Lightning's Poem (3)
Like a raging typhoon, fierce rain poured down alongside streaks of blue lightning crashing from the sky. It was ominous. Sabnack felt a profound unease from the thunderbolts plummeting amid the roaring storm.
She turned her head to gaze at the horrific, twisted mass of flesh. Covered head to toe in burns, its nerves and muscles utterly ruined by full-body flames, the human still gripped his sword high, one remaining eye glaring with unyielding battle intent.
"Even in that state... you're still going to fight?"
Sabnack asked. But there was no reply. No, Yushin couldn't respond. Perhaps from swallowing that searing heat—his voice was gone. His vocal cords seemed completely destroyed. Breathing was a struggle; he spat ragged gasps, burning his last reserves of will.
"You're surely in agony. That's enough. You were a worthy adversary, one I acknowledge. So rest now."
Sabnack raised her sword. It was mercy for a beast lost in torment. His body was a pyre; he couldn't fight properly anymore. Thus, out of respect, she intended to end the Diablo Slayer's life swiftly. No personal grudge—just a desire to conclude the duel quickly and grant him peace.
"...Huh?"
Sabnack's eyes widened. As she swung down, crimson blood sprayed from her body in a fine mist. The lightning focused in Karus's blade lashed out. Faster than any bolt from the heavens, a flash strike carved a deep gash into her flesh.
Caught off-guard, Sabnack grimaced and clutched the wound.
"...So you're fighting to the bitter end, huh."
She bared her teeth. She hadn't seen it coming. His sword speed was incomparable to before. A wounded beast is the most dangerous—that was a truth she now had to admit. Despite his mangled body, the Diablo Slayer had inflicted a mortal wound with an attack that left even her stunned.
Even on the brink of death, his swordsmanship remained swift and precise. The pain throbbing from her gash proved it.
'To hide this much power until now... As expected of the Diablo Slayer! I got careless, unworthy of me. Fine, I'll fight with everything until your last breath!'
Sabnack ignited her battle spirit. She wiped the blood from her hand on her sleeve, then hoisted her jet-black cursed sword. Glancing at Yushin, the Raging Flames Demon King spotted something suspicious. The lightning sword aura emanating from his drooping blade had visibly intensified. How could someone so near death draw such pure sword energy? Even Sabnack felt threatened; the energy concentrated in Karus was fiercely sharp.
"What are you...!"
Yushin thrust Karus skyward, and lightning struck, transforming into sword energy. Impossible. The Diablo Slayer had seized a bolt formed in the thunderclouds through his blade and made it his own power. Sabnack couldn't hide her shock. Was such a feat even possible? It stunned even a Demon King of her ancient vintage.
She didn't know how legendary the famed Lightning Sword Karus truly was, but converting heavenly lightning into sword energy was a perilously mad technique that would demand ten—no, a hundred—lives.
"Alright. Let's end this."
Resolving herself anew, Sabnack charged with eyes full of determination. She struck first, and Yushin countered. Their final clash erupted.
Swords collided with deafening clamor. Black flames surged. Blue lightning raced across the ground, shoving back the fire and assailing Sabnack. Leaping from the earth to evade, she swung to dispel the bolts.
"Ngh!"
Clashing with Yushin's blade, Sabnack swallowed a groan and retreated. Absurd. Was this the same Diablo Slayer she'd fought? Yushin Gilliard, having absorbed the sky's lightning, exuded a whole new tier of strength. The blue sword energy gleaming on his blade was more stable and sharper than ever. Even blocked by her cursed sword, its keen edge had grazed her flesh.
Black Flame25 Swords: Original Sin Slaughter Slash
Sabnack began her sword dance. Her razor-sharp arcs pressed hard against Yushin, who whipped lightning in retaliation. But he dodged. As bolts flashed, he evaded every strike, closing in to slash at point-blank range.
Thunderclap Eight Swords: Thunder Unicorn
A single slash. In that instant, he repelled Sabnack. She barely raised her cursed sword in time to avoid being cut, but her face betrayed panic at Yushin's lightning-fast speed.
"Grraaah."
Yushin rasped like boiling phlegm. Lightning plummeted from the thunderhead, slamming into Karus. The blade shuddered violently—as if it might snap any second—yet Yushin pressed on. Heaven's bolts were his sole path to victory. He'd wield them relentlessly, even if his flesh burned or his cherished sword shattered.
Sizzle.
