Chapter 345: Battle at the Lake (3)
“Graaaargh!!”
As the Shrink Magic was undone, and the Child-Force entered the Corpse Puppet-Duncan, Duncan began to move as if brought back to life.
With a monstrous roar, Duncan drew a tonfa made of bones and flesh strapped to his waist, and the tonfa regurgitated Black Armor, which it had stored within Duncan’s body, cloaking him with a protective layer of dark magic.
Wearing the black armor crafted from dark magic, Duncan moved swiftly, dodging Theodoor's hand and closing in on him.
"Such cheap tricks—"
—Bang!!
Before Theodoor could finish speaking, Duncan struck Theodoor's face with a powerful blow.
Duncan’s physical abilities, combined with the Black Armor made by Oliver, and the specially crafted tonfa provided by Ewan, packed a significant punch.
Yet, Theodoor’s head only slightly turned to the side.
As expected. Theodoor’s body had high durability, and just before the blow, he deployed a Mana Shield to defend himself.
The surprise attack had failed. All it managed to do was disrupt the flow of the battle and buy a little time.
‘That’s enough,’ Oliver thought, as he extended his hand towards Theodoor, attempting to extract his emotions.
Shwooo——!!
Although he could have used his Black Suit to defend his exposed body, Oliver decided to take the risk and boldly chose to extract emotions.
Normally, he wouldn’t have acted this recklessly, but since Theodoor was impervious to most attacks, Oliver felt this was the best course of action.
Even if he reinforced himself with the Black Suit or enhanced it with an Artificial Soul, he was certain Theodoor would shatter it with a single punch. Finding an opening for an attack seemed like a better option.
—Whack!!
As soon as Theodoor saw Oliver extracting his emotions, he swung his other hand and disrupted the process.
It was unfortunate. Oliver hadn’t managed to draw out enough.
‘Not just emotions, but life force too…’
Theodoor, pressured by Oliver’s suddenly aggressive offensive, was about to throw another massive punch.
Duncan tried to intervene again, but Theodoor unleashed a vast amount of mana, forcing Duncan away and then blasting a shockwave with his other hand, shattering Duncan’s armor and sending him flying far away.
Duncan struggled to resist, but the difference in power was overwhelming, and he was flung away helplessly, leaving Theodoor and Oliver once again facing off one-on-one.
Theodoor raised his gigantic fist and thrust it toward Oliver, who, instead of dodging, threw two sheets of paper and cast a spell.
Whiiiiing…
The papers embedded themselves in the knuckles of Theodoor's hand, generating a small but distinct sound as they created a purple magic portal that split Theodoor’s fist into three parts.
An ordinary person would have died or lost consciousness from the shock alone, while even a superhuman would have been rendered incapacitated by the injuries.
However, Theodoor manipulated his body with mana to suppress the pain, summoning multiple mechanical arms by weaving mana particles around the magic circle in midair.
He intended to grab the small suicide bomb puppets emerging from the portal and hurl them at Oliver.
It wasn’t a bad choice.
Even if the bomb puppets came straight out, Theodoor’s mechanical arms would be quick and strong enough to snatch and neutralize them.
Those mechanical arms were both incredibly swift and lethal.
That is, if they had been bomb puppets.
Craaack… Craack!!
Creeeeaaak!!!
Instead of bomb puppets, the ones who emerged from the portal were the Corpse Puppets-Bathory and Seamus.
At the very moment the paper hit them, Child-First and Third, who had discreetly moved into position, entered Bathory and Seamus respectively, utilizing Blood Magic and druidic spells to sever and destroy the mechanical arms holding them.
Caught off guard by this unexpected turn of events, Theodoor's eyes widened. At that exact moment, First summoned multiple Blood Balloons using the blood flowing through the artificial veins, quickly forming a spine-like spear.
“Skreeeaaaargh!!”
With a piercing scream, First, inside Bathory, thrust the spine-shaped stake, using the Blood Magic [Spine Pile], vertically into Theodoor’s massive arm.
Splaaargh—!!!
The spiked, multi-layered spine pile tore into Theodoor’s arm, digging deep.
Despite its immense piercing power, it stopped halfway due to Theodoor’s incredibly high bodily durability.
At that moment, Third, inside Seamus, struck the spine pile with all their strength, causing it to pierce through Theodoor's fist completely.
