I Killed the Player of the Academy-Chapter 252 ༺ Tates Valtazar (1)༻

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In <Heroic Legends of Arhan>, there were the top three races that were known for being the strongest.

Danann, titans and dragons.

Tates Valtazar, Eochaid Bres and Erin Danua – the Danann were the keepers of mythology,

Sky Titan, Frost Giant and Balor the King of Titans, whereas, were the contenders of the gods.

And last of them all were the mythical creatures called dragons.

Korin had experience fighting against all three of them.

He defeated Eochaid Bres along with Park Sihu, and had also defeated the resurrected King of Titans.

Lastly, in one of his missions, he accidentally woke up a dragon sleeping in his lair which resulted in a fight.

After going against all three races, Korin came to a conclusion that was as follows.

‘They’re actually not too bad, except for the dragon of course.’

Now that the era of gods had come to an end with divinity being a rarer resource than before, the Danann weren’t able to exert their full potential.

Even Erin Danua, who was the current King of Gods, relied on her thousands of years of experience with her spear to fight and rarely showed her power as a god.

The same went for the titans.

The Sky Titan and the Frost Giant weren’t that keen to fight, and the rest of the titans including King of Titans were like slightly bigger and stronger undeads resurrected from the dead. Like large humanoid machines, they could only move based on the data and commands given to them… and that was pretty much it.

On the other hand, there were the dragons.

In the last iteration, Korin had experienced a fight against a dragon. It was by accident when he was trying to complete a side quest, but it was a confrontation regardless.

“This is much bigger than I thought.”

And yet the dragon before his eyes was incomparably bigger than the one before. It was roughly 100 meters tall, and it would probably be even bigger if the tail was included in its height.

“Nidhogg the Evil Dragon.”

He was the strongest dragon of the few that appeared in <Heroic Legends of Arhan>. The jet-black dragon merging into the darkness stared deeply into Korin’s eyes with its violet eyes gleaming in the dark.

– Interesting. The dead can’t seem to get a hold of you.

Nidhogg commented and seemed intrigued by Korin. He had been staring from the darkness for a long time, and noticed the dead couldn’t touch him at all. Even though they were running into him to do something, Korin passed through them as if he was an intangible creature.

That was evident from how he remained unscathed despite passing through the enormous waves of undeads.

– A human using divine energy, huh. Been seeing more and more recently.

However, Nidhogg didn’t seem vigilant in any way.

He was born powerful, and Korin’s arrival was just that of yet another food. That was all it was to the dragon.

“Hmm…”

As if he couldn’t even see the dead trying to grasp him, the man – Korin – continued staring at the dragon in silence.

– …

Nidhogg was slightly irritated by the sight of the man staying silent, as well as his unperturbed appearance. It felt like he was looking down on him.

Without even caring about the bad mood the dragon was in, Korin stood there pondering as if he was calculating and thinking something through.

And that annoyed the Evil Dragon even more.

He was a dragon.

For thousands of years he crushed, broke and devoured the dead. Seeing how the man remained unfazed despite being in front of him, a great dragon, he deemed it a sin punishable to death.

On one hand though, the dragon became curious. Dragons had an innate ability of Dragon Fear, which instilled fear in any creature that saw them, but the man in front didn’t seem afraid in the slightest.

How was that possible? Unless he was one of the ancient gods or a titan, how could he possibly withstand his fear?

– Little human using divine energy. What is your name?

As such, the dragon spoke to the human, and yet Korin still stood there contemplating which of the two spears to use.

“Is a lizard considered a beast? I guess I have to find out.”

– …

A lizard?

Was he by any chance referring to him? Before Nidhogg could say anything, the spearman seemed to have come to a decision as he picked up the red spear out of his two spears.

Controlling his burning fury, the dragon was about to say something but—

Six Ways of the Spear

Fifth Style, Crumbling Mountain

It was a magnificent surprise attack. Breaking through the gap in one’s consciousness and between one’s breath, the spear was right before him.

