Ch.82Sacred War (3)

“For Uldur’s light upon the earth!”

With that rallying cry, fifteen thousand cult members first laid eyes on the entity of Wrath, and Khan too turned his head at their chant.

His crimson-black body overwhelmed all who beheld it. Standing at 10 meters tall with a matching physique, he was truly imposing.

The red mane, the crimson fur covering his lower body, and a tail covered in red fur unlike anything seen on a minotaur. His fur glowed with a sinister blood-red light—if anger could be represented by a color, it would be this exact shade.

Towering horns reached toward the sky, and red eyes surveyed them all. Those eyes were such a deep crimson they could be seen from a distance, appearing to ripple with blood.

All the cult’s forces participating in the holy war tightened their grip on their weapons upon first seeing Khan, whom they had only heard about in rumors. Those without weapons prayed fervently, burning with fighting spirit.

This monster had killed their families, lovers, and friends.

His hands, mouth, and hooves were stained with red blood—clear evidence that he had slaughtered their comrades.

The faces of those participating in the holy war hardened with determination, ready to charge at the command when—

Whoosh!

The Saintess, William, and the Divine Knights who had been battling Khan moments ago joined the cult’s forces in a flash of light. The Saintess threw William, whose legs had been severed, to the ground and began her speech.

“Today! We shall slay this evil monster—the Beast of Apocalypse that Uldur has warned us about—and bring forth Uldur’s light! This battlefield is already under Uldur’s watchful gaze! Let us show our fallen brothers and sisters a performance we can be proud of!”

Waaaah!

Cheers erupted across the battlefield. The roar of fifteen thousand voices filled the air as Khan watched, scraping the ground with his hooves, ready to charge at any moment.

As the cult members burned with determination to tear apart the monster and bring forth Uldur’s light, seeing Khan’s stance that suggested he might charge at any moment—

“Everyone, raise your weapons.”

The Saintess’s quiet voice. Yet her words reached even those far away. Like a wave, weapons rose one by one.

Hammers, flails, morningstars, shields, bows, holy books, or rosaries. Various weapons were raised, and those without weapons lifted symbols of their faith.

After surveying them all, the Saintess knelt and emitted a powerful light from her body.

Whaaaa…

“Great Uldur, our parent, your children now seek your aid.”

* * * * *

‘I don’t know what that is, but it’s dangerous.’

Seeing the Saintess begin her prayer, I charged forward from my ready position.

Both instinct and reason strongly warned that I shouldn’t leave her be, and I agreed with that warning as I charged. As I rushed forward, I stomped my foot with all my might.

Boom!

Crack!

When I stomped, a massive stone dragon appeared. Like a dragon flying over water, the rock formation raced along the ground toward the Saintess.

Yet despite seeing this, not a single cult member rushed to defend her.

Even Flock, who until moments ago had been throwing himself in the way of life-threatening attacks.

Crash!!

The stone dragon’s head, racing along the ground toward the Saintess, engulfed her. Despite the thunderous sound as the stone dragon covered her, the light emanating from the Saintess’s body pushed back the dragon’s head.

Rumble…

No, it wasn’t just pushing it back—it was shattering it. The light grew increasingly bright and was breaking apart the dragon’s head.

The stone pieces that had formed the head scattered behind the Saintess, becoming debris.

Thump thump thump!

While the stone dragon was breaking apart, I quickly reached the area behind the Saintess. As I approached them with thundering steps, the cult members felt as if an earthquake was occurring, and my house-sized body was now right behind the Saintess.

Having covered that great distance in an instant to reach the Saintess’s back, I swung my fist—far larger than her entire body—toward her.

“Thus we shall borrow the power of our parent Uldur and spread the light of our parent far and wide!”

My fist flew toward the Saintess’s back, but she paid no heed as she finished her prayer and raised her tightly clasped hands high toward the sky.

She looked as if she were offering her body to Uldur, the god of light.

