Dark Fantasy: Super Coward Mode

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Kang!

The sword swung honestly clashed against Ephemiya’s arm, making a loud noise.

In an instant, she had wrapped her arm in ice to block my attack.

Even while writhing in pain, I was taken aback by how swiftly she countered my strike.

Despite the interrogator’s power reducing a fist-sized red mist, people said they felt like their bodies could be flung away.

That size alone could significantly affect a person.

However, the magnitude of pain within Ephemiya was only proportional to her own size.

Just touching this pain could lead to a mental breakdown for an ordinary human.

Yet, she still moved gracefully.

Even now, she exuded a murderous intent so stinging it felt like it could kill me instantly.

And this was supposedly her weakened state?

The interrogator’s power.

Zumiya’s dragon.

I shuddered at the thought of having stumbled upon a boon to aid in this final showdown, then I deflected my sword.

Using the recoil to step back, Ephemiya aimed her wobbling arm straight at me.

About ten shards of ice surged forth.

Taking a breath, I pulled out the dragon’s wings.

Had I been flying for too long? The power to spread my wings felt rather weak.

Zumiya’s gift must mean that not much was left for me now.

Once these wings vanished, it would signify my last chance.

Paaah!

By kicking off the ground, I added propulsion to my wings.

As I sped forward, I pushed my kinetic vision to the limit, calculating the trajectory of the ice.

A single miscalculation could result in me being frozen solid.

But.

The training of the White Mask.

Oko’s blessing.

The interrogator’s power.

All of these combined made even the most impossible situations become doable.

I took another deep breath, focusing my energy into my sight and arm muscles as I moved.

My arms, moving fluidly, quickly shattered all ten shards of ice, and I was close to where Ephemiya stood again.

Kang!

With my propelled attack, Ephemiya’s body was shoved backwards.

Just before her legs could be caught by the throne, her expression morphed into one of rage over being pushed back.

“What are you, exactly?”

“Princess, it’s okay now. Please calm your anger and let me….”

“Calm my anger?”

Ephemiya had previously donned a merely annoyed expression.

But upon hearing the word ‘anger,’ her face twisted into something even more grotesque.

“Who are you to judge my anger!!!”

“Kraakh!”

Ephemiya unleashed a scream that was almost like a shriek, swinging her arm.

The force sent me flying back, nearly crashing against the wall.

I quickly used the dragon’s wings to halt just before making contact with the wall.

Damn it.

I spent quite a bit of the remaining energy from my wings protecting myself.

“Don’t speak carelessly when you can’t even comprehend my situation.”

Ephemiya approached me with a face twisted in fury.

I swiftly raised my sword.

It was a matter of mere seconds.

I barely avoided having my skull punctured by her sharp claws.

“Humans of the Empire and the divine race alike, they’re all the same.”

It was obvious I couldn’t win through strength, so I quickly twisted away to evade.

Her sharp ice claws embedded themselves into the ground.

Despite being lodged in deeply, Ephemiya effortlessly pulled them out and jumped towards me.

“Everyone always says I’m the bad one. They say I froze the world and am referred to as the Giant of the Snow Mountain. I’m a being that deserves to be cursed. I’ve been the one enduring all this so far.”

While she recited her words monotonously, I hurriedly moved my sword to block her rapidly striking attacks.

As expected, she seemed to possess enough divine prowess to absorb 4 Supreme powers.

Even while experiencing excruciating pain, her physical capabilities were extraordinary.

“My mother banished me from the start. My father neglected me as well. Have you ever endured that pain?”

“Princess, please calm down!”

“Don’t pretend you know anything and try to teach me with your insignificant sense of justice!”

I twisted my whole body to block her attacks as best as I could, but ultimately, I took a hit.

“Ugh!”

As I was sent flying back, Oko caught me.

Thinking I was incapacitated, Ephemiya charged straight for Selvia.

“Selvia, you speak!”

“Ephemiya….”

“You didn’t care about me either. You abandoned me too, didn’t you? And now you have something to say to me?”

Ephemiya grabbed Selvia by the neck and lifted her.

The power that granted life to Selvia fiercely clashed with Ephemiya’s ability to drain warmth.

“Selvia, you are a hypocrite. You didn’t come here for me, you only came to gain trust from the humans of the Empire. Once you pull it off, you will brag about it as if you achieved something big.”

“That’s not… Ephemiya….”

