The ruins of the forest were still burning.
Not with ordinary fire, but with the remnants of the power that had been released moments ago from the axe of the man called the Mountain Breaker.
A massive chasm stretched for kilometers into the earth, and molten rock bubbled up from the depths of the black cracks, while the sky above the area still trembled unstable, as if reality had not yet been able to rebuild itself from Walterk’s strike.
But at the center of all that destruction, nothing had changed. Daniel stood calmly beneath the tree, his clothes not even torn.
His white hair swayed gently in the wind, and the light of the tree’s half-ripe fruit reflected on his expressionless face.
The tree was also unharmed.
Its massive roots still pulsed in the ground, and the white and golden light of the fruit glowed calmly and steadily, as if the strike that could wipe an entire nation off the map had not even touched a single leaf.
A heavy silence fell over the army. Armored soldiers stood motionless.
Some mages, with pale faces, stepped back a few paces, their gazes wandering between Walterk and Daniel, as if their minds were incapable of accepting what they had seen.
"That... was Lord Walterk’s attack."
"Impossible..."
"Even the northern walls of the abandoned empire couldn’t withstand that strike..."
Whispers spread through the army, but no one dared speak loudly.
Because the truth standing before them was beyond fear; their logic had collapsed.
For them, believing this was not easy even though they had witnessed it. In fact, on the contrary, they were trapped in an incomprehensible shock.
This was the first time they had seen anyone stop the Mountain Breaker’s strike without even exerting effort or taking a wound.
Even the three strongest Eternal Warriors did not have such ability. They would have needed to use great power to do this.
But this man before them? He hadn’t even moved!
On the other side, Elisira was breathing with difficulty.
Her heart still hadn’t calmed down. At the moment that attack landed, for the first time since entering the forest, she had been sure she would die.
Not maybe, not probably, but certain death.
After all, under that attack that flattened the entire forest, created a crater kilometers deep, split mountains, and cracked the sky, how could a princess like her survive?
Under normal circumstances, just a fraction of that attack would be enough to kill thousands like her.
She had even felt her body collapsing under the pressure of eternal power, as if her existence no longer had permission to continue.
But now she was alive and completely unharmed.
Her trembling eyes slowly moved around until she noticed the faint, dark aura still fading around her.
And at that moment, she understood: Daniel had placed her inside his defensive range and protected her.
A strange feeling twisted inside her. If it hadn’t been for this monster’s action, she would have been killed now, and practically nothing of her would have remained.
She doubted even her ashes would have remained.
And then anger consumed her being, and her gaze locked onto Walterk.
"That bastard... didn’t even care that I was here."
After all, she was still the princess of the Holy Empire, one of the continent’s top powers, and her father was also among the strongest men on the continent.
And yet that savage bastard dared to attack even her? ...No, she wasn’t part of that wild trash’s target; she was just collateral damage!
And thinking about that made her even angrier.
And just then, the sound of a massive laugh echoed across the ruins.
"Hahahahahaha...!" Walterk was laughing.
His laughter boomed like collapsing mountains, and the waves of his mana made the ground tremble.
He laughed for a few moments, then calmly placed his massive axe on his shoulder and stared at Daniel with shining eyes.
"That... was just a simple strike." His gaze grew heavier.
"And yet, most Eternal Warriors wouldn’t come out of it unharmed."
"Not bad." But before he could continue, Daniel quietly cut him off.
All eyes fixed on him. Under normal circumstances, Walterk’s army would have been angry that someone dared to interrupt him.
But now? They no longer dared to show off too much in front of this monster.
"At least you were stronger than the previous ones." Daniel tilted his head slightly and continued with that same incomprehensible calmness.
A heavy pressure fell over the space. This insult was so great that the faces of several army commanders twisted in anger, but even so, they still didn’t dare say anything; they just remained silent.
Even the mana around Walterk became unstable for a moment. It was clear he was terribly angry at being compared to some dead trash.
"I’ll give you another chance." But Daniel continued without caring.
