The battle on the field had reached a fever pitch.
Petelgeuse's attacks grew more and more frantic. Dozens of jet-black demonic hands, like tentacles reaching from hell, struck from all directions. Each swing of these Unseen Hands, imbued with terrifying power, gouged trenches several meters deep into the hard ground. The entire battlefield trembled as rubble flew through the air.
Swish!
Yet, Natsuki Subaru moved like a phantom through the dense barrage of attacks. He sidestepped a sweeping hand, ducked under a slam from above, and even twisted in mid-air to slip through the pincer attack of two hands.
Suddenly—
With a tremendous CRASH, several giant ice crystals, each over ten meters tall, plummeted from the sky and slammed viciously onto Petelgeuse.
BOOM—!
"Wha- what?! Uwaaaaaaah!"
Petelgeuse let out a blood-curdling scream as he was smashed into the ground. Amidst the resounding crack of shattering ice, dust and ice shards filled the air, and the surrounding temperature dropped in an instant.
"That was Emilia's magic attack." Natsuki Subaru leaped back to Emilia's side, unable to hide his surprise. "That's some serious firepower... no, to be precise, that's not firepower, it's ice-power."
"I used all my strength for that magic attack, for what it's worth." Emilia panted slightly, her long silver hair fluttering gently in the magical aftershock.
"That power was way beyond 'for what it's worth'," Natsuki Subaru couldn't help but quip as he looked at the smoke-filled battlefield ahead. "But looking at the results, you controlled the blast radius very well, which is a huge relief."
"As expected of Lady Emilia." Rem put away her morningstar, her eyes shining with admiration. "That surprise attack was simply peerless."
Emilia looked down, slightly embarrassed, a faint blush on her cheeks.
Just then, the sound of galloping ground dragons echoed from the distance. Wilhelm and Felix arrived at a gallop, leading a squad of soldiers.
"Subaru-kyun!"
"Nyan~"
"Mr. Wilhelm, Felix, are you two alright?" Natsuki Subaru turned to greet them.
"We're fine. Our surprise attack was a success." Wilhelm leaped nimbly from his ground dragon's back. His silver-white hair was still stained with a few specks of blood, but his eyes were as sharp as a whetted blade. "According to the plan, all of the Witch Cult's 'Fingers' in the vicinity have been eliminated."
Beside him, Felix added, "We were very thorough, nyan~ There are absolutely no fish that slipped through the net, see~"
"That's great."
Natsuki Subaru let out a long sigh of relief. Now he could finally deal with Petelgeuse without any worries. He then turned to Wilhelm. "Mr. Wilhelm, thank you for your hard work."
"It was nothing." Wilhelm shook his head lightly, then asked, "So, has the Sin Archbishop been dealt with?"
"Not yet."
Natsuki Subaru shook his head. Before the words had even left his mouth—
"It hurts, it hurts, it hurts... It huuuuurts..." Petelgeuse's twisted voice came from within the dust cloud. "But... AHHH, AHHHHH, BUT! This pain is the proof that I am alive! It is the proof that I exist in this world in the flesh!"
With this demented declaration, a figure covered in blood slowly rose from the ruins. Petelgeuse's black robe was in tatters, revealing the pale skin and ghastly wounds beneath. Yet, the number of demonic hands behind his back had doubled, twisting and writhing in the air like living things, churning the surrounding dust into eerie vortices.
"As expected of a Sin Archbishop of the Witch Cult. He's certainly tenacious." Natsuki Subaru gripped his dagger, his gaze as sharp as a knife as he looked at Petelgeuse. "But this is where you will die!"
Because Wilhelm had completely eliminated all of the Witch Cult's Fingers, it meant that the Petelgeuse before him no longer had any chance of resurrection.
Finally, he could finish Petelgeuse without any reservations!
"How dare you!" Petelgeuse let out a piercing, crazed laugh, his bloodshot eyes staring daggers at Natsuki Subaru. "An existence as 'loved' by the great Witch as you can comprehend the sacred Authority she has granted me. However, your blitz ends here. You can absolutely never break through the supreme Authority the great Witch has bestowed upon me! Now, what will you do? If you just hand over the silver-haired half-devil over there..."
"In your dreams!" Natsuki Subaru cut him off without a moment's hesitation, the dagger in his hand flashing with cold light. "Don't think you can have everything your way, Petelgeuse. We will strike you down, right here!"
