Chapter 169
The Knight of True Flame did not act rationally, but merely moved according to his senses.
A longing for power, a lingering regret surging forth from the past, self-loathing twisted far beyond recall.
Even as everything else blurred, his obsession with it remained indelible.
"Where... is the dragon..."
The Knight of True Flame was tracking the presence and mana of dragons.
He had already stolen the strength of three dragons, yet he could not be satisfied.
Only by becoming even stronger, even for a moment, would his desire be subdued, even slightly.
"Power... is everything... it could not be otherwise..."
The Knight of True Flame still wore his armor, but had neither sword nor sheath in his possession.
He had realized, belatedly, that the swordsmanship he had once learned as a human was powerless.
Now, he was merely intoxicated by overwhelming strength and depended only on mana.
"I... was foolish... It should have been... this way from the beginning!"
Ignoring his true emotions, the Knight of True Flame swung his left hand.
At this, the trees blocking his path were swept away entirely.
He had been granted a level of destructive force unattainable for any human.
So he forced down his vain emotions, savored this moment.
"Now, no one... can defeat me! I have reached the very limits of force!"
The Knight of True Flame advanced even more rapidly, shaking the earth.
Wherever he passed, the terrain was scorched, and the mana spilling from him surged ever wilder.
Though he knew his actions were in vain, unable now to stop, he only rampaged all the more fiercely.
"... Were you there."
He discovered the undead dragon and immediately crashed into it.
The undead dragon staggered from the impact, barely managing to endure.
Yet the Knight of True Flame immediately smashed at its leg bones, and even its thick joints showed cracks.
"Gyaaaah!"
"Just a corpse, is that all? How utterly hollow."
The Knight of True Flame muttered curtly and summoned forth ferocious flames.
The undead dragon was engulfed in fire, but still persevered, glaring at the Knight of True Flame.
Though soot now covered its bones, the mana imbued did not diminish.
"Still, you call yourself a dragon... Khehehe... Kyahahaha!"
He burst into laughter, while calmly unleashing hundreds of conduits of lightning.
He had been bored, with no worthy opponents to test his strength.
An undead made up of dragon bones—surely he could test his power on this.
"Wouldn't that be amusing in its own way. Kukuk... Kuhahahaha!"
The Knight of True Flame discharged his lightning attribute and leisurely looked up.
The undead dragon, buried in flames and current, tried to trample him.
But he swatted it away single-handedly, and the undead dragon collapsed.
"Gragaga..."
"Still enduring? You seem weaker than I expected."
The undead dragon writhed but could not rise.
One leg was already broken, and every bone was being warped.
It seemed he would need a considerable amount of mana to finish the creature off.
"Kyagaga!"
The undead dragon opened its maw wide, then began to condense its mana.
Only then did the Knight of True Flame feel satisfied and brace for battle.
"Yes, you have to use your breath... to at least have a chance..."
He casually shook off his right hand and concentrated his mana.
He had only absorbed the dragon's power, fundamentally distinct from its origin.
So he could not use inherent dragon skills like a breath attack—but found he could mimic a similar form.
"Gyagyahaha!"
The undead dragon targeted the Knight of True Flame and fired off highly compressed mana.
Even though it was only undead, its breath looked uncannily genuine.
This made the Knight of True Flame shiver, faced again with his past defeat.
"This time... I will not fall."
The Knight of True Flame recalled being devoured by cold air, and altered his mana.
Back then, he had only a single power, but now possessed force equal to three.
If that was true, there was no reason he shouldn't be able to neutralize the undead dragon's breath easily.
"Now, I will be defeated... by no one..."
He pierced through the breath at once, gazing ahead with resolve.
The undead dragon's skull was shattered in mere moments, and the bones of its entire body began to collapse.
As soon as the fragments touched the ground, they broke apart, vanishing one by one.
"Alter Radiant..."
Sensing a familiar mana, the Knight of True Flame fixed his gaze.
The one who had interfered with his absorption of dragon mana, frozen his arm, and challenged the meaning of power.
All other memories had faded, but this rage alone was seared deep within.
"Brillie..."
The Knight of True Flame seemed to hesitate for a moment, then tilted his head.
Brillie had pointed her sword at him, but did not seem to hate him.
Still, staying at Alter Radiant's side, he only felt pointless jealousy welling up.
"If I kill you two... will I not feel at ease? I must... I must..."
* * *
Alter instinctively recognized the danger.
The Knight of True Flame—Lang Couster—could no longer be called a living being.
He was now a form made of mana, a source in and of itself.
In some respects, he showed traits similar to Lailnetia the Devouring.
'But he's not hiding his darkness. That means I can cut him down...'
Alter knew he held the advantage, yet couldn't be certain.
Because that darkness was so blatantly exposed, it made him suspicious instead.
Perhaps the Knight of True Flame had prepared some way to protect his darkness.
