I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-219

Ch-219. **God-Skin Hybrid**

—

A single strike.

Other than Batus attacking, nothing was seen.

No one could even tell **how Batus’ head ended up rolling across the floor**.

“…….”

King Valan remained silent.

But his eyes trembled continuously.

Batus was a user of Sword Aura.

A master who swung a force harder than steel.

They had considered him the pride and blessing of the kingdom—

and that belief shattered in less than a minute.

*That person… is Friedrich’s weakest knight?*

Impossible.

Unless trickery was used.

He hadn’t even seen the opponent draw her sword.

“Your Majesty. That was the ‘Instant-Draw Kill Blade’. It has been a very long time since I’ve seen someone who uses draw-sword techniques at that extreme level.”

“…Abdulla. You mean to say you could see it?”

“Yes. Also—Instant-Draw Sword techniques leave the user wide open if the first strike fails. It is a duel of whether that one blow succeeds or not. Batus did not lose because he was weak.”

King Valan’s direct knight, Abdulla, spoke with confidence.

Telling the king not to dwell on Batus’ defeat.

Each had simply staked everything on a one-strike-kill duel.

It was not weakness.

But opposed to Abdulla’s calm evaluation—

“Pathetic.”

King Friedrich’s judgment was brutally cold.

His expression, as always, was endlessly bored.

Everything was unfolding exactly as expected.

Like this, the duel had no meaning.

There was simply no fun.

“I will change the rules. Not a tournament. A survival format. Continue until someone kills Shalla. If the five knights you selected cannot defeat even one Shalla, then this kingdom no longer has a reason to exist.”

“Changing the rules now—?!”

Changing the rules in the middle of the duel—
a tyrannical absurdity.

King Valan opened his mouth to object—

but someone spoke first.

“Your Majesty. This may actually work to our advantage.”

Abdulla smiled.

A picture of victory formed clearly in his mind.

King Valan tilted his head.

“To our advantage?”

“I have already seen that Shalla’s technique. We can easily seize the victory.”

“You are confident?”

“Yes. We must win the second duel. Only then will the momentum of the kingdom rise again.”

Batus died too easily.

There was no morale to be gained from that.

King Valan nodded.

He trusted Abdulla.

And rightly so—Abdulla *was* strong.

*The one knight the king could name as his personal guard.*

That alone proved Abdulla’s power.

Only one in the kingdom could hold that title—and Abdulla did.

Aside from the Knight King, there was no one stronger.

Stronger even than Serengeti.

He had not participated in the Great Expedition only because he had to remain by the king’s side.

If it was Abdulla—victory was certain.

“Long live the Valan Kingdom! Victory to the kingdom!”

“Sir Abdulla!”

Amid deafening cheers, Abdulla slowly stepped into the dueling grounds.

Winning or not winning wasn’t the question—

He *had* to win.

“So, the king’s knight is Shalla’s second opponent.”

Friedrich laughed softly.

No one could tell what that smile meant—
but it seemed he found the situation entertaining.

*If only Wilhelm were here…*

Knight King Wilhelm.

If he were still alive, would Friedrich wear such a smile?

Would he dare maintain this attitude toward the Valan Kingdom?

Remembering those days, Abdulla steadied his breath.

Back then—there was nothing to fear.

No one dared look down on the Valan Kingdom.

It felt like just yesterday that they galloped across the blue plains together.

But now, Wilhelm was gone.

He died.

Abdulla wasn’t there at the end.

He used the excuse of guarding the king.

If he could go back—

Abdulla would join the Great Expedition and protect Wilhelm.

Protecting Wilhelm was protecting the kingdom and the king.

He realized that too late.

*Can I fill the space he left behind?*

No.

He could not.

Everyone praised Abdulla, raised him high as the king’s knight.

But Abdulla knew.

His sword couldn’t reach even Wilhelm’s *ankles*.

A lifetime of training—and he still couldn’t measure Wilhelm’s might.

That overwhelming supremacy.

Only a handful had ever seen the true extent of Wilhelm’s power.

He was always humble, never displaying it.

*I know. He could kill a Demon King.*

He was certain Wilhelm wouldn’t lose even to a Demon King.

…Then why did he never return?

Had even he been unable to slay a Demon King?

Then—just how powerful was the Demon King?

Could humanity ever hope to defeat such a being?

*I was too scared… too afraid to ask even Serengeti.*

Serengeti returned alive.

The only one of Wilhelm’s close comrades.

He wanted to ask her desperately:

How did Wilhelm die?

But no one in the palace could bring themselves to ask.

Even the king couldn’t.

Wilhelm was their idol.
Their hero.

They simply could not accept the death of a hero.

“I am Abdulla, the king’s knight.”

Facing his opponent, Abdulla spoke quietly.

When this duel was over—
he would ask then.

Protecting the kingdom came first.

“Shalla.”

The woman finally spoke.

A demonic voice—

Just hearing it made the heart throb uncontrollably.

“Please, teach me one move.”

Nod.

Shalla lowered her head lightly.

Completely defenseless.

Her stance was identical to when she faced Batus.

*Vacuum Blade.*

Ssssssshhhh—!

Abdulla’s sword trembled violently with Sword Aura.

Just touching it would send a shockwave through the enemy’s body—Abdulla’s unique technique, the Vacuum Blade.

*It was created to fight Wilhelm…*

Not to win.

Just to land *a single hit*.

He just wanted to imprint himself on Wilhelm—
whose smug expression and impenetrable mask made him seem out of reach every day.

But now, there was no one left in this world to receive that strike.

Chrrrnnng—

His sword sang.

Abdulla moved.

He entered Shalla’s range—

Flash—!

Light.

Draw—slash—cleave.

But a draw-sword technique shown once would never work on a master.

