Chapter 168: Reunion, I

The snowstorm that had raged the past week finally began to die down in the night. While most people had retired to bed, those serving the Divine Body Order never took their eyes off their duties.

On any normal night, a few men paying attention would’ve been sufficient for the order to monitor its surroundings, but now watchmen stood anywhere their eyes could scan the terrain with weapons drawn. The Divine Body Order’s warriors kept up a posture of vigilance as they guarded against any possible threat.

For the past week, the warriors had kept this watch up.

The time had come for incoming and outgoing guard teams to pass along information. Donald, the leader of Team Six, began exchange shift briefings with the guards of the Promise Tree.

“Anything unusual happen?”

“No, everything’s been quiet.”

“All right, good work. Go on and get some rest.”

“You deserve it!”

Finally able to rest, the previous guard team members visibly relaxed.

After they left and the team members were positioned in their posts, Donald examined their surroundings.

His eyes grew intense.

It had been a week since the unfortunate incident. While the warriors of the Pantheon had cleaned up the area, the remnants of that fateful day remained.

Scorch marks left by flames. Stains seeped with blood. The shattered remains of a broken fence.

The traces near the Promise Tree were undeniable evidence of battle.

As Donald examined the remains of that day, his gaze finally settled on the Promise Tree itself.

A long, deep scorch mark marred the giant tree’s trunk.

Whenever he beheld it, Donald’s blood boiled. His voice took on a chilling tone as he murmured:

”…I’ll tear them apart.”

The Promise Tree had been planted by the Pantheon, who descended upon Earth hundreds of years ago, and nurtured to full growth in just one day. It stood as a testament to the God’s presence and served as a spiritual pillar for the warriors who believed in the Pantheon.

Yet, this sacred tree bore wounds.

As a warrior of the Order, witnessing such defacement was an undeniable source of shame.

The theft of the sacred object from the Promise Tree was particularly painful. It was an artifact of the Pantheon—the collection of gods worshipped by the Order. This sacred object’s existence had not been known to the world from the beginning. When the Promise Tree first appeared, the Order’s warriors only revered the tree itself.

However, when a passage leading underground was discovered beneath the Promise Tree, they began to wonder if something might be hidden within. Then, about 150 years ago, a great warrior returned to the Order and confirmed both the significance of the Promise Tree and the existence of this sacred object.

As His great warrior, I declare to you, warriors of the Pantheon. Doubt not the existence of God! And be prepared to sacrifice your lives for the sacred object He has left behind!

The great warrior warned that if any harm came to the sacred object, terrible calamity would befall this land.

The warriors of the order were naturally curious about this terrifying event, but their interest waned when they saw the great warrior, known within the order as the “undying monster,” cower in fear.

However, not everyone managed to stifle their curiosity.

Rumors about the relics of the Pantheon—the collection of all gods—began to circulate endlessly outside the order.

The pantheon has descended and left behind unfathomable treasures!

He who possesses the relics of the pantheon shall hold the world in his hands!

No one knew how information from within the order was seeping out. But as the stories about the stored relics grew more exaggerated each day, the order began to suffer unbearable pains from thieves targeting the treasures.

Naturally, none of these thieves had ever returned alive—at least, not until the last hundred years.

Until a week ago.

That’s when fifty intruders raided the order and stole the sacred relic before vanishing into thin air.

“Ugh…” A groan escaped Donald’s lips as he recalled that day’s blunder.

The theft of the sacred relic had stunned warriors across many orders, and the great warrior had been laid low by the events of that day.

I need to retrieve the stolen sacred relic quickly…

As Donald fretted over the lost artifact, something else caught his attention.

“Huh?”

His fellow guard sensed something amiss.

“C-Captain! Look over there!”

Responding to the guard’s call, Donald turned his head.

His eyes focused on the base of the Promise Tree, where the earth began to tremble.

Shf, shf.

Boom!

The ground erupted, creating a massive crater.

Astounded by this sudden supernatural event, Donald shouted, “Fire the Illumination Bulb!”

Without hesitation, one of the sentries drew his bow towards the sky. The arrow, with its peculiar blunt tip, was no ordinary projectile.

Thwack!

The archer released the bowstring with a grim expression.

Fwoosh followed by a resounding BOOM!

The arrow ignited high in the heavens, emitting an intense light that illuminated the entire area for a brief moment.

As the glow faded, five shadows emerged from the hole near the Promise Tree. Witnessing this, Donald drew his sword in astonishment.

“Who in the name of Ha are these creatures?!”

The emerging shadows were unmistakably those of humans, raising more questions than answers for the vigilant Donald and his sentry team.

It wasn’t just one, but several figures.

Already on edge from losing their holy relic a week prior, the appearance of these suspicious intruders sent alarm through the guards.

