Chapter 290
Whoosh!
The afterglow began to swirl, mixing black and white.
It was an ominous aura, as if it would shatter at the mere touch.
“Doing strange things again…”
Whoosh!
Sirius, who had no intention of just watching, brought his sword, enveloped in the power of the sun, down.
A golden sword strike flew precisely toward the Black Dragon’s head.
However, it failed to reach its target fully.
Crash!
In an instant, black and white energy radiated from around the Black Dragon.
It engulfed the golden sword strike, as if wrapping around the very space.
“Tsk.”
The problem with the RP was having a negative effect on him as well.
Clicking his tongue, Sirius attempted to expand the scale of his next attack.
Just then.
Swoosh—
The black and white energy surrounding the Black Dragon ceased its movement.
And, he, who had lowered his gaze, raised his head.
Tears of blood, filled with deep sorrow, were streaming down from the corners of his eyes.
[The Witch’s Afterglow is consuming the body.]
[The Power of Grief is arriving.]
“Ugh!”
A strange sensation piercing through my entire body caused a voice to involuntarily escape my lips.
A sharp shiver felt as if crawling up my skin.
At the same time, a cold chill, like the very embodiment of sorrow, crushed my heart.
"…I have to finish this quickly."
The remnants of the emotions harbored by the Witch of Grief.
The despair of having lost a child unjustly and the rage of the irreversible tragedy were too intense.
I had to sever this power as soon as possible, even if it was just a second sooner.
"Hmph… my child…"
An intense whisper swirled in my mind.
Hanbit clenched his hands tightly, struggling to hold on.
"You look overwhelmed."
Sirius assumed a fixed position with an expressionless face.
However, even a conversation was impossible right now.
Snap!
Black fragments flew from Hanbit's fingertips, which had shot out instinctively, tearing through the space.
The wave of power that bloomed within transformed into a shape resembling the twisted emotions of the witch.
It turned into scattered thorns and surged forward head-on.
"I cannot expend much power here."
Sirius straightened his grip on his sword as he watched the incoming attack.
The souls he had gathered until now were also the source of his power.
There was a clear limit to what he could expend here.
It was right to kill the Black Dragon with the minimum investment and carry out the Goddess's command.
Whoosh!
Sirius concentrated his mind and thrust his sword.
Snap!
The heat and radiance emanating from his sword and body were literally the form of the sun.
A golden streak, surging like a spear, plunged down toward Hanbit.
Crash!
The power of the sun and sorrow collided in mid-air.
Before the aftershocks could even spread, the black and white curtain swirling around Hanbit went berserk once again.
Wrapping the sky like a pouch, the curtain soared upward as a dragonfly.
Crash!
The black and white energy, mingled with the power of the sun, engulfed Sirius like a sentient creature.
At that moment, a voice burst out involuntarily.
“What…!!”
The curtain that enveloped the surroundings in black.
Debris of emotion formed along the surface like thick blood.
And the dozens of black hands that emerged writhing from within evoked instincts from the past.
It was because they were exactly the same as the horrific power he had experienced in the other dimension.
It felt as if they were trying to drag him back there once again.
“Don’t… make me laugh!”
Whoosh!
Losing his reason in an instant, Sirius retreated higher into the sky.
Raising his blade, he spread the power of the sun in a sphere.
Crack—!!
A sharp noise rang out, as if tearing through the air.
That power enveloped the flying black hands.
However, the power of deep sorrow did not vanish.
Whoosh—!
Black hands surged forward, piercing through the wall of the sun.
The resentment and rage lingering in each one seemed vividly visible to the eye.
“Do you think you can drag me away!”
Whoosh—!
Shouting, Sirius cut down the flying hands and charged forward.
His pure white armor turned golden, and a radiance burst forth from the tip of his sword.
The thought of conserving his reserves of souls had already vanished.
Whoosh!
The Sword of the Sun, extending out excessively large, swallowed the black hand.
However, hands grew back in that spot.
In fact, their numbers increased.
“Ugh!”
Sirius’s heart grew increasingly anxious.
Hanbit, watching the scene with his own eyes, sensed something was amiss, but he was unable to move of his own volition at the moment.
It was a struggle just to maintain his sanity amidst the surging emotions.
*Swoosh!
* Waves of black and white extended from his arms, moving with a somber aura.
They formed a large flower in the sky.
*Pow!*
A pitch-black light burst forth from the instantly bloomed flower and flew toward Sirius.
Clenching his teeth, he swung the sword he gripped tightly with both hands with great force.
*Whoosh!
* *Boom!*
The two forces clashed in the air, causing a massive explosion that enveloped the sky.
Hanbit, flying through the blast, created dozens of spheres and launched them straight ahead.
*Whoosh!*
*Crunch!*
The spheres surged forward, emitting grotesque sounds, swallowing even the debris of the explosion as they flew.
And the moment the attack approached.
*Crack!*
Sirius let out a scream, his soul burning.
"No way!"
*Boom!*
Thousands of golden fragments scattered across the sky along with a loud roar.
They resembled pieces of the sun that had been cut and fragmented.
Whoosh!
The power engulfing the sky over Edlen emitted tremendous heat.
The witch's lingering scent reacted immediately to the intense assault.
Whoosh!
A black and white mist bloomed from Hanbit's outstretched hands.
It was large enough to instantly form a massive layer.
It swallowed the sun's power, which had been pouring down like rain, right in mid-air.
"Cough!"
A clot of blood sprang out from the recoil of the accumulated power.
Whatever the outcome, it was time to bring this to a quick end.
