So fast…!
Aiden who had been watching the battle while felling trees momentarily forgot their dire situation and let out an expression of pure awe at Maya’s movements.
I’ve never seen her move like that, not even once during our sparring sessions.
And not once had Maya ever moved like that when facing any monster either.
It was like watching a wild beast.
She roamed the entire area as if it were her own domain, preemptively reading her enemy’s moves and claiming the advantageous position.
Even when the Lord’s erratic attacks, characterised by their unpredictable timing, came at her…and when attacks that even Aiden found difficult to predict or block….
Maya moved without a trace of hesitation.
What would it be like if I were facing an enemy like that…?
It would probably feel like fighting underwater.
Fighting an opponent who can freely control the space around them under overwhelmingly disadvantageous conditions. Just imagining it was despairing.
I wasn’t the only one who’s grown.
Maya too had just shattered a wall of growth and ascended to the next level.
Aiden who had experienced that feeling himself more than once could tell.
Right now, Maya was in a state of perfect selflessness. She was totally immersed in the moment.
***
She’s broken through her limits.
Jun who was watching Maya’s battle felt the same way as Aiden.
Well, it was no surprise. Though Maya was often overshadowed by Aiden’s rapid growth, her own talent had never been anything to scoff at.
Besides, from the troll’s perspective, she’s also a bad matchup.
For a straightforward swordsman like Aiden, the Lord’s unpredictable rhythm was a real headache. But not for Maya.
She had lived most of her life in the chaotic Blackout and knew how to move with its unpredictable rhythm.
And above all, against an enemy relying solely on regeneration to survive, Maya’s [Spirit Frenzy] was almost the perfect counter.
It may not be enough to kill it in one blow, but she should be able to completely cripple one of its legs.
Even now, Maya was focusing solely on the creature’s right leg, deliberately ignoring the rest.
Kuruaaaa—!
But the Lord wasn’t a simple monster.
Jun had already gone through five bottles of mana fluid scattered around him.
Such an immense swirl of mana was distorting the very space around them. Naturally, from the Lord’s perspective, the greatest threat to its life was none other than Jun.
But since Jun still needed time, his gaze shifted to Aiden who was busy cutting down the trees.
Just then, Aiden also realized that the Lord’s attention had turned to Jun and began drawing mana from the mana fluid.
***
Though Aiden had been absorbed in admiring Maya’s movements, that didn’t mean he had lost sight of the Lord’s actions.
In fact, he had been tracking the Lord’s every move just as carefully as Maya, imagining what it would be like if he were the one facing it.
When Maya threw the dagger earlier… its hide was pierced more easily than I expected.
If he could react to those erratic attacks, then maybe he could buy time against the creature too.
[Charge]
He circulated mana through his entire body and shot toward the creature, tearing through the air.
His speed was almost impossible to track with the naked eye.
With the full power of the “Destroyer’s Leather” and support from both Jun and Eleanor, Aiden moved like a gust of wind.
At the same time, he surged with mana at full intensity.
Kururrr…!!
Sensing the red mana cloaking Aiden’s body, the creature turned its head as he approached.
Whoooosh!
A hand the size of a house came crashing down from above.
It struck with overwhelming force faster than anything before as if the monster had finally decided to crush its foe with all its might.
Boooooom—!!
In an instant, the ground beneath Aiden vanished without a trace, replaced by the enormous fist of the Lord.
However—
[Bash]
Crack!
Kuruuu…?!
A sharp, searing pain shot through the monster’s fist.
Its huge hand split down the middle, and its fingers were sliced apart like rotting branches.
But it didn’t end there. Flames erupted from the severed wounds.
It was the effect of the “Salamander’s Blessing”, the artifact Jun had retrieved from the Volcatornic Magic Tower and entrusted to Aiden.
Originally, the artifact had been meant to conceal Aiden’s royal mana, but even against a monster with such incredible regenerative abilities, its performance was outstanding.
Immediately afterward, Aiden leapt through the gap in the monster’s split hand, climbed up its arm, and aimed for its neck.
Though it would be nearly impossible to cut through the monster’s neck in one strike. It was thick as an ancient tree that had lived for hundreds of years after all. But he could at least halt its advance toward Jun.
Guuuuuuu—!!
Of course, the Lord had no intention of letting that happen.
It moved its opposite arm, intending to grab and crush Aiden on the spot.
