Side Story Chapter 122 - Endless Eighth (8)

[Kurgh!! G-Gaaaaah!!]

Midor pierced Solar from back to chest. He twisted and turned as he vomited blood after allowing an attack to hit him twice while completely defenseless.

“Looks like your blood is still red with that kind of body.”

Oh Kang-Woo smirked as he looked down at Solar, whose body was made of light akin to the sun.

[S-Solar!!!] Lunar shouted in shock.

She grimaced ferociously and swung her urumi at Kang-Woo.

“No, you don’t!”

Kim Si-Hun reached Lunar after answering Kang-Woo’s call and swung his sword.

[I told you it was pointless!]

Lunar frowned as she swung her sword at Kang-Woo and twitched her shoulder. The slight motion bent the urumi like a spring and wrapped Si-Hun’s sword. Si-Hun’s attack was neutralized by less than a second but he simply smiled.

“Yeah, I know.”

[...!]

Si-Hun let go of his sword and crouched as if he were falling forward, revealing the demon covered in red muscles behind him.

“Gahahahahaha!!”

[Ngh!]

Lunar couldn’t understand why she couldn’t see the massive demon behind the human. Her expression hardened as she looked up at the demon so big that it seemed like he was covering the sky as he fell toward her.

[All you have is strength—]

Lunar’s eyes shone ferociously. She stomped her right foot, lowered her stance, and turned counterclockwise. She lowered her urumi and moved as fluidly as a gentle breeze as she extended her arm. Her grappling technique of attacking by using the enemy’s strength against them had reached a point that it was a work of art.

[Such an attack will not reach me!!!]

Her palm made contact with Balrog’s fist; the gentle touch guided the power infused in the fist elsewhere as if freely changing the flow of a river rapid.

“I’m ignorant so I don’t understand stuff like martial arts.”

Balrog added more strength to his shoulder and forced his fist, which was trying to move elsewhere, in place. Sounds of bones breaking echoed from his shoulder due to the recoil of resisting the flow. However, Balrog smiled widely despite feeling extreme pain akin to being stabbed endlessly.

“If I can’t reach you, all I know how to do is add more strength until I do!!!”

𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Crack!

The bones of his shoulder shattered but the muscles around it swelled up and forced them in place. Balrog’s fist, which was being diverted elsewhere, was forced back to its normal trajectory.

[I-Impossible...!]

“Gahahahahahahahahaha!!!”

Balrog laughed heartily and activated [Overlord’s Titanic Might], multiplying his strength by five.

Crunch!

Lunar’s hand on Balrog’s fist was bent at the wrist at an unnatural angle. She could freely manipulate a river rapid but lost control once it became a tsunami.

[Ngh!!!]

Lunar quickly jumped backward but not fast enough; Balrog’s fist grazed her.

[KYAAAAAAHHH!]

She was swept by an immense impact despite the fist only grazing her. The unfathomable power smashed through Deific Essence and the power of Akart, sending Lunar tumbling.

[Urgh!]

Lunar quickly regained her stance to minimize the impact. Her feet dragged across the ground, slowing her down and creating a massive line on the ground.

‘I have to widen the distance...!’

She needed to get the injured Solar somewhere safe and buy enough time to combine.

Just then, she heard from behind her, “Do you need time?”

[

Gasp!

] Si-Hun was already at the place where Lunar managed to stop tumbling. [H-How?]

Si-Hun had not chased after Lunar as she was being blown backward; he had been here before she was even blown backward. Lunar stared at Balrog, who had sent her flying, in shock.

“Oh. Come to think of it, I forgot to tell you something.” Balrog cackled as he tapped on his head with his finger. “I may be ignorant, but I’m not stupid. Gahahahahaha!”

Balrog had not forcibly kept his fist in place because he wanted his attack to reach Lunar.

[N-No!] Lunar’s face paled.

“Heavenly Dragon Sword Technique, First Form,” said Si-Hun before Lunar could turn around.

It was not a technique he had learned from the Thousand Martial Treasury. It was the technique he had used since the moment he held a sword— the only technique that Si-Hun, who could perform a martial art technique perfectly the first time he used it, polished for many years.

“Heavenly Dragon Flash.”

The dragon soaring through the sky ferociously opened its mouth. The sword energy, condensed to its absolute limit, was unleashed in a straight line, cleaving everything in its path.

[Ah—]

Lunar reflexively stretched out her hand to use the power of Nostrian which she had not used during this battle, but it did not activate immediately because she was not as accustomed to using it as Solar.

Slash—!!!

The slash infused with the power of a dragon cut her in half from the crown of her head to her groin, forming a line on her body. Bluish energy poured out from the line.

[LUNAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!]

Solar extended his arm toward Lunar in shock but Kang-Woo stabbed Solar in the thigh before he could run to her.

“We can film the tearjerker ending of you embracing your lover’s corpse later.”

