Chapter 274: Aestrea Against The World (Final) [I]

And just like that, the fight that was one against one…

Slowly became… one against three.

One against five.

And soon… all nine of the world’s SSS-rankers stood together, their auras burning like suns.

Each one carried the responsibility of their kingdom, their race, their pride.

And all of them had their eyes locked on Aestrea.

SWIISSH!

“Die, rat!”

The Beast King was the first to lunge again, his claws glowing gold as he roared.

His strike came low, meant to gut Aestrea. The scythe flashed, sparks flying as it caught the claws.

BOOOOM!

At the same time, the Dwarf King’s hammer came crashing down from above. Aestrea twisted, the head grazing his shoulder instead of his skull.

Bone cracked anyway, blood spraying.

He staggered, only for roots to snap out of the ground, wrapping his legs. The Elven Emperor’s runes flared, green light trapping him in place.

“Hold him!”

Four more rushed in at once, one with blades of pure lightning, another with fists wrapped in stone, one who manipulated shadows, and the violet flame woman whose heat made even the air scream.

Their combined power hit all at once.

BOOOM!

FSSHHHH!

The ground split apart, a crater swallowing the battlefield. Smoke and fire surged into the air as the impact drowned everything in chaos.

For a second, there was silence… but it was quickly interrupted.

FWOOOSH!

Silver light exploded from the center.

Aestrea burst free, bloodied and torn, but still standing. His scythe spun wide, slicing through roots and stone alike. His eyes glowed faintly, dim but unbroken.

SLASH!

The scythe cut through the lightning warrior’s chest, blood spraying.

CRACK!

Aestrea’s knee smashed into the shadow user’s jaw, shattering it before a blast of violet flame hit him square in the side.

BOOOOM!

The blast hurled him across the field, his body slamming into the dirt.

Blood poured from his mouth as he pushed himself back up, silver sparks flickering weakly around him.

“…Hah.” He coughed, grinning

. “That almost hurt.”

“Arrogant bastard!” The Beast King rushed again, claws tearing open Aestrea’s arm before he could block.

The Dwarf King’s hammer followed, caving into his ribs with a sickening crack.

Still, Aestrea twisted his scythe in a wide arc.

SPLURT!

The blade carved open the Beast King’s chest. Golden blood sprayed, only for the wound to stitch itself shut in seconds.

“Kill him! Do not stop!” the Elven Emperor shouted.

The nine pressed harder.

Their attacks came like a storm.

Every blow struck Aestrea, tearing skin, breaking bone, forcing him down on one knee. His breath came ragged, his aura nearly gone.

But still he rose.

Still, he fought.

Each swing of his scythe cut down anyone who dared to get too close, each step leaving a trail of blood in his wake.

The world itself seemed to shiver at the sight.

And then…

Christina.

She had been frozen all this time, her holy light dim around her, eyes trembling as she watched. Her lips moved, but no words came.

Her heart hammered in her chest.

Then the Elven Emperor turned to her, his voice sharp, furious.

“Christina! What are you waiting for?! He has slain angels; he dares to wield the Words of Law! If anyone should cut him down—it’s you, the Saintess of the Holy Nation!”

“If you don’t act now, girl, you’re a traitor to heaven itself!” The Beast King bared his teeth.

“Stand with us, or be counted with him.” The Dwarf King spat blood and swung his hammer again.

Christina’s breath caught.

Her hands trembled as she looked at Aestrea, blood-soaked, broken, yet still fighting, still standing against nine of the world’s strongest.

Her heart screamed to stay still. But the weight of the world pressed on her shoulders.

The eyes of the nations…

The voice of her god…

And finally… she stepped forward.

Her holy light flared brighter, flooding the battlefield in gold. The other SSS-rankers smirked, feeling the tide turn.

“Yes… That’s it,” the Elven Emperor said coldly.

Christina’s lips parted, her voice cracked as it carried across the field.

“…Aestrea.”

Her aura sharpened, her eyes filling with tears she refused to let fall.

“…forgive me.”

Aestrea’s head tilted slightly.

Blood ran down his chin, silver eyes locking onto hers. His scythe trembled in his grip, but his smile never broke.

