Chapter 90 : The Conqueror and the Holy Kingdom (4)
Chapter 90: The Conqueror and the Holy Kingdom (4)
“Celeste.”
The man with wolf ears twitching atop his head walked toward Celeste as he spoke.
“You said you'd take responsibility and send them all back. When you didn't return even after all this time, I figured something had happened.”
Swish—
The man glanced around before continuing.
“And instead, you've gone and caused this troublesome mess. You should've just joined us from the very beginning.”
The wolf-eared man paid no attention to Baylen standing beside Celeste.
Ignoring Baylen entirely, he continued speaking only to Celeste.
Seeing that, Baylen inwardly breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Thank goodness.
They still hadn't taken any interest in him.
If he just seized an opening and slipped away...
“So who's this?”
“......!!”
As if he'd read Baylen's thoughts—
The wolf-eared man turned his head toward him.
His blood-red eyes slowly examined Baylen from head to toe.
“Human... I'm sensing an unusual aura from you. It resembles someone I saw once before. A Barrier Master?”
“......”
“Were you protecting Celeste?”
“Well done.”
“This one's fairly useful.”
“It'd be troublesome if he died here.”
“...T-Thank you.”
'Thank goodness!'
Baylen sighed in relief inwardly.
The wolf-eared man had seen his barrier and mistakenly assumed he had been protecting Celeste.
Well, it made sense.
Barrier Masters possessed almost no offensive abilities.
Even after erecting a barrier, what else could they really do?
Protecting someone was about the only thing they were capable of.
'The surprising part is... Brother Saint isn't correcting his misunderstanding.'
Celeste didn't expose what Baylen had actually done.
He merely stared at the wolf-eared man with a tense expression.
“What brings you here, Shigeir?”
“Do you really need to ask?”
“When you didn't come back even after so long, I came personally.”
“Let's finish this quickly and leave.”
“The King is waiting.”
With those words, the wolf-eared man—Shigeir—raised his hand.
His razor-sharp claws gleamed beneath the light.
The next instant—
He casually slashed through empty air.
It looked like nothing more than a simple swing.
Yet...
The aftermath was no less overwhelming than Zeke's.
KWAAANG-!!
A thunderous explosion shook the heavens.
At the same time...
The raging storm sweeping through the area abruptly settled.
It was an astonishing sight.
The fact that a mere human could create a storm was already unbelievable.
Yet this wolf-eared being had gone one step further—
He had literally shredded the storm apart.
“I don't know who was delaying you.”
“But now that we've arrived...”
“You won't be able to run wild anymore.”
Shigeir smiled faintly.
Seeing that attitude...
Celeste shut his eyes tightly.
In the end...
They had come.
He had hoped to finish everything before they intervened.
'If only it hadn't been for you, Conqueror...!'
Celeste bit down so hard on his lip that blood flowed.
At that moment—
“Oh?”
Zeke suddenly appeared before Shigeir with his usual indifferent expression.
“So there's another interesting one besides Jasper.”
“Though it's unfortunate...”
“You don't appear to be human.”
“Hm?”
Shigeir tilted his head at the suddenly appearing Zeke.
“Who are you?”
“How is someone without mana standing before me?”
It was a perfectly reasonable question.
An overwhelming fighting spirit poured from Shigeir's body.
Ordinary people would have their hearts stop simply by standing near him.
Someone without mana shouldn't have been able to endure that pressure.
As though answering his question...
Zeke slowly raised his hand.
“Will this answer suffice?”
The instant those words fell—
An invisible force erupted from Zeke's palm and shot toward Shigeir.
Bang-!!
A terrifying explosion split the air.
The invisible force slammed directly into Shigeir.
Receiving the attack head-on...
Shigeir was pushed back roughly two steps.
“Hah!”
He burst into laughter.
“Hahahaha!”
“This is interesting!”
“A guy without mana can launch an attack like that?”
“No...”
“Or is it simply that I can't sense your mana?”
By now...
