Chương 193: Lux Vult (23)

A beam of crimson miasma struck the falling Forbidden Keep. The bloody ray was stronger and more intense than anything the Malevolence's cannons could produce. It set the heavens alight, briefly pushing back the otherworldly darkness summoned by Simon's Edict of Endless Night, and struck the floating islands falling upon Helel's base. The blast caused the manaliths to detonate prematurely, causing massive explosions to rock the clouds above.

The Forbidden Keep itself was split into many parts, but Simon still sensed his Dungeon core inside one of the largest pieces. He drew upon the armies of minions he had branded for this very occasion across the battlefield, draining them of their mana to ensure he could cast his second Edict of the day.

"The fires of my wrath shall burn even the sun!" he chanted, weaving the threads of reality into a tapestry of flames.

"Let Hell's inferno rise from the depths of the Abyss to incinerate my enemies, until my own life is extinguished–" The attack came as anticipated as the words formed on his lips. Mental attacks traveled through his branded minions from multiple directions in an attempt to overwhelm his spirit and destroy it. It was a good plan, as befitting of the Commander… but one couldn't kill Simon the same way twice. Mind and Soul damage reflected by Remedia's Contingency!

Magic woven into his being by the Queen of Cocagne herself triggered at once, sending the attack straight back at its senders. Simon sensed the death wails of the spellcasters and angels who had dared strike him through the connection, which let him complete his Edict of Wounded Earth with a smirk on his lips. His magic set the Forbidden Keep's debris ablaze. The pieces turned into meteors coated in molten lava and followed by plumes of searing wind.

They struck Serras' floating ruins with the power of an airship fleet's bombardment at their back, shattering watchtowers in searing blazes, breaking apart floating streets, and knocking dragons out of the sky. The fireworks were like a balm on Simon's soul, as was the flow of experience coursing through his veins. Chaos and destruction followed.

His airships and warbeasts opened fire on dragons and angels coming to intercept them, the clash of spells and weapons echoing so far and wide he could hear them all the way from the Malevolence's deck. So many forces were fighting today that Simon struggled to keep track of them all. He saw Louis raining down swords and spears from his Armory to skewer angels with, dragons bringing down airships, and flashes of Remedia's spells and Dassein's lightning.

His horizon was an endless tapestry of explosions, destruction, and chaos.

"One minute before we are ready to fire again!" his lead engineer said.

"No, focus the miasma on the shield," Euphemia ordered.

"They will target us first." She was right, of course. It would make sense for Helel to fire at them with her light of destruction, especially since she should be able to sense the miasma crystals inside the Malevolence. Taking out the Overlord's flagship would cause a tremendous blow to the army's morale. But that is fine, Simon thought as a thick shield of mana powered by four Zodiac Fiend crystals surrounded the Malevolence.

The more the enemy focuses on the sword in their face, the more blind they'll be to the blade pointed at their back— The horizon brightened, and a shooting star surged across the battlefield. Anaximander had told Simon that teleportation alone was the only thing capable of outspeeding light, and that only those with the highest Perception stat in the world could truly follow its movements, but he didn't truly understand the truth of that statement until now.

Simon's eyes could follow the wind and the fastest arrows, even the movement of lightning, but light? Light crossed miles faster than a man could take a step. So he couldn't see Helel's arrival until she smashed into the Malevolence. She pulverized the miasma shield and shattered it to pieces, then obliterated the reinforced window separating the command deck from the world outside. The almighty winds blew into the room, throwing some people overboard and forcing the others to grab the airship's consoles.

However, the impact was a mere prelude to her overwhelming, suffocating presence. She shone so brightly that Simon's armor heated up with faint miasma smoke, while Lorimor shrieked in pain. He felt an overwhelming urge to submit and crawl to his knees, to worship and fall in silent adoration, but those were mere whispers crashing helplessly on the shield of his unbroken pride. You have entered Anna-Helel's Domain.

