The Indomitable Martial King

“So… that witch is here…”

The mercenaries, gripped by fear, glanced over Siris’s shoulder.

As expected, a large man walked towards them, glaring at the mercenaries. Shaking his head, he surveyed the scene of the devastated village.

“Such base creatures,” he muttered.

Despite it being the middle of winter, the man wore only a simple vest, exposing his thick chest, abs, and bulging arm muscles. His physique, the epitome of male ideal, made someone scream out.

“Fist King Repenhardt!”

Repenhardt raised his right fist. A golden aura enveloped his fist, pulsating as if about to explode. With a furious expression, he growled lowly,

“Death won’t be enough to atone for your sins!”

A powerful mid-thrust extended towards the mercenaries.

“Straight Cannon!”

His aura-infused punch struck the air, tearing it apart and sending shockwaves that engulfed the mercenaries.

KWAANG!

With a deafening roar, the ground split, and nearby houses were swept away. Dozens of mercenaries were shattered to pieces by the overwhelming destruction. Amidst the desperate screams, a mist of blood sprayed through the air.

“Argh!”

* * *

Siris soared through the air, her platinum blonde hair streaming behind her. As she swept past, heavily armed mercenaries fell one by one, blood spraying from their wounds. In their confusion, the mercenaries shouted.

“Form a perimeter!”

“She’s just an elf woman! Don’t be scared!”

Mercenaries wielding spears rushed toward Siris, creating a bloody spectacle as they charged. From all directions, sharp spearheads aimed to pierce her.

In that moment, Siris shouted clearly.

“Come forth, Sarana!”

The wind spirit, Sarana, appeared in a translucent form, floating in mid-air. With a sigh, she extended her shoulder, gesturing for Siris to step on it. Her expression suggested she had given up on pride or anything else.

“Thank you, Sarana!”

Siris stepped on the wind and leapt into the air, somersaulting. Her twin scimitars traced deadly arcs, performing a dance of death.

Splat!

Blood sprayed out in a circle around Siris, staining the ground a deep red. On the barren winter earth, the crimson blood painted a sun-like shape. All the mercenaries who had encircled her lay dead, their bodies sprawled in pools of blood.

“Aaagh!”

“She’s a monster!”

The mercenaries, having lost their will to fight, turned to flee. Siris, her gaze icy, tightened her grip on her scimitars. She had no intention of allowing them to escape. They had to pay for the atrocity committed in this village.

“Haap!”

With a shout, she leapt again. Despite their experience, the mercenaries’ attempts to block her attacks with swords and shields were futile.

“Sylph, dwell in my blade.”

Infusing her swords with the power of the wind spirit, Siris cut through the mercenaries like a beast. Spears, swords, and shields were no match for her twin scimitars. Crafted with utmost care by the dwarves of Grand Forge and imbued with various enhancement spells by Repenhart, they were weapons that could not be countered by ordinary mercenaries. Furthermore, Siris’s spirit magic had reached a level that made her an unstoppable force.

“Aaaargh!”

“R-run!”

Even the veteran mercenaries were ruthlessly cut down, causing the remaining mercenaries to lose their resolve and flee. Siris crossed her scimitars in the air and then plunged them into the ground.

“Terratus! Block their path!”

Boom!

With a thunderous noise, the ground erupted, transforming into the massive form of an earth giant. The earth spirit, Terratus, spread its arms wide, blocking the mercenaries’ escape route. The mercenaries halted, bewildered and unsure of what to do.

Siris, having pulled her sword from the ground, aimed it at the mercenaries and shouted,

“By our ancient pact, I summon thee, Udar Mjolnir!”

Crackle!

Lightning burst forth from the blade, forming the upper body of a giant made of thunder. The lightning spirit, Udar Mjolnir, hurled the thunder hammers in both hands. Two streams of lightning struck the mercenaries, blocking their escape route.

Rumble!

With a thunderclap, they were all charred black, unable to even scream. From a distance, the fleeing leader of the Locust Mercenary Corps, Recult, cried out in shock.

“This is impossible! I’ve never heard of the Crescent Moon Swordsman using such a technique!”

He had scoffed at the rumors of her slaughtering dozens of knights single-handedly. How strong could an Elf Slayer possibly be? He thought the rumors were grossly exaggerated. However, seeing it firsthand, the rumors didn’t even convey a tenth of her true power!

“Retreat! Everyone, retreat!”

Recult shouted frantically as he fled from Siris. But escape was impossible. Opposite Siris stood the true terror, the Fist King, Repenhardt.

“Hah!”

The hulking man charged at the mercenaries like a cannonball. Where did such speed come from in that massive body? He closed the distance in an instant, extending his right fist to unleash a wave of energy.

“Straight Cannon!”

Boom!

A golden veil swept through the mercenaries, pulverizing their limbs. Blood mist spread thickly, and shattered body parts rained down on the ground like hail.

Cornered, the mercenaries, like rats driven to a corner, grabbed their weapons and screamed.

“D-damn it!”

“So what if you’re an aura user?”

“You’re still human like us!”

“If we stab you, you’ll bleed just like we do!”

With bloodshot eyes, the mercenaries, wielding swords and axes, charged at Repenhardt. Without even taking a defensive stance, he simply raised both arms. Blades embedded themselves in his thick flesh.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The mercenaries’ hands tingled as they stared wide-eyed. The thick pectoral and abdominal muscles where the blades struck didn’t even have a scratch, let alone bleed.

A deep voice boomed from above their heads.

“Didn’t you know?”

The mercenaries looked up in a daze.

