Chapter 102
Ami’s stamina and mana had significantly dwindled.
Her body, which had been as well-attached as clay, now took time to recover after being cut once, and the shell that had fiercely protected her was peeling off in places.
Meanwhile, Helion was only slightly out of breath.
Despite consuming a considerable amount of mana and stamina, the power of each magic spell was still unbearable.
This was not only because Ami’s overall situation deteriorated but also proof that Helion’s strength was as abundant as an endlessly flowing spring.
Altife’s mana far surpassed that of an ordinary person, but Helion dismissed it with efficiency.
“Salecius is caught up. Glashalabolas is approaching.”
While continuing the fight, Ami surveyed the battlefield.
Arriving first on the battlefield, Salecius revealed himself not on Ami’s side, but at one end of the battlefield, simultaneously facing Frikkanrisk and Vargan.
The situation seemed favorable at first glance, but it was neck and neck.
A bishop had been sent to catch Vargan, yet that guy seemed to have done nothing and simply died.
They said he was a student, but what… he must be a freak at Helion’s level.
“But that’s okay. If Glashalabolas intervenes, I’ll be able to hunt Helion.”
In reality, Helion had noticed the change on the battlefield and was urgently pushing Ami.
Receiving help from another cardinal, even if they were both archbishops, would be embarrassing. But the situation is what it is.
There was a thought that she might die at Helion’s hands if things went wrong.
That thought suppressed Ami’s long-held pride and triggered her survival instincts.
“I’m not saying it’s cowardly, right? You love gang ups, don’t you?”
Despite the exhausted circumstances of blocking Helion’s magic, Ami spoke with a light smile, teasing her opponent.
Glashalabolas, who could change into various forms, was currently in a flight form pursuing extreme speed.
If his power could be felt, he would arrive in an instant.
“I wanted to savor you slowly, Helion. Unfortunately… it’s time for you to die.”
Ami squeezed out all her remaining strength for a final strike. She released all defenses and poured every bit of power into this attack.
She aimed for Helion’s left side, while the trajectory of Glashalabolas flying in was aimed at his right.
Helion, facing a crisis, focused his gaze.
With the holy power infused in his magic, he crafted two massive shields even more intricately.
Once again, the mana of Ami and Helion clashed.
Anticipating considerable shock, Helion put strength into the feet that touched the ground. Ami pushed forward relentlessly.
Soon, Archbishop Glashalabolas arrived.
As Ami smiled, confident of victory.
Huh?
“Wait, why is the direction…?”
⎯Kuh-Whack!
Her chest was pierced.
Glashalabolas’s muscles, which had rushed at high speed, were fully expanded. The grotesque figure of the monster that landed while dragging its body folded its wings.
Then, hot heat burst forth, and its appearance began to change.
The appearance is changing as it bursts forth.
The folded wings are being forcefully drawn back inside, and in their place, a pair of muscular arms have been added.
The thin legs, planted on the ground, quickly bulge with horse-like muscles that seem ready to burst.
The eyes around him melt away, unable to withstand the temperature.
『…….』
“Well, this is an unexpected situation.”
Helion combines the shields he had gathered in preparation for the shock and condenses them into a sword.
Thump-thump. As the heart held in Glashalabolas’s hand encounters the outside air, it reacts strongly.
The owner of that heart is not Helion, but ‘Archbishop Ami.’
Ami lies on the ground, looking baffled.
Though his heart has been stolen, he still clings to life, emphasizing that this must be a monster.
With rage, Ami spits blood and shouts.
『What are you trying to do, you bastard! Are you mistaking me for a beast with that brain of yours?—!』
At this moment, Ami’s fury surpasses even the moment he first realized Helion’s strength.
He roars with intense anger, realizing that he is not the one standing, but rather lying defeated.
What a ridiculously messed up situation this is!
『Glashalabolas! You half-breed bastard!』
Ami hurls insults at Glashalabolas.
Lying on the ground, unable to move, he glares with bloodshot eyes.
No matter how much Ami curses, Glashalabolas shows no signs of returning his heart.
At this point, a sense of unease begins to creep into Ami’s expression.
Thinking it over, this half-breed wouldn’t move like this on his own judgement. Then, could it be—no way…!
