Volume 2 chapter 51
Dodging the mountain-sized fist of the Treant, Clyris looked down.
The green mist was already spilling out of the valley. Where it passed, a deathly silence fell. All vitality was severed.
"Your Authority... is Life Drain!?"
She gripped her sword tighter, her eyes sharp as she stared at the twisted, wooden face of the Treant.
An Authority was the trump card of a Ninth-Rank powerhouse, invisible until unleashed. Because the Elven Empire was separated from the Demon Realm by an entire continent and had minimal contact with the outside world for five millennia, the demons knew almost nothing about Elven capabilities.
"Correct! I want you to watch with your own eyes... as every subordinate you brought—DIES!!"
The Treant opened its abyssal maw, filled with wooden fangs, and let out a roar that shook the clouds.
"Do not hold back! Even if we shatter this land!" The Treant turned its cruel gaze to its four companions. "Our High-Rank warriors can survive the destruction. But the ants brought by the Demon Lord? None shall leave alive!!"
"Hmph! Five pieces of trash think they can dictate terms?!"
Clyris cleaved the two Bishops aside, opened her hand, and pressed down.
"Let's see whose Death is stronger! Winds of Death!!"
A grey storm erupted from her palm. In an instant, it transformed into a massive tornado, screaming as it swept heaven and earth. The towering trees were shredded, and the green mist was sucked into the vortex and dissipated.
Within the storm, wood rotted into dust. Life withered into dry bones.
"Forget it! This is the only way!!"
The Grand Magus who hadn't used his staff finally drew it. With a wave, wind and clouds gathered. Lightning flashed, and thunder rolled.
"Stall the Demon Lord! I have notified the others; they will arrive soon!" He pointed his staff, and white lightning pierced the sky.
"Thunder Dragon's Roar!!"
A massive dragon head formed of pure lightning opened its jaws to devour Clyris. The sky filled with terrifying high voltage, turning the valley into a forbidden zone of thunder.
"Trading the lives of 330,000 soldiers for the life of the Demon Lord! It should... be worth it!"
The other Grand Magus gripped her staff, closed her eyes, and sighed.
White flames leaped from the void, scorching space itself.
"Heavenly Fire · Winds of Immolation!!"
Silent, formless winds fanned the white flames. In a blink, the sky became a sea of fire. The searing heat burned through space and baked the earth to glass!
"Come then! Who's afraid of who!!"
Clyris mobilized her full power. Darkness, Death, and Gravity—three Authorities wreathed her body.
The stacking of Authorities didn't just add power; it multiplied it exponentially. Two Authorities could suppress four enemies. Three could suppress nine!
But defeating them was easy; killing them was hard. If there were only four enemies, she could force a quick kill, pay a small price, and leave.
But there were five. And two were Holy Light Archbishops, whose combined attacks hit as hard as three ordinary Ninth-Rankers. Effectively, she was fighting six.
Trying to force a kill would leave her battered, just like when the Four Saints hunted her. When the reinforcements arrived, she wouldn't be able to escape.
So Clyris held back. She only used 70-80% of her power for each Authority.
But even that was terrifying enough!
Three Authorities stacked on her blade. Oceans of mana poured into the steel, making it sing a high-pitched, piercing keen.
"Try this! World Slayer · Dark Ruin!!"
Death and Darkness intertwined, mixed with unparalleled Gravity. Like a chaotic nebula, infinite matter and energy converged and fused within.
Then—a star was born!
A sphere of light, one kilometer in diameter, hung in the high sky. It lasted only a few seconds before detonating.
BOOM...
The world fell silent.
From the deepest darkness, the brightest light was born, piercing the firmament. Then came the ultimate destruction.
In a tidal wave of annihilation that erased even sound, the two mountain peaks were reduced to dust. The valley became a basin.
The land for twenty to thirty kilometers around was peeled away. Countless towering trees turned to ash instantly. Even the distant mountains were shaved flat.
Far away, the demon soldiers were pinned down by the sheer pressure, curling up in their trenches, unable to lift their heads.
RUMBLE...
Only after the shockwave passed did the earth-shattering roar finally arrive, deafening the low-rank demons.
"This... Your Majesty..."
The demons who could still stand looked up at the sky. Watching the power that slowly dissipated after shattering the heavens, they were lost in awe.
"Retreat... RETREAT!"
A Fifth-Rank Beast Demon spat blood and roared. "This battle is beyond us! Our mission is complete! Don't be a burden to Her Majesty! Retreat!!"
The moment Clyris launched her attack, her location was broadcast to the entire Alliance. Every Ninth-Rank powerhouse immediately abandoned their positions and rushed toward her.
