Novel

Those flames....

There was no way that Kamash wouldn’t be able to recognize them. Those were flames of pure mana.

Unlike Vermouth’s flames, which had been a brilliant, stainless white, these flames were pitch black. However, something like color wasn’t all that important when it came to things like this. Those flames were so pure in nature that Kamash couldn’t help but think of Vermouth.

Though at the same time... strangely enough, Kamash was also reminded of Hamel. While these flames were pure, there was also something passionate about them that had been lacking in Vermouth’s flames.

Kamash remembered both Vermouth’s decisive and controlled slashing and how, in contrast, Hamel would slash away wildly like a madman.

His cloudy head felt filled to the brim with these memories and emotions. His limp body obediently began to move in response to his heightened emotions.

Kamash started to run while roaring, “Aaaaaaah!”

It was as if Vermouth and Hamel, both of them, were currently flying towards him. It didn’t matter why they were here. It didn’t matter that the man emitting those flames was neither Vermouth nor Hamel. The only thing that was important to Kamash right now was that this man had made him think of his enemies.

In that case, there was only one thing for Kamash to do.

“You!”

Kamash’s upper body leaned backward. His back got so close to the ground that it was as if he was about to lie down.

Scruuuuuunch! Geett the l𝒂test 𝒏𝒐vels on no/v/elbin(.)c/om

His huge hand dug into the desert and scooped up a handful of sand.

“Killed!”

Cruuuuunch!

His fingers clenched tightly around the sand. The incredible force of his grip solidly compressed the sand into a single lump. He then filled the lump that he had created to the brim with his dark power.

“Me!

Kamash had no need for weapons. Even when he was alive, Kamash was more accustomed to, and comfortable with, swinging his fists and feet around than wielding a weapon.

That was also true for his stone-throwing. The act felt both familiar and comfortable to him. Grab a handful of dirt, turn it into a stone, and then throw it. With only this simple and primitive attack, Kamash had become the king of the giants.

The stone was sent flying towards Eugene. No, could this really be called a stone? Although it had been made by squeezing a handful of sand, it could no longer be considered just a clump of loose sand.

In fact, it didn’t really matter what to classify the projectile as. Eugene just didn’t want to get hit by it. He wouldn’t die if it hit him, but it would be extremely painful.

‘That said, I can’t just dodge it,’ Eugene calmly assessed.

If it continued on its current course, it might end up hitting Raimira, who was flying up behind him. Or perhaps it would swat some of the flying squadrons trailing even further behind, and it could also cause a disaster if it fell to the ground. Whatever the result might be, Eugene couldn’t allow it to happen.

So he didn’t want to let it hit him, but he also couldn’t dodge it.

‘What a familiar situation,’ Eugene nodded thoughtfully.

Then he would just have to destroy it.

Throwing his cloak open, Eugene pulled out the Holy Sword. His black flames engulfed the blade of the Holy Sword. The sword’s brilliant light then melded with the flames.

Cracracrackle!

The flames surrounding Eugene expanded explosively. The feathers of Prominence, which were trailing behind Eugene like a comet’s tail, also responded to Eugene’s movements.

Claaaang!

Eugene split apart the stone that Kamash had thrown at him with a single slash. The dark power contained within the stone couldn’t overcome the mix of flames and divine power, so it was forcefully dissipated. The stone that was split into two pieces then proceeded to disintegrate without leaving even a single pebble behind.

Less than a second had passed since the stone had first been thrown.

Light flashed in Eugene’s eyes as a feather that he had sent flying forward during the moment of his slash was caught in the focus of Eugene’s vision.

Crackle!

The space between Eugene and the feather was connected by a line of flames.

For Kamash, the stone he had thrown had disappeared. Then, his enemy had somehow appeared right in front of him. How could his foe have done this?

But such a question wasn’t of great importance to Kamash.

“You dare,” the giant howled.

Kamash was still caught in his fit of rage. The hand that had just thrown the stone rose up. The enormous open hand swatted at the sky as if Kamash was trying to catch a flying pest.

Boom!

