48 – OK

The strength of the magical power radiating from Mount Grace gradually increased. This is a sign that we are getting closer to the top.

Shion’s demonic sword, Cybeline, also received the magic of the mountain, and its blue glow deepened.

The Planteras rushed like beasts, regardless of front and back.

Each time she swung her sword, five or six Planteras were cut off.

Something caught Zion’s ankle.

Plantera, whose lower body was cut off, held on to Shion’s leg until the end.

These were burning like wasps facing an intruder who had touched the hive.

She immediately swung her sword and cut off Plantera’s hand, then ran on.

As we climbed, the greenery that blocked the sunlight faded and the rocks and pebbles stepped on them.

Soon, the open sky with no tree branches and leaves in sight began to come into view.

And finally we reached the crest of a ridge of large rocks.

Shion hid her face for a while from the suddenly blinding sunlight.

The first thing that came into sight after adjusting to the light was a magical slab placed about a hundred steps away.

She put her sword in and took a moment to catch her breath when she heard the sound of stepping on pebbles from the side.

When I turned my head there, the figure of an unknown man caught my eye.

Shion’s pupils widened.

Of course, I had to be alone at the top. She was clearly in the lead. The gap between him and Lee was overwhelmingly widened.

However, breaking Zion’s faith, an unidentified figure naturally stands in front of his eyes.

As if it fell from the sky.

He didn’t even have a colleague just like her.

Shion was able to intuit like an animal. That human is of the same type as himself, on a different level from the people struggling below him.

“What are you?”

When Shion opened his mouth, he turned around.

He wears a mask with dark red hair and holds a wooden sword in one hand.

The blood flowed down his shoulder and dripped onto the tip of his wooden sword.

“… .”

Zion remembered him.

A man I briefly met at Philin’s forge.

I had briefly overheard that I had received a letter of recommendation and paid close attention to it.

If you get a recommendation letter, it must be at the level of making a name in the area, but there were no rumors going around him. So I assumed that no matter how good I was, I would be at a level below Victor or Gail.

And that guess was completely wrong.

I never thought this man would be the biggest ambush in this exam.

The man’s eyes were shining strangely strong. It seemed like a potion or magic effect.

A wooden sword, a mask, and glowing eyes. It was full of unknown things.

However, it seemed that his fighting ability was not up to Shion’s.

Shion, who reached the top in the same way, did not shed a single drop of blood.

The masked man motioned for Shion to pass first. As the blood flowed, his attitude was very relaxed and gentlemanly.

When I saw that, I burst out laughing.

An ignorant applicant would have run hastily, blinded by the slate.

Seeing as he stood there, it was clear that the man knew too.

what awaits ahead

“Are you really cunning?”

I even had a funny thought that I might have come up because of the backs of other applicants.

It looks like a scammer, but that’s probably not all. If you don’t have certain skills, it’s impossible to come up to a place like this no matter how good you cheat.

“Unfortunately, I know everything.”

Nonsense tricks don’t work.

Shion threw a stone the size of a fist. The stone flew away and landed midway between the stone slab and where she was standing.

In response, the earthshafts soon began to rumble.

The place where the stone fell began to rise upward. Soon after, a house-sized golem appeared.

There was still one final gateway left. It was a test to filter out those who were simply lucky or who came up because they were cheating on others, and to select the best ones.

If you don’t destroy the golem, the magic slab won’t work.

oh oh oh-

The golem let out a roar so heavy that the gravel trembled, then stood tall in the slab and glared fiercely at the challenger. It was so big and heavy that if you hit it with even one fist, it would turn into dough right away.

Shion took out the magic sword, Civeline, and said to the man.

“Did you go first? Well, I’ll tune it to the rhythm once.”

It might be the last fight in Eternia. Can I play with you once in a while?

As Shion took a few steps forward, the golem’s gaze focused on her.

The artifacts hanging from her feet began to have magical powers.

As soon as I was ready, I immediately started running.

In an instant, she lunged at the golem at three times the speed of a normal human.

The golem immediately struck Shion with an arm.

Quaang!

It was such a strong blow that I thought the ground would all collapse.

Shion easily dodged to the side and got on top of the golem’s hand.

As if crossing a stepping stone, he climbed up to the shoulder and swung a knife at his left shoulder.

The whole process happened in an instant.

Booung!

The blue sword swept away the golem. Cybeline cut off a third of the shoulder of a huge boulder.

I swung it once more, and the remaining half fell off. Finally, I put my weight on it and swung it, and the golem’s left shoulder was split in two.

oh oh oh!

