BOOOOM!
Ghislain raised his sword, blocking Idun's attack.
The force sent him sliding backward, leaving deep grooves in the ground where his feet passed.
Despite the upheaval in his gut from the impact, Ghislain smiled.
"As expected, you're a strong one."
He was undoubtedly worthy of being counted among the Continent's Seven Strongest. His power and skill had reached their peak.
No matter his personality or his actions, his strength was genuine.
"I've always wanted to fight you properly."
He hadn't been able to do so in his past life. Idun was the type who only moved when he could see a path to a perfect victory.
That's why Ghislain had prepared extensively. First, he had to deal with the priests quickly.
Idun, his face contorted with rage, growled,
"You will die here, Duke Fenris."
BOOM!
Their swords clashed with lightning speed, each collision sending shockwaves rippling outward.
Despite the turbulence, the priests endured and pressed their attacks against Ghislain.
Thud!
Ghislain blocked Idun's sword but was struck in the side by one of the priests. Each time he parried Idun's blade, the priests' strikes landed on different parts of his body.
BOOM!
After a few more blows, Ghislain couldn't withstand Idun's relentless attacks and was flung backward.
"Hahaha! No matter how strong you are, do you think you can win in a situation like this?!"
Idun laughed in elation.
If Duke Fenris appeared to be in danger, the enemy forces would surely mobilize again. But if they could weaken him enough before that happened, a comeback was still possible.
At least, that's what he thought.
BOOOOM!
"Huh?"
Idun instinctively turned to look behind him.
A pillar of fire had erupted in the rear. The mana field maintained by his mages had finally been breached.
The mages of the Artrode Army, who had pushed themselves to the brink by drawing on their life force until their hair turned white, had collapsed one by one, completely drained of mana.
Once the balance of power tipped, there was no turning it back.
"Th-this can't be…."
Idun couldn't hide his shock. The mages, who needed to hold out a little longer, had fallen.
Boom! Boom! BOOM!
"Arghhh!"
Flames raged behind him, engulfing the mages and even the survivors of his forces who had barely held on.
Idun shouted at them in desperation.
"Retreat! Spread out! Move away from the flames!"
Despite his orders, the Artrode Army couldn't properly avoid the magic attacks. At this rate, his forces would be annihilated before he could kill Duke Fenris.
And if that happened, he too would die.
A cold gleam flashed in Idun's eyes as he thrust his sword toward Ghislain.
The only way to survive was to kill his opponent quickly.
BOOOOM!
Idun's sword was stopped by something. His face twisted in frustration.
"Who are you?"
Vanessa had appeared, erecting a shield to block Idun's sword.
"Don't move," she said coldly, her expression steely. She intended to buy time for Ghislain to deal with the priests.
Idun's lips twisted into a grotesque sneer.
"So, you're that mage Vanessa, judging by your skill. And yet, a mere woman dares to block me?"
To him, women were beings meant to worship and serve the greatest man in the world—himself.
The audacity of standing in his way, blocking his sword, was unforgivable.
Murderous intent gleamed in Idun's eyes. Things were already critical; having another superhuman meddling made it worse.
He needed to kill this mage while Ghislain was occupied with the priests.
"I'll show you your place."
Idun pressed his sword against the shield, pushing it with force.
Rrrrrrrr!
The blade, enveloped in blue mana, began piercing through the shield as if slicing through an intangible barrier.
CRACK!
Vanessa, startled, retreated quickly, but Idun was already upon her, swinging his sword again.
Although she erected another shield, Idun's sword tore through it like paper.
Slash! Slash! Slash!
"Ugh!"
Vanessa stepped back again, but her shoulder was left with a long gash.
As Idun approached, she extended her hand.
FWOOSH!
A massive surge of fire, concentrated solely on Idun, burst forth. It was a masterful display of mana control, ensuring the flames didn't spread elsewhere.
For once, even Idun didn't take the attack lightly and paused momentarily.
Thud!
He stomped forward, thrusting his sword.
SWOOSH!
The flames split apart, wavering briefly before vanishing.
The powerful, blue-glowing sword advanced, devouring the fiery attack as it moved forward.
Remaining calm, Vanessa moved her other hand. Following her gestures, magic circles began forming in the air.
Finally noticing the trap, Idun frowned, his expression tense.
"Multi-casting?"
Not just anyone could perform multi-casting. Even among superhumans, it required innate talent.
It was possible to forcibly cast two or three spells simultaneously, but that method was more about splitting spells rather than natural multi-casting.
It also consumed several times the normal amount of focus and mana, making it impractical even for superhumans.
Thus, most opted to cancel one spell and cast another in rapid succession.
Vanessa's level of multi-casting, however, was beyond that.
"Five… seven… ten?"
A total of ten spells were being cast simultaneously. The space around Idun was filled with Vanessa's magic.
Idun let out a baffled laugh. He had never encountered a mage like this before.
While he hesitated briefly, Vanessa unleashed her spells.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Several bolts of lightning rained down from the sky, targeting Idun.
BOOOOM!
Pillars of fire erupted from the ground, while icy spears shot toward him. Various other spells were cast in quick succession.
RUMBLE!
Finally, the ground split open, and massive boulders fell, burying Idun.
The area where Idun had stood was completely devastated. Concentrating her mana in one place, Vanessa had unleashed destruction on an unimaginable scale.
Where Idun had been was now a giant tomb of stone, obscured by dust and debris.
"Huff…."
Vanessa exhaled deeply.
She had used an extraordinary amount of mana, enough to make her dizzy. Even a superhuman would struggle to withstand such a sudden onslaught.
Recognizing her opponent's strength, Vanessa had overexerted herself to eliminate him.
