Chapter 482
The speed of the purple trajectory, drawing a parabola close to a straight line, gradually slowed.
Although it was a great distance, Lucia was able to distinguish the form of the being creating the trajectory without much difficulty.
The being raised its thick, long arms tightly in front of its face as if bracing for a blow. Ominous purple completely coated the legs beneath, and hooked blades like talons jutted from its feet.
What caught Lucia's attention even more was the face revealed as the arms slowly parted. Purple horns rose in a crown-like shape above large, pointed eyes—void of any white and burning with a dark, purple gleam. Its maw stretched unnaturally wide, torn up to the temples, where rows of black, jagged teeth carved countless diagonal lines.
It was right after that when the being of chaos, arms spread wide, opened its mouth.
"-----!"
A roar, a mixture of low and high frequencies, erupted as if to tear the atmosphere apart.
As the momentarily erupting shockwave pushed away the surrounding dust in a circle, Lucia could see a thick, light purple tongue undulating between its teeth. The split tip resembled a snake's tongue.
Grrr!
Moro, head held high, howled as if in response. As the purple hue spreading over it deepened, Seren, who had been bowing her head, also let out a convulsive cough."Sir! You can lean on me." Lucia pulled Seren's head into her embrace.
However, Diana, sitting behind, didn't even glance towards Seren.
"What in the—" Her gaze was completely drawn to the creature roaring overhead.
Several tentacles were even unfurling from its back, spreading out to either side. For a moment, it looked as though ominous wings were sprouting. But they probably weren't intended to function as wings—the creature's ascent was nearly complete.
Lucia's eyes twitched as she looked up, still resting a hand on Seren's back. "Is that?"
There was something oddly familiar about those tendrils. They reminded her of the avatar that had slaughtered the battle priests before they crossed the Black Wall. It reminded her of the tentacles that the avatar had wielded.
As the glint in the eyes of the being, which had spread its writhing tentacles wide, subsequently turned crimson, A colossal arc of gray stretched out below—Yanar Tash.
A glimpse of the creature surfaced through the churning sand and dust—though it was only a part of it. Its full form couldn't be seen all at once.
Lucia's mouth fell agape at the unrealistic size. Yanar Tash was larger than anything she had ever seen in her life.
Its grayish-black hide looked like rocks haphazardly pieced together. Through the gaps, a faint reddish-brown shimmered like lava.
And yet, the figure now glowing in purple high above seemed utterly unbothered by that overwhelming scale.
The very next moment, as it began to fall, it flung all its tendrils back and launched itself like an arrow toward Yanar Tash. Behind it, a purple trail flared like a tail, vanishing into the whirling clouds of sand. Then a sudden pulse of purple light tore through the storm.
Buooooooh—
Yanar Tash let out a deafening roar.
It was descending toward the ground, and for a moment, it felt as if the entire world were being pulled with it.
A massive head, letting out a scream amidst the scattering sand, was fleetingly revealed. Its teeth looked as if jagged stone beaks had been crudely fused. Its maw, gaping open as if holding an abyss, crashed down onto the ash-colored sea of sand with a deafening roar.
Boom, boom, boom!
An ash-colored explosion billowed up thickly again. The Earth's axis trembled, and a chaos-mixed shockwave once more swept over the group's entire bodies.
Grrr…
Moro, though pushed back, held its ground, its legs firmly rooted.
Lucia, cradling Seren, didn't miss the massive silhouette entering the sand even as she covered her face with one arm.
Trailing behind it, that faint, purple arc disappeared into the ground along with the creature.
Thud, thud—
Yanar Tash, which had been drawing a large semicircle, slowly flattened and completely sank into the sand. As the ash-colored dust swirled thickly, the vibrations that had continued from beneath their feet quickly subsided as if receding into the distance.
"Damn it." Diana, who had been clutching Seren's waist, finally shot upright. "A demon? There are more demons?"
Screaming, her eyes wide behind her mask, she looked back at those sitting in front. "Where did another monster like that pop out from? And where on earth did Ian go?!"
"He's the demon you just saw," answered Lucia.
Diana paused, blinking in confusion. "What?"
"That purple demon is Sir Ian," Lucia replied again, letting the edge of the cloak that had been wrapped around Seren's head fall.
Behind Diana's mask, a quiet, breathless sigh escaped. "That can't be."
"The Priestess is correct," said Seren, slowly lifting her head and straightening her back.
Lucia leaned towards her. "Sir, are you alright?"
"Yes. Thanks to you, fortunately... I didn't lose consciousness. Thank you," Seren replied with a pale smile. The blood at the corner of her mouth was evaporating into a dark blue smoke.
