Chapter 262
Chapter 262
Chapter 262
VS Abel (1)
Without anyone saying anything, they kicked off from their positions toward each other.
Surprisingly, the time it took for them to collide was quite long—not much different from the speed at which ordinary swordsmen would charge.
Of course, even though it was "ordinary," that standard was among the highest tier of humanity.
'I can see it.'
The sword path Abel intended to take.
And his overall strategy.
'Does he plan to start normally by gauging my capabilities?'
He could see the virtual sword paths densely surrounding him from all directions.
Truly the perfect movement of a swordsman who had reached the extreme.
However, unless he used Genesis Energy, that was something that only worked in the human world.
'I'll counter it.'
Rudian's sword seemed to waver slightly.
And then immediately...
CLANG!
With a tremendous roar, both sword blades were knocked backward.
"...!"
Not expecting his attack to be countered with pure swordsmanship, Abel's eyes changed to an expression of surprise.
"Sorry, but I can read this level well enough now."
Rudian's pure swordsmanship level was upper-tier Sword Master.
Originally, it would have been nearly impossible to counter Abel's strike—which far surpassed Grand Master level—with pure swordsmanship capability.
"Completing oneself doesn't just refer to energy alone."
During the 200-year period, Rudian had also elevated his swordsmanship capability beyond his current wall to reach the true realm of Grand Master.
Of course, Abel was still far ahead in pure skill, but reading sword paths and countering like this was possible.
"Instead of half-heartedly trying to test me, why don't you just use Genesis Energy?"
Genesis Energy—the power of this world's protagonist that had evolved completely separate from the seven powers.
That power could be called Abel's unique "answer" to chaos, refined in his own way.
But Abel ignored Rudian's suggestion and began moving his lips.
"...Chaos Domain."
"...Damn bastard."
Abel still seemed intent on testing Rudian, as he began chanting a 10th Class hostile spell this time.
—Chaos Ball.
WHOOSH!
Dozens of chaos spheres materialized around Abel through magic.
The absolute annihilation power that would cause ordinary matter to vanish upon mere contact.
The reason Abel specifically chose Chaos Ball—the most basic and versatile spell in the Chaos Domain—rather than other 10th Class magic was clearly...
'It's as if he's testing how I'll respond.'
In that case, Rudian was confident he could pass that test with high marks.
WHOOOOO!
The mind of sword-wielding Rudian rapidly settled.
"Chaos Domain."
"What?"
Finally, dialogue burst from Abel, who had said nothing until now.
Toward such Abel, Rudian grinned and said:
"Material Elimination."
From Rudian's body as the origin point, chaotic waves arose that deleted all surrounding matter.
Rudian smirked at the wide-eyed Abel.
"I told you to bring out Genesis Energy."
The method of implementing lower-law magic by reverse-rotating Shub's divinity from before.
The Chaos Domain that Rudian had created now was using that exact method again.
The spinning, charging Chaos Balls met the annihilation force.
KRRRRRRRR!
So what happens when chaos created by another clashes with one's own chaos?
Unlike ordinary elemental magic, if it were originally pure chaos, the moment they meet they would mix and create even greater energy.
But that was only the case for 'pure' chaos, and chaos woven in different ways denies each other's existence even more intensely and violently than ordinary elemental magic.
RUMMMMMBLE!
When two types of chaos collide like this, massive energy flows out from the collision point...
Depending on the power, mutual annihilation comparable to the Big Bang occurs.
"Crazy bastards, they don't know the meaning of moderation."
The Administrator, watching such massive physical force explode, muttered curses quietly toward the two.
Waves of darkness bursting forth with the momentum to shatter an entire dimension.
At the center, the origin of those waves, Rudian and Abel were still clashing without caring about the surrounding damage.
"What kind of suffering is this because of these damn brats..."
The Administrator, who had quietly grumbled, stretched his hand toward the sky and muttered softly.
"Turn, Supreme Transformation."
Infinity with infinity.
Something that surged from the Administrator's hand began returning the extending energy to nothingness.
Though the Administrator had thus prevented one world's destruction, Abel and Rudian continued to focus on their battle, unaware of the Administrator's contribution.
Spiral energy formed on Abel's blue sword.
That energy transformed into the shape of an Eastern dragon and advanced toward Rudian.
—Azure Dragon Rending Strike!
A technique that Abel, who had once fallen into another world like Rudian and suffered from eighth-grader syndrome, had developed and refined in his early days.
Abel's technique, which had been combined with Grandia's divine power to slice through countless demon kings in Chapter 1, rushed toward Rudian.
Though he hadn't used Genesis, that was still a technique that could be called Abel's ultimate move.
Rudian also prepared seriously to counter it.
However...
'...What should I counter it with?'
Even facing such a high-level attack, he couldn't think of any particular defensive technique.
The reason this happened was simple.
