SFRW-Chapter 281

Ch. 281 Sword God From The Ruined World

The northern edge of the continent.  

The monster invasion that began from the Lost Mountains was truly the start of a catastrophe.  

Without any warning, monsters emerged from the Lost Mountains like a well-trained elite army, staining the land with the blood of all living creatures in their path.  

The kingdoms that suffered the most were, naturally, the Altairi Kingdom and the Soteroma Kingdom, which bordered the Lost Mountains.  

Unable to stop the endless tide of monsters, both kingdoms ultimately fell to ruin.  

It was the moment when the centuries-old balance of the seven kingdoms completely collapsed—and the beginning of a new era.  

The fall of these two kingdoms united the continent.  

The remaining five kingdoms gathered their knights and armies to stop the monsters advancing south from the Lost Mountains, spending astronomical sums to recruit mercenaries as well.  

Thus began the war between humans and monsters—the true start of the Era of Chaos.  

The war, which lasted a grueling eight years, claimed nearly ten million lives, and the economic damage was incalculable.  

Countless Heroes who had upheld the five kingdoms perished, but just as the setting sun gives way to the rising dawn, many new figures rose to prominence.  

Among them, the one who gained the most unparalleled fame was the Mercenary King Joi.  

A once-ordinary country bumpkin of a mercenary transformed into the continent’s strongest warrior—the Hero who ended the Era of Chaos.  

And by her side were always ten mercenaries, shadows who followed her everywhere.  

They were the leaders of the continent’s Top Ten mercenary bands, now said to wield more power and influence than any of the five kings.  

Yet now, all ten of these fearless mercenary leaders lay sprawled on the ground, bleeding.  

None were mortally wounded, but not a single one could stand to fight.  

KWA—ANG!  

“…Ghk!”  

With a deafening explosion, a slender figure was sent flying backward. The fallen mercenary leaders gnashed their teeth and shouted.  

“Stop it, you bastard!”  

“That’s enough!”  

“Joi! Don’t be stupid!”  

“Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!”  

Amid their furious cries, the slender figure—who had been rolling on the ground—slowly rose, letting out a pained groan.  

Cough! Cough!  

With each cough, red blood spilled from their lips.  

Their short golden hair was a tangled mess.  

Eyes like deep blue lakes, a straight nose now smeared with blood, and full lips—torn and redder than ever.  

This was the Mercenary King Joi, the continent’s Hero who had ended the Era of Chaos before vanishing without a trace.  

Ptooey!  

Joi spat out the blood in her mouth and raised her greatsword.  

Her will to fight remained unbroken.  

“Your courage is admirable… but you’d need a thousand more years to face me!”  

The giant man, Allekuhi, charged forward, stomping the ground before unleashing a devastating punch.  

The sheer force of his fist tore through the air, carrying enough power to rend the atmosphere itself.  

BOOM—!  

A golden sword aura erupted, blocking Allekuhi’s punch—but only for a fleeting moment.  

“…Ghk!”  

Joi’s body crumpled as she was sent flying, a trail of blood arcing from her mouth.  

“Stop it! Just stop!”  

“We’re supposed to be on the same side! Why?! Why?!”  

“Goddamn it! Please, stop!”  

“Are you trying to kill the Administrator?!”  

As the mercenary leaders screamed themselves hoarse, Allekuhi finally shrugged and stepped back.  

Then, Luam stepped forward.  

“After being lifted from your worthless, insect-like existence by Lord Barhaut’s grace… you dare defy his will?”  

“Quit… spouting nonsense.”  

Joi wiped the blood from her lips with her forearm and glared at Luam.  

“A mere Planetary Administrator, acting so high and mighty…”  

“A damn mutt who only knows loyalty—yet you talk too much.”  

Luam’s skeletal fingers twitched as Joi interrupted and mocked him.  

Then, without warning, a pitch-black aura shot forward like a cannonball, slamming into Joi’s chest.  

CRASH—!  

She was flung back helplessly, blood bursting from her lips again as her limbs went limp like a broken puppet.  

“You didn’t kill her, did you?”  

Luam didn’t even bother responding to Allekuhi’s question—it was obvious.  

No matter how angry he was, Joi was still this planet’s Administrator.  

Killing her recklessly would mean the guardian planet’s liberation—something absolutely forbidden.  

As if to prove it, Joi—who had been sprawled like a broken doll—twitched and slowly rose again.  

Kaaah—Ptooey!  

Spitting out a bloody glob, Joi grinned like a demon.  

“Know the difference between you and me, bonehead?”  

She took slow, deliberate steps toward Luam as he spoke.  

“Difference? More like the difference between a dog and a bug.”  

Luam threw Joi’s own mockery back at her.

Though called Barhaut’s loyal dog, Luam didn’t particularly dislike the title.  

At least it was better than being a bug.  

“Yeah, that’s one way to put it. But you’re wrong.”  

Joi’s grin widened.  

“The real difference is… I can kill you. But you? You can never kill me.”  

Like an arrow loosed from a bow, Joi shot toward Luam.  

Where she found the strength was a mystery—but if one looked closely, her complexion had already returned to normal.  

“Kill me? A worthless insect like you?”  

Luam watched with disdain as Joi closed in.  

