Chapter 146: The Remnant (3)
The Annihilation Hammer Jigollath was a giant hammer. Its power also suited its shape.
When its owner swung the hammer downward, the sky would collapse.
It wasn’t a metaphor; the sky actually would collapse. It was always night in Helmuth because the sun was very dim. On top of that, Helmuth’s night sky had a heavy concentration of demonic energy. The Annihilation Hammer could control the demonic energy in the sky and direct it with its swings.
With just a downward swing of the Annihilation Hammer, its owner could bring forth night’s descent.
The Demon King of Carnage was ranked number five, but if only physical strength was considered, he was stronger than the Demon Kings ranked higher than him.
The remnant here today was also strong, though it was not the Demon King himself.
As Eward swung the Annihilation Hammer, he guided the darkness that drifted through the forest to fall down in unison.
Dominic staggered to his feet. His arms were crushed, and a large hole could be seen in the middle of his torso. However, his wounds recovered quickly. They were covered in scales again, and even the hole in his body was filled up with scales. As he breathed in a bizarre manner, Dominic thrust the Demon Spear into the ground.
He was using Spear Forest. The darkness underneath Eugene’s feet expanded, and hundreds of thorns soared up. His current attack was precise, incomparable to the time when Dominic had used Spear Forest with the Council Head’s arm.
Darkness was falling from the sky, and thorns soared from underneath Eugene’s feet.
However, neither was enough to make Eugene panic or even take a step back.
He held the Moonlight Sword in his right hand and the Holy Sword in his left hand.
Then, he swung them together. The pale moonlight and the glorious holy fire blended together, ripping apart the sky that had fallen because of the Annihilation Hammer and crushing the thorns underneath his feet.
Eugene also began using the Ring Flame Formula in addition to Ignition, making a Circle with his overloaded Cores. Inside the Cloak of Darkness, Mer felt Eugene’s spinning Cores and his exponentially amplifying mana.
She also knew about the Ring Flame Formula, but she wasn’t aware of this brainlessly overtaxing technique. After intentionally overloading his Cores, he accelerated his heart to keep up with the fiercely moving mana. But that wasn’t the end. He made every muscle fiber in his body hold the mana.
‘...Could he have… lost his mind?’ Mer thought.
Trembling, Mer looked at Eugene’s overloaded mana running wild. No sane person would use this kind of technique. Of course, they wouldn’t. The technique’s use shortened Eugene’s lifespan. The more his Cores were overloaded, the more they weakened. No one knew when his unstable, fast-beating heart would stop. His stimulated body, which was forced to follow the torrent of mana, would also be worn out.
That was the logical outcome. But….
‘…H e is controlling it perfectly. ’ Mer was beyond surprised.
The World Tree spirits that had blended themselves in Eugene’s body didn’t just mix lightning in his mana to create the Lightning Flame. As the spirits naturally merged into his body, they strengthened his Cores and contained the intensified explosions within one great ‘Circle.’
The Lightning Flame wasn’t the sole reason why he was capable of such a feat. 300 years ago, even Sienna had been shocked by Eugene’s understanding and control of mana. After getting to know the Lightning Flame in minute detail, Eugene then proceeded to use it to upgrade the White Flame Formula and Ignition to more complete forms.
Without Ignition, Eugene couldn’t properly control the Lightning Flash. The reason was simple — his body wasn’t able to keep up with the Lightning Flash’s speed.
However, he could perfectly control Lightning Flash if he used Ignition. From the start, he had created Lightning Flash to replace Ignition by completely eliminating its associated risks.
“I will trust you to defend me,” Eugene coldly spoke as he lowered his stance.
He wasn’t just saying it to Mer, but also talking to Tempest. The Wind Spirit King stood up behind Eugene and nodded. Although Mer couldn’t dare to stick her head out of the Cloak, she clenched her fists, determined.
Dozens of defensive barriers were cast, completely under Mer’s control. Stirring up a great gust of wind, Tempest pushed away the darkness.
This battlefield was the worst for Tempest. The forest was already under his enemy’s control, and the darkness blocked his wind. Yet, he didn’t shrink in fear. He was the Wind Spirit King, so he didn’t feel intimidated by the residue of his hateful enemy remaining in the darkness.
He wasn’t intimidated, because one of the heroes from 300 years ago was standing in front of him.
The world remembered him as the Stupid Hamel, but Tempest knew how much of a dreadful nightmare the human named Hamel was for demonfolk. At that time, demonfolk were more worried about Hamel than the owner of the Holy Sword, Vermouth, on the battlefield.
Hamel had no mercy. There was one person who killed more monsters, demonic beasts, and demonfolk on the battlefield than Vermouth — Hamel. What he was doing was not fighting in a war, but perpetrating a massacre.
