Chapter Seventy-Nine The End is Near
With the altar breaking apart.
A heavy rumbling echoed in every corner of Nanase Island.
Like the tolling of fate’s bell, it signaled the complete failure of the ritual.
The purple-black star hanging high in the sky lost its ominous glow and gradually dimmed.
Its existence seemed to lose its support, and the remaining radiance resembled the flickering flame of a candle before it extinguished.
At the same time, the battle between Mana and the Shadow of the End reached its boiling point.
Rain pounded the ground, bringing with it a sense of oppressive chill, while the air was thick with the surge of magical power, making it difficult to breathe.
Mana seized the opportunity as the Shadow of the End became weakened.
Leveraging the physical capabilities of the White Spirit Priestess, she swiftly distanced herself from the Shadow of the End.
And combined the recently obtained power of the storm with the shadows.
With a wave of her hands, the power of the storm erupted along with her movement.
Shadow blades, formed from countless dark figures, ripped through the air, slicing through the void and charging at the Shadow of the End.
The Shadow of the End, composed of countless flowing shadows, lost its infinite regeneration ability after the overcast clouds gathered above Nanase Island, obscuring the starlight.
As a result, it had to begin diverting its attention to dodge Mana’s attacks.
Its massive form twisted and changed at all times, manipulating the shadows that hung low to the ground.
These shadows seemed to have gained life, beginning to spread like a tide, quickly surrounding Mana.
Simultaneously, the figure of the Shadow of the End became blurred.
In an instant, its body split into countless shadowy clones, swiftly spreading out in the rain.
These clones completely replicated its appearance and powers.
They were not merely afterimages intended to confuse.
The crimson eyes, symbolizing the identity of the fantasy magical creature, fixated tightly on Mana.
Countless Shadows of the End clawed and rushed towards Mana.
Caught off guard by this situation for the first time, Mana had no time to think, her body moving instinctively.
She raised her hand to summon the power of the storm.
As she moved, the air around her twisted violently; the wind gathered gradually, forming a massive tornado.
The raging wind pressure blew away the Shadows of the End that tried to approach Mana.
At the same time.
Mana’s spirit flickered, and she unleashed the shadow’s powers.
The shadows beneath her feet, like ink, were swept up by the storm, transforming into a pitch-black tornado.
The combination of the “Illusory Royal Authority” ability was displayed at that moment.
The whirlwind, which fused the storm and shadow abilities, swept through every clone of the Shadow of the End in the area.
The shadow clones were devoured, torn apart, and shattered by the storm, like fragile pieces of paper scattering in the wind.
The shredded fragments recondensed in midair, transforming back into the form of the Shadow of the End.
It seemed as though it had not been injured by Mana’s attack.
However, its movements were no longer as sharp as they had been initially.
Mana keenly noticed this.
The body of the Shadow of the End was gradually disintegrating; its previously flowing black mist-like form began to break apart, as if invisible claws were tearing it from the inside.
Each piece became a thin, black breath, slowly ascending into the sky.
The purple-black star hanging high in the sky was reclaiming the power that should belong to it.
The Shadow of the End was being forced to return to the embrace of the stars.
The essence of the star ceremony was to simulate the authority of the stars through the sacrifice of the magical power and life force of the offerings.
When the altar on Nanase Island was destroyed.
The residents of Nanase Island, who were supposed to be the offerings to the stars, no longer provided magical power and life force.
The purple-black star immediately lost a portion of its supply.
It yearned for new offerings, new power to fill the void, and thus began to reclaim the Shadow of the End, which originated from “End’s” flesh and blood.
The body of the Shadow of the End became increasingly fragmented.
Yet there was not a shred of panic on its face; instead, it was filled with excitement and fervor.
Even though it had lost the altar of Nanase Island.
Leading to the “master” losing a portion of power.
This was of no concern to it.
The stars had descended.
As long as the master was successfully ‘revived’.
This plan would be considered complete.
Its gaze fell once more on Mana, eyes filled with reluctance and mockery: “The greatest masterpiece… I will definitely come back for you—!”
As soon as the words left its mouth.
The body of the Shadow of the End was engulfed by the clouds, preparing to return to the embrace of the stars.
However.
Just as it was about to disappear into the horizon, a blinding flash of lightning split the clouds, illuminating the heavy and dark storm clouds.
Accompanied by the roar of thunder, a tremendous sense of oppression enveloped the sky, where a colossal figure lurked deep within the dark clouds.
The Shadow of the End’s eight eyes widened, remembering the death it was supposed to face in Kawano City.
In this moment, it arrived late.
“Sorry, this time, you can’t get away.”
