Chapter 30

Chapter 30
Every gaze was locked upon Count Palatio.

The horrified soldiers.

The hopeless knights.

Even Penia and Deus.

And the colossal being confronting him.

The giant’s vacant eyes observed Alon, and Alon’s own detached stare met them.

Then.

[Sssss-]

A smile slowly formed on the giant’s lips.

[Hahahahaha!]

The giant’s booming laugh reverberated throughout the entire area as if it would pulverize all in its path.

The earth trembled, and the laughter held such force that even the dead, who chanted despair, fell silent.

Most of the living interpreted the giant’s abrupt laughter as scorn and derision, but in contrast to their assumptions:

[Good. Excellent! Oh, noble being!]

The giant’s laughter was imbued with authentic sincerity, happiness, and thrill.

The aura surrounding the giant’s form transformed.

Shifting from disdain to delight, from delight to euphoria.

And then.

[I, Ulthultus, accept your duel under the great pact!]

At the giant’s shout, the dead who sang of despair moved as one, arranging themselves into a vast ring encircling Ulthultus and Alon.

Drip—drip—

Blood flowing from the deceased saturated the earth, delineating its edge.

And so, a crimson colosseum was created.

Within this arena of ashes, adorned by bloodshed,

[Under the great pact, until this duel concludes, none may intrude upon this sacred battle!]

The moment the proclamation ended, the corpses of the dead detonated, erecting a blood-red barrier. A broad smile then spread across Ulthultus’s face.

It was a transparent display of pleasure.

Yet, in stark opposition, Alon’s countenance stayed completely blank.

But—

“…I want to go home.”

Behind that unreadable mask, Alon was quaking with a desperate terror.

***

No matter how frequently he reaffirmed it, Alon’s purpose for coming to the North was to slay the Outer God Ulthultus who stood before him.

To that end, Alon had assembled all necessary preparations to confront the deity ever since learning of its awakening. Now, only execution remained.

Still, despite being thoroughly ready, Alon’s mind was swamped with dread from the immense pressure radiating from the god, exceeding anything he had envisioned.

‘…Remain calm.’
Even after consuming the “Elixir of Exceptionality,” meant to steady his psyche, Alon could only just manage to calm his agitated heart. Unlike his impassive face, his heart began to beat wildly.

It wasn’t merely the instinctual pressure from the god. One element defied his predictions.

‘Why is the manifestation process so far along already?’
All Outer Gods, after descending, require time to adjust to reality before finally finishing their transformation into a “wise god.” Ulthultus should have been no exception.

And yet, Ulthultus’s manifestation had advanced more swiftly than foreseen.

Though roughly a month should have remained, the Outer God before him was already nearing the state of a complete wise god. This was plain to see.

This accelerated manifestation was a variable Alon had not accounted for.

The closer a god comes to becoming a wise god, the more powerful they grow.

[But more intriguing still. Oh noble one who blossomed amidst brutality, how do you know of our pact, though you are not from this age?]

As Alon swallowed hard, remembering that detail, Ulthultus questioned him.

However, Alon no longer had the capacity to respond casually to its words.

‘Can I succeed?’
Innumerable doubts and uncertainty flooded his thoughts.

Ulthultus, having become far more powerful than anticipated, was undermining the resolve Alon had barely sustained with potions, but he soon cast aside the negativity.

From the instant he had arrived here, Alon knew only one path remained for him to tread.

As Alon processed his confusion and grew quiet, Ulthultus, still in excellent spirits, grinned widely and spoke.

[If you do not wish to speak, so be it. You have that right. Then, let the sacred duel commence.]

As the giant’s smile widened, he lifted his arm.

[The duel of Babylonia.]

Ulthultus started to advance toward Alon.

With every step, the ground, tainted with ash and blood, resounded and was imprinted with footprints, yet Alon did not stir.

He merely stood in place, awaiting the entity before him.

And then,

Thud!
Even when Ulthultus reached him with a tremendous sound and raised its fist, Alon stayed silent, simply watching.

From a distance, puzzled murmurs began to rise from the living, but Alon kept his silence, observing the giant’s actions.

The reason was straightforward.

‘The rules.’
To flee or shift position in this situation would breach the rules of the great Babylonian duel, which existed in the forgotten age of gods.

The Babylonian duel had only two rules.

1. The attacker and defender alternate turns, and the defender cannot move.
2. The one who issued the duel challenge must surrender the first attack.

This turn-based duel style meant that if Alon moved even a single step, its purpose would be voided.

Furthermore, doing so would rob him of the opportunity to confront the Outer God before him.

Without the duel’s constraints, he would have no means to kill this god, who could effortlessly eliminate even Master Knights with one blow.

In other words, this duel was Alon’s sole method to impose restrictions that could grant him victory.

“Fixation.”

Therefore, the only action available to Alon in this moment was to defend.

Whispering the word, a sphere materialized before Alon.

“Condensation.”

The condensed sphere focused its energy onto his left arm.

“Reinforcement.”

With the muttered phrase, the concentrated energy in his left arm started to emit a profound light.

“Intensification.”

As he finished speaking and sealed the final gesture, Ulthultus, still grinning broadly, pulled back its fist.

Muscles retracted like a ballista.

The gathered force began to concentrate within the drawn-back fist.

