Chapter 92
Chapter 92
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 92
Chapter Title: Black Wings
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#92
How should I describe it?
Space warped, shattered, expanded, taking on an utterly unreal appearance.
Parts of the sea vanished in an instant as if scooped out, or split in half with a resounding *craaaack*.
A natural disaster.
There was no other word for it.
And the fact that all this devastation came from just two people fighting was nothing short of awe-inspiring.
"Not bad."
Gerald was purely impressed.
"For a mongrel who only licks the Emperor's soles, that's power beyond your station."
Of course, the words that left his mouth were laced with utter contempt.
"You're the pathetic one. Perfect for a rat who licks the Demon King's asshole."
Briani held her own in the verbal sparring.
No, she even surpassed Gerald by a wide margin.
The furrow in his brow made it clear.
"So you've become the Empire's wing with that tongue of yours."
It was the best taunt he could muster.
"Enough bullshit. Come at me."
Briani crooked her finger.
It was a posture of complete leisure, no matter who saw it.
But inside, she felt the exact opposite.
*This is bad.*
Gerald's power was far greater than she'd imagined.
She'd known he was a monster carried over from the previous generation, but not to this extent.
She felt blood rising in her throat.
Suppressing it with effort, she gazed down at Gerald with haughty eyes.
*What now?*
She was at a disadvantage.
It was a slight difference, but she couldn't say how long it would hold.
If things continued like this, his axe might take her head.
*Death doesn't scare me...*
But Mernotain weighed on her mind.
That filthy Demon King's follower would undoubtedly revel in as much slaughter as possible before leaving.
All while spouting madness about offering it to his master.
She absolutely could not allow that.
*After all the work I've put into building this place!*
*Whoosh—*
Her red hair shot upward.
Fueled by rage, her ability surged, beginning to dominate the surrounding space.
"Pointless."
But Gerald possessed the same ability as Briani.
Her dominance was instantly nullified, canceling out against his.
*Boom!*
The impact sent the sea roiling once more.
*Our abilities are equal. But...*
The difference in their physical bodies was too vast.
Of course, Briani's body had long surpassed that of an ordinary human.
But it was still far inferior to Gerald's.
He was a Dark Elf who had never ceased honing himself over countless ages.
*At this rate, I'll lose.*
Briani envisioned Mernotain's collapse alongside her own death.
She could never let that happen.
But there was no clever solution at hand.
For now, all she could do was fight her best against him.
The axe came down with momentum as if cleaving the world itself.
She folded space to twist its trajectory.
*Shiiiing—!*
She dodged the axe, but the demonic energy within it sliced her shoulder.
Blood the color of her hair sprayed out.
Pain wracked her, but she betrayed no sign of it as she raised her hand.
The seawater rose up as her spear, surging toward Gerald to impale him.
"Hmph!"
He scoffed.
With a single axe swing, the water spear lost its power and became ordinary water.
But Briani wasn't disappointed.
Her real attack was something else.
"Fall!"
With a shout brimming with imperial dignity, a massive cross appeared above Gerald's head.
"...What is this?"
For the first time, surprise flickered in Gerald's eyes.
"It's Saint Rodney's Cross, you bastard."
The holy relic itself manifested in space at Briani's command, folding reality to appear.
"Urk!"
Sensing the holy power from the cross, Gerald hurriedly swung his axe.
"Too late."
Briani's index finger swept down from above.
*Hummmm—*
The five-meter holy cross shot toward Gerald in sync with her finger.
*Craaaash!*
The axe shattered.
Holy power and demonic energy were polar opposites.
The pinnacle of holy power in Saint Rodney's Cross was no light force that Gerald's axe could block.
"Hraaah!"
But Gerald didn't give up.
Even as his beloved weapon shattered, he spared it not a glance and gathered all his demonic energy.
*Sizzle!*
Black smoke rose.
Holy power clashed with demonic energy, flames erupting.
Veins bulged on Gerald's forehead.
"Die!"
Briani, dropping the cross, was also pouring in her full power.
Her red hair whipped like a lion's mane.
The surrounding sea vaporized, steam billowing up.
It was as if hell itself had descended.
*Drip... Drip...*
Gerald's arms began slowly pushing back the cross bit by bit.
His arms were burning, but he clearly held the advantage in strength.
*Damn it!*
Briani broke into a cold sweat upon confirming it.
If he endured even this, she truly had nothing left.
She'd summoned every ounce of strength from her nursing days, yet it was no use.
She could see Saint Rodney's Cross slowly melting away.
It couldn't overcome Gerald's demonic energy.
*If only my knights were here...*
A few exceptional ones, including Magerus, could move even amidst demonic energy.
If the disturbance in Mernotain hadn't drawn them from the castle, she might have exploited a gap.
But that was hindsight.
Her knights weren't here now.
*What about that boy?*
Seo Woojin flashed through her mind, but she shook her head.
