The Indomitable Martial King

Siris murmured with a wistful voice.

“It was really nice…”

She didn’t need to worry about arrow supplies, could freely control its power, and its portability was excellent. The Magic Bow Nihillen was truly the perfect weapon for Siris. Yet, she had to return it after only shooting it a few times. Of course, this allowed the elves to open up a new future, so she had no complaints. Still, she couldn’t help but feel a bit of regret from time to time.

Repenhardt responded sheepishly.

“Sorry about that. I’ll make you a similar one later.”

“Huh? Can Repenhardt-nim really make something like that?”

At Siris’s surprised look, Repenhardt shrugged his shoulders proudly.

“As long as I have enough mana, it’s not difficult. What do you think of me, Siris? I’m the first 10-circle mage in human history, after all.”

“You don’t really look it, hmph…”

Siris grumbled but had a hopeful expression. Repenhardt smiled. In front of her, who shared the secrets of his past life, he had nothing to hide. Conversations with someone he could share everything with were enjoyable in themselves.

“In that sense, I need to increase my mana too…”

Repenhardt frowned, looking alternately at his thick arms and thighs.

“This body is really at odds with magic.”

This was one of the reasons Repenhardt had been loafing around. Despite meditating diligently, this body of Teslon showed no signs of increasing in mana. He had completely reformed his mana constitution with the subterranean sun Magrim, yet the results were still like this. Eventually, he got tired and gave up.

“I haven’t even broken through the 7th circle’s gate yet, sigh…”

In reality, his current state was far beyond that of an ordinary mage in terms of mana accumulation. However, for Repenhardt, who had once carved a high-speed path through magic in his past life, this was far from satisfactory.

“I need to gain more power.”

Repenhardt muttered with a serious expression.

“Things are going well now, but it won’t always be like this.”

So far, everything had proceeded as he had anticipated. He had united the different races, allied with the humans, and laid the groundwork for establishing the new Antares Empire on this land. Up to this point, everything had gone perfectly.

However, things would not continue to go so smoothly. Repenhardt’s recent successes were akin to gambling while knowing the opponent’s hand. With knowledge from his past life, he could predict most events, while his opponents knew nothing, making his victories inevitable. It was like a professional gambler winning against a novice by peeking at their cards.

But now, the strength of the different races was known to the world. The fighting methods of the non-human warriors had been revealed. Humans would no longer be so easily defeated by them.

Repenhardt’s adversaries were not merely factions or nations. He had to fight against the era itself. While he did not intend to solve everything with magic as he did in his past life, the power of magic was still essential.

“Since we’re heading to Jerunting, I’ll need to gather some high-mana artifacts there. My progress has been too slow, so I need to increase my mana even if it means using mana drain.”

Repenhardt stood up. He wiped the grease from his hands and spoke to Siris.

“Can you call everyone? Now that we’re on the topic, we should depart today. We can’t take Tilla because she’s on a surveillance mission in Carsus, but the others don’t have much to do anyway, right?”

Siris, who was already annoyed by their idleness, eagerly got up.

“Where are we heading?”

“Southwest of the Setelad Mountains, the Matos Mountain Range. There’s a dungeon called Kelte there that contains Jerunting. It should take about a week to get there via the Daiman Terminal.”

* * *

The Barony of Chetas, located between the Gluten Mountains and the Lakidi Mountains, was a territory through which the trade route connecting the Kingdom of Crovence and the Vasily Kingdom passed. In the city of Zarud, located on this trade route, the rough voice of a man echoed from an inn frequented by many trading caravans.

“What? He’s not there now?”

A robed woman standing before the man nodded fearfully.

“Th-that’s right, Teslon.”

At the words of the woman, Mage Philena, the black-haired young man named Teslon, who was sitting at the table, furrowed his brow.

“Grr…”

On the twentieth day since they departed from the Kingdom of Graim, Teslon and his party stopped in the trading city of Zarud to gather information about Repenhardt. Zarud was an essential stopover for the Taoban Trading Company, which primarily dealt with the Duchy of Antares, making it the best place to obtain information about the duchy. Philena, who had contacted a merchant from the Taoban Trading Company, brought back unexpected news.

“According to the merchant, he left the White Castle three days ago, saying he would be away for about a month due to some business.”

“We just missed him by a hair.”

Two men sitting at the table, Eusus and Stefan, groaned with a frown. They had come all this way only to find that their target was not present. For those who had prepared themselves and were burning with fighting spirit, this was indeed disheartening.

“Did he mention where he was going?” Teslon asked.

Philena tilted her head. “The merchants didn’t seem to know that much.”

“Well, it’s not something they would necessarily need to know,” Teslon remarked.

From the merchants’ perspective, as long as they completed their transactions and received their payments on time, it was a satisfactory deal. They had no reason to inquire about the movements of their clients.

“What should we do, Teslon? Should we wait here until he returns?”

