Chapter 146:

Chapter 146:

A crushing silence filled the decoy castle as the Hydra's golden eyes gleamed with uncontained amusement. The Phoenix Vanguard stood frozen, their minds scrambling to process what had just been revealed.

They weren't here to assassinate Maou-sama.

They had walked into a trap.

They had been tricked.

Tricked by what they had deamed mindless beasts.

And in front of them was the predator

The predator was standing before them had no intention of letting them go.

Like they chew toys.

Like they were mere cannon fodder.

The Hydra's massive frame coiled lazily around the throne room, his seven heads shifting fluidly, each one carrying an expression of either amusement, condescension, or sheer boredom. He wasn't worried. He wasn't threatened.

This was a game.

And they were his toys.

They were just playthings.

Meiyo's breath was steady, but her mind raced. We need a plan.

They had strength, but strength wouldn't be enough—not when they were fighting something so beyond their understanding.

From what she knew the Hydra.

The hydra was at minimum a 12th dimensional boss level beast.

That ranked it higher the pest monsters race that the Sky Hawk and Lava Dire wolf that attacked the kingdoms years ago on thier birthday. All though those beast can still grazes. They could not.

But why did the monster call them 12th dimensional before. 

They had not transcended that far like the noble clan heirs the Celestial Vangauard Academy allowed them to take a 5th Dimensional combat trial not 12th.

Could the Hydra have been mistaken.

No it knew something but what?

No matter.

Now was not the time for thinking.

Now was the time to survive.

Beside her, Kouki cracked his knuckles, his eyes burning with fury. "I don't care what you are." His aura flared, golden and crimson energy rippling around him as his mana surged. The Omni Energy he had converted into magic gathered in thick waves, forming intricate golden-red magic circles in the air. "You're still going to die like the rest of those filthy demons."

The Hydra blinked once, unimpressed. Then, he let out a low chuckle. "Oh? You think you're the first arrogant prince I've met?" His middle head tilted slightly, lips curling into a sneer. "Do you truly believe you can harm me?"

Kouki's fist clenched. "Shut up."

Without warning, he moved.

'Pheonix Aura' He thought using the kingdoms exxclusive technique for royal. Phoenix Aura gave him phoenix flames which gave passive regeneration and flame aura that can melt all.

Faster than thought, golden flames surrounded him. He then willed the flaming aura near his feet and the flames from the phoenix aura exploded from beneath his feet, launching him forward in a blur of speed that allowed him to travel infinite distance instantly that shattered the stone beneath him. His form blinked out of existence for a fraction of a second before he reappeared above the Hydra's leftmost head, his fist cocked back.

"Phoenix flaming fist" He yelled.

The impact was instant.

A crack like thunder roared through the room as Kouki's punch connected. Golden-red flames erupted, swallowing the Hydra's face in a torrent of destruction. The castle trembled, cracks splintering across the walls as the sheer force of the blow threatened to bring the entire place down.

But then—

The flames parted.

The Hydra's head hadn't even budged.

Kouki's eyes widened in horror.

Before he could even react, the Hydra's tail whipped through the air faster than light, slamming into Kouki's side like a divine hammer.

BOOM.

Kouki's body was sent hurtling across the throne room, his form crashing through seven stone pillars before he slammed into the far wall, the impact creating a deep crater that spider-webbed through the castle's foundation.

His vision blurred. Pain. His ribs screamed, his breath completely stolen from his lungs. His fingers twitched. He tried to push himself up. He couldn't.

The Hydra tilted his head, disappointed. "Is that it?"

"Pathetic and you came to kill Maou-Sama" it added.

Akari snapped.

"You bastard—!!"

She vanished.

In the blink of an eye, she was at Kouki's side, then above the Hydra, her hand outstretched.

She was knew she was being foolish

She was not using her clans abilities of soul bonding instead just fire beams of Manan like a angry beast.

But this was personal.

Her Kouki-Kun was hurt.

Her body moving on its owns.

A massive golden magic circle materialized above the throne room, engraved with ancient runes pulsing with raw mana. A beam of pure destruction tore through the ceiling, an unrelenting cascade of golden light surging down like the wrath of the heavens.

The castle shook. The air screamed.

The Hydra's middle head sighed.

And then—

His tail flicked.

Not at Akari. Not at the attack.

At the air itself.

The golden light simply… ceased.

Not absorbed. Not blocked. Erased.

From mere presence and air pressure of the tails flick.

Akari had only a second to process before a single claw gently tapped her stomach.

And then—

Silence.

Her body crumpled. The moment the Hydra's claw touched her, every nerve in her body shut down. She collapsed like a lifeless doll, hitting the ground hard.

Kaito saw his chance.

This was it.

He had to act.

Not just to win.

To prove himself. To show Akari she had been wasting her time on Kouki.

A pulse of red energy erupted from Kaito's core as he spread his arms, his magic circles doubling, tripling, forming a massive latticework of intertwining spells.

The entire castle rumbled.

Blood magic.

A technique forbidden for its sheer inhumanity.

Kaito smirked, twisting his fingers as the very air cracked. "You might be strong, but even you can't regenerate if I erase your blood."

The Hydra stared at him. And then…

He laughed.

Kaito's heart dropped.

The Hydra's middle head grinned.

"Oh, you poor, poor child."

Then—

Kaito's magic shattered.

Not countered. Not dispelled.

Just… ignored.

His own spell rejected him.

It was like watching a storybook character trying to stab someone in the real world.

The Hydra's golden eyes gleamed with mockery. "How does it feel?" His voice dripped with amusement. "To be less than fiction?"

Meiyo's breath caught.

She understood.

He's not in their dimensionality.

This was the first sign.

Maou-sama's forces weren't just stronger.

They were smarter.

"Everyone—fall back!" Meiyo commanded, her voice sharp, absolute. "Only Kouki and I can fight him."

If what the Hydra said was true.

And that Kouki and her were 12th dimensional like it,

Then only they can fight it.

She didn't believe it.

But it was possible that daddy pulled string to get Kouki and Her into 12th dimensional Combat trial instead of 5th diemnsioanl

Kaito recoiled, eyes flashing with rage. "What? No! I—"

"NOW!"

Meiyo's Omni Energy flared, a pulse of raw pressure slamming through the room.

Kaito grit his teeth. He hated it.

But he listened.

The others backed away, dragging Akari's unconscious form with them.

The Hydra chuckled. "Oh? You figured it out faster than I thought."

Meiyo ignored him. She had to focus.

She had to win.

Her body tensed. Her breathing slowed.

The air shifted.

Something deep inside her stirred.

Power she had never tapped into.

Power she shouldn't have.

Her crimson eyes flickered—

No.

They changed.

A deep, piercing gold-blue hue.

Sky Hawk.

Her mana surged, the castle trembling beneath the sheer weight of her aura.

The Hydra's amusement vanished.

And for the first time—

He looked intrigued.

"Now that…" He grinned.

"…is interesting."

The battle wasn't over.

It had only just begun.