Chapter 83 - Rage Mode (2)
Brother, attack that girl he was crying over. If we push him into anger, he will make mistakes, and then we can turn the tides in our favor.
Hearing those words slither into his mind, Zerak's bloodied lips curled into a grim, broken smile.
His gaze flicked toward Ash, who was making a desperate turn, standing protectively in front of the unconscious children scattered behind him.
Let's do that then, Zerak answered through the invisible thread of telepathy, his eyes narrowing with cruel intent.
"If you want to die that badly, then let me kill you first," Ash said, his voice steady and full of cold hatred as he stared at Miraak.
Ash was just about to attack when, from the corner of his eye, he noticed Zerak sprinting toward Elysia, who was still unconscious and completely defenseless.
This bastard actually dares—!
Ash's mind screamed.
Without wasting even a heartbeat, Ash shot forward like a bolt of lightning. He appeared next to Zerak in an instant, swinging his sword without mercy.
The blade, glowing with golden lightning, cut through the air, aiming to slash Zerak's legs clean off.
Yet somehow, as if sensing the attack, Zerak twisted at the last moment, throwing his body sideways. The golden blade missed by a hair's breadth, slicing through empty air.
Zerak tumbled away, rolling gracelessly across the ground.
Tsk.
Ash stood firmly in front of Elysia, guarding her with his own body. His eyes, already filled with anger, now seemed even colder, until it felt as if the temperature in the entire hall dropped.
Across the hall, Miraak was standing next to the unconscious students. Floating above them were several black orbs, pulsing like dark hearts.
Grace, Aurora, Lyra, Irvin, Ethan, Ray, and the others were not with that group—they had been scattered across the hall during the earlier fight, separated from those huddled helplessly near the sidelines.
"HAHAHA! What will you do now, human?!" Miraak shouted loudly, his laughter fake and strained. "Protect the girl lying there, or save these students? You can't save both!"
"HAHAHA! HAHAHA!" Zerak joined in, forcing out a laugh, even though his hands were slightly trembling from fear.
Inside, both of them were panicking. They were trying to buy time, trying to think of a way to survive the monster standing before them. They knew if they try to escape without handling him, one of them will die.
I don't have time for this bullshit , Ash thought, feeling a sharp pain pounding inside his head.
His mind was already exhausted from using Omni Thought again and again, and now the backlash was starting to show.
"Go ahead," Ash said in a low, chilling voice. His words rolled out like thunder, silencing their pitiful laughter in an instant. "Kill them."
Both Miraak and Zerak froze, staring at him in disbelief.
"Kill them," Ash repeated, his voice steady, unshakable, "and after that, wash your necks and wait for me. I will come for your heads."
The weight of his words crushed the room into stillness. Miraak and Zerak, despite themselves, knew he was not bluffing.
They could feel the intangible force swirling around Ash, becoming heavier and sharper with every breath he took.
"W-What... How can you leave your people to die?!" Zerak stammered, the horror creeping into his voice.
Ash scoffed, looking at Zerak like he was something disgusting stuck to the bottom of his boot. His voice sliced through the heavy silence like a blade:
"So what? They can go fuck themselves. I'm not their guardian. The academy is supposed to protect them. This is their problem, not mine. Kill them, save them, burn everything to the ground — I don't care anymore."
Before Zerak could even process those words, Ash's body blurred. In less than a second, he appeared in front of him.
The sword swung with terrifying speed, its edge aiming straight for Zerak's throat.
But Zerak reacted on pure instinct. He barely managed to twist his body, but the blade still pierced deep into his side, just under his ribs. The burning pain exploded in his chest as blood poured from the wound.
Am I... going to die?
That single thought flickered through Zerak's mind before Ash's kick met his face, sending him crashing to the ground with a sickening thud.
Did we...make a mistake....coming here?
Those were the last thoughts that crossed Zerak's mind before his vision faded to black, his body falling to the ground.
"Brother!!"
