No one here could have predicted that anyone would breach Ser’s spirit and Delia’s detection magic to reach the rear.
The resulting confusion had a significant impact on Hermila’s movements.
Huff, puff, the trajectory of her fist was thrown off.
With a tsst, Hermila retracted her outstretched fist and yanked at the roots of the plants strapped to her waist. Crack– countless roots buried in the ground pulled Hermila’s body back. At the same time, a formless sword sliced past her bangs.
“What the hell…”
Delia’s trembling voice.
“Focus on the battle for now!”
Ser’s sharp voice cut through and drowned out Delia’s words.
Intermittent sound of waves slicing through the air at the rear.
An unending barrage from the Masters.
Amid the absurd battle, Ser’s mind raced on. Weighing the pros and cons that would arise from her decisions.
“Gah-! Delia!”
Behind Hermila’s urgent shout, swish– the formless sword strike shot towards Delia. Immediately, borrowing the power of Karma, the space where the blade would land warped entirely.
Then the second wave of attacks surged, slicing through a towering steel barrier and scattering into the air.
Delia regained her composure and a faint electric current flowed from the tip of her wand. The current coursed through the ground, reaching Karuso’s toes and erupting from his body.
An instant of stiffness arose.
Yet, to those gathered here, that moment felt eternal. Hermila’s punch clung to that fleeting instant, shooting towards Karuso’s back, where Aran stood with his shield raised.
However, crackle– the ground was suddenly swept away by rising teeth, unable to touch Aran’s body.
Crack-
Just like before, the roots of the plants connected to Hermila surrounded her and pulled her back.
In the tumultuous pull, Hermila’s gaze landed on the Master Vamilion, who was preparing a large-scale holy magic.
“Delia! Mia!”
Just a simple shout.
Yet, the two understood the hidden meaning behind Hermila’s call.
A tiny current that rose from the tip of the wand extended toward the sky, merging with the clouds. Arrows shot along the path made by the current, intertwining with it and taking on the form of a Qilin.
With a sharp roar, the Qilin opened its mouth and started descending towards Vamilion.
Aran raised his shield towards the heavens. In response, his unique ability and the unbreakable barrier expanded solidly around them.
Thus, the arrow of the Qilin that would tear everything asunder clashed with the unyielding wall.
———!!
The sound as if the sky were collapsing.
A gigantic rumble that shook the very ground.
A grotesque light illuminating the darkened ruins.
In the chaotic battlefield, where neither mana waves nor any perceptible senses existed, countless spirits, serving as Ser’s eyes, did not miss the manifestation of the holy magic flowing from Vamilion’s sword.
Between the ceaseless waves of explosion, a wind carrying Ser’s voice brushed past Yuria and Alex’s ears.
No reason was needed.
Trusting Ser’s head and judgment, Yuria and Alex began to fulfill their roles.
Thud-
Blue plants rapidly thickened, turning the desolate ruins lush.
Beneath, rough steel barriers shot up.
Just as the giant barriers were about to completely cover their forms.
Chwaaaa-
Golden chains fell from the sky, enveloping the area.
The holy magic that sealed the space, sacrificing the caster’s lifespan and part of their body.
The chains of sanctity.
The second Master Vamilion’s holy magic, which even sealed Tylant, began to manifest.
The magic that had been swirling in the air came to a halt.
Amidst that, the flow of oxygen ceased.
The shape of the Qilin, clashing against the unbreakable barrier, began to fade.
Hermila’s momentum coming through.
The electric currents that had been pervading the area.
The sharp steel spikes.
Arrows like spears.
The plants that had been spreading out thickly.
Every gesture commanding the spirits.
All motion, except for the spirits, came to a standstill.
No time for confusion.
As soon as the chains of sanctity unfurled, Ser immediately began absorbing the spirits’ information into her mind.
Dividing roles, strategizing the numbers.
Allocating positions and granting new tasks.