Shigeir's eyes burned with excitement.
The strong recognized the strong.
Even from that casual exchange...
He had realized it.
The man before him was overwhelmingly stronger than he was.
“This is the first time—other than our King—that I haven't been able to gauge someone's level.”
“You.”
“What's your name?”
“Do I really need to tell you?”
“No.”
“You don't.”
“I already know.”
“That overwhelming strength.”
“A realm no human should possess.”
“So you're the Conqueror.”
“......”
Zeke didn't answer.
He merely smiled savagely.
“Haha!”
Seeing that smile...
Shigeir became even more convinced.
“That's it!”
“This is exactly it!”
“If you're human, then this is how strong you ought to be!”
“My blood is boiling!”
“I can't even remember the last time I met someone stronger than me!”
KWAHHHHH-!!
At that instant—
A violent fighting spirit erupted from Shigeir's entire body.
Craaack—
Craack!!
The pressure alone split the earth beneath him.
“This is my first time finding an opponent truly worthy of acknowledgment!”
“Come!”
“I, Shigeir, shall fight you myself!”
“Hm...”
Unlike the excited Shigeir...
Zeke remained perfectly calm.
He looked him up and down before speaking.
“More interesting than that...”
“I heard something intriguing.”
“You people have a King?”
“A King?”
“You wish to meet him?”
“That's simple.”
“Defeat me.”
“If you do...”
“You'll naturally reach the King.”
Ignoring his words...
Zeke turned toward the direction of the Papal Palace.
Closing his eyes quietly, he murmured,
“So he's beneath the Papal Palace.”
“He certainly has a heavy rear.”
“He hasn't moved even a single step despite all this.”
“Leon.”
“Reinhardt.”
“Indra.”
Tap!
The moment Zeke called them...
The three instantly appeared beside him.
All of them were drenched in blood.
The traces of fierce battle were obvious.
Looking at them...
Zeke asked,
“Can I leave them to you?”
“They're all weaklings.”
“I can handle two by myself.”
“So can I.”
Indra and Reinhardt answered one after another.
Satisfied...
Zeke nodded.
“Very well.”
“I'll leave them to you.”
“And Leon.”
“Yes, Father.”
“You don't need to rush.”
“An opponent suited for you...”
“Is already approaching.”
Zeke looked at Leon.
Though his face remained expressionless...
There seemed to be a hint of concern in his eyes.
Leon dismissed it as imagination.
This was the Conqueror, Zeke Fritz.
Even if he was Leon's father...
The idea that such a man would worry over him seemed absurd.
Yet...
For some reason...
Leon felt strangely embarrassed beneath Zeke's gaze.
His chest tingled oddly.
Was he coming down with an illness?
The thought lasted only a moment.
Zeke lifted one leg.
At the same time...
An enormous pressure surged from his entire body.
“Leon.”
“This differs from your technique...”
“But I possess a rather useful trick of my own.”
“...?”
Wooooooong-!!
The aura swirling around Zeke intensified even further.
Then—
Planting his foot upon the ground...
He spoke.
“Its only flaw...”
“Is that it's rather noisy.”
KWAAANG-!!
An earth-shattering explosion rang out.
Zeke's body shot high into the sky.
One hundred zhang...
Two hundred...
Three hundred...
He easily surpassed them all.
Everyone watching stood frozen with mouths agape.
A human...
Flying through the sky.
How could such a thing even be possible?
Yet the astonishment didn't end there.
As Zeke began falling...
He bent both legs like a frog.
Then—
He kicked empty air.
Bang-!!
With an explosive boom—
His body shot toward the Papal Palace like a meteor.
“......”
Leon's face went blank.
What exactly was that...
To compare it with his own technique?
Was Zeke talking about the Body Movement Technique Leon had demonstrated a year ago?
An indescribable storm of emotions swept through Leon.
Awe.
Shock.
Excitement.
Countless emotions surged inside him.
And it wasn't just Leon.
