The Brightest Darkness – 3

It was an attack of such power that even I, who used it, was left bewildered, yet the one who took a direct hit was moving perfectly fine. Not only was there no damage, but not even a scale was singed.

‘With that just now, I thought most guys would have been finished in one hit.’

In the B-Dark series, there was no technique that sent out enchanted attributes like sword energy, so I couldn’t be sure, but it was clear that its actual power was similar to what it appeared to be.

However, that guy took a direct hit and showed no reaction. I wondered if it was invincible until a certain gimmick, as seen in the game, was deactivated.

If that were true, it would be quite problematic.

While I was calculating a method in my head, the creature flapped its wings and charged. Simply by flying, the ground cracked open, and even the surrounding space twisted along with it.

Watching that sight, I was dumbfounded. It wasn’t even attacking, just moving, and the surroundings were distorting?

Whether I was dumbfounded or not, the distance closed in an instant. Its massive body approached within arm’s reach. Its maw opened wide.

The action of flying directly at the player and opening its mouth. I had seen it somewhere before. Because it was exactly the same pattern that appeared in the game.

‘Leaving other things aside, why does that guy look exactly like in the game?’

Due to the sudden question that popped into my mind, my body moved first, instead of my head which couldn’t react properly. I quickly rolled diagonally and got out of the way, just as I had done in the game.

The difference was that its body was ridiculously huge compared to the game, and the distance I rolled was also incomparably long compared to the game.

As I rolled out of the way towards its left foreleg, its massive body followed suit. Its upper body twisted, its neck twisted, and its maw turned towards me. It was incredibly fast for its size.

Its right foot swung. Logically, it was impossible for me to block that attack. Because there was a difference in scale between its body and mine, like a mosquito and a human.

However, the word ‘common sense’ was already a proposition that had been denied countless times. I plunged my sword into the ground and angled the hilt towards myself, so that the blade of the sword would touch the Devourer of Worlds’ foreleg first.

Then, I put strength into my legs.

-CRUNCH!

Its foreleg ground up the nearby ground and collided with the Wingless Nightmare. Despite it being a situation where it wouldn’t have been strange for it to burst apart the moment it touched, the Wingless Nightmare withstood the applied pressure.

I was the same. A tingling sensation surged through my arm, but I didn’t budge a single step backward.

Instead, the ground behind me burst apart. I heard the sound of all sorts of things collapsing and being destroyed behind me. As the sound subsided, a cool breeze blew.

I glanced behind me. The place, which had somewhat maintained its original form as a forest, even though it was a mess with giant trees uprooted and overturned, had become a massive gorge of unfathomable depth.

The cliff marking the beginning of the gorge was touching my heel. If I had been pushed back even half a step more, I would have immediately fallen into a bottomless abyss where even the bottom couldn’t be seen.

‘I can’t handle this kind of scale.’

I tensed my legs.

A battle where a gorge of that magnitude was created by just one swing of its arm, and space itself was shaken just by it moving its body. This kind of thing was far from my taste.

‘Is it not yet time?’

I looked at where the Goddess-nim was. She was sitting in place, her lips moving slightly, seemingly saying something.

Just as I began to slowly push back its foreleg, putting strength into my body, the Goddess-nim opened her eyes. Strange patterns were drawn within her golden and silver pupils.

It was the same pattern as the cross-like accessory hanging in front of her lower abdomen. When I first saw her, she didn’t have something like that. What on earth was it?

That strange appearance didn’t last long. Because as soon as the Goddess-nim blinked, she had returned to her original appearance.

“You! I’ll help too!”

The Goddess-nim, who had returned her pupils to normal, said that and drew upon her divine power. Like the color of her eyes and accessory, her right hand was golden and her left hand was silver.

As the light spread, the world began to restore itself. The space that had been scattered into pieces gathered, and the unfathomable gorge was filled with earth again.

At the Goddess-nim’s gesture, the Devourer of Worlds’ body was covered in divine power. Taking advantage of its annoyed movements, I quickly retreated. As soon as I moved out of the way, the mass of light shattered with a crash.

Another divine power immediately filled that spot. It seemed she had used it assuming it would be instantly destroyed from the start. It wouldn’t inflict damage, but it seemed sufficient to buy time.

“Are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?”

The Goddess-nim approached me, who was catching my breath for a moment. The cloth covering her chest and private parts was still merely fluttering in the wind.

Judging by its faithfulness to the purpose of not exposing important parts, at this point, it seemed like it might actually be clothing.

