Chapter 191 : The Northern Front (3)
Myu lunged.
Vicious demonic energy coiled around a razor-sharp edge, forging a blade of pure malice.
Her dagger bisected a Northern knight in a single, fluid motion.
Or so it seemed.
<Dance of Phantoms>
At the last moment, Lea’s Aura had shimmered like a heat haze, conjuring an illusion.
Myu’s blade met only air. Sensing the phantom texture, she erupted in a furious roar.
“How dare these wretched insects interfere with my battle!”
Myu, the Countess of Slaughter.
She seemed to be a creature who craved combat—the splatter of blood, the tearing of flesh—in every waking moment.
But that was a misconception.
If she only wanted a fight, she wouldn’t be targeting the others.
She was a butcher, not a duelist. A creature that oppressed, dominated, and massacred the weak.
That was the true nature of the Countess of Slaughter.
Her rage wasn’t born from a spoiled duel, but from the raw frustration of being denied her true target: me.
Just as I’d expected.
The woman who had postured as an honorable knight unleashed a presence far more terrifying.
<Red Moon>
She invoked a new technique, and the demonic energy around her warped, rushing outward.
The sky bled to black. Clouds devoured the sun, and in its place, a crimson moon ascended—full and blood-red.
Beneath its glow, Myu’s eyes gleamed with a vicious light. Sharp fangs pushed past her lips.
…Is that her true form?
I swallowed, watching her transformation. The others attacked relentlessly, but even in her metamorphosis, she deflected every blow with contemptuous ease.
When she was finished, her form had shifted completely.
…A vampire.
Even among the Twelve Nobles, many had once been common demonkin. It was no surprise that some retained their original forms. The Viscount of Sloth resembled an ogre; the Count of Wrath, a monstrous bat.
And now, a vampire.
“Night has fallen, little lambs,” Myu sneered, her voice a silken threat. “Run and beg your parents to hide you.”
The moment she spoke, the scent of blood thickened across the battlefield. It began to boil in the veins of the knights. Some simply vanished, their blood erupting from within, leaving behind nothing but scraps of flesh and armor.
Even with the Halo’s purification, we were being pushed back.
A low groan escaped me. I glanced at the others. “Are you alright?”
“…Holding on,” Lancelot answered, his breath coming in ragged bursts.
Just then, another knight’s body burst apart.
I clicked my tongue and poured more of my Aura into the Halo.
What was happening wasn’t an Aspect power. It was simpler, and more brutal. The knights couldn’t withstand the sheer pressure of her amplified demonic energy.
It was a form of Crushing Presence.
…One that’s always active.
This was a problem. In this state, could she defeat even Lady Enoxia?
First, I need to create distance.
I calmly assessed the situation and began to back away. Myu’s weapon was a dagger; her greatest strength was at close range. Of course, anyone below the Master level would simply explode if they got near her anyway.
“All of you, fall back! Maintain your distance!” I roared to the Northern knights as I conjured an arrow from thin air.
I spun it, infusing it with a heavy dose of Demonbane Aura, and let it fly.
<Full Bloom>
Like a flower unfurling, the arrow blossomed into a storm of razor-sharp petals that rained down on Myu.
But it was useless.
“You think you can stop me with this?”
Myu stomped the ground. The soldiers nearest her exploded in unison, their bodies forming a gruesome shield of blood and bone that absorbed my attack.
The petals detonated against the macabre barrier, shattering into nothing.
I shook my head in disbelief.
…That, too, was nothing more than a simple release of demonic energy.
How could a being of this magnitude be a mere Count? She seemed stronger than the Marquis of Fear.
Was I just that lucky back then?
If the Marquis had revealed his true form, if he had used his full power…
I shook my head, forcing the thought away.
Regardless.
“…I don’t know how we’re supposed to fight that,” I muttered, watching the others barely fend off Myu’s assault.
Lancelot’s spear deflected a kick. Roxen’s and Lea’s blades parried her dagger. My master’s arrows drew her attention, if only for a moment. Mihaila was tending to the wounded, and the Grand Duke was still gathering his energy.
“Die! All of you!” Myu shrieked, her eyes flashing as she brandished her dagger. “Die and become ash! I’ll tear you apart myself!”
At that moment.
“…Took you long enough,” I said, my tone blunt.
Grand Duke Derek Praha.
He had finished preparing his Mindscape.
“My apologies,” the Grand Duke replied. Then, he unleashed the power he had been accumulating.
<Sword-Realm of Eternal Frost>
The world froze.
The clouds, the red moon, the very air—everything was locked in ice, trapped in a single, crystalline moment.
…It’s just as breathtaking as the first time.
To think a single mortal could command such power.
I exhaled, watching Myu as the cold mist of my breath clouded the air. Caught in the Mindscape, she must have sustained a fatal wound. With the red moon itself frozen, she might even be dead.
“…Is she dead?” Lancelot muttered, staring at Myu’s frozen figure.
But then, the ice encasing Myu began to fracture with an unnatural sound.
“…You are truly no help at all, Sir Knight.”