Not wanting to let go of even a shred of hope, Ami speaks.
『…Did the Goddess Church abandon me?』
The action that serves as an answer to that question.
Glashalabolas tightens his grip on the beating red heart, striving to sustain his life. There’s no hesitation. It’s as if he came precisely to do this, crumpling it for certain.
Ami watches with his own eyes as his heart bursts.
The lifeline is severed.
『What the hell…』
With those words being his last, light fades from Ami’s eyes.
Glashalabolas is left with only a round gem taken from the burst heart.
Soon, thousands of souls absorbed over time begin to escape his body into the world.
Like fish fleeing a brook, endless wisps drift out.
Most have already lost their physical forms but fly towards somewhere in the world.
One of them slips into Helion’s left arm.
Suddenly, the once decayed appearance transforms, regaining vitality.
Helion moves what he realizes is his left arm again. After 15 years, his fingers move.
“…….”
Though it could bring feelings of nostalgia, Helion looks down calmly at Ami’s lifeless body.
His form scatters like dust and is carried off by a light breeze. It’s a death so empty and light that it renders the title of Archbishop meaningless.
『Crrrk.』
The one who caused all this, Glashalabolas, opens another mouth on his chest to absorb the core of Ami in his hand.
The more beings he consumes, the stronger Glashalabolas becomes. Helion is aware of this information.
He doesn’t just sit back and watch.
With his senses barely returning in his left arm, before the restored soul can even settle, he charges fiercely, swinging a sword that purifies evil with amplified mana.
It’s an explosive speed that would astonish anyone.
Such movement and power wouldn’t seem out of place for a Swordmage.
Had the opponent not been Glashalabolas, it would surely have been purified in an instant.
Ami, who had unleashed Liberation, could only barely hold back Helion’s magic.
Glashalabolas blocks it with his shield-like skin made of thick leather and bone.
Makkoneun.
『Grrr.』
He exhaled roughly.
The Archbishop’s eyes gleamed. They looked no different from a wild beast’s, seemingly craving combat and blood.
Glashalabolas, despite Helion’s interference, forcefully shoved Ami’s core into his mouth, which was pierced into his chest.
As a result, the drumming from his body became so violent that those nearby could hear it. Saliva dripped from his gnashing teeth, and his muscles writhed.
“…!”
Before Ami’s power could settle, Helion used his unique magic to kill Glashalabolas. This guy was dangerous and had to be dealt with immediately!
If his first unique spell had been applied on a large scale, this was a spell meant to annihilate one single entity.
With his right hand pulled back, Helion prepared to thrust like a spear. It contained a blindingly white light.
Glashalabolas sensed the impending crisis beyond all five senses and transformed his body.
⎯⎯!!
Helion’s thrust pierced forward.
As the light and sound of the world vanished, his white light seemed to devour the Archbishop from vision itself, aiming to obliterate the target’s existence.
For just a moment, it was as if a flashbang had gone off; the brilliance that had been revealed immediately disappeared, leaving behind the aftermath.
“…”
There was nothing in front of Helion.
This wasn’t because his attack had actually hit and obliterated the target.
He felt no sensation of being consumed, only the lingering traces of writhing purple mana remained.
It seemed he merely altered his appearance; there must have been another form for emergency escape.
“…I let him slip away.”
Archbishop Glashalabolas managed to escape from Helion’s unique spell.
*
Vargan was able to keep Salecius at bay using Alicia’s illusions.
In the end, while Salecius was allowed to flee, he left behind significant damage on her.
…….
After that, the battlefield changed rapidly.
The warrior of their leader, Ami.
With both Archbishops gone, the battlefield was quickly organized.
With the leader losing his life, the soldiers’ morale plummeted, leading them to flee.
The highest number of casualties in war happens when the tide turns, and it becomes a hunt to chase down fleeing enemies. Capturing those who have lost their fighting spirit is less about war and more about hunting.
Aside from the two bishop-class beings and twenty priest-class beings kept alive for experimentation and torture, the rest were annihilated to dust.
On the hero’s side, there were many injuries, but not a single fatality. It was due to the hard work of Helion and his party.
They managed to capture an Archbishop and eliminate his remaining followers, thus saving Dortmund.
