Episode 992 The Prelude to Death (2)
Aching.
Severe pain surged from the stab wound just below the solar plexus. It was because Hishril’s violent energy had etched the rupture into the wound.However, the current Verden was not human enough to react to such pain.
Didn’t someone say that a wounded beast is the most ferocious?
[Einber], perfected with the power and divine energy infused by the Gray Dragon, boasts inherent resistance comparable to the scales of a dragon greater than that of an adult, yet it was significantly damaged by the sword energy emitted from the light sword.Of course, it will automatically repair itself as if it were still alive over time.
“You tried to target my heart. Indeed, you possess a formidable power that cannot be let down.”
Although he dominated the battle, he allowed an attack while simultaneously inflicting serious injuries. Carelessness and misjudgment lead to an instantaneous reversal.Every moment’s judgment is both a variable and a conclusion.Just as Verden’s magic can kill Hythril, Hythril’s martial arts also hold the potential to kill Verden.
Hisril led me here.
Verden recognized the massive undead forces and the armies of humans and beastmen. A familiar presence was detected. Grave Ludworth and the mages of Eon turned their heads in the direction of Verden from the battlefield.
The massive dark rift known as the Gate of Death was fixed behind Hythril quietly and somewhat unpleasantly.
The clues are so messy that it’s hard to read the intention.
Verden looked at Hisril across from him.
Crack… crack… !
Dark red lightning flowers crossed Hythril’s shoulders, chest, abdomen, and pelvis in a diagonal line. The concept was destroying her very existence.Yet, despite knowing this, Hythril smiled and did not withdraw her fighting spirit.
Thump.
The afterimage of the pulsating lightsaber spreads like waves.Is it an illusion, or reality?It seemed as though a blood-stained beast appeared behind Hythril’s back.
“Someone once said that there is no one in this world more cruel than me. They probably meant it as an insult, but to me, it was a compliment. Honestly, I was proud of it, but seeing you hurts my pride a bit.”
Hisril glared at Verden as if he were looking at a beast just like himself.
“What kind of ideology, on earth, would one need to pioneer such a demonic path?”
It was only after experiencing it firsthand that I could truly understand. How cruel and wicked the dark red magic I had seen through Draven really was.
“If slaughter is evil, then I am the lesser evil. Verden, you will be the worst. As a result, countless lives will be taken away because of you. Enough to far exceed the number I have hunted so far.”“Slaughter is inherently evil.”“A villain. So you were aware of it?”“Neither of us should be weak enough to be bound by universal good and evil.”
[Interis], having become a thunderbolt, unleashes thunder irregularly.
“I take responsibility for all change.”“How.”“By proving that my ideals were right.”“With what.”“Freedom through power.”
At Verden’s declaration that he would go beyond merely reigning over the world—that is, become a being who determines good and evil—Histhril wiped the traces of a smile from her face.Befitting her title of Empress, she continued speaking with a serious demeanor.
“Actions beyond one’s station sometimes produce dreamlike comedies, but they inevitably end in tragedy. This is because once someone who doesn’t know their place tastes success, they run wild for the rest of their lives, unable to grasp their limitations. To me, there is nothing uglier or more disgusting than that.”“But you look forward to it.”“An impossible challenge. Reckless courage. They may be as stupid as greed-soaked trash, but… it is still a tragedy worth watching. Because sometimes it shows a happy ending like a children’s fairy tale. Though in the end, unable to forget those memories, they all died while acting recklessly, claiming they would save comrades or overcome trials again.”
Hisril was cheerful for the first time in a long while.
“Chaos mass-produces things like this that make decisions that are neither reason nor nature. If the entire continent falls into chaos, wouldn’t there be at least one fool who adorns their own end with the perfect conclusion?”“Perhaps.”“I want to see that. That is my ideal.”
I kill those who are presumptuous and hypocritical out of sheer disgust… but I hope they achieve the impossible and reach the conclusion they desire.Instinctive Hythril paradoxically pursued the very sights his nature loathed.
