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| ← Ch.104 | Ch.106 → |
Chapter 100
The countless number of equipment retrieved from the Royal Tomb of the Black Wings had been sent to the Mafahl Tower and were ordinarily only usable via Dina who was able to utilise X-Gate to bring those equipment to Ruphas's hand.
At the very least, that was what Ruphas had believed until this moment and as a matter of fact, that was truly how things were.
However, that preconception was overturned by none other than Ruphas herself.
It was because the equipment in the tower were summoned to her hand without going through Dina due to the X-Gate which was activated by herself.
The equipment which was called over was a set of two swords which acted as one weapon.
One sword screamed of power but looked unrefined, while the shorter sword gave off a feeling of grace and looked elegant. Although the pairing looked mismatched with each other, it gave off the feeling of man and woman.
"Lifthrasir. [2] This is a legendary sword that was said would remain intact even if the world were to end. It's a treasure that'll be wasted if I were to use it against some random small-fry, but if it's against you, even this sword would probably be happy to lend me its aid."
"Nothing will come out of it even if you praise me, you know."
"It's my honest compliment. You should accept it gracefully."
Ruphas swung the swords around even though it was not the appropriate time to be doing so.
Needless to say, Benetnash was not a clueless idiot to be thinking, "What is she doing?" whilst she saw this.
In a battle like the one they were in, the concept of common sense was useless. If anything, it could even be said that the winner was determined by how and to what extent an individual could surpass this so-called common sense.
Right after Benetnash flew into the air, the ground which used to be below her shattered and the slash attack continued to fly into space beyond Midgard, eventually splitting a faraway asteroid into two. [3]
However, the two had no way of knowing the collateral damage that happened elsewhere far away in outer space.
They both kicked the ground to take a step forward and clashed in the middle, causing a gale to blow away from them due to the impact.
Benetnash's claws and Ruphas's short swords smashed against each other and very quickly, Benetnash who had lost in the contest of strength was blown away.
Nevertheless, she quickly got back on her feet and struck her palm out.
"Luna Shooter!"
"Sol Bullet!"
The black torrent released from Benetnash's palm and the mass of white light shot from Ruphas's finger clashed with each other.
In terms of power, both of them were approximately the same.
However, [Luna Shooter], the arcane magic activated by Benetnash, was a high-tier Moon attribute arcane magic and was one of the ultimate skills which was used to instantly kill an enemy using a massive amount of mana.
On the other hand, [Sol Bullet], used by Ruphas, was a fundamental basic offensive arcane magic of the Sun attribute. It was of a lower tier than the one Benetnash had used.
The fact that the two of them were equal with one another signified the difference in the ability to handle arcane magic between the two of them.
Furthermore, that clash did not last for a long time.
It was because Ruphas came dashing through her own attack towards Benetnash.
Looking at this, Benetnash clicked her tongue whilst thinking, "What a troublesome sword".
A part of Ruphas's collection, a pair of swords: Lifthrasir.
The longer magical sword Lif was able to slice through divine magic and therefore made it possible to attack the enemy directly whilst penetrating past their defensive barriers. The shorter divine sword Thrasir was able to cut through arcane magic and therefore effectively served as a powerful defensive anti-arcane magic weapon.
Although, against Benetnash who would not use divine magic, the longer bladed Lif was completely ineffective, making it nothing more than a sword that cut well, thus it served as a silver lining in all of this.
However, if a question of whether it made everything well was to be asked, the answer would be no. After all, the one who was holding onto that sword was the strongest user in all of Midgard, Ruphas.
When in her hands, even an ordinary knife would turn into a weapon which would be worthy to be called legendary.
And in this case, that individual took hold of a weapon which was already classified as legendary. As a consequence, the might and threat of that weapon did not need further mention.
"Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
After screaming out a warcry, Benetnash turned into a silver ray of light.
Overcoming even her own limits and ignoring the creaks from her joints, she continued to attack Ruphas from all directions.
However, with a cool expression that aggravated Benetnash, Ruphas deflected the attacks with her sword and did not end up suffering even a single scratch.
Let alone that, from just a casual swing of the sword, Benetnash's right arm was amputated from her shoulder.
".... tsk!!"
Benetnash immediately picked up the severed arm and held it towards the open wound, forcibly regenerating everything.
Afterwards, without the slightest bit of hesitation, she charged in from the front and using the remaining blood on her hands from the previously amputated arm, attempted to blind her enemy.
She then circled around to the back and thrust her arm straight towards where Ruphas's heart would have been.
But again, it did not hit. Whilst keeping her back where it was and only moving her arm, Ruphas blocked Benetnash's attack with the blade of her sword.
Afterwards, Ruphas spun around and utilised the inertia to reinforce her kick on Benetnash's chest to launch her up.
The sound of Benetnash's ribs cracking resounded and from her mouth spewed blood.
Yet, she did not falter. After landing back on the ground as if barely managing to avoid being uncontrollably slammed down, she held her palm out in front of her and released a barrage of arcane magic to rain down upon her enemy.
