Chapter 183

The western approach to Lusilion.

Javert was still locked in a confrontation with Killian.

Kuuuuung-!

"Ha ha! Didn't I tell you it was pointless? All I have to do is come back to life."

"Shut up."

No matter how many times Javert killed Killian, she reappeared just as many times.

Javert was having some difficulty dealing with her.

She had no idea what sort of trick Killian was using.

Killian was a troublesome opponent precisely because so little was known about her.

As if trying to take advantage of that, Killian casually slipped into the pack of Chimeras.

"You've been hiding yourself this whole time. Are you afraid?"

"Oh my, call it strategy. Things could get troublesome if you figured out my ability."

It was a battle of numbers, with monsters thrown into the fight as well.

The red-haired investigator clenched her fist as though none of it mattered.

"Here, have this! It's a present from your big sister!"

"Pathetic."

-Droit Style Martial Arts, Fourth Form-

'Extinction'

Kwwwaaaaa-!

A streak of light incinerated the Chimeras all at once.

Even hundreds of mutated creatures crumbled before the handful of divine power Javert unleashed.

"Hoo..."

"You're seriously an absurd monster. You killed all of them with one punch?"

The two stood opposed.

In terms of martial prowess alone, Javert held an overwhelming advantage.

Her fierce momentum made the air around them tremble.

Yet it wasn't the enemy before her that made her anxious.

'Student Viktor.'

Javert's attention was entirely focused elsewhere.

A few minutes ago, she had sensed energy coming from the plaza.

Right afterward, the presence of the Blue Knight, which had weighed down the sky island, vanished.

'Did Student Viktor do something? Then what were those emotions I felt earlier...?'

Something had clearly happened.

She wanted to check at once, but Killian stubbornly blocked her path.

Her mind was clouded with worry and stray thoughts. Javert steadied her wavering breath again and again.

'Calm down.'

The faint trembling subsided.

Killian had tried to shake her, but Javert wasn't so easily swayed.

She wasn't the same as she had been as a child.

Ten years had already passed for Javert.

She was no longer as frail or foolish as she had been then.

She had spent six full years on battlefields as a weapon of slaughter.

Javert soon regained her rhythm and began driving Killian back without mercy.

"It doesn't matter if you won't move. I'll just keep killing you until you stop coming back."

"Mm... that's a pretty tough solution. But won't you be too late? You've looked anxious for a while now."

"You think too highly of yourself. Three seconds each time is enough to kill you."

Puck-!

Her fist shot out without warning and crushed Killian's head.

"Because you're weak."

"Ha...! My little brat got pretty cool while I wasn't looking, didn't she?"

Killian appeared behind her again.

Javert swung her fist without hesitation.

There was no bluff or exaggeration in her words.

Only flashing light filled the approach.

Her fist was always faster than three seconds, so Killian had to die once every three seconds.

Puck! Crack, crunch...!

"Ha ha! You've gotten ridiculously strong!"

"Killian. Was this all you had? You seemed so huge when I was a child, when you saw through everything I did."

"You're pretty good at provoking people too. That blank face of yours makes it even better when you naturally get under someone's skin!"

"That's because I had a good teacher."

The fight had become so one-sided that it resembled a slaughter.

Killian died more than fifty times in five minutes.

Perhaps even that was beginning to wear on her.

She no longer rushed at Javert.

Instead, she slowly widened the distance and stepped back as if troubled.

"Mm, should I retreat now? It looks like the Blue Knight failed too, and all the other troops have been dealt with. If I keep playing around here, I'll only pile up unnecessary losses. Better cut my losses before it's too late."

"You're running? Do you think I'll let you go?"

"Don't be upset. We'll see each other again soon anyway. Lord Oz should be making his move before long."

"Stop."

"Then see you then! Bye!"

Puhng-!

Killian grabbed her own head and casually blew it up.

Her body fell lifelessly to the ground.

Then the corpse crumbled like a handful of ash.

Like her previous bodies, it vanished without leaving a trace.

"......"

Javert stared down at the spot.

She clicked her tongue, then immediately turned toward the plaza.

Tak-!

With a light leap, she kicked off from the approach.

