Chapter: 209
Chapter: 209
After making a promise with the saint, Astrea, Kraush was on the move again.
Outside, many students were energetically promoting their factions and trying to get others to join.
Among them, one faction stood out the most.
It was THE faction with the largest crowd.
The White Ghost (백양단).
Yes, it was none other than the faction of the 3rd princess, Sigrid Ephania.
The achievements she had piled up weren’t in vain.
Sigrid’s popularity was at its peak, and she was leading a huge number of followers.
‘What’s that guy up to lately?’
There were rumors that she had solved the conflict between a student and a sub-professor.
Apparently, she handled the emotional barriers that arose after the incident with sub-professor Jenikalren.
Also, she had appeared at the Theology Hall during the incident involving the magic tool maker, Rona Imblize.
She was there to help Tarja, a member of Crimson Garden, who was having a showdown with Mirei Beakiss.
Thanks to Sigrid, Mirei Beakiss managed to clean up the mess while the professors were a bit slow on the uptake.
On top of that, Sigrid actively dealt with the chaos that erupted at the Theology Hall.
She even reportedly carried students who might have been injured out herself.
The students from the Theology Hall were deeply moved by her rescue efforts.
‘What a load of nonsense.’
Kraush covered his mouth, feeling a mixture of frustration and disbelief.
Recently, he had been venturing out quite often.
On the other hand, Sigrid had been focused on internal activities instead of external ones.Nôv(el)B\\jnn
She was well aware that this was a prime opportunity to absorb promising second-year students into her faction.
So, she intentionally halted her external activities to concentrate on internal ones.
Kraush clicked his tongue.
Anyway, she was being quite clever about it.
While the White Ghost was busy trying to attract the second years, the Lion’s Order (사자단), on the other hand, was nowhere to be seen in promotion.
But surprisingly, the Lion’s Order still had plenty of applicants wanting to join.
The reason was simple.
Kraush was there alongside Charlotte.
It was clear that Sigrid’s reputation had risen.
However, even more dramatically, Kraush’s name had skyrocketed.
His name naturally brought attention to the Lion’s Order, resulting in a surge of second-years flocking there.
The focal point for the second years was undoubtedly Kraush.
‘What a situation.’
Kraush didn’t place much importance on the faction itself.
After all, no matter how factions were divided, the outstanding ones would eventually find their place in the Sky Generation as time passed.
However, being the center of that Sky Generation was another matter.
Even the most faraway stars needed a glint of starlight to be noticed; without that light, they were meaningless.
‘Especially, I want to pull those first-year students into my faction somehow.’
At that moment, Kraush was lost in thought when he spotted something huge lumbering toward him in the corridor.
Naturally, Kraush looked up as he had to tilt his head back to see the head of the person approaching.
“Whoa! Finally, we meet again!”
In that instant, a thunderous voice echoed down the corridor.
Kraush recognized who this man was.
With deep green eyes and the distinct tattoos all over his body, here stood:
Frea’s child and a future member of the Sky Generation.
The Duel Emperor (투제) Arsoldar Freya.
For some reason, he looked even bigger than before.
“Arsoldar.”
After his fight with Kraush, he had gone into the mountains for training.
It seemed he had finished that and was back now.
As soon as he saw Kraush, he flexed his muscles through his clothes and grinned wide.
“Kraush, I’ve gotten stronger too! Let’s have another round.”
Indeed, the energy exuding from him felt stronger than ever.
His training seemed to have paid off.
“Alright, then.”
But sorry, he had grown much more since their last encounter.
At that moment, Kraush’s figure scattered.
By the time Arsoldar rushed to pursue him, it was already too late.
Kraush’s fist was right in front of Arsoldar’s belly.
“If you can withstand this…”
In that instant, an intangible force surged up from deep inside Kraush’s being.
Unified by the Seasons, even the power of World Erosion was channeled through Aura.
The intangible force displayed a different kind of output than before.
Boom!
And Arsoldar’s body was sent flying into the air.
Despite Arsoldar’s massive build, he was knocked across the corridor by Kraush’s punch.
Arsoldar’s eyes widened in shock.
Not only had Kraush vanished from his sight, but the punch he threw was on a completely different level than before.
Disaster Dragon Fall (재룡락).
Second Form (이식).
Power (력).
This was the result of focusing all Aura purely on strength.
Despite trying to regain his stance, Arsoldar twisted his body in a desperate attempt.
However, Kraush’s punch didn’t stop at just one.
Bang!
In that split second, a second punch slammed into Arsoldar once again.
This punch was even stronger than the first.
Cun Jin (촌경).
This was a technique Kraush frequently employed.
“Hack!”
With the successive hits, Arsoldar could barely suppress a groan.
If enduring the first hit was already tough, the second was naturally much worse.
Boom!
Arsoldar couldn’t even perform a proper roll and crashed heavily onto the floor.
Perhaps because of his enormous size, a loud noise echoed as he tumbled about.