His eyes calmly slid over Walterk’s massive axe.
"This time, attack with all your strength."
The veins on Walterk’s neck bulged slightly. For a moment, he truly felt humiliated.
He, one of the continent’s top ten Eternal Warriors, a being whose name had made armies tremble for decades.
And yet, his intuition screamed: danger. The warrior’s instinct that had survived hundreds of battlefields sensed something within Daniel that it could not explain.
And worse of all, he understood that this man was truly serious.
If the next attack wasn’t enough, perhaps the result would be something beyond defeat.
Walterk quietly took a deep breath. He didn’t like doing what others told him, but from his own perspective, the best course right now was to end everything in one strike.
Then he gave a cold smile.
"Do you know the problem with people like you?"
His mana pressure suddenly increased.
The air around his massive body began to crack, and the ground beneath his feet slowly sank.
"You think because you’ve killed a few insects... you can look at the sky."
The clouds in the sky spun, and black lightning formed within them.
"But some powers..."
He raised his axe, and at that moment, the world trembled.
"...belong only to beings who have passed through death."
A dark golden light erupted from his body. Not mana, not ordinary energy.
Eternal power.
There was a reason they were called Eternal Warriors.
Space around him began to bend, and even time slowed for a moment, as if the world had been forced to retreat before the concept Walterk was releasing.
The army soldiers retreated in terror. Some even fell to their knees, because they knew this attack recognized neither friend nor foe.
Only destruction.
Elisira trembled. Her soul felt crushed under something invisible, and even breathing became difficult.
"...I’m going to die." That was the only thought left in her mind.
Shs was sure that this one attack would definitely kill her; no one could stop such an attack!
And then Walterk roared.
"Let me show you why they call us Eternal Warriors!"
His massive axe came down.
Boom.
Light.
Explosion.
It seemed the world split open, the ground collapsed, and the sky cracked.
And a wave of eternal power, like an apocalyptic flood, rushed toward Daniel and the tree. A force that even defied the laws of the world.
But when it reached them, it calmed.
The eternal power faded like mist disappearing under sunlight. No explosion occurred, no defense was visible. The power simply lost its existence.
As if it had never been real.
Elisira’s eyes remained wide open. Her mind could no longer process.
Not just her, but the entire army, the commanders, the mages, and even Walterk himself.
Because this was no longer "more power," but something beyond their understanding.
And then Daniel laughed.
A quiet, deep chuckle that echoed through the collapsed silence of the forest. He slowly rose from his spot.
And at that moment, the air changed.
As if the world had realized something was moving that should not exist.
Daniel calmly swept his gaze across the army. But not just them; he sensed hidden presences, eyes watching from the distance.
Observers from the great powers of this world, and even beings that dared not come closer.
"That attack... contained eternal power." Then he said quietly.
His gaze fixed on Walterk.
"Is that why they call you Eternal Warriors?"
He was silent for a few seconds. He could not easily describe with words how ridiculous this situation was.
That attack was truly powerful. An attack that had reached the peak of S-rank and even gone slightly beyond. Although it hadn’t reached the national awakened rank, it wasn’t far off.
But the problem was that attack contained eternal power!
"Or is it just you who possesses eternal power?"
No one answered. Everyone was still in shock at how that attack had been stopped.
Daniel’s smile deepened.
"Not that it matters." His eyes began to glow quietly.
And at that moment, an unknown pressure descended on the entire area. A pressure that made even Walterk unconsciously tense his muscles.
"Eternity can not harm me." Then Daniel said quietly.
"Because I... am eternity itself."
And then Daniel drew his sword. The moment the blade left its sheath, space began to collapse.
Because the world could not withstand what was gathering inside that sword.
The Law of Eternity. He wanted to launch an attack with eternal power, but not a simple attack. He wanted to show the peak of the Law of Eternity that a mortal could achieve to these pathetic fools.
This could be the greatest honor of their lives, something that could also be their farewell gift before death.
Daniel raised his sword.
And struck.
Boom.