“Isn’t that contradictory?”“Because it is the ideal of the transcendent.”
The transcendent being moves forward ceaselessly to fulfill an unreachable dream, like a moth captivated by the moonlight. That was the yoke of transcendence.
So we have no choice but to be called crazy.
Hisril pushed his elbow to the side and aimed his light sword at Verden. Although a significant amount of his energy had been depleted to block destruction by surrounding himself with it, the density of his will had increased even further.
A pillar of magical power shot up.
Verden’s [Interis], with its flowing gray hair, flashed intensely. Rumble. A thunderous sound, repeating condensation and expansion, echoed through the air. Divinelightning, falling indiscriminately from the sky, struck the earth surrounding them.
Distorting space.
Heathril must not be killed, but there is no room to restrain one’s power. For the moment one underestimates him, one will pay the price. The Empress’s fangs reach the god.The crystallization of madness.It was the moment when murderous intent spewed from the eyes of the transcendents who had shared their ideals.
Snap, it felt like something snapped.
Slaughter in the wilderness.
Frenzied Fangs
Hythril, imbued with inhuman wildness through the Transcendental Spirit of Night Soul, unleashed a transcendental technique of annihilation. As her physical form vanished, murderous intent rained down like fangs.
Crunch!
Blood spread as [Einber] was pierced through as if biting to death. Shoulders, legs, flanks, and even the solar plexus. Hythril, having sunk in a total of seven teeth, reached within striking distance to tear off the luscious neck.
and.
The ‘Flash of Darkness’ that bloomed from Verden’s hand snatched away the vision. The destruction, concentrated beyond the limits by infinite magic, was no different from darkness.The end of the manifestation of magic.[Interis], whose constituent material itself had temporarily changed as it completely dissolved into the concept, became the shadow of destruction directly connected to the Mystic Eye.
Extinction: Nox
An indescribable clash of forces occurred between the two transcendent beings. Repulsion and attraction became intricately intertwined, engulfing everything in chaos.
────────────!
The sensation disappeared.
Nothing is visible. The world is dead silent. One cannot even feel the temperature. It felt as if the world had deprived her of her existence.
Hythril instinctively thrust his lightsaber forward even in his numbness. He felt a faint sense of presence. The last tooth dug into the skin.Swaaaaaaak!A red sword mark appeared on the white skin as hot blood gushed out. The head of Verden, the most handsome man Hythril had ever seen, flew up.
I won.I won.I ended up winning.
Cute Adrian might resent this, but… the battle between transcendents is ruthless. Kill or be killed. She savored the victory. It felt somehow more thrilling than when she killed the Beast King who had led her into the wild.
It was a hair’s breadth.I was lucky.Did the last spell miss?
I thought at best it would be a suicide pact, but the outcome was unexpectedly good. There is no pain. Fortunately, it ended more easily than expected.Easily.Yes, easily…
Ah, I knew it. I thought it was too easy.
Hisril Del Roharun blinked briefly, snapping out of her delusion. The sky was gloomy. As she slowly rolled her eyes, she saw her lying at the edge of the devastated land that had turned into hell. Shewas defeated.She had merely survived.The light sword [Silendar] was embedded diagonally in the ground some distance away from her.
“How… does it feel to have trampled upon the noble Empress?”“I withdrew my power before homeostasis was destroyed. You must have the strength to answer.”
Verden, whose magical manifestation had been released, sat down on a nearby small hill. Erasing the Hythril energy residing in the penetrating wound with destruction, he consumed the fruit potion of Lysandro summoned from the subspace.
The showdown is over.
Verden, who had bound her by casting a supreme magic circle, threw an extra robe. Covering Hisril’s tattered body, he asked.
“Oh my, what a gentleman. I can’t even put up a fight right now.”“Where is Adrian?”“Don’t underestimate me.”
