The Protagonists of Romance Fantasy Novels Have Escaped

156 – 156. The Place You Are Heading (2)

Edanant.

I’m sorry, Edanant.

The wretched and foolish woman wept until the very last moment, repenting.

Why—

Why on earth had I desperately sought forgiveness?

No matter how fervently I spoke, it would never reach the one who longed for forgiveness. Yet, the pitiful and foolish woman fell into eternal slumber, leaving behind only a fleeting sigh until the very end.

I cannot understand.

Even after rewinding the memories of that woman countless times in my mind.

Longing. Respect. Regret. Guilt.

It was a complex amalgamation of emotions far too intricate for a newly born monster to comprehend.

Edanant von Hohenberg.

Was that man truly such a precious person?

So much so that I trembled, parting my frozen lips to utter his name?

To become the pure white saint beloved by all, I needed to understand the sorrowful feelings that lingered in my heart like dying embers. Only by grasping those emotions could I finally become the pure white saint.

Edanant.

What kind of being is he, truly?

I must confirm.

I had to confront what kind of existence this outsider from beyond was.

Only then—

It had to be so.

* * *

Thud—

Blackened blood spilled forth.

The monster gazing at him felt a surge of emotions swelling in its chest.

It hurts.

Like being pierced by a sharp stake.

Why on earth?

I made him that way.

He denied me. He dared to label me a “freak.”

It’s only natural retribution.

He should writhe in pain, bleeding.

The monster, with its hair cascading like white threads, trembled its slender shoulders as it stared at Edanant. Despite asserting the righteousness of its actions as if under a spell, the pitifully trembling emotions refused to settle.

—It really hurts like hell.

“…Step back. Edanant cannot defeat me. Next time, I will truly kill you.”

This is not a lie.

It is certainly not a deception.

The power of the death-infused incantation could even kill a god.

It takes life.

A very monotonous and simple ability, yet its lethality is undeniable.

As if to prove this, I pushed Edanant to the brink of death in an instant. Had the incantation of instant death succeeded, Edanant would have become a guest of the afterlife right then and there.

-Return Beatrice. I won’t say it twice.

Edanant warned, wiping away the blood that dripped from him.

He had no intention of stepping back.

Even after nearly losing his life to the grip of death.

In the face of a desperate situation with slim chances of survival, all he wanted was to get Beatrice back. I felt a deep rage, almost overwhelming, at Edanant’s unwavering stance.

“I told you I am Beatrice! Why do you keep insisting otherwise!”

-Stubbornness? I consider it a natural assertion of self.

“She’s just a foolish woman who chose her own destruction. You know that, Edanant? Despite being a coward, incompetent and foolish, she drove not only herself but also the men who loved her to ruin with her misguided sacrifice!”

-…….

That is the truth.

Beatrice chose her own destruction.

To prevent the end of the world,

She summoned the death-infused incantation to restore the world, which was turning gray, back to its original state.

It is merely the result of cause and effect.

Even Maximilian, who remained until the end, accepted the fate of cause and effect by using his life force to forever isolate the Demon King’s castle. All the cursed beings who had fallen were likely of the same mind as Maximilian.

-What I desire is a world with foolish and meddlesome people. Even if the gray of the end disappears and the world returns to its original state… it would mean nothing without them.

“…….”

-I will bring them back. And then I can stop the end of the world again.

“…That’s absurd.”

It is an outrageous claim.

It would have been better if he had quietly accepted the sacrifices of the fools.

If the saint party were to be freed from the curse of the incantation, the end of the world, which had been postponed, would begin to move again. Edanant’s actions were nothing but a selfish folly aimed at plunging the world back into crisis.

Yet, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of envy towards Edanant’s actions.

– You can never become Beatrice.

“Shut up…!”

Edanant declared as he took a step forward.

The monster twisted its beautiful face in rage, expressing its fury.

– There is only one Beatrice in this world.

“I don’t care. Beatrice is already dead. If she were still alive, I could just kill her.

KWAANG-!!

Crash, crash, crash.

The intensification of war erupted.

At the same time, a giant wrapped in a blizzard began to move.

The futile exchange of words had come to an end.

Now, the only remaining choice was to subdue the opponent with sheer strength.

As the bombardment rained down, the death’s residue that guarded the monster stretched out its hands to block it. Following that, the death’s residue swung its fist wrapped in a blizzard, threatening Edanant.

* * *

The giant, a grotesque amalgamation of demons and undead, was a manifestation of death’s residue.

It was not the main body.

But it was exceedingly close to it.

Even in its incomplete form, with only the upper body summoned, it was enough to threaten Edanant. It exhaled a blizzard that seemed capable of freezing space itself, wielding a spear forged from cold.

KWA-HA-HA-HA-HA-.

Every time the sharp spear tip struck down, extensive cracks appeared. And as the cracks exploded, sharp ice surged forth.

If it touches you, it’s the end.

The spear possessed the power to trap its target in an ice hell, whether it be by slicing or piercing.

Is it planning to mummify me?

If I allow that single strike, I would be preserved as an ice statue for eternity.

– But that cannot happen.

Fire erupted.

Surface-to-air missiles mounted on the launch pad flew out in unison.

There was only one target-.

