Chapter 440
Chapter 440
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 440
Chapter Title: Regulation's Shadow
The sun illuminating the curse had fallen.
The lake eroded by the curse had evaporated.
The king of beasts had been slaughtered.
With the connections to the ancient calamities she herself had revived severing one by one, what the Apostate felt now was astonishment. Pure admiration. Even if their resurrections had been incomplete...
She knew those revived calamities were far from weak.
Ancient calamities.
The colossal walls that had once blocked her path.
Cardi, Ganikalt, Belial—and the walls she had overcome with all her might. The Apostate had been certain that the children of this era could never surmount those massive barriers.
It had to be that way.
They were children living in a false era that had lost its past and forgotten the truth. Century upon century piled on, even after hundreds of years, she was convinced they would never reach the truth.
Thus, they could not surpass it.
Thus, they could not reach it.
The saintess's faith, which had cried "Next, and the next after that," had been shattered after centuries—more than enough time. But...
"..."
The Apostate gazed silently ahead.
There, in silence, stood the successor of the covenant. The being who had reclaimed all the past and awakened to the truth... the one they had awaited so long. The existence that had shattered her expectations and reached this place.
Raniel van Trias.
The hero of this era, the child who had inherited the will of ash.
"I see."
The Apostate let out a laugh.
Indeed, now she understood.
What that successor was thinking, what that child inheriting the ash meant to say—the Apostate felt she finally grasped it.
"Without fail."
Someday, on a day when that child had not yet realized all the truths, she had said:
"Without fail, I will trample everything of yours. I will deny all of it and prove you wrong."
That she would trample everything of hers.
That she would prove the salvation she spoke of was wrong, and thus every path she had walked was wrong.
"Without fail."
Long ago, that child had sworn it, and the Apostate had answered with mockery. "Try it if you can," she had sneered. "Do you think someone ignorant of the past, living in this false present, could possibly do that?"
But what about now?
"I've come to prove it."
"That you are wrong."
That child had finally made it here.
Awakened to all truths and become the successor of the covenant, she stood here to deny her. Even having realized every truth, the child's choice remained unchanged—the Apostate could see that.
Still, that child sought to crush her.
To deny the path the Apostate Gletus had walked, to deny every life she had lived. And the denial that child spoke of could not be achieved by a single hero alone.
Those ruined by the Apostate.
Those crushed by the path she had taken. Only through them could the Apostate's life be denied.
Thus, that child had brought them.
Those with ruined lives, broken paths, yet still walking them. Those who had not yet abandoned their desires... that child had led them all here.
And those led here gave their answer.
An answer the Apostate could never have imagined.
"This is my answer, Apostate."
The mage she had mocked as becoming a madman like herself had remained human to the end. Human, he had denied the Apostate's prophecy and torn down the walls she had built.
"Behold, Apostate."
"Am I still a pathetic human?"
The swordsman she had ridiculed as a worthless human who protected nothing and lost everything had become a ghost and bitten into the Apostate. He had wrecked the stage she had created.
...Those she deemed nothing.
...Those she thought would end as nothing.
Merely crushed underfoot along her path, not even stumbling blocks. The successor had led such people here, creating results beyond the Apostate's expectations. By wrecking the stage she had made, they proved it.
That she was wrong.
That her prophecies, her expectations, her certainties were wrong.
Thus, that everything of hers was flawed.
"So this... is the denial you speak of."
The Apostate laughed.
Indeed, this was precisely the way to deny the Apostate. Thoroughly, lethally, completely.
"But."
But, the Apostate asked,
"Do you think everything will go like that?"
Do you think everything will go your way?
Glerea knew. The successor before her resembled Armiel—that person—to an astonishing degree. Even the foolish way of life that shackled herself in pursuit of the best.
Glerea had loved that foolishness.
But at the same time, she knew well how to break such people.
"Do you think I'll just let it happen?"
The Apostate's gaze turned to the one remaining calamity. The master of the cursed land, Abaddon. That calamity had yet to fall.
Of course, even that calamity would fall someday.
'It surely will.'
Wasn't the child there the one inheriting Belial's will? She could defeat it, no doubt. Just as Belial had in the past, that child too would raise a fierce storm and subdue the calamity.
'Chosen by Cardi and Belial, no less. It will surely happen.'
The Apostate trusted her comrades' judgment. She never underestimated those inheriting their wills.
But, but...?
The Apostate laughed as she gestured.
At her gesture, the filthy sludge surging toward the sky was swept away in an instant. Beyond the cleared sludge stood a single girl facing Abaddon. A girl resembling the Apostate herself.
Gazing at that girl, the Apostate smiled.
...In the past, the myriad gods had loathed the existence of Guides above all. But among them, the one who drew the greatest hatred from the gods was a single human. The human called Regulation.
Gletus of Regulation.
The original soul from which the Apostate's own derived.
