SFRW-Chapter 260

Ch. 260 Sword God From The Ruined World

Among the countries in Europe that suffered the most damage due to monsters, France was undoubtedly one of the top three. Though it was known as a powerhouse of Heroes, the vastness of its territory made it impossible to defend every inch. As a result, France did not hesitate to unleash its firepower on monsters that were vulnerable to modern weaponry—even if that meant using nuclear weapons.  

Because of such bold decisions, 20% of France’s land became irradiated. While people now criticize those choices as reckless and foolish, no one could have condemned France’s decisions at the time.  

Eventually, peace returned to France, and the surviving citizens believed they no longer had to live in fear.  

At least, that was the case until just an hour ago.  

One hour earlier.  

Bzzzt! Bzzzt! Bzzzt!  

The citizens enjoying the clear blue sky of France at the Champ de Mars suddenly screamed in shock as sparks erupted out of nowhere. Could it be that monsters were appearing again? Even though all dimensional rifts had supposedly disappeared, monsters still existed, and people couldn’t help but feel uneasy as they watched the scene unfold.  

Just as everyone froze at the sight of the violent sparks spreading like electricity from a power plant—  

Crackle—  

A distinct sound echoed. The once-pristine sky was forcibly torn apart, revealing a dark, jagged rift.  

“M-My God…!”  

“A-A rift…!”  

Those watching with bated breath turned pale in an instant.  

France had sacrificed 20% of its land to nuclear strikes but had desperately protected its capital, Paris. And now, a rift was forming right in the heart of Paris? There could be no greater disaster.  

People screamed and fled for their lives, while others, unable to escape, stood frozen in despair. Some even pointed their phone cameras at the scene, determined to capture whatever happened, even if it meant dying in the process.  

The peaceful Champ de Mars, bathed in warm sunlight just moments ago, had turned into a scene of chaos in an instant.  

But was there at least one silver lining?  

The rift wasn’t very large. At most, it was big enough for a single medium-sized monster to pass through.  

As the sparks faded and the rift stopped expanding, those who had been running halted and looked up at the sky.  

Then, after about three minutes—  

Swoosh—  

A human foot slowly stepped out from within the rift.  

A tall man, around 180 cm in height, with striking red hair that reached his waist and a lean yet well-built frame.  

His most defining feature?  

“Good Lord…”  

“He’s… blindingly beautiful.”  

“How can someone be so perfect?”  

His proportions were more flawless than any sculpture on Earth, his features so exquisite that calling him ‘perfection incarnate’ wouldn’t be an exaggeration.  

At a single glance, anyone—regardless of gender or age—would be left utterly spellbound.  

His attire was just as unusual, as if he had stepped straight out of a medieval fantasy film.  

Floating in the air with his arms crossed, the man surveyed his surroundings with emotionless eyes before slowly speaking.  

“□□□□□□□□□□.”  

It was a language no one had ever heard before. Though no one understood him, the man continued speaking indifferently while the crowd stared in a daze.  

How much time had passed when—  

“Everyone, move aside!”  

A group of people arrived—Heroes from the French Hero Association, beloved and admired by the nation.  

Among them, the one who received the loudest cheers was—  

“It’s Alphonse!”  

Sabri Alphonse, the strongest of France’s remaining three S-rank Heroes. Despite being in his late forties, he looked no older than his early-to-mid thirties, his flawless features making him one of the most popular men in France.  

Alphonse ignored the cheers and kept his focus solely on the man floating in the sky.  

‘What… How can a man like that exist?’  

Alphonse, who had never felt inferior in looks compared to any man, knew the moment he saw the red-haired man that standing next to him would make his own appearance seem pitiful in comparison.  

Though irritated by this realization, Alphonse knew now wasn’t the time to dwell on vanity.  

‘The rift is small, but… if he came from inside it…’  

This was someone he absolutely could not let his guard down around. The first rule when encountering beings from rifts was to always be cautious.  

“You… Do you understand our language?”  

Alphonse first spoke in French, then followed up in English.  

But the stranger continued speaking in an unknown tongue.  

“What language is that? Does anyone recognize it?”  

He turned to his colleagues, but even those well-versed in multiple languages could only shake their heads in confusion.  

