Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 406

406.

“Perdes, there’s no time left.”

Luseph’s anxious voice reached us then. Perdes turned around, and Trowel grinned, waving his hand lightly. Perdes, wearing a complicated expression at the sight, finally looked towards the Evil God with a determined face.

In the meantime, the movement of the black mass had grown even larger than before. Each time the massive body writhed as if struggling, the arrows fixed to the floor shook violently. It was clear to anyone that it was barely holding on. Perdes took a step forward towards it.

“M-Minerva.”

The voice burst out faster than the mind could register. Perdes paused briefly, then turned to us and smiled.

“Goodbye, everyone. May you find peace.”

“……!”

“Eluien, please take care of my friends.”

Eluien, hearing the last request, nodded slightly. Then, Perdes’ gaze turned to Luseph, who was standing next to him. Luseph, who had been standing with a gloomy expression, bowed deeply when he met her eyes. It seemed to be a gesture of respect for the sacrifice. Perdes returned the bow in response, then turned completely away from us and moved forward. The closer she got to the Evil God, the more golden light seemed to seep out from her body. Her black hair fluttered as her back was gradually swallowed by the light, soon becoming the light itself.

No. This can’t be happening…….

Should I stop her now, with all my might? Isn’t there another way if I look for it? Countless thoughts that had been tormenting my mind seemed to echo loudly in my ears. Just then, I felt someone grabbing my arm tightly. Only after realizing that my body had stopped due to the reaction did I realize that I had been trying to move forward. It seemed I had unconsciously tried to grab Perdes. When I looked up, Trowel was shaking his head with a bitter expression.

“It’s too late, El. The Annihilation Circle [a magical formation designed to completely destroy something] has already been activated.”

“T-Trowel, are you really okay? Is it okay to let Minerva, Perdes, go like this?”

I asked, almost clinging to him. His golden eyes, slightly widened, soon narrowed dimly. Then, he looked towards Perdes, who had been swallowed by the light. He opened his mouth slowly, as if carefully examining her, trying to find any remaining trace.

“To be honest, I’m not okay.”

“Then……!”

“But this is the path Perdes chose. Even if I don’t like it, I have no choice but to respect her decision. It’s always the one who loves more that loses, after all.”

He said it lightly, but the heart that answered that way could not have been truly light. It felt as if his chest had been scratched by a very sharp hook. I couldn’t even offer a word of comfort, so I just swallowed my breath silently, but then Trowel, who suddenly turned to me, shrugged and smiled.

“Still, how should I say this? It’s more bearable than I thought. I thought I would completely collapse when this day came.”

“Trowel…….”

“This is probably thanks to you, El.”

“……?”

The words that followed were so unexpected that I couldn’t understand them for a moment. I blinked blankly, and Trowel reached out and gently brushed my eyes. I hadn’t even realized it, but I was already crying.

“Thank you, El. I’ve always wanted to say this. If it weren’t for you, I would have been a pretty terrible guy.”

“I didn’t really do anything…….”

“No, you gave me so much. More than I can ever repay. Thanks to you, I gained the strength to endure. I’ve been saved by you.”

“What…….”

“It’s probably hard to understand. But I want to tell you this for sure.”

Trowel, smiling brightly with wet eyes, quietly hugged me.

“El, I’m so glad I met you.”

My vision blurred. I was the one who was glad to have met him. If Eluien was like a father to me, Trowel was the one who taught me the meaning of brotherhood. He was the first person to treat me kindly and embrace me, even though I was born late, caused immense damage, and was just clumsy without being worth my weight. He never laughed at me for considering the other Spirit Kings as family and always welcomed me sincerely. So I was always grateful to him. I always wanted him to be happy. Trowel was a person who deserved it. But how did things turn out like this?

Just then, I suddenly felt the surroundings getting brighter. I turned around in a hurry and saw the light emanating from Perdes covering the black mass. At first glance, it looked like Perdes was swallowing the Evil God. After the lights connected, they turned into one mass, so much so that it was impossible to tell who was who. Everyone around, including Trowel, stared at the sight, as if trying never to forget this moment.

