Chapter 52

Chapter 52. Call Me an Archery Genius (2)

It’s standard for archers to shoot arrows from outside the enemy’s range for safety.

But Keter was different.

He deliberately positioned himself between Garan and Marhan and shot arrows.

Garan and Marhan wanted to kill Keter first, who was shooting arrows within their range, but they couldn’t.

Facing the Birang Tribe’s Karn and Dragon Spear Jordic, even the Sword Wing Tribe found it burdensome to expose their backs.

A tactic of positioning oneself in a dangerous spot to distract the opponent’s attacks and mental focus. Only Keter could pull off such a bold strategy.

Meanwhile, Luke, standing far away, pondered his role.

Joining the fight wouldn’t help. His Aura was depleted, and he could only shoot regular arrows. Arrows without Aura couldn’t pierce the Sword Wing Tribe’s steel feathers.

Could he help with his abilities?

When Jordic’s Moon Eclipse covered him, he didn’t take damage. Others did.

He didn’t know how it happened, but it wasn’t a voluntary ability. It might activate again, but even if it did, it couldn’t distinguish friend from foe.

He couldn’t use such an incomplete ability here.

‘Above all, Keter…’

Keter didn’t say anything to him. It might mean to act on his own, but he didn’t think it meant to join the fight.

‘What can only I do here… Ah!’

Luke finally moved.

Though his thoughts were long, his actions were swift. He first evacuated Baydant’s knights to safety. Then he quickly left the battlefield.

Keter, watching Luke leave, muttered.

“Let’s see some sense.”

That was also a message to the Sword Wing Tribe.

Keter’s Amaranth shot Aura Arrows instead of Mana Arrows.

Two at Garan, fighting Jordic.

One at Marhan, fighting Karn.

All were invisible Aura Arrows.

Splat!

Blood spurted from Garan’s wing. Garan, about to finish Jordic, scattered steel feathers at Keter.

Keter dodged casually, watching Marhan’s reaction.

“Tricks!”

The sensitive Marhan detected the invisible Aura Arrows and deflected them with steel feathers.

But a gap formed, and Karn didn’t miss it, charging and biting. Keter then shot consecutive Aura Arrows at Marhan to assist Karn.

Marhan spun in the air, dodging arrows and shaking off Karn.

Whoosh!

“What!?”

Marhan was startled.

The arrow he dodged boomeranged back at him. Keter kept shooting Aura Arrows.

Flap!

Marhan quickly ascended vertically.

The Aura Arrows followed at terrifying speed but lost power and vanished at a certain height.

“Not a birdbrain.”

This was the annoying part of fighting the Sword Wing Tribe. If things got tough, they could just fly up.

Keter taunted Marhan to keep him from thinking.

“Don’t fly away cowardly, come down, you bastards!”

The key to victory was slowly building.

For example, the effective range of the Sword Wing Tribe’s steel feathers was similar to a crossbow. Beyond 80 meters, lethality dropped sharply.

‘Garan has speed and power, Marhan has perception and combat sense.’

Keter, understanding Garan and Marhan’s styles, didn’t rush.

‘Opportunity will come.’

Shooting steel feathers is a means of suppression. To deliver a decisive blow, the Sword Wing Tribe must come down to the ground.

“Dog!”

Keter called Karn and jerked his chin at Garan.

Karn, seemingly feral, understood and charged at Garan. Running on all fours, he leaped wildly, opening his jaws at Garan.

Jordic, on the defensive, switched to offense, preventing Garan from flying.

Then-

Screech!

Marhan, catching his breath in the air, quickly descended and swung his curved sword.

With Aura fully charged and gravity and speed added, the destructive power was overwhelming.

Jordic, instead of blocking with his spear, retreated to catch his breath.

Suddenly alone, Karn was toyed with by the two Sword Wing Tribe members.

Jordic, catching his breath, looked at Keter. Keter just watched, not shooting arrows.

‘What is that guy thinking? If you’re going to help, help properly. Why suddenly stop helping?’

