285th Episode
Luna revealed her full power.
A tempest of mana engulfed Benedict’s voice, silencing it in a tumultuous roar.
The moment Luna clenched her fists, a blinding flash overwhelmed Benedict’s vision.
—
An overwhelming crash deafened his ears and shook his head violently.
Benedict was thrown back helplessly, like debris caught in a wave.
While his vision spun uncontrollably, Benedict gripped the Command Blade tightly.
So far, he could withstand Luna’s attacks.
Though Luna wielded an enormous amount of mana, her precision wasn’t refined enough to harm someone at the near-Lord level.
However,
What Benedict thought would last only a few dozen seconds continued endlessly, battering him with relentless waves of mana.
Benedict realized he had completely misjudged the situation.
Crack!!
Once again, Benedict slammed into the ground and slid backward.
Shattered sand scratched against the armor imbued with the Blessing of the Dark God.
By the time Benedict was pushed all the way to the shoreline, he unleashed a Sword Energy technique, aiming to counterattack Luna.
But at that very instant,
The chaotic torrent of mana that had been swelling suddenly compressed into an intense force.
Luna, who had previously restrained her power out of consideration for Karen, now glimmered with silver eyes as she prepared her true magic.
—
From the magical circle drawn in the air, a crimson beam shot forth.
Benedict believed that the armor fortified by the Blessing of the Dark God would easily defend against Luna’s magic.
That belief turned out to be embarrassingly overconfident.
Zzzt!!
As soon as the red beam struck, the armor began melting and splitting apart, glowing a fierce red.
Caught off guard by this unexpected turn of events, Benedict swung the Command Blade just in time to deflect the beam’s trajectory.
The deflected beam carved across the sea, turning the water it touched directly into steam without even boiling it.
KWAHAAAAANG!!
An explosion erupted from the seawater as the pressure surged due to the sudden expansion of volume.
Before the towering tsunami-like water could fall, Luna unleashed another spell in rapid succession.
This was not the crude magic that merely poured out mana.
Instead, it transformed massive firepower capable of incinerating an entire area into something as precise as a razor blade.
Only then did Benedict realize that Luna had deliberately refrained from using high-level magic until they reached the coastline.
Crackkk!!
Precision bombardments pierced through his defenses and rained down upon him.
There was no time for a proper counterattack.
Even focusing on defense didn’t save his body from damage; if it weren’t for the Blessing of the Dark God, his skin would have already burned and fused with the armor.
It was one-sided.
This felt like flailing alone inside molten lava.
Through the chaos, Benedict stared at Luna.
He couldn’t comprehend what was happening.
Benedict and Arundel had anticipated the possibility of encountering an unexpected powerful force within the Osiris Countdom when planning their ambush.
After all, they were dealing with the Empire, and a place where its Guardians resided.
They had expected various variables and thus both acted simultaneously to handle them.
Yet, this silver-eyed girl surpassed even their worst assumptions.
She wasn’t just above a typical 8th Circle High Mage—she was something entirely different.
Although Benedict had encountered numerous demon worshippers draped in all sorts of bizarre rituals, he sensed an even stronger alien presence emanating from Luna.
“Who… are you?”
A talent so violent that it made ordinary humans seem incomprehensible was tearing Benedict apart.
On the other hand, Luna felt perplexed as well.
Despite having limited combat experience, during her time traveling with Ray, she had learned about the common traits of demon worshippers.
Demon worshippers, thanks to the powers of the dark god, possess strong survival abilities.
Even though their essence lies more in “erosion” rather than “healing,” they recover from wounds more easily than humans, making them quite bold in battle.
They often take significant physical risks to mount aggressive attacks, causing trouble for their opponents.
However, Benedict kept trying to counter Luna’s spells directly.
More precisely, he endured bodily damage while desperately attempting to cut through each incoming spell.
His actions were utterly irrational.
With his sword strikes, Benedict couldn’t effectively cancel or block Luna’s spells.
It would have been more logical for him to rely on the dark god’s power to absorb the spells with his body while attacking Luna directly.
“…”
Luna couldn’t understand why Benedict was acting this way.
It might have been psychological warfare, or perhaps the madness of obsession.
Of course, this wasn’t particularly important to Luna.
No matter how much Benedict struggled, he wouldn’t reach her.
Whoosh!!
A massive fireball descended right before Benedict.
As the blinding light flashed, immense pressure and heat swallowed him whole.
Unable to properly resist, Benedict was finally pushed into the sea.
Of course, Benedict didn’t sink.
At his level, a knight could freely walk through the air.
The problem was that above Benedict’s head, magical blasts comparable to those of high-ranking mages fell like rain.
Could this really be the power of a single individual, not even a large-scale mage unit of the Empire?
Facing this absurd spectacle he’d never imagined in his life, Benedict raised the Command Blade.
“I can do it.”
Benedict lifted his sword high above his head.
