The black spear pierced through Merlin's chest. Blood flowed down the shaft, staining the undergrowth crimson.
"Ah..."
Raon's fingertips trembled as he watched Merlin close her eyes, unable to even scream. Her breath and vitality were rapidly fading.
'Merlin....'
Seeing Merlin impaled on the black spear, lifeless, reminded him of Rimmer's final moments. The memory of his mentor smiling and worrying about them until the very end flooded his mind, turning everything white. A crackling sound filled his ears.
It felt as if a god of wrath, rather than Wrath himself, was possessing his body. Anger surged from head to toe, making him want to erase everything in sight.
-You fool!
Wrath struck his shoulders with both hands, as if trying to calm him down.
-She's not dead yet!
He shook his head vigorously, insisting that Merlin wasn't completely gone.
'What...?'
Raon exhaled roughly and examined Merlin again. Though extremely faint, her breathing continued.
"Raon Zieghart?"
Kern, the master of the Martial Society and a Transcendent known as the Demon Slaying Spear, widened his eyes as if recognizing him.
"So you were connected to this wench after all?"
The Demon Slaying Spear gently shook the spear shaft impaling Merlin, as if he had suspected as much. Blood poured from her like rain.
"But you're a bit late. It just ended."
He stroked Merlin's purple hair that had fallen over the spear shaft, expressing his disappointment.
"You bastard..."
As Raon was about to lunge at the Demon Slaying Spear with explosive killing intent, something happened.
"R-Raon..."
Merlin called his name, slowly lifting her eyelids. Time seemed to stop, and he couldn't take his eyes off her.
"How did you get here..."
Even impaled by the spear and dying, Merlin managed a pained smile, thinking of him first. Seeing her like this made his heart ache as if it would shatter.
"Huh? She can still speak in this state?"
The Demon Slaying Spear let out a disbelieving laugh.
"Her skills were lacking, but I have to admire her will and tenacity."
He nodded, saying it was befitting of a former Eden executive, if only for a moment.
"Leave here..."
Merlin gasped for breath, telling him to flee and leave her behind.
"P-please..."
With that final plea, Merlin closed her eyes again. Her vitality began to fade even more rapidly.
"Well? What will you do?"
The Demon Slaying Spear shrugged as if to say "do as you please" and playfully twisted the spear impaling Merlin.
"..."
Raon bit the inside of his lip as he looked into the eyes of the Demon Slaying Spear, who was mocking Merlin.
-Get a hold of yourself. She's still alive.
Wrath furrowed his brow, insisting that Merlin wasn't dead yet.
'I can feel it too.'
For some unknown reason, Merlin was still breathing despite her chest being completely pierced. If he could just rescue her from the Demon Slaying Spear, he might be able to save her.
-It'll be hard to save her while she's impaled, but try something!
'Right. Now's not the time to let anger cloud my mind.'
He couldn't make the same mistake he did with Rimmer. He sent Glacier's cold energy to his upper dantian, pushing away the anger filling his mind.
'I can't move carelessly.'
No matter how fast he was, he'd still be slower than the Demon Slaying Spear who had Merlin impaled on his spear. He needed to find a way to save Merlin that didn't rely on strength.
"Why are you here?"
Raon addressed the Demon Slaying Spear, suppressing the curses trying to escape his tongue.
"Can't you tell by looking?"
The Demon Slaying Spear twirled his finger, gesturing at their surroundings.
"I've joined the Four Demons. More specifically, I'm with Eden."
He explained that was also why he had pursued Merlin, tilting the spear shaft towards the ground. Merlin seemed unable to wake on her own, not moving a finger even as the blade piercing her touched the earth.
"I thought if we followed the Thespian Emperor and created the Five Divine Orders, we could have a proper fight with the Six Kings and Five Demons, but they kept hesitating. So..."
The Demon Slaying Spear raised his toe to step on Merlin's head.
“I left the Five Divine Orders and joined the Four Demons. I wanted a proper fight with the Five Kings.”
"Why the Four Demons instead of the Five Kings...?"
Raon exhaled shortly, trying his best not to look at Merlin.
"The Five Kings have more numbers, right? That means more people for me to fight, so of course I'd choose the other side."
The Demon Slaying Spear grinned, saying he joined the Four Demons because he wanted to fight more skilled opponents. He was truly a man obsessed with fighting.
