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Chapter 30 :  Playing with Someone’s Feelings

Chapter 30 :  Playing with Someone’s Feelings

“Sage…?”

“It’s the Sage…!”

The word Sage began to take root in the ears of the soldiers who had been frantically fleeing for their lives.

“What did you say?”

“Did you say it’s the Sage?”

“It’s true!! It really is the Sage!!”

“The Sage is here with us!!”

Among the princess’s soldiers, almost none were unfamiliar with the Sage.

Ever since the battle at the Sage’s fortress against the Third Elite Army led by Luciphra, nearly all of them had received his healing, owed him their lives, or witnessed his aid firsthand.

And that wasn’t all.

The image of the Sage hurling the Demon Army’s Third Elite Corps Commander, Luciphra, like a ragdoll with monstrous strength was deeply ingrained in their minds.

His mere presence was enough to become the rallying point for the completely shattered morale of the princess’s soldiers.

“Wooooahhh!!”

“The Sage is here!!”

“The Sage is fighting alongside us!!”

The individual matchups between soldiers and beasts were still overwhelmingly unfavorable.

Their armor couldn’t withstand the monsters’ demonic energy, and their weapons failed to pierce the beasts’ reinforced bodies.

And yet—hope began to rise.

Even though the princess and all the high-ranking noble commanders had fallen, if it was the Sage.

The thought that victory might be possible began to take root in their hearts.

The atmosphere of the battlefield shifted in an instant.

The three Corps Commanders of the Demon Army narrowed their eyes at the crimson-masked figure before them, their gazes filled with deep wariness.

They could hardly believe that a single person’s mere presence had completely restored their ‘enemies’ morale.

And if such a thing was possible, then surely this man had the strength to back it up.

“Who are you?”

Morcane’s voice trembled slightly.

“Does it matter who I am?”

In contrast, the voice of the crimson-masked figure was utterly calm and composed.

They had fought countless humans before, but they had never encountered one like this.

Despite being strengthened with demonic energy multiple times over, Erkine had been subdued in an instant.

Morcane had lost sight of his movements.

Ternak had been effortlessly knocked to the ground and stomped on.

And above all, what concerned them the most was his power.

What was that radiant light, that it could pierce through even their enhanced demonic energy?

The Sage, too, was curious.

Why did his Exterminating Divine Energy, which should annihilate all demonic energy, seem to clash and coexist with it instead?

‘I’ll just have to beat it out of them.’

The Sage silently lifted his foot off the ground.

That simple motion made all three Corps Commanders flinch instinctively.

And the moment his foot touched down.

“Ghh!?”

The crimson-masked figure had already closed the distance, appearing behind Erkine, his hand gripping the back of her neck and slamming her down.

The demonic energy surrounding her throat sizzled and evaporated like burning embers, and in its place, that unsettling light began to seep into her body.

Once again, an indescribable, mind-numbing pain engulfed her.

A scream ripped from Erkine’s throat.

“Aaaagh…!!”

Again.

She had lost sight of him again.

Did he really teleport?

Or was he simply so fast that she couldn’t perceive his movements, even while looking straight at him?

She couldn’t tell.

Morcane and Ternak moved at the same time.

Morcane rushed forward to aid Erkine.

Ternak, on the other hand, ran in the opposite direction.

The truth was, Ternak couldn’t care less if Erkine lived or died.

His only concern was retrieving the three human women he had claimed as his spoils of war.

Morcane lunged toward Erkine’s position in an instant.

But.

“Ghhkk!!”

Once again, he lost sight of the enemy’s movement.

A scream rang out from behind.

Turning around, he saw Ternak sprawled on the ground, writhing in agony after being struck down by a brutal kick from the crimson-masked figure.

“Ooooh…!!”

“The Sage…!!”

“He’s taking on three Corps Commanders all by himself!!”

The soldiers and lesser demons, who had been locked in fierce battle, found themselves mesmerized, turning their attention to the clash between the Sage and the Corps Commanders.

The sheer difference in combat level was undeniable.

Instinctively, they realized—the outcome of this duel would decide the fate of the battle.

Being thrown around in front of her subordinates was humiliating enough.

But to be treated as mere distraction while he dealt with another opponent at the same time—Erkine’s fury boiled over.

Humiliation.

That was the only word to describe what was happening.

Her expression twisted in rage—only to be lifted into the air and slammed face-first into the ground.

“Ghhkk…!!”

What a disgrace.

