Chapter 108 - The Heavens Fall (1)
Kim SooYong quickly understood why the situation had developed in such a way.
'Her skill set is a perfect counter for his!'
Lattice's main skills were ice-related.
While facing an average opponent, freezing them in order to pour out attacks would guarantee a win in most cases.
But the problem was that it just didn't work on Ain.
Ice couldn't win against fire.
Not only that, but after Ain used what seemed to be her ultimate attack which covered her whole body with fire, Lattice couldn't easily freeze her like before.
But that wasn't Ain's only advantage.
'The difference between the attack range is too big…!'
Kim SooYong clicked his tongue.
The higher-level the fight was, the more important the reach became.
But just at first glance, Ain's attack range seemed to double Lattice's.
It was as if a boxer was fighting against someone that was fencing.
It was obvious who had the advantage.
Most users also thought that way.
Professional gamers and rankers especially thought Ain had an advantage.
'Lattice was unlucky.'
'Even if he can read her, he can't overcome the job advantage.'
'Although he had a job disadvantage, he wasn't easily pushed off. He's definitely an amazing guy.'
Lattice was more skillful but lost because of the job disadvantage.
—That's what most rankers and users thought.
But some users thought differently.
'She's doing that again…'
The first were the people who had fought against Ain in the previous game.
Berard had fought against Ain several times, which was why he found it despicable.
—Ain always defeated the opponents by a narrow margin.
It was so obvious that you would think that she was a sadist.
It wasn't necessary to say how many times Berard had been fooled by Ain's tactics.
The other user who felt differently was Lattice himself.
Because Lattice had been the one fighting, he could feel the battle atmosphere more vividly than anyone else.
'What is she thinking…?'
Movements so fast that it was hard to follow them with his eyes.
From a third person's perspective, it may have looked as if he had unilaterally pushed her.
But the truth was different…
Lattice suddenly realized that the opponent hadn't used her triumph card even once.
She was just playing along with him.
It was as if she wanted to direct a dangerous play. There were many times when she blocked or dodged the incoming attacks by a narrow margin.
It was obvious that Lattice couldn't read Ain's thoughts.
Ain was having fun since it had been long since the last time she had a proper duel.
She was having fun, so she dragged on the duel as much as possible.
Even while narrowly avoiding attacks, she kept smiling.
Lattice thought that was Ain laughing at him.
"Tsk…!"
Lattice clicked his tongue.
—It was because he saw a crow monster flying toward Ain.
As Ain shook her hands, its body was covered in fire and soon disappeared after turning into light.
Soon, the city was invaded by monsters.
Monsters that could fly were the first to reach the tower's top.
It was where all the monsters were trying to reach.
The Abyss had devoured everything, and Iluna's battle was about to end. With that, Lattice's Quest would end.
The victory had been decided in the battle between the Heavens and the Abyss.
With the help of monsters, Lattice would probably be able to defeat Ain, despite her having a job advantage.
But Lattice didn't want a fight like that.
His pride didn't allow him to take a victory like that.
He preferred waiting for the magic circle to turn off rather than ending the fight with the help of monsters.
'I won't forget today…'
Ain's eyes met Lattice’s.
They looked at each other for a few seconds.
Lattice bit his lips and turned around.
Ain silently looked at Lattice, who had thrown himself under the tower.
After he disappeared, Ain judged his abilities.
'Not bad.'
Compared to the rankers of the previous game, he would probably be around fifth or sixth place.
Considering the time he'd spent playing Asrian, it was impressive.
If Hyun wasn’t a factor, maybe she would've been interested in him.
'But as expected, Hyun is more impressive!'
Ain smiled while thinking about Hyun.
She hadn't become interested in him just because he was good at playing, but it was true that was one of the reasons she had become attracted to him.
'I guess I have no other option than dying.'
Ain looked at the monsters that were approaching her.
The mission of the Heavens’ users was probably fighting the Abyss until the end.
It wasn't that she wasn't reluctant about dying…
But since Hyun had asked her, she didn't have a reason to doubt.
The moment she said that she would help him with the quest, Ain had left everything in Hyun's hands.
—Even her life.
Translator - Daniel Shin
Proofreader - ilafy
* * *
Ain remembered the face Hyun made while asking her a favor before they left.
She still didn't know what his relationship with the NPC girl was, but she was shocked by the face Hyun made when he heard that the girl could die.
If she died, would he make the same expression?
No, dying in Asrian didn’t have the same meaning.
'We'll soon meet… So I guess it's okay if we don't see each other for two days?'
She was okay with dying as long as she was able to prolong her life as much as possible, at least until the magic circle went off.
Ain looked around.
Monsters that had their wings spread were lining up around the tower.
Some monsters used their claws to climb up the tower.
The fact that the Abyss's army had reached that place meant that the last line of defense had been penetrated.
Most Heavens users and NPCs would've probably died by then.
Ain looked to the distance.
Hyun was probably somewhere out there doing his best to protect the NPC girl.
She laughed at her feelings.
She felt jealous of an NPC girl.
'Hyun, I hope everything works out.'
Ting-!
After hearing the notification sound, Ain opened the quest window.
- The Abyss's Forces have invaded the city. Soon, Iluna's orbit will change, and the sun will shine over it. The Phantom Land will soon turn into hell and become a place where only monsters can live.
- Good job, follower of the Heavens. The only thing that you can do now is probably drag out the battle. Your name will be forever recorded on the walls of the main temple.
