Apostle of the Goddess of War

Chapter 164

Ch.164 Apostle of the Goddess of War

Thump, thuuump…!

The sound of an earthquake rang out from behind.

Arwen flinched and looked back. A massive wave of holy power hit her face. Her heart pounded violently.

"I-is it okay? Don't tell me she's going rampant again…."

"Goddesses have pride too. It will be fine this time."

Sion judged the situation calmly. Now was not the time to look back.

'I must trust my allies.'

A map of the entire temple was drawn in Sion's mind. Based on the information absorbed during the moment of extreme concentration where he detected presences, he visualized the buildings and terrain.

The Apostle of the Goddess of War set the board to win.

He believed that even if the plan went awry, the monster named Kaia would block most of it.

Booo—m!

Following that, a pillar of fire also rose.

It seemed the Fire Priests had cast a large-scale fire magic.

However, the pillar of fire soon changed into a vortex shape and slammed down onto the ground.

The magecraft of human mages was mere trickery before a Goddess. She was the embodiment of irrationality itself.

'It wouldn't even serve as a warm-up.'

Laughter spontaneously escaped Sion's lips. Having the feared Goddess fight as an ally made him feel incredibly secure.

Flash!

Sion and Arwen quickly traversed the paths of the temple. Forces trying to block them fell before Arwen's blade.

'Arwen is amazing too.'

She was a crybaby, oblivious, insignificant, and perverted, but her swordsmanship skills were certain. Sion was still unsure if he could defeat her with pure skill alone.

Tap

Sion and Arwen, who had been running frantically, stopped simultaneously. As they braked on the building roof, broken debris fell below.

Rattle, rattle

In the silence, a chilling noise rang in their minds. It was momentary, but the same thought brushed through Sion and Arwen's brains.

'We will die.'

Two people who looked exactly alike stood blocking their path. They certainly hadn't been there originally. But they appeared at some point.

'They aren't human.'

Beside him, Arwen, whose pupils were shaking wildly, exhaled a short breath.

"They are the Goddess of Madness and Rage."

Arwen drew her sword and squinted. Facing an Evil God required immense courage.

Sion also thought that what had to come had finally arrived.

Goddess Achille hadn't lent him the War Sword for no reason. She must have foreseen this situation.

It was too risky for a Goddess to manifest directly. Crossing between the manifest world and the divine realm required enormous power and burden, followed by aftereffects. It was completely different from the fallen Evil Gods who belonged to the current world.

[Gederne and Vilena were originally one body. Eru separated them because they possessed power that was too dangerous.]

'Just hearing their epithets makes me breathless.'

[Do not worry, my apostle. Menesia and I will watch your backs.]

'Yes, My Lady.'

Sion also nodded. Ten years passed in one second.

[However, we must not drag out the time.]

'How much time can we use?'

Achille gazed into the distance and murmured. She seemed to be calculating the remaining time until Agnia absorbed all the fragments.

[At most 10 minutes.]

'Understood….'

Sion spun the War Sword once.

It was an impossible mission. However, Sion tended to feel competitive spirit the more obstacles he faced. A smile unconsciously appeared on his lips.

Sion's eyes gleamed blue.

Fierce black holy power began to erupt around him.

[Swing it.]

Screeech!

***

Sion held his breath. Perception expansion came before action. The holy power of war pulled him.

Sion's pupils captured the Goddess of Rage closing the distance. The air around the Goddess distorted chaotically. Spewing ominous demonic energy, space itself was warping.

Swoosh—

The surroundings were silent. Sion blocked out all unnecessary information.

'Arwen will be taken care of by the Goddess of Wisdom. No need to worry.'

Since he was wearing the Crown of Wisdom, he wouldn't fall easily. Sion focused solely on his own fight.

The fist of the enraged Goddess came right before Sion's eyes.

Sion imposed his mental image onto the world.

……The world inverted.

Whoosh!

The fist of rage sliced through empty air.

"Huh?"

Vilena, flustered, jerked her head up. Humans could not pull Evil Gods into a mental realm. Common sense was broken.

'I was uncertain….'

He didn't know if the mental realm would work on a Goddess. Even Sion wasn't sure.

But once he decided to fight and set his mind to it, his will, body, and soul responded to Sion's wish as if they had been waiting.

"Hoo."

He exhaled. Combat instincts surged up from his body. His brain awakened in real-time as if fireworks were exploding in his head.

It was an extreme battle.

'This must be the most dangerous and difficult fight I've ever had.'

Fighting an Evil God 1-on-1 without any interference or help. There had never been such a duel before.

An emotion that might be fear enveloped Sion. His heart raced wildly, and his excitement wouldn't subside.

At the same time.

'My mind has never been clearer than now.'

All the combat techniques he had learned and mastered until now clung to his mind and body like skin. He felt he could lightly dodge all of Vilena's attacks and counterattack effectively.

Rustle, rustle, rustle, rustle.

Sion's hair stood on end. His senses were heightened to the limit. The soul energy of Vilena entering his field of vision was also clear.

'I'll cut that.'

All sorts of thoughts, noises, and troubles merged into one bundle and vanished. Everything became clear.

Boom!

All of this happened in an instant.

Less than a second passed from the unfolding of the mental realm to Sion finishing his combat preparations.

As soon as she entered the mental realm, Vilena finished assessing the situation and launched herself.

Her fist, containing the roars of ancient demons, flew at him.

Grind

Sion and Vilena crossed paths.

Thud

Vilena's right arm fell to the ground. An earthquake occurred in the Evil God's previously calm eyes.

'War Sword?'

She couldn't possibly forget this chilly sensation. It was metal that had once pierced Vilena's heart as well.

A sword shrouded in darkness was in the Apostle of War's hand. Her fear showed the War Sword as a sword shrouded in darkness.

