By Zephyria The heavy rain was thinning, and the sky was gradually clearing. It was as if approaching the eye of a typhoon.
Nero, heading towards the fierce battlefield that would blow away even the clouds, occasionally stopped in mid-air and looked back. He was very worried about leaving Leonardo alone in his poor condition.
The Captain was more knowledgeable than anyone else about how to act when injured. But depending on the situation, he was also the epitome of recklessness, acting without regard for his own condition.
Knowing this well, he had originally intended to move together once his condition improved, but there was no other way because he would be constantly anxious and try to step up even if it meant overexerting himself.
He couldn’t afford to waste his energy on another pointless power struggle trying to stop him, so it was best to urge him to rest and move first while the Captain recovered.
The pitiful face, pale and asking for help. Nero sighed deeply as he recalled that image.
‘That stubbornness, really.’
Nero, shaking his head while staring back, turned his body again, tearing his gaze away. Then, he tried to move towards the center of the glittering light again, but suddenly, a powerful wind pressure blew in front of him, enough to make his wet hair float in the air.
As the unbearable energy mixed within it enveloped his entire body, Nero instinctively stopped breathing, bent his upper body, and raised his guard. He was pushed back without resistance, carried by the air, and when the sharp wind subsided, he lowered his arms and stared ahead.
As he blinked with a dumbfounded expression, two chilling auras flowed through his entire body. One was from a monster, and the other was from a human. But the human one was not much different from the monster. No, it was so destructive and cruel that it was no exaggeration to say it was similar.
Amidst the waves of the collision between the two beings, Nero grabbed his disheveled hair and muttered blankly.
“What… Do I even need to help?”
He had only heard about it, but this was the first time he was truly feeling the power of ‘that human’ properly.
The front page of the list of major forces from other organizations, which one often sees when belonging to Dark Silver. The person who always appears at the top, Kajard of the Council.
He had the same immeasurable S4-class title as the Captain, but since Kajard would not have experience on the front lines, it had been taught that the Imperial Army to which Dark Silver belonged would naturally have the upper hand if they were to face each other in the future. And that’s what he had believed.
But from the moment the article about Leonardo Blaine being captured by him circulated, the existing assessment of Kajard’s power became a piece of trash. And now, feeling his Magic Power directly before his eyes, Nero could be certain, feeling the conflicting energy seeping into his bones.
‘The nature is different, but the scale of Magic Power itself is similar to the Captain in his prime. He’s definitely not an opponent I can confidently say I can beat.’
The shadow of a tiny human that never yielded while constantly colliding with the shadow of a giant monster. Each time the two points collided, an explosion of air created a fierce gust of wind in the shape of a sphere, spreading in all directions.
The pressure was so terrifying that even he, standing 6000 yards away, could barely maintain his balance. Moreover, the clouds had been blown away only where those two beings were colliding, and light poured down dazzlingly from the clear sky.
Each time he withstood the passing wind, a tingling sensation continued as if blood was not flowing. Nero chuckled and watched the unfolding scene.
Then, suddenly, his red eyes, which had been looking into the distance, narrowed as he noticed something strange. The point of collision between the two beings seemed to be moving further back, gradually moving away from where he was.
To be precise, the giant shadow of the monster was continuing to move north, and Kajard seemed to be blocking it.
Nero tilted his head, watching the movement. He clearly remembered the Captain saying earlier, ‘His goal is to kill me.’
‘The Captain is behind me, so why is he going there? Did he perhaps change his target?’
He must have been burning with revenge against the humans who had imprisoned him in the seal, and their descendants, all the time he was asleep. So, his purpose must be to obliterate that existence and enjoy eternal freedom, and his instinct must be to go to places with as many humans as possible and massacre life.
As soon as that thought occurred to Nero, the human demarcation line spread across the plains beyond the ridge to the north, where the core was heading, faintly caught his eye. Immediately afterward, he saw the magnificent ice barriers soaring in front of the ridge, and Kajard being flung there at the same time, crashing down and drawing a chilling line, and he couldn’t just stand still.
