“Are you really that curious about who I am? Haven't you already given me a name? Hehe, ‘Void Demon’... I’m actually quite satisfied with that name! The Illusory Demon King—what a fitting title!”
The frivolous female voice, tinged with a hint of playfulness and unrestraint, drifted out once more from within the black sphere, instantly drawing everyone’s attention.
At this moment, because the black sludge that had originally adhered to the walls had been gathered into the central black sphere, the massive amount of light element Midir had released was finally freed from the shackles of darkness, brightening the entire underground space considerably.
Looking at the black sphere before him, Midir’s eyes narrowed. With a wave of his hand, he controlled a portion of the scattered light element to fly toward Aila’s side, while he pointed the tip of his sword at the black sphere and charged forward.
Seeing the light element land in front of her, Aila immediately understood. She took out a sharp short spear and, after guiding that bit of light element to the tip of the spear, used her height advantage to thrust downward with great force.
In the next second, the two weapons, saturated with dense light element, struck the black sphere almost simultaneously, carving two large gashes into it from different directions.
Just as the two of them thought the strike had succeeded, the seemingly fragile black sphere responded to their attack in an incredible manner.
Instead of collapsing, the sphere unfurled leisurely along the huge gashes they had made, like a black lotus endowed with life. It bloomed slowly in the dim environment, releasing an indescribably eerie beauty.
At the center of the bud, a shapely figure gradually appeared. Her silhouette was graceful, like a ghost stepping out of the darkness, yet she carried an irresistible allure.
The woman wore a semi-sheer black gown that clung tightly to her exquisite figure. The black tassels on the hem swayed gently with her movements, like the softest whispers of the night, yet they harbored a hidden sharpness.
Her face was snow-white and flawless, creating a sharp contrast with the surrounding darkness. However, the light smile hanging on the corners of her mouth sent an inexplicable chill down one's spine.
She slowly opened her narrow eyes, but the beautiful sockets were a terrifying, solid crimson—as eye-catching as her equally crimson long hair. Her deep gaze, which held a hint of a smile, made the group shudder.
Even more horrifying was that the unfurled parts of the black sphere transformed into two black wings behind her, one large and one small. They suspended in mid-air like giant hands from the abyss, ready to seize prey at any moment.
Her appearance caused the already tense atmosphere to freeze further. Everyone’s gaze was involuntarily drawn to her.
Upon seeing her, Aila immediately leaped back several steps, quickly distancing herself. With an expression as if facing a formidable foe, she barked in a low voice.
“This appearance... it’s Erica?! How can this be!? Could it be...!”
The appearance the opponent now presented was exactly that of Saint Archmage Erica, who had lost contact with Azure Fortress a few days ago. However, the power she displayed was completely different from what was mentioned in Aila’s intelligence.
Midir, meanwhile, narrowed his eyes. The elements within his body silently gathered on Starflame, ready to launch his strongest strike at the opponent at any moment.
“Don't be so afraid! I'm not like those lower-tier demons who only love fighting and killing. If you were to just leave now, I might even spare your lives. After all, I still want to see the grand finale of this show!”
The woman’s voice echoed softly through the cavern like drifting notes. Though not loud, it possessed an undeniable piercing quality.
“A show? What are you talking about, you monster! Where is Master Erica?!” Blake, standing in the distance, snapped back to his senses and questioned her loudly.
“Can't you guess? I've been wandering around your fortress using your father's identity for several days. Right now, Azure Fortress's military strength should be at its lowest, shouldn't it? Isn't it a great sense of accomplishment to watch this titan be destroyed with your own eyes?”
As she spoke, a look of utter intoxication appeared on the woman’s face, and she narrowed her eyes.
“What exactly did you do using my father's identity!” Blake’s already pale face grew even more ghastly upon hearing her words.
“Don't listen to her delusions!” Midir had already flashed behind her. He shouted at Blake while swinging his longsword in a horizontal slash.
A violent explosion of flames erupted from the blade. The woman merely turned her head slightly, and the two wings behind her, shaped like giant black hands, immediately twisted to the other side in an eerie fashion, blocking all the oncoming flames.
Under the blast of the explosion, the black gown on the woman’s body danced wildly. As the hem fluttered in the wind, it inadvertently revealed a section of her snow-white, jade-like thigh, yet her body remained perfectly still.
