"How... Even so, how could it..." Thesaya muttered, then fell silent.
The violet glow that had once filled Akihatara’s eyes flashed through her mind.
Archdemons were said to be enemies to one another by nature. Creatures steeped in madness and malice would find nothing strange in luring one another into traps under the guise of an alliance.
That would be even more plausible if Dharmaraja had originally been human.
"If sacrificing Akihatara to the god it serves was truly that bastard’s real plan…" Thesaya finally whispered.
Cherwyn, who had pushed Miguel away and straightened herself, naturally picked up the thread. "Then something worthy of such a sacrifice will descend upon that—"
"Are you kidding me…" Miguel groaned.
Thesaya shifted her gaze toward him, her eyes narrowing. She quickly realized that his reaction had nothing to do with their conversation. Miguel was staring past the left side of the wagon, his eyes wide.
Thesaya snapped her head around.
The Glacier Wall she had deployed only covered the area up to the single supply wagon on the left. Beyond that, the remaining wagons were being swallowed by the chaos waves, colliding and tangling together. It was something she had failed to notice while facing the rear.Rumble, crash—
The wounded lying in the cargo beds and the ember priests perched on the driver’s seats were all crouched low, as if caught in a raging sandstorm.
The only reason they had not already lost consciousness or their lives was the divinity clinging to them. Once that red sacred glow and the scattering sparks were completely stripped away, they would inevitably be consumed by chaos.
Whoosh—
That was why Thesaya poured even more magic into the gemstone clenched in her palm.
Crack— snap, crackle!
The Glacier Wall shielding the brazier wagon like a levee grew taller and stretched farther to the left and right. The veins bulging around Thesaya’s eyes throbbed violently, and the blood flowing from her nose increased noticeably.
Even as unbearable heat spread through her, Thesaya turned her gaze toward the gate.
Is it only this area that’s been caught in it?
The wall, the gate, and the legionnaires gathered before it were all swallowed by the mist-like chaos vortex, impossible to see. They might have been inside it, but there was no way to tell.
Creak...
What grated on Thesaya’s nerves even more was the faint sound drilling into her ears. As she turned her head back again, she frowned.
"Ugh..."
A sudden wave of dizziness struck her. Breathing was difficult with the nosebleed, and the taste of iron grew thicker at the back of her throat.
Fwoosh—
Just as she bit hard into her lower lip, the area was suddenly flooded with blinding light.
The sacred fire of the brazier surged upward like a pillar, piercing straight through the waves of chaos. Cherwyn stood before it, her arms raised high overhead.
Miguel, who had been throwing wood into the fire without even having time for a proper prayer, shouted, "That’s enough, Elder! Don’t push yourself any further!"
Thesaya did not refuse. She pulled her magic back in. Unlike usual, it resisted her control, forcing her to grip the gemstone tightly and snap her left arm backward.
"Blegh— cough!"
She staggered, her waist twisting as she leaned forward and vomited a mouthful of blood.
Moro jolted violently and lifted its head at almost the same moment. As the Glacier Wall began to fade like evaporating mist, Thesaya managed to wrap one arm around the horse’s neck, coughing up blood-streaked saliva.
Fwoosh—
Meanwhile, the towering pillar of fire split apart and poured downward like a blazing fountain. Cherwyn spread her raised arms wide, then slowly lowered them. As the surging chaos was burned away, a massive circular curtain of heat enveloped the area.
"Everyone, snap out of it!"
Miguel shouted as he leaped down from the wagon at nearly the same moment. Holding a piece of wood smoldering with sacred fire like a torch, he ran toward the blazing veil, raising his voice.
"Move if you don’t want to die! We need to transport the wounded! Now!"
The priest who had been seated on the left supply wagon’s driver’s bench instinctively sprang up and ran after him.
"Cough... hurgh..." Thesaya, hacking weakly, barely lifted her head. She clutched her cloak over her nose and mouth.
Even though she was no longer using magic, the veins around her eyes still stood out, throbbing visibly.
"Phew... Phew..."
She had narrowly avoided magic exhaustion, but her condition was a complete mess. She would not be able to cast even a low-level spell for some time.
Even so, Thesaya paid it no mind. Her swamp-colored eyes, heavy with exhaustion, remained fixed on the backs of Miguel and the priest as they crossed the chaos storm with sacred flame torches in hand.
Whoosh—
Sparks surged and scattered around them as they ran. It was the sacred fire, and likely the divinity of Lu Enter dwelling within it.
Without slowing, Miguel sprinted through the field of corpses and dragged down the priest huddled in the driver’s seat. Moments later, the priest, now shimmering with vivid sparks, staggered to his feet and immediately turned toward the wounded soldiers lying in the cargo bed.
"Honestly… he’s something else," Thesaya murmured, struggling to steady her breathing.
Unlike the priests who supported the wounded and then turned back, Miguel was already running toward the next wagon, torch held high. It looked as though he intended to keep going until every last survivor was pulled out. Even to a fairy like Thesaya, his retreating figure appeared noble.
"Agh..."
"Ugh... damn it!"
That was when the priests escorting the wounded passed through the curtain.
Sparks still scattered from them as they laid the wounded down near the supply wagons. Even while gasping for breath, they exchanged glances and immediately turned back, rushing beyond the veil once more.
"Anyone still alive?"
"Barely breathing! Damn it, to end up like this!"
The barbarian warriors’ groans continued from the cargo beds and beyond. Thesaya did not spare them a glance. Her gaze was fixed on the distance to the left.
Far across the way, near another brazier wagon, a separate curtain of sacred flame wavered faintly. Through the heat haze, she could make out the silhouette of a covered carriage.
"So that side is safe too…" Thesaya muttered, lowering her damp cloak.
They had not sought shelter there. They had clearly been pushed near it by chance. All the horses lay dead.
