"One, one strike?"
Borgos trembled his blood-stained lips as he looked at the Balrog whose head had been severed.
'To think that monster would fall in a single strike...'
He had personally experienced the demon's martial prowess wrapped in flames. He couldn't believe that the monster who crushed the legendary Thunder Hammer with its pinky and burned everything the Gray Hammer Guild had built with a single spark had its head severed in one strike.
'It wouldn't be strange to call him a new sword god.'
He had heard rumors that Raon had reached transcendence, but he didn't know he had moved past the entry stage to reach stability. Terrifying talent. It was a growth rate that could overturn the continent's history.
"That's right!"
Martha nodded, slapping her palm with the hand holding her sword.
"That's what it means to be the Light Wind Division Leader!"
She stomped her foot hard, saying it was refreshing.
"Is he using lightning now too?"
Burren shook his head as if in disbelief.
"Fire, frost, wind, earth, and now lightning..."
He shrugged, saying he was excited to see what Raon would use next.
"Raon is super handsome today."
Despite being busy protecting the burned dwarves and masters, Runaan couldn't take her purple eyes off Raon's back.
"Huh..."
Sheryl let out a hollow laugh after cutting down the last remaining demon.
'That sword technique was just taught to Lord Raon this time.'
Does this make sense? She recalled Glenn's excited face when he said he would pass on the Celestial Thunder Arts to Raon. To use a sword technique learned in just one night in a real battle. And to use it to behead a monster that had reached transcendence, it was so absurd she was speechless.
"Is, is it over now?"
Dorian lowered his sword, panting heavily.
"Then let's go back quickly? It's too hot here, it's not good for people..."
"No."
Raon shook his head, interrupting Dorian.
"It's just beginning."
No sooner had he said "It's just beginning" than crimson flames shot up from the neck of the headless Balrog. The dense flames smoothly shaped themselves as if touched by a master's hand, regenerating the Balrog's head with five horns.
"I didn't expect you to strike so quickly. And with a sword beyond my perception at that."
The Balrog muttered that it was impressive while rubbing the back of its neck.
"Kuuuugh!"
Dorian collapsed with a scream, seemingly unable to imagine that the Balrog would revive.
"It, it comes back to life even after being beheaded?"
"Damn it! What is this, a lizard's tail?"
"As persistent as it is ugly..."
Burren, Martha, and Runaan also trembled their lips with frozen expressions, as if they had seen something they shouldn't have.
"It would be stranger for a demon to die just from having its head cut off."
Raon flexed his fingers without showing the slightest sign of confusion.
-Did you know it would come back to life?
Wrath whistled as if surprised.
'Because I've seen it once before.'
The Flame Demon General, who was a transcendent from the Black Tower, didn't die even when Wrath ripped off his head. It would be stranger if a true demon like the Balrog died from being beheaded. He had naturally expected it to regenerate its head.
"Well, this prey is more savory than I expected."
The Balrog smacked its lips at length, as if pleased with itself.
"Don't put on airs."
Raon looked up at the Balrog with his chin tilted to the side.
"You may not have died, but your power must have greatly diminished."
The Balrog had consumed quite a lot of energy regenerating its head. Now, its power had dropped to a level not much different from Raon's own aura.
"This is no bluff."
The Balrog spread its arms wide and curled up the corners of its mouth.
"I'm just happy to be able to fight a strong opponent like you. Whether I die or you die, or even if we both die, it doesn't matter! Come at me with everything you've got!"
He stomped his foot, raising fighting spirit strong enough to make one's skin tingle. The thin ground burst open, with lava and flames erupting from all directions.
"No, you're the only one who's going to die."
Raon clicked his tongue shortly and drew a Crimson Slash. A blade of frost, flickering silver, fell towards the Balrog's head.
"I'll crush you!"
As the Balrog reached into the flames, a great sword burning viscously like flowing lava appeared in its grasp. Whoosh! The Balrog's great sword flashed with intense light as it smashed down on the cold energy of the Crimson Slash. Kwaaaang!
The two swords, wrapped in flames and frost, clashed and sent tremendous shockwaves in all directions. The frozen ground shattered into pieces, and the solidified lava exploded again, covering the earth.
"You're not running away!"
The Balrog nodded its head emphatically, as if impressed.
"For a human, you have a good fighting stance. But it's not a good choice."
He narrowed his eyes, saying Raon had made the wrong choice.
"Because that weak body of yours won't be able to withstand my power."
The Balrog put more strength into the hand holding the great sword, intending to crush Raon. But no matter how much weight it added, Raon's arms and legs didn't waver.
"You're enduring? How is this..."
The Balrog widened its eyes in disbelief.
"Now it's your turn to endure."
