Chapter 208: Gremory Elden Ishtar Elmark (3)

After a few seconds had passed,

Ferzen shifted the sword he held in his left hand to his right, his gaze fixed on Gremory.

Her body, transcending human limitations, moved faster than the speed of sound.

Although her speed was still too slow to evade the thunderbolts, Ferzen could only land a hit if he could accurately capture Gremory's movements and utilize his magic.

He was well aware that he was at a disadvantage in this fight because of that.

Only during the first attack, did he manage to strike her with a lightning bolt fueled by a large amount of magical power, even though he was unaware of her movement.

"......"

Bzzt-!! Bzzt-!!

Her unique blue hair fluttered and scattered in the air.

When Gremory felt the tingling of static electricity brush against her face, she couldn't help but feel amazed.

It was because the magic power coursing through her body showed no reaction to the electricity.

'It means...'

This phenomenon wasn't created by Ferzen's magic power.

When magic power transformed into fire and consumed other objects, the resulting flames were no longer fueled by magic power, but became a purely natural phenomenon.

In other words, the electricity she felt must be a natural occurrence caused by the thunder that had struck moments ago.

'Hmm.'

Thanks to her position within the Elmark Empire, she had access to everything.

When it came to acquiring new knowledge, she never turned away.

Because of that, Gremory realized that she had become some sort of human lightning rod. However, she was still fully aware that she held the advantage in this battle.

His lightning strike would indeed pose a threat, but for it to be effective against her, it would need to contain an immense amount of magic power, enough to overpower the currents flowing through her body in an instant.

However, Ferzen was unable to spare such a large amount of magic power due to his corpses working on the front lines.

In the end, the longer the war dragged on, the more futile his attacks would become.

If Gremory grew impatient and tried to engage him in a short-term battle, she would fail to gain the upper hand in this psychological warfare.

Therefore, she had to control the flow of this battle.

And an active battle like this was a stage that suited her well.

Rumble-!!

It was hard to believe that she could stomp her delicate legs on the ground without injuring herself, but the wasteland floor was torn beneath her feet as if it was mere mud.

──!

Like an arrow released from a bow, Gremory appeared in front of Ferzen in an instant, swinging her sword.

Paang─!

A loud sound reverberated through the air a few moments later.

Clang-!!

Then, a sound so heavy that it was hard to believe it came from swords clashing resonated from the center of the battlefield, accompanied by a swirling gust of wind.

Creak-!!

Creak-!!

As Gremory's sword, covered in her magic, clashed against the swords of the previous heads of Brutein, an unpleasant sound was created...

Ferzen, standing behind them with Isabel, gazed at her with a serious expression, paying no mind to his neatly blown hair.

"I see."

Simultaneously, Gremory also looked at Ferzen calmly, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.

Since the previous heads of Brutein, even in their prime, had never reached the pinnacle level of an Auror Knight.

Only certain parts of their bodies had been purified to allow for the unrestricted flow of magic.

Even if the arms that held the sword were completely free of impurities and filled with magic energy, if the lower legs couldn't withstand the opponent's strike, the posture would be disrupted and rendered meaningless.

That's why they compensated by blocking the attack together.

What surprised Gremory the most about the previous heads of the Brutein in front of her were their eyes, clumsily following her movements.

After all, while it was relatively easy to train the arms and legs to remove impurities,

And to train the chest, where the heart resides, to become the center of overall physical activity,

It was difficult to tamper with the optic nerve and hearing.

In fact, training the sensory organs seemed almost ridiculous.

After all, there was almost no other way to train them except for burning themselves with fire or subjecting their bodies to extreme cold to the point of frostbite, just as she had done.

However, all the previous heads of the Brutein family had trained in this way.

If they had only focused on training their chest, where the heart resides, to support their body after purifying their arms and legs,

They would have become even more "monstrous" beings in their lifetime.

However, instead of doing that, they trained their delicate optic nerves, an area that was fragile and could not be restored with magic.

There was only one reason why they made that choice.

It was because there was no reason for their bodies to struggle to keep up with their trained arms and legs once they died and became corpses.

That's why the previous heads of Brutein, who had the talent to become Auror Knights, decided to focus their training on their eyes.

"Your family is truly insane."

When they were still alive, they didn't care about their own lives.

Instead, they pursued an afterlife that would only come once they became cold corpses and moved according to the will of others.

"Your family might call it loyalty, but in the eyes of this Empress... It's nothing but madness."

However, even as she said that,

Gremory felt like she understood the reason why

The Brutein family was known as the pillar of the Ernes Empire.

If they hadn't been in the position of supporting the throne.

If they had ascended the throne and declared themselves as Emperors.

Perhaps this war would never have occurred.

It was a madness that was solely for themselves, not for others.

But in the end, what they chose was not the throne, but the position of lesser royalty.

To lack the ambition that benefits them and simply settle for a lower position...

"It can be called a mistake!"

Clang-!!

Pulling back the swords that clashed against each other with force,

Gremory swung her sword, infused with a vast amount of magic power, towards the ground beneath them.

Slash-!!

As if it were nothing more than a piece of fabric, the ground was sliced apart.

Rumble-!!

