Read Novel Full Vol 13 Chapter 5 Part 8
Vol 13 Chapter 5 Part 8
Here’s the chapter. Enjoy~
ED: LonelyMatter
Part 8
She got stronger.
She really got strong.
That’s what Meteor thought as she watched Liz overwhelm the Five Great Heavenly Kings.
It was deeply moving to see the girl who had cried since they first met growing up.
She never cried in public.
But as Cerberus, she had seen her cry in secret more than once or twice.
She had lost her mother in the palace massacre and was isolated in the palace with no one to support her.
Still, she was stouthearted and looked forward with her chest out without shedding a tear.
But the adults did not like her and tormented her.
The adults, the nobles who were supposed to be gentlemen, were all over the little girl, cursing her and trying to break her heart.
Liz never cried in public, no matter how painful it must have been for the little girl.
She would always hide in a corner of her room, clutching her knees and weeping loudly.
There was nothing Meteor could do.
She could not comfort her, save her, or even hold her.
All she could do was watch as Liz tried desperately to hold on and cursed herself for being a white wolf.
But Liz grew up without changing.
She held no grudge against her tormentors, and she continued to try to act happy.
But Meteor realized that her defense mechanism was working to keep her heart from breaking.
By smiling and acting cheerful, she was patching up the broken pieces of her heart.
“But when she met Hiro, she changed her mind.”
It may have started with her admiration for the God of War.
But after meeting Hiro and being guided by him, she gradually changed.
There had never been a boy who could talk to her from the same perspective without consideration.
And there was no way any boy would be willing to give up his life for Liz.
It was only natural for her to fall in love with him.
She had been saved many times, rescued many times, and smiled many times.
It would be impossible not to fall in love with him.
“That’s why I can’t forgive him.”
One day, Hiro suddenly disappeared from Liz’s life.
Without leaving a word and under a false identity, Hiro disappeared into the darkness.
The girl began to cry again.
As much as her heart had grown, the memory never faded, and she must have been deeply hurt.
“I… hate you for making Liz-sama cry.”
It was exciting to see the Five Great Heavenly Kings being beaten.
She wished he had been beaten more, but no one complained.
She should have told him more about how much it hurt her and how much she cried.
Hiro doesn’t understand even if you tell him in words.
He was also one of those who were deeply hurt. Thoughts cannot reach a man with such a closed heart.
No matter how much you shout, he won’t even turn his head.
So he should be beaten more. Then he will understand.
Throw him into a tidal wave of guilt for what he has done.
No one will turn around if you just wait―if you just talk to them behind their backs.
You have to tell them that you exist and turn them around because only then will the words reach them.
“Liz-sama, please do your best.
No one will stand in her way.
Meteor killed all the monsters around her.
“Soldiers of Grantz! Protect Liz-sama, and don’t let any of the monsters get through!”
The white wolf ran.
Faster than anyone else, sharper than anyone else, she pushed herself to the limit as she ran across the battlefield.
Meteor roared to fulfill her master’s wishes.
＊＊＊＊＊
“I’m not prepared enough.”
Said the twin-black boy, Hiro Oguro.
He threw a cold blade of words at the red-haired woman standing in front of him as if to shun her.
“You’re not ready to kill me.”
Liz’s shoulders shook. Her face was etched with bitterness as if he hit the mark.
Even Hiro knew what she was thinking.
The feeling was so warm and pleasant that it made him feel affection towards her.
But he could not make it happen.
It was meaningless.
Because if Hiro didn’t die――,
――Liz would die.
That was something he could not let happen. It was something that had to be prevented.
That was why he had come so far.
He had betrayed his friends, even the gods, and killed so many people with his own hands.
His hands had become so red that there was no turning back now.
“I guess I wasn’t prepared for this either…”
The boy looked up to the sky, all emotion gone from his face.
He looked down again, emptiness dominating his eyes.
“Do you know despair?”
A single sentence.
With that single sentence, the clouds in the sky tore and swirled.
The sky turned black, and the world closed in on itself in darkness.
The ground began to tremble with fear, and soon, it rumbled like a scream.
A torrent of immense power―the majesty emanating from the boy―twisted and turned friend and foe alike.
“Weep for pessimism, shed tears of disappointment, and enjoy despair.”
The ground collapsed around them, spewing vast amounts of sand through the cracks.
The space crumbled unbearably, and deep black darkness poured out of the perforations like mud.
Desperation poured down from the sky, and each time it collided with the ground, it shattered into pieces and scattered across the battlefield.
“Eat the souls of the dead Dark Emperor.”
Every sound in the world is absorbed by the darkness, and people are not even allowed to speak.
Silence pervaded the earth as if the concept of sound never existed in the first place.
