Chapter 291: The Power of a Single Hero!

Translator: Pai_

It is often said that heroes who go down in legend are those who lead to victory in war by their very existence alone.

If there were a hero who would go down in history, then that war was considered as good as won.

In some eras, such heroes existed, and in others, there would be no one worthy of being called a hero for hundreds of years.

And modern humanity possessed a hero who would be remembered in history.

“South, the front has stabilized thanks to Hræsvelgr! Preparing to raise the front line at each gate!”

“North, successful base defense thanks to the efforts of Two Moons! Currently regrouping and planning to push forward!”

“West, preparations for gate conquest completed thanks to the efforts of the Thunder Bird!”

“In the desert region, the Mobile Field Army and Special Defense Forces have completed preparations for four gate conquest teams! Planning to break through with Phoenix leading the way!”

As reports came in from each region, Faulden asked the Intelligence Unit.

“Then, there’s no urgent front at the moment?”

“That is correct!”

At the subordinate’s report, Faulden sighed and slumped down into his chair.

Iron alone was influencing the South, North, West, and desert regions.

Thanks to that, Faulden found things far easier to control, but even upon reconsideration, all he could think was that it was insane.

“Is this... really possible?”

Just the efforts of the Divine Beasts were enough to bring stability to the entire Empire.

“By the way... where is the Commander-in-Chief?”

“He is currently moving toward the Eastern side. He said he would conquer the gate there alone.”

The officer in charge of the Commander-in-Chief responded with a bright smile to Faulden’s question.

“How many gates has the Commander-in-Chief cleared so far?”

“As of today, 388 gates!”

“A monster.”

Seeing the officer answer proudly, Faulden shook his head with a look of disbelief.

A single hero was influencing the entire Imperial Army.

“What about the two Family Heads?”

“Family Head Terrion is targeting the gates in the southeast, and Family Head Lioner plans to conquer the gates in the northwest!”

“That’s a relief.”

Thanks to Iron’s stabilization, the two Families could now focus on gate conquest as originally planned.

If things had gone poorly, the two Families might have been deployed to the frontlines to restore collapsing battle lines instead of focusing on gate conquest, but fortunately, they could proceed according to the original plan.

“Were the other heroes in history like this too?”

As Faulden muttered to himself, the other officers nearby also quietly fell into thought.

But they couldn’t imagine it.

Even though the two Family Heads had reached the realm of Grand Master like legendary heroes, when compared to Iron, the difference was staggering.

“Perhaps the Commander-in-Chief will become one of the top three heroes in history.”

“Top three? He’ll be counted as number one. I think, based on achievements alone, he’s already nearly at that level.”

At the young officer’s words, a middle-aged officer clicked his tongue and spoke.

Then, the other officers nearby nodded in agreement as if to say they thought the same.

At this point, even calling Iron a genius had become an understatement, he was now at the level of being called a monster.

Faulden also slightly nodded in agreement, then came to his senses and gave an order.

“If we want to make that happen, we’ll have to work even harder, right? Alright! Focus!”

“Yes!”

At Faulden’s command, all the officers responded in unison and focused on their work.

It was during the chaos of tracking real-time combat status across all military divisions through magically developed artifacts that were incomparably more advanced than just a few years ago.

“The Commander-in-Chief has made contact!”

At the communication officer’s urgent shout as he ran in, Faulden stared at him intently.

Then the communication officer gulped and spoke.

“He says he’s entering a 113-day gate!”

“An A-rank one? Already?”

“Yes!”

“He’s going in alone?”

“That is correct!”

As Faulden wore a concerned expression, the communication officer licked his lips nervously and added.

“The Commander-in-Chief had a personal message for the Chief of Staff.”

“...What is it?”

At Faulden’s question, the communication officer swallowed hard and said,

‘A 100-day one is more than enough for me to handle alone, so instead of worrying about me, focus on commanding perfectly.’

At the communication officer’s words, Faulden silently stared at him.

Seeing this, the communication officer began to sweat coldly and hurriedly added.

“T-the Commander-in-Chief told me to relay it exactly as he said it!”

“...Understood.”

The communications officer hurriedly left the office, worried he might get scolded.

Watching him go, Faulden let out a sigh and looked out the window.

He could only sigh whenever he thought of his hyung who always enjoyed overexerting himself, but once again, he had no choice but to trust that he would return safely and wait.

As Faulden sighed and refocused on his work, Iron, who had made his younger brother sigh in deep concern, was standing in front of a gate.

Around him were the corpses of corrupted monsters strewn everywhere.

Among them were monsters so massive they could be compared to dragons.

Beings once called Eastern Dragons.

But now, the once-mighty dragons had vanished, their bodies sliced to pieces and left dead.

“Dragons, huh...”

Iron recalled the Imoogi he fought in the southeastern region.

“I think that one was stronger.”

Even considering the power limitation at the time, he felt the Imoogi had been more formidable. However, these monsters were nothing more than grunts.

Knowing this, Iron kept his guard up and entered the gate.

Kuwung!

“Quite the rough welcome from the start.”

As soon as he stepped into the gate, a massive barrage of thunderbolts and curses rained down on Iron.

One peculiar thing was that, despite being similar in size to the dragons that had emerged outside the gate, their attacks were far more powerful.

“From 100-day gates onward, it’s the real deal.”

The gates he had cleared so far had simply been tainted by corrupted energy and didn’t possess any notable characteristics.