“This body is made of steel.”

His previously excited heart suddenly calmed down. Only then did stories about the King of Fists, Jim Unbreakable, come to mind. There were limits to madness! To think they dared to wield swords against “Unbreakable”!

Watching the mercenaries’ legs tremble, Repenhart chuckled briefly.

‘…This is bad. I’m gradually getting used to talking like this.’

He placed his left fist against the abdomen of the leading mercenary. In an instant, his entire body twisted as an intense destructive force radiated through his fist.

“Zero Impact!”

Boom!

With a single blow, the mercenary’s upper and lower body separated, with bones and flesh scattering in the air. But that wasn’t all. The shockwave continued, smashing through the mercenaries standing behind him in succession.

Boom, boom, boom!

Amidst the sea of blood and corpses, Repenhart withdrew his fist with an indifferent expression.

Straight Cannon and Zero Impact.

These were all secret techniques taught by Jim Unbreakable, who had been instructed by Gerard.

Until now, he had never really needed to use them, so he had only practiced them half-heartedly. After all, simple punches were enough without resorting to special techniques.

But things were different now. Since he began taking martial arts seriously, he realized that martial arts, like magic, were meaningless if not familiarized through real combat.

‘An unfamiliar secret technique is worse than basic skills. Just like a familiar low-circle spell is more useful in real combat than an awkward high-circle spell.’

Thud!

The remains of the shattered mercenaries fell from the air like rain. Watching Repenhart walk through the bloody downpour, the mercenaries fell to their knees in fear. Seeing so many comrades perish in a single blow, they didn’t even dare to think about running away.

“Aaaah…”

Repenhart reached out towards a trembling mercenary. His massive hand, as large as a pot lid, gripped the man’s entire head and lifted him up. The mercenary screamed in terror at the thought of his head being crushed.

“Pl-please have mercy…”

A sneer came in response.

“Didn’t you say the word mercy doesn’t exist in your vocabulary?”

“N-no, that wasn’t me who said that…”

Crunch!

The mercenary’s sturdy skull was crushed like tofu. After throwing the corpse aside, Repenhart turned his gaze to the others.

The mercenary group was already practically annihilated. Only about six people, including their leader, Rekolt, remained alive. Rekolt, who was sitting on the ground, looked up at Repenhart and shouted.

“Spare us! We were just following Baron Chetas’ orders!”

With calm eyes, Repenhardt looked down at Rekolt and the mercenaries. At some point, Siris, who had finished dealing with the remaining enemies, had approached his side.

Repenhardt raised his right hand. A cold sneer appeared on his lips.

“I know. I know you were just following orders.”

“Then, then?”

Rekolt’s eyes sparkled, thinking they might be spared. In an instant, Repenhardt swung his raised fist powerfully.

“That does not justify your reason to live!”

Booom!

As the force of his fist swept through, the heads of Rekolt and all the mercenaries simultaneously shattered. Watching the headless bodies collapse, Repenhardt spoke coldly.

“If you thought you could avoid responsibility under the name of orders, you were mistaken. It was your hands and swords that caused their blood and tears….”

* * *

With the sound of loud hoofbeats, a group of cavalry entered the village. Upon arriving in front of Repenhardt, the entire cavalry dismounted and knelt in salute.

“Asrael and the entire Antares Knights have arrived!”

Looking at the black-haired young man with his head bowed, Repenhardt smiled faintly.

“You’re late, Sir Asrael.”

Asrael blushed with embarrassment.

“I’m sorry, White King. We rode as fast as we could….”

They had originally set out together. However, Repenhardt, saying there was no time, had gone ahead with only Siris. One of the Antares Knights, bowing his head, stuck out his tongue in exhaustion.

“No, how are they faster on foot than we are on horseback?”

“Right? It’s understandable for the Fist King, but even Siris is this fast….”

From the beginning, the Antares Knights had been chosen more for their personalities than their skills, so it wasn’t entirely surprising that their horsemanship was somewhat lacking. Nevertheless, considering that, it was still an incredible ability. The knights looked at Repenhardt and Siris with eyes full of respect.

Asrael looked around the village and spoke.

“You’ve already taken care of everything.”

Seeing the burnt village, the dead villagers, and the shattered corpses of the mercenaries mixed in, Asrael’s face hardened. No matter how much they were the enemy, it seemed excessively brutal.

Could it be that the lord he chose enjoyed slaughter? With a slightly concerned tone, Asrael asked.

“Who are they?”

“They’re from a mercenary group called Locust or something.”

At Repenhardt’s answer, Asrael’s expression brightened. He also knew well of the Locust Mercenary Group’s notorious reputation. He immediately understood why Repenhardt had acted so cruelly. Even he wouldn’t have shown any mercy if he had encountered the Locust Mercenary Group.

“They deserved to die like this.”

Another group of knights rode up. It was Baron Galin and his knights, the lord of the territory this village belonged to. Repenhardt asked, looking at the Baron.

“What happened to the villagers who fled?”

“My knights are taking care of them. Thanks to your quick action, about half of them survived.”

Baron Galin replied with a gloomy face at the village’s devastation. He clicked his tongue at the sight of the dead Locust mercenaries.

“Baron Chetas has gone mad. Hiring these vicious thugs… he must have known what kind of people they were.”

Meanwhile, an Antares knight brought two horses for Repenhardt and Siris. Baron Galin suggested to Repenhardt.

“Why don’t we return to the camp? My knights will handle the aftermath.”

“Let’s do that.”

As Repenhardt mounted his horse, the others also turned their horses around and began to leave the village.