Individually, her condensed mana bullets were dense enough to each destroy a city on its own. Yet she released hundreds to thousands of them whilst leaving no space for any maneuvers.
However, even after such an attack, Ruphas was still unscathed! Flying out of the cloud of dust and cutting past the mana bullets, she ended up in front of Benetnash.
Then, without the slightest bit of hesitation, she slashed! Benetnash's upper and lower body were sliced off from each other.
".... Tsk, don't look down on me!!"
However, in that very situation, Benetnash countered, directly landing a mana bullet on Ruphas.
Additionally, it might be appropriate to call it an obsession born as a result of her long-standing strong feelings.
Notwithstanding that the lower body was separated from the brain, the lower body moved on its own and kicked Ruphas away.
In light of what had just happened, even Ruphas was astonished, causing her to open her eyes wide in surprise as she was blown away.
Taking advantage of this interruption, Benetnash combined the bisected upper and lower body together. Unfortunately, perhaps due to how much severe damage she had suffered up to this point, she ended up kneeling down for a moment.
"Just from this... won't fall from just this much... !"
Who cares about the pain, who cares about the damage?
I've already determined that this battle's going to continue until one of us dies.
This is exactly the once-in-a-lifetime battle that I've long sought after.
So, I can't be wasting my time on my knees. There's no room to stop and recover.
"As if I'll be done with just this!"
Benetnash did not even wait for her wounds to recover properly before charging in and starting her fierce attack again.
Her attacks were by no means slow. They were neither weak nor dull.
If anything, there was no one else in Midgard who could dish out attacks which were equally fast, equally strong and equally sharp.
Each of her individual attacks in this countless barrage was more than enough to instantly kill those at the level of the 7 Luminaries and deal major damage to those at the same standing as the 12 Stars.
She was, without a doubt, the absolute strongest existence amongst the 7 Heroes and one of the individuals who could be called the strongest in Midgard alongside the Demon King.
However, even against an attack from such an individual, Ruphas was able to easily overcome it and counterattack, slamming her feet down and breaking Benetnash's neck.
Even whilst rolling on the ground, the regeneration effect took place. However, notwithstanding that Benetnash stood back up, she was already out of breath and it was clear that she was heavily drained from everything that had happened thus far.
Shit, I knew it already, but she's so far... ! I knew - knew that I wouldn't be able to win... but is she telling me I can't even contend with her properly!?
She was happy that her arch-rival was strong. However, that aside, if she was unable to do something about the difference, it was already clear who the loser would be.
She had issued a challenge whilst fully prepared to lose in the end, but it was not as if she wanted to lose.
After all, her greatest wish was to defeat Ruphas and surpass her.
Therefore, she wired her brain to think of a move that would lead her to victory.
She had absolutely no intention of saying foul plays were unfair or cowardly, this late in the game. Winning was everything.
Attacks aiming for the eyes, feint attacks and surprise attacks, as long as there was a hand to play, she did not care what it was.
She no longer paid any attention to what method she would have to use to win nor was she fighting against an enemy that she would be able to win against if she was worried about such a thing.
It was fine to look unsightly, it was fine to look dirty and it was fine to look desperate.
If it meant that she would be able to win against her opponent, there was no asset worth more than that.
~That wish of yours, I shall grant it for you. ~
Boom, the heart rang loudly.
The voice of a person whom she did not know, but certainly recognised, resounded. And suddenly, something was flowing into Benetnash.
That was - power.
It was exactly what she was wishing for just a moment ago. The move that would close the gap between herself and Ruphas.
~You desired it, did you not? To win against her. If so, I will serve as your power. If it is you, you shall definitely be able to fulfil that wish of yours. ~
Just for a moment, Benetnash saw a vision of a blue-haired beautiful lady in a dress.
A woman, who gave off a strangely tranquil feeling, smiled warmly and Benetnash saw a scene of herself getting hugged by that lady.
At the same time, Benetnash suddenly overflowed with divine power all throughout her body. Power filled her entire being.
Is this it? So this is the secret behind how the 7 Heroes won against Ruphas.
She had always thought that everything was strange. She had always thought it was a mystery that even though there was such a massive difference between Ruphas and the 7 Heroes, the 7 Heroes were able to come out victorious.
But finally, she understood. If it was like this, it was understandably no longer impossible to end up victorious.
All the more, if it was her which gained such a power, it would enable her to fight against Ruphas on almost equal footing.
With this... if I have this power, I'll be able to battle against her.
As a consequence, Benetnash laughed at the situation and then opened her mouth.
"You're in the way. Scram."
Benetnash could feel that the owner of the voice was surprised by her response. However, she did not know why she was surprised to that extent nor did she care to want to understand why.
This fight was hers. The battle that she had long continued to seek.
And at the end of that battle, whether it be a victory or defeat, whether it be life or death, everything was hers alone.
As if I'll even give a single millimetre of it away.