'Something is wrong with them, too.'
Sirius, who had maintained his composure, looked as if he were being chased by something. His
manifested power had grown noticeably, but the important thing was that he was no longer cool-headed.
Crack!
At that moment, Sirius unleashed his power once again.
A flash of light imbued with the sun's power burst out like thorns centered around his body.
Whoosh!
Soaring through the sky, Hanbit forged a black spear in mid-air and thrust it toward Sirius. A
scream filled with deep sorrow followed, enveloping the spearhead.
Crunch!!
Sirius, his eyes wide open, did not dodge but blocked the spear with one hand.
His fingertips were torn, and blood flowed.
Anger filled his eyes, which had been flickering with heat.
“Do you think I know how to return to the Otherworld!”
Quadru-!!
The power of the sun, unleashed with a roar, shattered the black spear as if crushing it.
Just then, black and white energy surged again from Hanbit’s body.
Whoosh—!
Charging forward in an instant, he swung his hand widely across the air.
From that point, a sharp, highly condensed energy extended outward.
However, Sirius swiftly swung his sword to block the attack.
Pow-pow-!!
An intense shockwave spread across the skies above Edlen.
Amidst a roar that seemed to split the heavens, the two bodies were flung apart.
“Ugh!!”
Hanbit was pushed back, scattering blood with a massive recoil that had arisen once again.
The witch's lingering scent around him flickered unsteadily.
Sirius, too, stood frozen in place, glaring at the spot.
'Just once… let's load it all in one go.'
Hanbit felt a sensation as if a part of himself was being gnawed away by the alien force.
It was inevitable, given that this was a power that normally required thorough preparation.
Rather, it was surprising that his body was holding up this long.
“Phew…”
Hanbit’s shoulders heaved laboredly.
With every breath, the witch’s emotions bloomed more intensely.
As it exceeded its limits, black and white wings sprouted from behind his back.
They were massive enough to clearly obscure the sky above.
'Please, just hold on this once!'
Whoosh—!
In an instant, the witch’s power exploded as if running wild.
Air was dragged out as if swept up in the force.
At the same time, Hanbit charged head-on.
Whoosh—!!
Sirius seemed to share the same desire to see this through to the end.
The light of the sun was darker than any power ever displayed before.
The body that held it all appeared far beyond the realm of the human.
Swoosh—
a long, black-and-white sword had suddenly appeared and naturally found its place in his hands.
Twisting his waist, Hanbit surrendered his body to the witch's lingering scent.
Clang—!!!
The swords clashed, pouring their full power into the clash, ringing out a sharp resonance.
The aftermath spread out with utter ferocity.
Crash—!!
A wave of shock mingled with the power of sorrow and the sun.
The atmosphere that struck it twisted into bizarre shapes, and the clouds above vanished, scattering plasma.
Far below, the buildings and walls of Edlen also cracked, and parts of them crumbled.
Whoosh—
the wings on Hanbit's back, having been blown away by the shock, scattered like dust.
Clumps of blood, appearing out of nowhere, sprayed into the sky, and his vision gradually blurred.
'Still…'
The barely remaining focus landed on Sirius, who was just beyond him. With
his upper right side missing, he was staring at them with a distorted face.
Hanbit could not read the emotion in his eyes.
'Just one more time…'
His body, having lost its power, naturally began to plummet toward the ground.
At the same time, the sunlight flashed.
Whoosh—!
Sirius, gripping his sword in his left arm, was drawing closer.
Even as he watched the creature flying toward him to kill him, his body did not move. The Celestial
Tiger and the Sylph were the same.
"I'm… sorry, my child…" The
witch's voice, tinged with tears, echoed faintly. *
Swoosh*—
At the same time, a black-and-white disc appeared before his eyes.
However, it could not block the attack. *
Crunch*—!!
Sirius, having surged forward, shattered the disc and thrust his sword.
The light of death cast before his eyes was too bright.
And the moment that light was about to touch his skin.
*Woong*—
Along with a strange sound, the surrounding scene changed.
"…?"
The location had not changed.
Edlen was still faintly visible below, and the sky, tinged with light, was the same.
The problem was that the space was jumbled like puzzle pieces.
"What have you done…!!"
In a space far away from here, Sirius was.
He was unable to move, as if trapped by something.
*Swoosh*—
Just then, a piece split open, and a black portal opened.
A man walked out from its center.
"You… who are you?"
Sirius asked the man.
The answer returned in a completely different form.
“You brought this upon yourself.”
The man, having spat out a meaningless remark, raised his hand.
At that, a purple sphere appeared and flew away at high speed.
Whoosh—!
The sphere struck exactly the space where Sirius had been.
That area vanished cleanly, without a sound.
I had never seen such spatial magic in the 55 iterations.
“…I never expected to meet you like this.”
The man had appeared at Hanbit’s bedside out of nowhere.
Hanbit, confirming his face through his blurry vision, let out a small voice.
“A… Sage?”
The Sage he had seen in the records containing Serenia, the Goddess of Silence.
Although the exact time period was unknown, it was undeniably the same face.
That conjecture turned into certainty with the man’s voice that followed.
“Yes. I am the Sage of the Nameless Age.”
Swoosh—
The Sage answered detachedly and placed his hand on Hanbit’s shoulder.
Meeting his gaze, he spoke quietly.
“I shall borrow your time for a moment.”
Whoosh—
Along with a voice ringing in his ears, a sensation of transference enveloped his body.
Barely holding on, Hanbit finally lost consciousness.
