Chapter 37
The Butcher Dog, Berkman.
His defining feature was his goofy behavior that always seemed like he had a screw loose, along with his slapdash movements.
As a result, he frequently made silly mistakes, especially when he was toying with weaker opponents, and that trait was even more pronounced then.
However, what could truly overcome all of that was his actual skill.
Not many could escape the Imperial Black Dragon Knights.
Unless one was an extraordinary individual like Shin Chang or Diana Mary.
In the meantime, Kraush raised his hand.
At that moment, the Black Hood activated and returned Bianca’s hairpin, which Berkman had taken, into his grasp.
Kraush carefully tucked the hairpin into his pocket.
When he looked up, there was Berkman, rolling in the snow with an annoyed expression, managing to get back on his feet.
Despite being hit squarely, he appeared perfectly fine.
If Bianca hadn’t been captured, Kraush would have used his aura-imbued sword to end him immediately, but Berkman was a strong opponent.
To take him down, Kraush would need to channel maximum aura, but Berkman would have surely caught on and defended himself in time.
Ambushes could only work at equal levels.
It was too risky to throw a bet like that with Bianca in danger.
So, Kraush had to choose a less powerful but guaranteed way to keep Berkman from spotting him while also weakening his hold on Bianca.
Not being able to launch a surprise attack was frustrating, but if Bianca was safe, that was what mattered.
“Who are you? Why are you interfering with my business?”
Berkman’s pouting snout twisted with displeasure.
“Less chatter.”
Kraush was eager to take Bianca back to Hadenhartz immediately.
He wanted to treat her injuries as quickly as possible.
Right now, he was the only one here who could help her.
The Raven from the Crimson Garden couldn’t move Bianca, and Ebelask had to follow the World Eroder’s unwritten rules.
But turning his back on Berkman to escape was also too risky.
Thus, he had to take Berkman down here and now.
“Attacking people nowadays, what a savage bunch of kids.”
The moment Berkman said that, his form shattered into pieces.
“Don’t piss me off!”
At that moment, Berkman’s axe whirled toward Kraush.
CLANG!
In a brief moment, Kraush’s sword filled the gap and blocked Berkman’s axe.
’Fast.’
His instincts managed to keep up with the danger just barely.
Moreover, just by the sheer amount of aura he exuded, it was clear that Berkman was at the highest level of Expert.
Becoming a species of the World Eroder likely broke through his limits.
Recently, Kraush had only just reached the intermediate level of Expert.
The difference in levels was glaringly evident.
“Well, look who blocked it!”
CLANG, CLANG, CLANG!
A few more times, Berkman’s axe swung.
Each time, Kraush’s sword quickly filled in the gaps.
It was a blunt weapon.
However, even a blunt weapon is effective when it can fully absorb the opponent’s strength.
Being pushed back by sheer power, Kraush kept retreating and couldn’t utilize the space dominance that a blunt weapon had.
“Keep blocking! Just keep blocking!”
Berkman exclaimed with his signature playful tone.
His words were light, lacking any sense of heaviness.
It was nothing more than the behavior of a street thug.
Yet, the axe was anything but light.
BAM!
Once again, as Berkman’s axe struck, Kraush’s sword flew up high due to the pressure.
Berkman’s eyes gleamed in the opening.
Releasing one hand from the axe, his fist came careening toward Kraush.
THWACK!
In that moment, a sharp sound echoed.
However, what Berkman didn’t anticipate happened.
“Ugh?!”
A groan escaped Berkman’s lips as he stumbled backward.
The reason was simple.
Kraush had anticipated Berkman’s actions through instinct and had struck back with his own punch aimed at Berkman’s.
Chonjeng
The technique punctured through the exterior, striking the internal core effectively.
It caused Berkman’s knuckles to fracture.
Conversely, Kraush’s left hand was also in pain.
While he managed to land the counter, he suffered damage as well.
If he hadn’t landed that blow, only Berkman’s fist would have been injured.
“Argh!?”
Berkman’s scream echoed as he realized the fracture in his bone.
Kraush was not free from pain either.
He felt the ache too, being similarly impacted.
However, Kraush immediately channeled strength into his sword with that hand.
In this aspect, Kraush had the advantage.
SWISH!
As Kraush’s sword sliced through the air, it grazed Berkman’s side.
He intended to pierce him right through, but Berkman reacted just in time to dodge.
Amid the spray of blood, Kraush’s blue eyes shone brightly.
He was familiar with pain.
He had endured countless higher levels of it in the past.
A minor fracture was not enough to hinder his actions.
‘I will take control of the flow.’
With the situation escalating, Kraush’s concentration sharpened.
With each successful punch and sword swing, Berkman’s actions began to falter.
When humans feel pain, they tend to retreat.
That was true even for Berkman.
Thus, in that moment of opportunity, Kraush explosively drew up his aura.
The aura seeped into his arm muscles, manifesting as a blue glow upon his sword.
‘Ignis.’
At that moment, in response to his summoning, the blue aura transformed into flames.
WHOOSH!
The flaming sword rushed toward Berkman.
Taken aback by the sudden burst of flames, Berkman was momentarily flustered.
And in that opening, Kraush resolutely aimed to inflict even the slightest wound on him.
“Damn it, you’re just infuriating.”
However, if that were all, Berkman would never have held his own against Charlotte before his regression.
WOOF!
A brief sound resembling a barking dog escaped.
Kraush recognized it as the starting point.
Following its resonance, the surrounding color began to fade.
The mountains, previously filled with snow, transformed into a vivid red hue.
As the sun set, the sound of barking echoed from every direction surrounding the mountain.
The red glow enveloped Kraush’s eyes.
As a result, all his senses began to disorient him.
