Azrael was wounded, but it wasn’t anything worth worrying about. With his healing ability, the wound should vanish sooner or later.
“…?”
However, my expectations couldn’t be more wrong. The wound on Azrael’s side started to turn black, just like with Ember’s wound, and as soon as it did, its healing also halted.
“No way!”
Does this mean wounds inflicted by the Void Beast are impossible to heal?!
I quickly turned to Ember and saw that her face was still filled with cold sweat. She was obviously in pain but was focusing on her task to “bless” the swords instead. As expected, she hasn’t healed her own injuries either!
“Ember!”
Without hesitation, I forcefully activated the special function of the system, the System’s Guardian Halo. I guess my tampering with the setting of only activating for a life-or-death-level injury backfired on me grandly.
In moments, a golden flash covered Ember’s body. Her missing left arm and the encroaching black skin on her quickly disappeared.
“Ugh…”
However, the price to pay for it was quite hefty. Ember was already a God-level tamed beast, so her activating Guardian’s Halo gurgled tons of my energy. Furthermore, it was more than what I expected!
Was the thing encroaching on her wound that bad?
I turned to Azrael and saw that, at least, the encroaching black thing on him wasn’t spreading anymore. He must’ve done something to stop its progress, but due to that, his reaction speed and movement were greatly slowed.
Their roles were turned upside down, as now Azrael was on the defensive! 𝘳𝑎.𝗇t
‘At this rate, he will get pushed to a corner and fail!’
Having no other choice, I stepped up.
I grabbed one of the three swords and rushed forward. Although its blessing hasn’t been completed yet, it should still have some effect!
Although I tried to catch up to them, the two were moving so fast and unpredictably that I couldn’t even start to guess where they would be the next instant. I activated Lifeblood, trying to boost my cognitive speed, just to be able to follow the two giants’ movements.
“There!”
Finally, the two moved close to where I was. I jumped using [Shadow Teleportation] and appeared at the Void Beast’s back. Then, with a large, winding motion, I swung the sword against its back.
*CHIIIIING!*
The sword couldn’t go past the shell, but it still caused a small dent in it. The barrier around the Void Beast shivered for a moment, and Azrael saw it as a chance.
*SLAM!*
He swung his sword horizontally, and taking advantage of the shell’s fluctuation, he cut through the part that became thin for an instant. His sword finally reached the Void Beast’s body!
Flames transferred from the blade toward the Void Beast’s body and slowly spread from the wound, just like the black thing on Azrael’s side. The Void Beast didn’t let it last any longer and quickly waved its claws, pushing Azrael outside of range.
“Whoa!”
As soon as it pushed back Azrael, the Void Beast turned its head in my direction before firing another beam from its mouth. I was surprised by the sudden attack, but I didn’t panic. Using [Shadow Teleportation], I moved toward Azrael’s side, gaining a large shield in the process.
This way, the Void Beast wouldn’t be able to attack me at all!
[What did you do just now, human? His protective barrier weakened for a short moment!]
Azrael couldn’t help but be curious. After all, his attacks barely managed to pass through its defenses, while Will was able to pass through it easily!
“Don’t tell me, you don’t know about the Void Element?”
It was a little unbelievable, but seeing his reaction, it was reasonable. Was it that angels only have the Holy Element or something? He’s using flames, though.
[Void Element? I think I haven’t heard of it before…]
“…”
Could it be that it’s a new element that was formed while he was sealed? That’s possible, but also a little disappointing. If he could use the Void Element, then this battle should be a cinch!
*ZIIIIIIIN!*
The beam finally found where I was and followed, but Azrael used his sword to “bend” its path, letting it fly in a completely different direction, far from where I was.
[Anyway, if you can use that attack again, do it! I’ll make sure to protect you!]
Azrael encouraged me, but I took a glance at the sword I had. The Void Powers covering it were mostly gone after that strike. To break its defenses again, I would need to reapply the blessings on it.
I turned to Ember and Namia, but the two weren’t finished yet. Their speed seemed to have increased, however, so we can expect it shortly. At their current speed…
“One minute! In one minute, I can destroy its defense again!”
Before then, we need to attract this Void Beast’s attention, making sure it doesn’t go to the two girls. Probably realizing the things I left unsaid, Azrael raised his sword again, his face turning serious.