Courage, spirit, and determination are all destroyed by fear.
Only one thing remained: despair.
“My name is―The Black Dragon King.”
The sense of oppression swelled even more, and the people around them fell to their knees as if hanging their heads.
There was no way to escape the tyranny of despair.
In the midst of everyone’s fear, Hiro held the Dark Emperor horizontally.
“He is the one who invites all life equally into the void.”
――Fear of death.
Time has completely stopped―no, only people’s hearts continue to beat, believing in hope.
All living things around them feared the ticking of time.
Without exception, friend or foe, horse, insect, even grass, all uniformly stop moving.
They hide to catch their breath, lest they be targeted by predators, lest they be cut down by the reaper.
“Let us draw the curtain on the final war.”
Like a god descending from the heavens, Hiro sentenced all to death.
――The Dark Mirror of Corpse Water
A blackness darker than darkness peeks from the sky.
A jet-black jaw is revealed and falls into the world as if to spit out a curse.
＊＊＊＊＊
Desperation fell from the sky.
Liz looked up at the creepy dragon but quickly regained her composure and looked around.
“Run! Run as far away as you can!”
Liz’s voice brought the stunned soldiers back to their senses as they fell to their knees on the ground.
“Don’t give up! There is still time!”
Liz looked away from the stunned soldiers who had begun to flee and looked at Meteor, who continued to fight the monster.
“Meteor! Hold off the monsters as long as you can, and let the soldiers go!”
“What about you, Liz-sama?”
“I…”
Liz looked at the sky again and prepared the Flame Emperor.
“I’ll stop it.”
“It’s impossible――”
Meteor’s hand came up to Liz’s back, trying to stop her.
But she stopped in her tracks, and after opening and closing her mouth a few times, she turned on her heel.
“…..All right. I’ll see you later.”
Meteor agreed.
She must have realized that there was no point in trying to stop her.
She must have felt the heat of the fire burning inside her.
If so, it would only slow her down. Meteor, sensing this, began to lead the evacuation of the Grantz soldiers while slaughtering the monsters.
“Thank you.”
A small whispered word of thanks was carried away by the hot wind.
Liz inhaled and exhaled slowly as if to calm her mind.
The red flame she was wearing changed to a blue flame.
“You―Do you know your destiny?”
The calm tone of her voice, her powerful words, brought a spring breeze to the ground.
A beam of light rose from the ground, piercing the sky that had been shrouded in darkness.
With a violent rumbling of the ground, the pillar of light thrusting into the sky continued to grow from the torn ground.
An immense torrent of power rushed through the sky and over the ground like a flowing river.
“Weep for optimism, weep for favor, sublimate happiness.”
Grass and flowers begin to flood the ground with soft light.
A sweet scent began to dominate the air, and the breath was filled with a refreshing coolness that cleansed the heart.
Small animals emerged from their burrows; the withered grass regained its green and new life sprouts.
Spring came to the world out of season.
There was no conflict, no strife, no slander. Only wonders swept the land.
In the midst of attack and defense, a new world was being rebuilt as light and darkness consumed each other.
“I will destroy them.”
A solemn yet feral voice spilled from Liz’s lips.
Waves of vibration traveled through the air, space compressed and cracked, and dignity danced wildly in the interesting resonance.
Her voice was pure and beautiful, but her demonic appearance, mixed with a flirtatious charm, exuded an immense divine authority.
“Blossom in full glory――Flame Emperor.”
The Flame Emperor vanished from Liz’s hand, and the world was filled with a great heat of red and blue.
The sun appeared on the ground, and the flames of the fire rippled through the air, filling the entire area.
The beautiful nature was burned up by the eternal fire without a trace.
There was not the slightest trace of the gentleness that existed before. A tyrannical heat wave spread throughout the world.
――Full Bloom
The world was transformed.
No, there was only one woman who was allowed to rule the world.
Every living thing in the world around her was drawn to the sun.
All living things, friend and foe alike, horses, insects, and even the grass, envied her.
――The sun rose.
The ring of fire from the roadless that filled the ground changed its target to the darkness that had taken its place.
A mass of flame shot skyward, roaring like a lion, toward the dragon born of darkness.
Darkness engulfs light, light cuts through darkness, and black and red collide violently, refusing to yield.
The impact shook the ground, mowing down grass and trees and tearing up the ground,
――The world was enveloped in light.
＊＊＊＊＊
The next thing he knew, he was looking up at the sky.
The sky was azure as if the darkness that had reigned until a few moments earlier had lied.
Coughing, Hiro shifted his center of gravity and slumped over, feeling intense heartburn. He tried to stand up and put strength into his arms, but it did not work. When he looked down at his legs, he saw that he had lost his right knee and beyond.
