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126
Rohan recalled how Leriana had used her power during the battle in Bemos Village. The vast holy power that had engulfed the entire village like a wave. He replayed in his mind several times that power which had completely excluded killing intent and contained only the will to restore everything to its original state.
It was the opposite of the aggressive sword he had been using until now, but there was no anomaly. The sword that had only bloomed in his imagination immediately manifested in Rohan’s hand. Constantly rippling and swelling, giving an infinitely pure feeling… it resembled a black flame.
It was an overwhelming talent. Arpel assessed it as such, observing the magic power and divine authority swelling up on the sword blade, ready to burn away all that was impure.
“Grrrr…!”
The executive on the opposite side let out a beast-like breath and swung his fist. It was a monotonous movement, no different from before, disregarding the fiercely burning power of the opposing force.
Faced with an attack so familiar it was predictable, Rohan quickly twisted his body, moving one foot to the side. Whether the fist that brushed right past him embedded into the ground, or rock fragments caused shallow cuts on his cheek, or the specter’s energy stained that area dark blue… he did not stop.
With each step Rohan took, the magic power overflowing from his body restored the contaminated land. Eventually, the creature let out a loud cry. As if unable to contain the rising anger at the opponent scurrying away like a mouse.
This one had already been acting like a beast, having lost its reason. The spark of anger Rohan had ignited further fueled its instincts.
Now, as if even the last bit of reason had disappeared, the creature seemed blind to the fact that it was being lured, focused solely on chasing its opponent.
Still, Rohan did not immediately thrust his sword. Even though the opponent, charging endlessly as if ignorant of the very concept of defense, repeatedly exposed its vital points unguarded.
<It’s done, Rohan.>
Finally, Arpel spoke, ending what seemed like an endless chase. It was the news Rohan had been waiting for. With a smirk, he gripped his sword once more and spun his body around completely.
The executive didn’t miss this opportunity. Unlike before when he had attacked with a twisted posture while aiming at an opponent much smaller than himself, now his prey was right in front of him. Even the dullest mind could calculate that much.
The giant’s face twisted grotesquely. It was a smile predicting his own victory. If he could just land this one strike, the annoyingly elusive opponent would be crushed without a trace.
The fist approached right before his eyes. The speed of the thrust, the wind that swept the surroundings while cutting through the air, was clearly extraordinary. One could vaguely sense the overwhelming power residing in those thick hands.
Yet Rohan’s face remained bright. As if he had been hoping for this seemingly extremely dangerous situation.
“Now!”
Just before the fist made contact, he let out a loud voice. Simultaneously, as if by magic, the creature froze in place. Countless shadows had sprouted like thorns from the ground Rohan had been treading on, piercing through the creature’s body.
Roughly a hundred thorns fixed the giant’s body in place. Their intricate, intertwined positions created a perfect trap that could immobilize even an opponent with monstrous strength for at least a few seconds. Observing the blood flowing along the thorns, the mouth opening as if to scream in pain… Rohan swung his sword.
It was in an instant that the burning sword split the creature’s body. From below the arm to the opposite shoulder, not only completely bisecting the giant’s body but also setting the cross-section on fire.
“Kyaaaargh—!!”
A scream like a ghost’s wail.
Rohan slightly furrowed his brow at the shriek that clearly pierced his mind. He thought it strange that it could scream so well despite its body being completely bisected and burning. It was an astonishingly tenacious life force.
If so, this alone wouldn’t be enough. Thinking this, just as he was catching his breath, Arpel whispered softly.
<Step back.>
Rohan moved away from that spot without hesitation. He did so even though he noticed the thorns that had been binding the opponent’s body were wobbling precariously, as if reaching their limit. His faith in Arpel was that strong.
And as soon as he completely left that spot…
The rippling shadow thorns caused a massive explosion in an instant. The already burning flames grew even more fierce, and the flames swept up by the strong wind resembled a huge firestorm. As if trying to resist this, the specter’s energy spewed out wildly from the creature’s body, but it was helplessly swept away and disappeared before the overwhelming firepower.