I was the only one who couldn’t bear to watch until the end and averted my gaze. Even if I regretted it later, I wanted to turn away from this moment now. But was it an illusion? I tried to turn my head, using the flowing tears as an excuse, but I suddenly felt a sense of incongruity in the passing scenery. Almost reflexively, I raised my head again, and my whole body rapidly turned cold. I hadn’t seen it wrong. A man was standing blankly a little distance away. He was a man wearing a black robe and disheveled blonde hair. He was skinnier and more haggard than I remembered, but it was a face I could never mistake.

“The Grand Duke……!”

As soon as I recognized his identity, I tried to grab him. But his movements were faster than mine. A gust of wind seemed to rise, and a chilling energy like a blade instantly swept over us.

“Everyone, get out of the way!”

Crash! Kwaaaang!

Horrified faces, a massive tremor shaking the ground, an explosion filling my ears, and a light so intense it felt like I was going blind all happened at the same time. It didn’t take long for my posture to collapse. I couldn’t even stand straight, so at some point, I was almost lying on the floor. Numerous noises mixed into the buzzing reverberation, making it difficult to distinguish what was what.

The energy that had been raging like it was tearing the world apart subsided after some time. When I opened my eyes again, everything around me was dark. Looking up, I saw that the retreating dark clouds were filling the sky again. None of the gods who had been watching from above were visible.

‘What happened? Where are the others?’

I reflexively groped around. Then, I soon felt someone’s warmth reaching my hand. Startled, I lifted my head and saw a familiar figure in my sight. It was Eluien. I also met eyes with Trowel, who had been next to me until just before the incident.

“W-what is it?”

“Lord, are you alright?”

“I’m fine. What about Sibel?”

“Ah, she’s safe.”

Before long, familiar presences followed from the other side as well. Everyone was bewildered, but it seemed like no one was hurt. But the relief didn’t last long.

“This is a disaster…….”

I heard a sigh and raised my head to see Luseph staring blankly at something. Following his gaze, my face hardened. The place where the intense light had been spreading just a moment ago was now quiet as if nothing had happened. All that was visible was the black mass still pierced by arrows. But one part was split open, and a black arm was stretched out from the gap. A hand with long nails was clutching someone’s limp neck. It was the black-haired woman who had lost her light and returned to her original form.

“Perdes!”

At that moment, a rock soared sharply from the ground and pierced the arm clutching Perdes. Trowel was already rushing forward. The arm was completely severed, and black energy poured out like blood from the severed part. At the same time, Trowel barely caught Perdes, who was falling helplessly. But it wasn’t a situation to be relieved. The black energy that had poured out from the severed part was covering them.

“No!”

I immediately tried to create a barrier. But there was a barrier spreading over them even before I could. Luseph, who had blocked them, was stretching out his arms to create a shield. The problem was that the shield was melting faster.

“Fall back! Quickly!”

Trowel nodded at the urgent cry and quickly retreated, supporting Perdes. Taang! At the same time, an intense gunshot rang out, and the black energy scattered greatly. Eluien, who had taken out the Judge [his signature weapon], had sniped at the main body. Then, as if changing its stance, the stretched-out black energy was now shot at Eluien.

“Eluien!”

The black energy quickly wrapped around the Judge he was holding. No sooner had the gun barrel been crushed like tofu than Eluien, clicking his tongue slightly, immediately let go of the weapon. Then, the shape of the gun completely melted and disappeared as if evaporating into the air. The black energy also subsided, but it didn’t seem to have any particular effect on the Evil God. As evidence, the black hand that had fallen off in the meantime was intact again.

I took a deep breath. Now that I had come this far, I couldn’t help but know the situation, but I had to acknowledge the reality again. Perdes had lost consciousness, and the device that had been sealed was completely released. The Annihilation Circle had failed.

‘What’s going to happen now?’

What the Grand Duke had unleashed a little while ago was by no means human power. I thought he would have taken back the power he had planted in him as he entered full awakening, but it seemed he was still maintaining it. I never imagined he would have prepared for it in this way. I quickly looked around, but the Grand Duke’s figure was nowhere to be seen. I could find him if I looked closely, but there was no time to do so. Soon, the split surface widened more and more, and a black figure began to crawl out from within. The way it poured out with the viscous liquid was just like shedding its skin.

