Book Eater

Chapter 228: Great Battle (4)

Kukukung...

The clash between the two masters had ended, but the earth was still crying.

The great magic, Abraxas, and the deadly sword technique, World Break...

The clash of these forces changed the land, leaving a massive crater in the plains. Later generations may come to believe that a meteorite had struck the plains. A dark cloud of dust and smoke covered the charcoal black ground.

There was a shadow moving inside the pit.

“Cough!”

The shadow spat out blood. The pain wasn’t just in his flesh, but had penetrated down to his bones. In retrospect, he may have been too close to the epicenter. But, his skin wasn’t that damaged. It seemed like most of the pain was internal.

A little... No, it is quite difficult.

Theo winced inwardly as he looked at the ruinous damage inside his body. His seven Circles, which normally ran smoothly, were trembling and moving shakily. He was experiencing rebound, the cost of using magic that exceeded his Circles. And Abraxas certainly far exceeded the standard of seven Circles.

He had used a lot more magic power than when he had fought Hyde. Abraxas was a spell he could only use without consequences after reaching the 8th Circle. It had been reckless, but it had been the only card he could play.

Still, he won, so it wasn’t the wrong choice.

“This is absurd. How long will it take to get out of here?”

As the dizziness wore off, Theo glanced around him. He was surrounded by the crater’s walls, and the cloud of dust was blocking the sun.

“My body is a mess, and it will take several months to recover.”

He could also feel several lacerations and torn muscles from the explosion. Simple recovery magic didn’t seem to be having any effect on them either. If he relaxed, he would definitely pass out.

However, Theo couldn’t faint yet. It was too risky until he confirmed the death of his enemy, Pan Helliones. Fortunately, Pan Helliones was nearby.

“... Come… here.”

“......”

Theo might be injured, but he was barely scratched compared to Pan Helliones.

A swordmaster’s body was closer to an adamantium golem than a human. They were monsters that could survive an enemy’s magic with just their pure aura defense. Nevertheless, Pan Helliones was horrifically wounded.

His legs had disappeared, leaving a gaping wound from the stomach down. His right arm had been torn off at the elbow, and his left arm was filled with the shards of his greatsword. His armor, which had been made by the emperor’s own master craftsmen, was nothing but torn strips over his body.

He had also suffered massive burns all over his body, and blood flowed from every single orifice on his face.

“Great, ha... h,” Pan Helliones gasped for breath as he spoke words of praise, “My power… crushed... front... ally. This... qua... lity, I don’t know...”

“What do you mean by that?” Theo clicked his tongue, despite the pain. “Are you saying that you can’t acknowledge a young man? Didn’t you get smashed by my technique?”

“T-That...”

“No, that’s okay. There is no point asking you since you are having trouble breathing.”

Blunt as he was, Theo had hit the mark. Pan Helliones was only a few moments away from death, so it wouldn’t be strange if he stopped breathing. Therefore, Theo asked about something that he hadn’t been able to erase from his mind throughout the fight.

“Why did you lie?”

“... Hmm?”

“About Randolph’s sister, Rebecca.”

Theo hadn’t figured it out at first. He had been too occupied with surviving. It had only occurred to him when he was preparing Abraxas. His insight had been supplemented by the two divinities, and he realized that Pan Helliones wasn’t the type of person who would do such a thing.

“Senses, good.”

However, his confidence stirred the last bit of life inside the dying man. In the East, it was called the dying flash, a last moment of lucidity before death.

Pan Helliones’ breathing steadied briefly as he looked up at the distant sky with blurred eyes and muttered quietly, “Rebecca is a brilliant disciple. It would be a shame to kill her because of such a thing. The authenticity of the statement didn’t matter, as long as Sir Clovis departed.”

“You always planned on a duel?”

“Correct. It was true that I engineered this situation to kill you. But I was defeated and you won-” Pan Helliones hesitated for a moment before speaking again, “And because I can’t see the future of the empire.”

