To these adventurers who dared to challenge her, Shadow deemed them nothing but fools. The difference in combat strength was obvious—had it not been for the activation of their “Unyielding” lock-HP effects, even the party’s Paladin, their stalwart shield, wouldn’t have survived a single spell from her.
As for the rest? A single hit would mean instant death.
And with that level of power, you still dare challenge me?
You’re walking straight into death’s embrace!
With a cold snort, Shadow descended from the sky. She had no intention of hovering in midair to make herself difficult to hit—that was not the conduct of a truly powerful being.
Accepting the opponent’s challenge head-on, crushing all their tricks and schemes with overwhelming might—that was what a King should do. It wasn’t foolishness, but absolute confidence in her own strength.
“Gravity Magic: King’s Court!”
There was no need for chanting. Shadow simply raised her hand, and gravity magic surged out from her as the center. The ground groaned under the pressure—collapsing inward.
“Kneel, you vermin! Insects should crawl on the ground where they belong!”
A spell of such scope and coverage, with no blind spots—every adventurer rushing toward her was immediately flattened into pulp.
And yet… that vision of the future crumbled before her eyes once more. It was rewritten yet again.
In the instant the gravity spell activated, Helga anticipated the incantation—and cast the same spell, but with the opposite directional force, canceling it out completely!
Two gravity fields clashed, and the opposing magical energies neutralized each other. In the end, nothing happened.
A flicker of astonishment crossed Shadow’s eyes.
“…My fate was interfered with again?”
Shadow had already identified the nature of Irene’s magic. It was a power no one had ever wielded before—an ability called “Fate.” A form of magic that far surpassed human comprehension. Even Shadow, who had copied her sister’s powers, couldn’t fully understand it. That was the realm of the divine.
The world’s future—each person’s future—spread like the roots of a tree, branching endlessly in countless directions. Every individual choice altered its flow.
And Irene’s ability… was to forcibly deny any future she did not desire, and redirect cause and effect toward the future she wished for.
Even if that branch of fate was impossibly thin—one that shouldn’t be reachable by normal means—she could still choose it.
But—
Shadow narrowed her eyes, her gaze passing through the others and landing squarely on Irene.
This power… isn’t without limits!
With the gravity spell dispelled, Serena’s crimson figure suddenly appeared in front of Shadow. Gram had already been drawn. The blazing blade of her sword surged forward, aiming directly for Shadow’s throat—but Shadow’s magical shield held strong. The sword clashed against it and was thrown back by the magical rebound.
At the same time, Shadow transformed her magic into an unstoppable “Blade of Storms,” slashing Serena in half at the waist.
However—this future, too, was denied.
What unfolded before Shadow now… was another rewritten reality.
Serena’s sword glinted as it returned to its sheath. From the very start, she had gone all out against such a powerful opponent. She unleashed her most powerful sword technique—Dragon’s Roar—and it unexpectedly triggered a critical strike, landing precisely on the shield’s weakest point!
Before Shadow’s disbelieving eyes, her magic barrier was shattered yet again. Though the strike didn’t go deeper, the shockwave grazed her cheek, drawing a shallow line of blood.
“Tch. You again… the one who stole my sister from me! Frida!”
The fiery crimson hair… in that moment, Serena’s figure overlapped with a girl from Shadow’s memories—one of the Seven Heroes, a woman once hailed as the Sword Saint. If it hadn’t been for her stealing her sister away, perhaps… things wouldn’t have turned out this way.
That’s right, the one who said she was a burden to her sister and didn’t want to drag her down from saving the world—was this red-haired wench!
The chaotic flood of memories made Ying lose her composure. She launched a counterattack at Serena without hesitation. Serena was still in a state of exhaustion after her last move and had no way to dodge!
However—
“Look at me!”
The moment that voice echoed in her mind, Ying’s gaze was involuntarily drawn toward its source!
It was the Taunt skill used by that paladin girl. But that didn’t make sense—Taunt only worked on monsters; it had no effect on people!
Why couldn’t she look away now?!
Could this, too, be part of Eileen’s interference with fate?
Startled, Ying’s spell had already flown toward the paladin, only to be fully blocked by the shield. Ordinary magic wouldn’t be enough to take her down in one blow.
With the shield shattered, it was the perfect moment to follow up—and Lilisah wasn’t about to miss the chance.
Even with only one hand, she still possessed terrifying destructive power. But just before her punch landed, Ying’s form once again turned into that of Fruya.
“Lilisah…” she murmured softly.
Lilisah’s attack faltered for an instant. Though her fist ultimately struck, that brief hesitation gave Ying enough time to defend herself. She was still sent flying, coughing up blood, but the damage wasn’t severe.
Lilisah was puzzled. Why had she hesitated?
But the doll-like girl apologized quietly, “I’m sorry, everyone… We finally had a chance, and I… I wasted it.”
A flash of displeasure passed through Serena’s eyes, but she quickly chose to overlook it. Though she didn’t know why this puppet girl was following Eileen now, the one possessed by the Shadow King was her master, wasn’t it? Serena could understand why she’d hesitate.
“…There won’t be a second time.”
Lilisah nodded, still confused. Who was that girl who called her name just now? She was certain they’d never met before, yet the feeling was oddly familiar…
The next moment, the Shadow King, flung into the air, floated under the deep blue night sky. The full moon overhead seemed to fall under her control, carrying a wave of freezing cold as it descended toward the ground.
“Everyone, I’ll handle the magic interception!”
Helga stepped forward, casting a spell almost identical to the one before. Two frozen moons collided in mid-air, and in the instant of impact, the magical shockwave swept across the land, unleashing a blizzard of frigid wind.
From the start, Helga hadn’t expected her magic to injure the Shadow King. She had focused entirely on reading her opponent—if she could match the same timing and rhythm, she could cancel the spell out.
This was a theory every mage knew, but while easy to say, it was nearly impossible to achieve in combat!
There were countless types of magic—how could anyone accurately predict which one the opponent was going to cast? Let alone match the exact casting speed and timing!
It would be safer to just cast a magic shield instead—because a wrong guess meant instant death.
“Well done. To have guessed which magic I would use in such a short time and counter it so precisely. But your casting speed can’t match mine, can it? And even if you can interfere with fate… if something is a fixed outcome, it can’t be changed!”
Ying sighed lightly.
Fate only allowed intervention when multiple branches existed—when there were still choices to make.
But if something was guaranteed to happen, inevitable with 100% certainty—
Then, of course, it couldn’t be changed. That was a future singular and absolute.
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.