Mind-affecting effects will pierce through resistance, and Crown of Control will constantly target everyone. Crown of Control negated by Indomitable Crown. Everyone else present was far less fortunate. Crowns of thorny crystals grew on their heads and attempted to pierce their way into their skulls, triggering countless Contingency spells, automated amulets, and other such countermeasures.

Nearly everyone on the deck disappeared one after the other, teleported to safety before Helel's power could mentally overwhelm them. Odette, Lorimor, and the entire crew vanished. Euphemia alone was spared thanks to some contractual shenanigans, but even she looked unsettled by the sheer power radiating from their attacker as she remained behind. Still, the Law she had applied to the Malevolence triggered at the Maiden's use of Light-aligned magic.

Swords of power appeared out of nowhere to strike the invader, only to shatter harmlessly against her naked skin.

"It is the height of arrogance to believe your Laws would apply to your goddess, Euphemia. You have truly lost your way." Her voice sounded so much like Anna's, but deeper and full of cold condescension.

"I see you changed your marriage contract so that the effect would transfer to your deranged husband and protect you. Almost clever." Simon dared look up at the greatest of the Zodiac Fiends. All of her siblings had been monstrous horrors even when merged with hosts, but Helel… Helel was beautiful. Anna's features had been sharpened and refined. Her honeyed hair had become like a fountain of flowing gold.

Six feathered wings of solid light grew out of her sleeveless white dress' back, while two smaller ones framed her fair face. She went barefoot, but golden bracelets adorned her wrists and ankles. Purple tattoos representing flowery thorns stretched from her left cheek all the way to her arm. Her white, diamond-like crystal was embedded in her chest right above her heart and pulsated with otherworldly power.

"What's wrong, Simon?" she asked him with a faint smile.

"Has my radiance left you speechless?" She still retained so much of her host. Same face, same pleasant smirk full of mischief, but her eyes… her reddish eyes were utterly devoid of Anna's warmth and humanity. They looked down on Simon as if he were the dirt under her foot, a worm that should feel grateful she even bothered to give him a speck of her attention. This was no arrogance propped up by insecurity like Thalas, but a complete disregard born of unshakable confidence and godlike power.

Anna-Helel believed with all of her heart that Simon Magnos, Fourth Overlord of Endymion, was no threat to her. And she might very well be right. The pressure she exuded trumped even Nodens at his strongest. The very air had grown heavier than molten lead, and Simon's instincts screamed at him to run or surrender rather than hold his ground. Yet he resolved to show no fear as he rose from his metal throne.

"I admit I didn't expect you to show up here," Simon said as he locked eyes with the Maiden. He had to buy some more time.

"I feared I would have to tear through your entire army to reach you."

"Why would I hide from people who cannot threaten me in any way?" An– Helel sounded genuinely curious.

"It was impish of you to darken my light, Simon, but if you wanted to earn my attention, you just have to pray to me. Unlike you, I answer those who call for my help." You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"I'm sorry I couldn't teleport to your side when you called, Anna." Simon scowled in bitterness.

"This… is all my fault."

"It is not," Euphemia said at his side, her warhammer materializing in her hands.

"She is right. Everything that happens, and will ever happen, is the result of my providence." Helel put her hands behind her back, looking almost like the picture of innocence.

"I am the dawn and the twilight, the Light of the universe that shines the way forward. Today's events happened because I decided that they would." Simon barely stifled a dry laugh. Helel's smile immediately faded away.

"You deny my truth?"

"I deny nothing. You are no mistress of fate, or even a goddess." If so, then her escape would have been inevitable throughout the reigns. She only stood before Simon because he messed up.

"You are a cancer that grew in the shadow of my mistakes. You live in my world."

"Simon, to deny my godhood is not proof of courage or bravery." She narrowed her eyes to better look down on him.

"It is a sign of mental illness." And she clearly believed every single word she said.

"There is something deeply wrong with you, Simon." Her tone could almost pass for compassionate.

