Chapter 270: The Lion’s Roar
“But, you missed the cut!” Raymond suddenly snapped back to his senses, looking up at Olivia, who had already rushed into the sky. He let out a wild laugh, then grabbed the dark-red greatsword floating beside him, as its crimson glow began to condense.
Rising high into the air, Olivia turned around, her ruby-like eyes locked tightly onto Raymond. The golden brilliance once again gathered upon the blade in her hand.
Unstoppable!
He had experienced this before—when his strikes had clashed against this golden magic only to be devoured by it entirely. Raymond already understood then that he must not directly counter it, especially now when Olivia still held the advantage of height.
He was just about to flap his steel wings to evade, but suddenly sensed a small fissure forming upon them. His magic flow was disrupted by that tiny crack.
So this was your goal!
Raymond’s eyes widened, staring at those ruby-like eyes above. His lips curled into a twisted grin as the blue lines across his body blazed, surging magic flooding into the greatsword in his hands.
The activation of a Sacred Relic did not require magic. Different Sacred Relics demanded different powers to drive them—some required bloodline, some raw strength, some will, others ritual. Yet magic, after all, was still the world’s gift. And when vast magic poured into a Sacred Relic, it could unleash even greater power.
Boom! Dark-red clashed with gold once more. This time, the two seemed evenly matched, tangling in midair. The enormous force seemed to twist space itself.
Olivia’s face remained unchanged, but the light in her ruby eyes only burned brighter.
Sensing something, Raymond’s expression shifted. He closed his brown eyes, and his emerald-green pupils suddenly blazed open. From the crimson torrent shot forth a piercing green beam, surging toward the heavens. At the same time, the pale-red magic bursting from Olivia’s eyes erupted. One beam intercepted the green light, while another streaked through the crimson torrent unopposed—blasting away half of Raymond’s head.
“Ugh… ah!” Raymond screamed. Veins bulged across the half of his face that remained as the blue markings spread, repairing his head. But the diverted flow of magic meant the crimson torrent could no longer resist the golden flood. Olivia’s magic consumed him once again, slamming him into the ground.
Boom, boom, boom! The earth quaked once more, the mighty impact ripping it apart and sending dust billowing into the air.
Olivia, no longer supported by the clash, descended gracefully. Landing firmly upon the ground, she gazed down at Raymond in the crater and spoke her first words outside of declaring judgment: “Having never fought against an opponent of equal rank, relying only on your Sacred Relic and suit of armor, you are pitifully weak.”
“Ugh~ heh-heh-heh~” Raymond’s sound was twisted, half a scream, half a laugh. His steel wings had folded away, while the half of his head blasted apart was slowly regenerating. He spoke through gritted teeth, suppressing pain: “You are so strong… and your mastery over magic is so pure. Who are you?”
“No… it no longer matters. Will you kill me?” Raymond asked.
“This is your judgment.” Olivia pronounced.
Raymond suddenly smirked strangely. “But your magic also takes time to recover, doesn’t it?”
Olivia abruptly looked down. At some point, a hemp rope had entwined around her leg. The other end was in Raymond’s hand—no, wound around his body, ultimately clutched in his grip.
“Sacred Relic or not, it is still power governed by my will!” Raymond laughed, springing to his feet and yanking the rope.
Olivia felt a violent force drag her off balance, spinning her like a sling.
“Hahahaha! I pronounce your sin—Pride! And those guilty of sin shall face judgment!” He roared, swinging the rope to smash Olivia’s small frame brutally into the earth.
Boom! The force cracked the ground open, Olivia coughing blood as she struck. Before she could recover, Raymond swung her again, slamming her back down.
“In the end, you’re just a little girl. When you rushed from the ground to strike me, you aimed for my wings because your strength wasn’t enough to confront me directly. Praiseworthy instinct!”
“But… even if you disdain Sacred Relics, they are still extensions of divine power! The Lord you worship—called so or not—He is still of the gods’ kind! And yet you dare to scorn the power of the gods with such arrogance!” Raymond bellowed, his hands unrelenting as he smashed Olivia again and again into the ground.
Behind him, his steel wings spread wide. His head fully healed, the etched lines across his armor glowed with infused magic, repairing the gash Olivia had cut into it.