—Bang!!
“Raaaargh… Rip it apart!!” First shouted.
Responding to the command, the spine pile sprouted large, blood-red spikes, shredding one of Theodoor’s arms.
The massive fist tore apart violently, scattering pieces in every direction, and taking advantage of the opening, Bathory, Seamus, and even Duncan, who had been thrown away earlier, charged at Theodoor with full force.
Bathory’s blood-soaked blade aimed to pierce Theodoor’s heart,
Seamus’s fist, imbued with the power of nature, was ready to smash Theodoor’s face,
And Duncan’s tonfa, in constant motion, sought to destroy Theodoor’s body.
However, all their efforts were blocked by Theodoor’s Mana Shield.
Even after losing one arm, Theodoor remained focused, not only defending himself but also quickly regenerating his shredded arm using the mechanical limbs he had created.
Knowing they couldn’t allow Theodoor to recover, the Children attacked with desperate intensity, trying to prevent his regeneration, but Theodoor’s defense held firm.
No, it was more than that.
As the Children closed in, Theodoor unleashed a powerful shockwave, sending both the Corpse Puppets and Oliver flying backward. At the same time, he stomped his foot, causing the lake to tremble violently as if shaken by an earthquake, preventing anyone from getting close.
And it didn’t stop there.
Above the heads of Oliver and the Corpse Puppets, Theodoor conjured numerous magic circles, unleashing a barrage of mana bullets, lightning bolts, ice shards, and flames like an all-out bombardment orchestrated by dozens of magicians.
The lake, already ravaged by their intense battle, roared once again as massive pillars of water surged, and Oliver, along with the three Corpse Puppets, focused all their energy on avoiding the impending disaster and resisting the lake's turbulent currents.
Meanwhile, Theodoor continued healing himself. It was impressive. Each spell demanded his complete focus, and yet...
Pop!!
As Oliver dodged the barrage of magic from above, he hurled a mana-infused sheet of paper into the air.
Amid the relentless mana bombardment, a portal formed higher than the magic circles, and through it, a Corpse Puppet Sniper appeared, with Child-Second entering it and taking control.
“Kya-ha-ha-ha-ha!!”
Second, evidently thrilled to be the last one to join the battle, laughed maniacally as they pulled out more than ten enhanced guns from each of their hands and fired at the magic circles in the sky, destroying them with precise, hundred-percent accuracy.
As the magic bombardment subsided...
Oliver gathered the mana he had absorbed from the lake into both hands, bringing it to the surface as he prepared for a power struggle with Theodoor.
Theodoor tried to stir the lake's waters, but Oliver matched him by pouring his own mana into the water, cancelling out Theodoor’s attempts. The lake, which had been heaving like a tsunami, began to calm.
At that very moment, Bathory, Seamus, and Duncan moved.
With the sky now clear, Bathory formed wings of blood and launched the first attack on Theodoor. Following closely behind, Seamus and Duncan joined in the assault.
Theodoor attempted to agitate the lake again by increasing the amount of mana he was channeling, but Oliver responded by adding more of his own mana to neutralize it. Even when Theodoor tried to conjure another magic circle for bombardment, the Corpse Puppet Sniper fired precisely, disrupting his every effort.
Thanks to the sniper’s support, the other Corpse Puppets were able to close the distance and once again press their attacks on Theodoor.
“Skreee!!”
Bathory shrieked as they focused all their strength into the Blood Blade, hurling it at Theodoor’s Mana Barrier, creating a small crack in it.
Duncan immediately followed up by compressing his Black Armor and striking the crack with his tonfa, widening the breach.
Seamus hurled a vine-wrapped spear, imbued with the power of nature, shattering Theodoor’s Mana Shield and impaling his arm, which had been in the process of regenerating.
“Grrr… You troublesome… pests!”
“Grow!”
As soon as the spear lodged into Theodoor’s arm, Third, within Seamus, shouted.
The vines embedded in the spear obeyed the druid’s command, growing rapidly inside Theodoor’s arm, tearing apart his internal structure and making the wound even worse.
“You worms!!”
Theodoor roared in fury, unleashing a burst of mana to suppress the vines growing within him while at the same time summoning a multitude of hands on his remaining arm, creating a massive tentacle-like limb.
With his life force, mana, and emotions surging, the Children faltered momentarily.