“How are we supposed to communicate…?”  

“…Can you understand me now?”  

Suddenly, the man’s voice came through clearly.  

“You know French?”  

Alphonse muttered to himself in surprise, but the man immediately responded.  

“Is that what you’re speaking? Now that I think about it… the humans here seem to use quite a variety of languages.”  

After murmuring something unintelligible again, the man nodded in satisfaction. He had somehow deciphered the various languages spoken by the international crowd at the Champ de Mars—though Alphonse had no way of knowing that.  

“If you’re not an enemy, would you mind coming down?”  

Uncertain of the man’s intentions, Alphonse kept his tone as friendly as possible.  

Fortunately, the man seemed willing to talk and descended without resistance.  

Thud—  

As his feet touched the ground, his striking appearance became even more apparent.  

“So… who are you? Why did you emerge from the rift?”  

Instead of answering, the man posed his own question.  

“I smell Rebley’s traces everywhere. Is this… Earth? The planet that Barhaut is currently conquering?”  

Though they could now communicate, Alphonse still couldn’t comprehend the man’s words. He had no idea what ‘Rebley’s traces’ meant or who ‘Barhaut’ was.  

But one thing was certain.  

Even without any overt hostility, the natural intimidation emanating from the man’s tone made Alphonse’s entire body tremble.  

‘…I’m… terrified.’  

An overwhelming fear gripped Alphonse—a primal terror so immense that resistance or defiance was unthinkable.  

***  

When Seo Do-jun opened his eyes, the first people he saw were Shinjo and Choi Kang-soo.  

“Uncle! Are you okay?”  

“Guild Master, are you hurt anywhere?”  

Both spoke almost simultaneously, immediately checking on Seo Do-jun’s condition.  

“I’m fine.”  

From the moment he woke up, Seo Do-jun had already assessed his physical state and confirmed there were no issues.  

“You scared us! You suddenly coughed up blood and collapsed… Are you really alright?”  

Was it a side effect?  

The Eyes of Falsehood and the Trap of Immortality didn’t consume magic when used.  

Was it mental energy instead?  

He had felt a part of his vitality drain away, making him aware that using them consecutively was dangerous.  

‘But I only used them twice… To lose consciousness from just that…’  

Of course, considering that the trade-off was his life, the benefit was incomparable.  

However, using the Eyes of Falsehood and the Trap of Immortality in an unsafe environment was far too risky.  

Seo Do-jun decided he would never use them consecutively unless it was a life-or-death situation.  

“How long was I out?”  

“About half a day.”  

“Half a day?”  

The fact that he had been unconscious and defenseless for so long made him take the side effects even more seriously.  

“Where are Rahf and Grichuk?”  

Not seeing the two familiar faces, Seo Do-jun asked.  

“Grichuk’s condition worsened, so Rahf went down below the Sky Forest with Bolikos and Twek.”  

More precisely, they had gone to treat Grichuk using the dark magic energy lingering throughout the Sky Forest.  

“Is his condition that bad?”  

“He can’t regenerate or recover… According to Rahf, Grichuk’s soul might gradually collapse over time.”  

Hearing this, Seo Do-jun immediately recalled the Power of Godslaying.  

Though he hadn’t seen it clearly, he knew that unless it was the Power of Godslaying, there was no reason Grichuk couldn’t recover.  

Grichuk was a valuable ally, one Seo Do-jun couldn’t afford to lose so easily.  

“Let’s go see them.”  

As Seo Do-jun spoke, Shinjo and Choi Kang-soo nodded and moved to exit Romak’s nest.  

Just then—  

“Uncle, should I carry you?”  

“…I’m fine.”  

Despite Seo Do-jun’s refusal, Choi Kang-soo kept insisting, just in case.  

Ultimately rejecting Choi Kang-soo’s concern, Seo Do-jun propelled himself out of the nest on his own.  

As he wondered where to go next—  

“Uncle, wait a moment.”  

Choi Kang-soo pulled out a long rod from his pocket and tugged on the string attached to its end.  

Pew— Whoosh— Boom!  

Shortly after, an identical signal flare exploded in the distance.  

