The Immortal Genius Spearman

Chapter 107

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The man, who had been digging the ground with his pickaxe, straightened his back.

Well-developed arm muscles.

Veins like wriggling worms bulged on his forearms, gripping the pickaxe.

Despite the hot weather, the man had long bangs covering the left side of his face.

He was Paul, the leader of the third squad of the Makstri Unit.

“…Phew.”

Paul let out a long sigh as he looked around.

Everyone was pickaxing, wary of the guards.

For those who paused to rest out of exhaustion, the guards would shout at them or whip them, punishing them on the spot.

They were all criminals, dragged here as an alternative to serving their sentences.

‘…Five months.’

It had already been five months since Paul arrived here.

He could have just gone to prison, but coming here was purely Paul’s choice.

All because they promised to cut his one-year sentence in half.

However, most of the men didn’t choose this place unless they were forced into it.

Because it was truly a life worse than that of a slave, day after day.

But Paul didn’t care about that.

He just wanted to be free from this bondage as soon as possible.

“Phew.”

Memories that would surface from time to time.

The cheers of victory in Makstri still seemed vivid, as if it were just yesterday.

Thinking about it brought a faint smile to Paul’s lips.

“What are you doing over there? Get back to work!”

A guard, who had been watching, yelled at Paul. He quickly turned his head and picked up the pickaxe again.

If he moved even a little bit too slowly, the whip would come flying.

Clang!

Only two months left now.

If he could endure that time, his sentence would be completely over.

‘When that time comes…’

Would he be able to return to that place?

No, would he be able to go back to that person?

Even while doing hard labor, Paul hadn’t stopped his physical training whenever he had the time.

It was the best he could do in this place.

When he thought about it, was there ever a time when he had worked so hard and felt so happy as during those memories?

‘…I wonder what Sir Damian is doing.’

He was probably working his subordinates to the bone.

That thought brought a small smile to Paul’s lips.

* * *

Clang!

“Ugh!”

The spear that had been thrust straight suddenly twisted sideways, knocking away the knight beside him.

‘He’s used to fighting multiple opponents.’

‘Where did this guy suddenly come from?’

He still had a youthful appearance.

No matter how much they stretched it, he couldn’t look older than his late teens.

But to think that they, who had been wielding swords for over 20 years, were being pushed back like this—it made no sense.

They had long since discarded their sense of shame for ganging up on him.

The knights of the Rose knight Order gritted their teeth, determined to capture this man no matter what.

“Hah!”

One of the knights from the Rose knight Order took a step to the left and swung his sword at Damian.

As the blade cut a semicircle in the air, Damian glanced at him.

He swiftly assessed the slightly inward-turned foot, the tilted shoulder, and the straightened wrist.

He even noticed the direction the man’s gaze was focused on.

Damian straightened his back and tilted his head slightly backward.

Because the knight was aiming for his left neck.

But as Damian raised his head to evade backward—

Whizz!

“…!”

Damian’s brows furrowed at the sudden sharp pain he felt around his left jaw.

The tip of the knight’s sword had just grazed his chin.

Step!

Damian quickly stepped back, startled.

But there were already other knights behind him.

“His movements have slowed! Keep pressing him!”

It was a very shallow wound.

It wasn’t even enough to leave a scar, with only a few drops of blood falling.

But considering the ghost-like movements he had shown so far, something must have gone wrong with him.

“He’s exhausted too! Go for his legs!”

“Haaah!”

Indeed, his movements were noticeably slower than before.

If one looked closely, his grip on the spear was even trembling slightly.

“Huff.”

Damian took a deep breath and, tucking the spear into his side, spun around.

Clang clang clang clang clang!

The knights rushing toward Damian hurriedly raised their swords to block.

The spinning attack, like a whirlwind, knocked the Rose knights backward.

At that moment, they felt a chill run down their spines.

‘He still…’

‘…has that much strength left?’

What is this guy, a monster?

Unbelievable reflexes.

Unpredictable attacks.

And he still had stamina to spare?

This was utterly nonsensical.

Milo couldn’t hide his expression of disbelief, as if he had encountered an actual monster.

But

Drip… drip…

Sweat was trickling down Damian’s jaw.

To be honest, Damian was reaching his limit.

‘…This is tough.’

Had he ever been pushed into a corner like this since his revival?

He had managed to kill two of them in the meantime, but there were still four knights left, including their commander.

Milo looked at Damian and spoke.

“Give up. I’ll spare your life if you do.”

Despite his young age, his skills were unbelievable.

If he could persuade this man to come to the Empire…

‘The Rose knight Order would once again rise to the top of the Empire.’

His words held a tempting offer, but Damian, far from being swayed, glared at Milo with cold eyes.

Milo himself was one of the top swordsmen in the Empire.

The only thing that limited him was his inability to use Aura.

But Milo could say this with certainty.

This young man was stronger than him.

Moreover, he still had enormous potential for growth.

If he could nurture him well enough…

‘He could be the next commander of the Rose knight Order.’