Alon was well acquainted with this technique.

Because he had witnessed it before.

With one second, it could shatter the ground.

With five seconds, it could fracture the sky.

With ten seconds, it could overturn the world.

This was the Song of Destruction.

And then,

[Truly magnificent…]

Feeling immense joy in adhering to the rules of Babylonia, Ulthultus smiled as everyone around them wore looks of astonishment.

Even without full comprehension, they understood instinctively.

The power coalescing in the Outer God’s hand was anything but ordinary.

At the precise moment all gazes converged,

[Oh, honorable one who comprehends the nobility of the duel!]

The fist was unleashed.

!!!!

With a deafening roar, everything was obliterated.

The ground burst apart as if its crust had been shattered.

The air vibrated, producing a harsh explosive sound.

The world within the punch’s range momentarily became a vacuum.

And then.

Boom—!!!
Following the delayed, ear-splitting explosion, gray dust scattered in every direction.

“This is unbelievable.”

They witnessed it.

The world, completely annihilated, with nothing remaining where Ulthultus’s fist had landed.

A massive cone-shaped crater marred the ground, and the gray sky was cracked open, allowing a purple sunset to bathe the land with its light.

Overwhelming power.

As the living, who had been staring vacantly at Ulthultus silhouetted against the sunset, began to feel a blend of despair and awe,

“Th-the Count… he’s still alive?”

“What? What are you saying—”

Everyone’s attention turned toward the conical space at one knight’s murmur.

And then.

“Unbelievable…”

Along with a knight’s low curse, they all saw him.

Count Palatio, soaked in blood, was rising to his feet.

The Count’s condition was far from normal.

His right arm hung uselessly, devoid of strength, and the blood streaming from his body suggested his death was imminent.

Yet, despite such circumstances, Alon stood firm, gazing directly at the giant without a hint of emotion.

As the lotus-shaped pendant around the Count’s neck crumbled into ashes and vanished,

“The conditions have all been met.”

The Count’s voice rang out.

“I invoke the Oath.”

***

The “Ring of the Arrogant One” is an artifact that, much like the original “Oath” he obtained, bestows power in return for a cost.

In the game, the item acquired differs based on whether the protagonist’s class is a mage or another profession.

There are two other distinctions.

One is that, unlike the original “Oath” he used, the ring provides four oaths simultaneously.

The other is that, unlike the original Oath, the ring’s activation requirement is that the wearer must be near death.

Thus, every condition was fulfilled.

He had deliberately lured the Outer God into a restricted duel.

He had blocked most of the pain with the Leviteon potion.

He had used the one-time artifact acquired before stopping at Caliban—the “Pendant of Reincarnation,” which guaranteed survival regardless of injury—to endure the god’s assault.

He had obsessively reinforced only his left hand, clutching the recovery potion, to force it into his mouth.

And with that, he satisfied the prerequisites for the “Oath.”

“…I shall perform it.”

Within the frozen moment, Alon, having completed the Oath, looked forward.

Before him stood the giant, filled with immense joy, arms spread wide, motionless.

As if anticipating Alon’s attack, the giant did not budge an inch.

Alon staggered, extending his uninjured left hand.

“It took so long to prepare the Leviteon potion, and without it, I wouldn’t have been able to stand.”

A thought voiced amidst the dull agony.

Even after taking the pain-suppressing Leviteon potion and forcing the highest-grade recovery potion into his mouth, Alon’s body was still shattered.

Short of an elixir, his body could not be instantly mended.

But for now, being able to raise his left hand was sufficient.

The giant, who revered duels, having reached the peak of savagery and attained honor, would neither interrupt nor evade Alon’s attack.

No matter how long the preparation for that attack took.

“Huu—”

Watching the magical energy spiral upward from his raised hand, twisting into a vortex, Alon recalled the Oath he had just sworn and allowed a faint smile behind his expressionless facade.

The nature of the Oath, demanding a great sacrifice in exchange for greater power, had rendered his restrictions even more severe than initially planned.

Ulthultus had grown stronger due to his rapid manifestation, surpassing Alon’s expectations.

However.

Now, Alon was certain.

This strike would reach the Outer God.

Crack!
As the spiral of electricity began to twist with a strange sound, Alon muttered under his breath and recalled the four Oaths.

“Refraction.”

The first Oath. To warp the laws of the world when employing magic on this frozen earth.

“Point.”

The second Oath. To warp the laws of the world when employing magic while near death.

“Condensation.”

The third Oath. To warp the laws of the world when confronting a god with magic.

“Annihilation.”

The fourth Oath.

To warp the laws of the world when confronting the great duel god Ulthultus with magic.

Alon looked ahead.

Before him, a massive line of red lightning had taken shape.

Thin and elongated.

Illuminated by the purple light of the setting sun, it shimmered a deep crimson.

The gray magic flowing from the bracelet on his left hand enveloped the red lightning line like smoke.

In the view of the knights and soldiers, Alon’s figure was outlined against the sunset.

In the eyes of Deus and Penia, two “eyes” manifested behind Alon, etched into the sunset.

With that.

“Line of Silence.”

As Alon whispered, a blinding white flash shot toward the smiling giant.

Boom!!!
The gray land momentarily regained the semblance of a pure white snowfield.