“The future?” Theo asked reflexively. “What do you mean?”

“... Time’s up.” Pan Helliones didn’t explain as he changed the subject. “I gave my sword and life to the Empire, and this is the only thing I can teach the winner. Next time, you should acknowledge your own power.”

Theo looked curiously at him. “Why are you telling me this?”

“Think of it as a final grudge. It was a good fight, but... the taste of defeat is still bitter. In the end, I don’t want to lose to someone too weak.”

His body was gradually giving up on life, and he had no more time to speak to Theo. It was the last will of a dying person, but Theo couldn’t help feeling strange hearing it.

Pan Helliones’ breathing slowed, and stopped, along with his heart. Theo silently watched as Pan Helliones’ soul escaped his body, marking the death of the Empire’s 4th Sword.

... He couldn’t see the future of the empire?

Theo didn’t bask in the glow of victory as he pondered. It was a pessimistic comment coming from one of the Empire’s Seven Swords.

Was something going on inside Andras? He would have appreciated a little more information, but even the White Tower’ spies found it hard to penetrate the deepest part of the Andras Empire. It wasn’t something Theo could investigate alone.

“Ugh, is it hurting more because I finally relaxed?”

His body renewed its complaints now that he had confirmed his enemy’s death. He hurriedly drank a potion from his Inventory, but he couldn’t reverse the burden on his Circles and mind. It was a wound which could only be healed with time. As he fought the pain, Theo realized he needed to avoid fighting for a little bit. Thankfully, there were no enemies around.

Indeed, it wouldn’t be easy to approach this horrible scene.

In fact, anyone who would approach him probably wouldn’t be ordinary. Theo managed to drag himself to the edge of the crater before completely giving up. His head hurt as all his power drained out of him.

As his vision darkened, he saw a man and a woman with blonde hair approaching him.

“……!”

“………!”

I’ll leave the rest to you, Randolph.

***

The battle of Babarino Plains ended exactly half a day after it had started. It was fairly short for the largest battle in the civil war, but it had involved the most people on either side.

Naturally, Prince Elsid claimed victory. The paladin had been restrained, and Marquis Fergana had fled and was unfit for further battle. Duke Cornwall had also fled quickly once the tables turned.

“Capture Duke Cornwall and the other leaders! Arrest the soldiers and send the result of this battle to every estate in this country!”

The news spread faster than any messenger. Elsid’s victory spread quickly throughout Soldun Kingdom, causing the nobles to frantically calculate how to react. The duke had lost his fifty thousand strong army, so there was no longer a chance of victory for him. In other words, Prince Elsid’s victory was confirmed. The small nobles watching the battle were forced to start moving, and they could only think of one method to get on the prince’s good side.

“There is no future for the noble faction. Let’s capture Duke Cornwall for Prince Elsid.”

“The Cornwall Duchy still has ten thousand left...”

“Isn’t it okay if we capture him before he gets there?”

“Prepare an encirclement. Do it now!”

Yesterday's enemy was today’s friend, and today’s friend might become tomorrow’s enemy. Duke Cornwall may have been at the top of the world a day ago, but now he was public enemy #1. In fact, many people were secretly enjoying his downfall.

The seven small nobles within the influence of the Cornwall Duchy moved their troops and established an airtight perimeter around the duchy. It only took a week for the rebel leader, Duke Cornwall, to be captured and escorted to the capital. In some sense, it may have been better for him to have died on the battlefield.

Marquis Fergana had surrendered without any resistance, and once the news of Duke Cornwall’s capture was made public, the rest of the noble faction surrendered themselves.

At that moment, Elsid’s Civil War ended. However, there weren’t many people who knew the hurdles Meltor had faced during this brief war. It was a much tougher battle than the conflict between the crown prince and the duke.

As for the fact that Theodore Miller had won against one of the empire’s Seven Swords...

It took time for hidden history to be revealed.