This was the moment Seraphina and Plum struck!
That's right. Clyris was the bait.
She knew from the start that the Alliance only truly feared her. If not for her presence, they would have stormed the fortress long ago.
Previously, she hid in the fortress, protected by layers of defenses. The Alliance dared not attack, fearing they would exhaust themselves breaching the walls only to be slaughtered by a fresh Demon Lord.
But now, confirming the Demon Lord was out in the open, the Alliance Ninth-Rankers didn't panic.
Without the cover of Fortress Guns and Defensive Arrays, even if she could fight ten at once, they had twenty-two! They could bury her in numbers!
But the moment they left... the Alliance soldiers were defenseless.
The Ninth-Rankers were the Sword of Damocles hanging over the demon bomber fleet. No matter how many planes there were, facing a Ninth-Ranker meant instant destruction.
But without them? The remaining Alliance forces couldn't stop the absolute numerical advantage of the air fleet.
Confirming the Ninth-Rankers were en route to Clyris, Seraphina and Plum gave the order simultaneously.
"Send in the fleet!"
When the massive bomber formation emerged from the clouds, the Alliance soldiers below stared blankly at the sky.
"No... didn't they say the demons were attacking Camp Two? Why..."
A soldier muttered, his spear slipping from his grasp.
"Run... RUN!!!"
Soldiers screamed, scrambling desperately for cover.
"No! Get up there and stop them!!"
High-Rank officers rushed into the sky, but it was too late.
BOOM! BOOM!! RUMBLE...
Aerial bombs fell from the heavens, blossoming into flowers of death on the ground.
Mushroom clouds were planted across the Alliance camp, turning everything to ash.
And it didn't end there. The fighters didn't return with the bombers. Half stayed behind, circling like vultures, looking down at the ruined camp.
Any sign of movement was met with a strafing run. No survivors were spared.
Finally, the ground troops moved in to sweep away the scraps.
_____________________________
Ironwood Territory.
"Viscount Baroque, Viscount Rick, Viscount Mori..."
Charlo looked at the five Border Viscounts before him, his expression impassive. "I believe I have shown sufficient sincerity. What is your answer?"
"Will you integrate your assets into Ironwood voluntarily and become idle shareholders of the United Chamber of Commerce? Or do I take them myself?"
As he spoke, Charlo drew upon the natural elements, gathering mana around himself to form a suppression field.
Inside this field, everyone but Charlo was suppressed to 70% of their power. This was the absolute dominance of a High-Rank over Low-Ranks!
Within a five-kilometer radius, all natural mana was under his control. Others couldn't draw from it and had to use their internal mana to resist the external pressure, making their movements sluggish and distorted.
At the Ninth Rank, one could even expel all elements except their own affinity from the area, creating a domain where lower ranks couldn't even exert half their strength.
Unless another High-Ranker was present to contest control, these five Viscounts were helpless.
"Lord Charlo... I accept! I am willing to hand over... Iron Lion Territory! And invest all assets of the Iron Lion Family into the United Chamber of Commerce!!" Viscount Baroque, already missing half his body and weak, collapsed under the pressure first.
"I accept too... Lord Charlo! I hand over Warhammer Territory and the Ironhammer Family assets! Please withdraw your power!" Viscount Rick, in his wheelchair, begged for mercy.
With these two breaking, the remaining three exchanged glances and hurriedly agreed.
"Excellent!" Charlo nodded in satisfaction and withdrew the pressure. "Gentlemen, you have made the correct choice!"
"Correct choice... is it?" Viscount Mori smiled bitterly. "I don't know. But what comes next? Lord Charlo, how will you face Count Ester? Legally, he is still our liege. Although he sold us out, we have no proof and cannot openly betray him! Therefore, when his punitive expedition arrives, we can promise not to send troops, but we cannot turn against him... We apologize, but we cannot agree to that, or we will be outcasts in the entire Eastern Noble Circle. I hope you understand!"
"It's fine! I don't need your strength to deal with him!" Charlo dismissed their concern. "And I won't need it in the future either! Just remember to disband your armies when you return!"
"Then—this meeting is adjourned!" Charlo signaled for them to leave. The five Viscounts obediently departed.
"Young Master, you're just letting them go?" Lawrence walked to his side, eyes narrowing dangerously as he watched them leave.
"No need to worry." Charlo waved his hand. "They can't make any waves. Ignore them! If they show any disloyalty later... we'll just crush them along with everything else!"
"Understood! As you command!"
Comments (0)
Please login or sign up to post a comment.