Originally, her intention had been to stall for time, but if she had killed a powerful enemy in the process, it was all the better—
BOOOOM!
The massive stones burying Idun shattered as he burst forth.
His hair and armor were a mess, but his eyes still gleamed with murderous intent.
"How dare you?! A mere woman!"
Idun's rage was palpable as he advanced, teeth grinding, and swung his sword in an instant.
Vanessa tried to teleport away as soon as she saw him emerge, but she was a moment too late.
Slash!
A deep wound appeared across Vanessa's chest, blood spurting forth.
"Cough!"
She collapsed to her knees, blood dripping from her mouth.
Exhausted from using an immense amount of mana and drained by prolonged combat with the enemy mages, she had nothing left to give.
Step. Step.
Idun approached slowly, his sword outstretched. Vanessa looked up at him with despair-filled eyes.
'How can he be this strong…?'
She was aware that her one-on-one combat skills weren't exceptional. Her primary role had always been to provide powerful area attacks from the rear.
Her destructive power was so immense that it didn't matter who her opponent was—most couldn't withstand a direct hit.
Yet Idun had endured. No, even saying he endured was an understatement—he emerged from her barrage with barely a scratch, only slightly fatigued.
Vanessa wanted to know the source of such incredible resilience.
"Hah, to think you'd force me to use my trump card," Idun said with irritation, glaring at her.
"Curious how I stopped your magic, aren't you? Die with that curiosity unanswered."
Idun was seething with rage. The mage he had dismissed had given him such a hard time.
The tremendous consumption of mana had left Idun seething with rage. His fury was so intense that he momentarily forgot even about Duke Fenris, who was still locked in combat with the priests.
Though his clash with Vanessa had been brief, her sheer power had left an undeniable impression.
"With these many dangerous factors, no wonder we've kept losing this war. You are no ordinary mage."
He had known she was skilled, but he hadn't expected her to be capable of multi-casting.
A mage specialized in rear support was hard to fully grasp until faced directly in battle.
Now it was time to eliminate this dangerous obstacle.
"Repent for your sins and worship me even in death."
Idun raised his sword. Fenris knights were rushing over, but they were still too far away.
Yet Vanessa's eyes still burned with defiance as she stared directly at Idun and said,
"I will never worship someone like you."
"Everyone gets cocky before they die."
"No, the one who will die is you."
"What?"
At that moment, Idun's sword changed direction.
BOOOOM!
The blade flying toward him shattered into pieces.
"Sword?"
Idun's face froze. A sword that had been lying on the battlefield had moved on its own and attacked him.
There was only one person capable of such a feat.
Step. Step. Step.
Ghislain approached, casually wiping the blood off his sword.
As he neared, Ghislain gave a relaxed smile.
"Well then, it's time for just the two of us to settle this, don't you think?"
Idun couldn't spare any attention for Vanessa retreating behind him. If he attacked her now, that blade would undoubtedly come flying again.
He glanced around. He had been so focused on Vanessa that he hadn't realized how the battle was progressing.
His forces were nearly annihilated. In the rear, fire magic continued to explode, cutting down his retreating troops.
The majority of the enemy's forces had encircled him. A few knights had reached Vanessa and were supporting her as they carried her away.
And…
"You've already killed all the priests?"
All four priests lay dead, their hearts pierced and their throats slashed.
The time Idun had been tied up with Vanessa hadn't been long, yet the priests, even those adept in combination techniques, were already dead.
These were some of the most skilled priests in the Church of Salvation, specifically chosen for this battle.
"Haa."
Idun let out a short sigh, biting his lower lip.
He wore a troubled expression as he placed his hands on his hips and surveyed his surroundings again.
"Hmmm."
There was no need to rush anymore. Taking a moment to assess the battlefield, he considered his options.
Escape didn't seem feasible.
"Thorough, aren't you?"
Enemy forces blocked every direction. Knights stood in front of him, and mages were unharmed. Duke Fenris was still unscathed.
Trying to flee would only result in an exhausted, disgraceful death.
He refused to die like that. If he had to die, it would be glorious and with dignity.
Running a hand through his hair, Idun asked, "So, are you all going to attack me at once?"
If they all charged, no matter how strong he was, he wouldn't stand a chance. But the response he received was unexpected.
"No, I'll kill you myself."
Idun covered his mouth and laughed.
So foolish. It was absurd how foolish Ghislain was.
Ghislain could have worn him down using his subordinates, killing him with ease. Why bother taking him on directly?
"Are you serious?"
"Yes. Why do you think I went through all the trouble of setting this up? It was all to kill you personally."
"Haha! Hahaha! You really think you can beat me? Is your confidence that high?"
Idun's twisted smile widened. He wanted nothing more than to shatter that arrogance.
Ghislain nodded lightly.
For Ghislain, Idun was unlike any other opponent. There was something special about their relationship.
After all, Idun was the one who had personally beheaded him in his past life. That's why a simple mob attack wouldn't suffice—he wouldn't be satisfied without killing him personally.
And hadn't he thought about this moment since before his regression?
Ghislain extended his sword, a cold smile on his face.
"In a one-on-one fight, I'll win."
In his past life, he hadn't had the chance to prove it.
If he hadn't gone back in time, the noble knight would have claimed the glory of defeating the Mercenary King and continued to rise to prominence.
But now, it was time to prove he was stronger.
Ghislain's sword moved, and Idun's sword moved to meet it.
BOOOOM!
Their blades clashed, unleashing bursts of red and blue light that radiated across the battlefield.
[T/L: I need your support, dear readers. I will give discount to all those who will buy the rest of the chapters all together, so please support me the reader on my webnovel platform and read ahead chapters on my ko-fi page "RevengerScans" : https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]