Overpowered Extra Noble in a Novel

136.

Crack. Snap.

BOOM!

Vulkon’s ruins began to collapse.

Keltarren’s eyes, burning with white-hot flames. The explosive heat that had burst forth, obliterating even blessings, didn’t just engulf the ruins—it soared into the sky, emitting an intense flash.

“You… presumptuous… will surely… be annihilated…”

Keltarren’s voice echoed sporadically through my mind.

“It worked.”

The once-majestic sound had diminished to a mosquito-like whisper.

The burning eyes, writhing tentacles, and the crumbling ruins—it was clear the creature had sustained a major blow from the heat.

Grrr…

I poured the remaining mana into my sword.

Due to Keltarren’s convulsions, the base of Vulkon crumbled. Even as the whole ground was collapsing, the creature kept convulsing, even while burning.

Even the gods of destruction are still gods.

Unlike Sora, I don’t know how this being interfered with the world.

If left alone, there was a high chance it would restore the damage promptly.

A heavy rumble rose, and a blue light pulsed from the blade.

“It’s not enough.”

All the heat was already used. For this, I’d have to explode compressed mana—combined mana from the mana core as well as from outside—to unleash a second, more massive explosion.

As I breathed, the blue light gathered.

All the converging mana was poured into the blade for compression.

Finally, when the mana reached its limit, bolts of lightning shot out erratically. The charge for the grand explosion was complete.

“If I disappear… everything collapses… you will all die…”

As the entity’s eyes, now quivering almost pathetically, gazed up, I quietly spoke.

“Don’t ever appear before me again.”

Simultaneously, I unleashed all the compressed mana in one go.

ROOOAAARR!

The tremendous explosion nearby shook my entire body. My eardrums must have burst; a high-pitched ringing echoed emptily in my ears.

“…!”

With that last incomprehensible cry of Keltarren, its voice vanished entirely from my mind.

‘Keltarren dealt with, for now…’

As the overwhelming power of the superhuman disappeared, my consciousness snapped back to normal.

The towering, fiery eye and tentacles began to disintegrate into ashes. With the supernatural powers gone, Vulkon’s ruins violently trembled as if an earthquake had struck.

The remaining ground, which had only barely held its shape, began to split. The ruins collapsed into the fissures.

The collapse of Vulkon.

The entire city rapidly sank.

‘The base of the city was his physical manifestation?’

He had been talking nonsense about everything dying when he vanished, and I wondered what it meant.

Turns out, his massive body had been keeping Vulkon’s base intact. Once gone, the structure crumbled like a ceiling without support.

Starting from where I stood, the central area of Vulkon collapsed like an anthill, dragging everything down.

Upon lifting my head slightly, I saw the ground between falling debris. I must already have been far from the surface. Light was fading fast, and darkness was encroaching.

‘What about the others?’

I quickly extended my senses to search for Reinbight and Pesaha’s presence.

They were somewhere among the ruins.

They must have been caught in the sudden collapse of Vulkon.

‘There!’

Close by, I sensed a rapidly descending aura. Given the lack of mana fluctuations, it must be Pesaha.

Turning my stiff neck, I spotted a protruding strand of black hair among the debris.

‘Unconscious?’

I hastily used an invisible force to grab the strand and pull.

Slllpp—

Thankfully, Pesaha came out smoothly from the debris without needing much force.

Dry, congealed blood ran down her forehead. Her entire body was soaked in blood, and her clothes were torn like rags. She must have hit her head and lost consciousness.

‘Where’s Reinbight…’

I couldn’t sense anyone nearby.

Looking upward, I detected a mana presence slowly descending. Given his thrashing, Reinbight seemed unharmed, though it appeared he had no means of stopping his fall and was flailing aimlessly in the air.

“White Beast! Grab Reinbight and escape!”

The creature’s aura was distant, much higher up.

Surely, the White Beast could create stepping stones and navigate through the collapsing city to make it out.

Fortunately, it seemed the White Beast understood. Its aura quickly moved toward Reinbight and then shot toward the surface.

“To Myna’s side.”

I instructed the White Beast to regroup with Myna, though I wasn’t sure if it would hear me. But through blessings and enhancements, it had become quite intelligent, so hopefully it would act accordingly.

Now all I needed to do was escape with Pesaha.

After securing Pesaha in my arms, I channelled mana into my sword and swung it at the debris overhead.

“Madman?”

Is it due to lack of mana?

The sword struck the debris, barely penetrating halfway before stopping.

Crash. Clang!

“Crap…!”

The strike that would normally split a boulder in two was no longer effective.

“……”

After scanning my surroundings, I looked downward.

I saw dark, indiscernible depth between the scattered fragments.

I felt like I was being pulled into a bottomless sinkhole. Though I had fallen quite a distance, it seemed there was still no end in sight.

“Even as I’m falling, it’s almost certain I’ll die.”

‘If I use all my recovering mana for defense, I probably won’t die…’

But the concern is what happens next.

With the surface growing distant beyond all measure.

“… Huff.”

I turned my body and hugged Pesaha to shield her with my back from the inevitable crash.

*

How much time had passed?

