The Regressed Mercenary’s Machinations

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Chapter 627: Come Find Me. (2)

“What, what is this…?”

Arterion, who had been consumed by madness just moments ago, was now completely dazed.

What Ghislaine had just shown him was the very same appearance of the adversary he knew.

There can’t be two adversaries. How could the same visage of the adversary appear in two individuals at once?!

“You bastard! What sorcery are you using?!”

Arterion roared. But in his shocked state, he didn’t even fully register that the enemy was approaching him.

In an instant, Ghislaine drew near and cut into Arterion’s body.

Slash!

“Graaaah!”

Arterion’s chest was sliced deeper than ever before. As soon as Ghislaine succeeded in her attack, she stopped amplifying her power and withdrew.

She had gotten used to the power of the Stage 5 core. With her recovery rate improving, she could maintain the Stage 5 state for a considerable duration now.

However, using Dark for amplification was still a challenge. She couldn’t keep using that powerful ability indefinitely; if she pushed too hard, she would collapse.

Crack.

Just from using it once, her legs began to wobble. Fortunately, she had used a significant amount of mana until now, so she could endure even with this amplification.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

With Ghislaine’s attack as the cue, the superhumans all charged in and attacked again.

Arterion continued to be pushed back, sustaining injuries along the way. He struggled to counterattack, but the precision he once had had long since faded.

Part of it was exhaustion, but his mind was also flooded with confusion.

‘Why? Why are there two adversaries?’

The power Ghislaine displayed for a moment was undoubtedly that of an adversary. She looked just like one too.

After all, only the members of the Salvation Society use such dark energies.

‘Have I been deceived?’

Ereness had definitely met the author. If that’s the case, she could not have been unaware of that aura. It would have been evident during their battles together.

But did she just overlook it? That doesn’t make sense.

‘No, that can’t be. There must be a reason Ereness overlooked it.’

Doubt flickered for a moment that Ereness might have betrayed him, but he quickly dismissed that thought.

Ereness hated the Salvation Society more than anyone and could never ally with them.

As Arterion was being pushed back, he focused on the energy Ghislaine released when she amplified her power again.

‘This is different.’

Though she looked astonishingly similar, the energy felt slightly different. Just like Ereness, he couldn’t sense malice from that aura.

Only a sense of unknown foreboding lingered.

Still, he couldn’t understand it. That kind of energy couldn’t be obtained casually. It was different from that of an adversary, but there was certainly a dark energy present.

‘Its essence… is similar to the Salvation Society. It carries the energy of the Demon God.’

Ereness must know this too. If she has indeed overlooked it, there would have to be a compelling reason, but it was hard for Arterion to guess.

In fact, the reason Arterion was confused was that, unlike Ereness, he was unaware of Dark’s existence.

She may have had some suspicions, but she thought of Dark as a different kind of spirit and moved on. Being an elf sensitive to the energies of spirits, she couldn’t be entirely certain.

No matter how strong Ereness was, her ability to sense the energy of a Demon God would inevitably be weaker than that of a dragon.

As a dragon, Arterion recalled the hypothesis Ereness had proposed at that time.

‘Could it be… has that been obtained?’

That existence had been sealed away along with the adversary. Thus, if an adversary appeared, that being could re-emerge as well.

And here, right now, an adversary existed.

Ghislaine’s moments of amplification were far too brief for Arterion to fully grasp. Yet, that brief sensation he felt didn’t leave his mind.

‘What on earth…’

It felt as if the adversary had been split into two.

Then who is the real adversary?!

Even if an ordinary human gained that existence, they couldn’t so easily draw upon such dark energy. Only an adversary could fully wield the power of that being.

For Arterion, there was no way to accurately identify who the adversary was.

Until now, he had solely focused his attacks towards Yulien. But…

‘What if this Ghislaine is the adversary?’

That contradicted everything he knew, but he couldn’t entirely dismiss the possibility.

The problem was that he was utterly exhausted.

The humans had thoroughly prepared to fight against him. Even if they were able to use magic freely, it wouldn’t have come to this extent.

‘If I can’t be certain, I have to kill them both. But… right now, that’s impossible.’

Graaah!

Arterion couldn’t bear to acknowledge it. How could the strongest dragon like himself be pushed back like this?!

That said, he wasn’t foolish enough to lose his grip on reality. If this continued, he could truly lose his life.

‘I must escape.’

He couldn’t die here. He had to kill the adversary without fail.

If he acted now, if he acted now, he could still escape. Although his strength was nearly depleted, if he poured out the remaining power, slipping away shouldn’t be too difficult.

He now knew who the adversary was. In fact, it was uncertain which of the two it was, but he could simply kill them both.

Although it wounded his pride deeply… he had to withdraw for the sake of a more important task.

‘From now on, you won’t get such an opportunity again!’

He would suppress his pride and fight cunningly. He would stealthily eliminate the human factions, one by one.

Now, the humans would live in fear, not knowing when he would show up.

“Grrr… Just wait and see.”

With a flap!

Arterion spread his wings wide. He was preparing to flee.

If he flew far away, they wouldn’t be able to catch him.

At that moment, again, a black fog enveloped his mind.

