Chapter 174  

"I choose to join the camp of Count Chris," said Do-Jin.

"God's grace will be with you, a person of good faith," replied the smiling knight who held a blue flag.

"You crazy..."

“I’ll see you on the battlefield," said Do-Jin.

Do-Jin didn't even bother listening to Yu-Seong's entire reply before following Count Chris' knights.

Yu-Seong found himself alone, watching as the knights of Count Monte moved on.

"Your friend has chosen a different path. I suppose he made such a foolish decision since he knows nothing about how dishonorable those hypocrites are," said the knight of Count Monte, shaking his head from side to side. He soon continued, "We should hurry too. The Count is waiting for us.”

After brief contemplation, Yu-Seong replied with a nod, "...Okay.”

In fact, he could not go back on his decision. Even if he could, he had no intention of doing so.

‘That's how you're coming out, huh?’

Yu-Seong recalled the protagonist of the original novel, Kim Do-Jin, the returnee from another world. Do-Jin was the last person Yu-Seong wanted to fight, but if it came down to it, Yu-Seong had his own way of doing things.

As Do-Jin's figure grew more distant, Yu-Seong turned to follow Count Monte’s knights.

***

Count Monte was not an ordinary person; he boasted a massive physique that could be mistaken for that of a giant.

‘How can he look so tall even when sitting…? He appears to be over two meters at least?’

Yu-Seong observed that the Count had broad shoulders, which were more than twice the size of an average adult man's, and thick thighs that were even thicker than Yu-Seong's waist.

Sitting in a chair with his long and wild black hair, as well as black eyes full of savagery, Count Monte was an undoubtedly powerful figure, someone who would be called a warrior at first sight. He also had an overwhelming aura that dominated the surrounding area. It was to the point that the other knights standing around Count Monte were almost invisible as he overshadowed them all.

Shortly after entering the barracks, the knight who was in charge of guiding Yu-Seong frowned. He said, "Show some respect, foreigner.”

Yu-Seong pondered how to respond to the knight’s words.

"No worries. These foreigners have their own laws. There's no need to hurt each other's feelings over trivial matters," said Count Monte as he looked at Yu-Seong while mediating the knights.

Indeed, his cheerful personality matched his appearance, and his piercing eyes shone even as he squinted them. He also gave off an odd sense of intimidation.

‘It would be impossible to assassinate him.’?

Currently, both Do-Jin and Yu-Seong were level 23 in the Tower of Heaven. However, Count Monte looked like he had surpassed at least level 50. Yu-Seong had thought about assassination as a way to win the war, but he decided to abandon the idea when he saw Count Monte.

‘Count Monte wouldn't be the only one who's this strong according to the setting.’

Even if Count Chris had a different personality from Count Monte, their level of strength wouldn't be much different. Surely, it was nearly impossible for Yu-Seong to defeat Count Monte and even the surrounding knights with his current power. This would also be impossible even for Do-Jin.

With this realization, Yu-Seong lowered his head and said lightly, "Nice to meet you, Count Monte. I'm Choi Yu-Seong."

"Foreigner Choi Yu-Seong, you don't seem like an excellent warrior at first glance," said Count Monte, pronouncing Yu-Seong's name with as much ease as the people Yu-Seong had met on the third floor.

Count Monte’s personality wasn't just cheerful but also straightforward.

"You don't seem to have any weapons, and can you even fight properly with those skinny arms?"

Although his words were blunt, Count Monte did not appear to be trying to insult Yu-Seong. He was stroking his rough beard with the hand that was laid on the armrest, and his gaze was filled with pure curiosity.

Fortunately, Yu-Seong knew how to act in this situation.

"I can just simply prove my skills. How about showing you here and now?" Yu-Seong said calmly. He was not intimidated by Count Monte’s forceful demeanor. In fact, he had met even more formidable opponents than Count Monte before.

"Well, good. I was curious about the skills of the foreigner chosen by the gods," Count Monte shouted loudly as he looked up. "Let’s see, who will step forward to honor this foreigner on this stage?"

As if they had been waiting for that shout, the knights raised their voices without hesitation.

"If you give me a chance, I, Kyron, will..."

“I, Oor, will personally honor the stranger…”

"Your Excellency, if you allow it, I, Zerus, will honor you!”

The chaotic atmosphere continued until Count Monte, satisfied with the responses, burst into a loud laugh. "Hahaha! There are so many knights who value honor, so how could I fear Count Chris’ hypocritical group? However, there are too many eager ones. If I personally call someone, someone may be disappointed..."

Turning to look at Yu-Seong again, Count Monte asked, "Foreigner, will you choose your opponent?"

<The 9th floor of Tower of Heaven>

The objective of the mission has changed.

Success the mission by proving your qualifications to the chosen Count.

If you fail, you will return to the 5th floor of the Tower.

And with that, a new mission message was delivered.

"Understood." Yu-Seong nodded lightly as he looked around at his surroundings.

There was no need to distinguish who had stepped forward and who hadn't. In fact, all the knights present were burning with a desire to win, looking at Yu-Seong with a competitive glint in their eyes.

‘If I choose someone who seems easy to defeat, winning will be easier, but…’

Would that be really necessary? As he slowly turned his head, Yu-Seong met the gaze of a red-haired knight who was close to Count Monte.

"I choose you," said Yu-Seong.

