Five Days Destruction (5).

The global chaos had died down a little, and the world could now be said to be in a state of rest, but that did not signify the end of the battle.

As the battle between Milim and Sariel had ended, there was a destructive amount of energy released to the atmosphere.

This resulted in the birth of many monsters.

Some were lucky enough to gain sentience, deciding to flee to the Jura Forest, the birth place, and the homeland of all monsters.

Due to the astronomical amount of energy present, some had undergone evolution, introducing new species of monsters.

With the remaining few that held no tinge of intelligence, they were caught up in the catastrophic event and died upon birth.

But it did not end there. Another disastrous clash took place.

The fight between Rose and Zelanus was nothing short of catastrophic.

The damage they caused had been so cataclysmic that it had destroyed 84% of the west.

They had been so focused on eliminating each other that they hadn't taken into account the state of the world at the time.

The same could be said about the clash between Sariel and Milim.

Something needed to be done about the rampant energy at the time, so a huge sacrifice was made.

Taking the scene to Silverion, the battle unit had been dispatched to deal with the problematic insectars that had begun trashing around.

Akane: 「Well, that's something I never expected.」

Akihiko: 「A queen? Then I can assume that there is a king, too.」

Standing right in front of them was an insectar possessing a bewitching beauty.

With pink exoskeleton that radiated a malicious yet divine glow.

Akihiko: 「Since when did I start fighting power rangers?」

Aika: 「Don't ask me. Look at that gigachad behind her.

Give me one good reason why I shouldn't think he's just another Broly ripoff.」

She spoke as she pointed to another rather muscular looking insectar behind their target.

Akane: 「Well... can't argue with that....」

「Hm? Perhaps you're here to intercept us?」

Akane: 「Straight to the point, eh? Good. To answer your question, yes.

We are here to get you to stop what you're doing. We may even let you go free if you could just stop this now.」

「Quite the bold talk considering your status. Know your place, fool.」

Without another word, she unleashed dozens of deadly looking scales towards the unassuming group.

The scales swirled and drilled their way towards them.

Even the smallest of scales could become a deadly weapon when they came together.

If they were to be hit directly, their bodies would surely be turned to ribbons.

With blinding speed, they all jumped out of the attack's range.

Immediately after that, the place where they had been standing until just before was covered with poisonous scales released by Peliod.

It was a poison that could kill even demons, despite its fantastically beautiful glow.

Its toxicity, which could corrode the body and destroy the spirit, was so fierce that even a Demon Peer count would have been unable to withstand it.

Aika: 「Damn! She's trouble.」

Akane: 「You guys, take on the gigachad, as you called it. I'll take her by myself.」

Unlike demons, who always wanted the bigger prey, they were humans at heart.

Something like this would be considered generous and considerate of her.

Akihiko: 「Haha! Sucks to be you. See ya!」

They quickly fled to fight the insectar they had been talking about.

Akane: 「Now, what to do?」

She drew out her blade, ready for the upcoming fight.

Akane: 「I have high expectations for this battle. I am Akane Masami. It's a pleasure to meet you.」

Peliod: 「Is that how you do it? Very well. It's nice to meet you too. I am called Peliod.

Known as the queen of the insectar race. Let's see just how fragile the human race is.」

With the quick introduction, there was nothing else that was needed to be said.

In a flash, Akane had already appeared above Peliod, and with her blade up high, she swung downwards at her shoulder.

She definitely has a great affinity for magic. I'll need to decapitate her arms constantly to interfere with her magic.

With that thought in mind, she made the first move.

She had already thought of many scenarios.

In the case where she was caught in a trap of hers, she had already devised an escape plan.

In the case where her attack was blocked, she knew exactly what to do.

She had already covered up for the many loopholes in that brash action of hers.

It was already known that she was the most intelligent and capable warrior of the group.

She would always plan three steps ahead for the future, making her a tricky and unpredictable opponent.

With a single simple action of hers, she could alter the course of a battle or war to her favor.

With the attack making its way towards Peliod's shoulder, she was blocked by the sudden appearance of a prism barrier around her.

Seeing as her attack was blocked, Peliod struck back.

She sent out poisonous scales, released with terrifying speed that defied all odds.

But the plan Akane had for escaping was already set in stone.

She activated the ability 『Spatial Transfer』, and managed to escape from her grasp before Peliod could think of counterattacking.

