Drak, who had not expected that I would throw my weapon, urgently extended his spear and deflected the Family Sword.

However,

Clang-!

Ziiing-

'Ugh!'

Since he hadn't anticipated the surprise attack, his right wrist holding the spear had to suffer from severe throbbing pain.

"Damn it!"

Drak imdiately swung his whip.

I was already rushing toward him before he knew it.

Whirr-

The hurriedly swung whip succeeded in holding down Axion.

However, Drak's front was left completely empty.

In the anti, my left fist, which had beco free after letting go of the Family Sword, struck Drak's broad nose just as it was.

Unlike my slender-looking appearance, considerable power was loaded into my gauntleted left fist.

Thwack!

"Ugh!"

Drak's groan leaked out amidst the heavy sound of bones breaking and skin being crushed.

Vwooom-

Even amidst the dizzying pain that made him feel like losing consciousness, Drak succeeded in making Bahmut swing its tail by tightening the stirrups with his feet.

But I avoided the tail's attack with a smooth movent,

Thud!

Of course, in the midst of that, I didn't forget to feed a blow to Drak's jaw with my knee.

Clap clap clap!

"Wo-wow!"

At my beautiful movents, which were like performing acrobatics and different from Drak's brutish ones, the spectators spontaneously applauded and let out gasps of admiration.

"Ughhhh-"

At the dizzying shock felt simultaneously in his nose and jaw, Drak ground his teeth and swung the whip, but I had already moved away and retrieved the Family Sword.

"You bastard, I'll put an end to you!"

The thoroughly agitated Drak shouted at the top of his lungs and rushed toward , but,

Thwack!

"Urk!"

Thud!

"Augh!"

Crack-

"Ugh!"

There was no way Drak, who had lost his cool, could catch my movents.

Only the dull sounds of beating Drak resonated from here and there.

"Cough!"

Drak, who was hit directly in the jaw by my cleanly executed kick, barely managed to steady his body that was about to fall backward.

He, who almost staged an unsightly scene of falling from Bahmut's back, swung his spear wildly.

"Damn it!"

However, I was already out of Drak's range this ti as well.

Blow by blow piled up, and before he knew it, the light hits Drak had allowed had well exceeded ten.

"Drak, are you planning to hold a endurance contest right here? Haha!"

Only after hearing the shout of Themia, who was watching this while giggling, was Drak able to realize.

'……That guy is superior to in skill.'

As proof, I had been picking only the parts where he would feel sha and hitting them, without attempting a decisive blow for a while now.

'Arrogant bastard!'

Since it was already clearly revealed that the first blow was a fluke, Drak, realizing that dragging ti like this would only lead to being toyed with by , bit his lip.

'I will finish this!'

Vwooo-!

Soon, a fierce storm of aura began to rage around Drak and Bahmut.

I, who grasped his intention through that appearance, also steadied my posture, and soon a storm more violent than Drak's swirled around my body.

Gulp!

The spectators watching this swallowed dry saliva.

"This is getting more and more interesting……."

Themia unclasped his interlocked fingers and crossed his arms.

Just then.

"Aaaaaah!"

Drak charged toward and pulled out the 'trump card' he had hidden until now.

'Fine, I admit that I am pushed back in a head-to-head fight.'

However, despite that, there was a reason why Drak attempted a head-to-head fight…….

'Swallow all of his Blade Aura!'

As Drak pulled Bahmut's reins, Bahmut's eyes soon turned green and it opened its snout wide.

Whiiiiing-

Then, the Blade Aura that was enveloping began to be sucked straight into Bahmut's mouth.

'It worked! It worked!'

Seeing that fact, Drak cheered.

How much effort had he put into training them after realizing a few years ago that mutants capable of absorbing aura were occasionally born among Bahmuts?

'Now!'

Of course, it wasn't that Bahmut could absorb the opponent's aura indefinitely.

A mutant Bahmut could suck in aura for 10 to 30 seconds at best.

But that amount of ti was more than enough.

Because it was obvious that the opponent, facing a situation where their aura was suddenly being sucked out, would be flustered and their aura balance would also be disrupted.

'What crazy guy in the world could know in advance that a mutant Bahmut absorbs aura?'

He just had to aim for that timing and take the opponent's head.

"Uryaaaaa!"

Drak pulled Bahmut's reins with all his might and attempted a lance charge.

This attack was undoubtedly the 'trump card' Drak had prepared.

Screeeech-!

However, the one whose balance was disrupted was not .

"Wh-what!"

Bahmut, who had been emitting light from its eyes and swallowing aura, was suddenly staggering while vomiting bloody foam.

"You call yourself its owner, but it gets sick because you feed it just anything."

My cold voice was heard.

Slash.

And in Drak's eyes, which hurriedly turned at the sound colder than that voice.

Thud.

His own right leg rolling on the ground was reflected.

"Aaaaaack!"

Drak's scream, unable to overco the pain and shock that arrived a step late, resonated in all directions.

Thud!

Grrrrmble-

Eventually, the staggering Bahmut, vomiting blood, collapsed on the floor with its owner on its back.

"My…… my leg…… Ack, my leeeeeeeg!"

Even in the situation where he was crushed by Bahmut's massive body, Drak desperately tried to reach out his hand and stretch his body toward his leg.

I watched this miserable scene, approached Drak, and said while pressing down on his head, just as Themia had done a mont ago.

"You will never be able to mount a lizard's back ever again."