Ch.56Cold Rain Fell (3)

The black clouds begin to transform.

They gather together, forming six distinct weapons.

Sword, blade, spear, axe, hammer, and dagger.

The various weapons wait eagerly for Rahilt’s command.

A slight movement.

The master of the Authority flicked his index finger.

Whoosh!

The dagger flew through the air. It moved freely through the void like a fish with smooth scales.

Its target was Luca.

Though the sorcerer might not pose a critical threat, he was skilled at driving others into crisis. Eliminating Luca first would make purging the others easier.

Despite his loss of reason, Rahilt made the optimal decision.

‘So fast…!’

Even to manipulate space required precise coordinate settings. But the dagger’s final destination was unpredictable as it darted through the air.

So Luca raised the earth in a dome shape, surrounding himself on all sides. The earthen wall was thick enough that the dagger couldn’t penetrate it.

In that instant, Serin noticed Luca’s misjudgment first.

‘The rest of the weapons… can’t just be for show…!’

Thump!

Serin kicked the ground.

As if confirming her judgment, the hammer formed from black mist hovered in the air directly above Luca.

The moment Rahilt’s index finger dropped—

CRASH!

The black hammer fell with unnatural acceleration.

“Tch.”

Only someone like her, whose physical strength far exceeded normal humans, could block something like this. Understanding this instinctively, she kicked away the black hammer.

Bang!

The impact against her foot sounded like a cannon blast.

Above the deflected hammer, the sword, blade, and spear floated, surrounding her from all directions.

Rahilt controlled the weapons’ performance like an orchestra conductor.

‘I can’t dodge this…!’

The advantage of shadow swordsmanship wasn’t its destructive power, but its ability to execute movements beyond human limitations. That’s exactly what was happening now.

Multiple weapons curved through the air with threatening trajectories. There was no way to counter each one.

So Serin made a quick decision.

“If I can’t dodge… then head-on…!”

Boom.

She pushed off the ground forcefully with her feet.

She fixed her gaze forward. The menacing weapons emanated an ominous black energy.

At that moment—

Whoosh!

The flying dagger grazed Serin’s shoulder. Red blood sprayed for an instant, but Serin’s feet continued moving forward.

Luca and Kanarin were shocked by Serin’s reckless behavior. And as if to extinguish this feeble flame completely, the massive hammer fell toward Serin’s crown.

CRASH!

“No…!”

“Serin!”

It was reckless. She should have sought cooperation instead of charging ahead alone.

Just as Kanarin and Luca held their breath—

Boom!

The sound of rolling across the floor echoed.

It was the reverberating sound from Serin’s strength.

Supporting the black hammer with her right arm and steadily advancing, Serin looked like a divine warrior descended from heaven.

That abnormal determination sent chills down the spines of those watching.

And the intense determination condensed in her eyes was the source of the awe she commanded.

“…Let’s go, Luca!”

“Mm!”

The reckless judgment to receive attacks head-on while advancing—a strategy only Serin could execute, having inherited the Emperor’s body that had once overwhelmed Rahilt.

It had been a long battle.

If they didn’t end it now, they would have no choice but to resort to their final measures. Kanarin was certain of this.

Grrrr.

The ground shook violently.

Luca’s magic worked to remove the hammer Serin was carrying with a rising floor. Immediately after, Kanarin leaped toward the five rushing weapons.

“Skill activation – Dance of the Celestial Maiden.”

[Assist mode activated.]

[Correcting movements of user: Kanarin Rupenter.]

Whoosh!

Kanarin’s body tilted almost horizontally. Like metal drawn to a magnet, the ice spear danced elegantly at her fingertips.

There were no gaps in the beautiful trajectory drawn by the crystallized snowflakes. Moreover, the weapons with cloud-like properties had poor compatibility with the ice spear.

Kanarin landed on the ground after blocking all the incoming weapons.

“It’s not over yet!”

If the weapons were held by human hands, the situation would already be resolved. But those floating in the air could scatter and gather in an instant according to Rahilt’s will.

“Run, Serin! And Luca, cover her!”

“Yes!”

“Got it!”

Kanarin and Luca took positions on either side of Serin. They were injured and defended against the black weapons that cut, stabbed, and struck down, desperately clearing a path for Serin to run.

Splash.

Blood sprayed along the way.

A faint trail of blood, diluted by rainwater, stretched in a straight line toward Rahilt.

“Haa… haa…”

Rahilt’s figure was right before her eyes. Serin advanced through the trials step by step over the short remaining distance.

