The absolute destruction that a human is capable of was displayed to all that day as Sylvester's spear made contact with the earth. Like a streak of lightning, he descended rapidly, and before the Cannibals could even comprehend it, they were obliterated by the frenzied heat emanating from the spear.
However, that was merely the initial effect, as the spear gradually descended into the ground and dispersed the earth-shattering energy in a radius wider than two hundred meters. The earth disintegrated in an instant into large blocks, and from each crack erupted raging light and fire that engulfed the cannibals.
In a flash, hundreds and thousands of cannibals bore witness to hell on earth, while Sylvester's spear descended deeper and deeper, expanding the crater further and burning more fiercely. The very rocks and sand began to liquefy into a magma-like substance, destroying even those untouched by the flames.
BOOM!
The ground quaked as though an earthquake had struck. The Piercing Hell had been executed flawlessly. The aftermath of the attack was awe-inspiring. As per Sylvester's vow, the front and right flank of the Sandwall army were free of all cannibals.
Not even corpses were left behind, as everything burned away in the unimaginable heat. As for Sylvester, he soon emerged from the ground after removing the debris obstructing his path.
His breath was heavy, and his whole body was covered in mud and blood. It was undoubtedly one of his strongest attacks, akin to a nuke. However, it also took a toll on his body.
"That was brilliant!" Felix hurried over to check on Sylvester. "Are you injured?"
"No, I'm just exhausted," Sylvester replied, consuming more Solarium crystals, for the battle was far from over. More cannibals were streaming onto the field. It seemed as if the entire cannibal population had come to attack, which could have been the case as they had just celebrated their most revered festival.
"Get back to fighting. I will fulfill my promise and keep this area clear." Sylvester instructed him. "Be cautious."
Once Felix had departed, Sylvester readied himself for another round. As expected, the cannibals appeared stronger this time, and their numbers had also grown. The strategy was understandable and straightforward—wear out the enemy.
'How many waves are there? Do they have Grand Wizards as well?' Sylvester wondered in silence.
Soon, he began to chant a hymn and raised his palm toward the cannibal horde.
?In the name of the Lord of Light
Cannibals be damned out of sight.
Accept my curse; a might you can't fight.
Burn in the fire!—Begone from my sight.?
Sylvester's palm facing the horde began to shine in a blinding white light. The Wrath of Heavens beam began to form itself in no time and, at his will, shot at the horde.
Sylvester kept chanting the hymn, moving his hand and burning the horde with his beam in two directions. Being powerful enough to melt stones, the beam easily pulverized human bodies and giant lizards alike.
But he was not done. After maintaining the beam of plasma of light for nearly a minute, he decided to use the Hellfire Purge as well.
?The fury never ends, for heathens are countless.
My light is eternal, for Lord's blessing is boundless.
No mercy to you even if you plead and confess.
Death and hell—have finally come to bless.?
Crack!
Boom!
The earth uprooted, and the cracks grew into ravines. The allies were safe, while the cannibals got swallowed by the ground, and others burned by the lights coming from the dark gaps. They screamed and sometimes laughed with joy. Even while dying, to them, Sylvester seemed like their god.
"Haha! Marvelous!" Count Sandlwall laughed and approached Sylvester after jumping over ravines and cracks. "I never doubted your abilities, Your Grace."
Sylvester didn't have the energy to retort. 'Almost seventy percent of my reserves are gone. I'm trying to punch above my weight by bringing Grand Wizard-level destruction while being an Archwizard. I can't keep this going for long.'
He felt out of breath and stood with the help of the spear. "How many more waves do you suspect will come?"
"I don't know, Your Grace. My soldiers are also tired by now, as they had never faced more than three waves before, and now four have already passed." The Count replied. "Can you still fight, Your Grace?"
Sylvester was aware of the madness lurking in the Count's heart, waiting to be unleashed, so he reluctantly agreed. "I can do it."
"Of course, how could I forget that you are the great bard that can't be killed?" The Count said, remaining beside Sylvester. "But I cannot permit you to fight alone. The church might hold me accountable for any unfortunate events."
Sylvester paused to regain his composure and attempted to ignore the man. He felt the vibrations on the ground intensify, as he expected.
'I don't feel comfortable here anymore. Something isn't right.'
