Ravier rolled forward, narrowly avoiding the attack. Although some of his hair at the back was cut, he remained unscathed.
When he turned around, he saw a woman twirling a dagger with a disappointed expression.
"Oh my, you dodged? Young master, didn't you say this guy can't fight?"
Belinda clicked her tongue. Judging by his movements, he seemed to know nothing about combat techniques, but his reaction speed was no joke.
Ravier, his face filled with anger, growled.
"A sneak attack… how dare you…"
He didn't even finish his sentence. Someone else had already approached and swung their sword.
"Whoops!"
Getting distracted by enemies in front of him, Ravier quickly ascended into the air.
Slash!
He evaded just in time, but his clothes were slightly cut. This time, it was some arrogant-looking man wielding two swords.
"Oh, so you dodged that. If that had landed, you'd be dead in one hit since my attack power is doubled."
Kaor clicked his tongue in disappointment.
Ravier, infuriated to his core, fumed as not even the Master, Count Fenris, had stepped forward. Instead, these underlings dared to challenge him.
How insignificant did they think he was for such weaklings to come at him?
"You bastards dare…"
Swish!
Just as Ravier glared at Kaor, he sensed an intense presence approaching and quickly raised his head.
Ghislain was charging at him, his red eyes gleaming like before, swinging his sword.
There was no way to dodge this one. Ravier unleashed all his holy power to shield himself.
Boom!
"Urgh!"
He barely managed to block it, but the impact wasn't fully neutralized, and Ravier was pushed far back.
Landing on the ground, Ghislain pointed his sword at Ravier and grinned.
"See? I told you he's terrible at fighting."
The other two nodded in agreement.
"Seems like it. But his reaction speed isn't ordinary."
"Still, one hit from my twin swords and he's dead. Doesn't he look pretty weak in terms of endurance?"
The three of them casually chatted while surrounding Ravier. It was blatantly obvious they intended to gang up on him.
Ravier glared at Ghislain and shouted.
"You! Is it not shameful for a Master to resort to teamwork?"
"Why would that be shameful?"
"What?"
"Is this guy an idiot? Do you think I'm dueling you? Who says a Master has to fight alone?"
"You… you bastard…"
Ghislain waved his sword casually as he spoke.
"I speak now as the commander of the Northern Army of Lutania and a noble of the kingdom. You conspired with the Duchy to commit treason, deceived the kingdom's citizens as a member of a heretical group, and killed countless innocents. Under the kingdom's law, I hereby place you under arrest. Your crimes are severe, so kneel immediately and submit to the judgment of the law. How's that?"
"Wow…"
The knights, listening to Ghislain's declaration, found themselves clapping unconsciously.
So, their lord could say such things when he wanted to. The problem was that he usually punched first and explained nothing.
But Ravier didn't take Ghislain's words at face value. It was clear he was mocking him.
"You bastard!"
To Ravier, who had always lived elegantly as a high-ranking member of the Salvation Church, this was the first time he had suffered such humiliation.
The plans he had prepared in the capital were ruined, and now even the most crucial secret had been discovered.
Even if he returned, he would face retribution for his failures. The Church's laws were not merciful.
All of this was because of that man.
Whoooosh!
From Ravier's body, wings of black energy burst forth once more. The remaining hand extended with black energy shaped like claws.
This time, he didn't intend to use his power half-heartedly. Even if it cost him his life, he would kill Count Fenris.
Boom!
Ravier detonated all his remaining holy power. His entire body was engulfed in burning black energy.
The sheer force startled everyone, causing them to hesitate.
"Everyone, fall back! Make space," Ghislain commanded, and the knights retreated to a safe distance. Only Belinda and Kaor remained near Ravier, looking for an opportunity.
Ravier had immense power but significantly lacked technique. He wasn't a combatant; he was a priest.
Ghislain didn't intend to use all his strength. There was no need to fight alone when teamwork could make it easier.
Belinda and Kaor could adequately support him now. There was no reason to risk overexerting himself unnecessarily.
"I'll go first."
Whoosh!
Ghislain exploded with mana as he dashed forward. Ravier immediately released a surge of black energy to meet him head-on.