Akane, given the leisure time to do so, analyzed the properties of Peliod's prism barrier.

Her protective prism barrier is not limited to magic but also applied to a certain amount of emission-type techniques.

At this, she could be considered a natural enemy of demons who wielded magic as their weapons.

What a troublesome foe I'm facing this time around.

She thought with an annoyed expression.

This marked the beginning of the attack-defense strategy.

Akane would attack relentlessly, and when she saw that Peliod was about to strike back, she would withdraw.

She also prepared multiple 『Spatial Transfer』at discrete points to make pinpointing her next attack in sync with the teleportation magic almost impossible.

Although there was a big problem with that.

Her energy quantity would make the number of times she could do so quite restricted.

She knew that spiritual life forms were energy creatures of lire willpower and energy.

They could easily be killed by total deprivation of energy (energy/magicule loss).

Hence, even as a spiritual life-form whose existence could be considered godlike, it wasn't impossible for them to die.

She was taught that by Sariel, who had proceeded to drain about 70% of her total energy for the excuse of the experience.

It was a very painful reminder that served to warn her about the consequences of losing so much energy.

But this was all accounted for. She wouldn't carelessly do such a thing without having a way forward.

Akane: 「Let see whether this works. 『Destroyer』!」

With the power of her unique ability, she was able to destroy the prism barrier that had caused her a lot of trouble.

Without wasting any time, she struck.

Akane: 「Solitary Spirit Barrage: Calamity Break.」

A technique and art she learned from Sariel.

It was something that took her two months to accomplish.

Considering her skill level and versatility, it shouldn't take her too long just to master an art.

That just displays the degree of complexity of the art.

And yet, according to Sariel–

Oh? I just thought of an attack that could make me pierce the very soul of my opponent them—bam! I made this art!

Thinking back at his words, she felt he just called her useless in the cutest way possible.

A piercing screech was heard throughout the battlefield, making all the combatants turn to look at the perpetrator.

Peliod: 「Damn it! I'll kill you!」

She was enraged, and as a result, her attacks became more difficult to deal with.

She released a deadly and poisonous mist that was so deadly that it even affected Akane.

It was not merely something that could kill if consumed, but something that would melt the skin and burn the flesh at the slightest touch.

The slightest contact with the skin caused extreme pain.

Thanks to this, Akane realized the danger of the poisonous mist. And then:

Hold up. That's extremely toxic. I'll be dead if this continues. I've already inhaled a sample of it before I had the chance to cease breathing.

I'm a spiritual life-form now, one who discarded the need to breathe constantly. But it seems too late to whine now. What a drag...

Her poisonous mist could decelerate ones kinetic force, making them slower than they are supposed to be.

It was just that, the slower she was, the slower her perception would be.

With a slower perception, she would not be able to react to attacks quickly.

....Or so Peliod thought.

As she tried to launch another attack on Akane, she was still able to react in time.

She had the subskill 『Enhanced Reaction』 after all.

Even with her lowered speed; her reaction time would not be affected.

With her other subskill, she could destroy the effect of Peliod's mist.

It wasn't that Peliod was weak and incapable, but her opponent was a perfect counter to her.

If she were fighting someone like Aika or Akihiko, she would have won the fight over time, but Akane was just so versatile.

Seeing as her poisonous mist did nothing to affect Akane, she became more annoyed.

Sending many destructive energy vines towards Akane, she had devised a devious plan in mind.

But alas, Akane could sense all these kinds of things.

Using the green energy vine, she had intended to lock her in a particular combat area.

With this, it would be easy for an unassuming and undetectable insectar to attack her discretely.

She would not depend on that approach to deal with heavy damage; therefore, she had already planned to make an attack that Akane would not be able to counter.

But with Akane's sharp intuition, she had already known that a plan was being set up.

She didn't know the exact details of the plan, but just having the idea that a trap was being laid was enough for her.

Akane: 「Oh no, you don't. Enjoy this! 『Destruction Combat Space』!!」

With the help of her innate ability to manipulate space, she used her gravity magic to increase the force of the earth in that particular combat area.

With the addition of separating space using a barrier within this area, she had prevented the odds of interference.

Seeing this, Peliod's frustration only piled up.

This being... All she does always counters me. How annoying...