Just as my fist was about to reach her back, completely ignoring the resistance from the light emanating from her body—

“Army of Light!”

The light bursting from the Saintess’s body began slowly pushing back my fist that had nearly reached her back.

Seeing my fist being pushed back, I stomped the ground, causing stone spears to erupt from below, while calling down lightning from the sky to assault the Saintess.

The bright light couldn’t block attacks that were manifestations of Wrath’s power and natural phenomena themselves—the stone spears racing through the earth impaled the Saintess’s body, and lightning engulfed both her and those around her.

‘I’ve won.’

Even a troll cannot survive having its heart pierced. I smiled at the sight of the Saintess with her heart clearly impaled.

Having eliminated the most troublesome healer and supporter, I could slowly push back the others and use my Life Drain trait to eventually emerge victorious.

Crash!!

At that moment, Flock swung his mace at Khan, and seeing this, I raised my left arm to defend. However, the power behind that mace exceeded my imagination.

“Die, evil monster!”

A single strike from Divine Knight Flock, who until just now had barely been able to block Wrath’s attacks. That attack forced me to take a step back.

‘What’s going on?’

How could a mere human force me back with a single blow?

It was just one step backward, but even special beings like Participants hadn’t managed this, let alone this weak human who until moments ago was being sent flying by my strikes.

Following him, two knights with swords—Baytram and Bell—descended upon Khan.

Rumble, rumble…

I raised stone walls to stop them and surrounded the walls with lightning to keep Bell and Baytram at bay.

Whoosh!

But they transformed into light, ignoring the wall, and slashed past me.

Mmmrrgh!!

Swoosh!!

Blood fountained from where the two had cut me.

Their attacks were on a completely different level from when I fought them earlier. Those who had struggled even to wound my legs now sliced through my hide with a single strike, leaving wounds that were significant even by my standards.

Whooosh!!

Something pierced through the air toward me. Before I could see and dodge it, my beast instincts forcibly controlled my body to avoid the attack.

But I couldn’t completely evade it—an arrow of light grazed my arm. Previously, these arrows could only make tiny holes in my palm, but now even a graze created a large wound.

Blood flowed freely, soaking the earth, as I prepared for the next attack.

Whooom!!

A massive hammer swung toward me. I countered by surrounding my fist with lightning and meeting the hammer head-on.

Crash!!!

When my fist collided with the hammer, a powerful shockwave swept the area. The soil stained with my blood couldn’t withstand this clash and flew away, and I looked at the one who had swung the hammer at me.

Heavy white armor. And a massive hammer comparable to the size of my fist. He grinned at me, then dropped his hammer and stepped back.

Seeing this, I jumped upward.

Swoosh!!

Baytram and Bell passed through where I had been. Apparently, these three were meant to pin me down, along with Flock who continued to protect them with his shield—four in total.

And then…

Whooosh!!

The archer with the strongest attacks. I created a spear of lightning to counter the arrow of light flying toward me as I dodged in mid-air.

Crackle!!

Lightning spread around from the collision with the light arrow. The arrow of light also dissipated from the clash with my lightning spear.

Moooo!!

In that gap, I jumped high into the sky and released lightning upward to prepare for a lightning strike.

While a single lightning bolt could be summoned with just a wave of my hand, I still needed this preparation process to unleash countless bolts.

The light illuminating the land from the sky began to weaken as gathering storm clouds blocked it, and I started flying toward where the white-armored figures were gathered.

Moooo!!!

* * * * *

“Wrath is flying toward us. Be careful. And he’s summoned storm clouds, so lightning will strike everywhere.”

“Hmm. Holy Incantation Unit, prepare to shoot him down. Priests, set up barriers.”

“Yes! First Wave will begin with the First Incantation Unit and proceed in order.”

“Yes!”

The Holy Incantation Unit began reciting prayers at Archbishop Pelosi’s command, and the priests released holy power to create barriers.

