Zeshion joined the fray!
Although a tad too late, a helping hand is still a helping hand! Zeshion engaged Noir in close combat, making him unable to focus on attacking from range. He was extremely wary of Zeshion’s new sword, something that I was seeing for the first time too.
The sword was of a pure black color, as if it were cursed, but it was releasing a holy aura. Each swing cut not only air but even space along its path. Noir was blocking it with crystallized tentacles, but the tentacles crumbled before even touching the sword!
Seeing that much, I could guess why Noir would want to avoid the sword to the point of having tunnel vision. Still, the time I gained from it was something that I needed.
“Ugh…!”
My body gave out… Literally. The entire time, I was running Lifeblood at full output, after all. Without that, I wouldn’t even be able to dodge the attacks coming from Noir. Still, now that I was running on fumes, the skill finally faded, causing the pain that I had ignored to flood in all at once.
Just as my control over the space barrier I was maintaining was about to fade, another barrier protected me, followed by a shower of golden particles, healing my torn muscles and tendons and restoring some energy inside me.
‘This… Goddess Blanc!’
I turned in their direction, seeing her focusing on healing not only me but everyone else altogether. That includes herself. As expected of her, however, my injuries healed almost instantly. Energy is slowly being restored too, probably coming from herself and passed to me through unknown means.
I turned to Noir and Zeshion, playing a deadly game of tag. Zeshion swung the sword over and over, but Noir was moving all over the place, using his speed beyond Zeshion’s to keep a safe distance away from the black sword.
As it is, Noir would slowly gain more distance, earning enough time to launch more attacks. If that happens, then Zeshion will probably be on the losing end in a few moments.
Before things reach that stage, I, the only other person who could move, should do something!
I turned to Ember, sending a command to her through our special link. She was sprawled on the ground, but seeing that the barrier around the girls was steady, she should be conscious. A moment later, a positive reply came back, making me sigh in relief.
“Phew…”
I calmed down my wildly beating heart before activating the two flames simultaneously. Flames of Evolution and Flames of Regression roared to life, covering my entire body. Still, they could only last for a short while, given that I only have the few karma I gained while fighting against Noir.
A few seconds at most, but that should be enough.
The flames recovered my energy fully, giving me enough to perform a powerful attack at least once. At that moment, a portal appeared before me, and at the same time, a portal appeared on top of Noir.
I didn’t hesitate and punched forward, cladding my fist with as much energy as I could. My fist entered the portal and exited on top of Noir’s head. Noir noticed it at the last second, dodging it, but my fist still grazed his left cheek.
I missed! Still, that was fine. With the graze, the Flames of Evolution started burning, spreading all over Noir’s body. I was about to rejoice just as the portal Ember opened vanished, but I was flabbergasted by the scene that followed.
The flames, supposed to be almost impossible to quench other than using up all the “fuel” from the host, vanished with a simple shrug. Furthermore, Noir’s fist flashed, entering the portal just as it was about to close, and landed on my chest.
*BAM!* *CRACK!*
A solid hit! My ribcage collapsed from the strike before I got sent flying back. Luckily, Igni and Fang were prepared to catch me as I flew, lessening the damage I received by a little. Still, the damage was something I couldn’t ignore. The broken ribs punctured my lungs, both lungs, so I was unable to breathe anymore.
Ember squeezed her energy, healing me using her Void Powers, but doing so ended up making her faint. Before the barrier around us vanished, Blanc covered us with another barrier, protecting us.
The battle doesn’t look too favorable to us anymore.
Sooner or later, Zeshion would lose his advantage against Noir and get slapped away. Vermeil fainted, along with Zeta and Ember. Ajax was healed but had no energy left, so he was unable to participate even if he wanted to. 𝘳𝑎.𝗇t
In short, if we don’t do anything, then only a slow death awaits every one of us. Such a conclusion should be avoided at all costs!
“Igni, let me borrow your knowledge for a bit!”
Without asking for permission, I pulled Igni closer, bumping foreheads with her. Although our lips touched for a short instant from the momentum, we didn’t fuss over it. Rather, I need a certain memory from her right now.
“…”
I focused on the system’s function, scanning Igni’s memory. Soon enough, I found what I was looking for and quickly etched it into my own memory.
“My Lord, don’t tell me…!”
Igni realized which memory of hers I copied, so she could guess what I was planning. However, I quickly pressed my finger over her lips, stopping her from uttering a word more.
“If I don’t do this, we don’t have a chance of winning. Don’t worry, I wouldn’t die from the recoil of using the skill, at least.”
Igni’s eyes flickered, worry painted over her face. Still, she quickly relented, planting a firm and long kiss on me before separating.
“If you die, I’ll definitely follow you to hell and scold you!”
So my destination after death was already set to hell? I smiled wryly but quickly focused on the memory I extracted from her. The one I extracted is a dangerous but powerful skill that almost killed Igni after she used it before.
It was the power to borrow the strength of your future self!
Visit 𝘳𝑎.𝗇t