LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 238
―Whoosh!
Mephist teleported again, unbuttoning his dress shirt sleeves as he spoke.
“It seems your cleric is a healer. How interesting.”
Mephist rolled up his sleeves, magic swirling around his upper arms, vibrating like a saw blade.
“In the futures I observed, the cleric was also a healer. Is it usual for healers to take on such roles? Or is there knowledge I have yet to explore?”
“Talking a lot, aren’t you?”
This is the final battle. I chugged the potion in my hand with the determination to give it my all.
―――――――――――
· Hero’s Potion
· Strength increases to max for 15 minutes.
· There are no consequences for truly great power!
―――――――――――
I fused the [Giant Potion] with a little bit left of the A-Rank [Enhancement] and the [Fairy’s Song].
At the same time, I strengthened my reflexes with the [Thunderhawk Potion].
―――――――――――
Strength: 100 (+70)
Health: 31 / 31
Magic: 1
Mana: 52
Divine Power: 82
Faith: 100
―――――――――――
I pumped my stats to the limit. If this isn’t enough, I’ll think about that then.
I didn’t increase my strength for any particular reason against the wizard Mephist.
Without this much, I could easily cross over to the afterlife in one hit.
Boom! I slammed the ground with my maximum strength. The floor shattered, sending shockwaves.
I closed in on Mephist in an instant, pushing beyond the limits of reflexes for a mere 0.08 seconds. I could hardly perceive where I was, but barely locked my enhanced vision onto my target.
―Whoosh!
Wrapping divine power around my arm, I refined it into the shape of a gauntlet, a warrior’s weapon. Without hesitation, I threw a punch at Mephist’s crimson body.
―Boom!
He blocked my fist with a city-like brute force. The shockwave pushed away Tanya’s aura nearby and whipped up a strong gust.
“You have good eyes, healer.”
Mephist smirked as he flexed his arm. The muscles bulged, contracting as he pushed me back.
Is this my limit even with maxed strength?
Well, I’ve never learned any martial arts.
But I bought some time.
“Hah!”
Behind me, Lishe aimed for the Demon King’s brainstem. He teleported away to avoid it. But—
―Swoosh!
Blood splattered as Mephist’s ear was torn. Thanks to the combo, it was the first damage we dealt.
“Just strike before casting a spell!”
This crude method was our primary way to counteract Mephist’s time stop.
We attack without giving him time to cast.
It’s simple.
“You’re fast. But.”
The Demon King’s arm tensed.
“You’re shallow.”
He approached Lishe again, throwing a punch at her. Crash! Lishe, defending straight on, hit the ground hard. Obsidian shattered, flying around.
“Ugh!”
Ambrosia gaped, unable to follow the unbelievable combination of attacks.
“Where does that power come from? Isn’t the Demon King a wizard?!”
“A wizard without frontlines is weak. If you engage in close combat like now, there’s nothing you can do. It’s a plain fact. Because of that—”
Snap, Mephist unbuttoned his shirt completely.
His intimidating muscles were revealed.
“Self-discipline is inevitable, wouldn’t you say?”
This is what makes him so terrifying. The reason I boosted my strength.
Mephist is a wizard, but even just looking at his strength stat, he’s a master. His martial arts are on another level.
Since he doesn’t use weapons, he can freely switch between magic and martial arts. A tricky opponent with both skills.
‘Well, I never planned to win using brute strength from the start.’
―Whoosh!
Tanya waited where Mephist just teleported. The aura from her sword clashed against his magic, making the space split in all directions.
We place our party members strategically to block his retreat. Lishe, fast in both swordplay and footwork, relentlessly attacked him in a series.
We compensate for lacking stats with party members. We push the advantages of a party play to the extreme.
Thanks to that strategy, we slowly cornered the Demon King. He couldn’t easily cast the time stop, and even if he did, he couldn’t attack us.
Mephist, busy dealing with defenses.
‘It’s about time to unleash our next move.’
I’ve had many long battles with Mephist till now. His countermeasures must be limited.
Lishe can exploit that gap.
“Hah!”
At the moment Lishe’s next strike shot directly at Mephist’s brow—
―Swish!
A chain of light burst through the ground, wrapping around Lishe’s limbs. An incorporeal concept weapon summoned by magic.
Her limb movements began to slow down like a slow-motion video from the point she was captured.
“7th tier, Chains of Torment…!”
Acella recognized instantly what it was. A binding that slows down the target’s time.
“To make me bring this out.”
The Demon King wrapped the chains with magic. He raised his right arm, clenching his fist. Then Boom! The obsidian exterior wall of the Demon King’s castle crumbled, large fragments flew down.
As the Demon King lowered his arm, high-speed fragments shot toward Lishe. The threat was that they could flatten her in a single hit upon direct impact.
“Lishe!”
I signaled her.
Right now.
Mephist would attempt to bury Lishe while time was stopped.