As Raon smiled coldly and raised his wrist, the thin Heavenly Drive began to push back the flame great sword as thick as a building's pillar. Both humans and demons were shocked to see Raon physically pushing back the Balrog that was more than twice his size.
"Is this the power of a human?"
The Balrog, seemingly flustered at being overpowered, gripped the great sword with both hands, but could only endure Raon's strength without gaining the upper hand.
"It's troublesome if you're surprised by just this much."
Raon tilted his chin, looking into the Balrog's bewildered eyes.
"This is just the beginning."
-Hmph. Having sucked the marrow from this king's bones, it's only natural that you should easily crush such a creature.
Wrath snorted, saying it would be strange if Raon lost.
'That's right.'
Thanks to Wrath, he had possessed physical abilities surpassing a transcendent since he was a Grandmaster. Now that he had reached transcendence, his abilities and attributes had increased tremendously, giving him a body that wouldn't lose even to a Balrog.
"Fine! Let's settle this with strength!"
The Balrog, as if its pride was hurt from not being able to overwhelm with strength, stomped its foot and raised its demonic energy to the extreme. Its surroundings melted white-hot, and the flames emanating from the great sword flickered blue.
Raon unleashed Frost Snap towards the Balrog's flame sword that was surging like a tidal wave. Two lines of silver flashes cut through the flames and struck away the Balrog's great sword approaching from behind.
Clang! Raon's Heavenly Drive and the Balrog's flaming greatsword clashed, creating blackened cracks and shaking the entire tunnel. The lava-filled floor surged up and down, scattering sparks as if about to explode.
Raon and the Balrog walked on the red-hot lava, pouring sword strikes at each other's vitals. It was a clash of pure power and speed, without any grappling. As their immense powers collided endlessly, everything around the two transcendents was erased.
'Charging like a wild boar without a care for injuries...
Raon narrowed his eyes as he deflected the Balrog's great sword that was coming at him not to stab, but as if to explode.
'Similar to a martial artist, but different.'
Even a martial artist focused on power and speed would instinctively try to avoid injuries. But the Balrog came at him with strength and fighting spirit, not even guarding its vital points, as if it would kill Raon even if it meant dying itself. Its swordsmanship was crude, but its movements were filled with conviction and spirit, making it difficult to deal with.
"Looks like you're getting tired now!"
The Balrog, thinking it had gained the upper hand, twisted its lips and transformed its flame great sword into a whip, lashing it down. The way it freely wielded the whip layered with flames was like a dragon endlessly spewing fire.
The Balrog seemed to gain strength as it fought, raising increasingly powerful fighting spirit and pressuring Raon. The flames of its whip began to turn blue, pushing back Glacier's cold energy.
"You can't stop my flames with that level of cold energy!"
The Balrog mocked Glacier's cold energy as it transformed its whip back into a flame great sword and brought it down. Although Raon blocked the Balrog's great sword, the heat was so intense that the cold energy enveloping the Heavenly Drive began to melt away.
-How dare that creature!
Wrath gnashed its teeth and raised its head.
-What are you doing! This king is being disrespected!
It gritted its teeth as if asking why Raon was being pushed back.
-Crush it with strength!
'I was already planning to do that.'
Raon nodded lightly. Having fully grasped the Balrog's swordsmanship and abilities, he was ready to end this.
"I'll end this!"
The Balrog swung its great sword horizontally with both hands. With a sound like the world was being torn apart, a wave of flames mixed with wind surged forward. It seemed as if the entire underground was engulfed in the firestorm raised by the Balrog. Thud.
Raon stepped forward with his left foot and thrust the point of the Heavenly Drive towards the Balrog's great sword. Cold energy rose from the thin blade, blooming into frost flowers that spread throughout the underground.
The Demon King of Wrath's final battle technique. Silver Aurora. The Silver Aurora drawn by swordsmanship bloomed into a brilliant flower within the realm of transcendence. As the intense heat and chilling cold energy competed, steam rose in all directions.
But the outcome was decided in less than a few seconds. Glacier's cold energy engulfed the Balrog's flames and heat, dyeing the entire underground silver.
Even the storm of flames froze silver, creating a shape similar to the World Tree raised by Wrath.
"W-wait! This cold energy is!"
The Balrog tried to raise flames to push back the Silver Aurora, but the silver world had already bound its limbs and covered its body and neck.
"You, you and the Monarch of Wrath have some kind of..."
The Balrog couldn't finish its last words as its mouth and head froze completely.
"You talk too much."
Raon twisted his lips and swung the Heavenly Drive. The frozen body of the Balrog burst, and the boiling lava and flames subsided. Unlike before, not even a hint of vitality could be felt from its body.
"Phew..."
Raon lowered the Heavenly Drive and let out a short sigh.
'It certainly wasn't easy.'
It may have looked simple, but in reality, it was a close call. If he hadn't drawn out Glacier's full power, he might have been burned instead.