What kind of a misunderstanding is this stupid woman under? Did she think for a moment that I would be happy with this?
Did she think that everyone would get on their knees to pray, worship and say, "Ah, thank you very much, Goddess" like fools or something?
Know your place. There's a limit to how impudent you can be. I've never once called for an idiot like you nor have I ever had the need to.
When did I ever say I needed your support?
Since when have I ever wished for help from an insignificant idiot like you?
That affectionate Goddess mask of yours and your hands that try to bless me are disgusting and make me want to puke. Don't you dare try to touch me, trash.
The only one in this place that's permitted to come in contact with me is her alone.
"Didn't you hear me? I've said to scram already, Alovenus - you third rate author!"[4]
Benetnash shouted out loud and silvery light overflowed from her body.
At the same time, the power, which was seeping from her body, was extinguished and the divine power itself was blown away from her.
I don't need it. I have no need for a fake power like that.
Sure, I want to win against Ruphas even if I have to exchange my life for it, but if I have to win using a borrowed power like that, even dying would be better.
In the first place, winning like that is not your own victory. Even if a person were to win like that, it would merely mean that an individual that received the Goddess's power won and it would not be the individual's victory alone.
I thought to win regardless of what kind of dirty tactics I had to use. I wished to surpass her even if I had to look unsightly.
But I've never wished to fall to the point of becoming someone else's tool nor win using someone else's power.
That's right, this battle is my fight. This stage is for just Ruphas and myself.
As if I'll let someone else come onto the stage.
Even if that person is the Goddess, I'll kick her down and make her fall back onto the audience seat.
The only thing a fool like you can do is observe. Just shut up and watch from the side, you out-of-place Goddess.
"I've made you wait... now, let's continue our fight. I won't let anyone else interfere."
"............. ."
"...... ? What are you looking like a fool for, Mafahl?"
".... No, nothing. I was just thinking, you're quite an existence. I've never once felt this much respect from the bottom of my heart like I do now, Benet."
After hearing Rupha's honest compliment, Benetnash's eyes opened wide then she started to laugh.
"What are you saying this late in time? I've always been quite an existence. If I wasn't, I would never have been able to call myself your arch-rival."
"Haha, that's right. You're certainly someone worthy of calling yourself my arch-rival. Just then, I felt that feeling being renewed once again."
The two of them acknowledged each other and smiled at one another, creating a moment of stillness.
But regardless of whatever happened, this was still a battlefield and they were still in the middle of killing each other. Therefore, the tranquillity did not continue to last.
Although Benetnash was drained, she moved resolutely towards Ruphas with a movement as sharp and as fast as she had been moving until now.
Due to her own extreme speed, even her own body suffered as a consequence, causing blood to flow down from the corner of her mouth as she continued to strike at Ruphas.
In response, Ruphas used pinpoint precision to guard, deflect and counter Benetnash to send her flying.
Then the follow-up attack. Ruphas slammed her feet into Benetnash who had barely managed to get her feet back on the ground, shattering her ribs into pieces and shoving them into her organs, attempting to break her delicate body.
Yet even then, the Vampire Princess continued to remain standing without falling down.
"— not yet! I won't, lose, yet!"
Benetnash jumped up, gathering and amplifying all of her magical power in her two hands.
In perception of the incoming imminent doom, the whole of Midgard shook violently. Animals across the world trembled in panic and the Sword Saint, who was travelling together with Sei's group, became terrified and unable to move.
Perhaps it was what you call an instinct possessed by those in the wild. They could subconsciously sense what was going to happen.
Right now, in this time and space. A power that was more than enough to obliterate the entirety of Midgard was created.
And on top of all of that, that power was within the hands of the woman who would fire it towards Midgard without the slightest bit of hesitation. They understood all of that instinctively.
"Along with Midgard.... Everything can perish—!"
From the hands of Benetnash, a light gushed out, piercing into open space.
Right afterwards, what peeked out from the sky was a single arrow.
However, the size of that arrow was something stupendous. If it was the length alone, it was well over a few kilometres.
All things considered, rather than an arrow, it might have been better suited to being called a spear... no, even if it was a spear, it was far too long.
In any event, it was far too strong of a power to be called an arrow fired from a bow.
"[The Maiden Who Fires the Silver Arrow]!"[5]
Benetnash swung her arms down.
At the same time, the greatest highest-tiered Moon attribute arcane magic, enhanced with as much power as possible, came charging towards the ground.
What would happen to Midgard as a result of this attack was nothing but a throwaway thought to Benetnash.
Even if the whole world was to be destroyed, as long as she would be able to win against Ruphas, even just for the slightest moment, it was all fine for her.
She did not care that she would die as a result.
Nevertheless, in the face of an attack which could literally destroy the whole world, Ruphas laughed without a care and then firmly settled down on the ground.
Then, along with an ear-shattering sound, the silver arrow came dropping onto where Ruphas was currently standing.
| ← Ch. 104 | Ch. 106 → |