"How can there be so many of them?" He asked the Count.
"All the tribes gather for their celebrations. These are all the cannibal tribes," The Count replied. "They have breeding villages near each tribe, and some have more than one. These villages have cannibal and trafficked women purchased with gold, who are used to increasing their population."
'As expected.' Sylvester had already guessed as much about the breeding farms. 'I hope that girl is safe. I'll go and look for her inside the Divine Desert after this.'
Thud!
Thud!
The heavy footsteps of a lizard beast grew closer, and a larger horde appeared. This time, they wore stronger armor and wielded sturdier swords. A few robed men were also present, suspected to be magic users.
'I must kill the wizards first. Sandwall is vulnerable to magical attacks,' Sylvester thought, stabbing the wizards with his spear. However, he refrained from using any large-scale magic as there was no guarantee when the battle would end.
"Maxy! Look at the back!" Miraj suddenly shouted.
Sylvester quickly looked and stopped abruptly. His spear retracted as he stared at the cliff wall behind him.
"W-Why are the knights retreating?"
Thud!
"Maxy, be careful!" Miraj warned.
Quickly, Sylvester leaped and killed the giant lizard beast. Then, he focused on the hideous cannibals around him. He felt their hatred and rage and moved his spear non-stop, striking and retracting. But, unfortunately, the cannibals also began to surround him from his left side as the Knights retreated and gave an opening.
"Count Sandwall, why are your soldiers retreating?" Sylvester questioned as the man also fought the cannibals beside him.
"We cannot fight them alone, Count! You need to call back the knigh—"
Woosh!
Sylvester stopped mid-sentence as the intense scent of death abruptly came from behind him. He attempted to jump as a reaction, but alas, too late.
"Argh! W-What are you d…"
Sylvester had no idea what had happened. Then, finally, he looked down and saw a spearhead protruding from his chest. The pain came later as his knees buckled and his body collapsed.
"C-Count?" He tried to utter words.
"So you can sense one's emotions?" An unfamiliar voice echoed from behind Sylvester. He tried to turn his head, but the man pushed the spear deeper, planting its tip into the ground.
Sylvester's face glistened with sweat as he wondered what had occurred. He had not detected any irregularities or dangers nearby. The attack had come out of nowhere.
The voice continued, "Now I understand how you foiled all my plans - Jartle County, Ironstone Duchy, Iceling Duchy, and the Northern Mountains. It all makes sense now."
The man finally stood in front of Sylvester. "It's been a while since we last met, my greatest adversary."
In agonizing pain, Sylvester looked up, but it was just the Count without the usual voice. "S-Shadow of Masan?"
"Perfect!" The man rejoiced and knelt beside Sylvester. "My ten-year planning—my ultimate move in Iceling to seize Gracia—you ruined it. You humiliated me, my dear bard, and this is my payback."
"Gah!" Sylvester groaned in pain while trying to remove the spear from his chest or manipulate the metal with magic.
"Tsk...Not so easy, Bard. That spear is made of Darkstone. So you can't use magic anymore."
Sylvester looked back at him. "H-How? Since when?"
"Haha!" The Count sat down and waved his hand at the cannibals, who abruptly stopped inching closer and killed themselves by slitting their own throats.
"My amazing bard. Ever since you arrived in this County, the only Count you ever met was me. I admit it was harsh to trick your strange ability to sense emotions. But a simple self-hypnotization ensured I fooled my mind into believing I was the Count. Now, when the hypnosis ended, you sensed my emotions. But I was quick!"
"MAX! What happened? Damn it!" Felix noticed Sylvester and frantically tried to reach him, cutting any cannibal in the way or jumping over them.
The Count scoffed and stood up. "Knights! Retreat to the wall! The cannibals have surrendered! Follow my orders!"
Clank!
Out of nowhere, ten elite knights emerged and cuffed Felix with Darkstone chains. They were stronger when combined, and Felix was exhausted beyond belief. He tried to fight, but he got overpowered easily.
"Sylvester! What's going on?" Felix asked so loudly that his throat tore apart from within. "FATHER! Bring him to safety!"
"Throw him in the dungeon!" Shadow of Masan in Count Sandwall's guise and voice shouted at his son.
