Belinda had finally established her own complete world.
The foundation of this world was her unconditional, infinite love and devotion to Ghislain and Elena. The essence of this world was manifesting here and now.
It was the birth of a new transcendent.
Papapapapapapap!
Countless trails of light sliced through lkir.
“Aaaaagh!”
Trapped within this luminous cage, lkir could do nothing but scream as he was ruthlessly slashed.
Even Ghislain felt a chill run down his spine. Once inside that space, no one would be able to easily evade or block the attacks.
Whoosh!
The daggers, enveloped in radiance, scattered in all directions. lkir’s bandages were soaked in blood, shredded to reveal the grueso sight beneath.
“Grrrk…”
With the bandages fully removed, lkir’s appearance was grotesque. His face and body were riddled with scars, leaving no unblemished surface.
Already covered in festering wounds and pus, his body was now drenched in blood from the fresh cuts inflicted by the daggers.
lkir looked down at his own body, his vacant eyes murmuring.
“Anette… Anette… are you… here again…?”
Most of his wounds were inflicted by Anette long ago. Those injuries had never properly healed, festered, and constantly oozed pus.
With his mana core shattered and his life force drained, his body could never fully recover. It was a marvel he could still move and fight in such a state.
Whoosh!
Thick shadows surged toward the staggering lkir. Even as the darkness twisted and churned before him, he remained motionless, unable to react.
Slash!
The darkness split apart as Belinda erged from within.
With all her strength, she drove two daggers into lkir’s body—one piercing his heart and the other his neck.
Thunk! Thunk!
“Grrk…”
Already gravely injured and staggering, lkir couldn’t defend himself. His tendons had long been severed, and he was holding himself together with sheer force of will.
Belinda shed a single tear, her gaze filled with hatred.
“I truly thought you were dead.”
Summoning the last of his strength, lkir forced out a rasping laugh.
“Heh… Dead? Look at … This is as good as being dead.”
“I didn’t know you were alive. I thought raising the young master and lady well was enough. If I’d known, I would have done things differently.”
lkir had been the root of all destruction for her organization and the one responsible for her master’s death. Had she known he was still alive, her life would have been consud by a quest for vengeance. Perhaps her ignorance had been a blessing in disguise.
lkir chuckled, his body trembling with amusent.
“Heh… To think… that boy was her son… And I didn’t know for over twenty years… Heh heh… Everything’s been unraveling since that day… The Duke’s faction fell into ruin… How could there be such coincidences…”
“It’s no coincidence. It’s fate.”
Indeed, this was fate. Who would have thought such an old grudge would resurface like this?
It was clear lkir had survived thanks to the Duke’s faction and the Salvation Order. anwhile, Anette’s child had grown into a powerful man, becoming the Duke’s greatest threat.
The ties of enmity between Ghislain and the Duke were far older and deeper than anyone had anticipated.
Belinda bit her lip before speaking again.
“This ti, you won’t co back. I’ll make sure to sever your head properly. This ti, you have no one left to save you.”
“Heh… To fall to you after her… If only I’d mastered that technique…”
“A vile creature like you could never master it.”
Whoosh!
With those words, Belinda swung her twin daggers.
The two blades, glowing with aura, crossed to decapitate lkir.
Clang!
Her attack was halted by a surge of black energy emanating from lkir’s wounds.
“Huh?”
Sensing sothing was amiss, Belinda quickly retreated.
Whoooosh!
Black energy poured from lkir’s injuries, wild and uncontrollable. The dark aura rapidly engulfed his body.
Crack.
lkir’s muscles began to swell, his form growing larger. Grinning through bared teeth, he spoke.
“This is how my story ends… At least the Count of Fenris is here to witness it.”
Belinda’s expression hardened. She recognized what was happening.
It was the Salvation Order’s infamous transformation: the Holy Warrior.
lkir’s eyes filled with a manic gleam, as if seeing a vision. His voice was almost reverent as he continued.
“This power… It’s the only thing that kept alive. But it wasn’t truly living… Now, I can finally find peace.”
He turned his gaze to Belinda, his voice dripping with malice.
“The heir of Anette… and the Count of Fenris… Killing you both will be enough. If I can achieve that, it’s my victory in the end.”
