Chapter 91: Holy Night Showdown (Heavy Blow)

We tried to go on the offensive again, but against Aymok’s perfectly coordinated assault—his shadows and his own strikes working as one—we found ourselves unable to break through. Surrounded by countless shadows swirling around him, Aymok looked like something out of legend: the monstrous Yamata-no-Orochi or Medusa herself.

“What’s wrong? You only had spirit at the start?”

Aymok taunted us.

“Don’t rush. We’ve got our own priorities to juggle here.”

I fired back lightly, though inside, frustration was eating away at me. We’d laid groundwork, but it wasn’t enough to overturn this situation yet.

“Hmph… in that case, I’ll make the first move.”

The countless shadows Aymok had been manipulating flowed back toward his main body, merging into the shadow beneath his feet and vanishing. The constant threat of those shadows lifted for a moment, but that moment was all he needed—Aymok raised his right hand high and snapped his fingers, casting his next spell.

“O pitch-black darkness… enshroud the battlefield in shadow—Darkness!”

At the moment of activation, a sphere of darkness formed at Aymok’s fingertips. It swelled in an instant, engulfing him entirely. The darkness expanded further, swallowing us up before we could react. In a heartbeat, our vision vanished, our sense of balance disoriented—I staggered, unable to steady myself.

『…It appears to be a magic that manipulates darkness. Be careful. We can’t tell where the attack will come from.』

Alicia’s voice echoed, warning us to stay alert.

『…But in this much darkness, wouldn’t Aymok be unable to move too?』

Souta voiced the question that crossed my mind as well.

It was a true, suffocating darkness—so complete that I couldn’t even see Souta, who should’ve been right beside me. Thinking it’d be hard for anyone to attack under these conditions wasn’t unreasonable.

『No. That’s not possible. Aymok is a Priest of Darkness. This darkness is his domain.』

Just like Alicia, a Priestess of Water, could move freely in water, Aymok, as a Priest of Darkness, wouldn’t be hindered in this darkness at all.

『Ugh… seriously…?』

Souta groaned in disgust.

I sharpened my focus, straining to catch even the faintest sound as I prepared for an attack.

“...!”

A surge of killing intent suddenly came from behind me, slightly to the right—I kicked off the floor at full strength, twisting my body away with everything I had.

Aymok’s fist, wreathed in black flames even darker than the surrounding dark, tore through the space where I’d been a moment earlier. I couldn’t avoid it completely—several strands of my hair caught the edge of the attack, curling and burning with a faint crackle.

“Tch…!?”

I raised my weapon to counterattack, but Aymok’s figure had already vanished, melted back into the darkness.

“Souta! He’s suppressing his presence and attacking—stay sharp!”

“Got it! …Shit, he’s coming! Take this, damn you!”

Souta’s voice rang out, followed by the sounds of something clashing several times. Then came his scream—and a heavy crash, like something massive had been slammed down.

“Gwaaaaaaah!?”

Souta’s scream echoed through the darkness.

“Soutaaaa!”

I tried to move to support him, but I couldn’t even tell where he was. This darkness didn’t just block vision—it seemed to distort sound too, making it impossible to pinpoint locations by noise alone.

…What do I do? How do I break through this!?

『Ikuto-san, use Fog Territory!』

At that moment, Alicia suggested using magic.

“Fog Territory… Right! That’s it!”

I immediately understood what Alicia meant and began chanting the spell.

“Fog!”

A thick mist spread outward from where I stood, gradually filling the area. The darkness still swallowed everything, so no visual change was noticeable, but with this, Aymok’s vision should now be obstructed as well.

Then, I lightly cut the back of my own hand with a Water Cutter, letting the blood scatter into the air. Slowly, I infused that blood into the mist I’d created.

“Blood Search.”

The blood carried a detection spell that allowed me to sense anything it touched. By spreading that blood throughout the fog, I could now perceive every single movement within the space enshrouded by the mist.

With this, our positions were completely reversed.

The magically enhanced perception spread outward. I couldn’t see colors—only shapes—but I could sense the entirety of the fog-filled space. It felt like I’d become a radar.

The first thing I saw was Souta, kneeling and clutching his chest. It looked like he’d been knocked down by Aymok’s earlier strike and was now trying to push himself back up.

And right behind him—Aymok, closing in to land the finishing blow.

