episode_0153

Death runs with his sword drawn.

Scattering fragments of the earth with each step, like an arrow fired in an instant.

Although it had the shape of a human, it was clearly not a human being.

“Attack!”

“It’s no use.”

Claire gives an urgent order. Ophelia sneered leisurely.

The same holds true no matter how many people gather, unless they are high-ranking wizards.

No, even high-ranking wizards would not be able to resist on their own and would be slaughtered.

That was a superman meant to kill a wizard.

Karma condensed to the limit.

A body that clearly transcends man.

An anti-demon blessing that prevents restraint and curses.

Jinsil’s sword that cuts off attacking magic.

A warrior who was stronger than anyone else in the room, like a disaster, bared his fangs.

Four breaths. Ten steps.

That was enough to narrow it down to a few hundred meters.

Even before the hastily manifested magic reached its target, the wolf of Ishangior arrived in the middle of the wizards.

Missing attack magic digs into the ground in vain.

But no one paid attention to it.

There was a roaring beast in front of me.

A nightmare-like life has crept into everyone’s minds.

The binding magic cast by some wizards was broken before it could be implemented.

Constant horsepower.

A blessing of unknown origin that is no different from a curse to wizards.

“Uh, what… !”

Unfortunately, the subordinates who were around were unable to utter their last words or scream.

A lightly swung slash.

A blue afterglow splits the sky.

The magic barrier cast urgently by the targeted wizard shatters like thin ice with a single strike from the true silver sword.

From the top of his head to his groin, the neatly cleaved wizard rolled his eyes.

Her naked body, cut in half, was revealed through the fluttering of her clothes on both sides.

“No way…!”

At the same time, the extended fist stuck in the solar plexus of one of the knights.

A speed at which an individual driver cannot even react.

The steel breastplate crumbles like mud, and powdered ribs and spine burst through the back.

A trembling knight.

The inside of the armor had already turned mushy due to the strong impact that penetrated the entire body.

Even if someone were hit with an ice spear on their bare body, they wouldn’t be broken like that.

The unfortunate knight died without even a single moan, with blood and fluids flowing from every pore of his body.

Three swings. Two punches.

And one kick.

There was not a single person who could withstand the blow.

‘This is a killing beast… !”

Claire was shocked and took a step back.

Although he had listened to Isabella’s warning, it was a power beyond imagination.

The moment I blinked once, my six subordinates turned into pieces of exploded meat.

The speed was so fast that it seemed as if six people had exploded at the same time as Claire saw a blurry flash in her eyes.

Pieces of flesh exploded like firecrackers.

The blood that spurted out went beyond the fountain and poured down into a curtain.

“Wow.”

Ophelia let out an exclamation.

“Jump out right now and block it!”

Claire let out a scream-like yell.

The last card I had prepared just in case.

It was a method she didn’t want to use as much as possible, but… .

There was nothing I could do when things turned out like this.

If things continued like this, it would take less than thirty seconds for my subordinates to be wiped out.

Three carriages led by Claire.

Claire and a woman were riding in one car, and the men were riding in the other car.

And, in the last remaining one… .

– Kwazijic!

The carriage broke apart, and three knights jumped out.

Knights covered in black iron armor and holding long swords.

I couldn’t see his face because of the helmet… All three were radiating strong energy.

“… Is he a master?”

The blood-soaked woman raised her long sword again, screaming like a wild animal that had found its prey.

—-

“Three master-level knights… ? It’s probably not a force that can be brought in secretly.”

At her sister’s slightly trembling voice, as if embarrassed, Claire smiled, showing her teeth.

It was a laugh filled with neither joy nor ridicule, but only anger.

In order to borrow those articles from Isabella, I had to promise to participate in her ‘banquet’ again.

Doing that obscene thing again that made me feel like I was going out of my mind after experiencing it just twice.

They are unofficial masters whose existence is not known to the empire.

They were Isabella’s personal subordinates.

If it had ended without them stepping forward, it could have ended in just one go… If this happens, I will have to sacrifice my body more than three times.

Still, thanks to this, we were able to block Ophelia’s best attack.

‘I couldn’t believe it, but I never thought they would really summon Aishangior… .’

In Claire’s mind, the story she had with Jayden before came back to mind.

====[Claire, a day ago.]====

“So, the only forces Ophelia can mobilize are the guys we sent, right? This way, it will end easily.”

“Oh, I’m not sure, but… There may be one more. As far as I know, there were only two occasions when Lady Ophelia had contact with someone else.”

Jayden reported hesitantly.

Among the confidants ordered to monitor Ofelia, Jayden was Claire’s most trusted spy.

Because it was obvious that Claire was in love with herself.

As long as his heart does not cool down, he will not betray himself.

“Anyone else? Who is that?”

“This is Princess Aishangior. Both times we only had brief conversations, but just in case… .”

“Hashar Aishangior? No, what benefit does such a strong man have in helping Ophelia? A woman who only clings to powerful people.”

Ordinary people who know nothing praise her, calling her a knight of the goddess or something, but if you look closely, her actions were consistently power-oriented.

He had the Margrave of Landenburg, who commanded the entire East, as his patron, and formed a deep friendship with the daughter of Archduke Palun, who commanded the entire North.

He was also on good terms with one of the great half-human families, the Red Copper Clan.

He blatantly got closer to Prince Leopold, who was becoming more powerful, and also showed kindness to his opponent, Princess Leonor.

In addition, she seemed close to Lacey Elmain Stadolph, a candidate for sainthood of the Church of Elfinel.

Each person she came into contact with either had great power or would one day have it.

