Survival Story of a Sword King in a Fantasy World

Subdued the Kingdom (3)

Ryu Han-bin shook the battlefield and destroyed the Second Corps of Allendia.

With the indirect wide-area attack of using extremely long-ranged Blade Aura, so-called ‘Aura shoveling,’ he couldn’t gain any experience at all.

By killing someone too weak to die just by getting caught up, there was no experience, and if someone were at a level high enough to give Han-bin experience, he wouldn’t die from an attack like that.

A series of enemy lines collapsed, followed by the echoes of screams.

“Argh!”

However, the warzone was so chaotic that he couldn’t avoid direct combat.

“Successor to the Sword King! I, Orlo from Aziran, challenge you!”

“I, Headron of the Rendiel family, challenge you as well!”

“Collaboration is not a knight’s virtue, but it is no shame against a powerful being like you!”

Han-bin killed relatively high-level knights.

Three men attacked him, and he retaliated. One was wounded, but two were killed.

[Lv. 68 Swordsman has been slain. You gained 1,913,240XP.]

[Current Experience: 3,239,230,800/200,432,582,300]

[Lv. 64 Spearman has been slain. You gained 1,882,400XP.]

[Current Experience: 3,241,113,200/200,432,582,300]

‘Hmm, I’ve gained experience.’

Han-bin frowned while retracting his Gigant.

‘I’m glad it isn’t that much, though.’

When he became level 7, the required experience for another level up increased a lot.

Level 5 required 54 billion XP, level 6 needed 98 billion XP, and level 7 needed over 200 billion XP.

How long would he need to grind to gain enough to raise his level?

Many a mickle made a muckle.

‘I thought it was hopeless before, but I became level 7 from level 5.’

Aliens with Guidelines gained a pleasure reward for killing Latnains.

Hence, the higher the level, the more infamous they became as killers.

The condition to unlock it was level 50 or higher.

At least that was what those people knew.

However, the truth found by Kibie’s shadow reading was a little different.

‘The actual level requirement is 20. They’ll be rewarded little by little after falling in Latna.’

Every time a native was killed, they gained a little pleasure reward like drinking a glass of wine or smoking a cigarette.

As it stacked up, they became more careless about murder and soon forgot morality.

The point came when they no longer felt any problems with merciless killing.

And if they were over level 50, they would be rewarded with intense pleasure that they couldn’t easily taste on the continent of Latna, which was boring and nonstimulating.

It was enough to seduce Aliens who had already become accustomed to murder.

Even if some tried to avoid murder because they were wary of pleasure, it was hard for them to avoid fate.

Latna was never a peaceful world.

Where drums beat, laws were silent. In such a world, when their levels were over 50, they got used to violence.

Sometimes they were forced to kill to survive, and once they gained a taste of the pleasure reward due to that, it was over.

They became addicted to that pleasure, causing them to commit murder again.

It was a system made of a lot of effort to change a normal human being into a natural killer.

‘I also would be like that once I’m over level 20.’

Level 50 was a long way off, but level 20 wasn’t far enough to think of it as nonthreatening.

There were bound to be a lot of high-ranking people in that neighborhood.

‘I might get wet in the drizzle, and if I don’t care about it, I’ll fill it up accidentally.’

However, Ryu Han-bin wasn’t stupid enough to insist that he would kill the only person on the battlefield.

‘I don’t have to keep avoiding kills. All I have to do is avoid unnecessary murder.’

He raised his Gigant high and shouted.

“Surrender or retreat! I won’t cut anyone who retreats!”

Surrender was an indefensible humiliation, but escape could be wrapped up as a strategic retreat.

By reading each other’s faces, the knights and soldiers began to run away from the line one by one.

Of course, where was the strategic retreat in that situation? Running away was still running away.

The battle ended with the fall of Elod Gate.

A loud cheer broke out from the Sword King Legion.

“We won!”

“Praise the name of the Goddesses!”

“Long live Sword King Felard!”

Han-bin clicked his tongue after putting Gigant on his back.

“Well, I’m not the Sword King.”

* * *

About 30 days had passed since the six Churches declared the holy war.

Currently, the power of the Fairy King Roflan had extremely diminished.

The central part of Allendia had collapsed, and only the capital, Armorica, and the surrounding area remained.

Talbaros, the last final gate to the capital.

In the field south of the fortress guarded by the First Corps, two men looked at each other and lifted their swords.

One of them, a middle-aged Elf in colorful light armor, shouted in a pose.

“Come, Sword King’s successor!”

He was Lord Lakrell, the commander of the First Corps and the most powerful knight of the Fairy Kingdom.

Ryu Han-bin also unsheathed Gigant, leaving a comment in a heavy voice.

“Hmm!”

The fortress of Talbaros was on the verge of collapse due to the offensive of the Sword King.

Lord Lakrell, who couldn’t see the increasing damage of the First Corps, asked for a one-on-one confrontation with Han-bin.

-Let the captains fight among themselves and decide the outcome of the battle!

Ryu Han-bin also had no reason not to accept it.

He had checked Lakrell’s level beforehand.

[Race: Elf. Magic Swordsman Lv. 101.]

‘It means the battle’s over if I beat that Elf down. Nice and neat.’