She deflected the swimming dagger and avoided the spinning blade.

Thump. Thump. Thump!

At the end of her relentless charge, Rahilt drew closer.

Just as color returned to Serin’s face—

A sharp spear plunged down with tremendous force and speed.

Whoosh!

In response, Serin let out a battle cry.

“Haaaap!”

She committed the insane act of countering a blade with her fist.

A strike delivered with faith in the dragon emperor’s body. And a feat accomplished through determination that temporarily numbed her sense of pain.

And the extraordinary usually overcomes the ordinary.

Thwack!

The black spear scattered and dissipated into cloud form.

“Riaaaaan!”

CRASH!

She jumped with all her might. Spinning like a top, she wrapped her entire body in the familiar rotational sensation. She loaded merciless power into the centrifugal force.

Spinning back kick.

The destructive technique she had honed since her previous life bared its fangs.

That’s when it happened.

Crack, crackle!

Sparks flew from the black spear—now transformed into cloud form—that had been shattered by Serin’s fist.

An ominously familiar precursor.

Kanarin and Luca were too busy blocking the remaining weapons.

“No!”

Screams erupted from the group.

There was no way the airborne Serin could avoid it. Nature’s fastest disaster would mercilessly pierce Serin’s chest.

Then a bright light filled the entire main building.

Flash!

“Ah…!”

Kanarin let out a sharp cry.

Lightning that could split even an ancient tree in two struck Serin, forcing Kanarin to squeeze her eyes shut.

Boom, rumble…

Thunder arrived belatedly. Even then, Kanarin couldn’t bring herself to look at Serin.

“Cough!”

A coughing sound was heard.

The source was—right in front of Rahilt.

The final destination Serin had reached through sheer determination.

The smell of burning flesh filled the air. Torn and singed clothes fluttered. Yet her eyes remained unbroken. They consistently held a straight path directed solely at Rahilt.

That heart—bearing fruit that was by no means in vain,

“Haaaaaaap!”

Her full-powered technique struck Rahilt’s body.

CRASH!

Rahilt fell, dragging along the ground.

This opportunity couldn’t be missed. She needed to pursue him to the end and render Rahilt incapable of fighting.

Knowing this better than anyone, Serin tried to move her body, but—

Sizzle!

Her entire body tingled.

The aftereffects of being directly hit by lightning crawled through her body. It seemed her immature body couldn’t handle the lightning’s aftereffects.

“Narin unnie… Second Prince…!”

She wanted to ask them to handle Rahilt in her place. Just as she was about to convey this, Serin’s heart sank.

They were still busy dealing with the weapons threatening them from the air.

Which meant—

“Rian is still…?!”

Serin quickly got up. Having pushed her body to its limits, she staggered heavily.

Bad premonitions always come true with chilling accuracy.

Rustle.

A familiar figure rose from the debris, dusting himself off. He too was staggering. It would be strange if Serin’s full-powered kick hadn’t had any impact.

After all, even though she was young, Serin was the blood of the man who had been Rahilt’s natural enemy.

“Haa…”

A labored breath escaped. From Rahilt’s mouth—something she never thought she’d hear.

Crack, crackle!

The weapons that had been darting through the air disappeared, scattering outside the main building. All three people focused their gaze on Rahilt at this strange occurrence.

Eventually, he spoke.

“Yes… I didn’t need to defeat you…”

Rahilt was following the same pattern as his wager with the Emperor from that time.

“I just need to destroy everything first.”

Boom, rumble!!!

The earth shook.

Everyone lost their balance and stumbled at the tremendous scale of the vibration.

At first, they thought an earthquake had occurred. They were filled with despair, wondering if the Dragon’s Authority controlled not only the sky but the earth as well.

The moment they realized this was a misjudgment came soon.

Grrrrrr…

A strange floating sensation filled the interior. The first person to guess the cause of this unknown floating sensation was Luca.

“This is insane, surely not…!”

Luca immediately rushed to the window. And right away, he witnessed the cause of the situation.

“Huh…”

Clouds filled the space below the main building. And the clouds exerting physical force were tearing the main building away from the palace and soaring leisurely into the sky.

“Is anything really possible for you…?!”

Perhaps because it required an enormous mass of clouds, the cloudy world all around had cleared, with dense clouds forming a circle only around the main building. This was probably why the weapons formed from clouds had disappeared.

Serin, Kanarin, and Luca were all dizzy from an experience they’d never had before.

They were at an altitude they’d only seen from airplanes in their previous lives.