Placing her left hand on the center of her breastplate, she continued. "I couldn't see the Agent of the Saint's exact form... but I was able to feel his presence. The chaos entangled with the stigmata was so immense it resonated on its own...."
"Then, should we not get close to Sir Ian?" Lucia asked worriedly.
Seren shook her head gently, the faint smile still lingering. "I believe it's alright now. The stigma has stabilized. The Agent of the Saint's chaos strengthened the resonance, but it settled again. As long as I remain cautious, there shouldn't be any major issues."
"Well, that's a relief, I suppose. But you must be careful, Sir Seren. You understand what I mean, don't you?"
"Of course, Priestess. And once again, I'm—"
"No... I mean...." Diana, who had been watching the two calmly conversing, finally stammered and interjected. "Is that really, Ian?"
Lucia and Seren, looking back at her, each nodded.
At that moment, Moro, which had been catching its breath with low growls, moved again. It was even changing direction, as if turning.
Seren, whipping her gaze around, gripped the reins, but the beast only tossed its head in irritation and kept walking. Seren frowned, then shifted her gaze to follow Moro, as if something had just clicked.
Diana, who had been frozen, continued. "You're saying the way to deal with Yanar Tash... was to become a demon?"
"He probably hasn't completely shed the shackles of mortality," said Lucia, shaking her head. "Sir Ian has transformed into a similar form before. Of course, at that time... he wasn't as completely mutated as he is now."
Her gaze shifted to the right. Far away, amidst the swirling sand tornadoes, the chaotic scene of the area was being revealed through the dust.
"Surely, Yog must have helped him in some way. That must have been the whisper Sir Seren couldn't understand."
"Whatever help that snake bastard had given, it doesn't seem to change the fact that he's become a demon," Diana murmured, closing her eyes as if the situation was bleak.
Understandably so—this could very well mean the birth of a new archdemon. It was the most terrifying outcome she had imagined since the moment she learned Ian harbored chaos.
"He will turn to his original form," Lucia said firmly. "If that weren't the case, Sir Ian wouldn't have made such a choice. Sir Ian has a goal he absolutely cannot give up."
"How so?" It was Seren who asked.
Lucia, looking back at her, shrugged. "I don't know that either."
"Once you cast off the mortal shackles, it's not so easy to go back, Priestess," said Seren, as she looked in the direction Moro was heading.
She then eventually let out a sigh and lowered her gaze to Lucia. "He won't be able to return to being human on his own unless the gods intervene, but this isn't a place their gaze can reach."
Her tone carried a mix of regret and apology—yet it was clear the words still had to be said.
"The reason the Black Lions, including myself, strive not to lose our humanity is because of that. No matter how special Yog is, unless it's a fragment of a god, it won't be of any help, Priestess."
Lucia offered no rebuttal. Of course, it wasn't because she agreed with Diana's words. Rather, Seren's words made her even more convinced that Ian could return. Although an ancient god, Yog truly was a fragment of a god.
However, she couldn't reveal Yog's identity, especially not in front of a Black Lion who was desperately trying to hold back her transformation.
"So perhaps...." Seren, unaware of Lucia's inner thoughts, let out a bitter sigh and turned her gaze away. "Agent of the Saint may have sacrificed himself for us."
"Sacrifice?" said Diana, one eyebrow raised.
Seren nodded and looked back at her. "He must have believed that shedding his shackles was the only way to kill that archdemon and save us."
"What non...." Diana, who was about to speak, flinched. A chilling possibility had crept into her mind.
Ian had been more relentless than any fairy she'd ever known, but he had always been the man who'd faced any danger—if it meant protecting others.
"Whichever is true, we'll know if Sir Ian succeeds in killing Yanar Tash," Lucia added calmly.
She glanced back at the back of Moro's head, now moving at an increasingly brisk pace, and continued, "To do that, we also have to survive until the end."
"You are correct, Priestess." Seren nodded in agreement, and at last, Diana looked around herself as if snapping out of a daze.
"So Ian… he's down there fighting right now?"
"Probably. Moro is currently following Sir Ian's presence, so we'll know soon," said Seren.
Diana's head snapped back again. "What? We're not moving away—we're going toward him?"
"Didn't we decide to maintain a suitable distance? Besides...." Seren lightly shook the reins in her hand. "Moro isn't listening to my commands right now. There's no other way."
"Crazy...." Diana sighed.
