Overlord of Blood and Iron

“Kuk…”

Dorian stared down at his own abdomen as if he couldn’t believe it.

A black dagger that came out of nowhere was inserted inside his midsection.

BANG!

Kang Chul-In turned to retaliate against the one who had ambushed Dorian.

CLANG!

And with a large collision…

Tat!

The opponent jumped back.

“It’s you…”

Kang Chul-In could see the one who had ambushed Dorian.

“...Bellatrix.”

It was his old subordinate, the one who had been paired with Lucy to form his personal guard, the dark elf Bellatrix.

“Dorian. Just take care of yourself and your injury. I’ll settle this.”

Leaving Dorian behind him in pain, Kang Chul-In started to walk forwards.

And there… were his old subordinates.

It wasn’t just Bellatrix there.

The ‘Immortal Vanguard’, which was formed late in his reign near 2028, was also there. This was one of the most elite armies that Kang Chul-In boasted of, and was formed of demi-humans that were injured, and chose to be ‘mechanized’ for war.

Close call there.

Kang Chul-In sighed in relief, staring at the group that was once his.

It was lucky that Kang Chul-In met the Immortal Vanguard in this dungeon.

At the time that Kang Chul-In had met his end, each of the members of the Immortal Vanguard were over Level 80. And that wasn’t even it. They also knew how to use the minor version of Overdrive, due to the tutelage of Kang Chul-In himself.

It would have been impossible to hope for a victory if the Immortal Vanguards were at their former levels.

“So, any last words?”

Bellatrix asked Kang Chul-In, with a voice that seemed to contain rage.

“Not yet.”

Kang Chul-In answered.

“N-not yet?”

Listening to Kang Chul-In’s answer, Bellatrix threw back her head, and started laughing maniacally.

“Pft… Hehe… Hahaha… HAHAHAHA!”

At this point, Bellatrix’s mouth was almost touching the tip of her ears due to the laughter. 

“You… You really think that you can live? Kuku…”

Whilst Lucy seemed depressed and melancholic due to the hatred of Kang Chul-In, Bellatrix seemed to have gone mad due to it.

“You...Will never get out of here alive. This is going to be your burial ground. It’ll make me feel better when I rip you to pieces, and spread your body parts around Valhalla.

“Is that all you’ve got to say?”

“No, I have a lot more to say… But rather than talk so much…”

Swish!

Bellatrix vanished.

“I’d rather…”

And appeared next to Kang Chul-In, whispering…

“Separate your head from your body.”

Saying that, she launched another black dagger, a spike that was formed of her own shadow, towards Kang Chul-In’s neck.

Puk-!

Blood flew from around Kang Chul-In’s neck.

“Die.”

Bellatrix didn’t stop.

“DIE!”

With Kang Chul-In as the focus of her attacks, Bellatrix appeared and disappeared, and used her shadow as a weapon to attack Kang Chul-In.

Slowly but surely, more and more wounds started appearing on Kang Chul-In’s body.

Shadows, huh… This might be difficult.

But even while he was taking these losses, Kang Chul-In’s head remained as calm and collected as ever.

Bellatrix’s nickname was ‘Shadow Runner’. This was also based on the ‘authority’ she gained from consuming the heart of a Shadow Leopard. And of course, this was another authority that Kang Chul-In had passed on to them.

The ability to phase between shadows, hiding one’s body within shadows of objects was difficult to deal with for someone that was adept in close combat like Kang Chul-In.

I guess I’ll just let her have some of me.

The method that Kang Chul-In thought of right now was an extreme method that was harmful to both oneself and dangerous to the opponent, and that was to give up one’s flesh and take the enemy’s bones. 

And that thought was immediately carried out due to Bellatrix’s next move.

“Hey, you’re not going to guard here?”

Bellatrix suddenly appeared behind Kang Chul-In…

Puk!

And stabbed her dagger into Kang Chul-In’s back.

While fierce pain assaulted Kang Chul-In, he ignored it and turned his body to avoid an even worse injury.

Now!

And releasing the mana flowing in his heart, Kang Chul-In thought of the mechanism of Vortex.

Rumble~!

As a miniature tornado started to form around Kang Chul-In’s body, Bellatrix was interrupted from hiding inside another shadow. This gave Kang Chul-In an opportunity, and…

“Kuk!”

Kang Chul-In immediately dashed to Bellatrix, and started to choke her throat.

“Maybe it’s better that you went crazy…”

“Kuk...W-What…”

“That makes me at least feel better.”

It meant that Kang Chul-In would feel less emotional guilt for killing a crazy, raving Bellatrix than a depressed Lucy.

“Now, rest.”

Saying that, Kang Chul-In attempted to snap the neck of Bellatrix.

But… Kang Chul-In had to let her go due to the arrival of the Immortal Vanguard.

“Vahalla, hall of the warriors.”

Under the leadership helmet of one of the Immortal Vanguard members, the official military cadence started to ring throughout the Vahalla dungeon.

“My honor be in battle.”