The spirits began to move in order. At the same time, Karuso wielding dual swords and Ghetto brandishing a great sword vanished.
The gaping maw of Fenrir unfolded upon the ground.
The Master, Aria, holding the rosary, began to cast a large-scale spell.
The spirits’ power lifted the ground.
A fierce gale swept through the stilled air.
A huge curtain of fire erupted.
Yet the Masters’ attacks raged on.
The fangs of Fenrir gradually closed in.
The formless blades that butchered the spirits surged forth.
Dozens of hands imbued with the wrath of humans.
The chains of sanctity gradually took shape.
Darkness surged.
Light raged.
The swirling wind grasped the space.
The undulating earth enveloped them.
Fenrir’s fangs dug into Delia’s ankle.
Two swords arrived at Ser’s neck.
Thousands of hands strangled Hermila.
The chains from the heavens encircled all.
And then.
Crack-
The wave of devastation bursting from Hermila’s body devoured her lifespan, creating fractures in the chains.
The new form of Hermila regained her freedom.
She materialized in front of Ser.
After forcefully batting aside the two swords that had come her way, she embraced Delia and Ser, pulling them away.
At the same time, the spirits’ mysteries manifested.
The dark information that permeated all surrounding life.
The lights that illuminated their exterior.
The wind that dominated the space.
The information from the earth that gauged their positions.
Countless pieces of information, unfathomable to human comprehension, slammed into Ser’s mind.
A pain akin to her brain twisting.
A suffering as though her entire body was shattering and splintering.
In a situation where if she lost her focus for even a moment she would perish, Ser’s mind gave birth to a new mystery.
Not magic.
But a revelation through the spirits’ power.
A large-scale spatial movement.
Snap-
The finger of the highest spirit, Lin, snapped.
The very space around them.
Shift-
Was transferred.
“Gah… Hooo, whew.”
“Hey, you… your condition-”
Shaking her head at Delia, who rushed over, trying to wipe the blood flowing down her face.
“There’s no time to worry about anyone else. We must continue the fight.”
“But…”
Delia couldn’t finish her thought.
Once again, the detection magic unfolded, revealing the scattered figures of their companions.
Moreover.
Crack-
“Ugh-!”
The cursed hands rushed towards Delia.
“Listen while fighting.”
Already plunging into darkness, Ser began to speak rapidly.
“Each of you will face one opponent. I’ve matched you with Masters whose compatibility isn’t terrible. You don’t need to win. Just hold on. I will subdue that thief as quickly as possible and join you. Just hang on until I get there.”
Ser’s desperate plea, audible only to Delia, mingled with a gentle breeze and reached the other four challengers.
Fwoom-!
Raging purplish flames distorted the unbreakable barrier, signaling the beginning of a new battle.
*
“Ughkh… AAAAH!”
Kaboom– the hastily released gravity tore through the ground, forming a massive cliff.
“Ugh… Ugh, absolutely, can’t… let you pass.”
Weaving unsteadily, Heinzel, despite the poison-laden spells sticking to his body, refused to yield.
Nerve-crippling toxins, muddling his senses, conjuring hallucinations, leading him slowly toward death amidst endless pain.
Yet Heinzel would not bend.
Dragging his nails across his skin, biting his tongue, he clung valiantly to consciousness.
He knew he couldn’t win.
But he couldn’t collapse.
He couldn’t break.
No matter what, he had to endure and stand firm.
He mustn’t let the enemy pass, even by grabbing onto their pants.
Such thoughts and iron will propelled Heinzel into motion.
Huffing, he steadied his resolve, exhaling with difficulty.
His nerves were paralyzed, his limbs unresponsive.
He exerted mana to twist his muscles into movement.
His senses tangled.
He adapted to the chaos.
He just had to best all the phantoms conjured by his hallucinations.
A multitude of needles of pain surged through his veins.
He bore it.
“AAAAAH!”
Crack- BOOM-!
With the many spells converging before him dispatched, Heinzel lunged forward.
