Episode 232. Awakening (5)
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Flames engulfed in chaos soared endlessly.
The huge, black vortex centered around Paelrito began to swallow everything on the battlefield in an instant.
The ground split once more under its power, and lava burst out more violently than before. Even the lava would immediately cool and solidify into ash when it touched the vortex of chaos.
First, Jin protected Valeria and the Red Owl with a protective barrier made of spirit energy. The 'Judgment' that was about to start would be a series of shocks she could not handle alone.
"Valeria, you should go to the outskirts and help others now."
"Okay."
Valeria mounted the Red Owl.
She didn't have the senses of an Ascendant, but she could tell that Paelrito had turned into a monster. She too had witnessed the carnage of the monster's battle firsthand.
Therefore, even knowing that Jin had become an Ascendant, she was worried. She would always be worried, even if Jin became stronger than he is now.
"Should I call for reinforcements as soon as I get out of the battlefield?"
Jin turned and smiled.
"No, if there's any slack in the main force, tell them to send everything to the Holy Kingdom's outskirts. It's okay here now."
As Valeria was about to mount the Red Owl, Paelrito's vortex spread waves of chaotic energy all around.
Jin lightly swung his sword and cut through the chaos that had enveloped him and Valeria.
The blade, surrounded by spirit energy and a golden aura, silently moved forward and split the huge wave of chaos in half.
The divided chaos could not easily recover and bubbled, spilling onto the ground like a waterfall.
After confirming that Valeria had left the battlefield, Jin looked at Paelrito again.
"Poor guy..."
In Jin's feeling.
Paelrito had been defeated only once in his life, and had experienced despair only once. The great swordsman, who was once the hope of the demon world, could not overcome that one moment of despair and met this hideous end.
Chaos was spreading incessantly all around.
The ruined lands, the forests and rivers that died from the aftermath of the battle, and even the wind were all being eroded by the chaos emanating from Paelrito.
However, not a single bit of chaos could enter where Jin was standing, in front of Paelrito. Like water blocked by a rock, the chaos could not pass Jin and spread to the sides.
Behind Jin was the King's Castle.
If he weren't there, the chaos would have engulfed the area around the King's Castle within about ten minutes. And after it finished merging with Zito's Eye, it would have fully awakened as a monster.
Jin concentrated his mind while reading the energy of his comrades who were fighting with Zito's Eye in the direction of the King's Castle.
'There shouldn't be a problem there now.'
He could handle anything.
Now, there was nothing in the world that he couldn't handle.
Jin, realizing this fact with his whole body, charged his energy into Bradamante. The Sword God vibrated, producing a deep resonance.
Third Battle Technique of Run Kandel
Meteor Shower
As soon as he released the power gathered in the blade, the battlefield was dyed with dazzling light. Paelrito reflexively shielded his eyes from the light piercing through the chaos.
[Grr, aaaaah!]
Paelrito let out a monstrous cry. Instinctively, he crouched down and waited for the light to disappear. It seemed he wouldn't be able to confirm Jin's position before the light went out.
However, Paelrito was unaware that Jin's sword had already slashed him once. As he lifted his head due to the severe pain of his waist being severed, he could not see the chaos that should have been protecting him.
Instead, what filled Paelrito's view was an endless downpour of golden flashes.
There was no way to avoid those eye-stinging flashes. The chaos that had been protecting him was already torn apart, leaving only ruins.
He had to endure the downpour of flashes with his whole body. However, even while the chaos was destroying his reason, he was sure. He wouldn't be intact if he endured that.
[Kaaa, ah....!]
Tszuaaaak, krrzzk-!
His body was being torn apart. With every lightning strike, his flesh exploded and his bones crumbled. He tried to spread the chaos to block the meteor shower and heal the wounds, but the sky was becoming more and more golden.
It was getting brighter as if the sun was rising. Paelrito, turned into a monster, continued to scream even though he could not feel physical pain.
It was because of fear. The fear he could not shake off even after becoming a monster was making him tremble, the power held by a human named Jin Run Kandel.
He couldn't resist.
The Meteor Shower was demolishing Paelrito, far surpassing the rate at which the chaos could regenerate. Now, the only things left that could be called Paelrito's physical body were a hollowed-out upper body and a single leg.
Even that would soon disappear. The Meteor Shower wasn't falling randomly, each one moved containing Jin's will.
Incessantly accurate, and without mercy, the meteor shower seemed to completely obliterate Paelrito, who had turned into a monster.
The golden flashes ceased.