It was a calculated move based on the assumption that, from Aiden’s current position, he wouldn’t be able to swing his sword effectively like before.
But in that very moment, the Lord felt its body tilting and falling over.
At the same time, an intense pain erupted from its right leg.
Kwooooooo!!!
Maya who had been relentlessly building up damage had just unleashed [Spirit Frenzy].
The Lord’s right leg began to wither and blacken.
It was a wound that could not be healed unless the leg was completely severed.
Kurugutuda…!!
At this rate, it would be defeated.
Sensing this, the Lord acted just before Aiden could reach its neck.
Baaang—!
Gathering its strength into a massive fist, it slammed the ground with overwhelming force.
In an instant, the surrounding area exploded, blasting everything away.
“Gah…!”
“Khuh!”
Caught off guard, Aiden and Maya were swept away by the shockwave.
The unbalanced and now fallen Lord decisively grabbed its blackened, dead leg.
Crack…!
With a chilling sound, the flesh tore away, and dark blood gushed out like a waterfall.
By now, the hand that Aiden had slashed earlier had already finished regenerating.
Aiden who was flung far across the battlefield was left speechless at the sight.
“…It really is a monster.”
The energy of the eroder that had possessed the troll’s body began to wrap around the wound, squirming as it rapidly regenerated a new leg.
Of course, Aiden and Maya weren’t going to just stand by and watch.
The two quickly drew more mana fluid and absorbed it, then kicked off the ground and charged the creature once more.
The Lord didn’t feel its life was threatened by the two, but it couldn’t ignore the fact that it had already expended much of the energy it had painstakingly gathered to deal with them.
At this point, the creature decided it had to force them back somehow and make a break for the most threatening one of them all…the mage.
It would deal with Maya later.
But first, a massive boulder flew straight at the real threat who was Aiden.
[Bash]
In response, Aiden split the boulder in two and looked ahead. This time, a tree, torn out by the roots, came flying at him.
Still unable to fully regain his stance, Aiden was forced to retreat… only for another massive boulder to come flying toward him once again.
Thud!
“Guh…!”
He tried to split the boulder mid-air.
But he lacked the strength, and the rock slammed straight into his body.
Though Eleanor’s divine magic and mana shielded him, the impact nearly knocked him unconscious.
Meanwhile, Maya who had fully closed the distance leapt onto the creature’s shoulder and lunged for the left head.
She intended to slam [Spirit Frenzy] directly into that red mass of liquid that had been controlling the Twin-Head Troll’s body.
But in a split second, dozens of sharp spears shot out from the liquid, aiming to skewer Maya’s entire body.
Clang! Shhk!
“Hh…!”
Because of the aftereffects of her earlier use of [Spirit Frenzy], Maya’s reaction was just a hair too slow.
Fortunately, she managed to block all of the attacks aimed at her vitals. But one of the spears pierced through her thigh.
Just then—
[Pierce of Light]
A sacred golden spear pierced into the creature’s shoulder joint.
Goooooogh!
Only then did its gaze snap back to the center of the battlefield.
Jun and Eleanor.
With eyes full of venom, the Lord yanked out the golden spear and, just like it had with Aiden, hurled everything it could get its hands on at the two of them.
Boom! Crash! Boom!
Jun’s pre-deployed [Shield] blocked the incoming boulders and trees, while Eleanor maintained the [Shield] using “End of Sorrow”.
Eventually—
“It’s ready.”
Jun who had been silent all this time finally spoke.
At the same time, his eyes locked with the Lord’s.
[Multicasting]
[Volcanic Tornado]
A storm of fire began to form.
Illusia invoked ancient magic, layering and amplifying the mana.
Fwooooshhh!!!
The creature, in a fit of desperation, unleashed a mana-infused scream to shatter the magic.
But the [Volcanic Tornado] infused with ancient magic did not falter so easily.
The firestorm that was brought forth after prolonged focus was on a scale beyond comparison to anything seen before.
It was the result of the orb Sergey had left behind, combined with all of Jun’s accumulated insights.
The countless blood-red trees made from the corpses of monsters went up in pitch-black flames.
As the core sustaining this space was incinerated, the Lord pressed its regenerated leg to the ground and stood up.
“It’s not over yet.”
[Ice Break]
Next, ice began to form high up in the sky, seemingly from the heavens above.
