The Protagonists of Romance Fantasy Novels Have Escaped - Chapter 118
118 – 118. The Black Cardinal (3)
The self-detonation triggered by the rampage of the scourge exploded.
Ilkeron, who had allowed a single strike, suffered fatal injuries as half of his face and upper body were engulfed in the blast. Yet, despite such grievous wounds, he rose to his feet, fully conscious.
*”I never expected this. To think you would take your own life…!”*
Having triggered all the high explosives attached to his body, there was no way he could have survived.
Surely, there would be nothing left but a bloody mess.
Such foolish bravado.
Even if it was a method to counter the ambush, it was far too foolish.
As Ilkeron gazed at the remnants of the explosion, filled with acrid smoke, he raised the sharp tip of his sword. Edanant was slowly emerging from the site, which had been devastated by the rampage of the scourge.
*”I can’t believe it…! How are you still intact?”*
– Because it is a body completely fused with the calamity of war. It’s akin to a fire mage not suffering burns.
Despite having directly faced a colossal destructive force capable of turning a vast area to ashes, Edanant remained unscathed. The armor of the calamity, equipped with high explosives, still exuded its grandeur.
It was an absurd outcome.
To think that even after executing a self-detonation that used himself as the medium for the explosion, he remained intact.
Knowing him, he must have carried out the extreme act of self-detonation without hesitation to counter the realm of swiftness.
“But you can’t be completely unscathed.”
– You old fool.
Though it was not visible due to the armor, Edanant had sustained a deep, fatal wound to his nape. The strike from Ilkeron, delivered just before being swept away by the explosion, had ultimately led to this critical injury.
If it were a stroke of luck, one might say the carotid artery was unharmed.
Had the carotid been severed as well, he would have struggled to staunch the bleeding.
As a deity, he had done his utmost to seal the wound.
Had his response been even slightly delayed, a catastrophe of a head rolling would have ensued.
– Thanks to you, I almost became a headless ghost.
“I’ve grown rusty as well, to turn my steps back in the face of an explosion… If I were the Ilkeron Nebiacus of my youth, I would have chosen to die alongside you without hesitation.”
Had he struck down his neck with the resolve to die, Edanant would have met his end.
Knowing him, Ilkeron wore an expression that seemed to reflect self-contempt.
– Now, it’s about time for you to die.
As Edanant raised one hand, all the muskets deployed in the air aimed at the black cardinal. The intent was to kill Ilkeron, whose face and upper body were horrifically covered in burns, in an instant.
Now, it was possible.
Having sustained such severe injuries, he would be unable to move freely.
Hesitation is the most feared cause of defeat.
The pitifully crumbled figure of Ilkeron proved this.
“Is that truly possible?”
The black cardinal lifted his head, his single eye gleaming fiercely. Even after losing one eye in the explosion, he had not lost his fighting spirit.
The harsher the adversity, the stronger one becomes.
Isn’t that the tenacity of the fanatics who worship the one true god?
Ilkeron displayed superhuman endurance as he pressed on with the battle. The sight of him gripping the hilt of his sword with hands mangled by the explosion was nothing short of madness.
Tatata-tatata-tatata—!!!
Hundreds of muskets erupted in flames.
Soon after, a multitude of bullets poured down upon the black cardinal like a torrential rain.
How much longer can I endure?
The body, akin to a return slip, will gradually meet its limits.
Yet, as the sharp strikes continued, it still proclaimed its resilience. Ilkeron, having deflected countless bullets like grains of sand, even threatened Edanant with a decisive blow.
“Damn it!”
The decisive blow was merely a ruse.
Once again activating the realm of swiftness, Ilkeron closed the distance to Edanant in the blink of an eye.
‘He must be on the brink of death… how can he be this fast?’
It was no different from when he ambushed from behind. The madness of Ilkeron, charging forth in the guise of a grotesque, burned body, left one at a loss for words.
-How dare you close the distance.
I have no intention of allowing the hunting dog of the Kingdom of Seonghwang to approach.
The high-explosive bombs mounted on his armor unleashed a fierce burst of thermal energy, resulting in a massive explosion.
No matter how many times I try, the outcome will be the same.
That tattered body will never withstand the pressure of the blast.
-But… it’s unlikely the same trick will work on the hunting dog of the Kingdom of Seonghwang.
Ilkeron activated the realm of swiftness once more, distancing himself from the blast radius. With keen observation, he discerned the activation of the bombs’ fuses.
