Chapter 144: How Dare You...
Lucy charged a blazing spark of magical energy into her hand and pierced through the fabric of cosmic space at a miraculous speed that transcended the limits of vision and perception!
Her movement was not merely an instantaneous teleportation through space, as it might have appeared to an ordinary observer. Rather, she was directly tearing through the very fabric of space itself.
The supreme offensive spell condensed within her fist possessed enough power to obliterate a being at the standard Noble Level, and could even inflict severe, irreversible physical damage upon Cain’s current body, given that his true body was two full levels weaker than Lucy, who stood at the pinnacle of the Truth Level.
Destructive energy gathered within Lucy’s glowing fist as she drove her overwhelming strike straight toward the faceless shadow’s head.
Had that blow struck a planet, it would have shattered its very core and reduced the entire world to cosmic dust scattered throughout the void!
BOOOOOOM!
A colossal ethereal shockwave erupted, shaking the nearby orbits and causing the surrounding void to tremble as though a miniature solar explosion had detonated within that narrow region of space!
Yet...
Cain?
The attack had already passed through him and been completely evaded before it could even graze his body.
The shadow figure vanished from the point of impact as though it had never truly existed there, only to reappear with calm, composed dignity directly behind the enraged Lucy.
He stood there with absolute fluidity and stability, as though he had not just evaded an attack powerful enough to erase an entire planet!
Cain’s voice emerged garbled and distorted as he called out in bewilderment:
"What the hell has gotten into you?!"
From a short distance away, Old Man Darren watched the scene in paralyzed shock.
He saw the black shadow that was supposed to be his great master vanish in less than the blink of an eye, only to reassemble itself behind the purple entity known as Lucy!
The aura released by Lucy’s attack alone was enough to make Darren feel as though the years of his life were accelerating, his already frail body aging far beyond its natural limits.
Had it not been for the protective barrier Lucy had wrapped around him beforehand, his elderly body would have been reduced to scattered pieces of flesh across the vastness of space!
However, Darren noticed something far more painful.
It seemed that his master had not even noticed his presence, despite standing only a short distance away.
Cain’s attention had been completely focused on Lucy from the very moment he appeared in space.
It was a cruel and bitter reminder that his master had truly forgotten him, his existence erased from Cain’s memory on the day he destroyed his own memories.
Meanwhile, Lucy slowly turned around, her purple eyes blazing with fury as she glared at the black entity, which continued to utter distorted, incomprehensible sounds and words.
How could this man have dodged her preemptive spell so effortlessly, as though he were merely playing with her?!
Granted, she had not unleashed her full power, and her previous attack had only been a Royal Level spell.
But to evade it so effortlessly...
Was that not utterly absurd?!
And infuriating?!
Even so, a proud, disdainful smile appeared on Lucy’s lips.
She assumed that it had been nothing more than a lucky coincidence.
So what if he had dodged her first attack?
In the end, she was still the undisputed strongest entity in this domain.
Even if he managed to evade another strike or two, she would still obliterate this summoned soul and make him understand the consequences of daring to call her "my wife."
Lucy spoke in a mocking tone filled with pride:
"Hah... You survived the first strike through trickery and luck. But believe me, that good fortune won’t save you next time!"
Lucy continued pouring more and more magical energy into her body until her brilliant purple aura illuminated the darkness of the surrounding void.
Then, from the depths of the dark space, the fabric of the dimension split open, allowing her to draw forth a legendary sword resembling a Japanese katana.
Its pale-white blade seemed to have been forged from the delicate complexion of a moon maiden.
Merely looking at its razor-sharp edge gave one the sensation that their very soul was being sliced apart!
SWOOOOSH!
SLAAASH!
A brilliant white arc of light emerged from the blade as Lucy delivered a swift horizontal slash.
A razor-sharp wave of energy tore through the void, flying directly toward the black shadow.
Lucy did not stop at a single attack.
She immediately followed it with two consecutive slashes, sending three magical blades of energy toward Cain as they tore through space with a terrifying screech!
The impact of the waves upon space itself was fierce. It was as though they were slicing apart the particles of nothingness and tearing the very horizon of space into pieces!
Yet Cain merely moved with calm precision, without the slightest trace of agitation.
An extremely thin layer of core energy covered his hand as he swept his palm through space with blinding speed...
And blocked all three slashes with the palm of his hand!
Old Man Darren could not hear the impact in the vacuum of space, but he could feel the violent shockwave pushing him farther back through his orbit, making him realize just how terrifying the battle unfolding before him truly was.
As for Lucy...
She stared at the completely unexpected sight with wide eyes.
For a moment, she nearly laughed from sheer shock at the absurdity of what she was witnessing!
This sword was not some ordinary weapon with slightly greater strength.
It was a unique Royal Level magical item:
The Kaguya’s Teardrop Blade!
An item of unknown origin.
A single strike from its blade was capable of severing anything below the level of the soul itself.
It could not be blocked by any physical barrier, because its cutting ability transcended matter and operated on a conceptual level!
So how could this strange "Cain" block such an attack with the palm of his hand?
And not only that...
He remained perfectly elegant and stable, as though he had done nothing noteworthy at all, before continuing to utter those distorted words through the ether once again.
Cain’s fragmented voice emerged:
"Y...o...u... a...a...a..."
Lucy could understand nothing from his distorted voice except the word "You."
She immediately assumed that he was continuing some cliché declaration of affection, the kind of obsessive nonsense constantly recited by admirers, such as You are my entire life and similar garbage.
Lucy realized at that moment that this entity named Cain was no easy opponent and certainly not someone she could afford to underestimate.
However, blocking several consecutive attacks was hardly an insurmountable obstacle for her.
She possessed supreme arts and cosmic energies that surpassed all conventional expectations!
As Lucy prepared to gather an even greater amount of energy and deliver a decisive blow that would settle the matter once and for all...
Cain suddenly moved his hand with blinding speed, far beyond the limits of intuition!
Dark ethereal gates erupted throughout space.
From within them, sharp sovereign magical chains shot forth, wrapping tightly yet flexibly around Lucy’s body and completely restraining her movements in the middle of her next attack!
Cain wanted to end this futile altercation as quickly as possible.
He needed to understand the secret behind this fierce attack and, more importantly, what had driven his wife to suddenly rush at him with such murderous intensity.
Yet Lucy...
The moment she found herself bound by those strange chains and saw Cain approaching her with steady steps, she felt as though he were mocking her pride and trampling upon her throne.
Even though that shadowy body possessed no tangible facial features with which to express emotion, the blood in Lucy’s veins boiled with rage and fury.
How could Lucy Montgrad, who stood at the very peak of the magical hierarchy, be bound and shackled by a summoned entity from a lower world like Earth?!
How dare this entity insult her and restrain her power in such a humiliating manner?!