“Souta! Behind you!!”

I shouted just as Aymok shifted into attack posture. At my warning, Souta turned around—but his body wasn’t responding properly; his legs gave out beneath him and he collapsed.

Aymok raised his arm, cloaked in that ominous black flame, and swung it down at Souta. A single blow from that would kill him.

I didn’t think—I ran.

“Soutaaa!!”

I hurled myself forward at full speed.

I slammed into Souta, knocking him aside just in time to push him out of Aymok’s attack range.

The next instant, Aymok’s fist smashed into my back.

It felt like a branding iron had been pressed directly to my skin, and the moment after that, my body was launched like it’d been hit by a freight truck.

“Guh—aaagh!?”

『Kyaaah!?』

Both Alicia and I screamed.

My body was flung through the air, spinning as it bounced against the stone floor again and again, rolling uncontrollably. My vision went black as the world spun wildly, my brain shaken like dice in a cup.

Finally, I skidded to a halt, sprawled face down.

“Kh…!”

Every part of my body was screaming in pain.

But I ignored all of it and forced myself to think. The battle wasn’t over yet.

Thanks to the expanded perception granted by Fog Territory, I didn’t need to lift my head to understand the situation. That alone was saving me now—even raising my head felt like too much.

Aymok was about ten meters away. I’d been thrown a long way.

He hadn’t lowered his guard. If I’d lost consciousness, my magic would’ve ended immediately, so the fact that it remained in effect told him clearly that I was still willing to fight.

Suddenly, the darkness vanished.

Instead, thick fog filled the surroundings, blanketing the space in pure white. Aymok had likely judged that maintaining the darkness no longer offered him any advantage.

As for my Fog Territory—I didn’t dispel it. I couldn’t. While lying here on the floor, the fog that concealed me was the only thing keeping me alive. It was my sole survival strategy.

But this magic burned through energy fast. At most, I had a few minutes left before it would fade.

“…Still planning to keep hiding? Pointless.”

…Says the one who started the game in the first place. How self-serving.

Aymok moved his shadows once more, weaving them around himself to form a detection barrier roughly five meters in radius. Maintaining that formation, he began to approach, step by deliberate step.

At this rate, it was only a matter of time before my position was discovered.

I forced myself to keep casting spells, gritting my teeth against the pain ravaging my body—and now a sharp headache added itself to the torment.

I fixed my aim on Aymok and released the attack all at once.

“Go! Ice Lance, twenty-shot burst!!”

A storm of icy spears materialized behind Aymok, hurtling toward him in rapid succession.

This wasn’t a random barrage. It was the result of spells I’d been quietly preparing throughout the battle—lures hidden during brief lulls, designed to activate remotely.

Aymok defended and evaded with his shadows, nullifying every single spear. But that was within expectations.

“Hmph… so that’s where you are.”

With those words, Aymok turned around—and showed me his back.

At that moment, I adjusted the density of the fog, subtly shaping it so that a faint white silhouette appeared ahead of him, right where he was looking.

“There!”

Aymok unleashed his shadows in that direction, skewering the white phantom. It dissipated instantly.

“Ice Lance! Ten-shot burst!”

I triggered another pre-laid spell from a distant position. Every time I activated one, it felt like a hammer slammed into my skull—my vision swam, and I barely held on.

Again, I produced a white silhouette, baiting Aymok’s attack.

If I kept setting off the spells I’d hidden across the field like this, I could buy at least a little more time.

『Souta… are you alright…?』

Using that brief window, I called out to Souta.

『I’m fine! More importantly, what about you!? You took that hit protecting me…!』

『…It’s not fatal. But fighting’s gonna be rough.』

I analyzed my own condition.

A few ribs were broken. My organs had taken damage. Judging by the sharp pain when I tried to move, the bones in both my arms and legs were likely fractured when I was thrown. That wasn’t even counting the sprains, scrapes, and countless bruises scattered across my body.

All of it was technically within the range of what healing magic could fix—given enough time and mana. But with my reserves nearly depleted, that wasn’t an option.

In fact, I couldn’t afford to waste even a drop. I needed every last bit of strength for the final gamble I was about to attempt.

『So… sorry, but I’m gonna have to ask you for a favor. It’s a bad bet, but if we’re gonna beat him… you’re the only one I can rely on.』

I entrusted my last hope to Souta.