The dragon was too big to dodge it in that split second, and was completely caught off guard.

– Kajik!

The red spear landed on the dragon’s chest. It wasn’t able to pierce through his thick skin, but after seeing that and checking the notification, Korin let out a smile.

[The Evil Dragon of Mythology, Nidhogg, has been cursed by the Red Spear, Gae Derg.]

– You inflict 350% additional damage.

– It cannot escape from the Hunting Ground.

– A mark has been engraved on the enemy. You receive the Accuracy Boost of a Hunter.

“Oh, so they do count a lizard as a beast. This is easy then.”

That was when the air suddenly went through a change.

The wrath of a dragon bubbled up its throat and turned into a ball of pure darkness.

– Die.

Flames started pouring at the human who enraged the beast. The Dragon Breath was poured out at Korin.

<Sun Manifestation>

The Sun appeared in the middle to stop it, but even the Sun couldn’t fully block a Dragon Breath.

The overwhelming pressure of the flames from the dragon pushed the Sun back and swept across the earth.

‘So a Dragon Breath doesn’t count as fire, huh.’

Korin noticed that the Sun couldn’t absorb the heat from the breath. The Sun was supposed to be able to absorb everything so long as it was in the form of flames and heat, but judging from how it couldn’t, he concluded that a Dragon Breath was closer to a pure energy attack.

– You insolent human. You think that fake Sun will be enough?

Nidhogg opened his wings wide, as black balls of energy began to wiggle from his immense wings.

Dragons were the master of magic. They were magicians from birth and a race destined to be incredible mages.

By willpower alone, they could use magic with each of them being at the scale of grand magic spells.

– Hwaruruk…!

Mana began to tremble as they heeded to his call.

Even Marie Dunareff, said to have been blessed by mana, wouldn’t be able to use a spell of this size.

This was the full power of a dragon.

An individual stood no chance of survival against this immense living weapon.

– Kugung!

The heavens and the earth quaked and churned.

Various spells, each of them at the level of a grand spell that fell only slightly short of a Dragon Breath, began to strike down from above.

The entire area was starting to be wiped away by the thunder and lightning bolts; they destroyed the earth and created a thick layer of dust that even the Sun couldn’t shine through.

– …

Nidhogg watched on with a smirk.

As always, this was the limitation of a human, or so he thought.

– GOOOOHHH…!

But immediately after, he sensed that the Sun was still burning bright, which proved that the human was still alive.

That can’t be, the dragon thought. How could he possibly survive through all that bombardment? 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

– Tatatak…!

The land filled with dust was silent. At least it would have been except for the sound of a creature running across the plains, and the sharp senses of the dragon were able to pick it up.

Where? Where was he coming from?

– Tak!

With the sound of someone kicking off the ground, something emerged from the fog. By the time Nidhogg noticed him, the man was already jumping to the back of his neck.

“If you waste big spells like that, you end up clogging your own vision.”

In his hand was the Silver Spear. Carrying the aura of Sebancia Duke, he aimed at the dragon’s neck with his spear awakened as the Demonic Spear.

– Foolish!

That was when the dragon’s tail swept through the air and flew towards Korin, who was nearing the dragon’s neck like a small fly.

– Thud!

A deafening thud and Korin was rolling across the ground. That tail sweep from Nidhogg could have killed even a titan in one attack but Korin was still alive.

– How are you alive, human!

Korin used his Condensed Aura at the moment of the clash to fling himself into the air away from the tail. As such, despite crashing down into the ground at a fearsome rate, he quickly regained his posture and stood back up on his feet.

‘That was just a scratch and yet my body is in tatters already.’

As expected of a dragon, each of its limbs were lethal.

“Well, still not too bad.”

He observed the enemy despite the blood dripping down from his body. His blood was creating a small puddle on the ground beneath him, but that mattered not to Korin.

