C448 - Zephyrin (4)
Woosh!
Zephyrin had ominous demonic energy swelling around her neck.
Shaku shot lightning at her other eyeball, but it couldn't halt the building breath.
It was just an exhale, but it contained incredible power, enough to astonish both Murakan and Valkas.
However, Jin could remain calm even though Zephyrin's breath was clearly headed toward him.
It was because he had confidence.
Zephyrin won't kill me.
Or she couldn't.
Whether it was due to the Demon God Orb or something even more terrible, Jin's Solderet power was the most crucial element.
As he deduced during his time as a Provisional Flagbearer, both Zipple and Kinzelo knew a way to transfer the God's Contract.
However, Jin believed the means might not be so straightforward.
If it were easy, Zipple, Kinzelo, and Joshua would have been more proactive in trying to kill him.
If her goal was to annihilate us, she would have shown her power from the beginning.
Zephyrin's breath power was certainly impressive, but considering the transcendent battle prowess she displayed, it was nothing unusual.
Besides, it wasn't at a level that Jin and the others couldn't handle.
In other words, Zephyrin had no choice but to forcibly control her strength to avoid killing Jin.
Kwaaaah!
Zephyrin opened her enormous mouth, and the subspace winds swirled wildly along with demonic energy, as if a storm had begun.
An attraction and repulsion force emanated from the breath, and a purple breath beam headed towards Jin.
[Ugh, how annoying!]
Murakan descended swiftly and blocked Zephyrin's breath.
The breath first touched the Shadow Energy curtain beside Murakan's wings before hitting the ground.
Most of the demonic energy was absorbed by the Shadow Energy curtain...
And the remaining fragments and other beams were pushed back by Shaku and Valkas.
The entire subspace precariously trembled due to the combined power of the dragon and humans.
It would be challenging for ordinary warriors even to endure the pressure of this battlefield.
Every time the force clashed, their ears buzzed, and a shivering sensation ran through their bodies.
Perhaps because the group handled it well, Zephyrin released a second breath infused with even more potent demonic energy.
Although she had lived many more years than Murakan, like most of them, she had never experienced a battle like this before.
To kill, crush ruthlessly, or annihilate without leaving a trace.
Such battles weren't difficult, but to Zephyrin, killing Shaku and Valkas, attacking Murakan just enough not to kill him, and capturing Jin alive were bothersome.
Moreover, it was aggravating.
Murakan's resilience far exceeded Zephyrin's expectations.
She had heard rumors that he had partially regained his strength, but she had no idea it would be so intense.
Zephyrin also began to see Jin's intentions.
'Sly bastard... you're very confident that I won't kill you, Jin Runcandel.'
The blue flames enveloping Jin sent shivers down her spine.
Furthermore, it seemed those flames would soon tear apart a portion of the subspace.
Suddenly, she thought maybe it would have been better to wait for another day and a better opportunity. She might have made a somewhat impulsive decision.
'I think I know why my Master is paying attention to you.'
Boom!
The second breath collided with the Shadow Energy curtain and was neutralized.
Although it seemed like she was struggling to maintain defense, Murakan was slowly preparing to counterattack.
[It looks like you shot quite well, and the power is quite decent.]
[Compliments don't sweeten the deal, haha.]
[Well, that's true. And this won't be sweet either.]
As soon as Murakan finished speaking, the massive curtain split into three pieces like shadows moving with light.
One remained behind Murakan for his defense, while the other two took positions on both sides of Zephyrin.
Due to the nature of Shadow Energy, Zephyrin was unaware that the curtain had extended to her sides. It's almost impossible to perceive shadows, no matter how vast they are. Her enormous body, several times larger than Murakan's, also contributed to the impossibility of checking the left and right Shadow Energy curtains.
If you can't feel the flow of force, you can only confirm it with sight.
However, Zephyrin's vision was limited, combined with the fact that her body was still mostly hidden by purple smoke...
It also influenced Zephyrin's inability to perceive it clearly.
She couldn't even see her own body, let alone the surroundings.
[What are you boasting about again? Ah...!]
Zephyrin realized something was wrong when she saw "demonic energy" starting to leak from the Shadow Energy curtains that Murakan had extended to her sides.
He was trying to shoot the absorbed breath through the curtains.
The Shadow Energy, or rather, the shadows.
This power not only had an efficacy at least 2 stars superior to that of aura or mana but also possessed another unique characteristic that normal powers could never imitate.
It was to imitate or mimic something as if projecting shadows.
What Murakan was doing by shooting Zephyrin's breath with the curtains was based on that principle.
