Chapter 179

“I see things differently.”

“You bastard…!”

As their voices rose in fury, two Edwards clashed. The fanatic swiftly drew his sword, aiming to slice Edward’s neck with an aura-swathed blade. But…

Step back.

With a single retreat, Edward evaded the tip of the sword. Instead of dwelling on his failed attack, the fanatic attempted to knock Edward off balance using his full-body armor. It seemed like he was trying to enter a form of sword wrestling, but…

Lu Shu Yaobu - Grappling Step.

Edward made a light sweeping motion. The fanatic’s body, hurtling towards him like a cannonball, spun comically through the air.

“Lu Shu means ‘to roll up one’s sleeves.’ As you step out with your left foot and extend your right hand, then step forward with your right foot while unfolding your left hand…”

Edward lacked what is commonly known as “battle sense.” In those critical moments of combat, where life hung by a thread—like walking on the edge of a knife—he was unable to make the best decisions. He couldn’t discern whether an opponent’s attack was feigned or real, nor could he effectively engage in psychological warfare. His poor battle instincts were a significant hindrance when facing enemies at his level; defeat seemed inevitable.

Yet now…

In the blazing heat of battle, his offense and defense approached perfection.

Since you’re so thick-skulled, just pound these moves into your body.

Ah, that’s such harsh talk!

Instead of whining, let’s try it one more time.

Though Edward may have been lacking physically and mentally, he possessed an unyielding determination once set on something—a stubbornness that refused to surrender.

If his head were stone, he’d carve every posture into it until they stuck.

Edward closed his eyes, recalling Jaeyeon’s teachings:

Slowly… And more lightly.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“More.”

“Yes.”

When attacked, he would counter according to the “fixed pattern”. He was no different from a character in a video game—defending and attacking by rote. If he unleashed a combo, it would be like executing a pre-set ten-move sequence!

Of course, this wasn’t an ideal approach. If his opponent discerned the pattern, Edward could find himself helpless, toyed with and ultimately killed.

Ideally, someone so lacking in combat talent shouldn’t bother learning martial arts at all… But Edward’s situation was unique.

It was fine for him to have battle senses as bad as garbage and intelligence that could only be described as idiotic—he was an epic character blessed with mythological psionic talent.

Shing! Thud!

The sword struck his hand, then bounced off with a metallic clang. The flow of inner energy over his skin protected his flesh.

Bam!

“Ugh…!”

The madman flew like a stone, crashing into the wall. As he coughed up blood, Edward smoothly traced circles with both hands. In no time at all, the ground beneath his feet bore the symbol of Taeguk—the yin-yang.

“Look at this,” Edward said, radiating light from every inch of his body. “Pathetic.”

“You…! This…”

The Madman trembled with rage. Edward’s provocation, equivalent to that of a middle school student in Earth terms, was enough to make him lose his mind.

“Attack them all!”

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The paladins who had been watching the fight until now finally moved into action.

“Look at this ugly sight. Is this supposed to be my future? Tsk tsk.”

“You…! You bastard! I’ll nail you to a cross while you’re still alive! You’ll walk like a dog, begging for mercy, praising God until your throat is slit! I will make it happen!” he shouted with a wild expression on his face.

And indeed, it was possible. If he and his paladins attacked together, no matter how strong Edward’s defenses were, they would eventually break through.

Yes.

This is what it means when a madman lives on.

Thwack!

“I was… Huh?”

The madman, spewing curses with frenzied madness, suddenly stops. He lowers his head in bewilderment, revealing a massive hole in his chest.

Though he possessed a tenacious life force, earning him the nickname “Lightning Bug”… even this legendary vitality couldn’t overcome such grievous wounds.

Thud.

Even Edward is taken aback by the sight of the fallen figure.

“Wow… It actually worked? I was ready to teleport back if this failed.”

This phenomenon occurs due to Edward infusing his lightning attribute spiritual energy into the madman’s body, causing an explosive reaction. It’s a technique he briefly studied before learning Taeguk Fist—more accurately, it’s the effect of the Ninety-Nine Sword Forms of Light that he had merely read about.

Despite his talent for the Light attribute, he had never properly mastered this martial art. Yet he succeeded with just one strike in battle—a testament to his ability to create a sword aura after merely reading about it for a day.

With the dungeon-clearing conditions met, all the surrounding paladins vanished. Edward relaxed his stance and caught his breath.

“Phew. To be honest, that was risky. I’m glad the bald guy charged at me one-on-one… Man, the difference between hard and hell difficulties is night and day.”

He dusted off his clothes as he checked the rewards. Before him lay a substantial amount of gold, several metal protective items, and…

”…Huh?”

It was rarer than most drop items from ordinary equipment. One would need to kill hundreds of millions of regular monsters for it to spawn—needless to say, that made it quite elusive.

However, Revenge didn’t consider this item particularly special. Although its drop rate was abysmal, every monster had it listed in their loot table. Thus, players who ran automated hunts daily often acquired it more frequently than expected.

Besides, even if you drew a card hoping for something extraordinary, wouldn’t any average rank still be useless?

“I heard these don’t come out very often… Hmm. Will I get anything better than my current High Warrior?” Edward muttered as he grabbed another card and flung it down.

Tiriling!

As the card spun through the air, Edward caught a glimpse of the statue of the goddess with her mischievous smile flashing by at the edge of his vision.

