Chapter 387: Lightning Didn’t Fall From the Sky (6)

If neither Qi nor Unique Magic is involved, then it’s purely a contest of raw physical strength.

Of course, I was already losing in that aspect too—but I hadn’t lost in technique yet.

No matter how inhumanly strong the Thunderarch might be, her body still follows human anatomy.

Even the most physically superior human can’t attack an enemy behind them without twisting their torso—

Joints don’t naturally bend backward.

And no matter how much effort she puts into her pinky finger, she can’t overcome the strength of my entire arm.

That’s just basic human physiology.

If, by some miracle, she could beat me with just her pinky… then I’d just accept my loss.

If a low-tier card beats my ace, then this game was rigged from the start.

“Tch…!”

“Now that I’ve caught you, it’s over. Without your lightning, you can’t win.”

No matter how much she tries to summon her lightning,it’s pointless since I’m in direct contact with her.Every time she tries to channel her power, her thunder gets absorbed into my Mother Earth Card.

I put more force into twisting her arm.

“If I keep this up, your arm will be useless forever.”

“Try it… if you dare…!”

“Do you really think I won’t? If necessary, I could break your neck without a second thought.”

…At least, that’s what I intended.

But suddenly—

I felt resistance.

Huh?

It’s not bending?

What the hell?

Even though I’m using both my arm and leg strength— even though I’m leveraging her joint with maximum efficiency— her arm still won’t break?

This is bullshit.

“For all that tough talk, your strength is pathetic.”

Damn.

Her thoughts were far too clear.

｢Now that my thunder has disappeared, I can finally feel my natural strength again.**
**I should be grateful—I can finally use my power properly.｣

Wait. Did she just use Qi?!

The Thunderarch slowly put more strength into her arm.

As if she was recalling a forgotten memory, she abandoned the thunder’s power— and  filled the gap with raw Qi instead.

A power that’s harder to use, but impossible to steal.

Damn it!

Stop growing stronger in the middle of a fight!

This messes up my entire strategy!

Come to think of it, it was strange that she could use lightning but not Qi Arts in the first place.

Even the Qi she naturally possesses is far greater than mine.

At this rate, I’ll lose my grip soon.

What should I do?

Should I call for Tyr…?

And then—

– RUMBLE!

A massive tremor shook the Lightning Tower.

It felt as if a lightning bolt had struck—

No.

It was more like a lightning bolt had suddenly gained mass and slammed into the tower with monstrous impact.

The ceiling tilted so much that I could see the sky.

The walls and roof, which should have been sturdy, were swaying violently.

Even the underground foundations were crumbling, sending chunks of rock crashing down.

The Thunderarch shouted urgently.

“You! What the hell did you do?!”

“I didn’t do this!”

“If not you, then who else?!”

“How could I possibly break the entire tower when I can’t even break your arm to save my life?!”

What’s happening?

Even if I turned a few walls into cards, that wouldn’t be enough to collapse the whole structure.

Did the Thunder God outside kick the tower or something?

…Regardless, we’re now facing a collapsing building.

There’s no point in holding on to this joint lock anymore.

The problem is— even if I let go now, it’s still dangerous.

“T-Thunderarch!”

Suddenly, the sound of small footsteps echoed toward us.

It was the young girl from underground, the one who had been tending to the children.

Feeling the tower shake, she rushed here in a panic to find the Thunderarch.

“It’s an earthquake! The tower is tilting—huh?”

But when she finally found the Thunderarch—

She froze in place.

A blank expression took over her face.

Because instead of a majestic guardian—

She found the Thunderarch tangled up on the ground with me in a grappling match.

…Yeah.

I can see why this might look bad.

Even the Thunderarch, realizing how we must appear, looked flustered.

“J-Jerry. This is—“

Now’s my chance.

If I want to escape, this is the only moment.

“It’s a misunderstanding! The Thunderarch and I were just… uh… having a simple, purely physical wrestling match! Nothing else happened here!”

“Shut up!”

As the Thunderarch yelled in frustration, she momentarily lost focus—

I seized the moment, released her arm, and rolled away.

Then, I sprinted toward the wall I had turned into cards.

Since I had transmuted an entire wall, there was now an open gap leading to the earth outside.

Damp soil from the collapse was spilling into the opening.

I grabbed my Mother Earth card and forcefully pushed it against the dirt.

Aided by Earthweave, the massive mound of soil easily shifted aside at my command.

In an instant— I had created a tunnel leading to the surface.

Placing my foot on the edge, I turned back and shouted.

“Sorry, everyone! I peeked behind the curtain, but I didn’t find the answers I wanted. So, I’ll be on my way now!”

“Stop right—!”

The Thunderarch made a move to chase after me—

But just then, she saw the desperate face of the young girl.

Even if she knew the truth—

Even if she chose to ignore it—

The fact remained that the Thunderarch had been protecting this city.

And right now, that girl was depending on her.

Depending on her to keep doing what she always did.

A moment of hesitation flickered in the Thunderarch’s eyes.

And that moment was all I needed.

Before any more problems arose, I vanished underground—escaping with Earthweave.

The outside world was a chaotic mess.

Cheers and screams mixed together.

People who had been watching the Thunder God’s death were now frantically looking around in confusion.

As I emerged from the ground, I was almost trampled by the crowd.

“What the—?! A person just came out of the ground!”

“I’m a spy! Move if you don’t want trouble!”

At the word spy, the nearby spectators flinched and backed away, giving me just enough space to climb out.

But—

Something felt off.

