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Chapter 21: Rebuttal Demon
“Ugh…”
It was a whole day later when Eurius got up.
“Your Majesty! Are you all right?”
The first thing he saw when he woke up was Beatrix’s worried face.
“Thank you for taking care of me, Princess.”
“The healers from the temple treated you, but they said you should rest for today.”
She was referring to the priests of the Medit Order.
They could borrow the power of God and turn their force into healing power.
But in general, martial artists did not rely on healers’ power unless they had serious injuries.
That was because healers’ power did not restore wounds, but rather increased natural healing power.
If one abused healing, even a strong martial artist would lose their natural recovery ability and create a fatal weakness.
Of course, there was one person who had a miraculous healing power that could turn back time and heal even near-death injuries.
That was the ‘Great Saintess’, who was a player.
But since her, there was no priest in the continent who could perform such a power, as far as he knew.
When the news of his recovery reached him, the duke also entered the guest room.
“Haha, I took a big hit yesterday. Your highness’s growth rate is amazing.”
The duke was smiling brightly while rubbing his swollen face with an ice bag.
“I guess it’s time for me to retire as I get older. After the duel with Your highness yesterday, my body hurts everywhere…”
But to Eurius’ eyes, he looked like he was teasing him.
‘Geez, this old man is so whiny.’
He was glad that he didn’t seem too upset about being punched in the face by Eurius, who was almost his grandson.
“By the way, I wasn’t feeling too proud of reaching the realm, but I didn’t even get to see your ‘secret technique’, Duke.”
That was actually why Eurius was more gloomy than he thought.
He knew that there were different levels among the superhumans in the same stage, but he was receiving the benefits of a player, wasn’t he?
But the duke subdued him without even showing his secret technique of the fourth stage.
“That’s not true.”
But the duke seemed to have a different thought.
“I’m proud that I did my best yesterday.”
“What do you mean?”
“There is a time and place for every skill. Do you remember what I said a month ago?”
Eurius nodded his head in confusion.
“There is more than one way to reach the top. Is that what you mean?”
“Yes.”
The duke stopped smiling and explained with a serious face.
“A secret technique is just a tool after all. A true martial artist does not care about the tool.”
The reason why the duke did not use his secret technique in yesterday’s duel was not because he didn’t need to, but because he judged that it was better to defend firmly against Eurius’ attacks.
The result was Eurius’ complete defeat, who ran out of stamina and collapsed.
As he thought about that, some memories of his previous life came to his mind.
“So you mean that even if they are not superhumans who reached the realm, there are many strong people out there.”
“Yes. In fact, in our family, there was a martial artist who received the title of [Crusader], which is only given to the lords, without entering the fourth stage.”
Of course, it was not common for a martial artist who had trained so hard to fail to overcome the wall, but it was possible.
Eurius himself had trained for decades in this good environment and in his previous life, but he couldn’t attain enlightenment and only reached the fourth stage now, right?
‘That means there are more hidden masters in the continent who can be on my side besides the verified superhumans!’
There were still many mountains to climb in the continent.
Eurius was deep in thought.
But that was only for a moment.
The duke praised him, perhaps thinking that he had been too serious.
“I was really surprised by your secret technique. I never imagined that it would manifest in such a way.”
The swordsmanship (?) training method that came from the duke’s family was a proven method with history and tradition.
When one reached a certain stage and tried to block or catch the attacks of a martial artist who was much higher than them, they would naturally attain enlightenment.
Beatrix’s ‘speed’ in his previous life was also manifested in that way.
“But I never expected that there would be a secret technique that could make the target unrecognizable. It’s an amazing skill.”
Eurius scratched his head shyly at the duke’s compliment.
His secret technique was rather plain, considering his status as an emperor.
‘It might be useful, but it doesn’t look good for an emperor, stealth! I’m not an assassin from the southern desert!’
But soon, Eurius realized that his expectation was wrong.
“Stat window!”
[Eurius von Scharnos]
Job: Emperor, Grandmaster (Superhuman)
Strength A+ Agility S Intelligence B+ Spirit A+ Force S Force Aptitude SS+
[Traits]
Swordsmanship (A+)
Royal Bloodline-You have awakened the authority of a player.
Emperor’s Dignity B rank (1st consecutive victory)-Increases your noble bloodline, leadership, and charisma as the emperor of the empire.
(Evolution) Formless Sword-Fourth stage force control. You can erase all your traces. Depending on your skill level, you can ignore the sixth sense of force users as well as human senses.
Sixth Sense-A sixth sense given to excellent force users. You can sense things that are not detected by your five senses.
(New) [Unique Skill] A special ability that you gained by awakening the fourth stage.
(New) Rebuttal Demon (A rank)-The higher you go, the more ordinary you become. This is your unique skill that reflects your fourth stage trait. You can hide all your information. This trait will not break unless it is a detection skill with a higher rank than this skill.
[Hidden Skill]
Restart-Players can turn back time and start their lives over at any time. But you are not an official player, so you are limited to one time. (Currently permanently unavailable)
Second Round Bonus-You retain some of your abilities, memory, and talents when you restart.
??? (This skill is currently unavailable.)
Overheat-A skill that only you, who have four cores, can use. Temporarily increases your force rank by two stages. However! Excessive long-term use will damage your cores.
“Wow!”
As soon as he checked his stat window, Eurius had to restrain himself from jumping up and down.
The increase in stats was not the problem.
He had gained the trait that he needed most!
[Rebuttal Demon] It was the perfect skill for his situation. He would inevitably become a famous figure in the continent if he reached the realm of superhumans.
Then he would face fierce opposition from the nobles, including the archduke, even before he started his activities. That was one of his biggest worries.
But he didn’t have to worry about that anymore! He could just act as a slightly talented swordsman emperor.
He asked the duke to observe him right away to test it out.
“Wow, it’s true.”
The duke also looked more surprised than before as he stared at Eurius.
He didn’t notice it earlier because he had no traces, but now Eurius had completely lost the unique aura that superhumans who reached the realm had.
If the duke couldn’t notice it, no other martial artist in the continent would be able to recognize Eurius’ true value.
No matter how plain it looked, it was an amazing trait that added a player’s unique skill to the fourth stage.
“Congratulations. You have gained another advantage, Your highness.”
Use what you have well!
This was also one of the useful teachings that the duke gave him.
His newly acquired [traits], Formless Sword and Rebuttal Demon! These would also give him a great boost in his future endeavors.
‘Now I can think about my second goal in coming to the holy kingdom!’
He hadn’t paid much attention to it because breaking through the wall was such a priority, but there was another reason why Eurius accepted this trip to the holy kingdom willingly.
He had already succeeded in breaking through the wall with much better results than he expected.
Now his only goal in the holy kingdom for the remaining time was one thing!
The place where the most talented people in the continent gathered.
It was the Savior Academy. He intended to scout talents who could help him in the future.
There was only about a week left until the academy’s semester started.
‘And before that, I have to thank someone.’
Beatrix looked puzzled.
“I don’t understand what kind of help I gave you.”
“No, your advice was the biggest help for me to break through the wall. Thank you again.”
He added another word in his mind.
‘Of course, including my previous life.’
Eurius bowed his head very politely, following the etiquette of the royal family.
His demeanor was completely different from his casual and somewhat light-hearted attitude until then.
She just bowed her head back, not knowing why.
“Your highness.”
‘He’s still a strange person.’
He was talented enough to duel with his father, the duke, whom she admired most, at that age.
But he
didn’t act like an emperor or show any authority, and he talked to her, who was just a daughter of a noble family, without any distance.
He made a polite gesture and disappeared. She stared at his back for a long time.