Parasite
Oliver, who had been hanging back, suddenly joined the fray, casting a spell using the emotions he had extracted from Theodoor earlier to deploy Parasite, a disease-based black magic that drains life force.
The vines inside Theodoor’s body turned black as the parasitic spell took root. From the darkness, numerous mouths sprouted from the vines, resembling those of Voracity, devouring Theodoor’s emotions, life force, and mana indiscriminately.
Theodoor, who hadn’t even let out a groan from earlier attacks, finally screamed as his mana, life force, and emotions spiraled out of his control.
The giant arm he had created trembled as though it were on the verge of tearing apart.
Though he had absorbed the power of other mages perfectly before, this time it seemed different.
It made sense. Relying on borrowed power to enhance one’s own couldn’t be free of risks. At that moment, Oliver remembered what Merlin had once told him.
When they had talked about eschatology.
“Cheap imitators often steal ancient authority and drape themselves in it beyond their means.”
Though Oliver felt unqualified to say such things—given how much he had borrowed from others to grow—he couldn’t help but think Theodoor perfectly fit that description at this moment.
Reaching out toward the suffering Theodoor, Oliver absorbed the emotions, life force, and mana that the parasitic vines had drained from him, using them to reinforce his Black Suit once again.
Swish—
Wielding a Quarterstaff woven from emotions and life force, Oliver struck Theodoor, delivering a blow that dealt meaningful damage.
Theodoor groaned in pain, choking on his own breath.
His body, already compromised by the parasitic vines, which were draining his life force, mana, and emotions, left him barely able to move freely. The overwhelming sensation left him confused, and as a result, his body went berserk, sprouting countless arms from every part of his body, unleashing indiscriminate, high-powered magical attacks in every direction.
He unleashed a blind flurry of elemental magic, raw mana attacks, and even emotion-infused explosive spells like Bullets of Wrath and Lightning Strike.
Although his attacks were wild, they were still powerful enough to force the Corpse Puppets to retreat. Not missing the opportunity, Theodoor gathered his massive fists once more and swung them toward Oliver.
“Huff—”
Oliver instructed the Corpse Puppets to retreat and, using the emotions, mana, and life force he had absorbed from Theodoor, created another Artificial Soul to reinforce his Black Suit. He swung his Quarterstaff with all his might.
Even though the staff had no special magic attached, reinforced by the Black Suit, it cleaved through the air and tore apart Theodoor’s fist, splitting the lake in two.
"...What?”
Theodoor gasped as he looked at his neatly severed arm. His emotions quickly shifted from shock to terror.
“Everyone.”
At Oliver’s call, the Children sensed their chance to claim victory and charged at the now defenseless Theodoor.
Bathory drove a blood-soaked stake into Theodoor’s body, piercing him through.
Duncan's tonfa spun rapidly, wrecking havoc on Theodoor’s form.
Seamus, with a fist imbued with nature's power, smashed Theodoor’s face, crushing it.
“Last one! The star of the show!!”
The Corpse Puppet Sniper, who had been supporting from afar, rushed forward in excitement, leaping into the air and firing a sawed-off shotgun.
Boom—!! Boom—!!
The blast created a massive hole in Theodoor’s body, leaving him a tattered wreck.
Now consumed by the terror of death, Theodoor swelled up like a balloon, releasing a massive explosion of blood, guts, and flesh as he burst.
The explosion caught Oliver and the Corpse Puppets off guard as they were swept away, though none were seriously hurt, except for the Corpse Puppet Sniper, who had been closest to the blast and had the weakest durability.
Despite the lack of significant damage, the situation left them bewildered. None had expected Theodoor to die like that. There had been so much they still wanted to ask…
‘Wait? Is he dead?’
As Oliver surveyed the blood, entrails, and chunks of flesh floating on the surface of the lake, he cocked his head in confusion.
Most of the mana, life force, and emotions had vanished with Theodoor’s death, but a tiny piece of flesh still wriggled, retaining a trace of life force, mana, and emotion.
More than just retaining it, it was crawling somewhere.
Crawling toward Oliver’s back.
Thunk—
When Oliver turned around, Theodoor, driven by the overwhelming desire to survive, had pierced through Oliver’s back with his final attack.
It was completely unexpected.
As Theodoor, now consumed by madness, let out a crazed scream:
“I… I will never die!”