The Demon King started on his instant cast.
Lishe also responded hastily.
The holy sword’s light shone.
*
Lishe, in resonance, could see clearly.
The world frozen by the Demon King’s time stop. She intervened in it.
It became like when she entered the Barrier Stone’s world, with scenery suddenly coming to a halt.
Once bustling party members, dispersed auras, and smoke, all physical laws froze.
Tap, tap. The only being walking leisurely inside, the Demon King.
He leaped, pulling a massive chunk of obsidian toward Lishe.
If this keeps up, when time resumes, Lishe would be hit without a chance to defend herself. She couldn’t escape being bound.
‘He can’t directly touch me, that much is clear.’
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have to fight so clumsily while cast such a powerful spell as time stop.
Lishe kept her eyes perfectly still.
She couldn’t let it be discovered that she infiltrated his domain during resonance.
A little, just a little closer; she waited for the chance.
“Whew.”
Finally, the moment the Demon King brought the rock closer to Lishe’s face.
‘…Ugh.’
Their eyes met.
In an instant, her gaze might have flickered. Lishe identified this as her last chance and moved her feet to leap forward.
―Slash!
A clean trajectory.
During the frozen time, blood did not burst forth.
“Truly, you had a scheme.”
The Demon King calmly stepped back. Little droplets of blood gathered on his right shoulder, floating in mid-air.
She managed to land a hit on one arm.
But she couldn’t take his life. The chains had slowed her down.
As the Demon King injected more magic, Lishe’s body grew heavier. She could barely open her lips, forced to kneel.
“A splendid move. It’s the first time someone has breached my domain. Hero, is that divine being you some variable I failed to calculate?”
The Demon King stroked his chin as he met Lishe’s gaze. After a long look, he shook his head.
“You’re not the one. Not the one who targeted my gap. Then who is?”
The Demon King scanned the area, stepping closer to one individual.
The healer of the hero party.
“How strange. I thought everyone had turned into different individuals, but why does only this one resonate with the frequency of divine power?”
He cast Dispel toward the healer.
“If I think of future troubles, it would be wise to remove this one first. Of course, it’s just a difference in order.”
With magic filling him, he spoke.
“I do not intend to leave any humans on this continent.”
“…Why?”
Lishe barely managed to voice it.
Why, despite having the strong ability to see the future and walking only along successful paths to the top, would he commit such evil acts of waging war to annihilate humanity was the question hidden within.
If his ultimate magic is the goal, surely there could be paths to cooperate and unite.
The Demon King understood her intent clearly.
His reaction, however, showed a rather bemused attitude as if Lishe’s question was puzzling.
“Because I’m of the Demon Race.”
With that succinct answer, Lishe understood.
While speaking words and moving limbs may be similar, the being before her was fundamentally different from a human.
There was no room for dialogue or negotiation from the very start.
“Good answer, you crimson brat.”
―Crack!
A sharp ice spear shot towards the Demon King. He defended with his remaining left arm.
Lishe turned, startled. The world had indeed remained frozen.
Clip, clip. Amidst the smoke, Acella appeared alongside the magic circle.
“I was a fool to briefly mistake you for a wizard.”
Without hesitation, Acella unleashed offensive magic in a flurry. The Demon King, unable to block all attacks, grimaced as one struck his torso.
“Ah, so you do feel pain.”
“This is also fascinating.”
Snap, the Demon King snapped his fingers.
―Boom!
As time flowed again, the falling obsidian crashed magnificently to the ground.
*
To me, it seemed like an explosion had just occurred. But I understood the situation well enough.
‘I couldn’t take his life.’
Lishe didn’t finish the job. Still, one of his arms was severed. I quickly rolled forward to seize the Demon King’s body.
While the Demon King was busy fending off Acella’s attacks, the positions of the two kept shifting.
‘Acella even moves amidst the time stop.’
She deciphered 7th tier magic in an instant, what an astounding ability.
First, rescuing Lishe, who was buried under the obsidian. Tanya and I dug her out.
“Lishe, are you alright?”
“I’m sorry, I couldn’t win.”
“Your injuries are severe. I will heal you while the royal princess buys time.”
After diagnosing, I found fractures at three locations. Not good. First, I administered painkillers, followed by casting a Healing Spell.
Boom! From the front, magic clashed, and shockwaves continued to rattle the area.
‘Even with Valen’s help, Acella alone is struggling.’
I need to heal Lishe and reunite with the others quickly.
However, now that it’s known Lishe can move during the time stop, that trick won’t work again.
With one arm taken off, Mephist is certainly losing combat power, but still formidable.
The moment I aimed for his threatening arm—
―――――――――――
· You have acquired [Demon King’s Blood].
· You have discovered a new combination recipe for [Synthesis].
· Time Rebound Potion = Demon King’s Blood + Atropine
―――――――――――
The means for a turnaround appeared in my status window.