It was a magical item Rahf had left with Choi Kang-soo to help them locate each other in the vast Sky Forest.  

“That’s handy.”  

“Right? It can be used up to five times. Rahf really is useful.”  

As Choi Kang-soo spoke, Seo Do-jun and Shinjo immediately headed toward the signal.  

Though the distance was considerable, the three quickly reached the spot where Rahf, Grichuk, and the others were.  

Grichuk’s condition was indeed dire.  

“The problem is the direct hit from Vampica. Though the rate of magic leakage decreased significantly after her death… his magic is still dissipating bit by bit. If we leave him like this…”  

He didn’t finish, but everyone understood.  

“So you’ve been searching the forest for a way to treat him? Has there been no improvement at all?”  

At Choi Kang-soo’s question, Rahf shook his head.  

“This is just emergency first aid. To truly heal him, we need souls—a lot of them.”  

Grichuk had been reborn through Rahf’s sacrifice of countless souls.  

To restore him now would require another massive number of souls.  

“You’re saying we have to kill innocent people?”  

Choi Kang-soo expressed his disgust, and though Shinjo remained silent, his expression made his disagreement clear.  

Seo Do-jun felt the same.  

No matter how valuable Grichuk was as an ally, he couldn’t justify sacrificing innocent lives to save him.  

Rahf, of course, understood their reluctance.  

“Do I look like I’m about to go slaughter innocent people? When I created Grichuk, I didn’t have the luxury of choice. But now, things are different.”  

Back then, his sole focus had been revenge against Barhaut and proving his loyalty to Archbishop Alfrey. But now that he had aligned himself with Seo Do-jun, Rahf knew there were lines he couldn’t cross.  

“The best option would be vampire souls, but Vampica likely brought most of them here. There isn’t any left to gather.”  

Meaning they needed to leave Iostem quickly.  

“How long can he hold on?”  

Seo Do-jun looked at Grichuk, who was barely conscious, as he asked.  

“At most, two weeks. Maybe a day or two more if we’re lucky.”  

That was much shorter than expected.  

“How many souls are needed?”  

“Just to stabilize him, we’d need hundreds immediately. For a full recovery… ten times that.”  

“You’re insane…”  

Choi Kang-soo stared at Rahf in disbelief at the idea of needing thousands of souls. It made him question Rahf’s sanity all over again.  

“Grichuk’s soul expanded after absorbing the essence of the Death Knight.”  

Though Rahf’s words sounded like an excuse, Seo Do-jun also found the idea of sacrificing thousands distasteful.  

‘Still, we have to do what we can.’  

Especially if it meant targeting those allied with Barhaut—such a cost would be justified.  

“Open a dimensional passage now.”  

At Seo Do-jun’s command, Rahf prepared to create a portal.  

“You’re leaving?”  

Bolikos and Twek, who had been silently listening, finally approached.  

“On behalf of all our brethren, we want to express our gratitude. We will never forget your help.”  

“Aren’t you resentful that I ended up with Iostem’s artifact?”  

At Seo Do-jun’s question, Bolikos laughed heartily.  

“Resentful? Killing Vampica was more than enough. Finding the artifact was just a means to that end. More importantly…”  

Pausing, Bolikos looked at Seo Do-jun, Choi Kang-soo, and Shinjo before continuing.  

“We’ve been freed from Barhaut’s control. We have nothing left to desire. And for that, we are eternally grateful to you. We sincerely hope you achieve your goals.”  

Seo Do-jun clasped Bolikos’ outstretched hand.  

“We will.”  

“Yes, if it’s you, I believe you can.”  

With that brief farewell, the dimensional passage opened, and Seo Do-jun’s group stepped through one by one.  

Once the portal closed, Twek suddenly panicked.  

“Lord Bolikos! Romak is dead—how are we getting out of the Sky Forest now? We should’ve asked them to take us to the exit!”  

“Ah… That is a problem.”  

Bolikos also seemed to realize this oversight, his face falling.  

But only for a moment.  

“Still, compared to our fight against Vampica, this is nothing, right? We can handle this ourselves.”  

“…I suppose so.”  

“Let’s hurry back and tell our brethren that peace has finally come to Iostem.”  

“Yes!”  

Peace had come to Iostem.