Dark clouds, brimming with lightning, hung over the ground.
No, upon closer inspection, they weren't dark clouds.
Bang... Boom!
A series of explosions echoed, each one a massive blast. The various dust particles, unable to withstand the force, rose up in a cloud.
Then, what was the lightning?
Crackle—!
Sparks spread out in all directions, piercing through the dust. However, they were not ordinary.
The lightning was far too deep blue.
"How long has it been?"
Aster repeatedly unleashed explosions (爆滅) to pressure Destrue.
It wasn't precise.
It seemed as if he didn't care whether he hit or missed, aiming roughly.
As a result, some of the explosions only threw shockwaves at Destrue and then disappeared, but such details didn't matter.
After all, how solid was Destrue's force field?
Zzz—!
The sound of pure, refined metal clashing, clear and resonant.
It left only that sound and then vanished into nothingness.
But why should he waste his mental energy?
'Just hit him.'
In front of Aster's combat style, Destrue couldn't hide his considerable confusion.
<What...!>
Continuous shockwaves striking the force field. Chaotic. No, beyond chaotic, it was like the play of children.
But that made it even more difficult.
If it were a formal, standardized attack, he could at least predict it, but this was unpredictable.
Was that all?
Bang! Boom—!
When dozens of explosions were launched, the emperor retreated to create distance.
One second. No, half a second. Even a moment would do.
Just to buy a moment!
But, how fast he was, rushing over like a madman.
<...>
The emperor, with a stern face, increased his speed. In fact, he turned and ran away from Aster.
But even that wasn't easy.
"Where are you going?"
Step, step, step, step, step!
Blue light flared up along the path, soon crackling and illuminating the surroundings.
The continuous shockwaves!
<...!>
The emperor had no choice but to stop and deploy his force field.
'Filth like this...!'
The opponent's realm wasn't higher than his.
Rather, it was lower.
Of course, comparing Destrue and a human, an ancient mage and a modern mage, was impossible, but the parties involved knew.
Who was above and who was below.
Whether he could crush the opponent and to what extent he would have to endure the damage.
In that sense, Aster was clearly inferior to him.
Zzz—
The relentless pressure from the cursed heaven, and the bizarre transformation of the brat with the help of the cursed heaven...
An unchanging truth.
The emperor was above, and Aster was below.
'But, why?'
<...Gah!>
A sharp sound and a sudden turn of vision. Aster's fist hit his jaw.
A blow that was hard to believe from a mage, likely due to the strange magical power surrounding his fist.
Bang!
"..."
Giving up on creating distance? The emperor headbutted Aster's face.
Aster took a few steps back, then showed a grin with blood-stained teeth.
"Want to go at it with fists? I'm good at that too."
<...>
A sudden brawl began between them.
Thud! Thud—!
The sound of leather drums echoed, and with each sound, someone's body jolted.
Even as this happened, the emperor couldn't understand.
'What... this bizarre!'
The emperor, who had conquered countless territories and brought the world under his feet.
He had met the most outstanding knights and mages, and various powerful figures who used all sorts of bizarre techniques.
Among them were geniuses who reached the pinnacle through orthodox means, and diligent ones who opened paths through endless effort.
Sometimes, there were those who nearly took his life through unorthodox methods.
Countless battles.
But, countless victories.
The emperor had fought a thousand battles and won a thousand times.
But even to such an emperor, Aster's combat style, or rather, Aster himself, was incomprehensible.
Thud—!
"Ugh...!"
A fist that hit the chest squarely, flipping his eyes. A blow that would make him fall over.
But.
<...Gah!>
Smack!
As if not feeling the pain, the eyes flipped and the fist struck the face.
Was he fearless? No, it was a bit different.
Or did he enjoy combat? A battle king (鬪王). Like the battle fanatic who gave the emperor a hard time until the end. Did he feel pleasure from pain?
No, that wasn't it either.
Smack! Smack! Thud!
Mutual blows. For every hit received, one was returned.
The battle between the emperor and Aster was closer to a knight's brawl than a mage's duel. No, it was more like pure violence.
Even as this happened, the emperor's mind was filled with memories of past opponents.
'How can such a person exist!'
Look at those eyes.
"...Huh."
A savagery more intense than the wild king (野王) who ruled over all beasts.
His aggressiveness far surpassed the battle king, and his killing intent was thicker and deeper than the soldier who committed the most slaughter in a thousand battles.
"Are you daydreaming?"
Suddenly!
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Shoulders pressed together, a relentless headbutt followed.
The brat, ignoring the blood flowing from his own forehead, kept moving.
As if giving his own blood meant he could touch a single hair, as if giving his own flesh meant he could take a single drop of blood.
It was different from common sense.
Giving flesh and taking bones was the proper mindset a warrior should have.
<Choke—!>
At that moment, the emperor realized and had to admit.
<This...!>
The emperor roared.
"Huh...?"
Sensing the unusual aura, the brat immediately retreated.
Boom—!
At that moment, a massive aura burst from the emperor's body.