Not only the fancy knight and his squire, but even the princess and her maid had stepped outside. They were waving urgently at the priests rushing in with the wounded, urging them to hurry.
It was right then that Thesaya froze, wiping the blood from her mouth with the back of her hand.
Creak... crunch!
The ominous sound that had brushed past her ears earlier now rang out clearly. As her overheated nerves calmed, her hearing returned.
Thesaya’s eyes widened. Beyond the flickering veil, massive violet tentacles were rising.
Creak... squelch...
They twisted and tangled together, weaving like thick tree trunks. Sharp thorns sprouted everywhere, and maws lined with jagged teeth tore open. Beneath them, a huge, limp mass slowly rose into view.
"My goodness..."
Thesaya let out a gasp as she realized that thing was Akihatara.
The creature twitched intermittently, a grotesque sight, as though its skin had been completely flayed to expose raw flesh. And those violet tentacles were piercing through its body as they rose.
Squelch!
Only then did Thesaya fully realize that the ominous tentacles were sprouting from the archdemon itself. Muscle fibers were swelling and thickening, growing strand by strand. Yet this could not be dismissed as a simple mutation.
A being of the void... using that body as a host?
To Thesaya’s eyes, it looked as though Akihatara was being reborn as an entirely different monster. violet tentacles writhed and erupted from its limp head, wings, and legs.
At the same time, startled shouts erupted beside her.
"Shit, what the hell is that?"
"Crazy, by Karha!"
The wounded warriors had noticed it as well. They were watching the archdemon being reconstructed before their eyes.
—Ah… It’s finally becoming easier to endure….
At that moment, a faint whisper slipped into Thesaya’s mind as she stared at the rising mass of tentacles, towering like a colossal tree. It was a voice she had grown disturbingly accustomed to.
That was why Thesaya snapped her eyes open and scanned her surroundings.
Yet all she could see was the blazing pillar of fire, scattering heat, Cherwyn standing like a statue with her arms hanging limply at her sides, priests rushing back and forth with the wounded, and the raging vortex of chaos.
—Keep your balance, Friend. If you get swept away and thrown out, there won't be a next time...
At the next whisper, Thesaya finally lifted her gaze upward.
Amid the swirling violet vortex, she caught sight of a golden trajectory circling at tremendous speed. Its exact form had yet to fully emerge, but there was no mistaking what it was.
"Ian!"
He was clearly plunging back inside. As Thesaya’s gaze followed the golden trail spiraling inward, Moro snorted and turned backward.
Rumble, crash—
A moment later, Ian’s figure was briefly revealed to Thesaya’s eyes. His golden wings were spread wide as he cut through the storm of chaos.
To be precise, he was likely gliding along the turbulent wind rather than truly flying, but to Thesaya, the distinction hardly mattered. He had probably fought Akihatara amid the swirling dark clouds in much the same way before.
—You’re doing well. Let’s keep pushing against the current. Though I don’t know how long your wings will hold out.
Thesaya’s eyes narrowed slightly when Yog’s whisper dug into her mind once more. She realized that Ian, who was moving inward as if riding the waves, was not as at ease as he looked.
True. There's no way he can maintain that form forever.
The dragon magic circulating through his Mantra circuits had to be running low.
As she gave a slight nod, a strained exclamation mixed with heavy breathing came from behind her.
"Madness... what in the world..."
It was Miguel, having returned.
His gaze, along with those of the priests, was fixed blankly on the bundle of tentacles rising and entwining, and on the archdemon being hoisted upward as it twisted and mutated within them.
"The Great Warrior! It's the Great Warrior!"
"The Demigod has come!"
At that moment, loud and ragged cheers erupted from among the wounded. They had finally noticed Ian, who was circling the sky and drawing closer to the crown of the archdemon’s head.
Miguel, along with the priests scattered across the area, could only stare upward in stunned silence.
"Lu Entre, have mercy."
Almost in sync with Miguel’s murmured prayer, Ian, who had been spiraling through the air, gave his wings a powerful flap.
Whoosh—
His speed dropped sharply, and then he surged upward in a single instant. Gripping the greatsword with both hands, Ian raised it high. A dense cluster of light spread across the blade.
While the barbarian warriors cried out in awe, Thesaya’s gaze dropped beneath him.
Creak... crunch—
Akihatara’s reconstruction was nearly complete. Amid the mass of tentacles sprouting thorns and gaping maws, all tangled together like an ancient tree, the archdemon appeared as though its lower body had been swallowed by the summit itself, with only its upper torso jutting out grotesquely.
The creature slumped forward, its body shimmering with a deep violet sheen. Not only its wings, but even its head was now buried beneath writhing tentacles that flowed downward in place of its former feathered crown.
Rumble! Crash—
At that moment, a golden trail came hurtling down like a thunderbolt.
It was Ian, his magic wings folded back as he brought the greatsword down in a decisive strike. A violent trajectory of divinity, magic, and chaos surged and spiraled wildly around him.
Crunch!
The blade, packed with a blazing cluster of light, drove deep into the nape of Akihatara. The divinity-laden path only halted after carving through more than half of the archdemon’s upper body.
Red divinity smoldered and spread across Ian as he tightened his grip on the greatsword’s hilt.
As the blade sank a fraction deeper, one severed wing root tore open and sagged to the side.
The mass of tentacles, tangled like tree trunks, convulsed violently. Between the barbs and gaping maws erupting at random along their length, dozens of violet eyeballs burst forth in the next instant.
At the same time, Akihatara snapped its head upward. The tentacles parted and surged aside, revealing a violet face devoid of eyes or nose, marked only by the raw, brutal gashes left by Ian’s blade.
Below it, the single remaining maw split open, stretching as though it were about to tear itself apart.
"----------!"