Golden sword energy surged from her blade like a storm, yet Luam didn’t move to block or evade.  

Just as the raging aura was about to engulf him—  

CRACK—!  

Space split open, and a massive skeleton knight wielding a greatsword emerged, effortlessly blocking Joi’s strike.  

A Dragon Bone Knight—its bones twenty times thicker than a normal skeleton’s, forged from the remains of a dragon.  

Overwhelming strength, indestructible durability, and magic resistance made it one of Luam’s ultimate weapons.  

“Freedom? Peace? For a guardian planet’s Administrator to spout such nonsense… It seems Lord Barhaut made a mistake appointing you. You’re unfit for the role.”  

“Tch. So you’re not just an overly loyal mutt—you’re an arrogant bastard who thinks he’s the master now.”  

Joi knocked aside the Dragon Bone Knight’s greatsword and unleashed another wave of golden sword energy.  

With each slash, the knight staggered backward, bone dust scattering everywhere.  

Though she was no match for transcendent beings like Allekuhi and Luam, Joi was still a human recognized by Barhaut—a true Administrator who had earned her power.  

CRUNCH! CRACK! SNAP!  

As the Dragon Bone Knight was forced back, its bones crumbling, Luam frowned and tore open more spatial rifts.  

SKREEEEE—!  

GYAAAAAH—!  

Hordes of high-level undead and Death Knights poured out, twisting Joi’s expression in frustration.  

She desperately blocked, dodged, and counterattacked—but alone against Luam’s legion, holding out was impossible.  

“…Ghk!”  

Kneeling as she spat out a fist-sized clot of blood, Joi found three sword points at her throat.  

“Go ahead. Try to kill me.”  

Knowing Luam couldn’t kill him, Joi deliberately pressed his neck against the blades.  

Just as Luam was about to shout in alarm—  

THUD—!  

Ratio appeared soundlessly behind Joi and struck the back of her neck, knocking her out instantly.  

“What a stubborn fool,” Ratio clicked her tongue, looking down at Joi’s unconscious form.  

Had Luam asked too much?  

All he wanted was her cooperation in ambushing Ophel’s Seven Apostles.  

Though from Joi’s perspective, that cooperation might have been… uncomfortable.  

“Don’t mind her. Let’s get started.”  

At Ratio’s words, Luam nodded and walked toward the ten fallen mercenary leaders.  

The Administrator’s Direct force—the ten mercenary leaders under the Mercenary King Joi.  

Luam planned to use them.  

Joi had drawn her sword to stop him, but no Planetary Administrator—barring exceptional cases—could oppose the will of the Six Seats.  

“Your purpose is to protect this planet. This is for that very cause—accept it gladly.”  

A vile, dark magic began erupting from Luam’s entire body.  

***

Meanwhile…  

“You said Barhaut conquers planets to create guardian worlds, right?”  

“That’s what I heard.”  

More precisely, it was to protect his homeworld, Tirotio.  

Barhaut, a royal of that world, had defended it alone against all would-be conquerors.  

In that light, he was a defender who used any means necessary to protect what was his.  

Not that such reasoning justified his conquests.  

“Just who is he trying to protect it from?”  

Choi Kang-soo’s question had always puzzled Seo Do-jun as well.  

If even Barhaut needed so many guardian worlds to defend his planet, didn’t that imply the existence of beings equal to—or greater than—him?  

“Honestly, life was simpler when I knew nothing. Born as a human who barely lives a century, and now caught up in… whatever this is.”  

Choi Kang-soo let out a hollow laugh.  

Human lives were short.  

After seeing other races who lived for centuries or millennia, he realized how precious each day was.  

Then, he suddenly turned to Seo Do-jun.  

“But you’re not human anymore, right?”  

“Huh?”  

“Let’s be honest… who would see you as a normal human with a 100-year lifespan? You might as well be immortal now.”  

“Immortal? You think such a thing exists?”  

Seo Do-jun scoffed. Even gods could perish—as proven by the fallen deities of conquered worlds.  

“Fine, maybe not truly immortal. But you’ll live for ages, won’t you?”  

Seo Do-jun didn’t deny it. He had felt it too—that he was no longer human.  

Back in his ruined world, some had lived twice as long as ordinary humans: legendary knights, archmages, chosen priests…  

Now, Seo Do-jun had far surpassed even them.  

Transcendents were like that.  

How long would he live?  

Hundreds of years? Thousands?  

The thought weighed on him—and the same applied to Shinjo and Choi Kang-soo.  

Unless their powers vanished, they too would live as Transcendents.  

Perhaps returning to Earth isn’t the right choice.  

The realization darkened Seo Do-jun’s mood—but not for long.  

The Khetalu Plains were now in sight.  

No point worrying about going back when there’s still so much to do.  

Liberate the remaining guardian worlds. Kill the Six Seats. Defeat Barhaut himself.  

Only after all that could he afford to think about Earth.  

“Boss! Looks like that bastard wasn’t lying.”  

As Choi Kang-soo said, sturdy barracks and numerous presences could be sensed ahead.  

But…  

“Seems someone got here before us. Stay sharp.”  

At Seo Do-jun’s warning, Shinjo, Choi Kang-soo, and Grichuk readied themselves for battle.