Chapter 207 - 206 : Darkness vs Light (2)
Every Holy Knight turned toward the small figure of darkness.
Beneath the moonlight, surrounded by the shattered remains of the undead, the girl’s silhouette looked like death given form.
Several knights reacted instinctively.
They raised their bows, conjured arrows of pure holy light, and released them.
The arrows streaked through the air with perfect accuracy.
They struck her—
And disappeared.
Not because they had missed.
They were absorbed.
The holy light vanished into her body as though her darkness devoured radiance itself.
There were no wounds.
No burns.
No marks of any kind.
The little girl tilted her head.
Then...
She began to cry.
Her voice was broken.
Distorted.
It echoed unnaturally, as though countless whispers were layered over one another.
"Nobody wants me..."
She sobbed softly.
"Nobody wants me..."
"Nobody wants me..."
Her words spread through the battlefield like poison.
Several Holy Knights faltered.
The two knights standing closest to her failed to cover their ears in time.
They heard the full weight of her voice.
Both of them froze.
Their eyes lost all focus.
Without a word...
Each slowly drew his sword.
Then...
They slit their own throats.
Blood sprayed into the air.
The holy light surrounding them flickered violently before fading away.
Both men collapsed to the ground.
Dead.
Leonis’s eyes widened.
"Cover your ears!"
"Now!"
Every knight reacted instantly.
Hands flew to their ears as holy energy surged around them, desperately trying to block out the girl’s voice. Priests and priestesses hurriedly cast divine barriers over the minds of their allies, reinforcing their resistance against the horrifying sound.
But it was already too late.
The girl’s sobbing continued.
It wasn’t merely heard.
It was felt.
Like icy fingers crawling beneath the skin.
Like something gnawing away at the edge of sanity.
Scarlett stepped forward.
"So..."
"So that’s how your power works."
The next instant—
She and Leonis charged.
Holy power erupted from their bodies.
Their armor shone even brighter as divine blessings surged through every inch of their beings.
They moved faster than ever before.
Their boots hammered against the ground, leaving brilliant trails of light behind them.
The little girl remained perfectly still.
As they closed the distance...
Her body blurred.
Leonis and Scarlett struck simultaneously.
Their blades sliced straight through her.
Yet instead of flesh...
They cut through living shadow.
It was like trying to slice through mist.
The girl’s body dissolved into darkness before reforming several meters away.
Completely unharmed.
Her head slowly tilted toward them once more.
The battle that followed became increasingly gruesome.
Leonis swung his sword in wide, devastating arcs, destroying countless shadowy phantoms that appeared around the girl.
Illusions flickered across the battlefield.
Some vanished after a single strike.
Others seemed almost real.
Scarlett fought with terrifying precision.
Her golden eyes carefully tracked every fluctuation in the surrounding mana, searching for the girl’s true body hidden among the endless illusions.
Yet every time they believed they had cornered her...
She disappeared.
Only to reappear somewhere else.
Behind them.
Above them.
Among the priests.
Even with their ears covered, the faint echoes of her sobbing still slipped through.
One priest lost focus for the briefest instant.
A tiny gap formed within his mental barrier.
The girl’s voice seeped through it.
His eyes widened.
Then became empty.
Without hesitation...
He pointed his staff toward himself.
Holy power erupted.
The explosion consumed him instantly.
Elsewhere, another knight caught only the faintest trace of her cry.
His expression twisted.
Turning abruptly, he swung his sword at the ally beside him.
Leonis intercepted the attack just in time.
His shield slammed into the knight, shattering the illusion that had seized control of his mind.
Minute after minute...
The casualties continued.
One knight died beneath the blow of a confused ally.
A priest burned himself alive with a spell cast in panic.
Another warrior covered his ears just a second too late.
One after another...
They fell.
The Holy Knights’ numbers steadily dwindled beneath the girl’s illusions, mental corruption, and cursed weeping.
Yet Leonis...
And Scarlett...
Never retreated.
They continued pressing forward.
Using everything they had.
Leonis called down towering pillars of holy light from the heavens.
The blazing radiance tore through layer after layer of shadow, finally forcing the girl’s true body to flicker into view.
Scarlett acted instantly.
A golden magic circle spread beneath the girl’s feet.
Chains of pure holy light erupted from the earth.
They wrapped around her wrists.
Her ankles.
Her body.
The little girl shrieked as she desperately struggled to dissolve into shadow once again.
This time...
The chains held.
Scarlett’s eyes flashed.
"Now!"
Leonis and Scarlett raised their swords.
Holy power erupted from both weapons, illuminating the battlefield with blinding brilliance.
Together...
They thrust forward.
One blade pierced her chest.
The other...
Her head.
A blinding explosion of holy light erupted from within the girl’s body.
The darkness writhed violently.
Twisting.
Thrashing.
Screaming.
Then...
It dissolved into nothing more than drifting smoke beneath the overwhelming radiance.
Silence returned.
The little girl was gone.
Only faint traces of darkness lingered in the air before disappearing into the night.
The remaining Holy Knights released long, exhausted breaths.
Some dropped to one knee.
Others leaned heavily against their weapons, their faces pale with exhaustion.
Only Leonis and Scarlett remained standing.
Though visibly weary, their eyes never left the forest.
They continued searching for any sign of another threat.
