SSS Awakening: I Can Class Change at will

Chapter 184: The Black Raven’s Death

As a mage, Moon understood perfectly well what it meant to lose control of a powerful, unstable spell during casting. It wasn’t merely dangerous or risky, it was absolutely catastrophic.

His current Ignite skill contained enough power that losing control would result in its detonation at point-blank range. The explosion would outright kill him instantly, reducing his body to nothing but fine ash and vapor.

He would resurrect after, but he would have lost a great loss. With so much mana wasted, the debuffs of death would be brutal to have.

“TAKE THIS!” Moon roared with a final effort, hurling the massive yet compact fireball directly toward the settlement of the Heretics.

The colossal sphere of death streaked through the air like a descending meteor of pure fire.

The Black Raven continued its desperate screeching attacks during the precious few seconds the attack was launched in, desperately trying to destabilize or deflect the incoming spell through sonic waves.

But that failed miserably. The powerful fireball continued traveling through the air at astonishing speed, and within a few seconds it would land and kill the last remaining heretics.

During those final moments, the guardian beast realized that no matter how many sonic attacks it launched, no amount would successfully stop or weaken this powerfully charged spell.

The spell was too stable, too concentrated, and simply too powerful.

In that split-second of immediate crisis, a memory engraved permanently into the Black Raven’s very soul suddenly surfaced.

Decades ago, when the guardian beast had been nothing but a little crow, it had encountered a dying Heretic warrior in the forest—a man named Krathel who’d been mortally wounded defending his village from a beast attack.

The crow had approached the dying human out of simple curiosity, drawn by the scent of blood. But instead of driving the scavenger away with his final breath, Krathel had smiled gently and offered the small bird a piece of dried meat from his pouch.

“You’re… hungry too… aren’t you?” the warrior had whispered through blood-filled lungs. “Take it… little one. No sense… letting it… go to waste…”

The crow had eaten gratefully, perching beside the dying warrior as his life slowly faded.

With his last moments of consciousness, Krathel had reached out with a trembling, blood-soaked hand to gently stroke the crow’s feathers.

Krathel would then be saved by a human with long black hair, and a calm expression on his face. The human would hold Krathel in his arms before smiling at the raven then leaving with immense speed.

For the next few years, Krathel and the raven would not meet each other. Once they met, the raven was the one dying from injuries after his mother was killed in an ambush by multiple powerful beasts. Krathel would take in the crow, and they would become best friends until eventually they became a beast and its tamer.

They would grow powerful together under the training of the human until eventually, Krathel left the village, feeling betrayed by his master who liked his other student more. He would join another group, and the crow would follow him with loyalty.

Then, the raven would fight alongside Krathel until they were both on the brink of death. The day where Krathel faced a person that had once been a friend, a training partner. Their enemies, Velshaara and the White Swan would also suffer terrible woulds that would leave them on the brink of death.

On his last few moments before death, Krathel would cough out blood before begging the Dark Raven to protect his people from harm.

For decades afterward, the Black Raven had watched over the Heretic settlement, driving away dangerous predators, and guiding hunters to safe prey.

It had protected Karthel’s descendants, children who’d grown into warriors, then elders, then ancestors themselves.

Generations of Heretics had lived and died under the Black Raven’s silent guardianship.

The Black Raven’s crimson eyes blazed with resolve as the memory turned into a single promise.

Teardrops began to form in its eyes, as it was fulfilling its promise on its last few moments before death. Its eyes yearning to meet its master once more, to spend time with him like it had before.

The guardian beast made its final decision.

With wings tucked at the optimal angle for maximum velocity, the Black Raven dove with insane speed, using its own massive body as a living shield to intercept the incoming fireball—sacrificing itself completely to fulfill the promise it engraved into its very soul.

BOOOOOM!

The Black Raven’s agonized screech cut off abruptly as the Ignite spell detonated against its body at point-blank range. The guardian beast’s protective feathers instantly ignited, its flesh burning and charring from shock that exceeded even its S-rank durability.

But the interception succeeded.

The fireball’s trajectory was deflected upward and away from the settlement. Instead of incinerating helpless non-combatants, the explosion vented harmlessly into the open sky above—a pillar of flame that illuminated the entire area like a second sun.

The Black Raven’s massive body fell from the sky, trailing smoke and embers, its wings badly burned and no longer capable of flight.

It crashed heavily onto the blood-soaked ground between Moon and the settlement, creating a small crater from the impact.

The guardian beast tried to rise, to continue protecting its charges despite its injuries. But its body refused to respond. The burns were too severe, the damage too much to ignore.

Through fading vision, the Black Raven’s crimson eyes fixed on the settlement behind it—where frightened faces of children and elders peered out from shelter, safe because of this final sacrifice.

<I kept… the promise… Karthel. I can finally meet you after so long…> The dying guardian thought in its final moments before its consciousness faded completely, unable to stay awake due to the catastrophic injuries it had gathered.

Flames continued eating mercilessly at the Black Raven’s body and feathers, cooking the flesh beneath.

Moon stood completely alone amongst the absolute carnage surrounding him, his breathing ragged and haggard from the brutal fight that had taken nearly everything he possessed to achieve this victory.

“Moon! You won! You killed it!” Selene’s excited voice shouted as she finally arrived behind him atop Mirage, relief and admiration flooding her tone.

But Moon showed absolutely no reaction to her words, standing still with an empty expression.

“Moon!” Selene shouted again with growing concern, dismounting quickly and walking around to position herself directly before his face.

Moon’s entire body tensed suddenly before immediately relaxing when he realised that it was Selene rather than a threat.

Realizing Selene had finally arrived, Moon’s eyes widened. “Hurry up! Strike it now before it dies! You need to claim the killing blow!”

Although he spoke, he couldn’t hear anything. He wasn’t sure even sure whether he was whispering or shouting, it was a truly eye opening feeling to him.

Selene jolted awake from her stupor, suddenly remembering the agreement they’d established before the battle began. She hurriedly summoned her staff and conjured an offensive spell.

A wind blade began forming, the wind blade powerful enough to deal meaningful damage so the system would properly register the final strike as belonging to her rather than Moon.

She released the wind blade, charging towards the Black Raven that could die at any moment. Her heart beat faster as she glanced between Moon and the beast, unsure if she was late or not.