"I was getting bored just waiting around in Eden, but then they asked me to catch this wench. They said they'd block her path, so all I had to do was thrust my spear. Of course..."
The Demon Slaying Spear kicked Merlin's waist with his toe as he lowered his eyebrows.
"There wasn't much satisfaction since she's a magician. She was weak too."
He spat on the ground where Merlin lay, saying it wasn't a satisfying battle.
"Then..."
Raon took a step towards the Demon Slaying Spear.
"I'll be your opponent. In exchange..."
"You want this wench?"
The Demon Slaying Spear twisted his lips as if Raon's intentions were transparent.
"Do I need to do that? Looking at you, it seems you'll charge at me even if I don't give her to you."
He curled up the corners of his mouth, saying he could sense the anger Raon was forcibly suppressing.
"You said you like fighting, right?"
Raon shook his head, pushing down the anger trying to overwhelm his mind.
"If I get consumed by rage and start swinging my sword wildly, wouldn't that ruin your excitement?"
Knowing that appealing for Merlin would be useless, he instead provoked the Demon Slaying Spear's thirst for battle.
"Oh?"
The Demon Slaying Spear's eyes flickered faintly with interest.
"If you hand over Merlin now, I'll face you with all my strength. No, I'll even give you time to recover your stamina and aura."
Raon nodded, saying he'd allow time for recovery to stimulate the Demon Slaying Spear's competitive spirit.
"I swear on my name as the Sword Emperor, Raon Zieghart."
He placed his hand on his chest, promising not to flee with Merlin but to settle things here.
"I don't care about the rest..."
Veins bulged on the Demon Slaying Spear's temples.
"Did you say you'd give me time to recover my strength and stamina? You?"
He furrowed his brows as if finding it absurd.
“Yes. You’re not at your full power right now either.”
Raon nodded, examining the various magical traces on the Demon Slaying Spear's armor. Though he claimed it was easy, it was clear he had been through quite a long pursuit and battle.
"Ha! You've got a talent for provocation. Fine! I'm not interested in a dying magician anyway."
The Demon Slaying Spear curled up the corners of his mouth as if finding it amusing.
"But before that..."
He pulled out two pairs of reddish bells from Merlin's bosom.
"They told me to retrieve these no matter what."
The Demon Slaying Spear put the bells he took from Merlin into his own bosom, licking his lips.
"Take her."
He thrust the spear shaft impaling Merlin towards Raon with a sneer. Merlin, still pierced by the spear blade, was flung helplessly by the spear's flexible movement. Raon rushed towards Merlin, lowering his Divine Sword and Demonic Sword, even though he sensed the Demon Slaying Spear might attack.
The Demon Slaying Spear immediately plunged his spear, its blade raised sharply towards Raon's head, after releasing Merlin. Raon gently caught Merlin with his right hand while raising his Demonic Sword in his left to block the Demon Slaying Spear's strike.
To prevent shock from reaching Merlin, he spread Glacier's cold energy in a fan shape to stop his body from shaking.
"Good. You pass."
The Demon Slaying Spear stepped back, saying Raon seemed skilled enough to keep his promise. Though his pride was hurt, he seemed to desire a full-strength battle, as he began to cultivate after taking elixirs to recover his aura and stamina.
-Ha!
Wrath exhaled in disbelief.
-I can't believe you actually saved her, with that mouth of yours...
He shook his head, saying he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
'Now's not the time to be amazed by that.'
After confirming the Demon Slaying Spear's movements, Raon stepped back to examine Merlin. Blood endlessly poured from the wound in her chest where the spear had pierced, soaking even his uniform. His black uniform appeared red from the blood.
'She's still alive.'
Despite her chest being shattered by the Demon Slaying Spear's strike, Merlin was still breathing. Of course, she was racing towards death, so he needed to act as quickly as possible.
Raon placed both hands on Merlin's chest, hoping for a miracle. He poured the Divinity Born from Darkness he had accumulated into her blackened wound.
As the subtle light, rather than a sacred radiance, soaked Merlin's chest, her wound slowly began to heal. The extreme bleeding stopped, and new flesh started to grow in a miraculous sight.
-It's still not enough! Draw out more!
Wrath waved his hand, saying the healing power was still insufficient.
'I want to, but...'
Raon bit his lip.
'There's not much left.'