'He's even stronger than before. If he also uses the power of Devouring, he'll get quite tricky.'
Without hesitation, Alter stepped forward.
Brillie walked beside Alter, slowly drawing her sword.
She gathered a current of violet light, bracing her resolve.
"Alter."
"Yes?"
"It's just a feeling...but I think this will be a bit difficult."
"I felt the same. The color of the darkness is much more turbid."
"..."
Brillie stared at the Knight of True Flame, visibly tense.
From the mana emanating from him, she saw he was even stronger than before.
The battle would be hard-fought, and even taking his life would be no simple matter.
"Second Apostle. If I fall in battle, retreat immediately and call for reinforcements."
"... Why do you say that?"
"Because I trust the Second Apostle. I cannot sacrifice others for the sake of my own life."
Berhan stepped ahead of Alter and Brillie, taking the vanguard.
He was old enough, beyond lingering attachments to life or death.
But he could not push even the Second Apostle to the edge; the next great mage and the Sword Flower had to survive.
Those two were the last resort, the empire's hope.
"I hope you'll heed my words. If even I can't win, you must think of what comes next."
"We should all try to survive—why do you first think of dying?"
"... You know, don't you? I chose the path with the best odds."
Berhan glanced at Brillie sideways and walked forward with composure.
If necessary, all forces would have to be mobilized for those two.
However, he himself could not act so ruthlessly, so he wagered only his own life.
"Even if the radiance of Semerune does not shine upon me... I must praise it. That is my duty."
Berhan gripped his hammer with both hands and looked toward his formidable foe.
He had crossed blades briefly before, but only proved his own inability to overcome.
Surely, the foe was now even stronger than then, but retreat was not possible.
"I will kill you..."
The Knight of True Flame uttered simply and charged forward without hesitation.
Berhan swung his hammer at once, but the Knight of True Flame avoided it with ease.
Not satisfied, he sharply changed direction, heading for Alter.
"You rascal! Where are you going!"
Berhan turned swiftly and brought his hammer down.
The Knight of True Flame caught and squeezed the hammerhead in his left hand.
At first, the mana imbued in the hammer seemed to cave, then quickly became taut, forcing out the external mana.
"Was this all you had, to face me?"
The Knight of True Flame yanked the hammer, then let it go.
Berhan was pulled along, but only then sensed his opponent's intent.
At some point, a bizarre mana had sprung up, attacking him in an instant.
"I'll kill you first—"
The Knight of True Flame tried to sever Berhan's neck, but could not move any further.
In fact, he wouldn't even realize that his body had frozen.
Only one person could perceive this time that had been frozen.
"..."
Alter surveyed the situation again and released cold air.
He managed to halt the attack just as Berhan's neck was about to be cut through.
As expected, the Knight of True Flame was dramatically empowered by dragon mana.
'This isn't enough. I need to find his weakness.'
Alter protected Berhan with cold air and studied the Knight of True Flame.
Ordinary attacks were likely ineffective, but he had to try several things all the same.
Given his own position, he had no choice but to focus on defense.
'Even this—if it lets me win, that's enough...'
With composure, Alter released the time freeze.
At the same time, cold air blocked off mana, causing Berhan to stagger backward.
The Knight of True Flame, unable to comprehend the scene, was enveloped in chilling cold.
"Krrrr..."
He froze just for a moment, then melted himself out with a powerful flame.
He stared at Alter, filled with killing intent.
A blow must have landed, but how had cold air slipped in during that split second?
"Pulling some cheap tricks, I see. What did you do?"
"..."
"Do you think you can win with such nonsense?!"
Not understanding the phenomenon, the Knight of True Flame charged at Alter.
He couldn't tell what sort of magic was used, but knew for certain that Alter had interfered.
If he wasn't eliminated first, he'd continue to be a hindrance.
"... Get lost."
Brillie recalled her fury and bloodlust, swinging her sword.
A streak of violet light flashed along the blade, shooting out in a straight line.
The Knight of True Flame raised both arms to block, but the Radiance-imbued sword energy did not yield an inch.
"Kukuk... Yes... At least this much... Gah!"
He screamed in pain as he clashed against the Radiance.
Both arms were severed instantly, the sword energy cutting through chest and ribs.
Not just Alter—even Brillie had reached the highest realm.
"Kahaaa!"
The Radiance dug in deep and exposed the darkness within.
That darkness was not only pitch black, but tangled in a sticky mass.
The Knight of True Flame, scattering intense mana, desperately strove to weaken the sword energy's force.
"This... isn't enough... Do you think I'll fall like this?!"
He forced the sword energy back with great effort, drawing back the darkness inside him.
The surface had a slight scratch, but it was far from a fatal wound.
In an instant, he regenerated his wounds, regaining both arms fully.
"This isn't the end, is it? Go on, rampage some more. Brillie..."