The force of this new space did not affect Akane as she had already practiced under more severe conditions a lot of times in the past.

In fact, it was the point of this whole thing. When facing an opponent who could manipulate the forces of nature at will, one had to resist with sheer willpower.

As of now, it would take an astronomically great force of gravity to weigh Akane's group down.

Which meant a great force of gravity was used in this combat space.

This combat area was filled with intense energy wavelengths that served to disrupt the course of magic.

This was a result of the special properties of her unique skill that could annihilate the effects of various types of attacks.

This was a technique created by Akane herself.

This would also hinder Akane's magical capabilities, but she was not a magic person.

Seeing as she was unable to use her magic, Peliod became enraged.

Peliod: 「I've had enough of your stupid tricks. I'll end this now.」

Saying that, somehow, Peliod managed to manipulate space outside of the barrier Akane set up, distorting it to crush the barrier surrounding them.

With the continuous process of spatial distortion, she successfully destroyed the barrier.

The effect of the combat area was about to spread out to the entire vicinity, but Akane quickly dispersed it.

Akane: 「Hm... This is going to be troublesome.」

With the little time provided, Peliod had already created several insects.

In truth, she had actually been conserving her energy for this moment.

She had not gone all out from the beginning and had saved enough energy to create ten children to do her bidding.

Seeing this, Akane became extremely wary.

With the presence of the ten insects, a complete change had occurred.

An ominous feeling of doom grew within Akane, and her intuitive mind rang with immense danger alarms.

Fuck this. I'm in deep shit now.

This was her genuine feeling.

It wasn't that the newly born insects were overwhelmingly powerful, but a dangerous event would soon take place.

And when this happened, the whole of Silverion will suffer greatly.

 ◇◇◇

As soon as Akane began to battle Peliod, Akihiko made his way towards the insectar who wielded multiple swords.

The insectar, in person, had six arms, with each arm holding firmly a blade made with of the material Sariel called alienium.

According to him, an average insectar possessed a body on par with adamantite.

When this body is bathed in the foreign energy of the otherworld, it becomes what he calls alienium.

Surprisingly, his body was comparable to mythic grade weapons.

This meant that alienium could be called a variant of adamantite with similar properties that boasts incredible performance on par with mythical grade material.

It was only understandable as they were also a result of the special properties of alienium.

Clad in brown exoskeleton, his exterior was slick, and his defense was solid.

The insectar had one golden horn sprouting out of his head, along with two tails as sharp as his blade.

Considering his skill level, he may be impossible to defeat.

This was what Akihiko thought internally.

With his body and blades on par with mythic grade, it was only natural that this insectar was on par with, or perhaps even more powerful than Peliod.

In actuality, it would be better to consider him stronger than Peliod, given that his physical and magical capabilities are quite good.

He absolutely had no intention of underestimating the enemy as that was the quickest way to get his ass handed to him.

With a proud look, the insectar spoke.

「Greetings human. This one is called Mushito.

A direct descendant of the great Insect Lord Zelanus.」

As we suspected, there is an insect lord of the sort. But where?

Akihiko was in a situation where he didn't have the leisure of thinking things through.

Akihiko: 「Well, that's cool and all—but where is your lord?」

Mushito: 「Hm... about that, he should be dealing with that pest of an insect right now.」

Akihiko: 「Hm? Who did you call a pest just now?」

Mushito: 「Who else if not that silve–」

Before he could complete his words, his jaw was forcefully shut by a powerful kick.

In a fit of rage, Akihiko had bypassed Mushito's perceptive ability and delivered a powerful kick that actually made Mushito feel pain.

With that said, a blade was sent towards Akihiko's waist, aiming to cleave him into.

But in the nick of time, Akihiko jumped out of the attack range.

Mushito: 「That was rude... and incredible. You humans never cease to amaze.」

Akihiko: 「....」

Getting no response from him, Mushito could only sigh.

He expected to see him enraged, losing control of his emotions to reach the level where mistakes were inevitable.

But he had inaccurately judged the enemy, and he paid the consequences.

Mushito: 「It can't be helped. All life forms are bound to make mistakes one way or another. It's up to you to learn from them.

In my case, I get you a little more clearly. I will not repeat the same mistake as I did before. Let us begin this fight, human.」

Saying that, the signal for the beginning of the battle was given.

