106. Labyrinth
106. Labyrinth
In the cold atmosphere, I turned my gaze.
I looked at Stella, sitting pitifully in one corner.
"Well, well."
Stella, who had burst into tears the moment she saw me, was still crying her eyes out even now.
No, maybe she'd had that face even before I arrived. She probably had.
"Judging by that face, you shit yourself again?"
I said it with a snicker, but...
I'd heard what that snake bitch in front of me was spouting about what Stella was.
I couldn't know what topic had led to that story, but it had been a pretty shocking thing to hear.
Akasha.
A being created to complete it.
Stella Verheigen.
As I am now, that story—
Even if I don't want to think about who the being that created Stella is, I can't help but think of it.
The owner of the gaze I felt before coming here.
The greatest Wizard I ever knew.
The motherfucker who put a hole in my gut.
The ancestor of the Verheigens.
Kaloso Verheigen.
But, thinking about it calmly again.
I don't think that can be right.
It's not that I want to believe that motherfucker.
It's not that I believe him, and it's not that I'm denying it without any basis either.
Kaloso isn't that kind of man.
The bastard was fiercely proud. His self-esteem was high, and his ego was as strong as mine. He insisted that no Wizard greater than him should ever exist, past or future, and ran his mouth about how only he stood closest to the end of magic.
Would a guy like that.
Try to achieve through someone else's body what he couldn't achieve himself?
There's no way.
It's not that I'm denying it because I believe in Kaloso.
I'm denying it because I know Kaloso well.
Then what the hell is it?
I'll find out if I beat the shit out of that bitch in front of me.
"What an impertinent little brat."
The snake bitch's eyes, glaring at Phaid's head, were calm. Even though I'd killed her subordinate, she showed no agitation whatsoever.
But I wasn't surprised by that reaction either.
I know Black Wizards are that kind of breed.
"I get that a lot."
I turned my gaze to Pina, hanging in the air. She was breathing. Her life force... didn't seem to have been drained, but I couldn't be sure.
And the light radiating from that body.
That's Sparkle's light.
It seems she somehow managed to pull off a ritual that draws out the power of a spirit, something that didn't exist 400 years ago.
I don't know when the ritual will end.
I don't think I should leave Pina like that.
And Stella... if I leave her alone with her thoughts, she looks like she might kill herself.
Thinking I needed to end this quickly, I faced forward.
I saw a woman with pitch-black hair hanging down like a madwoman. Hair so long it touched the ground.
Each strand of it writhed like a snake.
And... she resembled Stella.
"Stella. Is that woman your mother?"
"N... no..."
Stella weakly shook her head.
And the woman in front of me giggled—kuk-kuk—.
"I'm not her mother. If I had to say, her aunt? Want to call me Auntie Samaella?"
"Don't... call yourself my aunt...!"
If she's her aunt, then she's Stella's mother's sister.
"Judging by that reaction, you're not very close with your niece."
"How could we be? It's the first time I've seen her in 14 years since my niece was made."
At the word "made," Stella flinched and looked at me.
I shrugged and looked at Stella.
"You're not close with that woman, right?"
"H-how could we be... close... hic... we're not..."
"Then I can beat her up, right?"
"...Huh?"
Stella let out a stupid sound.
The woman standing in front of me, Samaella, opened her eyes wide and curled her lips in a sneer.
"Did I mishear?"
"What?"
"Didn't you just say you'd beat me?"
"You heard right."
Samaella's Realm? I can't tell.
It feels like it's obscured by a hazy fog.
My guess is, the edge of the 7th Circle.
What magic does she use? What I can sense right now is poison.
And Intent in the shape of snakes, crawling all over the inside of this room.
There's no... sticky, somehow suggestive Demonic Energy.
She doesn't use illusion-type magic.
The tips of her fingers, visible between her wide sleeves, are black. She's coated poison under her nails. The shape of those fingers is bizarre. Hidden-Weapon Art? Claw Art?