It was because Korin was certain of his victory.

– How insolent!

His comment further infuriated the dragon. It stole the leisure away from the Evil Dragon who used to reign supreme ever since its birth.

– Die…!

The dragon poured out his fury-ingested magic spells.

He continued firing spells that could eradicate any living creature that came into contact with it. The dragon’s infinite supply of mana made it possible.

[ ᚱ ] — Raidho x 2

Sixth Style, Shura

By boosting his physical stats, Korin managed to dodge every single one of those missiles. With his sheer instincts and eyesight, he calculated the bits and pieces of the land that were safe from the bombardment, and created a safe area around him using the Sun and his Aura.

Through all that, he managed to dodge, defend and survive.

And his fight against the dragon was being displayed to the soldiers that were several kilometers away from him.

The overwhelming bombardment of dazzling light could be seen lighting up the darkness from where they were standing, and the soldiers couldn’t possibly think of anyone that could survive through all that.

Despite the level of destruction that was beyond their comprehension, there was only one reason why the soldiers, the knights and Miruam could stand their ground.

He was still alive.

In spite of all those attacks, Korin Lork was still alive in that chaos.

[Battlefront Flag Bearer]

– You are the symbol of the battlefield. You are the brightest flag bearer of every war, and a central figure that must not fall.

– You will be at the center of attention during a war. Your stats will change depending on your ally’s faith.

– All your allies will become psychologically anxious if you fall.

※ The Attention Level has reached 80%. All of your stats will increase by 30%

The miracle called Korin Lork was giving birth to the awe and admiration of the soldiers and everyone present, which further supplied him with power.

<Sun Compression>

The Sun compressed into the tiny Silver Arm of Airgetlam. Seeing that radiant light approaching him, Nidhogg couldn’t help but feel an emotion he had never felt before.

‘Why,’ he wondered.

His opponent was being trampled, grazed and crumbling whenever he came into contact with any of his overwhelming spells.

The dragon did not miss his legs stumbling from fatigue.

That was what it meant to confront a dragon – going against a living weapon was not an easy feat. Trying to achieve that as an individual would only let him realize his stupidity.

Power, speed, size, mana and defense – the dragon was stronger than any individual by an incomparable degree on all fronts. He was definitely much stronger so why—

‘How is he coming closer every step?’

The dragon felt a sense of crisis. For the first time in his life, his instincts were ringing alarms in his head.

“An old and ancient lizard… isn’t what it takes to kill a man.”

Nidhogg got goosebumps.

Seeing a creature overcoming the wave of overwhelming bombardment, he felt fear. Despite not admitting to the fear he was feeling, he tried to soar into the skies with his wings but—

– You cannot escape from the Hunting Ground

Sharp stinging pain traveled all across his wings.

It was a curse – a curse of concepts that gods had created to fight against titans and mythical creatures.

The Red Spear, Gae Derg. The spear used for hunting evil beasts was stopping the dragon from escaping its fate.

– You dare…!

Upon realizing that he couldn’t escape, the dragon flashed its final breath.

The all-destroying light appeared in his mouth.

“I really am… following the steps of Sebancia.”

The breath didn’t stop Korin. Activating all of his three Aura Cores, which he had been saving for the last attack, he put everything into this one spear.

<Dragon Breath>

The final breath of the dragon rained from above. It was the strongest magic in the entire universe that didn’t allow anything to offset or stop it.

At the face of the attack that could eradicate a human even with the Compressed Sun in the way, Korin put forth nothing but his spear tainted in darkness.

“Third Demonic Spear.”

He voluntarily jumped into the Dragon Breath that could neither be blocked or dodged.

“I was saving this up for Tates but… the first priority right now is to survive so…”

Thinking that he first had to survive for anything to work out, he poured out his entire arsenal without worrying about the future.

⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛————!!

The breath of the dragon stole all light and sound away, but facing that, Korin infused his spear with the truth.