The stench of burning flesh filled the air. Mishandling the lightning had scorched the hands gripping the hilt. Yet Yushin endured the pain, swinging without hesitation.
'Pain means nothing. I have to win. I must win. End the Demon King here. Hurl the Raging Flames Demon King into oblivion.'
Grinding his teeth, Yushin accelerated the six embers accumulated in his heart. Influenced by the lightning in Karus, they burned themselves ceaselessly, spewing mana. Let his heart shatter. Let it crumble. He didn't care. Give me power. Power to judge this Demon King. With it, I'll slay her. Eradicate Demon Kings from this land, this world.
"...Sa...b...na...ck...!!"
Yushin forced his mouth open. Somehow regenerating his vocal cords, he croaked her name imperfectly. He hammered down relentlessly, cornering her—at the cost of his hands disintegrating. Fingers weren't fully gone yet; he could swing a couple more times.
"Sacrificing your body to keep fighting! Impressive, Yushin Gilliard! Diablo Slayer! You are worthy to be a Demon King's nemesis! This is no fabrication—my deepest, truest words!"
Sabnack bared her teeth at Yushin's unyielding spirit, despite his ragged form. She grinned brightly, a fierce, combative smile praising him.
"I'll fight without regrets too!"
Slammed her black cursed sword into the ground. Boldly declared she'd squeeze every last ounce of strength. Burn everything they had in this battle. She raised the hilt again, preparing her final strike. Black flames erupted to their limit as she unleashed her ultimate blow. Anyone could see it was her all—or nothing.
'Harness every bolt to the limit... complete the final strike. No second chances. Pour it all in now.'
His heart pounded madly. The six embers blazed, melting his circulatory organs. He hoisted Karus high once more, absorbing far more lightning than before—the utmost his body and blade could endure. Ten-odd bolts surged in unison, forging thunderbolt sword energy.
"Diablo Slayer! Yushin Gilliard!"
"I'll sever your neck."
Black Flame66 Swords: Flame Demon
Thunderclap Eight Swords: Thunder King
Black flames erupted. Blue lightning raged. Demon King and Diablo Slayer exchanged final blows, concluding the duel. At last, the fight—the war—ended. The battle's victor would seal the wedge's fate.
* * *
Ardena, engulfed in black flames, regained consciousness as Allen hoisted her up. How long had she been out? No time to check—Allen half-dragged her forward.
"Move. Before I break your legs."
Allen's voice was sharp. She'd seemed tamed with Yushin nearby... but no, the mad dog was still a mad dog.
"The Demon King?"
"No idea, can't see. I know they're fighting, though."
Allen muttered, staring ahead. Yushin versus the Demon King. Strangely, no fear gripped her. She was certain Yushin would win. Baseless intuition, yet she believed he'd surely slain Sabnack by now.
"Don't yank me, you brutish mutt!"
"Brutish? Want me to slice those floppy ears to human size?!"
The two swordswomen dragged Ardena's limp legs, hastening onward. Soon, the steam cleared, revealing the duel between Demon King and Diablo Slayer with their own eyes.
"I lost. Finish it."
Bathed in blood, Sabnack offered herself humbly to death. No hesitation. She was resolved.
She'd poured her soul into the exchange and fallen. Her sword shattered, inflicting a fatal wound. The Another One's immortality-severing strike had stripped her eternal favor. Her Demon Core—the essence of a Demon King's dignity—lay broken. She was now an empty shell.
"I fought without regrets and die without them. Even in my last breath, as a Demon King."
Yushin lowered his blade. Sabnack didn't move. Bereft of immortality, a sharp edge would end her inescapably.
Yushin's body swayed as he raised his sword. On the verge of collapse, yet he steadied and aimed. Honoring the Demon King who'd fought fairly to the end, he'd grant a swift death.
"Demon King Sabnack."
He swung the lightning-armed blade.
"Fall to oblivion."
Thunder flashed. Blood fountained from Sabnack. The decisive blow struck the Demon King. With that, she lost the Raging Flames' authority. Body stripped of immortality and power, it crumpled like a puppet with cut strings.
Confirming Sabnack down, Yushin finally expended everything—collapsing like the Demon King.
Seeing it, Allen screamed, shoving Ardena into the mud and rushing to him. Ardena wanted to check Yushin too, but face-planted by the mad dog, she couldn't even open her eyes.
RRRRROOOOAAAARRRR!!!
As Allen reached the fallen Yushin and Ardena flailed in the muck, a colossal monster's roar thundered across the land.