“My honor be in battle.”

And the other Immortal Vanguard members repeated what one of their members said, while dashing towards Kang Chul-In.

“There be no defeat, no surrender. This breath, stop after the battle ends.”

“There be no defeat, no surrender. This breath, stop after the battle ends.”

The Immortal Vanguard’s glorious and loud cadence, as well as powerful military might started to pressure Kang Chul-In.

“...These bastards.”

Kang Chul-In unconsciously muttered in rage. And…

BANG!

With Kang Chul-In at the center, a large shockwave formed of Kang Chul-In’s mana pushed away the Immortal Vanguard and Bellatrix.

“You guys.”

“I’ll just finish you off quickly.”

Pzzt, Pzzt!

And as soon as those words came out of Kang Chul-In’s mouth, powerful and large sparks started coming out from Kang Chul-In’s body. This was the activation of Phase 2 Overdrive. 

Swish!

Swinging Kaiforce which had just turned into a lance, Kang Chul-In motioned to his enemies.

“Come.”

----

“Kuk...Kukukuk…”

Bellatrix laughed.

“You...cough! Will definitely… die… Kuk… Definitely…”

Even though Bellatrix was dying, with Kaiforce puncturing a hole through her chest, she spoke towards Kang Chul-In like a raving madman. Just like Lucy, it seemed as if she had difficulties in reining in her emotions.

“Rest now.”

Kang Chul-In spoke.

Puk-!

Kaiforce made its way to the heart, and ripped it open.

Swish~! 

The remains of Bellatrix’s body turned to dust, and was swept off by the wind and carried away.

And next was the leader of the Immortal Vanguard, Robert.

“Who do I serve… My lost loyalty…”

Even while his arms and legs were brutally chopped off, Robert tried his best to remember the Lord he had once served. Even though Kang Chul-In was right in front of him… It made Kang Chul-In frustrated. 

Puk!

Kang Chul-In wordlessly stabbed through Robert’s throat.

“Kuk… I… can’t seem to recall Milord's face…”

Bang!

Robert fell to the floor, dead.

“...How long do I have to do this for…”

Kang Chul-In spoke, disarrayed and lost for the first time.

Thinking of the fact that he might have to kill even more of his old subordinates as he progressed through the dungeon, the stress was getting to him.

“Sigh…”

And leaving behind the countless corpses, Kang Chul-In finally leaned against a half-broken wall, and sat down.

“Let’s rest for a little while.”

“...Even monsters rest?”

“I’m getting to my limit now.”

Kang Chul-In didn’t try to act tough in front of Dorian.

“Honestly, I think I’m going to die of exhaustion.”

Bellatrix after Lucy, as well as the Immortal Vanguard. Due to the fact that Kang Chul-In had to activate the Phase 2 Overdrive so often and for such extended periods of time, his body was in a mess.

Only 15% of his mana was remaining, and his stamina was also hitting rock bottom. And worst of all, he wasn’t recovering because of the countless bloody wounds he had.

“It seems like these might be the last potions I drink here.”

Drawing a breath, Kang Chul-In then proceeded to gulp down a Health potion, and a mana potion that he had.

“Huu…”

Like this, Dorian and Kang Chul-In rested for another two hours.

Putting bandages on his wounds and consuming some emergency food and water, Kang Chul-In was able to somewhat regain his strength. 

And they started to move again.

Though they wanted to rest a bit longer, the sense of danger impeded this exhaustion. If they rested for a little longer, who knew if they wouldn’t get ambushed and sent to the underworld.

Thankfully, they didn’t meet any enemies while on their way to the Lord’s hall. Though some ghosts that seemed to be maids came and cried their eyes out and complained to them, nothing major occurred.

The boss should be in the Lord’s hall, right?

Walking across the red carpet that led to the Lord’s hall, Kang Chul-In thought of who the final boss might be.

There were many possibilities.

It could be any of the 5 generals of the Valhalla Army, or it could also be his Vampire Butler Alfred.

But seeing as though it would be impossible to determine who the boss was in a short period of time, Kang Chul-In gave up and decided to just prepare for the upcoming battle.

Finally, Kang Chul-In and Dorian were able to reach the Lord’s hall, where the final boss of the Valhalla territory resided.

But… something was off.

“So you’ve come, cold-hearted one.”

The boss was someone that Kang Chul-In had never even seen before.

Long, white hair. Pale skin. A tall, skinny body. Sharp eyes, and sharp claws. A man that Kang Chul-In had never seen in his past life, or his current life at that, sat down on the throne that Kang Chul-In had once graced.

“Are you prepared to pay the price?”

With a reddish hue in his eyes, the white-haired man stared at Kang Chul-In coldly. It occurred to Kang Chul-In, observing the man’s features, that the opponent might be a vampire.

“Who are you?”

Kang Chul-In asked.

“State your name.”

“My name, huh?”

Listening to the answer, Kang Chul-In almost dropped Kaiforce due to his astonishment. It was because this white-haired man was completely different from the ‘man he knew before…’