Before the war, the atmosphere surrounding Dortmund had been grim due to matters related to the divine beast and Craine, but it completely transformed after these events.
People sang praises for the heroes, and donations flowed into the church as a gesture of gratitude and worship.
Among those being praised were Vargan and Finn, former students from Academia, who, despite their young age, had contributed greatly to performing miracles, becoming significant topics of positive conversation.
Especially Vargan, a descendant of the prestigious Schugenharz.
“…Tch.”
The protagonist, Vargan, now sat in a hospital room.
In stark contrast to the cheers outside, he wore a deep frown that wouldn’t relent. He felt extremely uncomfortable.
Reflecting on the moments from the battlefield.
No matter how much mana he had, outputting it to the extreme had strained his mana circuits.
His senses became strange due to the curse from Salecius, and the red aura had left wounds that barely stopped bleeding.
Even though he successfully cursed away one of Salecius’s arms using every possible means, it would heal within days.
From the public’s perspective, an incredible genius who had yet to become an official hero had defeated an Archbishop alongside a wounded divine beast.
While others showered him with endless praises, he felt a near-humiliation from the bitterness of his experiences.
He was busy praising endlessly, but the person in question felt a sting close to humiliation.
“Wasn’t there a way to bring about better results?”
He reflected on the past, considering various options.
While it was good to know there were alternatives, the scope was narrow.
What method should have been used to maintain the upper hand?
How could he have obtained the Judgment Weapon without losing Ami’s powers?
He burned through his emotions as he simulated multiple scenarios.
This wasn’t so much a trait of Vargan from the novel, but rather his inherent nature.
……
While he was engrossed in thought, he belatedly noticed Helion had entered.
Helion scanned Vargan’s full body and remarked, “It’s a miracle that neither an arm nor a leg is missing.”
The damage Vargan had suffered was significant.
He normally wouldn’t show any pain, but during the treatment, he could have screamed without anyone finding it strange.
Vargan briefly paused his many ongoing simulations and looked at Helion.
“Instead, one of my precious Familiars has been seriously hurt.”
“Don’t you think it’s fortunate that it’s just one Familiar?”
“It’s ‘a’ Familiar that got seriously hurt!”
Taesan, whose hand had been severed, recovered in no time.
However, his Familiar, Eon, who had always protected him like a shadow, was cut in half by a red aura during the intense confrontation with Salecius, and would take a considerable time to fully recover.
For now, Vargan had ordered him to rest in his shadow.
If he didn’t give orders, he would definitely jump out on his own to be a shield again.
“Even though Familiars struggle due to their nature, I think I can help with Vargan’s condition.”
Helion had just come back from restoring Finn’s condition perfectly.
The power of the High Magician Helion wasn’t just in his physical strength.
“It’ll only take a moment.”
Magic unfolded immediately.
Helion’s healing magic was visible.
What that means is, the recovery process unfolded vividly before his eyes.
The parted flesh began to fill in as the damaged skin regrew.
It’s why this has been called a ‘miracle’ of the saint.
Continuing the healing, Helion conveyed, “Once your condition recovers to a certain extent, Vargan will be summoned to the Church. Not for interrogation, but there are many who are curious about you.”
“I hate bothersome things.”
“They wouldn’t just let the person who faced Frikkanrisk and the Archbishop off the hook.”
“Well, that makes sense.”
Vargan showed a nonchalant attitude, as he expected this.
Helion threw in a topic that could pique the seemingly emotionless Vargan’s interest.
“Since there’s still plenty of time left in the mentoring period, once the matter in Dortmund is wrapped up, we’ll start serious training for both you and Finn.”
“It wouldn’t be a problem to start learning from now… or so I’d like to say, but it seems there’s still one task left.”
“One task?”
Vargan responded to his question.
Cardinal Jephar is ultimately part of the path Vargan intends to take. He plans to prepare and step lightly on it in the future.
Even if he took a hit, there’s much to gain from this episode, and he can repay it later.
For now, he was still in the process.
A time of preparation for the future.
Hadn’t he sown the seeds quite extensively throughout the episodes in Dortmund?
“The task of punishing the criminal remains.”
The time for the first harvest had arrived.
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