-Well done!
Wrath spread its hands.
-It dared to disrespect this king's power! Serves it right!
It wagged its tail while looking at the shattered Balrog.
'Oh, you're even giving compliments. That's rare.'
Raon smiled faintly as he lowered the Heavenly Drive.
-Compliment? When did this king ever?
'You said "well done."'
-T-that just slipped out! Don't get cocky just because you defeated a creature that only knew brute strength but not how to use it properly!
Wrath shook its head, saying it was natural since the Balrog wasn't even worth knowing its name.
'I won't get cocky. But transcendence is definitely different.'
A state where the sword moves as he wishes and he can even control the surrounding forces. After defeating the ancient dragon and now the Balrog, he finally felt the reality of having reached transcendence.
'Hm?'
Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked at the ground where the Balrog had stood.
'This isn't the Balrog's demonic energy?'
The Balrog's aura was clean like that of a martial artist, but the traces of demonic energy left on the ground where it seemed to have been summoned had an ugly feel to it.
'As I thought...'
Someone else summoned it. The Balrog he fought was certainly strong, but not to the extent of breaking through dimensions at will like demon kings. It was clear that someone had summoned it through extensive preparation.
'Probably the Black Tower.'
There's no doubt about it. Only the demonized humans of the Black Tower use such tainted demonic energy.
'Were they planning to let it grow stronger in this space before pulling it out?'
It wasn't certain, but it seemed they had summoned the Balrog to this underground to subdue the dwarves and then make them their own forces.
'I'm not sure if I should consider this fortunate...'
The Gray Hammer Guild and the dwarves suffered great damage, but by dealing with it here, they prevented a situation where thousands or tens of thousands could have died. However, he couldn't be simply happy because many had died or been injured here as well.
Feeling a bitterness on the tip of his tongue, Raon turned around. He smiled and nodded at the people looking at him with tense faces.
"It's over. You can relax now."
He nodded, shaking off the remaining heat of the Balrog from his hand.
"It, it won't revive again, right?"
Dorian raised a trembling finger, pointing at the frozen corpse of the Balrog.
"I'm not sure if it will revive or not, but even if it does, it won't be a threat anymore."
Raon shook his head lightly. Even if beings beyond human revive, most of them consume a great deal of energy. If it were to revive now, it would meet its end at Sheryl's hands without Raon needing to step in.
"You called it a Balrog earlier, what is that?"
Martha narrowed her eyes as if recalling what was said earlier.
"It's a demon."
Raon clicked his tongue as he looked back at the Balrog's corpse.
"It's an extremely strong race among demons."
He briefly recited the explanation Wrath had given him.
"Balrog? Now that you mention it..."
Borgos raised his head, his chin trembling.
"I remember my father mentioning such monsters. He said they were creatures with strong greed for flames, combat, and weapons..."
He let out a sigh, saying it only just came back to him.
"He said few could stand against them among all races, yet you..."
Borgos approached Raon, raising his knee that was covered in scabs from dried blood.
"Thank you. There's nothing else I can say except thank you."
He knelt on the hot ground, saying thank you for saving the dwarves and people. Despite his flesh sizzling, he bowed his head without a single groan.
"Thank you."
"Thank you so much..."
The dwarves and masters of the Gray Hammer Guild also knelt behind Borgos, pounding the ground with their fists, disregarding their injuries.
"Please don't do this."
Raon gestured for Borgos and the masters to stand up.
"I just helped because I could."
He shook his head, saying it wasn't such a big deal.
"No, it is a big deal. If you hadn't come, we would have died in these flames while just hammering away."
Borgos bowed his head, saying Raon was more than worthy of such gratitude.
"Then please get treated first before thanking me. It's burdensome..."
-Raon!
Raon abruptly turned around mid-sentence. Wrath, seeming to have sensed the same thing, shouted his name fiercely. The space where the Balrog died split open. No, as the space itself was roughly torn apart, a pitch-black wave like an abyss surged forward.
Unable to withstand the powerful force of a dimension opening, the air violently burst.
He quickly drew the Heavenly Drive to block it, but the wave of force was so powerful that he was thrown back. The others couldn't withstand the shockwave and were sent flying back, their backs slamming into the walls.
"Kugh..."
Raon wiped the blood trickling from his mouth and raised his gaze with difficulty. Kuung! Two burning red eyes emerged from the pitch-black rift in space. They were similar to the Balrog he had just killed, but the aura they possessed was on a completely different level. Just looking at them made his eyes feel like they were burning.
-Insane! Why is that creature here!
Wrath shouted as if it was unbelievable.
'No way...'
-This king mentioned it earlier, didn't I? That there was a demon who kicked away the throne of Devildom on its own.
It swallowed dryly as it continued speaking.
-That creature is Askara, the leader of the Balrogs.