But he quickly got back on his feet.
His eyes shone with the madness of battle.
“Haha, I… I endured it!”
And that was the end of it.
His eyes rolled back, and he collapsed onto the floor.
Kraush lightly dusted off his hands.
If it were anyone else, Kraush might have tried to reason with them a bit, but this was Arsoldar.
He knew only fists would work on him, so he didn’t hold back at all.
With a hit like that, he wouldn’t be a bother for a while.
Just as Kraush thought to move on again, there in the corridor ahead stood a man.
Upon seeing him, Kraush slowly narrowed his eyes.
He had long blond hair similar to someone’s.
However, this man’s face, though somewhat androgynous, had a more feminine touch compared to the other.
‘The Fake Arthur.’
This was the guy who deceived everyone by calling himself Arthur Gramalte and snuck into Rahern Academy.
And he was undoubtedly connected to the Red Witch, Abella.
Kraush and Arthur’s eyes locked for a moment.
In that brief exchange, Kraush had many thoughts flash through his mind, but he soon smiled nonchalantly.
“Arthur Gramalte, huh? That Arsoldar guy ending up like that was because he wanted it. Don’t go blaming me on a whim.”
Kraush had hardly spoken to the fake Arthur before.
He had built connections with the other special class kids, but the fake Arthur kept to himself, even within his own class.
All Kraush really knew was that this fake Arthur had put off joining the Lion’s Order.
As he regarded the fake Arthur curiously, he took a step forward.
“You’ve gotten much stronger since last time, huh?”
A rather significant statement.
“Yeah, things have been hectic.”
So, Kraush returned the comment with just enough profundity.
He knew that he wouldn’t get many insights from the fake Arthur.
“Though, I don’t think we can honestly say we were that close in the past, right?”
Kraush smirked, teasing the fake Arthur.
“True, we weren’t that close.”
And the fake Arthur agreed readily.
Somehow, he stood right in front of Kraush.
Their eyes met.
Kraush realized one thing.
Regardless of anything else, it wasn’t easy to read the meaning in the fake Arthur’s gaze, similar to that of the real Arthur.
The real Arthur had many secrets hidden away.
“But it is kind of fascinating. I never thought I’d see you using Aura.”
At that moment, Kraush’s body instinctively reacted as if to defend itself.
His expression conveyed disbelief at the statement.
Yet, the fake Arthur’s face remained unchanged.
“Well, I suppose relying solely on the power of World Erosion wouldn’t have sufficed. You back then, and you now.”
His next words struck deep.
Kraush struggled to contain his expression from hardening.
The phrase, “You back then, and you now,” didn’t require much contemplation.
The fake Arthur was suggesting that over countless cycles, Kraush had learned Extreme Blood Poison and wielded the power of World Erosion.
And through that power, Kraush had undoubtedly fought against the world’s destruction.
But what this meant with Arthur having regressed was clear.
It indicated that in that cycle, Kraush ultimately failed to stop the world’s destruction.
‘Shut it!’
However, Kraush’s heart instinctively rejected that fact.
The Arthur he had met in countless cycles didn’t exist in this world.
The Arthur who lost his life in a destroyed world due to the Black Hood had vanished.
Thus, this guy before him was merely testing him.
Wondering if Kraush was a regressor.
It was a ridiculous thought.
The fake Arthur was deliberately poking at Kraush’s temper.
“Hey.”
So, Kraush decided to react just like the hothead Abella knew him to be.
“Why are you babbling nonsense since a while ago?”
Whoosh!
At that moment, black flames erupted from Kraush’s body.
The Aura transformed into the power of World Erosion, and now the black flames emanating from him displayed even fiercer heat than before.
There was no Arthur in this world that Kraush recognized.
That, he knew better than anyone.
“If you don’t want to die, stop stirring trouble and get lost. Otherwise, I’ll make you end up just like that guy over there.”
Kraush warned while pointing at the sprawled Arsoldar.
It was a clear indication that the fake Arthur shouldn’t meddle.
The fake Arthur glanced at Arsoldar and turned away without any hint of fear.
“I’ll see you later in the Lion’s Order.”
And with that, the fake Arthur left.
[Looks like he got hit hard.]
Crimson Garden’s voice echoed, and Kraush clicked his tongue.
It left a bad taste, leaving him with only unpleasant feelings as the fake Arthur walked away.
[What’s his game?]
A crow from Crimson Garden had perched by the now-open window.
Kraush looked in that direction and stated the undeniable truth.
“Extracting information isn’t just their job.”
He had said he would join the Lion’s Order.
That alone sounded like a declaration of war.
Then bring it on.
He would strip them of everything, including Abella’s schemes.
Kraush turned his body and began to progress down the corridor.
In the opposite direction of where the fake Arthur had headed.
Perhaps they had been heading in different directions long before.
As the two figures departed from the corridor, only the faintly unconscious Arsoldar rolled about in the dust.