While the leaders of the Cassiubia League were facing Vepar, there was a great commotion happening beyond the wall created by the ancient tree. Everyone—the nagas who had leapt into action sensing that their master was in danger, the Cassiubia League under Magor’s command, and the eighth recruits who had secretly come up to the surface—had expected the mess to arise. The heroes, especially, planned to take advantage of the chaos and save the remaining captives. However, not everyone was rushing outward.
“Ruahu!” Ru Hiana broke off from the group and called out for Ru Amuh until her throat burned. Of course, she didn’t think Ru Amuh would be easily beaten, but there was no guarantee of his safety considering how dangerous his mission was. And seeing that Ru Amuh hadn’t responded to her no matter how many messages she sent, Ru Hiana went to look for him in the end. After calling out for his name desperately for a while, she felt the presence of another group and darted into a nearby building to hide.
Another group of nagas went straight for the wall, their eyes red from their intense emotions, but ended up slipping down futilely all the same. Only once they left did Ru Hiana let out the breath she had been holding. From where she was, she could hear screams and shouts clearly, which meant that she wasn’t far from the center of the battlefield. ‘Where could Ru Amuh be?’ Ru Hiana wondered as she climbed up to the building’s rooftop instead of going outside. She looked down from there, and as she expected, nagas were fiercely clashing with the Cassiubia League forces 200 meters away around the wall.
Ru Hiana’s eyes sparkled when they landed on one spot; several nagas were circling around something rather than swarming up to the wall, and there were more dead nagas in the particular spot than anywhere else. Ru Hiana jumped down from the rooftop. She ran like she was flying and swung the rapier that Chi-Woo had gifted her. As her sword flashed, several nagas fell while spewing blood. With the element of surprise, she was able to forge a path relatively easily.
“Ruahu!” She soon broke through and reached the center.
“Ru Hiana?” Ru Amuh pulled back his long sword and looked at her in surprise. “How are you here?”
“Are you all right?”
But instead of answering, Ru Amuh simply smiled in response. A deep shadow cast over Ru Hiana’s worried face. She knew Ru Amuh didn’t lie, and she could see his condition from looking at his face alone. Ru Amuh was soaked with sweat, and his face was pale.
“I thought I could bear one blow.” Ru Amuh placed his hand on top of his ribs and groaned softly. “But my sides are hurting after receiving one proper hit. As expected of a great demon.” It might have been his bad luck; Ru Amuh felt like his broken bones were piercing into his organs, and he was having difficulty breathing. Since he couldn’t breathe well, he couldn’t move as well as usual. Ru Hiana pursed her lips and gripped her rapier tightly after seeing Ru Amuh break out in cold sweat.
“Let’s get out of here first,” Ru Amuh then said, as his synesthesia sharpened after he had barely managed to collect his breath. The nagas who had backed away from the sudden intrusion were rushing toward them from all over now. The two instinctively stood back-to-back and raised their swords—that was when one figure dropped down from the building’s rooftop.
After landing on the ground, he waved both arms softly in a circle. And before the Ru siblings could turn back, the nagas tumbled into the air without a sound and got shredded apart; it was like they had been shoved inside a washing machine running on maximum speed. Not a single one of them survived. The Ru siblings blankly turned to see who had gotten rid of dozens of nagas with just one swing. It was the slender, middle-aged man with bushy hair who dressed like he was on a vacation.
“Yo!” Ismile from the Nahla family said, “Sorry, seems like I’ve kept you waiting for too long.”
The Ru siblings were taken aback for two different reasons. Ru Hiana was surprised to see Ismile here, while Ru Amuh was shocked by what he had just witnessed.
“Well, I was worried about Ruhu here,” Ismile said. “I wanted to keep alive a hero like you who would try something like this.” His eyes narrowed at Ru Amuh for a moment before his usual smile took over.
“But there are still those who got captured!”
“It’s fine. Fine. Apu and Yusu both went. The two of them can handle it.” Ismile waved both hands dismissively, and when he saw Ru Amuh’s condition, he whistled. “Anyways, we should get to a safe place first to treat his injuries. Ah, don’t worry. I might not look the part, but I have experience dealing with the human body.”
