Volume 8, Chapter 50 – Fierce Battle

As if time had stopped, even the raindrops falling from the sky stood still along with the city. This was followed by a blue ripple that slowly spread outwards from Tina as its center. Only when the ripple had covered the entire city and even reached the wilderness outside did the frozen picture begin to move again, and the raindrops in the air were allowed to fall.

Yisi, who was also affected, tilted her head. Although there had been an effect similar to time stopping, she had not actually been stopped. The reason she had stood still was just to see what Tartaros was going to do. After all, a magic name like ‘Realm of Manipulating Fate’ sounded very impressive. She might encounter the Sea Demon Lord Styx in the future. To be able to probe the combat methods of the demon lords through a battle with Tartaros was an opportunity for her.

For this reason, Yisi had even specially dispelled all the various resistance magics on her body and voluntarily entered Tartaros’s domain.

After the world returned to its clamor, her body immediately felt a weakness she had never experienced before. This weakness was not like after a long run or a day of heavy physical labor, but more like the feeling of something being stripped from her. It was as if a man in his prime had suddenly been sent back to his childhood. Accustomed to his powerful limbs, to then have to use an immature body, he would naturally feel weak all over. Yisi was experiencing this feeling now.

Keeping her cool, Yisi looked at her status bar.

Her level had dropped from 427 to the same as Tartaros’s, less than 150. In addition, her attributes such as strength, magic resistance, health, and magic power had also dropped to the level of 135. However, the number of spells she could use had not decreased, and her storage could still be used normally. Her combat memories were also fine.

In other words, the so-called ‘Realm of Manipulating Fate’ was actually a spell that lowered the opponent’s level to the same as the caster’s? Although Yisi felt that if she hadn’t dispelled all her resistance skills, it would not have worked on her at all, even so, this was quite a perverse spell. An ordinary person did not have as many buff effects as she did.

As for the matter of putting herself in a disadvantageous position, Yisi was not reckless. From the coverage of the blue ripple just now, the effect of ‘Realm of Manipulating Fate’ should only be effective on targets within Dahl City. So as long as she ran out of this range, the worst-case scenario was that she would return to normal after a period of time. Of course, these were all secondary. The most important thing was that Yisi had confidence in herself. Even at the same level, Tartaros could not defeat her. If worst came to worst, she could just turn on those resistance buffs again.

The other party looked completely unthreatening, even though she was probably trying to put on a fierce expression.

Slightly tightening her grip on Gungnir and feeling the much-weaker strength, Yisi nonchalantly flicked her silver hair back.

“The same level, huh…”

This would save her the trouble of deliberately suppressing her strength in the upcoming battle. The opportunity to fight a demon lord was rare. Since she would have to deal with the Divine Religion later, having the experience of fighting a demon lord as a bargaining chip would naturally give her more say.

“You’re finished!”

Tina, wielding two rapiers as her weapons, shouted at Yisi.

An opponent who can use two swords at the same time?

This would be a bit difficult to deal with.

Putting away her previous ease, Yisi raised her guard. Although she often sparred with Laxy and had a record of thirty losses and five wins in a pure skill battle, that was on the premise that Laxy used a short weapon and a one-handed weapon. If Laxy were to use a two-handed sword or dual-wielded weapons, she would have almost no chance of victory.

“There’s no room for dawdling then.”

First strike.

She flickered in front of Tartaros in the blink of an eye.

It was not ‘Blink,’ but a straight flight at a speed so fast it was hard to catch. Yisi sent out Gungnir with her right hand, aiming straight for Tartaros’s heart.

Tartaros’s race was demon. When dealing with demon-type creatures, cutting off the brain or limbs would not have the most direct effect. Even after their most critical heart was destroyed, some demons could still move for a short period of time. Gungnir did not have the ‘Demon Slaying’ magic attribute, so aiming for the heart was just a temporary measure.

However.

It was easily blocked.

Tartaros, with just an upward flick of the rapier in her left hand, deflected the thrusting Gungnir.

An expected outcome.

