I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 735

Although Ash had received the favor of the previous Emperor, Robert, it wasn’t as if she hadn’t experienced adversity and hardship.

Rather, because she had received his favor, she had sometimes faced even more trials.

Therefore, the ’arrogance’ or ’conceit’ that geniuses typically possessed was far from her character.

In the past, she had nearly died quite a few times while acting with such a mindset.

Furthermore, as these experiences accumulated, she had realized just how crucial ’talent’ and ’physical weight class’ were.

’If you think about it, physical weight class can also be considered a talent.’

Some say that once you reach a certain level of skill, no matter how superior your physical weight class is, it ultimately becomes a battle of endurance.

Ash half-agreed and half-disagreed with that opinion. The higher one’s physical weight class, the less endurance was consumed.

Of course, since the limits of a ’human’ were clear, that difference was rarely felt.

Geugeugeuk!

But the man before her eyes was different. Ash smiled as she felt her two legs gradually being pushed back.

Could this strength really be considered human? Even though she was pushing back with all her might, she was simply being pushed back in silence.

Her prospect of marriage had been blocked because of her constitution where mana accumulated just by breathing, yet the man in front of her was on an even greater level.

Deciding that a contest of pure strength was futile, Ash immediately resolved to fight in a different manner.

Having gauged the extent of Grylls’s strength, she decided to distance herself first.

Bbeok!

Instantly pulling back her clashed sword, she took advantage of the moment Grylls’s balance faltered to strike his torso with a front kick.

Since it was a front kick infused with mana, an ordinary person would have had their insides ruptured and been left dazed for quite some time.

However, Grylls was only pushed back slightly, and without giving Ash any time to recover, he lunged forward.

The pressure was as if a rhinoceros were charging at full speed. She slowly raised her sword, which glowed like a flowing green galaxy.

Just as Grylls attempted to slash horizontally with the Sword of the Heavenly Demon, she brought her blade down.

Kaaang!!!

The screech of metal clashing against metal erupted, and—

Kwaaang!!!

A powerful shockwave radiated outward from them, turning the surrounding area into a wasteland.

Ujikeun!

Beyond merely cracking like a spiderweb, the ground beneath their feet caved in.

Udeudeuk! Kwadeuk!

Even the straight-growing trees couldn’t withstand the wind pressure, their thick trunks snapping in half.

With just a single exchange, they had wrought destruction akin to a natural disaster. And it was caused by just two people.

Kwaang! Kwang!

Their swords entangled in a complex dance. The more they clashed, the more the surrounding environment was blown to pieces.

Ash compensated for her inferior physical weight class compared to Grylls with her superior swordsmanship, maintaining an equal exchange of blows.

It was absurd that she had to mobilize her highly refined swordsmanship just to keep up, but that only made it more enjoyable.

How could she secure a victory over this man? And in what manner would this man defeat her?

While she could roughly grasp Yoo So-wol’s style, Grylls was entirely unpredictable.

Hwiik!

It was during their relentless exchange. Without warning, Grylls reached out his hand.

His hand aimed precisely for Ash’s slender wrist. She instantly grasped his intention.

Grylls had already been getting pushed back slightly due to his lack of technique compared to Ash.

Even if he was being pushed back, it didn’t mean he was at a disadvantage, but he had chosen to adopt a different approach.

’So you won’t engage in a pure contest of skill?’

A wise choice. Ash smiled.

But regardless, she couldn’t just let herself be caught.

Thus, she pulled her hand back and swung her sword with elegance.

Kwaak!

"?!"

However, even the hand wielding the sword was caught. Grylls had completely let go of the Sword of the Heavenly Demon and grabbed her barehanded.

Normally, this action was akin to suicide, as the moment it failed, there was a high probability of suffering a massive blow.

After all, it meant letting go of one’s weapon with both hands.

Hu-ung!!!

Having seized Ash’s wrist, Grylls then grabbed her collar and threw her away.