“Your magic is strong, but in the end it is still just magic. Only a powerful body determines true strength!” Raymond shouted, his steel wings erupting with a sonic boom as he dragged Olivia high into the skies.
“Let us see—at such speed—whether your body can endure!” He pulled her along, streaking across the heavens, stopping suddenly above a village. The sonic boom deafened the land below, some villagers collapsing unconscious from the blast alone.
Raymond grinned wickedly, then hurled Olivia straight into the ground. With a thunderous crash, the manor at the heart of the village was obliterated.
Screams rose, echoing like praise to his strength. Raymond swung Olivia again, flying circles around the village.
The shockwaves tore through the settlement, her body like a flail demolishing everything in its path.
“Hahaha! You have no real experience in battles of life and death, do you? As you said—you’re only used to sparring! Do you know what knights and warriors do in this situation?” His voice rumbled amid the storm. “They sever their own leg. For if they do not, they will surely die. Cut it off, and there is still a chance to live!”
“You still live, don’t you? You still hold your sword, don’t you? Hahahaha! So tell me—will you choose death, or cut off your leg and…”
A sudden burst of oppressive magic cut his words short.
The whirlwind stilled, dust swept away, his flight stuttering.
“Escaped? Or cut it off?” The rope recoiled into Raymond’s hand. He saw where it had snapped, charred and blackened—not severed by a blade.
He dismissed it. He never believed such wounds could kill someone with such fighting spirit anyway.
Raymond looked. Olivia’s golden short hair was a tangled mess, her face and armor smeared with blood—her own, or that of the slaughtered villagers, he could not tell.
“It doesn’t matter. Between us, only one will live, right?” Raymond laughed.
“…” Olivia did not answer. She steadied her breathing, brow furrowed, eyes darting as she scanned the surroundings.
“Heh, still arrogant? In your eyes…” Raymond’s words froze. From his chest jutted a thin, ashen arm, claws gripping a still-beating heart.
“In… her eyes… she never cared for you,” a hoarse voice grew clearer. “The reason she didn’t stomp your skull when she descended was only because she noticed me.”
Raymond twisted his head, just enough to see a drooling vampire.
“Of course, your blood is delicious too. But I lack the time to savor it. I can only take your heart.” The vampire spoke regretfully before vanishing. Instantly, Olivia’s golden torrent engulfed both Raymond and the vampire.
Her eyes flicked, searching.
“Heh-heh… If you wield such power before he is even dead, you must be someone he values greatly,” the vampire’s bitter rasp echoed by her ear. Olivia answered only with another eruption of magic.
“Useless. I can smell it. From birth till now, you have only lived ten years. Perhaps you may grow strong in the future—but now, you’re just a child. Ha~” The foul stench in his rasp coiled tightly behind her.
Her armor felt pierced. Beneath, the clothes her mother had woven tore apart, exposing tender skin to a chilling touch.
Just a little deeper—and her heart would be taken, like Raymond’s.
But then, faintly, a lion’s roar rang out. The very space seemed to freeze. The vampire’s figure, close to her, was revealed—his eyes wide with horror.
“The Golden Lions? Those things were supposed to be extinct!” he shrieked.
In Olivia’s ruby eyes blazed the form of a roaring lion. The beast leapt forth from her gaze.
Its golden body towered like a mountain. Its breath exhaled magic. Its growl thundered like storm and lightning. Wherever its paws touched, earth turned to gold. Its blazing golden eyes stared down at the vampire beneath it like an ant.
“Eeeeaaaghhh!” The vampire shrieked. Under the lion’s gaze, his body slowly transmuted into gold.
With a shudder, his ashen flesh split open, a bloodied skeleton clawing free, fleeing toward Blackrock Point. His abandoned skin crumbled into solid gold.
“Cough, cough…” Olivia spat blood. Being slammed so long by Raymond had left its toll on her body.
She raised her hand and patted the lion’s leg. “Kill him.”
At her height, she barely reached its shin.
“Rooaaar!” The Golden Lion bellowed and bounded after the vampire.
Though its movements seemed slow, each leap spanned vast distances. All it passed turned into gold. Beneath its paws, red-gold gleamed.
Their figures receded into the distance. Olivia gazed at Raymond’s armored corpse, life gone. She slumped to the ground, then lay flat on her back, eyes closed, snoring softly, her face peaceful. From her neck glimmered faintly the edge of a cross.