NOVEL WEB Chapter 93
Chapter 93
“A demon who uses swordsmanship…”
This was Eckelart’s first impression of Peshua.
Clad in simple light armor and carrying a single longsword, the figure reminded him of an imperial knight.
In the past, when the empire’s holy power wasn’t as immense, the knights Eckelart had faced were not particularly formidable. For someone chosen by the Tundra, knights clad in steel armor who charged in recklessly were merely easy prey.
“What should I do?”
“Hm? What do you mean?”
“I’m asking, what should I do to take you?”
“Uh… is it okay to tell you this…?”
“Speak.”
The way to obtain a demon.
“First, you need to find a medium that can connect Hell and this place, Solaria, and then offer a sacrifice! After that, all you can do is hope for a fateful connection!”
“…”
“Was that… too difficult?”
“I understood.”
Eckelart already knew how to summon a demon from the past. However, he hadn’t expected to hear it directly from a demon.
“Just hypothetically, if your contractor dies… what happens to you?”
“I’d drift around Solaria for a while, I suppose? Then, when the last bit of magic given by my contractor is used up, I’d have to make a choice. Whether to remain here or to return.”
“A choice, huh… What choice would you make?”
Peshua grinned.
“Hah! My master won’t die. There’s no reason for me to make a choice!”
“No one is immortal. Your contractor will eventually kneel before me.”
Eckelart’s provocation was met with Peshua’s response.
“My master? That’s not going to happen.”
“I have already reached the realm of transcendence. I don’t sense any transcendental energy here, so there’s no one who can stop me.”
He declared this while staring directly at Peshua.
“I will kill you, and I will kill your contractor as well. When the moment comes for you to choose, you’ll understand that my words were true.”
“You know, you’ve probably never fought someone stronger than yourself, have you?”
“…What?”
“Transcendence or whatever, the winner is the stronger one. My grandfather even defeated an Archdemon once.”
“What nonsense is that…”
“Let me make you understand. Draw your weapon.”
Annoyed, Eckelart began to chant a spell.
Chaaaak-!
[Eckelart summons the Glacier Spirit: Randun, through glacial sorcery.]
[Randun spits out Ice Swords and attacks the enemies under its dominion that it has not chosen.]
[The Ice Swords will persist until Randun is destroyed or exorcised, and they cannot be broken.]
Chujajajak-!
A large-headed ghost exuding a bitter cold opened its mouth wide.
– Bwoooaahhh…
Five ice swords of different shapes emerged from Randun’s mouth, and Eckelart chose the one most suitable for wielding.
– Kyaaaaaahhhh-!
Randun, after swallowing the remaining swords, circled around Eckelart. It was clear that the moment he gave the command, it would unleash an overwhelming killing intent and ferocity.
Chaaak-!
[Eckelart summons Glacial Sorcery: Primal Spirit of the Glacier, Kalani.]
[Kalani hands over a glacier bullet to Eckelart every 10 seconds. Eckelart can maintain up to six bullets simultaneously, and the bullets explode upon impact, dealing frost damage.]
– Grrrr…
“The spirit and the primal elemental are natural enemies. Just commanding such beings at the same time makes you more than fit to be my master.”
Peshua frowned and questioned.
“Surely, you don’t think that makes you strong, do you?”
“…I see no need to continue this friendly conversation any longer.”
Fwoosh…
[A boss battle is commencing.]
[The Demon of Resurrection, Peshua, blocks all escape routes with flames.]
[Peshua’s unique trait 【Indomitable】 is now in effect.]
Fwoosh…
Flames flickered across Peshua’s body.
[Peshua’s basic ability: Blazing Flames has been activated.]
[Peshua will continuously regenerate a significant amount of life force until the end of the battle.]
“High heat, huh… It won’t be difficult to deal with.”
Between ice and fire, ice has the upper hand. Moreover, the superiority of elements often depends on which side has reached a higher level.
‘This will be an easy victory.’
To Eckelart, Peshua was an incredibly easy opponent.
“First… I should make you aware of your insolence.”
He wouldn’t make the same mistake he made with Ipos.
Eckelart focused on long-range attacks to ensure that Peshua couldn’t even approach him.
“Randun.”
As Randun began to float, it unleashed an ice sword toward where Peshua stood.
Boom-!
The sound of the ground shaking.
Peshua was no longer there.
[Peshua uses Mirage Dance.]
[When moving, mirages rise, disorienting vision. Additionally, the speed of all projectiles passing through the mirages is reduced by 30%, and tracking functions are nullified.]
[If enough mirages fill the battlefield, a Heat Vortex can be cast.]
A skill set specially prepared by Faust for the battle against Eckelart. It’s a set of skills that can handle most situations when fighting against a sorcerer.
‘As expected of my lord!’
Peshua thought as he faced Eckelart, with the mirages between them.
‘The Transcendent is indeed transcendent. What incredible power!’
