Chapter 182
Chapter 182
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 182
Chapter Title: The Carnival
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Lightning shot out in an instant, coiling around Andre's body.
An explosion and a deafening roar followed in the next moment.
The confined space was once again filled with the thick smell of burning, and his vision was obscured by dust and smoke.
‘Not yet.’
Though the creature must have sustained significant damage, Loan didn't let his guard down.
It was a creature formed from a collection of individual human bodies, now merged into one.
He had encountered foes that borrowed a human body, evolved a demonic body to resemble a human's, wore a human body like clothing, or merged with a human, but this was the first time he'd seen one that had completely abandoned its humanity to fuse together like a demonic beast.
The last he'd seen of it, it had been torn to shreds by the explosion, barely retaining its original form, but there was no telling if the remains would merge together again.
Loan briefly considered the need to extract information from it, then, without hesitation, unleashed another bolt of lightning upon the hazy figure.
KRA-KOOM?!
Flames and lightning are hotter the bluer they are.
The current bolt was noticeably redder than the last.
The dry air had weakened the cumulonimbus cloud, causing the lightning's color to change.
It was therefore bound to be weaker, less hot. The resulting explosion wasn't on the same level as before.
In fact, it had the opposite effect of spreading the dust even wider.
Shhhhhhh-
Piercing through it, a swarm of thin, chain-like snakes now surged toward Loan.
K-KRAAANG!
He'd reflexively detonated his gathered mana to erect his Domain, and it was a good thing he did; otherwise, he wouldn't have escaped unscathed.
The mana itself had scattered, obscuring his vision and making it difficult to see, but now that he could assess the situation again.
Loan was in no state of mind to worry about minor details.
He now understood how the creature had regenerated its body.
“You…”
He had planned to incapacitate it and use the [Mask of Truth] to find out what they were plotting in Ferrara.
But now, he abandoned that thought entirely.
Complete destruction and annihilation.
Seeing the corpses that had been crammed into the large cauldron behind the creature, now tangled together and connected to it, his only thought was to return the abomination to mana as quickly as possible and appease the lingering spirits of its victims.
Rage fueled his will, reflexively accelerating the rotation of his Circles.
Giiiiing— The three furiously spinning Circles purified the atmosphere, concentrating mana into Loan.
Loan extended both hands, generating a powerful bolt of lightning between his palms.
He skipped the process of conjuring a thundercloud—
and channeled the electricity into the outer flow of Convection coursing through his body.
His body began to crackle, Pzzzt- pzzt!, emitting blue sparks as if he were an energy source on the verge of exploding.
Even without the ability to see mana.
Even without being able to sense magical power.
Anyone could tell just how dangerous Loan's current state was.
That was true even for a demon.
Andre had secured extreme regenerative abilities from the dozens of bodies offered as sacrifices, but he instinctively realized this would be a difficult fight, considering his opponent's affinity.
Thus, the only option available to him was to drag the situation into a battle of attrition.
He still had the snake heads, which he could draw out as thin as chains.
“Let's see how long you can last.”
His words carried the promise of an endless assault.
After which, they poured forth.
Countless snake heads.
Shwaaaaaaak!
In response to the creature's attack, Loan would unleash multiple tendrils of lightning.
KRAANG—KRAKOOM?!
A series of explosions would follow as the lightning surged back through the snake-like tendrils.
Then, to counter each tendril of lightning, another chain-like snake head would lash out.
When they collided and exploded, neutralizing the lightning, yet another chain would follow.
The battle continued, a contest of firing and firing again without changing stance.
It was a prolonged showdown.
A situation where a single lapse in concentration would mean the end.
If one were to analyze Andre's technique, it involved compressing and extending the total mass of his body, then converting its physical properties into another form to attack.
While that in itself was miraculous, Loan believed the creature's true strength lay in its visual prowess.
Loan's own ability to ‘see’ had reached a level close to short-term precognition, yet their exchange continued.
Was it because every single chain-like snake head had an eye?
The creature's sight was incredibly sharp.
This battle, filled with countless flashes and explosions amidst the dust, could well be called a battle of vision, a battle of concentration, or even a battle of endurance.
‘If this continues, I'll have the advantage in the end, but…’
Loan had no intention of dragging out the fight.
He had already faced enemies in the undergrounds of Schwerin who sought to endlessly produce demonic beasts.
To win a fight against a regenerating foe, one had to sever its roots with overwhelming force.
He had to annihilate the core within its body, the very source of its regeneration.
He had once neutralized Brien's barrier through the physical expansion of the [Sphere of the Void].
His train of thought continued along that path.
Suddenly, in Loan's mind, the concepts of lightning and the void intertwined.
He had conceptualized lightning and controlled its flow with Convection. If he used that to create a perfect sphere, to detonate and incinerate the enemy within—
‘It'll work.’
The concrete image that formed in his mind spread out like a net toward the surging snake heads.
Pzzzzzt!
Azure tributaries of electricity crawled up the snake tendrils like prominent veins.
“Guaaaaaah!”
A momentary electrocution.
But Andre was not the destination.
They spread out in all directions with the creature at the center, forming a sphere of Convection.
The principle was the same as when manifesting the [Sphere of the Void] externally, but this time it was a Convection carrying electric power—in other words, an electric current.
