Kuro no Maou

I didn’t get any fatal wounds nor did any of my limbs get blown off. No physical defects either. I can move my body somewhat.

“Guh, uu......”

Inside the dense cloud of black smoke, I stood back up by putting power in my creaking body.

Since the dust had yet to settle, my vision is still blocked but I can ascertain atleast my own looks.

Fuck. My [Baphomet’s Embrace] has completely disappeared.

Right now I only have a black shirt with no enchantments whatsoever and my leather trousers. My outfit is no different from a normal villager right now.

In this one attack, my black robe took more damage that it could handle and turned to ashes.

“Thanks, for being with me till now.”

After founding it in that treasure box at Lily’s hut, it was my partner that had been with me for the past 3 months so I decided to send it off with a word of gratitude.

Fulfilling its job as my defence till the very last moment, if I did not have my [Baphomet’s Embrace], I would have died there.

“So.....how did it go?”

Although slightly burned, I stood back up to my feet and looked forward.

The cloud of dust began to disperse with the blowing winds and my visibility became clearer.

I had been blown away quite a lot of distance due to the explosion’s shock waves. Now then, what happened to the 8th Apostle Ai who was at the centre of that explosion——

“......What the hell is that?”

As the black smoke finally settled, I could see the 100m crater that was a proof of the immense explosive force of that magic.

I was also inside it and there was nothing to block me from seeing directly towards the centre of that crater.

And, I definitely saw a lump of something black there.

“Is that a monster?”

As I went a little closer, that black lump, no, that black object that was burnt completely was apparently something like that of a lion.

Since it was in a crouching like position, I couldn’t make out its actual size but it seems bigger than atleast 10m in size.

What the hell is that thing? What happened to Ai? Is that monster Ai herself?

As I considered various possibilities, I took out my [HaraRetsu] just in case and took a stance.

“Kurono! Are you alright!!?”(lily)

And from the outer side of the crater, Lily’s shouting voice came towards me.

Since I can’t hear Fiona, she must have already collapsed due to over use of magical energy.

“I’m fine and still alive!”(kurono)

Lily, who was still in her girl form, appeared. She seemed somewhat sooty, probably because she used her Oracle Field to protect me and was unable to defend herself.

As Lily ran towards me, at that moment, I saw the mouth of that black monster slightly move.

“It’s still alive!?!”

It was exactly meant as a normal question but,

“—-yeah, that was really dangerous.”

I actually got an answer.

“If Tsumiki-chan hadn’t covered me, I would have really died.”

The mouth of the fallen monster suddenly opened up.

From behind those ferocious looking fangs, a single girl appeared.

“I was really surprised. This is the first time someone actually jammed my sealing item.”

With an amused smile, as if nothing major had happened, the 8th Apostle once again stood in front of me.

There were no wounds on her body from the flames. She was pretty much the same when we started.

The only change was that her twintails had now fallen to a normal straight hairstyle.

That means, her seals had been completely removed.

“Kuh, are you kidding........”

The distance between us was around 10m, yet her dense magical energy’s presence was stabbing into my body.

All of her seals now removed, her silver aura was now much thicker and I could even feel some sort of invisible, indescribable pressure as well.

This bad. The fact that we weren’t able to take her down with [Golden Sun – Aur Soleil] was already bad but now that we’ve made an Apostle go fully serious, it has become even worse.

“Run Kurono!”

Just as Lily’s voice resounded, numerous balls of light passed by me and flew towards Ai.

I can’t just wait and watch here dumbfounded. For the time being, I began to retreat backwards to take as much distance I could from her.

But the moment I took the first step, Ai took a stance with her worn out bow with a speed that could not be seen by human eyes.

“I won’t let you run away. I’ll end it with this single shot—-“

The balls of light used by Lily approached Ai with high speed. In just the next second, they’ll reach and explode.

But in that instant, Ai fired the arrow that had been formed who knows when.

“—[Lux Sagitta] enchant [Ether].”

The arrow fired was the same as the ones she had fired before, or so I thought but, the light around the arrow became blurred, no, it was as if the space around the arrow itself was getting distorted, and I couldn’t see it properly.

The [Lux Sagitta] fired with a weird effect was fired, and at the same time her wooden bow also broke.

It was unable to bear the force of the arrow being fired, probably it was actually as worn out as it looked.

As I thought that, finally, the balls of light fired by Lily hit.

