Chapter 426
Chapter 426
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 426
Chapter Title: Meteor vs. Giant Flower
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ROOOAAAR-.
Lilianne sensed the meteor coming as well.
The pressure of the atmosphere splitting apart pressed down on her shoulders like a crushing weight. She knew she had to dodge it, but at the same time, she felt it would be impossible.
Her eyes met Hailz's amid the flowers of the garden.
Those red eyes had been fixed on her from the very start, without a hint of wavering.
She was confident she could land that massive meteor strike perfectly.
"Impressive."
Lilianne genuinely coveted Hailz.
"A cut above that dragon."
To protect her body from the garden's flowers while simultaneously casting such a difficult spell.
And the precision of the meteor on top of that—there wasn't a single flaw.
Hailz was the very ideal of every mage. The ultimate existence that those who walked the path of magic one day aspired to reach.
The meteor, which had looked like a mere speck in the sky, gradually drew closer. Before long, it filled her entire field of vision.
Shhhrrrr-.
The flowers wriggling on the ground all shot upward at once.
They gathered and merged, growing larger. Sharp thorns and petals clustered together, expanding in size.
And finally, a colossal flower bud formed.
A gigantic flower bloomed, enveloping the meteor—one that reached up to the clouds.
A flower so enormous that the meteor looked small beside it.
The flower, formed from the entire garden, blocked the meteor.
KWAAAAA-BOOOM-!
The meteor plummeted downward, incinerating and crushing the petals. The petals, unable to withstand the meteor's force, shattered into ash and scattered.
But the flower didn't break so easily.
The falling meteor gradually lost its momentum and came to a halt. The massive flower seized it and swallowed it into its enormous maw.
GRRRRIIIND-.
The meteor that had entered its mouth...
FWOOOSH-!
Was violently launched back out from within the flower.
"...!"
Hailz, caught off guard by the meteor being shot back at her, hastily deployed a spell in surprise.
VRRRRIIING---!!
The barrier she conjured barely blocked the meteor. To alter its trajectory bit by bit, Hailz trembled as she thrust her staff forward with effort.
Even for Hailz, erecting a defensive barrier capable of stopping a meteor on such short notice was no easy feat.
And yet.
CRACK-.
"...!"
Another massive flower opened its maw from behind, targeting Hailz.
It was too late to react. While blocking the meteor, she couldn't cast another spell quickly enough.
Just as she thought it was over...
Shhhhh-.
Pure white frost enveloped Hailz's back.
The massive petals froze white in an instant.
There was no need for it to remain frozen forever. Just buying a brief moment allowed Hailz to prepare her next spell.
Flash-.
Hailz vanished from her spot.
A short-range teleport.
As Hailz disappeared, the incoming meteor flew toward the frozen flower.
KABOOOM-!
The frozen flower shattered into pieces.
Hailz, who had teleported to safety and confirmed the sight, let out a sigh of relief.
"Phew-."
The flower that had ambushed her from behind was much smaller than the one that blocked the meteor.
But that didn't mean she could ignore it. If it had swallowed her, the flower's poison would have melted her body instantly.
Hailz turned her head and gave her thanks.
"Thanks to you, I'm alive."
"Mind if I butt in?"
It was Siwoo who had frozen the flower.
Siwoo and Ye-ryeong hadn't just been spectating Hailz's fight. They'd been tense the whole time, ready to intervene while giving her a chance.
No matter how important her revenge and pride were, they weren't worth more than her life.
"Of course. Actually, I was about to ask for your help? This is killing me. Please, lend a hand."
Hailz didn't let pride get in the way.
From the fight so far, she'd judged that she might not be able to handle Lilianne alone.
"Should've said so sooner."
Ye-ryeong gripped two foot-long daggers in each hand and pulled her mask up over her face.
"I've been itching to jump in."
Lilianne gazed down at the ice crystals scattered on the ground.
Glittering shards of ice. Frozen petals from the shattered flower.
Lilianne's cheeks flushed as she beheld them.
"Beautiful."
She loved beautiful things. Thorny flowers most of all.
The frozen, broken flower exuded a different kind of beauty. For the first time in ages, she felt entranced.
But she didn't lose herself in it.
On the contrary, Lilianne grew wary of this beauty.
"The more beautiful the flower..."
Shiiiik-.
A dagger thrust from the darkness toward her throat.
"...the sharper its thorns."
Shrieeek-.
Two daggers crossed and flew sharply. They targeted only vital spots: throat, head, heart, eyes.
Each thrust was lethally precise, but not overwhelmingly powerful.
Purely restrained strikes meant to kill. Not backed by brute force or flashy technique.
Just speed and accuracy.
Ye-ryeong's dance wove in seamlessly, drawing a satisfied smile from Lilianne.
"See? Isn't it beautiful?"
"What're you babbling about?"
Shik-.
A dagger grazed her eye. She thought she'd dodged, but a drop of blood splattered—plink.