The lightning contained within the tens of thousands of mana tributaries extending from the target's center detonated everything all at once.
Until the target was completely gone—
An eternal pain, pouring down until it atoned for its sins.
A powerful discharge attack that completely detonates, incinerates, and annihilates the target, forcibly reverting it to mana, which is then fed back into the tributaries to sustain the sphere.
[Sphere of Infinite Penance - Thunderbolt]
What dominated the space now was a blinding, azure flash of light that erased the horrific scene in an instant.
And the continuous roar of explosions.
BOOM! BANG—BA-BOOOOM?!
The explosions continued until there was nothing left to burst, until every last particle had been reverted to mana, and then, as if it were a lie, the sound vanished.
Ruuuumble...
It was replaced by the sound of the building shaking.
It had absorbed the full impact until it could endure no more.
Soon after, cracks spiderwebbed across the walls and ceiling.
Loan used the Narrow Path to step away, retracting all the thunderbolt's energy into his Convection. He then gathered all the surviving but unconscious hostages and raised a sphere armed with physical force.
KRAANG! K-KRAKOOM!
Behind the completely collapsed ruins.
After a whirlwind of Convection scattered all the dust and debris far away.
Only Loan and the hostages remained.
Sienna and the remaining villagers were watching from a short distance.
“Loan…”
She didn't know what had happened, but seeing that massive building reduced to dust made it clear that something incredible had taken place.
Loan entrusted the unconscious people to the villagers' care before reuniting with Sienna.
Sienna had eliminated a good number of Nostra on her own, and a considerable number of the enemy had fled.
The fact that she had accomplished this alone proved she was at the upper echelons of the Runners.
“There was a demon.”
“Was there…”
“I wanted to summon Aul to get information from the demon, but I couldn't. It's a shame.”
Sienna shook her head.
“The situation inside must have been more serious than where I was. You saved all these people. Why not be proud of yourself?”
As if they thought another disaster would strike if they left his side.
The former hostages stuck close behind Loan, bowing their heads repeatedly to express their gratitude.
Sienna spoke to the embarrassed Loan.
“Besides, it's not like we didn't get any information at all. That would be too shameful for a member of the Faith Division.”
“You found something out?”
“I got the word 'Carnival.' One of them was muttering something proverbial, about how the time to harvest the fruit after fattening it up would soon be upon them.”
“Carnival…”
It was an unfamiliar word, but considering the demon Andre, it made a certain kind of sense.
That creature had also used sacrifices to enhance its own power, so what were humans to it but prey?
Moreover.
‘It's similar to what happened in Schwerin.’
Their words reminded Loan of the appearance of the giant monster in Schwerin.
If they were preparing something like they did there, their target would surely be the heart of Ferrara, and the time must be near.
Just as his thoughts were beginning to take shape, a voice spoke up from behind him.
“I heard something while I was captured. About that 'Carnival.'”
He turned to see the girl who had been lying on the table, fated to be the next sacrifice.
The girl, covering herself with a gathered cloth, continued.
“I didn't know what it meant when I heard it, but they said this: They were going to put the Carnival on the agenda.”
“The agenda?”
Sienna asked.
“Yes. That's what they said, but I don't know what it means.”
Loan furrowed his brow for a moment before joining the conversation.
“Senior, the council politics here mean that representatives from Ferrara's influential families decide the duchy's will, right?”
“Yes. It was arranged that way to prevent power struggles after the duke's death.”
“If they're talking about an agenda, couldn't they mean the council? It sounds like they're making some kind of decision there. It sounds like they've either seized control of the council or believe they can.”
“Hmm... Timing-wise, the founding day of the Ferrara council could be the day they're targeting.”
Loan paused before he spoke again.
*-Then could it be that one of the families is colluding with the demons or Grave?*
It was a dangerous statement, one that had to be made psionically.
An unsubstantiated claim could cause problems.
If it became known that such words came from a member of the Union, it could worsen the situation.
It could sow discord in Ferrara just as it was trying to stabilize its political landscape.
Understanding Loan's meaning, Sienna processed the psionic message internally before turning to the villagers.
“Well then, shall we start by carefully going over what happened here?”
She began to take statements from the village survivors and the intended sacrifices.
After the information was organized.
Loan and Sienna spoke in a private location.
“So representatives from five families will become the council members.”
“They made it an odd number so that decisions can be made by a majority vote when opinions differ.”
“And the chairperson will be elected at this general assembly. What are the relationships between the families like?”
“The former ducal family was unparalleled. The other five families are all similar in terms of territory size, influence, wealth, military strength, and martial power.”
However, there was a slight difference in their motivations. The three families who lost children at the ball were the most enthusiastic about forming the council, so it was clear their opinions would hold the most sway.
They are the ones who insist on taking a very hard-line stance against the demons and Grave.
“On the surface, it doesn't seem like it would be one of those three families.”
“But we can't completely rule out the possibility.”
“Right. Let's look into it. The Responsibility Committee is most closely involved with Ferrara's stabilization, so Commander Garcia might have some information.”
Who might be connected to Grave.
Or if any family has direct ties to Nostra.
First, they needed to gather more information related to the Carnival.
There was one week left until the council's inauguration.