Chapter 1003
Chapter 1003
“Hold on.”
Larian extended her arm, barring the path of both Raon and Evelyn.
“Even though you have crossed into Transcendence, facing him on your own is out of the question.”
She shook her head firmly, adamant that Evelyn stood no chance of overcoming The Fallen by herself.
“In truth, it is not merely a hard task—it is outright impossible. The Fallen has not revealed the full extent of his might.”
Larian made a dismissive gesture with her hand, urging the two of them to pull back.
“Leave The Fallen to me. You two should deal with the remaining foes.”
She asserted her intention to end The Fallen with her own hands, summoning four daggers into her grasp.
“Let them do as they wish.”
The Fallen curled his lips into a scornful grin while his shredded palm knit itself back together seamlessly.
“They appear quite eager to embrace death.”
A biting wave of bloodlust surged from him, seemingly provoked by Evelyn’s sudden ascension.
“I warned you that he has completely lost his mind.”
Evelyn offered a dry, mocking laugh as her gaze settled on The Fallen.
“He radiates murderous wrath without sparing a single thought for the atrocities he committed.”
She rolled her finger in small circles, gesturing for him to wake up from his delusion.
“Why should this piece of filth—who thoroughly drained my very spirit and exploited my dark reputation—be the one acting indignant?”
The crimson cross embedded within Evelyn’s irises burned with an even fiercer glow, revealing the pure fury churning inside her.
“Your spirit and dark reputation?”
Raon shifted his eyes toward Evelyn, his brow knitting slightly.
“What do you mean by those words?”
He struggled to grasp her statement, since the final memory he had observed involved The Fallen extracting an unknown essence from Evelyn’s lifeless body.
—Has that masked freak managed to commit yet another vile deed?
Wrath spat out a bitter chuckle, muttering that The Fallen truly never ceased his villainous toil.
“I witnessed the events that followed through the lingering trace of The Fallen’s consciousness left within my mask.”
Evelyn exhaled a soft, weary breath as she glanced down at the ruined disguise of the old woman.
“His ambition was to swallow the entire Lothair Kingdom to establish his sovereign territory, yet because I ruined it, that entire foundation was wiped away. In consequence…”
She tilted her chin up to look at The Fallen, her gaze dripping with unbridled revulsion.
“He wielded my notorious deeds and soul to bring the neighboring realms to their knees. It required little effort on his part, given that my uncle and those aberrant beasts remained under his command.”
Evelyn pressed her lips together tightly, recounting how he had continuously amplified the terror tied to the name of Merlin through Lokta and the beasts, who possessed only fleeting remnants of life.
“Following that, he feigned a tactical withdrawal and covertly seized all the resources and riches of the ruined territories. He certainly possesses a cunning intellect.”
She nodded slightly, remarking that this calculated scheme was the sole reason the dread surrounding Merlin had endured across generations.
“I see…”
Raon lowered his brow, fixing his gaze upon the silent figure of The Fallen.
“The Lokta present within your past recollections and the warrior I encountered inside the helm felt somewhat… actually, remarkably distinct.”
The Lokta etched into Evelyn’s memories had carried the demeanor of an affectionate guardian rather than a cold soldier, whereas the presence lingering in the helm was steeped in the grim, merciless aura of a merciless warrior. That glaring disparity had puzzled him until now, but it was evidently all an orchestrated result of The Fallen’s design.
“A sliver of my own sentiment must have seeped into that relic during its forging.”
The Fallen clicked his tongue quietly as he observed the fractured mask, visibly displeased that so many secrets had slipped through. Maintaining such blatant audacity after carrying out abominations beyond the reach of normal wickedness proved he truly existed outside the realm of ordinary mortals.
“Lady Larian.”
Raon turned toward Larian, who still stood positioned before The Fallen.
“Pardon my intrusion, but I ask that you step aside for this engagement.”
He inclined his head, presenting a solitary, sincere request.