He was genuinely fixated on “cutting.”
Since the day he first held a sword, Benedict dreamed of reaching the ultimate realm where he could control and cut everything.
Even after ascending to the position known as the kingdom’s greatest swordsman, Benedict hadn’t yet attained that ultimate realm.
The barrier beyond, which earned the title of ultimate, was so impossibly distant that he couldn’t even glimpse a clue.
With little time left in his allowed lifespan, Benedict still couldn’t find his path.
So he clutched the Command Blade.
He would reach the ultimate realm.
That was the greed behind why Benedict grasped the Command Blade.
Yet, Benedict still hadn’t reached the ultimate realm.
He still couldn’t properly cut through Luna’s magic.
In such a case, a knight would inevitably be overpowered compared to a magician who had achieved an equal level.
Or, was it even possible to call it an equal level?
That was unclear.
Benedict couldn’t even ascertain how high this alien existence stood.
Still, one thing was certain:
If he reached the ultimate realm, no matter how great the spellcaster, he could cut them down.
That was an immutable truth.
Ssshh!!
Just as Benedict was battered and pushed back to the shallow waters,
A corrupted aura spreading from the narwhal hidden beneath the sea revived his body.
With crazed eyes, Benedict stared at the Command Blade still firmly in his grasp.
“Answer me…”
To cut through everything, he had embraced corruption.
The dark god had the responsibility to guide Benedict to the realm he sought.
The countless records of calamities inherent in the Command Blade were necessary for Benedict.
“Answer me!!”
He would reach the realm where he could control and cut through everything.
If he succeeded, he could slice through even the bizarre magic cast by this alien existence with just a sword.
Benedict desired transcendence.
“Lead me!!! Beyond this!!!”
Benedict’s overflowing greed stained the Command Blade with a crimson glow.
Luna observed the scene from above, pointing her finger at Benedict.
Now they were no longer on the ground.
They were in the middle of the sea.
Luna was aware of the narwhal’s existence.
She knew that the monster, grown by absorbing the dark god’s power for a long time, would significantly empower the demon worshipper.
Despite understanding this, Luna had moved the battlefield to the middle of the sea.
Zzzt!
A high-tier annihilation magic, restricted when used on land, finally began to take shape.
Luna coldly encompassed both Benedict and the narwhal in her sight.
Anyway, these beings would never aid Ray.
When the opportunity arose,
These misguided existences needed to be vaporized.
*
Lea ran while crying.
Nothing felt real.
Throughout her short life, Lea had only ever received love.
Although Ray sometimes teased her unnecessarily, he was kind to her when he wanted to be.
To Lea, the world had always seemed beautiful.
The happy child who had only ever known joy met the underside of the world for the first time.
Most children placed in a situation like Lea’s would likely collapse halfway, sobbing in fear.
However, commendably, Lea ran as hard as Karen had hoped.
She ran tirelessly, despite being enveloped in terror, crying loudly.
Then lightning began to fall from the sky.
Where the lightning struck, flames erupted, quickly consuming the surrounding area.
The searing heat enveloped Lea.
Terrified, Lea slipped but got up and continued running.
Unbeknownst to her, the heat that was burning entire wooden buildings wasn’t lethal to her.
The dragon blood flowing through Lea protected her from the scorching heat.
Though Luna wasn’t entirely sure, she had anticipated this phenomenon.
Lea emerged from the scorched region in tatters.
As soon as she came into contact with the fresh air, Lea tripped and rolled several times painfully.
Fortunately, the booming sounds nearby gradually grew fainter.
Wobbling to her feet, Lea looked around and started sobbing pitifully.
“Uuuuuuuhhhh…!”
Her vision blurred with tears.
Still, following Karen’s instructions, Lea moved forward despite everything.
But her legs were too weak to run any further.
Lost in her sorrow, Lea wandered aimlessly, unable to set a proper direction.
Alone in such a place, Lea was far too young.
At that moment, a voice called out.
“Why are you crying here all alone?”
Lea hastily wiped her tear-streaked face with her singed sleeve, sniffling.
Seeing her like that, Ray asked,
“Why are you here alone?”
“Uh… O-Oppaaa…!”
Summoning her remaining strength, Lea ran and threw herself into Ray’s arms.
Ray first embraced the running Lea.
Clinging to Ray, Lea cried her heart out, choking on her sobs as she searched for Karen.
“Uh… Oppa…! Karen-ne…! Karen-ne…!”
“…What happened to Karen?”
For a moment, Lea hesitated to tell the story.
The image of Karen standing alone amidst the charred ruins was too frightening to verbalize.
But eventually, she had to speak. Lea gathered her courage.
“Karen-ne is hurt… She’s over there… She told me to go first…”
Trembling, Lea pointed in the direction she had fled.
Ray looked in the direction Lea pointed.
Smoke rose from the half-burned buildings, drifting toward the sky.
Ray’s expression twisted with fear.
