The Ability to Shift Anything is Convenient, Even in Another World!

The air around the greatsword stirred, drawn toward it in an unseen current. Reika, unsure of what was happening, activated her ability to see into the metaphysical realm.

Her purple eyes glowed as she peered beyond the ordinary, revealing the familiar gray fog from before, now flowing toward the greatsword.

The fog condensed, drawn into the blade. Within seconds, a deep red glow engulfed it—a manifestation of aura. The sword pulsed with raw energy, completely assimilating the crimson substance.

Alguis stiffened, his eyes widening at the overwhelming surge of power.

"That heavy aura of his... such pressure!"

Agnar gripped the greatsword tightly with both hands. Steadying his stance, he adjusted his balance, preparing to unleash a devastating strike.

"Fourth Style: Mountain’s Descent!!"

With a single, powerful cleave, a surge of raw energy hurtled toward Alguis. Without hesitation, Alguis swung his hammeraxe through the air.

<Earth Surge!>

He brought the weapon down with all his strength, slamming it into the ground. The earth buckled, sending waves of soil crashing forward to meet Agnar’s attack.

"YOUR RESISTANCE IS FUTILE, ALGUIS!!"

The two forces collided in an earth-shaking impact, a deafening boom tearing through the battlefield. Though Alguis had managed to counter the strike, the resulting tremors rippled outward, reaching the nearby village. Houses crumbled under the force, reduced to rubble. His defense wasn’t strong enough to fully absorb the impact, but it was enough to keep himself and those around him from being caught in the destruction.

"Huff... Huff..." Alguis panted, gripping his hammeraxe tightly.

"Is that all you've got, Alguis!?"

Agnar lifted his greatsword once more, its blade gleaming with raw power.

"Let's see if you can block it again!"

Alguis, exhausted, watched as Agnar began charging his weapon. His eyes darted to the unconscious forms of Völun and Aeden lying in the distance.

Damn it! If he unleashes that attack again, the village will be completely wiped out!

As Agnar waited for the sword to condense the fog into aura once more, something flickered in his peripheral vision.

"Wha—"

Reacting instinctively, he halted the charging process and raised his sword to intercept the incoming attack. His technique was canceled as the projectile struck the blade, detonating on impact in a burst of fire and force.

As the flames died down, Agnar looked around, searching for the one who had ambushed him. In the distance, two silhouettes stood against the fading glow, a strange figure hovering beside them. It was Reika and Veylir.

"I... I did it!" Reika exclaimed, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"I can't believe it! With that ability, you can access all of my powers! Uh, what was it called again? Sub... Subjective—"

"Who are you people!?" Agnar's voice thundered across the battlefield, cutting Veylir off mid-sentence. Stunned, she fell silent.

"Uh..." Reika mumbled, suddenly unsure of herself.

Agnar's grip tightened on his greatsword as he raised it once more.

"You dare interrupt my fight?!"

He shifted into an offensive stance, his piercing gaze locked onto them.

"Since you had the guts to throw a fireball at my face, then you must be one of his subordinates!"

Without hesitation, Agnar lunged forward, closing the distance in an instant. Reika's breath hitched as panic surged through her, but Veylir's voice cut through the fear, steady and reassuring. Guided by its presence, she forced herself to act.

<F-Flame Blitz!>

Five fireballs flared to life around Reika in an instant.

"Go!"

At her command, they shot forward, streaking toward Agnar in rapid succession. But facing one of the continent’s top Swordmasters was no simple feat.

Agnar extended his hand toward his greatsword, flooding it with aura. The energy spread in an instant, enveloping the entire blade in a dense, crimson glow.

The fireballs closed in, but with swift, fluid movements, Agnar cut through them effortlessly. One by one, they were severed, their flames vanishing into nothing. Not a single ember reached him.

Her bombardment had failed spectacularly. She had landed her attack, yet to Agnar, it meant nothing.

"What the hell was that?! It’s like he saw every projectile before they even landed!" Reika exclaimed.

Meanwhile, Alguis watched the battle unfold, his mind racing.

An opening!

Reika gritted her teeth and pushed herself harder, summoning even more fireballs to overwhelm Agnar with sheer numbers.

"Ghk! I can't...!"

"Reika! Don’t rely on just one ability!" Veylir urged. "I have plenty more in my arsenal—try something else!"

"Are you kidding me?! If I switch abilities for even a second, that guy will kill me on the spot!" Reika shot back, barely keeping up with Agnar’s relentless defense.

Agnar unleashed a massive slash, his aura-infused blade cutting through the air. The fireballs detonated on impact, their explosions fizzling out before they could even reach him.

"Playtime’s over, kid!"

Without hesitation, he charged toward Reika, showing no signs of stopping. She barely had time to react—still in the middle of setting up her next ability.

"Hyaaaaah!!"

