“Nari!”
Seridan, who had been watching from behind, screamed in horror.
She could never have imagined that someone’s head could twist 180 degrees—let alone emit a blinding white beam of light from their mouth.
Ludger’s figure, swallowed by the beam, seemed to vanish as if erased by an eraser.
“Are you all right?!”
“Don’t make a fuss.”
Ludger rose from the shadow nearby.
“I was only startled for a moment. It didn’t even graze me.”
He hadn’t been hit, but that attack was nothing to scoff at.
That roar just now had compressed high-density divine power and released it outward in a single blast.
And even though it was merely a roar, it had punched a hole through the sturdy inner structure of the citadel.
Judging by how clean the edges of that hole were, the power was no joke.
“So that’s why those bindings were so tightly wrapped around him—meant to suppress and compress the divine power trying to escape.”
Diena, seated upon her golden throne, smiled and praised him.
“Correct. As expected of someone from our bloodline—you see things clearly.”
“Even so, how can you do that to someone who shares your blood? Twisting their neck like that—calling that family?”
“We’ve never been the type to laugh and share pleasantries, have we? This is the fate of the defeated. The twins actually got off easy.”
“You call turning a body into that—altering it beyond humanity, erasing reason, binding it with restraints—‘getting off easy’?”
“The real one’s even worse.”
Clang.
As she spoke, Diena lifted the golden chain in her hand and gave it a shake.
What was bound to its end crawled out from behind the golden throne.
“.......”
Seeing the figure, Ludger was at a loss for words.
“Say hello, Heathcliff. This is your elder brother, Petra von Bretus. You remember him, don’t you?”
Of course he remembered.
Petra von Bretus had been the brother who tormented Ludger—the youngest and illegitimate child—most relentlessly and cruelly.
He remembered him as a spoiled, arrogant brat.
It had been over twenty years, so only memories from childhood remained.
But what was Petra like now?
Crawling out on all fours like a slave, his entire body was covered in scars, burns, and blood-soaked bandages.
His eyes were hidden under a blindfold, and patches of his hair were missing—likely torn out through abuse.
He looked like either a leper or a burn victim barely rescued from a fire.
“What have you done to him.”
“I told you, the twins got off easy. This foolish boy bared his fangs at our brother Salesin until the very end. And this is what became of him.”
Diena let out a low, amused laugh.
“But I didn’t kill him.”
She said that, but Ludger could tell.
Petra was barely clinging to life.
Killing him would have been the greatest mercy and salvation.
“You should’ve just killed him.”
Ludger’s eyes traced Petra’s body with cold detachment.
It was an instinctive process—part of his blood as a descendant of the Holy Sovereign.
Under the bandages, on every patch of skin, were brands and divine magic circles—engraved directly into living flesh.
Ludger felt the mark on his own back sting in response.
More than that, those weren’t ordinary brands.
They contained an effect.
“So you plan to make him explode—releasing all the divine power he’s gathered at the cost of his lifespan. You’ve turned him into a living bomb.”
“That’s his fate. If no external enemy had invaded, he’d never have been used like this.”
Diena shook her head, almost regretfully.
“In times like these, we can’t help it. Honestly, Brother Salesin really does have the most twisted tastes.”
Her words blamed Salesin’s cruelty, but Ludger could see she was enjoying every bit of it.
“Well then, farewell, Petra. It’s been fun.”
At her command, the golden chain shone.
The light spread through Petra’s neck, down his body, and activated the sacred formations carved into his skin.
“Ah... uh...”
Petra opened his mouth, trying to say something—but no voice came out.
Of course not. His teeth had been pulled out, and his tongue severed.
But if his mouth were whole, he would likely have said—
Stop it.
Brrr—
Petra’s body convulsed once, then began to swell like a balloon filled with air.
He was seconds from exploding.
“Wait! If he goes off like that, won’t you be caught in it too?!”
Seridan shouted, and Ludger answered immediately.
“Divine power doesn’t work like mere physical force. That explosion will devastate enemies but bestow even stronger blessings upon allies.”
And the divine power that was about to detonate had been accumulating for over twenty years within the bloodline of the Holy Sovereign.
It had been completely sealed and compressed, amplified by shaving away his lifespan.
If a being like a demon—an enemy of the sacred—were here, the blast would obliterate it entirely, leaving not even dust.
The danger to them was just as great.
Ludger stepped forward to stop it, but his opponents didn’t intend to let him.
Lawrence and Lorelai charged at him again.
Their legs twisted at impossible angles as they lunged for his body.
Sonic booms split the air, shockwaves erupting with every motion.
Ludger tried to deflect and evade while pushing forward, but the twins were relentless.
Shnk!
Ludger’s swordstick lashed out in a surprise thrust.
Normally, Lawrence would have dodged it—but this time, he took it head-on.
Thud.
The blade pierced his abdomen, and Ludger’s eyes widened.
It wouldn’t pull free.
“They’re... doing this on purpose.”
They were buying time for Petra’s detonation.
The twins had ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ no minds left to make such decisions.
Someone had to be controlling them.
And sure enough, Diena’s smile deepened.
“Well done, my siblings.”
The moment she, certain of victory, offered her farewell—Ludger’s lips curved into a cold grin.
Her eyes flickered with confusion.
He’s smiling? Why?
“I think that’s enough to draw everyone’s attention. Don’t you think it’s a bit late to join in now?”
“We had a lot to prepare on our side too.”
A blinding white flash fell from the sky.
What looked like light was actually the trail of a swung sword.