<...I acknowledge.>
Swish—
The ground turned black and decayed as the aura spread. The natural world rotted.
The ancient specter.
With loyal subordinates bound by some interference, Destrue didn't want to use his power unless absolutely necessary.
But.
<It won't do to hold back.>
The difference in time? While he was asleep, magic and martial arts might have advanced. The style of combat might have changed, and old methods might have been dismantled.
Or, perhaps the brat was just exceptional.
But, either way.
<It won't be easy to catch you with human methods.>
Soon, a thick aura swirled around.
A purple aura spreading through the emperor's body.
The moment the emperor abandoned his identity as a mage and unleashed Destrue's power.
Overwhelming fear.
But Aster didn't flinch.
"Thought it would be easy."
He was familiar with it.
"Then I'll... "
Crackle, crackle.
Blue sparks spreading through his body.
Like being wrapped in lightning. Blue sparks of magical power flickered around Aster.
Soon—
Boom—!
Colliding light and lightning. The surroundings were dyed in different colors.
* * *
A foreboding aura rising in the sky.
Shine and Obern, witnessing Destrue's arrival from a distance, increased their speed.
They had rushed to the ancient ruins, using all the elixirs they had.
<What...>
Shine stood in a daze, taking in the scene ahead.
Flash—
Rumble... Bang!
As if the lightning from the sky had descended to the ground, a fierce bolt struck the surface.
No, it was more accurate to say it surged from the ground.
It looked like... yes. As if the gods from legend had fallen to the earth.
A terrifying aura that could overwhelm even Shine.
<That wicked brat... was that strong? >
Blue lightning and purple light flickered, obscuring Aster's form, but Shine naturally assumed the blue lightning was Aster.
After all, that deep blue lightning was very similar to the nature of the magical power Aster possessed.
"I, I... can't... "
Obern, half in a daze, took in the scene.
Dull eyes. The focus was blurred. A look of obscured intelligence.
It wasn't due to Destrue's aura. Nor was it because of the negativity, like Aster.
Destrue's aura was focused on Aster, and even the negativity he spread was gathered to face Aster.
The reason Obern was in a daze was different.
"..."
It was awe-inspiring.
Every time the ominous purple light flickered, a deep-seated fear rose within. But what about the blue lightning?
Ecstasy.
It is often said that a master's artwork can captivate the soul just by looking at it. A beauty that enchants the instincts.
To a mage, blue lightning was more beautiful than any master's artwork.
Why wouldn't it be?
The pinnacle of magical power manipulation.
Beyond the thoughts and principles it contained, its very existence was the purest form of magical power, the destructive force it unleashed.
On the other hand, Shine's perspective was slightly different.
<So... well done.>
The gestures and movements were invisible due to the flashing light, but the momentum and flow of the battle were clearly revealed.
This was because the abstract flow, which was perceived through the senses, was concretized through the medium of magical power.
Crackle— Bang! Rumble...!
The two light clusters, merging and scattering, repeatedly clashed with intense force.
At first glance, they seemed evenly matched, but to Shine, who had reached the rank of Master Knight, it was clear.
'The advantage... is Destrue.'
Aster was just wildly thrashing.
But that made it even more captivating.
Rough. Savage. Brutal. No concern for efficiency, no adherence to any form.
But Shine felt freedom from it.
No, not freedom...
—Reverence.
Squeak—
Shine realized his emotions when the friction sound from his tightly clenched fists reached his ears.
'Am I... feeling reverence?'
Why?
Just by looking at the movements, they were incomparable to his former self.
Form and technique. Unlike the knights who thoroughly internalized them to achieve freedom, the freedom built without any foundation was beautifully distant...
But that was all.
'But, why?'
<This... damn. Am I feeling this towards that wicked brat? >
Shine couldn't understand himself, but in a way, it was natural.
Sometimes, something can be awe-inspiring just by its existence, regardless of its perfection.
A mage, but with a mastery of martial arts. A lifetime, a past life. The martial arts Aster had built were exactly that.
<In this state... I can't even intervene.>
It wasn't just because of the intensity.
A freedom that was beautifully distant... yet a savagery that brutally cut through the opponent's flow. Amidst the wild thrashing, he disrupted the opponent's combat rhythm and controlled the battle.
This was the essence of the déjà vu the emperor felt. As a mage, not a martial artist by nature, the emperor could never fully grasp Aster's combat style.
But.
While watching him, Shine felt a sense of pity.
Solitude.
Aster's combat style had no concept of allies.
Each move might be inefficient, but the overall combat flow was thoroughly efficient, designed to handle everything alone.
'What kind of life has he lived?'
Still, from a distance.
In a place where the battle's aftermath didn't reach, Shine and Obern watched Aster's combat.
One felt a distant ecstasy, the other an unexpected pity.
<...>
"..."
The two beings, Destrue and Aster, continuously collided and fell.
The blood flowing down evaporated instantly in the lightning of magical power.
The emperor, with his deep-set eyes, took in the sight of his opponent.