Chapter: 150
On the snowy mountains where the wind howled.
At the edge of a cliff sat a man with blood-red long hair, grinning like a fool.
His red scarf billowed slowly in the wind.
This was his favorite time.
When the yellow sky unfurled.
The sensation that the world itself was writhing in tension.
It was a feeling that reminded him of his old hometown.
“What the hell are you doing? Why did you mess with Hardenhartz?!”
At that moment, the man’s pleasant musings were interrupted.
He slowly turned his head to the side.
There stood a woman with messy, long black hair.
Instead of her usual attire, she wore an all-black robe.
Clenching her fists tightly, she glared at him with a fierce intensity.
The man tilted his head, puzzled by her reaction.
“Well, it’s the best opportunity to gain quality world erosion power, isn’t it?”
His alias was “Light Bringer.”
He was a world eroder associated with Ixion.
The more powerful the opponent he faced, the higher the tier of world erosion he could achieve.
Obviously, the higher the tier, the more world erosion power he could gain.
And right now, Hardenhartz boasted none other than the Sword King, Lai Balheim.
Why wouldn’t he take advantage of the chance to obtain high-quality world erosion?
“You’re full of it. If that’s the case, just team up with me!”
“Hahaha, that’s impossible.”
Light Bringer shrugged comically.
“You know how world erosion works as a world eroder yourself, right?”
Ebelasque bit her lip.
World erosion was, quite literally, erosion of the world.
It was created by eroding a part of the world.
So, even if unrelated beings huddled together, world erosion wouldn’t be forged.
Ebelasque knew that truth well.
“Otherwise, I wouldn’t be chasing strong opponents around like this!”
“Don’t make me laugh.”
Ebelasque shot him a serious glare.
“You just want to fight. All your reasons are just excuses.”
Seeing her furious expression made Light Bringer chuckle quietly.
“Sure, but why does it matter?”
As if triggered by her words, a surge of world erosion power whipped around Ebelasque.
Despite the dark energy coiling around her, Light Bringer remained relaxed.
“I don’t understand the rookie at all. My actions are for Ixion’s benefit.”
When Ixion was mentioned, Ebelasque paused.
Ixion was a group gathered to create gods through their world erosion.
They wished to recreate their lost world.
“But stopping me now, how does that help Ixion?”
“…You’re not dealing with Hardenhartz. You’re up against Balheim. How will you handle it when Balheim comes after Ixion?”
“Hahahaha! That’s even better! We’ll gain even higher quality world erosion, right? Our world will draw closer to rebirth!”
Light Bringer laughed maniacally.
Judging by his expression, he seemed sincere.
“…You’re insane.”
Ebelasque gave him an incredulous look.
Faced with her gaze, Light Bringer gradually suppressed his laughter.
“Isn’t it odd? We who have already experienced the end of the same world have been crazy for a while now.”
His red eyes glowed slowly.
Recalling past events, he wore a creepy smile.
“Rookie, it seems like there’s something in Hardenhartz. So, let me tell you one thing.”
With a thundering sound from above, lightning struck.
It meant world erosion was officially on the move.
“This world is not our world.”
He spread his arms wide against the backdrop of thunder.
“It’s nothing but fertilizer-rich land existing to save our world.”
Yellow raindrops began to pour from the sky.
“The bugs living on the land need to be well-ground to serve as fertilizer, don’t you think?”
The yellow raindrops trickled down Light Bringer’s cheek.
He truly regarded the people of this world as fertilizer.
Just as world eroders didn’t treat them as humans, world eroders themselves weren’t treated as humans either.
Realizing that, Ebelasque bit her lip.
She might have thought that way in the past.
But now things were different.
She had met one decent guy.
Ebelasque pressed down on her heart.
She had a promise with him.
It was a promise to protect Hardenhartz.
A promise she owed her life to.
It was a vow that freed her from a bond that seemed unbreakable for a lifetime.
“Still, I…”
Just as she was about to speak again to stop Light Bringer,
The space beside him suddenly twisted and warped.
Ebelasque instinctively gasped.
Soon, a black frog leaped out from the distorted space.
Seeing the frog, Light Bringer smiled brightly.
“O, Commander Ixion, what brings you here?”
“I bring ruin, scarlet blood, let it rain down.”
In that moment, a stream of meaningless words poured out of the frog.
Annoyed by the noise, Light Bringer tapped the frog lightly.
“Commander, we can’t decipher that.”
The frog paused briefly before making ribbiting sounds, then its voice shifted.
“I came because it seems there’s some commotion.”
A completely different, jewel-like voice now echoed.
Hearing that, Light Bringer grinned.
“What commotion? I’m just trying to work here. Seems like the Sword King is around. Time to gather some world erosion.”
“There’s no guarantee it will go well like with the Poison King.”
“Don’t worry! We have the rookie here!”
Light Bringer pointed eagerly at Ebelasque, his laughter bubbling over.