The sky shook violently. It felt as if the sky was about to collapse.

Kamash’s hand had suddenly stopped moving in midair. It had gotten caught on something. To Kamash, it felt like he had struck a wall that was impossible to break through. Such a feeling was unfamiliar to Kamash. Soon, Kamash realized what had blocked his hand from advancing any further.

A tiny human, who looked no different than an insect when put next to Kamash, was blocking the palm of the giant’s hand. So Kamash used even more strength to try and push his arm and hand forward.

The arms currently attached to Kamash’s torso were different from the ones that had gotten cut off when he was alive, but something like that didn’t really bother Kamash. The current Kamash wasn’t aware enough to feel any discomfort from having strange, new limbs, and far from being a problem, his new limbs actually performed better than the ones he had when he was alive.

‘How hideous,’ Eugene thought as he held back the huge palm with the Holy Sword.

The rough and tough leather of the giant’s palm couldn’t be cut even with the Holy Sword. To Eugene, the limbs currently attached to Kamash felt like they were several completely different body parts that had been reshaped together to look like limbs. Eugene didn’t know where the parts to make these limbs had been ripped from, nor could he tell just how many pieces had been mixed together to make them.

But wasn’t Kamash actually stronger than he had been when he was alive? It really did seem that way. Eugene didn’t think Kamash could have exerted such strength three hundred years ago.

In that case, just how strong was the giant? Eugene didn’t know for sure, but he could at least be certain of this much: The deceased Kamash had become much stronger after being raised as an undead than when he was alive.

‘Though not as much as I have,’ Eugene thought confidently.

Three hundred years ago, Hamel was still a young man when he and Vermouth had worked together to block Kamash’s advance. Frankly speaking, Hamel hadn’t just been young; he was, in many ways, still immature.

It had only been a few years since Hamel had first crossed over to the Devildom. This was even before they defeated their first Demon King. After killing Kamash, they had gone on to experience so many fierce battles that they had lost count. They slayed the Demon King of Carnage, the Demon King of Cruelty, and the Demon King of Fury.

Then Hamel died.

And was reincarnated as Eugene Lionheart.

Eugene could feel vibrations in the air. Although nothing had actually happened yet, the divinity stored within Eugene glowed and communicated an intuitive hunch that was no different from true precognition. For a moment, Eugene’s golden eyes shone with a slightly brighter light.

The giant’s thick fingers fell onto Eugene’s head. In a split second, Kamash had clenched his entire fist around Eugene. And as if that wasn’t enough, Kamash also wrapped his other hand around the fist.

Whether it was crushing Eugene in his grip or hammering him down into the ground, there were many things that Kamash could have done from here, but none of them would have succeeded.

Kamash’s fingers were stopped before they could completely close. The moment he tried to put even more strength into his grip, Kamash was unconsciously forced to open his fist back up.

Swishswishswishswish!

The black flames flickering around Eugene exploded into hundreds of different slashes. Kamash’s palm was torn to pieces. And because he was a little slow to open up his fist, two whole fingers had been completely sliced off. But since his body was already dead, Kaamash didn’t feel any pain from this.

However, an eerie feeling that was somewhat different from the sensation of pain was spreading from his wounds. Kamash couldn't comprehend what this feeling was.

In fact, it was terror.

But because Amelia had surgically excised so much of his mind, Kamash’s body didn’t tremble or hesitate due to his fear. Instead, his fear further fueled his rage. Kamash let out a loud roar and swung his fist at Eugene.

But for such an obvious punch, there was no need for Eugene to even use a spatial leap to avoid it. Eugene accelerated forward, shedding the feathers of Prominence behind him like the tail of a comet. From the perspective of the overwhelmingly larger Kamash, Eugene, who was flying around leaving a trail of light, looked like a pitch-black firefly.

‘A firefly?’ Kamash scowled.

That was only in terms of looks. This definitely wasn’t some harmless firefly. With Kamash’s giant field of view, he was able to take in Eugene’s every movement.