Kanarin wasn’t one to leisurely observe and share impressions. With Luca’s help, she clearly observed the abnormal formation of the clouds.

Layer upon layer of stratocumulus clouds with a burning white color. And even the raised central part.

Soon, fear rose in her eyes.

“Is this… a supercell?!”

Supercell.

A form of thunderstorm and a type of cumulonimbus cloud. The most dangerous disaster among thunderstorms observable by humanity.

In the past, when a supercell descended on Mumbai, India, it reportedly resulted in a record 944mm of rainfall in a single day.

It might be a consolation that it typically has a short duration, but a supercell created by the Dragon’s Authority wouldn’t be bound by ordinary meteorological laws.

“Dangerous… this is…!”

The true value of a supercell isn’t its rainfall that far exceeds common sense.

A supercell is itself an excellent breeding ground for tornadoes and a disaster that mercilessly scatters giant hailstones. Moreover, it can induce hypothermia by rapidly lowering the temperature.

Even its scale was abnormal. Its presence was far more majestic than an ordinary supercell.

At this rate, the end of the world would become reality.

Even the Emperor, the guardian of providence, couldn’t reach this high in the sky.

Kanarin had to make a decision.

She had to kill Rahilt herself, whom she had drawn in out of her own greed, in Serin’s place. Even if it earned Serin’s wrath, it was better than the end of the world.

So, Kanarin quietly opened her mouth.

“…Point shop open. Sort parallel ability list.”

[Loading information from parallel worlds.]

[What would you like to purchase?]

There was no need to deliberate. It was already decided. She needed to summon the strongest to end this situation.

But she couldn’t easily move her fingers.

It was because of Serin, who had called her “unnie” and sincerely offered a helping hand.

…The blame would be entirely on her.

“I’ll use…”

Just as Kanarin was about to complete her order—

Ding!

The status window sent an unprecedented notification.

[Warning, intervention. In. Inter. Vention. Is. Is. Happening.]

“What…?”

The status window’s warning ended there. And controlling her heightened emotions, Kanarin waited for the next response.

.

.

.

.

.

Ding!

[Remove the clouds.]

A message that showed a stark contrast to the status window’s businesslike tone.

[If you do, I will, surely…]

Static, crackle.

The status window blurred and produced noise. It seemed like a reaction to the end of the intervention it had warned about.

Gulp.

She swallowed in her dry throat.

Someone was seeking help. A being with power so extraordinary that it could intervene in the status window…

Her decision was quick.

“Serin.”

“…Yes.”

“I’m going to remove the clouds now.”

“Is that possible?”

“Yes.”

“That’s a relief.”

The news that they could delay the end of the world caused by Rahilt was certainly welcome. But Kanarin’s expression remained heavy.

“But I won’t be able to come back up here. Neither will Luca.”

Luca is needed for the cloud removal operation. Only Luca could cast the magic to support her in the air.

“Can you handle it alone?”

Kanarin asked for her opinion, though she thought it was impossible. Even though some powerful being had shown the way, there were still no certainties.

Yet Serin smiled.

“If not me, then who?”

Regardless of how it happened, it was Serin herself who had wanted to get involved first. Then the results stemming from the cause were entirely her own responsibility. At least, that’s how Serin saw it.

So Serin let them go without hesitation.

“Go, Narin unnie.”

“…Yes. Let’s definitely meet again.”

After their brief farewell, Kanarin shouted.

“Luca! Jump down!”

“Wh-what?”

“Hurry, grab me!”

“What’s going on, damn it…!”

Without time to stop her, Kanarin jumped out of the main building’s window, and Luca caught her, wrapping his arms around her waist.

Whoosh!

The air created an explosive noise as it rubbed against them. So loud that even Luca’s voice right beside her was muffled.

“Luca, levitation magic!”

“I can’t hear well!”

“Oh, I said use levitation magic!!!”

“Ah…!”

Only after she shouted directly into his ear did Luca finally understand. Light particles overflowed from his staff.

They regained peace of mind as the gravitational acceleration and air friction decreased instantly.

“Phew…”

Kanarin moved her fingers into the air.

“Point shop open. Sort parallel ability list.”

Ding!

[Loading information from parallel worlds.]

[What would you like to purchase?]

“I…”

She gazed at nature’s fury crafted by the Authority. It was the worst weather disaster, formed by clouds that had gathered from across the horizon, piled layer upon layer.

The Dragon’s power, impossible to counter with human strength.

Then, this side too had no choice but to break through with the strongest that shatters providence piece by piece!

“I’ll use all my points.”

