Osel turned to his daughter. And just by seeing her bright, innocent eyes, a bright smile spread across his face.
âAre you worried?â
ââŠitâs an Apocalypse. I heard that theyâre monsters, completely different from the other Demigods. How could I not when itâs a being like thatâŠâ
âOf course, Iâm scared too.â
Osel spoke in a soft tone.
âIn my heart, the desire to run away is very strong. Ah, this is something the other circle members should never hear.â
ââŠyou can do that.â
âDonât you know that I canât do that? Itâs not a problem that can be solved by running away.â
ââŠâ
It was clear what Beniang was worried about.
Osel would have been lying if he said he wasnât scared. But it was fine.
He could still laugh sincerely.
âDemigods are certainly scary beings. But there are things that are more frightening than they are.â
âLike what?â
âLosing your family.â
Oselâs gaze settled on Beniang.
âHaving no home to return to.â
ââŠIâm also afraid of losing my father.â
âHaha. Thatâs another reason why I should come back. Donât worry. Rezil has designed a splendid operation. If everything goes according to plan, there should be no problems.â
If everything goes according to plan. Even at that time, Beniang knew how ridiculous that statement was.
Their target was an Apocalypse-class Demigod. A true transcendent being who could single handedly wipe out a country.
There was no way they would be able to take down such a target without anything going wrong.
I love you. And Iâm sorry.
He had smiled as he said those words.
She couldnât accept it at first. Rather, she was angry at Osel and Eizek for not keeping his promise.
And she cried after realising how pointless such behaviour was. She cried as if the world was ending.
After her emotions settled, she was overcome with depression, self-doubt, and loneliness.
Even then, time continued to pass. Slowly but surely.
Over time, her emotions gradually became diluted. At some point, Beniang became able to talk about Osel with a smile again.
However, from the moment she heard his will to now, there was one thing she was never able to understand.
How was he able to look in the face of his own death and smile?
* * *
Ivan stumbled.
The life seemed to have been sucked out of him. He didnât even have the strength to move his body.
Ivan had put all of his mana, mental strength, and even his vitality into that punch.
He wanted nothing more than to collapse at that moment. If he could close his eyes, even for a moment, there would be no greater happiness.
But he couldnât.
Ivan forced his eyelids, which seemed ready to close at any moment, to stay open.
âI touched it.â
It was clear.
According to Noraâs words, his fist had touched Agniâs âcoreâ. It wasnât just a touch either.
It was quite a formidable blow. He was certain.
It was his first time fighting a transcendent being like Agni, but he knew his punch had landed solidly.
Nevertheless, Ivanâs expression wasnât good.
âShitâŠâ
Ivanâs fist had literally created a sandstorm. However, this artificially created sandstorm soon dissipated as the force behind it disappeared.
The dust gradually settled, revealing Agniâs body.
His upper half was missing, and the flames on his body flickered dangerously, like a dying bonfire.
It wasnât a joke. This proved that Ivanâs thoughts had been right.
His punch was effective. In fact, it might have even been a fatal injury.
But in the end, it still failed to kill him.
[I didnât expect something like that.]
Agni spoke in a harsh tone.
There was no chance for him to say any more.
Crack!
An awl made of ice suddenly shot towards him.
Puk.
The ice awl stabbed into his body, but Isakaâs expression was not good. The ice soon melted.
Isaka grit his teeth.
Did this mean he couldnât do anything with his ice even when Agni was so badly injured?
âMonstrous bastard.â
[It would be better for you to watch your mouth. Unless you want your soul to disappear.]
Even though he spoke sharply, Agniâs condition was also not very good. Ivanâs fist had actually touched his core.
It would have been really dangerous if the Half-Dragonâs Dragontongue was stronger or if the Magic Warrior had more mana.
It was possible that he would have died in this place.
When he had this thought, Agni was filled with rage, but he forcibly suppressed his emotions.
He didnât have to get excited.
He could tell from their conditions. That last attack was the last hidden card they had.
They should have killed him with that last attack. Failure to do that meant that the result wouldnât change.
ââŠshit.â
Ivanâs body inevitably collapsed.
In the end, all he could do was glare at Agni. The fact that he didnât immediately pass out on the spot was admirable.
It was Nora who prevented him from falling.
It was a bit ridiculous to see such a large man being held up by a little girl, but there was only a heavy atmosphere.
âStop being such a crybaby.â
ââŠMaster.â
âThat aside, that last punch was really good.â
Nora smiled and stroked Ivanâs head.
Ivan grumbled discontentedly.
