Chapter 97
Chapter 97
-----------------------------------------------------------------
>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 97
>Chapter Title: Pros Don't Yield
>-----------------------------------------------------------------
It wasn't complete obliteration. More like a simplified, makeshift version of it?
Like that, once, twice. Three times in a row—
Boom! Boom! Rumble, crash!
The makeshift obliterations slammed into the ground, and the earth screamed as it caved in.
The cavern where Destrow lay dormant collapsed with a roar, and Aster's figure plummeted into it amid the crumbling rocks.
That was when the voice echoed.
[What a savage guest you are.]
Ziiiiing—!
"Ah, damn it!"
A voice that suddenly tore at his eardrums! Aster spat curses amid the ringing that split his skull.
Was it the high pitch? No, not that.
It was simply because the voice was so utterly impure.
'What the hell is this...'
Aster started to look up at the source but gently closed his eyes.
Instinct told him. Looking now... his eyes wouldn't come out unscathed.
But that lasted only a moment.
"Hoo."
Aster found calm with his breath.
Pure mana had many uses. Even against something inscrutable and impure at the same time, he could endure it a bit.
And that was it?
Szzz—
The eerie energy spreading from the Fire Mark. As it permeated his body.
It felt much more comfortable.
The Fire Mark's energy granted immunity to Destrow's impurity.
With a completely relaxed expression, Aster raised his head.
"What, you're awake?"
[Hmm, blessed by Reverse Heaven? No, more like your own capability.]
"Answer the damn question, you rotten thing. So, you're Destrow?"
It was a fact he knew without asking.
But he asked for a different reason.
The monstrosity, Destrow.
Compared to its infamous reputation, the being before him was a handsome man with a glossy face.
Only its body, made of black and white, betrayed that it wasn't human.
"Tsk. Ignoring me again."
Aster glared at the silent Destrow.
But unlike his flippant attitude, his inner thoughts were quite complicated.
Normally, he'd have punched it in the face by now...
Why couldn't he?
'...This bastard's too strong?'
An overwhelming presence that felt like it would gouge out his eyes just by looking.
He couldn't even dream of it.
Like facing a mountain with no visible peak.
Did it sense Aster's inner turmoil?
[I have a proposal for you.]
Destrow spoke with a faint smile on its lips.
Its graceful finger extended softly, pointing to Aster's left chest.
[Give me Reverse Heaven.]
It was a voice impossible to refuse.
As if it had distilled every sweet voice in the world, it was mesmerizing.
Of course, to Aster, who had blocked the impurity, it sounded that way. To anyone else, it would have been a mind-shattering cacophony.
Anyway.
"Reverse Heaven? You mean the Grimoire?"
[Grimoire... Yes, it took that form. Give it to me.]
"Hmm..."
Aster crossed his arms and eyed Destrow sideways.
"What if I do?"
Destrow's smile deepened slightly.
[After I rule the world, I shall grant you the most fertile lands and the highest throne. And the sharpest sword and the wisest staff.]
He had no idea what that meant.
He got the lands and throne, but the sharpest sword was just a sword—what made it the sharpest? And what the hell was a "wisest staff"?
Meanwhile.
Wiiiing—
The Fire Mark trembled violently.
As if saying.
—Don't fall for it.
...Like that.
'Tsk, stay still, damn it.'
Destrow.
It referred to itself as "I" in the imperial sense and spouted incomprehensible nonsense.
If it were anyone else, you'd suspect flowers were blooming in its head, but dismissing it as a madman was...
'Too strong. Sigh, that's just...'
In Aster's mind, the strongest was Pahren.
A mage with the moniker "strongest ever," fully deserved. Unlike his annoying face and beastly nature, his magic was nothing short of divine.
So, let's compare.
Destrow and Pahren.
The answer...
'No clue, damn it.'
They were on different scales.
Like asking if 100kg or 100m is bigger? Weight and length. Different units.
[Hmm, you're taking your time. Does my offer displease you? I can give you everything.]
That statement was true.
Destrow.
In life, it was humanity's first emperor.
A ruler who had the whole world at its feet.
No land in heaven or earth wasn't its possession, not even the fruits on nameless wild mountains.
It had never once lied.
Lies... were a tool for the weak, needy, or incapable to achieve desires or hide themselves.
Destrow had been the unparalleled greatest mage even before becoming emperor. No need for lies.
If it gave, it gave.
Whatever it was.
[Master of Reverse Heaven. My patience is deep, but not infinite.]
In other words, hurry up and answer.
At the urging, Aster let out a deep sigh.
"Yeah, fine."
[Oh? Decided?]
Aster nodded.
"Honestly, I needed a moment to prepare myself."
[I understand. Reverse Heaven is worth that much. But at this moment, your judgment in forsaking greed for reality shines brightest.]
"Is that so?"
Aster smirked.
"Then, want me to show you something even brighter?"
<...?>
"Watch this."
Palm extended forward. As Destrow's gaze focused, crackle! Light burst forth.
Rumble...!
A thunderous roar, and a burst of light erupted from his hand!
<...!>
"Ah, this is called Obliteration."
