Chapter 728 The Second Half 3
Seeing the deadpan look on the skull's face, Daneel sighed, thinking that it really took away a lot from the joy that one would obtain when they were getting revenge if they couldn't see the expression on their opponent's face.
After all, he had gone to great lengths to turn around the situation and make it so that this guy's actions would be the same ones which were the reason behind his demise, and he couldn't even see that realization on his face!
By restricting the Head, he had made sure that the man wouldn't arrive to save Daneel. Of course, this also meant that… He couldn't arrive to save him either.
It was such a simple, yet satisfying twist the Daneel really loved it, and as he saw the domain of Rayen take effect, he couldn't help but think that this man whom he had taken on as a subordinate was quite capable.
He could tell that if he was inside, he would have found no way whatsoever to see, because the entire purpose of the domain was to make sure that anyone who entered it would be robbed of their sight. Like Bartholomew, as he had been called, if anyone was dumb enough to also block themselves in a place so that they couldn't leave the area of the domain, then they would find themselves pretty much cornered and set up for defeat.
Yet, it had to be acknowledged that Bartholomew was not to be underestimated, as he calmly stopped all attempts to gain vision, which had already been proven futile, and he was using other means to track everything around him.
A mage, especially one who was at least at the Hero level, would never be completely helpless if they had control of their Mageroot. In this case, the man had slowly begun to use all kinds of elementary particles to map the area around him, so that if anything moved, they would move too, giving him an indication that something was coming from that direction.
It was pretty smart, but it made Daneel sigh again, as such a skilled person would have been really useful if he had been on Angaria's side. Alas, he had chosen the wrong one either out of greed or some other reason which didn't really matter, and now, he had to die.
Even though he had figured this out, it still wasn't easy to track Rayen, who was actually… Right above Bartholomew, slowly lowering himself while making it seem as if his movements were actually that of the wind. This kind of camouflage was done by putting himself on the back side of air current, making it so that even if the elementary particles detected that something was moving, it would look like a long 'sheet', while the movement of Rayen was hidden within it. It was slow, but it was effective, mainly because there was a system in this barrow which sent gusts of wind at regular intervals, perhaps to drive away the rotting stink of corpses that were all buried underground.
Although it looked like Bartholomew's defeat was inevitable, Daneel knew that there would be some problem soon, because if this was all that was needed to defeat him, then Rayen wouldn't have declared before that they would definitely not be able to kill him. So far, everything he had been doing was without what Daneel had given him, and it was obvious that the man was first trying to use his own strength, before depending on someone else's.
It was an admirable thought, and even Daneel wished to see just what a true-blue Hero was capable of.
They were supposed to be so much more powerful than Champions, with this difference being much larger than that between Champions and the previous realm, too.
With the domain, Rayen had already demonstrated how this was the case, because no such absolute domain was possible in the Champion level. This was if one didn't count Daneel, of course, who could be called the ultimate exception. Almost any Champion level domain could be overcome using brute force attacks or if an expended enough Energy, but in this case, there was such a strong command over the resonance with darkness and the power that was being drawn forth from the World that in that aspect, anyone facing Rayen would be helpless, unless their insights into darkness were even higher than his.
In his hands was a blade that was also wreathed in shadows, and it seemed to be a very powerful one. It was infused with his power, and Daneel could tell that it was no normal weapon. It was certainly stronger than most trinkets or weapons he had seen so far, as any of those would have long burst into pieces if they had that much power infused into them.
It was definitely something special that had been made especially for this purpose, and it almost seemed like the sickle of the grim reaper as its point descended toward the top of Bartholomew's bare skull.
Just before the moment when Rayen was about to thrust it home, Daneel braced himself, but surprisingly, before Rayen could even put forth the force with which he was going to pierce his head, the man swiftly raised his hands and caught Rayen's in a vice-like grip.
That grip, itself, seemed so strong that just seeing it made Daneel feel that any part in his body would have snapped if he was the one who was being targeted by it, and both Rayen and Daneel were also thoroughly surprised that Bartholomew had even been able to sense the attack.
There was no time to think, though. As one who had experience in battle, Rayen reacted quickly, kicking forth with his legs to drive himself away from his target.
All of these moves exceeded were so strong that they exceeded the Champion realm, mainly because they were attacks infused with the magical powers of a Hero-level Mage. At the Hero level, one could use spells instantly to boost their power and also strengthen their body to terrifying levels, making the playing field quite even with Fighters even in close range.
Bartholomew seemed to have expected Rayen's move, as he leaped up to escape his opponent's scissor kick before landing before him after painfully wrenching his hands so that Rayen had no option but to land on the ground. His hands were almost tied behind him, and by now, it was obvious what Bartholomew's strategy was.