Boom!
The attack didn't land cleanly. Kaor had swiftly leaped in and swung his swords, forcing Ravier to dodge and disrupting his stance.
Ravier's body wavered as he retreated midair.
"Damn!"
Unlike Ravier, who could maneuver freely in the air, Kaor lacked such a technique and clicked his tongue in frustration as he returned to the ground.
But dodging Kaor wasn't the end of it.
Belinda suddenly appeared and swung her dagger at Ravier's neck.
"Urgh!"
Clang!
In perfect timing, Ravier had no choice but to raise his hand to block the dagger.
Although the black energy surrounding his body prevented severe damage, he could feel chunks of his holy power dissipating.
Protecting his fragile body required a significant amount of energy.
Before Ravier could counterattack, Belinda's robe billowed.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Dozens of daggers flew like snakes, targeting Ravier's body.
"You b*tch!"
Boom!
Ravier unleashed a wave of black energy, scattering the daggers. But in that brief moment of distraction, Ghislain charged forward.
Ghislain's sword was an Aura Blade. Although Ravier could endure it with his power, a direct hit would consume an enormous amount of his holy power.
Ravier hastily created a shield of holy power and retreated again.
Boom!
He barely escaped, but Kaor attacked again.
When he evaded Kaor, Belinda struck. And before he could respond, Ghislain came in again.
"Damn… you cowardly bastards…"
Individually, they were all weaker than him. Yet he was so busy blocking and dodging that he couldn't catch his breath.
Ravier had devoted himself to studying scriptures and fulfilling Church doctrine. Never before had he regretted neglecting combat techniques as much as he did today.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
The four of them moved with such speed that no one else could interfere.
Even so, Ravier occasionally managed successful counterattacks with his raw strength and incredible reflexes.
Boom!
"Ugh!"
Kaor was struck by black energy in the stomach and knocked back. Belinda was also flung aside as she blocked an unexpected attack.
Fortunately, Ravier couldn't focus enough power on his attacks due to his divided attention. Both Kaor and Belinda, though battered, avoided critical injuries and quickly returned to the fray.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Meanwhile, Ghislain remained untouched. He dodged or blocked every attack flawlessly.
As a result, Ravier grew increasingly anxious. Though he was also defending well, he could feel his holy power draining faster and faster.
'At this rate, it's over.'
If he kept being dragged along by their teamwork, he would eventually tire and die.
He needed to launch a more overwhelming attack. He had no intention of holding back his strength anymore.
Kwooooo!
As Ravier began to burn his own life force, his hair turned stark white.
Soaring higher in an instant, Ravier glared down at the three and spoke.
"Die, you insignificant worms."
The purple light in his eyes darkened further, and thousands of strands of black energy shot forth from his body.
Like stars filling the sky, countless black rays instantly took over the space.
Those lights rained down toward the three. Knowing his lack of skill, Ravier had chosen to overwhelm them with sheer power.
BOOOOM!
The force was powerful enough to devastate the surrounding area. No one could easily withstand it.
The three tensed, drawing out their mana to brace for impact. There was no room to dodge.
But they weren't the only ones there. Someone who had been waiting for Ravier to unleash this attack had been standing by under Ghislain's command.
"Fire Shield."
Above the three, a blazing shield formed. It was so powerful that it consumed half of Vanessa's mana.
Crash! Crash! Crash!
The black energy collided with the fire shield but failed to pierce it. Thousands of strands of energy pounded relentlessly on the shield, but it held firm, imbued with overwhelming magic power.
The shield, crafted by a 7th-circle mage who had absorbed part of a Dragon Heart, withstood the assault. Although the total energy of the black rays was comparable, they were too dispersed to break through the shield.
RUMBLE!
Finally, as the shield exhausted its power and disappeared, the remaining black energy had weakened significantly. The three used their mana to endure the diminished attack.
"What is this?!"
Ravier turned his head, his face filled with rage.
This attack had consumed most of his holy power. It was an attack he couldn't replicate, one that absolutely needed to succeed—yet it had failed.