Crack, Thud

The arrows that had been embedded were pulled out one by one as the figure was revealed. Along with it, a foul smell began to spread as if what had been blocked had been released. I felt like my body was being contaminated just by breathing, so I naturally stepped back.

Soon, the completely detached black figure, Karian, slowly raised his body. Seeing him again, he was quite different from when he was trapped in the Purification Circle. The black hair that seemed to cover his entire body was the same, but his skin was all black as if black ink had been poured on it. Conversely, the color of his eyes had turned whitish. He had the horns of a mountain goat on his head, the legs of a lion, and the tail of a crocodile hanging behind him. It was a bizarre form that could not be called human, demon, or even a monster.

“…….”

A strange state of confrontation continued for a while. Everyone around me, of course, stared at Karian without saying a word. The stench was so strong that it felt like my nose would rot, but the shock was so great that such a thing didn’t matter.

“Could it be, he’s awakened?”

The arrows of the seal that had been fixing him had all fallen off. The process of shedding his skin, even with a completely different appearance than before. Anyone could see that the current Karian had no choice but to have completed his awakening. Just as I was unconsciously grabbing Eluien’s sleeve with a feeling that my mind was fading, he shook his head slightly.

“Not yet.”

“Huh? Not yet? But that appearance is…….”

“Look at his wings.”

Only then did I discover the blackish mass on Karian’s back. It seemed like it would be quite large if it bloomed, stretching from his head to beyond his toes. The reason I couldn’t recognize such a large form at a glance was because it was drooping. Moreover, only a part of it had leather and feathers attached, and most of it was in a hideous state with almost all the bones exposed. It didn’t seem like it would function as wings to anyone.

“It stopped just before completion. It seems like it stopped because the Annihilation Circle had progressed to some extent.”

“I, I see.”

But at this rate, isn’t it really just a matter of time?

The Annihilation Circle had failed, and the only weapon to counter it, the Judge, had melted in the previous attack. The sky was still only black. There was probably a reason why the gods who had been watching the situation from the Divine Realm were not responding immediately and were silent. No matter how much I thought about it, there seemed to be no sharp means.

“Khehehehe…….”

Then, a laughter that increased the anxiety was heard. It was Karian’s voice. Sharp teeth gleamed between the corners of his mouth that were raised in a smirk.

“This is quite a great thing. All sorts of precious figures have gathered to catch me alone.”

Muttering languidly, he seemed to be in a very good mood. Even though he hadn’t finished his awakening, a sense of leisure and composure was felt throughout his body. He seemed to know that he was in a favorable situation.

“Karian…….”

I heard Deron grinding his teeth. Karian, who slowly turned his gaze towards him, narrowed his eyes.

“Who is this? It’s Deron, who betrayed me. I didn’t expect you to be in front of me when you should have run away far away. Ah, did you come to ask for forgiveness?”

“Nonsense. You’re the one who’s the traitor.”

“Kek, I didn’t hate your arrogant parts so much. If you ask for forgiveness now, I might take you back.”

“That will never happen. My lord is only one forever.”

“Lord, huh? Are you talking about that cocky brat?”

“Don’t you dare call the Demon King Your Majesty so carelessly!”

“Demon King?”

Karian, who had paused, turned his gaze to the side of Deron. It seemed he had finally discovered As. His eyes sparkled as if he had discovered the symbol of the Demon God engraved on As’s forehead.

“……I see. That cocky brat back then really became the Demon King.”

Muttering, Karian flicked his finger. Then, with a gasp, Deron’s body fell upside down as it was.

“Deron!”

Everyone was greatly surprised by the situation that had unfolded in the blink of an eye. While Sibelius hurriedly supported Deron, I also quickly moved to Deron. Fortunately, he was still breathing, so I started healing him without delay. But the effect of recovery, which should have appeared immediately, did not activate properly. It wasn’t that there was no reaction at all, but it was at a weak level that would take a long time to reach a safe zone. I had never had this happen since I gained healing power, so I was very embarrassed.

‘Why? Could it be that the power of the Evil God is stronger than mine?’

As, who had been staring at this side with a hardened face, looked towards Karian. A fierce energy soared from him, his expression completely gone from his face. But Karian, facing that, only smiled more deeply.