He possessed even greater magical power than Urea, who Peshua had recently witnessed in the Autumn War, a being that wouldn’t fall. On top of that, Peshua was in a state where he had the worst possible unique trait: Indomitable.
Since the outcome of the battle was already decided, he had to think about how to inflict a critical wound on his opponent.
‘Should I cut off an arm? No… Physical loss means nothing to a Transcendent….’
He would simply restore his body using that immense magical power. The situation was grim in many ways.
“I don’t care anymore! I’m charging in!”
Whoosh-!
With the lingering traces of flames, Peshua charged straight at Eckelart.
“Randun.”
Swoosh-!
After guiding the ice sword, Eckelart redirected it to counter the mirage.
Whoosh…
The projectiles momentarily slowed, and Peshua seized the opportunity to circle around Eckelart, as if rotating like the hands of a clock.
“It’s pointless.”
Peshua was thinking of closing the distance by spinning around like the second hand of a clock. However, Eckelart, having seen through that impure intent, cast a spell to thwart it.
Shhhh-!
[Eckelart uses Glacial Sorcery: Glacier Formation.]
[A massive ice wall is created within a certain range.]
Crack-crack-crack-crack-!
A colossal ice wall emerged from Eckelart’s hand.
Fwoosh…
[Peshua uses Scorching Slash.]
[Deals explosive slashing damage to a single target.]
Boom-!
Sizzle…
The ice wall shattered as Peshua’s spinning continued.
“Tsk….”
Peshua’s strength was simple.
Fast, strong, and scorching hot.
That was all, and yet, something about Peshua still sent chills down Eckelart’s spine.
Whoosh-!
Having closed the distance, Peshua lunged straight in.
“Not so fast!”
Pop-!
An ice spear shot reflexively from Eckelart’s hand, while at the same time, the ice sword of the ghost Randun targeted Peshua.
Whoosh…
Whoosh…
However, with Peshua’s bizarre movements combined with the mirages that obstructed the projectiles, the hit rate dropped significantly.
With just one ability, Peshua was neutralizing the vast array of powers Eckelart possessed.
Swoosh-!
Before Eckelart knew it, Peshua had reached right in front of him, swinging his sword.
[Peshua uses Scorching Slash.]
[Deals explosive slashing damage to a single target.]
Sizzle-!
‘I blocked it!’
The moment Eckelart felt a surge of joy after blocking Peshua’s main attack with an ice sword.
Creak…
Peshua suddenly withdrew his strength and twisted the trajectory of the sword, swinging it from another angle.
Clang-!
Eckelart, who managed to block that first strike, felt a cold sweat run down his back.
‘With a sword… I can’t win.’
Even though his transcendent body reflexively blocked Peshua’s unpredictable sword strikes, it was merely a stroke of luck. His opponent intentionally used a sword technique that was so incomprehensible that even he could only consider it luck when he managed to block it.
“You, this spot’s weak, isn’t it?”
Clang-!
Clang-!
Peshua, laughing wickedly, pressed the attack like a demon. In response, Eckelart extended his left hand.
“Die, demon.”
“Ugh, this is quite….”
Eckelart summoned six glacier bullets, thanks to the primal spirit Kalani.
Boom-boom-boom-boom-boom-!
Peshua dodged most of the bullets but couldn’t avoid being hit by one in the end.
Boom-!
That single hit sent Peshua flying, crashing hard into the ground.
The difference in power was overwhelming.
“Randun!”
Determined to finish the fight, Eckelart launched a bold offensive. Two ice swords were unleashed simultaneously.
Pop-!
Sensing the danger, Peshua sprang to his feet and took a step forward.
Then, a massive heat vortex erupted, melting the surrounding snow.
Roar-!
[Peshua activates Heat Vortex.]
[The heat vortex spins at high speed, emitting flames. It also pulls in all nearby projectiles, and when the rotation ends, it shoots the pulled-in projectiles in all directions.]
The two ice swords and spears that Eckelart had painstakingly fired were all sucked into the vortex.
‘Where is she?’
More concerning to Eckelart was the fact that Peshua had disappeared.
‘She must be hiding within the radius of the vortex.’
She was likely planning to strike the moment the vortex’s rotation ended, using the chaos from the absorbed projectiles as cover for a surprise attack.
‘Was her plan to make me fall victim to my own sorcery?’
“…That won’t work.”
Shhhh-!
[Eckelart uses Glacial Sorcery: Ice Cocoon.]
[A sturdy ice wall rises to form a spherical shield, protecting from all directions.]
Crack-crack-crack-crack-!
Several ice walls shot up, forming a round, egg-shaped cocoon around Eckelart.
Shhhh-!
[Eckelart uses Glacial Sorcery: Ice Fortress.]
[A massive ice fortress wall rises around Eckelart, extending in all directions.]
Crack-crack-crack-!