For a Black Wizard, she was thoroughly prepared for close combat. Still, her fingertips were stiff, as though it had never occurred to her that I might get close.
I retied my bandages. I gathered my loose hair into one and tied it back, then took off my outer garment.
Samaella. That Black Wizard is strong.
If I thought about fighting Phaid and Samaella at the same time, she's strong enough that I couldn't guarantee victory.
"No matter how impertinent I am, I don't lay hands on a friend's family carelessly."
But right now, she's alone.
"Stella Verheigen."
"H-huh? Hey, wh... what's this all of a sudden—"
I grabbed Stella by the collar and lifted her.
Stella's flailing, strengthless hands grabbed at my hand. Whether she did or not, I flung—Stella over next to Pina.
If she stays beside Pina, where the ritual is still in progress, that Black Wizard can't target Stella either.
"That's twice now you owe me your life."
So, can I win?
"Think hard about how you'll repay me."
There's nothing more to agonize over.
I kicked off the ground and ran.
The snakes that had been roaming the wide cavern opened their jaws wide. Eight snakes made of Intent.
Even if you break them, tear them, smash them to pieces, as long as their master's will isn't broken, they regenerate endlessly.
That's what Intent is.
I won't know their power until I get hit, but just looking at the size of those fangs and the poison beading at their tips makes my head spin.
I'll end this without taking a single hit. I don't have such arrogant thoughts. I'll give flesh and take bone.
Before I die poisoned, I'll kill her first.
The moment that long stride hit the ground, the Intent snakes lunged. Their speed is faster than I thought.
Clicking my tongue, I wrapped my whole body in Aura. At the same time, krrk—pain flared in my side. Ignoring it, I raised my elbow and drove it down. Even so, my steps didn't stop.
I have to close the distance.
Two steps. With her wide sleeves fluttering, Samaella raised her arm. From her black-stained fingertips, dozens of snakes burst forth.
The moment my third step touched the ground, I twisted my body. BOOM—the ground where I'd been standing just moments before caved in. I barely regained my balance and threw a punch.
With a crunch, the dozens of snakes in front of me burst. The remains left after bursting are poison. I detonated the Aura wrapped around my body.
WHOOOSH—
The remnants of Aura, scattering like cherry blossom petals, drove away the poison. The poison I couldn't drive away touched my skin. A burning heat, a numbing pain burrowed into my bones.
I gritted my teeth and took another long stride. The distance closed in an instant. Samaella, unfazed, stepped back one pace.
Even so, if I reach out, I can touch her.
First, grab her by the collar. The moment I reached out with that thought, a chill ran down my spine. I pulled my hand back. I dodged and rolled my body on the ground.
At the same time, WHOOOM—!
A black explosion shot up from where Samaella had been standing just moments before.
Poison.
"Aha! Good instincts?"
The poison that shot into the sky gathered in the air.
It became a poison cloud and began circling around Samaella. Drip— drip— the poison falling from it melted the floor and gave off a foul stench.
Just the smell alone... makes my stomach turn.
I steadied my breathing. I have to dig into that.
I have to keep the Intent snakes in check, dodge the rain of the poison cloud, deflect Samaella's main body's attacks, and land attacks of my own.
Does she have other means of attack? She definitely does. Samaella hasn't used magic yet.
Even so, can I do it?
I can.
I spread my Mana. The Mana racing madly through my Acupoints, heating my body, seeped out of me. A faintly glowing pink Mana wrapped around my body.
It's not protective Aura.
It's a form more focused on offense.
The Deceptive Body that made me worthy of being called the Calamity Star.
'That's always your damn problem. You do everything perfectly and then why do you say the technique name at the end?'
For some reason, I felt like I heard Luna's scolding in my ear... but I ignored it.
It's a name I agonized over for three days.
I, personally... think it's cool.
