757. Embracing Death Part Five
“[Rakintash, I Ask For Your Strength: Bones Of The Ice Dragon].”
I stared up at Naro’s new icy form. It was like he was now wearing an armor of ice— one that was larger than he was, its icy plates designed to look like the scales of a Kobold. A pair of wings and a tail that was many times his size protruded from his back, and a pair of icy horns poked out of his helmet.
He floated there, the injuries he had sustained earlier now gone. And his eyes were different. His golden irises engulfed the entirety of his sockets so that there were no longer any whites or blacks in his eyes, and a thin slit-like pupil cut across his eyes horizontally, regarding Chordus quietly.
“Bones Of The Ice Dragon?”
I blinked at that, repeating after the [Hellprince].
“But how do you have such a Grand Skill? I thought the Old Gods were only in the Mortal Realm!”
However, Naro didn’t indulge me with an answer. Instead, he just raised his blade and pointed at Chordus. The [King Of The Wild] tilted her burning head back at him.
“Do you truly think this little form of yours is enough to defeat me? I have seen the extent of your strength with this Grand Skills of yours, you will not be able to stand a chance against me as I am right now.”
Chordus spread her arms back at him. Naro just shook his head as he floated forward slowly.“That is true. I do not stand a chance against you, even with this boost in power. However, there is one factor you didn’t consider.”
There was a pause as Naro looked down at himself, flexing a hand. Chordus eyed him curiously. And Naro smiled.
“I’m not alone—”
“[Divine Radiant Slash]!”
I screamed as I struck Chordus from the back with my newly-regenerated corrupted claw. She recoiled, the attack knocking her back. Although, it barely even cracked the crystalline surface of her body. She spun around as she wretched, raising her sword my way.
“You—”
But there was a crackle of iridescent light that overcame her body. For a moment, I thought that was an aftereffect of my divine attack. But then I saw the distortion that flickered over the [King Of The Wild].
And I knew that was an effect of my corrupted claw, rather than my Skill.
“Huh.”
I paused for only a moment as the strange aftereffects of my corrupted attack slowed Chordus. But she glared at me in anger and moved.
“Shit—”
I cursed as she moved too fast for me to react. But before she reached me, a blast of frost blasted her from the side, sending her tumbling through the sky to the ground. I blinked as I watched Naro fly up towards me.
“Hey, you’re actually doing damage to Chordus now!”
I exclaimed as he opened his mouth and sent another breath of frost down at the [King Of The Wild]. She screamed as she tried to fly up against his attack, but she slowed, her body constantly freezing as even the air itself was turned to ice.
“Shut up and help me!”
He spoke even through his constant ice breath. I nodded and clasped my claws together, sending a wave of corruption down to Chordus to crush her. It engulfed her entirely as she screamed, raising a hand up.
The spades in the air came crashing down towards her, raining all around Naro and I. Some of them came straight for us, which forced us to dodge out of the way, stopping our attacks on the [King Of The Wild].
I sent out flaming attacks to stop the spades from reaching Chordus. If she got back to them, it would be bad for both Naro and I— we wouldn’t be able to pin her down any longer. She would be too quick, and we would both be defeated with ease.
But they were too fast. They evaded my flaming projectiles as they were just about to reach Chordus. She grinned, slashing out with her blade to get rid of the remaining corruption clinging onto her. Then she raised a hand as if to grab the closest spade falling from the air. But before that could happen, there was a flash of light as a gigantic spell circle appeared in the ground. Before I could even process what was going on, everything below froze.
I blinked as the entire landscape was engulfed in a mountain of ice that rose out from the ground. Chordus. Her spades. Even my corruption was somehow trapped in the ice.
I stared at the [Hellprince] in shock— at the sheer might of his brand new powers.
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“Why didn’t you use this Grand Skill earlier? Maybe we’d stand more of a chance if you did!”
I pointed accusingly at him. But he just shook his head as he replied under his breath.
“No, we’re still not strong enough either way.”
He whispered as he watched the ice around Chordus begin to break. She moved her head, glaring up at us as the [Hellprince] took in a deep breath. And before the [King Of The Wild] could fully regain control of her movements in the ice trapping her, Naro dove straight down into the mountain he created.
“What are you doing—”
I started. But then I watched as Naro sank into the ice like it wasn’t even there. He zipped through the translucent surface, before continuing onwards down past the frozen spades and heading straight for Chordus.
He was swimming through the ice like it was water.
