Ch.146Chapter 146. The End of the Battle (3)

“This can’t be happening…!”

Arte was in a state of panic, frantically looking around.

She gathered mana in both arms, closed her eyes and concentrated.

‘It’s gone!’

“Eeek!”

There was nothing in Arte’s mind anymore.

Until just moments ago, she had been connected to thousands upon thousands of monsters, but not anymore.

The feeling of omnipotence—like she could do anything with tens of thousands of monsters—had vanished in an instant.

It was a sensation too difficult to accept.

When the connection with the monsters was severed, Arte felt like she had lost everything.

Realizing that struggling inside the cave wouldn’t change anything, Arte hurriedly went outside.

Currently, the monsters should be waiting a short distance from the cave, following her previous orders.

Arte called for the wyvern she frequently used for transportation, but it didn’t come.

The massive black wyvern that used to fly to her immediately when called.

“Arrrgh!”

Arte let out a frustrated cry as she summoned her own creature for the first time in a long while.

Whoosh—

The gaseous creature enveloped Arte with a whistling sound, and she irritably surrendered herself to it as she took flight.

Though she instinctively knew her connection with the monsters had been severed, she felt she needed to confirm it with her own eyes.

Perhaps if she got closer to the monsters, her control might return.

And so, Arte arrived at the monsters’ location, clutching at straws.

“…!”

Arte was struck speechless by the scene unfolding before her eyes.

The place that had been a monster “legion” gathering spot until just moments ago had completely transformed.

Kieeeek-! Kyaaaak!

It was a bloodbath.

Tens of thousands of monsters were tearing at each other as if they had lost their minds.

Even when she closed her eyes and opened them again, thinking she might be seeing things wrong, nothing changed.

The tens of thousands of monsters were biting, clawing, tearing, and eating each other.

“Ah, ahhh…”

A hollow sound of disbelief escaped Arte’s lips.

Shocked by the scene, Arte failed to notice something.

The monsters fighting at the gathering site weren’t simply fighting because they had lost Arte’s control.

It was instinctual behavior.

What happens when monsters not under Satan’s or Arte’s control are gathered in one place:

Monsters that are natural enemies fight each other, and the strong devour the weak.

“Nooooo!”

Arte’s scream echoed emptily.

Neither her voice nor any of her will could reach the monsters.

The monsters were no longer controlled by Satan’s power.

Kieeek-!

The cry of some unidentifiable monster sounded even louder in Arte’s ears.

At the same time, Arte finally realized something.

The fact that the monsters had lost control meant something had happened to the being who had given them power.

“Lord Satan?”

It was Arte’s anxious mutter as she sensed something was wrong.

**

“Huk, huk!”

Elaine barely managed to hold herself up while taking rough, labored breaths.

She still felt a strong pressure around her neck, as if someone were strangling her.

After collapsing on the ground for a while, trying to catch her breath, Elaine finally spoke.

“Haaaa.”

At last, a somewhat calmer voice escaped Elaine’s lips.

Her chest was still pounding and her throat still hurt, but she could manage.

As soon as she regained consciousness and could move her body, Elaine looked around.

‘Pathetic, so pathetic.’

There was no one around.

Neither Ryu nor Satan who had been strangling her.

Splash- Swoosh-

The only movement Elaine could see was the waves crashing with sound.

Thud-

Elaine silently struck the sandy ground with her clenched fist.

Ryu had come to save her.

She had tried to stay as far away as possible to avoid hindering Ryu, but ultimately failed.

Just when she thought it was over after being captured by Satan, Ryu appeared once more to save her.

Ryu, who appeared blocking Satan’s fist, had dominated Satan throughout.

Though she didn’t know exactly what was happening, Elaine could sense it instinctively.

The fact that Ryu held an overwhelmingly advantageous position in the battle between the two.

And just when she thought it was almost over with the reversed atmosphere, she was captured.

She couldn’t remember much after that.

All that remained in Elaine’s memory was the intense pain that made her consciousness fade.

Looking around at the surroundings where no trace of life could be felt, Elaine blamed herself over and over.

If she hadn’t been here, the battle between Ryu and Satan would have ended with Ryu’s overwhelming victory.