He had used up most of his Divinity Born from Darkness. The remaining power wasn't enough to heal Merlin.
'I'll have to use the last resort...'
Raon infused the little remaining Divinity Born from Darkness with the Authority of Sloth and Lust that lay dormant in the depths of his soul. While ordinary holy power would have rejected a demon king's Authority, his divinity was born from darkness and thus gently accepted the demon kings' powers.
-You crazy bastard!
Wrath widened his eyes in disbelief.
-This could be even more dangerous than before!
'She'll die if I can't heal her now anyway!'
There was no time to send Merlin elsewhere. He had to save her here somehow.
-Hmm....
Wrath, realizing there was no other choice, let out a low groan.
-...But why Sloth and Lust?
'Sloth has the ability to recover body and mind while sleeping. And Lust might help because Merlin spent a lot of time with Lust.'
The Sloth he had unlocked enhanced recovery of body and mind during sleep, and Merlin had become familiar with Lust's energy from spending time with Lust. Hoping it would help her, he mixed the energies of the two demon kings.
'Please!'
Raon focused on harmonizing the divinity and Authority, praying for Merlin's breath and vitality to return. As if answering his desperate plea, Merlin's wound completely closed, and the endless flow of blood stopped. Though her skin remained deathly pale, her breathing slowly began to return.
-She-she's recovering!
Wrath clasped his hands together, saying a miracle had occurred.
'Not yet.'
Raon shook his head firmly and warmed Merlin's body with the heat of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation, burning away the impure energies remaining in her body.
'I should give her an elixir too.'
He took out an elixir he had packed for emergencies based on Zieghart's report. As he tried to remove her mask to put it in her mouth, strangely, the mask wouldn't come off.
'What's this?'
He had easily removed Merlin's old woman mask before. But now, even when he applied force, the mask wouldn't come off.
'No choice.'
Fearing the mask might break, he crushed the elixir into small pieces and slipped them into Merlin's slightly parted lips beneath the mask. As the elixir's heat rose in Merlin's body, her faded vitality slowly began to return.
-Now we can breathe a sigh of relief...
Wrath exhaled in relief as he watched Merlin's breathing stabilize.
'Yeah....'
Raon nodded, wiping the sweat from his forehead. Saving Merlin had been several times more difficult than fighting thousands of monsters. His whole body felt heavy, as if soaked in water.
'She's badly injured.'
The wound from the spear piercing her chest had been so severe that he hadn't noticed her other injuries, but Merlin's body was covered in wounds. Her originally black robe appeared red from the blood that had flowed from all over her body.
'She's lost her magic too...'
Magicians typically create a circle in their heart. Merlin had been no exception, but he could no longer sense the magic circle she had possessed.
"Oh? You really saved her?"
The Demon Slaying Spear rolled his eyes in disbelief.
"Are you talented in medicine too? Impressive."
He clapped his hands as if genuinely impressed.
"But that's just prolonging her suffering. She'll die again anyway."
The Demon Slaying Spear licked his lips, saying he'd kill Raon and pierce Merlin's chest again.
"Have you..."
Raon turned his gaze away, ignoring the Demon Slaying Spear's provocation.
"Fully recovered your stamina?"
"Thanks to you."
The Demon Slaying Spear said he was in perfect condition as he struck the ground with his spear shaft. His aura pressed against Raon's heart with overwhelming intensity. It was clearly the aura of a high-ranking Transcendent.
"I see."
After setting up a defensive formation of Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation's flames and Glacier's cold energy around Merlin, Raon stood up.
"Then let's begin."
Raon raised his Divine Sword and Demonic Sword, apologizing for making him wait so long.
"Don't you need time to recover your stamina too?"
The Demon Slaying Spear tilted his chin as if asking if Raon would be alright.
"No need. The outcome will be the same anyway."
Raon calmly shook his head and approached the Demon Slaying Spear. With each step he took, golden flames and blue frost spread like wings, enveloping the entire forest.
"Huh?"
The Demon Slaying Spear furrowed his brow at Raon's aura fiercely pushing back his own.
"Are you trying to play games with me?"
He summoned an even stronger aura, his pride seemingly hurt, but Raon's momentum neither broke nor retreated.
"To you..."
Raon lowered his fierce eyes, overwhelming the Demon Slaying Spear's mighty aura with sheer force.
"I'll teach you the terror of battle."