Following the flow of mana, he turned his gaze. Far off, floating in the air above the knights, was a woman.
"A mage?"
He hadn't expected there to be another. Before Ravier could gather his thoughts, Vanessa began casting another spell.
"Fire Lance."
Zzzing—! Zzzing—! Zzzing—!
In an instant, dozens of magic circles appeared around her, unleashing a barrage of fire lances.
Unlike before, where spells were cast in rapid succession, this time they were all manifested simultaneously.
"W-What is this?!"
Seeing multi-casting for the first time, Ravier panicked and tried to evade. But Ghislain was faster, extending his hand.
Whoosh!
Mana-infused lances, which he hadn't used until now, were also unleashed toward Ravier.
The fire lances and mana lances filled the space, converging on Ravier. He didn't dare attempt to dodge.
BOOOOM!
The remaining holy power in his body erupted, forming a black, dome-shaped shield.
Crash! Crash! Crash!
"Urgh!"
The relentless assault of lances hammered his shield. Already depleted of most of his holy power, the shield quickly gave way.
Though he managed to block the attack, Ravier was now utterly exhausted.
He had never focused on combat, and it showed. Unable to properly manage his power, he had fought with brute strength and speed alone.
From beside him, Belinda's voice rang out.
"If your ultimate attack fails, you should just die, right?"
Slash!
"Argh!"
Belinda suddenly struck, slashing his neck. Though it wasn't fatal, the deep wound spewed black energy continuously.
BOOM!
Ravier barely mustered his strength to push Belinda away, but Kaor was already slashing at his chest.
"Ugh!"
The black wings on Ravier's back trembled a few times before beginning to fade.
He tried to counterattack, but Vanessa's magic was faster.
CRACK!
A flash of light burst from the sky, and a bolt of lightning struck Ravier's body.
BOOM!
"Gaaaah!"
Even with his neck slashed, chest wounded, and struck by lightning, Ravier didn't die.
With bloodshot eyes, he desperately tried to muster more power. His life force was unbelievably resilient.
"How dare you! How dare you do this to one blessed by god!"
He glared with bloodshot eyes, trying to summon his remaining strength, but his initial vigor was already gone.
Seeing this, Ghislain smirked.
"Looks like your power is almost gone. Let's wrap this up."
BOOOOM!
As Ghislain activated the third core, dark red energy enveloped his body.
With his body surrounded by dark red energy, Ghislain looked no different from Ravier, except for the lack of wings.
In fact, his aura was even denser and more concentrated than Ravier's holy power. This was why Ghislain had also been called a demon on the battlefield.
Whoosh!
With his red eyes glowing, Ghislain charged toward Ravier. Ravier froze in place.
He needed to block or dodge, but the thought didn't even cross his mind. It wasn't fear—it was pure shock.
'T-That power…!'
Ravier's trembling eyes followed Ghislain.
The energy surrounding his body was similar to his own holy power. The explosive mana was reminiscent of the mana cultivation technique his group had researched.
And yet, Ghislain wielded both powers seamlessly, as if it were nothing.
'T-This is impossible…'
Ravier's group had scoured the continent, researching any forces that resembled their own power.
But what Ghislain wielded wasn't just similar—it was almost identical to their own.
He hadn't noticed it at first. But now that Ghislain's power was unleashed to its fullest, it was unmistakable.
At this moment, Ravier's mind, as a researcher, took over completely.
"W-Wait!"
He reached out frantically, shouting, but Ghislain ignored him without hesitation.
Falling for an enemy's tricks during battle was the mark of an amateur. Once Ghislain decided to kill, he focused solely on that goal.
"It's over."
Slash!
Ghislain's elongated Aura Blade sliced cleanly through Ravier's neck.
With his strength entirely depleted and defenseless, Ravier took the blow head-on.
Even after his head was severed, his face remained filled with doubt.
"You… how…"
Those incomplete words, laden with unanswered questions, became Ravier's final words.
[T/L: Please support me and read 385 extra chapters: https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]
[T/L: I am sorry for irregular updates, I had gone under a small surgery and still in the recovery phase. Once I recover fully, I will start uploading the chapters regularly.]