Ch.185185. Jesus Gay (3)

The otherworld based on Corin’s mystery, tentatively called ‘The Sky Without Bottom,’ possesses three major powers.

First, as the name suggests, it literally has no bottom.

The clouds on the ground are connected to the dark clouds in the sky above, making it possible to burrow through the clouds and switch positions.

Thanks to this, without flight abilities, one would fall endlessly until the moment the otherworld dissolves, exposing them to the force of that potential energy. Even if that doesn’t happen, those unfamiliar with aerial combat would face considerable difficulties.

The second ability, on the other hand, is the power to summon ‘dark clouds’ within this otherworld and control them.

These dark clouds, which are the same substance(?) that forms the space connecting the sky and ground to create an area where one can never touch the bottom, are essentially a refined version of Corin’s ‘weather manipulation powers,’ restructured for easier use.

Inside these dark clouds, electrical energy crackles with sparks that would cause slight tingling even for advanced-level beings. Thanks to the special energy surrounding them, these clouds cannot be easily penetrated by outside observation.

Additionally, once deployed according to my will, these dark clouds become ‘fixed’ and never disappear or move due to external factors. As the master of this otherworld, I remain unaffected by any environmental influences within it.

And the grand third ability is the power to unleash a magical attack called ‘Thunder Bird’s Judgment’ toward targets outside the dark clouds—a spell with power rivaling extreme-level magic—without any cost, incantation, or delay.

This magic can manifest as lightning striking from the sky or as thunderous sound waves.

It can become spears made of electrical energy or transform into current itself, electrocuting opponents with dozens of lightning branches.

But perhaps there’s a price for such powerful capabilities—to use this third function, I had to give up the visual obstruction and other functions provided by the second ability.

Since the second and third abilities couldn’t coexist, after much deliberation, I ultimately chose the ability to manipulate dark clouds over the attack function.

In other words, I considered blocking the enemy’s senses more important than attacking.

Being able to spam ‘Thunder Bird’s Judgment’ without delay or cost is certainly impressive.

An extreme-level spell fired repeatedly by an advanced magic user—hardly anything could survive before it.

Of course, one of those rare exceptions stands before me now.

If I could endlessly fire spells, eventually they would collapse, but in my opinion, that orc Yesugeii would probably split my head with his axe before that happens.

Yesugeii is a ‘Totem Warrior,’ rivaling Paladins among vanguard classes for magical resistance.

While Paladins have high tolerance and resistance to magic, Totem Warriors have high magical defense.

He can simply take several extreme-level spells head-on and shrug them off, even withstanding my slash magic with his body alone.

Moreover, my three-way soul resonance… now completed as a four-way resonance, is reaching the end of its duration. Rather than dragging things out, I preferred to resolve the situation quickly.

And the result is this current situation.

Hidden in the dark clouds where Yesugeii couldn’t detect me, I would emerge at opportune moments to launch surprise attacks, gradually accumulating damage on his body.

Clawing with my nails, electrocuting with my wings, hitting, striking, kicking—repeating blow after blow to slowly wear him down.

This tense chicken game, where neither knew who would fall first, continued for some time….

—CRASH!

The end of the otherworld’s duration resulted in dissatisfaction for both sides.

I had tried to bring him down but failed to finish him off, while Yesugeii, though battered by my offensive, had barely managed to survive….

‘This is the worst….’

As the shortened duration of soul resonance finally ended, I instantly reverted to my original form and struggled to overcome the strange weakness permeating my entire body.

Having grown stronger after reaching advanced level, I no longer become completely powerless when soul resonance ends, but even so, how could I remain unaffected after resonating with three animal companions?

While there’s no actual material consumption, something intangible—difficult to express in words… perhaps best described as ‘mental energy’—has been depleted.

Though physically there might be no abnormalities, this strange weakness gripping my entire body feels like a warning.

A warning about what changes might occur to my being if I abuse this soul resonance.

But, even so, I couldn’t bring myself to abandon or let go of this soul resonance power.

“Gruh, gruuuuh….”

To defend against the approaching orc, Yesugeii, who was dragging his ‘blood-soaked axe’ while breathing heavily.

