Ascension Through Skills

The chill of the Frost Arrow spread. The grasses of the eastern mountain died instantly, and breaths turned frosty.

The mage groaned in agony.

“Frost Orb…”

The highest-ranking ice magic. The mage was mistaken to think that Taesan was not able to use it.

“Now I understand why those who came before couldn’t overcome it.”

To use the Frost Orb at such a rapid speed meant that he was a faction leader-class mage. It was a level that even a multitude of lower ranks couldn’t approach, let alone challenge.

“But this time, it’s different.”

The mage winked. The two swordsmen, who had been measuring the distance, rushed at the same time.

Their speed was incredibly fast. In an instant, they pushed through the bushes and approached Taesan. Seeing their approach, Taesan did nothing.

“Hmm?”

The mage was taken aback. Mages fundamentally needed time to cast. If they got that close, unless he had an artifact, it would be impossible to counter.

‘Is it ending this easily?’

The sword pierced Taesan’s chest.

And their bodies reverted to their original state.

“What!”

“Uhm!”

“What’s going on!”

The onlookers exploded in astonishment. Taesan, indifferent, looked at them and again cast the Frost Arrow. The Frost Arrows floating in mid-air began to multiply one by one.

“Eh, wha?”

The swordsman stammered as he attempted to move his sword again.

But once more, his body reverted back to a state from before he swung his sword.

The watching mage was shocked.

“Space, no. Time manipulation magic? What in the world!”

He could only think of it that way as someone ignorant about the labyrinth.

Meanwhile, Taesan continued to multiply his Frost Arrows. Their number had noticeably increased now.

“…Casting?”

The mage looked at Taesan with narrow eyes.

“Everyone listen. It seems he is preparing a wide-range magic spell. It looks like he can’t move until he completes it.”

This was a complete misunderstanding.

Taesan was able to move freely while casting the Frost Arrows.

The mage continued to speak.

“He probably has all sorts of support magic in place to protect himself from attacks while he prepares his magic. But if it’s that powerful, it probably has limits.”

The mage was stepping back as if he had accidentally stepped on a frog, but he was close to the truth. The attack nullification could only be triggered up to three times per person, so it would eventually disappear if they attacked multiple times.

However, thinking they could defeat Taesan by doing so was a mistake.

Taesan planned to correct each and every one of their misconceptions.

They strategized on how to defeat Taesan and rushed at him all at once. The archer shot arrows, the swordsmen wielded their swords, and the mage cast and fired magic.

All their attacks were erased by the attack nullification.

They stubbornly continued to attack.

And finally, the attack nullification ended. The swordsman, who had been swinging his sword swiftly, pierced Taesan’s chest. When his body did not revert as before, the man laughed and put more force into the hand holding the sword.

“Die!”

Clang!

The man was flung away. He got up from the ground in surprise.

“What?”

Taesan continued to cast, his face impassive.

By now, the attack nullification count for each enemy was entirely finished. All their attacks were being absorbed by Taesan.

But no damage was inflicted.

The blade couldn’t cut his skin, arrows ricocheted as if hitting a steel plate, and the magic didn’t affect him at all.

“What the!”

Hearing the shocked voices, Taesan thought.

‘As expected, it’s meaningless without Aura.’

His defense exceeded one hundred. Ordinary weapons like these couldn’t inflict damage.

‘Did I take 60 damage?’

When he deliberately took an Aura hit from Galant, he took 63 damage. This meant he received a pure Aura damage of 163 before his defense stat was accounted for.

‘I wonder if there’s also an Armor Penetration effect? I want to learn more.’

Taesan pondered with a relaxed expression while his opponents were at their wits’ end.

Their attacks and their actions were futile. Even if they stabbed his neck, they would only be pushed back with double the force.

Enraged, the mage shouted.

“Push him! Try to knock him down!”

“Ughhh!”

A person in heavy armor pushed Taesan with a Tower Shield, but only the ground beneath the armor sank, while Taesan did not budge.

A man tied Taesan’s arm with a rope. Taesan, with an annoyed look on his face, pulled his arm, and the man was sent flying.

“Aaaaaargh!”

“Controlling my strength is also a chore.”

Even a light hit could kill. With an annoyed look, Taesan continued casting the Frost Arrows.

The Frost Arrow drawn in the sky was steadily growing in size.

Frost began forming on the shrubs that had died from the cold.

A man swinging a sword at Taesan could not bear the cold and chattered his teeth, yelling at the mage.

“Do something!”

“What, what should I do?!”

The mage was also panicking. At first, he thought it was just an enhanced version of Frost Orb. But as time passed, he realized it was a gross misjudgment.

Frost Arrows, dozens of Frost Orbs were being drawn in the sky.

The mage realized.

That it was not just casting.

That it was just a brute force manifestation of many Frost Orbs.

Attacks towards Taesan gradually stopped. With frightened faces, they slowly distanced themselves.

“Oh……”

A shadow fell over them.

The Frost Arrow drawn in the sky had become a giant sphere.

Crack.

The ground froze. The cold seeped deep into the earth.

In the midst of nature freezing, their human bodies could not withstand it. Frost formed in their throats. Coughing, they slowly distanced themselves.

“I like wide spaces. Various experiments are possible.”

