Chapter 207

Chapter 179: Bluefire Burning the Moon, Blood Staining the Royal City, Part 13

“Run! Go this way—!”

In the distance, amidst the crowd, a robust man in a light blue cloak urged them to start running.

The civilians scattered like startled birds, too terrified to even scream. I saw a girl who looked very much like Sarah… she seemed to meet my gaze for a moment before following the crowd and fleeing into the distance.

Was that Sarah…

It was too dark to be sure… never mind, now wasn’t the time to think about it.

I shook my head lightly, stumbled, feeling dizzy.

Warmth trickled down the back of my neck but quickly stopped.

I lifted my head, looking at the night sky, as red as the sun.

A crimson sea of flames roiled above, like the end of the world. Explosions thundered overhead, shaking the heavens and the royal city.

At the heart of the fire, a slender figure with wind and waves encircling her spun around the massive body of the monster. She dodged the fiery tongues, her sword slicing through the air with a “whoosh,” cutting the beast’s flesh and bone.

“Grrr—”

The monster seemed badly wounded. It let out a terrifying howl, flames engulfing its body, leaving a thick black trail as it plummeted like a meteor.

We can’t let it land here…

A prickling sensation spread across my body. As I felt my injuries healing, I took two steps forward. Ice pillars erupted beneath my feet, launching me into the sky like a cannonball. The wind roared in my ears as I watched the fireball hurtling down, ready to change direction once the distance was right, moving to the right of the monster.

“Victoria! Move—!”

As I shouted, I held my hands out in front of me, palms open, scanning the area below. They were running too slow; people seemed everywhere. The only empty spot… was a small square several streets away.

Target that area.

In an instant, I made my decision. At that moment, Victoria withdrew.

Next, a dazzling blue light burst around me.

“Aah—!”

Boom—!!!

My full-force attack.

Thick frost mist sparkled with countless ice shards, pouring from my palms. A fierce chill swept up a torrent of cold waves, instantly engulfing the monster in the air.

Crack—pop…

Visibility blurred by the frost mist.

At the center of the cold surge, the blazing inferno, swallowed by the bone-chilling temperature, flickered and dimmed. The monster’s body, hit head-on, changed trajectory, flying toward the distant square. The sound of ice formation echoed from its body.

Good… I’ve temporarily frozen it.

My body fell again.

At the same time, overwhelming fatigue washed over me.

I… can’t hold on much longer…

Whizz—

Wind howled, hair whipping across my face.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Victoria dodge the frost mist, her graceful arc in the air bringing her swiftly to my side. She grabbed me tightly in one arm.

“Huff—”

Unable to hold back, I exhaled softly.

She hugged me too tight… my arm was trapped against my chest, hurting.

Bang—!

The monster’s body crashed into the square, smashing the central stone lion statue. Amidst the dust, one of its arms shattered, scattering ice crystals embedded with flesh and bones.

“Are you okay?”

Victoria’s voice remained cool, though slightly labored.

Her appearance was disheveled. Her dress was scorched in places, and she had lost one shoe. Her arm had severe burns, and her golden hair was a mess.

The ends of my hair were all curled up, and my face was a bit blackened by smoke… Even so, it couldn’t hide her beauty.

“Not…”

I barely managed to say one word when the wind rushed into my mouth.

After Victoria hugged me, she didn’t stop at all. Her other hand immediately raised the sword to strike. A huge wind blade formed in front of me in an instant, screaming as it flew toward the direction where the monster had fallen. She suddenly turned her body in mid-air, tightly pinning me to her side like a doll, and dived down toward the small square.

Gale-force winds blew around us, making my earlobes ache.

Boom—!

The wind blade sliced through the rubble, cutting the monster’s frozen body in half from the waist down.

But we both knew that this alone was not enough to kill it.

…But I was already very tired.

Tired to the point where my head started spinning, even though my chest hurt from being squeezed by her, I didn’t want to make a sound.

I felt like my stamina had been completely drained.

This wasn’t because I overused the Frost Order… The order power inside my body was still abundant, and I could probably hold on for a long time. I could clearly feel this, but my body was extremely weak.

I knew very well why I had become like this—it was due to the recovery from the previous injuries.

It consumed the power of the Abyss.

Gulping…

My stomach was very hungry, extremely hungry.

I could even feel my stomach churning.

I wanted to eat something… anything, just eat something… eat something…

Sniff.

My nose was filled with Victoria’s scent… the human fragrance… mixed with the smell of burning flesh… like grilled meat.

It smelled too good…

I really wanted to devour her in one bite.

Smack!

In a daze, someone suddenly slapped my forehead.

“You still have the mind to play around.”

“… Huh?”

Coming back to my senses, I realized that at some point, I had bitten down on Victoria’s arm that was holding me.

My heart trembled violently, and I immediately let go.

Saliva pulled into long strands, dripping from my chin… it was itchy.

I secretly pinched my thigh, forcing myself to regain my composure. I wanted to find an excuse to explain to her, but what came out of my mouth was: “I just wanted to taste it…”

Yes, it tasted salty.

What am I doing…

Victoria frowned slightly, looking straight ahead: “Pull yourself together.”

Plop.

She gently landed on the circular square, putting me down as her right-hand sword swung again.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

“Grrr—”

The sudden roar behind me snapped me out of my daze.

…I’m still in the middle of battle!

Not good…

Feeling the intense heat behind me, I bit my tongue and suddenly turned around.

In my field of vision, the lower half of the monster’s body, which had been severed, rapidly dissolved and scattered in the flames… then reformed into writhing chunks of flesh that disappeared into the hollow in its head. Countless crimson bloodlines gushed out from its severed vertebrae, forming a new body.

The monster slowly raised its head in the firelight, its bone-chilling face turning back toward my position once more.

“Grrr—”

Hellfire spewed forth along with its howl.

…Moon Step!

Whoosh—

Stepping into Moon Step, I dodged sideways. The flames roared past my side, as if distorting the air. After appearing more than ten meters away, my legs gave out and I stumbled, rolling twice on the ground with a “thud,” my face hitting the flower bed on the side of the square.

Ouch ouch ouch…

Tears almost welled up.

No… If I keep going like this, I’ll lose.

If I lose… then everyone in the royal city… I can’t lose, I can’t…

I struggled to stand up, wiping the saliva off the corner of my mouth, and shouted up at Victoria in the sky: “Find a way to drive it out of the city—!”

As long as it leaves the city… I can kill it.