Miraak's heart-wrenching scream ripped through the hall like a blade of pure agony, but Ash felt nothing but a cold, merciless satisfaction deep in his hollow chest.
"YOU BASTARD!" Miraak roared, his voice cracking, "HOW DARE YOU HURT HIM?! I WILL MAKE SURE TO KILL EVERYONE YOU CARE ABOUT! THEN I WILL KILL YOU MYSELF! I WILL MAKE YOU FEEL DESP—"
"Shut up," Ash cut him off coldly, his voice, flat and emotionless, crushed Miraak's outburst.
He walked forward slowly, swinging his sword in the air to flick the blood off the blade.
"You're going to die here anyway," Ash said, his tone flat and unbothered. "How are you planning to keep all those stupid promises?"
His words were a challenge, a taunt to Miraak, but his mind was already calculating.
The orbs were still hovering menacingly, their power buzzing in the air, threatening the lives of those unconscious. Ash knew he couldn't let that happen.
He had not killed Zerak for a reason.
He couldn't risk Miraak's rage spilling over into the students. He didn't care about their lives, but he knew Elysia will be sad if she knew everyone here died.
Tsk, I don't want to hear her nagging later.
If Ash were alone, he wouldn't hesitate to let the others die. They were nothing to him.
Though Elysia wouldn't hate him for letting them perish, Ash knew she would be devastated. And the weight of that feeling was unbearable.
Looks like love has blinded me... but what can I do? It is what it is.
After losing her once, I feel like I can even fight Gods for her.
Meanwhile, Miraak, now consumed by his fury, turned his full attention to Ash.
The black orbs that had hovered menacingly over the children, with a flick of his wrist swarmed around Miraak.
"LET'S SEE HOW YOU SURVIVE THIS!!!"
Miraak shouted, his voice laced with venom. His anger reached its peak, and the orbs began to move, gathering speed and power, aiming directly for Ash.
As the orbs surged forward, Ash looked at them with a cold smirk.
Looks like the gamble paid off.
He thought as his sword cut through the air with a sharp arc.
Golden lightning crackled, slicing through the nearest orb, but Miraak had already anticipated the move.
The remaining orbs scattered, flanking Ash from all sides.
You can't see all of them, human.
Ash's eyes scanned the orbs encircling him. His heartbeat quickened, but he didn't let the pressure get to him.
With a swift twist of his body, his feet planted firmly on the ground. His gaze was unblinking, unwavering.
Every muscle in his body was breaking and rebuilding, but his focus was only on the orbs around him and then he struck.
SLASH!!!
SLASH!!
BOOM!!
BOOM!!
Each orb exploded violently as his sword cut through them with brutal efficiency. But orbs were relentless.
The fighting scene felt like the light was swallowed by darkness, like fighting from within an endless night.
More orbs formed from the demonic energy swirling around Miraak, encircling Ash like a storm.
They moved in perfect synchronization, closing in, tightening the space around him. The tension in the room thickened, suffocating.
The headache is increasing, Tsk
Ash's thoughts buzzed as his eyes scanned the orbs. With each swing, his blade cut through the oncoming storm, leaving afterimages of golden lightning in its wake.
The orbs exploded in bursts of dark energy, but there were always more—more orbs that Miraak summoned to replace those Ash destroyed.
And Miraak was growing more desperate, more frantic.
The air grew thick with the acrid scent of burnt energy, the floor trembling beneath the sheer force of their battle.
Miraak's lips twisted into a snarl. He could feel the end drawing near.
He knew his time was running out.
The orbs around him flickered weakly, their dark glow dimming, a clear sign that their energy was waning.
But Miraak had one last card to play.
I never thought I'd be pushed this far, forced to do 'that'.
A twisted, malicious grin stretched across his face as he dug his claws deep into his chest, gripping his heart.
His breath came in labored gasps as he burned the ancient bloodline that flowed through his veins—the blood of one of the seven overlord demons.
"AARHRHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
A guttural roar ripped from his throat as his body shuddered violently in pain. His blood burned as it was consumed by the dark magic he had unleashed.