"You are sick. You are possessed by a deranged deviant that clouds your judgment and blinds you to my divinity. You are as insane as that stubborn Paladin in your own sad way." It was at that moment that Simon realized the merger had gone differently than all others. While a sliver of Anna remained in the fusion, Helel's personality had thoroughly dominated her.

"The same goes for you, Euphemia," Helel said, even as the raging noise of battle grew closer.

"I am your Light. I chose you to be my new prophet, and you served me well until you forgot yourself. Repent for your mistake, and return to me." Euphemia scowled, but doubt crept in.

"It couldn't have been you," she said, her conviction slightly shaken.

"Not at the start."

"I was every vision you ever had, every voice you ever heard." Helel's voice briefly morphed into one Simon didn't recognize, but which left Euphemia quite shaken.

"It was I who inspired Pharis to raise my church, so that we could bring order and discipline to a world filled with chaos and confusion."

"We're ready, Your Majesty," Shabram's voice echoed in Simon's mind. Simon immediately sprang into action with Quickdraw. He summoned Balefire from his Inventory and lunged at Helel without warning while she was distracted, his blade so fast it could catch falling lightning… and yet he proved too slow either way. Helel seemed to teleport out of the way of his sword with casual ease, while Euphemia was too shaken to strike.

"Accept your helplessness, Simon," Helel said, nay, demanded.

"My mercy only extends so far."

"If we cannot threaten you…" Simon fired at her with Ectoplasmer.

"Then why did you feel the need to dodge?" Helel's lips twisted into a scowl as she avoided his projectile. His words had indeed rattled her.

"My mortal self envied your freedom." She closed the gap between them in a fraction of a second.

"She thought it would make you happy." Her hand grabbed his throat with a grip Thalas could only dream of.

"She was wrong." Helel then slammed him through the deck. She flew him through the entire length of the ship, using his body as a battering ram while smashing him through wall after wall. Countless damage notifications filled his vision as they broke past the engines, but the only pain he felt was of her fingers burning his throat with sacred power. Supereffective demonslayer damage! Physical contact worked both ways.

After silently begging Anna for forgiveness, Simon activated his Crown of Pain and attempted to seal Helel into that hellish dimension. He immediately felt some kind of invisible wall preventing his sorcery from taking hold, and a smirk of absolute contempt stretched across the Maiden's lips. Crown of Pain couldn't bypass Anna-Helel's Shekhinah.

"All this power… it is a burden to you," Helel said as they broke through the Malevolence's back and emerged into wartorn skies.

"You don't know what to do with it, what you're supposed to do. You thought this Class brought you freedom, but it only shackled you further." She moved her lips close to his helmet, as if to kiss him.

"I'm going to free you from the burden of choice, Simon," she promised as the Malevolence began to lose altitude behind her.

"I'm going to free you from yourself." He blasted her in the face with Hellfire Gaze. No invisible wall protected her this time, the flames of his gaze striking her in her eyes. Though it failed to leave burns, it caused her enough pain to tighten her grip on his throat and choke him. This only encouraged Simon to increase the pressure and attempt to thrust Balefire through her chest. Helel responded by throwing him across the sky as if he were a pebble.

Simon barely managed to halt his momentum with Darkflight before he could hit one of his own airships and issued a telepathic order.

"Now!" The supreme lightning of victory which had once brought Simon to the brink of death fell upon Helel. She failed to dodge this time, and Dassein's Ragnarok struck her with such blinding power that the air turned electric. A torrent of lightning capable of blasting airships apart struck her from above in a blinding flash. It did nothing. The lightning simply flowed over Helel's skin like water on a smooth rock, and Simon realized she hadn't failed to dodge; she simply didn't need to.

Neither did she avoid the Nova spells, the sorcery barrage, draconic fireballs, and the swords that struck her from various directions. The projectiles shattered against her like waves on the eternal shore. Noble Class users had surrounded her from all sides, protected from Helel's Crown of Control by Judge-witnessed Vows granting them immunity to mind-control at the cost of becoming vulnerable to other ailments.

