Chapter 150: The End of Erosion
TL: Potato-tan
Proofreader: Asianpotato
The aftermath of the battle was immense, observable even from a distance. As Russell and his party began to enter the vast expanse of Kuhelaumto’s eroded space deep within the expansive forest, the space began to assert its presence.
A boundary of sorts hung over the expanse of the colossal diameter, with its surface rippling in hues of black. At its center was a pillar-like construct, well over sixty meters in length, its form bleeding into the darkness that consumed the space.
Then, a blinding flash of light illuminated the center of the black space. The pillar crumbled, and the hemispherical barrier that had isolated it from the world began to shatter.
The hemispherical barrier, several kilometers in diameter, which had been consuming and eroding the space, began to lose its strength and recede. A soundless explosion followed soon after.
A tempest-like shockwave tore through the forest, causing the sturdily rooted trees to sway as if they would fall at any moment, while the force of the shockwave uprooted the smaller ones entirely and sent them flying.
Birdsong turned into a cacophony of squawks as they took to the skies, while the terrestrial animals bolted away from the shockwave and the ensuing tremors.
After a single, tumultuous passage, the shockwave, accompanied by flashes of light and gusts of wind, subsided. The shockwave flung dust and earth up to tens of meters, veiling the view in a murky haze.
A gaping crater revealed itself. The wide, shallow crater was a mess of shattered trees, rocks, ravines, and valleys.
And surrounding it all, looking small in comparison to the crater, were the figures of people.
🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷
“Hm.”
Aellasis tilted her head in curiosity.
“The space. . . is collapsing?”
Calia also nodded as she looked around.
“That’s right. The central axis just collapsed. It seems Russell has defeated the master of this strange space.”
Calia, a wizard, could see the situation at a glance. She could read the outline of the space that she couldn’t observe before, as the magical energies that had been drawing a certain pattern along the collapsing space were losing their power.
Rumble. . . .
An earthquake struck, causing everything to tremble. The ground shook. A white light appeared on the horizon, showing the boundary as it collapsed. Irrucil looked at it with an anxious expression.
“Is it okay for us to stay here?”
“Gather here!”
Aellasis raised both hands, responding to Irrucil’s question. A transparent shield formed from her small white hands, enveloping the three of them in a hemisphere. Calia waved her hand, and a light that extended from her formed a three-dimensional magic circle, creating another shield on top of the hemisphere Aellasis had created.
Oooooooooo!
With a strange sound, the eroded space shattered and collapsed over a wide area, sending countless fragments flying. At some point, a sense of distortion washed over them.
“Ugh.”
The three of them opened their eyes after having closed them against the blinding light, and the forest came into view. To be precise, they were in a giant crater, with coniferous trees standing outside.
The sky was clear, and the clouds had cleared away. The sun was setting on the horizon, casting a reddish glow, and the sky was a beautiful blend of red and blue.
Coo-coo-coo-coo. . . . . .
The other world’s erosion receded, and the original world filled the gap. The space itself, which was inaudible to human ears, vibrated with a rumbling groan, causing the surroundings to tremble before gradually subsiding.
Calia, who had removed the barrier that had been protecting them until then, looked around the crater.
“It seems we’ve made it out. What an incredible aftermath.”
“Where’s Russell?”
“Over there, I think.”
Irrucil pointed to where Russell lay. Nahilnir and Final Frost stood with their sword and ax blades planted in the ground on either side of him. The three women rushed over and looked down at the fallen Russell.
“Russell! Wake up!”
“Why is he like this? Russell! Wake up!”
“He’s completely unconscious. . . I’ve never seen this before.”
He was lying in the middle of the crater, showing no signs of regaining consciousness. Aellasis, who had climbed onto his upper body, slapped his cheeks repeatedly, but he didn’t budge.
“He won’t wake up. . . .”
“Don’t make that face, Aella. Step aside.”
