Chapter 199
Zeke was rather surprised by the Dark Elf's reaction.
'They don't know that two thousand years have passed? Does time flow differently here?'
Zeke asked the Dark Elf warrior again,
"I entered this 'Inverted Tower' to undergo Tyr's trial. Why are you here?"
The Dark Elf warrior who stepped forward raised his misshapen sword again.
[So you're a follower of that Tyr bastard! Persistent and tenacious bastard! I'll take your head and send it to Tyr's camp!]
Although the system was translating the language, they couldn't communicate at all.
'These guys are as belligerent as the Orcs.'
The Dark Elves raised their misshapen swords again and slowly circled Zeke.
They formed a formation and charged towards Zeke all at once.
Rustle!
The snake-like, winding misshapen swords flew from all directions.
Zeke deflected the misshapen swords with his shield and charged towards the nearest one.
Bang!
One of them was hit by the shield, flew back, and crashed into the wall.
Zeke didn't stop, used the Phantom Step to make a sharp turn, and swung his sword at the others.
Bang!
Overpowered by the force contained in Zeke's sword, the misshapen swords the Dark Elves were holding were flung away.
Zeke then extended the length of Bahamut.
Slash!
The Dark Elf, who had never expected the sword to lengthen, was pierced through the heart by Bahamut.
Swoosh
Zeke calmly disrupted the balance of the formation and dealt with the Dark Elves one by one.
'They're as skilled in joint attacks as the green warriors who summoned Arataso.'
The green warriors read each other's minds and moved as one.
On the other hand, the Dark Elves pressured Zeke with their formation honed through countless training sessions.
Zeke didn't rush, calmly deflecting their attacks and waiting for an opening.
Clank!
Failing to break through Zeke's solid defense even with continuous attacks, one of the Dark Elf warriors gave a signal.
Piiii!
Then something flew in from the sky.
'Is that... a Wyvern?'
It looked like a Wyvern, but it seemed a bit smaller than a typical Wyvern.
Looking closely, a Dark Elf was sitting on the Wyvern flying in the air.
The Dark Elf warrior rode the Wyvern and threw a spear towards Zeke.
Whoosh!
Zeke dodged the spear falling from the sky, raised his shield, and quickly dashed forward.
The spear that fell from the sky landed accurately on the shield Zeke was holding.
Crash!
As soon as the spear touched the shield, a huge explosion occurred.
"Ugh!"
Zeke rolled on the ground from the unexpected explosion.
[The shield's durability has fallen below 60%.]
A single spear throw reduced the durability by more than 30%.
'Damn it!'
He needed time to repair the shield. However, he didn't have the luxury of repairing his shield in the middle of an intense battle.
Just then, another spear fell from the sky towards Zeke.
Crash!
The accurately thrown spear was more effective than randomly falling magic.
Crash!
Eventually, the shield, hit by consecutive attacks, shattered.
Zeke took out his scabbard, which he hadn't used in a while, unfolded it into the shape of a shield, and consumed the potions he had placed in the slot.
A healing potion, a stamina potion, and a 'Potion of the Sky' that increased agility.
"Whew!"
Zeke took a breath and raised his sword, watching the falling spear.
Whoosh!
Zeke leaped into the air towards the falling spear.
"Haaa!"
Riding the wind with the Gale Force, Zeke deflected the flying spear with his sword and sent it back.
The spear changed direction and flew towards where the Wyvern was.
Crash!
The Wyvern made a sharp turn to avoid the flying spear.
At that moment, something flew past the Wyvern.
Slice
The crescent moon Zeke had launched tore through the Wyvern's wing.
Kiiiii!
The Wyvern screamed, lost its balance, and plummeted to the ground.
Crash!
Both the Wyvern and the Dark Elf warrior on it crashed to the ground.
[Ugh!]
The Dark Elf warrior, crushed beneath the fallen Wyvern, crawled out, dragging his broken leg.
But someone was already standing in front of the Dark Elf warrior.
"[H-human!]"
Zeke looked at the crawling Dark Elf warrior with cold eyes.