“Whether you ask or not, that remains an impossible endeavor.”
Larian waved her hand dismissively, acknowledging that while there was clear history between them, Evelyn was incapable of prevailing on her own.
“I shall stand beside her in this struggle.”
Raon drew both Heavenly Drive and the Wooden Ring Sword, planting his feet firmly beside ‘Merlin’.
“Truly? You have my whole heart!”
Evelyn clapped her palms with visible delight, proclaiming that their combined strength would bring assured triumph. Witnessing her cheerful grin and shameless display of affection under such perilous circumstances proved she was indeed the genuine Merlin.
—She remains entirely unhinged, it seems…
Wrath tossed his head back, noting with exasperation that Merlin had not shifted in character one bit.
“Set your worries aside.”
Evelyn cast an easy, reassuring wave toward Larian.
“I have already brought down this piece of garbage once in the past, after all.”
Her bright smile radiated unyielding assurance that victory was well within their reach.
“Hah…”
Larian let out a soft, resigned breath as her gaze moved between Evelyn and Raon.
“The very second matters turn dire, I am stepping in.”
She gave a brief nod, granting them a single opportunity to test their mettle.
“My thanks.”
Raon inclined his upper body, expressing his gratitude toward Larian.
“Time to strike!”
Looking immensely pleased, Evelyn gave her own shoulder an encouraging tap before soaring into the open air.
“Please recover your strength for the moment.”
Raon flashed a brief smile toward Mark Goetun, who was blinking in complete bewilderment, before leaping upward to take his place alongside Merlin.
“Phew…”
The Fallen released an irritated, long breath.
“You have grown excessively arrogant simply by stepping into Transcendence. I am no longer the Sage who existed in your former days.”
His slender fingers gripped the mask of the young man, his eyes gleaming with a frigid, cruel light.
“I have altered my nature as well. I finally understand the sheer depth of your lunacy.”
Evelyn raised her chin in clear defiance, practically signaling the start of the clash.
“Raon, direct your entire focus toward severing his neck.”
She opened her palms wide, a gentle smirk gracing her features.
“I shall handle every other complication.”
Evelyn drew in a steady breath, guaranteeing that both defensive maneuvers and spell nullification would fall entirely under her charge.
“Understood.”
Raon gave an unruffled nod.
‘Having somehow brought down the Black Tower Master, there is no reason I cannot finish The Fallen as well.’
Though his vitality had taken a heavy toll from sustaining the Sword Domain, his remaining reserves were more than sufficient for combat.
“As you wish.”
The Fallen rubbed his smooth jaw, his lips pulling into an austere smirk.
“I shall slaughter the pair of you. In fact, every single soul gathered on this ground shall perish.”
Spheres of illumination and pitch-black dark manifested directly above his palms, declaring his intent to conclude matters in a solitary strike. Unlike earlier exchanges, the twin energies no longer dispersed in a faint haze; instead, they began spinning in tight, concentrated circles.
‘What is that…’
Raon narrowed his focus upon the illumination and shadow coalescing atop The Fallen’s fingertips.
‘An orb?’
Orbs served as an advanced discipline among spellcasters, compressing high densities of mana to unleash lethal sorcery with exceptional swiftness.
“Hah.”
As Raon braced his muscles against The Fallen’s staggering surge of mystic power, Evelyn simply scoffed. A sharp snap echoed from her fingers, and the swirling spheres of illumination and dark brought forth by The Fallen abruptly froze in place. With their mana pathways instantly disrupted, the spheres churned wildly like boiling water before violently tearing themselves apart.
“Tch!”
The Fallen scowled, staring down at the palm that had endured the detonation. Although he managed to avoid having his skin ruptured this time by anticipating the backlash, the unexpected disruption clearly caught him off balance.
“You fail to grasp just how thoroughly I dissected your crafts, don’t you?”
Evelyn tilted her chin high, meeting The Fallen’s hollow stare.
