Chapter 40
Chapter 40
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: When Meeting the Dead (5)
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As a result, no matter how desperately she struggled, she concluded there was no chance of victory against Nibelis. The difference in their power was that overwhelming.
If there was any hope, it lay in Nibelis's attitude. Unfortunately, the fact that she was off guard held little meaning.
'She does underestimate me, but she doesn't neglect her own defenses...'
Nibelis's carelessness stemmed from her absolute confidence in her defensive abilities. Even if Arietta possessed skills beyond her predictions and caught her off guard, her defenses wouldn't be breached. It was the arrogance of a mage.
Regrettably, Arietta lacked the power to shatter that arrogance. If she unleashed her full might in a killing blow, it might work—but Nibelis wasn't so careless as to allow her that chance.
'I can't escape either.'
With the enemy's goal being her capture, fleeing would be ideal. But the barrier of darkness surrounding them allowed no escape.
'In that case, all I can do is endure and rely on the enemy's complacency.'
Arietta decided to trust her allies. If she held out and bought time, Azel would find a way.
Having thought that far, Arietta suddenly gave a wry smile.
'Since when have I...'
Since when had she come to trust Azel this much? She didn't know. More than any heavenly army or demonic horde, the fact that he was fighting on the same battlefield as her right now filled her with reassurance.
Seeing Arietta's resolute will, Nibelis raised her hand.
"Foolishly choosing to continue a fight with an obvious outcome. It'll only tire us both."
"That arrogance won't last forever, Dragon Demon."
"It's not arrogance."
Flames of darkness surged around the coldly speaking Nibelis. Half-shrouded in shadows, she continued.
"I'm merely stating facts."
5
Frowning as the abomination approached, Azel clicked his tongue inwardly.
'Troublesome. What a pain.'
Azel had plenty of experience dealing with abominations. They were a favored tactic of high-ranking black mages during the Dragon Demon War. Indiscriminate in their targeting, these amalgamations of corpses had inflicted massive casualties on allied forces.
Of course, they weren't particularly frightening to Azel. The issue was that they were annoyingly durable—perfect for stalling against him right now.
'No choice.'
Azel took a calm, deep breath.
Thump!
His heart beat.
Hummm...
The Life Rings resonated with that pulse, amplifying his mana.
Mana flowed through his Spirit Veins, accelerating as it entered the Life Rings. It amplified upon passing the first ring, amplified again through the second, and surged even stronger through the third. Before returning to the Spirit Veins, it drew fuel from the pulsing blood vessels and the faint vibrations of his bones, maximizing the output.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
His heart rate quickened, accelerating the mana racing through his Spirit Veins further. Each pass through his heart increased it exponentially, filling the veins to the brim, spilling into every part of his body, and even overflowing to envelop him.
Fwoooo...
The process was instantaneous. Before the commanded foes could charge and the abomination could close in, Azel completed his mana amplification.
For a Spirit Order practitioner who could freely control his heart's rhythm and every blood vessel in his body, perceived time was subjective—something he could shorten or extend at will. Right now, Azel's perception stretched to its limits.
"Good."
Azel murmured softly.
This body was far from complete. As a mana vessel, it was too small. Compared to his prime, its capacity was less than a tenth.
But that was enough. Because Azel possessed the technique to control even the mana overflowing beyond his body's limits, if only temporarily.
The moment the enemies gave him the leisure to amplify his mana leisurely, they faced a power on an entirely different level.
Graaaaaah!
The abomination lunged. Its strength far exceeded what its size suggested—likely surpassing even an ogre's brute force.
That wasn't all. As a crystallization of curses, mere contact inflicted damage on beings of the present world.
Azel dodged the abomination's hand and retreated. At the same time, he tilted his head slightly.
Swoosh!
A pitch-black blade erupted from the ground, grazing perilously close to his face.
It didn't end there. Black blades surged up continuously, stabbing upward like skewers.
Azel evaded them all with dance-like movements. The instant he stopped, he stomped the ground hard.
Boom!
A light foot stomp shook the entire surface around him.
"Urk...!"
Azel's hyper-activated senses caught a groan from five meters underground. It came from Kirion, the Dragon Demon swimming through the earth to attack.
The stomp transmitted vibrational waves to strike Kirion below. He wanted to follow up and finish him, but there was no time. In that brief moment, the abomination closed the distance and swung its arm.
'Thunder Dragon's Claw!'
Azel slashed along its trajectory at an angle.
Kraroom! Boom!
Another thunderous roar overlapped from Nibelis's attack on Arietta in the distance. Azel's sword unleashed lightning, shredding the unholy giant's arm.
The unexpected thunder made the charging enemies flinch. Only the abomination pressed on heedlessly, reaching out again.