He could be the successor to General Piaren, who was known as a monster even within the Empire.

Milo extended his hand to Damian.

“Surrender. I will open a path for you that you could never even imagine.”

“…What?”

“I will accept you as a knight of the Rose knight Order. I’ll forget everything you’ve done up until now.”

“You’ll accept me as a Rose knight?”

“Yes.”

Milo smiled broadly.

If this kid had ears, he must have heard of the Rose knight Order of the Empire.

‘The Baroque Kingdom may be sizable, but it’s nothing compared to the Empire.’

Milo continued speaking.

“If you have family, I’ll take responsibility for them as well. I promise you that as the vice-commander of the Rose knight Order.”

“Hah… That’s quite a tempting offer.”

Damian slightly loosened his guard and took a deep breath.

His heaving chest seemed to calm down a little.

Damian asked Milo,

“But I have one question. May I ask?”

“As many as you like.”

“There’s something I need if I’m to go to the Empire. Can you give it to me?”

“Whatever it is, I can make it happen. The position of vice-commander of the Rose knight Order is far more influential than you might think.”

Milo answered confidently.

Although he had made the grave mistake of losing his subordinates, bringing in someone of this caliber would more than make up for it.

In response to Milo’s words, Damian said,

“I’d like the head of the Imperial Emperor.”

“…What?”

“Hah, thanks to you, I’ve had enough rest. Shall we start again?”

His breathing had steadied, and the trembling in his hands had stopped.

His legs felt much lighter now…

“This is good enough to go again.”

Milo’s smiling expression turned icy cold.

He tightly gripped his sword.

“Once again… I’ve been fooled by your silver tongue.”

“Anyone who falls for it is a fool.”

Damian smirked as he raised his spear.

Grinding his teeth, Milo spat out,

“You will not die easily. I swear it in my honor.”

“I won’t die easily. I’m going to kill all of you.”

“Attack!”

Whoosh!

At Milo’s command, three knights charged at Damian.

And from the very back—

Swish.

Milo moved his sword, aiming at Damian.

Whoosh!

A coordinated attack from four people.

Among them, Milo’s strike was particularly sharp and threatening.

However…

‘Compared to back then, this is manageable.’

He remembered the time when his flesh was torn and his bones broken, yet he resisted until the end.

The difference now was that his body had grown a bit more since then.

‘If my arms were just a little longer, I could’ve struck faster.’

‘If my legs were a bit longer, I could’ve escaped backward more quickly.’

Various thoughts flashed through his mind.

But—

A faint smile appeared on Damian’s face as he glared at the approaching knights.

No matter what the past was like.

“There’s no better time than now.”

Vwooooom!

The spear in Damian’s hand vibrated, and blue mana enveloped his entire body.

Whoosh!

Swish!

Up until now, Damian had been moving defensively, but now he charged forward, swinging his spear at them.

No matter how many of them there were, their swords couldn’t reach him before his spear did.

“He’s coming!”

Clang!

In the blink of an eye, two rapid strikes pushed back the two knights in front.

The fact that they managed to block the attack showed just how skilled they were.

Ordinary soldiers wouldn’t have even been able to follow the movements with their eyes, let alone block them.

‘What incredible speed.’

Watching Damian’s attack, Milo narrowed his eyes.

How could he perform such attacks with an unrefined body?

If it were purely physical strength, his elbow or wrist joints would have already been shredded from the strain.

There was only one explanation for this.

‘Is he amplifying his mana instantly?’

If he could control his mana at a level beyond belief, then it might be possible.

But even that should only be theoretically possible.

“Haaah!”

Milo let out a shout as he dove to the right, swinging his sword at Damian’s left leg.

From below to above.

A diagonal strike aimed at Damian’s left thigh, which was out in front.

Damian quickly pulled his leg back, furrowing his brow.

Slash!

For a moment, the sword’s tip brushed his thigh, scattering a thin line of blood into the air.

‘Damn it.’

He knew.

He knew the knight would aim there.

But unlike the other knights, his speed and timing with the sword were ridiculously precise.

At least from Damian’s perspective.

In his current exhausted state, while defending against the attacks of the other knights, it was impossible to completely avoid Milo’s sword.

This meant his limits were approaching.

Slash!

“Ugh!”

Damian blocked the knights’ attacks and retreated. But with Milo’s relentless assault, wounds were gradually accumulating on Damian’s body.

“…But it looks like I’ve won.”

A smile crept across Damian’s lips as he spoke.

Milo’s eyes narrowed with suspicion.

“What trick are you trying to pull now!”

“It’s not a trick.”

Damian gestured with his chin behind Milo. At the same time, Milo flinched and turned around.

“Vice-commander!”

“You bastards!”

The Caion unit was charging toward Damian.

The knights of the Rose knight Order were now lying cold and lifeless across the hill.

Damian pointed his spear at Milo and said,

“Our victory, Rose knight Order.”

And then, Damian’s spear swept through the air, unleashing a storm of blood.