Although the surrounding trees had been shattered by their fierce clash, the sheer cliffside remained intact.

Kwaang!

Ash let out a low groan as she collided heavily with the wall.

But before she could even register the pain, a massive presence loomed right in front of her.This chapter was taken from nove​lping.com without permission.

There was no need to ask whose massive presence this was.

Hu-ung!

Grylls’s fist flew right before Ash’s nose. It was a punch that would knock her unconscious the moment it connected.

She barely managed to twist her head to dodge the fist.

Kwaang!

A single punch. That punch shattered the solid rock of the cliff, leaving a perfect imprint of his fist.

As if this weren’t the end, Grylls pressed his advantage by unleashing a flurry of punches just as he had been trained. The cliff shattered with every swing.

If she took even a single hit, she would suffer massive shockwaves front and back, putting her at a severe disadvantage.

Hwiik!

Therefore, she smoothly ducked to avoid the attack, then struck him with the pommel of her sword.

Grylls winced with a loud Kwang! sound. Although he had deployed his Body-Protecting Gangqi, Ash penetrated right through it.

For her, who had overcome countless trials, the Internal Heavy Palm Technique was the most basic of basic skills.

Pabak!

After striking Grylls’s flank with her pommel, Ash rolled forward to reposition herself.

Now, Grylls was the one with his back against the wall. Before he could recover, she unleashed an even greater Aura Blade.

Her sword was infused with a powerful energy, utilizing the Unity of Self and Object that Grylls had demonstrated.

Si-ing!

She swung that sword toward Grylls, who had just turned around.

Kwaaang!!!

It struck Grylls, who had hastily raised his arms, resulting in an explosion that sounded like a cannon firing.

Under the influence of that recoil, Grylls was driven deep into the thick rock of the cliff.

A small cave, barely large enough for a single person, was carved into the cliffside.

Ash exhaled as she anticipated Grylls’s next move.

Kwareureuk! Kwareuk!

A moment later, a rumbling, scraping sound echoed from within, and—

Pi-ing!

A very faint sound pierced her ears.

But because it was an ominous sound, like a dagger flying toward her heart, she hastily turned her head.

Sure enough, an arrow shot out fiercely from the dark opening, grazing Ash’s cheek.

To think he had drawn his bow and pulled the string in such a cramped space. If nothing else, even Ash had to tense up at his archery skills.

Kwareureuk! Kwareuk!

Meanwhile, the scraping sounds from inside the cliff became even more frequent.

Ash wondered what on earth he was doing inside to make such noises.

After a moment, the noise ceased. Gripping her sword with both hands, she channeled her aura.

’I must act before he does whatever he’s planning.’

If she sliced through this cliff, she would get her answer. There was no hesitation.

If she gave him time to ’think’, she would be the one at a disadvantage.

Si-ing!

A very light diagonal slash. On the surface, it was a fluid, gentle cut.

However, a diagonal hairline crack appeared across the punctured cliff, and—

Kugugugu!

The entire cliffside began to collapse like a sandcastle.

Thick dust billowed, and the ground shook as if an earthquake were occurring from the collapsing cliff.

Even so, Ash’s gaze remained fixed on the opening. For starters, she felt no resistance on her blade.

Since Grylls possessed a body harder than rock, the lack of any sensation of cutting him meant he had already vanished.

Where was he? From where would he appear to entertain her?

She had already forgotten about being a knight or a martial artist. There were only combatants left here.

’Where is he? Where did he go?’

A moment later, as soon as she confirmed the cliff had completely collapsed, Ash scanned her surroundings.

Grylls’s presence was highly unusual, making it difficult to detect even with Ash’s sharp senses.

It was as if he had assimilated with nature. Thus, if he chose to hide, finding him would be a daunting task.

The only reason she had been able to find him at the Heavenly Demon Cult was due to a series of pure coincidences.

It was then.