Aellasis stepped back, and Irrucil, who was kneeling on one knee, placed her hand on his neck. She let out a sigh of relief when she felt his strong pulse.
“Let’s get out of here for now. We need to get him back to the village and have him properly examined and treated. Help me carry him.”
Irrucil said this, then handed Nahilnir and the axe to Calia and Aellasis before lifting Russell’s body and carrying him on her back.
“Isn’t he heavy?”
“It’s fine. Calia, which way is it?”
“. . . . . . .”
Calia didn’t answer Irrucil’s question. Aellasis, who had become curious, looked up at Calia.
“Calia?”
“Something’s coming.”
Aellasis and Irrucil turned their heads in the direction Calia was looking. The crimson sun was slowly setting below the vast crater’s horizon.
The coniferous trees that jutted out like thorns on the crater’s horizon stabbed the red orb, but it accepted them without resistance. The scarlet light that bathed the sky and earth spread throughout the world, increasing its area.
Then, a long, gigantic shadow cast the crimson earth into darkness. Someone was approaching with their back to the twilight.
“I sense an ominous dark magic. This is no ordinary person.”
“Dark magic?”
Aellasis frowned at Calia’s mutter. In an instant, her ordinary human eyes transformed into thin, slitted pupils that moved vertically and horizontally like a reptile’s. A faint magical power then surged through them, causing them to glow.
Aellasis, her expression as hardened as Calia’s, spoke.
“. . . Sister is right. It’s dark. . . and thick. And cold. I’ve never felt magic like this before.”
Irrucil blinked, not understanding what the two wizards were talking about.
“What are you talking about?”
At that moment, the figure that had been approaching while obscuring the sunset vanished with a whoosh. At the same time, Calia, her eyes wide, swung the Nahilnir she was holding, pushing Aellasis and Irrucil away.
A deafening sound followed immediately after.
Bang!
Aellasis braced herself with Final Frost and sat down hard, while Irrucil jumped back, still carrying Russell on her back. When she looked up, she saw a figure clad in a black robe and hood facing off against Calia.
The robe, which didn’t reflect a single ray of light, had edges that fluttered like dark smoke, and the hood pulled over the figure’s head was filled with nothing but darkness. Two crimson eyes were glowing from within.
Those red eyes scanned Aellasis, who had fallen over, Calia, who was facing off against it, and Irrucil, who was standing behind them and carrying the unconscious Russell on her back.
A low, thick voice echoed from within the shadows.
“The tree that stood here. Did you banish it?”
The earth and air trembled as the cold voice rang out, as if it had risen from the depths of an abyss. It was as if the space itself was shivering at his voice.
Calia glared at the man in the black robe, who was gripping the greatsword with his bare hands. Then, in an instant, she planted her feet and twisted her waist, turning her wrist. With that, the heavy greatsword slipped from the man’s grasp and sliced his neck.
A whooshing sound filled the air. However, the man in the black robe simply tilted his head back to evade the sword strike. Then he extended his left hand and brandished his magical power. Pitch-black magic spread in all directions, like a stroke of black paint.
Not to be outdone, Calia also switched her grip on the sword hilt to her left hand and extended her right hand.
KABOOM!
An explosion erupted. The deafening sound and shockwave sent everyone flying or rolling away.
A single, casual gesture from the man in the black robe settled the violently kicked-up dust. He stepped back a little and asked the three women, who were glaring at him again.
“Answer me. The World Tree, Kuhelaumto, was eroding this place. Did you banish it?”
“Yes.”
Calia, who had stabbed Nahilnir into the ground to dispel the explosion’s force, slowly rose from her spot and spoke. The man in the black robe looked at her.
“The ancient human who made a pact with Geliotos. . . I thought you were a vampire. But you have a rather unique physique.”
Calia’s eyes widened in surprise. Somehow, the man in the black robe had accurately identified her current state. Calia had once become a vampire after making a pact with the devil, but she was no longer one.
