Chapter 430: The Savior of Death (6)

A dragon and a skeletal giant towered between heaven and earth, alongside an avatar of a goddess and martial kings. Everything around them was being swept up in merciless waves of destructive light.

Watching the scene from afar, Malican Thun let out a sigh. This isn't a fight I can dare to step into.

It was a clash between two absolute beings beyond comprehension. At the very least, one had to be at the level of a martial king or an archmage to even barely take part. Anyone lesser than that would only be a hindrance.

Malican felt a pang of regret. Ah, I almost had it...

In the end, he had failed to gain anything from fighting his future self. Before he could, the future Malican had suddenly clutched his head and gone into a fit.

He had managed to behead a martial king thanks to that, which was certainly an achievement, but the battle had ended before he could elevate himself.

At the realm of a silver knight, he was of little help in such a monstrous battle. So instead of heading toward the battlefield, Malican moved along the outskirts, saving as many people as he could.

He had already relocated Desteran and Chaplin to safety and was now heading toward where Milia had fallen in the distance.

Right. I'll do what I can.

***

Alius was shouting at the top of his lungs. "Hurry! We need to get the injured out of the capital!"

Defeating Rigail hadn't ended anything. Even worse monsters had appeared, and they needed to escape this hell as quickly as possible. Even as he directed the evacuation, Alius kept glancing toward the center of the capital.

After all, who could easily look away from the sight of a hundred-meter skeletal giant grappling with a five-hundred-meter dragon?

But that giant skeleton... What is it?

He already knew the identity of the massive dragon. It was Tesranach, the God of Death. Then what was that skeleton? At first, he had thought Tesranach had summoned something again. A god of death summoning a giant skeleton was hardly unusual.

But a skeleton punching the god of death in the face? That was anything but natural. Judging by the situation, it seemed to be an ally, so he sought out the archliches. Since the Twilight Order also practiced necromancy, it seemed related. He asked, "What exactly is that thing?"

Malican Thun wasn't able to intervene in the fight, which meant event experts at the level of archliches were the same. Thus, Kalaf and Tirafar were also busy assisting Alius in evacuating the Twilight forces. In the midst of the chaos, Kalaf answered absentmindedly. "It is my master."

And immediately got scolded by Tirafar.

—You're not supposed to say that, you fool!

Karnak's public image was that of a righteous mage who abhorred evil.

—Ah... right.

Immediately after, both of them hastily dodged the conversation and offered only vague responses. This only deepened Alius's confusion.

Master?

There was only one being the elders of the Twilight Order would call their master.

Hence, Alius got the wrong idea. Could it be... the Goddess of Twilight herself has descended in the form of bones?!

***

A skeletal frame harder than steel tore through the billowing smoke. The air trembled as a bone-white fist came hurtling forward. The dragon lifted its upper body and slammed down with its scale-covered forelegs, from hundreds of meters in the air.

Both were so massive that their movements seemed slow at a glance. But the mass and force contained within them were utterly overwhelming. With the collision of the two colossal bodies, not only the earth but even the sky shook.

Through the tangle of the two monsters, streaks of golden light shot upward. It was Leven and Drel. The radiance of martial kings struck Tesranach's scales in rapid succession. The scales split, and draconic blood sprayed into the air.

Varos and Serati followed immediately. Their aura blades, stretching dozens of meters, gouged into the cracks in Tesranach's wounds. A groan escaped from the dragon's massive fangs.

Even so, Tesranach did not fall. His momentum did not falter. If anything, the more he was wounded, the stronger he seemed to grow. Drawing forth even greater power, he lashed out at Karnak! "You fools!"

The skeletal giant was driven backward. Its rear foot crushed the surface of the city as it braced itself.

Seizing the opening, Tesranach spread his wings. "Begone!"

A massive gale swept up Leven and Drel. It was no ordinary wind, it carried draconic mana within it.

Even as martial kings, they were unable to withstand the attack and were hurled to the ground. Tesranach immediately raised a foreleg, intending to crush them underfoot. Just as a dark shadow loomed over Drel's head, the dragon's head suddenly jerked violently to the side. Something had flown in and struck him.

Startled, Tesranach turned his head. What is this now?

It was a golden sword, one launched from hundreds of meters away. And not just one. More golden blades followed, slamming into Tesranach's massive body in succession! Drel quickly got himself to safety before turning his head. He saw a gray-haired girl in the distance, radiating brilliant light.

***

Lapicel calmly focused her mind. Dozens of radiant swords floated around her. Some of them slowly tilted, their tips turning toward the far side of the capital.

A faint smile touched her lips. It's nice not having to worry about aiming.

The target was hundreds of meters long. It would be hard to miss even with her eyes closed. She could ignore precision entirely and pour all her aura into pure destructive power!

Bringing her hands together, she condensed her energy once more. "Advance."

Terrifying aura transferred into twelve radiant swords. Each blade trembled violently, as if it might explode at any moment.

"Pierce."

With an explosive sound, twelve streaks of sword-like meteors brilliantly cut across the blood-red sky.

***

Dozens of radiant blades streaked through the air. Tesranach hastily deployed defensive magic circles. Explosions erupted repeatedly upon them.