But in his relentless pursuit, Agnar failed to notice Alguis closing in from behind. To Alguis, Reika’s desperate attacks had created a rare, perhaps even final, opportunity to take Agnar down.

Silent as a shadow, Alguis shifted his grip on his hammeraxe. Using the hammerhead, he swung with everything he had, pouring every last ounce of strength into the strike.

Agnar, too focused on Reika, barely managed to raise his blade in defense. But the impact was overwhelming. The sheer force shattered the greatsword into pieces.

Then, the hammer struck true. The moment the metal connected with Agnar’s face, a brutal shockwave tore through his body. He was sent hurtling backward, crashing into the ground and rolling multiple times before coming to a stop.

"GHAAAK!!"

Agnar's body convulsed from the brutal impact. His head throbbed with an intense concussion, pain flooding his senses. Blood streamed from the wound, staining the ground beneath him. His ears rang with a piercing whine, each pulse sending fresh agony through his skull.

"Koff! Khakk!"

Seconds passed, and the ringing began to fade, replaced by the slow, deliberate sound of footsteps dragging across the dirt. Through blurred vision, Agnar saw a figure approaching—Alguis, battered but resolute, forcing himself forward.

"This is the end, Agnar!"

Agnar's eyes trembled. He tried to move, to force himself upright, but his body refused to obey. The damage was too great. His strength was failing.

"No... I won't let it end like this..!"

Alguis raised his hammeraxe, its edge gleaming in the dim light. He tilted it slightly, aiming the blade at Agnar’s neck.

"I know this is too much… but I can't forgive you for the innocent lives lost at your hands!"

With a swift, decisive swing, the axe carved through flesh and bone.

SPLAT!!

Agnar’s head hit the ground with a dull thud, rolling across the dusty earth. Silence settled over the battlefield, heavy and suffocating.

Everyone stood frozen, their eyes locked onto the lifeless body before them. Agnar, one of the strongest swordsmen on the continent, had fallen in front of their very eyes—cut down by the former Dwarven King, Alguis.

Alguis released his grip on the hammeraxe, letting it remain embedded in the ground. He stared into Agnar’s lifeless eyes, saying nothing as the weight of the battle settled over him.

"Hah... Hah... Hah..."

His breath came in ragged gasps as he scanned the battlefield. His gaze landed on Aeden, lying unconscious—a casualty of her own battle with Agnar.

Without hesitation, Alguis hurried to her side and reached into his pocket, fumbling through its contents. Seconds later, his fingers closed around a small, elongated bottle. Uncorking it, he revealed a shimmering green liquid inside.

Carefully, he tilted Aeden’s head back and parted her lips, slowly pouring the substance into her mouth.

Meanwhile, Reika knelt beside Völun, trying to assess his injuries. Before she could do much, movement in the distance caught her eye. Turning, she saw Silas and several others arriving at the scene.

She rose to her feet, Soru following close behind as they met the newcomers.

"What happened here?" Silas asked, surveying the aftermath.

Reika exhaled, glancing back at Alguis.

"A lot happened... but that man ended the fight." Reika replied softly.

Alguis approached Völun and opened his mouth, carefully letting the green substance flow in.

After a moment, both Aeden and Völun coughed in unison. Völun’s eyes fluttered open, and as he regained awareness, he saw Alguis kneeling before him.

"M-My king... Cough! Cough!"

"Relax, Völun. Take a deep breath and recuperate..."

On the other side, Aeden groaned, holding her injured shoulder as she struggled to stand.

"Ghk!"

Noticing her reckless movement, Alguis stepped forward and placed a firm hand on her shoulder, stopping her.

"Don't make unnecessary movements, Aeden."

Hearing his words, Aeden exhaled and carefully sat back down.

With the situation under control, Alguis turned to Reika. He stepped closer, then bowed his head.

"Thank you, young woman, for helping me deal with him..."

Völun and Aeden, still weak but alert, widened their eyes at the sight of their king bowing to a human. Alarmed, they stood and slowly approached.

"My king! You don't have to do that!"

Alguis tilted his head slightly to the left, acknowledging their words but remaining still.

"It's fine. Doing this is an act of courtesy."

"But my king, you're a person with a high status—"

"Being a noble has nothing to do with this."

Their expressions shifted upon hearing his words. Alguis let out a deep sigh.

"Sigh... I couldn’t protect this village properly without the help of others. I am unfit to be king..."

Völun clenched his fist and placed it against his chest.

"But still, killing Agnar is one of your greatest feats, my king! That’s why my loyalty will remain until my last breath!"

Aeden followed suit, mirroring Völun’s gesture.

"I agree! We will follow you until the end of our lives!"

Alguis smiled at them.

"I told you to drop that honorific already..."

As they spoke, Reika, who had been listening quietly, finally stepped forward.

