Chapter 67: Finisher

Chapter 67: Chapter 67: Finisher

The mountain trembled beneath them.

The enormous spell descending from the sky had already swallowed the clouds above, turning the once peaceful morning into a violent mixture of darkness, light, and roaring energy. The air itself seemed to thicken under the weight of so much concentrated power.

Lazaria stared upward. She could feel it at once. The sheer amount of power contained within that attack was absurd. Even from where she stood, the pressure was enough to make her skin crawl and the fine hairs on her arms rise. That much power, gathered into a single strike, was almost impossible to comprehend.

Her gaze slowly shifted toward Nova. The primordial demon was no longer paying attention to her. His crimson eyes remained fixed on the enormous attack approaching from above. The distraction was complete.

Lazaria clicked her tongue.

*I actually wanted to beat him a little more.*

Her fingers curled slowly. *I’ve been preparing this spell since the beginning of the fight.* She had deliberately hidden the magic within her mana, patiently gathering enough power without allowing Nova to notice. The process had been careful and quiet, each strand of energy folded away until the moment arrived.

She knew the spell could not kill him. A primordial demon was not something she could simply erase with one attack. But she did not need to kill him. She only needed to restrain him.

*At least I could have beaten him up a few more times.* A faint pout appeared on her face. Then she glanced toward Silver. *But I guess she won’t let me have any more fun.* Lazaria sighed, and her expression hardened.

Nova suddenly turned his head. His crimson eyes locked onto her. He had noticed. The corner of his mouth lifted.

"You..."

A sharp focus settled over Lazaria. Nova’s body moved, ready to strike, but Lazaria had already disappeared.

"Too slow."

Her voice came from behind him, and Nova simply froze, caught completely off guard.

Lazaria raised one hand and spread her fingers open. A strange darkness gathered around her palm, unlike ordinary dark magic. There was no violent explosion, no roaring flame, no overwhelming pressure. Instead, the darkness was unnaturally quiet, almost lifeless. Her eyes glowed faintly.

"Soul Seal."

The instant those words left her mouth, the space around Nova distorted, and a gigantic transparent cage materialized around him.

Nova’s expression changed. "What..."

The cage closed. Invisible chains seemed to wrap around his body, and then something deeper happened. The crimson light disappeared from Nova’s eyes. His body remained standing, but his expression turned completely vacant, like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

Lazaria exhaled. "Done."

She grabbed him at once, and without wasting another second, she carried the immobilized primordial demon back toward Theon.

Theon looked at her, then at Nova, then back at her again. "You actually finished already?"

Lazaria shrugged. "I wasn’t trying to defeat him." She glanced at Nova. "I was only buying time so I could beat him up more."

Theon stared at her. "...You were planning to beat him up more?"

"Of course." She smiled innocently.

Theon rubbed his forehead. Before he could say anything else, an enormous surge of power erupted overhead, and his attention snapped toward the sky.

Fen had noticed it too. The evolved Fenrir understood the danger immediately. The enormous attack descending toward the battlefield carried enough destructive power to tear the entire mountain apart. If it landed directly, the consequences would be catastrophic.

Fen stepped forward. His white fur fluttered violently beneath the pressure, and the halo above his head began to glow. Brilliant light gathered around him.

"Master."

Theon looked toward him. Fen’s expression was unusually serious.

"I have to finish up this beast right now."

Theon understood immediately. "Fen..."

Fen raised his head, and the halo above him began spinning. The surrounding clouds parted, and a pillar of radiant light descended from the heavens and enveloped his body. The pressure in the air changed, growing heavy and thick. Even Lazaria turned toward him.

"What is he doing?" Silver’s gaze fixed on him, sharp and unblinking. "That is..."

Fen slowly raised his paw. Light gathered above him, more and more, until the sky itself seemed unable to contain it. The clouds split apart and the heavens opened. A gigantic sword began descending from the breach, its blade impossibly large. Radiant white light flowed along its edges, and the entire weapon looked as though it had been forged from the light of the heavens themselves.

Theon stared, breath caught in his throat. "So that’s..."

Fen’s voice remained calm. "Heaven’s Judgment."

The sword descended. The hellhound finally noticed. Its three heads lifted at once, and dark flames erupted from its mouths as the beast roared. Black mana surged around its enormous body, forming a massive barrier above it. The hellhound dug its claws into the ground and tried to resist, but the sword struck hard regardless.

BOOOOOOM!