The two men looked at each other and pulled up their Force and Aura.

Cold tension hung around both camps.

Two streams of air collided with a sharp tone.

“Taaaaaa!”

An intense battle ensued.

Allendia’s most powerful knight, Lakrell, was a war master with outstanding skills and experience to match his reputation.

Ryu Han-bin wasn’t an easy opponent either.

Killing his opponent was simple, but it wouldn’t have been easy to subdue him without getting injured.

‘You’re a reputable knight, aren’t you? I should persuade him to join our side.’

However, he found it the opposite.

Han-bin’s swordsmanship had also increased significantly in terms of quality and strength.

Moreover, it wasn’t a one-on-one duel. They were on a chaotic battlefield.

Unlike the knights killed in battle, they could concentrate on the battle in front of their eyes.

“Huh!”

Eventually, the blow of Gigant broke Lakrell’s sword.

He overcame his opponent by not fighting and avoiding the use of ordinary skills.

‘Hey, I’ve improved.’

Ryu Han-bin was proud of himself. Aiming his great sword at Lakrell, who was on his knees, he asked with a solemn expression.

“Do you admit defeat?”

The middle-aged Elf knight bowed his head.

“I surrender. Thank you for your sword’s mercy.”

The giant Valtara warrior made him give in instead of seeking a vital point, allowing him to avoid serious injuries.

It was a perfect defeat that he couldn’t help but accept.

“You’re not like your teacher, successor to the Sword King.”

‘… Actually, I’ve never seen the old man’s face.’

Although he felt guilty, Han-bin continued to keep his brazen expression.

Even that seemed to be the dignity of a truly powerful being.

“The Sword King Baotolt was only interested in cutting down his immediate opponent. But you value even your enemy’s life.”

Lakrell nodded in admiration.

“The righteous man deserves to be called the true Sword King. I appreciate it, Lord Felard.”

Ryu Han-bin was embarrassed.

‘Was it that great?’

The difference in skills was clear. There was plenty of room on their side.

‘If he sweated a little more, he’d be able to save lives, and there’s nothing he wouldn’t be able to do, right?’

But apparently, the Sword King didn’t do that.

‘He might have been humanity’s oblivion.’

Indeed, he didn’t think he would hear the Sword King being just or noble.

There was only a story of an ignorant and absolute power.

Anyway, the result was good.

Allendia’s best knight bowed his head sincerely.

“I will pay the debt of this life! Until then, my sword shall remain yours to command!”

* * *

Night came after the battle.

Han-bin and his party relieved their fatigue by having a late dinner at the accommodation.

“Come to think of it…”

Instead of eating the soup, Effir looked back at Ryu Han-bin and smiled brightly.

“Han-bin, your reputation has become so beautiful these days.”

It sounded strange, but it was also an unexpectedly appropriate expression.

The reputation of the ‘Sword King’s successor, Felard Bean,’ after defeating the Transcendental shook off Latna.

However, it was only the reputation of a new powerhouse.

It became different after the civil war of Allendia had progressed.

An absolute benevolent power who avoided unnecessary killing and cherished even the life of the enemy.

“They all wonder how you came out under the Sword King.”

Ryu Han-bin smiled bitterly, chewing on the thick pork.

“It’s just that I don’t want to gain more experience.”

“I heard the pleasure reward starts from level 20. Then you don’t have to care, do you?”

Effir tilted her head.

“At this rate, level 8 will require 400 billion, level 9, 800 billion, and level 10, 1.6 trillion.”

According to that calculation, how much experience did he need when he was at level 20?

“I don’t think you’ll be able to fill all of it even by killing every single living being of Latna.”

“It’s not like that.”

Han-bin replied, looking back at the black-haired beauty who was eating bread next to him.

“Thanks to Kibie, I know why this necessary experience is set this way.”

* * *

Whenever she had time, Kivie used shadow reading on the power of the absorbed Omphalos.

It was an attempt to bring the divinity of the darkness back somehow.

Even if that didn’t succeed, the more information they had of the enemy, the better their stance would become.

She checked, examined, and cross-validated the information she obtained through the Transcendental.

“Hollien, I have a question.”

“Yes, Kibie?”

“When you were the Transcendental, you were at level 155. So, how about the Thunder King and the Archmage?”

“Genovia is a level 150 Mage, and Garhan is a level 152 Magic Swordsman.”

Hollien obediently told her the truth.

There was no reason to hide it because she had already decided to cooperate with Kibie.

“Then, what is the required experience needed to level up before you lost your abilities?”

“It was about 438 billion.”

“What about Garhan?”

After taking time to recall it, she replied in an insecure voice.

“It’s probably more than 210 billion. I don’t remember it in detail…”

Kibie snorted.

“That’s enough. It’s about 100 billion units, which is already too many.”

She wondered for a moment.

“Wait, why is the required experience between levels 155 and 152 so wide?”

It was only a three-level difference.

But there was a gap of over 200 billion experience?

“Do you want me to tell you a strange fact?”

Hollien smirked and continued.

“The Level 150 Mage, Genovia’s experience requirement is 312 billion.”

Kibie’s eyes widened.

One hundred billion more experience requirement than level 152?

“That doesn’t make any sense.”