“Yes, please help him!” Ru Hiana immediately exclaimed, but Ru Amuh looked worried.
“But…I’m still…”
“Come on. It’s fine. You look like you’re having a hard time even breathing. I can fix you in a second.” Ismile suddenly looked up to the night sky. “I’m sure he is going to come soon anyways. We just have to rest in a safe place and let him take care of the rest.”
“…I don’t understand.” Ru Amuh, and of course, Ru Hiana had no idea what Ismile was saying.
“Huh. Did I not tell you both?” Ismile looked back and smirked. “That guy is definitely going to come.”
* * *
Bam!
A skull cracked. Chi-Woo’s club ripped through the face that appeared on Vepar’s back like paper.
“Kiaaaaaaah!” Halfway into casting curses, Vepar got interrupted by the hit and screeched. In shock, she quickly tried to move away, but her opponent didn’t let her. She didn’t know how this happened, but a human hero had succeeded in inflicting great damage on her and created an opportunity for the monsters fighting her.
“Hmph!” Sruthos swung his fist wildly. Vepar raised both arms and tried to block the attack.
Pwssh! But another hit to her side hindered her.
“You called my poison ‘alright’?” Murumuru’s red eyes shone as it spoke. “How about this!?”
Kaaaaaaaah! Murumuru thrust two katanas into Vepar’s sides, and a fierce whirlwind rushed in. Vepar couldn’t maintain her senses from the excruciating pain as her insides felt like they were getting shredded, and Sruthos used the chance to grapple her instead of attacking; he wanted to create an opening for a striker better than it was.
“Impressive!” Chi-Woo jumped over her head and swung his club down as if he was trying to split the ground in half. He felt the impact traveling along his hands clearly. The next moment, Vepar’s body melted as if it was made up of water. Then a whirlpool formed from the liquid on the ground.
“Kyah!” Vepar sprang out, accompanied by the sound of something boiling.
“Damn it!” Philip quickly turned around in surprise. He gritted his teeth and wondered, ‘What’s that?’
He had miscalculated. He had thought he would inflict less damage since unlike the time he fought Andras, Vepar could use her full strength. But that wasn’t so. Even though he was aware the club was a holy item, it produced a synergy that surpassed his imagination when combined with Chi-Woo’s special skills.
Moreover, Chi-Woo had soaked the ghost-busting club in holy water for days. Chi-Woo’s skill—no, anyone would be hard-pressed to call it a mere skill—his innate power to exercise absolute dominance over all evil or dark types was clearly at work. The stronger his opponent, the stronger his power. Of course, since Chi-Woo couldn’t fully tap into his ability, there was a limit to his power. Still, what he was capable of was much greater than Philip had expected, and that was where the problem lay.
Philip had originally planned to slowly cut down Vepar and finish her in one shot. In game terms, he’d planned to leave about fifty percent of her HP and end the final boss with a lethal move. This way, the boss wouldn’t be able to enter the second or third phases that occurred when their HP fell below a certain level.
If the monsters heard, they would dismiss it as ridiculous, but Chi-Woo’s power made it possible. Unfortunately, Philip had underestimated its effectiveness and the level of damage it would inflict, leaving Vepar at only five percent of her HP in an instant. Since Vepar was now in critical condition, she might take drastic measures, and Philip’s concerns soon turned into reality.
Vepar, who managed to escape by a hair’s breadth, could clearly judge her situation even while feeling dizzy. The alter ego she had created while consuming quite a lot of energy was destroyed in one shot. Half of her face, including one eye, had been blasted away, and it didn’t regenerate at all. Moreover, she couldn’t stop throwing up blood. Her condition was so severe that she couldn’t believe it. It should be impossible for something like this to happen.
Despite her disbelief, Vepar accepted her reality. ‘It’s…over for me.’ If she took another hit, she would die instantly. In fact, it was safe to say her condition was unrecoverable from the moment she received a direct hit.
Even though she still felt like it was all a fever dream, the pain spreading through her whole body reminded her that this was reality. ‘If that’s the case, if it’ll end like this—if I have no choice but to disappear like this…!’
“______________________!”
