Valoran Subjugation Battle (4)
Clang—!
Behind the greatsword I had roughly knocked aside, Valoran’s hollow body came into view.
“Hermila!”
The instant I called her name, a sharp wind skimmed past my cheek—
Crunch—
A fist wrapped in blood-soaked bandages drove straight into Valoran’s abdomen. It didn’t stop there. Savage energy erupted from the fist, boring into his muscles, twisting and crushing them.
Even through that agony, Valoran seemed unbothered. He released a surge of demonic energy, seized Hermila’s forearm, and raised his greatsword high.
“Noah!”
The moment Valoran’s blade began to fall, I snapped Hermila’s arm free of the coiling demonic energy, hauled her body back, and leapt clear.
“Ghh… I didn’t expect you to break it… Ugh—!”
“Hang on just a little. It’ll heal right away.”
Rubia let out a worried sigh, lifted Hermila’s limp arm, and poured Divine Power into it.
“I-I had no choice—it was an emergency. I’m sorry…”
I stayed glued to their side, shielding them while I watched Valoran’s condition.
Part of me wanted to charge in without rest and finish the subjugation already, but that wasn’t an option. There was no guarantee his spatial jumps would always target me, and I still had to cut down every strand of demonic energy flying toward Rubia.
But Valoran’s state was… off.
A normal magic beast would have kept coming without giving us a single breath to recover. Instead he just stood there, prodding the places he’d been wounded, staring at me in silence.
A strangely pleased expression.
Lady Cartia… was he like this before too?
…No. He never looked like that.
Unlike ordinary magic beasts, there was intelligence in the way he carried himself. And more than that… his demonic energy felt sharper than before, yet his body itself seemed heavier, slower.
What the hell is going on?
“Miss Noah. Let’s go again.”
Hermila finished rewrapping her bandages and strode past me. Rubia and Hermila didn’t seem to notice anything wrong. They’d never seen Phase One, so maybe this version of him just looked normal to them.
Enough. Focus on the subjugation first.
Yes…
Doesn’t change the fact that the bastard’s still a Beast of the End.
I nodded and tightened my grip on Frey.
The moment Valoran saw me ready for battle again, the corner of his mouth twitched upward.
Yeah. Definitely weird.
Ting—
The instant his form vanished I raised my greatsword.
Right side.
Clang—
He wasn’t even looking at the others. Only at me. With that leisurely expression. As if he were enjoying himself. As if he wanted me to notice something.
“Noah!”
I ground my teeth and knocked his greatsword upward. Hermila’s fist and Rubia’s Divine Power slammed into Valoran while his stance was broken.
Crack— An arrow of Divine Power scored a line across the armor of demonic energy; Hermila’s fist shattered that energy to pieces. I twisted my arm with blood-qi, redirected Frey’s path, and brought the blade down with everything I had.
The sensation of thick hide parting registered at my fingertips. Without stopping I poured blood-qi like mad into the open wound. Crunch— The sound of a beast’s fangs grinding together, and a violent blast of demonic energy erupted from Valoran’s body.
An area attack.
And it wasn’t over. Five magic circles bloomed across the ground, a razor storm whipped up around Valoran, and thousands of orbs rose into the air.
I let go of Frey, seized Hermila’s waist with both hands, and hurled her toward Rubia. Instantly I resummoned Frey, sliced through the floating orbs of demonic energy, and wrapped my body in the maximum output of blood-qi.
“Rubia! Barrier! As thick as you can make it!”
The words left my mouth at the same moment I flung a dagger to trigger the magic circles.
BOOM—! All five circles detonated at once, raising a colossal wall of flame.
Valoran’s smile stretched wider. The massive greatsword hanging in the air began to fall straight down toward the earth.
An instant before it struck, I threw myself against him, pressed tight to his body.
At the same moment an indescribable tidal wave of demonic energy roared out. From sky and ground it poured like water, rising, twisting, surging through the air. Demonic energy so dense even Qi Sensing could barely parse it overturned, tore through, smashed, and split the entire Cartia mainland.
Yet the ground beneath my feet stayed calm. More precisely, the ground Valoran and I stood on together. I hadn’t known the safe radius, so I’d stuck as close as possible—turns out there was a fair bit of room. Roughly three Noahs laid end to end.