The flying droplet was vivid. Her face twisted viciously; it had been ages since she'd bled.
KWAAAAK-!
Flowers erupted from the ground. Thorny stems shot toward Ye-ryeong from all directions.
At that moment.
CRACKLECRACKLE-.
The flowers targeting Ye-ryeong's back froze solid all at once. Time itself seemed to freeze, halting everything around them.
It wasn't just the flowers.
Lilianne's feet froze too, stopping her momentarily.
In that gap, Ye-ryeong's dagger plunged in.
Squelch-.
Lilianne's wing tore open from the dagger.
But that was it. Tougher than steel, the wing served as excellent armor.
She avoided a vital hit, but it didn't end there.
Shiiiik-.
CRASH-!
Siwoo's spear charged from above, unleashing waves of ice at Lilianne. The chill spreading from the tip froze her body white in an instant.
Shatter—the ice broke apart immediately. No matter how potent Siwoo's ice, it couldn't freeze a demon lord so easily.
Lilianne swung the whip in her hand. Clang! It collided with Siwoo's spear, sounding like metal on metal.
Slither-.
In that opening, Ye-ryeong melted into the shadows once more.
Moment by moment, she struck at Lilianne's vitals from the darkness. The duo's combo that had felled Etasian in seconds resumed.
Lilianne's expression twisted ferociously. Whenever she pressured Siwoo with her whip, a dagger inevitably targeted her vitals.
It was clean and powerful teamwork. And there was one more person to worry about.
The one she had to be most wary of here.
Whoosh-.
Sure enough, scorching heat descended from the sky.
ROOOAAAR-.
A sun she had never seen before appeared overhead.
Not just any sun.
A massive one filling her vision, blazing bright red. It turned the dark demon world into broad daylight.
Solar Inferno
Flame magic at the pinnacle—crafted by Magnus and Runeterra's mages combined.
The ultimate fire spell, born from the combined might of Magnus and Runeterra's mages.
Hailz was manifesting it alone.
"Seriously... no joke."
"I'd never fight her, no way."
Siwoo and Ye-ryeong marveled at Hailz's spell. Siwoo especially vowed never to battle her, given their ability matchup.
The ground's heat doubled. The sun radiated such intense temperatures that Siwoo's ice melted away instantly.
It was the same spell from the last inter-server war, but on another level.
Far hotter, far larger.
Even more powerful than what Runeterra's archmages had conjured together.
Of course.
The drawback was the time needed to cast it.
Shiiiik-.
As expected, Lilianne's flowers, sensing danger, stretched toward Hailz en masse.
To unleash Solar Inferno, Hailz wasn't even using spells to protect herself.
But that was because she had faith in something.
CRACKLECRACKLE-.
An icy barrier wrapped around Hailz like a sanctuary.
An impregnable fortress shielding one person. Realizing it would take considerable time just to breach it, Lilianne glared at Siwoo.
"You filthy linked curs..."
"You were gushing about beauty earlier. Got bored already?"
"I'll kill you first!"
Enraged by Siwoo's taunt, Lilianne spread her wings wide and charged at him with blinding speed. Lashing with whip and wings, she battered him, shaking his body badly.
Even for Siwoo, facing a demon lord one-on-one was tough.
Snap-.
Slash-!
The whip flew into Siwoo's chest. He groaned in pain from the thorny strike.
Grip-.
But simultaneously, he grabbed the whip with his hand—as if he'd been waiting for this.
CRACKLE-.
Frost surged along the whip. In an instant, Lilianne's body froze and slowed.
And seizing that opening—one person struck.
Sstab-.
Stab-.
Lilianne's wings shredded. A dagger embedded in the nape of her neck.
Her wing-based defense was neutralized.
More vitals followed in rapid succession. Wielding multiple daggers like magic, Ye-ryeong relentlessly targeted them.
But.
"Damn... pests."
Even run through the vitals, Lilianne activated a technique without falling.
RUMBLE-.
Thick rose thorns erupted from the ground.
Like a forest of massive spears rising from the earth. A dense, inescapable assault aimed at the stealthy Ye-ryeong.
Popopop-.
Ye-ryeong dodged swiftly, but imperfect evasion left wounds, tearing her mask.
The thorns left no room to stand, instantly forming an impenetrable forest.
Everyone assumed she'd be impaled and die in the thorn forest.
Whoosh-.
Far off in the sky, Siwoo and Ye-ryeong appeared.
They hadn't dodged. Hailz, protected by Siwoo's ice, had teleported them to safety.
To shield them from the rising thorns?
No.
That wasn't it.
Whoosh-.
Solar Inferno loomed massively in the sky.
She'd evacuated them to keep them from getting caught in it.
Hailz prepared her spell, they bought time protecting her. Finally, evacuating allies.
A perfectly scripted combo. Lilianne felt the temperature soaring, her skin starting to burn.
And soon.
ROOOAAAR-.
The sun in the sky began plummeting downward.