Path To Godhood Begins With Marrying Wife And Gaining SSS Rank Skill

The words were calm, but they felt heavier than any shout.

Ruel forced his head up.

He met Ethan’s eyes in the sky which were oozing with coldness.

It seems he wasn’t joking as he radiated killing intent.

Ruel’s heart slammed against his ribs. Sweat soaked his back and ran down his spine. His breath grew rough, and his vision blurred for a moment.

Ethan looked down at him without blinking. His gaze was sharp and merciless, like a blade hanging over someone’s throat.

‘Did you really think you could come here and fuck me in my own home and walk away?’

‘Even if I overlook many things, I am still not a saint, you son of a bitch.’

”Since you refuse to bow..”

Darkness gathered behind Ethan like a rising storm cloud. It twisted and rolled, spreading across the sky. The ground below darkened as a huge shadow stretched outward, swallowing the cracked courtyard.

His voice grew colder.

“You have five seconds to back down.”

CRACK!

Thunder exploded across the sky. The sound shook the air and pressed against everyone’s chest. The darkness behind Ethan thickened, and it pulsed like a living thing.

The Imperial knights at the edge of the field turned pale.

“What is this killing intent…?”

“He wants to kill…”

“He isn’t holding back…”

Their auras rose by instinct, but they were crushed down at once. It felt like standing in front of a giant beast that had just opened its eyes. Their throats felt tight, and their breaths grew shallow.

“Ahh… we are Emperor Realm Knights, yet we feel this…”

“How is he so powerful at the same level…”

Their hands trembled on their weapons. Some swallowed hard. Some could not even move their feet. They looked at Ruel, trapped inside the light cage, and a strange pity rose in their hearts.

He had provoked a monster.

Behind Ethan, a sword of darkness slowly formed. It was long and heavy, shaped from pure shadow. It did not shine. It swallowed light around it. The air near it twisted and sank, as if power itself was being eaten.

It followed the same principle as the Sword of Judgement, but it felt far more dangerous. During months of seclusion, Ethan had shaped this. His mage power and knight power had merged in a strange way.

If that sword struck, it would not just wound. It would erode strength itself.

Ethan’s control was still lacking, and he could only use it once. But Ruel was not moving.

Ethan opened his lips and began to count.

“Five.”

Ruel’s mouth opened.

‘Ahh… I surren—’

‘Surrender… surrender…’

His voice would not come out. His throat felt locked, and his tongue felt heavy.

“Four.”

His body refused to listen. His fingers trembled, but he could not raise his sword.

“Three.”

Fear spread through his eyes. His pride broke, and only survival remained.

“Two—”

“The battle is over! Over!”

Kane’s voice cut across the field like a blade.

The pressure froze at once.

The swords of light stopped in midair. The sword of darkness behind Ethan faded slowly. The storm in the sky weakened.

Silence fell over the courtyard, thick and heavy.

Only the sound of rough breathing remained, and the cold figure of Ethan still floating above, looking down like an emotionless judge.

WHOOSH!

The dark sword humming behind Ethan slowly faded, its shape breaking into strands of shadow that dissolved into the air. At the same time, the swords of light planted in the ground around Ruel began to lose their glow. One by one, they turned into drifting sparks and vanished.

The heavy pressure that had been crushing the courtyard lifted little by little.

“Haaa!”

Ruel gasped and collapsed to his knees. His sword slipped from his fingers and hit the broken stone with a dull sound. He grabbed his own neck as if he had just come up from deep water. His chest rose and fell violently while he dragged in large, desperate breaths, as though he wanted to swallow the air itself.

Dust stuck to the sweat on his face. His arms shook. His whole body felt empty.

When his knees hit the ground, he slowly lifted his head.

Above him, Ethan still floated in the sky.

Ruel stared at him, his eyes unfocused.

‘What is that…?’

‘How…?’

When that last sword had fallen, he had felt it clearly. In that instant, it was as if his fate had already been decided. His mana had slipped out of his control, and his strength had scattered. He had felt like a helpless lamb, unable to resist, just waiting for the blade to fall.

The memory alone made his back grow cold.

Around the courtyard, the silence broke.

The people who had been holding their breath suddenly shouted.

“Lord Ethan!”

“We believe in you, Lord!”

“Yes! We knew you would do it!”

Voices overlapped. Some guards raised their weapons high. Some pounded their fists against their chests. Their faces were red with excitement, and their eyes shone with relief and pride.

Even those from the Empire side watched with changed expressions. The earlier tension had turned into quiet shock.

Kane stepped forward, brushing dust from his sleeve. A faint smile rested on his face.

“Thanks for showing him mercy,” he said, looking up at Ethan.

Ethan slowly descended, his boots touching the cracked ground with a soft sound. The last traces of light and darkness around him disappeared completely. His expression was calm, almost casual, as if nothing major had just happened.

“Haha… How can that be?” Ethan said with a small shrug.

He rolled his shoulders once and looked at Ruel briefly.

“It was just some stupid luck,” he continued. “He underestimated me and allowed me to land sneak attacks.”

His tone was light, but the courtyard still carried the weight of what everyone had seen.

Ruel, still kneeling, lowered his gaze. His fingers dug into the ground. He said nothing. He only breathed, slow and heavy, while the image of Ethan in the sky refused to leave his mind.