A long, screeching scream erupted from her mouth as she tipped her chin up. An eardrum ringing, high-frequency noise roared throughout the area. Then darkness suddenly descended all around them. It had been pretty dark because it was early in the morning, but the slowly brightening sky dimmed again as if time was rewinding.
“Fuck!” Philip cursed. He had been worried that something like this could happen, and his concerns hit right on the mark. Vepar had assessed her situation and made a split-second decision before immediately carrying it out. Now that things had gotten to this point, he wouldn’t be able to reach her anymore; it would be like trying to cross the endless sea. Vepar had given up on her physical body and soul; all that was left of her was her ‘existence’.
Chi-Woo was also started by the sudden turn of events. ‘What happened? Why does Vepar suddenly feel so far…!’
“…She’s trying to leave her existence behind.” Philip bit on his bottom lip. “She’s offering everything she has to engrave her existence onto this world…Damn it!” What Vepar was doing was not much different than someone going berserk, but it was an entirely different story when a great demon did it. It also meant that Vepar was imprinting her very existence into this place.
Crumble! The walls of the ancient city collapsed at once. The pure darkness that ate up even the night pushed in.
“The territory…is moving…!” Murumuru let out a startled cry. As Murumuru said, the darkness that occupied the opposite side had lifted its heavy self up and started moving—towards where Vepar was. Before they knew it, the whole area turned dark with no visible light.
Philip stopped running meaninglessly. This was not the end of the battle. Rather, it was only the beginning.
Flash! Faces sprouted all over Vepar’s body, bulging and moving their mouths quickly while blood and tears streamed from their eyes—as if they were all chanting a spell. A terrible chill swept over everyone. It felt like the ocean in the middle of winter. No, this was not merely an illusion in their minds.
A wave splashed over and hit the ground. The overlying land turned into a dark sea, causing countless swirls. Some rose like they had been stirred by a paddle and became a tidal wave, hitting Sruthos. It was so powerful that even a huge gigas like Sruthos got overwhelmed in a heartbeat. And this wasn’t the end.
—Kehe! Kehehehe!
Unknown spirits flew around them while letting out freakish laughs. When one of them scratched Murumuru’s face violently as it streaked by, Murumuru screamed and held onto its face. “What…what…!” Murumuru touched its own face like it couldn’t believe what was happening. Its wounds opened up and quickly began to decay.
Moreover, the storm that came with thunder and lightning had engulfed even the flowing wind. All natural disasters that could be experienced in the ocean were occurring at the same time. Only Chi-Woo remained standing. He stood shining like a lighthouse, guiding one in the right direction when they couldn’t see even an inch ahead.
However, in reality, Chi-Woo’s situation was not much different from the others. The darkness caused all kinds of abnormalities, and Philip struggled to endure it by blocking the darkness with the glowing club, burning burned the encroaching darkness. However…
“Ugh…!” There seemed to be no end to it. The club, full of Chi-Woo’s exorcism mana, was incredibly efficient and could face an army of 10,000 alone. It was no exaggeration to say he was slicing through the darkness and completely destroying it. However, the berserking great demon was not equivalent to an army of 10,000, but way more than 100,000. There was nothing he could do given the sheer enormity of his enemy. Philip ground his molars as he felt the energy of the club draining rapidly. He had planned a short-term showdown, but things went awry and suddenly turned into a long-term battle. At this point, the odds of winning were basically zero. But still, he couldn’t give up like this. What should he do…?
“Ah—” It was then that he heard a familiar sound. The presence wandered around, seemingly looking for someone. How could anyone possibly walk around in this area? Philip turned around and was shocked to see the newcomer.
“Fuck, fucking hell. How dare you mess around in my area, you fucking bitch.” The girl swearing with an expression of annoyance was not the white-haired Balal, but an identical-looking girl with black hair. Her eyes were also pitch black. “…Oppa. It’s getting hard, isn’t it?” Kabal crossed the black sea and reached Chi-Woo. Tilting her head, she asked, “Want my help?”
When Philip’s eyes narrowed, Kabal giggled and raised her hand. She was holding the bag Chi-Woo had left behind. She tapped it with her index finger and licked her upper lip, asking with a smile, “If the answer is yes, can I have one more bottle?”