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Chapter 660: Secret Duel (2)

When do the Righteous Ones fight, exactly?

When their own lives are in danger?

Or when a great crisis befalls someone else?

‘No… do those people even fight at all?’

Of course, seeing that the Kingdom of Shelbir in Doatel had an order of knights, it didn’t seem like Righteous Ones simply stood there and took blows without resistance.

In fact, even during Jiseon and Jeonggu’s Gift Breakthrough, hadn’t the knights of Shelbir shown themselves to be quite aggressive?

But then again, considering how Prince Aldo had opposed violence during the planetary ascension examination, spouting that absurd theory of balance… it felt like there were almost no moments when Righteous Ones would truly draw their swords.

To begin with, since they didn’t commit evil deeds, there probably weren’t many situations that required a sword in the first place.

‘Then what kind of problem could possibly have arisen for those people to be engaging in a secret duel like this?’

Could it be that even Righteous Ones harbored a craving for power or a desire for battle, and had been secretly dueling like this all along?

If that were truly the case, then today he might end up unintentionally uncovering a massive and ferocious secret of the Righteous Ones.

And not alone—but alongside top-tier criminals from Pahalufe, who stood at their complete opposite.

Ziiiiing!

At last, the friction sound from the duel arena began to reach Yeongwoo’s ears.

It meant that the Falling Pavilion had almost arrived at the scene.

And it also meant that the duelists were already nearly lost in a state of selflessness.

By now, brilliant trails of multicolored light must have been streaking across the sky—but they were likely too absorbed to even perceive them.

And then, finally—

Kuuuuung!

No sooner had the leading presidents landed on the wasteland than heavy impacts rang out in succession.

Kwakwakwaang…!

It was the sound of hundreds of third-grade prisoners, along with Yeongwoo’s Falling Pavilion, crushing into the ground.

“Hup!”

As Yeongwoo leapt up from inside the Falling Pavilion, which had split into eight directions, the bluish glow flickering in the distance vanished all at once.

At last, the duelists had noticed the presence of intruders.

“…What happens now?”

As Yeongwoo muttered while staring toward the duel arena, the long-haired man who had been standing beside him at some point spoke with his arms crossed.

—They’re quite strong. They won’t just drop to their knees immediately.

“They’re quite strong? Don’t tell me they’re Second-Grade beings?”

At Yeongwoo’s question, the man let out a laugh as if it were absurd.

—Ha, as if. If that were the case, we wouldn’t even be able to stand here without their permission.

“What…? Are Second-Grade beings really that powerful? But there are hundreds of presidents here.”

At that, the man tilted his head up and gazed beyond the sky.

—No matter how powerful a planet may be, can it compare to a galaxy?

It meant that Second-Grade beings existed on an entirely different level.

Well, even among Third-Grade beings, wasn’t there already a significant gap in martial prowess?

‘Hundreds of Third-Grade beings wouldn’t even be able to move? Then it’s not just a matter of raw strength.’ 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Perhaps there was some mechanism—like authority—that prevented insubordination?

But considering that weapons capable of targeting transcendents clearly existed, Second-Grade beings likely weren’t at the level of absolute inviolability.

“Have you ever encountered a Second-Grade being, sir?”

At Yeongwoo’s question, the man fixed him with a deep, profound gaze.

—If you’re asking whether I’ve seen the limits of power… then yes. I’ve seen more than enough.

‘What the hell is he talking about?’

At the vague answer, Yeongwoo felt a strong urge to punch the man in the face.

But he quickly realized he couldn’t, and had no choice but to steady his breathing.

Could this be what the man meant by the ‘limits of power’?

—It’s begun.

The man spoke as he turned his gaze toward the duel arena, and Yeongwoo quickly followed.

There, he saw blue lightning and pitch-black flames violently intertwining.

The prisoners, unable to hold back any longer, had stormed into the arena and begun clashing with the unidentified duelist.

“What the—did they just start fighting right away? Shouldn’t there at least be some kind of dialogue?”

—That is dialogue. You’ll know the result soon enough.

No sooner had the man spoken than three streaks of azure lightning tore through the sky, and near the ground, black sparks burst like fireworks.

Chwiaaaaat!

Seeing this, the man moved forward with an expression that said he had expected it.

—As I thought, not ordinary at all.

“Don’t tell me one of our presidents lost?”

—‘Our side’? There was only a single weak prisoner.

“……”

The long-haired man drew a clear line between himself and the weak.

Then suddenly, he grabbed Yeongwoo by the back of the neck.

Kwaak!

“…Huh?”

—With that heavy body of yours, you won’t make it in time. I’ll help you.

“W-what?”

Even as Yeongwoo recoiled in shock, the man launched himself into the air.

Taaaat!

And with Yeongwoo in his grip, they cut through the air at tremendous speed—until he could finally see.

“Ha…?”

The two duelists, facing off against the hundreds of prisoners who had arrived first.

‘Is that Delmir?’

The first thing that caught Yeongwoo’s eye was the one wrapped entirely in white cloth.

They were even more lightly equipped than the prisoners present, and their head was fully covered by a silver-white helmet, making them stand out.

It made it impossible to easily guess their race—but at least they had ‘limbs.’

“Who is that from Delmir? You can tell, right, sir?”

