novelraw Chapter 106 : Chapter 106
Chapter 106 : Chapter 106
Chapter 106. Counterattack (2)
In the pitch-black darkness.
Her consciousness flickered faintly, as if blinking on and off.
The cold chains that bound her entire body were not simple restraints.
They were cursed objects that sucked her magic, her very existence.
'Keuk.'
She couldn't muster any strength.
As an ancient dragon who had lived for thousands of years, this was the first time she had felt such powerlessness.
Even when she fought Arus.
Even when she fought Primus, it wasn't this bad.
At least then, she could move according to her own will.
But now, her limbs were bound, and her magic was being absorbed.
Her limp, seemingly dead body felt as if it wasn't her own.
'Master…….'
His face came to mind.
The man who had willingly drunk from a poisoned chalice for her.
The only human who had respected her not as 'Anticus' but as 'Anonymous.'
No, as just a single being.
How heartbroken would he be if he knew this?
Perhaps he was already wandering around, searching for her.
It was then.
Rumble!
A sudden vibration shook the entire cave.
It wasn't a simple tremor.
Somewhere very close beyond this place, immense powers were colliding.
One was a familiar evil, the magic of the Lich King Nox, and the other was…….
'Master!'
There was no mistake.
It was the magic of her Master, who had regained his strength after darkness had fallen.
His power, with the curse lifted, was comparable to that of the previous Demon King, but Nox's energy was also formidable.
If anything, it was even larger and more sinister.
'He's being pushed back.'
Her heart sank.
He was in danger.
At that moment, two familiar faces came into her sight along with a faint light.
"Found her!"
It was Noemi.
And next to her was Noctavira, with a half-dazed look on her face.
"How did you get here?"
Her voice didn't come out properly.
The chains weren't wrapped around her neck, but her magic had been depleted, and her stamina had waned as a result.
Noemi hurriedly came forward.
Worry and relief crossed in her eyes.
"There's no time for a long explanation. I'll free you right away."
A small hand ran over the chains.
Her gaze was incredibly serious.
"To cast such a wicked spell. What a bad guy."
Noemi focused on the chains for a moment, then began to mutter something in an ancient language that was hard to understand.
Complex spell patterns were repeatedly drawn and erased in the air.
"Please wait just a moment."
A faint blue light flowed from Noemi's fingertips and enveloped the chains.
Soon, the unpleasant energy that had been suffocating her began to disappear as if it were a lie.
The pressure that had been sucking her magic weakened, and she could feel strength welling up again from deep within her body.
'What did she do?'
The spell on the chains was a high-level magic that was difficult to understand.
Even Anonymous would have taken a long time to dispel it.
But Noemi did it in just a few minutes.
And she did it by imbuing it with a power of exactly the opposite nature, neutralizing the spell.
'This child, when it comes to magic, she's far more incredible than I am.'
To not only grasp the nature of the spell in such a short time, but to imbue it with exactly the opposite power.
This was not something just anyone could do easily.
A true genius of magic. No, even the word genius was insufficient.
Once the spell was broken, the chains could no longer bind her.
Crack!
Anonymous broke the shackles herself and stood up.
She wasn't fully recovered yet, but there was no problem with her movements.
Turning her head, she saw Noctavira still hesitating, not knowing what to do.
'Something's different about her.'
Instead of her previous sharp and arrogant aura, she felt a subtle nuance mixed with anxiety and confusion.
But now was not the time to worry about her.
Ku-kwakwakwang!!
Once again, the cave rumbled loudly.
This vibration was much stronger than before.
'Master is being pushed back!'
She knew it instinctively.
If she didn't help him right now, he might be in real danger.
"We have to go help him now!"
At Anonymous' cry, Noemi and Noctavira nodded their heads at the same time.
There was no time to hesitate.
Without delay, they ran towards the depths of the cave where the clash of powers was felt.
'Master. Please hold on just a little longer.'
Anonymous prayed earnestly in her heart.
***
Nox's bony face contorted as he let out an unpleasant laugh.
"Uhaha! You dared to talk big to me with just that much power? So a Hero is nothing special after all!"
The condensed dark magic at the tip of his staff raged like a storm.
I instinctively raised my sword to block it, but the shockwave struck my entire body.
"Keuk!"
I barely managed to endure my body being pushed back.
He wasn't just strong.
His attack patterns were completely different from the Nox I had experienced in the game.
Having evolved into the Lich King, he was freely using not only swordsmanship but also unpredictable high-level magic.
He wasn't just blindly charging forward, relying on his strength like before, but he also possessed the agility to watch my reactions and aim for openings.
To make matters worse, the surrounding undead, under Nox's command, were attacking in a coordinated manner.
While I swung my sword and cut down a few of them, I had to barely dodge a bone spear flying from behind me.
'Damn it, there's no end to them. And that guy Nox is too strong.'
It was a difficult situation even though the curse of the former Demon King had been partially lifted and the power of the hero had returned.
It was highly likely that he had also gained Kaliditas' knowledge and experience by absorbing his soul.
'Just how strong is Primus, who subdued him?'
A chill ran down my spine at the thought that suddenly came to me, but I soon dismissed it.
Now was not the time to think about other things.
I had to use all my strength just to block Nox.
Just as the fierce battle continued.
A dazzling halo of light erupted from the other side of the cave.
A pillar of pure magic that cut through the darkness like the dawn of a new day.
"Dad!"
A familiar voice. And next to her…….
"Anonymous!!"
She was there, smiling brightly at me.
The chains were nowhere to be found, and she was smiling with a brighter face than before.