It was a pitch-black, abyssal fear darker than the shadows Mago wore.

Sion extended his sword like lightning without giving her an opening.

Ching!

Darkness undulated like several long spears and assaulted Vilena.

Vilena stomped the ground roughly.

Ripple—!

The ground rippled greatly as if it had liquefied. Debris surged up and blocked the War Sword.

Splash!

However, blocking all attacks was difficult. Vilena received cuts all over her body. These were injuries sustained without direct contact; she was hurt merely by the scattered sword energy.

[To think you could handle it this perfectly.]

Even Achille didn't know Sion could exert this level of destructive and lethal power.

Sion's heart beat fiercely, sending plenty of blood and holy power to his brain.

Drip.

Nosebleed flows.

Sion and Achille wiped their noses simultaneously.

"Haha."

Both laughed at the same time.

The ecstasy of war, of combat.

Going all out against a strong opponent offered pleasure greater than anything else in the world.

"Urrrgggh, ggggh!"

Vilena's sanity snapped instantly.

Several factors overlapped.

The fact that a human deployed a mental realm on her.

The humiliation of having her arm cut off.

Even rage towards Achille for lending the War Sword to a human to kill an Evil God.

The Goddess of Rage, Vilena, began to let out a roar she had never felt before.

"Aaaaaaah—! Achilleeee!"

Boom!

The roar exploded like a vacuum wave.

As if time had stopped, debris from the ground shot up. Rocks and fragments floating in the air stopped mid-air and vibrated.

"Ugh!"

It was a tremendous howl. Blood started flowing from Sion's ears. His eardrums had clearly burst.

All the air was pushed away. The entire area turned into a vacuum state. Sion couldn't even breathe.

Vibrate, vibrate, vibrate, vibrate!

Rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble!

The howl still hadn't ended. With ferocity worthy of an epithet, the entire temple was collapsing as if it would be torn apart.

Snap

The monstrous scream stopped.

Time began to flow again. The fragments that had risen and the air that had flown away returned to their places.

Sion and Vilena kicked the ground simultaneously.

Boo— Bang!

Navy blue and black collided in mid-air. A fierce explosion occurred. As the smoke cleared, the center was deeply dented.

The temple, possessing a long history, was being buried in ruins moment by moment. If anything remained after the fierce battle, it would be a miracle.

Clang-clang-clang-ching!

Sion and Vilena engaged in a transcendent fight.

Swords and fists exchanged blows. They poured attacks onto points that would exist in the future. Existing in reality but living in the future.

Boom-boom-boom— Boom!

Vilena's fist collided with the War Sword. The fist was cut in half by the blade, then instantly recombined to aim for Sion's face.

Swish!

Sion slightly turned his head, but his cheek burst. The wind pressure was such that merely grazing it tore the skin.

Bang! Baang! Bang!

The sword screamed under the consecutive fists of rage.

Miraculously, he endured and dodged the Evil God's offensive even in an unstable stance. But he was rushed merely defending.

Vilena's movements, having adapted to the War Sword, were too fast and left no openings.

Whoosh!

Vilena's short blue hair left an afterimage as she grabbed Sion from behind. Sion reacted immediately and swung the War Sword roughly.

Thwo—ack!

Following the sword's trajectory, the temple buildings were sliced away. Black holy power formed sword energy from the blade, tearing everything apart in all directions.

Even at that moment, Vilena's counterattack continued. There was no room for other thoughts. Only defense; he poured all remaining strength into the exchange before his eyes. If there was a delay in thought or reaction, he would die.

Sion did not breathe once on the boundary of life and death. One breath would slow his movements, and it felt as though a hole would open in his chest.

Boom-boom-bang!

Screeeeech!

Thump—!

'My head is hot. It feels like it's melting.'

Side effects of accelerating his brain to the limit began to arise. He reached a point where he couldn't tell if he was swinging the sword or if the sword was swinging his arm.

Crunch!

Sion, whose reactions had slowed significantly, was struck hard on the shoulder.

His left shoulder dislocated. The tide of battle turned instantly.

The demonic energy of rage finally began to crush Sion's mental realm.

Even pouring down swords of stars like rain couldn't pierce through the demonic energy of rage.

Vilena was a disaster running around, a monster swallowing stars.

Grind, grind

Sion's eyeballs bulged as if they would pop out. He used all his senses to continue the exchange. There was a limit to enduring with a dislocated arm.

Immense impact and information seeped into Sion's brain. His eyeballs hurt as if they would pop out, and the inside of his skull felt dry as if all his cerebrospinal fluid had drained.

"Graaah! Achilleeee! Come down yourself! Do you want to watch your apostle die!"

Vilena's shout sounded like a distant echo. He realized the end of his life was approaching.

'Since when did I stop breathing?'

His head throbbed as if it would split. He could no longer move his arms. It wasn't a problem solvable by willpower.

It had become physically impossible.

"Pah—!"

Sion finally gasped for air. He vomited dark red blood along with it.

As if emerging from water, the noises began to be heard clearly.

[Sion! Sion! Breathe! Breathe! Are you alright!]

'My… Lady…?'

[Thank goodness. If it had been just a little longer, you would have died!]

'I am….'

Only then did Sion recognize his own condition.

Both arms were broken, and bright red blood flowed from his whole body as if he had been drenched in bloodwater. There was no intact spot anywhere on his body. His breathing was shallow, as if about to extinguish.

It was miraculous that he had blocked the rage offensive while holding the War Sword with broken arms.

'Did-I lose?'

Stomp, stomp

Vilena, who had inflicted defeat upon Sion, approached with rolled-back white eyes glaring.

"Now, give up. Either let me kill the apostle with my hands, or come down yourself. Achille."

The Goddess of Rage still treated Sion as nothing, showing no interest.