Chapter 184 The Roar Of Calamity
"Kill me...? Me, of all people...? You think you can take me down, a mere mortal...?!!"
Noah shouted, thrusting out his staff.
The magical energy filling the [Temple] made it impossible to sense the magical energy that should be shining. To avoid it, I would have to release my own magical energy to cover up the surrounding energy and detect his magical energy... but that wasn't necessary.
I remained still, my upper body slightly bent, holding my breath in anticipation.
The next instant, a crack ran through space.
But it wasn't like the irregular, shattered-glass-like cracks I had seen before.
A grid-like surface expanded before my eyes.
In the next moment, it grew thicker and larger.
Countless straight lines etched into the air, dividing space into numerous cubes.
Each cube was small, about the size of a fist. It spread out extensively, covering the entire [Temple] without leaving any room to escape.
Space magic――[Air Slash Dice].
That was the name of the magic Lady Eva told me about later.
It unfolded in an instant, covering the entire [Temple] and about to engulf me――right before my eyes.
"――UOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"
I shouted at him.
My unique battle technique――[The Roar of Calamity].
I unleash an aura tainted with heavy properties.
I ride on that aura and unleash a roar.
The heavy, dense aura that synchronized with the sound wave spread out horizontally in front of him, and was about to engulf [Air Slash Dice],
CRACK!!!
It was crushed into tiny pieces.
"What...?!"
In an instant, Noah's eyes widened in shock.
It wasn't just shock. It was beyond shock. He had no idea what had happened, and his expression was one of pure, unadulterated confusion.
Meanwhile, I calmly switched to the attack.
I kicked the floor with my right foot, then pivoted my body with my left foot as the axis, and stepped forward with my right foot. At the same time, I swung down the "Black-White" that I had been carrying on my right shoulder, following a crescent-shaped trajectory.
The blade that was released was pitch-black.
My unique sword technique [Heavy Blade][Flying Blade]――combined technique, [Calamity Heavy Flying Blade].
Boom!!!
The sword I swung down easily pierced through the wall of air.
The pitch-black blade released from the super-speed swing flew towards Noah at an incredible speed that was almost imperceptible to the eye.
So, it was only natural to say...
"――――?!"
Noah, who had been stunned until just a moment ago, managed to deploy a barrier just in time to counter my attack.
The barrier deployed in front of him, powered by Space magic, received the pitch-black blade and...
SMASH!!! It was shattered in an instant, without even lasting a moment.
But beneath that, another barrier was deployed, and it also received the blade. It shattered. The next barrier received the blade. It shattered. And the next one after that received it and shattered, and it kept going, receiving and shattering, receiving and shattering――it was impossible to tell how many layers of barriers were deployed in an instant, but [Calamity Heavy Flying Blade] shattered them all in an instant, piercing through the bundle of barriers.
"――UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUOOOOO!!?"
But in the brief time gained from the barriers, Noah had deployed another magic.
With his hand, which was somehow enveloped in Mirage, he distorted the scenery, making it seem as if the light had been condensed a hundred times.
A strange, distorted shield of space.
The blade clashed with it, and...
"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!?"
The blade, together with the shield, charged towards Noah.
Noah couldn't even stand his ground, and was pushed back by the blade all the way to the wall of the [Temple], getting sandwiched between the wall and the blade, yet still managed to endure.
However, he wouldn't try to escape by teleporting. He couldn't escape.
He was now using all his might to constantly supply magical energy, maintaining the shield. If he tried to teleport, the magical energy supply would weaken, and the shield's strength would decrease. He knew that if that happened, the shield would be slashed apart by the blade before he could even transfer.
Should he keep enduring, or take a gamble and try to teleport? Or, if he endured, would the blade's power decrease, allowing him to teleport safely?
He had thought that far, but it was unclear whether he had chosen to defend.
However――either way, his limit was soon reached.
ZZZZZZZZZ――KA-BOOM!!!
And, after the sound of the shield resisting the blade, the sound of the decisive blow finally echoed. Furthermore, after that, the heavy, painful impact of the crash resounded throughout the Temple.
It was the sound of the blade that had cut through the magic shield and Noah, sinking into the wall.
"――――!!?"
Noah, whose body was torn in 2 by the blade, was spewing out a massive amount of fresh blood while leaning against the wall, slowly sinking to the floor. His eyes were vacant, staring into the void, unable to focus.
"Phew...!!!"
I let out a deep breath, exhaling slowly from my mouth.
In the end, even though I used "Black-White", I was able to settle it with one hit from the [Heavy Flying Blade]. You could say it was an overwhelming victory. But it's not like Noah was weak.
On the contrary, if I had fought him before fighting Logan, when I was still in top condition, I would've undoubtedly had a tough battle.
It's a strange story, but because I fought Logan beforehand, I was able to win so easily.
That's because the difference in my skills before and after fighting Logan was like night and day. I think that even without using the Saint Sword Technique, I could've easily defeated the dragon with just a [Flash Blade].
So, even though I had to use "Black-White" in [Chaos Strength] mode, the power gap between Noah and me had opened up, allowing me to take him down with one hit. Otherwise, I would've had a really tough fight.
Anyway――,
"...I'm glad I could win before using up too much magical energy."
If this keeps up, even with [Chaos Strength], I'll eventually die. Today, I've finally made it back to the ground, but I won't be able to fight anymore.
That being said, I didn't take any damage during the fight with Noah, and I only landed one hit. Even if I cancel [Chaos Strength] right now, the burden won't be that heavy――that's my only solace... and that's when I thought.
"Hey, hey... seriously, spare me...!!"
I gritted my teeth and muttered from the bottom of my heart, looking at Noah who had been blown away to the wall.
There was...
* * *
Time rewound for just a few seconds.
Space magic――[Dimensional Cut Wall]
Space magic――[Distortion Deflection Barrier]
Noah Kirke, who had been defeated, had used extremely high-level magic that even the heads of the 4 houses couldn't use, in a very short span of time.
Noah, whose body had been cut in 2 by Aaron Gale's [Calamity Heavy Flying Blade], was on the verge of death. No, in reality, it would have become a reality in just a few seconds. The massive blood loss would make his consciousness fade away like it was dissolving.
In his fading consciousness, Noah thought.
(Is this where I die...?)
It was regret. The frustration of not being able to die yet.
(Just a little more, just a little longer...)
He looked back on the efforts, hard work, and various sacrifices he had made up until now, and thought it was ridiculous.
(Unreasonable, isn't it... why did this monster appear?)
The overwhelming violence that had crushed everything he had built up to this point was unbearable. No, it was reality.
In the end, he couldn't accept it.
But...
(Ugh...I'm exhausted...)
He just can't seem to muster up the will to resist, to stand up against the unfairness.
His consciousness, his energy, everything is being sucked into the dark hole of death. There's no way to fight against this reality. He can only accept it.
That's why Noah gave up on everything.
And when he tried to surrender himself to the peaceful, dark world of death...
'――――Brother!'
He remembered.
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