Kwaaang!!

A massive explosion erupted from the collapsed cliff. Ash expected Grylls to burst out from there.

Kwaang! Kwang!

However, she couldn’t help but be flustered as explosions went off in succession across the cliffside. What on earth was happening inside?This chapter was taken from novelpin⁠g.com without permission.

She had long known that Grylls could detonate his arrows like time bombs.

Those explosions were surely of that nature. Yet, that didn’t resolve her confusion.

What was he thinking, triggering consecutive explosions? For what purpose?

If it was to disorient her, she could understand, but... it was highly inefficient.

If it was merely to obscure her vision, that tactic was a failure.

Chwaang!

She swung her sword forcefully, generating a powerful gust of wind.

The dust and debris scattered by the explosions were blown away by the wind pressure, naturally revealing the collapsed cliffside.

Having been sliced diagonally by Ash and subjected to consecutive explosions, it could no longer even be called a cliff.

Yet Grylls was nowhere to be found, leaving her question unanswered.

’Where on earth did he...’

Seuuuk—

It was just as Ash harbored her doubts. A massive shadow began to loom over her head.

It was a shadow far too large to belong to Grylls. Startled, Ash looked up.

And she saw it clearly with her own two eyes: a boulder the size of a house was falling from the sky.

’What?’

Ash’s blue eyes widened. Why was such a massive boulder falling on top of her?

Her panic was brief; she gripped her sword and sliced the boulder.

Chwajajajak!

One second. In less than a single second, the boulder was reduced to dozens of fragments.

And appearing from beyond the shattered pieces of rock was...

"...Ha!"

Grylls.

Gripping the Sword of the Heavenly Demon—which he had retrieved at some point—with both hands, he swung it straight down.

Ash chose to dodge the attack rather than block it. Just look at the size of that massive, beautiful Aura Blade.

If she blocked that head-on, even if her spine didn’t shatter, it would place an immense burden on her body.

Si-ing—

Grylls’s sword narrowly grazed the tips of Ash’s hair as it swept past.

Since it was an off-balance dodge, a counterattack was difficult. But that didn’t matter.

Grylls would also require a non-trivial amount of time to retrieve the Sword of the Heavenly Demon embedded deep in the ground...

Kwaak!

...or so she thought, but Grylls swiftly let go of the sword and grabbed Ash.

And then, he threw her with full force, just like before.

Treating weapons as mere tools, he effortlessly utilized his powerful physical weight class. That wasn’t all.

Pi-ing! Ping!

The moment he threw Ash, he immediately fired arrows. Ash deflected those arrows while her feet were still off the ground.

What was even more astonishing was that Grylls charged again before she could even regain her stance. He gave her absolutely no room to breathe.

"...Haha!"

A moment later, Ash, having barely regained her balance by stepping on the air, let out a dry laugh.

By the time her feet touched the ground, Grylls was already right before her eyes, attempting to slash with his sword.

How many moves had he calculated to bring about this situation? No, had he even calculated them at all?

Unless he was following a beast-like instinct backed by split-second judgment, he couldn’t possibly display such movements.

She felt she now understood how he had survived in the Forest of the Four Seasons since the days when he possessed no power at all.

But even so.

Hwiik!

She had no intention of just taking it. Ash twisted her head, narrowly dodging Grylls’s targeted strike.

Then, sweeping her foot along the ground, she kicked Grylls’s leg to trip him.

No matter how solid his legs were, like sturdy trees, they had to give way if the sensitive joints were targeted.

Bbagak!

While Grylls was forced onto one knee, Ash’s knee struck him squarely in the center of his face.

As she had thought earlier, being a knight or a martial artist meant absolutely nothing.

They were simply fighting.

"You seem to like this kind of fighting?"

Ash thrust her sword toward the staggering Grylls, and—

"This is the only kind of fighting I know."

Grylls countered clearly, charging toward Ash like a wild bull.