Nero, sensing that it was time for him to step in, took a deep breath. Then, he gathered his fingers in front of his face and muttered as if hypnotizing himself.
“Felix Montero, belonging to the 11th Squad of the 6th Company of the 3rd Battalion of the Central Branch. Felix Montero, belonging to the 11th Squad of the 6th Company of the 3rd Battalion. Legion Commander, Legion Commander.”
It would be best to move in a way that wouldn’t catch the Legion Commander’s eye if possible, but it didn’t seem like a time to be cautious. First, prioritize the protection of the members below, and even if he stepped forward and aroused suspicion, he had changed his appearance, so who could argue if he pretended to be Montero?
He didn’t feel good about only giving that dimwit a good deal…
Anyway, Nero, thinking that it would be fine if he quickly took care of it and hid his appearance, pressed his finger joints and made his bones crack.
Soon, the clouds pushed by the wind cleared, and the crimson sunset fell on his red eyes. The corners of Nero’s lips curled up as he gazed at the monster beyond.
“Catching that one will be a tall tale for at least 30 years.”
Hot heat seethed around him, causing mirages to rise and distort the space. In the midst of it, Nero, crouching down and preparing to spring out, pulled down the gloves on his hands tightly to prevent them from coming off.
And a few seconds later, his figure, swallowed by the flames, disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Creak― Kwaaaang―!
Hugo, who had crashed into the crack in the split ice wall, reflexively got out of there as soon as he saw the intense flames erupting in front of him. He thought that the core, which had flung him away, had fired a breath at the lower part of the ice wall.
After spouting nonsense about Leonardo dying a while ago, it had changed direction and was trying to advance north. In the meantime, the core continued to patrol around the source of the barrier spread in the sky, attacking the members intensively, as if it had realized that the source was the Barrier Stone.
It was fortunate that Leonardo had escaped from being the target, but if its ultimate goal was to head north, the situation was the worst. If it went straight ahead like this, there was the mainland of the Empire at the end. So, he had to stop it here no matter what.
Hugo built sturdy double ice walls to protect the members guarding the Barrier Stone below. Then, he stood firmly in front of them and spread an Aura to block the flames. However, the powerful Magic Power and the core’s fierce cry that followed made him guess that another being had appeared here.
A chilling flame that did not feel friendly at all.
It was surely that mysterious shadow that had kidnapped Leonardo.
A black figure flying at a crazy speed was soon caught in Hugo’s frowning vision. The figure circled around the core and fired fireballs at irregular intervals, and the core, as if it was quite threatening, cried sharply and increased its altitude.
And at that moment, Nero, who had created a beast’s claw glowing crimson in his right hand, Teleported near the core in an instant. Then, before its eyeballs could even turn to him, he raised his arm and growled with a grim momentum.
“Did you tear our brother’s left arm?”
Ten red pupils, which had not sensed his presence, rolled sideways. It seemed quite surprised.
However, Nero’s determined movement was much faster than its perception speed. Before the stinger at the end of its tail could even spread, Nero’s hand, which revealed its teeth like a Dragon’s mouth, mercilessly struck down on the core’s left foreleg.
The claw of fire, which had penetrated into the hard hide, cut off its muscles and nerves in an instant, trailing its tail. Acidic liquid boiled on the friction surface, and acrid smoke was emitted, but Nero didn’t care.
He clenched the monster’s bone buried in the thick flesh and concentrated ultra-high heat on his fingertips. Then, he added his grip to grind the surface with his fingers and mercilessly broke the monster’s bone in two.
The entire arm of the heavy body was torn off in an instant, and sizzling blood splattered spectacularly along with a fierce roar that scratched the skin.
In the gaps of the red liquid scattering in the sunset, Nero, with a grim gaze, chillingly recited.
“I’ll take one of your arms too.”