But the current Apostate had strayed far too far from her. The broken, twisted Apostate no longer resembled her at all.
But not the girl there.
That girl's soul, still in its pure state, matched exactly that of the being called Regulation. And the Apostate knew that being was the gods' reverse scale.
'The existence the gods feared was the high dragon's mage, the Guide Yormun van Draconic.'
But.
'The one they most despised, the human they sought to crush no matter what... was Gletus of Regulation.'
The truth she had grasped.
Mulling it over, the Apostate slowly raised her arm. She extended her fingers. Pointing at the girl beyond.
"Behold."
She whispered.
At her whisper, the forgotten gods perked their ears. They turned their heads toward where her gesture pointed.
"Regulation is there."
Regulation. A word they could never forget.
Screeech, grind.
At that name, the forgotten gods reacted.
Their heads all turned. The gazes of the gods guarding the Apostate's side shifted to Chloe beyond. The moment they beheld that soul, the gods' eyes trembled.
"The Regulation you hate above all."
Plop.
"Is right there."
The Apostate released the leash she held on the forgotten gods. As if permitting them to do as they wished. The moment she relinquished control over the forgotten gods.
Rumble.
The earth, the sky, the air—everything shook. The forgotten gods roared. Roaring, they charged toward the girl.
Craaaash!
The chains Raniel had scattered everywhere to bind the gods were snapped entirely by the gods, their reverse scales stimulated. From the moment they heard "Regulation," their movements changed.
Thud, boom.
With every step they took, the ground cratered, shook, and dust rose. Glancing at them, the Apostate laughed. Bursting into laughter as if utterly delighted.
"Even now."
The Apostate looked at Raniel.
Bathed in the pouring blood of the gods, breathing raggedly atop their corpses, the Apostate smiled at her.
"Even now, can you deny everything of mine?"
You must deny all of me.
But I need only deny one small thing of yours.
"Junior."
The Apostate sighed pityingly.
"Don't choose such a difficult path. Collapse. Break. Don't expect the best from others. The only one you can be responsible for is yourself."
Glerea saw it.
Raniel's eyes shaking. Her gaze turning not to her, but to the gods charging toward the girl.
"Look at this."
Pointing at Raniel's trembling eyes.
The Apostate tilted her head with a smile.
"You're already crumbling, aren't you?"
Raniel kicked off the ground and charged.
Rushing past Glerea, reaching for the gods heading toward Chloe... but.
Grip.
Glerea seized Raniel's arm.
"Shall I say it again?"
Glerea whispered into Raniel's ear.
"You've lost, child."
From the sky fell massive fists, feet, maces. The forgotten gods lunged at Raniel, gripped by Glerea.
With a deafening roar.
For the first time, Raniel's stance crumbled.
2.
Splatters of blood sprayed long and far.
Not at the barrier's front, but tree trunks surging from below the ground upward. The one pierced by the trunk bursting at Chloe's feet was not her.
"Guh..."
Pierced in that split second as she shoved Chloe aside and switched places—Destel. Groaning, he slammed his fist into the greatshield.
Booom!
Vibrating, the greatshield's barrier expanded. The moment the ground-covering barrier severed the tree trunks, Destel urgently gripped the wooden roots piercing his arm and calf.
"Urgh, ngh..."
Roots that, from the instant of piercing, took root in his body, sucking nutrients and growing. Destel yanked out the stubborn roots with all his might.
Vision flashing with pain multiple times.
In pulling them out, Destel's skin tore long strips. Blood poured down in splatters. Breathing heavily, he tossed the extracted roots to the ground.
"..."
Catching his breath and lifting his head, he saw Chloe staring at him. Meeting her trembling eyes, Destel forced a smile. But even that smile was feeble. His lips, twisted in pain, quivered.
"What are you doing? Chant the spell already."
Destel gripped the greatshield again.
Clang, clash! Amid the roars of roots battering the greatshield, Chloe drew up mana once more.
'...Damn, it hurts like hell.'
Destel gritted his teeth, watching the blood dripping down. A wound that wouldn't heal easily even with the hero's regenerative power. Perhaps because the extending roots had ravaged the injuries? Anyway.
"..."
Destel silently looked ahead.
There was Belnoa, dashing between surging roots, approaching the great tree. Looking back, Chloe was deploying countless circuits.
...Neither of them was trembling.
Facing such a foe, in a situation where victory wasn't assured, they weren't cowed by fear—instead, they sought the path to triumph. To Destel, it felt nothing short of miraculous.
How do they do it?
On the battlefield, Destel often felt this way. From the knights, the so-called heroes, or even his comrades.
'Aren't you afraid? Isn't risking your life terrifying in itself?'
Knights gladly offering their lives at his gesture. Soldiers crawling into limbs without complaint. Accomplished powerhouses willingly sacrificing themselves as if it meant nothing.
...None of it made sense.
Because he was afraid.