While raising huge flashes and clouds of dust, I confirmed Ai standing in the same pose in which she had fired the arrow.

Considering the strength of an Apostle, I doubt she had taken much damage but right now, rather than that, I’m more worried about that arrow she had fired.

“Kuh, her aim is Lily!?”

The [Lux Sagitta] went around me and flew towards Lily who was behind me.

The arrow is blurry and I can’t really see it properly but its speed itself isn’t very high. I can clearly track it with my eyes.

“Such a slow attack—-“(lily)

Lily fired several balls of light to intercept the arrow fired towards her.

A single arrow in itself was a very small target but Lily’s attacks that possessed high tracking ability could definitely hit an object that flying directly straight towards her.

As balls of light hit the approaching object one by one, small flashes and explosions were created.

But,

“—-No way! Even though it’s just a low level magic!!”(lily)

[Lux Sagitta] which was supposed to be just a low level attack magic was continuing on its path without any deviation even in the face of Lily’s attacks.

“Dodge it Lily! That attack is dangerous!!”(Kurono)

Ai hadn’t fired a normal [Lux Sagitta], I certainly heard her enchant it with ‘something’ called [Ether].

“!?!”

The moment Lily began to take evasive manoeuvres, as if realizing that, the light arrow began accelerating.

Furthermore, it even made a sharp turn to correct its trajectory towards the direction where Lily flew.

“It has Auto tracking ability as well!?”

This speed, manoeuvring ability; evading was impossible.

The only method left to Lily was,

“Oracle Field Max Power!!”

To defend.

*ZUDODODODOO!!*

“Lily!!?”

An explosion that was impossible for a normal [Lux Sagitta] occurred.

With a bright flash and waves of destruction, I saw Lily’s small body being blown away.

No way, could it be that Lily was—–no, calm down. She had all her limbs, and she didn’t seem to bleeding too much either.

Her [Oracle Field] might have been broken but the Ancient Velvet dress around her body should have protected her.

Lily, who had been blown away, crashed on the ground and finally stopped.

There were no responses from her, it could be that she had fainted from the shock.

“It’s not the time to be worrying about your Fairy-chan you know? My attack hasn’t ended yet.”

I soon realized the meaning behind Ai’s words as I looked above for a second.

“Wha—-“

There, the [Lux Sagitta] that had attacked Lily was now coming towards me while in its same blurred form.

So it didn’t end with the explosion that took out Lily. It seems she really intends to end this in a ‘single attack’.”

“Fuck, Magic Bullet Arts!!”

Holding the baton in my left hand, I fired a storm of magic bullets to intercept that light arrow.

But, as expected there was no effect, and no matter how many bullets hit it, the arrow kept on flying towards me like a missile that had locked-on to its target.

While retreating with max speed, I kept on firing the magic bullets but the distance kept on getting smaller.

It was impossible to evade but can I even get out of this attack alive? It had broken through even Lily’s [Oracle Field] easily, my defensive magic was—–no, don’t give up yet, I have no choice but to do it!!

“Oooooooo, Black Shield!!”

Holding the baton in front, I deployed my shield with maximum solidity.

I waited for the impact of the approaching [Lux Sagitta] while bracing my legs and standing firm there.

*GIYARIRIRI—–*

Raising a shrilling, uncanny sound, the point of the arrow was being stopped by my black shield.

There was an impact but it didn’t explode and like a drill trying to punch open a hole in a wall, the arrow continued to dig into the black shield.

Soon, the arrow broke through the shield as if it was obvious and continued on its path.

The moment my baton [Black Ballista Replica], which was still held in my hand that I had raised in front, came into contact with the ‘distortion’ of the arrow, it was instantly pulverised and smashed to pieces till the grip portion.

I felt as if I saw each and every splinter of my broken baton fly off in slow motion.

The arrow approached, I had no way of blocking it. What was next was my face, to be exact, it approached towards my eye that gave me my vision to see things.

“Kuhh!!”

Whether it was a reflex or was it done consciously, in that small moment, my right hand moved.

In front of me and the arrow, a black wall, no, the black blade of [HaraRetsu] was put in between and it acted as my very last defence.

*GIYARIRI—-*

The same sound I had heard just a second ago. The arrow kept on pushing on, even when blocked by the blade of the cursed weapon as if not allowing anything to block its path.

It started shaving off, first the coating of black magical energy on the blade. It didn’t even last 0.2 seconds.