“…So even you?”

Christina didn’t answer.

She raised her hand, and a golden light burned around her like a second sun.

The battlefield shuddered.

Then the world moved.

BOOOOOOOM!!

The Beast King roared, his body swelling larger than mountains, his claws glowing as he ripped open the void itself.

Behind him, a storm of golden lions poured from the fracture, each roar shaking the sky.

They charged, hundreds of them, jaws wide, rushing at Aestrea from every side.

Aestrea spun his scythe.

SLAAAASH!

A single swing carved a dark crescent through them, shredding dozens into mist.

But the rest kept coming, their claws tearing at him, their fangs ripping his flesh as he struggled to cut them down.

CRACKKKK!

The ground split apart, magma exploding upward.

The Dwarf King slammed his hammer into the earth, summoning a tidal wave of molten rock.

The fire surged like a burning ocean, sweeping toward Aestrea with unstoppable force.

“Let’s see you crawl out of this!” the dwarf bellowed.

Aestrea thrust his scythe into the ground.

BOOOOOM!

Chaos energy surged outward, splitting the wave in two.

The magma poured around him, but his skin blistered from the heat, his silver aura flickering weaker and weaker.

But before he could recover…

CRRRRSHHHHH!

Roots shot from the void itself, twisting like snakes.

The Elven Emperor raised both arms, pulling entire forests from another plane. The branches stabbed into Aestrea’s limbs, coiling, trying to tear him apart.

“Bind him! Don’t let him breathe!”

“This shit again?!” Aestrea growled, twisting his body, silver sparks bursting from his skin as he tore one root free.

He swung his scythe wide, cutting another, but then, lightning struck.

KRRRAKOOOOM!

A blade of thunder split the air, slashing across his chest. Blood sprayed as the SSS-rank lightning-user darted in, his body moving like a streak of light.

“Too slow!”

Aestrea staggered, then caught the man’s arm and yanked him forward.

CRACK!—

His knee shot up, breaking ribs before spinning his scythe and splitting the air behind him.

The shadow-user was there, a dagger of pure darkness aimed at his neck.

CLANG!

Sparks flew as scythe met dagger. The shadow thickened, hundreds of arms shooting from the void, each grabbing at Aestrea’s throat, legs, chest.

“Fall, damn you!”

But fire burned them all away.

FSSSSHHHHH!!!

The woman of violet flame raised her hand, and a sea of fire bloomed, hotter than suns, her eyes cold.

She clenched her fist, and the flame collapsed inward, crushing everything inside.

Aestrea’s scream tore from the fireball as his skin burned raw, his chaos energy cracking.

He swung blindly, cutting apart the sea, stumbling free with half his body charred black.

And still, he smiled through blood.

“…That’s all you’ve got?”

“Not even close!”

RUMMMMMMBLE!!

The stone-user slammed both fists into the ground. Mountains exploded upward, ripping from the earth.

Entire ranges rose and collapsed at his command, boulders the size of castles raining from the sky, falling toward Aestrea like a world-ending storm.

Aestrea leapt, his scythe cutting through falling stone after stone.

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOM!

Each impact shook his bones, each swing draining his strength.

CRACK!

A boulder clipped his leg, snapping bone as he crashed into the dirt.

The Beast King came again, golden claws tearing through his back, ripping flesh and muscle. Blood poured like rivers.

Still, Aestrea twisted, slashing upward, cutting open the Beast King’s throat. Golden blood sprayed, but the wound healed instantly.

“YOU CAN’T KILL ME!” the Beast King roared, smashing his fist into Aestrea’s ribs, lifting him off the ground.

But just before he could land…

BOOOOOOOOOM!!

Water flooded the field.

Another SSS-ranker raised his hands, summoning entire oceans from beyond the void. Waves taller than mountains crashed down, drowning the land.

The scythe swung wide, splitting water for an instant before another wave swallowed him whole.

Aestrea vanished beneath the sea.

SHAAA!

Shortly after, he suddenly burst from the water, coughing blood, his aura flickering like a dying star.

