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chapter-242

Chapter 242. The Weight of the Name ‘Reinhardt’ (1)

“This is……”

Jinhyuk’s gaze turned towards the entrance.

He could sense multiple presences approaching.

“Kang Jinhyuk!”

“Mr. Jinhyuk!”

Shrrg!

Clank!

Chun Yuseong and Teresa drew their weapons each.

Instinctively realizing that the ones approaching harbored no goodwill.

Reinhardt bit his lip with a stern face.

And shortly after.

Thud.

Along with the sound of footsteps, familiar faces appeared en masse.

Duke Vainstern and the nobles who followed him, with Swordmasters of the Hundred Battles and court mages.

All of them were influential figures who virtually controlled the empire’s power.

Not to mention, their escorts were all formidable in their own rights.

‘I heard that the throne is a lonely place, but this is like being completely on a deserted island.’

The falter of imperial authority that Reinhardt spoke of became palpable.

Especially since, after failing to block the demonkin and being helplessly ravaged at the border, even more nobles joined the Duke Vainstern’s side.

And.

That result was right before their eyes.

“It was truly tiring to come all this way. To disrupt the barrier and the magic circle, it took even mobilizing the court mages.”

A sneering smile appeared on Duke Vainstern’s face.

“Why pretend it was hard? Shouldn’t you be thankful instead? I would think entering this perfect sealed room makes committing the act all the more simple.”

“Huhu, don’t be so sarcastic, please. Your weak and tired body, you’ll soon find eternal rest in the grave.”

A murderous statement about killing the emperor.

Yet, no one present could stop Duke Vainstern from committing the high treason right before their eyes.

“Seems like you’ve coveted the emperor’s seat quite avidly. If you think you can bear the weight of this crown, you’re greatly mistaken.”

“No, not at all. Even I wouldn’t be able to swallow the empire whole right away. There are eyes from surrounding kingdoms; if I did that, the empire would be at the risk of being torn into pieces.”

Getting legitimacy requires time and procedures.

“When His Majesty passes away, instead of the smart and astute third prince, I’ll push the stupid and profligate second prince. Of course, behind the scenes, it will be I who wields the real power. And as time passes, the third prince as well will quietly disappear. It would be perfect to make it seem like ‘he fell off a horse during a hunt.’”

Hmm.

He’d planned it all very thoroughly.

‘He’s the kind of villain there probably is,’ thought Jinhyuk to himself.

But.

“You’ll find your capabilities lacking.”

Jinhyuk shrugged his shoulders.

“What did you say?”

“Your capacity is woefully inadequate to hold the throne. That’s what I mean.”

“I’m not worthy? Me, Duke Vainstern, the highest authority in the empire!”

Duke Vainstern’s face flushed red as the veins in his neck stood out.

Getting irritated means losing.

This gentleman had already lost from the very start.

“Highest authority… Pfft! A so-called highest power of the empire that clings to the martial world, and rather than doing anything himself, he boasts about ousting an old emperor and seizing the regency. Or, if you were really confident, why not climb to the emperor’s seat with real power? As it stands, you’ve only borrowed helping hands, and you can’t do anything by yourself.”

“That’s… that is…”

Duke Vainstern looked as if he had been hit by a hammer in the head.

But, it only lasted a moment.

“I am the one who oversees all. None of this would be possible without me.”

“Seems like you’re born with a silver spoon in your mouth, fortunate enough to ride on your family’s coattails.”

Being born with a silver spoon could indeed be considered a skill.

But then, couldn’t you have tried a little harder?

“You, you! Everyone boosts you as a hero and now, do you fancy yourself as one? What are you all doing? Cut off that wretched tongue right now!”

“See, that’s what I’m talking about. If you’re angry, you should step up yourself. Unable to even hold a sword, you simply order others around. Roughly speaking, even the old man beside you could probably just shoot a level one Fireball and you’d cook into a crisp on the outside and tender inside, yet you strut around with arrogance that would even make a demon king stick his tongue out.”