'Of course, the simplified version.'
The obliteration Aster unleashed bared its ferocious fangs right in front of the emperor, Destrow.
Dying in battle and suicide were different.
And from Aster's perspective, fighting the emperor was tantamount to suicide.
That was the "preparation."
Ta-at!
Aster quickly leaped back. Meanwhile, a question swirled in his mind.
'Damn... how many seconds will it last?'
3? 4? Eh, at least 10.
But apparently, people don't always die when they're supposed to.
—[Devour it.]
A distant voice in his ear. Familiar yet unfamiliar, unfamiliar yet familiar.
The Fire Mark, the Grimoire!
But devour?
Fwoosh—!
Aster broke into cold sweat at the monstrous killing intent pouring from the emperor.
'Who looks like they're about to get devoured right now... damn it!'
Just killing intent, yet so vicious.
It tightened around his throat like it would snap it. Sharper than any famed sword!
But that lasted only a moment.
—[I'll return it.]
'Return what?'
No reply.
'You rotten thing...'
Aster, waiting briefly for a response, almost spat—ptui!—but didn't. The mask would just spit on his own face.
Anyway, he leaped atop the cavern to buy time, patter, pat.
Thud!
The moment Aster landed on the ground, the change began.
Zzzzt...
"......?"
Unknown afterimages overlapping his body.
Like a hologram projected over Aster's form, a shape crackled into being.
At first, like a broken projector, the image flickered on and off, but gradually solidified.
As if overlaying new text on already-written paper.
Aster let out an exclamation after the change finished.
"Huh, what is this."
His eye level had changed.
Not just that.
Crunch.
Fist clenched absentmindedly. Where did this power come from? Immense strength surged from his muscles uncontrollably.
And the core?
Rumble...!
Raw mana filled his heart. A sea of boiling lava spread in his core.
But not everything had improved.
Mana Body. The realm had risen several stages, but how to put it...
'Crude.'
Not just that?
The mana in his core was abundant and boiling, but its purity was several times lower.
The circuits too felt clogged with clear impurities.
It was like... yeah.
'Previous life...'
Exactly like right before he died.
Snap!
Flick fingers, and a mana veil appeared before him. So transparent his face reflected clearly...
"Ha!"
Seeing it, Aster couldn't help but laugh in disbelief.
"This is me?"
Snap, his past life's self.
The outfit from right before the final battle with the Decullan Family.
As if his peak-era appearance was perfectly replicated, everything matched.
Just then.
[Reverse Heaven... You're playing an interesting trick.]
Destrow rising from the cavern.
Its voice boiled with considerable anger.
"What, I was a bit late, and now what's this?"
Aster tilted his head at Destrow emerging onto the cavern top.
And understandably.
Zzzt... zzt.
Its black-and-white-only body. Something writhed over it.
Looking closely, it was...
Cursed script.
Same style as the one engraved on his own chest.
But unlike his, it didn't seem beneficial to the target.
Destrow breathed raggedly.
[Hoo, haa...]
Like a beast caught in a trap, Aster wondered inwardly.
'You?'
No reply, as expected.
Or was this a reply?
—[I'll suppress it.]
The explanatory voice.
Aster chuckled dryly.
"You sneaky bastard. I thought you'd thrown me to the wolves for sure. Guess you have a conscience."
He'd almost felt betrayed.
Anyway, Destrow heaved ragged breaths under the Fire Mark's ploy.
[Reverse Heaven. You can't do this to me... to me.]
All the efforts to perfect itself.
After placing the world at its feet, it sacrificed countless subjects.
The sharpest sword—the finest knights—as fodder.
The wisest staff—the most profound mages—as nutrients.
[Yet...]
Boiling voice.
Just then, fierce energy erupted around Destrow.
[You leave me... for that insignificant thing!]
Bang—!
With that, the cursed script shattered in all directions.
It hadn't shaken off all, but compared to before, many bindings had fallen away.
Aster watched, then shook his head in disbelief.
"You're one obsessive bastard."
[Shut that mouth!]
"Whoa..."
Freed from bindings? Indeed ferocious.
'Tsk, put in a bit more effort. Slacker.'
He'd praised the Fire Mark moments ago, now scolding it.
A flip as easy as turning a palm, but natural for Aster.
"Still a bit strong..."
He'd grown stronger, Destrow weaker. The gap had narrowed drastically, but Destrow was still above.
He could feel it clearly.
"Yeah, well... this is on me."
What was this compared to before.
From blatant suicide to something resembling a 'fight.'
Sure, still ridiculously strong...
'Let's do it.'
When had he ever had odds? This was better than before, at least.
[I'll tear you apart.]
"Do it."
[Then Reverse Heaven will know its judgment was wrong.]
"Ah, the wrong one is your obsession."
<...>
"......"
As Destrow glared fiercely, Aster slowly raised his arm and crooked a finger.
"Pros don't yield."
It was his middle finger.
[You'll regret...]
"Yeah, I take it back."
Aster leaped forward instantly. A fully-fledged obliteration smashed into Destrow's face.
Unlike before, it was the complete version.