A deep voice carried by the wind came through, with a commanding and cold authority akin to a tempest— it was the voice of Garuda.
A fierce wind suddenly swept in, violently tearing the sky apart.
The already fragmented body of the Shadow of the End completely collapsed before the storm’s authority, like ashes blown away in an instant, disappearing into the storm.
…
…
The same battle was unfolding in Kawano City.
After losing Garuda, the torrential rain in Kawano City gradually ceased.
However, the dark clouds above the city still loomed like mountains, shrouding every corner and preventing the stars, which hung in the night sky, from casting their light over the entire city.
Upon realizing that another altar had been destroyed, the Shadow of the End instinctively wanted to flee back to the basement.
It wanted to take the altar with it.
But Nagi would not allow it to succeed.
A fierce wind rose, like a blade tearing apart the fabric of the world.
The Shadow of the End could only summon the shadow blades from its hands to counter.
The shadow blades moved in the air like living creatures, drawing black arcs as they effortlessly ripped through Nagi’s wind blades.
Even though it was a collision of shadows and fierce winds, it was clear that the shadows, charged with more magical power, held the advantage.
Yet even so, endless magical power propelled the gusts, constantly blocking the Shadow of the End’s path.
At this moment.
The purple-black starlight could not penetrate the clouds, and the Shadow of the End lost its crucial magical supply.
In this moment of endless magical power, its superiority became clear.
Yet the Shadow of the End still did not intend to use soul resonance on Nagi.
Clearly, its keen instincts warned it against resonating with the being in front of it.
Realizing it could not escape from Nagi, it shifted strategy and took the offensive.
The shadow blades in the Shadow of the End’s hands morphed into dozens of black whips, swiftly striking towards Nagi.
These shadow blades coiled like snakes, searching for any gap to attack.
Nagi quickly retreated, having anticipated this. She gathered the wind instantly in front of her, creating a massive wall of wind between the two.
But Nagi did not intend to clash head-on.
The moment the shadow blades were about to touch the wind wall, Nagi controlled the wind to transform into a whirlwind, ensnaring the shadow blades within.
Utilizing the storm fueled by boundless magical power, the dark shadow blades were ground down inch by inch.
Until the pitch-black blades were completely shattered, dissipating into black mist in the wind.
The expression on the Shadow of the End finally showed a hint of urgency.
Having lost its light source, its shadows could not receive replenishment.
At the same time, it also failed to recover the power of the “Shadow of the End” as it had wished.
—If this continued, it would only be exhausted by the enemy before it.
The Shadow of the End finally reached this conclusion.
This made it unable to resist reaching toward the “Authority of the Stars.”
The purple-black star pupils in the Shadow of the End’s eyes began to flicker.
Seeing this, Nagi felt a surge of anxiety in her heart.
Whether she could withstand the authority of the stars was uncertain to her.
But at this point, she could only trust the Shadow of the End within their soul contract—
“It’s okay, I’m very reliable~”
Nagi’s eyes suddenly changed to purple-black star pupils, and her face broke into an innocent smile.
At this moment, it was no longer Nagi but “Nagi Shadow” who controlled her body.
“Finally, I found you.” A slight grin curled at the corners of Nagi Shadow’s mouth, ultimately forming a cold smile reminiscent of a crescent moon.
High above, the purple-black star seemed to have suddenly lost its power.
Its radiance halted for a moment, then swiftly dissipated like smoke, the purple-black glow began to fade rapidly, and its appearance lost its ominous color.
Simultaneously, the purple-black radiance in the Shadow of the End’s eyes transformed into countless light particles, dispersing in midair, revealing the crimson star pupils beneath.
In that same instant.
Nagi felt the erosion deep within her soul escalating at an alarming rate, the purple-black light surged towards her heart like a relentless tide, gradually covering her soul.
【Time until complete erosion remains—】
【—7 years】
“Thank you for your patronage~ Now, it’s up to Light-chan~”
Nagi Shadow smiled breezily, her voice tinged with mockery.
The purple-black star pupils suddenly shattered, transforming into countless tiny stars, which twinkled anew in Nagi’s eyes, as if a starry rain had fallen.
As the words left her lips, the figure of the girl standing face-to-face with Nagi appeared to lose all power and consciousness, her frail body instantly collapsing backward.
Immediately regaining control of her body, Nagi rushed forward and caught the collapsing figure.
The girl in her arms felt surprisingly light.
Just when Nagi thought everything would come to an end.
The girl slowly opened her eyes, the crimson star pupils dotting the center of her gaze.
She voiced her confusion:
“…Little Light?”