As Yeongwoo asked while being dragged through the air, the long-haired man let out a low chuckle.

—If it’s a Delmir who can dare stand against escapees from Pahalufe, there’s only one.

[Translator - Night]

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“What? Then don’t tell me—”

—That is the current head of Delmir, Tiape Delmir.

“The head of Delmir?”

The fact that even this Third-Grade long-haired man remembered her name was already proof that she was a major figure.

Moreover, Delmir was one of the three great Righteous families of the Giufe Galaxy Cluster.

Considering that a galaxy cluster consisted of hundreds to thousands of galaxies, it was no exaggeration to call them a prestigious family on a universal scale.

‘And Delmir is a Righteous family. But its head is here…?’

It was as if he was witnessing figures that one might never encounter in an entire lifetime of wandering the universe—all gathered in one place.

Weren’t the most prominent figures of both the Righteous and Wicked factions assembled here?

—I heard that Righteous Ones always receive good fortune, but perhaps that’s not always the case.

As the man muttered with a crooked smile, Yeongwoo tilted his head—and at that moment, another violent surge erupted from the duel arena.

Kwaaaaat!

One of the prisoners, writhing like boiling oil, charged straight at Tiape.

—Only by clashing with ‘evil’ can it be called a true battle! I shall place you upon a proper trial!

Which meant that the opponent Tiape had been dueling in secret wasn’t a Wicked One either.

At this, Yeongwoo reflexively turned his head to look at the one standing about ten meters away from Tiape.

Unlike Tiape, who was wrapped in white cloth, the opponent wore jade-colored heavy armor—

—Poachi Shalmoram.

“Huh?”

—Aren’t you looking at him? They say he wields a sword that saves lives. This is my first time seeing him as well.

“You’ve never met him before—how can you tell?”

—Because that one-eyed man is looking at us without running away.

“…?”

In other words, it was pure speculation.

But it also meant he had heard that Poachi Shalmoram was one-eyed and extremely steadfast.

‘No, even so—how can he be this certain with just that?’

Ironically, Yeongwoo himself also thought that the opponent must be Poachi Shalmoram.

More precisely, he trusted the intuition of the long-haired man—a powerful Third-Grade being of the universe.

An intuition honed over a long time through clashes with countless great figures.

“If you say so, sir, then it’s probably true.”

As Yeongwoo spoke, a powerful clash rang out at the center of the arena.

Taaang!

At last, Tiape and a Third-Grade prisoner had engaged.

Tiape wielded a curved sword glowing in five colors, shaped closer to a scythe, while the Third-Grade prisoner targeting her swung four longswords—one in each of his four arms.

Shwiaaaak!

Four blades, each aiming from a different direction with fierce tearing sounds.

In truth, Yeongwoo couldn’t even follow their movements with his eyes—he could only tell that blows were being exchanged when multicolored trails appeared near Tiape’s body.

Pipiping…!

From beyond the limits of his perception, sharp friction sounds arrived belatedly.

‘Damn it, I can’t even tell how they’re fighting.’

Well, wasn’t this the first time he had seen a Third-Grade being fight at full strength?

No matter how much of a planetary fleet commander he was, he couldn’t read the desperate movements of a Third-Grade being.

‘It’s frustrating…! Why am I the only one who can’t see this rare spectacle?’

As Yeongwoo ground his teeth, the long-haired man glanced at him.

—You can’t see it, can you?

“…No. I still have a long way to go. I can’t even perceive the movements of a Righteous One.”

—Righteous Ones aren’t weak. What you’re seeing right now is strength.

As soon as the man finished speaking, the prisoner crossing blades with Tiape was flung backward.

—…Kgh!

With one of his arms severed.

—I have shown sufficient courtesy by not taking your head. Now speak. Who are you, and how did you find us?

Though she had clearly won the second duel as well, fear was evident in her voice—enough for even Yeongwoo to notice.

Because she knew better than anyone that if things went even slightly wrong, her head could roll here at any moment.

Given the nature of Wicked Ones, it wouldn’t be strange if everyone present suddenly attacked at once—and she had already sensed that among the crowd before her were not a few ‘true powerhouses.’

Above all, the very fact that such high-level Wicked Ones had appeared as a legion in the first place was something that should never have been possible.

At that, the long-haired man pushed through the other prisoners and stepped forward.

—You’re late to the news. Pahalufe has fallen.

At those words, Tiape—who had maintained her composure until now—had her expression collapse instantly.

—What…?

Pahalufe.

A high-grade prison directly managed by the Cosmic Police Bureau.

It was common knowledge throughout the universe that each prisoner confined there was a great evil that had brought immense harm.

And for such a Pahalufe to have fallen—

—Then you are…

Tiape looked at the mass of sin, which had grown to over a thousand, with disbelief.

The prisoners let out their characteristic sinister laughter and spoke words that would sound like a nightmare to any Righteous One.

—We are the prisoners of Pahalufe.

—The balance has been broken.

—It seems everything begins here.

As the prisoners’ bodies began to tremble ominously, Tiape hurriedly asked—

—H-how? How could Pahalufe possibly fall?

At that, every great evil present turned their heads in unison, as if by prior agreement.

Toward the place where Planetary Fleet Commander Jeong Yeongwoo stood blankly.

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