Hisril soon answered without hiding the information, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“I put him in an abandoned prison within the Lower Beastmen tribe, so he should have escaped by now. His life is not in danger. He doesn’t have a single physical defect.”“I see.”
Verden continued asking questions while carefully distinguishing between truth and falsehood.
“How many beings have been resurrected as complete transcendents like you?”“As far as I know, there are three, including myself. Vantoreon Roden Taranis and Lycan Turgard.”“The Great Cataclysm of Light and the Great Emperor of the Eastern Continent, I suppose.”“Just as you suspected, right? *Cough, cough*.”
A little blood mixed in Hisril’s faint cough. Although she felt excruciating pain as her damaged nerves returned, she thoroughly concealed her condition.
“we are…….”
The Nine Gates.Each opened one gate to fulfill the promise made to Draven.Two gates exist in the southern part of the Eastern Continent, and as they influenced each other, the opening of the gate in the lower beastkin tribe was delayed; Hythril remained here to manage it.
“The second gate here must have opened by now. I have no interest in what happens in there, though.”“…….”
Hisril clearly explained what he had been doing since his resurrection and revealed the whereabouts of the two people who were not here.
“Lycan went to Delharun to open the last Four Gates of the Eastern Continent… and Vantoreon headed to the Central Continent alone. I heard he intends to use the intercontinental travel magic circle in the Republic of Beldirn…”“Didn’t Vantoreon say he already kept his promise to Draven?”“It’s not the Four Gates. The goal is an ideal.”
Hisril’s eyes curved into an arc.
“Bantoreon went to the ownerless land. To meet you, Verden.”“Me…?”
Verden couldn’t help but be surprised by the news.
“He says he saw the potential for something more in you. Are you worried about the territory? Well… there won’t be anything to worry about. Vantoreon has absolutely no interest in massacres… so if you aren’t around, he’ll probably just wait quietly while drinking tea.”
She smiled weakly.
“We… aren’t on anyone’s side. We are just transcendent beings who want to be free. Still, no matter what happens, we have no intention of belonging to the forces of the Old King.”“So you mean you might side with the Continent?”“Well, if I feel like it?”
Hisril, Vantoreon, and Lycan are powerful variables capable of influencing the course of the battle. It would be a waste of their strength to kill them, but it is concerning to let them live.Verden, standing at a crossroads of choice as always, raised a question once again.
“By the way, what do you mean by leaving an unforgettable mark on Adrian?”“Ah, that. Uhuhu.”
Hisril shyly licked his lips.
“It was sweet.”“……?”
At that unexpected reaction, Verden’s thoughts froze for a moment. Why are you blushing? For a split second, Isabella and Callia overlapped in his mind.
Adrian, what happened to you?
In the brief moment when Verden was genuinely flustered for the first time in a long while, Hisril, who had clearly lost his will to fight, had a terrifyingly fierce gaze.At the same time, a deep blue thunder spear embroidered in the air was aimed at Hisril.
“Don’t mess with me. There is no escape.”“You’re not letting your guard down.”
Hisril revealed his teeth.
But I can see it.
The highest-level magic circle was torn apart and shattered by sheer brute force. Hithril sprang to her feet, wrapped herself in the robe Verden had given her, and placed one hand on the ground.Her body, marked only by the trajectory of destruction, began to recover at a rapid pace.
“how…….”
Verden perceived the magical workings taking place inside Hisril’s body.
Lysandro’s Fruit?
Hythril had consumed the potion borrowed from Adrian beforehand and was forcibly suppressing its effects while concealing them with her energy and will. It was a hiddentactic she had devised after confirming a particularly concentrated potion in Adrian’s spatial bag and testing it while inflicting wounds on her body.
Thanks to Verden’s destruction, the resilience was fully unleashed.
I’ll give you the sword back!
During the fierce battle, the light sword, which had been imbued with energy little by little, moved remotely and shot at Verden.
Boom!