And then he reached her before she could fully break free from the ice. When he did, he swung at her with his sword of ice, sending her figure tearing through the mountain. I watched as she just flew through the ice as it shattered all around her, all the while Naro continued to unleash a combination of powerful strikes at her ragdolling body.
But unfortunately for him, he grew too complacent as she managed to regain her bearings and swing out with her sword before he could strike her with his next attack.
Her single slash sliced his mountain in half and sent him flying back as the ground split open. The spades were freed from their frozen prison, and the [King Of The Wild] moved to rejoin them. But I intercepted her.
I struck her from behind, swinging out with a flurry of [Divine Strikes] combined with [Corrupted Draconic Fury]. But the attack barely even made her budge as she spun around and swung at me. I flew back, avoiding her swing. However, the gust of wind generated from her attack was enough to send me flying back.
Another blast of frost shot her way from behind, but one of the spades reached Chordus first. And her figure disappeared into its surface as the spade was frozen where it floated. I looked up across the dozens of flying spades as she appeared on the surface of one, before disappeared again.
Her figure flashed into existence and vanished, moving between the spades instantly, all the while the array of projectiles spread out. It was evidently clear that she was trying to avoid getting trapped in one spot by Naro’s ice again.
I raised a hand, sending numerous tendrils of corruption after them from the sky. But my attacks were too slow as the spades spread out far and wide across my pocket space. I gritted my teeth as Naro flew down and landed next to me. Even though he had taken a direct attack from the [King Of The Wild], he was still in one piece. His armor saved him, and the cracks it sustained quickly sealed.
He watched the spades dart through the air, each one on their own, before he met my gaze.
“We can’t defeat her.”
He spoke simply. I opened my mouth to protest.
But we’re actually fighting back! I wanted to say. However, I stopped myself. Because I made the same realization he did.
The truth was— while we were doing damage to the [King Of The Wild], we were barely doing any damage to win.
“I do not know how long Chordus’s one-time use Grand Skill will last, nor do I know how many more tricks she has up her sleeve. But I do now one thing—”
Naro continued as he looked down at himself. He sighed as he shook his head.
“This power… it was given to me long ago through sheer chance. And even though I have possessed it for a long time, I have not been able to master it until now. Its effects will not last long.”
“What do you mean by that?”
I asked him with a frown. He just took a step forward as he eyed the spade that was carrying Chordus. She was swooping down straight for us as she sliced the tendril of corruption giving chase to her in half.
“Now is no time to explain. All that matters is the plan you mentioned earlier.”
Naro pointed at her, sending another wave of frost her way. But she vanished from the spade’s surface, appearing on another behind our backs. We both spun around as the [Hellprince] continued.
“Your plan was to hold her off, right? How much longer do I have to do that?”
“I’m not sure… maybe five more minutes?”
I answered hesitantly. And Naro just nodded at me as he spoke simply.
“Then just leave it to me. Get out of here.”
“What?”
I stared at him in shock. However, it was clear he was serious.
“But you’ll die—”
I started, and he cut me off as he bared his teeth my way.
“I already accepted my death when I decided to join your rebellion against the Demon King.”
He spoke as he strode forward, sending another wave of frost at the [King Of The Wild]. This time, Chordus just dove around it, still flying our way.
“We can still get Manos’s help.”
I argued, and Naro laughed in my face.
“Seriously? No— he won’t be enough to defeat a Primordial Demon. Just let me do just let me do this.”
“But…”
I trailed off. The [Hellprince] just chuckled.
“I don’t even care about going against Regnorex, you know?”
He slowly broke out into a crazed laughter as he spread his arms wide.
“That’s probably a death sentence— you’re all probably going to fail and die!”
He turned to face me, a savage grin on his face.
“All I wanted was to kill Chordus. That annoying bitch has been getting on my nerves for a very long time. You just gave me an opportunity to kill her.”
Chordus was just about to reach us, when Naro clapped his hands together. Another mountain of ice appeared from the ground, trapping the [King Of The Wild]. Her figure remained frozen there, right before us for a moment.
But then she melted into her spade, appearing in the air, free from the frozen prison he had trapped her in. Naro shook his head as he turned to face where Chordus was at now.
“So just get out of here.”
He spoke without even looking my way. I hesitated for a moment, but he took off into the air, flying after the [King Of The Wild] as he spoke one final word.
“Go.”
And I took in a deep breath, before opening a rift and escaping through it. All the while, both Naro and Chordus clashed in the air in [The World Of My Mind]. And they battled as I flew through space, arriving back in the Netherworld.
As behind me, I sent my pocket space into the oblivion that was the fold between the planes.