───────────────
After several minutes...
The surviving Holy Knights regrouped and counted their numbers.
Of the force that had entered the forest...
Only seventy-seven remained.
Despite their losses...
A ripple of relief spread through the survivors.
They had lived.
They had destroyed an abomination unlike anything they had ever encountered.
Small smiles appeared.
Some knights raised their swords toward the heavens.
Others quietly whispered prayers of gratitude.
High above the battlefield...
Arthur observed everything from Barbatos’s back.
"They’re unbelievably strong," Arthur murmured.
The System responded.
[ The man and woman leading them are both S-Rank, Host. ]
[ Even if you sacrificed your life again to temporarily reach SS-Rank, I doubt you could defeat either of them. ]
The System hesitated.
[ There’s also... something strange. ]
[ I’m sensing a familiar energy surrounding them... ]
[ But something is preventing me from identifying it. ]
Arthur narrowed his eyes.
"Then there’s only one explanation."
"A System User."
He exhaled slowly.
"And that’s bad."
His gaze drifted toward the blackened roots of the World Tree.
"So..."
"Their target is Astarte."
He studied the battlefield again.
The undead army.
The Holy Knights.
The forest.
"...Or perhaps..."
"...it’s the World Tree itself."
He shook his head.
"But regardless..."
"They’re seriously underestimating Astarte."
As though responding to his words...
The Holy Knights’ brief celebration came to an abrupt end.
New screams echoed through the forest.
Not one.
Not ten.
Hundreds.
The ground trembled.
Darkness spilled from between the trees.
Again.
This time...
It wasn’t a single little girl.
Dozens of shadowy figures slowly emerged.
Their forms varied wildly.
Some resembled unnaturally tall adults.
Others crawled across the ground on twisted limbs.
Some floated silently above the earth.
Others lurched forward with grotesquely misshapen bodies.
Every one of them was formed from absolute darkness.
More solid than shadow.
Less substantial than flesh.
They were...
Far more horrifying than the first.
Their hollow eyes stared blankly ahead.
Their bodies constantly shifted and distorted.
Countless whispers overlapped into one horrifying chorus of sobs, laughter, and cries.
Yet despite the overwhelming sight...
Neither Leonis nor Scarlett showed any outward fear.
Their expressions remained unchanged.
Before either of them could issue another command...
One of the veteran knights hurried toward them.
Scars covered his face.
His battered armor still glowed faintly with the remnants of holy power.
He bowed respectfully.
"Sir Leonis."
"Lady Scarlett."
"We’ve nearly exhausted our holy energy."
Another knight quickly stepped forward.
"Our Blessers are completely drained."
"The priests and priestesses have reached their limits."
"If we continue any farther..."
"We’ll all die here."
Others spoke one after another.
"We’ve already lost too many."
"Our reserves are almost gone."
"These creatures just keep multiplying..."
There was no panic in their voices.
Only the honest reports of experienced warriors who understood the reality of the battlefield.
Leonis clenched his jaw.
Scarlett clicked her tongue.
Yet neither of them ordered a retreat.
Scarlett’s golden eyes grew cold.
"Endure."
Her voice carried unquestionable authority.
"You all know whose orders we’re carrying out."
No one answered.
No one needed to.
"We cannot disobey him."
"No matter the cost."
She looked toward the forest where more shadow creatures continued emerging.
"With the Evil Dragon dead..."
"This is our greatest opportunity."
"Our chance..."
"...to be of service to him."
Those words silenced everyone.
Every knight knew exactly who she meant.
Their backs straightened.
Their resolve hardened once more.
Even though they were exhausted.
Even though their holy power was nearly depleted.
Leonis slowly raised his sword.
Scarlett did the same.
They were about to order another charge—
When Scarlett suddenly froze.
A gentle voice echoed directly inside her mind.
"Scarlett..."
"My beloved..."
"Come back."
"There is no need to push any farther."
Her pupils contracted.
The voice continued.
"It seems..."
"We underestimated her."
"Return for now."
"We’ll come back next time."
"Properly prepared."
At that very moment...
Another voice reached Leonis.
"Leonis..."
"My child."
"Return."
"That is my command."
Leonis tightened his grip around his sword.
"I would rather retreat..."
"...than lose you."
Leonis exchanged a glance with Scarlett.
Without hesitation...
Both of them raised a hand.
"Stop."
Leonis’s command echoed across the battlefield.
"Hold your positions."
Scarlett immediately reinforced the order.
Every Holy Knight halted.
The countless shadow creatures remained gathered at the forest’s edge.
Watching.
Waiting.
Then...
Another message reached Leonis alone.
"Leonis..."
"Look toward the sky."
"Someone has been watching us."
"I dislike spies."
"Deal with him."
Leonis slowly lifted his head.
His eyes scanned the heavens.
Arthur’s breathing stopped for an instant.
’...Damn.’
’He found me.’
"Barbatos."
Arthur spoke immediately.
"Head back toward the forest."
"Now."
The shadow dragon began to turn—
But Leonis was faster.
He bent down and picked up a long spear forged from holy steel.
Sacred engravings shimmered faintly along its shaft.
Without hesitation...
He drew his arm back.
Then threw it.
The spear exploded through the sky like a falling star.
Wrapped in blinding holy light...
It shot straight toward Arthur’s head.