443 The Power of—!
Azrael ran as fast as he could, reaching out toward his sword's hilt. His movements were fast but seemed too slow in our senses. And just as his fingers were about to touch the hilt...
*GRAAAAAGH!*
A short roar echoed, which was followed by a vicious attack. The Void Beast waved the spiky pike in its hand, using it like a blunt weapon instead of a piercing one.
Before he could touch his sword, he was forced to move back, out of the pike's long range. Fortunately, he managed to stay clear of the spikes and wasn't damaged by them.
"Sh*t! Too slow!"
I cursed, wanting to slap the back of Azrael's head if I could. However, blaming him wouldn't change anything. The Void Beast stood up, but it was visibly weakened.
The sword piercing through its chest probably dealt quite heavy damage to it!
With the Void Beast heavily injured and Azrael fully healed, the fight was now turning into an even one. However, the problem is that there are barely 5 minutes left until the Faux Contract ends.
We need to end this fight fast!
"Ember, give me all the Energy Recovery potions you have!"
Since we were running short on time, I no longer hesitated and planned to use "that." Ember didn't bother questioning me and promptly took out all the Energy Recovery Potions she had on her. A total of 5 vials.
"Great. Then, you two, go and support Azrael in fighting the Void Beast. I need to stay here where it's safe!"
"... You brat. Don't you dare order me around!"
Namia was, as usual, angry at me for trying to give orders to her. Still, knowing that not following my words could lead to her eventual death, she had no choice but to follow them.
Ember, as usual, went toward the enemy promptly. Sometimes, I wish she would try to reject my orders once or twice. Well, having obedient monsters is the best, though.
As soon as the two went to fight with Azrael, I quickly popped the corks of all five vials before downing their contents one after another. Due to their overlapping effects, energy started to rush into my body, like a dry sponge absorbing water.
"Ugh!"
Pain assaulted my senses as my energy level reached maximum capacity in just a few seconds. Before my body suffered from Energy Overload, I quickly used that one function from the System.
"Activate Status Augmentation! Target: Ember and Azrael!"
I quickly inputted the commands, not bothering to do it through my mind but instead reciting them orally. As soon as I did, the whirlpool of energy that was filling my body over the limit was rapidly drained.
"...!"
The draining was faster than the recovery speed by a fraction, so there should be no problem with running out... However, the pain that comes with the rapid gain and loss of energy was unavoidable.
Still, the result was well worth the pain I was suffering.
Ember's power was raised to roughly the same as Namia's, while Azrael became powerful enough to actually overpower the weakened Void Beast!
As soon as I used Status Augmentation, the tide of the battle turned, with our team pushing the Void Beast into a corner rapidly.
When it tried to attack using its spiked pike, Ember would create a portal to divert the weapon physically. Taking advantage of Ember holding its weapon, Namia would then fire countless red spears toward the Void Beast's back, despite all of them not reaching the enemy due to its shell, to pull its attention.
And then Azrael would dash forward, attempting to grab his sword, which was still stuck in the center of the Void Beast's chest. Still, as expected, it was wary of Azrael and would always take distance whenever he tried to come close. Due to this, a full minute was wasted by them repeating this pattern.
When I was beginning to think that we were in a stalemate situation, a change suddenly occurred.
*CRACK!*
Namia's attacks managed to cause cracks to appear on the Void Beast's shell!
No, rather than it being due to Namia's incessant attacks, it was more likely related to the still-pierced sword in the middle of its chest. Due to the pain from its wound, its firm belief that its body was indestructible was slowly whittled away.
"Hah! Now, the turtle comes out of its shell!"
Namia sneered, pouring in even more attacks without rest. The Void Beast had to prioritize defending itself, lest its shell get destroyed, further pitting it into a hopeless situation. However, turning its back to Azrael was a grave mistake.
"Ember!"
"Yes, Master!"
With my command, Ember solidified the space on the Void Beast's legs, not letting it move to evade Namia's barrage. It had its attention caught between the restraints on its legs and the attacks coming from above. Azrael was now completely out of its radar!
Azrael dove to the Void Beast's spiky sides and finally managed to reach his sword's hilt. As soon as he grabbed it, instead of simply pulling it out, he decided to go and inflict as much damage as possible on it.
[Flames of Retribution! Devour my enemy!]
With a short chant, the flames that were slowly dying out along the sword's blade suddenly roared into a raging conflagration. Everything from the Void Beast's chest and above was bathed in the flames, which bypassed its shell and rapidly burned away.
The Void Beast flailed around, waving its pike, shoving the spikes all over its body, and all else, in a bid to push Azrael away. However, with Azrael under the effect of Status Augmentation, his speed was greater than what the Void Beast could handle.
Azrael effortlessly evaded each spike and even went as far as waving his Flamberge to the side, letting it cut through the Void Beast's chest diagonally upwards.
A large cut, almost bisecting its body, was created!
Seeing the damage he delivered, Azrael stood still for a moment, as if watching his great work of art and savoring the moment.
"B*tch! Finish it off! Come on!"
I started roaring from far away. I'm already full of that "unable to finish the enemy" bullsh*t!
Azrael turned to me for a short instant, as if wanting to say something, but in the end, he decided to follow my words. To make sure that the Void Beast died, he covered his sword with raging flames to the limit that he could muster before waving it down.
*CRACK!*
The shell around its body was no longer enough to protect it, as it got bisected in halves from head to groin. As soon as this happened, the Void Beast's body started to disintegrate into black particles of matter and energy, as if sublimating.
"... Is it dead?"
Namia muttered with her brows furrowed. I quickly turned to her, glaring, as her words just now were a flag. One that was forbidden to be said right after finishing a powerful enemy!
Fortunately, such a cliche didn't happen, and the Void Beast's corpse vanished completely, leaving nothing behind. Seeing that, I finally could heave a sigh of relief.
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