Most of them were maintained by the dead or by collapsed, shapeless monsters.

But this place was different.

Inside the gate, composed of a black sea, numerous black dragons were lined up in rows.

“Sea Dragons, huh...”

A once-great race that had ruled the seas between the Eastern and Western Continents.

They now appeared in corrupted forms, aiming to bring down Iron.

‘This won’t be easy.’

Iron furrowed his brow.

For Iron, a Grand Master, their attacks weren’t particularly difficult to handle.

He was more than capable of breaking through alone and reaching the sealing stone.

But what about others?

Even if the two Family Heads were not a concern, clearing this place with an army might require significant sacrifices.

-You shall not approach the Dragon God!

Several dragons blocked his path, but Iron crushed them with overwhelming Divine Power and continued pressing forward.

Then, the gate trembled, and the black sea began to surge violently.

-O, Dragon God...

All the dragons cried out toward the center of the gate.

At that moment, Iron’s white sword elongated and flew, slicing through the center.

Kwaaang!

With a thunderous explosion, the white sword flying toward the center halted.

“...Not a pushover, huh.”

Iron scowled.

His full-power attack had been blocked.

That meant a being with at least the strength of an outer god had awakened.

-An opponent even outer gods would struggle with.

A massive black dragon, so enormous that even giants would appear small in comparison, looked at Iron and spoke.

A dragon shaped like a giant black eel, its oppressive aura was immense, but Iron, who had killed even gods, wasn’t about to be intimidated by this.

“If you were fully awakened, maybe... but right now, you’re nothing.”

-Indeed... you’re right. Even if I were fully awakened, I wouldn’t be confident of victory against the current you. At my current state, it’s even more impossible.

As the Dragon God acknowledged this without resistance, Iron looked at him with a surprised expression.

“Are you prepared to die?”

-Hoho... Indeed. I have already resolved myself to face death at your hands.

At the Dragon God’s words, Iron grimaced.

He couldn’t understand how someone could smile while knowing they were about to die.

-From the moment you arrived, I was able to fulfill the promise I made. With this, my kin can continue their existence. So I thank you for allowing me to achieve my goal quickly.

Only then did Iron understand why the being before him had smiled.

“Trying to buy time, huh?”

-Indeed. My kin and I will give everything we have to hold you back.

As the Dragon God acknowledged him without resistance, Iron's expression twisted.

-To you, who has come to my gate alone without even a Divine Beast, I offer my gratitude once more.

The Dragon God smirked slyly as he manipulated the water.

As the Sea Dragon's authority to control the sea manifested, the other dragons began to move as well.

In response, Iron unleashed his Divine Power at full strength from the start. At the same time, his White Sword moved, slashing down the dragons rushing in from all directions.

-It will not be easy.

The moment the Dragon God spoke, whirlwinds formed across the black sea and shot toward Iron.

Iron’s sword pierced through the whirlwinds and advanced toward the Dragon God, purifying the black sea in real time with Divine Power.

With Iron using his full strength, the man who had even slain gods, countless dragons fell with their massive bodies severed in two.

Even so, the Dragon God did not move toward Iron.

Even as his kin died in droves, he only manipulated the sea and did not recklessly charge Iron.

‘I’ll kill them all first, then face him.’

Knowing that the opponent was deliberately stalling for time to avoid fighting him directly, Iron gave up on rushing into a battle with the Dragon God.

Instead, with the determination to wipe out every single dragon inside the gate, he began killing them one by one as they charged at him.

“That was a pointless struggle.”

At last, standing before the massive body of the Dragon God, Iron radiated killing intent as he spoke.

But the Dragon God only smiled in satisfaction, as if he had achieved his purpose.

-Oh Dragon God...

-Well done. Thanks to your sacrifice, our kin will be able to live on.

The Dragon God said this as he offered a blessing to the final fallen dragon.

At the same time, he gathered all his power and began to move.

It was to confront the Iron who now stood before him.

Kugugugu!

As his massive body moved, so large that even giants would appear laughable, the entire gate shook.

The sea surged, and the corrupted energy churned into whirlwinds.

But Iron’s White Sword cut through everything, slicing through the Dragon God's massive body like cheese.

-Kraaaagh!

The Dragon God writhed in agony and charged at Iron.

Even though it was a suicidal assault, it had no effect on Iron whatsoever.

The Dragon God's overwhelming curses and his authority over the sea were useless.

The perfectly harmonized power of the White Sword eradicated all corrupted energy, and the power he had received from Destruction disappeared in real time.

-…You’re a monster.

With those final words, the Dragon God’s massive body collapsed onto the black sea.

And a short while later, a huge black jewel rose from the Dragon God’s corpse.

The moment Iron touched it, a bright light flashed, and a portal opened that led outside the gate.

“T-the Commander-in-Chief has returned!”

A soldier shouted in astonishment as Iron stepped out of the portal.

Immediately, officers from the Eastern Army rushed over in a hurry.

Iron looked at them with a serious expression and asked,

“How many days has it been since I entered the gate?”

“It's been fifteen days!”

At the officer’s words, Iron understood why the Dragon God had died with a smile.

Just as he had said, the dragons had faithfully carried out their strategy to tie Iron down.

“This is going to be a hard fight...”

With a dark expression, Iron looked back at the area where the gate had been.

Thinking the battles ahead would be anything but easy, he immediately moved to head for the central region where Faulden was.

***

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