[You will be able to.] Tempest’s wind pushed Eugene forward. [Your reincarnated self will be able to settle the old scores that even Vermouth couldn’t.]
Tempest’s hurricane still wanted to go north, so it couldn’t end in a place like this. Eugene felt Tempest’s strong will.
Settle old scores that even Vermouth couldn’t deal with — his words made Eugene laugh. Vermouth wasn’t the only one who had accrued old debts and didn’t get to pay them. Everyone who wandered around the Devildom wished to settle those debts.
“…You guys…” Eugene spoke as the Moonlight Sword in his right hand lit up. The incomplete Moonlight Sword consumed a great amount of his mana, maybe because it needed to make up for its lack of power. When he first held the sword at Hamel’s grave in Nahama, he could only swing it a couple of times, but… now?
“...are already way past the line.”
The Moonlight Sword shone brighter still. When he swung the sword, its light filled up the crooked crescent moon, making it into a half-moon. And that still wasn’t enough. Turning around in a full circle, Eugene swung the Moonlight Sword once more. The trajectory of the sword now drew the shape of a full moon.
“That is why you can’t block this,” Eugene declared.
The filled-up full moon scattered away. All-consuming light flooded the entire forest.
Dominic didn’t know what the sword in front of him was. Although the Moonlight Sword had been sealed deep underground in Helmuth, even the Demon King of Carnage didn’t know what it was. The Moonlight Sword was pure destruction in the shape of a sword.
Every thorn from Spear Forest that Dominic had cast using the Demon Spear was crushed. With every beam of light touching him, his body was destroyed, and every time, more scales covered his body. Dominic’s consciousness became faint as he went through this process multiple times.
It was becoming faint, but it didn’t mean he was unconscious. No longer under Dominic’s control, his body moved even more sharply and precisely. The remnant in the Demon Spear led Dominic; he wasn’t using his skills anymore.
‘… What am I…? ’ Dominic absentmindedly thought.
With blank eyes, he looked forward. Every time a shining light brushed past him, his body shook greatly, but it didn’t hurt.
‘…What am I doing here…?’
He remembered stabbing his grandfather from behind. He had pierced the heart, twisted the sword, and held his grandfather’s collapsing body. His grandfather had pulled out the Demon Spear to counterattack, but he hadn’t used it in the end. He had just turned back, looking at Dominic in disbelief.
Dominic had enjoyed the look on Doynes’ face. The Council Head had thought Dominic would obediently become his heir, huh? Well, in a way, the Council Head ruled over the entire Lionheart clan. If Eugene Lionheart hadn’t shown up, Dominic would have dreamt of becoming the Head and been satisfied with his seat. There was one reason for the Council of Elders to be stronger than the main house: the Council Head, Doynes Lionheart. He was positioned higher up in the Lionheart family tree than any other main family member. He was also a man of talent, recognized by everyone in the clan.
However, Dominic couldn’t be his grandfather. He wasn’t certain whether he would be treated as the Lionheart’s highest elder and martial arts master when he was old enough to become the Council of Elders’ Head like his grandfather.
‘… Why … ? ’ Right before his consciousness faded away, one question filled Dominic’s head. ‘… Why am I dying? ’
The answer to Dominic’s question was simple: Eugene had killed him with his sword. No matter how bizarre and brilliant spearmanship Dominic showed with his four arms, Eugene already knew every skill he used.
The remnant didn’t have an ego. How hard could it be to fight against a person who only relied on another’s memory to use skills? The heroes’ fight against the Demon King of Cruelty had continued for three days. Hamel and Vermouth had stood on the front lines and dealt with the Demon King’s spear.
It was impossible for Eugene to forget the fight, so he knew how Dominic would move — he knew in which direction he should deflect Dominic’s attack and where to aim in order to cut Dominic. If the Moonlight Sword by itself did not suffice to fight the Demon King, Eugene could use it with enough proficiency so it would suffice.
Everything happened in a flash. Right after Eward flew up to the sky and swung the Annihilation Hammer downward, Dominic’s mind was destroyed. It didn’t take long for Eugene to cut off Dominic’s every arm and slit his stomach.
Eugene passed by Dominic, but the dead Dominic stood up behind him.
Dominic’s mind was already corroded and destroyed by the remnant, his body irreparably damaged. However, the scales connected and filled up his horrendously damaged body.
Looking at Dominic being stitched together once more, Eward laughed. Controlling a corpse was a taboo even in black magic, but Eward enjoyed committing this taboo that he should never have committed.
‘ Mother .’ Eward thought of Tanis and everyone in the Bossar Family.