Until now, Adi had automatically blocked most attacks of this type.
'Damn, I shouldn't keep thinking about Adi...'
In the end, Rudian had no choice but to deploy defensive magic by reverse-rotating divinity like before.
—Aegis of Athena.
—Dimension Blockade.
—Absolute Shield.
The three types of defensive magic that Adi had once deployed protected Rudian with brilliant light.
And that barrier collided with the Azure Dragon Rending Strike.
CRASH!
All barriers shattered and the azure dragon struck Rudian's body.
"ARGHHHH!"
"What foolishness. Such an idiot..."
The Administrator clicked his tongue slightly watching Rudian being blown away.
'Even if it's the process of awakening to authority, that last strike was too damaging...'
Most importantly, the problem was that his opponent still hadn't exerted full power.
'Ugh! Damn... that hurts!'
Though he could have eliminated pain sensation entirely, Rudian deliberately left human senses intact.
No matter how much he had ascended to godhood, the tension and crisis awareness from pain were greatly connected to survival.
'As expected... nothing beats real combat.'
The problem was that even though he hadn't yet drawn Genesis from Abel, 40% of his power had been lost.
Rudian, regenerating his blown-off right arm, slowly rose from his position.
"Huff, huff..."
After regulating his breathing slightly, Rudian raised his sword again to face Abel.
But for some reason, rather than charging, Abel spoke to Rudian:
"Disappointing."
"What?"
"Ascending to godhood refers to the supreme state of completing one's mental image and body to become perfectly unified."
Though the Pantheon was full of beings hardly worthy of being called gods, at least that was the setting here in .
"...Suddenly giving lectures?"
"But despite perfecting your body and mind, hesitation still remains in your heart. Were your words about killing Berus and saving the world just empty boasts?"
An unexpected expression appeared on Rudian's face.
Wasn't that bastard completely brainwashed by Berus?
Yet his words were piercing deep into the core.
"How long do you plan to think of yourself only as a supporting character?"
"...!"
"Having monopolized the position of 'protagonist' that is me, do you think you can break through the current situation with a mindset of stepping back?"
"You..."
"If you stole my position, be confident to the end. Put down half-hearted hesitation and lingering attachments, and persistently dig in to the end!"
Abel read the hesitation seated deep in Rudian's heart.
If he truly wanted to resolve all the current problems, he shouldn't be spouting things like 'guilt complex.'
"Though this wasn't the time period I wanted to come to, this result came from my choice."
Abel expressed his will while pointing Grandia.
"Abandon the thought of sympathizing because we're from the same hometown."
"..."
Same hometown.
The last hesitation Rudian harbored.
This was ultimately the classic genre called 'transported to another world,' and the real name of the novel's protagonist Abel was 'Lee Geon-ung.'
In other words, he too was from the same hometown as himself.
Originally he had considered this fact merely as setting, but meeting Euryale, one of the three Fates, had changed that thinking considerably.
That this world he belonged to wasn't simply a created world.
Abel had pierced straight through the hesitation Rudian had kept buried only in his heart.
"From now on, I will seriously try to kill you. After this, one of us two will definitely die."
"..."
"If you don't want to die, manifest your unique authority with full power."
"...Let me ask just one thing."
Rudian hesitantly presented a sudden doubt to Abel.
Abel showed no reaction, but Rudian continued speaking anyway.
"You... did you deliberately lose to Berus?"
"..."
"Foreseeing this current situation... did you deliberately stage defeat?"
"No."
Abel shook his head firmly.
"If I could have resolved it, I would have resolved it myself. Don't insult my will with pointless speculation."
"...Right."
Why would Abel, who should be subordinate to Berus, be able to face him with such free will?
The assumption that Berus's restraints had loosened because this was the Demon God's domain came to mind first, but even that felt strongly like Abel had intended it.
"I too will kill you."
Fighting spirit manifested through single-minded determination.
Only after seeing Rudian like this did a faint smile appear on Abel's previously expressionless face.
"Yes, that's how it should be."
WHOOSH!
Blue energy began forming on Grandia again.
Azure Dragon Rending Strike.
Abel's ultimate technique that had instantly broken through Rudian's defense was manifesting again.
'Now, how do you plan to block this?'
Swordsmanship capability and magical capability had been sufficiently confirmed.
The other domains would probably be at similar levels.
The Administrator also watched Rudian with a rather intrigued expression.
'Not a degraded existence, and facing an opponent superior in capability, he must be confused about how to wield his newly completed power.'
The surprising point was that Abel, whom he had been certain was Berus' servant, was somehow maintaining his sanity.
'I was planning to revive him a few times if he died... thanks to this, things became easier.'
The Administrator mused while watching Rudian begin operating divinity in earnest.
"Come, complete it. Prove that the great Father's judgment wasn't wrong. Repay the price of my long silence."
The Demon God's will thus watched over Rudian.