It continued, next was the blade that held the curse.

[HaraRestu] was a cursed weapon, that means it was also a magic weapon. The blade’s hardness that possessed magical energy was so high that it was incomparable to normal steel.

But, even so, it,

*BAGINN!!*

Was unable to stop this arrow!

“——“

The black blade that possessed the curse of both love and hate was pierced through by the arrow of light.

This time, finally, there was nothing left to me save me any longer.

It couldn’t be stopped. There was simply no way of stopping it.

That’s why, I could only watch, with this left eye of mine, as the arrow approached it and pierced through it.

*DOZUU*

“GAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!”

The light plunged into my left eye.

It completely pierced through my eyeball. It hurts, I feel intense pain, but—–it’s not something I can’t tolerate! I haven’t died yet!!

“Ah, Aaaa.....”

The arrow pierced straight into my left eye and stopped there.

Since I can still sense things, it probably didn’t reach and pierce through my brain it seems.

But obviously, I have lost half of my vision.

With my right eye that was still functioning, I saw the arrow of light stabbing into my left eye.

I threw away the remains of the [Black ballista Replica] in my hand and grabbed the arrow.

The enchant that distorted the space around it had already disappeared. Also, even through its made of light, I can definitely grab it like a normal object and there was no heat either.

Rather than [Lux Sagitta] it was more closer to those [Stakes – Sagitta] used by Sariel.

“Uu Ooooooohh!!”

Shaking off the slight hesitation in me, I pulled out the arrow.

Inside my left eye, there was a sensation of something grinding and being torn and a sensation of my eye socket becoming slightly expanding instantly. Neither of them were things I wanted to feel ever again.

“Guuoo.....oo.....”

I pulled out the light arrow along with the eyeball that it had pierced into.

“Haa.....haa......”

I didn’t really feel like seeing my own eyeball stuck on the arrow so I quickly threw it away.

I unconsciously filled the eye socket that had become empty with my jelly-like black magical energy [Flesh Compensation]and pressed it together to make it compensate for the missing eyeball.

That’s just simple flesh though, it was only meant to close the wound. Just like putting a glass ball inside there, it won’t give me my sight back.

“Haa......”

But what I need to think about right now is not my lost left eye but the enemy that’s still standing in front of me, Ai.

With just my right eye, I glared at Ai who had come right in front of me who knows when.

“Sorry, I became a bit too serious there.”(Ai)

Sticking out her small tongue slightly, Ai gave a somewhat embarrassed expression, like a child whose prank had been found out by someone.

At this distance, my [Hararetsu] should reach her which hasn’t broken yet though it does have a hole from the arrow.

But, I can’t move. My right hand that was holding the hatchet didn’t move at all.

I haven’t gone mad. Even at such a distance, there is no timing, no opening to attack at all.

Shit! Move! I don’t mind even if I take her down with me. I’ll attack!

Lily has fainted, Fiona is out of magical energy. I am the only one who can still fight!

“Don’t glare at me like that. This battle was Devil-san, no Kurono-kun and the other’s victory.”(ai)

“What are you planning?.......”

“Nothing at all. My bow broke after all.”

Putting both of her hands in the front she fluttered her palms. Her actions were really comical like a child.

“I never said that we’ll continue this battle till either one of us died. Kurono-kun and the others don’t want to die for no reason either right? Or rather, I was saved by Tsumiki-chan as well so I technically lost for breaking the rules as well, or something like that?”

I could only blink my eyes and breathe right now.

I was unable to even agree or even nod to her words.

“fufufu, I really thought I’d die in today’s battle. Tsumiki-chan also died. It was quite Hard Mode battle but I had fun.”(ai)

As if thanking me, Ai clapped my shoulder.

I reflexively shook her hand off.

“Nn mouu, don’t be so angry! But I’ll forgive you, you three worked really hard after all, that’s why—-“(ai)

That moment, a silver aura gushed out of Ai mixed with extreme killing intent.

“—-Don’t you dare lay a hand on them Misa.”(ai)

That killing intent was not towards me, but towards someone else, right, I realized it now that someone else was standing right behind me.

“It looked like you were having a tough battle so I came to help you, you know?”

“Wh, who is it?.......”(kurono)

As I turned to look back, a woman I had never seen was standing there.

“11th Apostle Misa, the great me shall kill you so be grateful alright!?”

Another new Apostle was standing there.