He could help, but she couldn't risk him.
A hero must not die in a place like this.
He bore the critical mission to stop the Demon King above all else.
*I have to handle this monster myself.*
The problem was, she had no way.
Saint Rodney's Cross was already more than half burned away, unable to exert its full might.
The weakened cross soon vanished.
In the end, it couldn't withstand Gerald's demonic energy.
"Huuuuh—"
Gerald exhaled deeply.
Just as Briani had pushed herself, he too seemed to have taken considerable damage.
*Now!*
Briani had no intention of missing this chance.
Her arm trembled, her insides churning, but she moved anyway.
*Flash!*
In an instant, she teleported behind Gerald, hand outstretched.
*Sever.*
Grab the head, sever the space.
Cut off its connection to the body.
No matter how monstrous Gerald was, he couldn't survive decapitation.
*Please...*
She moved at her utmost speed toward the back of his still-unreacting head.
But...
"Shallow trick."
Gerald twisted his body.
Briani's hand missed, grasping empty air.
"Now I can finally clip your wings."
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
He had clearly suffered significant damage.
Yet his eyes gazing at Briani still burned with murderous intent.
"Time to die."
Gerald's death sentence fell from his lips.
Before she could recover her arm, Gerald's hand blade came flying toward her side.
The terrifying demonic energy sharpened to a razor's edge and rent Briani's body.
*It's over.*
There was no way to dodge.
Her face twisted.
*I can't die like this.*
Mernotain and the children in her arms came to mind.
People who had laughed and lived in peace.
But now, it seemed they would never enjoy such peace again.
*I'm sorry.*
She closed her eyes and apologized.
For her lack of strength in protecting them...
"Power Strike."
It was then.
A familiar voice rang out.
*Boom!*
A massive shockwave erupted before her eyes.
"W-What?"
Startled, Briani snapped open her eyes.
The first thing she saw was Gerald's shocked face.
The hand that had lunged to crush her body was flung upward.
*What is this?*
In the incomprehensible situation, she darted her eyes around, scanning her surroundings.
Then she saw it.
Jet-black wings shining brilliantly.
A contradictory description, but nothing else fit.
"...Seo Woojin?"
Seo Woojin, with "Celestial Wing" activated, aimed his sword—cloaked in hellfire—at Gerald.
* * *
Seo Woojin ran at full speed.
Thanks to folding space for movement, he was still quite a distance from the two.
But Seo Woojin was a hero.
Using "Acceleration," he closed in rapidly.
*This is no joke.*
The aura from Briani and Gerald's clash was so awe-inspiring it felt like the heavens and earth might split open.
Even from afar, he could see the sea screaming in agony.
Tensing, he swallowed dryly and pushed his legs harder.
*Thud thud thud!*
Pouring out mana at full throttle, his speed was incomparable to before.
*Just a bit faster.*
It would astonish anyone watching, but Seo Woojin himself felt his legs were too slow.
*Next level up, I hope I get speed-related skills or spatial movement ones.*
His thoughts were remarkably light for someone heading into battle, but he deliberately pushed thoughts of his own death aside.
Any fear, and he wouldn't take another step forward.
*How can I kill Gerald?*
Honestly, it was impossible with his power alone.
He could only provide support.
Only Grand Duke Briani could deliver the finishing blow.
*Draw his attention, create an opening.*
That would have to suffice.
The problem was how difficult that would be.
Leaping rooftops, dashing through the air, Seo Woojin's figure rapidly approached the battlefield.
*Just a little further...!*
He began to make out the flow of the battle.
Seo Woojin's expression twisted.
The massive cross that Briani had summoned was melting away in Gerald's demonic energy.
Struggling in the contest of strength, urgency and anxiety were plain on Briani's face.
*I have to help now!*
But before Seo Woojin could arrive, the cross vanished.
"Ah..."
Seo Woojin let out a sigh.
Then, Briani disappeared and reappeared behind Gerald.
Her attack failed, and crisis struck.
*She can't dodge it.*
Seo Woojin instinctively knew she couldn't evade Gerald's strike.
No.
If she took that hit now, Briani would definitely die.
Seo Woojin's mana surged through his body.
He had to save the Grand Duke.
No time to think of consequences.
"Muspelheim."
Hellfire dwelled in "Rune Dea."
The sword seemed to scream from the alien power, but there was no choice.
"Just hold on a bit."
*Boom!*
His powerful stomp collapsed an entire house, kicking up a dust cloud.
And...
"Celestial Wing."
Wings sprouted.
Not the expected pure white, but abyssal black wings.
In that instant, all of Seo Woojin's abilities amplified several-fold.
A moment stretched into eternity, surroundings streaking backward like beams of light.
*Boom!*
Gerald's arm, closing in to tear Briani apart, was deflected by the strike of "Rune Dea" infused with "Muspelheim" and "Power Strike."
His bulging eyes staring back were, frankly, quite amusing.