The black flames continued to burn the giant. Until the screams that now sounded like tinnitus completely stopped, the regenerative power that had been struggling to reconnect the bisected body reached its limit and quieted down, and the enormous body turned into a handful of ashes.
Until then, Rohan stood still, keeping his position. Only after seeing the flames completely die down could he gently relax his body that had been tense with a trace of nervousness.
“Arpel, I think you can come back now.”
He gently tapped the sword handle. Not particularly refusing this gesture of goodwill, Arpel immediately changed his form. Just as a brief flash of light poured out and he returned to human form, something fell onto the pile of ashes.
“…Do all the executives wear masks?”
It was a large mask that had been covering the giant’s face. The dark green mask split completely in two as soon as it hit the ground.
Arpel’s gaze turned to the halved mask.
“Maybe they wanted to hide their faces.”
“Hmm… that could be the case.”
Although it seemed like quite a frivolous thought, Rohan responded quite seriously. He thought there was some logic to it. All the executives they had seen so far had bizarre appearances that could hardly be called human. If any human consciousness remained, they might want to hide their faces.
“This is…”
Then he frowned at a strange energy he felt. The source of the energy was the mask. Not only was it split in half, but it started to crumble slowly from the edges, turning into powder and collapsing into an unrecognizable form.
Arpel felt this too. This energy, which couldn’t be called magic power, holy power, or even specter’s energy, was something unknown that even he had never encountered before. If asked whether this was harmful like the specter’s energy, Arpel could boldly assert:
“God…”
This was a power close to the pure authority of a god. Rohan suddenly raised his head at the faintly heard voice.
“God? You’re saying this is the power of a god?”
“Yes. Such pure and clean power is rare.”
“But, gods…”
His voice trailed off strangely. Feeling deep complexity not only in his voice but also in his eyes, Arpel quietly reached out and tidied Rohan’s disheveled hair. The emotion that leaked out seemed to show his deep anguish as well.
“That’s right. There are only celestial gods and demon gods.”
But, Rohan. Arpel continued.
There are only two gods existing in this world: celestial gods and demon gods. This was a truth known to all and a fact that would remain unchanged in the future.
There was one god who had disappeared, but he was an evil god who spread specters in this world. However, the energy they had just felt was far from the power of specters, which were remnants of the evil god.
But there was one possibility remaining.
“Was the evil god always an evil god?”
The name ‘evil god’ is merely a derogatory term given to a god tainted by evil. Although he had lost that name and became a nameless god that no one remembers anymore, there must have been power that the evil god possessed before becoming evil.
Rohan, with eyes wide open, seemed to be deep in thought. Arpel, who had been looking towards the forest for a moment, quietly took his hand.
“Arpel?”
“Let’s get out of here for now.”
“But Dein said he was bringing other priests…”
As soon as he started speaking absent-mindedly, Rohan’s expression hardened. He belatedly realized that the situation was turning strange.
The time they had spent in battle was not short. There was a temple not too far away, so if they had gone to ask for help, priests should have arrived by now. However, no priests had come to aid them.
Did something go wrong? They might have been ambushed on the way. Since it was Dein, of all people, he wouldn’t betray them, so the lack of any news meant that something had happened to him. Trying to think of other possibilities while hiding his anxious look, Rohan nodded.
“Let’s go to the temple for now.”
Whether they had arrived safely, and if they had, why there was no news. Many questions arose. There was much to ask at the temple.
Thus, as the two were about to leave the center of the forest that had become a battlefield, with the temple as their destination…
Boom—!
A loud noise erupted from somewhere. It seemed similar to when they had faced the executive’s sudden attack, but this recent boom seemed to have come from quite far away.
However, while Rohan glanced in that direction for a moment, he didn’t slow his pace. Although he felt uneasy, he thought finding the temple was the priority for now. That would have been the case if Arpel hadn’t stopped in place and pulled him back.
“Let’s go that way.”
“But…”
His voice of objection sank in the blink of an eye. The eyes of Arpel he met for a moment were mysteriously seeing a distant future he didn’t know. To Rohan, who remained silent as if entranced, Arpel…
“Leriana is in danger.”
…dropped a bombshell.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