At that moment, a voice came from behind Donald.

“What’s going on?!”

“In-Intruders!”

As the illumination bulb lit up the sky, warriors from the order rushed towards the source of light.

Due to their heightened state of alert, the number of converging warriors multiplied exponentially. Empowered by the gathering forces, Donald and his squad advanced to confront the mysterious intruders.

“Halt!”

“Who the hell are you?!”

In the bright beacon, three men and two women were revealed.

Despite their striking beauty, Louis and his companions were nothing more than trespassers to Donald and his men.

“Reveal your true identities!”

“Drop your weapons and surrender!”

The Order’s warriors continued to converge, completely surrounding the group. Their number swelled to over a hundred. The sheer force emanating from them was oppressive, enough to make any ordinary person quail and sit down on the spot. Yet the five individuals at the center remained unfazed.

At that moment, Louis, standing at the forefront of the group, stepped forward. Seeing this, Tania and Kendrick made to follow, but the Twins grabbed their shoulders.

“No.”

“You can’t go.”

“Huh?”

“Why not?”

The startled Flame siblings, eyes wide with shock, received a stern shake of the head from the twins.

“Leave them be.”

“If you interfere now, you’ll find yourself getting a beating too!” The twins’ serious words prompted Fin, who had moved to Kani’s shoulder, to join in.

“You’re right. When he’s this angry, it’s best to let him vent and cool off on his own. Remember that.”

Nodding at their wise counsel, as precious as gold and jade, the Flame siblings retreated.

Meanwhile, Louis continued walking forward.

Seeing this, Donald’s eyes sharpened as he shouted, “Can’t you hear me? Stop!”

But Louis didn’t stop. Instead, he muttered under his breath.

“I was here… Just a few minutes ago, I felt wonderful.” His voice, though quiet, resonated clearly as if infused with mana.

“…?”

As the order’s warriors exchanged bewildered glances at this unexpected soliloquy, Louis continued.

“…But now I feel utterly dirty. I’m furious.”

He took another step forward.

“You have no idea how long I waited for this moment…”

“What in the name of—…?”

“It’s been 250 years. All that time… I’ve been waiting for today…”

Stomp.

Shing-shing!

As Louis advanced once more, the sound of swords being drawn filled the air from various directions.

By then, five hundred men had rushed to the site upon seeing the smoke signal. This represented almost the entire force, excluding those dispatched to retrieve the holy relic and the combat squads stationed outside at all times.

Surrounded by the sect’s finest five hundred warriors, Louis continued his quiet monologue:

“It wasn’t much I asked of you…”

”…What nonsense are you spouting?”

”…That single thing… You couldn’t even protect that one thing?” Louis gritted his teeth.

Why had he bothered with that troublesome thief rehabilitation project? It was all for a mere fraction of progress in the future. Amidst his busy schedule, he had generously bestowed advanced demonic scriptures upon them, all for that 1cm of future benefit…

Given the terrible result of all his efforts, it was inevitable that Louis’s despair turned to fury.

Crack.

He snapped a neck.

“…It’s only right to punish these bastards who couldn’t even do their jobs properly.”

Crack, crack.

“…Take it lying down.”

Louis’s eyes glinted as he snapped more necks.

“What the hell are you doing…?” Donald’s incredulous shout was cut short.

The figure directly in front of him had suddenly disappeared.

And then…

Wham!

“…?!”

A thunderous sound accompanied by the sight of Donald’s body hurtling skyward at a forty-five-degree angle.

“Huh?!”

“B-branch Chief!”

The surrounding squad members cried out in surprise, but before long, they found themselves in the same predicament.

Bang! Bang!

People were sent flying into the sky with each explosion.

“S-stop him!”

“This isn’t normal! Wake up!”

“Prevent him from escaping!”

Despite the sudden turn of events, the Order’s warriors sprang into action. They tightened their ranks, forming a more impenetrable blockade around Louis.

But their efforts proved futile. From the start, Louis had no intention of fleeing. His sole objective was simple: to pummel his opponents as hard as he could.

Krak! Bang!

One shot, one kill! Never missing his mark! With each swing, another body soared into the sky.

“What in the…?!”

“This is… This can’t be happening!”

The Order’s warriors recoiled in stupefied confusion as they witnesses Louis’s onslaught.

They couldn’t defend against or even react to these attacks. How could they when Louis wasn’t showing himself?

Meanwhile, Tanya watched Louis smacking around the holy warriors like he was beating down a single animal. Her eyes sparkled.

“Oh, wow…”

Eleven years ago, Louis’s image, wreathed in brilliant light, had been deeply etched into the young girl’s heart. Despite not looking exactly the same as he had back then, Louis was still impressive.