“Even throughout the years my true memories remained locked away, my mind dwelled upon it ceaselessly. The methods to shatter your mystic arts, the exact formulas to dismantle your enchantments.”
Her lips curved into a sharp grin as she made it known that every scrap of The Fallen’s magic had been cataloged and unraveled by her studies.
“You could not have harbored any genuine malice toward me during that period, could you?”
The Fallen brushed away the lingering residue crackling across his fingers, his eyebrows drawn in a tight grimace.
“In the beginning, it was merely an intellectual pursuit…”
Evelyn slowly turned her gaze toward Raon, who maintained his position beside her.
“Yet after my heart chose Raon, my sole aim became exposing your vulnerabilities so he could end your life.”
She gave an indifferent shrug, making it clear that her relentless study of The Fallen was carried out entirely for Raon’s sake.
“Back then, my own limitations prevented me from claiming victory despite knowing your secrets…”
Evelyn channeled her mana through her fingertips, and an incantation of pure light that The Fallen was quietly weaving behind his back dissipated without ever taking form.
“Yet now, empowered by the ring Raon forged for my sake, no feat is beyond my reach.”
Her laughter rang out with complete certainty, leaving no room to doubt her impending triumph.
“You were surely bound under my mental domination.”
“I tore through it. Better yet, it shattered.”
Evelyn leaned her frame gently against Raon’s shoulder, releasing a calm exhale.
“Genuine devotion possesses immeasurable might, you know.”
She tossed a mocking grin toward him, adding that a monstrous existence who dared to warp the flow of time itself could never comprehend such things.
—Aye, she is without question utterly demented.
Wrath shook his head in silent agreement, wholly persuaded that this woman was the identical Merlin of old.
“Sigh…”
Raon breathed a heavy sigh, masking his expression behind the raised edges of Heavenly Drive and the Wooden Ring Sword.
“Very well, then.”
The Fallen inclined his head with chilling composure.
“I shall snuff out your life once more, and when you are broken, I will scrape every fragment of your spirit down to nothingness to feed my purpose.”
A legion of armaments wrought from brilliant radiance and consuming dark coalesced above his hands, his tone descending into an icy stillness.
“Let this ancient, festering grievance reach its final resolution today.”
The Fallen hurled the spectral weaponry forward before Evelyn could even begin redirecting her mana. Broadswords, daggers, lances, shafts, knives, heavy battleaxes, and crushing warhammers surged forward—far distinct from crude magical bolts, each construct exhibited distinct trajectories as they hurtled directly toward the two of them.
‘I must withstand the initial wave.’
Just as he set his stance to parry the onslaught before executing a counterstroke, he perceived the pulse of Evelyn’s mana rising from behind. Her pure energy expanded outward like an intricate web, catching and completely dissolving every single incoming weapon The Fallen had launched.
“I made my promise. I shall guard your rear.”
She pointed her finger ahead, urging him forward with complete faith.
“Understood.”
Drawing strength from Merlin’s absolute certainty, Raon surged straight toward The Fallen and brought Heavenly Drive crashing down in a lethal arc.
“Tch.”
As The Fallen raised a dark barrier using his right forearm to deflect the sword, Merlin slipped her own mana directly into the frequency of the defensive spell.
“Now!”
Raon capitalized instantly on that momentary hesitation, extending Crimson Slash to its absolute zenith to cleave through The Fallen’s arm. Yet The Fallen, possessing the split-second instincts natural to a Transcendent, shifted his weight just in time, resulting in only his hand being sliced instead of losing the entire limb.
“You had best steel yourself completely.”
Evelyn cast a razor-sharp glare toward the grimacing figure of The Fallen.
“Because today is the exact hour your pathetic soul gets dragged into the gutter.”