* * *

That was how Blue Night came to an end.

To put it simply, we had stopped the calamity with a complete victory.

"Everyone, move! Wipe out the monsters remaining on the island!"

"We'll transport the injured first!"

"Speed is everything! Stay sharp!"

The knights arrived late.

The Blue Knight's barrier had isolated the entire sky island from the outside.

The reinforcements could only begin arriving one by one after the barrier broke.

The knights quickly began bringing order to the mess Lusilion had become.

'That was one fucking long day...'

We left the remaining cleanup to the knights.

Everyone was exhausted.

It felt like we all needed a long rest.

We immediately boarded the Sky Train leaving Lusilion.

Just like the car we had taken on the way here, the tram's interior was good enough to rival a decent hotel room.

'Good thing I got the best tickets.'

Thanks to that, we could rest comfortably inside the tram.

It was time to focus on recovering.

We didn't even have a chance to talk much.

Everyone collapsed onto their beds and promptly fell asleep.

'We have a lot to talk about, but I should let them rest today...'

I was no different.

The bed I sat on was comfortable, and I was growing drowsy.

Soft, steady breathing.

Quiet breathing came from beside me.

I had remained by Carmilla's side while she was unconscious.

'I really put you through a lot.'

I gently smoothed back her fallen silver hair.

Was it the backlash from her awakening?

Carmilla didn't wake up.

She would probably sleep for several more hours.

As I checked on her condition, I kept holding her hand tightly.

'...Still, you pulled it off in the end.'

Carmilla had dramatically brought her consciousness under control.

I believed in you.

I believed you could restrain even a rampage like that.

Your Highness had always been noble, so I believed the slightest blemish could never taint you.

"Even if one is born a murderer, it is ultimately oneself who chooses how to live. The noble do not believe fate is life. They believe life itself is their fate."

"Life is closer to attitude than birth, and attitude is the whetstone that shapes one's fate."

You were that kind of person.

You weren't someone who used your birth as a shield and easily became vulgar.

You worked harder and cultivated yourself all the more, striving to embody the nobility you envisioned.

"A vampire's nobility is an attitude."

"It is choosing not to kill even when one can. It is refusing to drown in pleasure even when one can."

I had seen that in you.

I had seen your elegance and your unbreakable convictions.

"Therefore, this lady shall never forget her attitude."

That was why I offered you my neck.

I bared my throat and allowed those fangs to tear into my flesh.

I was certain you would be all right.

Even if I died like that, I thought it would be all right if it was for you.

"You really went through a lot."

I whispered softly.

Then I solemnly kissed the back of her pale hand.

Smack.

The girl's expression seemed to ease a little.

Leaving the princess like that, I lay down at one end of the bed.

'Damn, nothing on my body doesn't hurt...'

After taking the full force of a twentyfold Stake, my arms and lower body had been completely torn off. They had healed cleanly, but the tingling pain still remained.

I took a deep breath and steadied myself.

"Let's rest... For the next few weeks, let's not think about anything..."

With that mutter, I pushed aside my stray thoughts.

Then I operated my status window.

Large blue screens soon appeared before my eyes.

A pile of notifications.

It was better to check things like this right away rather than let them pile up.

Ding-!

[You have cleared the main quest!]

-Title: Blue Night

-Details: Stop the New Kingdom-Cultist Allied Forces.

[You have cleared the stage perfectly!]

-Rewards have been issued. Please check your inventory.

Ding-!

[You have cleared a linked quest!]

-Title: Apocalypse, Death.

-Details: Prevent Lusilion's fall. Defeat the Apostle of the Evil God, 'the Blue Knight (Blue Knight).'

[You have achieved an impossible accomplishment!]

[You have defeated an enemy that could not be defeated!]

[A special reward has been provided. Please check your inventory.]

Ding-!

[Linked Quest-02]

-Title: From Many Scars

-Details: Stop the combined forces of the New Kingdom and the Cult.

[You have successfully defended 'Lusilion'!]

-Rewards have been issued. Please check your inventory.

"Let's check these quickly and sleep."

It was time to settle up.

Time to open the rewards that had piled up.

Footnotes: