Chapter 397: Bring It On! (3)
Chapter 397: Bring It On! (3)
"Punishment."
The moment the activation word left my lips, a magic circle illuminated the sky. From within its center, a giant flaming sword slowly began to emerge.
The blade, forged of pure light, burned with such intensity that its radiance was blinding.
The sheer volume of light, incomparable to the measly torches held by the cultists and monsters, pierced through the dark dawn.
Stunned by the overwhelming sight, the monsters stared blankly up at the sky. Their intelligence was low, yet they possessed enough instinct to recognize something truly awe-inspiring.
That was why they worshipped the Evil Gods, and why they could do nothing but stand frozen, even as they realized the magic unfolding above would lead to their certain demise.
Perhaps they had simply realized, instinctively, that no matter what they did, there was no escape.
As the spell reached completion, the sword of light—its crossguard elongated to resemble a crucifix—cast its brilliance upon the earth.
Was it because I had obtained a Dragon Heart and defeated two Evil Gods, crafting this spell with even more potent mana?
The pressure radiating from it was far more intense than when I had unleashed it against Ugly Prosperity.
If I felt it this strongly, I could only imagine what those directly targeted were experiencing.
The beast-type monsters, driven by sharp instincts, quietly closed their eyes. The slimes, composed of rotting flesh and bone, frantically began devouring nearby allies to bloat their size.
While some accepted death and others resisted desperately...
Only the chimeras, whose fear had been surgically removed, and the greenskins, whose brains were filled with nothing but rage and combativeness, continued their futile resistance.
However, their crude volleys of stones, hastily aimed ballistae, and the uncoordinated bolts fired without direction were nothing more than a token effort.
Rumble—
The giant sword began its descent. It started slowly, but it rapidly gained momentum, soon hurtling toward the ground with terrifying speed.
The flames swirling around the blade burned even brighter, incinerating the very air.
In the wake of its descent, the final resistance vanished like mist.
Boulders hurled with monstrous strength melted away, and thick ballista bolts crumbled into ash before they could even travel. The spikes launched from the chimeras' limbs had long since been blown away by the shockwaves.
The followers of Reckless Roar and Confused Unity were famous for their exceptional combat prowess, but...
In the end, power must always bow before a greater power.
Already reeling from Dragon Fear and unable to respond properly, the finishing blow slammed down upon the enemies who had already been battered by Iris and Iona’s magic.
The giant sword plunged deep into the earth as if making a grand proclamation. The elements composing it began to clash and reach a white heat. And then...
BOOOOOOM—!!
A spectacular explosion erupted.
A violent shockwave overturned the earth and shook the very atmosphere. For a long moment, my vision was bleached white, rendered useless.
Even though I was a safe distance from the impact zone and knew I was immune to my own magic, the sheer power of it made me flinch.
I took a brief moment to enjoy the sensation of Iris clinging tightly to my back, hiccuping in shock, and Iona narrowing her eyes beside me.
The world, which had turned as bright as high noon, slowly returned to its natural darkness... and in that process, the scars of the explosion were revealed.
The ground glittered where it had been crystallized. There was nothing left but soot and wreckage so mangled the original forms were unrecognizable. And then, there was the towering mushroom cloud.
...Wait. A mushroom cloud?
"Good heavens."
I knew my mana capacity had increased since gaining the Dragon Heart, and that my resonance efficiency had improved drastically.
I hadn't been able to test it properly during the speedrun in Paracelsus's dungeon, but I had expected my full-power output to be significantly stronger.
I expected it... but this exceeded my expectations.
The dream of every mage, a moment I believed would one day come, was fulfilled right now. Shivering from the rush of dealing such massive damage, I whispered the line I had memorized in advance.
"Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds..."
"Stop talking nonsense and move, Master."
"He's right, he's right! I can see enemies over there getting into formation and aiming this way. If we just dawdle here, we'll end up getting lynched and sent home just like Student Yandel said!"
"Eh."
I was pushed forward by Iris and Iona before the lingering emotions could even fade.
"I mean, you're the one who suggested this, Master. Why are you looking at us with such resentment?"
"Student Yandel... well, no. It's fine. You're at that age, after all. I, Professor Iona, can understand. I've seen many students like this."
"......"
Being treated like a hopeless chuunibyou felt... some kind of way, but they were right. I quickly took flight, leaving the scene of destruction behind.
Thanks to my Dragonization, which had brought me even closer to being a dragon, the recoil on my body after using Punishment had decreased significantly... but it still wasn't something I could fire off repeatedly.
Would things change once Elisha finished her Arcana and I learned it?
Indulging in a bit of wishful thinking, I welcomed the murderous intent flying toward me.
"[Krawrawrawra—!!]"
As expected, "Krawrawrawra" was the gold standard for dragons.
*
The battle that followed was so one-sided it almost felt wrong.
Stun them with Dragon Fear, then immediately drop wide-area magic. If it looked like an attack was coming from outside the range of influence, I’d retreat immediately and repeat the process.
It was an incredibly simple pattern, but it was just as powerful. Fortunately, the enemies were followers of simple Authorities and couldn't find a way to counter it.
I spent the entire day one-sidedly scattering Fear and magic everywhere, turning the armies of the two Evil Gods into a shambles, but...
Though they couldn't stop us, perhaps they had learned how to mitigate the pain after being hit so much.
The monsters of Reckless Roar, who had high defense, began to shield the monsters of Confused Unity, who had high regeneration.
Punishment still sent both types to the afterlife together, but Iris and Iona’s attacks were no longer able to reach the ones hiding deep inside.
Furthermore, as the corpses began to pile up, they even started using the bodies as shields. In the end, we retreated after inflicting slightly less damage than originally intended.
I still had energy left, and Iona could recover quickly by sucking my blood... but Iris seemed to be reaching her limit.
No matter how you looked at it, fighting while carrying an Iris who was limp from mana exhaustion was too dangerous.
"...It's not that my mana is lacking. It's that you and Iona are abnormal, Master."
"Who said anything?"
"Your face is practically screaming how disappointed you are, Master."
"N-no, it's not?"
"You're saying that even now with an expression like a puppy who had its toy taken away. Who would believe you?"
"Zip it."
I can't believe she caught that.
I knew I shouldn't be thinking this during an important battle... but honestly, it was incredibly fun.
Attacking one-sidedly from the air while the enemies just melted away? And there were endless waves of them to hunt?
This was a total hack-and-slash!
As someone who had once hunted Great Demons, how could I stay calm? I ended up in this world in the first place because I loved games.
I had played H&A so passionately that I ended up inside its world, but ironically, there were no games on the Eurelia continent.
That was likely why my excitement surged uncontrollably whenever something reminded me of a game.
...Though, perhaps I went a bit overboard this time.
While I was reflecting inwardly, Iona, who had been listening to our conversation, spoke up with a mockingly pitiful expression.
"Sob, sob... I wonder if this boy, who knows nothing but slaughter and women, will ever know ordinary happiness."
"...Professor Iona?"
"You know, you know. I'm not teasing Student Yandel, okay? I just feel a great sense of responsibility as a professor!"
"You mean a great sense of enjoyment?"
"A student's growth is my enjoyment."
Iona’s expression flipped instantly into a grin. Perhaps because she had sucked my blood a few times to replenish her mana, her skin looked particularly radiant today.
Iris, on the other hand, looked like she was about to die from indigestion after chugging so many mana potions.
I sighed as I looked at the approaching fortress walls.
"Sigh... well, even though the unexpected alliance with Confused Unity happened, I'd say we did enough damage considering the circumstances."
"Don't worry. Who would dare blame you, Master?"
"Huh? What are you talking about? I meant that since I've done enough for today, I'm going to rest and go back to wrecking them tomorrow."
"......Master, I don't think you have any right to feel wronged by Iona's joke from earlier!"
Iris looked at me as if I were a madman. I chuckled and bantered back with her until we finally reached the walls.
The other women were guarding the walls just in case... but it seemed there was no need for that.
The enemies had been strangely obsessed with me. Even though they couldn't catch me. Was I the target from the beginning, rather than the Yarnshard territory?
Just as I was feeling a bit restless, like I had become an idol for the Evil God world, I stepped onto the wall.
"Master!"
Carla rushed toward me like a sparkling-eyed puppy. As I caught her, the usual storm of praise followed.
"That was truly amazing! The power was one thing, but the fact that you recovered so quickly after casting Punishment was even more incredible! Swords were plunging into the sky like tombstones...!"
Even though I knew there was a bit of exaggeration in her flattery, it still made me feel a bit smug.
However, I couldn't fully focus on her today. That was because...
"Hieee! He made eye contact! He's going to make me his slave and force me to do nothing but carve sculptures for the rest of my life!"
"Gold! Offer him gold! Gold isn't more important than your life!"
"O Almighty Clashing Steel, protect me from the Evil Dragon with your eternal flame."
"...Who are you calling an Evil Dragon?"
I frowned, wondering why they were acting like this even after I protected them.
But I understood everything after Fay’s following words.
"Junior, you were popping off Dragon Fear like crazy while you fought. At first, everyone was just startled, but after hearing it three or four times, they completely lost their minds."
"......"
Fafnir’s karma runs deep.