"Sorry to interrupt, but would you mind telling me what exactly is going on?"

Alguis turned to her, but before he could answer, Völun scowled and snapped, "For a human to disturb our king’s conversation—"

Before he could finish, Alguis raised a hand. The gesture was enough. Völun fell silent as Alguis shifted his attention to Reika.

"We were chased by several men who tried to assassinate us, including that person over there. Unfortunately, the village got caught up with this mess..."

Silas narrowed his eyes. "What did you do to make them chase you this far?"

Alguis sighed, lowering his head.

"After my son staged a coup d'état, the first thing he did was exile me, never allowing me to set foot in the Dwarven Kingdom again."

Aeden and Völun clenched their fists as Alguis revealed the truth.

One of the villagers hesitated before asking, "Since you were the only one exiled, why did these people follow you?"

"Because our loyalty is to the king!" Völun declared without hesitation.

"That’s right! We’ll follow him to the ends of the earth, exiled or not!" Aeden added.

Alguis smiled at their words. "You guys..."

As he gazed at his loyal subordinates, his vision blurred. His body wobbled slightly.

"Urk..."

Aeden and Völun immediately rushed to his side, supporting him.

"My king!"

"Let me... rest a bit over there..." Alguis weakly pointed to a spot in the distance.

"We apologize for interrupting, but our king needs rest. Now, if you’ll excuse us..." Aeden said before leading Alguis away.

Völun followed, supporting Alguis as they walked, and the crowd slowly began to disperse.

Meanwhile, Silas turned to the villagers. "Gather whatever belongings you can—clothes, food, tools, anything useful."

They quickly obeyed, searching through the wreckage. Fortunately, thanks to their swift evacuation, no one had lost their life. The sturdiness of Silas’ house had shielded them when the tremors struck.

"Look at that craftsmanship," one villager remarked. "It withstood the worst of it. But still..."

They turned their gazes to the rest of the village. Most of the houses had collapsed, unable to withstand the battle’s destruction. Only Silas’ home remained standing, but even the well—their only water source—had been reduced to rubble.

"Sigh... Rebuilding will take weeks, maybe longer," one villager muttered. "And with so few of us, it'll be impossible to finish anytime soon."

As they discussed the situation, Silas suddenly strode over, his expression darkening.

"Hey, you muscle-brained idiots! Why are there corpses lying in front of my house?"

The village men froze as they suddenly remembered the corpses they had gathered earlier.

"Uh... W-We were going to bury them hours ago, but we needed your presence. We searched for you, but when we couldn't find you, we got caught up in everything else, and the burial got postponed..."

Silas scowled. "You delayed it yourselves! And who told you a burial needs an elder’s presence? You could’ve done it without me!"

The men lowered their heads in silence.

"We thought that—"

"Enough excuses! Get the tools and bury them immediately!"

"Y-Yes, Elder!"

Without another word, they scattered, hurrying to gather what they needed.

Silas exhaled heavily, rubbing his forehead as he surveyed the ruined village. The sight before him was nothing but destruction and despair.

"Sigh... How do we even fix this mess?"

 ...

Alguis watched the villagers as they gathered what little they could from the wreckage. Some searched for their belongings, while others stood in silence, staring at the ruins of their homes. Cries of despair echoed through the village.

Damn it! If only I were strong enough to withstand his attacks... Maybe I could have—

A small poke on his left arm pulled him from his thoughts. He turned and saw a young girl holding a flower in her tiny hands.

"Mister, thank you for saving us from the bad guys!"

Her bright smile caught him off guard. For a moment, the weight on his shoulders lightened. He let out a quiet chuckle, patting her head before taking the flower.

"N-No problem!" He gave her a thumbs-up.

The girl giggled, her eyes gleaming with joy.

"Ehehe!"

"Alex! Don't bother that mister and help me over here!" her mother called from a distance.

The girl glanced back at Alguis one last time before running off. He watched her go, his grip tightening around the flower as he let out a slow breath.

"Coming!"

The girl ran off, her laughter fading into the distance.

Alguis looked down at the flower in his hand, its delicate petals untouched despite the destruction around him. A small smile formed on his lips as he stood, dusting off his clothes.

"I've made up my mind. Instead of wallowing in guilt, I need to take responsibility for the damage I've caused."

His gaze shifted to Aeden and Völun, resting beneath a nearby tree.

"Aeden! Völun! I need to talk to you!"

At his call, both warriors immediately grabbed their weapons and approached him.

"Do you have some time to spare?" Alguis asked.

"Uh... yes, my king!" Aeden straightened up. "After some rest, we've regained most of our strength!"

"Good. Since you’re both ready, I need your help with something. Follow me."

Without hesitation, Aeden and Völun fell in step behind Alguis. As they walked, he explained his plan. Their path led them toward the forest, and soon, the three disappeared into the shadows of the trees.