Chapter 550: Between Shadow and Light (2)

That weapon was not made by human hands—that much was certain—which meant it was impossible for Aegon to have known about it beforehand.

Yes... that was the truth. And yet, for some reason...

Ivar Valerion could not rid himself of his doubts. He simply could not believe every word his nephew had just spoken.

The prince rose to his feet, his interest in the angel’s corpse now spent.

"Tell the troops to prepare to move. We’re leaving this place," Aegon ordered, prompting a frown from Ivar. Their current position was the most defensible if they were attacked again.

"Where are we headed?" Ivar asked.

Aegon answered with his usual smile.

"We’re going to regroup with the rest of our soldiers... and prepare to strike back at the Church."

"Strike back? And how exactly do you intend to fight them in our current state?"

"It’s quite simple. But first, we’ll need some strong men to execute the plan... chief among them, Frey Starlight. He is the key."

In his mind, Aegon Valerion had already begun weaving the strategy that would bring the Church down.

The first step was to unite their forces with the soldiers fighting in the east.

Taking advantage of the fact that the Ultras had also been attacked by the Church, Aegon and his forces moved unhindered, following in the footsteps of Maekar Valerion and Ser Alon—both of whose fates remained unknown to this hour.

No one knew what had happened on the fiercest battlefield—where the strongest of each side had clashed—until that angel had appeared in the end, suppressing them all without exception.

...

...

...

The cleansing had begun all at once, as thousands of winged angels swept across the entire world.

But for the main battlefield, only a single angel was needed.

A towering angel radiating a sacred aura, its pressure crushing down on every soul present.

It opened its mouth wide—so wide that a radiant pit of light formed above its face.

From that pit erupted a colossal beam of holy power.

An overwhelming force that swallowed the battlefield whole, engulfing all in its blinding light.

The strike covered a vast range and was so fast that every combatant had to race against time itself to avoid it.

That beam carried such a dreadful pressure that even those at SS+ rank were certain it could kill them.

The demon Beleth instantly appeared before Beatrice, shielding her with his body. Elsewhere, Gavid Lindman shifted into his Ghost Form, while Mergo teleported away.

Maekar Valerion and Ser Alon moved at their maximum speed, attempting to evade, while Phoenix Sunlight cloaked himself in fire to block the attack.

Within moments, the aura’s explosion shook the entire continent, consuming seven SS+ ranked combatants.

The angel let out a deafening, mechanical roar, continuing to pour holy light from its mouth, unleashing a staggering torrent of aura.

Its assault lasted for what felt like an eternity—minutes that burned into the minds of those trapped within, as if they had been cast into hell for endless hours.

For a moment, they feared the cursed angel would never stop, but at last it closed its mouth and eyes, raising its hands to form a strange symbol.

At that instant, a bizarre dome formed around its body—just as the aftermath of its savage attack was finally revealed.

The angel’s light had carved a long trench through the battlefield, splitting the earth in two.

At the heart of the destruction, the first to emerge was the demon Beleth—still standing, shielding himself with his massive arms.

But his state was dire. His coarse, black skin had been charred to a horrific degree, and he bled profusely, the stench of his foul blood filling the air.

His arms, in particular, were in a ghastly condition. Beatrice, whom he had shielded, fared far better thanks to his protection, but even she had not escaped unscathed.

That light emitted by the angel was a direct bane to demons.

Ser Alon and Maekar had barely avoided the attack, along with Mergo and Gavid Lindman. Yet all four wore grim, shadowed expressions. They knew—taking that attack even once would be fatal.

Beleth had endured it because he was a living fortress. They lacked that kind of physical resilience.

This realization turned all their eyes toward the other tank on the battlefield—Phoenix Sunlight.

He had only recently reached SS+ rank, and without the protection of his Ember Form, he would have never survived this battlefield at all.

But right now, he was certainly the weakest link .. wounded heavily from his prior battle with Beleth. Everyone wondered if he had survived.

It took only a few seconds for the answer to appear before them.

The greatest talent of his generation—Phoenix Sunlight—stood revealed, and his appearance was so ghastly that both Maekar and Ser Alon immediately averted their gaze.

Burned black. The man who wielded fire himself had lost both arms entirely.

His hair was gone, his face stripped of all features save for his dimmed crimson eyes.

He collapsed to the ground, breathing raggedly, coughing up an alarming volume of blood.

With a single attack, that strange angel had reduced him to such a state.

An angel capable of unleashing an aura beam strong enough to wound SS+ rank fighters this badly...

The winged monstrosity hovered above them, encased within a circular, heavenly dome.

Slowly, it began to open its eyes again—blazing orbs of blinding light—while its mouth widened, as if preparing to open the gates of hell itself.

Sensing the aura building around the angel, everyone present understood what was coming.

"He’s preparing to attack again!!!"

An angel capable of releasing an aura beam with that level of destruction against SS+ combatants...

"Three minutes... He can keep his mouth open and pour aura for three full minutes..." Ser Alon muttered, his bloodshot eyes fixed on the foe.

In that moment, realizing the magnitude of its power, everyone moved with a single thought in mind:

We have to stop it. No matter the cost!

If the angel opened its mouth again, who knew what would happen?

Men like Ser Alon and Maekar didn’t even know if they could avoid the attack a second time.

Gavid’s Ghost Form had already reached its limits after being used throughout the battle.

And the tanks—Beleth, and especially Phoenix—wouldn’t survive another strike.

Knowing this truth, everyone launched themselves at the angel with everything they had.

It was a rare sight—fighters from the Empire and the Ultras joining forces without a word, driven purely by survival.

They all crashed into the dome shielding the angel, hammering at it in an effort to break through. They nearly succeeded—

But then the ring behind the angel’s back flared with light, and its body released a violent shockwave of aura, blasting them all away.

The moment they were pushed far enough, the barrier around the angel vanished.

Its eyes and mouth opened again, casting all their faces into darkness.

That thing was about to unleash the same devastating attack again—an attack that would end most of them.

And indeed, the angel’s aura beam roared forth once more ..but in the instant it fired...

They all heard the strange sound of shattering glass, and reality twisted violently.

Gripping her magic staff, Beatrice had finished casting her spell, tricking the angel into firing in a completely wrong direction—while they stood in the exact opposite one.

"Now! Hit it with everything you’ve got!" Ser Alon shouted, charging forward alongside Maekar, aiming for the angel’s back.

On the Ultras’ side, they did the same.

Exploiting the opening Beatrice had created, they sought to end it with one overwhelming strike.

But what happened next was so absurd they could hardly believe their eyes.

The Angel head twisted at an impossible angle with blinding speed, redirecting the beam back toward them in a wide sweep.

To take that attack at such close range...

Everyone present knew exactly what it meant.

There was only one outcome—death.