Kzzzzinnng!

The instant their swords clashed, a resonating shock ran through Abdulla’s entire body.

He parried the flash-draw, pulled his sword toward his chest, lowered his stance, and swung before she could react.

*She won’t move quickly after meeting my Vacuum Blade—!*

Her insides must have been shaken by the clash.

she shouldn’t have time to react to the follow-up strike—

Crash!

…but it bounced off.

Abdulla spun through the air, barely managing to land.

*What hit me?*

His left shoulder was soaked with blood.

As if sliced by an extremely sharp blade.

Not an ordinary sword.

“…Twin blades?”

Shalla now held a *small* second sword.

It was Abdulla’s first time seeing a draw-sword user wield twin blades.

He was stunned for a moment.

*The small blade is for defense—prepared for when the draw fails.*

But now he knew.

He wouldn’t fall for it twice.

*I have it all figured out.*

Abdulla shortened his stride.

He understood her range and her twin blades.
All that was left was victory.

Shalla—

could no longer defeat him.

That’s what he thought—

“…Why is Sir Abdulla stopping?”

“H-he suddenly froze?”

Confused voices arose.

Abdulla had suddenly stopped while approaching Shalla.

Shock flashed across his face.

*My body…*

Wouldn’t move.

And that could only mean one thing—

*Poison.*

The tiny blade was coated in poison.

Despicable for a knight’s duel.

Such a person was no knight.

But his mouth wouldn’t move.
His body refused to listen.

Strong poisoning—
a nerve toxin that mana could not repel.

Sst.

Shalla moved next.

This was a battle that ended only with death.

Shalla gently swung at Abdulla’s neck.

CLANG!

Abdulla moved with everything he had.

He clenched his teeth and deflected the blade—

but his movements were already unbearably dulled.

Thud!

His left arm was severed.

…He could not win.

He failed to consider every possibility.

This wasn’t just a knight’s duel—
it was a battle that would determine the fate of the kingdom.

*Ah.*

Shalla’s sword glowed with a crimson aura.

He couldn’t block it…

Shalla swung for Abdulla’s neck—

Slash!

—And in that instant—

something was cut.

*No.*

…He *thought* it was cut.

But when he opened his eyes—

Abdulla was somewhere else.

“Next… I will fight.”

“……Serengeti?”

Where Abdulla had stood—

Serengeti now stood.

Her authority—**Position Exchange**—had activated.

But even Serengeti was not unharmed.

Shalla’s blade had carved open her chest.

It narrowly avoided being fatal, but she would die if the bleeding continued.

“Why…?!”

Abdulla scolded her.

Serengeti smiled faintly.

“You must not die yet, Sir Abdulla.”

“You are our only hope—why would you—!”

Fighting at full strength would barely be enough—
yet Serengeti stepped in already wounded.

But Serengeti spoke with no hesitation.

“You have someone you must meet, do you not?”

“W-what…?”

Someone he must meet?

Surely she didn’t mean…

Impossible.

He died during the Expedition.

“And do not worry.”

Fwooooooooooosh—!!

A blinding aura erupted.

Pure white.

Radiant beyond measure.

An overwhelming aura — incomparable to the Sword Aura Batus and Abdulla had shown.

It shimmered like wings, illuminating the world.

In that state, Serengeti—

looked straight past Shalla
and provoked King Friedrich himself.

“I will win.”

*

*

 

The Abyss.

A place endlessly dark, where you cannot see even a step ahead.

An ancient continent swallowed and twisted, spawning countless anomalies.

Nothing here could be considered strange.

“Randolph… are you not worried about the Valan Kingdom?”

And within this Abyss, I walked alongside Isabella.

Because the moment we entered, everyone was scattered.

“Is it because of King Friedrich?”

“He is… the Demon of Arrogance. Backed by the Empire. He will not fear even the Church of the Goddess. Marquis Weiser and Serengeti—”

“It’s fine.”

“Sir?”

Isabella blinked when I suddenly said it would be fine.

But it *really* was fine.

For a very simple reason.

“Serengeti is strong. Trust her.”

Not just physically.

Serengeti was strong in every sense.

Never breaking, never falling—
a blazing sun that shone even brighter in danger.

Of course, that wasn’t the only reason.

“Even in the worst possible scenario, disaster will not occur.”

“You sound confident.”

“I bought insurance.”

“…?”

Isabella still didn’t understand.

I chuckled.

After hearing about Arrogance in the Imperial Meeting—
there was no way I would stay idle.

Naturally, I prepared accordingly.

An invincible insurance that ensured we would never lose.

But more importantly, right now—

the Abyss took priority.

*God-Skin Hybrid.*

This Abyss was **its** domain.

Back at Marquis Weiser’s estate when I went to meet Serengeti—
the monster that tried to emerge from the collapsing warp was the God-Skin Hybrid.

Alongside Main Quest 4: *Seal the Rifts of the Dark Space.*

Fortunately, I shut down the warps in time, so the God-Skin Hybrid didn’t come out.

If it had—

I would have died.

*I definitely saw its eyes during the Jeju Island incident.*

Later, when I killed Baal in the Abyss, countless “Residents of the Abyss” stared at me with interest.

And among them—

*its* eyes were there.

Eyes filled with deep curiosity.

As if they already *knew* me.

*It felt like it knew me from the beginning.*

《“The God-Skin Hybrid” records you in its eyes, promising a next time.》

That message had appeared when I cleared Main Quest 4.

Long before I ever possessed the fragment of Destruction.

For the ruler of the Abyss to take interest in a human—
that had never happened before.

And now again in this Abyss—

entering *its* domain didn’t feel like coincidence.

…God-Skin Hybrid.

The being known as the god of all hybrids.

*What is it?*

 

 

 

 

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