“Snap! Tada-da-dak!”
“I don’t know what that means… Sylvia, do you understand it?”
“No. How would I understand that?”
“Snap! Tada-da-dak!!!”
The skeleton soldier, desperately banging its ribs and making a series of clumsy appeals, was in a state of frustration.
Not understanding what was being said, I was about to start asking questions when, in the distance, beyond the hill, Yuri appeared, carrying a Dark Elf on her shoulder.
“I’ve brought the Dark Elf you mentioned. As the Count said, I searched a ridge not far from the Imperial Palace, where the entire palace could be seen, and found it hiding in a hut.”
“You’ve neutralized it, right?”
“Yes. I’ve outfitted her with magic restraints, so now it’s unable to use mana at all.”
“….”
Thud.
Yuri dropped Sephiroth in front of me, carelessly tossing her to the ground.
But something was off about Sephiroth’s condition.
Her body was stiff, as if unconscious, murmuring in a barely audible voice.
When I brought my ear closer, I could hear her muttering over and over, “Vermont will destroy the world…”
What nonsense.
“Hoo. Let’s clean up this mess first. Identify the wounded.”
“Yes, Count.”
The once grand Imperial Palace was now a wreck.
Collapsed walls were everywhere.
The noble guests had all passed out. And the soldiers and guards were lying scattered, some with minor injuries and others severely wounded.
“Ugh… What on earth happened…?”
“How did the Imperial Palace get like this!?”
Soldiers collapsed, groaning from mana depletion, their faces filled with confusion as they looked around, clearly released from the spell that had controlled them.
“Ughhh…”
“…”
Meanwhile, Reinhardt was snoring soundly, seemingly from the effects of the dark magic waves he had absorbed directly.
It looked like he had fainted, overwhelmed by a sudden drain of mana.
“Grandpa Skeleton!!! Are you alright!?”
“Tada-da-dak!”
“Oh! Oh no! So many bones are broken?!”
Most of the skeleton soldiers were unharmed, though many had broken bones.
But bones could be reassembled, so the losses were effectively minimal.
‘A perfect victory.’
Five years. Sephiroth had been scheming within the 4th Legion for five long years, preparing her strike.
In just one night, I had frustrated all her plans and managed to resolve the situation without a single casualty.
I wanted to shout in triumph, but I forced myself to hold it in.
After all, saying something like “Is it over?” could make the dead rise again.
“Phew. Is it finally over?”
“Hey!!!”
“Ah! Why did you yell out so suddenly… huh?”
Just then, Sylvia had to go and jinx things.
The ground suddenly trembled, and the earth shook violently.
Were there still stragglers left?
From the basement passage, the bodies of animals started rushing out uncontrollably, gathering together, merging, and forming a massive shape like black jelly.
“What is that, Sephiroth?”
“Hahaha…! It’s finally awake! Give it up! That creature is a crystallized form made from the accumulated hatred of those who died in the Elven Kingdom! It’s a chimera, a monster born from the millions of unjust deaths!”
“…!”
Sephiroth suddenly snapped out of her daze, grinning confidently.
The black shape continued to grow, soon becoming as large as the entire palace.
With every step it took, the ground trembled, and the buildings were crushed as if they were mere crackers.
‘Now that’s real black magic.
Why is it only a disaster for me?’
What?
A chimera made from the spirits of the wronged dead and animal corpses?
Why do I get labeled a black mage for using undead armies or wielding a slightly sinister-looking holy sword as a Dark Knight?
It was absurd and frustrating, and I couldn’t help but feel a pang of frustration in my chest.
“Sylvia. Charlotte. Yuri. Fall back. I’ll take care of this.”
Facing the giant chimera that was slowly advancing toward me, I prepared to activate my skill again.
Perhaps it was from using the wide-area “Black Magic” earlier, but now I was more familiar with its manipulation and could set more precise ranges.
I aimed the range toward the front and made sure not to hit anyone behind me, then unleashed the skill. Black smoke billowed, engulfing the chimera.
[Grrrrr….!]
“My lord. It doesn’t seem to be affected at all.”
“No, Sister Knight! Look closely! It’s moving so much slower now!”
I thought it had no effect because it seemed completely unaffected by the black magic.
The momentum that seemed ready to crush everything in its path suddenly slowed down.
The chimera was now advancing slowly, almost in slow motion.
It seems that, like everyone else, it was also affected by mana depletion, unable to sustain its own power.
However, the fact that it couldn’t be completely neutralized by black magic meant that this wasn’t just a puppet controlled by magic. This was clearly a separate life form created through sorcery.
“Everyone, fall back! Something really strong and extremely dangerous is coming out!”
At that moment, Charlotte, her face filled with excitement, raised her Super Super Strong Sword.
Yuri quickly started moving the injured soldiers out of the way.
Soon, everything in the way between Charlotte and the giant chimera was cleared, and Charlotte began chanting a spell as she swung her sword.
“Rumble, Crash!!!”
Kwaang!
A purple aura erupted from her Super Super Strong Sword, rising high enough to pierce the sky.
That same aura, which had once cleaved a mountain, now descended straight toward the chimera.
With one swing, the giant chimera was sliced in half, as smoothly as cutting tofu.
As Charlotte retracted the aura, the chimera collapsed to the ground, and as the dust cleared, what was left was a long crater and a half-split chimera.
“Did we finally take it down…!”
[GRRRR!!!]
The moment Sylvia finished chanting her spell, the chimera, which seemed dead after being split in two, began to stir.
The two halves of its body rejoined, healing as if they had never been separated, and the chimera began advancing again, looking as though it had never been split at all.
“Ah…”
Charlotte, exhausted from mana depletion, turned pale. Despair was written all over her lovely face.
[Haaaaap!!!]