Jinhyuk’s relentless verbal onslaught continued.

Every word struck deeply.

No wonder Chun Yuseong was pressing his temples, his expression seeming to say everything was messed up.

And as expected, Duke Vainstern was foaming at the mouth.

“Yo-you…!”

“‘You’ are the name of our country’s great person.”

You should be thankful to be compared to Won Gyun at most.

Who blustered in self-importance but met a miserable death.

“Kill him!”

The command was given.

And at the same time.

Boom boom boom!

The waiting mages all chanted in unison.

The field of view was blinded by white light.

＊＊＊

Whoooo!

Numerous magic circles spread out into the void.

Then, a storm made of brilliant spells struck.

They were all high-tier spells consisting only of 5th circle and above.

However.

[Lv10 ‘Primeval Flame’ activates!]

Red flames surged up.

Boom boom boom!

The spells shattered against the wall of fire.

‘Impressive.’

Jinhyuk swallowed dryly as he observed his newly acquired skill.

The power was incomparable to that of the ‘Element of Fire.’

Even the court mages in front of him had their eyes bulge as if they were about to pop out.

“This… How can it be?”

“To cast such high-tier magic instantly.”

“Is that man… a monster?”

They planned to settle it from a distance, knowing it was impossible to win in melee.

Yet such a casual gesture easily nullified their prepared spells.

Low-level circles just won’t do.

To make an impact, they need a higher-tier spear to break through that flame barrier.

[8th Circle multi-cast ‘Lightning Spear’ manifests!]

An 8th circle multi-cast.

The lightning magic created by twenty mages revealed its might.

Crackling!

Exploding sparks could make one’s eyes feel dizzy.

A huge spear about four meters long vanished like lightning.

Speed and weight.

Both carried the essence of a lethal strike.

Yet.

Right before the spear could pierce Jinhyuk, a shield made of fire and ice was created before him.

An elaborate pattern spread wide from the center of his body.

Adding a barrier to it, the shield’s sturdiness rose to a level beyond the circles.

Boom!

An incredible shockwave spread, but not even a small crack formed on the shield.

The result was the same as before.

The strike was easily blocked.

‘This too… was blocked?’

‘Heh, heh. I… poured all my magical power into it.’

‘I can’t believe it. Is he a polymorphed dragon or something?…’

…The difference was clear.

If it went on like this, it would be a waste of magic power.

Then, it was at that moment.

“Don’t be scared. We knew he was strong. That’s why we brought so many knights and mages, isn’t it?”

Duke Vainstern slowly raised his right hand.

With that, the knights aligned to his left and right moved simultaneously.

“Sir Ebrahim. You will take him on directly. With the support of the mages, you should be able to subdue him without much difficulty.”

With Duke Vainstern’s command, a twitch ran through Ebrahim’s body.

Surely…

A grand swordmaster combined with high-circle mages could unleash an overwhelming force.

It was known that this combination alone could hunt dragons.

Even if facing a high-leveled powerhouse, it would be hard to escape unscathed.

“Seems we’re destined to be enemies, after all.”

Jinhyuk retrieved ‘Fang’ from the spatial inventory.

Fighting Ebrahim meant he had to use all his strength.

But.

Ebrahim, seeing ‘Fang,’ did not draw his sword.

Instead, he asked the duke a question.

“Duke, do you remember? The question I asked you on the first day when I decided to join you.”

“Why do you ask?”

“Please. I must hear it before I fight.”

Touched by the sincerity of his request, Duke Vainstern recalled the past.

“…You chose me for the future of the empire.”

“For the future of the empire… Yes, I surely said so. It was not a lie.”

Shrrg!

Ebrahim’s sword was drawn.

Its dazzling glow scattered across the tomb.

However, the sword was not directed at Jinhyuk.

In protect of Reinhardt, Ebrahim stood tall in front of him engulfing like a mountain.

“Thinking of betraying for now?”

