Chapter 1219 - 1219: Wings of Terror

The moment she heard the voice behind her, the smile on the Hero's face vanished, and the hand reaching for the Snow Woman turned into a fist.

Without uttering a single superfluous word, the girl spun around, twisting her waist, and her petite fist, wrapped in majestic Magic Power, punched decisively towards the presence behind her.

The fist was no bigger than a rice bowl, seemingly unimposing, yet it carried enough Strength to carve a lake out of flat land, like a meteor roaring through the air.

However, as the attack approached in an instant, the presence behind the Hero merely extended a calm palm.

A hand formed of transparent Spirit Light intercepted the heavy punch unhurriedly, fingers spreading open.

The next moment, the world flickered in black and white.

The compressive impact of the collision poured out to both sides like a curtain. The stained glass of the Lake Town church shattered in response, with the fragments crushed into powder before hitting the ground. The streets on either side were torn apart, the surface utterly blown away, exposing the vast waterways below. Trees in the distance were uprooted, and even the clouds in the sky were split in two.

With just a single strike, Lake Town, as remembered by the Hero, was severed in half.

The girl lifted her head slightly, glaring fiercely at the opponent.

In her memory, those beside her used to be the Cruising Bishop and a Little Girl, but now neither was present—of course, no other townsfolk or believers were either.

In their place was a hazy Radiance Humanoid, its four wings—a mix of one black and three white—folded behind it, emitting an indescribable presence. Its form lay between matter and light, with each feather outlined in holy luminescence.

In this semi-destroyed world, it stood as if entirely unaffected, the one outstretched hand firmly intercepting the Hero's strike.

Then, light emitted from its palm, transforming into chain-like runes, winding around the girl's fist, threading through her fingers, climbing up her wrist, and slowly creeping upward.

Feeling the interference power that penetrated not only her body and soul but even spread to her destiny and past, the Hero felt a tingling at her scalp.

Urged by the sensation, she let out a loud roar and swiftly kicked her foot.

"Get lost—!"

Her toe tore through the air, bearing the same majestic Magic Power, kicking straight for the target's vital point.

But at the very moment of her action, the wings behind the Four-winged King also swiftly unfolded, precisely intercepting her attack.

[Commandments/Holy/Wisdom/Birth (1231237)]

D7 = (4. Commandments)

The small leather boot struck firmly against the pure white wing, causing the ground to tremble, and under the chaotic wind raised by the impact, most of the church behind the Four-winged King was directly destroyed, the remaining walls collapsing with a loud crash.

Yet, although the shockwave couldn't be fully blocked, that wing remained unmoved. On the Four-winged King's face, void of facial details, even the glow in its eyes wasn't disturbed in the slightest.

"Do not harm without cause, that is the Commandment."

Realizing she couldn't suppress the opponent's Authority, the Hero's brow furrowed.

"Even a Goblin counts as a person!?" she cursed.

"I am not a Goblin." The Four-winged King's response was uttered with extreme certainty, as if stating a truth.

"Tch—" The Hero tried to break free but found it difficult to move.

"But it's okay, misunderstanding is only temporary." As this gentle murmur was voiced, the single wing extended, its immaculate feathers began to extend, bend, and entwine, tightly clasping the girl's ankle and binding it within.

The feathers felt cold and soft, yet carried a strange adhesive quality, as if numerous small suckers adhered, sending a chill down the Hero's spine.

"No matter the cost, no matter how many attempts, I will definitely become yours—"

But before It could finish speaking, a sharp ice arrow shot through the void from behind the Hero, accurately striking It between the eyes.

Immediately followed by five more ice arrows in quick succession, hitting almost simultaneously at the same spot.

A series of crisp hit sounds rang out, the ice arrows shattering instantly into a flurry of frost, also causing the Four-winged King's head to jerk, making the glow across its face flicker.

Remarkably, the previous ground-shattering heavy blow hadn't caused It to falter, yet these insignificant ice arrows delivered a significant impact, making its posture sway slightly.

"Release that child!" Then, the Snow Woman's shout, filled with killing intent and anger, followed.