The mountain shook. A wave of light exploded outward, and the hellhound’s barrier shattered instantly. Its dark flames were swallowed whole by the radiant sword. The beast screamed as its enormous body was driven into the earth, and then the light consumed everything around it. For several seconds there was nothing but brilliance. Then silence.

Fen lowered his paw. The enormous sword disappeared. The hellhound no longer moved.

Fen turned around and walked calmly back toward Theon. At the same time, Lyra’s body shifted. The crimson glow surrounding her slowly faded as the Flame Empress withdrew her form, and Lyra returned to her normal shape. Her body immediately lost its strength, and Theon caught her before she could fall.

"Lyra."

She blinked slowly. "I’m fine."

Theon frowned. "You don’t look fine."

"I’m just tired."

Before Theon could respond, Silver approached. She looked toward the sky, and tension crept into her expression.

"Master..."

Theon looked at her. "What?"

"Why is it taking so long?" Silver’s gaze stayed fixed on the enormous attack still gathering above.

"It’s not easy." Her voice grew serious. "Containing that much power while forcing it downward at that speed requires an enormous amount of mana."

Theon looked upward, and something in his expression shifted. His attention moved toward Ifrith. The primordial demon was still standing, still fighting, and now he was gathering another spell.

No.

Ifrith was preparing something enormous. Silver noticed it too.

"Ifrith is preparing another attack."

Theon looked between the two enormous spells, one descending from above and the other forming around Ifrith. If those two attacks collided... His face darkened.

"The academy..."

His gaze moved toward the distant Imperial Academy.

"If those attacks collide, the entire mountain could be destroyed, alongside the academy."

Silver nodded. "Exactly."

Theon clenched his fist, then looked toward her. "All right."

Silver blinked. "Master?"

"I’ll help you," Theon said.

Something in her expression tightened. "You can’t."

"I know." Theon raised his hand. "I’m not joining the battle." Mana began flowing from his body. "But if you need mana, I can give you mine."

Silver stared at him for a moment, and then she understood.

"Master..."

Theon extended his hand. "Take it."

Silver hesitated only briefly before raising her own hand. Mana poured from Theon’s body and flowed into her, and she felt the surge of it rush through her almost instantly. The enormous spell above them accelerated. Its radiance intensified until the entire sky seemed to bend beneath the pressure.

Silver gritted her teeth. "More..."

Theon pushed harder. "Take everything you need."

The spell accelerated further, faster and faster, until it finally crossed some invisible threshold and became a single streak of overwhelming power.

Below it, Ifrith was still gathering his own spell. His eyes had gone completely black, and dark mana crawled across his body as the demon blight continued to spread. He raised both hands, and the surrounding flames twisted violently. His spell was almost complete.

Silver’s breath caught. "Now!"

Theon released the remaining mana, and the enormous spell descended. Ifrith looked up, his gaze locking onto the incoming danger.

Then...

BOOOOOOOOOOM!

The attack struck. The mountain vanished beneath the explosion. Stone shattered, and trees were ripped from the ground. The sky disappeared behind a wall of fire and smoke as a tremendous shockwave swept across the surrounding landscape. The entire mountain was torn apart.

Shock rippled through Theon as he watched. For one brief moment, everything turned white. Then black. Then red. Flames climbed into the sky, and smoke billowed upward like a second storm. Chunks of stone rained down from above, and the ground beneath Theon’s feet trembled violently as he stared at the destruction.

His mouth hung slightly open. "...That was..." He couldn’t finish the sentence.

Silver rushed downward at once and disappeared into the smoke.

"Master!"

Theon watched anxiously, and then he felt it. A familiar presence. Weak. Very weak. But still alive.

Silver emerged from the smoke with Ifrith in her arms. His body was battered, and his clothes were torn. Dark marks covered his skin, and the demon blight still clung to him, but he was breathing.

Theon exhaled. "He’s alive."

Silver nodded. "Yes."

Then her expression tensed, and she turned her head.

"...Master."

Theon felt it too. Something was approaching. Fast. Very fast. A chill crept down his spine.

Then the atmosphere shifted. Theon felt it at once. A presence. No, more than one. Several powerful auras were racing toward them from the direction of the academy, cutting through the smoke and residual shockwaves with alarming speed.

Tension gathered in his chest, and the air grew heavier with every passing second. He looked toward the academy at once. The approaching forces had not yet reached them, but the distance was closing fast.

Theon turned his head, and what he sensed made his entire body freeze.