When I landed, the shock of the impact rolled off through the strength of a superhuman, then I turned back to endure the endless barrage of falling debris.

The sound of the landslide-like echo reverberated endlessly.

The shock of the debris felt like a full-body massage for a while.

Finally, when it seemed the endless collapse was nearing an end, I immediately closed my eyes.

I needed a minimum amount of rest after my exertions.

With a short nap, I cleared my muddled mind and quietly opened my eyes in the chilling darkness.

“……”

Darkness.

Though I had raised my eyelids, all I could see was darkness.

‘…Sealed beneath the ruins, huh. Hmm?’

Faintly, I began to make out the surroundings bit by bit.

Though there was only debris like soil and rocks everywhere, a blurry shape of an arm or Pesaha’s head came into view when I turned my gaze.

‘So, light is slipping through?’

But surely, we’re deep underground, completely covered in rubble.

Even with dark adaptation, there needs to be some minimal light visible to see anything. Under normal circumstances, there would be no way light should seep through here.

This situation seemed unreal, even considering my superhuman capabilities.

‘Over…’

Looking around carefully, I noticed a tiny gap between the ceiling of tangled rocks and timber pieces.

Apparently, light is penetrating through these small gaps. If light can seep through, then at least minimal breathing should be possible.

It’s a stroke of luck amid the disaster.

‘Keltarren…’

I couldn’t perceive any unpleasant sensation.

Thus far, the immediate danger was gone. I couldn’t sense Reinbight or the White Beast either. They seem to have successfully escaped the collapse.

The faintest connection to the White Beast still lingered.

“……”

I stopped myself from sighing to avoid wasting oxygen unnecessarily.

The battle with Keltarren had concluded for now.

However, the critical problem remains that Pesaha and I are buried somewhere underground. I have no idea how far we fell.

‘How do we escape?’

If it were just a simple crater, creating a stepping platform and climbing would be enough.

But with the ruins and debris completely covering the crater,

The only solution is to clear the rubble overhead.

Alternatively,

A third party has to dig out all the debris and free the trapped individuals.

‘My lady… my lady?’

I called out several times, but there was no response.

“… No answer.”

Even if Reinbight had reached Myna and relayed the message, could people from the northern region rescue us trapped underground?

‘Maybe not.’

In the previous life, even with advanced rescue equipment and techniques, escaping a collapse was far from easy. There’s no way this world’s people possess the ability or technology for such a task.

‘Maybe Nia could step in.’

Considering Nia solving the problem of Untler, meeting up with Reinbight, hearing the story, and then coming to the ruins of Vulkon,

It would consume considerable time. Whether Pesaha could hold on that long was questionable.

“Phew…”

I let out an unnecessary sigh and reclined, feeling weary.

Click.

Fortunately, due to my efforts catching the debris, there was enough space to stretch my legs and lie down.

But, perhaps due to the depletion of mana,

The chill from the ground seeped through my back. Although it wasn’t to the point where I shivered, it was a sign that my immunity to the cold had broken.

Turning my gaze slightly, I saw Pesaha’s head nestled close to me.

She was still unconscious.

Her skin was pale, and her body was trembling slightly in the cold.

‘… She’s not a mana-user.’

If I can feel the cold, an ordinary person like Pesaha must be experiencing intense freezing.

Elven blood should protect her from the cold, but it seemed that her deep slumber was interfering with that natural resistance.

Puff.

I activated the silver blessing and warmly embraced her.

Her pale complexion remained, but the shaking from cold began to subside.

‘The body temperature will be maintained with the blessing.’

Hypothermia can be countered within this blessing’s scope.

The real issue is food.

Upon a quick check, a few pieces of the rations received while parting from Myna’s group were still in my possession.

Originally, I had been given a week’s worth of rations, but it seemed that only a few pieces remained. Either they were lost in the battle or during the fall.

Counting carefully, even if I rationed it out, three days would be the maximum. Even if I didn’t eat anything and gave everything to Pesaha, five days was the limit.

Apparently, I had lost substantial supplies during the intense battle with Keltarren. It was fortunate that some remained despite the chaos.

After shaking my head, I carefully opened my mouth.

“Pardon me.”

With Pesaha unconscious, I began to search her.

Being a regular person, she must have brought provisions for the journey to Vulkon. While their condition after the chaos was uncertain, it didn’t hurt to check.

“… Three dried meat strips.”

There were at least these three strips.

That relieved the concern about food.

Next came water. I hadn’t carried a waterbag.

Fumbling around Pesaha’s waist, I managed to grasp a waterbag.

Click.

The waterbag seemed unusual.

I could see a crack.

There were traces that it had spilled substantially.

Naturally, the bag was very light.

“……”

Considering her condition, she needed immediate medical care.

Based on the situation earlier, she seemed emotionally unstable.

Trapped deep underground, with an indefinite timeline for escape, our resources consisted only of six days’ worth of food and an empty water bag.

The surroundings were filled with cold air. There was also no way to know when the air would run out.

Buried at the bottom underground, while monsters are still reviving and the dark cultists continue their schemes,

I had to escape this underground place with Pesaha.

‘F*ck this.’

I unleashed a series of creative curses against Keltarren in my mind and closed my eyes.

---