Gremory forcefully plunged her right foot into the cut she had made, causing a portion of the ground where Ferzen and the former head of Brutein stood to crumble...

Kunng-!!

She kicked it as if scooping it up.

Boom-!!

The ground, large enough to accommodate a small building, was lifted and blown away, as if a meteorite had crashed into it from the sky.

What remained was a hollow crater.

As Gremory released her legs, she gripped her sword and launched herself towards the piece of land that she had kicked, which was flying off into the distance.

"Keuk...!"

Meanwhile, Ferzen, who had regained his balance with the assistance of the previous generation's heads, frowned at the deafening sound of the rushing air.

Even if he wanted to move his body, he couldn't overcome the immense inertia that was pressing against him.

All he could do was breathe.

Slash-!!

Before long, the previous heads, who had taken their positions in the air, threw their swords and split the ground that obstructed their view. It was the same piece of ground that Gremory had kicked...

Of course, once it was destroyed, they could no longer see Gremory beyond it.

Before reaching the high and steep cliff, Ferzen poured out a large amount of his magic power to strengthen his connection with Isabel.

Her body, which had been electrified by the initial lightning strike, would naturally return to its original state over time.

Therefore, she should direct the next lightning strike, which would not occur again naturally, to hit herself.

There was no need to save the attack for later use.

Flutter-!!

Eventually, she who once possessed the greatest talent for elemental magic in the history of the Ernes Empire,

And the one who had overcome her own stigma as a witch─Isabel Ron Pierre Genova.

Fluttered violently in the wind that blew against her.

Thud-!!

And when Isabel, Ferzen, and the previous heads of Brutein momentarily landed on the edge of the steep cliff,

Flash──!

A beam of light descended from the cloudless sky, cutting through the air and striking the top of the cliff face in Eliatta Gorge.

Boom-!!

Yes, that attack meant that

Gremory, who they couldn't see, was above their heads.

'......'

Why did an enemy that disappeared from view always appear from above?

In Lee Seo-jin's memory, this was some kind of predictable development and was called a cliché.

Paaaaaaaah-!

Thud-!! Thud-!!

With a brilliant flash of light that would blind anyone who dared to look directly at it, shards of broken stone tumbled down the cliff.

And the cliff face, which had been transformed by a large amount of magical energy and couldn't withstand the impact, melted like snow......

Rumble-!!

Just like the crumbling cliff that signaled the start of the war.

And just like the cliff on the other side that was shattered by Gremory's punch, the cliff they were on began to crumble as well.

'It hurts.'

Gremory, falling through the air just above Ferzen along with the fragments of the cliff, let out a faint groan.

She had made all the preparations and waited in plain sight for Ferzen to unleash the lightning attack.

Yet, as if to assert that a direct lightning strike could outshine the rising sun in the darkest moment of the world,

It overwhelmed all the magic power flowing on the surface of her skin with a noise resembling the chirping of thousands of birds, displaying its unique brilliance.

As a result, the back of her clothes were charred, and bubbles formed on her skin.

In the meantime, the skin on her sides and thighs were completely peeled and burned black.

Of course, magic power quickly surged through her skin once again in an instant.

However, her body, which had borne the full force of the lightning strike...

Suffered from grotesque burns and scars that starkly contrasted with the remaining cold beauty.

But Gremory didn't truly care about her beauty that had been marred.

If she had cared in the first place, she wouldn't have exposed her entire body to the cold in order to train.

She had no intention of living the life of a girl whose sole purpose was to fawn over men, flaunting her pale skin, ample breasts, and curvaceous hips.

The Princesses of the Obern Kingdom, who whimpered beneath the men, were despicable and pitiful even from a woman's perspective.

Life was something that people could only experience once.

In that life, she had been bestowed the title of Empress.

As long as her hands could still move.

And she could walk with her legs.

Shouldn't she take control of everything in this world with her own hands?

Even if she couldn't ascend to the heavens where the beings called Gods reside.

The ambition of the human named Gremory Eldin Ishtar Elmark was to reign as the conqueror of the earth.

Crack-!!

'This...'

At that moment, the blade of the sword she was holding melted and disappeared.

All that remained was the handle of the sword in her palm.

But when did she become so fixated on weapons?

She laughed and tossed the sword, now just a handle, behind her.

For someone at the pinnacle of the Auror Knights, a weapon was merely an extension of their hand.

'By the time I hit the ground, this annoying paralysis should have worn off.'

Despite her attempts to adjust her posture, her body, struck by a powerful lightning attack, continued to twitch uncontrollably, refusing to obey her brain's commands.

But it wouldn't last long.

"Are you just going to stand there and watch?"

In the battle that would follow, she would never be this defenseless again.

Yet, Ferzen, who watched her descent, made no move to seize this opportunity.

Did he think it was pointless since they couldn't execute a proper combination attack while in the air?

"Not taking risks may be an ideal trait for a general. But... It's not a good trait for a man."

Gremory soon landed on the ground, accompanied by the falling fragments of the cliff, while laughing at Ferzen.

Boom-!!

Without even pausing to catch her breath, she kicked off the ground and ran.

Paang─!

The only trace she left behind was the delayed echoes of the air.