The impact shook Tesranach's body. That was to say, a dragon hundreds of meters long had been shaken. The sheer power was so immense it resembled an actual meteor shower. Even Tesranach's expression hardened this time. Th-this is no trivial attack...

Though they were all at the level of martial kings, she was clearly a step above Leven and Drel. He could not leave that girl unattended, but she was too small and fast to catch with ordinary magic.

Tesranach opened his jaws, and flames flickered between the dragon's fangs. He intended to unleash a breath attack and obliterate the entire area where Lapicel stood.

Karnak, realizing what was coming, hurriedly sent a transmission.

—Everyone, block it!

A reply came from an unexpected direction.

—We will block it.

From hundreds of meters away on the opposite side, a massive flash shot forward. A colossal pillar of light, over twenty meters in diameter, pierced straight through one of Tesranach's wings!

With a pained cry, Tesranach turned his head. The power contained in this strike was truly immense. Even all the damage he had taken so far combined could not compare to that single strike.

Tesranach was baffled. My wing was pierced?

The magic had come from a rooftop far in the distance. A man in his fifties stood there, pointing with his staff.

Diogres? Certainly, a 10th circle spell from an archmage could produce such power. Even so, it made no sense. How could he betray me?

The question did not linger long. There was a different soul inhabiting Diogres's body. Pointing Dawnshroud Staff once more, Dios, now returned to his original body, gave a cold smile. "You really are as massive as a mountain."

But that didn't matter. After all, one of the Tower of Dawn's main sources of income had been drilling tunnels through mountain ranges.

"I've got plenty of experience punching holes through mountains!" The ultimate 10th circle destructive spell split the sky once more. "Aurora of Destruction, Catastrophe!"

***

Across hundreds of meters, golden bombardments and ultimate destructive magic rained down without cease. Up close, Serati and Varos, Leven and Drel struck and withdrew repeatedly. Whenever Tesranach tried to deal with them first, Karnak would shove his massive frame forward and block the way.

All of these offensives meshed together like perfectly interlocking gears. Individually, none of them were worthy opponents, but together they complemented one another so well that even Tesranach could do nothing about it.

Damn it! Tesranach ground his teeth.

It was suffocating. Why were they all so foolish? "You do not understand! Once that one loses his path to desire, there is no telling what he will do!"

Spreading his wings, Tesranach drew upon the Black God's grace with all his might. At this point, there was only one option left. At the very least, I'll take him!

He endured Lapicel's golden blade head-on. He bore Diogres's magic with his body. Wounds spread across his entire body, yet he continued to advance. No matter what, that one must die!

He ignored Leven, Drel, Varos, and Serati alike. All his attacks focused solely on the giant skeleton before him.

That one must be killed!

Hundreds of magic circles blazed. Hundreds of necromantic formations spewed darkness. Heaven and earth were filled with the Black God's Grace, shaking the world itself.

Karnak responded with everything he had. He spread a vast curtain of darkness. It shattered and vanished the instant it formed. He spread it again. It shattered again.

The one who faltered first was Karnak. The skeletal giant's knees buckled. Its massive kneecap slammed into the ground with a thunderous crash.

Tesranach's eyes gleamed. At last, he had driven him back. Now, the evil incarnate no longer had the strength to defend! The dragon opened its jaws. Terrifying heat gathered between its countless fangs. Varos's face turned pale.

Breath! A desperate shout tore through the air. "Dodge it, young master!"

Tesranach sneered inwardly. In that completely cornered state, how could he possibly dodge? A beam of annihilation tore through the air.

The hundred-meter-tall skeleton suddenly rolled across the ground and evaded the breath. The misfired beam of destruction streaked across the sky, vaporizing all the clouds in its path.

Tesranach was absolutely stunned. What in the—?

It was a movement that could never be executed without specifically practicing how to roll to evade attacks. But who in the world would ever train for something like that? Even as Tesranach fell into confusion, Karnak did not stop.

Crushing the streets beneath its massive bulk, the skeleton rolled across hundreds of meters before landing. Then, with one knee bent, it braced itself against the ground and extended its hand.

It was done as convincingly as possible, so that to anyone watching, it looked as though this had been the plan all along. And with that outstretched hand, he hurled the woman it held.

—Go, Serati!

The red-haired beauty soared through the air, her blazing sword in hand. In an instant, she rose above Tesranach's head and let out a sharp cry.

The Twilight Blade stretched to nearly thirty meters in length. At that size, it was more than enough to threaten even Tesranach. In haste, he drew upon all his grace and raised a barrier. "Darkness, shield me!"

At that moment, something changed in Serati's eyes. A dark blue flame surged along the Twilight Blade. The crimson grace of Twilight and the deep ocean Grace of Dawn coiled around each other as flames. They burned more fiercely than ever as red and blue fused into one.

Leven and Drel's mouths fell open.

Is that the realm of purple?

For a human aura user, reaching the purple-tier meant harmonizing blue and red. Then what of one who wielded divine grace?

Karnak blinked blankly. Wow... she really became a goddess, didn't she?

Serati, now a streak of light, brought her blade down. The darkness shattered. The Black God's Grace faded. Draconic mana collapsed, and even the malice and death energy were completely erased.

A brilliant flash carved deep into Tesranach's brow. Dragon blood poured down like a waterfall, and a horrific scream echoed across the blood-red sky.