He swung the now useless halberd like a club, making a dull sound as the back of the assassin bent.
Fwoosh– Mute’s body was torn apart.
Yet he felt nothing in his hands.
Hallucination.
Twisting gravity shifted his stance. Crack- the enemy’s dagger slid off the halberd’s shaft just narrowly. He heard the sound, but felt nothing.
Hallucination.
As soon as he realized it, countless spells surged towards Heinzel.
It was dangerous. He needed to widen the distance.
Boom-, he kicked the ground violently, forcibly increasing the space between himself and Mute as the earth erupted.
“Ugh… argh…”
With great effort, he removed the spell lodged in his thigh.
Rip- the blade peeled away like a petal, tearing his muscles and blood vessels.
Heinzel welcomed the pain.
For it revived the fading sensation in his legs.
The moment he adjusted his posture again.
From the sky, numerous chains cascaded down, enveloping the area in a mist that erupted from Mute’s body.
The guise of deception.
He couldn’t find Mute’s form.
He couldn’t see the incoming spells.
He couldn’t sense approaching death.
In the echoing void where nothing could be heard.
A sword plunged into Heinzel’s waist.
A dagger pierced his spine.
An unknown blade split his muscle.
His right eye was clawed out.
His toes were severed.
His ankles were cut.
At last, his knees were reduced to naught.
Thus,
The blades.
Gradually.
Crawled up his waist.
To Heinzel’s heart.
Hallucination.
“AARRRHHHH!”
Boom-!
With all the strength he could muster, his roar, coupled with the surge of mana, awakened Heinzel’s spirit.
The fog cleared.
His dulled senses returned.
Countless spells that had been embedded in his body scattered into the air.
The wounds that had been gaping around began to bleed anew.
Thick blood sprayed across the ground.
What remained was:
The earth overturned by gravity.
And the tattered body of Heinzel.
And.
A smirking Mute.
And Aria cradling Rubia.
“What…”
“…when did…”
The sobering voices of Heinzel, whose throat cracked, and Ser, who had just arrived, echoed through the thick dust.
In the outpost where Rubia lay asleep, countless barriers swirled around.
The very barriers that Ser believed would take at least half an hour to set up, even if she did it herself.
It must have taken no less than an hour to unravel them.
Which means.
They had infiltrated the rear since the standoff on the battlefield.
No.
Perhaps.
They may have been lying in wait in this very spot from the beginning.
“Finally over, huh?”
Aria’s annoyingly sweet voice slipped out, and with it, the cursed grasp that had been clinging to Heinzel’s body crack– twisted him.
Not an illusion, but the real thing.
Heinzel, whose body was soaked in curses, collapsed to the ground, and thick blood continually gushed from his mouth.
“Watching weaklings struggle pathetically is hilarious.”
With a giggle, Aria’s cursed fingers slowly tore at Rubia’s clothing.
“What should we do with this troublesome little Shaman who made us work so hard? Strip her naked and hang her in the imperial capital? Or toss her into a pit with the experiment subjects fed aphrodisiacs? Even if we end up in paradise, we still need the Shaman’s blood, so we need her seeds.”
Mustn’t miss this chance.
If they let them go like this, everything will come to an end.
In such a dire situation, subduing them was impossible.
They had to kill.
Using ‘that’ now would mess up all plans, but there would be enough time to buy.
Trust must be placed.
In Hermila.
In those who followed her.
Even if Brunhilde awakens.
No matter what happens, Rubia could surely be kept safe.
Someday, she would also welcome Noah after passing the trials.
If so.
Here,
I must act.
With my eyes closed, I stared at the door connecting me to the spirit realm.
Feeling the connected path.
The purpose, direction, start, and end.
All of it.
Slowly, the moment I opened my mouth.
i crackled-*
“…Huh?”
Aria’s voice, laced with confusion.
And then.
Through the haze, I heard a voice that sounded as if it were scraping the bottom of the abyss.
“Get lost.”
Echoed through the ruins.