After giving his orders, Archbishop Pelosi looked back at Khan. A minotaur wrapped in black lightning flying toward the Light Cult.

“It’s as if a scene from mythology is being reenacted. Black lightning falling upon the Light Cult.”

“Perhaps this is the mythical war that Uldur spoke of…”

Iris agreed with Archbishop Pelosi’s observation, but he shook his head.

“No, the mythical war described in the scripture is incomparable to this. Even from the fragmentary descriptions, a single blow tore the earth apart with lava flowing from the tears, and the sky was covered in black ash so that no one had ever seen a clear sky. This small incident could hardly be the reenactment of the war in mythology.”

Iris nodded at the archbishop’s firm words, recalling what was written in the scripture. She drew her bowstring as she watched Khan approaching.

Lightning now struck from the sky, hitting where the cult members were gathered, but they wouldn’t fall for the same technique twice.

The holy barrier that had risen in the sky perfectly blocked the black lightning falling from above.

Ignoring the lightning striking above her, Iris’s bow manifested an arrow shimmering with light, which began gathering power.

As the light grew stronger, becoming so bright it was difficult to keep one’s eyes open—

“El Zeria’s Strike.”

Calmly uttering the skill name, she released the bowstring. The light left a white trail as it flew toward Khan, who was plummeting toward them wrapped in black lightning.

They collided.

Crackle!!!

Black lightning versus the power of El Zeria, Uldur’s angel who presided over war.

That power, imbued with Iris’s strength—greatly enhanced by the Sacred Domain and Army of Light—contained tremendous force.

El Zeria’s Strike continued to advance with the momentum to pierce through Khan’s black lightning, while Khan emitted more lightning to break through the arrow.

In the end, Khan won that clash, but he wasn’t fighting Iris one-on-one.

“Holy Blast!”

Crash!!!

The Holy Blast fired by the First Incantation Unit’s 50 members flew toward Khan, who had just broken through Iris’s arrow.

Their power, also strengthened by the Army of Light and Sacred Domain, meant that while each individual was weak, their combined strength rivaled that of a Divine Knight.

Compared to El Zeria’s Strike that Iris had just fired, it might lack penetrating power, but its raw force was no less.

Khan faced the attack head-on, leading with his horns and rotating his body like a drill to pierce through the Holy Blast.

However… Despite how many the Holy Incantation Unit had lost to Khan in the labyrinth, reinforcements had brought their current number to 350, comprising seven units.

“Holy Blast!”

Another Holy Blast was fired. Khan’s lightning weakened against this attack, but he still broke through. However…

“Holy Blast!!”

He broke through the third Holy Blast as well, but now the lightning surrounding him had disappeared.

“Holy Blast!!”

Moooo!!

From the fourth Holy Blast onward, he had to take the hits directly with his body. Fortunately, his thick hide and the fact that the Holy Incantation Unit’s skills fell into the magic category meant they couldn’t pierce Khan’s hide, but they made his body burn.

After breaking through the fifth and sixth Holy Blasts with his body, Khan now looked like a minotaur roast cooking in white flames.

“Holy Blast!!”

“El Zeria’s Strike!”

Another Holy Blast and El Zeria’s Strike rained down. As Iris watched the attacks flying toward Khan, who was already covered in holy fire, thinking it was a perfect attack striking his blind spot—

Boom!

Khan’s body disappeared before the arrows of light and light magic could touch him.

“Wrath has vanished! Everyone search! He can’t escape thanks to the Saintess’s El Rapim’s Barrier!! Find him—”

Moooo…

A low bovine growl interrupted Archbishop Pelosi and Divine Knight Aquis as they were issuing commands to the cult forces.

The sound came from where the priests were stationed. Khan, engulfed in white flames, raised both arms with his red eyes flashing.

Crash!!

Khan’s thick arms smashed through the defensive barrier that had blocked even lightning, and he landed in the rear area where priests and holy knights were gathered, setting up something.