“There’s no other way. But a month… that’s too long,” Teslon murmured, feeling troubled. Stefan downed his drink roughly and shouted in frustration.

“Damn it! I thought we’d finally get to meet that bastard Repenhardt.”

At that moment, a middle-aged man, who had presumably just returned from the restroom, passed by their table and cautiously spoke to Stefan.

“Young man, I don’t know what’s going on, but you should watch your language.”

“What do you mean, watch my language?” Stefan, noticing the man was a commoner, responded bluntly. The middle-aged man’s expression hardened in displeasure. However, seeing that Teslon’s party was dressed in expensive travel attire, indicating their high status, the man regretted his intrusion and stammered as he spoke.

“Isn’t your target the renowned King of Fists? I was just concerned and thought I’d warn you.”

Eusus, with a stern face, interjected into the conversation.

“The King of Fists isn’t here, is he? So what is there to be afraid of?”

As expected, Eusus was more composed than Stefan. Although much was damaged, he still showed some degree of respect towards his elder. The middle-aged man shook his head and continued.

“It’s not about fear. The King of Fists, Repenhardt, is a hero among heroes who ended the civil war in the Kingdom of Crovence. His subordinates are nothing like the slaves we know; they uphold chivalry, honor, and pride, contributing significantly to the kingdom’s peace. Because of this, many young people these days admire the King of Fists. I was just worried that a confrontation might arise.”

The middle-aged man glanced around nervously before returning to his table. Eusus clicked his tongue and looked at Teslon.

“Annoying rumors are spreading.”

“It’s not good.”

Teslon bit his lower lip, feeling troubled.

“We need to capture Repenhardt quickly. If we delay any longer and he gains more power, it will be a real headache. If he hides behind his subordinates, there will be no way to reach him.”

Stefan muttered in frustration.

“In that sense, now that he’s wandering separately, it’s an opportunity. But we can’t find his location….”

At that moment, a clear voice came from the other side of the table.

“Do you want to know his location?”

Everyone turned their heads in surprise. And in that instant, they all shared the same thought.

‘What?’

‘Who is this woman?’

‘She’s huge!’

The one who spoke was a giant woman, nearly two meters tall. Despite her size, she was astonishingly beautiful. The incongruity of such beauty with such a build was almost terrifying. Philena, feeling intimidated, asked in a small voice.

“Who are you?”

Recognizing the sword at the woman’s waist, Teslon spoke calmly.

“You’re a paladin of Seiya.”

The woman bowed respectfully and replied.

“I am Christine, a paladin who serves Lord Seiya.”

Christine had lost in her romantic pursuit because of Repenhardt and had left Sillan, in tears. However, she couldn’t let go of her attachment to Sillan. She had stayed near Sillan, searching for a way to reclaim her love. Even during the battles in the royal capital of Krotin and when Repenhardt’s party headed to the Duchy of Antares, she had been secretly following them.

The closest city to the Duchy of Antares was the trading city of Zarud. Christine stayed in Zarud, gathering information about Repenhardt. She planned to find his weaknesses and reclaim Sillan. By continuously receiving updates from the Taoban Trading Company and bribing a maid working in the White Castle, she had obtained quite detailed information about Repenhardt.

She continued to stay at this inn because its geographical location was the best for contacting the Taoban Trading Company. Teslon’s party was also staying at this inn for the same reason, so it was not entirely a coincidence that Christine met them.

Christine looked down at Teslon’s party and began to speak.

“I’ve heard about you. It seems you are hostile to Repenhardt.”

This was something that could be easily observed since Teslon’s party never hid their attitude. Teslon nodded and said.

“As you can see. However, I heard the Paladin of Seiya just mentioned his location?”

Christine smiled faintly.

“Yes, I know where he is headed now.”

This information was obtained through the maid she had bribed. Since Repenhardt did not particularly hide his movements, even his servants knew that he had gone to a dungeon named Kelte in the Setelad Mountains.

“I will tell you his location.”

Christine spoke meaningfully. Teslon’s eyes lit up.

“Judging by your tone, it seems like there’s a ‘but’?”

Christine nodded. She suddenly put on a solemn expression.

“Please let me accompany you. I have a reason why I must kill him.”

Teslon’s eyes sparkled.

A paladin of Seiya would be an excellent addition to their forces. Moreover, Christine’s eyes were burning with the flames of anger and hatred. Of course, he needed to ask more details, but her eyes alone conveyed a grudge against Repenhardt so deep that no further explanation was needed.

Teslon grinned and extended his hand.

“Welcome. There is no reason to oppose your offer. Everyone here has their reasons.”

Christine firmly grasped Teslon’s hand. Watching from the side, Philanence gave a bitter smile inwardly.

‘Well, I don’t have such a reason.’

Of course, Eusus and Stefan, who were filled with grudges, welcomed Christine with enthusiasm. As she joined their party, she shared the information she had.

“The cursed one is heading to…”