As if surprised by this, the golem began to wield its remaining limbs at random.

With a huge impact, dust and stone fragments flew in all directions.

Shion calmly evaded the golem’s attack and got out of range.

After returning to the original position, Shion took a deep breath and spoke to the man.

“Now it’s your turn.”

“… .”

The man observed Shion’s sword for a while, then raised his wooden sword and stared blankly as if comparing it.

He put a wooden sword on his waist.

Then he stretched out his empty hand into the air.

Shion’s eyes widened as he watched with a questioning gaze.

A shining sword appeared in the man’s hand along with a formidable magic pressure.

‘Could it be a demon sword?’

It was extremely rare to own and wield a demonic sword at such a young age.

What’s more surprising is that even though it’s the same magic sword, the magic pressure was so high that it couldn’t be compared to Shion’s Civelline. Ordinary people were at the level of losing their minds to the point of sword facing each other.

‘That’s… what?’

The material of the sword was also bizarre. No matter how special the magic sword is, the sword is taken out of the scabbard and does not suddenly appear out of thin air. He had traveled all over the continent, but this was the first time he had ever seen a sword like that.

He cut through the air with one hand. The light flashed blindingly, and immediately a pure white sword wave flew into the golem’s right shoulder.

Quaang!

It caused a devastating explosion that blew off the golem’s entire right arm.

It was a tremendous power to the point of being stunned.

The man checked the golem and extinguished the sword again.

Shion looked at him and said.

“what is your name?”

“… .”

“Can’t you talk?”

The man nodded.

Shion crossed his arms in displeasure and narrowed his eyes.

He stared at me like he was fighting and then said.

“… Then I won’t tell you either.”

And there was only silence between the two.

Unable to hold back, Shion eventually tried to talk with his body.

She pointed at the man with her hand and pointed at the golem.

‘You go first.’

He shook his head.

After confirming the man’s intention, Shion immediately pulled out the Sibelin.

Having rejected the opportunity given earlier, there was no room for gossip even after she destroyed the golem and stamped the slate with first place.

oh oh oh-

The golem roared and gathered strength.

The surrounding rocks clung to the golem like a magnet. Soon after, the damaged arm was restored again.

The golem’s body can be restored indefinitely unless its core is destroyed. There was no use in cutting it down little by little.

You have to stop breathing with a strong blow.

Shion immediately rushed at the golem.

The golem, whose aggression reached its peak, immediately raised its arms and slashed it down at Shion. It was a faster and more powerful blow than before.

Quaang!

As before, Shion threw herself to the left to avoid it. However, the golem swept his arm to the side as if sweeping a broom, when Shion hesitated due to a sudden change of direction.

Shion held up his sword like a shield to block it, but he was blown away with blows all over his body.

Shion, who fell headlong to the floor, stood up without a moment’s delay.

And again, I ran into the golem. This time she induced the golem’s attack and ran away. When the golem mishandled, it took advantage of the gap and clung to the body without delay.

I swung the cybelin at the torso where the core was hidden.

Along with the blue afterglow, it created long sword marks on the golem’s body.

However, it was not enough to reach the core because the torso was so large.

The counterattack came straight away. The golem was able to freely twist its arms and attack as each rock was joint.

It was not allowed to be near the torso.

Attacks continued without a break so that he could not concentrate on cutting the core.

Rock fragments flew in all directions.

Shion slashed his torso several times with all his might, but only cut marks were left and he couldn’t do much damage.

The golem’s fist finally hit Shion head-on after several unsuccessful attempts.

She floated up and plunged headlong again into the distance.

Shion vomited blood once and muttered to himself.

“It hurts.”

I knew it when I dealt with it properly. It wasn’t made for you to deal with alone.

When I tried to stand up again, I immediately felt a great pain in one of my ankles.

“Huh!”

It must have been bent once when he fell to the floor, but his ankles were so swollen that it was difficult to walk.

Moreover, the golem’s attack was not over.

The golem picked up a boulder and threw it hard at Shion.

Sensing that it was too late to dodge, Shion barely got up and put the sword on her waist and took a stance with her feet.

I couldn’t see any other way than to cut it.

The rock flew at her in a straight line. And when it reached my eyes, a pure white sword wave flew from the side and shattered the rock.

“… !”

Shion turned his head.

At the place where the sword wave flew, a masked man was standing with a demonic sword out.

Shion bit his lip. Even if I die, I don’t want help.

He looked at Shion for a moment, then walked towards the golem.

It’s like saying that now it’s your turn.