DEB 107

From that moment on, there was no time even to ask what was happening. A gray light struck the ground, and suddenly black flames erupted, taking control of the swamp.

Out of those flames, zombie-like creatures began to emerge one by one, followed by figures cloaked in dark energy as if they wore it as armor. Their numbers continued to grow, soon surrounding the group in a tight circle.

“Wow… it’s been a while since we’ve been in a situation like this,” Ash remarked, his tone carrying a battle-ready energy as he ignited his sword with flames.

“When the ruler is complete, his soldiers only grow stronger. Stay alert—these are not the same swamp creatures you’ve faced before,” Yasha warned in a low voice.

“Don’t worry about that. What’s our first move?”  

“Yasha, command us, and we shall obey.”  

“Yes, Yasha.”  

“Agreed. Fighting it out like this is better than endlessly trudging through this damned swamp.”

Despite the sudden battle, the disciples waited calmly for their master’s orders. 

Watching them, Yasha’s lips curved into a slight smile.

“We need to eliminate these swamp creatures quickly to lure out the ruler. When the new ruler rises, I’ll step in. Until then, I need you to conserve my strength by assisting me.”

“No problem. Vina!”

“For the third time, stop saying my name like it’s some kind of battle cry.”

Vina rolled his eyes as Ash called his name like a skill command. 

With a wave of his hand, the swamp ground froze, making it easier to maneuver. 

Ash stepped onto the ice and unleashed flames as he charged toward the enemies.

With swift, sliding movements, the battle began. 

Seven fireballs spun around Ash, lighting up the darkness and striking the nearby swamp soldiers. 

Amidst the confusion, Ash cut through the disoriented enemies and plunged deeper into their ranks.

-Khrrrr! 

-Screeeeech!

The swamp soldiers screeched, encircling Ash with banshee-like cries, but the revolving fireballs acted as a barrier. 

Even so, he was quickly outnumbered. 

Ash swung his sword furiously, slashing the neck of a knight shrouded in black mist before twisting his body to avoid an attack.

“You’re too reckless! Verita, Zenith! Open up a divine field together!”

“Don’t go ordering Zenith around, you red-scaled lizard!”

Vita joined the fray, back-to-back with Ash. 

The aura from Vita and the Guardian’s sword radiated a fierce energy that pressured the swamp soldiers. 

As Vina sighed and froze the ground beneath each step and the moisture in the air, he aided the battle by launching icy attacks at the soldiers.

“It’s impressive how coordinated they are, even though it’s been a while since their last war. They must’ve kept up their training.”

Watching the scene unfold, young Yasha praised them, while Zenith and Verita met each other’s eyes, timing their actions.

The two began to pray, causing the swamp floor to tremble.  

“Vina! Freeze their feet so they can’t run!”  

“I was just about to.”

Having previously battled these swamp creatures, the disciples knew what to expect when a divine field was cast. 

Vina channeled his focus into freezing the feet of hundreds, even thousands of soldiers. 

With the ground secured, Ash and Vita danced through the air, avoiding the swamp’s pull while striking down their foes.

Cutting down one enemy, Ash would leap off another’s head to strike down two more. 

The swamp monsters roared in rage as they closed in on them. 

Just as they grabbed at Ash’s ankle to pull him down—

– Slash!

At the perfect moment, Vita sliced through the hands holding onto him.

“Thanks!”  

“Don’t let yourself get caught so easily.”

Vita’s sharp rebuke came with no room for Ash to express gratitude. 

A minute later, Vita found herself in the exact same predicament, receiving a rescue from Ash.

“You’re no better, you know?”  

“Shut up before I say something I regret.”  

“Pretty sure you already did.”

Ash chuckled, jokingly asking if Vita had picked up any humor along the way. 

Vita’s face hardened just as the ground shook.

– Rumble!

The sky roared, and the earth trembled again.

This time, however, the rumbling wasn’t caused by the enemy—it was the work of their own allies.

Zenith and Verita’s prayers grew stronger, shaking the swamp. 