Remedia and Norbelle flew under their own power, while Dassein rode his manticore and Casval carried Filip of Cocagne and Thalas in his claws. Shabram danced to empower Alcyone as the Phoenix ferried them on its back. Not since the conquest of Magvolia had so many Noble Class users gathered to fight a single opponent. Helel looked at this army of heroes capable of bringing nations to their knees, and sneered in contempt." Merciless Angel," she said, snapping her fingers.

Her Abyssal Domain rippled with power, and red feathers materialized over everyone's head. Simon barely had time to blink before the object fell upon him, striking not at his body, but his very soul. The feather vanished inside his flesh and weighed on his spirit and drained him of his vitality, blowing away his life like candlelight. This attack didn't inflict damage, not really, or else half of it would have been transferred to Euphemia.

Simon instead felt his Vitality stat sharply dropping to the absolute minimum, a single point separating him from total organ shutdown. Merciless Angel brought you to the verge of death! The same effect struck everyone present. None died, but each of them seemed to be left devoid of their vitality, their skin sick and pallid. Even the Phoenix appeared winded. Simon himself immediately drained minions to heal, while various magical buffs kicked in to help his allies recover. But Helel didn't give them a chance.

Her wings flapped and unleashed beams of light in all directions. Alcyone alone reacted fast enough to teleport Shabram away, while Dassein's manticore jerked to take the attack in place of its rider. Everyone else failed to move in time. Casval, as the biggest target, was struck in the chest and died on the spot as their first casualty. He dropped Thalas and Filip, with the former leaping at Helel and the latter firing an arrow of darkness that bounced off the Maiden.

Remedia and Norbelle were both struck, but their Contingency spells triggered to teleport them to safety. The Phoenix's head was blown off, its body consumed by fire. Simon himself took a beam to the chest, its power so vicious it melted his chest plate in spite of half the damage transferring to his lady wife. Mythic damage! Supereffective demonslayer damage! It's not light, Simon realized to his horror.

Everyone present had come with items and buffs protecting them from Light to a degree, but the Mythic element transcended such precautions. It was often considered divine and transcendental power, the element of raw magic itself. Not just light! Thalas reached Helel and attempted to chop off her wings, only for his axe to shatter against them. The Maiden didn't even flinch as she casually backhanded the Berserker so hard he was flung across the landscape to the ocean below, a mere afterthought.

"Mardok fielded twice that many 'heroes' the last time around, and they could barely hold their own," Helel declared with sneering disdain, her gaze focusing entirely on Simon as she lazily pointed a finger at the falling Filip and blasted his head off with a beam. She didn't even look at his corpse as it fell into the ocean below.

"What made you think today would go any better?"

"The fact that I am here," Simon replied with every bit of bravado he could muster as he summoned his dracozombie and followed through with a spell." Putrefy." Helel vanished out of the way, then turned her attention to the Phoenix. While the eidolon had begun to regenerate from its fatal wound, the Maiden simply had to point a finger at it to dismiss it the same way Norbelle banished Carbuncle. Dassein leaped off his dead manticore and lunged at Helel with his spear, but it too failed to leave a dent on her skin.

She retaliated by slamming his chest with her palm, the blow cracking it and sending him flying across the sky.

The Berserker can bypass Physical resistance, but not immunity. Simon guessed that Helel's Shekhinah ability blocked all forms of damage outside of specific conditions. At least I can punch through it somehow. Norbelle and Dassein hadn't left his Party, which meant they survived Helel's attack and could come back for another round. Other reinforcements also arrived in the form of a mechanized Vouivre carrying Louis himself.

However, another figure arrived quicker after flying out of the Malevolence's wreckage, carried by Judge wings and motherly fury.

"Euphemia." Helel smiled arrogantly at her rebellious prophet and welcomed her with open arms.

"Have you come to embrace me at last?"

"You may be right. Maybe it was you I heard all those years ago. It doesn't make a difference to me." Euphemia angrily raised her warhammer, which crackled with lightning.

"I renounce you either way!" She struck Helel in the chest, and drew blood.