Upon hearing those words, the surrounding knights immediately began to stir.

"He chose Kyron…”

“He does have an eye for people…”

"Kyron is one of my top three knights. Foreigner, are you sure about your choice?" Count Monte asked as he laughed heartily.

If he backed down now, Yu-Seong would likely receive a mission failure message right away.

"Of course," Yu-Seong replied confidently.

"Then, let’s go out. This place is unsuitable for an honorable battle," Count Monte replied.

Yu-Seong smiled inwardly as he nodded with a calm look on his face.

***

Outside the barracks, Count Monte's knights and Yu-Seong created a large open space by splitting up the soldiers and mercenaries who had gathered around. It wasn't particularly difficult to do so. Upon hearing that the knights were going to have a duel, the soldiers and mercenaries had quickly moved to create a space for them to fight.

Yu-Seong stood in the large, circular area and looked at the expressions of the people around him.

‘They all seem quite interested.’

Not only Count Monte and his knights but also the mercenaries and soldiers, who would normally avoid eye contact with the knights, were showing interest and excitement in their expressions and eyes. Also, no one had imposed sanctions regarding the current situation.

"Are you sure it's okay not to wear armor?" asked Kyron, a knight wearing battle armor and an iron helmet, as he faced Yu-Seong.

"I don't have armor, but I have something similar," replied Yu-Seong with a nod.

When Yu-Seong used the Pharaoh’s Caprice, the familiar battle suit covered his whole body. Looking at him in surprise, Count Monte exclaimed, "You have an artifact!"

The knights also expressed their admiration briefly. Artifacts were very valuable items in the Tower of Heaven.

‘Although, with the arrival of players from Earth, artifacts are likely to become more common…’

Above all, ancient relics were also a type of artifact. Needless to say, Count Monte's words held some truth.

"If using artifacts is dishonorable, I won't use it," said Yu-Seong.

"No need to do so. Having an artifact is also a part of a knight's ability," replied Kyron, who was standing in front of Yu-Seong.

Kyron then quickly drew his sword from his waist and held it up. A strange bluish-green light flashed on the edge of his shining silver sword before disappearing.

"Is that...?"

"Yes, it is also an artifact. It doesn't have amazing abilities like yours, but it's designed to receive mana better than a regular sword."

"I see," said Yu-Seong with a nod.

After exchanging a few more words with Kyron, Yu-Seong asked for a spear. After all, he couldn’t fight barehanded.

"I, knight Kyron, vow to fight with honor and without shame in a fair duel."

"I, Choi Yu-Seong, will also fight honorably."

With their preparations complete, Yu-Seong and Kyron exchanged formal greetings and faced each other with their respective weapons. As a foreigner, Yu-Seong worried he might be ignored, but Kyron remained courteous throughout the encounter, earning Yu-Seong's respect in return.

And so, the duel began. Kyron made the first move. It appeared that he had decided to dig close into Yu-Seong, who was using a spear as his weapon.

His movements, like that of a lithe leopard, were so swift that Yu-Seong missed a beat while concentrating on him for a moment. It was hard to believe, considering that Kyron had a rather large physique as a knight of Count Monte.

‘Being a skilled knight was not just an empty boast. His judgment is good.’

However, Yu-Seong had a skill. Using his Third Eye, he read Kyron's movements and easily deflected Kyron's sword with his spear.

‘He also has good strength!’?

Even though his level of Physical Strength Reinforcement was quite high, Yu-Seong's arm still trembled.

Kyron, who had clashed weapons with Yu-Seong, also looked surprised at his opponent's strength.

‘His skills are also worthy of a knight, but…’

In Yu-Seong's mind, the spear skill of Ireland's prince, Cu Chulainn, still remained. Cu Chulainn's spear skill was not just a good technique, but also an extraordinary one that could be called a Magic Spear even without the power of magic.

‘If I were to compare it to martial arts, it would be Divine Arts!’

Yu-Seong was confident. He knew that his Cu Chulainn's spear skill, which he trained relentlessly every single day, were superior to Kyron's swordsmanship.

He read the trajectory of Kyron's sword with his Third Eye and quickly evaded all his attacks. Then, he began his counterattack, widening the gap between him and the bewildered Kyron.

‘Raging Snake!’

Yu-Seong relentlessly attacked without giving Kyron any breathing space. He left Kyron gasping for breath. And not missing his chance, he executed Cu Chulainn's second skill of the Secret Spear Skills.

"Double-Headed Serpent!"

Kyron, bewildered by the sight of the spear tip extending outwards as if splitting into two, instinctively blocked the attack on the left.

Clang-!?

The heavy sound of impact echoed as Kyron's balance was disrupted. His eyes widened in shock. He thought that one of the spear tips was an illusion, but actually the spear that had flown in from the right was also real.

‘I've lost!’

Kyron felt his defeat, but he didn't give up. He quickly raised his sword to defend himself. However, he couldn't withstand another strong impact, and loosened his hand that was holding the sword.

"Ugh-!"

With a groan, Kyron dropped his sword. He almost fell to his knees, but Yu-Seong quickly caught the spear and stopped him.

The sudden turn of events caused a brief silence between the onlookers.

"If you kneel before someone who is not your lord, it's not honorable, is it?" Yu-Seong remarked.

Kyron’s eyes widened in surprise, while Count Monte burst into laughter.