However, he still couldn’t actually see Eugene. Even though Eugene hadn’t left the giant’s scope of vision, Kamash just couldn’t follow his movements. Eugene would disappear in an instant, looking like his light had flickered off, and then he would reappear in a completely different location.

Kamash tried to grab Eugene with another swing of his fist. But before his fist could even reach the intended impact point, Eugene turned into a streak of black light that flashed past Kamash’s arm.

His streak of light barely touched Kamash, but with only that, it still left the giant’s arm in tatters. Viscous blood poured down from the wounds like a waterfall.

With the Holy Sword, Eugene sliced his way up Kamash’s thick forearms and reached all the way to the giant’s shoulders. A neck that was as wide and tall as a castle wall could be seen right in front of him. Would he be able to slice through it with a single blow? Eugene asked himself as he gripped the Holy Sword with both hands.

Black flames split apart the sky as Eugene swung his sword. However, Kamash’s neck wasn’t caught in the slash. Kamash dodged the slash by leaning over in a manner that seemed unbelievably flexible for someone with such a large body.

Kamash’s movement was just unnatural. At this thought, Eugene unconsciously let out a snort. After all, his enemy was a corpse. Kamash’s movement didn’t rely on things like bones, muscles, or nerves; the giant was only able to move through the use of dark power.

‘So that’s the case,’ Kamash also realized this fact.

He now understood just how different this dead body was from the body he had when he was alive, with how it was incapable of feeling pain and the fact that he could now perform movements that were formerly physically impossible.

Although some of Kamash’s memories and emotions had been removed, his fighting spirit and honed battle instincts still remained.

Rooooooar!

A seemingly endless amount of dark power enveloped Kamash’s entire body. His ragged forearm was immediately glued back together through the use of dark power.

So how was he supposed to fight with this brand-new body and immense dark power? There was no need for Kamash to even spare a thought to answer such a question. Kamash, the Chieftain of the Giants and a Child of Fury, immediately understood how he was truly meant to be fighting.

Kamash wasn’t the only enemy in this desert. A three-headed wolf with long snake-like necks leaped over Kamash’s body. It was one of the demonic beasts that had previously been sealed in the skies above Ravesta. Stretching out its necks, the wolf tried to devour Eugene.

“Gaaaaah!’ Kamash let out a rage-filled roar as he reached out his hand.

The giant snatched one of the demonic beast’s legs in mid-leap and then slammed it down into the ground.

Boooooom!

A crater was dug into the desert as sand was sent flying upwards. He may have already flattened the demonic beast, but that wasn’t enough to cool Kamash’s rage.

Kamash raised his foot and stamped down on the demonic beast while roaring in a loud voice for everyone to hear, “This is my battle!”

Cracracrack!

It was only after crushing all three heads of the huge demonic beast beneath his feet did Kamash raise both arms to face Eugene in a battle stance.

“Hah,” Eugene let out a huff of laughter at this sight.

Eugene looked into Kamash’s eyes and read the expression on the giant’s face.

Was he seeing the spirit of a warrior, a sense of honor, and a respect for their battle?

No, it was different. Eugene could see the difference between someone like Ivatar and Molon, and what Kamash had meant by those words. The reason Kamash had said those words and killed the demonic beast by trampling it beneath his foot was simple and clear, making it easy even for Eugene to understand the giant.

It was all for revenge. Since Eugene was the one who had killed him, Kamash believed that he personally had to kill Eugene.

Such feelings just made it easier for Eugene to deal with Kamash. Thanks to Kamash’s behavior and the words he had roared, the counter-charge being led from the Centipede Mountains had come to a screeching halt.

“I’ll kill you,” Kamash growled.

Boooom!

Kamash’s foot stomped on the ground once more. Blood spurted out of the demonic beast that had already been trampled to death, and the thick cloud of sand that had been raised was filled with the scent of blood.

When Kamash swung his arm, the wind that this move created blew away the cloud of sand. A massive amount of dark power accompanied the movements of Kamash’s arm, battering its way through the air. Eugene’s sight was instantly filled with a thick darkness that left no room for him to escape.