Although she still looked exhausted, her eyes were alive.
Just the fact that she was safe made me feel as if new strength was surging through my entire body.
My hand gripping the sword naturally tightened.
But upon seeing this, Nox shouted in astonishment.
"How can this be! How were you able to break the chains?"
Nox was flustered by the sudden turn of events.
He had no choice but to retreat from the magic Noemi was unleashing.
"Dad! Leave this to me!"
As Noemi swung her staff, a huge ice storm swept through the undead.
Anonymous, despite her tired body, also joined in.
With just a light flick of her hand, she fired powerful magic bullets, keeping Nox in check.
With the two of them joining in, the tide of battle was rapidly turning in our favor.
He revealed an opening due to the unexpected variable, and I did not miss that moment.
"This is the end!"
I focused my power into Balisardo and charged towards his heart.
Nox hastily cast a defensive magic, but it was not enough to block the sword strike filled with my will to save Anonymous.
Ka-kang!
The shield of darkness shattered, and his body was pushed back significantly.
The flustered Nox seemed to have decided to retreat.
"Keuk! I will surely repay you for this humiliation!"
Leaving behind a third-rate line commonly uttered by villains, he turned into black smoke and disappeared into the darkness of the cave.
A continuing silence.
The one who broke it was Noemi.
"Wow! We won!"
Noemi jumped up and down like a child, rejoicing.
Noctavira was watching this situation with a somewhat dazed face.
But my gaze was fixed on only one person.
'You're safe. Thank goodness.'
I slowly approached Anonymous.
She was still looking at me with a bright smile.
No other words were needed.
I hugged her tightly, carefully, as if she would break, but more desperately than anyone else.
“...Master.”
Her voice, with her face buried in my chest, trembled faintly.
Her warmth, the proof that she was alive, felt more precious than anything else.
For a while, we just held each other without a word, confirming each other's existence.
Forgetting all the noise and darkness around us, as if only each other's warmth was everything.
***
A heavy silence hung over the conference room of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
Adel nervously bit her nails and stared intently at the crystal ball.
Father and Noemi.
A full day had passed since the two of them had left to save Master Anonymous.
As time went by, her anxiety grew like a snowball.
Iris, who was sitting next to her, also maintained a stiff face instead of her usual cynical expression.
At that very moment.
Woooong.
The crystal ball lit up with a faint light.
The first to appear was Noemi's face.
Instead of her usual expressionless face, she looked somewhat tired, but just the fact that she was safe brought a wave of relief.
"Noemi!"
Adel shouted without realizing it.
Soon, over Noemi's shoulder, the face she had been waiting for so eagerly appeared.
"Master!"
Although her whole body was covered in soot and dust, it was definitely Master Anonymous.
'She's alive!'
Adel smiled, not knowing what to do with her overwhelming joy.
Her eyes even welled up.
Iris, who was beside her, also faintly raised the corners of her mouth.
"I knew the two of you could do it."
The relief was brief.
Iris immediately got to the point.
"So, what happened to the Lich King?"
Beyond the crystal ball, Father's figure appeared.
His face was somewhat heavy.
"He escaped."
Adel's expression stiffened again.
"Escaped? Father and Noemi were together, and on top of that, Master was there too……. How could he have escaped?"
Father seemed to be choosing his words for a moment before answering.
"It didn't seem like transition magic, but he disappeared, vanishing like smoke."
Tension once again filled the conference room.
He escaped even though Father, Noemi, and Master Anonymous, who had regained her strength, were all there together?
The Lich King must be an unimaginably powerful being.
'Just how strong is he?'
A chill ran down her spine.
Well, he was the one who had even captured Master Anonymous.
He was no pushover.
If it had been her, Iris, and Alvarez there instead of Father…….
'Could we have come back alive?'
The strength of her father and younger siblings, and in inverse proportion, she keenly felt her own inadequacy.
A sense of self-reproach washed over her, but that feeling soon turned into fighting spirit.
Adel soon clenched her two fists.
'I have to become stronger. Like Father, like Noemi. And like Iris.'
Adel stared into the air with eyes full of firm resolve.
Iris, sitting next to her, silently watched Adel.
A complex emotion that was hard to read flashed in her red eyes.
***
Nox, who had barely escaped the battlefield, looked at the cave he had come out of in the distance and gritted his teeth.
He put so much force into it that his bony jaw could have shattered, but his anger did not subside easily.
'Damn it. Damn it! I had him in my grasp!'
His plan to rule the world by making the queen of dragons, Anticus, his subordinate had come to nothing.
The hero Frank, who had regained his power, a monster of unknown magic, and even the half-human queen of vampires.
He had failed to properly deal with a single one of them and let them slip away right before his eyes.
No, he hadn't let them slip away.
'I was weak, so I ran away.'
Anger at his own powerlessness boiled up from within.
He had even absorbed the power of the first Demon King, but he had to run away, pushed back by just them.
It was an unbearable humiliation.
At that moment, a faint light seeped out from his bosom.
At the unexpected reaction, Nox frowned.
'What's going on? Weren't all the One-eyed ones annihilated?'
The surveillance creatures he had installed throughout the cave should have all been destroyed during the fierce battle with Frank.
Nox tilted his head for a moment, then, just in case, he carefully sent magic into the crystal ball.
Before long, a blue light swirled, and an image formed on the surface of the ball.
The moment he confirmed the person in the image, Nox's emaciated face was filled with astonishment.
Eyes like an abyss of unknown depth.
An absolute presence that seemed capable of putting the entire world beneath its feet.
It was Primus.