Boom!
A massive surge of energy erupted from lkir’s body. His eyes rolled back, leaving only the whites visible.
His body convulsed violently, frothing at the mouth as he mumbled incoherently.
“Grrr… Anette… I’ll kill you…”
“Target… Fenris… Marquis Ferdium… Elena…”
“Anette… Belinda…”
Even as he reached a transcendent level, his mind had unraveled. The cost of the Holy Warrior’s power was steep, leaving lkir a shadow of his forr self.
“Tsk.”
Belinda retreated, her daggers once again levitating around her. Though her wounds were severe and her mana nearly depleted, she had no choice but to face the now even more powerful lkir.
At that mont, Ghislain, who had been silently observing, stepped forward.
“Enough, Belinda.”
“Young master.”
“I’ll handle this.”
“But that monster—”
“That’s no longer the man you once knew. He’s finished. What’s standing before us is sothing else entirely.”
“…”
“Why don’t you head to the castle and assist Gillian? According to Dark, things seem stable, but you can never be too sure.”
“…Will you be okay?”
Ghislain smirked.
“Stop worrying so much.”
Belinda allowed herself a small smile.
No matter how strong or powerful Ghislain beca, he would always be a child in her eyes. That wouldn’t change, not even if he grew old and gray.
With a nod, she stepped back.
“I’ll go ahead. Finish it quickly and catch up. We have much to discuss.”
“Don’t worry. This won’t take long.”
With a roar, the fully transford lkir charged at Belinda.
But Ghislain intercepted him.
Boom!
Ghislain grinned savagely.
“Now, let’s see what you’ve got.”
His eyes glowed crimson, and a dense, dark aura enveloped his body—an aura far stronger than lkir’s.
Crunch!
lkir’s massive hand reached for Ghislain’s sword, attempting to snap it in two. But Ghislain was faster.
He released the weapon and instead drove his fist into lkir’s face.
Boom!
lkir’s head snapped to the side. Ghislain flexed his hand, chuckling.
“I’m versatile with weapons, sure, but my first love wasn’t swordsmanship.”
lkir roared, twisting his neck back into place. Ghislain, unfazed, pulled his fist back again.
“My first discipline was hand-to-hand combat. I’ve always been fond of throwing punches.”
His fist shot forward like a bullet.
Boom!
“Grrk?”
lkir’s head snapped back once more. The monstrous being couldn’t comprehend what was happening—why he was the one being overpowered.
Watching from a distance, Belinda couldn’t help but chuckle.
There was no need to worry this ti, after all.
‘So things never change. Still…’
Ghislain had always been the reckless child who threw punches whenever things didn’t go his way. Though he had frustrated and worried those around him, Belinda had always embraced him with love, believing he would grow into sothing greater.
And now, here he was.
Ghislain had truly changed. His fists, once tools of tyranny that caused harm, had now beco a beacon of hope, protecting countless lives.
‘Anette, are you watching this?’
As Belinda made her way toward the lord’s castle, a soft smile graced her lips. Was it because she’d stirred up old mories she’d tried to forget? Or was it because she had finally shared the truth about Anette with Ghislain?
Today, it felt like she might burst into tears at any mont.
‘Goodness, I must be getting old. How embarrassing.’
Still, once this ordeal was over, she thought, she might finally allow herself the luxury of crying freely, indulging in the bittersweet nostalgia.
Even in his deranged state, lkir instinctively tried to chase after Belinda as she retreated. With only his unconscious desires driving him, he sought to kill the target of his hatred.
But there was no way Ghislain would let that happen.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
Boom!
Ghislain’s fist drove into lkir’s now twice-enlarged abdon.
Crash! Crash! Crash!
lkir’s massive body tumbled and rolled across the ground, landing a significant distance away.
“Raaaaargh!”
The monstrous lkir quickly sprang to his feet, letting out a blood-curdling roar. Realizing he had to eliminate the obstacle before him, he focused his rage entirely on Ghislain.
Ghislain cracked his knuckles, shaking his head with a smirk.
“Man, you’re tough.”
He could tell that lkir wasn’t capable of fully wielding his transcendent power. With his mana core shattered, the energy implanted by the Salvation Order was the only thing keeping him alive.