“I’m fine. For now. Because all I did was exchange one attack with that guy.”

“That’s a relief. From now on, I’ll help too.”

A feeling of genuine relief appeared on her face. While the Devourer of Worlds roared in annoyance at the divine power that clung to it no matter how much it tried to shake it off, I asked about the sight I had just witnessed.

“I have something to ask, what were you doing just now? There was a strange pattern floating in your eyes. That… I mean, the same pattern as the one in front of your lower abdomen.”

“Ah, are you referring to this in front of my womb?”

Cough, I coughed inwardly at the Goddess-nim’s words, which had no filter whatsoever. She just says things like that here. Is she perhaps lacking the emotion of shame?

“Yes. Anyway, that’s right.”

“I gave a revelation to a human who worships me.”

“A revelation?”

The Goddess-nim was about to answer but stopped, unfurling a silver veil and sending it down upon the Devourer of Worlds. The creature spewed out a pitch-black breath and instantly melted the veil.

It was clearly a power capable of treating the Popes’ divine power as nothing, yet in front of the Devourer of Worlds, it was nothing more than a wet tissue in comparison.

“Although it is said that the limitations are great because I have lost almost all my power, it is entirely possible to see fragmented futures. I gave the revelation for that future.”

For the future, you say? Is there something specific the Popes need to do?

“Then you would know whether I can kill that guy right now, wouldn’t you?”

“That is….”

As the Goddess-nim trailed off her words, a tremendous roar surged forth. The world, which had barely regained its form, was once again shattered into pieces.

Only a handful of ground remained where the Goddess-nim and I stood. Everything else plummeted into an endlessly spreading abyss.

The Devourer of Worlds gnashed its teeth in annoyance. It was clearly angry. A murderous aura swirled in its vertical red pupils.

“Dodge! I will assist your movements!”

With those words, the creature charged with unbelievable speed. As I unconsciously took a step, the sole of my shoe naturally stomped on empty air.

There was no time to be surprised by the fact that I was floating in the air. The Devourer of Worlds’ attack immediately came in. Its maw powerfully bit into the empty space where I had leaped back from.

Golden and silver lights continuously flashed near its tail, but it persistently charged, targeting only me. It seemed to pay no attention to the Goddess-nim at all.

It must be to kill me first and then mock the Goddess-nim. Because if I die first, the Goddess-nim will fall into much deeper despair.

In addition, it might also be because the Goddess-nim’s attacks don’t inflict actual damage. No matter what its goal is, it would be difficult for it to target me first even in a situation where it’s getting hurt.

-I don’t know about that. Nor anything related to it. Because it’s out of my hands. So, I don’t know about the possibility of killing that guy.

A voice echoed in my head.

-But I saw one future connected to you.

A pitch-black breath flew towards me. I gave a command in Draconic language for it to scatter. The breath that had been approaching, melting all creation, scattered powerlessly.

-You will fall to the ground.

“Stella, a revelation has descended from the Sun.”

“Selene, a revelation has descended from the Moon.”

The Popes, who had urgently summoned the Inquisitor and the Interrogator, announced that revelations had arrived from their respective gods. Stella tilted her head upon hearing that.

“What kind of revelation is it?”

“It is a revelation that includes not only us Popes but also you.”

Selene, with a bewildered expression, asked back.

“You said it included us…?”

“Yes, Inquisitor. That’s right.”

“Have you already interpreted the revelation? I feel like it hasn’t been long since the gods responded.”

“This time it was very short and concise, making it easy to interpret. I will tell you, so please listen carefully.”

Stella and Selene briefly made the sign of the cross and nodded. Both of them were people who were confident that their faith was second to none, except for the Popes. Their expressions immediately turned serious.

Floreta slightly moved the holy relic in her hand. A golden mass of light enveloped the four people. When the mass of light cleared, all four had arrived at a desolate hill.

It was a place that held a legend that someday, divine light would descend upon it.

“The revelation told us to go here.”

“To this place… you mean?”

Selene had a face full of questions, but that question didn’t last long.

The four people’s expressions hardened simultaneously.

“Were you already here?”

“In a situation like this, I couldn’t just stay cooped up inside, could I?”

At that time, Kaikilia, sensing something unusual, ascended to the top of the Magic Tower. Minerva-nim, who had already arrived, was there looking up at the sky.

“That’s unlike you, Minerva-nim. Considering it hasn’t been long since you found the ancient scroll, are you saying you’re going out so often? I had prepared myself not to see you for about a month.”