It collided with [Interis] just as it was, a metallic sound spreading, and a trace of red energy contained in the light sword returned to Hisril.
Recovered some of the fatal and severe injuries using the power of the potion stored in the body.Recovered the energy accumulated in the light sword to seek an escape route.
Paaaat!
She, whose internal energy had been completely depleted by the destruction of Verden, regained the strength to move for a moment. Forming sword energy in both hands, she unleashed her leg power.
Dimensional Transfer
Verden rushed in front of her as she was slashing through the lightning spears raining down from above. Although he, too, had expended great strength due to recoil and fatigue, he was overwhelmingly superior to Hisril at that moment.
“He is heading toward the Gate of Death. Does it lead somewhere? I will push it away for now.”
Quinter Casting:
A massive mass was placed on the staff. Hythril, however, paid no heed and thrust his arm forward. He then shifted his center of gravity to the right.
Give up on one arm!
Kwaaaaaaaang!
Hisril’s entire body was crushed, his left arm broken and bone protruding. It was a repulsive force he could not endure at the moment. The ground where his right leg had stepped cracked. His joints and nerves, which had barely recovered, creaked loudly.
“───!!!”
He let out a shout and grabbed Verden’s shoulder with his right hand.He pulled the ground with the balls of his feet.Finally, Hisril, having twisted the direction of the force, was flung forward instead of backward.
Crunch!
The gates of death loomed behind her as she spun, scraping the ground with the bone protruding from her skin. An unyielding obsession with no intention of being captured.
Give this to Adrian.
Heathril took his palm away from his lips and blew a kiss.
It was my first time, too.
Verden’s eyelids trembled.So, what?
It was fun. See you later.
Hisril threw his battered body straight into the Gate of Death.
Is it pursuit or abandonment?
Having made his decision, Verden accelerated and followed in Hisril’s footsteps. As soon as she disappeared, Verden also entered the Gates of Death.
… … Taaaaaaang!
A few seconds later, Verden, struck by a shock to his soul, was flung outside. Fixing himself in space and suspended in mid-air, he gritted his teeth.
‘taboo……!’
The boundary of the powerful taboo was accepted by Hisril, while Verden’s existence was rejected. Although the fundamental causes were different, the process was similar to how the sanctuary Abenka had refused Verden’s entry.
Can it be destroyed?
Verden parted his lips, keeping a primitive method in mind. He had wanted to pretend not to know if possible, but this time, he had no choice.
“What would happen if I broke that?”
Verden said it again.
“Answer me, host.”
Soon, the bookshelf of the Gring Arcanum, summoned by chance from the subspace, opened wide.The scent of the sea lingered around Verden.
{Indeed, a true god pursuing ideals like ‘you’ and Oldarc. You already knew that I was watching over you from here… … No.}
The host flinched in response.
You were watching me. Long ago.
From the moment he understood the concept of the soul and obtained the divine, Verden had been sensing the host’s gaze beyond the Gring Arcanum.
But I didn’t try to pretend I knew.
Since the Host was still an Apostle of Fate shrouded in mystery to Verden… Verden decided to observe the Host in return. As hefocused on the gazes reaching him, he was able to confirm the creature’s presence.
Just as the host saw the world through Verden,Verden saw Arcadium through the host.
The problem is that the host did not notice this fact at all. This is because it was something that did not exist in his knowledge.
{Indeed… … interesting. Amazing.}
“If you’re not going to answer, get lost. Voyeur.”
{I’d like you to call me an audience member. In any case, since the banquet is being delayed at my own discretion, I will answer your question just this once. As a token of compensation.}
Gring Arcanum pointed at the Gate of Death.
If that collapses due to the concept of destruction, a situation will unfold that neither ‘you’ nor Oldark wanted. Only the parasites would rejoice.
“If it’s a parasite… the arch-demon of parasitism?”
{Ipeakarn.}
The host did not hide his contempt.
Are there any other parasites besides that?