‘To think she dismantled The Fallen’s spell craft in a fraction of an instant…’
Just as Larian let out a breath while assessing Evelyn’s mastery, the Soul Devourer launched into action. Melding into the atmosphere like an ethereal phantom gifted with the essence of Wraith, he rematerialized right behind Larian and brought a massive black scythe sweeping downward. It was a fatal stroke designed to reap both mortal spirits and raw mana in a single strike.
Without even sparing a backward glance, Larian effortlessly held off the colossal scythe using merely four daggers.
“I will entertain you shortly. Contain yourself.”
“Mage Tower Master Larian…”
A hollow growl slipped from the Soul Devourer as a murky, dark miasma began bleeding from the surface of his scythe.
“Treating me lightly would be a grave error.”
As that abyssal power ignited along the scythe’s edge, Larian’s floating daggers began to vibrate as if their enchantments were being sapped away.
“That polearm.”
Larian’s brow furrowed slightly as she observed the dark blade steadily pushing back her weapons.
“It is hardly an ordinary construct.”
A weapon capable of draining the very ambient mana and intricate charms bound to the daggers was something no standard craftsman could ever fashion.
“You boast mastery over every art under the heavens, yet such knowledge is utterly hollow here. No sorcery can touch me.”
The Soul Devourer held his chin high with arrogant disdain.
“I am the absolute ruin of all who practice magic.”
He offered a cruel smirk, declaring that no wielder of the mystic arts could ever hope to best him.
“Just how many innocent lives have you bled dry up until this point?”
Larian inquired calmly, treating his pompous claims as entirely beneath notice.
“You dare…?”
“That is hardly how true magical experimentation is performed.”
Releasing a short scoff, she commanded an additional set of daggers to rise and intercept the scythe’s path. Yet just as before, the dark armament feasted upon Larian’s arcane energy, spilling an even thicker tide of shadow across the clearing.
“Completely futile…”
Before the Soul Devourer could finish his mocking retort, an abrupt, gaping wound ruptured through his shoulder as though struck clean through by an unseen projectile.
“Wh-what is this…”
The Soul Devourer reached across to clutch the sudden wound in shock, only for a matching puncture to erupt violently through his right leg.
“Guh…!”
He shuddered as dark blood sprayed outward from the fresh injuries.
“You overestimate your station.”
Larian offered a cold smirk, presenting a pristine dagger wrapped tightly in howling gale and crackling lightning.
“A natural enemy? True scholars of magic acknowledge no such foolishness. Any obstacle can be dismantled through thorough research.”
With a subtle twitch of her fingers directing the blade, a massive puncture tore straight through the Soul Devourer’s midsection.
“Could it be…”
Understanding finally flickered within the Soul Devourer’s panicked eyes.
“You relied on wind and lightning solely to achieve maximum velocity!”
“Precisely.”
Larian gave an approving nod, her azure irises gleaming with sharp focus.
“That shroud of darkness does not envelop your physical form entirely. All that is required is striking before your senses can process the threat.”
As she casually shrugged, pointing out the utter simplicity of her strategy, the Soul Devourer’s entire arm was severed and sent flying into the dirt.
“Aaaaaagh!”
The Soul Devourer collapsed forward, howling as he gripped the bleeding stump of his shoulder.
“Recognize your own insignificance.”
Larian cast a frigid look down upon the writhing creature beneath her.
“I stand as the Mage Tower Master among the Five Kings.”
“Urgh…”
The Soul Devourer’s gaze shook violently under the weight of her overwhelming aura. Yet just as Larian prepared to obliterate his skull using a dagger coated in dense, lethal mana, The Fallen unleashed an ear-splitting roar, unfurling colossal wings forged of brilliant light and absolute shadow.
‘From this moment onward…’
Larian tightened her brow, keeping a watchful eye on the terrifying surge of power cascading through the air.
‘The true battle begins.’
‘The scale is far greater than before…’
Raon clenched his teeth as he observed The Fallen, whose composure had entirely cracked into genuine fury. A titanic maelstrom of light and darkness churned violently around his figure. The sheer force felt capable of swallowing not merely the mountain ridge beneath their boots, but the vast expanse surrounding it, causing cold sweat to dampen his grip on the hilts of his swords.
