Chapter 338: Regis vs Sanguine Order I

"This is bad..."

Regis muttered under his breath as his mind raced.

’With my own companions attacking me, destroying the portal to the Realm of Evil materializing above the demon lord would be many times harder.’

He then crouched beside Elysia as he shook her, "Your Majesty, are you there? I could really use your help right now!"

"R-Regis..."

Elysia’s mouth opened, but it was Wisteria’s voice that came out of her.

"Wisteria?"

Regis asked in confusion, as he had a bad feeling about the current situation.

Wisteria controlled Elysia’s body as she spoke, "The portal that the demon lord is creating triggered a resonance deep within the corruption of Ely’s soul. Without me suppressing the corruption and preventing her from moving, she would already be under the demon’s control like the others. I’m sorry, but..."

"I understand..."

Regis gritted his teeth as he erected a mana barrier around the queen to prevent her from being affected by stray attacks, ’If only I could use Corruption Manipulation...’

Had it been any other time, he would have already tried doing so.

However, aside from the fact that the current situation was extreme and gave him no time to think, he was also unsure whether his evil craft would even work against the devil being summoned by that demon lord.

Bzzzt— Clang!

Bzzzt— Clang!

Bzzzt— Clang!

Killian’s body flashed with lightning as he continued attacking with his sword.

"This is frustrating!"

Regis was just about to curse when he saw a figure in the corner of his eye.

"Marzana!?"

Remembering her chaos energy, his eyes flashed with hope as he dashed towards her while dodging the countless magic spells and attacks of his controlled companions.

"R-Regis!"

Marzana called out as she was being cornered by her very own teammates— Raxon and Aeola.

Swoosh!

Regis’s figure appeared as he used a longsword from his storage artifact to deliver a blow hard enough to send the two of them flying.

This bought them a brief moment.

Marzana looked at him with a gaze full of worry and confusion.

"W-What’s happening to the—"

"We don’t have enough time!"

Regis cut her off as he hurriedly whispered while deflecting the attacks of their companions.

"Listen, we can do this. I’ll face the Sanguine Order, while you use your chaos energy to interrupt the summoning ritual that the demon lord is casting."

Marzana still had many questions in her mind, but she ultimately nodded while gritting her teeth.

As the two quickly made up a plan, they did not waste any more time.

The two of them began dashing towards Aziza, who was still at the center of the huge magic circle encompassing the whole Sanctuary of Life and Death.

Her demonic power had corrupted roughly eighty percent of the sacred land’s magic circle, and the rate at which it was going up increased even further.

Aziza clearly noticed the two humans’ intentions as her melodious voice echoed around the battlefield.

"My beloved, please protect me~."

In an instant, the pink glow covering the members of the Sanguine Order’s eyes intensified.

This caused all of them to attack simultaneously.

Auryn, Lesfera, and Aeola— the mages— cast various magic spells that made it look as though the apocalypse itself was descending.

The weakest magic spell they had cast was that of the High-rank.

"Shit!"

Regis, who had been deliberately running behind her to fend off the attacks of the close combatants, sped up.

"Ah!"

Marzana let out a yelp as he felt her body being snatched by someone.

’Why did he have to carry me like this...?’

Feeling Regis’s arm around her stomach as she was being carried under one arm like a child, she could not help but complain.

"I-Is this really necessary?"

"Yes, if you don’t wanna die."

Regis answered as he used his other hand to wield his sword and parried Killian’s sword along with those of the other members of the Exemplar Squad.

In the next moment, however...

"!!!"

Regis felt goosebumps covering him as he felt violent fluctuations of mana.

"Haha, shit..."

He glanced up at the sky and saw something he never wanted to see.

Pandora floated in the sky, pointing her staff towards the two as a storm of mana raged around her.

On her chest were five blue stars emitting a brilliant light, with her fifth star being three-pointed.

That was right.

Pandora was currently in the Early Stage of the Five Star Realm.

And as of this moment...

...her full power was being directed towards an attack meant for her brother.

It did not take long for her chant to resound in the area.

[Grand Magic: Devastatio Vorago]

WOOONG—!!!

Regis felt shivers down his very soul as a wry smile appeared on his face.

It was the same magic spell he used to raze down the peak of one of the mountains in Sagrada Dragona.

And now...

...that very same magic spell was now coming for his life.

In an instant, Regis made a decision.

Wooong— Wooong—

Two red stars and five blue stars manifested on his chest at the same time.

WOONG!!!

Then, they began to connect until all seven stars coalesced and became purple.

This was his method of gaining access to a higher form of energy comparable to the divine and demonic powers: Aether.

"Marzana!"

Regis called out as he took out the supposedly ruined Sword of Tinateria.

Marzana, still feeling a little embarrassed, answered, "Y-Yes?"

"Hold this!"

Although she did not know what he was trying to do, Marzana knew that this was not the time for questions.

As such, she held out her hand and held the handle of the ruined sword, while Regis held the blade part.

Fortunately, the ruined sword was dull, making it easy for him to hold the blade without being hurt.

He then reminded, "Whatever happens, don’t ever let go, okay?"

"Mhm!" Marzana responded resolutely.

In the next moment, two chants left Regis’s lips in succession.

[Grand Magic: Astrum Sanctuarium]

A barrier made of starlight manifested around Elysia, thus effectively protecting her from Pandora’s powerful magic spell.

And as for the second one...

[Lux Aeterna]

"Wha—!?"

Before Marzana could even react, her senses were overwhelmed as her mind directly blanked out.

When she opened her eyes right in the next instant, she found that they were already near the demon lord.

"I’ll stop them from here. You got this, okay?"

Regis’s encouraging voice sounded beside her ears.

"H-Huh— W-Wha— Wai—!"

Before Marzana could even speak, she felt the powerful arm wrapped around her body throw her into the sky.

"Ahhhh!"

Her voice resounded in the battlefield as her figure flew straight towards the portal that had already been partially materialized.