He couldn't see, so he wanted to have his opponent in his hands so that he wouldn't be able to get up to any thing even if the domain was active.
Simple, and effective.
However, it looked like Rayen had had enough.
Waves of elementary particles started to congregate behind him, right behind Bartholomew's neck, and Daneel started to feel a faint sense of danger even though he was quite far away.
Rayen was casting a spell, and the way he manipulated the particles so easily even though the spell in question seemed to be a particularly advanced Hero-level one made it clear that this must be his signature move, which he had practiced a lot so that he could be familiar with it.
Daneel was blinded by the layered patterns of the attack, so he decided to ask the system just what it was.
In fact, it was the system's help that he was even able to see anything in the first place. There was only pitch-black darkness, but the system was using the input from the World to create an image for him.
Soon, Daneel got the answer.
[Spell resembles 'Kiss of Darkness'-Hero level Path-specific Signature spell in records.
Record is as follows:
Kiss of Darkness: Darkness is not just the absence of light. It is that which brings forth all the darkest fears in a living being's mind. Each being is reminded of the time when it was completely helpless, and the stronger the Hero's insights into darkness, the more such feelings can be brought forth willingly. 'Kiss of Darkness' embodies the Will of one who wields Darkness to take one back to their origin, when they were but defenseless specks who could be squashed out of existence with a single thought. It is a Mind-Body dual attack, and if successful, a target loses all control over their body and mageroot for a brief period of time, and grievous injuries are also caused by the buffeting waves of particles which strip away the skin after passing any defenses that might exist.]
Holy crap!
Understanding what it was made respect appear in Daneel's eyes, but Bartholomew…seemed to have sensed the attack, too.
And his response…was peculiar, to say the least.
First, he started head-butting Rayen, and each attack made shockwaves vibrate through the earth and almost reach Daneel, who was over a kilometer away.
Each strike apparently held almost the same force that one would feel if they were being hit by a truck, and even though barriers popped up to protect Rayen, the force passed through, disturbing his concentration and slightly disrupting his spell-casting.
At the same time, as Daneel watched on with both his eyebrows raised, bony hands burst through from the earth right below Rayen and grasped his legs, while more and more hands started to appear all around him.
Daneel was quite taken aback, as he had scanned this area, and it was actually one with empty graves. Where the f*ck had these corpses come from? And how were they being animated?
Even before he could ask the question to the system, he found out why Drakos had said long ago that a single second was enough to decide a fight between Heroes.
The bony hands seemed to have the special property of corroding through barriers, and Rayen understood that he would lose his legs if he carelessly stayed.
So…he launched his attack even though it hadn't completely formed.
It was in the form of a long curved blade, almost like lips which were moving to give that 'Kiss', and as it passed through Bartholomew, it seemed as if it had done no damage.
However…for the briefest of seconds, Bartholomew let go of the grip he had been holding on to for dear life until now, and Rayen broke free of both his hands and those of the ghastly bodies that had risen from what was supposed to be an eternal embrace.
Rising in the air, Rayen breathed heavily, and said, "Screw it."
Knowing what he meant, Daneel activated his ability, and the next second…it was Bartholomew's turn to step back with shock.
"You! This spell…how?! It is supposed to be lost!"
The reason behind this hoarse scream was that Rayen had been given a spell by Daneel's ability that perfectly countered the army that had risen from the ground.
It was a shining sun which sent down rays of golden light, and this light seemed to be burning the bones of the army which hastily stepped around to escape those rays which were cutting through the darkness domain while aiming for their heads.
Only…Daneel shook his head, because as expected, it wasn't as ultimately powerful as he had expected. It wasn't like his whole Path didn't have limitations, and the limitation of this ability was that even though it allowed for spells to be given that countered an opponent's attacks, they had to cast by those who were being given the power, and they might not have enough of the 'insights' which were required to perfectly cast each spell.
If it was Daneel, the World would do it for him. But for his subordinates, the World would only help by giving an indication, and the rest had to be done by them alone.
It, alone, might not have ensured their victory, but in this case…there was also the amplification.
With a smile on his face due to the fact that he was wielding more power than he had ever done in his life, Rayen started recasting the spell, and where before the curved blade made of shadows had been 10 feet long, it was three times that now, and it looked like it would definitely wipe out Bartholomew.
The man with the skull for his head seemed to have recognized it, too, as he took another step back with horror.
However…what he did next made both Rayen and Daneel freeze, instantly.
Raising his hands, he shouted, "Wait! Don't kill me! I'm actually with the Head! He went in on his own accord! You really think he's so dumb as to believe something like what I said right away? It was all a façade! It was so that I could join the Church and pass information to Angaria!"