‘Evelyn cannot hold this back single-handedly.’
The apocalyptic spiral brought forth by The Fallen was packed with unfathomable mana and intricate formations. Regardless of how deeply Evelyn had analyzed his techniques or the fact that she had reached Transcendence, this tempest was not an assault a single person could neutralize. As Raon began channeling Fire Wall and the Dance of the Golden Flame, sweeping Heavenly Drive behind his back to mount a desperate defense, Evelyn’s clear, soothing voice cut through the chaos.
“Press forward.”
She instructed him to cast aside all defense and prepare for a decisive strike.
“Place your faith in me and charge ahead.”
She offered a steady nod, urging him to trust her without reservation.
“You truly cannot see the boundaries of your own weakness.”
The Fallen sneered with bitter contempt, deeply insulted by Evelyn’s steady resolve.
“I will scour all of you from existence.”
The moment his fingers gestured downward, the catastrophic vortex of light and darkness expanded exponentially, threatening to consume the entire mountain peak. Ancient pines, thickets, and solid crags were ground into fine dust, and the very mountain was cleaved apart under the sheer pressure. Such destruction exceeded mortal limits entirely—it was the pure manifestation of absolute magic wielded by a Transcendent.
—Why not take the gamble?
Wrath gestured toward Evelyn with a sharp jerk of his chin.
—Put your trust in her this once.
‘Now that is quite unexpected.’
Raon offered a faint grin within his inner thoughts, glancing toward Wrath.
—What part of it?
‘Normally, you would brand her an utter lunatic and order me never to rely on her.’
—Th-that is…
Wrath seemed taken aback by his own change in demeanor, choking down a sudden stammer.
‘Regardless, you are a dependable ally as well.’
Raon smiled inwardly and shifted his attention directly ahead. His lips curved slightly as he locked his gaze onto the colossal hurricane of light and dark barreling toward them, swallowing the earth whole.
‘Very well. I shall place my faith in her this time.’
Casting away all thoughts of shielding himself, Raon pushed off against the cracking expanse of empty air. He hurled his entire momentum toward the heart of the maelstrom—straight toward The Fallen hidden behind its veil—coating his twin blades in the absolute pinnacle of his aura. Even when the blistering pressure of the tempest began scorching his flesh, his charge did not falter for a fraction of a second.
‘If I have chosen to trust, I will carry it to the absolute end.’
For Evelyn to openly ask for his faith carried profound weight. Recalling the tragic path her existence had walked, expressing such reliance could not have been easy, which solidified his resolve to perish right here if necessary, throwing every ounce of his spirit solely into the offensive. Strands of his hair caught the edge of the blazing light, and the encroaching shadow ripped away the fabric of his sleeve.
Just as the opposing energies prepared to disintegrate not merely his outer flesh, but the underlying bone and muscle, Evelyn’s softly shimmering aura manifested directly before him.
The roaring vortex of light and shadow froze dead in its tracks. That absolute pinnacle of sorcery The Fallen had unleashed began to unravel into wisps of faint vapor before the perfection of Evelyn’s counter-formula. Precisely as she had assured him, she dismantled The Fallen’s grand technique down to nothingness.
The instant the obstruction vanished, Raon drove his weight into the Supreme Harmony Step with terrifying momentum, closing the remaining distance to The Fallen in a flash.
“You insane…”
The Fallen scrambled to weave a desperate barrier, yet the tip of Raon’s steel had already breached his guard. Executing Raon Zieghart’s signature art, the Silver Sword Dream, intertwined with the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation’s Flame and Ice Unification, the strike descended. The scarlet surges of the Flame and Ice Unification drove straight through The Fallen’s chest, while the ethereal crescent of the Silver Sword Dream cleaved cleanly across his neck.
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