Then the human alliance would have defeated the resurrected devil Satan and restored peace to the continent.

‘If only I hadn’t been kidnapped in the first place.’

Elaine couldn’t stay still with the overwhelming self-blame and self-loathing.

It wasn’t this bad even when she was kidnapped by the elder of the Nameless Organization in O’Neil Kingdom.

She never thought she would feel such anger and helplessness that made her body tremble.

Though she couldn’t remember the process, the last image of Ryu and Satan was clearly imprinted in Elaine’s memory.

Satan’s black hand reaching out.

Ryu’s figure emerging from the void, embracing her.

And the scene of both of them disappearing somewhere simultaneously.

Ryu’s final action was clearly meant to save her.

Until the very end, she had been nothing but a hindrance, let alone help.

The two who had disappeared hadn’t reappeared despite quite some time passing.

Having glimpsed the battle between the two, albeit briefly, Elaine instinctively felt it.

That something had definitely happened to Ryu who disappeared with Satan.

“Uaaaah!”

Elaine’s frustrated roar echoed emptily on the deserted island.

**

“Something must be wrong.”

“…”

Despite seeing clear results, Addy was shaking her head, denying the outcome.

She looked like a child stubbornly refusing to accept reality.

Yuria looked at Addy with pity before shifting her gaze back to the signal device.

The main unit of the emergency signal device connected to all captains including the commander.

Yuria had been waiting in the office with Addy since the commander left to rescue Elaine and settle things with Satan.

Surely thinking that the commander would return after defeating Satan with his playful demeanor.

But what greeted them wasn’t the commander’s playful appearance.

It was the severed signal from the emergency signal device.

The emergency signal device, created with the help of the Dragon Heart, never lost its signal no matter where on the continent it was.

Even if it fell into the deep sea where the human body couldn’t withstand, the signal device would still send a signal.

But that signal device’s signal had been cut off completely.

As if it no longer existed on this continent.

“Yuria, please check it again. If necessary, I can bring the Dragon Heart embedded in the building.”

“…”

Yuria couldn’t respond to Addy’s words.

Though not as much as Yuria, Addy, who knew how to handle magic, surely knew.

That all signal devices except the commander’s were shown to be normally connected, and there was nothing wrong with the magical device.

“Addy.”

“It doesn’t make sense for the commander’s signal to be cut off. There must be an error in the mana detection…”

“Addy.”

After quietly listening to Addy, Yuria firmly cut her off, feeling it couldn’t go on any longer.

Reading Yuria’s intention from her voice, Addy stopped speaking.

“That’s enough, Addy.”

“…”

This time, no response came from Addy’s lips.

Addy just bit her lower lip hard while looking at the signal device with cloudy eyes.

“For now, let’s go to where the commander’s signal was last seen.”

“…Yes.”

Addy responded with a shaky voice to Yuria’s calm words.

The place where the commander had gone to rescue Elaine was an island located near the eastern edge of the continent.

It would take at least a few days for Yuria and Addy to get there, as they couldn’t teleport freely like the commander.

They needed to leave as soon as possible.

“Haaa.”

Addy sighed deeply as she began preparing to leave the office.

Watching her, Yuria first picked up the signal device’s main unit from the table.

“Yuria.”

As they were leaving the office, Addy called Yuria’s name in a much calmer voice than before.

Yuria looked at Addy with a serious expression instead of answering.

Reading Yuria’s gaze, Addy continued.

“The fact that the signal device’s signal has been cut off means.”

“Two things. Originally there would be only one possibility, but since it’s the commander who had the signal device.”

Yuria answered Addy’s words as if she had been waiting for them.

There was only one meaning to the signal being cut off.

The person carrying the signal device had died, and the device was destroyed.

But for Commander Ryuyeong, who could teleport, another possibility existed.

The possibility that the signal device hadn’t been destroyed but had truly disappeared from the continent.

It was a possibility that could only be considered because of the commander who could transcend space.

“…Let’s hurry.”

Addy quickened her pace with a determined voice, as if not wanting to let go of the last hope.

Not properly predicting how harsh the truth she would soon discover would be.