[Think about just one thing, and one thing alone. Combine all of your future aspirations and the Domain into your profound ‘truth’. Only through a harmony of the heart, mind and body added with your perception, realm and truth will you reach the ultima.]

His master, Erin Danua embedded the ‘Void’ into her spear.

Sword Emperor Garrand wished to cut down the skies with his sword.

Alicia hoped to pierce through anything regardless of the distance—

And the Sword Fiend hoped for the Universal Sword that could slice anything—

So what ‘aspiration’ would Korin Lork embed, and what ‘domain’ will he hope to reach? What was the ‘profound truth’ he hoped to fulfill?

What was the ultimate truth he was trying to pursue?

Korin made up his mind.

<A whole-hearted stab that penetrates everything.>

Penetration of Every Creation.

The strongest impalement.

That was the truth he embedded into his spear.

****

The bombardment that quaked the earth came to an end as Korin remained standing there with the spear still piercing forward.

His legs were trembling and the blood dripping down from his forehead covered his entire blood. Despite all that, he was the one that came out victorious.

Before his eyes was the large dragon that could cover the entire sky, but in his chest was a large gaping hole.

“Wow… I, it actually worked…”

Despite the pain, Korin couldn’t help but marvel at the hole in the dragon’s chest.

Piercing through a dragon with a spear? It was incredible to think how he had personally achieved something that was only possible in myths and imaginations.

He had a feeling that he was veering further and further away from being a human.

“Cough cough…!”

His injuries were severe, but to be honest, it was still something to be grateful for that an individual was alive after doing something as stupid as going against a dragon.

“I have to take a break after destroying the well…”

Let’s not do anything and just take a good rest for the time being, he thought to himself.

It sounded like a great idea. He could stay in an encampment for several days, recover to his full condition, rejoin the army and continue with his quest to gang up with numbers.

His plan, however, was shattered to smithereens in just 3 seconds.

– Kuung!

“Huh?”

Something incredibly heavy descended at a rapid speed and landed on the ground. It was by no means lighter than Nidhogg.

“Uhh… Wait, why the hell are you here?”

It was a gigantic eagle – a nemesis of Nidhogg that lived in the World Tree. It was one of the field bosses of the World Tree that Korin assumed he would have to defeat during the third phase.

“Shit…!”

He was doomed. Korin quickly grasped onto his two spears to fight against the eagle, but it immediately picked him up and darted off into the sky.

“Not good…!”

For a second, he wondered whether he should kill the eagle by summoning the Sun, but in that split second, they were already several kilometers above ground. Even if he were to successfully kill the eagle here, he would fall to his demise.

After half-giving up and trying to find a way out, he was looking around when he found his comrades fighting at the base of the World Tree.

“Eochaid Bres? Master?”

He could see the radiant battles of his master and Eochaid Bres all the way from the sky. Around them, he also saw his comrades and some unidentifiable foes.

“Damn it… Yeah. I guess they wouldn’t wait for us like they did in the game.”

Although Korin had somewhat anticipated it, he wasn’t expecting them to go against an army of that size from the front. They didn’t seem perturbed by the potential losses they could suffer on their side.

– CAAAWWWW…!

After flying for a while, the eagle let out a cry before throwing him down. There was footing right below where he was dropped, and Korin was able to land on his two feet without much difficulty.

“Fuu… a branch?”

Looking at the material beneath his feet, Korin assumed it was a branch of the World Tree.

But was this really a branch? It was so enormous and far-reaching that he could see the planet, let alone just clouds… It was hard to guess how Korin would react if he discovered he was 40 kilometers aboveground.

“Been a while, junior brother.”

And standing before him was his senior.

“…Valtazar.”

“Well done coming this far. My nemesis; the qualified hero of this generation. Or~ would you prefer I called you this way?”

With an expression oddly friendly and close, Tates Valtazar said to him.

“Player.”