I raised my two clenched fists. I relaxed the muscles of my whole body. At the same time, I drove the explosive flow of Mana even more fiercely.
Samaella's eyes narrowed.
"...That form is—"
At the same time.
A light flashed.
Crunch.
With that sound, red blood sprayed into the air. My fist smashed into Samaella's face. But the blood wasn't Samaella's.
It was blood bursting from my arm.
The moment it touched, an Intent snake guarding Samaella's side bit into my arm.
It doesn't matter.
What matters is that I touched Samaella, and she couldn't react. I didn't stop moving.
"Just now, what—"
I threw a punch.
Samaella's eyes followed my fist. Her sleeve fluttered, and a snake surged from within. The poison cloud churned and spat poison, and the snake lunged.
Everything was fired to block my fist.
And then, a light flashed.
THUD—
My fist buried itself in Samaella's abdomen. I didn't stop. I swung my arm like a whip and struck her jaw. I extended my leg and kicked her long shin.
Each time, Samaella saw my attack, reacted, moved, and tried to block.
She couldn't block.
That's what Deceptive Body is for.
If only I had a weapon—even just one short dagger—this bitch would already be full of holes.
Clicking my tongue, I worked my body.
A menacing light glinted.
The first punch struck her solar plexus. The second foot stomped her instep. The third elbow drove up into her carotid artery. The fourth fingers dug into her abdomen, and the fifth knee drove into her spine.
One step, two steps, three steps. Samaella, who had been retreating with each hit, when the sixth Roundhouse Kick drove into her solar plexus—
"Kuh, hup...!"
She let out a rough breath for the first time.
At the same time, her eyes changed. Between her fluttering sleeves, her nails gave off a menacing light.
I quickly spun my body. Whirl— following my rapidly rotating body, a vicious cutting sound rang out.
Her nails. My clothes were sliced off. Not stopping there, they split into dozens of strands in the air. The severed pieces, steeped in poison, turned to ash.
"Do snakes have nails too?"
"You've got a long tongue."
"Surely not longer than a snake's."
At my taunting, a grinding sound came from between Samaella's teeth. I didn't miss the opening. I grabbed a fistful of the hair shot toward me. I wrapped it around my arm, tighter and tighter.
That hair burrowed into my arm as if alive. It crushed muscle, tore nerves, and gnawed at bone. That's what I wanted. I gripped it even harder.
Bewilderment crept into Samaella's expression.
With muscle crushed and nerves torn, with even bone being ground away, I moved my hand and gripped even harder. How could that be possible?
With Mana. If you move the Mana inside your body with precision, something like this is possible.
Of course, not just anyone can do it.
Only me. It's a skill only Ronan Luzarak can do.
In that state, I steadied my breathing.
I extended one foot slightly and placed the other behind, shifting my weight. My body turned sideways, my arm extended. In that nearly fully extended state, I bent it just slightly.
I don't clench my fist. I open it naturally and aim at my opponent with my fingertips.
Will it work? Will I succeed?
I remember Arisa's form. I know its power. I got hit by it several times while sparring.
So I can do it.
If a chimpanzee can do it, there's no way I can't.
I clenched my fist. Samaella, sensing something was wrong, made her next move.
The Intent snakes surrounding the area lunged at me. Her fierce nails swung toward my nape. The poison cloud spat poison, and countless hairs surged forward.
At that moment, my fingertips were already aimed at Samaella's heart.
I shifted the weight I'd placed behind me forward. The power starting from my toes spread through my whole body. I twisted my waist and shoulders at the same time. I detonated my Mana and added even more intense rotation.
The scattered power gathered in my right arm. The Mana racing through my Acupoints gathered in my right arm. The Mana that could no longer be contained and leaked out became Aura, wrapping around my right hand.
When everything had gathered into a single point like that.
My open hand became a fist and touched Samaella's chest.
The fist detonated.
One-Inch Force.
BOOM—!
Samaella's body slammed into the wall.