Chunks of ice floated weightlessly in the air, defying gravity. They released cold air downward, as if resisting the updraft created by the storm of flames.
And finally—
[Lightning Call: Transformation – Thundercloud]
Massive heat and cold collided, rapidly generating steam.
The resulting black thunderclouds swallowed the sky, blocking out all light in the area.
Darkness fell in an instant.
Aiden who was highly sensitive to mana watched Jun’s magic with a shiver running down his spine.
He wasn’t particularly knowledgeable about magic, but this… this felt like—
As if a human were controlling a force of nature.
Eleanor who was viewing the world through [Insight] was no less stunned.
“This is crazy…”
A mere fifth-circle mage, commanding the powers of nature itself?
Nature, which had always obeyed only the will of the heavens, now responded to the will of a single man, bringing forth miracles into the world.
This was, without question—
Magic.
Krowwwaaaaaaah—!
Sensing the unnatural phenomenon, the Lord let out a frenzied roar and charged straight toward the two of them.
[Block of Light]
A divine wall materialized in midair, blocking its fist.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
As the golden wall began to crumble under the relentless barrage of the Lord’s fists….fists swung without regard for the blood bursting from its hands—
“Haaaah!”
Now partially recovered, Aiden and Maya rushed at the creature’s ankles.
Two slashes carved its Achilles tendon into a deep V-shape, causing it to stagger for a moment.
But the creature let out a desperate punch that once again sent the two flying.
[Iron Rampart]
In front of the creature, a massive iron wall rose.
Summoned by Illusia, the enormous wall of steel crumbled to dust under the barrage of relentless punches.
[Summon]
A golem that was long hidden from the world emerged, drawing in the surrounding earth to form its body.
Infused with Jun’s mana over time, the golem had grown to a size nearly equal to the Lord’s.
Wooooooooom—!
Kraaaaaaaaaah!!!
As the two giants clashed, the shockwaves shook the scorched black trees all around.
Meanwhile, the firestorm continued to draw closer. The sky darkened further and ominous crackling sounds filled the air.
A brawl between two giants with no defense.
Bang! Thud! Craaaaash! Wham!!
The first to collapse—
Was the golem.
The summoning time had been extremely short due to the mana-blocked space.
Exhausted, the Lord finally reached Jun.
It smiled, as if to say it had won.
“You’re too late.”
With the mage’s low whisper, the spell was complete.
[Unique Magic]
[Heavenly Thunder]
A brand-new spell, created solely by Jun.
Concentrated to its very limit, the lightning attribute energy flashed brilliantly.
The world that was stained black by thunderclouds turned white. Like a blank canvas.
―――――――!!!!
Before the sound of the explosion caused by the expanding air could reach them, the light struck the ground.
Once. Then twice.
And it didn’t stop there. The ultra-high heat, reaching tens of thousands of degrees, struck down over a dozen times above the Lord’s head.
Then—
At Jun’s command—
――――――――――――!!!!!
The final bolt descended.
Fzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzt!!
Craaaaaaaaaaaaackle—!!!
A moment later, an immense roar of thunder burst through the silent world, as if announcing its presence far too late.
“……”
And so, silence fell once more.
As if everything that had just happened had been nothing more than a fleeting dream.
The group stared toward the direction where the wrath of the heavens had rained down again and again.
There stood the Lord who had reached right up to Jun….the creature was charred black with smoke quietly rising from its body.
Crack…
Finally, a fracture appeared along its body.
As if triggered by that first crack, a network of fractures spread like a spider’s web across the Lord’s entire frame.
Burned black all the way through, the body collapsed like a statue made of coal.
Yet even then, Jun didn’t take his eyes off the creature.
“It’s not dead yet.”
“…What?”
Standing right beside him, Eleanor glanced at Jun in disbelief, then turned her eyes toward the charred remains.
Unfazed by her reaction, Jun slowly stepped toward the creature, crushing the blackened flesh underfoot.
From what was once its head, a red bubbling liquid was still writhing across the ground, releasing tiny bubbles as it crept forward.
It looked like a desperate attempt to cling to life.
“Predator. It’s been a while since you had a premium meal.”
Chwap!
As Jun brought the Predator close to the red liquid, it frantically sucked in every last drop.
Chwaaaaaaap…!!
And once not a single drop remained…. only then did the barrier finally begin to collapse.
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