"I really didn't like using this kind of method, but I have no other choice."
It wasn't the method Murakan preferred.
In the past, he had enough power to subdue someone like Zephyrin using the characteristics of Shadow Energy.
On the other hand, Misha was good at handling the infinite excess of Shadow Energy, as demonstrated since her first encounter with Jin.
I never thought the day would come when I would put into practice what I learned from that tough girl.
This wouldn't have been possible if I hadn't recovered at least forty percent of my strength.
Hmph!
Murakan snorted mockingly, recalling Misha's insidious smile.
Woo!
The curtains on both sides made a sharp noise as they released demonic energy.
This demonic energy was more potent than Zephyrin's exhaled breath combined with Shadow Energy.
With Zephyrin's enormous body, avoiding the demonic energy was impossible.
[Ha! Where did you learn such unpleasant tricks...?]
There was no time to deploy a protective shield.
Zephyrin's colossal body was an advantage in most battles, but against such an unexpected attack, responding was uncomfortable.
When the demonic energy struck Zephyrin's torso, it produced a thunderous crash reminiscent of a collapsing castle.
The scales and bones of her massive body creaked and twisted, creating a spine-chilling noise that sent shivers down the spine.
Aaargh!
A scream echoed, seemingly impossible to hear.
[Receiving your own breath must be the first time for you, isn't it?]
Murakan spoke with an evil tone full of amusement, and Zephyrin writhed in pain for a while.
Zephyrin moved her tail reflexively and exhaled her breath in all directions.
She released demonic energy into the air.
She tainted the subspace with poison.
Murakan and Shaku pushed their senses to the limit as they dodged Zephyrin's fury.
Even in Zephyrin's simple charge, they could suffer fatal injuries if they made a mistake.
The two, jumping and flying between Zephyrin's swaying tail and the demonic energy, had the same thought in their minds: this could be their best, or perhaps their last chance in this battle.
Valkas, who had been protecting the Black Knight, couldn't afford to miss this moment.
The three sought the wounds that Zephyrin had suffered before she could recover and tried to inflict more damage.
Shaku screamed and shot lightning, while Valkas gathered all his strength and delivered a punch.
The lightning and the punch hit where the scales had torn.
What appeared before their eyes was a terrifying spray of blood that was enough to make everyone, even those who had spilled blood on the battlefield their entire lives, pale.
Ugh!
Blood spurted like a waterfall from Zephyrin's torn flesh.
The blood contained the poison that had left the Black Knight in a coma.
Finally, Murakan flew through the poison, reaching the wound inflicted by Valkas and Shaku.
It was located around the middle part of the body, which could be compared to the abdomen in humans.
In other words, it was a vital point that anyone would consider a vulnerability.
Murakan infused all his strength into the wound, which was so deep it looked like a cave.
Soon, a beam of Shadow Energy pierced through Zephyrin's body.
It would be appropriate to say that her back was cut. Everyone felt that Zephyrin's spine was about to break under Murakan's breath.
Ha, Ha...!
Afterward, Murakan took a breath and stayed in the air...
And Valkas and Shaku stayed below him, catching their breath.
The battlefield, which had been incredibly noisy, had become so quiet that only the group's heavy breathing could be heard.
It was an extremely brief silence.
Zephyrin, who had remained motionless with her torso bent backward, let out a sigh and slowly raised her head.
"...Well, this is surprising, isn't it?"
The demonic energy scattered around began to accumulate and fill the enormous hole in Zephyrin's abdomen. Her regenerative ability was so fast that there was hardly a way to intervene.
"It's hard to remember the last time I felt so much pain."
Murakan was convinced that she wasn't completely unscathed.
However, he judged that the damage she had suffered wasn't enough to prevent Zephyrin from continuing the battle.
'It seems we've caught quite a troublesome one.'
What could be considered luck was that Jin's will to traverse the spatial rift had just been completed.
Zephyrin had been momentarily distracted by the unexpected blows and pain.
Zephyrin's eyes darkened as she saw the intense blue flame burning in Bradamante along with Shadow Energy.
Bradamante's sword created a bright and sharp trajectory in the dark subspace.
Then, as if a dimensional portal were opening, the subspace expanded and revealed the outside.
On the other side of that portal, they found themselves again in the reception room where they had started, with no objects destroyed and everything intact.
And in the next moment...
The group discovered something they didn't expect: one of Zephyrin's weaknesses.
'Her size decreased as soon as I cut through the subspace...!'
They intuited it.
And that was that Zephyrin could only transform into her true form in this subspace.
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