“Such creatures would be better off not existing. Selfish beings who only harm others while expecting love in return… They should be eradicated.”

With those words, Ephemiya gripped tighter.

Despite Selvia being nearly invincible physically, her face was growing paler under Ephemiya’s power.

“Oko, thank you.”

“Laydan….”

After thanking Oko, I slowly approached Ephemiya.

If left as is, Selvia truly risked death.

I couldn’t allow that.

“So, what did you intend to do, Princess?”

I tossed out a casual remark, and Ephemiya replied dryly.

“I told you, if you don’t understand, just get lost.”

“Is that truly what you wanted, to act like this?”

“Don’t speak out of turn with your meager knowledge!”

“Then why haven’t you ended a human’s life with your own hands?”

Interrupting Ephemiya’s words of rage, I immediately got to the crux of the matter.

Her facial muscles froze in response to my words.

“If you despise humans so much and loathe the divine race that abandoned you, shouldn’t you just annihilate all of them with your own hands?”

“…That’s because I wanted to see you all suffer a slow death….”

“Is that really the reason?”

I could feel her malice intensifying.

It felt like my legs could give out at any moment, but I held on with sheer willpower.

“If you want to see us suffer a slow death, those humans frozen solid right in front of you can’t explain that. You’re merely leaving their lives intact while siphoning off their warmth!”

“…!”

Ephemiya’s face momentarily filled with shock.

It was as if she couldn’t believe how I knew that.

“The Knight Commander has returned safely. And she testified to us.”

“…No, don’t make wild assumptions like that.”

“You just wanted to relieve your anger. You were secretly hoping someone would come and stop you, and that someone would understand you, right?”

“Shut up!!!!”

Eventually, Ephemiya tossed Selvia aside and lunged at me.

I could hear Selvia gasping for breath.

Fortunately, it seemed her life was not in danger.

My body moved instantly.

I blocked Ephemiya’s attack.

To ensure a definitive end, my sword began to freeze.

It seemed she was attempting to sap my heat away.

Quickly, I deflected Ephemiya and directed all the dragon’s particles back to enhance my physical abilities.

I felt the dragon’s wings connected to the bone in my back vanish.

At the same time, I felt my body grow significantly lighter.

One last minute.

I had to decide things within that time.

“Laydan!”

Oko seemed to think it was a reckless choice.

But it was certainly not a spur-of-the-moment decision.

It was all part of my plan.

Kang!

I charged at her first.

Ephemiya let out a slight sound of surprise at my much faster speed.

But I didn’t stop.

I needed to move as fast as possible to tire her out.

After all, given her demigod nature, there had to be a limit.

Kang!

Deliberately moving chaotically left and right, I swung my sword at her.

I aimed to avoid seriously injuring her.

I targeted only her joints.

Only in that manner could I hope to use Demeter’s power for healing later.

“Ahhh!”

Ephemiya screeched in frustration as she caught one of my arms.

“Ggh!”

An unbearable heat surged through the part she grabbed.

Despite Oko’s blessing, the area she intervened with seemed to lose its warmth.

The moment I noticed it starting to freeze instantly, I compressed her pain even further using the interrogator’s powers.

“Chok…!”

It seemed she couldn’t even scream, as she held her head, releasing my grip.

I steadied my ragged breath.

One arm was completely frozen, making it impossible to move properly.

But.

I could still do something.

Now, it truly felt like it was time to end this, so I wasn’t concerned about my state.

I moved my legs.

My energy felt like it was seeping away as my limits approached.

Yet I still ran one last time.

Ephemiya belatedly noticed me and reached out with her hand.

I ducked to evade her touch.

And then.

Screech.

“Ah!”

Finally, I succeeded in slicing through her Achilles’ tendon, leaving her completely immobile and collapsing to the floor.

I looked at Ephemiya’s face.

Her eyes were trembling.

It was evident.

Those were eyes filled with the horror of death.

Feeling like the power of the dragon had fled, my body screamed of its limits.

But I couldn’t stop moving.

“Laydan! No!”

Selvia screamed as she tried to come closer to me.

It seemed she thought I was going to kill her.

Thanks to her actions, Ephemiya’s expression sank deeper into despair.

I raised my sword.

As I watched Ephemiya clench her eyes shut tightly.

I tossed the sword aside.

As she flinched at the sound of it falling, trying to look at me.

I embraced her.

 

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