In response, the light and flames covering the blade of the Holy Sword grew longer. The two lights swirled around each other and then became one. The moment Kamash’s fist and dark power were about to make contact, Eugene held the Holy Sword up with both hands.

Then he covered it in the layers of the Empty Sword.

Eugene didn’t use Ignition. He didn’t even see the need to max out the number of stacks. While twisting his upper body, he swung the Empty Sword with both hands, though it looked more like he was swinging a club than a sword.

The power of Eugene’s blow was terrible. The wave of dark power that had covered everything in front of him was instantly erased. Kamash’s fist was split in two lengthwise, along with the rest of his arm.

Even as his arm was instantly engulfed in flames of mana, Kamash still hadn’t understood what had just happened. That was just how fast the Empty Sword had been swung and how irresistible Eugene’s attack had been.

But there was one thing that Kamash did understand. His death was drawing near. Was this because he had already died once? Kamash was well aware of just how empty death was. That was why he instinctively resisted its approach.

Cracracrack!

Thanks to another desperate twist of his waist, Kamash managed to keep his throat from being sliced open. Instead, his entire right arm was sent flying.

“Gaaaaah!” Kamash roared.

Kamash didn’t feel any pain from having his right arm sliced off. He had felt the touch of death from Eugene’s sword as it cut off his arm and had almost reached his neck, but Kamash didn’t feel any fear either. Where there should have been fear, there was only overflowing rage.

Kamash moved his remaining arm, which was still intact. His fingers squeezed tightly around his dark power, compressing it into crystals as his feet kicked the ground.

Sand exploded into the air. For a moment, it seemed like the sky and the earth had switched places. Vast quantities of sand had been thrown into the sky, as a sandstorm with enough force to tear apart a large army engulfed Eugene.

The feathers of Prominence that were being held high above Eugene’s head all fell to the ground. As they did so, the sky and the earth seemed to have swapped places once more. Eugene had cast a reversal spell through the mana stored within the feathers of Prominence.

Now that his vision was cleared, Eugene could see Kamash once more. The giant was holding a large crystal of dark power in his hand and was about to throw it at Eugene.

Eugene let go of the Holy Sword with his left hand. He slowly raised his hand with the back facing outwards. A flickering flame was kindled in the palm that was facing toward Eugene. The flames that had surrounded Eugene were all being drawn into his hand.

The black flames formed into a sphere. It might now be impossible for Sunspots to appear within Eugene’s flames, as they had turned pitch-black, but the method to conjure up an Eclipse hadn’t changed.

Concentrate his mana in a single location, amplify it until it explodes, contain the explosion, and wrap it in layers.

With that, the construction of an Eclipse was complete. Eugene turned his hand so that the back of his hand was now facing toward him and then gave a slight push with his palm. The Eclipse, which was only about the size of his fist, shot forward.

Its size was so small that it couldn’t even be compared to the crystal of dark power that Kamash had created. It was so much smaller that it almost looked like a firefly in front of the sun.

However, among all those watching this battle, not a single individual actually thought of looking down on the Eclipse. Even the demonfolk who had emerged from behind the Centipede Mountains could sense the terrible power contained in the ball of flames Eugene had just thrown.

All the demonfolk unconsciously took a step back and held their arms in front of them. By doing so, they readied themselves to absorb the force from the explosion as well as the aftershocks that would soon follow.

The black wizards still hiding within the Centipede Mountains also reached the same conclusion. Amelia Merwin, who was standing in front of a group of liches, collapsed onto the ground, her face paling.

‘No, it can’t be,’ Amelia silently despaired.

She transmitted an absolute order to Kamash.

Don’t try to resist it. Avoid it at all costs. So, step back and prepare an evasive stance.

Kamash’s body almost moved to obey the command.

But then, ‘I refuse,’ Kamash thought as he forcefully held his body in place.

She wanted him to not resist? To avoid it at all costs? Even when he was alive, Kamash had never once shown such cowardly behavior. If Kamash had ever been wise enough and rational enough to do such a thing, then he wouldn’t have continued to attack Vermouth and Hamel even after his limbs had been cut off.

