Chapter 400: The Oracle

“A mere human like you has no right to utter that name.”

Despite Karyl’s incredible display of power, Judex’s expression remained unchanged.

“You speak of rights... You, who manipulated us without ever showing your faces,” Karyl retorted.

“You foolish creature. You dare show such insolence to the Creator of the very ground you tread and the air you breathe? Strong as you are, do you really think you can survive without the blessings you take for granted?”

At that, Karyl’s lips curled into a smirk.

“...”

And for the first time, Judex’s impassive mask showed a slight crack.

“The Creator?” Karyl asked incredulously. “Are you really a servant of a god? No... I bet you Nephilim are just fools who blindly believe whatever Yula tells them because of her blessings.”

“What nonsense are you spouting?”

“Do you have the courage to face the truth? Can you confidently say your beliefs are built on genuine memory and not on something fabricated?”

Step... step... step...

Karyl stepped over the fallen Nephilim, advancing toward Judex.

“Yula’s blessing? Don’t mistake physical strength for true blessing. Your might is no more than a splinter.”

Judex regarded him with a cold glare.

“Doubt is a sin that belongs only to humans. We established the Church and spread Yula’s teachings in order to guide you, to bless you with enlightenment. But you sorry creatures remain hopelessly ignorant.”

The angel resumed his indifferent expression.

“We act only by divine command. You... You’re nothing but a murderer trying to come up with absurd justifications for his heinous crimes.”

“Heinous crimes?”

“You destroyed the Church, believing our god would not notice. Yet despite your transgressions, she granted you one final chance, which you squandered by killing Virtus. Now, you must face punishment for persecuting Yula’s followers and for slaying the divine messenger who came only to warn humanity of the impending crisis.”

At that, Karyl frowned, looking at Judex with disdain.

“Is that what Yula ordered you to say? Or are you merely using her as an excuse for your own personal vendetta? If she’s so mighty, tell her to stop hiding behind you and fight for her creations herself.”

Karyl pointed at Judex, then slowly turned his finger downward.

“You lot cannot rise to my level.”

“Y-You...!!”

Judex’s veneer of composure cracked again, anger surging forth at the blasphemy against Yula.

“How dare you...!”

The more Judex’s fury flared, the fiercer the fire in Karyl’s eyes burned.

Swish...!

When Judex swept his massive arm through the air, halos of light shimmered along the path of his fingertips. Then, dozens of light beams rained down on Karyl.

“Watch out!”

At Karyl’s shout, everyone on the wall scattered.

Crash...!

Judex’s beams sliced through everything in their path like lasers, carving the thick fortress walls into dozens of pieces as effortlessly as cutting through tofu. Then, as he raised his hand once more, a golden light poured down from the Sky Fortress, casting a radiant glow across the ground below.

Woooong...!

The earth quaked, and Elanion, who had been struck down, rose once again, gripping his greatsword. At the same time, Karanon’s arms grew back up, allowing him to drag his massive mace across the ground.

Maron slowly stood up and retrieved his head from the ground, attaching it back to his body.

Schlack...!

His flesh knitted itself together with a grotesque sound, and his eyes snapped open.

“Hmm...” Maron turned his gaze toward Karyl as he stretched his neck from side to side.

“Okay, let’s be honest here,” Karyl sneered at them. “Do you really think freaks like you should be called

angels

?”

Watching their revival, Karyl felt disgust rather than awe. To him, there was nothing holy about corpses springing back to life. After all, no one viewed the undead as holy.

𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

“If you’re so determined to fight a hopeless battle, suit yourself. Struggle all you want, you pitiful creatures.”

“Is that so?” Karyl murmured, his voice dripping with derision. “Then you better watch your back.”

Fwoosh...!

The space suddenly distorted, and two sharp blades shot out from the darkness.

“Ugh...?!”

Aidan’s Twin Blades just managed to graze Judex’s wings.

“Ten points,” Karyl remarked calmly.

Judex rose into the air, but Suan swiftly engaged him, unleashing a barrage of powerful punches.

Bang! Boom...!!

The fierce clash echoed like a series of explosions in the sky. Yet Suan couldn’t break through the protective barrier surrounding Judex.

“You too, ten points.”

Ganeth and Serica Lauren followed-up from behind Suan, thrusting their razor-sharp spears, but they too missed by a hair’s breadth.

Judex had already taken to the skies.

“Five points.”

Boom...! Crash! Crash!

Wind Blades surged toward Judex with a deafening roar, seeking to cut him down.

“Hmm... Ten points.”

Judex staggered briefly. Seizing the opening, Miliana lunged at him with her twin blades.

“Haaah...!!”

Digon Twin Blade Technique - First Form: Crimson Moon Wind

Her twin blades glowed red, as if freshly drawn from the forge, while crimson scales covered her arms, making her resemble a fiery flower in bloom.

Woosh! Slash...! Crash!

“Urgh...!”