[The Heavens have lost! You can increase your contribution rate by fighting until you die!]
[From now on, only the numbers of monsters killed will count toward the contribution rate!]
Ain slowly read the quest window.
As long as the AI that managed the quests had said that the Heavens had lost, there was no way to change the result.
The calculations of the AI had never been wrong.
The reason why protecting the magic circle didn't count as a contribution anymore was probably because it was pointless.
If she wanted to solidify her rankings, it would probably be better if she had eliminated at least one high-ranking monster.
'I'm glad I followed Hyun to Iluna.'
Of course, Ain had no intention of doing that.
Ain smiled after looking in the direction in which Hyun had disappeared.
"What would you have done if I wasn't here?"
The longer it took for the magic circle to disappear, the longer it would take for the sun to shine over Iluna.
Hyun had asked her to protect the magic circle for as long as possible, so Ain had decided to die in that place.
Prepared for Extinction.
Suddenly, Ain thought that the name of her ultimate attack matched very well with the current situation.
* * *
Maria's sacrifice had kindled the last spark of the falling Heavens.
The Heavens’ army, while being covered with a shining blessing, had burned their lives.
But the soldiers who were prepared to die were swallowed one by one by the Abyss.
If it weren't for Radiette and other high-ranking Holy Knights fighting the stronger monsters, they would've been annihilated long ago.
"Abandon the walls! Retreat!"
The battle had moved from the walls to the street.
Under the commander's orders, the Heavens’ soldiers drew a line around the magic circle.
"Protect the main tower!"
"Hold on to the tower's defenses!"
There were numerous defensive artifacts placed around the temple—those were the Heavens’ last cards.
Wolves that had entered through a gap in the formation began trembling as if they'd been electrocuted and soon turned into light and disappeared.
Hundreds of flying monsters received a lightning attack and turned into ash.
The mana of the magic circle was supporting all the city's energy.
"Fight until the end! Our lives exist for today!"
A Holy Knight shouted while lifting his sword from the rooftop of a shop in the square.
Among the soldiers, some struggled even with level 50 skeletons.
But the fact that they'd refused Maria's proposal and stayed in that place meant that they were ready to die.
Thanks to Maria's buffs, even a newbie soldier wasn't different from a hero.
"Die, bastards!"
Users were also infected by the madness of the war.
Asrian's system that controlled your brain waves depending on the situation didn't allow them to take things lightly.
Buildings crumbled, and light exploded outward.
The effects of magic and death couldn't be distinguished anymore.
'It isn't here, either?'
There, the end was getting near.
While «Assimilated» to Louise, Hyun was running through the city.
He needed to find Radiette as soon as possible.
The only way to save Louise was to leave that place as soon as possible.
Not only that, but the only one who could send Louise from that place to Asrian was a Heavenly Being.
Maybe it was egotistical to ask him to save a single person's life in the middle of a war where everyone was sacrificing themselves.
But Hyun was thinking of using either Ain's or Radiette’s ex-lover's name if necessary to save Louise.
He was running while making air explode under his feet. Louis suddenly said something strange.
「Hyun, I'm feeling strange. I can feel Maria's presence all over the city.」
「What does that mean?」
「I'm not sure… But I can't help but think that it isn't a good sign.」
「Wait, ugh…!」
Hyun used the wind to roll to the side.
A giant bird monster fell from the sky.
It seemed like it had already lost its consciousness. As soon as it touched the floor, it became light and disappeared.
「Oof… Don't say stupid things! That was dangerous!」
Hyun felt a slightly depressing feeling welling up.
Those were definitely Louise's feelings.
He felt bad for being harsh to her but soon brushed off those feelings.
It wasn't the moment to be thinking about things like that.
'Just where is Radiette?'
Hyun was starting to feel more anxious as time went on.
He had never hated that he couldn’t send a whisper to an NPC so much.
The city was big, and fights were happening everywhere.
He thought that Radiette was probably at the forefront, but when he reached that place, he wasn't there.
'Wait, there's someone there!'
Hyun found one of the Holy Knights.
Since his ranking was high, he probably knew where Radiette was.
While hoping that, Hyun approached him.
"Are you… The Priestess? Why are you here…"
The Holy Knight mumbled after looking at Louise's face.
He was surprised for a little bit, but it was only briefly because of the current situation.
"Do you know the location of the Heavenly Being?"
"Yes. Mr. Radiette should be in the south. I've heard that the strongest monsters have gathered around that area."
The Holy Knight told him that Reapers had been summoned to the battlefield.
Hyun thought he knew why they'd appeared, but he just listened quietly instead.
Reapers were followers of a demon and were basically the representation of fear.
It wasn't an opponent that a normal soldier could face. The only one there who could face them was the Heavenly Being.
If Radiette was fighting the Reapers, he was probably near the gates.
'South gates… Okay, I'll be able to meet him…!'
Hyun looked at the top of the tower.
The light still hadn't been turned off.
It seemed like Ain was protecting the magic circle, but she wouldn't be able to resist forever.
He had to move quickly and reach Radiette before the light went off.
"Maria, where's Maria…?!"
While Hyun was thinking about numerous things, Louise suddenly asked the Holy Knight.
Because he was deep into his thoughts, despite him having control priority, she was able to ask a question.
The soldier was surprised by the sudden change in the speaking style of the Priestess, but his face soon turned grim, and he answered.
