Chapter 569 - 559 Salvation

Chapter 569: Chapter 559 Salvation

Space began to collapse.

Cracks spread through the space surrounding Asem and me before it shattered into fragments.

The space itself probably couldn’t withstand the collision between the tremendous energies we had unleashed.

The blood-red sky vanished, replaced by a world that looked like the view through a kaleidoscope.

—The Dimensional Gap.

That was how Asem described it.

"Apparently, you’ve become someone who can literally destroy the world all by yourself. To think that the world I constructed to be so incredibly sturdy is on the verge of collapsing..."

『Half of that is your fault, isn’t it?』

I offered a mild protest against Asem’s words as I surveyed the shattered space around us.

The destruction had spread across a considerable area, but fortunately, it had barely stopped short of reaching the battlefield where Azazel-sensei and the others were fighting.

Good thing we had put some distance between ourselves and them.

If we had fought there, countless people would undoubtedly have been caught in the crossfire.

However...

"Your current power rivals that of Infinity and Dream. Possessing such overwhelming strength might be fine for now, but eventually, people will come to fear and resent you. Alternatively, some may try to exploit your power. Even if you kill me and bring this battle to an end, you might eventually become a nuisance to this world."

Asem suddenly brought up the subject.

...I already knew that.

Protecting Miwa was part of the reason, but I had also returned to this world because I believed I would become a nuisance in the other world after defeating Sirius.

A hero who defeated the Demon King wielded enormous influence.

A country that had such a hero on its side would be in a much better position than other nations when negotiating future political affairs.

And that would only lead to more conflict.

That was what I had thought, and that was why I...

To be honest, after returning to this world, I never expected to get caught up in something this serious.

I hadn’t even imagined that I would grow this powerful.

A power rivaling Infinity and Dream—the power of Ophis and Great Red before they were divided into two separate beings.

The fact that I could now fight Asem head-on, even after he had absorbed Trihexa, was proof enough.

If things went badly, there might come a day when I would be treated as a nuisance to this world, just as Asem had predicted.

『Even if that happens, I still need this power.』

"And what if the very power you possess ends up hurting the people you love?"

As Asem asked that question, his eyes seemed to be gazing into the distant past.

He had possessed great power, attracted attention because of it, and been exploited. In the end, he had lost someone he loved.

Perhaps Asem was seeing a reflection of his former self in me.

I closed my eyes for a moment before speaking.

『Without power, I can’t even protect the things I want to protect. I’ve experienced that pain more times than I can count. If someone precious to me is ever in danger, I’ll protect them. No matter what it takes. Even if I have to twist the very laws of the world to do it.』

Without power, I could do nothing.

Accomplishing anything required a commensurate amount of strength.

But possessing too much power could also sow the seeds of new disasters.

That was simply how the world worked.

But... that was precisely why—

『I have to show everyone what this power means. I have to show them that the wishes of everyone who helped me are contained within it. No matter how long it takes.』

"I see. ...Well, considering that your power-ups are fueled by breasts, I doubt things will get quite that serious."

『Could you not? I was trying to make a cool, dramatic declaration, and you had to go and say something like that.』

▽

Keeping a certain distance between us, Asem and I flew higher and higher until we eventually escaped the world he had constructed.

We had chosen the Dimensional Gap as the battleground for our next confrontation.

The Dimensional Gap.

It was Ophis’s birthplace, and Great Red now ruled over it.

They said that anyone without sufficient power who entered this place would be exposed to the void and cease to exist.

That wasn’t a problem for either of us anymore.

We possessed more than enough power to remain here without even having to think about it.

Feeling the strange currents drifting through the Dimensional Gap against our skin, Asem and I clashed once more.

I beat my eight dragon wings and charged straight at him.

In response to my head-on assault, Asem conjured a magic circle before himself and unleashed a magical bombardment of staggering proportions.

What was more, the spells he used were unmistakably at the level of forbidden magic.

Ever since he had taken on that form, he had been using forbidden magic as casually as breathing...

I had heard that forbidden magic came with enormous costs, but perhaps absorbing Trihexa had made those drawbacks irrelevant to him. He was firing off one devastating spell after another without the slightest concern.

Their power was on an entirely different level, too. Even now, taking one of those attacks head-on would undoubtedly leave me severely injured.

『Hah!』

Weaving between the magical bombardments raining down like a torrential downpour, I closed in on Asem and slammed my fist, wrapped in an immense aura, straight through the magic circle he had deployed!

My crimson-glowing fist shattered the magic circle channeling the forbidden spell and struck Asem’s body!

"Guh?!"

Asem was sent flying through the Dimensional Gap, but he twisted his body and forcibly regained his balance. Then, releasing an aura from every part of himself, he charged straight back at me!

—Fast!

Asem closed the distance in an instant and followed his momentum with a kick.

His foot buried itself in my stomach, folding my body into a V.

He must have embedded magic into the kick as well, because the instant his leg made contact with me, a magic circle appeared—

—and exploded!

The combined impact of Asem’s kick and magic shattered the armor covering my abdomen!

The explosion left my body numb, but I couldn’t afford to remain helpless!

Asem was already following up with another attack!

Let’s do this, Ddraig!

『I am ready!』

My dependable partner answered immediately!

He must have anticipated this situation given Asem’s strength. Just as expected of him!

『『HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!』』

Ddraig and I roared as our voices merged into one!

Rainbow-colored aura poured from our bodies, altering the currents of the Dimensional Gap itself and creating enormous swirling vortices!

Our power surged explosively!

『Boost Xenon Ultimate Drive!!!!!!!!!!』

A new voice rang out from the Sacred Gear’s jewel.

At that instant, rainbow-colored flames erupted from various parts of my armor, which began to shimmer and ripple violently.

Cloaked in flames as intense as Ignis at full power, my ultimate strength broke through into an even higher realm!

I grabbed Asem’s approaching arm and drove my clenched fist into his stomach!

My rainbow aura pierced straight through his body!

"Gaaah!"

Asem’s movements halted for an instant, and I landed a solid kick against him.

This was an attack delivered with a form that had been strengthened beyond its own ultimate evolution.

No matter how absurdly powerful Asem had become, there was no way he could emerge unscathed.

The blood spilling from his mouth and the pained expression on his face proved as much.

But he wasn’t the kind of opponent who would break so easily.

"Guh... AAAAAAAAAAAAH!!"

Asem raised his aura and unleashed hundreds of energy spheres at me.

Sensing something ominous, I immediately shot upward, but...the energy spheres pursued me!

No matter where I went or how erratically I flew, they followed my movements with unerring precision!

To control this much power and this many projectiles so accurately was impressive.

But I couldn’t afford to let even one hit me.

I dodged every single one, then retaliated by firing countless ki blasts of my own!

Asem smoothly evaded every one of my attacks and rushed toward me.

I flew toward him as well, generating shock waves in my wake.

Our fists collided—

CRAAACK! WHOOOOOOOOOOOM...

A tremendous sound rang out, as though something enormous had shattered.

When I looked around, I saw cracks spreading across the kaleidoscopic scenery of the Dimensional Gap.

The fractures expanded rapidly from the point where we had collided until the entire surrounding landscape looked like shattered glass.

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