Chapter 168
Crack. Creak.
Cracks form on the sword.
The recoil of forcefully raising its rank with the Lord's Banner was catching up.
The sanctuary created by the Predatory Sword shatters.
The scabbard held in his left hand, too. The sword as well, seemed to have exhausted its strength and shattered vainly.
A time that should be filled with considerable regret.
However, Callius was indifferent.
"Making such a fuss."
It was as if it was screaming, refusing to die. Looking at the Predatory Sword like that, Callius slightly raised one corner of his mouth and looked around.
The swords of the sanctuary that pierced through the body of the 'Undying Corruption' and devoured him gluttonously.
Only when the number of generated swords reached the thousands did it completely consume him—it was a part of the Predatory Sword, Roas.
One by one, they turned into round photons and gathered into Roas.
Crash-!
The Sanctuary of Predation shattering like glass fragments.
Beneath it.
Whoosh-!
A sword sparking and emitting light was held in his hand.
Sring. Click.
[Predatory Sword - Roas]
Grade – Phantom
Imbued Soul – Roas
Unique Ability – Predation.
Sheathing Roas, Callius dismissed the spear that had floated up.
Nothing had particularly changed.
The status window had never been very kind to begin with.
There was no need to deliberately check.
'A sword that forcefully deploys a sanctuary with the Lord's Banner breaks.'
But Roas was different.
It was originally one step away from a rank-up, and it had preyed upon the 'Undying Corruption' who possessed a soul and flesh that exceeded its capacity.
With that, its rank had risen.
It was as expected.
'I've figured out the sanctuary's ability.'
When deploying a sanctuary with an armament, the power of that weapon is either amplified or completely evolves to be used in a new way.
Roas was clearly the former.
The strengthening of the predation ability.
The ability to recover through predation was also properly transmitted, granting it such a sanctuary ability.
'Infinite Predation.'
Furthermore, it became able to use the power of the prey it consumed.
Of course, it was a temporary effect only possible within the sanctuary, but restricted to the sanctuary, it was better than most swords.
Naturally, there were pros and cons.
If it's an opponent one can drag out a fight against, it's possible to starve them to death.
But if that wasn't the case and one had to settle the match in a single clash, it was a sword that couldn't see a great effect.
Roas's sanctuary was clearly a method of starving the opponent to death.
'Doesn't matter.'
There are bound to be compatibility issues with sanctuaries anyway.
This much was sufficiently useful.
Because currently, the only sword with a scabbard was the Predatory Sword, Roas.
"The burden of Instant Step is greater than I thought. It'd be better to limit the number of times it can be used in combat to roughly three times."
If pushed, it's possible around five times, but a battle is something where you never know what might happen.
Until he got used to it, it was better to keep Instant Step as a hidden card and use it sparingly.
"Hmm."
[You have achieved a dazzling feat...]
[Your rank has risen by one stage!]
[You acquire the title of 'One who Ended the Corruption' alongside the Dragon Slayer.]
Useless titles kept being given to him.
But the rank-up was welcome.
[Callius von Zerban]
[Title] - Hero of the Nation, Dragon Slayer. One who Ended the Corruption.
[Class] – Pilgrim
[Holy Power] – 2nd Class
[Divine Power] – 11341/39105
[Talent] – [Bard's Blessing] [Instinctive Intuition]
[Trait] - [Grace] [Noblesse Oblige] [Repentance of Past Wrongs] [Prodigal Son of the Order] [Glutton] [Three-Colored Eyes] [Incense of Delusion]
[Constitution] - [Fused Bones]
[Stats]
Strength – 201 ▶251
Agility – 186 ▶234
Dexterity – 52 ▶72
Health – 232 ▶276
Faith – 110 ▶164
Dragon Power - 108 ▶136
Demonic Power - ???
His overall physical abilities increased significantly with the rank-up.
'Has Demonic Power only just escaped the traits?'
But seeing as it was still marked with question marks, it seemed he indeed needed to properly organize his demonic power when he had the time.
Because time was urgent, Callius contained the fairy's demonic power inside his body in a similar way to before.
That is to say... right now, in Callius's dantian. One bud of the Ten Thousand Flower Six Fleshes contained the fairy from the Royal Tomb itself.
To help him, one of the fairies of the Royal Tomb had pierced through his dantian.
Therefore, the value of his demonic power was still in an unorganized state.
Of course, since the urgent matters were sorted out, it was something he could organize gradually.
[Your feat will fill the first chapter of a hero's epic.]
[The first chapter of the epic, 'The One who Killed the Dragon and Killed Evil,' will be spread by the believers who serve the God of Thread.]