A surge of power exploded from him, spiraling outward like a whirlpool. His features twisted and distorted as his demonic heritage fully consumed him.
The air crackled with malignant energy, and the very ground beneath him warped and split. The force of his power tore at the fabric of reality itself, warping the surrounding space.
For a brief moment, Ash's sword slowed, caught off guard by the oppressive wave of energy that slammed into him.
His body staggered and his Primordial Aura and Miraak's Bloodline Aura clashed in the air with a screeching sound.
SCREEEEEEEEECH!!!!!!!!!!!
"HAHAHAHAHHH HAHAHA"
Soon, Miraak's laughter filled the air.
"Let's die together, HUMAN!"
He raised his arms high, and the remaining orbs surged back to him, their size and power multiplying with terrifying speed.
They pulsed with a sickly red light, vibrating with the raw fury of Miraak's demonic blood.
Annoying!!!!
Ash thought as he gripped his sword tighter, golden lightning crackling from its blade, a stark contrast to the dark, blood-fueled energy swirling around Miraak.
With a roar, Miraak hurled the orbs at Ash once more. This time, however, they weren't simply seeking destruction—they were hungry.
Twisting, warping, and reaching to drain Ash's very essence.
Miraak's hands moved in a frenzied dance, sending the orbs spiraling like a deadly tornado, circling Ash with a precision that felt impossible.
Ash's muscles screamed in protest as he poured more mana into his strikes, each swing cutting through the storm of orbs.
His sword carved a bloody path through the oncoming assault, but the more orbs he destroyed, the more Miraak summoned.
"I WILL MAKE YOU REGRET FIGHTING ME!" Miraak howled, his body glowing with fiery red veins as he pushed more of his bloodline into his magic.
Ash's heart thundered in his chest. This was no longer a battle of strength or speed—it had become a battle of wills.
Is he burning his bloodline? He never did that in the novel. Shit!
Miraak had tapped into something ancient, something primal—and Ash was running out of time.
Miraak grinned, sensing victory in the air. The orbs were too many, too powerful—and Ash was faltering.
"You can't win, human. I will break you!" Miraak's voice dripped with malice, an ominous promise that sent a chill through Ash's bones.
Suddenly, the orbs that had been attacking Ash shifted direction, their deadly momentum accelerating as they turned toward Elysia.
"I'll take this girl's life and make you feel despair!" Miraak roared, a cruel smile spreading across his face.
Ash's expression grew even more distorted, it was impossible to think a human can make this type of face.
Without hesitation, he bolted forward, his sword raised high. Lightning crackled along the blade.
He reached Elysia in a blur of motion, his sword flashed in desperation as he cut through the orbs that came for her. He couldn't count how many times he swung—it felt like an eternity.
Despite the strength of his blows, Miraak's orbs continued to multiply, their dark shadows blotting out the light in the room.
Due to which, some of the orbs hit him—blasting through his defense.
His body which held a balance of life and death due to core overloading, became unbalanced.
The healing power of the Rune was became slow and sluggish, hindered by the demonic energy and bloodline of nullification in the orbs.
The pressure was becoming unbearable. His strikes were slowing, his movements heavy. Each swing took a toll. His body, already near the breaking point, was on the verge of collapse.
His cores started to crack from the strain of overusing his powers. The only thing keeping him away from pain was, Omni Thought.
But even his mental state was slipping. The pain was building, his headache escalating to unbearable levels.
Shit!!
His skin burned with each labored breath, his movements becoming slower as his healing couldn't keep up.
And then, something happened.
The Black barrier around the hall—the one formed by demons—shuddered violently, as if it was about to break.
Cracks ran across the surface, each one followed by the deafening sound of explosions rocking the very foundation beneath them, and Ash's heart dropped.
Both Ash and Miraak's eyes widening with urgency.
No, no, not now, Ash thought frantically, as the reality of the situation tightened its hold on him.
CRACK!!!
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