The Dark Elf warrior took out a dagger from his bosom and tried to slash at Zeke's ankle.
Thud!
But Zeke lightly dodged the dagger and stabbed the Dark Elf warrior in the back.
Swoosh
Both the Dark Elf warrior and the Wyvern turned to ash and disappeared.
Zeke picked up the spear that was left behind.
It looked like an ordinary spear, and he was curious about how it caused an explosion.
Zeke put the spear in his inventory, hid himself among the nearby cover, and observed the movements of the other Dark Elves.
But he couldn't sense any presence.
'Did they run away?'
Zeke left the ruined city and hid himself in another hiding spot he had found earlier.
He had wounds all over his body from being caught in the explosion of the spear.
Zeke took out potions, applied them to his wounds, and drank the rest to replenish his stamina.
"It's been a while since I've had wounds on my body."
This was an everyday occurrence in his past life.
He could use healing magic, but since he didn't have an ability like Healing Factor, his face and body were covered in wounds until he had the chance to use healing magic.
As he reminisced about the past and chewed on jerky to replenish his stamina, a message window suddenly popped up before Zeke's eyes.
[The Fighting God's Domain is impressed with the target's performance.]
[Additional rewards will be given if you liberate the souls of the remaining Dark Elf warriors.]
[Number of remaining Dark Elf warriors: 13]
'What's this?'
Zeke tilted his head as he checked the message that appeared. He felt like the Inverted Tower was encouraging him to do more.
'The Orcs too... This place was definitely created to train someone with a certain intention. Who on earth did they create this place to train?'
It was clear that training was the purpose, but the scale of the labyrinth was too large, and the monsters were too realistic for it to have been created just for training.
Zeke stopped thinking and gripped his sword, looking at the number of Dark Elf warriors displayed in the message window, then stood up.
'I should be able to figure out what this place is when I clear the quest.'
He held the goblin's shield and tried to find the remaining Dark Elf warriors, concealing his presence.
But just then, he heard a sound from afar.
'What's that?'
A mournful sound echoed throughout the empty city.
Zeke enhanced his eyesight and looked towards the source of the sound.
Someone was standing on top of a building, blowing a stick-like flute. The mournful sound flowed from that flute.
'I don't know what they're doing, but to expose their location so openly... Is it a trap?'
Zeke was puzzled, but with his sword in hand, he slowly approached the figure playing the flute.
Strangely, however, Zeke gradually felt his strength draining away.
At the same time, his body relaxed, and Zeke began to follow the mournful sound with vacant eyes.
Woooong!
An eerie energy emanating from the stick drew Zeke in.
Soon, Zeke's eyes lost focus.
He walked towards the figure playing the flute, drawn by the sound.
Then, following the command conveyed through the music, Zeke stopped in front of the building.
Dark Elves hiding here and there appeared.
One of them jumped out and immediately swung a sword at Zeke.
Clang!
However, the person who was playing the flute on the building suddenly appeared and blocked the attack.
The Dark Elf warrior, whose attack was blocked, took off his mask and shouted,
"[Leader! We must kill this human now!]"
The Dark Elf warrior who revealed his face had one eye missing, and his face was covered with burns and scars.
The leader said to the one-eyed warrior,
"[If this human was really sent by Tyr's camp, we must interrogate him and extract information.]"
The one-eyed warrior, seemingly filled with hatred for humans, glared at the dazed Zeke and gritted his teeth.
But in the end, he listened to the leader and stepped back. The leader also took off his mask and revealed his face.
He had a beautiful appearance similar to an elf, but his skin was dark brown.
The leader asked Zeke,
"[Were you really sent by Tyr?]"
Zeke, his eyes unfocused, shook his head.
The leader asked again,
"[Tell me what the current situation outside is.]"
Zeke stood still, silent. The leader approached Zeke and said once more,
"[I ordered you to report the situation on the battlefield in detail.]"
That's when it happened.
Whoosh!
In an instant, Zeke's hand grabbed the Dark Elf leader's neck.