Though he had been reduced to a mess by my continuous attacks, he had somehow recovered enough to move without hindrance thanks to his tattoo’s power, and was now approaching me exuding murderous intent.

With my enhanced physical abilities from resonating with advanced magical beasts now completely gone, I probably wouldn’t even manage a single exchange before being crushed.

Of course… did I not know this?

The situation is one-on-one. A situation where neither seems particularly advantaged or disadvantaged.

I’m clearly cornered by anyone’s standards, while he, though considerably worn down after intense combat, has no immediate impairment to his fighting ability.

Moreover, Yesugeii’s eyes had gone wild with murderous intent toward me….

—WOONG!!

At that moment, someone’s magical power spread throughout the surrounding space, just like when ‘The Sky Without Bottom’ was formed.

The source of this phenomenon—magical power extending as if to dominate the entire space, a precursor to otherworld formation—was, of course, Sophia who had been standing by.

[Blow him away, Gregory!]

Along with my beloved’s telepathic message reaching my mind, Astra’s healing power naturally settled into my body, somewhat restoring my collapsing mental energy.

And after all this was somewhat settled.

Sophia’s otherworld, ‘Two Sides of a Broken Mirror,’ revealed itself.

The otherworld, unfolding to contain myself, Yesugeii, and Sophia who was hiding somewhere, presented an extremely dreamy and beautiful landscape, like something from a dream.

Under a beautiful night sky where the Milky Way cascaded down and numerous stars twinkled, surfaces shaped like broken mirrors reflected their images from different angles.

Of course, this otherworld wasn’t just a beautiful landscape.

The high night sky literally ‘opens,’ and from there, over a hundred white meteors fall to the ground in a formation reminiscent of rain.

‘Celestial Meteor Shower.’ This magic, aptly described as an evolved form of extreme-level magic, targets Yesugeii precisely, but… he is still an advanced warrior boasting top-tier magical defense.

With the red aura from his axe now protecting his body’s surface, Yesugeii raises his axe to block the attack….

“….?!”

Suddenly, he realizes with undisguised bewilderment that his axe has vanished from his hand.

In truth, it hasn’t disappeared. In some world (future), Yesugeii accidentally left his blood-soaked axe outside the otherworld before being caught up in it, and Sophia, as the master of this otherworld, merely recreated that possible future as reality.

This was the true power of Sophia’s otherworld: ‘Materialization of Possibility.’

—KWAGAGAGAGAGAGAK!!!

Above the bewildered Yesugeii’s head, ‘Celestial Meteor Shower’—which in one possibility had been fired tens of seconds earlier—pours down, having instantly gained altitude.

With the possibility of his ‘Totem Tattoo’ activation failing now realized, Yesugeii couldn’t defend in time and was swept up in the attack. Unfortunately for him, he had approached me in his tattered state….

[—Sea!!!]

In that brief moment, I drew out my trident while resonating my somewhat recovered soul with Cretinus, and charged in with currents swirling around me.

The replica trident, activated through the power of the sea god’s divine beast Cretinus, became a weapon capable of wielding fragments of divine authority. Thanks to this, seawater followed the trajectory of my swings with the replica trident….

Soon, this was amplified by Sophia’s otherworld power into countless waters that seemed to engulf the interior of the otherworld.

The area around me became a shallow sea about one meter deep from the endlessly flowing water, and I decided to actively utilize this.

Yesugeii, exposed to consecutive magical attacks in his defenseless state, still harbored murderous intent, but not everything in the world can be resolved by will alone.

Cold penetrating to the bone marrow, electricity shocking the entire body, flames searing the skin crisp. Add to that countless lacerations, bruises, and other wounds.

Already beyond battered and practically a walking corpse, he still managed to endure my attack with a battle cry by summoning his will, but….

I thrust with the trident, push with waves, strike, throw, and thrust again.

The saltwater around me moved in harmony with the trident’s movements to assist my attacks, creating unimaginable pressure for Yesugeii.

Employing what I considered the finest techniques possible with a trident, utilizing the sea god’s power to manipulate the ocean, the result was finally clear.

At last, Yesugeii accepted the humble knock of the trident aimed at his heart.

—SHUNK!

It was an anticlimactic end for the great warrior once called the Khan of the Orcs.