Philiana Defeated Claudio with the Power of Her Companions
Claudio was slumped over, propping himself up with his sword in a pool of blood. He probably wanted to fight Philiana one-on-one, but what we did was quite cowardly. Still, if I told Philiana about it, she’d probably just say, “I don’t desire a duel,” and dismiss it.
From Philiana’s perspective, we probably just created unnecessary trouble and dealt damage. Claudio wasn’t that significant a presence to her. She likely only recognized him as one of the enemies she had fought in the past.
The sound of metal scraping against metal, *jari*, brought me back to my senses. Claudio was trying to stand up, even while leaning on his sword. Was he planning to continue fighting?
“W-wait… I’m not dead yet.”
“Is that so?”
Philiana turned around and glared at him with cold eyes, raising the long sword in her hand. Was she planning to finish him off right here? Claudio seemed to smile slightly, perhaps sensing her killing intent.
The end for him, killed by the rival he had never stopped pursuing. With no hope of winning left, this was the only path remaining.
Philiana stood before the dragon’s head, which remained expressionless as she looked down. Their figures were faintly reflected in the crimson blood.
“Go to the Blackwind Forest. Someone is waiting for you there.”
“What did you say?”
Claudio looked up, taken aback by her unexpected words. I recalled that the Blackwind Forest was where the Paycones lived. Was there someone waiting for him there…? Could it be Sylvie?
She was a Paycone girl who had attacked with a werewolf named Gulf as one of the assassins some time ago. Gulf had said she was Claudio’s disciple.
“It is a shadow you yourself have created. Face your own darkness thoroughly.”
“I don’t understand what you’re saying.”
Claudio stood up and, despite his severe injuries, drew his sword again.
“There is someone far stronger than me there. Her sword thirsts for blood and suffers for it. You may kill each other to your heart’s content.”
“Wait! Huuugh, kill me! Kill me!”
Philiana sheathed her sword and walked away, leaving Claudio to flail in his puddle of blood. Well, it worked out for the best. Sylvie had been troubled and confused by her own savagery. If her opponent was Claudio, she could unleash her fury without any problem.
We, on the other hand, had other things to do. We had to head towards the White Rose quickly.
“Hey, Philiana, are you alright?”
Even though we still had a long way to go, Philiana seemed quite exhausted from the previous battle. And Elana, who had taken a hit midway, was in the same state.
“Y-yes, I’d like to say so, but I don’t think I can stand on the front lines for a while.”
As I approached, I saw that her body was covered in wounds. She could barely stand. Fortunately, there were still members who could fight. We would have to let Philiana and Elana rest for now and fight with the other members.
“Alright, let’s head to the White Rose. You two can take your time.”
Sharin, Nina, and I retraced our steps. Through the rows of houses, the half-destroyed castle began to appear. As usual, the White Rose remained contaminated. My gaze narrowed on someone standing near it.
“Hey, is that…?”
“Indeed. We’ve been beaten to it.”
While we were distracted by Claudio, Auroa had beaten us to it. The moment his hand touched the magic stone, the White Rose began to burn black, resonating with the magic released from it. The power poured into it pulsed with a dull light, growing stronger.
“What is he doing? Is he going to destroy it just like that? Right, has Lord Nephilim been resurrected?”
I turned to Karubene, who had arrived later from behind.
“He just rushed straight ahead. We can’t do anything without the most important person here, can we?”
“Ah, my apologies. So, how is he?”
Lord Nephilim, who Karubene was carrying on his back, was still in critical condition. He seemed conscious, but I didn’t know if he could transform into that form and fight again.
“Lord Nephilim, are you alright? What is he trying to do?”
In response to my voice, Lord Nephilim opened his eyes slightly.
“Ugh… no. That person is…”
As his dry lips parted, the air above us shimmered. It was as if an explosion had occurred in the sky. Purple clouds swirled, and the wind was drawn towards the White Rose. The overflowing magic created thunderclouds. Lightning flashed within them, emitting a dull glow.
As if obeying its master’s will, the thundercloud soon changed shape. From within it, a landscape of another world appeared. The separate world unfolded like a giant screen that suddenly materialized in the air.
This sight was somehow familiar. My mind flashed back to a past memory, like a tiny lightning strike. It was the same phenomenon that occurred when a Dark Elf sorcerer opened a portal to Hell before.
However, the scale was different this time. The previous event was limited, and the other world was too small to see clearly. This time, the red sky of Hell and the terrifying mountains towering in the distance were clearly visible.