Every second counts. They could only rest because Karn was a sturdy Birang Tribe member.

On the other hand, the Sword Wing Tribe’s strength was terrifying. The advantage of mobility through wings was so effective in battle.

Jordic’s spear didn’t even graze Garan. Garan fought at a precarious height using his wings.

Thus, Jordic couldn’t reach Garan without jumping.

Without wings, Jordic could only jump 5 meters, and being airborne severely limited his actions.

Defending alone wasn’t an option, so Jordic had to jump to seize attack opportunities. Each jump added to his injuries.

“Whew.”

Jordic, replenished by a brief rest, returned to the battlefield.

Keter watched Jordic rush out and said.

“At this rate, we’ll be wiped out.”

Keter calmly predicted their annihilation.

Despite his bravado, Jordic’s stamina was at its limit. Karn, a werewolf, had excellent stamina and regeneration but couldn’t effectively fight the Sword Wing Tribe due to compatibility.

Though numerically superior, their lack of teamwork meant no synergy.

[Keter, I can’t understand. Why aren’t you using my power?]

Then, Amaranth, watching the situation, whispered.

[I know what you’re worried about. You’re afraid they’ll run if they see the power of Mana Arrows.]

Amaranth, having lived thousands of years, easily grasped the situation. He knew what Keter wanted.

[Become the Mana Archer. Use my full power. Then you can kill them without giving them a chance to flee. You know this isn’t a bluff.]

“You really don’t know how to bargain.”

[What?]

“If I were you, I’d let you use it once for free. That way, you’d experience how great the Mana Archer is and feel grateful for the free power. Huh? How else will you corrupt someone? That’s why there’s been no progress in half a century.”

[……]

“Give it for free. You need to experience how great the Mana Archer is to decide whether to use it again.”

[Hmph, just die.]

Amaranth cut the connection.

“Damn stingy bastard. Didn’t expect much.”

Keter scratched his back with his bow, watching the fight.

Then, at some point, he clapped.

“I see it. The way to kill.”

Victory in battle isn’t just about ability and skill. Keter found the answer in external factors.

“Marhan takes care of Garan a lot.”

Whenever Garan is in danger, Marhan steps in to help. Conversely, Garan doesn’t help Marhan when he’s in danger.

It’s subtle, but Keter, understanding their psychology, rejoined the battle.

* * *

Karn, once full of vigor, and Jordic, once full of bloodlust, now wore dark expressions.

Without Keter’s support, they struggled against the Sword Wing Tribe’s fierce attacks.

Jordic prepared his final Moon Eclipse. At this rate, it was the end.

Then, Keter joined the fight and said.

“From now on, Plan B!”

What’s that? Jordic and Karn were baffled by the unheard-of plan.

Meanwhile, the Sword Wing Tribe brothers were relaxed. Though slightly injured, it was superficial. They had no reason to lose with their stamina and Aura intact.

Then, Keter unleashed a barrage of Aura Arrows. All aimed at Garan.

Garan laughed and soared into the sky.

Splat!

Blood spurted from Garan’s wings as he ascended vertically. He focused on the visible Aura Arrows, missing the earlier invisible arrow.

‘Did he read my movements?’

Using a barrage of Aura Arrows to distract, then attacking the wings with an invisible arrow.

Easier said than done. The plan could easily fail depending on Garan’s flight direction.

But Keter was confident. He knew Garan would dodge vertically.

Jordic’s spear struck down at the falling Garan.

“Ugh!”

Garan lost his flight ability but barely blocked with his folded wings.

Jordic, who had been frustrated by Garan’s aerial taunts, didn’t miss this chance.

Whoosh!

Jordic focused all his muscles on attacking.

But even if he read Garan’s flight, Garan was a Beastman. Garan matched Jordic’s spear skills with pure swordsmanship. Spear and sword clashed, sparks flying, their bodies crossing.

Splat!

Blood spurted from Garan’s chest. Without his wings, Garan’s swordsmanship couldn’t match Jordic’s.