Even during his fight with Belinda, lkir hadn’t been at full strength. Yet he had exuded confidence, clearly relying on so trump card.
“So this is what you were betting on?”
The transformation into a Holy Warrior amplified one’s power several tis over. Even a broken man like lkir could unleash devastating strength in critical monts.
Ghislain finally understood why the Duke’s faction had carried out this audacious plan.
“A disposable piece. A transcendent who can only use his power once is perfect to throw away.”
And lkir, knowing this was his final stand, must have seen this battlefield as the best place to burn out his life.
Of course, things wouldn’t go as they’d planned.
“Raaaargh!”
lkir refocused his rage. He decided to eliminate the irritating opponent in front of him first.
Boom!
Kicking off the ground, lkir vanished from sight, appearing before Ghislain in an instant—his speed was so great it seed like teleportation.
Crash!
lkir’s massive fist smashed into Ghislain, who barely managed to cross his arms in defense, though the impact still sent him sliding backward.
“Aaaaargh!”
lkir beat his chest and let out a guttural roar, like a beast declaring its dominance.
But Ghislain, despite the numbing pain that made it feel like his arms might fall off, just grinned.
“It’s been a while since I’ve had to use my full strength.”
A hand-to-hand fight with soone wielding no weapons was rare enough. And to find such a battle with a transcendent? Even rarer.
Though lkir’s techniques had dulled due to his unhinged mind, his raw strength and durability were far beyond that of an ordinary transcendent.
Ghislain felt a thrill he hadn’t experienced in a long ti. This was going to be a fight where he could truly let loose.
“Raaaargh!”
Seeing that Ghislain remained unscathed after taking his punch, lkir growled in frustration and charged again.
This ti, Ghislain was faster.
Moving at incredible speed, he closed the distance and drove his fist into lkir’s face.
Boom!
“Aaaagh!”
With a thunderous explosion, lkir staggered back, letting out a pained roar.
Ghislain clenched and unclenched his fist. Even with all his power concentrated into the blow, lkir hadn’t shattered.
As expected. Ghislain could feel his blood boiling with excitent.
“Raaaaargh!”
lkir rushed at him again, and Ghislain didn’t dodge. He t the charge head-on.
Crash!
The two titanic figures exchanged punches, their black auras swirling and clashing violently, as if trying to devour one another.
Both landed hits, and each staggered back slightly.
“Raaaaargh!”
lkir roared again, but Ghislain simply smirked.
“Co at again.”
Boom!
Crash!
Smash!
The sound of fists colliding echoed incessantly. With every clash of their monstrous strength, the surrounding area was rocked by shockwaves.
lkir’s fist ca crashing down once more. Ghislain didn’t dodge but blocked it head-on. Pain shot through his arm like his bones were shattering—it was a terrifying force.
But he didn’t step back. Instead, he retaliated with his own punch.
Boom!
lkir was hit hard but imdiately counterattacked. However, with each exchange, his body was pushed further back.
“Put in a bit more effort, will you?”
Boom!
With a devilish grin, Ghislain landed another punch squarely on lkir’s face, sending him sprawling.
As ti passed, it beca clear lkir was losing ground. He could no longer mount proper counterattacks and was left taking blow after blow.
“Raaaaargh!”
The beastly lkir refused to stay down, rising again to swing his massive fist. His strength and speed were still imnse.
Boom!
Crunch!
Ghislain planted his feet firmly into the ground, creating deep grooves as he absorbed the impact. This ti, his body barely budged.
“Is that all you’ve got?”
Boom!
This ti, Ghislain’s punch sent lkir staggering back. His battered body began to swell where it was struck, with injuries now visibly worsening.
“Just because you’re throwing your energy around wildly doesn’t an you’re strong.”
With a mocking smile, Ghislain swung his fist again.
Boom!
lkir went flying once more, his body crashing to the ground. The sheer force of the blow was enough to snap the mindless rage out of him, leaving his eyes montarily filled with shock and confusion.
Ghislain towered over him with an air of smug confidence.
“Let’s wrap this up.”
Thud.
Surrounded by a dense black aura and glowing red eyes, Ghislain began to approach the fallen lkir.
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