He wondered if everyone had rotted by now. They probably had. At the time, Eward wasn’t a black wizard, so he couldn’t make proper undead out of the corpses. The best he could do was kill them without leaving a scar… and control them very carefully using his darkness. He really didn’t want to break them.
“Magic is….” Trembling with excitement, Eward moved his hands. “…So cool and fun.”
The darkness spirits creepily shrieked, and the darkness resonated with their screams as they crowded around Eward. Moving his finger, Eward drew a formula with blood-red light on the darkness.
The darkness that hovered around Eugene turned into numerous hands. They all reached out to Eugene, trying to grab him. Avoiding their grips, Eugene swung the Moonlight Sword and the Holy Sword simultaneously.
Meanwhile, Dominic’s — no, the monster’s face was covered with scales. With a squealing sound, the monster thrust the Demon Spear into the ground. Once again, darkness spread underneath Eugene. Thorns soared up, turning the ground into a forest of spears. However, Eugene stood in the center, unscathed.
Woosh!
Turning full circle, Eugene crushed the thorns and took a step back as he lifted his cloak.
With his black magic, Eward tried to pressure the space around Eugene to suffocate him.
[Ack…!]
Mer groaned in Eugene’s head. Eward’s magic was tenacious and ominous, just like a curse. Using the barriers, Mer stopped Eward, then analyzed the formula and dispelled Eward’s magic.
Eugene had said that he was going to trust Mer and Tempest to defend him. And that was what he was going to do.
When he turned his head, Eugene could see the staggering Dominic. Eugene had killed him several times, but Dominic still stood up.
‘Do I have to turn him into ash to finish him off? ’ Eugene wondered.
Although he could spare a part of his mana, it was a waste to infuse enough mana in the Moonlight Sword to reduce Dominic to ashes.
‘I can’t waste it on a corpse.’
He pulled out the Thunderbolt Pernoa. It had previously consumed a significant amount of his mana, but he now had the Lightning Flame. Ever since he had acquired that, Eugene could greatly reduce his mana waste, enabling him to continuously fire the Thunderbolt with little mana.
Pzzz!
He didn’t even need to draw the bow. The waving Lightning Flame held up the Thunderbolt as the bolts of lightning from the Flame became its arrows.
One, two, three, four, five… fifteen lightning bolts were now ready to fire. Eugene shot them out all at once.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Amid the loud sound and the blindingly bright light, Dominic’s body was crushed and began to scatter away. Moving forward, Eugene swung the Holy Sword. Under the sword’s holy fire, Dominic’s entire body crumbled to dust, leaving no trace behind.
However, the Demon Spear remained.
Ignoring the Demon Spear, which had fallen on the ground, Eugene jumped up. With the giant magic circle behind his back, Eward was holding the Annihilation Hammer high.
“…Hahaha!” Eward burst into laughter and swung the Annihilation Hammer downward.
Rumbbleee !
The intense air current made by the Annihilation Hammer rushed over Eugene. Numerous hands came out of the darkness underneath Eugene, trying to grab him.
The magic circle behind Eward rippled, and a set of giant hands emerged from within the circle. Then, as if they were Eward’s wings, the hands opened wide and grabbed his body from behind, appearing like giant folded wings.
“Nice to see you,” Eugene spat. He knew those hands. The hands were made from the Demon King of Carnage’s black magic. Even though Hamel had attacked with all his might, he had found it difficult to slash off even one finger. There were ten fingers in total, each with its own magical ability. The Demon King had simply moved a finger here and there, but it was enough to bombard the heroes’ party with powerful magic.
The demonic energy led by the Annihilation Hammer was weighing down on Eugene’s entire body as if it would crush him. The barriers under Mer’s control shattered one by one. As Tempest supported Eugene’s body, he tried to countervail the Annihilation Hammer’s power, but his storms scattered away as the darkness began to mix itself in the storms.
Eugene put the Thunderbolt back inside the Cloak.
The pressuring energy was strong, but not enough to bend his back. As Eugene glanced at Eward, he saw the latter looking down at him, using the giant hands to shield his entire body. He was smiling as if he was certain of his victory.
He looked ridiculous.
What had Eward done ever since the fight had begun? Well, he had made several smart moves. Isolating this space with darkness and stopping the Black Lions from joining the fight was pretty smart. Making Cyan, Ciel, and the others their hostages earlier was also smart. However, that was it. He had signed a contract with the darkness spirit, the remnant of the Demon Kings. After that, he could do so many things, such as controlling the darkness in this place, using the Annihilation Hammer properly, and using high-ranked black magic by resonating with the remnants. But he didn’t.