She still had the characteristics of a vampire, such as her ability to suck blood and transform into a bat, but she had almost complete immunity to sunlight, which was their usual weakness. That was why she was able to stand in the direct sunlight without any problems.
The man in the black robe, who had been looking at Calia, turned to the white-haired woman holding a large, white axe. His red eyes curled into a smile.
“What’s this? A young dragon. I thought they had all gone into hiding or disappeared. . . . There is still un-bound individual left? How fortunate. I never expected to meet a dragon here.”
He approached Aellasis as if the others hadn’t even entered his mind. The man in the black robe’s red eyes gleamed from beneath the hood, and Aellasis’s expression turned vacant.
“Disappear!”
At that moment, Calia, who had been lying on the ground, kicked off and charged with Nahilnir in hand. The crimson magic that surged up the blade gathered at the tip as a sword aura, and a fearsome beam of light shot out from it.
The greatsword, which had concentrated its extreme piercing power into a single point, bore down on the man in the black robe with a momentum that even he couldn’t ignore.
Puh-whoosh-!
At that moment, the hem of the robe, which had been fluttering in black smoke, expanded rapidly and became a black wave that shot up into the sky, blocking Nahilnir.
Bang!
However, Nahilnir pierced through the black wave. But Calia had no choice but to brake suddenly with her entire body and change the great sword’s trajectory. The black wave’s dissolution of dark magic caused the tip of Nahilnir to point towards Aellasis.
“Aella! Raise your axe!”
At Calia’s shout, Aellasis hurriedly raised Final Frost. The next moment, her axe and Calia’s greatsword clashed.
“Gah!”
The impact knocked Aellasis back, causing her to roll on the ground. Gritting her teeth, Calia turned around and raised her greatsword before she could even check on Aella’s condition.
A blinding flash exploded at close range, sending Calia flying back as if something had struck her.
“Interesting weapons. I like them.”
Thud!
The man in the black robe, who had been tilting his head, suddenly bent over at the waist. When he looked down, he saw a white chain that had pierced through the ground. Realizing that it had struck his abdomen, he raised his head.
Irrucil, who had gently laid Russell down on the ground, ran towards him and swung her sword.
“Hmph!”
The short, sharp sound of her breath alone revealed the strength and magic infused in her sword.
Whoosh!
At that moment, black magic flames erupted from the man’s entire body in the black robe. Then he transformed into a living flame and blocked Calia’s sword.
“What are you?”
“I don’t know!”
Irrucil, who had repelled the flames, continued her assault without stopping. The flaming sword swung relentlessly, drawing countless lines. However, the man in the black robe brandished his dark magic and repelled her attacks one by one.
Jingle, jingle, jingle. . . .
However, the chains that had pierced through the ground and occupied the space, restricting his movement and forcing him to enter the path of her attacks, were not something that even he could take lightly.
“This is bad.”
“I’ve got you.”
Irrucil muttered as the man in the black robe let out a grunt. A forest of chains had sprung up around him. At the same time, the chains that had received Irrucil’s magic began to resonate all at once, causing the atmosphere to tremble and distort the view.
In an instant, Irrucil’s eyes shone brightly blue. And then, Irrucil’s body accelerated, creating countless afterimages.
Bam!
By the time the man in the black robe realized it, her sword had pierced his chest.
“. . . . . .I think I know. He has a peculiar magical shape, black hair, and a distinct northern look. There aren’t many places where those with such abilities and appearances live.”
Despite the chest piercing, the man’s voice was devoid of any signs of pain or death. Irrucil, taken aback, tried to pull back, but the man’s hand shot out like lightning and grabbed him by the neck.
“K!”
“It seems I need an explanation. What kind of guys are you? A half-baked vampire, a young dragon, a combination of northerners. . . What’s the story behind this strange combination━”
Rumble, crash, bang!
At that moment, a blinding white flash and thunderclap engulfed the world. Lightning struck the man in the black robe directly, slamming him into the crater floor and creating a long trench.
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