What an utter disgrace to suffer such humiliation in front of her men.

But under that overwhelming strength, there was nothing she could do.

The Sage straddled Erkine’s back, pressing her head even harder into the dirt.

It was a sight too pitiful to belong to a Corps Commander leading an elite division of the Demon Army.

“Ghh…!!”

A strained groan escaped Erkine as the Sage interrogated her.

“Tell me everything you know about how your demonic energy changed, and why.”

“I refuse…! If I asked you to reveal your power, would you obediently—AAAAAAAHHHH!!!”

The moment she refused to answer, the Sage injected more Exterminating Divine Energy into her body.

“Aaaghh!! Kyaaaaaaaaahh!!!”

Her body convulsed violently as she thrashed, her pale limbs flailing like those of an insect pinned to the ground.

The Sage pressed her head even harder into the dirt, fixing her in place as she writhed.

“If you tell me everything, I promise to make your death as painless as possible.”

“Get off of Lady Erkine!!”

Morcane charged at the Sage, summoning the densest Illusion Energy he could muster.

The air itself grew thick and toxic with deep violet-black demonic energy.

But even Morcane was caught.

The Sage’s remaining hand reached out and gripped Morcane’s face.

‘N-No…! This can’t…!!’

Fingers spread wide, he squeezed with all his might—then slammed Morcane into the ground just like Erkine.

“Kyaaaaaahh!!!”

A monstrous grip that felt like it would crush her skull.

And that same horrifying pain that radiated from his hands into her body.

If this continued, her entire body would burn away, her brain melting in agony.

She had to do something.

With what little strength she had left, she reached out and grabbed the crimson mask.

“…Ghkk!!”

For the first time, the Sage let out a surprised grunt.

Morcane poured every ounce of her Illusion Energy into his mask.

The Sage’s mind wavered—just for a moment.

Sensing the danger, he increased the force on his grip.

“Ghhkk—!!! AAAAAGH…!!!”

But Morcane didn’t stop.

Desperately, she continued pouring her energy into him.

Until.

THWACK!!

The Sage lifted her by the face and slammed her into the ground.

“Gaaah…!!”

In the silence of the battlefield, only the sound of her skull colliding with the earth and her cries of pain echoed.

THWACK!!

THWACK!!

Each time her head struck the ground, the earth itself trembled.

THWACK!!

“Agh…!!”

THWACK!!

“Ugh… uh…”

Morcane’s vision blurred, her body going numb.

At last, her fingers lost their grip on the Sage’s mask.

The deafening crashes and tremors stirred the unconscious Saintess nearby.

“Mmm…”

She stirred, slowly regaining consciousness—thanks to the Exterminating Divine Energy purging all traces of demonic corruption from her body.

Violeta and Herneon also slowly regained consciousness.

“Ugh…”

“My head…”

The three of them, who had been lying down, slowly sat up.

And then, the unexpected sight unfolded before their eyes.

“Huh…? Who…”

“Sage…!!”

“You…”

Right in front of them, the Sage was pinning down two corps commanders, sitting atop them.

They wanted to greet him, but the Sage had no time for that.

Due to Morcane’s illusionary energy, his vision was starting to blur.

“Ugh… Ugh…!”

For the first time in the battle, a weak groan escaped the Sage’s lips.

Since the enemies’ energy had been strengthened, it took time for the Annihilation Divine Aura to completely erase it.

Until then, he was bound to suffer from the remnants of that energy.

Because of this, it was becoming harder for him to keep a firm grip on Erkine and Morcane.

Both of them could feel the strength in the hands and arms restraining them gradually loosening.

Meanwhile, Ternak, whose leg pain had subsided, quickly sprang up and lunged at the Sage, who was still pinning the two corps commanders down.

With his vision already wavering due to the illusion, a massive Dark Orc was now charging at him at terrifying speed.

“Ugh…!!”

For now, there was no choice but to retreat.

With his hazy mind, he barely managed to roll his body to the side, narrowly dodging Ternak’s charge.

“Ugh…”

Seeing this, Lumienne quickly ran over and supported the staggering Sage.

“Saintess…?”

“Yes, it’s me. Are you alright?”

At that moment, an overwhelmingly sinister energy began to fill the air.

“You insolent fool… I won’t let this end here.”

From Erkine’s body, an even darker, pitch-black energy surged forth, covering the sky.

Her presence was unmistakably different from before she had been subdued by the Sage.