Ka-blam!

Light erupted. Edward’s jaw dropped as the statue of the goddess, which had always flashed him a playful smile, suddenly erased its grin in apparent shock.

“Huh? What’s with this reaction?”

In that moment of surprise,

Thud!

A staff fell from the sky and embedded itself in the ground. While the radiant golden hue was every Player’s desire, Edward couldn’t help but feel disappointment.

“Ah, a staff… And this length suggests it might be for a scribe?” he muttered, pulling out the staff.

[You have acquired Paladin (Hero)!]

“Huh? For a scribe class, isn’t this…”

With a glimmer of hope, Edward changed his class.

A paladin, huh? Just looking at it gives off a close-quarters combat vibe, doesn’t it?

But the moment he changed his class…

A wave of memories washed over him.

This was the record of a man—a hero entirely different from the religious fanatic Edward.

“Ugh…?!”

When memories were inherited through class cards, the recipient’s character inevitably changed in many ways.

Memories formed the very core of one’s self.

Hayes, having understood her newly acquired memories through a process called “regression,” didn’t think she had changed. However, the nobles of the Chrom Kingdom suspected that she might have been brainwashed.

It was only natural. She used to be loyal to the state and fulfill her duties as a noble, but now she found the king’s orders ridiculous—how could they not be suspicious?

In the same way, Edward could also change. Perhaps he would prioritize his identity as a “paladin” over his current self as “Edward”!

Yes, that was possible.

If he wasn’t an incomparably eccentric man, it might have been different.

“Damn. Damn. Damn…” He gritted his teeth, mocking the memory of trying to change himself.

“You’re weak,” he scoffed.

An absolute standard had already been set for him. Even the memories of a hero who fought against injustice couldn’t overcome the shock brought by the existence of the Emperor.

His character attribute was Fanaticism (狂信). Once he chose a direction, he would never look back.

“Hmph!” With a snort, he returned to his original form. Thanks to this, although he retained the memories of a paladin, they became mere knowledge.

“I’m disappointed. In twenty years, you’ve barely achieved anything.”

He dusted off his hands and exited the dungeon. Unconsciously, he had perfected control over his Light attribute.

“Oh… I want to train with His Majesty as soon as possible.” The blond youth smiled beautifully, though it was a smile that Jaeyeon would have disapproved of if he could see it.

“Impossible…” Everyone watched with astonishment.

“He… he’s standing…”

“He’s on his feet…”

They were dumbfounded by this unbelievable reality.

“How can such a thing exist in this world?”

“He’s walking. He’s really walking.”

The doctor, disciple, and maids all observed the scene with trembling eyes.

“The child… standing on two legs…!”

“No way…”

I held Flower, who was exhausted, as I gazed at the child proudly standing upright.

With skin so firm it was hard to believe he had just been born, and abundant brown hair, the baby scanned his surroundings with bright eyes before spotting me and reaching out his arms.

“Kya! Mama!”

An innocent laugh escaped him. In response to this absurdity, I couldn’t help but chuckle myself.

“Thank goodness you’re not proclaiming your divine right as ‘the one and only ruler of heaven and earth’.”

As I extended my hand, the newborn baby eagerly crawled towards me.

And then…

Plop!

He climbed onto my knee.

“C-cry… cry…”

“He’s crying?!”

“Oh no… The child is…!”

Ignoring the gasps around us, I cradled the baby close to my body like a sticky clingfilm. His skin was still damp with amniotic fluid, so I used the elemental power of water to instantly evaporate the moisture. At that moment, the maid finally regained her composure and spoke up.

“A-Ah, it’s a boy, Your Highness!”

“Yes. I can see that myself.”

The sight of this child, bearing a resemblance to me, gazing up at me with those large eyes, stirred something within my heart.

So, he’s my son, is he…

“Ahh…”

Just then, Flower came to her senses and picked up the child. Despite being so tightly attached to my body, he offered no resistance when she took him in her arms.

“Gyaha…”

The child giggled as Flower gazed at him with an expression of utter amazement.

She spoke:

“Your Highness… you’re pitiful.”

”…What brought this on?”

“Yes. I’m sure you’ll never experience these feelings again for the rest of your life…”

I looked at Flower. Despite her sunken eyes and gaunt cheeks, she was smiling radiantly like a flower.

“Well, I suppose that could be true.” With a wry smile, I glanced at the maidservants.

“Let them sleep.”

“Yes, Your Highness! Goodnight!”

“Goodnight!”

“All right.”

After handing Flower and the child over to the maidservants, I left the room. I could see the footmen and maids moving about frantically.

“Firstly… I’ve managed to pull this off.”

As expected, the child born was no ordinary human. Though identical in appearance to a regular person, there was something different about him. Not only were his physical abilities exceptional, but I could sense a tangible dantian within his abdomen—the element of Air.

“So all my children will be like this now…” he mused. “It’s not divine blood or anything mystical; just a special lineage.”

Of course, even with this knowledge, mass-producing extraordinary offspring wasn’t feasible. Each time I replicated life factors, it cost me dozens of kilograms of bone and muscle—how could I recklessly continue such a process? Even now, I had yet to fully recover from the muscle loss incurred during those two instances of intimacy.

“I’ll have to remain in Ardenia for some time without logging out,” he decided.

Muttering to himself, he headed towards the Guild Office.

And just like that,

ten years slipped away.