His arms shook, his legs unsteady, but he still raised his scythe.

“Saintess… end it.”

The words came not from him, but from the circle of SSS-rankers, their gazes cutting toward Christina.

Her staff glowed blindingly gold, the sphere of holy mana above it swelling until the air itself seemed ready to collapse.

Aestrea swayed, knees bending.

“HURRRGHH!!”

He vomited a whole mouthful of blood onto the shattered earth, his chest heaving, his vision blurring.

Still… he looked up at them all. Ten figures, shining like gods. He, alone, on his knees, bloodied and broken.

And yet… he laughed.

“…Ahh… how dumb was I?”

The sound struck them all strangely. The Elven Emperor frowned, the Dwarf King narrowed his eyes, the Beast King growled low in his throat.

“What nonsense are you spitting now?” the Dwarf King barked.

Aestrea’s bloody grin widened.

“Here I was… throwing my life away… again and again… protecting this rotten world from the demon beasts. You think I bled for myself? Hah… no. I bled for you. For them.” He spat blood into the dirt.

“I tore apart three demon generals with these hands. Three. And yet…” His voice cracked, his gaze sharp. “…I’m the heretic?”

“Ah…”

Quiver…

Christina’s hands shook around her staff. The golden sphere wavered, her lips parting… but no words came.

“Saintess,” the Elven Emperor snapped, “Remember your identity. Do not falter.”

Christina bit her lip hard, eyes burning. Tears trembled, but she forced her focus back, whispering to herself:

“Forgive me…” as the golden sphere grew larger.

Aestrea staggered, forcing himself to stand on shaking legs. His scythe dragged across the shattered ground, sparking against the stone.

“Well…” He chuckled, his voice hoarse.

“…I don’t care anymore.”

His blood-stained smile tilted upward.

“Kagetaro… I ACCEPT YOUR PROPOSAL!”

His voice ripped across the battlefield, raw and desperate.

The SSS-rankers froze.

“…What?” The Beast King snarled.

The Elven Emperor’s brows furrowed.

“Is he… calling out to the Abyss?”

The air hung heavy.

For an entire second, it seemed ridiculous, pitiful, even.

A dying man shouting at the sky.

Some of them almost laughed.

Until…

A voice reached out to them.

“Fufufu~… I knew you would finally turn to me.”

The voice was sweet, mocking, almost playful.

The space above them rippled.

Shadows warped, tearing open into a spiraling rift. From within, a figure stepped out, slow, graceful, her presence bending the very air.

A woman.

Her hair was long, with a grey color that shimmered like stars. Her eyes matched her hair perfectly, sharp and alluring.

She wore armor like flowing silk, elegant and dark, her beauty carrying both charm and danger.

Aestrea’s breath caught, his eyes widening.

“Y-You… you’re a woman?!”

Kagetaro bowed lightly, her lips curving.

“Why, of course~. Or did you prefer me as a man?” She gave him a sly wink, her laughter bubbling out like poison-laced honey.

“Tsk… disgusting.” Aestrea grimaced, muttering.

The woman’s grin only widened.

“Names are fickle, but if you must—call me Yumi.” Her voice rang with playful cruelty. She turned to him, eyes softening in mock affection.

“My dear moonlight swordsman~.”

Then, she looked at the circle of SSS-rankers, her aura stretching like an endless night sky pressing down on them.

“I’m afraid,” she said sweetly, “you cannot kill him.”

The Beast King bared his fangs. “Hah! Who do you think you are, strutting in here? Do you think one more shadow can scare us?”

“Even with you, you’re nothing against the ten of us. Don’t delude yourself.” The Dwarf King snorted.

“Ten?” Yumi tilted her head, her smile coy. “Oh, my dear kings, emperors, and saints…”

She raised her hand.

The air split.

VRRRRM!

A thousand black portals tore open in every direction, stretching across the battlefield like gaping mouths.

From each, armored figures marched out, cloaked in shadow, carrying weapons of cursed steel, their eyes glowing with pure hatred.

Step after step, the ground trembled as the army filled the horizon.

Yumi’s voice dripped with delight.

“…How about the entire Dark Order?”

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