He could smell the burning flesh and immediately realized what had caused the injury.
However, with an injury of this magnitude, there was no problem.
The right leg was immediately restored by super-speed regeneration. Hiro stood up, but as if suffering from anemia, he immediately dropped to one knee. The accumulated impact still seems to be eating away at the body, even though it has recovered.
“…..I never thought it would be canceled out―or perhaps I was pushed too far.”
The body covered in wounds told the story.
Above all―if he looked at the situation around him, it’s obvious.
The only things lying on the desolate ground were burnt and scorched monsters.
Most of the Grantz soldiers were standing there in a daze as if they had not grasped the situation. Under their feet, blue flames were drawing a line like a border.
The Grantz soldiers were sure that Liz had protected them.
A sigh of admiration escaped Hiro’s mouth.
The fact that she could afford to save others in that situation―however, Hiro was not surprised.
“It was a feat that Altius could have pulled off as well.”
There was no reason why Altius, who also possessed the Flame Emperor, could do it and Liz couldn’t.
It was natural that she could do it, but it was wrong that she shouldn’t be able to do it.
Footsteps were delivered to Hiro’s ears through the gap between such thoughts.
He turned his gaze in that direction and saw an uninjured Liz walking up to him.
Her dignified, even composed appearance must be nothing but a terror to her prey.
Hiro smiled and waited for her with his Dark Emperor ready and waiting. The red sword, running through the ground, stitched the air as it approached. He caught the red sword as it swung down and bounced it back, then turned around and elbowed her. When the attack was caught by Liz with one hand, he went to sweep her off her feet.
But she left a trail of footprints on the ground and leaped―Liz’s foot hit Hiro directly in the chest, and the impact pierced his gut.
“I’ll bring you back.”
Clenching her fist, Liz swung a powerful blow at Hiro’s face as he bent his body into a crouch. As Hiro fell to the ground, Liz grabbed him by the chest and lifted him up with her mighty strength, then turned a cold stare at him.
“I’ve had enough of this.”
“…It might be enough for you.”
Hiro forced Liz’s hand away and jumped backward to create distance.
Liz was trying to save him.
It would be suicide to remove the Five Great Heavenly Kings from Hiro’s body.
It was more clear than fire that the freed Five Great Heavenly Kings would once again toy with the world.
People would once again be thrown into the depths of despair.
Of course, the “curse” on Liz will be forever unbreakable.
Liz, like the first princess shrine maiden, would become ill and pass away at a young age.
Her body, which had lost its soul, was reused by the Spirit King, who raged and destroyed everything Liz held dear.
“A thousand years ago, I didn’t want to be a hero.”
He only wanted to save the first princess shrine maiden, Rei and was purely pursuing power.
However, too much power sometimes brings about cheers, and before he knew it, he was being feted as a hero.
“I didn’t want to be the hero that everyone worshiped.”
The more battles he won, the more people became enthusiastic.
They praised him, and they had their own expectations of him.
No matter how much he shouted that he was not qualified to be a hero, Hiro’s name spread on its own.
“It would have been enough if I could have cured her illness.”
Fame attracts the powerful.
Still, he was not intimidated nor defeated and continued to defeat any worthy opponents that came his way.
Awe invites more enemies.
Once they realized that they could not win head-on, they began to use the lure of the enemy.
Malice, murder, and resentment were directed at those around him, at those he cared about.
“This time… I want to save you.”
He got the power he wanted, but he couldn’t save anyone.
And yet, people continued to hail him as a hero.
They kept saying kind words to him, telling him not to worry, that it wasn’t his fault.
So they selfishly told him to keep fighting and put a sword in his hand.
People continued to drive him to the battlefield, a hero who could only take lives and protect no one.
“I don’t want to lose anymore.”
He couldn’t keep one of his promises, and the person he really wanted to protect died in his arms.
Even his brother-in-law, who had stood by his side for so long, was avenged by taking the Heavenly Emperor away from him.
The story should have ended a thousand years ago.
If the world had been left to the exceptional genius Altius, the world would not have stagnated like this.
Even after a thousand years, there was no need for the red-haired girl to lead a hard life.
If Hiro had not distorted the future, Liz would not have lost her mother.
She would have been blessed with a good husband, had children, built a happy family, and lived out her natural life.
She is the red-haired princess who inherited the blood of Altius and the soul of Rei.
She must atone. She must protect. Must fulfill the promise.
So, Hiro decided to unite all.
He concentrated the “core” of the Five Great Heavenly Kings into himself, neutralized the World’s Five Greatest Treasured Swords, and destroyed the “curse.”
“…Please let it end with your own hands.”
Hiro put on a fierce smile and made a wish to the red-haired woman.
――Will you please kill me?