Ebelasque repeatedly opened and closed her mouth.
She knew exactly who owned that black frog.
The Black Witch.
The leader of Ixion, the woman who could resurrect the comrades she longed for.
She had entered Ixion because of her.
Furthermore, because she existed, Ixion could continue to exist.
She was the only one who could create a god of world erosion.
“Ebelasque Benaforth.”
At that moment, the Black Witch called her name.
Ebelasque flinched at the sound.
The Black Witch continued, “Don’t mix too well with Light Bringer.”
Just a simple piece of advice.
She didn’t stop Light Bringer.
In other words, it was tacit approval.
Ebelasque’s eyes wavered.
She wanted to tell him to stop right away, but she couldn’t.
She had spent her life endlessly researching necromancer studies, aiming to revive her comrades.
Yet, she failed at the rebirth of life.
The Black Witch was the only one who could grant that.
Ebelasque couldn’t defy her words.
“I am again…”
Just like how she became a puppet of the Empire, her heart was seized by it, becoming a pawn of Ixion once more.
Because of that fact, Ebelasque felt a deep loathing towards herself.
She was repeating the same mistake again.
Meanwhile, the Black Witch’s frog dissipated into smoke.
It had merely come to check on what was happening.
“Well then, rookie, it’s time to get to work.”
Light Bringer grinned at Ebelasque, who had her head down.
He knew that she couldn’t rebel against the Black Witch.
“Of course, you remember your job, right?”
“…Prevent anyone from approaching while you fight the Sword King.”
“That’s right! Just a heads up, don’t interfere. The maturity of erosion depends on enjoying it slowly!”
Ebelasque pressed her lips together and turned her body into the darkness.
As she walked away, Light Bringer turned his head back.
At the same time, he began to grin slowly.
Because there was someone charging toward the cliff’s edge, kicking up a terrifying storm of snow.
Light Bringer drew a blood-red sword that matched his hair.
One of the Ten Great Swords.
Blood Lacerator.
The blood-red blade gleamed hungrily, eager for its next prey.
At that moment, on the snowy ground Light Bringer was watching, the snow erupted with a boom.
“Could it be from that distance?!”
Light Bringer’s astonishment came as he spotted something sparkling among the snow.
Just as he pulled out Blood Lacerator,
Clang!
The blood-red energy whirled and connected with something.
The object that flew into the air suddenly stopped mid-flight.
Light Bringer’s gaze shot upward.
And what he saw was a sword.
A sword flew toward him.
From a distance that could only be seen atop a mountain.
“Wow, is that a monster or what?”
But it didn’t stop with just a sword flying toward him.
The sword that hovered in the air started to grow larger.
Light Bringer couldn’t help but smirk.
He knew that sword was created by the Sword King, Lai Balheim.
Emperor Annihilation Sword.
Soon, the sword grew large enough to fill the sky.
It cast a massive shadow on the mountain.
From afar, flocks of birds began to flee in a panic.
In the face of such overwhelming scenery, death was the only foreseeable future.
Finally, the sky began to crumble.
“What the…”
Light Bringer licked his lips in anticipation.
“To build up this much excitement for use.”
At the same time, the blood-red aura began to wrap around Blood Lacerator.
That bright red aura stretched up to Light Bringer’s arm.
Thump!
He could hear his heart pounding loudly in his ears.
The red aura took form, becoming the shape of an enormous arm without skin.
At the end of that arm was Blood Lacerator, which now took on a grotesque shape.
Muscle fibers and veins intertwined, forming the sword’s body.
In that moment, the black jewel embedded within it slowly began to awaken.
As the black eyes opened up, heat began to surge from his body.
Light Bringer sprang up from the ground.
He reached out towards the sky with an arm and the colossal Blood Lacerator.
Clashing with a deafening crash!
Light Bringer’s Blood Lacerator collided with the Emperor Annihilation Sword.
The surrounding forests and mountains were torn apart and sent flying.
If anyone had witnessed that astonishing scene, their mouths would surely have dropped open in shock.
Crack!
And when the clash of power settled, Light Bringer emerged as the victor.
He pushed the downward Emperor Annihilation Sword away.
Light Bringer grinned with a sense of triumph.
As he savored the prickling sensation in his arm, he could feel like a madman.
Just as he was about to land on the ground.
He felt the ominous darkness of the sky still lingering.
As Light Bringer finally looked up, he saw another sword looming over the Emperor Annihilation Sword.
It turned out, the Emperor Annihilation Sword wasn’t just one sword from the start.
More and more Emperor Annihilation Swords began to multiply in the sky.
“Wow.”
The sight of the sky filled with Emperor Annihilation Swords was enough to terrify even Light Bringer.
Under the overwhelming visual of countless swords in the sky.
“They say Balheim is a cursed place, looks like it’s true.”
This time, the sky truly began to fall apart.