"Such camaraderie. But you will regret that foolish choice..." Petelgeuse laughed madly, his voice like scraping metal. His head twisted back toward Emilia, his contorted neck making an unsettling sound. "And you, the silver-haired, purple-eyed half-devil over there. For the sake of the trial, I will continue my activities from the shadows to defile you!"
"Being surrounded by so many people, you should know you're at a disadvantage, right?" Emilia took a step forward. "So, just surrender obediently! If you surrender, we can—"
"SILENCE! HALF-DEVIL!" Petelgeuse hysterically interrupted Emilia, the wounds on his face splitting open from his rage. "You'll 'let me off easy'... is that it? You presume to pity me, a devout follower who embodies the great Witch's love, a Sin Archbishop—there's a limit to your arrogance!"
As he spoke, Petelgeuse's voice grew more demented, the hands behind him dancing wildly. "No matter what, you cannot change my faith, and moreover, these words come from the mouth of a half-devil like you! How could I, who has always lived by diligence, commit such a slothful act?! What humiliation! What an insult! What a disgrace!"
"YOU... are the truly slothful ones!" Petelgeuse finally roared.
"He's... completely lost it, that guy..." Felix couldn't help but take half a step back, his cat ears twitching uneasily.
"This can only be solved by force." Wilhelm slowly drew his longsword, its blade reflecting the cold light.
"Reasoning with a madman like this is a complete waste of time," Natsuki Subaru said coldly, thinking to himself: After all, this guy Petelgeuse has been completely brainwashed by the Witch. It's impossible to communicate with him normally.
"Must you destroy my plans?! MUST YOU?!" Petelgeuse clawed frantically at his own scalp, blood trickling down from his fingertips. "AH, AHHHH, AHHHHH... At this rate, how will I prove my faith to the Witch? How will I prove the Witch's love for me? How will I prove the diligence I've invested to repay that love?!"
Petelgeuse's voice grew sharper and sharper, eventually becoming an inhuman roar. The black demonic hands danced wildly with his emotional fluctuations, tearing the surrounding ground to shreds.
"My Fingers... to kill, murder, and exterminate them so cruelly, mercilessly, without order, selfishly, easily, and meaninglessly... Ahh, ahh! My brain, it TREMBLES—"
Petelgeuse's gaunt fingers dug deep into his scalp, blood dripping through his messy green hair. In the midst of this frenzy, he suddenly became eerily calm.
"...Ahhh, so... that's how it is. Very well."
Petelgeuse slowly lifted his blood-streaked face, his gaze sweeping over Natsuki Subaru and the others with a terrifying gentleness.
"Very well. I understand! Come, let us compete! Let us see which of us is more worthy of her love! It is time to fight for it! For love, yes, for LOVE! LOVE! LOVE! LOVE! LOVE! LOVE!"
With that, dozens of Unseen Hands shot out from behind him, lunging at everyone like uncaged beasts. The jet-black hands twisted and deformed in the air, making a hair-raising crackling sound, tearing even the air itself as they passed.
"Watch out! His attack is coming, scatter now!"
As he yelled, Natsuki Subaru's figure flickered. He was already at the front of the group, his Kasaka's Venom Fang tracing several streaks of eerie green light under the sun.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Three slashes, as fast as lightning, struck their marks. Three incoming Unseen Hands snapped and broke, dissipating into wisps of black smoke.
"Our attacks can't hit him, and we can't even see his attacks..." Rem gripped her morningstar, her blue oni horn glowing faintly. "Is this the terror of the Unseen Hand?"
"We can't even judge the direction of the enemy's attacks... In a fight like this, we can only rely on our own perception." Wilhelm held his longsword horizontally before his chest, his silver-white eyebrows knitted into a straight line. Even this battle-hardened old swordsman now wore a rare, solemn expression.
"Get back! All of you, fall back!" Natsuki Subaru shouted without turning his head, rapidly slashing at the Unseen Hands coming from all directions. "Right now, I'm the only one who can see these things! Get to a safe place first!"
These attacks, known as the Unseen Hand, were the physical manifestation of Petelgeuse's Authority. They could extend for dozens of meters behind the user, and were not only flexible and versatile but also contained the terrifying power to instantly shred an adult ground dragon to pieces. Among everyone present, only Natsuki Subaru could see these deadly Unseen Hands.
Speaking of which, the Unseen Hand originated from a Witch Factor and was originally an ability exclusive to the Sin Archbishops of the Witch Cult. But in reality, anyone who absorbed a Witch Factor could use this power, though it would have a certain effect on the user. Petelgeuse's mad, twisted personality was a side effect of prolonged use of this ability.
