LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 153
Translator: FenrirTL
Editor: Doodle, Eyes
=================
Chapter 153: Dragon Fang Corps (3)
‘So, in the end, I have no choice but to use it.’
Clockwork Array was originally one of the “traps” Cassandra had prepared in advance to capture enemies.
-After the Gravekeeper, now Troyban and the Sacred Demon Church’s forces. Sir Theo will struggle to face them all alone without reinforcements, so I thought I’d lay out a few arrangements in advance.
Wizards were not particularly specialized in combat unless they were battle mages.
However, the reason they were shunned by others was because they were beings capable of performing miracles.
Particularly in areas that had been preemptively dominated by them, it was best to avoid stepping in at all.
-…You’re preparing a magic array, aren’t you?
-As expected, you noticed quickly. Yes, that’s correct.
-But aren’t you short on magic stones to construct the array right now?
-……
-Don’t tell me?
-I trust Sir Theo will handle utilizing the preparations well. Isn’t that so?
To activate a magic array, it naturally required a corresponding amount of energy. Even more so for constructing a Mental Domain.
But with no magic stones available for consumption at this moment, Cassandra sought to source energy in another way.
-Using the enemy to strike the enemy. What better strategy could there be?
The method Cassandra had devised was sacrificial magic.
She intended to use the corpses of Troyban’s fallen swordsmen.
However, the biggest problem lay elsewhere.
It was that Cassandra, still young, had an incomplete mental realm and magic circuits, which were insufficient to invoke such large-scale magic.
* * *
On one side of the clock face where Theo and Ode’s group stood, a slightly smaller chronograph was spinning.
Chrrrrk, chrrrrrk—
As the hands turned, the corpses buried in the underground mausoleum began to dissolve. The blood seeping out from them soaked into the gears, causing them to spin even faster.
The faster the gears turned, the stronger the barriers forming the domain became.
At this very moment, Ode’s group was essentially no different from prisoners trapped in a cell.
And then—
“Aaaaaargh!”
Shrieks burst out from Ode’s group as various pressures constricted their bodies.
The leader of the Blue Crane Corps collapsed entirely, his face smashed into the ground.
His magic ran rampant, causing his body to swell as if it might explode at any moment. His muscles and tendons twisted grotesquely, leaving him choking and gasping as though his life was slipping away.
Ode’s right arm, which she had barely managed to stop from bleeding earlier, reopened as blood gushed out again. Meanwhile, Kali grimaced as he felt his blood spirit shrinking rather than expanding.
Beneath their feet, new chronographs of various designs appeared, with their hour hands spinning rapidly.
In contrast, Theo was different.
The chronograph beneath his feet was winding backward, with both the hour and minute hands moving in reverse.
Color gradually returned to his previously pale face, and his breathing became rapidly steadier.
It was as if time itself were flowing backward.
[External laws applied. All Buff duration extended.]
[Current available time: 2 minutes.]
[3 minutes.]
[4 minutes.]
Time was indeed rewinding for Theo.
– Since you’ve regressed, you must already be familiar with my Mental Domain, right?
– I’ve only heard bits and pieces.
– My Mental Domain is based on precognitive abilities. The only difference is that it doesn’t stop at mere knowledge.
– You’re saying you apply what you see directly to reality?
– That’s right. For those who enter my domain, I assign each of them a personal clock. Then, I wind it as I see fit, in whichever direction I choose.
Magic that allowed free manipulation of an intruder’s time.
Even when Theo had heard about it, he found it astonishing.
Now, facing it in reality, he finally understood why Cassandra had earned such a grandiose title.
Why, with all this power, was she so easily controlled in the future?
Theo pushed aside the fleeting thought and infused his sword with magic once more.
In theory, as long as he remained in this domain, he could sustain his All Buff state indefinitely.
“Grahhhhhh…”
Crunch, crack!
The Blue Crane Corps leader, struggling against his rampaging magic, eventually collapsed with his neck snapping to the side, lifeless.
This was the result of fast-forwarding time, amplifying the aftereffects to the extreme.
Why! Why isn’t this working?!
Meanwhile, Ode’s time was being rewound.
The moment her arm was severed was prolonged, forcing her to endure unrelenting bleeding and agony.
Ode’s complexion had grown deathly pale from the severe blood loss.
The fear of dying such a meaningless death consumed her entirely.
To escape this curse, her only option was to take action against Theo.
I won’t let it end like this!
Ode gritted her teeth.
And my ancestors didn’t devote their lives for it all to end in such a disgraceful way!
The Reaper of death was closing in rapidly.
But before she could take even a single step—
Flash!
The Moon-White Sword and the Dragon Slayer Sword fell heavily in front of her.
Chaaang—
“Get away! I said get away!”
The harder Ode struggled, the more persistently the Moon-White Sword and the Dragon Slayer Sword followed her.
A moment ago, Theo had faced her and Kali simultaneously. Now, it was her turn to confront the two swords simultaneously.
The problem was that their movements were as if wielded by two different individuals, each distinct.
The Moon-White Sword displayed elegant motions akin to the “Plum Blossom Twenty-Four Techniques,” while the Dragon Slayer Sword exhibited sharp maneuvers rooted in the “Six Arts of the Demon Dragon.”