Phantom Binding.
While Berkman could see clearly, Kraush was trapped within the Phantom Binding, which distorted his perception of the world.
A technique that spread aura through sound, overlaying it on the opponent’s senses.
Once ensnared in Phantom Binding, one would become oblivious to the moment of their demise.
“Isn’t it exhilarating to be trapped?”
Berkman chuckled as he watched Kraush stand idly, ensnared.
However, in contrast to that laughter, Berkman’s dog-like nose flared as he slowly gripped his axe.
Just moments ago, when Kraush assaulted him, Berkman realized he was in more danger than he anticipated.
The sight of a little boy, a significant disparity in strength and aura.
He had vaguely thought he could treat him like a mere weaker opponent.
But now, with minor injuries to his left fist and a gash on his right side, he felt the pressure mounting.
It was about time the search party from Hadenhartz should be arriving.
Finishing this quickly seemed the best course of action.
WOOF!
So he barked once more.
With that, several of his senses twisted.
The pain he had felt in his finger and side vanished.
By summoning up illusions, he erased the hindrance of the pain in his immediate battle.
As he did so, he approached step-by-step, axe in hand, moving as cautiously as a hunting dog.
With the use of Phantom Binding, Berkman classified Kraush as a dangerous individual.
Now, he would no longer hold back.
Like the moniker of “Butcher Dog,” he truly began hunting.
‘The movements following my axe from earlier, that wasn’t standard behavior.’
Even in the Phantom Binding, Kraush might have had a plan ready.
Berkman twirled his axe.
What he swung down was none other than the base of a tree.
CRACK!
The fallen tree began to topple right in Kraush’s direction.
At the same time, Berkman sprang toward Bianca.
In that moment.
SNAP!
Kraush sliced through the falling tree and immediately rushed at him.
Berkman barely dodged Kraush’s sword as it came barreling toward him.
With eyes wide open, he glared at Kraush, who seemed to be caught in the Phantom Binding.
Yet, his instincts remained sharp.
He possessed the means to counter Berkman’s illusion technique completely.
Berkman chuckled in disbelief.
“Ha ha, you little bastard!”
For the first time in a while, Berkman felt a shiver run down his spine.
Kraush had been waiting, intentionally hiding his fangs until he approached.
‘He’s trying to stir my complacency.’
As Kraush’s gaze locked onto Berkman, it appeared as if he had completely broken free from the Phantom Binding.
Now he understood thoroughly.
That boy was no mere quarry.
It was a blood-soaked battle between predators.
CLANG!
The sound of axe meeting sword roared through the forest.
GRIND, GRIND, GRIND, the battle of might began, metal clashing against metal.
As he watched this unfold, Berkman leaned in closer, opening his mouth like a dog.
“If you can’t stop me, I’ll gouge her eyes out and chop off her fingers and toes, stuffing them in her mouth.”
Those words from Berkman were meant to provoke Kraush’s anger.
However, even after hearing them, Kraush’s expression didn’t waver.
Despite being such a provocative statement, his reaction was nonexistent.
Seeing that made Berkman certain.
‘This guy, the Phantom Binding isn’t having no effect on him at all!’
Though how he’d pierced through the Phantom Binding remained a mystery, it was evident that Kraush’s senses weren’t entirely normal.
If that were the case, the odds shifted in Berkman’s favor.
On one hand, Kraush was impacted by the Phantom Binding and had something to protect.
On the flip side, Berkman needed only to attack.
Riding that shift in momentum, Berkman unleashed his axe from all directions.
Though Kraush barely managed to deflect Berkman’s axe, he began to be pushed back.
And that wasn’t all.
The illusions began to mix into Berkman’s axe attacks.
WELCOME CHOP!
Countless ethereal axes began to pour down upon Kraush.
Even though he had countered the Phantom Binding with his instinct, he couldn’t completely dispel its aftereffects.
The evidence of that was the multitude of wounds that continued to appear on Kraush’s body.
“Grrr, ugh!”
And watching that from afar, Ebelask bit her lip.
She hesitated as she witnessed the clash between the two.
Kraush was her benefactor, the one who had restored her heart.
Even if it was a deal, she held a sense of morality.
She didn’t want to let him die like this.
‘Should I intervene? But if I do, that guy will target me too. No, not just me, if he views me as a threat, he’ll go after Kraush as well.’
Berkman, the Butcher Dog, was a pawn under the influence of the World Eroder.
Should he choose to go after them, it would spell nothing but doom.
The rabid dog was among the strongest of the World Eroder.
Moreover, true to his name, he was stubborn.
Once he set his sights on an opponent, he wouldn’t release his grip until their demise.
So she couldn’t intervene, pacing back and forth anxiously.
SMACK!
In that moment, Kraush was struck by Berkman and tumbled to the ground.
He quickly got back up, but in doing so, he permitted further attacks, aggravating his wounds.
Seeing that, Ebelask sprang to her feet.
No, this couldn’t happen.
Better to die later than die here; otherwise, it would all be meaningless.
[Do not intervene.]
At that moment, a voice echoed within her mind.
The owner of that voice was none other than the Crimson Garden.
She was taken aback.
Do not intervene?
Could they not see that Kraush was dying?
[Just watch.]
Then the Crimson Garden’s voice resounded once more.
There was a conviction in her tone.
[That boy said he would win on his own.]
Kraush had spoken those words himself.
In that case, as his teacher, she had to trust him and watch over him.
[Trust the boy who restored your heart. He’s a unique one I acknowledge.]
Upon hearing those final words, Ebelask slowly sat back down.
“…If you die, I’ll resurrect you as a corpse.”
She said that with the hope that it wouldn’t come true.
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