Insanely so. His heart pounded without cease even now. If that tree trunk piercing him moments ago had gone just a bit lower, straight through his heart, it would've been over. Instant death.
He couldn't hide that fear. Destel saw it—his fingers gripping the greatshield trembling uncontrollably.
'...I'm shaking like this.'
Of course, Destel knew.
They're afraid too. They just push forward despite the fear. Hadn't even Raniel said it? That she's afraid, but stands there overcoming fear to avoid regrets.
'How in the world...'
But at the same time, Destel wondered.
How can they advance like that without trembling?
'How, exactly?'
How do you overcome fear?
'I don't know... I just don't.'
Destel couldn't grasp it. Death terrified him too much. He loathed battlefields demanding one's life. He still didn't know how to conquer this terror.
He simply stood here.
He hated this situation terribly, but he lacked the courage to shirk all responsibility and flee... or to overcome fear and charge ahead. He had neither.
Thus, a coward.
Thus, called卑鄙.
"Reload."
Clinging to neither, gripping his shield, a voice came from behind.
"Stand by."
The signal that Chloe's chant was complete.
Destel released the shield. As the platinum greatshield dissolved into stardust, dozens of branches engulfed him.
Flutter.
With the greatshield dispelled, his surcoat billowed largely. From the fluttering surcoat emerged the most basic star armament: the star sword.
Berzer of Absolute Severance.
Among the heroes Destel could emulate, the strongest. Until Kyle Toven's emergence, hailed as the mightiest. The moment that hero's star sword filled his hand, Destel's eyes settled coldly.
...He was a cowardly,卑鄙 human.
But those he could summon were brilliantly shining heroes. Embodying them, Destel could forget himself. He could be a hero.
Slash.
Destel's arm moved.
Emulating Berzer's swift sword strikes. His surcoat billowed as his arm blurred. The star sword severed every approaching tree trunk.
A path thus cleared.
"Manifest."
At the voice from behind, Destel swung his sword wide and leaped sideways.
Flash.
With a blaze of light, a massive magic circle appeared before Chloe. Concentrated mana began to whirl. In a mere instant, quicker than a blink. The circuits converged to a point and erupted in light.
Spell Barrage.
Spell Acceleration.
Exterminate.
Extending were beams of light.
Dozens of rays splitting from one flash burned through the encroaching roots and advanced. The moment the roots blocking Belnoa's charge were shot down by Exterminate.
Thud, Belnoa kicked off the root remnants and leaped. Seeing it, Chloe twirled her staff once.
She tapped the ground with the staff's tip. Circuits spread across the earth. Standing at the center of the massive circuit, Chloe cried out.
"Cataclysm."
The ground quaked.
Rumble, the rising earth restricted the great tree's movements. Belnoa accelerated, stepping on the prison-like earth encircling the great tree.
Belnoa advancing, drawing a storm.
Chloe relentlessly unleashing spells.
Watching them, Destel swung his sword from a step back, cleaving all roots targeting Chloe. Billowing his surcoat, Destel thought. He soothed himself.
...Yes, even a coward like him could do this much. At least he wouldn't survive by drinking his junior's blood. He was contributing to this battlefield.
That was Destel's final bastion.
He couldn't solve all problems in his junior's stead, but at least he fought alongside her. The last bastion keeping him from despising himself.
Standing on that bastion, Destel looked ahead.
Belnoa, advancing with Chloe's support and drawing a storm, was the epitome of a reversing hero. A figure straight out of a fairy tale. Gazing at her, Destel forced a smile.
"Yeah, give 'em hell."
Like those who knew they could never be heroes, Destel immersed himself in one. Hoping that shining hero would achieve the feat in his place.
It was the moment Belnoa, drawing the storm, swung her arm.
【■■, ■■. ■■■■■■■■■■■■!】
A monstrous roar shook the heavens.
Destel, Chloe, even Belnoa instinctively looked up. The vast night sky was gone. What filled their eyes was a massive white giant.
【■■■■■■■■■■】
【■■】
【■■■■■■■■■■】
【■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■!】
The colossal god leaped, blotting the sky, intervening in the battlefield. Nameless gods followed in its wake, one after another, entering the fray.
Crunch!
Struck by the colossal god's kick, Belnoa vomited blood and flew through the air. All her life-risking leap toward the great tree moments ago faded to nothing—she was back at the start.
Boom.
With a roar, Belnoa crashed into the ground.
Destel's head slowly turned back. There lay a cratered earth. A hero vomiting blood.
"Bel, Belnoa!"
Chloe's scream.
Belnoa's hacking cough of blood.
"...Ah."
Destel sighed.
The star sword he had unknowingly dropped returned to stardust. His billowing surcoat settled. Destel turned his head forward again.
The surging great tree, Abaddon.
The nameless colossal gods intervening in the battlefield.
Watching them charge to trample this place, Destel muttered hollowly.
"...You're kidding, right?"