But Azel was no longer there. He'd left an afterimage and circled behind with Flash Step.
Bang!
A blue flash from his sword strike carved a long gash down the abomination's back. Chunks of its impure power scattered as fragments.
"Tough as expected. Annoying."
Azel grumbled. As he pulled back his sword for a follow-up, he thrust behind him.
Boom!
"Kyaaak!"
An explosion rang out, followed by a shrill scream. It was feminine, but the raspy voice made it sound bizarre.
"Surprisingly girly scream. Regina, was it?"
"Ugh..."
Regina groaned. She'd hidden her presence and form with stealth arts, striking at what she thought was a perfect opportunity. Yet Azel had sensed her like a ghost and counterattacked.
Regina lunged at the smirking Azel. Transparent force blades materialized in the air and flew at him.
Instead of parrying, Azel suddenly leaped back. Twisting his body downward, he unleashed a sword strike at an odd angle.
Crack!
"Grk!"
Kirion, bursting from the ground, screamed. He'd timed his ambush for when Azel's focus was on Regina. But Azel had been waiting and cleaved him open.
"Th-this...!"
Kirion groaned, staring at the fountain of blood gushing from his body. His eyes, scarred by Azel's blade across the face, blazed with hatred.
"Azel Zestringer, you bastard...!"
Azel vanished from before him without reply. Moments later, a sphere of darkness detonated there. Azel, having shifted over ten meters in an instant, spoke.
"To think you'd try to hold me with this. Your superior has no grasp of reality."
Four enemies surrounded Azel.
The abomination, Regina, Kirion, and an unfamiliar black mage lurking in the shadows. The latter had just fired the dark sphere.
"Urgh, ughhh...!"
Kirion staggered, gravely wounded. He'd staunched the bleeding with magic, but his condition was dire. To be counterambushed after attempting a sneak attack...
Azel's eyes gleamed coldly.
"No time to play. Time to clean up."
He'd overfilled his body with mana to dispatch them quickly. It granted greater power than normal, but burdened his body heavily and drained mental energy, so it couldn't last long.
In the next instant, Azel vanished.
'What?'
Regina's eyes widened in shock.
No—he reappeared the moment she reacted, preparing Flash Step to strike his presumed back.
And not just one. One behind the abomination, one before Regina, one beside Kirion, one behind the black mage!
'Clones?'
Even Dragon Demons with superhuman senses couldn't distinguish real from fake. In this moment, they all seemed illusory.
"Did you really think hiding so carefully would work?"
The Azel behind the black mage spoke. The mage, realizing his back was taken a beat too late, panicked.
"Eek!"
He reflexively cast a defensive spell. The abomination and Regina rushed toward him.
'That's the real one!'
As he opened his mouth, its presence sharpened, and the illusions vanished. To think he'd so easily pinpoint the hidden black mage and strike first! She Flash Stepped desperately, but too late.
"Graaaak!"
She froze at the scream from behind.
'Why?'
Azel was attacking the black mage—why was it Kirion screaming?
The gravely wounded Kirion had tried burrowing underground the moment Azel moved. His wounds were too severe for a reckless charge.
That's when Azel seized his throat and pierced his heart.
"Guh, guhkk... This can't... be...!"
Kirion died with eyes wide in disbelief. Azel confirmed his death and tossed him aside.
"Those confident in their senses don't fall for this easily."
He dispersed his presence to create clones, then invested real presence into one. Enemies without time to judge properly mistook it for the real one and charged.
The moment their attention locked on the bait, Azel's true body struck their opening. That's how Kirion died.
"And we're not done yet."
"What?"
Regina involuntarily turned at Azel's ominous words.
Stab!
The careless black mage was impaled by a blade rising from the ground.
"Guhk, how in the...!"
The black mage gasped in astonishment.
Snap!
Azel flicked his fingers. Destructive energy spread from the sword piercing the mage, obliterating his heart. The black mage perished without a scream.
Azel had laid a double trap. The first made them mistake the real body and strike from behind; the second activated when they thought it over and let their guard down.
Azel shrugged.
"Getting caught by the same trick every time—makes my job easier."
The second trap was a variant of the one he'd used in the Valan Forest. When felling the beasts, he'd seized their swords, applied concealment arts to hide them perfectly, and deployed them now.
The difference: now Azel could manipulate the thrown objects far more intricately. While the enemies fixated on the clones and recoiled from the "Azel" strike, the hidden sword flew low across the ground, then accelerated upward to skewer the black mage.
"Excluding that one Dragon Demon woman, you're all pushovers. Study up before coming at me?"
Regina shuddered at the sight. An irrepressible terror welled up.
'Just what is this guy's deal?'