The Frost Arrows and Blazing Orbs remained stationary until Taesan fired them.

Then what would happen if he manifested dozens, hundreds of magic, and fired them all at once?

He was curious from the moment he learned the Frost Arrow, but it was a method he could not use in the narrow labyrinth. On Earth, he was too busy blocking monsters to test it, but there were no such monsters here.

Taesan clenched his fist.

[You have activated Ice Shard.]

The bunched-up Frost Arrow was firmly secured by the Ice Shard.

Taesan lowered his hand.

[You have activated Magic Acceleration.]

The sphere of ice fell to the ground.

The accelerated object hits the next hill.

Boom!

“Ahhhhhh!”

“Ahhhhh!”

Along with the loud noise, people screamed and were flung away. The mages tried to bear it, gritting their teeth, but they were torn apart by the aftereffects of the force.

A moment later, those who barely managed to stand were astonished when they looked at their hill.

Everything on the hill had frozen.

Shrubs, trees, and forests, without exception, were trapped in an ice prison. The extreme cold didn’t stop there. It swallowed the surroundings and expanded its territory.

“This, this……”

The mage could not believe it. It was a small hill, but still of a size that would warrant the name of a hill. It would take a person ten minutes to walk across it.

All of it was trapped in the cold.

‘This is……’

It was of a level akin to a natural disaster.

As far as the mage knew, it was a range of magic impossible for humans.

‘……Dragon?’

A race that protected the world. It was a level only they could achieve. Taesan felt satisfied with the looks of astonishment and fear.

“The preparation process is long, but it’s worth using.”

The time spent experimenting had resulted in a result that was not regrettable.

Taesan turned his gaze and looked at the trackers.

“Will you continue?”

There was no answer. Taesan clicked his tongue.

“Then get lost.”

Having lost their will to fight, they fled.

And they started spreading what they had seen.

The one who protected the princess was a monster.

He was the incarnation of a dragon.

Until now, it was just a rumor. The trackers who went to find the princess had all died, so they couldn’t experience his real strength.

But this time, everyone who went survived.

With those who had personally experienced it making a big fuss, it couldn’t be said that the evaluations were exaggerated.

If the survivors were weak, if they were just specks in the group, they might have been dismissed as exaggerations…

But all of them belonged to the upper ranks of the world, so that was impossible, too.

The story that Taesan had frozen a mountain started to circulate. Some said he was a master swordsman and an outstanding mage, while others said he was an apostle of the demon god.

The rumor grew as each tail bit onto another tail.

Given this, each country had no choice but to start moving.

Until now, those who had targeted the princess were just individuals. The large group known as the nation did not show any movement. They were busy dividing the demon clan’s territory, and they had no reason to target the princess.

The demon clan was extinct. If the princess died, it would truly be the end. The limits of survival alone were clear. She would die soon, so there was no need to move.

Moreover, Harmon did not show much interest in the princess after dealing with the demons. They didn’t see the need to act when the god was quiet.

But now the story has changed.

If even half of the rumors about Taesan were true, victory was impossible for individuals. The countries quietly prepared to move.

And Harmon was the one who drove the last nail into the coffin.

[Kill the Princess of the Demon Clan and her dog.]

It was a decree filled with a strong will, just as when they were ordered to kill the demon clan.

There was no major country that would defy the god who caused the demon clan’s extinction. The world began to move.

They wouldn’t send soldiers. They realized that what reached Taesan was not a group but a strong individual.

Each country sent its strongest power.

Those with the title of “Master Swordsman.”

“Oh.”

Taesan raised the corners of his mouth in delight. Annetsha, who was basking in the sunlight, was startled by his sudden action.

“Why are you doing that?”

“I’ve been disappointed so far. But……this is enough.”

A strong power could be felt from the other side. It was a power that even he, who had broken through the labyrinth, couldn’t look down on.

Several of them were approaching this place. They scattered their strong power as if they had no intention of hiding it.

Annetsha, realizing too late, turned pale.

“Ma, Master Swordsman?”

And not just one. Their figures started to appear from beyond the eastern mountain.

There were five in total.

“This is the last.”

If he could just knock them down, there would be no one left who could bother him.

“No, it can’t be…”

Annetsha grabbed the hem of Taesan’s clothes.

Taesan was undeniably powerful. It’s not an exaggeration to say he was the strongest human she’d ever seen.

But the Master Swordsmen were also those who have surpassed human limits. Any one of them could bring down a whole city.

There were five such individuals here.

Even for Taesan, it would be challenging. That was what Annetsha thought.

“We have to run away. We can’t face them. We have to run away……”

Taesan comforted Annetsha, who was fumbling with a pale face.

“Just go to sleep for a bit.”

In an instant, Annetsha lost consciousness.

“No, don’t…”

With that thought, she fell.

“That’s ridiculous.”

Taesan carried her into the cave. He laid her down on a bed of grass and stepped outside.

“Have you finished saying your goodbyes?”

A stern middle-aged man appeared. His rugged, muscular body revealed what he has been doing all his life.

[Is it a worthy one?]

The ghost was also intrigued. The four men in front of him had a strength that would satisfy even him, who had seen many adventurers as they challenged the labyrinth.

Red-haired, blue-haired, white-haired, and blond-haired.

“It’s easy to tell them apart.”