The death’s residue guarding the monster.

The surface-to-air missiles flew through the fierce blizzard, piercing into the death’s residue. At the same time, the sharp warheads that succeeded in penetrating exploded, delivering a devastating blow.

Kuuung.

One shoulder and arm fell away.

And cracks appeared all over the massive body, as if it would shatter at any moment.

*“Nothing allows the flow except for me. Everything stops.”*

The chunks of ice that had been pouring down,

The thunderous roar that resulted from it,

Even the surface-to-air missiles that were continuing from the launch pad all came to a halt in an instant.

The spirit had seized time.

Even the flow of space revealed its helplessness against the spirit’s power.

This was something that should have been impossible.

The range of the spirit’s influence was limited to objects with clear forms.

The power of the spirit, now integrated with the essence of death, had come to bind even time and space. In a world frozen in an instant, Edanant, who was maintaining his sanity, gasped at the sight before him.

*“Fly away.”*

*Tu-whaaang!!*

The physical force of the spirit erupted.

In a world where time had stopped, Edanant, permitted to attack, was thrown backward with a fierce explosion.

He rolled several times on the ground.

Since everything was still frozen, he couldn’t brace for the fall.

Thus, Edanant had to crash into the wall like a rotting tree, defenseless.

-Not only has it stopped objects, but now it’s even halted time? This damn spirit…!

*“Cough, cough…!”*

He gritted his teeth and lifted his head.

The sight of a monster coughing up blood came into view.

The spirit retaliated.

Because it had violated not just the laws of physics but the very principles of the world.

With a groan filled with agony, he clutched his neck and spat out blood. Even the power of the spirit, which had an infinite range, seemed to have clear limits.

-Stop it. If you keep overdoing it, your throat will be ruined.

*“Why are you worried about me…? Edanant, weren’t you planning to kill me?”*

-That’s true. There’s a limit to meddling. Worrying about safety against an enemy is absurd.

*“……”*

I can’t hate you.

No matter how much I was hurt, I could never truly hate you.

Love is poison.

And it was a curse that endlessly weakened the heart.

Could it be that some remnants of that woman, who had fallen into eternal slumber, still lingered in my heart? A faint smile spread across her blood-stained lips.

“Try to overcome me, Edanant. Otherwise, that woman will never awaken.”

The chill of death surged forth.

The black frost that had wrapped around my entire body eventually became a suit of armor, scattering the otherworldly essence.

The armor of war.

It was strikingly similar to the full armor that Edanant had deployed.

Perhaps it was a suit of armor that imitated Edanant’s technique. Aside from the feature that accentuated the woman’s slender figure, it was practically a replica.

—Yes.

As Edanant extended his hand, he took a step forward.

As if to express his will, a crimson torrent surged, wrapping around Edanant.

A girl appeared.

The girl who emerged from behind Edanant reached out her hand, lending her strength.

The identity of the girl with flowing red hair was the essence of war. Though she had not materialized, she was in a state akin to a spirit, wrapping her hands around Edanant’s neck to fully unleash his power.

Win.

The war whispered.

In response, Edanant drew forth his utmost divinity.

─────!!!

No further conversation was needed.

They would simply clash.

In a bid to save the saintess, they wielded their divinity against each other, each wanting to become that saintess.

War. Death.

The crimson torrent and the pitch-black frost storm collided, shaking the Demon King’s castle.

Countless weapons emerged, but once again, they were destroyed by the power of the war’s essence. Nevertheless, the essence of war displayed a madness that summoned nearly countless weapons, as if it had completely unleashed its limits.

Iron blood.

The spectacle of guns and cannons formed from the crimson torrent evoked the image of iron forged from blood.

As the monster, who had shown a relaxed demeanor while skillfully wielding the power of the war’s essence and the divinity of death, gradually felt urgency rise on her beautiful face. This was because the bombardment intensified, beginning to grow in scale.

Amplification.

The special power possessed by the essence of war.

The strength, amplified repeatedly, will soon swallow even death itself.

“I won’t allow that. ‘Arise, O power of death that annihilates all living beings.'”

Kuddddddddddd.

As the monster gestured, the half-destroyed essence of death rose up, resurrected.

All wounds healed.

Moreover, the giant of the grotesque, which had only a upper body, now gained a lower half.

The giant of death stood tall, stretching out both hands. In response, a colossal sword of icy chill, capable of cleaving the Demon King’s castle in two, was placed in the giant’s grasp.

That sword is dangerous.

One misstep could lead to a single fatal blow.

Edanant, gazing at the battlefield amidst the crimson whirlpool, let out a gasp of disbelief.

“Edanant!!”

As the clash of war and death surged toward its climax,

a woman’s sharp scream echoed.

Crimson whirlpool. Pitch-black storm of frost.

In a situation where the outcome of the battle seemed poised to be decided in an instant, a new variable flew in, bringing with it the possibility of change.

Elizabeta.

The third princess of the empire appeared, escorted by grand sorcerers.

Kuwung-.

With the appearance of the villainous noblewoman, an anomaly occurred.

The giant of death, which seemed ready to strike down with its great sword at any moment, retreated as if taking a cue. Such a sudden change spread shock across the monster’s beautiful face.