To fail to kill in one hit during an assassination was to expose one’s own existence. And after exposing one’s existence, it would be difficult to continue the mission. But a one-on-one frontal battle was not like that. A one-hit kill would only occur in a situation where the other party was too careless or the strength gap between the two sides was too large.

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This was just a probe.

Not just to test Tartaros’s reaction, but also to adapt to her own weakened speed and strength.

“Mmm.”

The annoyance of having her weapon parried also made Yisi let out a light hum.

Then, what greeted her was Tartaros’s counterattack—after parrying Gungnir with her left rapier, Tartaros thrust her right sword straight at Yisi’s chest.

Sidestep to dodge.

This was not a matter of reaction speed, or predicting her movements, but simply a weapon advantage. The long spear-type Gungnir was much longer than a rapier. For Tina’s two-handed sword to hit her, there was a considerably long reaction time.

If she had been holding an ordinary iron sword, she would probably be in a sorry state now. Yisi couldn’t help but think so. Most people who fought against a dual-wielding opponent would fall into a dilemma, because they would be too focused on the enemy’s leading hand and neglect the fact that the other hand also held an equally deadly weapon.

However.

The attack that should have been dodged still created a wound on Yisi. A sharp, burning pain came from her left shoulder.

Why?

That rapier clearly didn’t hit me.

As if seeing the surprise in Yisi’s eyes, Tina, who had been able to close in because of the opening on Yisi’s chest, showed a cruel smile.

“Surprised? This is a weapon that reverses cause and effect, that cannot be dodged no matter how you evade. A Demon Lord isn’t just an empty title!”

It would be bad if she let Tartaros get into her embrace.

Gungnir could never be brought back in time at this distance. In fact, it would become an obstacle.

Damn it.

[Blink]

Appearing below Tartaros, her left hand unable to exert any force due to the pain and injury—the ligament was probably damaged—Yisi, gritting her teeth, used her body as an axis and, like a whip, swung Gungnir at Tartaros’s back.

Thump.

She felt the solid impact, but not the unpleasant sensation of bones breaking.

This person’s body is very sturdy.

By the time she realized this, Tartaros had already been sent to the ground by her spear, and a cloud of debris that obscured her vision rose from the ruins, as if a cannonball had exploded on the ground.

The visibility is terrible.

Rather than pressing her advantage, she had to first heal the wound on her shoulder.

[Advanced Healing]

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Her right hand, covered in a dense golden light, had just touched her left shoulder when the wound and pain disappeared as if they had never been there. If Yisi remembered correctly, this was the first time she had been injured since coming to this other world and completely mastering her own power.

As expected of a Demon Lord.

“But an attack that reverses cause and effect…”

If she couldn’t solve this troublesome weapon, she would always be in a passive position. The so-called reversal of cause and effect was to have the ‘result’ first, and then the ’cause.’ The result of a wound appearing first, and then the act of swinging the sword, was a dangerous existence that violated the laws of nature and interfered with fate. Even in ‘Ragnarøk,’ no player had ever possessed such a weapon or magic.

Of course, she was not completely helpless against such a so-called causality-reversing attack.

That players couldn’t possess it didn’t mean they had never faced it. In battles with some NPCs, players would occasionally encounter NPCs who used causality weapons. And to face this adversity, the players had come up with several solutions.

One, to eliminate the NPC before it could use the causality weapon, or to interrupt its action of using the weapon, not letting it interfere with fate. Two, to use a power so strong that it could interfere with causality, to interfere with the other party’s interference. Simply put, in the world setting of ‘Ragnarøk,’ the most direct manifestation of power was magic power. The strength of a causality weapon lay in its ability to interfere with fate, and its power to interfere with fate was sourced from magic power. So ‘a power so strong that it could interfere with causality’ meant to gather a magical defense stronger than the causality weapon.

This was not difficult for her.

The rapier in Tartaros’s right hand did not have much magic power.

