novelraw Chapter 139 : Finale (1)
Chapter 139 : Finale (1)
Chapter 139: Finale (1)
The briefing ended in just three minutes.
Part of it was because the instructions were simple—but more importantly, detailed explanations weren’t necessary.
In a good way, everyone present had a clear sense of self-awareness. They understood their strengths and limitations precisely.
Eugene looked at each of them once, then nodded.
There was no need for further explanation.
Though each had entered this battlefield with different goals and motivations, at this moment, they had to trust one another.
Whether for revenge, duty, or personal ambition—none of those desires could ever surpass the prosperity of humanity.
“Everything is for the future.”
Taat!
Frederick Lake and Betty Scarletwood charged in first.
In response, Dabios drew out spears of darkness from behind and hurled them without even a preparatory motion.
Frederick leapt into the air, while Betty rolled to evade them.
The spears embedded into the ground, scattering ominous mana around.
With a single gesture from Dabios, the spears vanished as if they had never existed, returning to their position behind him.
“So now you’re trying to stop us from even getting close.”
“The Were-Reptile and Smilodon will join soon. Let’s break through before that.”
The two steadily closed the distance against the returning spears.
Even as their skin was torn and pierced by the spear tips, they pressed forward without hesitation.
“…….”
The moment they finally entered attack range—
Dabios immediately activated Slaughter Field.
At that instant, Rubia cast three types of defensive magic.
Sacred Armor, Divine Armor, Divine Aura.
The blades that filled the air rapidly shaved away at the barriers, but they bought just enough time to exchange blows.
Frederick pushed in from the right.
Betty from the left.
One unleashed a Mana Fist, gathering every last bit of remaining mana.
The other brought down a massive greatsword strike infused with condensed mana.
KWAAAAAANG!
Kiiiiik, Kiiiik!
Two blows that would have obliterated most Beasts on contact—
Were blocked by Dabios with both hands.
Twisting its body lightly to disperse the remaining force, it kicked Frederick away with its left leg.
“Guhk…!”
Then it fired three spears simultaneously, pushing Betty back over ten meters.
The four watching from behind quickly processed the information.
These were attacks from some of the Empire’s greatest fighters. Even an SS-rank Beast should have at least been damaged.
But its additional ability made that impossible.
“Mana Infect….”
Everything cut by Slaughter Field became contaminated.
Even concentrated mana.
“…Still, this confirms it.”
At Karen’s words, Eugene nodded.
“Yeah. The ratio’s different, for sure.”
Even an SS-rank Beast couldn’t use its abilities infinitely. There was a limit.
The stronger the attack, the denser the Slaughter Field needed to be to block it.
And as seen earlier, the field had been excessively concentrated against the two.
Rubia touched her lips as she spoke.
“With attacks stronger than that… there will definitely be gaps outside the range of Slaughter Field.”
“Only for a moment, though.”
With the final confirmation complete—
It was time to act.
Eugene Carter, Francia Brida, Rubia Magnus, Karen Rosefield.
The four took their positions according to their roles.
“…….”
Ten seconds that felt like ten minutes passed.
KWAAAAAANG!
Using the explosion from afar as their signal—
They charged toward Dabios.
The final battle had begun.
---
As I sprinted forward, I quickly scanned both sides.
The members were desperately holding back the A+ rank Beasts from joining the area.
‘If we fail this time, it’s over…!’
I unleashed a slash to obscure the enemy’s vision, then signaled Francia and Rubia.
Francia ran toward Betty, who had temporarily pulled back.
Rubia deployed three magic circles in the air.
“I can only maintain 100 shots in continuous deployment!”
“Understood!”
After splitting from the two heroines, only Karen and I remained.
Without hesitation, we both entered the enemy’s range.
Swoooosh!
As if it had been waiting, spears flew toward us.
Karen deflected them with her halberd, and I barely knocked them aside with Lukesax.
At the same time, three types of Spear Magic rained down from above.
At that moment, two small spheres floating behind Karen sank into the ground.
Two thick spikes burst upward from the earth, shooting toward Dabios’s core in an instant.
Before it could even activate Slaughter Field—
The sudden strike forced its body backward.
Thud!
The spikes pierced straight through its left leg.
Dabios activated its ability belatedly, shattering the spikes—
But that brief moment of disruption was perfect.
In that instant of hesitation, Karen and I closed the distance and unleashed mana-filled strikes.
The exact same pattern and mana compression as Frederick and Betty’s earlier attack.
But there was one difference.
This time—
There was one more participant.
Between the rising spikes and the falling Spears—
A long wooden pillar appeared.
It was struck directly by a dark spear and split in half—
But it failed to reach Francia Brida, who had been hiding at its tip.
She joined the front line instantly and drew her sword at the exact same timing as us.
Three strikes from three directions.
Dabios activated its ability again.
Whoooooosh!
As expected, Slaughter Field concentrated on Karen and me.