He quickly held a dagger to her neck and took the Dark Elf leader hostage.
The other Dark Elves aimed their arrows at Zeke.
The one-eyed warrior shouted at Zeke,
"[Cursed human! How are you sane?]"
Having experienced the mental attack when he first encountered the Dark Elves, Zeke had prepared potions effective against curses in advance.
Zeke didn't answer and said, gripping the Dark Elf leader's neck,
"Hey, Dark Elf. Do you really think this is the Hero King era?"
The Dark Elf leader slowly opened her mouth.
"[What do you mean by Hero King era?]"
"Hero King Kaisir."
At Zeke's words, the Dark Elf leader replied,
"[Kaisir, that cursed weapon of war, a Hero King? What are you talking about?]"
Zeke was also confused by the Dark Elf leader's words.
'Master Kaisir, a weapon of war?'
The Kaisir he saw was grumpy and eccentric, but he wasn't cruel enough to be called a weapon of war.
Moreover, from what he heard of his life story, Kaisir mostly tried to avoid using force and only used his power when absolutely necessary.
Zeke said to the Dark Elves,
"It's been two thousand years since the era when Hero King Kaisir and the Valiant Knight Tyr were active."
The leader and the other warriors were startled by Zeke's words.
Only the one-eyed Dark Elf glared at Zeke, grinding his teeth.
"[Fools! Come to your senses! That wicked human is playing with words to contaminate our minds!]"
It seemed like he was filled with hatred for humans to the core.
That's when it happened.
Whoosh!
At the sound of the leader's whistle, Zeke felt his body momentarily paralyzed.
'Is the potion wearing off already?'
In that instant, the Dark Elf leader spun her body and struck Zeke's temple with her elbow.
Crack!
Zeke barely managed to regain his senses and block the attack. As the leader stepped aside, the one-eyed warrior shouted,
"[Shoot!]"
Dozens of arrows flew towards Zeke.
Whoosh!
Zeke ducked and rolled on the ground. At the same time, dust rose, obscuring his vision.
The Dark Elves poured more arrows into the dust cloud.
Zeke's figure was hidden by the thick dust cloud.
"[Cease fire!]"
The one-eyed warrior gestured, and one of the warriors slowly approached with a misshapen sword.
It was to confirm Zeke's death.
That's when it happened.
"[Gah!]"
A hand clad in hard armor grabbed the warrior's neck.
Zeke had quickly activated Hercyon and deflected all the arrows.
Even with his neck caught, the Dark Elf warrior swung his sword at Zeke.
Clang!
The misshapen sword couldn't pierce Hercyon and bounced off.
Zeke tightened his grip on the warrior's neck.
Crack!
The Dark Elf warrior's neck snapped, and he died.
Thud!
The body of the Dark Elf warrior, who died with a broken neck, turned to ash and disappeared.
Zeke's eyes flashed from within his helmet.
"Twelve left."
He had a limited amount of time to wear Hercyon.
Zeke charged straight towards the leader with Bahamut.
Clang!
Instead of the leader, the one-eyed warrior jumped in and blocked Zeke's sword.
"[Human! I'll skin you and use your hide as a banner!]"
Zeke swung his sword at the one-eyed warrior.
Clang!
Zeke mainly used swordsmanship against the Dark Elves because he had to conserve his stamina and mana, which were rapidly depleting, and refrain from using Aura Blade as much as possible.
Zeke stepped forward, executing the True Dragon Sword Art.
Bang!
The one-eyed warrior stumbled backward, his face suddenly turning pale.
He trembled and stammered,
"[S-Sword Saint...!]"
Surprisingly, he recognized Saturn Draker's swordsmanship.
He shouted at Zeke,
"[You! What is your connection to the Sword Saint!]"
Zeke didn't answer and charged straight towards the one-eyed warrior, unleashing the Dragon Slayer technique.
Dragon Slayer True Dragon Sword Art
Chapter 6 Verse 1
Dragon Heart Strike
Bahamut, imbued with the power of the True Dragon, lunged fiercely towards the one-eyed warrior's heart.