“Is this my fault…?”
“It’s that mouth of yours. Try to keep it shut.”
I silenced Lancelot and readied myself.
The ice imprisoning Myu exploded, and she stepped out from the glittering shards.
Completely unharmed.
In fact, she was calmer now, her earlier frenzy gone.
“Hoo… It has been a while since a battle was interrupted. I got a little carried away.”
Myu swept her hair back. She raised her dagger, her eyes meeting mine. “You, later. I believe I need to deal with that old man first.”
She licked her lips, her gaze fixed on the Grand Duke. Incredibly, the demonic energy radiating from her hadn’t diminished in the slightest.
…Is this even possible?
I stared, my face a mask of disbelief. Even for one of the Twelve Nobles, to take a Grand Master’s Mindscape head-on and emerge unscathed… This was nothing like Pepia, who held the same rank.
“…What is that thing?” Lancelot asked beside me, his expression just as dumbfounded.
“I have no idea.”
“…Is it even possible to be that unharmed?”
Is it possible?
I fell into thought, my eyes fixed on Myu, still bathed in the light of the red moon.
Why was she fine?
…That moon. Is it on the level of an Aspect power?
As I looked up at it, a sense of profound dread washed over me. It felt like someone’s eye…
Wait.
A wave of nausea surged up my throat. It was a vile, repulsive feeling, as if cockroaches were crawling over my skin—the same sensation I’d felt when struck by the Aspect power of that insect, the Marquis of Fear.
“Are you alright?!” Lancelot rushed to my side, but I couldn’t answer.
How could I?
I had just realized what the red moon was.
“The Demon God…”
It was the eye of the Demon God. The being the Twelve Nobles worshipped, the one they yearned to serve. That was the red moon.
Myu doesn’t lack an Aspect power…! She’s a high priestess.
Why was she unharmed by the Mindscape? The answer was obvious. What use was a mortal’s power in a space where the gaze of a god had descended? It would only be torn to shreds.
I pushed Lancelot away and got to my feet.
Within this demonic domain, I was the only one who could destroy her.
I possessed the power of divinity, wielded Demonbane Aura, and had been granted the Stigmata.
Only I could kill her.
“…I have to go.”
I watched the Grand Duke and Myu clashing in the distance. At a glance, they seemed evenly matched, but the aftermath of using his Mindscape was evident; the Grand Duke’s face was etched with exhaustion.
“Lancelot, Roxen. Cover me.”
“Huh? Ah, yes, sir,” they replied in unison.
I immediately began to focus, reaching for the Mindscape I had only recently glimpsed. I had only grasped a single thread of it, but I had to weave it now. It was my only chance.
My Mindscape is a field of thorns. But what does that mean?
The Halo above my head flared, spinning faster. Demonbane Aura surged from the depths of my being, and a trickle of blood ran from the Stigmata on my forehead.
Normally, I would have wiped it away. Not this time.
I had to understand the ultimate nature of my Mindscape.
Mulling it over, I took a step forward.
A sharp pain shot through the soles of my feet, but I ignored it.
What has my life been?
Why wasn’t I trying to flee, even as the Demon God itself looked down upon me?
I already knew the answer.
To protect them.
To protect my comrades, who had become as precious to me as my revenge. That was why I took another agonizing step forward.
Was it sacrifice? Or stubborn pride?
The closer I got to Myu, the more violent the storm of demonic energy became. With each step, the pain in my feet intensified.
“Kgh…” A groan escaped my lips.
Still, I kept walking. To protect the dying knights. To protect Lea.
My life has been pain. I lived a painful past life, and I live this one with a pained heart.
Therefore, my life is a path of thorns.
My mind went blank. At the same time, everything I had ever experienced flashed before my eyes.
A Mindscape is a reflection of one’s life.
My life was one of pain born from vengeance, but it was also one of happiness gained through the sacrifices of others.
So I, too, had to give back.
It isn’t perfect. But I know the path I must walk.
Therefore.
Even if it is only a fraction, Mindscape, answer my call.
In that instant, something began to radiate from my body. A pure white light. A faint, yet utterly pure, pulse flowed from me. At the same time, a voice echoed in my mind.
[You have suffered, my child.]
Ah.
Hearing that voice, I saw the image of a young girl and a goddess overlap—a girl I felt I had seen somewhere before. She smiled benevolently and placed a hand on my head.
A great power surged through me, and I finally understood.
…So this was it.
I was a repentant saint. A fool walking a path of penance for the sake of revenge, an idiot who had turned his back on others. And yet, I had not been forsaken.
In return, I would protect them.
Even if I must suffer in their place, I will not lose anyone else.
Come. My suffering. I am the one who sacrifices, the one who faces hell. Every path I walk is a path of penance.
The air trembled as the Demonbane Aura transformed into droplets of pure white blood, scattering like snowflakes. Where my feet had trod, countless white petals bloomed from the ash-covered ground.
A Mindscape where ash and flowers spread in unison.
<Golgotha of Thorns>
The perfect counter to the Demon God’s gaze had just been born.