And a voice echoed in his head.

― …Come find me.

Boom!

It delivered the most intense shock to his psyche he had ever experienced.

“Grrrgh!”

Something, something was intruding into his mind. Arterion realized that something was terribly wrong with the current situation.

But it was already too late. His mind was swiftly consumed by the black fog.

Kaaah!

Arterion raised his head high towards the sky and roared. His eyes were once more filled with battle intent and malice.

How could the strongest existence like himself run away from insignificant humans?!

“Grr… I will kill them all…”

That kind of disgrace was unacceptable. He must ensure that he slays the adversary and the remaining humans in this place.

With a wild gleam in his eye, Arterion launched another attack.

‘I will kill the adversary!’

His mind was filled with nothing but intent to kill. He had to at all costs take down the adversary.

He had fallen victim to the humans’ thorough preparations. His life would end here.

So, he had to kill at least one of them before he died. He could leave the aftermath to Ereness.

She was an exceedingly cautious and deeply strategic elf—the most elf-like, yet also the least elf-like.

She would take care of the remaining adversary.

Kaaah!

Arterion threw himself into a reckless attack, relinquishing his own life.

The more he pressed in, the more openings appeared. Arterion’s body was now covered in blood.

The strong spirit and body of the dragon began to crumble gradually.

The superhumans all swarmed around, relentlessly assaulting Arterion’s body. They instinctively understood they needed to finish this now.

‘There won’t be a second chance.’

‘It was certainly an attempt to flee.’

‘If we let him go now, we’re all dead.’

If Arterion managed to escape, the continent would face ruin. The next battle wouldn’t allow for this much capital. They would never win.

It seemed his dragon’s haughty pride had shifted his mindset. Thus, he had to kill Arterion right now, even if it was risky.

Bang! Bang! Baaang!

Everyone fought with all their might. Even if bones broke and flesh ripped, they believed in their divine power and pressed on. Even after running out of mana, they swung their weapons without hesitation.

Arterion’s body had now become tattered like a rag, and he could hardly spread his wings properly.

Kaaah!

Arterion poured all his strength into one last effort. With what little magic was left, he attempted the Lower Circle magic multiple times.

The wizards remaining in the fortress were bloodied but managed to unravel it.

Now everyone was aware. The end of this fight was approaching.

Boom!

Arterion’s massive body staggered and collapsed to one side. Even so, he swung his tail and claws in the air.

The attacking superhumans struggled just as much to maintain their balance. Their arms and legs trembled and wouldn’t move correctly.

Kaor had long since collapsed and was only gasping for breath.

Even divine power had limits to its recovery. The priests’ divine power had nearly run dry, but the recipients were also out of mana, damaging their bodies in the process.

It was so severe that even the immensely sturdy Parniel nearly dropped his mace in a moment of weakness.

“Phew!”

The only ones barely standing were Ghislaine and Yulien.

It wasn’t that the stamina of the two was stronger than Parniel’s. Parniel had taken the most hits due to his reckless movements. Naturally, his stamina consumption was considerable.

Yet, thanks to her taking the blows upfront, they could push Arterion faster.

Ghislaine knew this was truly the end. It was time to use her final move.

Kaaah!

Boom!

Arterion slammed his tail down again. However, he could no longer follow up with more attacks, leaving an opportunity.

Ghislaine gripped her sword tightly and spoke.

“Yulien.”

“…Right.”

Bangaaaang!

The two gathered their last bit of strength and charged at Arterion.

Flicker!

Ghislaine’s body was once again engulfed in black fog. Though she had endured until now by using it only at the moment of attack, this would be her last time. She no longer had the stamina to continue using it.

So, he called upon the power of will once again. To ensure her attack was a success, she summoned the flow of the world.

Gwooooooo!

Time slowed down. This space had come to dwell within Ghislaine’s will.

Arterion strained to raise his claws. Though he sensed Ghislaine’s space, he could no longer move as he had before.

At the moment when Ghislaine pushed her sword toward Arterion’s Dragon Heart with all her strength…

‘Huh?’

A faint ripple brushed against Ghislaine’s senses. Amidst the flow of the world, some unidentifiable something was sneaking.

‘What is that?’

It was an aura whose identity she couldn’t discern. Though unseen, she felt that something was there.

This space was where Ghislaine and the world resonated together. She would not miss any existence that opposed that flow.

That energy continuously seeped out from Arterion’s wounds.

Bang!

Ghislaine’s sword finally pierced through, destroying Arterion’s Dragon Heart.

However, his mind was directed elsewhere.

‘It’s moving.’

It slithered and squirmed like a serpent. It wasn’t normal energy. If it were normal energy, she wouldn’t have missed it.

Ghislaine slowly turned her head toward the direction it was heading.

‘…Yulien?’

It was heading toward Yulien.

Ghislaine tried to call out to Yulien. She wanted to warn him that something was approaching.

But upon seeing Yulien’s face, she halted.

Yulien’s gaze was also drawn along with that energy. And he silently watched as it penetrated his body.

‘Yulien, you…’

Yulien slowly turned his head. His gaze was directed not at the dying Arterion, but elsewhere.

In that disjointed time.

The eyes of the two met in the void.