The God of Thread.
Truly, a god of various things.
The god of all things made of thread.
That could be the thread that cuts the opponent's neck, or the strings of an instrument that plays a performance to enchant someone.
The god of all those things.
Since it was said to be spread by the believers serving the God of Thread, they were likely bards who handled harps or instruments.
It wasn't something to worry much about.
An epic was just something similar to an achievement.
More importantly, the next message.
[Most of the Corrupted who live avoiding the eyes of the gods are hostile towards you.]
[Some are curious.]
The Corrupted had taken an interest.
Whether it was hostility or curiosity, it wasn't a very good result.
Of course, good reactions also arose.
[The dragons who were hostile to you calm their anger upon hearing your feat.]
[Some become interested.]
The one who ended the Corruption.
Since he killed the Undying Corruption, the dragon race, who had a bad relationship with them, could now show interest in Callius.
'Even so, the father of the Fire Dragon Sword will throw a fit trying to kill me.'
Even if that was the case, it was still a vague situation to settle anywhere, so there was no need to care too much.
There was a lot to do anyway.
"The Empire's Saintess, huh. It's my first time seeing you."
Callius's ashen eyes turned toward the bloodied saintess.
Her pink hair was dyed red.
Blood flowing down her cheeks trickled, soaking her clothes, and through the torn garments, dark bruises or burst wounds were abundant.
"……"
"……Have we met somewhere before?"
"No. It's... my first time seeing you."
"Is that so."
Callius felt a strange sensation.
It was definitely an appearance he was seeing for the first time.
Was the Empire's saintess he knew originally with such a face?
Pink hair is the symbol of a saintess.
That was the same.
But the face was completely different from what he knew.
'Is it an illusion?'
It was completely different from the face he knew, yet somehow familiar.
He wondered if it was because she was bloodied, or if it was something else, but more than that, he had to figure out how to act toward her.
Whether to treat her as a noble of Carpe. Or as the Queen's Knight. If not that, then as a fellow seeker walking a similar path.
"…First, let me convey that I received your last grand greeting quite unpleasantly."
The saintess's cheek flinched.
This referred to the Empire's invasion of Carpe.
He was one of the four great nobles of Carpe.
It was also his attitude to treat the saintess as the Count of Zerban of the North.
"It was a plan we prepared for a long time. But we overlooked one thing."
"Me."
"Yes."
Callius von Zerban.
His existence stopped the invasion of Carpe.
And didn't he also cause the Empire's Master to die?
Not only that.
He killed the dragon that came to the Empire, destroyed Laktus's greenhouse and rescued the slaves in the meantime. He killed another of the Empire's Spears, and ultimately subjugated the Undying Corruption.
A man who, just four years ago, was called a good-for-nothing and referred to as the family's headache.
Had不知不觉 become a strong threat to the Empire and appeared before them.
"The Corruption..."
"As you can see, I killed it."
The saintess kept her words short.
Even though she had clashed with the Undying Corruption and eventually dropped its head, Callius didn't have a single injury anywhere.
His energy also looked full.
'I should see him as at least a step above me.'
Luteon's report said he was merely half a step below her, but she didn't know what had happened.
If his words were true, it meant he had grown that much in a mere year, but he wasn't someone who could make that possible, nor was it realistically feasible.
If there was someone who could do that...
'Is he a Challenger too?'
There was no other way to think of it.
Thus, the saintess had to confirm it.
"Did you also... arrive on the Day of Beginning?"
The Day of Beginning.
The day the Challengers set foot in this world all at the same time.
A Challenger couldn't possibly not know the meaning of that day.
If he was a Challenger, he couldn't pretend not to know.
'Challengers, in the end.'
Are beings that must kill each other.
"……"
To her question, Callius didn't answer hastily.
He kept silent.
But silence was soon affirmation.
The saintess understood.
"As I thought."
Because without that, his growth rate and strength were impossible to comprehend.
She was convinced.
Without knowing Callius's inner thoughts.
'What is the Day of Beginning?'
Just as he was about to ask back since she had convinced herself somehow—
"Saintess!!"
Tap, tap tap.
New figures arrived one after another before the saintess.
The numbers engraved on their red armor were 11 and 10.
It was Vibrener and Jollet.
Behind them.
Whoooosh-! Thump!
Beati's massive body arrived, and the knights and colleagues riding on it were together.
"Callis!? Are you okay?"
Aldo, Serena, and Fillo jumped down from Beati and asked after his well-being.
Everyone had been severely beaten by the saintess, with many injuries here and there.
"Um, Bibi is..."
"I know."
Bibi was hurt.