[Sacred Bulwark]

[Radiant Prayer]

Two consecutive layers of gold covered Yisi’s body. The second layer of gold even formed a pair of golden wings made of light particles behind her—this was a magic that could bring the user back from the dead, to avoid death. Although it was one of the few skills she had with a cooldown, its effect was exceptionally powerful. As long as she died within its duration, ‘Radiant Prayer’ could immediately revive her on the spot.

After applying the buffs, Yisi looked down. There was no sound from the dark ground.

Has it been so long, and she still hasn’t come up?

A sharp whistling of wind sounded behind her.

Yisi did not turn her head, just accumulated power in her spear.

A technique of setting a trap to lure the enemy in.

Combining Cynthia’s cunning fighting style, to deliberately reveal an opening to lure the enemy to attack, and then to deliver a heavy blow when they are careless, as long as Tartaros attacked her back, ‘Sacred Bulwark’ would buy her time. Then she could take advantage of Tartaros’s moment of weakness, turn around to gain the advantage, and defeat her in one blow.

However, the imagined attack did not come. On the contrary, the air fell into a strange silence. A bad premonition arose in Yisi’s heart.

This is bad.

Then, a sensation that paralyzed her entire right arm came from her hand. Tartaros’s target was not her, but Gungnir. The Gungnir in her hand was just a product of casually mixing some high-grade metals from this other world and did not use any high-grade materials from ‘Ragnarøk.’ Therefore, the moment the weapons collided, Gungnir was cut in two by the rapier in Tartaros’s hand.

Then, just as Yisi was about to turn and respond, a dull pain came from her waist.

Tartaros’s magic-infused kick.

Although it was blocked by ‘Sacred Bulwark’ and she was not seriously injured, there was an uncomfortable feeling of her stomach churning.

This is no time to cry out in pain.

Without hesitation, Yisi once again used ‘Blink’ to appear behind Tartaros. Even if Gungnir was only half-left, it didn’t mean the fight was over.

For a time, various colored magic flashed in the dark night sky. Each collision of their weapons made the ruins let out a creaking groan. Even the dark clouds high above were torn to shreds by the turbulent magic over time. The people who had noticed the commotion from the start, the people who had been sleeping just a short while ago, the people who had rushed out of their homes in a panic, all of them now looked up at the sky, their uncertain expressions filled with fear of the unknown and violence.

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“What is that!”

“I heard the Demon Lord’s declaration. It’s the Demon Lord Tartaros! The Demon Lord has appeared!”

“How can the Demon Lord be in the capital? Where are the soldiers? What are the soldiers doing!”

“But there are two people in the sky.”

“Who is fighting the Demon Lord?”

“Wait, why do I feel cold…”

“Huh? You’re freezing—hey, hey, hey… it’s magic, magic! The Demon Lord is about to cast a spell! Everyone, run!!!”

The fearful voices were swept away by the raging wind. Firelight and lightning came along with the fleeing footsteps of the residents. But this disastrous scene was like a dream. The prelude had just appeared, and the next second it was smoothed over by a golden breeze, and everything returned to calm.

“Now!”

Taking advantage of the moment Yisi was casting a spell, the sweat-drenched Tina flashed in front of her, one sword slashing at Gungnir, the other going straight for Yisi’s throat.

“Tsk.”

[Absolute Defense]

Clang.

The attack was blocked, and the two of them separated in an instant.

“Hah—hah—, to be able to even resolve that, you’re quite capable.”

Wiping the blood from the corner of her mouth, a trace of anxiety appeared in Tina’s red eyes. Yisi had not held back in her initial strike, but had used all her strength. Even if it had been a dragon, it would have been split in two by that blow, which contained a raging power. But Tina had only been smashed into the ground, leaving a huge crater like a meteor impact in the already ravaged street. The Demon Lord’s body was far tougher than a dragon’s.

Tossing aside the now-short, dagger-like Gungnir in her hand, Yisi answered with a smile.

“You’re not so bad yourself.”

“You have no weapon now. Surrender. Join me, and I will give you a position second only to me, above tens of thousands.”

“Only a little worse than you?”

“Of course.”

Tina answered with feigned calmness.