[Then, we need to hold back this Spawn of the Void first. Human, you stay a safe distance away. Attack when you see an opening!]
As soon as he finished speaking, the two giants’ battle resumed once more. Each of their movements was literally destroying the land, cracking the earth, and ravaging space itself.
Of course, Azrael wasn’t simply repeating their exchange from before.
From beyond the shell of Void Powers protecting the Void Beast, flames were still smoldering brightly. Azrael was taking advantage of this and attacking that same spot continuously, almost like harassing his enemy.
[Ugh…!]
However, there’s one problem:. Whenever Azrael moved intensely, the encroachment over his wound was spreading slightly. The damage accumulation from his flames, or the damage from the blackened parts of his body. It wasn’t hard to guess which one was more severe.
“If only I could heal his wounds…!”
I’m not sure if it was from lowering his guard or that he was outsmarted by the enemy, but his wound was going to be his biggest weakness. The Void Beast, as if copying Azrael’s actions, was also meticulously targeting the wounded part, forcing Azrael to move violently and aggravating his physical state further.
“There must be some way…”
I tried to think, letting my mind turn rapidly while watching the two fight. When my gaze drifted toward Namia, however, something flashed in my head.
“The Faux Contract!”
Right! If I use that, then…!
“Azrael! Let me place you under a Faux Contract now, so that I can heal your wounds!”
I tried raising my voice, but the two were currently in the middle of an intense exchange. There was no room to breathe, much less to reply to my offer.
However, there’s no time to waste on waiting. I quickly used [Shadow Teleportation] once more and appeared under his shadow. The two were moving rapidly, so it was quite a dangerous location for someone like me.
I quickly moved up Azrael’s body, careful not to fall off, and finally reached his shoulder. After repeating my offer to him, Azrael glanced at me for a moment. I took his gesture as a yes and quickly activated the System’s function, placing Azrael under my control.
[Notice! Initiating contracting through the Faux Contract… Success.]
[Warning! The contracted monster is beyond the System’s Control. Penalty will be applied for the duration of the contract.]
[Contract formed! Contract expires in 0 hours, 9 minutes, and 55 seconds.]
“…!”
The contract did succeed, but it’s merely 10 minutes total! I was secretly hoping to gain a beyond-god-level tamed monster and drag him around, but like this, I wouldn’t even be able to extend his Faux Contract beyond this battle.
Anyway, I quickly activated the System’s Guardian Halo and designated Azrael as the target. In an instant, a blinding flash of golden light covered his entire body, healing him fully and even erasing the encroachment that was creeping across his wound.
“Sh*t…”
But right after I did that, my vision spun, and I almost fell from Azrael’s shoulder. It had been quite a while since I felt like this. My energy was practically emptied in one go!
Although I can hold my consciousness with sheer will, it’s hard to even raise my sword anymore. I would need to recover a bit of my energy first before I could resume fighting.
I grabbed a small vial of energy recovery potion from my pocket. It was there only for emergencies when I didn’t even have enough to open my [Spatial Storage] or to teleport away to safety.
As soon as I emptied the bottle’s contents into my mouth, energy started to gather deep inside my body. It was gradual, but I was recovering from the energy deficiency state. But before I could recover enough to move, the two giant’s movements became a lot brisker.
I hung tight on Azrael’s clothes, resting on his shoulder, and bided my time.
“(Master!)”
And just as I was about to fall off, I heard Ember’s voice echoing inside my head. Turning to where they were, I saw the two swords, covered in a thick layer of Void Power, ready for battle.
“Nice!”
I quickly squeezed my remaining energy and used [Shadow Skip]. Thanks to the dark clouds, I could reach where the two girls were in one go, saving energy during the process.
As soon as I reached Ember’s side, she passed me an Energy Recovery Potion of the highest grade. As expected of her, she really knows what I need.
I took the vial and popped the cork, downing its contents in moments.
Unlike the cheap one I took, in which the only saving grace was its extremely long shelf life, this one was several times more effective. Energy started to rush back into my body, recovering enough to resume fighting at any moment!
“Ember, the swords!”
I extended my hand, and Ember quickly passed the two “blessed” swords to me. Holding one in each hand, I turned to where the Void Beast was and smiled.
“Now, let’s see who’ll have the last laugh!”
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