“It’s not just me, is it? Kaikilia, when that child secluded herself in her room, didn’t you personally go all the way to her front door?”

“……I will not deny it.”

Without one being first to do so, both looked up at the sky again. The feeling was very strange. And in a very bad way.

Her golden pupils briefly looked downward. Even the Silver Dawn Knights, and the knights who had been completely disbanded and absorbed into the Pitch-Black Holy Night Knights, were looking up at the sky side by side.

And that’s not all. The maids of the Imperial Palace, and even the guards, not just the knights, were doing the same. Anyone with eyes had their gaze fixed entirely on the sky.

As Kaikilia frowned at the unusual sight, Minerva-nim used magic to survey the nearby cities. The situation was no different there.

All citizens of the empire were trembling at the ominous aura, gathering and murmuring, instinctively looking up at the sky.

Minerva-nim, who had ended her vision sharing, wore a rarely serious expression.

“This is another absurd situation. All cities are in this state.”

“Are you saying it’s not limited to the Imperial Palace?”

“I simply checked about a hundred places, and they’re all like this. I don’t know about the Holy Nation, but it’s safe to say that the entire empire is under the influence of that strange aura.”

“……I understand.”

It was around the time Kaikilia was thinking about the next command to issue.

The sky literally began to vibrate.

Kaikilia and Minerva-nim, without one being first to do so, prepared for battle. An unusual situation was unfolding. The sky was shaking, not the land or the sea?

“Minerva-nim.”

“Speak, child.”

“Issue an evacuation order immediately under the Emperor’s authority, and instruct all knight orders to prepare for battle. The mages of the Magic Tower must also all be mobilized. For this is surely no ordinary matter.”

“I understand.”

While Minerva-nim unfolded the magic circle, Kaikilia summoned the Holy Sword to her right hand. The Holy Sword, transformed into an elegant ceremonial sword, completely different from its crude mass of light appearance until now.

Even Kaikilia, the owner of the Holy Sword, hadn’t known until now that she could draw out such power, yet Delta remained calm even after seeing this. As if he had known from the beginning.

In the first place, even the Holy Sword’s transformation like this had only happened after she truly became aware of that man, so no matter how much Kaikilia thought about it, she couldn’t shake the thought that she had truly been defeated.

And the thought of having told Minerva-nim that if there was ever a man who surpassed her, she would serve him with all her heart and soul.

“……”

Kaikilia bit her lip slightly and tried to focus on the situation before her. It might happen someday, but not right now. She had not yet acknowledged that man.

The current Kaikilia had no idea that her former self wouldn’t even have made the assumption of ‘someday’.

“Kih-hee-hee, it finally began.”

“Began? What?”

Nyx, who had opened her window and was looking up at the sky, quietly mumbled. Below, knights dressed in bunny girl outfits were collectively running around in confusion.

“You don’t need to know.”

“Eek! Are you going to keep doing that?”

Nyx pulled her cheeks, stretching them out. The battle with herself continued for a long time, and in the end, it was Nyx who lost. Nyx held her reddened cheeks and made a tearful face.

“It hurts…”

“I hurt too. Kih-hee-hee, aren’t you an idiot? You’re me, so why are you pulling your own cheeks like that?”

A second round immediately broke out.

Around the time Nyx’s body was turning red in various places due to the fight between Nyx and Nyx, the sky’s reverberation began to intensify even further.

It was such a large vibration that it felt as if someone was grabbing the sky and shaking it. The two naturally stopped their actions, and soothed their swollen skin with magic.

“……What on earth could it be?”

“Well. Someone might be fighting.”

“Fighting? Who? With whom?”

Even though she heard that the sky was vibrating due to the aftermath of a fight, Nyx wasn’t particularly surprised. Because she knew four individuals who could immediately commit such an act.

The Emperor, the Eternal Mage, and the Popes of the Holy Nation. Every single one of them were people who had reached the realm beyond human.

If she knew that everyone on that list was also surprised by what they were seeing, her thoughts might change a bit, but at least for now, not knowing the scale of the anomalous phenomenon, that was the case.

Only the question of why they would fight specifically in this vicinity remained. Of course, ‘vicinity’ here referred to a distance where the fighting couldn’t be seen, but only its aftermath could be felt.

“Kih-hit, if I knew that, would I be doing this here?”

Nyx smiled gloomily. Nyx puffed out her cheeks.

Yes, Nyx didn’t know the outcome.

All she could do right now was pray, swallowing it inwardly without revealing it to anyone.