The Return of the Disaster-Class Hero-Novel

Ch 85 – Trial of Reputation (5)

When Pelio shouted, his body emanated a yellow light. This yellow was that of a forsythia.

The yellow light shocked everyone.

“No way!”

That color was the color of the Libra, the owner of the balanced sign.

“How could a Virgo disciple let out that color…!”

<Unique Colors>! The magical energy of the twelve Zodiacs differed in color.

[Cardinal Red—Red Archer]

[Navy Blue—Blue Gemini]

[Violet—Purple Aquarius]

[Gold—Gold Leo]

[Dark Red—Garnet Aries]

That was how it worked. Moreover, whether one had rented skills or not didn’t matter. A disciple had to power their spells with the magical energy of their own Zodiac. Of course, exceptions existed, but the current situation wasn’t one.

‘If he’s a Virgo disciple, he should be letting out silver light!’

Pelio letting out a different-colored magical energy was clear proof of him being a traitor. And as expected, the Belgian prince drew the holy symbol of the Libra and activated his ability.

[Equivalent Exchanged-Changing Space]

The yellow light appeared along the wall and the floor. It was shaped like a hexagon.

“…!”

In a flash, their surroundings changed.

Koo-goo-goong!

Goat and Hugo couldn’t believe this sight. The area within the hexagon had changed scenes; they were now within a garden.

[The Virgo Saint’s treasure room has been swapped with a privately-owned Royal estate in Belgium.]

It was a bizarre sight. However, the problem wasn’t the changed surroundings.

Boom boom boom!

To everyone’s surprise, standing in the swapped space were several thousand knights clad in helmets and armor. Armed to the teeth, every one of them was letting off the magical energy of the Libra. It didn’t end there.

‘That’s…!’

Toads were also in that area. These were the toads Lee Gun and the Archer disciples had killed outside the dome. Moreover, that symbol was engraved on their backs too.

This made Goat furrow his brows. ‘Something like this couldn’t be prepared in just one or two days.’

In the first place, the Virgo Saint’s holy ground shouldn’t have been penetrated so easily.

‘Also, he used the Changing Space skill.’

The Libra was considered the number one amongst the twelve Zodiacs, and its Saint was famous for being the <Exchange Saint>.

In other words, the Libra Saint gained something equivalent to what she sacrificed. According to rumors, she could revive a dead person if she sacrificed someone of the same rank.

‘Or she could kill someone with it.’

However, this had to be an equivalent exchange. It was like weighing with a scale. This also applied to spaces. ‘To be able to invade this space, they had to have sacrificed an equivalent cost.’

The problem was that they had been within the Virgo Saint’s holy ground even if it were a small part. Goat couldn’t imagine what had to be sacrificed to do this.

‘At the very least, souls had to have been sacrificed. Tens of thousands of people at the bare minimum!’

On the other hand, the soldiers who had been called forth flinched when they saw Lee Gun’s party.

“Elder! This is different from the plan! The Archer Saint is also here…”

Pelio glared at them for speaking such words. “He’s a good-for-nothing Saint! We’ll just kill all of them!”

“…?!”

Hugo and Goat felt anger surge in their hearts at being treated like trash.

On the other hand, Kevin had witnessed the betrayal with his own eyes. It had shocked him. “What the hell did the Libra offer you…”

Pelio was a prince of Belgium, and the Virgo Saint had been protecting him. The prince had become one of the Virgo Saint’s top three officers and the elder of the Virgo temple.

Therefore, Kevin couldn’t understand how Pelio could betray him so easily.

Hugo and Goat laughed out of spite.

“I guess your high-rank disciples aren’t much. How could you recruit a spy as your disciple?”

“This is why you are always second.”

These words made Kevin angry. “Do you really think I didn’t know about the spies?”

“You didn’t.”

“Our Gun knew about them from the start.”

“…!”

Hugo continued, “It’s fine. Our Gun is the best. All the twelve Zodiac Saints should bow down to him.”

Baffled, the Virgo Saint looked at Hugo. “Did you drink alcohol again, Archer?”

“I didn’t drink any!!”

Hearing those words, the flustered Goat quickly gave Hugo some medicine to make him sober up faster.

Then, Kevin glared at the soldiers. “I would’ve known if there was a problem with the faith of my disciples!”

Hugo accepted his words. ‘While he’s a high-rank battle Saint, he’s also the Contract Saint.’

The Virgo Saint was the <Contract Saint>. He used his abilities through strict contracts and restrictions. Amongst the twelve Zodiac Saints, his power had the most restrictions. Yet, his abilities were strong.

As expected of a temple under the Contract Saint, to join the Virgo temple, a disciple had to accept a strict contract. If the disciple’s faith underwent changes, they would suffer immediate punishment.

That was why a spy could never pass the entrance test of the Virgo Saint. Therefore, Kevin muttered, “How were they able to falsify their faith?”

Hugo feigned a smile in response. “Either you’re an idiot, or this is a plan to deceive us.”

“What?”