No, he’s even cooler now!

His appearance had matured into a more grown-up handsomeness as he’d become a man.

Krrraaahhh!

Shhhk!

Louis was causing chaos amid the screams of the battlefield.

“Hey! Where’s your strangler?!”

Then there was the tiny head bopping the face of a warrior swinging a sword from behind.

“It’s me, you fool!”

And the slender arm gripping the unconscious warrior’s collar and shaking them hard.

“I’m about to lose my mind because of you lot!”

A snow-white fist slammed squarely into a warrior’s solar plexus.

Even Tania, her eyes swollen and bruised, found the sight of it all nothing short of magnificent.

Bam! Bam!

“Crack!”

“Aargh!”

The rhythmic boom of drums filled the air, punctuated by a cacophony of screams.

Fin and the twins watched the spectacle from a comfortable vantage point near the Promise Tree.

Kendrick looked on with a mixture of terror and awe at the teacher’s rampage.

Tania, too, stood there, her eyes sparkling with childish glee, as if the sight was more than she’d ever imagined.

But time doesn’t stand still forever.

“Huff!”

“Beast… mortal beast…”

In what felt like the blink of an eye, four hundred of the five hundred succumbed, collapsing to the ground.

These were no ordinary people. They were elite members of the Order of the Divine Body, the most powerful military force of the winter continent, swept aside as if they were nothing.

Anyone who knew the true power of the Order would have dismissed Louis’s situation as nonsense.

“Hwooshhhh…” Louis exhaled faintly, his racing heart finally settling a bit after the tempest of violence.

Ah, that’s better.

Even though he was still angry, his ire had abated considerably compared to when he’d entered the Order.

Hmm… Should I try hitting them a little more?

If he struck them a few more times, maybe what little anger remained would finally dissipate.

He eyed the remaining hundred standers and gave them a testy look.

“Crack.”

The ebb warrior jumped backward and cried out in alarm. “What… What manner of ruthless slaughter are you carrying on here?!”

“Slaughter?” Louis cocked his head at the question. “I didn’t kill anyone, did I?”

“Look at all the fallen soldiers on your hands—you call that not killing?!”

“What are you talking about? Why would they be dead? They’re not dead.”

”…?”

“If you don’t believe me, go check for yourself.”

At that, the warrior from the Order who had fallen to the ground earlier examined his comrade and cried out in surprise.

“He’s… he’s alive!”

“This one’s alive too!”

Amazingly, the warriors weren’t dead but merely unconscious. To be exact, they appeared to be in a state of suspended animation, as if their bodies had ceased to function temporarily. Despite having been struck with such force that they should have died instantly, they were still breathing.

“They’re… they’re alive?!” The bewildered warrior from the Order was at a loss for words.

While he stood dumbfounded, Louis loosened his fists and stepped forward again.

“They’re alive, aren’t they? Let’s keep going, then. Otherwise, those who got hit first might feel slighted.”

”…That couldn’t possibly be true…”

“Oh, I’m sure they’d feel cheated! That’s why I’ll make it fair for everyone.”

As Louis clenched his fists once more and prepared to lunge forward—

“Stop right there!” A powerful voice boomed from behind the Order’s warrior.

The survivors’ faces lit up at the sound.

“Th-the great warrior!”

“The Great Warrior!”

They all anxiously cried out to one figure.

A middle-aged man, towering over 2 meters tall, emerged from the crowd. He was the Order of the Divine Body’s strongest fighter, known as the Undying Monster.

“Please be careful! He’s no ordinary opponent!”

In the eyes of the Order’s people, there was no doubt that the Great Warrior alone could stop the beastly white-haired creature before them. Amidst the warriors’ expectations, the Great Warrior appeared with twenty guards in tow. The Great Warrior moved forward through the path made by the crowd.

Suddenly… His steps came to an abrupt halt.

“Huh?!” The Great Warrior’s shoulders shivered as he hastily swallowed a gasp. They trembled slightly.

“Great Warrior?”

“What’s the matter?” The crowd observed the great warrior’s peculiar behavior with curiosity.

Meanwhile, Louis scrutinized the figure of the great warrior from the Order.

”…Huh?” He blinked once. ”…That can’t be…” Then twice. After blinking several more times, he tilted his head quizzically. A puzzled expression gradually gave way to certainty, the corners of his mouth curling upwards in recognition.

What is he doing here?

Having identified his counterpart, Louis eagerly called out, “Oi, you there, Mister Clump!”

His eyes curved charmingly, reminiscent of a crescent moon. “Long time no see, eh? Heh heh.”

The moment their gazes met—Louis’s purple eyes locking with the great warrior’s—the latter’s eyes widened in astonishment.