NOVEL NEXT Chapter 141
Whoosh…
Across the river, the wind rustled the rye field.
The breeze tickled the ears.
Just Edwin and his father.
A memory of that peaceful day.
If only that nightmare hadn’t happened that day, he might have lived as an ordinary farmer.
Edwin’s mind was in chaos.
Was it too much of a dream for a common farmer to aspire to be a hero…?
…
…
As Edwin opened his eyes, he encountered the ethereal girl, Aria Bluebell.
Shwoosh…
She was pouring her sacred power into him.
No, rather than pouring, it was closer to flooding.
“Aria…?”
Silence…
Strength filled his entire body. The pleasant warmth wrapping around him brought Edwin to his peak condition like never before.
But…
“Aria! What are you doing?! If you use that much sacred power…!”
“This is the best option right now. Please stay still.”
“Aria…”
Her expression was serious.
Injecting sacred power into another person like this was exhausting, and as a result, Aria’s vitality was gradually waning.
‘…’
In fact, just before the mysterious explosion occurred, Aria noticed the change in her body when she momentarily made eye contact with Aveline.
Who? Who are you…?! Where are you?!
Cough!
Against her will, Marcochias’s voice began to echo in her mind.
‘Before others find out about this…’
So before she did anything reckless, she had to entrust all her sacred power to Edwin.
This was the best Aria could do.
…
…
Crack!
Crackle!
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Against the backdrop of the thinning demon barrier on Mystic Island,
The sacred rain that heralded the apocalypse poured down incessantly.
Ka-Kang!
‘Guhhh!! Who the hell is doing this?! Where are they?!’
Marcochias couldn’t pinpoint the starting point of the arrows gracefully flying toward him.
It was as if countless angels surrounded Marcochias, making him face a divine judgment.
He could do nothing but be pierced by the light.
And then,
Thud.
In the distance, Edwin Gwynn was approaching Marcochias.
Shwoosh!!!
In an instant, the dark surroundings lit up like daytime.
Like an executor tearing away the curtains of darkness from the most shadowy corner of the world.
An amount of sacred power unimaginable before dwelled in his sword, shining brightly like a holy sword.
Thud.
Edwin stopped just five steps away from the great demon he was set to vanquish.
He tossed aside the small shield he was wearing on his left arm.
Holding a sword with both hands.
Edwin had something to test.
In an empire that values cooperative defense through shields and teamwork with party members, the swordsmanship was revered.
However, for Edwin, who harbored the desire to slay a demon with his own hands, this was the only permitted strike.
Days spent practicing alone in the training hall flashed through his mind.
Hah?
And just when Marcochias was struck by the thirteenth arrow and let out a short dying scream.
Swish!
!?
After that, the azure knight’s form vanished.
‘What…?!’
Marcochias could not read his footsteps with his enhanced eyesight in human form.
But at the very least, he could sense that the line he was drawing was not a curve but a straight line.
Swish!
An ominous sound soon engulfed him.
!?
‘Did it… just pass?’
Thud.
One of Marcochias’s knees buckled.
Edwin was already behind him.
‘First Strike.’
A typical first strike.
Marcochias simply allowed a straightforward attack.
It was just an honest strike investing everything in speed.
He could not evade it.
The arrows, imbued with white light, had formed a perfect angle for him to pass through.
Clang!
“What?!”
But that was not the end. The moment Marcochias tried to recover and rise as quickly as possible.
Boom!
A vivid afterimage of the slash began to incite a sacred explosion.
“You pathetic creature!”
Of course, Edwin was already readying his second attack.
Swish!
Once again, ominous noises surged from behind Marcochias.
Edwin did not hesitate.
The sacred power entrusted to him by Aria.
Without hesitation, he would unleash it to kill that demon.
That was his only thought.
Swish!
‘Yeah, heh…! This is getting interesting!’
Marcochias’s magic power surged.
Whoosh!
!?
This time, instead of black mist…
A white, shimmering mist swirled around him.
It was the manifestation of [Marcochias’s Power – Angel Transformation].
Chime!
‘?!’
Edwin was sure he had struck.
The sensation of gripping the sword hilt firmly assured him so.
While it was clear he had dealt damage…
“Haha! Ha! This is fun, fun!! To force this form upon me, you punks!”
“What the hell…?”
Marcochias was no longer a demon.
To be precise, he had the form of a demon, but twisted and tainted angel wings adorned his back.
Shwoosh…
Above all, the most shocking thing was that he felt sacred power emanating from him.
“Is this… possible?!”
It was absurd. A demon possessed the abilities of an angel at the same time.
“What will you do now? Green creature?”
Ironically, Marcochias was a fallen angel from the Order of Angels.
His transformation power was not simple transformation magic but something far more complex.