“Ugh!? Why is it back?!”
[I can’t let the humans who were supposed to make chocolate cake die!]
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ is cheering on the Great Spirit!]
Kwaang!
A massive brown figure charged at the giant chimera, and the two titans collided, engaging in a fierce struggle.
At first, it looked like the Great Spirit, “Dirt-Dirt”, was pushing the chimera back, but soon, due to the size difference, Dirt-Dirt started to be slowly pushed back.
It became clear that even the Great Spirit couldn’t overpower it with strength alone.
At this point, the only realistic way to defeat the chimera was clear.
“With my stamina drained, and Dirt-Dirt holding it in place, my job is now clear. If it doesn’t die after I cut it, I’ll keep cutting until it does.”
“That sounds like a fool’s plan… But for this, it might just be the right answer.”
“I’ll finish it quickly. Yuri, cover me.”
“Yes, Instructor.”
“Keep cutting until it dies?” It seemed absurd, but at this moment, there was no other choice.
Just as there is no such thing as infinite power, there is no such thing as an immortal creature.
If we keep cutting, eventually, the chimera will reach a point where it cannot recover.
But how long would that take?
No one knew.
Yet, without hesitation, Sylvia and Yuri gripped their swords and rushed forward.
Their movements were in perfect sync, as if they had fought together on the battlefield for years.
“Yuri, wound the chimera’s body, and before it heals, Sylvia, follow up with another strike!”
“Yes!”
Swish! Swish!
Yuri moved swiftly, cutting across the chimera’s body, leaving wounds that quickly started to heal. But before it could close, Sylvia rushed in and drove her sword into the open wound.
“Kaboom!”
Every time Sylvia chanted a spell, an explosion echoed, and flashes of light burst from inside the chimera’s body.
It wasn’t enough to stop it with just one hit, so Sylvia kept circling around, stabbing the chimera again and again with her sword, each strike accompanied by another explosive boom.
The successive internal explosions seemed to weaken the chimera.
Meanwhile, Dirt-Dirt, who had been pushed back, finally planted its feet and began pushing the chimera backward.
[Grrrrr!]
[Kyaaa! This isn’t retreating! It’s just taking a rest!]
The chimera roared and swelled its body, then, with a powerful push, it sent Dirt-Dirt flying backward.
Still undeterred, the chimera began to slowly advance, destroying buildings in its path.
“Hah, Hah… Is this still not enough…?”
Before long, Sylvia collapsed from mana depletion, unable to stand.
Both Charlotte and Sylvia were exhausted, and Dirt-Dirt was no longer able to fight.
Now, it seemed like the end was near.
There was no way to stop the chimera now.
“Yuri.”
“Yes, Count.”
“Take Charlotte and Sylvia, who have collapsed, and head to the panic room. It will be safe there, even if the Imperial Palace completely collapses.”
“Yes, understood. But what about you, Count?”
“There are still people left behind.”
“…!?”
In the banquet hall, there were still many people lying unconscious.
If I left them behind and fled, they would be trampled by the giant chimera and die.
That would mean the complete annihilation of the Empire’s high-ranking officials, exactly as Sephiroth had planned.
I couldn’t allow that to happen under any circumstances.
“I—I’ll stay behind and rescue everyone! You should escape first, Count!”
“How am I supposed to carry Sylvia and Charlotte by myself? Charlotte maybe, but Sylvia is too heavy. It has to be you.”
“Count… But…”
“There’s no time! Go now!”
“…”
Yuri hesitated for a moment, her lips quivering, but then she turned and began to shoulder both Sylvia and Charlotte, heading for the panic room.
Once they were out of sight, I finally let out a sigh of relief.
“Phew…”
So how was I going to move all these people by myself?
That was impossible.
It was just an excuse to send Yuri away.
I had a hidden move that could only be used when no one was watching.
[GRRROAR!]
As the giant chimera roared and advanced toward the people, I slowly began to step forward.
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ warns you that if you don’t stop, you will die!]
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ strongly recommends that you flee immediately!]
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ is shocked by your judgment and questions your fear of death!]
Kali had been silent until now, but now she was incessantly nagging.
She must have figured it out by now.
That I had no intention of stopping.
Even if I had to die under the feet of the chimera, I would not stop.
‘Do something, Kali!’
Kali had rarely interfered with reality before.
But could she just sit back and watch as I faced death without doing anything?
[Evil Disposition]
[Passive Skill]
[You are loved by demons and evil spirits for no reason. You stand out to them.]
What I believed in was Aslan’s cursed nature.
I was naturally favored by the Evil Gods.
If she truly loved me, if she didn’t want me to die, Kali would have no choice but to intervene personally.
Trusting Kali alone, I made my final gamble, betting my life on it.
[Evil God ‘Kali’ appears in the present world, shedding a tear…]
Boom!
Just then, with a thunderous crash that nearly ruptured my eardrums, a bright blue flash lit up before my eyes.
For a moment, it felt as if I had been struck by a flash grenade, and my vision turned completely white.
But as my sight returned, I saw the giant chimera completely shattered into pieces.
[GRRR…!]
For a brief moment, it seemed as though it was trying to regenerate, twitching as if attempting to heal itself.
But soon, the black chunks lost their vitality and sagged, no longer moving.
This time, it was so thoroughly destroyed that even Sylvia couldn’t chant “Did we finally take it down?” ten times—there would be no resurrection.
Had Kali truly intervened and ended her passive observation, manifesting in the real world at last?
As I turned to look for her presence, I found the answer.
“You took advantage of my weakened state and ravished my body at will. How was the feeling? I’ll give you the opportunity to leave your last words.”
“Ah.”
With Holy Sword Tempest, that crackled with blue electricity, raised high, I saw Empress Sister smiling chillingly at me.