Seizing the opportunity, the Hero's eyes gleamed, and she pushed off with her remaining foot, instantly shattering the two bindings which had just seemed unbreakable, dissolving into glittering particles and feathers.

While retreating swiftly, she didn't forget to grab the hand of the Snow Woman Sister, who cooperated seamlessly, leaping agilely like the wind. Together, they landed at the end of the street, vigilantly keeping their distance from the Four-winged King now holding a hand to its forehead.

"Thanks a lot, Snow Woman Sister." The Hero shook the Snow Woman's hand, which felt icy to the touch, and gave her a bright smile.

"I can only do this much." The Snow Woman dispelled the hexagonal ice flowers that had just been shooting from her other hand, then squeezed the Hero's hand back firmly with both hands.

"Do your best, okay."

Then, this small world began to gradually fade away.

The half-destroyed Lake Town was painted over with blankness, the ruined church and the rubble-strewn streets began to blur and dissipate, and the image of the Snow Woman faded until she quickly disappeared, leaving only an echo full of emotion.

As the echo faded away, the smile on the Hero's face also vanished, and a pair of emerald eyes stared coldly at the figure opposite.

On the pure white horizon at this moment, there remained only the girl and the Four-winged King's presence.

Behind the Angel King, the wing that the Hero had just violently torn free was no longer pristine, feathers were scattered and shattered, hanging limply as if broken, its light dimmed.

The first intervention of destiny failed.

The Four-winged King tilted his head slightly, silently gazing at his crippled wing.

"...There's still a chance." He murmured softly.

This place was not anywhere in the world, not even considered the Hero's spiritual world. Instead, it was the manifestation of her abyss, a destiny record of everything inscribed in the world since the existence known as "Vestie Tees" was born.

This destiny record was originally impossible for someone else's will to exist within; it's a place deeper than spirit, soul, even deeper to one's own origin, a place where even the concept of "visiting" does not exist.

However, with the stacking of factors like the Limit Breaking Curse, the Illusion Realm of the Land of Oblivion, the awakening of the Ultimate Shift... the Hero caused this nonexistent place to reveal itself, and the Four-winged King took a desperate gamble to forcibly intervene here.

The scene the Hero just witnessed, meeting with the Snow Woman, was not merely a past memory but a record engraved in the world itself, her very destiny.

That Snow Woman was not just a resurfaced image, nor was she entirely her in reality, but the part of the Snow Woman "connected to the Hero."

Even if that Snow Woman was harmed here, she would suffer no effect in reality.

The only one affected would be the Hero herself.

Just as the Four-winged King claimed "I can also manage," if he had just completely defeated the Hero and utterly obliterated the Snow Woman, then the Hero's past destiny would become "having gone through all that under its guidance."

Even the records in reality could have been altered accordingly.

The Snow Woman would forget everything after meeting her, the Border Count would start to worship the Angel, and the Kingdom's official records would state: "The Saintess, guided by the Angel met at Lake Town, ascended the Highland, extinguished the Corrupted Phoenix, and became a Hero of the border."

With the Authority of the Great Demon intervening in the awakening of the Ultimate Shift, this level of concept clash could influence everything and everyone connected with her.

It's irrelevant whether it actually happened, humankind's memories are inherently ambiguous with no solid evidence. Even actual records, unless protected at the conceptual level like those in the Hunter's Library, would eventually not escape being corrected.

Everything would unconsciously become "it was originally like this."

Therefore, if the Four-winged King succeeded in inserting his existence into the Hero's past, he could even bypass the Divine Knowledge Saintess's blockade and re-descend into this world.

But this also depends on succeeding in the premise first.

"All-Knowing? It's nothing impressive." The girl opened her fingers, made and unmade a fist, feeling the residual warmth of the Snow Woman in her palm, first curling her lips slightly, then letting out a disdainful snort.

"You really don't understand Snow Woman Sister at all."

→☆→☆→☆→✧←★←★←★←

[D105. Into the Invisible Black—Will you win (The higher the better match)]

D10=4

[Four-winged King activates skill: Quadruple Sacred]

D3=(3. Birth)

D764=426

[Corrupted Phoenix activates skill: Depraved Sun]

D305+D658=(160+612)=772