Seeing that his strike had failed, Midir immediately vanished. When he reappeared, he was already in mid-air. A dazzling white pillar of light, as thick as a thigh, shot from his palm, aimed directly at the woman’s head.
The woman in the black gown stood gracefully amidst the storm. Faced with the dazzling light pillar shooting toward her, she didn't show the slightest hint of panic. Instead, a glint of playfulness flashed in her eyes.
The black wings suspended in mid-air once again acted as her shield, quickly blocking her front.
However, when Midir’s light pillar slammed into the black wings, an unexpected change occurred.
The immense energy contained within the light pillar erupted instantly, clashing violently with the black energy on the wings. Amidst the blinding light and the roar of the impact, a deep crater was left on the wings—a mark left by the light pillar piercing through the defense.
“As I thought, your defense isn't invincible. Your blustering was just to make it easier for you to leave, wasn't it?” Seeing the effect of his magic, Midir, who had landed nearby, immediately gathered strength for his next attack.
“Hehe, I did underestimate you a little... but you won't be able to do anything to me here...”
Before the woman could finish, Midir’s next wave of attacks was already upon her. This time, she was surrounded by countless wind blades carrying ice thorns.
“What a man with no sense of romance! You won't be very popular like this~”
The woman gave a delicate cry, and her two black wings transformed into a black wall to block her front.
Although the ice thorns and wind blades carved gash after gash into the wall, the voluptuous figure behind it remained unscathed, still watching the group with calm composure.
However, Midir keenly noticed that after his several rounds of intensive attacks, the pair of black wings behind the woman had visibly shrunk.
“I want to see just how long you can hold out! Ronald, Rosal, Blake—take the fallen and get out of here quickly. I'll cover you!”
After seeing the change in the woman, Midir became even more certain of his guess. He signaled the others to take the unconscious Duke and the others away.
“Hehe, a nice thought, but I'm not going to give up these hostages and fight you head-on~”
The woman in the black gown chuckled softly and lightly waved her fair, jade-like hand.
The black sludge that had remained on everyone’s bodies suddenly began to squirm rapidly, as if it had been given life.
They quickly converged into thick black tentacles, like the hands of demons from the abyss, tightly entangling the dying people with lightning speed.
Meanwhile, the slightly smaller wing behind her transformed into a black long blade, slashing directly toward Midir. It blocked the Starflame swinging down from mid-air, and the blade and sword remained locked in a stalemate.
“How about it? If you keep fighting me like this, those people will lose their lives! Why don't we both take a step back?”
The woman in the black gown stood before Midir with a triumphant smile. Sensing that the pressure from the sword in front of her had lightened slightly, she knew she had grasped her opponent's weakness perfectly.
The black tentacles entangling the hostages continued to bind their bodies tightly. The immense pressure from the tentacles had already caused the hostages' bodies to twist, their veins bulging as if they might collapse at any moment from being unable to withstand the force.
Just as Midir was struggling internally with whether to retreat and find a better strategy, a sudden, massive explosion shattered the silence of the cavern.
The explosion was deafening, as if the entire cavern were trembling at that moment. Even the black tentacles entangling the hostages shuddered slightly, giving them a brief moment to breathe.
Midir whipped his head around toward the sound. He saw Aila, who had been inactive until now, crouching in the woman’s blind spot with a long firearm in her hands. A puff of white smoke was still rising from the barrel.
Upon hearing the loud noise, the woman in the black gown immediately commanded her wings to block her front. However, the projectile Aila had fired was made of something unknown, and it was even more terrifying than Midir’s magic.
A dazzling golden light, like a bolt of lightning piercing the night sky, suddenly tore through the pair of highly defensive black wings. The golden light was so intense that it instantly illuminated the entire cavern, forcing everyone to squint involuntarily.
The source of the golden light was a golden bullet. With incredible speed and power, it struck the woman in the black gown precisely between the eyebrows.
The bullet pierced straight through the woman’s skull and continued forward without stopping until it slammed violently into the distant cavern wall.
The entire section of the wall seemed unable to withstand the massive impact and collapsed with a roar, kicking up a huge cloud of rubble and dust that dyed the surrounding air a heavy gray.
Rate on N.U.
