I held my breath, watching the hand make contact with the swirling, heavy energy of the Core.
Swish.
There was no explosion of aura. No shockwave. No scream of binding magic.
The hand simply passed through the Core as if it were made of smoke.
"Tsk."
The figure clicked its tongue.
"No traps triggered? How boring."
The voice sounded distorted this time, losing its human cadence.
Then, the figure wavered like a reflection in a disturbed pond before dissolving into wisps of violet smoke that drifted back into the cat’s fur.
The cat yawned, stretching its back.
’Safe.’
I exhaled slowly, my lungs burning from the held breath. My gamble had paid off.
But the relief was short-lived.
"It seems the big bad wolf is too busy fighting outside to leave any traps inside."
A new voice spoke.
This time, the sound didn’t come from the cat, nor from the dissolving smoke.
It came from everywhere.
The shadows around the cat boiled. They rose up like a fountain of black ink, solidifying into a distinct shape.
A man stepped out of the darkness, his boots clicking softly against the invisible floor.
He wore a pristine noble’s coat that seemed untouched by the chaotic battle outside. His hair was perfectly styled, and his face bore that trademark, charming smile that hid a thousand knives.
This time, the pressure was real.
A suffocating aura washed over the sanctum, cold and sharp enough to make even my skin crawl.
I quickly used the system check on him
━━━━━━━━◇◆◇━━━━━━━━
Name: Bane
....
━━━━━━━━◇◆◇━━━━━━━━
’It worked!’
Then... This was definitely him. I
Bane tilted his head, looking up at the Core with genuine appreciation.
"Beautiful," he murmured, taking a step forward. The cat trotted over to rub against his leg. "To think such a magnificent source of power was hiding in this frozen wasteland... It almost feels like destiny."
He raised his hand, the real one this time.
Aura began to gather at his fingertips, forming a complex, glowing seal that radiated domination.
"Now... be a good dog and give me your heart."
He was focused entirely on the Core. His guard was down, and his back was slightly exposed to my position.
This was it.
The moment I had simulated a dozen times.
’Now!’
I didn’t hesitate.
I poured every ounce of my focus into my eyes, triggering the ability I had been saving for this exact second.
[Exorcist’s Gaze!]
[Exorcist’s Eye!]
Whoosh!
A torrent of ethereal energy surged from my retinas. It wasn’t physical heat, but a cold, purifying judgment that bypassed flesh and struck directly at the soul.
In an instant, silver-blue flames erupted from Bane’s chest.
They spiraled outward, enveloping his spirit in a roaring inferno.
"Gah-!"
Bane’s composed expression shattered. His eyes went wide, his jaw clenched, and his body convulsed as the spiritual fire began to sear his very essence.
’Nemo! Now!’
I screamed the signal through our mental link.
The response was instantaneous.
The darkness above us split open. Two massive, violet eyes, each the size of a carriage, snapped open in the void ceiling.
ROAR-!
The shadows around Bane surged upward, forming the jagged, terrifying shape of a wolf’s maw. It was the Night Devourer’s true avatar, manifested within its own heart.
"Meow!"
The cat reacted instantly.
However, it didn’t look at the giant wolf. Instead, its head snapped toward me. Its vertical pupils glowed with a chaotic light, and a wave of mental spikes hammered against my skull.
Crack.
The floor beneath me rippled as a wall of shadows rose up to shield me, deflecting the cat’s mental assault.
Then, the massive jaws slammed shut.
CRUNCH.
The entire sanctum shook. Bane was swallowed whole by the avatar of the Overlord, disappearing into the crushing pressure of the domain’s concentrated power.
’Got him!’
I clenched my fist, adrenaline pumping through my veins.
The plan had worked perfectly. I had stunned him, and Nemo had finished him.
But just as the triumphant thought crossed my mind, my eyes instinctively flicked to the lingering system window.
[General Health: Slightly Injured]
My blood froze.
’Slightly... injured?’
That was impossible.
He had just been hit by my exorcism flame and devoured by an Overlord. I knew he wouldn’t die, but even if he survived, he should be in a critical condition. If so...
’We have been tricked!’
The realization hit me like a physical blow.
But before I could shout a warning to Nemo, a splitting pain erupted inside my head.
"Argh!"
The mental defense the shadows had provided... was gone.
The cat was already in front of me.
It moved faster than my eyes could track, a blur of black fur and malice. There was no playfulness in its gaze now, only the cold intent to kill.
It raised a paw.
Swish.
I tried to summon my sword, to dodge, to do something. But my body was paralyzed by the overwhelming psychic pressure radiating from the small beast.
Bang!
A massive force slammed into my chest.
I was thrown backward like a rag doll. The air left my lungs as I tumbled across the invisible floor, skidding for meters before coming to a painful stop.
"Cough..."
I spat out a mouthful of blood, my vision swimming. Darkness encroached on the edges of my sight, threatening to pull me under.
’Why...’
I looked up, my vision blurry.
’Why didn’t Nemo protect me?’
The answer appeared a second later.
The space where Bane had been swallowed, the spot where the wolf’s avatar had clamped down, suddenly distorted.
Riiiip.
A blood-red portal tore open the darkness.
A moment later, a figure stepped out, stumbling and gasping for air.
But... it wasn’t Bane.
It was a tall man in crimson robes, his face twisted in a mask of agony and confusion. His aura was chaotic, flickering wildly as he clutched his chest.
The Blood Marquis, Yaro.
But that wasn’t what made my heart stop.
Burning on Yaro’s chest, eating away at his gruesome, bloody spirit... were my silver-blue flames.
’I see...’
I realized the horror of the situation as my consciousness began to fade.
Bane hadn’t taken the hit, not entirely.
He had somehow swapped places, or the damage, with the Marquis at the last possible second!
’He didn’t hesitate to sacrifice his own subordinate...’
The Blood Marquis was supposed to be his loyal servant. Yet, without a second thought, Bane had used him as a meat shield to block a fatal blow.
He treated even his most powerful pawns as nothing more than extra lives.
’What a... cold-blooded monster.’
My vision went completely black. The pain in my chest dulled into a distant numbness.
There was nothing more I could do. I had played my cards, and I had been outplayed by sheer cruelty...
As the absolute silence of the void reclaimed me, I let out one final, self-deprecating mental sigh.
’Well then...’
’I suppose it is time for Lumin to leave the stage.’