With blinding speed, Akihiko dashed to the side of the insectar, aiming to finish the battle as quickly as possible.

He had comrades to assist, so he wouldn't spend valuable time brawling it out with an insect.

Akihiko: 「『Sunflower Slash』!!」

With a dazzling yellow light, his attack should've decapitated him, but that was far from the truth.

*Clang*

In truth, his attack was met with a quick and decisive parry that blocked his strike.

Simultaneously, another blade was aimed to pierce him in the heart core.

He intended to jump away from the strike, but he felt a weight on his foot.

Akihiko: 「Tch.」

Mushito had actually stomped on his foot to prevent escape, ensuring that his instant kill attack would mark the end of the battle.

But another idea appeared in Akihiko's mind.

If I were to neglect my initial attack to block the incoming one, there's no doubt I would be struck by another attack. But–

The attack aimed at his heart core was evaded.

Akihiko had shifted his body position to dodge the incoming attack, but not without consequences.

Akihiko: 「Nargh!」

Even with the evasion, Mushito's blade managed to graze his chest.

But that was a wound that could be healed quickly.

With his blade still blocking the pressure from Mushito, he was at a disadvantage.

Mushito had many arms with multiple blades, making it easy for him to be diced to cubes at any moment.

It made it difficult for him to battle Mushito directly.

Another important factor that needed critical consideration was the fact that Mushito's arms and blades were long (not extremely long) and could reach him easily.

That only increased the chances of death in Akihiko's case.

In this situation,the normal course of action would be to use long-range attacks to weaken the enemy.

But that was another problem on its own. Insectars are extremely resistant to magic.

Their exoskeleton give their owners resistance to magic, with their surface possessing a magic jamming effect.

Although the strength of the resistance varies from insectar to insectar, with the varying factor being the grade of the metal and metallic alloys in the exoskeleton.

This was just how powerful the insectars are.

Knowing this, Akihiko had planned to fight in the way and position that would make him safe and, at the same time, make him capable of hurting the enemy.

Doing such a thing would not be easy, but at this point, it wasn't a matter of being capable, but a matter of making it possible.

At this, Akihiko made his resolution firm.

It was Mushito's turn to launch an attack, and it wasn't a casual blow.

Mushito: 「『Energy Burst: Concentrated Spirit Slashes』!!」

His first move was to unleash his deadly secret art from the start.

One that could instantly disintegrate the spirit body of any spiritual life-form.

As the name implied, hundreds of spirit-destroying slashes were sent towards Akihiko with speed, long breaking the sound barrier.

They were all concentrated at his position, meant to erase his existence. But–

Akihiko: 「To hell with this!

『Blazer』!!」

A brilliant counter was performed on the spot.

To Mushito's stupefaction, his seemingly unblockable attack was successfully nullified by this human before him.

Mushito: 「You... WHAT DID YOU DO!?!?」

Seeing his damned state, Akihiko smirked.

Akihiko: 「Do you really wanna entertain the idea of a physics lesson?」

In actuality, the particles used in that last attack were simply something that could cause mass destruction if they weren't handled with care.

Spiritrons were the attack's fuel, and with the influx of energy present in that attack, it was possible to destroy one's spiritual body with it.

Akihiko took into consideration the range of the attack, manipulating space to his will using his unique skill, then causing thermal fluctuations to the level that would destroy the energy flow of his attack.

In short, he compressed the space occupied by that attack and increased the thermal state of the atmosphere, which caused intense radiation.

This also made the movement of particles in the attack a thousand times faster than the norm, causing an explosion due to energy overload.

Due to the insulation of space, the explosion wasn't even perceived.

That was the summary of it all. In short, Akihiko was nothing short of a genius.

Mushito: 「Fuck this shit! Fuck you!! I'm gonna kill you!!」

Akihiko: 「Let's see about that, rip off!」

With a loud roar of indignation, Akihiko responded to Mushito's relentless assaults.

Normally, Mushito would have an overwhelming advantage considering the number of weapons he wielded.

But that was not a problem for Akihiko, who imbued his blade with the effect of 『Thermal Excitation』and 『Solar Flare』.

With that power, even his blade reached the mythical realm of power.

With the flashes of lights and distributions of shockwaves, they danced with mesmerizing ferocity.

Their techniques escalated into something surreal, with both of them breaking their limits.