Having successfully evaded the explosion, he would surely initiate a counterattack.
As if to demonstrate this, Ilkeron repeatedly activated the realm of swiftness and approached Edanant.
-You, who are no better than a walking corpse.
It takes a minute to deploy the high-explosive bombs.
If he prepares for another self-detonation, even the hunting dog of the Kingdom of Seonghwang would hesitate to attack recklessly.
Edanant, in preparation, raised Aldebaran and parried the incoming strikes.
“Can you hold out until then?”
Perhaps sensing his thoughts, Ilkeron raised the tip of his blade and spoke.
Feeling the chilling glint of the blade, Edanant sensed fear spreading throughout his body. Without a doubt, Ilkeron would activate the realm of swiftness once more.
That prediction proved accurate.
As Ilkeron’s figure blurred like a mirage, the armor of the reaper was ground away.
Clang!
Clang, clang, clang──!!!
The scream of metal echoed.
And the fragments of armor swept away by the strikes scattered in all directions.
“Cough!”
If he had been in perfect condition, he would have succeeded in a decisive strike.
With the swift blade, he would have severed the breath of his opponent.
But unfortunately, Ilkeron was close to death. The recoil from activating the realm of swiftness multiple times had even stirred his insides.
He coughed up a mouthful of blood.
This was evidence that Ilkeron was slowly reaching his limit.
—Hoo…!
Before him, the black cardinal showed a moment of vulnerability, but Edanant took a step back. Perhaps wounded by the strike that had cut through the cursed armor, Edanant was pressing his chest, attempting to staunch the bleeding.
The fear that his instincts had warned him about was not mistaken.
The blade of swiftness, which had even breached the realm of the superhuman, was aimed precisely at his heart. Had Ilkeron’s attack succeeded, his heart would have been pierced, leading to his demise.
Unbelievable.
Is this the kind of swordsmanship possible for a human who is little more than a living corpse?
He had faced death twice.
How long could he continue to escape with mere luck?
Recognizing the gravity of the situation, Edanant raised one hand and moved the muskets. Though Ilkeron was in a significantly weakened state, he intended to finish it with a barrage of bullets.
Kwahahahaha──!!!
But before he could even pull the trigger, the muskets were sent flying.
A red storm.
The mace of wind unleashed from the holy sword.
The whirlwind of the holy sword, distorting the air as it flew, obliterated the cursed armor of innocence in an instant. Startled, Edanant turned his head to look in the direction of the sudden assault.
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“Master…! I will kill you, cursed armor of innocence!!”
A holy knight, draped in the sword of wind, burst in.
Cirel Veiled.
The captain of the guardian knights and a monster who had risen to the ranks of the Seven Great Kingdoms.
Cirel, who had been held back by Maximilian’s betrayal, had rushed onto the scene. Staring into Cirel’s eyes, filled with deep hatred, Edanant let out a heavy sigh.
—This is a mess. Truly pathetic.
“No matter how I try, I can’t stop Cirel if he suddenly leaves the scene.”
Edanant said, turning his head to the side. Then, a man with long black hair spoke in a flat voice.
Maximilian.
Ilkeron swallowed hard at the sight of him.
“Could it be that I would overwhelm my master…? You’ve grown so much since the past. As your brother, I’m proud.”
– What nonsense are you spouting?
Maximilian let out a faint smile as he pulled out a vial. The red potion contained within was a high-grade elixir capable of healing even fatal wounds in an instant.
Edanant received it and poured the potion over the deep wounds on his neck and chest.
Ssshh-.
Smoke began to waft as the deep injuries started to close.
Confirming that the bleeding had completely stopped, Edanant gripped the hilt of his sword and took a step forward. At that moment, Maximilian also drew his holy sword with both hands, confronting the holy knights of the Holy Kingdom.
“Brother?! You really came to help!”
Jebeline, who had swept away the surrounding holy knights with a shockwave summoned from white lightning, shouted in surprise upon seeing Maximilian.
Maximilian nodded and replied.
“I can’t burden a pregnant woman. Edan, take them down swiftly.”
– You still believe…?
An entirely unexpected situation had formed.
Who would have thought that I would end up teaming up with the one who abandoned our family?
I know.
I must overcome this situation, even with the help of my enemy.
This was all to protect Jebeline from the Holy Kingdom’s forces.
Seeing Maximilian preparing to face both Ilkeron and Cyrel, Edanant wore a subtle expression as he joined the fight.