However, she couldn't exactly jump off and run—one wrong step, and she could stumble straight into quicksand. Since Lucia and Seren wouldn't follow, if she got stuck in quicksand even once, she would surely die.
"I can feel it now too," said Seren.
Placing her left hand on her breastplate, she added, "Prepare for impact. It's getting closer."
Lucia and Diana, without further questions, hugged Moro's neck and Seren's waist tightly, respectively. Almost immediately, the tremor swelling from beneath the earth sharpened into clarity.
Boom! Woosh—
With a deafening sound, the middle of the gray desert erupted as if exploding, only about a hundred meters away from the group.
A blast of gray sand consumed their field of vision, followed by a chaos-infused shockwave that swept over the group. Though they staggered slightly, all three held their ground.
Swoosh...
Beyond the thickly spreading sand, a massive, vertically rising shadow was being revealed. From the base of what looked like a colossal pillar, a reddish-brown glow began to pulse and spread.
Just as Moro skidded to a sudden stop, all eyes widened.
Buooooooh—
A thunderous roar split the sky as a reddish-brown shockwave burst outward in concentric rings. The wave of displaced sand surged in every direction like a crashing tide.
"Shit! Moro! Run! Morooo!" Diana screamed, eyes wide as she caught sight of Yanar Tash's massive silhouette tilting ever so slightly toward them.
Grrr!
Moro reared with a fierce cry, then pivoted midair and landed in a full sprint. Even while skillfully maintaining her balance, Diana's gaze did not leave the tilting silhouette.
Swoosh—
A force swept away the surrounding dust and pushed it out in all directions. A massive torso, seemingly covered in rocks, was revealing its form, casting a vast shadow over the desert.
"Fuck."
What felt slow was merely an illusion. In truth, it was moving at tremendous speed and would land not far behind the group. Of course, that was only how it seemed—Yanar Tash had a way of effortlessly warping Diana's sense of distance.
Boom— Boom—
Yanar Tash's torso struck the ground like a whip. Ash-colored sand surged like a tidal wave, and faster than that, a shockwave imbued with chaos erupted.
Grrr!
This time, even Moro couldn't withstand it. Its hind legs kicked up into the air, and Diana, letting out a scream-like yell, kicked off its back and threw herself.
Spinning once in mid-air, she soon shot her eyes wide and spread her arms. Lucia was flying towards her, her cloak fluttering.
Diana, embracing Lucia, tumbled to the ground. Tumbling away with a dull thud, Moro crashed to her left while Seren, who had been thrown even earlier, hit the ground alone and rolled.
As Diana, having stopped, sprawled out, Lucia, barely holding up the cloak with one arm, whispered, "Inside... Diana... quickly!"
Sprawled on her back, Diana blinked and quickly rolled into her embrace.
Woosh!
Gust of wind, heavily mixed with sand, swept over them in the next instant. It was created by the surging sand tidal wave.
Grrr!
As Moro howled and Seren's coughing spread, Lucia finally shook off the cloak that had been covering their bodies. Not a single grain of sand had flowed into the cloak.
Psssss…
The sand that had covered their bodies scattered in all directions. Diana, who had buried her face in Lucia's embrace, cautiously raised herself.
The area ahead came into view, shrouded in a veil of ashen mist. The massive, wall-like shadow stretching beyond it was likely Yanar Tash.
It was then that reddish, glowing streaks poured down like a shower above it.
Boom, boom, boom!
The explosions themselves weren't large—just dark red sparks scattering through the sand-filled haze. But the reaction was immediate.
Buooooh—
The limply sprawled shadow writhed, and a scream filled with obvious pain shook the atmosphere.
However, Diana was no longer looking in that direction. It was the same for Lucia, who slowly rose.
Swoosh.
The purple trajectory that had rained down the red slashes onto the ground was plummeting at an incredible speed.
Boom!
The purple streak landed with a heavy thud, sending up a plume of ashen sand. It stood as if to block the path between the group and Yanar Tash.
Though wind laced with sand swept over her, Diana didn't so much as blink.
"Good heavens...."
Because at the center of it, a figure bathed in a purplish hue was rising to its feet.
It was easily three meters tall—a massive, hulking creature. Smooth, curved horns jutted from its head, and bulging muscles rippled beneath leathery purple skin that looked impossibly tough. Along either side of its spine, long tendrils sprouted in a row, each one arching upward in a slow, undulating sway.
Diana, who had taken in even the ominous green gleam clinging to the tips of its sharp fingers, suddenly held her breath.
"Grhhh..." With a rumbling breath that carried a low, guttural frequency, the demon Ian Hope turned to face them.