Jin stared at the land where the meteor shower had struck without even catching his breath. There was no sign of Paelrito in the molten land boiling from the remaining heat.
But Jin knew that he wasn't dead yet.
Particles scattered in the air were carrying the will of chaos, flinging Paelrito somewhere. Black winds seemed to fly past Jin as if they were running away.
They were heading towards the Holy King Star. There, he aimed to merge with the physical form of Jito, whose seal was released.
But Jin didn't hastily chase the wind.
There was no need. After all, neither Paelrito nor the will of chaos trying to save him could ever escape from his grasp.
Jin slowly followed the black wind. From time to time, the spirit energy that slipped out of the wind transformed into a dagger-like shape and stabbed at Jin, but it disintegrated even before touching his body. They couldn't penetrate the energy radiating from Jin.
Not even a scratch was made. If anything, Paelrito, turned into a black wind, seemed to panic and run around even more. It looked as if he was stumbling like a human. Each time he realized Jin was behind him, he cringed and crumpled.
Around that time, Paelrito was gradually regaining his consciousness as a monster.
When he first became monstrous, he had no rationality at all, but after experiencing the brink of extinction once, his ego was formed.
'I must get Jito... I must get Jito's Eye and escape.'
Even though he was being overwhelmed now because he had not fully awakened, given enough time, he could definitely pose a threat to Jin.
Perhaps he might even be able to kill Jin. And with that power, he could become a disaster that the world would never see again.
Paelrito, or rather, the entity that could no longer be called Paelrito, but a monster, had such hope. Even if he couldn't fight right now, he surely could run away and buy some time.
He was panting as if he were a human.
In fact, he was gradually taking a form similar to a human. The particles that made up the wind slowly began to shape him like a human.
By the time he approached the Holy King Star, he had taken on an appearance similar to Paelrito and looked up at the sky.
He should have seen a landscape vibrating with purple magic. He should have seen Jito's Eye swallowing all the life on the Holy King Star and roaring.
But all that entered the monster's eyes was the sky and the earth, all dyed in pitch black, with even the boundary disappearing.
It was a spirit energy field. It seemed like he shouldn't get closer. The monster stopped for a moment and glared at the darkness.
'What is this...!'
He could feel Jito's magic from within.
"However, that magic was faint enough that one could barely feel it by standing on end. Whether it was hidden by the dark energy or if Jito's Eye was already in danger of extinction inside, it was not immediately clear.
But there was not much time to ponder.
Jin was getting closer. If he remained still, his shadow would soon completely engulf him.
[Kaahh!]
Eventually, the Abomination tore open a path through the darkness with both hands. However, the moment he clenched the darkness, his two hands began to secrete black pus like a rotten plant. If he kept a hold on it for any longer, it felt as if it would melt right off.
[Kuh, huck, heck...!]
Of course, the damage wasn't limited to his arms. Just as the soul penetrated life, the dark energy now covering the Planet of Monarchs also tore through the Abomination's body and mind.
It was as if he had fallen into a toxic swamp. The Abomination barely kept standing on his shaky legs as he entered.
And he was able to realize right away.
That this place was just another limb.
[You're here... Paelrito. No, it would be proper to call you the second Abomination to appear in this world.]
Moorakan, the Black Dragon.
He was the one who spread his pair of wings and spoke in a dull voice. Moreover, beneath his forefoot was a purple mass, torn beyond recognition.
It was Jito's Eye.
[Well, did you need Jito's Eye? I'm digging around, do you want me to hand it over?]
[Ah...]
From time to time, the mass seemed to try to escape from Moorakan, but every time it was torn even more by the claws and sharp scales on his forefoot.
Trying to fuse with that Jito's Eye wouldn't hold much meaning. Instead, he might exhaust all his remaining energy trying to restore Jito's Eye.
To Moorakan's side, Talalis, catching his breath next to the corpse of Bideluche, and Runtia, supporting her, were visible.
From the beginning, it was pointless for the Abomination to run away from Jin. That was why Jin calmly pursued him.
Moreover, while chasing the Abomination, Jin also prepared for the last action he could take.
Self-destruction. The only option available to the Abomination was that. Jin had formed a protective barrier around the entire battlefield to prevent his self-destruction from damaging other lands of the Holy Kingdom, and from killing even one more person.
Soon, the Abomination felt a chilling presence and looked back. Jin was entering through the dark energy curtain he had created.
There was nothing the Abomination could do but watch Jin approach as he collapsed onto the ground. Jin's shadow was casting over the Abomination's head.
"It's time for you to disappear."