It was a method based on his current stats, storing memories of his form.
And of course, a strike imbued with sacred power could not strike someone who was sacred itself.
Thus, Edwin’s attack was rendered null.
…
To prove this, Lev’s support fire was no longer connected either.
“Edwin! What is…?”
The demon creatures that had been cleared by Yeriel stood beside him.
Marcochias began to grin widely.
“Heh. Ha! You lot are truly nothing but fodder. To make Jinn feel this way. Bunea, Tobiel, Dalian!!! It’s enough to drive one insane… I want to kill you lot right now, but if you come out like this, I want to enjoy it a bit more!”
However, the battle was over.
‘Jinn losing? That can’t happen.’
The mysterious arrows that had been flying until now, and their attacks were based on sacred power.
Without pure skill, they wouldn’t be able to harm him in the slightest.
“Ugh, ha ha ha! Is this it?! Is it really over?! Your naive sacred attacks from Claris won’t work anymore, right?!”
He restrained his laughter, taunting Yeriel and Edwin as if they were a joke.
“If you have a next plan, hurry and show it! Let’s see if you can entertain me! Especially since I’m here to evaluate directly. Ah, don’t tell me the only thing left is to be naked and beg like the creatures you are…”
Just as Marcochias was about to instill fear in them…
Pewww!!!
Boom!
Once more, an untraceable speed flashed through his head.
Guh… Guhuhuh…
Pewwwwwwww!!!
The light was indeed several streams.
But one noticeable difference was that this time, it began to rain crimson lightning instead of white.
*
‘If he’s an angel, then that’s a bonus for me.’
The Gray Ashen Bolt, filled with magic power, continuously released phantom arrows.
[Critical Hit!]
[Critical Hit!]
[Critical Hit!]
[Weak Point Hit!]
[Additional Damage Proportional to Agility]
[Sniping Trait Activated! Additional Damage Proportional to Agility]
[Black Dragon’s Tendon Effect Activated! Additional Damage Proportional to the Shadow Attribute]
[Ability ‘Massacre’ Stacked 14 times]
[Ability ‘Massacre’ Stacked 15 times]
[Ability ‘Massacre’ Stacked 16 times]
[Marcochias (Human, Angel) – HP: 39%]
Perhaps it was because there had never been a boss with this amount of durability, the battle status window continued to roll in.
[Remaining Mana: 47%]
[Remaining Wind Energy: 150]
[Aggro: 79]
[Erosion Level: 120/410]
[Demonization: Skill Power Increased!]
[Tarchangel Transformation: Greatly Reduces the Costs Needed for Skill Usage!]
…
…
…
[Grace ‘Balance of Hell’ Restores Wind Energy] [Remaining HP: 100%]
[Grace ‘Balance of Hell’ Lowers Aggro Gauge] [Remaining HP: 100%]
As long as he managed his aggro gauge, the demon wouldn’t be able to find his location.
What that meant was that his health remained at full.
With [Balance of Hell], the recovery cost would also be at maximum speed.
[Damage Multiplier: 6640%]
Pewwww——wwww!
I activated the Wind Archery while continuously firing phantom arrows.
—————
[Fourth Technique: Wind Archery] (Active) (General Skill)
: Guidance – The wind is not to be calculated but to be overcome.
While using the Wind Archery, this gives guaranteed hit as an additional effect at the cost of additional wind energy. (On/Off Technique)
[Due to the contract with Ariel, the consumed wind energy decreases, and damage increases significantly.]
—————
The effect of the newly acquired skill, Wind Archery, was clear.
With skill level 9, the accuracy correction from the sniping trait allowed me to shoot with my eyes closed or even rapid fire, and all shots turned into critical hits.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
With the sound of the wind bursting with refreshing pressure,
GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!
From far away, I could hear the satisfying scream of the demon.
The one who had transformed into their version of angel was writhing in agony.
The greatest characteristic of the demon and angel hereditary heirs is that,
The cost they use is divided into erosion for the former and sacred for the latter.
Erosion is strong against destruction while sacred power excels in restoration.
As evidenced by the frequent hierarchical conflict, the black magic henceforth could deal damage among demons, except for the demon king, but…
Sacred power is different.
It fundamentally has the effect of purifying demons, and since it has strong stats for restoration,
Sacred-powered beings cannot harm each other.
Having confirmed Marcochias’s skill gimmick through Caeran, it was clear that activating his angel transformation would grant him sacred attributes.
‘This is why Marcochias was tough in the Reincarnated Hero.’
However, that mattered little to me since I could wield both sacred and erosion.
At first, with the Sacred Crossbow and Wind Archery combined with Edwin’s aid I toyed with him to induce his angel transformation.