A quick check with Qi Sensing told me Rubia was fine too.
I steadied my breath and drew Frey once more. At the same time Valoran wrenched his greatsword free of the earth.
That delighted look on his face.
Don’t you dare smile.
I shook off the thought and charged. I swept my trailing greatsword up from the lower right. Valoran casually blocked with a burst of demonic energy and swung. I memorized the path, reverse-summoned Frey while it was still caught in the energy, then thrust my arm sideways, resummoned the blade, and cut.
Clang—! Crash—! Boom—!
Greatsword and Frey collided. Demonic energy and blood-qi ground against each other. His massive fist met mine.
Shockwaves from every exchange swept the tide of demonic energy aside and shoved back the aura of death. With each new clash the wounds multiplied. I had to break the pattern.
Whoosh—
Right on cue, a familiar sound from behind. I arched my back and welcomed Hermila’s fist.
BOOM—!
Valoran caught her punch on the broad face of his blade and twisted. I snagged Hermila’s ankle as she was swept along, then leapt back to open distance.
“I thought you’d been swallowed by the wave—you scared me half to death!”
“Th-there wasn’t anywhere else to dodge.”
Hermila exhaled in relief and checked me over. Rubia, who had rushed up right after, did the same and sighed.
“Thank goodness you weren’t badly hurt… Ha, that gave me a fright.”
Divine Power flowed in, knitting cracked bones and seeping into my heart.
In that exact moment—
Ting—
“Rubia!”
I shoved her aside and wrenched Frey upward with everything I had.
CRASH—!
Forcing the block from an unstable stance made every muscle in my body scream. Just before my knees buckled completely I blasted blood-qi into the ground and locked myself in place.
His movements were nothing like before. Twice as strong. He wasn’t releasing demonic energy outward anymore—he was wrapping it directly around his body and swinging with it. Almost exactly the way I fought with blood-qi.
He… learned by watching me…?
Clang—
Valoran’s smile widened further as his greatsword grew heavier. Demonic energy shoved my blood-qi back; the blade crushed down on Frey.
“Ghh—!”
Crunch— My jaw cracked from clenching so hard, and my legs slowly straightened.
Then—
Whoosh— BOOM—!
Hermila’s fist joined mine and my body snapped upright in an instant. I roughly dumped a potion into my mouth and charged Valoran again.
Ting— Left side.
I brought the greatsword down vertically. Clang— Valoran’s diagonal swing was knocked aside. Hermila’s follow-up attack punched straight into his hollow body. Divine Power shot into the momentarily cracked demonic energy and exploded; my blade slipped into the gap.
Slice— A clean sensation, different from anything before.
“Hermila!!”
Whoosh—
With a sound like an arrow leaving the string, Hermila’s body launched forward. In a blink she was right in front of Valoran, fist extended.
Hermila’s fist, seeking only destruction. The Force of Annihilation drove into the wound.
Crack— Starting from the point of impact, fractures spider-webbed across Valoran’s body. Yet he looked as if he were having the time of his life, smiling wider as he swung his greatsword like a madman.
The swing itself was light, but the result was not. The wind pressure alone sliced skin and carved sword-marks into the dry earth. I released my own Force to cut the pressure and blocked the sword-aura racing toward Rubia. Hermila, having recovered her fist, drove deep into Valoran’s body again, interrupting his next motion before it could form.
Bit by bit the Force of Annihilation spread through him.
Crack— The sound of a shell shattering, and Valoran drove his greatsword into the ground.
Phase Three.
“Hermilaaa!!”
Hearing my shout, Hermila leapt back, grabbed Rubia, and vanished in an instant. Once I confirmed they were completely outside the mainland, I unfastened the Bracelet of Verdure.
Every Force that had been sleeping, sealed away, was released. The blood-qi inside me grew denser still; the chill at my throat turned even colder, sharper.
And then—
Valoran’s voice reached me.
His greatsword tore free of the earth.
The armor wrapped around his body shattered.
Wings unfurled.
The Black Sun rose.
At the same time Valoran’s mouth twisted, and behind him a crimson moon climbed into the sky, blotting out the sun.