In the end, Kamash refused to back down, thrusting his left hand towards the Eclipse.

In looks alone, it might have been a firefly in front of the sun, but from the moment the two attacks made contact, the Eclipse immediately dissolved the crystal of dark power. The dark power that had been condensed to its very limits simply burst apart like a balloon. The Eclipse then kept gliding forward until it reached Kamash’s hand.

From the moment the Eclipse touched his fingertips, Kamash’s hand began disintegrating into dust. Kamash continued to pour out his dark power as he attempted to block the Eclipse’s advance. However, the Eclipse continued to glide forward without any impediment, and eventually, Kamash’s entire left arm was destroyed.

Then, the Eclipse suddenly detonated. A storm of mana swept over the desert. However, the storm wasn’t strong enough to knock Kamash off his feet. Although he had lost his arms in mere instants, both of Kamash’s legs were still intact.

Pushing more strength into his legs, Kamash leaped forward. Opening his jaws wide, he let out a fierce roar.

But Eugene was nowhere to be seen.

Thud.

Kamash felt something land on his chest. It was something very small. Kamash immediately lowered his eyes to look down at his chest. He saw Eugene standing there with both feet planted on Kamash’s chest.

“You’re still as big as ever,” Eugene muttered while pressing down on Kamash’s chest with his feet.

Fwooosh!

The flames of Prominence flared up on Eugene’s back, sending Kamash’s huge mass stumbling as he was suddenly pushed backward. Kamash hurriedly tried to brace himself by exerting more strength with his body. However, Eugene wasn’t just simply using force to push the giant. From their point of contact at Eugene’s feet, flames were drilling into Kamash’s chest.

“You,” Kamash spat out, his face twisting in a grimace.

He could only watch as Eugene grabbed hold of the Holy Sword with both hands and raised it over his head.

Kamash recognized the sword. It was the same Holy Sword that Vermouth had once used. And he recognized the flames that enveloped Eugene’s body and the way that the flames fluttered like a lion’s mane; Kamash recognized it all.

“You’re not Vermouth, and you’re not Hamel either,” Kamash growled.

What was the point of stating the obvious? Eugene snorted as he erected layers of Empty Sword.

Boooom!

He stomped on Kamash’s chest one more time. Unable to hold on any longer, the giant fell backward.

“Who are you?” Kamash demanded even as he fell.

With his back towards the sun, Eugene held the Holy Sword aloft with both hands.

“Eugene Lionheart,” he replied.

Kamash didn’t know that name. And he wouldn’t get the chance to remember that name in the future either.

Black flames fell from the heavens. The moment that the giant’s falling back touched down onto the desert, the Empty Sword dug into Kamash’s neck.

‘Ah...,’ Kamash silently sighed.

Three hundred years ago, the Great Vermouth had beheaded Kamash.

But in this day and age, Vermouth was gone. Kamash realized this fact the moment his throat was sliced open. Right now, the one who was taking his head wasn’t Vermouth. It wasn’t even Hamel, either.

‘Eugene Lionheart....’ At the moment when the last blurs of his vision completely disappeared, a thought instinctively flashed through Kamash’s mind, ‘I’m finally dying.’

Boooom!

The fallen Kamash would forever remain still.

Right as Eugene was about to put away his Holy Sword and leave the giant’s corpse behind, he thought of something, “Oh, right.”

Could someone who had died a second time be re-resurrected as an undead? Eugene didn’t know for sure whether that was the case, but he didn’t want to leave any lingering annoyances behind.

Eugene immediately created another Eclipse out of one of Prominence’s feathers and threw it down at Kamash’s corpse.

Only after confirming that the black flames had engulfed the entire body did Eugene fly back into the sky, then breathed out a sigh of relief, “Phew, that was close.”

Eugene had told his companions that it would be over by the time they got here. If he hadn’t managed to finish his fight with Kamash just now, on top of his embarrassment at allowing the fight to go on for so long, Eugene would have also had to face the shame of failing to live up to his word.