The continuous exchange of attacks filled the space with anticipation, as all turned to look at the both of them with awe and admiration.

They seemingly disappeared from their initial position, only to appear in a different location to continue their brutal clash.

Akihiko would block all the attacks released by Mushito and would counterattack, using his unique skill to interfere with the energy to manipulate its effectiveness.

Anytime Mushito attempts to perform his magic or an art, the energy he intends to utilize would always become unstable, a result of Akihiko's use of his skill.

If he were to go ahead with the attack, it would definitely cause a superheated explosion that would cause him life-threatening damage.

Seeing this, he reverted to purely physical attacks.

As time passed on, the victor was revealed.

Mushito: 「Grrgh! Take this!! 『Destructive Lancelot Lunge: Sixfold』!!」

Mushito discarded his cautious behavior due to rage and made a reckless yet powerful move.

He threw all his swords at Akihiko, hoping to get him in place to make his final move.

Even though the attack was extremely dangerous, it only served as a decoy.

Once Akihiko tried to launch a countermeasure, Mushito would strike. That was what he had in mind.

Each of the six blades he had thrown had the capability to kill Akihiko, and yet–

Akihiko: 「That's enough! 『Blazing Lotus: Eight-layered Petal Flash』.」

With his ultimate art unleashed, the option of predicting the winner became non-existent.

It was already clear.

Six blazing slashes destroyed all of Mushito's blades, and the remaining two headed for something else, or more specifically, someone else.

Mushito: 「Guuugh!!... W-What is this!?」

Akihiko: 「Do I need to spell it out for you? So tactless. You're gonna die. That's what's up.」

Mushito's body fell limp to the ground as his head was decapitated.

With an infuriated expression, he roared to the heavens.

Mushito: 「That's outrageous! I can heal myself just fine! Watch this!!」

He began to wriggle pathetically, hoping to achieve something.

But his hope was crushed brutally.

Akihiko: 「What a useless excuse for a pathetic bug. It's a useless endeavor.

That slash contained my flame elements. With your soul energy as fuel–」

As he spoke, he created a flame ball that glowed with an ominous violet light.

Seeing this flame ball, Mushito's expression sank.

Akihiko: 「–my flames will burn until your soul ceases to exist.

Just die in solitude like you are supposed to.」

Saying that, Akihiko walked closer to Mushito's soon-to-be corpse with a devilish smile.

Mushito continued to wriggle around helplessly as the weight of the situation dawned on him.

He tried to buy time in preparation for an escape plan.

Mushito: 「Haargh!? Me? Die? Impossible! I was supposed to become the successor of Lord Zelanus! Don't you dare mock me! I–」

But alas, it was all for naught.

Without the chance to continue blabbing nonsensical words, his head, which had already been decapitated, exploded due to a powerful flame blast.

Akihiko: 「To think I would become so cruel because of an insult to someone.」

He involuntarily thought out loud. But fortunately, no one heard him.

Akihiko: 「You have my condolences, foolish one.」

Looking at the place where he had just attacked, he turned his head and began to walk away.

Another intense battle had ended.

Even though he looked just fine, Akihiko had actually lost a lot of energy and needed some time to recover.

With his current state, he wouldn't be able to assist his comrades. At least, he will only serve as bait for the opponent.

Understanding that, he had no intention of interfering with anyone's fight and had already prepared a sleeping schedule.

He had done his best, and now, he was ready to receive his well-deserved rest.

Although he had certainly killed Mushito, he hadn't discarded his body.

A fatal mistake that would only serve to reduce the odds of victory for Silverion.

—————————————————————————————————

「Note: And that's another successful chapter released. Damn! I feel like I've been on a chapter releasing spree. I mean, look at it.

If my memory serves me right, I began December, and this is already February. Let's just say it's been two months and perhaps some days or weeks. I've already released about thirty-nine chapters.

Well, let's ignore that. This is also just me talking trash to increase the number of words, so that's that.

Well, I have some mock exams coming up next week. So I might delay in releasing the next chapter, but your boy ain't gonna sit back and let life kick him around like a soccer ball.

As soon as I'm done with the test, I'll go right back to the way things were.

Please hit that vote button if you think I deserve it. I hope you all enjoyed today's sequel. Adios Amigos!!」

Word Count: [4280]