Petra’s body, seconds from exploding, split cleanly from crown to floor.
Psshh—
The divine energy that had been about to detonate vanished.
In that infinitesimal instant before explosion—a gap no wider than a needle’s eye, lasting less than a tenth of a second—the blade had pierced through, perfectly nullifying the divine activation.
“Who are you?!”
Diena shouted in shock.
Even though Petra had been cut in half right beside her, she hadn’t sensed the intruder’s presence at all.
The attacker said nothing—only raised the sword horizontally and swung it toward Diena’s neck.
“How dare you!”
Diena didn’t stay still.
The golden throne beneath her flared with light, generating a powerful repulsive force that blasted both sword and intruder backward.
The figure spun once in the air, landing smoothly on the ground.
When Diena recognized the person who had descended, her brow furrowed.
“A demon? Don’t tell me... the Great Demon Suruna?”
“My, you actually remember me. I’m flattered. I thought no one in this world remembered my face anymore.”
“How could I not recognize that accursed aura.”
“And yet you didn’t notice me standing right next to you.”
Suruna’s taunt made Diena clench her fist.
She had stayed composed with Ludger, but being mocked by a demon—that was humiliation she could not bear.
Her lips trembled, but she took a deep breath and forced her smile back.
“Fine. I’ll admit our oversight. But a demon coming here alone? Don’t tell me you still can’t forget her?”
Her?
Ludger narrowed his eyes at Suruna.
He couldn’t see the demon’s face from behind.
“What, no response? Did I strike a nerve? Of course I did—you plotted every battle with that traitorous Saintess Arkenis of the Theocracy.”
Diena spoke with conviction, as if she knew the truth about him.
“So that’s why you’re here, right? Pretending to be our enemy as a demon—but you’ve got your own scheme. Did you really think I wouldn’t see through it?”
“Ah... I was wondering when you’d start spouting nonsense like that.”
Suruna lazily dug at his ear with a finger, looking bored.
“How long will you cling to stories from centuries ago? Blaming others because you lost the Saintess’s power—pathetic.”
“Hah! Lost her power? And whose fault is that? Besides, we haven’t lost it yet. In the homeland, there’s still—”
Diena stopped mid-sentence when her eyes flicked toward Ludger.
As if she’d almost revealed something he wasn’t meant to hear.
Suruna smirked.
“Well, if you’re still obsessed with past glories, I won’t stop you. But you got one thing wrong, and I’d like to correct it.”
“Wrong?”
“Didn’t you notice?”
Suruna’s grin widened.
“I’m not the only demon who came here.”
“What...?”
Immediately, from the great corridor behind Ludger and his group, a colossal power surged.
Diena reacted first.
“Everyone, fall back!”
The golden throne blazed brighter, expanding a radiant barrier around her.
Fwoooosh!
A moment later, a dragon’s breath swept over it like a tidal wave.
“Uaaagh!”
Seridan and Bellaruna, who had been watching from the back, fell on their backsides as the blazing torrent passed overhead.
The dragon’s breath incinerated every defense soldier it touched.
Despite the wide-ranging attack, none of their allies were harmed.
The breath moved with its own will, avoiding friendlies and relentlessly pursuing enemies.
Dodging was useless.
Even the agile experimental subjects who leapt or rolled aside were caught, the breath curving midair as though guided, swallowing them whole.
Those engulfed didn’t even have time to scream—their voices burned away with their bodies, leaving nothing behind.
Under the blue moonlight, the red flames shimmered and mingled, tinting the world violet.
Within that purgatory of fire, only Diena and those sheltered by the golden throne’s barrier survived.
“Oh my, how disappointing. I had prepared that strike for ages to wipe them all out at once.”
With clicking heels, a woman emerged from the shadows—Helia.
Half white, half black hair, an alluring body wrapped in a revealing outfit.
Diena’s expression froze at the sight of her.
Another demon.
It was already a humiliation for the Great Demon Suruna to breach the Holy Nation’s inner citadel—now there were two.
“The Great Demon who once consorted with the Saintess, and now the last princess of a perished race? Seems today’s the day we erase all you accursed beings.”
“I didn’t exactly want to come here either, you know.”
Helia grumbled, shooting a sideways glare at Suruna.
Sensing her irritation, Suruna merely shrugged and gripped his sword.
“I’ll take the front line. You handle the rear.”
“Yeah, yeah, whatever you say.”
Though she spoke sarcastically, Helia began channeling her authority to support him.
Authority: [Illusion].
The phantoms she conjured weren’t mere tricks of the eye—they possessed real physical force, indistinguishable from the genuine article.
Ancient beasts rose around her and charged toward Diena.
But Diena didn’t stay idle.
As she sat upon the golden throne, divine power flared behind her—bundles of golden chains shot out in a fan, colliding with the beasts.
Golden chains shattered in their jaws, while beasts impaled by the chains vanished into nothing.
Through that chaos, Suruna pressed forward, sword in hand.
Clang!
Diena drew forth a golden scale with one hand; it tilted, and a spear of golden energy shot out, grazing Suruna’s cheek.
At the same time, his sword sliced across Diena’s face and embedded itself in the throne’s backrest.
Before blood could even drip, both wounds closed instantly.
But their expressions told opposite stories—Suruna was grinning, while Diena’s face hardened.
As those two clashed, Ludger turned his gaze back to the twins.
“I won’t lie. I’ve got nothing but hatred left for you.”
No one remained to interrupt him now. The real fight could begin.
“But I’ll send you off quickly—without pain.”