Miliana’s relentless barrage forced Judex back, but the angel eventually managed to retaliate, knocking her away with one punch.

“Fifteen points.”

Beikan was there to catch Miliana as she spun through the air. Using his shoulders as a stepping stone, Hwarin leapt upward.

As she surged toward Judex, she took her beastly form, releasing a ferocious howl. She managed to pounce on the angel, sinking her claws into his wing and chomping down on his neck.

“...”

However, her fangs failed to pierce through his shield.

Thud!

Judex swiftly drove his elbow into Hwarin’s abdomen, not even turning his head.

“Urk—!!”

The blow was devastating. Hwarin’s side was marred by a hole from which blood gushed out, as though insects had eaten through her flesh.

“Ghrrr...!!”

Despite the critical injury, Hwarin clawed at Judex’s unprotected wing before falling, managing to tear off a chunk of flesh.

Skrrch—!

Hwarin flashed Judex a mocking grin, showing him the middle finger as she spat the feathers still clinging to her jaws.

“You filthy wretch...! How dare you...!”

Uncharacteristically for a divine being, Judex began to curse. It wasn’t the wound on his wing—which was already healing—but his bruised pride that stung the most.

“...Thirty points. Kinda sloppy, but still impressive,” Karyl remarked with a wry smile.

Shing...!

At that moment, Hagane ambushed Judex from behind, tendrils erupting from his crimson sword.

“Grr...! Urgh!”

“Judex!!”

The other three Nephilim rushed forward, weapons drawn, trying to intercept Hagane.

Swish...! Boom!

But Hagane summoned more crimson thorns from the pool at his feet, launching them at the approaching Nephilim.

Clang! Clang! Sizzle...!

“Ten points. Don’t you think the title of Demon King is wasted on you, Hagane?” Karyl reproached sharply, watching the demon square off against the four Archangels.

“Haha...” Hagane let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head.

“Is one truly a king if he lets others fight in his place, merely scoring their attacks? Such arrogance is beyond measure.”

“Oh? Doesn’t your god do the same—sending you all to fight in her stead?”

“Silence!” Judex’s face twisted with fury at Karyl’s retort.

“And also, my people made you bleed. If anyone’s arrogant, it’s you.”

“...What?”

“Of course they didn’t think they could cut your head, no matter how hard they tried. But that was never their goal to begin with.”

Judex frowned, visibly confused.

“Their sole objective was to shatter your shield, so that my blade can dig into your neck.”

“...!”

Kary’s voice rang in Judex’s ears.

“The attack isn’t over yet.”

Crack...! Clang!

At that moment, a low voice rang out from Nain Darhon, as he thrust a small orb into Judex’s side.

“Die.”

It was Condensed Tarak.

The Immortal Council alone had conducted research on Tarak, transforming it into a system of dark magic rooted in darkness itself. And Nain Darhon was undoubtedly the only living sorcerer on the continent capable of wielding the power of Tarak.

“...!!”

The space around them distorted, as though sucked into the black orb, and Judex’s shield shattered like glass, breaking into tiny fragments.

“And we have a hundred!” Karyl beamed, driving his sword forward with a faint smile. “Each one might seem insignificant to you, but they’re all valuable pieces to the puzzle. Humanity was born incomplete by nature.”

Shhhhhk—!!

Polsetia’s blade pierced right through the center of Judex’s throat, emerging from the back of his neck with a splash of crimson.

“Guh...! Ghah...!” Judex gasped, grabbing the sword with both hands.

“This isn’t some show of force like yours. We take one step at a time. Humans are strong because they can crawl through all the filth to achieve their goals. We’re not like you bastards, always seeking to be self-glorifying heroes.”

“You fucking...!” Judex shuddered as blood sprayed from his mouth.

In response, Karyl pushed the blade deeper.

“Die cursing your arrogance.”

[...Withdraw your blade.]

At that moment, a voice, as heavy as if it carried the weight of gravity itself, echoed from above, nearly suffocating everyone.

“G-God... Almighty God...!!”

An intense brilliance pierced down through the night sky, illuminating the scene as though noon had suddenly arrived.

Judex, with a look of reverence, raised his face toward the light.

“They’ve come.” Karyl looked up with a sharp, mocking grin.

[Heed the Oracle.]

The voice felt like a knife sinking into the heart, leaving everyone breathless.

Shing—!

In that instant, Karyl pulled his sword from Judex’s neck and kicked him back. Judex clutched his bleeding throat with both hands, and Karyl turned his gaze from him, slipping the ring off his finger.

Clang!

He stripped off his armor, tossing it into the radiance of the aurora.

“Heed the Oracle, you say?”

Karyl glanced at the gem on the ring before clenching his fist around it.

Crack!

As the gem shattered, he slowly turned his palm downward, letting the dust scatter in the wind.

“I refuse.”

Karyl dusted off his hands, slowly and deliberately, his defiance clear to all.