When Marcochias ultimately resorted to his angel transformation, I bombarded him with demon attacks via Demonization.
This was a straightforward exploitation of elemental advantage without any bugs involved.
‘To him, my very existence must be a bug.’
He probably never thought that a human using demon attacks would be anything but Caeran.
[Marcochias (Human, Angel) – HP: 0%]
BAM!
Having taken in all the accumulated attacks in disbelief, Marcochias began to transform into a beast form.
In the end, it was the beast form, which had the highest stats value, that he could trust.
Growl!
A pitch-black new form, with peculiar scales over neat manes.
A body much larger than an ordinary wolf-beast, with large wings sprouting.
From this perspective, Marcochias, the Great Demon, appeared authoritative, but…
Struck by unexpected blows, two holes were punctured in his head, which would be fatal.
He slightly ascended into the air, preparing to breathe fire.
At that moment, I immediately switched from the crossbow bolts to the sacred bolts.
‘What? Maybe about 10 left?’
In beast form, Marcochias’s statistics were impressive, but what I had to be most cautious of was the breath attack that could induce petrification.
Therefore, just as with the three-headed dog, a healer was absolutely essential.
But…
…
…
[Aria Bluebell]
– [Marcochias’s Minion (Power of Obedience)]
[Status Average]
: ??? (Infected!)
[Specialization]
: ??? (Infected!)
[Unique Traits]
: ??? (Infected!)
…
As of now, Aria had accepted the power of obedience from Marcochias on her behalf, so she wouldn’t be able to assist us.
Moreover, the power of obedience from Marcochias cannot be dispelled by even dispel magic.
Even if the caster dies, the last command given is maintained.
‘…Just hold on a bit longer, Aria. I will surely…’
Amidst the pouring guilt…
I could only grit my teeth while picturing Aria’s eyes.
*
Marcochias was sharp.
So he was already aware that the attacker from afar was Lev Denec.
But no matter how much he looked around, he could not find the location of that presence.
“Where the hell is it coming from!! How far do you intend to toy with me?!”
Even if he wanted to use Valantes’s creatures as shields,
She wouldn’t budge an inch against Violet’s sealed arrows.
Whoosh!
As Marcochias breathed out a torrent of flames full of anger,
Snap!
In response, the pure white girl, Yeriel, snapped her fingers.
Fwoosh!
EEE!!
Seven phoenixes appeared around her,
Boom!
And soon, they began to merge, creating a firestorm that thwarted Marcochias’s flames.
It was as if fire was burning fire… a spectacular sight.
!?
If among humans, there was a wizard able to handle flames comparable to the hellfire…
It would have to be Kruun, the hero who held the essence of immortality.
‘Could it be…?!’
In an instant, memories streamed into Bunea’s mind—a report from Dalian about the boy who partially obliterated the 14th Army.
‘Heh, heh.’
A hollow laugh escaped.
They were no doubt amateurs.
They were surely amateurs, but Marcochias seemed to have perfectly grasped his own weaknesses.
Human greed surpasses that of demons.
‘How dare you lot… think you can defeat me?!’
Pewwww!!
Once again, arrows showered down upon him.
A groan escaped involuntarily.
The quality of these attacks was leagues apart from ordinary elven archers.
“Ugh… Damn it!”
Boom!
Marcochias’s flames clashed with Yeriel’s fire magic, creating explosions.
“Aaaaaah!”
“I-I’ll help!”
As each engagement concluded, Edwin, Violet, and Lev attacked again,
The situation began to shift, and Marcochias started to be pushed back.
Guh… Aah!
He should always be the instigator of plundering and slaughter.
But things went awry.
With the magic tower exploding and the barrier weakening,
Caeran had vanished, and communication with the 5th Legion had completely cut off.
What remained were only a handful of trifling demon creatures that had been on Mystic Island since the beginning.
Even those were scattered all over the island, leaving him with only the capable subordinates of the next saintess and Valantes’s creatures.
Pewwwwwww!!
“Damn!!”
His assailants wasted no time, relentlessly attacking.
Boom!
‘Without a source of magic power…!’
At this rate, he would truly be defeated.
Of course, he could return to Pandemonium upon death due to his essence of the soul, but facing the humiliation of fleeing after being thrashed by a few Claris students was something he would rather die than endure.
Just as the bolts began to shift from fear to realization in Marcochias’s mind, he managed to recall something he had forgotten.
‘Wait, there’s a way to bring about immense despair?!’
These are the ones who took my belongings. Repaying them in kind is the best kind of revenge!
Following Caeran’s counsel,
He could simply issue a command to the girl with saintly abilities to find and kill someone named Lev Denec.
It was a completely simple task.
Find and kill Lev Denec, that scum! No matter what!