Sylvester glared at the Shadow of Masan. "So it was all your plan? Deceiving me by showing false anger for compensation and that underground sacrificial city! All just to ensure I don't have time to think about you?"
"Hah, you're correct. But I'm sure you still had doubts. You are...were, my greatest adversary, after all...ah." he sighed. "If only we were on the same side, we could have ruled the world."
"What did you do to the Count?"
The Shadow of Masan smiled wickedly. "His fate is what's about to be your fate."
The Shadow of Masan began walking back. "You were too good for your own good, my young rival. It was fun while it lasted, but now I must continue with my plans and conquer the east for my beloved Emperor, the Sand Lord."
Sylvester's breathing grew heavier, and his voice turned hoarse. "L-Let Felix go!"
"I shall, but the church may not—Farewell, bard."
The Shadow of Masan snapped his fingers, and the cannibals regained their senses. They all rushed towards Sylvester, who found himself trapped in the middle of them.
'No, no, no…I cannot die here…What will become of Xavia?'
Sylvester gritted his teeth and summoned all the strength remaining in his body. "C-Chonky! Devour them!"
Miraj was already teary-eyed, struggling to extract the spear from Sylvester's chest. However, he lacked the strength to do so. He felt hopeless and useless, even cursing himself. "Max…Please don't die!"
Sylvester did not have the energy to respond, finding it difficult to stand. His body had already depleted all its Solarium, and the Darkstone spear had reduced the meager supply to nothing.
"I will not die today! Haaaa!" He swung the Spear of Infinity to the best of his ability, cutting through the cannibals. Then, he attempted to make his way back towards the wall.
However, the rain impeded his progress, and he began to lose his footing on the bloodied corpses. He fell many times but quickly rose to his feet.
"I cannot!" His grunting breaths were audible. "I cannot leave Mum alone!"
Woosh!
He decapitated a group of cannibals before him and took a step forward. His eyes grew heavy, and hatred for himself began to build. His inability to see through the Shadow of Masan's schemes was his own fault.
'How did he discover my ability?' He pondered.
'How did he counter it with mere hypnotism?'
Regret, rage, and refusal to accept the situation drove him to the brink of insanity. With his tired arms and body, he fought like an animal.
"I won't die!"
Woosh!
Thud!
Just as he saw an opening to reach the wall, a giant crossbow ballista came shooting at him. They fell randomly around him, but each of them was bigger than his own body.
'He's doomed the County! Nobody knows he's a spy! The Holy Land's wrath…'
Boom!
Following Ballista, the same exploding crystals he had given the knights began to rain down from above and fall around him.
On his last breath, Sylvester looked up at the sky where the Shadow Knight hovered, likely watching everything.
"Help me! I saved those people!" he requested as his body fell down, without any energy left.
"Maxy! Wake up, please!" Miraj pleaded, attempting to drag Sylvester by placing him on his back. But with the spear impaled in his chest, it proved impossible.
"R-Run away, Chonky…Go back to m-mum…Pro-te-tect her…" His voice faltered as his shining golden eyes lost their luster.
He kept his gaze fixed on the sky, hoping for a response.
"Embrace your destiny~"
A faint whisper was the only reply, crushing any remaining hope he held.
"I can't die...not now!" he repeated, as the growls of the cannibals grew louder.
Thud!
Fate had already taken its course. Sylvester knelt with a stopped heart, his body cold and his face pale and lifeless. The spear propped him up, allowing him to remain seated, and his helmeted head drooped forward.
"Wraaaa!"
"Eat!"
"Kill!'
The cannibals quickly overtook the area, and Sylvester's body vanished beneath their massive horde, his fate unknown.
Only time will tell—can the damage be restored?
Or was it the beginning of the realm's downfall—forsaken by the Lord?
No one could answer that, for the divine prophecy of the dragons had been misinterpreted. As the realm prepared for the bloody war, the true tragedy fell upon Gracia's shore.
Without anyone knowing, the calamity crept—So gloomy that even the heavens wept.
____________________________
[END OF VOLUME]
[NEXT VOLUME - The Grassroots]
[A/N: Thank you for all your support, fellow monke, lads, and ladies. We consistently remained in the top 25 this whole month. It's crazy, honestly.
Thank you again, and if you haven't, be sure to leave a review.]