[Warning: Once your balance reaches 0pt, you will never be able to open the status window again.]

[Warning: All weapons and skills you’ve accumulated so far will be completely destroyed.]

[Despite this, user: Kanarin, do you wish to spend all your points?]

[Do you wish to return to being an ordinary human?]

The warning is long for once.

It was a warning she’d heard since she started the first main quest. She couldn’t have forgotten such devastating side effects.

It would be a lie to say she wasn’t regretful.

But Kanarin made her decision without a moment’s hesitation.

“I was an ordinary human to begin with!”

[Yes/No]

Among the binary choices, Kanarin’s finger touched Yes.

She uttered her final command.

“Implement the Destroyer Irelphi Yustiha’s slash – World Cleaver!”

[Correcting movements of user: Kanarin Rupenter.]

Light gathered.

It was white like the brilliance of the moon and blue like a lake reflecting the sky.

The light, descending like a blessing, transformed into a pure white ceremonial sword that fit perfectly in Kanarin’s hand.

“One Sword Startles the Stars.”

She quietly recited.

With one slash, draw forth the admiration of the stars.

The ultimate slash becomes a concept of phenomenon itself. An offensive beyond biological cognition. It was the remnant of a woman who had destroyed the world as a pure human.

“World…”

Kanarin drew the miraculous sword that seemed to divide the world into heaven and earth.

“…Cleaver!”

Whoosh!

After the intense sound of cutting through the void, both Kanarin and Luca felt as if light and sound had vanished from their senses, dissolving into emptiness.

In such a world, something approached. Simultaneously, awe spontaneously arose, making their hair stand on end.

In a world where even time seemed to stop, a four-legged beast with spread wings licked Kanarin’s forehead with a majestic appearance.

[Thank you.]

It was the divine beast.

It had exactly the same appearance as the adult divine beast depicted in the original work.

“Ah…!”

The moment the divine beast licked her forehead, vast information flowed in like a panorama.

From the female protagonist being killed by the black magician to the divine beast, with only its soul remaining, attaching itself to her as the kingdom’s only anomaly.

The divine beast, surviving this way, remained with Kanarin in the form of the familiar game system.

Afterward, it absorbed the power of defeated opponents, granting strength in the form of points.

And spending all the points meant drawing upon the divine beast’s power down to its soul.

[Thank you for bearing our fate in our place.]

Only when the clear tone tickled her ear and faded away did the scene before her eyes find its place.

“Ugh…?!”

“Kanarin!”

“It hurts… it hurts, it hurts, it hurts…!!! Ughh…!!!”

“Get a hold of yourself, Kanarin!”

It was the recoil.

The burden placed on her body from drawing upon power beyond her capacity trampled Kanarin’s entire body.

While supporting the unconscious Kanarin, Luca looked at the disaster refined by the Dragon’s Authority.

“Did we… fail?”

Just as Luca was about to judge—

Crack.

A single crack was drawn in the void. As if cutting through space itself.

The moment he witnessed this strange phenomenon, Luca’s survival instinct rang alarm bells.

“Damn…!”

He canceled the levitation magic. Instead, he used air magic to accelerate their fall. His instinct urged him to get as far away from that crack as possible.

That premonition was exactly right, and Luca witnessed a miracle of the mortal world with his own eyes.

Whoosh!

The massive mass of clouds was sucked into a single crack. As if an endless vacuum existed beyond the crack, it greedily devoured the Authority and disaster.

Moreover, infinite updrafts were generated around the two-dimensional fissure, creating a massive storm.

“Kanarin…”

He had to protect her. Somehow, he had to safeguard the woman who had saved his life in childhood and gifted him a life.

He had seen it several times before. The one-time portals Kanarin had drawn through the status window.

It was a mysterious principle. He had never asserted that he could implement it, but…

“Even if it’s impossible, I have to do it, right?”

His staff emitted a wondrous light.

He imagined the ability he had rehearsed many times.

Spatial magic isn’t in the realm of impossibility. He had operated it several times before, and the Mansion of the Sorcerer itself had its entire space curved.

Fix the coordinates and connect the spatial passage. That simple task had become an incomprehensible realm passed down for generations.

“I can… do it…!”

At this moment, the extra who had twisted the fate of the original work shattered the realm of the incomprehensible.

Swoosh.

A surface rippling like a pond. Beyond it, Luca threw himself in, embracing Kanarin.

◇

Meanwhile, at the point when Kanarin had just set out to remove the supercell.

Serin, loosening her tingling ankles, called his name.

“…Rian.”