“You killed Gun and deceived the world. A deception of this caliber is probably nothing to you”

Realizing the implication of Hugo’s words, Kevin unsheathed his sword in anger. “It wasn’t me!”

“What do you mean it wasn’t you? We saw it in the memory analysis, and your warehouse was full of swords similar to the one that stabbed Gun!”

“I don’t know what you guys saw, but it wasn’t me! In fact, I was the one who investigated Lee Gun’s death!” Kevin tried to explain himself.

“What?”

“I found those blades while investigating the suspect!”

The expression on Hugo’s face was a sight to behold. He had truly become sober.

Kevin ground his teeth. The fact that Lee Gun hadn’t been able to exit the tower had been eating at him for the past twenty years. “He died before I could kill him. Do you know how much that burned me up? I even thought about dragging the Aquarius Saint by her hair into the tower!”

Hugo didn’t know what wrong the Aquarius Saint had committed, but it didn’t matter. “You really….”

“If my Zodiac hadn’t forbidden me from doing it, I would’ve gone into the tower. Lee Gun is someone I recognize as a man. There’s no way he would’ve died so easily. At the very least, I wanted to be first to find Lee Gun’s corpse!”

The revelation left Hugo more and more dumbfounded. ‘It doesn’t seem as if he’s lying.’

However, there was a dubious point to Kevin’s story. ‘Didn’t the appraiser read the memory from the blade? He said the Virgo Saint had stabbed Lee Gun in the back.’

Therefore, Hugo decided not to believe Kevin. In the first place, only a swordmaster of Kevin’s caliber could stab Lee Gun in the back. The Archer Saint asked, “If not you, then who dropped Gun into the trap?”

“That’s…!”

At that moment…

Cheng!

The soldiers raised their spears, trying to activate their skill.

Lee Gun furrowed his brows as he saw a familiar magic formation. Until now, he had been on the sidelines, having a ball watching the Virgo Saint suffer like an idiot, but now…

‘That is a forbidden technique.’ This spell could destroy a holy ground.

A holy ground was a space created using the power of a Zodiac. If the holy ground got damaged or destroyed, the Zodiac would be directly harmed as well. And if the Zodiac suffered damage, its Saint suffered catastrophic damage.

In other words, dealing with the holy ground was the only way the disciples could neutralize a Saint, who had absolute defense!

“This holy ground has eight barrier cores! We just need to destroy them!” Since Pelio had been a Virgo disciple, he knew how the inner barrier was constructed.

Hugo glared at the Virgo Saint when the latter held up his Winter Frost. “You—”

“Shut up! I don’t have time to converse with you right now!” Kevin immediately disappeared.

“!”

He reappeared in front of the soldiers! “You dare attack a Saint in his holy ground. It seems you guys also think I’m soft.”

Inside their holy ground, a Saint could receive 100% of their Zodiac’s power. As for a high-rank disciple, they would receive the highest of buffs.

Kevin let out an ugly laugh. The murderous intent he radiated now was completely different from the one he had when he tried to fight Lee Gun. His mouth twisted upward, and his piercing gaze looked almost possessed by spirits.

[Carry Debt to the Grave]

<One might forget a favor, but a bitter foe will be taken to the grave.

This was the Virgo Saint’s advanced skill, a mental elevation skill. If he held a grudge, even the midsummer would become frosty. This skill was a body awakening skill that didn’t deactivate until the subjects of the Virgo Saint’s grudge were all dead.

Kevin’s sword started dancing.

Poo-hahk! Poo-hahk!

“Kuhk!”

Seeing the Virgo Saint’s murderous intent, Pelio became desperate.

The problem with the Virgo Saint had been his obsession with Lee Gun. Although Kevin might not look like much, he was one of the strongest fighters. He could go into a Red Zone and slaughter monsters by himself.

“Hmmph! When the holy ground falls, it’ll be the end of both Lee Gun and him!”

Sounds of explosions rang everywhere. The monsters that had invaded the Virgo Saint’s holy ground started to destroy the holy ground’s seals.

Kwahng! Kwahng! Kwahng!

[The Virgo Saint’s power is starting to falter.]

Despite this, Kevin was quick in dispatching his enemies.

[Dead Leaves(Withered Leaves) of November]

As he swung his sword, the nearby soldiers and monsters shriveled up like mummies.

Pah-ssssssss!

Pelio’s desperation only increased due to that. “Are you guys done destroying the holy ground’s barrier! How much more time do you need!”

“We couldn’t locate one of them!”

“What!”

“One of the eight cores was a fake!”

“…!”

“We cannot destroy his holy ground…!”

This took Pelio by surprise.

In contrast, Kevin let out a cold laugh. “Did you really think I would make it so easy for me to lose my power? The last location is known only to me and my Zodiac…”

“Over there.” A voice interrupted him.

“What?”

“The head of the sculpture over there. You should destroy it. That’s the core you guys are looking for.”

“…?!!”

Lee Gun nonchalantly threw that statement out there. He was pointing at the large statue visible through the windows. The statue was that of the Virgo, and it was located at the center of the holy ground.