But the foundation of those techniques was something Ode knew all too well.
-The flow of the Sword Legacy she had longed to see so desperately was right there.
“You’re… You’re testing the Sword Legacy against me?”
It was a provocation.
A challenge over who was more in tune with the Sword Legacy.
Let’s pit the Sword Legacy that you and your ancestors sought to restore against the interpretation I have derived. Let’s determine who is closer to the true form and who stands superior.
That was what it was saying.
And,
-If your
Such arrogant intent was clearly conveyed.
Snap!
Ode felt something inside her head break.
She could no longer tolerate the impostor before her.
Crunch!
In the end, Ode froze her right arm solid with ice and launched a massive lunar eclipse to confront the Moon-White Sword and the Dragon Slayer Sword.
Boom—
Clang! Clang!
“Incredible… That a mere unbeliever’s sorcery… could reject the grace bestowed by the gods… This can’t be…!”
Meanwhile, Kali bit his lower lip hard as he watched Theo slowly approach him.
The personal time applied to him was in a “Pause” state.
As a result, the infinite magic power he had been drawing from the
“Holy Demon Conquest, Holy Demon Conquest… Lord, please comfort this unworthy lamb who could not overcome the irreverent unbeliever. Rebuke me sternly for the foolishness of failing the trial you laid before me.”
Kali closed his eyes tightly and recited a prayer.
He believed he no longer had the means to resist Theo.
In that case, only one option remained.
“As a gesture of repentance, I shall offer my soul to you, Lord. Please calm your wrath and guide me toward the righteous path. I vow to follow you even with my eyes closed.”
Kali drew a dagger from his inner robe and suddenly stabbed his neck.
Without hesitation, he slashed downward.
Splat!
A fountain of blood erupted into the air, only to turn black like ink in an instant.
Simultaneously, a large vortex was drawn, summoning an enormous entity that existed beyond the boundaries of the Mental Domain.
It became a colossal eye.
An eye belonging to a being that regarded Theo and all other mortals as nothing more than insignificant specks.
『A meager wish it may be, but I shall grant it in recognition of your devotion.』
Its will echoed in a resounding voice, and finally, a dark form emerged from behind the fountain of blood.
The
Part of him had successfully descended, brought forth by Kali’s self-sacrificial spell.
Thunk—
Theo halted his steps and looked up at the
‘At least up to this point, it’s all according to the Sorceress-Empress’s prophecy.’
Fragments of his last conversation with the Sorceress-Empress flashed through his mind.
-However, the
-Then…!
-Even so, I must do it. As the Emperor of a nation, I have a duty to protect my subjects and prepare for the possible end. So please, help me, Sir Theo.
The resolute determination in the Sorceress-Empress’s eyes was something Theo could never forget.
-I intend to shackle the
She had mentioned that if the enemies were trapped in the Mental Domain, the Bishop of the Holy Demon Church would inevitably make a self-sacrificial move to summon the
-And then, perhaps, he will arrogantly say this:
『Were you waiting for me?』
-Were you waiting for me?
『Do your worst, insignificant speck.』
-Do your worst, insignificant speck.
『Whatever it may be, I shall entertain it well.』
-Whatever it may be, I shall entertain it well.
The
Then all that was needed was to exploit that arrogance.
Whether it would work or not was a problem for later.
“Dragon Fang Corps!!”
Theo did not answer the
Instead, he called out to someone else.
The ones now remembered only as the Resolution Squad.
Those who had been buried in ancient legends and had disappeared into obscurity.
-I am…
-I am here!
-I am here as well!
Faint spiritual forms began to appear one by one around Theo.
A ghostly legion.
Beneath their feet, the Chronograph had spread, its hour and minute hands rapidly rewinding.
-Hahaha! The Dragon Fang Corps!
-What a nostalgic name.
-Who could have imagined we would reclaim the name we ourselves had forgotten in this way?
The colors of the ghosts grew more vivid, gradually taking on human forms.
Swordsmen clad in white armor and helmets, each wielding a sword in one hand.
Some were mounted on white horses, while others stood at the forefront holding flags several meters high.
There were those carrying drums, shields, and spears as well. A 299-strong army appeared, forming ranks.
The aura they unleashed collectively overwhelmed the presence of the
This was precisely the Sorceress-Empress’s gambit.
Her plan was to rewind the personal time of the ghosts within the Mental Domain and resurrect the legion.
And at the very center of it stood Theo.
Shrrrk—
Theo donned the Helmet of Aegir and enveloped his entire body in white armor.
Brilliant white light repelled the darkness of the
In one hand, he held Drake’s blade, its surface brimming with dragon scales, and in the other, he gripped the reins.
“All units—”
As he pulled the reins, a shadow rose, and Umbra appeared, attempting to soar.
“—follow me.”
With his declaration of war, Theo rose high into the sky, followed by the Dragon Fang Corps.
-Dragon Fang Corps!
-March forward!
-March—for—ward!
Doom! Doom! Doom! Doom!
With the thunderous sound of drums, the march began.
Leaping across hundreds of years of time.