Unless you are greedy for power, there is no reason to do something like that.

“Ophelia, who has nothing but magic, would not be an easy woman to be dragged into something like this… ?”

“1 Isn’t this the prince’s plan? To extend influence over the Sigmillus family through her… Or maybe they are targeting Claire.”

There was no way the prince would have coveted the Sigmillus family, which was not a marquis or a duke, but was merely a count… I didn’t know.

“I don’t think killing me will really harm the Empress… I still don’t know.”

In the end, Claire was unable to determine whether or not Hashall would participate in the war.

Because I couldn’t figure out why I was taking Ophelia’s side.

Well, how could she have found out?

The fact that Hashall took Ophelia’s side simply because of his knowledge of the game.

“Ha… . Is it a beast-man predator? . Just in case, if it really shows up, we won’t be able to deal with it with our own strength.”

Even if her skills were half as good as rumored, all half-baked wizards would be torn to death.

In the end, Claire had to go to Isabella and borrow the power to stop Hashar Aishangior.

No matter what the cost will be later.

===================

– Kaaang!

With the sharp sound of the crash penetrating her ears, Claire’s consciousness returned to reality.

Three Black Iron Knights were engaged in a bloody battle with Princess Aishangior.

The rumor that the beast-human predator was comparable to the Empire’s best sword was not an exaggeration, and even against the three masters, the situation was favorable.

The sword bodies containing each other’s karma collide one after another, emitting a bursting sound.

The black long swords with a strange energy were able to withstand the sharpness of the true silver sword.

“Kaaat!”

“… … .”

Unlike Aishangior, who roared every time he delivered a powerful blow, the Black Iron Knights swung their swords silently without a word of energy.

Even to Claire, it seemed a bit strange somehow.

She also didn’t know their detailed identities… Still, it didn’t matter.

I thought that would give me enough time to deal with Ophelia. That was enough.

Claire, who turned her gaze away from the battle of the masters, looked at Ophelia, who was still maintaining the barrier.

Her subordinates also stretched out their arms towards Ophelia again and drew in their magic power.

Although the number has decreased slightly, it would still be just as daunting whether it was 1 to 40 or 1 to 30.

If we keep pushing like this, we can win.

“What should I do about this? The last resort I was so proud of has been blocked? … Did you think I didn’t know?”

“First of all, it was something I kept as secret as possible… . To the extent that only one person other than the person involved knows.”

A low voice. Ophelia also seemed to guess who told Claire.

Claire gestured over her shoulder and brought the man standing behind her to the side.

He placed his hand on his shoulder and showed it to Ophelia as if showing off.

“… Jayden.”

“Yes, Jayden is also a spy I sent. Did you even believe in Jaden? Well, you and I grew up together for over ten years, so we were like childhood friends.”

In fact, Jaden was the first monitor sent by Claire.

Ophelia lowered her head.

“Ophelia, how are you feeling now? The team you were bragging about was caught by three masters, and you were left alone. It’s your loss for trusting Jayden. How does it feel to be betrayed by someone you trusted until the end? Please tell your sister too. Please.”

Claire taunted Ophelia and gathered magic power into her fingertips.

I was planning on penetrating the barrier like this.

“… Being able to bring three masters is higher than I thought. I guess I should have sold my body like my sister.”

“This is until the end… !”

Even though I was already extremely distraught thinking about what I would experience later at the banquet, my sister’s sarcasm ridiculed me until the very end.

Claire, irritated to the core, lets out a furious roar…

No, I vomited blood.

From beyond the throat, blood gushed like regurgitation out of the mouth.

“Ugh! Wow… ! What’s this… ! blood… ? Big, hehe!”

The blood pouring thickly soaks the ground.

The purple dress turned red.

A pain that feels like all the organs in your stomach are melting.

Claire’s face turned pale.

‘… poison?! At some point… !’

Gritting her teeth, Claire put strength into her wobbly legs and somehow corrected her posture.

My knees were trembling, and my back was half bent due to the terrible pain… .

Somehow, I kept my face straight and glared at Ophelia.

My sister slowly walked towards me, looking at me with a triumphant expression.

“You are so consistent. When they are at a disadvantage, they shrink, and when they are at a slight advantage, they quickly become elated. They always pretend to be elegant and relaxed, but… Even if you scratch the inside a little, it’s like this. The bottom is revealed immediately. That’s why they say the bowl is small. If you had broadened your horizons by at least half of the ocean-like bottom, it wouldn’t have ended up like this.”

Ophelia laughed, mocking Claire.

“Nothing like poison… !”

Claire looked around, creating a detox spell with the magic she had barely managed to squeeze out.

She wasn’t the only one who was poisoned.

All of her subordinates were also lying on the floor, vomiting blood.

About half.

Surprisingly, the other half were completely fine, without any signs of poisoning.

When I saw my colleagues rolling around on the floor, vomiting blood, I was embarrassed and didn’t know what to do.

‘What is the difference… ?’

Addicted and non-addicted.

Claire was able to immediately notice the crucial difference between the two.

The men who came with her in the carriage… The spies waiting with Ophelia.

Only the former was rolling around on the floor.

‘Addicted. Just us? When and how… !’

“Ah,”

Claire’s eyes widened as if torn.

There was only one chance to poison her and her subordinates.

Deer stew.

The stew everyone ate for dinner.

If poison had been released there, this would explain why only she and her subordinates were poisoned.

and,

‘The reason I served stew for dinner… !’

Claire’s head jerked to the right.

The poisoned criminal was laughing hard when he saw her.

“It’s late, sister.”

At that moment, Jayden’s sword pierced Claire’s side.