[The eighth pillar holding up the Virgo Saint’s holy ground!]

The shocked Kevin turned to look at Lee Gun. Lee Gun grinned as he maintained his snake eyes.

[Gaze of a God]

Lee Gun laughed after grasping the internal structure of this place with his skill. His actions left a mixture of joy and grief in the room.

“You…!”

Kwahng!!!

The head of the goddess sculpture was instantly decapitated.

All the cores, which were the pillars of the Virgo Saint’s holy ground, had been destroyed at that moment.

[The Virgo Saint’s holy ground has been destroyed.]

[The Virgo Saint’s power will temporarily disappear.]

Kevin slumped to the floor as the power drained out of him.

The overjoyed traitorous Virgo disciples restrained the Saint. The thing binding Kevin wasn’t a normal rope. It was a monster made out of clay. The clay bound the Virgo Saint’s hands and feet, then hardened.

Kevin glared at Lee Gun. “Lee Gun!” An aggrieved expression took over his face. “I didn’t expect your help, but at the very least, you shouldn’t have interfered!”

“Why would I do that?”

“Why? This is an obvious conspiracy, and you said you won’t fall for it! However, you basically played into the Libra Saint’s hands by doing this!”

Lee Gun laughed as if he found Kevin’s assertion ridiculous. “Who cares about that?”

“What?”

“At a glance, I could tell this is that woman’s machination. However, it doesn’t matter. I’ll just get rid of all of you!”

“…?!”

Kevin might not look it, but he was humanity’s strongest swordsman. In terms of speed, he was on par with Lee Gun. In some aspects, the Virgo Saint might be faster.

It was a good thing that those Virgo traitors had taken out the Virgo Saint without Lee Gun having to lift a finger.

With a cold smile, Lee Gun lifted his ax. “I feel bad for you. You’ll die before you can pleasure yourself.”

“What? Ah—” The Virgo Saint was about to say something, but he flinched when he saw the look in Lee Gun’s eyes.

Lee Gun was dead serious. As if it were letting out a roar, the ax in his hands descended toward the Virgo Saint’s body.

Kwah-jaeek!

A massive amount of blood flowed into the air, and a severed head hit the floor.

Hugo and Goat were surprised.

“Lee Gun-nim!”

The Virgo Saint was surprised that he could hear the voice. His eyes turned round as the head of a monster rolled past his head. It was the monster that had been restraining him.

Boom!

As soon as the head fell away, the next part to fall was the Virgo Saint’s right arm.

Toohk!

At the same time, the monster that had been restraining the Virgo Saint started to sway on its feet.

Lee Gun laughed. Of course, it was rare to encounter the Virgo Saint in a powerless state. Lee Gun had thought about just killing Kevin, but in the end, he hated doing the dirty works of others. So, he had cut off only an arm.

However, for a right-handed swordsman to lose his right arm, it was a fate worse than death.

‘This is the price you’ll have to pay for the past twenty years.’

The Virgo Saint wasn’t someone to let this opportunity, which Lee Gun created for him, go to waste.

[Temporary Contract: Swiftness]

Kevin instantly escaped the grasp of the monster.

Shweek!

As soon as he escaped, he looked into the cold snake eyes of Lee Gun. It was a hair-raising experience. Then, the monster which had been holding the Virgo saint was obliterated.

Poo-hahk!

Lee Gun’s ax ruthlessly broke apart the monster’s body.

Hugo gulped. He didn’t know why, but Lee Gun was furious. It took a lot for the man to show so much murderous intent.

However, this reaction was inevitable for Lee Gun. Why?

‘The monster holding the Virgo Saint…’

That wasn’t a normal monster. It possessed the energy Lee Gun had felt when he was stuck in the Devil’s tower. He had felt it ad nauseam.

‘It’s the tower’s guard.’

Lee Gun had been the subject of an experiment; the monsters of the tower were supposed to eat him. He had eradicated those bastards. So, it had been a while since he had smelled this foul stench.

It got under Lee Gun’s skin. ‘Still, I found a clue.’ If he got rid of Pelio, he could confirm who was the culprit behind him falling into the trap.

Lee Gun put strength into the hand holding the ax.

This change of events had shocked Pelio, but the prince feigned a laugh. Lee Gun freeing the Virgo Saint was unexpected, but the world’s strongest swordsman had lost his arm. It was a critical blow for the other side!

Therefore, Pelio created the Libra magic circle. “Do not underestimate their power! The armless Virgo Saint and the Archer Saint are nothing in front of them!”

At that moment.

Pahng!

A deafening roar that sounded like a cannon shot rang out, and something flew toward Pelio.

“!”

Kwahng!

Pelio shuddered when he was the item that got embedded near his feet. It was the severed head of the monster that Lee Gun had cut.

With a cold smile on his lips, Lee Gun looked at Pelio. “If you have the balls, pick it up. I’ll do the same thing to your head.”

Suddenly, the coin inside Lee Gun’s pocket shook and emitted light.