To be honest, her barrier was about to collapse. Yisi Enya’s strength far exceeded her imagination.

Pressing her index finger to her chin, Yisi tilted her head in thought.

“A very tempting offer.”

“I promise you that after you join me, I will not restrict your freedom. You can go wherever you want. I will also fulfill my initial promise to you and restore the freedom of your lover, Evelyn Anna Ymir Shalu.”

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“Lover? Did you get something wrong?” Yisi frowned, but soon her expression returned to its initial ease. “Speaking of which, you’ve reminded me. We haven’t settled the score with Laxy. I’ll return your words to you. Submit to me, or even if you look like you’re only eight, I won’t be polite to you.”

“You… in your dreams!”

To make a fool of her at a time like this, anger welled up in Tina’s heart, and she couldn’t help but tighten her grip on her rapiers.

Since I can’t recruit her, I’ll have to get rid of such a dangerous person. The ‘Realm of Manipulating Fate’ can’t be maintained for too long. When the barrier’s time is up, I’ll be the one to die. I have to eliminate her while she’s without a suitable weapon.

However, Tina’s heart soon sank.

Yisi had taken out a new weapon, and it was a weapon that Tina was very familiar with, a weapon that had prevented her from walking out of the castle openly—Azazel’s Sword of Ruin.

No, rather than asking where this weapon came from, it was more important to deal with her. As long as she killed her, the Sword of Ruin would fall into her hands. The ‘Realm of Manipulating Fate’ had less than three minutes left. She couldn’t drag this on any longer.

Taking a deep breath, Tina’s voice suddenly turned cold.

“You’ll regret this—[Blessing of the Earth Mother].”

The moment her words fell, a pair of demon wings, emitting a black aura, spread out from behind Tina. Not only that, but her entire aura also became exceptionally evil. Layer after layer of crimson patterns, like the markings of the Fallen, appeared on her body. Even the whites of her eyes were dyed blood red. Her gray hair flew about, and like a true demon lord, she was enveloped in crimson lightning and the aura of death. Just by existing, she gave off a feeling of oppression and fear.

Yisi glanced at the [Omniscient Map].

Tartaros’s various stats were soaring at an extremely fast speed, soon reaching a point where the [Omniscient Map] could no longer observe them. If it were such a powerful opponent, with her current self, it should be very difficult to deal with.

However, she was not without a trump card. Or rather, Tartaros’s transformation-like magic reminded her of a skill she hadn’t used in a long time.

Yisi lightly snapped her fingers.

“[Third Form Awakening].”

Dragon wings and cat ears spread out at the same time. Her twin tails, which were tipped with blue, also turned to a pure silver color. All the elements around her, as if they had seen their king, desperately gathered towards her, guarding her like soldiers. As for the evil aura emanating from Tina in the sky, it was instantly torn to shreds by the elemental tethers as soon as it came into contact with the elements around Yisi.

“What!”

Even though Tartaros’s voice had become exceptionally mature, Yisi could still hear from her tone that it was a feeling mixed with shock and disbelief.

“How is that possible! How can there be a strengthening magic stronger than the ‘Blessing of the Earth Mother’!”

“Mmm… although I don’t know how to answer, I’m sorry, but such a magic is right in front of you. To describe it, it’s a strengthening magic that doubles all stats. Simple, right?”

“You—”

Without giving Tartaros a chance to speak, for her, the battle just now had been enough for her to absorb for a long time, and from it, she had come to a conclusion: at the same level, a demon lord was not easy to deal with.

Of course, that was only if their levels were the same.

Without using ‘Blink,’ she appeared directly in front of Tartaros at an incomparable speed. She had been at a disadvantage before, not only because of her weapon, but also because she was not used to her body. And now, there was no such discomfort.

Putting the Sword of Ruin into her storage, Yisi poured strength into her right hand. She had roughly grasped the amount of force that would not injure Tartaros, but would still make her feel the maximum pain.

Well then, it’s time to punish this person a little.

At the last moment before Yisi disappeared from her sight, Tina saw a smile on her face that would leave her with a psychological scar in the future.