Watching Zeke streak through the heavens like a falling star...
Reinhardt and Indra muttered at the same time.
“That lunatic...”
“How can someone...”
Their words differed.
But their meaning was identical.
Everyone was utterly dumbfounded by Zeke's feat.
“Is he truly human?”
The members of the Demon Race were no different.
Every one of them stared with wide eyes at the trail Zeke had left behind.
Even to them...
The sight before them defied all logic.
“Hey.”
Indra called out to them.
“Let's each get on with our own business.”
He crooked his finger, beckoning them closer.
A cheerful smile rested on his lips...
Though murderous intent burned beneath it.
Boom-! Boom!!
Battles between true powerhouses were impossible for ordinary people to endure.
Simply standing nearby was enough.
Shockwaves exploded in every direction in the blink of an eye.
Every time fists collided...
Every exchange of blows...
Violent blasts swept across the battlefield.
Leon felt his consciousness growing hazy.
Zeke was on another level entirely...
Yet even these battles produced unimaginable aftershocks.
Even so...
Leon's eyes shone brightly.
Because he remembered what Zeke had said.
'Father said...'
'An opponent suited for me would come.'
But until then...
He couldn't simply stand idle.
Flash-!!
Leon's figure raced around the battlefield at frightening speed.
He was searching for Sibelte.
Earlier...
He hadn't had the luxury to look for her.
Now he did.
And with that freedom...
He couldn't ignore her.
Before long...
He found Sibelte.
Her situation wasn't good.
Surrounded by members of the Demon Race...
She stood on the brink of death.
Without hesitation...
Leon charged straight into the middle of them.
Slash-!!
His sword carved through the Demon Race.
It moved so quickly that even accomplished experts couldn't follow it.
The Demon Race never even had a chance to resist.
They died instantly.
“Leon!”
Seeing her savior appear like a miracle...
Sibelte looked at him with overwhelming relief.
“You came!”
“Have you found the person you're supposed to protect?”
“Yes!”
“It's me!”
“Please protect me!”
“Well now.”
Leon chuckled.
Even in a situation this dire...
She still had the composure to joke.
What made it even funnier...
Was how serious her face looked.
Soon...
His expression turned solemn.
“Father has headed toward the Papal Palace.”
“It seems he's planning to settle things with the Werewolves' King.”
“......!!”
“Until then...”
“Our task is simple.”
“Let's survive.”
Sibelte nodded resolutely.
She understood her own role.
“What about Celeste and Baylen?”
“They're together.”
“Baylen's barrier is excellent, so I left them there.”
“Are there any other survivors?”
“I sensed Jasper, the Holy Knight.”
“And a few other presences.”
“But I can't confirm whether they're allies.”
Sibelte bit her lip tightly.
Her thoughts were clearly in turmoil.
Naturally.
At this point...
It was impossible to distinguish friend from foe.
After all...
Hadn't Leon already witnessed it?
Werewolves who looked exactly like humans.
Recalling that...
Leon spoke.
“Some of the Werewolves wear human faces.”
“Fortunately, they can't hide their ears.”
“So even if someone looks human...”
“Don't approach them carelessly.”
“Thank you for telling me.”
“Then let's get out of here—”
BOOM-!!
Something suddenly crashed down from the sky.
Landing only a short distance from Leon...
The figure slowly emerged from the dust.
“I snuck after my older brothers without them noticing...”
“And it looks like I found someone interesting.”
Like the others...
He had a human face.
And beast ears atop his head.
“My brothers said there were a few strong humans.”
“Looks like they weren't lying.”
He bared his fangs.
“You.”
“Let's have a fight—”
BOOM-!!
Before he could finish—
Leon's fist smashed squarely into the Werewolf's face.
The Werewolf skipped across the ground several times before crashing straight through an entire house.
Watching him disappear into the wreckage...
Leon said,
“Found him.”
“The one I'm supposed to fight.”
As he spoke...
Leon's eyes had become intoxicated with exhilaration.