Fated to Be Loved by Villains

 EP - 030.2 - Purifier (4)

The translucent shield generated by infusing magic into the Ultima shattered upon impact with Marquis Riverback's magic.

Since I didn’t stack it with ‘Penance’, my durability stat was garbage. It's basically impossible to endure such an attack.

Still, since it’s divine power, it was able to block it once. This was the inherent advantage against demons. 

It is also largely thanks to this why I was able to escape this far relatively easily.

‘…Come to think about it, it makes no sense.’

The 'King of Pandemonium’ that could negate a demon's unique ability and having divine power-imbued skills... 

It’s an incredibly powerful combination against demonic enemies.

Even at this current stage, where my growth is practically non-existent, I can still make ample use of it.

As the shield shattered, Marquis Riverback's magic scatters in the surroundings. Witnessing this, he snickered.

   〚Ha! Big words for someone who only knows how to run and hide...〛     

However, he suddenly stopped mid sentence and shut up.

It's because the magic that bounced off after breaking my shield destroyed part of the ‘Cathedral’ nearby.

The holy relics were exposed. 

I purposely set up the shield angled, so that it would hit there.

Fragments of stained glass rain down along with pieces of holy relics.

Since this was a cathedral built inside Elfante ‘Imperial Academy’, it was naturally built using only the highest quality materials. 

The dispersal of holy power within would be akin to a grenade explosion, scattering its influence in the surroundings.

Radiant white light began to flash in every direction, which is all divine power.

“Try taking a look at what’s around you?”

I turned around with a grin.

From behind, I hear Marquis Riverback's howl as his entire body burns brightly, fully exposed to the divine power.

‘Good.’

This should stall that guy for a while.

It should be enough time for me to go to the rendezvous point and collect the item. 

Tallion is sharp and reliable. If I specified the time accurately, he will undoubtedly perform the task accordingly.

In fact, by the time I arrive at the rendezvous point, the alarm also started beeping...

‘Alright.’

I then caught Tallion rushing towards me at full speed, holding the 'requested item,' in my field of vision.

Seeing that, I smiled and reset my watch.

Everything is in place. 

All that's left is to wrap things up.

●

Marquis River back's head was boiling to the point where it couldn’t get any hotter.

“I’ll skin you alive, you fcking bastard brat, I’ll chew your guts in front of you!”

He's never felt such rage in his entire life. It felt like his blood vessels were about to burst.

In all his years, he's never encountered someone who humiliated and insulted him to this extent!

Wiping off the lingering burn from the contact with divine power just now, he scanned his surroundings with gleaming eyes.

During the brief moment he lost focus from being struck, that damned Dowd had already vanished somewhere.

Of course, this wasn't an obstacle at all as he had consumed the Devil's Essence. 

It wouldn't be a difficult task to track down the opponent's whereabouts, it doesn't matter where they are hiding.

“…”

He began to trace the faint lingering scent of human presence, which mingled with the swirling smoke.

Coincidentally, there were no other humans around. Following those traces was even easier.

And before long, Marquis Riverback, having found the location, let out a snicker.

‘Gregory Hall?’

The spire. It is one of the tallest buildings in Elfante.

As he ran with his tail, Marquis Riverback wondered where he was possibly going. Turns out, it's here, of all places. 

Due to the nature of tall buildings, this is a dead-end with no place to escape or hide. And to make matters worse, the man was currently at the very top of this place.

〚Idotic fool!〛

If it were the usual Marquis Riverback, he might have at least pondered why this man went to such a place. 

However, anger had consumed his entire mind, deteriorating his judgment.

In that sense, he immediately started flying towards Gregory Hall without any hesitation.

〚Heup!〛

With his body accelerating in an instant, he reached the top of Gregory Hall in no time. He ferociously scanned the surroundings immediately. 

It didn't take long for him to find Dowd Campbell, who had boldly revealed himself in the open.

There was something on Dowd's waist that he didn't see before. 

‘…What is that?’

It was a cylinder the length of a human arm. It was something golden but showed no apparent features.

It was suspicious, that much was certain.

〚…〛

However, Marquis Riverback decided not to pay it any heed. 

Even though Dowd has been resurrected from the dead and received an unknown power, he was still a bug that he could chase and eventually crush. At best, it would just be some crude trick.

He'll finish this now, once and for all. 

   〚I'll make you feel pain, I'll make you experience hell! I will make you beg to kill you instead!〛          

He shouted and accelerated forward. Black haze spread around him, as he raised his speed to the limit.

This slick rat was always running, and it infuriates him to the core. This time, he won't let that happen again. 

However, Dowd Campbell didn’t even budge.

He had defended the attack with the divine power shield a few times before, but he did not show any signs of running away now.

〚…?〛

At this point, despite being consumed by anger, Marquis Riverback felt that something was off.

What the hell is he doing?

‘…If I kill him here, it will be over!’

He had repeatedly drawn magic from the amulet he wore on his wrist, before injecting it to the incense burner in his arms. 

However, looking at the amulet now, it seems to have been exhausted all of its magic power. The last time was probably its limit. 

Now, this guy doesn't even have the means to defend himself!

With that thought in mind, he raised his hand with a vicious smile and started gathering demonic energy. The distance between them was close. He had no defense, and considering the difference in strength, dodging is even more impossible.

He couldn't stop his relishing expression from coming out as he imagined this guy being torn to pieces.

“I've told you before. Try taking a look at what’s around you.”

However, at the same time as those sentences were uttered. 

Marquis Riverback’s body suddenly froze.

No, he was ‘fixed on to’ to be exact.

On a disk lying on the floor.

‘…A disk?’

Why would this kind of thing be here? He blinked his eyes in bewilderment. 

With a squeaking sound, the cylinder connected to the disk and dug to the floor.

“Eum.”

Dowd said with a smirk.

He was also on top of the disk.

“Good thing I didn't return it.”

With such a sentence.

The bodies of the two men were launched into the air with terrifying force.