“I’ve been deeply contemplating. I thought the empire would walk the path of ruin due to the incompetence and passiveness of the current emperor.”

But.

“In this pressing moment, the actions shown by the emperor were different from what I had assumed. Of course, a part of that change was due to the influence of Kang Jinhyuk.”

The reason why the emperor came to his senses. The reason why Ebrahim, one of the ultimate forces, betrayed.

It was all because of one person.

“Truly, you bring me no benefits whatsoever. Like a brain-eating bug – unbearably irritating.”

“It’s not a crime to be charming enough to change people’s hearts, right? Besides, looks like the tables have completely turned now, doesn’t it?”

Even with the knights and mages, they couldn’t stand against this group.

The quantitative difference couldn’t outweigh the immense qualitative gap between individuals.

Above all, Chun Yuseong and Teresa held strongly on the flanks, which was crucial.

While surrounded by a group of knights, they didn’t dare to break through those two defenses.

“Indeed, it seems we are at a disadvantage now. At least with the current state of affairs.”

Duke Vainstern nodded, seeming to acknowledge the situation.

Yet, there wasn’t a hint of him giving up.

It wasn’t over yet, he implied.

“It seems I must call you all into play as well. The martial world must be thanked for expecting this extent.”

With those words ending.

“Indeed, we should’ve come. Good thing we did.”

Another variable intervened.

＊＊＊

Those who had not stepped foot in the tomb until now responded to Duke Vainstern’s summons.

Thud. Thud.

Accompanied by the sound of footsteps, there were strong individuals who wouldn’t be out of place if called rankers from each guild.

Among them, the most noticeable one was the woman at the front.

“Nice to meet you.”

Her healthy wheatish complexion and long black hair reaching her waist were striking.

Without need for introduction, one could infer the identity of the person.

‘Gandhara…’

Precisely, the leader of Gandhara, ‘Nirasha.’

Tingle! Tingle!

A sensation of pressure crawled over the skin.

Just walking, but it seemed as if the air within the tomb was tightening.

Indeed, this is the strength of India’s strongest.

Having taken down Belmaryiel, it was no exaggeration.

Not merely in strength or the quantity and quality of magic power…

‘Different.’

Something was indeed different.

And there was only one way to know what it was.

Jinhyuk activated ‘Predatory Eyes.’

But.

Throb!

“Gah!”

An intense pain spread from his eyes.

[‘Predatory Eyes’ failed to perceive the target!]

[The current target is under the protection of ‘Mandala(SSS)’.]

A top-tier Mandala.

At this point, for Nirasha to possess it…

‘The deities of India are directly shielding her.’

Though limitations from the system are certain, if the identity of the deity is unknown, they have no chance of victory on this side.

Even considering that Ebrahim had joined their ranks.

‘There’s only one way left.’

To penetrate that, they too must prepare something of equal strength.

Jinhyuk’s gaze subtly moved to the heaven’s landmarker behind them.

The power of deities.

With that in their possession, they could take down Nirasha – precisely, the deity supporting her.

While Jinhyuk was quickly deliberating, Nirasha smiled faintly.

“You have special eyes. Honestly, I’m surprised. It’s the first time I meet a player whose eyes are superior to mine.”

“I too wasn’t expecting to meet a player already being supported by deities. Is India’s criteria fairly generous for this? Or did you just sweet-talk the deity pretty well?”

“If you understand that much, then you also should know that as a human, it’s impossible to oppose a god.”

“Sorry, but I’m not the type to favor the word ‘give up.’”

Jinhyuk slowly moved his hand, searching for a way to buy time.

He never directly visited, but he remembered several secrets about this place from the documents.

“The main cast teems to be gathered, so let’s start this party.”

Jinhyuk subtly picked up the golden ring placed nearby.

Even though Duke Vainstern had ceased all barriers and defensive magic, there were still traps of death left intact.

Precisely…

Boom boom boom!

[Traps for graverobbers activate!]

Traps like these.