Holding hands, they remained calm amid the quaking ground, continuing their invocations.

“May the mercy of the divine, who hears our desperate pleas, descend upon this earth.”

“Through sacrifice and grace, let life blossom here.”

Though their words differed, their prayers merged in purpose.  

“Let the light descend.”

As their voices intertwined, the sky opened, and miraculous life sprouted from the ground. 

Intense light poured down from above, and vines of golden light spread across the earth.

-Screeeeech! 

-Aaaaargh!

The swamp beings writhed in agony, clutching their heads as Zenith and Verita’s holy energy poured over them. 

The creatures struggled to retreat into the swamp, but Vina’s ice firmly held them in place.

“Hah!”

Even with the holy aura surrounding them, the sheer numbers of the swamp soldiers were overwhelming, and they were much stronger now than before the ruler’s full awakening. 

The resistance took a toll on Vina, who wiped blood from his lips and frowned.

“Are you guys going to clear these out or what?”

Vina’s fierce order snapped Ash and Vita out of their awe at Zenith and Verita’s divine field, and they resumed cutting down the soldiers.

As countless soldiers fell, their bodies collapsed and dissipated into mist, prevented from resurrecting by Yasha’s control. 

With the number of monsters reduced from thousands to mere dozens, a massive rumble shook the swamp.

– Boom! Boom! Boom!

The sound was like the footsteps of a colossal entity. 

Until now, young Yasha had offered minimal assistance to keep the battlefield under control. 

But now he stepped forward.

“The ruler has finally arrived.”

With a sigh, he moved to stand alongside his disciples. 

Ash and Vita tried to pull him back, concerned.

“Go back.’”

“…!”

Yasha’s irresistible command pulled them behind him with a force that brooked no defiance.

“What kind of command…!”

Ash and Vita were shocked. The sheer strength of his control was almost indistinguishable from Yasha’s former power, leaving them feeling helpless and monitored, as if even their breaths were under his watch.

“‘Stand back.’”

The other disciples experienced the same phenomenon, compelled backward by young Yasha’s words, a bone-chilling feeling coursing through them. 

Ash, attempting to protest, opened his mouth—

But his voice was drowned out by a deafening roar.

– Crash!

A thunderous noise pierced the air as a black shape rose from the swamp, spilling dark sludge like a waterfall.

Young Yasha stood still, facing the monstrous figure emerging from the swamp, as his disciples stared in horror.

“…Eil?”

Verita paused his prayer, whispering in shock. 

“…Hamel.”  

“…Dahlia.”  

“…Roan.”

The other disciples were the same, muttering familiar names in stunned disbelief. 

Countless human faces merged into one grotesque, massive head as the creature shook off the swamp’s sludge and stood upright. 

A massive form with a mountainous body, crowned with the writhing faces of countless humans.

In front of this towering figure, young Yasha seemed minuscule, a mere dot.

“…Aisha.”  

Vina murmured the name of a child they had known from their church, letting out a painful sigh.

A graveyard for the suicidal. 

Their very own personal hell. 

There was no mistaking what kind of entity the King of Wraiths represented.

Its horrific, sinister form was beyond belief.

This was the new ruler of the swamp.  

“Yasha…”

Not even the demon lords inspired this level of terror. 

It felt utterly foreign, like encountering a being from an entirely different dimension—similar to the pressure they’d felt from the Bird Without Eyes. 

The oppressive force was overwhelming, wave after wave crashing over them.

Ash, stood frozen and muttered his master’s name. 

As if responding to a cue, the other disciples snapped back to attention, widening their eyes.

“Yasha!”

“Yasha!”

Realizing the situation, they searched for their master, who now faced the swamp’s ruler alone. 

Although their cries were desperate, they couldn’t move a muscle under Yasha’s command. 

He stood still, staring at the monstrous entity comprised of familiar faces—the children he had failed to protect.

“…Finally, I can find peace, and so can all of you.”

His whisper settled over the swamp like a command.