Chapter 131 (1/2)
“I got lucky,” said Su-hyeun.
That was the opponent he had in mind, the very same man he wanted as his first fight and asked Gordon Rohan about it earlier. Su-hyeun had been ruing the missed opportunity after his request was denied, but luckily enough, he got matched up with the individual he wanted to fight anyway.
“Who’s your opponent that you’re saying you got lucky?” Hak-joon asked. He was busy searching for his own name until he heard Su-hyeun’s muttering and began searching for the latter’s name instead. And after spotting what he was looking for, he gasped in surprise and asked again. “What do you mean this is luck? That’s Thomas, isn’t it?”
“That’s why it’s good.”
“Dude, could it be that you get, like, super excited and stuff when fighting strong enemies?”
“You think I’m a monster? I hate fighting. I’m a pacifist.”
“But then, why….That dude, he’s dangerous, isn’t he?”
Hak-joon glanced at Thomas grinning away in the distance.
That man also must’ve been rather pleased with who his opponent was. It was quite likely that he, too, had been conscious of Su-hyeun.
“You know, I just wanted to step on him at least once, that’s all.”
Hak-joon knew that Su-hyeun was quite angry. Still, he couldn’t help but worry. It probably had to do with Thomas’s previous display of ruthlessness.
“If you think it’ll get too dangerous, please throw in the towel. Please,” said Hak-joon.
That was what Su-hyeun told him yesterday.
“If it comes to that.”
And the reply implied that it wouldn’t come to that.
Hak-joon spat out a lengthy groan.
While the two of them were chatting away, Gordon Rohan began addressing everyone else.
“Everyone, I assume that you’ve all confirmed who your opponent is by now. As for who goes first, it’s coincidentally me. Well now, lucky me.”
Gordon’s opponent was an awakener named Mirage Rowoon. The latter sucked in deep breaths — perhaps out of nervousness — and raised a shield and a shortsword.
Mirage Rowoon was famed for his high defense and endurance. So much so that as far as defending was concerned, he was absolutely confident in enduring the whole day, even if the entire world started attacking him.
“Okay, then. Let’s get started right away.”
Swiiish—
With the exception of Gordon Rohan and Mirage Rowoon, all the other participants were transferred to the waiting area.
Crack, craack—
Gordon Rohan’s body slowly descended to the floor. “Good. This is not bad for my first challenger.”
“Challenger? Are you talking about me?” Mirage Rowoon gripped the shield even tighter and glared straight at Gordon Rohan. “Sure, I might not be as strong as you, but it still feels pretty insulting to hear you looking down on your opponent even before the start.”
Clunk—
The four-sided wooden shield began transforming little by little, and eventually, was enveloped in blue-colored metal. Its size also grew much bigger than before. Now curved in an elliptical shape, it had transformed to provide not just protection from the front, but from both sides, as well.
“Right, it’s understandable that you feel confident about your chances. You must be pretty skilled just by the fact that I’ve heard your name.”
Gordon Rohan was feeling quite happy with this match-up because he knew about his opponent.
“You allegedly said that even if you were fighting the whole world, you can still last the entire day. Is that true?”
“That I did.”
[The match will begin.]
The moment Johnny Brad’s start signal reached the two…
“Why don’t we put that claim to the test?”
Fwooosh—
Gordon Rohan’s figure disappeared from the spot.
At the same time, Mirage Rowoon raised the shield, having instinctively realized that an attack was incoming.
Kaaaa-boooom—!
Kurung, kurururung—
An incredible impact force was transmitted over the shield. While being pushed back, Mirage Rowoon looked over the shield at his front.
<<A punch?>>
It was just a single punch with nothing special about it.
Although magical energy was injected into that one strike, it didn’t look like any special skills had been activated.
But…
<<He isn’t even a damn missile, so what the hell is…?>>
That impact caused by a single punch was easily the strongest attack Mirage Rowoon had ever experienced so far. Even though he had heard Gordon Rohan’s name many times before, not once did that name loom intimidatingly large like in this very moment.
“You’re indeed quite sturdy.”
Gordon Rohan rolled his fist tightly. He struck so hard just now that his hand felt a bit numb. “Looks like you’re qualified to make that claim, after all.”
“At the very least, I’m not planning to easily….”
“But the thing is…”
Two pairs of wings suddenly unfurled right behind Gordon Rohan’s back.
“Did you know?”
Right afterward, pure-white magical energy began spreading out around those wings.
It was at that moment Mirage Rowoon’s unique crisis perception began ringing warning bells.
<<That…is incredibly dangerous.>>
The moment those wings appeared, Gordon Rohan felt like a completely different person.
Not just the density of his magical energy, but even the amount spreading out to the surroundings were on another level altogether. Up until a second ago, Mirage Rowoon believed he could somehow battle it out and endure, but now, that was no longer the case.
Mirage Rowoon injected far, far more magical energy into his shield. At the same time, every single defensive technique in his possession was wrapped around it. Never mind one day, lasting for one hour would be a miracle at this stage.
“Did you know that everyone lives in their own little worlds?”
Gordon Rohan stepped forward while extending his hand in the air. “A newborn baby believes the room within its field of vision is the entire world.”
A pure-white spear soon appeared in his hand. It was shaped like a trident, with nary a speck of imperfection or dust on it.
“Students think of their schools as their whole world, while adults experience the world called their workplace. While riding planes, you view the world outside, and through experiencing culture, you gain knowledge and understanding. All of that is a process to broaden your horizons.”
“What the hell are you trying to say here?”
CLANK!