[GAAAAHHH!!] Solar screamed in pain and collapsed.

“Let’s take this time to talk, you and me,” said Kang-Woo as he looked down at Solar, snickering.

[You... bastard... YOU BASTAAAAAAAAAAARD!!!] Solar glared at Kang-Woo resentfully. [I WILL MAKE YOU PAY!! YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS SIN!!! THE GREAT AKART WILL TEAR YOU INTO PIECES!!!]

“Kurgh!!! Gaaaaaaaaahhh!!!” Kang-Woo’s eyes rolled backward and he convulsed uncontrollably. “Th-The Light of Akart is tearing me apart!!! Gaaaaaaaahhh!! Save meeeeee!!! It hurts so muuuuuuch!!!”

[Y-You son of a...!]

“Pfft!! Bwehehehehehe!!! What? You said I was gonna pay, didn’t you?” Kang-Woo stopped convulsing and trampled on Solar’s head with his tongue out. “What’s all that yapping good for? Huh?”

[...]

“Well, what did I expect from an idiot who would try something as dumb as transforming mid-battle?”

No one but characters in a nineties mecha anime were dumb enough to watch as their enemies combined right in front of them.

‘Are all of Akart’s retainers like this?’

Kang-Woo had to admit they were strong but they all had several screws loose.

‘Maybe it's because they’re pretty much cult fanatics.’

The stronger one’s faith in a cult became, the more brain cells they lost. Even a Nobel Prize winner would behave questionably if their faith in a cult deepened.

‘If these guys are this bad... I’m a bit worried about the son of a bitch Akart.’

It was no simple feat to make someone this fanatical; strength or intelligence couldn’t make it work. To make some lose their minds to this extent, they needed something that far surpassed logic and reason.

‘Well... I’m sure I’ll find out when I meet him.’

Kang-Woo scrapped his thoughts about Akart and turned his gaze.

“Right, then. Let’s get started.”

[Start... what?] asked Solar with his eyes narrowed.

Kang-Woo bit open his thumb without answering.

“I’m dying to know where and how you managed to get Nostrian’s power.”

[And you think I’ll tell y—]

“Yeah, yeah. I’m sure you’re thinking you won’t. But you’ll change your mind once you get a taste of molting.”

Kang-Woo sprayed the black blood dripping from his thumb on Solar’s back. The blood, filled with demonic energy from the Abyss, seeped into Solar’s wound.

[Kurgh!! Arghhh!!!]

Solar’s eyes widened. The extreme pain of his insides being torn apart took over his mind. His eyes rolled back and he trembled as he foamed at the mouth.

[O-O Great Akaaaaaaaaart!!! G-Give me streeeeeeeength!!!]

Solar reflexively shouted Akart’s name as the pain ravaged him.

“Akart is on sabbatical, man,” Kang-Woo said as he smirked and bit open another finger.

Just then, a blinding golden light burst from Solar.

Whoooom!!

“Wait, what?”

‘He wasn’t on sabbatical?’

[A-Aaaahh! O Great Akaaaaaaaart!!!] Solar stood up as he cheered. The bonding golden light wrapped around him. [I believed! I never doubted!!!]

He stretched out his arms toward the sky.

[Grant me your blessing! Your radiant splendor! The truth and light of balance!!!]

Tears trickled down Solar’s cheeks.

[Grant me your light! Light, light, light, li—]

Just then, countless cracks formed around Solar’s golden body and he began to crumble before he could even comprehend what was happening.

[—Huh?]

“Fuck!!!” Kang-Woo cursed and sprinted toward the crumbling Solar.

He tried to activate the Authority of Regeneration using his black blood but had no idea where to activate it on Solar’s body, which had already broken into countless pieces.

[Glory... to... Akart.]

Solar worshiped Akart with a smile even when dying by his hand.

“...”

Chills ran down Kang-Woo’s back. How far beyond the scope of madness did one need to be to praise the god who betrayed them, even in death? Kang-Woo stared at Lunar as a last hope but she wasn’t moving an inch after being split in two by Si-Hun.

“Dammit...”

In the end, Kang-Woo had gained nothing besides eliminating two of Akart’s retainers. Everything about Nostrian and Akart was still shrouded in darkness.

“No, I wouldn’t say I gained nothing.”

He set his disappointment aside and shook his head. He had gained something far too valuable to say that he had gained nothing.

“Fuuu.” Kang-Woo looked up to see the sun setting. “I wonder what gifts I should prepare for tomorrow?”

He couldn’t help but smile.

***

Slam!

“KANG-WOOOOOOOOO!!!”

“WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!!”

“THE WEDDING DRESSES ARE HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERE!!!”

“WRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!”

The time loop had broken at last.

“KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!! KANG-WOO, WHY ARE YOU TAKING OFF YOUR PANTS ALL OF A SUDDEEEEEEEEEEEEEN?!!”