Jordic, seizing the advantage, unleashed a fierce assault. Blood, flesh, and feathers scattered.

“Brother!”

Seeing his brother pushed back, Marhan flew up, leaving Karn behind.

Karn tried to chase Marhan.

Keter shouted at him.

“Leave him, finish that guy first.”

In short distances, especially in a straight line, Karn was overwhelmingly faster than Marhan.

Understanding Keter, Karn didn’t chase Marhan but struck Garan’s back.

“Jordic. Prepare for a big one.”

Jordic, attacking without pause, frowned but prepared Moon Eclipse.

The attacks were effective, but the wings blocked most. Only Moon Eclipse could take down such a resilient opponent.

“Disappear!”

Marhan flapped his wings powerfully, pushing Karn and Jordic back.

Garan, barely defending, caught his breath thanks to Marhan. Instead of thanking his brother, he pulled out a small vial.

It was an Elixir.

Not a ‘potion’ that aids recovery, but a true miracle potion that instantly heals wounds. With Marhan protecting him, he could safely drink it.

But-

Crack!

Just before drinking, the Elixir shattered, scattering on the ground. Keter’s arrow precisely hit the Elixir, breaking it.

“Damn archer!”

Garan, having lost his only Elixir, was furious.

Marhan recklessly shot steel feathers, then grabbed Garan’s waist and flew up. He planned to recover with his Elixir at a great height.

But they were already in Keter’s palm. Garan, in Marhan’s arms, exclaimed in shock.

“Arrows above!”

In a vertical ascent, they couldn’t change direction, a perfect trap.

Using wings as shields, they could block Aura Arrows, but falling to the ground was inevitable.

Thud.

As they landed, Jordic stood before them. Having completed Moonlight Spear Technique’s secret move, Moon Eclipse, Jordic smiled coldly.

The Sword Wing Tribe brothers, having missed their chance to flee, didn’t just stare. Their swords gathered dense Aura Blades.

“Khaaah!”

Jordic’s desperate cry echoed loudly.

“Kaaaah!”

The Sword Wing Tribe brothers shouted with the will to live. Their slashes tore through Jordic’s Moon Eclipse from both sides.

Through the torn Moon Eclipse, Karn charged, swinging Aura-filled claws at Garan.

Garan and Marhan, having already swung their swords to tear Moon Eclipse, couldn’t block Karn’s attack.

But-

Crunch!

Karn’s claws were blocked.

By Marhan’s extended right wing.

“Kaaaah!”

Karn roared, tearing off Marhan’s right wing.

Marhan didn’t just take it. Gritting his teeth, he pierced Karn’s torso with his left wing.

“…!”

Whoosh!

Marhan threw the pierced Karn aside.

He covered his torso with his left wing and pulled out an Elixir. His torn right wing was beyond recovery, but his brother’s wing was lightly injured. With the Elixir, high-altitude flight was possible.

Garan, of course, and Marhan had no intention of retreating now.

It would be easy to flee and request reinforcements. But if they caught the Seven Evil Tribes with the Empire’s help, military exemption would be out of the question.

Moreover, the spearman was down. Only a heavily injured Birang Tribe member and an archer remained. The fight was almost won.

The archer’s Aura Arrows were threatening, but they couldn’t pierce wings.

Or so it should have been.

Crack!

The Elixir shattered.

An arrow, piercing the thick, hard wing, shattered the Elixir. Not stopping there, it deeply embedded in Marhan’s chest.

It wasn’t an Aura Arrow.

A black arrow, Mana Arrow.

The arrow of death gnawed at his body.

“This… this is?”

Marhan, using a massive amount of Aura to forcibly dissipate the Mana Arrow, looked pale at Keter.

Keter, holding the Mana Arrow, smiled.

“Does it hurt? I hurt too.”

Seeing Keter’s relaxed attitude, Marhan quickly realized this was all planned and tried to negotiate.

“Stop! We surrender. As Imperial Nobles, we request negotiations!”

“Bullshit, if you lose, you die.”

Keter shot the second Mana Arrow.