And at the same time, it extended both arms violently toward Francia, intending to blow her away along with her sword.
At that moment—
A crimson blade began to overlay her broken sword.
“……!”
Dabios realized the situation instantly—
But instead of retreating, it stepped forward.
Whatever the ability was, it likely intended to destroy it before completion.
But—
Tiiing!
Its arms were blocked by an invisible wall.
And the Aura Blade Francia had woven—
Pierced through its aura and armored body with ease.
“How dare…!”
Refusing to allow anything further, Dabios hurled a spear straight toward her heart.
Even so—
Francia didn’t falter.
She twisted her blade upward and slashed.
Crack—
The spear shattered the moment it touched the Divine Armor that had formed.
Unlike the previous attacks from the others—
Her Aura Blade was constructed in the exact opposite way.
And it cut through Dabios’s body as if slicing tofu.
“GRAAAAAAAAH!!”
With half its upper body severed, Dabios unleashed a torrent of killing intent and threw spear after spear—
“Amplify Field.”
“Storm Nova!”
A sudden burst of wind formed between them—
Pulling Francia completely out of Dabios’s range.
It was a joint effort by Michel Bernhardt and Agent Meriel.
With a satisfied smile, I stepped on Karen’s halberd and leapt upward.
‘Against a Dabios that’s lost its composure…!’
Mid-leap, I reversed my grip and drove Lukesax straight into the exposed gap in its upper body.
Then, pouring every last bit of mana I had left—
I slashed upward to the right.
Slash!
Its head spun through the air—
Severed along with its neck.
A victory achieved together.
---
The defeat of the commander Beast dealt a heavy blow to the enemy’s morale.
The remaining high-rank Beasts did their best to fill the void left by Dabios—
But the loss of a central figure had a real impact.
Soon, after eliminating the four A+ rank Beasts including the Erosion Pillar Scatter—
There was a clear shift in the enemy’s movements.
The low-rank Beasts that had coordinated so effectively began to lose their edge.
The number of reinforcements steadily decreased.
The aerial Beasts, which had joined later, even began retreating in groups.
“Don’t let them escape! Wipe them out here!”
“Yes!”
Centered around the relatively fresh Dellowell Believers, eight teams were formed and deployed.
Six for interception.
Two for pursuit.
Chasing down fleeing Beasts completely was impossible for humans—
But they needed to drive them toward the border, away from the capital if possible.
If they could identify the Gate’s location in the process, even better.
Out of the roughly 8,000 Beasts gathered at Mallet, nearly 30% were defeated.
Of the remaining 5,000, around 2,000 chose to flee.
While the pursuit team led by Frederick Lake and Betty Scarletwood chased them beyond the outer wall—
We focused on eliminating the remaining 3,000 as quickly as possible.
As a result—
Within four hours, nearly 90% of the remnants were eliminated.
“…I’m dead.”
“Haha… yeah.”
The remaining Beasts struggled desperately to take even one more human down with them—
But the alliance was not so easily broken.
Especially Karen and the veteran fighters—their performance was dazzling.
By the time the pursuit team returned—
Not a single Beast was left moving in the area.
“Evacuate the wounded first! Move!”
“Inside, quickly!”
“Outer wall and turret repair teams—briefing first, then move!”
“They’re Beasts! Don’t lower your guard! We don’t know when they’ll appear again!”
Supporting each other, Rubia and I entered the tower.
Watching people rushing about in all directions, we paused briefly and looked at each other.
Though exhaustion was evident on our faces—
The smiles on our lips were brighter than ever.
Soon after, we each moved to handle our respective duties.
Francia, who had performed two miracles, was completely exhausted and resting in a makeshift lounge.
Those with relatively less depletion focused on caring for the wounded. Members of Karbenna and the Special Task Force also actively assisted.
The Magic Tower’s agents found Master Gustav collapsed unconscious on the terrace and transported him to the infirmary.
As Rubia followed them to help, I headed toward the command center.
Inside, Master of the Magic Tower Gustav was engaged in heated discussion with the leaders of each faction.
“I’ve been saying this—there were no signs whatsoever—!”
“Gate Beasts usually don’t show signs.”
I stepped in, interrupting their conversation.
“Well, the mana composition of the area might change slightly—but noticing that in advance is nearly impossible.”
“…….”
“Did the pursuit team get any results?”
At my question, Frederick pointed to a section of the map spread across the table.
“Given the location, we couldn’t pursue further—but it’s highly likely they emerged from inside the Forest of Delusion.”
“Huh?!”
Gustav suddenly exclaimed as if struck by something.
As all eyes turned to him, he waved his hands hurriedly.
“N-no, it’s nothing! Please, continue!”
“…We left a vanguard there, but we have no idea when they’ll appear again.”
“There should be about six months of grace.”
Looking over the ten key figures gathered here, I shifted my gaze to the upper-left of the map—
Toward the capital, Arpe.
“We need to prepare quickly before then.”
Preparation—
To survive.