The Thunder God was gone.

Not a single trace of him remained in the Cloud Waterfall.

Reading the minds of the people, I quickly realized the truth.

The Thunder God had been absorbed by the Regressor.

…And yet, for some reason, things had taken a strange turn.

I tilted my head upward towards the Lightning Tower.

Darkness spread across the sky.

Lightning flashed within it.

The power of the Progenitor Tyrkanzyaka clashed against the twin swords wielded by the Regressor.

The fight’s intensity was enough to shake the tower itself.

As onlookers speculated in confusion, I understood exactly what was happening.

And I sighed.

“So you finally did it, Hilde.”

It seems Hilde has finally turned her imagined script into reality.

Her suspicions were justified.

The Regressor had hoarded over ten miraculous encounters, enough that anyone might mistake her for a Crusader if not even a Saintess.

As a former Crusader herself, Hilde was more keenly aware of that possibility than anyone else.

Perhaps she had only held back because she thought the Regressor could be an ally.

Or maybe— she had just been waiting for the perfect moment.

But for Tyr and the Regressor, who had been getting along just fine yesterday, to suddenly break into full-blown combat?

At worst, I expected them to part ways on bad terms.

Then again… neither of them were normal.

Neither outcome should really be surprising.

Still, what a waste.

With them fighting now, who the hell is going to help me?

I sighed to myself.

“There he is! That’s the one!”

“Halt! Cooperate with us!”

The Thunder Guardians had spotted me.

They were Claudia’s elite forces, stationed on the surface under the Thunderarch’s orders.

They definitely suspected I was connected to this incident.

Hmm.

They didn’t seem hostile, but…

I had just been fighting the Thunderarch moments ago.

Getting caught and handed over to her again would be troublesome.

I needed to slip away before—

Someone suddenly grabbed my arm and shouted.

“He’s a spy! He just crawled out from underground!”

“You believe that nonsense?!”

Goddamn it.

Of all the naive fools!

Do you think a real spy would announce themselves as a spy?!

I had no time to explain.

I shoved him aside and took off running.

“Wait! Stop right there!”

The Thunder Guardians pushed through the crowd in pursuit, but there were too many people in the way.

Compared to me, who could read gaps in their thoughts and shove off-guard pedestrians at the right moment to slip through the chaos—

They were far too slow.

If I could just reach the outskirts—

Just as I resolved to escape, someone else spotted me and gave chase.

“W-Wait…!”

A ragged voice called out to me.

I was about to shake them off,  but when I saw who it was, I changed my mind.

“Ah, Peru! I found you!”

“…What the hell did you do? The Lightning Tower…!”

Ah.

So she wasn’t on the tower.

Since her health was poor, she must have stayed on the surface, like the other Guardians.

But hold on.

Why is she blaming me for the tower tilting?!

I don’t even have the strength to make it wobble, let alone collapse!

For once, I’m the most innocent person here!

“I have no idea why everyone keeps blaming me, but whatever—we need your power! The tower is about to completely collapse! Hurry and fix it!”

“…I’m already on it.”

Peru took a deep breath and pulled out her bell.

She envisioned the majestic Lightning Tower, standing firm and unshaken.

Then—

She rang the Golden Lord’s Bell.

The power of the Golden Lord responded to her call.

A clear but resonant chime echoed and the metal reacted as if it could hear the sound.

Cracks sealed themselves, dented walls straightened out, and even the collapsed lower structure was reversed through alchemy, gradually restoring the tower.

“What a ridiculous cheat ability! Nice job! Oh, and while you’re at it—can you hide me too?”

“…From whom?”

There was no need to explain.

The Thunder Guardians, who had pushed through the crowd, were now charging straight at me.

“Stop right there!”

Shit.

I suck at fighting against multiple opponents.

Can I talk my way out of this…?

Just then—

A thunderclap rumbled from above.

People screamed and ducked as a mass of darkness was forcibly expelled from the top of the spire.

Enveloped in shadows, Tyr was hurtling downward, clashing mid-air with the Regressor.

Even as they fell through the sky from dozens of meters above, they exchanged blows relentlessly as if gravity didn’t matter.

Tyr swung her shadow-coated arm.

I couldn’t see it clearly from this distance, but I could feel the destructive force behind it.

A strike powerful enough to split the world apart.

The Regressor countered with Jizan.

The force behind Tyr’s attack bent her arm in a grotesque direction before snapping back from the recoil.

Her body crumbled from the sheer impact.

But—

She was the Progenitor of Vampires.

Breaking bones and losing blood was just another Tuesday for her.

As if nothing happened, her body restored itself instantly.

Meanwhile, the Regressor, having completely blocked the attack, was still blown away by the aftershock.

Even though she had used Jizan, the shockwave alone was enough to send her flying.

After their brief collision, both of them were thrown in opposite directions.

The Regressor crashed into the distance—

– CRACK!

The sound of something breaking echoed.

Meanwhile, Tyr, having lost her footing, plummeted headfirst to the ground.

Gasps and screams filled the crowd.

But those screams soon turned to shock.

Tyr landed effortlessly, without a single scratch.

Then, she spoke.

“Come out. Surely, you did not die just from that, did you?”

“Hah… You’re right.”

A voice answered.

From where the Regressor had fallen, a pile of debris suddenly exploded into the air.

With Jizan, she had cleared the rubble in an instant.

Clenching her teeth, she stepped forward once more.

At last—

The spectators finally understood the true cause of this disaster.

It was just a fight between two people.