âWhy are you doing things you never did before?â
âI donât know.â
Nora murmured to herself before she seemed to remember something.
âWhat is the name of your technique?â
ââŠIvan. Ivanâs punch.â
âHuhu. How tacky. But calling it that name isnât too bad. Hmm. And it seems youâre only a short step away from reaching the Warrior King stage.â
Noraâs voice was light, and her expression was bright. But this appearance caused Ivan to feel uneasy.
âIvan Dolgar.â
Ivanâs expression hardened.
His real name, which even he had forgotten after so long, had come out of Noraâs mouth.
Nora smiled as she looked at her studentâs face.
The years of her life flashed before her eyes. Sheâd stopped counting after the 200th year, but quite a long time had passed.
It was too long. At least, for humans, it was a very long time.
It was a boring, hard, and lonely time, but looking back, it wasnât a bad life.
She could think this way because of this student of hers, who accompanied her during her later years.
âMake sure you look carefully.â
Nora walked towards Agni.
After she used Flame Spirit, she had no mana left. But it wasnât impossible to use magic martial arts without mana.
This was also the decisive difference between a Wizard and a Magic Warrior. After all, Magic Warriors were those who paid more attention to their bodies.
âIvan is still a step away.â
In other words, he needed more time.
No matter how much talent, instincts, and bloody hard work he put in, Ivan would never be able to overcome the obstacle of experience that was built up over time.
He needed someone who could show him that final step. That was what his teacher, Nora, believed.
A smile blossomed on Noraâs face.
There was even the best opponent at this moment.
âWhat are you doing?!â
Ivan screamed and squirmed, forcing himself up. However, after heâd raised his body halfway off the ground, he collapsed face first in the sand once again.
He had no strength in his legs.
Nevertheless, he didnât stop struggling. He clenched his jaws so hard that his gums started bleeding.
He knew what Nora was thinking. He could feel it.
âDonât do it! DonâtâŠâ
Ivan coughed up a mouthful of blood.
Pieces of his organs which had been damaged by his attack could be seen in the blood.
âPlease⊠please donâtâŠâ
Noraâs footsteps didnât stop.
Seeing her crying disciple reminded her of the time when she first took him in.
Ivan, at the time, was very innocent. She recalled the pure and naive look in his eyes.
Her once cute disciple had grown to become a disgustingly giant man. But this also meant that she raised him well.
âHuhu.â
-Her stray thoughts ended there.
Noraâs expression changed.
Before she knew it, she was right in front of Agni. Then she recalled Ivanâs Punch.
It was an attack that contained the full potential of a Magic Warrior.
She slowly clenched her fist and stretched it forward. Doing martial arts without mana was the same as using a bow without any arrows.
Those looking on might think it was useless. However, that wasnât entirely true.
She could at least show him the motions. She could teach him the most ideal posture.
Ivan watched this scene with tear-filled eyes.
Despite his sorrow and helplessness, he watched his teacherâs final moments with wide eyes.
Agni was also looking at Nora.
âWhat is she doing?â
He couldnât feel any power in this human in front of him. This meant that she wasnât a threat to him.
Even the smallest of his embers could still burn her to death. He was certain of this.
But he still couldnât move just yet.
No, he didnât want to move.
This wasnât like the Dragontongue. He wasnât moving because his âheartâ didnât want him to move.
Something about Noraâs appearance at this moment made him not want to make a move.
âReverence.â
Was a Demigod like him feeling reverent towards a human?
Noraâs clothes were covered in blood and sand, but her upright posture seemed to carry a sense of purity and holiness.
Nora clenched her fist.
Ivan realised immediately.
That movement, that posture, that fist.
She was imitating the secret technique heâd just used.
No, it wasnât an imitation. She was fixing the shortcomings, reconstructing, and developing it to perfection.
It was Noraâs last lesson.
She extended her small, thin fist.
Tok.
This fist hit Agniâs body with a weak sound.
ââŠâ
[âŠ]
It happened in an instant.
The Dreadful Flames spread to Noraâs arm. Then, the flames covered Noraâs entire body.
Hellfire. Noraâs entire body was engulfed in hellfire.
She heard Ivanâs grieving cry.
Nevertheless, she didnât open her eyes. She didnât even open her mouth.
She didnât want to show her student the unsightly appearance of her screaming during her last moments.
She wouldnât allow it.
âŠ.
âŠ.
It was strange.
For some reason, she didnât feel any pain.
Was she already dead?
Was she burnt to ashes before she could even feel it properly?