‘ T his is all he can do. ’ Eugene concluded.
Swinging the Annihilation Hammer, grabbing opponents with a bunch of hands, making thorns with the Demon Spear… Eward used various spells aside from these things, but he did it pretty clumsily considering how powerful the Demon King’s skills had been originally.
Pzzz.
Eugene’s lightning flowed, and the blazing mane generated by the White Flame Formula fluttered in the air.
The layer of demonic energy created by the Annihilation Hammer was broken through. With his eyes dyed with darkness, Eward accurately perceived what had happened in front of him.
The layer of demonic energy was penetrated when the Moonlight Sword shone. Without delay, Eugene approached the giant hands. Arriving in front of them, he turned his waist and pulled out the Holy Sword. He first cut the fingers with the Holy Sword, then attacked the weakened fingers with the Moonlight Sword.
“…Ah…” Eward gasped. The fingers that shielded his body were cut apart. The darkness that had previously risen up flowed down like blood. Eward looked down at his collapsing body, but he saw something weird.
Of course it was weird.
Eugene’s attacks from above had cut Eward in half.
“Ahhhhh!!!” Eward screamed as he felt horrible pain. The darkness near him burst continuously. The magic circle was distorted.
‘It hurts. Why?’
Eward was bisected at the abdomen.
‘Am I going to die?’
He wasn’t going to die. The darkness reconnected his body, even replacing Eward’s blood, making Eward whole once again.
“I w-will ki-kill you,” Eward stutteringly said, wiggling his fingers.
Using the set of giant hands, he started bombarding Eugene with magic. His attack was ferocious and fierce, very much unlike Eward’s usual self.
Wrapping himself in a mana shield, Eugene broke through Eward’s magic attacks. He wasn’t just relying on the mana shield — Tempest’s raging wind pushed away Eward’s magic while Mer intercepted the rest.
“Arrggh!” Holding the Annihilation Hammer, Eward sprung out at Eugene. The floating set of giant hands flicked a finger in Eugene’s direction.
Booom!
The explosion affected him, but Eugene didn’t let it show. Instead, he stepped forward without stopping. Then, he swung the Moonlight Sword powered by the explosive Ignition.
Bannggg !
The Annihilation Hammer and the Moonlight Sword clashed. Eugene didn’t have enough power to cut down Eward. If he went head to head with Eward, he would certainly be at a disadvantage. So, instead of trying to fight against Eward’s power, Eugene used Eward’s momentum to turn around and shove the Holy Sword, which he pulled out from the Cloak, into the gaps between the giant fingers wrapped around Eward.
“Awwwk!!”
Eugene slit Eward’s throat, but he couldn’t cut the head off. He only cut it halfway. As Eugene had expected, no blood came out of Eward’s throat, and his ‘brother’ could still speak clearly. Screaming at the top of his lungs, Eward brandished the Annihilation Hammer and blindly fired different magic attacks.
Thummmp!
Eugene hadn’t stopped using Ignition, but he was already starting to feel the rebound. Although he pursed his lips tightly, blood was oozing out from the corner of his lips. His speed slowed down for a moment. Tempest and Mer focused on defending Eugene, but the Annihilation Hammer broke through their defense, smashing Eugene’s left arm.
“Ha… Hahaha!” Eward saw Eugene’s left arm bleeding. If he had been a little stronger, he would have ripped off Eugene’s arm. Although Eward hadn’t managed that, Eugene had to be experiencing a lot of pain. Besides, Eugene couldn’t recover his wounds, unlike Eward.
“It hurts? Right?! You can cry if you want to. Even scream if you want!” Eward chortled.
“Grow a pair,”[1] said Eugene.
“…What?”
“If you can’t man up and you think this kind of injury is something to cry about, wear a diaper, you fucking baby,” Eugene smirked as he came up close to Eward. Eugene was holding the Moonlight Sword, but Eward couldn’t see the terrifying moonlight.
‘...What is that sword?’ Eward thought, unable to understand what Eugene was holding right now.
Still, he didn’t care because he was definitely going to get Eugene at this distance. He wasn’t lowering his guard, as he hated getting hurt. The fingers covered Eward’s body, creating a more secure cocoon, and another magic circle appeared on top of the previous giant magic circle behind Eward.
‘… Why? ’ Eward asked inside his mind.
The darkness pulled him toward it.
‘…What do you mean by ‘avoid it’…? That thing is just… a stick.’
The spirit delivered a warning in a faint voice.
‘Don’t… order me around. I-I can do this on my own. Trust me, I will feed you that guy myself.’
The fight that seemed everlasting finally stopped when the Moonlight Sword touched the giant set of hands that protected Eward, exploding the moonlight.