At this moment, a trace of worry flashed in Emilia's amethyst eyes. "Subaru, it's too dangerous for you to face him alone..."
"Trust me!" Natsuki Subaru suddenly sidestepped, dodging a hand sneaking up from behind by a hair's breadth, and severed it with a backhand slash. "I can handle this alone! Just protect yourselves for now!"
"Subaru..." Emilia hesitated for a moment, but seeing the determination in his eyes, she finally nodded decisively. "I understand. Be careful, Subaru. We'll be right behind you, ready to provide support at any time."
"Stubbornly refusing to see reason, you've missed your chance to retreat!" Petelgeuse shook his head frantically, spittle flying, the hands behind him dancing even more violently. "This decision... Slothful! Slothful! Slothful, slothful, slothful, this is slothfulness to the extreme! Unbearable to look at!"
As Petelgeuse roared, more hands emerged from the void behind him, forming a web of death that closed in on Natsuki Subaru.
A cold smirk played on Natsuki Subaru's lips, his eyes flashing with a resolute light.
This time, he would not give Petelgeuse any more chances to breathe. He would finish him in one go.
"Petelgeuse, DIE!"
Natsuki Subaru stomped the ground, shattering it, and shot forward like a cannonball, his speed so great he left a trail of black afterimages.
In that moment, his Level 37 physical abilities erupted in their entirety. As he advanced, the dagger in his hand became a silver storm. Six incoming Unseen Hands were instantly severed, dissolving into specks of black mist.
"Uwaaaaaah—Die, die, die, die!"
Facing the rapidly approaching Natsuki Subaru, Petelgeuse let out a crazed roar. His neck twisted at an impossible angle, and the space behind him suddenly warped violently, rippling like a disturbed water surface.
BOOM! CRACK!
In a deafening explosion, dozens of jet-black hands, like giant serpents from hell, burst forth with unstoppable force, shredding all trees within a ten-meter radius.
From the perspective of the onlookers, Natsuki Subaru's figure flickered across the battlefield like a ghost, constantly dodging, weaving, and fighting something they couldn't see.
"This... this is too scary, nyan~" Felix's fox ears twitched nervously. His golden pupils reflected the horrific scene of destruction wrought by the hands. A giant tree, so thick it would take three people to encircle, was instantly twisted like a pretzel by an Unseen Hand. He couldn't help but worry, "Can Subaru-kyun really handle a monster like this on his own?"
"We must trust in Sir Subaru." Wilhelm's hand never left the hilt of his sword, his gaze fixed like a torch on Natsuki Subaru. "Right now, he knows better than any of us how to deal with the Sin Archbishop."
At the same time, dozens of jet-black Unseen Hands struck from all directions—from the air, the ground, the forest—like a net cast from heaven and earth, seeking to completely envelop Natsuki Subaru.
—Bloodlust!
Natsuki Subaru's eyes narrowed as he instantly activated the skill.
Consuming 100 mana points, a terrifying, suffocating aura erupted from his body, washing over Petelgeuse like a tidal wave. The pressure was so intense that even the surrounding grass and trees bent low.
"Ngh-ah..."
Petelgeuse's body froze stiff. For the first time, a look of genuine fear appeared in his crazed eyes.
Though it lasted only for an instant, it was enough.
In that split second, Natsuki Subaru had already broken through the encirclement of hands, slicing through every last one of them.
And then—
SQUELCH!
The dull sound of a blade sinking into flesh was exceptionally clear.
The Kasaka's Venom Fang had accurately pierced through Petelgeuse's chest. The tip of the blade emerged from his back, bringing with it a spray of fresh blood.
_____
🔥 40% OFF! THE TIME TO JOIN THE COMMUNITY IS NOW! 🔥
That's right: a special 40% OFF offer for you to become a member! We're celebrating the arrival of new stories and we want you to join us.
Besides securing your access at an incredible price, your support helps us unlock much more content for the entire community. Our goals are still active:
🎯 100 Powerstones = +1 Bonus Chapter for everyone! 🎯 5 Reviews = +1 Bonus Chapter for everyone!
🚀 And our main goal: 55 MEMBERS = +5 extra chapters of ALL STORIES!
Take advantage of the discount, support our work, and get access to everything! Secure your spot with 40% OFF now: 👻 patreon.com/Walnutchan