The wound inflicted by the saintess was clean, and fatal.
Her internal organs were damaged, and Bibi was dying in real time.
The dragon's tenacious vitality was barely holding onto her lifeline.
Callius immediately took out holy water.
"Saintess. Here..."
The saintess also received the holy water.
While Callius was treating Bibi.
The Empire's Spears began to be on extreme guard against Callius.
They must have grasped the general situation too.
Killed the Undying Corruption.
And they knew all too well who the master of the numerous ashen legion was, wielding dragons like limbs.
-Grrr.
"Are you okay?"
Licking his hand with a weak tongue, it seemed she was getting quite better. Even when she was the size of a palm when young, the fellow used to lick his hand.
Recalling that memory, his hand stroking Bibi was incredibly benevolent.
But soon.
When that benevolent hand grasped a sword.
The atmosphere changed in an instant.
"H-How dare you direct killing intent at the Saintess!"
The 11th Spear.
Vibrener instantly spewed fire from his spear.
Fire Spear Vibrener.
His ultimate technique, Fire Thrust.
A thrust made of flames flew toward Callius in an instant.
Intense flames that would burn the air in an instant and a long-range thrust that formed it.
Despite wielding a spear, Vibrener, who preferred long-range techniques, was known to be un-spearman-like, but his technique was fast, and the strong flames were not easy to counter.
However.
Sring.
Spears made of flames.
Dozens flew out, but with a single swing of Callius, all the Fire Thrusts were torn apart.
"What! My Fire Thrust!"
The saintess's eyes narrowed.
He didn't strike it away, nor did he slash it. He tore it.
'The sword.'
What made that possible was the sword he wielded.
It could only be seen as the sword's ability.
"It's useful. So that's what it was."
The Predatory Sword that had risen in rank.
Roas's predation now not only devoured flesh and soul.
It also devoured the opponent's unique ability.
And that too.
Swoosh.
Roas's blade burns red.
The burning flames scattered in all directions and swayed like flower petals.
"Pahwaro."
Whoooosh!
Deep red fire became flower petals and spread everywhere. Surging like a wave, it rushed toward the Empire's Spears in an instant.
The flower petals of fire that engulfed the area rapidly raised the surrounding temperature, carrying a momentum that seemed ready to burn everything.
"Keuhhhhk! Kuhah!"
"Crazy!"
Boom boom boom boom boom boom boom!
The petals exploded wherever they touched and blazed fiercely, turning the surroundings into a sea of fire.
The Empire's Spears, Vibrener and Jollet, tried to block them one by one, but it was not easy at all.
The surging petals rolled like waves and fluttered like butterflies.
Moreover, the power and principles contained within them.
And the heat doubled, making it even harder for them.
"Step back."
Kwaang-!
The saintess, who couldn't stand by, stamped the ground with her spear, creating an explosion.
The ground was lifted by her spear, and rocks flew about.
It was merely just that.
But because the saintess did it, it was different.
Catch.
Interest filled the eyes of Callius, who caught a flying rock.
'The Holy Spear's ability is Enhancement. Don't tell me she enhanced each and every one of these rocks.'
With that, she offset the numerous petals of Pahwaro and temporarily blocked them.
She didn't use a lot of power, but he didn't think Pahwaro would be blocked like this.
Even if she hadn't fully ripened yet, the saintess was indeed a saintess.
"Niol."
[Yes.]
Ashen light bloomed from the entire body of Callius, who summoned Niol and received the Fire Dragon Sword.
This was the energy Callius had created.
Residue.
As it bloomed and dyed the surroundings ashen, the saintess's pupils shook.
An energy she had never felt in her life.
However, her senses, sharpened from the battle with the Corruption, sounded an alarm.
The slowly rising energy of residue dyed the area grey.
It was a phenomenon that eroded space itself along with his powerful imagery.
Callius's power, which had risen in rank.
Had become even more powerful than he himself thought.
"Pay the price for hurting my people."
The Fire Dragon Sword held in his hand.
Its one and only technique.
The Fire Dragon's breath combined with the Mad Dragon's Roar in Callius's hands.
The sword that soared high into the sky.
Was swung down in a single breath.
At the same time, the moment the saintess and the Empire's Spears hurriedly tried to unleash a spear strike.
"Roar of Ash."
His calm voice.
Broke the will contained in their spears.
―!
The Roar of Ash that spread out in a fan shape.
When the ashen light eventually flickered and disappeared.
What Callius saw was one thing.
Along with the neatly erased terrain.
Two lumps of ash burned so much that their forms were unrecognizable, and the saintess standing in the center.
It was the figure of the saintess vomiting blood.