kscans

Chapter 697 - Lord of Darkness

He was a being on par with the [Poet] who held a place in the rankings—in other words, a current ranker. The ebony lute, unanimously described as a “horribly overpowered Anima” by all who learned of its true power, allowed its master, the storyteller, to borrow the form and strength of heroes using their “names” as a medium.

Of course, it came with numerous restrictions. The projection time for each “name” was limited to a few, or at most, a dozen seconds. Furthermore, once used, the cooldown time was, without exception, a uniform one month.

However, even with these and other extreme limitations, the assessment of others remained unchanged.

[Bardenhode (The Storytelling Dreamer)]—an ability that allowed one to temporarily inhabit the “power” of a summoned “name,” right down to their very knowledge. It was, in truth, an unfair advantage of the highest order, nothing short of a top-tier cheat.

“Nine seconds! I’m going in, Ricky-kun!”

“Got it!”

In that instant, the black-clad figure vanished. Leaving only his voice behind, he disappeared without another sound. The [Adamant] warrior who saw his colleague vanish gaped in shock—no, he didn’t even have time to be shocked.

“Guh—agh, are you serious…?!”

It was a purely reflexive defensive action. Following a premonition that shot down his spine, he activated a damage-reduction skill, only to be sliced to ribbons right through it. He let out a cry of astonishment as a shower of damage effects erupted from his body.

The only thing his eyes barely caught was a trail of red light hanging in the air. He had seen it with his own eyes several times, and countless more through recordings—a flash that always appeared in the heat of battle.

It was his trademark: the phantom of the Rabbit Blade.

Then, another premonition shot through him. Casting aside any sense of composure, he instantly chose to counterattack the presence bearing down on him from behind. Even in his shock, he spun around without a fraction of a second’s delay—

“Geh…?!”

…and in that moment.

That damn Acrobat, Auerin cursed from the bottom of his heart.

He and his fists were met by a massive warhammer that seemed to fill his entire vision. With the rather shocking sound of an iron mass striking a human body, he was sent flying at tremendous speed, utterly unable to hold his ground.

“Sorry, Auerin, I can’t exactly hold back…!”

All I have to do is follow the user manual for the [Acrobat] temporarily installed in my head—my virtual brain—but this “name’s” powers are just too wild.

He was a top-tier wild horse, in a different league from the [Sword Queen] or the [Sword Saint]. It was better than those two since he could at least handle it, but honestly, it was the kind of power he’d rather not use if he could help it.

Every single step was utterly absurd. To think that the man himself controlled this manually… it gave one a profound understanding of just how exceptional he was.

In other words, to be frank…

“Let’s just wrap this up quick… shall we?!”

I want to stop this blind melee jet as fast as possible. This isn’t something a normal person can endure, so I have to finish off the enemy, even one second sooner.

And fortunately, with the power of this “name” at my disposal…

“Hmph…!”

Reaching a distant enemy won’t even take a full sec—

“—Too bad.”

“…You’ve got to be kidding me, kid.”

And so, less than a second later.

The future he had envisioned—closing the distance in a straight line and slamming the tip of a dagger, summoned through borrowed power, into his opponent’s throat—never came to pass.

His body, which had been moving at near-sonic speeds, was bound by countless shadows. The phantom blade wouldn’t budge an inch, no matter how hard he pushed or pulled.

He wasn’t surprised that he had been caught—he was stunned that he had been caught by him, who had clearly reacted to his movements, rather than by a pre-laid trap.

“…I hate to ask, but did you actually see that?”

A veteran of countless battles, a speed that even the fifth-ranked of the Southern Faction couldn’t react to. With a wry smile caught between bewilderment and admiration, he couldn’t help but ask the boy, who stood there leisurely without even taking a stance.

“No way. Even if you’re slower than the real thing, there’s no way I could see that.”

The [Undying], clad in a black even deeper than the [Poet]’s, let out an amused smile.

“It’s just… I’ve been spending a lot of time with him lately.”

As he dispelled the bow in his left hand, he continued.

“I know his movements, so if I’m on guard, I can at least react.”

“…………As expected of a ranker from the East.”

To Tetra, who had declared it so casually, Yata returned a smile that was now one hundred percent pure admiration—and that was the time limit.

The ground beneath them was black.

Before he knew it, the darkness that had filled the entire field stirred softly.

“Embrace and kill.”

The King, having captured his enemy, brandished a small dagger that appeared from nowhere in his left hand… and gently, just slightly, cut his own skin.

And then, as a faint crimson trickled from his right arm, the [Undying] spoke.

“—[Erebus].”

In that instant.

Upon the shadow that had turned to darkness. All those within the domain… which is to say, friend and foe alike, all three save for the boy-king himself, were met with the same fate: death.

A staggering number of debuff icons appeared simultaneously beneath each of their status bars, robbing their avatars of all freedom. At the same time, countless status effect damage instances triggered, instantly wiping out their remaining HP—and the bell signaling the end of the match rang out.

Thus, the first round of the Third Triangle Duo was decided.

“…………A flashy finale isn’t really my style, so give me a break.”

“…I’d say that was more than overwhelmingly and spectacularly flashy, wouldn’t you?”

The victory went to [Adamant & Undying]… or rather, it was a solo victory for the [Undying], who had annihilated everyone, including his own teammate.

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So, what was Ricky doing, you ask? He was trying to finish off the blasted-away Auerin, only to get counter-attacked and defeated.