Beyond the fortress walls, the heat vortex could still be seen.
Even if the vortex’s rotation stopped and the projectiles were launched toward him, they would be unable to penetrate the fortress and would cause no harm.
* * *
Fwoosh…
As Eckelart had predicted, Peshua was hiding behind the heat vortex, waiting for the right moment to strike.
Crack-crack-crack-!
The defense sorcery was so impressive that it elicited a sigh of admiration.
‘Can I break through this?’
Peshua pondered deeply.
Was she afraid of failing her mission?
Or was she afraid of being abandoned?
…No.
Her master didn’t trust her. He simply knew her capabilities.
He knew how sharp she was as a sword.
He knew what she could and could not cut.
Even if a single slash left only a shallow wound, it would be the wielder’s responsibility, not the sword’s fault.
With those words, she was saved.
In the relationship that had been filled with emptiness, a ripple had formed.
She could now proudly call the place where she resided her home. And that meant more than anything.
A sword must not hesitate.
Its thoughts must be simple, and its will must have direction.
It’s not about how not to be abandoned, but how to become sharper.
Now, Peshua could give her all.
So that her master could fully evaluate her as the sword she was meant to be.
Lately, she hadn’t fought with all her strength.
‘This time, I’ll give it everything….’
Eckelart was strong.
It was only natural, as he was a Transcendent.
But having reached that level only recently, he wasn’t yet a true Transcendent in the full sense. He was just a mass of immense magical power.
On the other hand, demons were different.
They were monsters who had honed the art of combat to the extreme.
Fwoosh…
Flames flared up on Peshua’s sword.
A demon knew better than anyone how to fight an opponent stronger than themselves.
Creak…
Creak…
The heat of the vortex was beginning to wane.
Soon, it would scatter the absorbed projectiles in all directions and dissipate in a fiery explosion.
What remained on the battlefield was a fortress of ice and, beyond its walls, an isolated swordsman.
What was about to unfold would be both inspiring and strange.
‘Breathe deeply, focus the heat into a single point…’
This story was connected to Faust’s past.
The reality he faced in Solaria was always more unfortunate and absurd than the original story.
Kal Curso was stronger than in the original, using a wider array of abilities, and the unpleasant trio had appeared not as three, but as five, joined by the lions of the Blood Church.
The collapse of the decayed root, which he had never experienced before, and the massacre of the Blue Witches, who should have survived—these were all unexpected outcomes, as if they were designed to drag him into despair.
However, here and now, in a place he hadn’t anticipated, there was a small four-leaf clover.
‘A sharp and heated thrust. Sharp and hot… sharp… and hot…’
Whoosh-!
The vortex scattered, shooting projectiles in all directions. Naturally, ill fortune followed, as an ice spear shot directly at Peshua.
Thwack-!
Peshua sacrificed her left arm to alter the spear’s trajectory.
Creak…
Her right arm continued with its original intention.
Boom-!
In a posture that seemed as if she were being shot forward, she launched a fierce thrust.
[Peshua uses Sun in the Lens.]
[Attempts an ultra-heated thrust. The thrust deals physical and fire damage, and if it hits, the target is guaranteed to ignite, suffering continuous fire damage.]
Boom-!
Crack-!
The fortress wall was pierced, but the strength of the cocoon prevented full penetration.
However—
“Urgh….”
A sharp and heated thrust.
[A familiar has unlocked a new ability after intense training.]
[Sun in the Lens transforms into Drawing the Dragon’s Eye.]
Creak…
The trajectory of the thrust grew larger, transforming into the shape of an Eastern dragon, and then it pierced straight through the ice wall in front.
Boom-!
[Peshua uses Drawing the Dragon’s Eye.]
[Attempts an ultra-heated thrust in a straight line, releasing a fire dragon along the thrust’s trajectory.]
[The fire dragon deals 500% of the attack’s power as fire damage, and any target hit by the dragon suffers an additional 100% physical damage from the thrust.]
Fwoosh…
The ice cocoon melted away in an instant under the fire dragon’s onslaught, and the thrust struck Eckelart in the chest.
Pssshhhh…
“What… in the world…?”
For Faust, this was an utterly unfamiliar, yet surprisingly positive, turn of events. Something he hadn’t anticipated.
“…Huh?”
Fssss…
Peshua disappeared, engulfed in flames and feathers.
[Peshua is forced to lose as she has dealt sufficient damage to the party.]
[The effect of Indomitable nullifies any excess damage the enemy received beyond the limited damage.]
[If the enemy was killed by this damage, they will resurrect.]
[Peshua returns to the flames. She will resurrect shortly.]
[The gate’s magic power is insufficient.]
[Peshua will not resurrect.]
[The boss battle is over.]
……
In that moment, what unfolded in the battle between Eckelart and Peshua was something that neither Faust, the Akad party, nor even Peshua herself could have predicted.