I Can Purify Corruption Through Intimacy in the Apocalypse

Lucien resisted the urge to click his tongue.

This is the worst possible chance.

Opening his cloak slightly, he checked the spool of dark thread hidden inside. After confirming it was still there, he closed the cloak again and glanced at the three standing beside him.

Their attention remained fixed on the distant rooftop where the Spider Hollow prowled back and forth. As Lucien studied them, however, a thought occurred to him, causing his expression to shift slightly.

Aldren and Calla both specialize in mobility to some extent, even if they're probably not on Ava's level. And Selva can keep us alive if things go wrong.

His gaze briefly moved from one to the next.

Shouldn't that be enough?

The Spider Hollow's greatest advantage was its speed. If they could neutralize that, the rest of the fight would become considerably more manageable.

Lucien looked back toward the rooftop.

“Let's kill it.”

The sudden statement immediately drew their attention.

Calla turned toward him, her brows furrowing beneath her usually composed expression.

“How?”

“First, how much DE do you have left?”

DE—Divine Energy—was exactly what its name implied. It fueled the divine powers granted by the gods a practitioner served, and its regeneration rate varied depending on rank. Of the five Covenant ranks Lucien knew about, the three of them belonged to Ordained, the second-lowest tier.

“About half,” Aldren replied.

“Same here,” Calla added with a small nod.

Selva raised a hand slightly.

“I still have around seventy percent.”

Lucien nodded.

“Good.”

A faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

“I played a game of chase with that thing yesterday.” Lucien jerked his chin toward the rooftop. “From what I could tell, it's probably blind. Its abilities also revolve around webs, and it relies heavily on speed to make up for its lack of physical strength. Did you know that?”

The three exchanged brief glances before nodding.

“Good. That saves me some explaining.”

Lucien crouched slightly and picked up a loose piece of stone from the floor. Turning it between his fingers absentmindedly, he took a moment to organize his thoughts before looking back at them.

“I have a few ideas. I'll need all of you to cooperate.”

“What are they?” Aldren asked immediately, his expression turning serious.

Lucien's smile turned a little dry.

“Well, hear me out first.”

***

As he began outlining his ideas, the uncertainty on their faces gradually faded, replaced by concentration. Aldren folded his arms while listening, Calla's brows remained slightly furrowed as she considered each step, and Selva quietly followed along without interrupting.

No one questioned whether fighting the creature was possible.

They simply listened.

After a while, Calla slowly nodded.

“It's a sound plan.”

Aldren let out a small groan and rubbed the back of his neck.

“I'd really prefer if we could finish it during the first phase.”

Lucien shrugged.

“That would be nice, but let's not get our hopes up.”

A faint smile appeared on Selva's face at the exchange before she glanced between them.

“Should we start now?”

“Sure,” Lucien replied.

Selva stepped forward and brought both hands together in front of her chest. Closing her eyes, she lowered her head slightly and spoke in a soft, steady voice.

“Zoḗgennis mótū, súscita vitam.”

As the final syllable left her lips, a faint warmth spread through the surrounding air.

Lucien felt his body become slightly lighter, as though some invisible weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

Selva opened her eyes and lowered her hands.

“Animated Vitality,” she explained before glancing toward Lucien. “It speeds up the body's natural healing process several times over and lasts for about half an hour. It might not be as effective for someone with Inferni blood, though. Sorry.”

Lucien chuckled.

“It's fine. I'm used to being discriminated against.”

Selva's lips tightened slightly.

“That's not what I—”

“Let's start.”

Aldren cut in before she could finish.

Nobody had much else to say after that. The atmosphere inside the abandoned building quickly shifted to preparation as everyone focused on their respective roles.

Aldren took a slow breath before stepping out into the street, his movements noticeably quieter than usual despite the size of the longsword hanging at his side. Lucien followed several meters behind him, slipping through the shadows cast by the surrounding theater buildings while Calla and Selva remained inside.

The afternoon was already beginning to give way to evening. Long shadows stretched across the road between rows of ruined buildings, and the occasional breeze carried dust and loose scraps of paper through the empty streets. Somewhere farther away, faint sounds of battle still echoed through the district, but around this particular intersection, everything felt strangely still.

Once Aldren reached the middle of the road, he stopped and raised his longsword vertically before him with both hands. His expression had grown completely serious now, all traces of his usual easygoing demeanor gone as he focused on the rooftop in the distance.

Although Lucien knew the Spider Hollow was likely blind, he still activated Shadow Concealment out of habit. Darkness gathered naturally around him as he moved beneath the shade of a partially collapsed storefront, making his already quiet presence even harder to notice.

For a few moments, nothing happened.

Then Aldren inhaled and raised his voice.

“Ex Ergónis vī, spátium súperet momentum!”

The prayer rang clearly through the street.

Lucien immediately shifted his attention toward the distant rooftop.

The Spider Hollow froze in place before its head snapped toward Aldren's position. Even from this distance, Lucien could see the sudden tension running through its thin frame, and in the next moment it burst into motion.

Tkt-tkt-tkt-tkt—

Its limbs hammered against stone in a blur as it accelerated. Loose gravel bounced from the roof's edge, rattling down onto the street below, while strands of long dark hair streamed behind its skeletal frame.

It really is fast.

Even after seeing it yesterday, Lucien still found the speed ridiculous.

Based on what he could see, the creature was easily crossing fifteen meters every second. It covered several dozen meters in what felt like no time at all, darting from rooftop to rooftop with an agility that bordered on absurd.

Aldren's prayer had worked exactly as intended.

Its entire attention was fixed on the man standing alone in the middle of the street.

Good.

Just as they had predicted, it positioned itself above Aldren before launching downward.

WHUMP!

The creature hurled itself from the rooftop like a spear.

Aldren reacted instantly.

The moment the Hollow descended, his body blurred. Accelerated Momentum removed the normal limitations on his movement, allowing him to burst sideways with a speed that looked supernatural.

Scrrrk—

His boots scraped against the pavement as he redirected himself several meters away.

A heartbeat later, the Spider Hollow slammed into the exact spot where he had been standing.

CRACK!

Stone fractured beneath the impact.

Dust burst outward in a pale cloud, briefly obscuring the creature from view.

Hidden within the shadows, Lucien felt the corner of his mouth lift slightly.

Perfect!