“Is the pressure I’m putting on you really that heavy, Ville? You seem a little delirious.” Sophie’s voice sounded quite sharp.
She didn’t believe Via had any chance of victory against her right now.
“My Demon King, while I agree that momentum is important, in the current situation our odds really don’t look very high,” Desolate Fire reminded her. “Especially since this opponent is using the perfectly balanced Divine Might Armament for both offense and defense. If you can’t even break through its defense, then all this talk might really just be talk.”
“Is that so?”
Via didn’t take Desolate Fire’s analysis to heart.
It was true that under the enhancement of sacred arts, Sophie’s combat power in every aspect far surpassed her own. Even with the Demon King Armament activated, the other party held an overwhelming advantage.
But even so, it didn’t mean Sophie was without flaws.
“Selina, you still have one fatal weakness.
My current strength hasn’t reached the Transcendent tier yet, so my holy power is limited. I cannot maintain so many blessing sacred arts along with the Divine Might Armament’s consumption for long.”
Sophie spoke first, voicing exactly what Via was thinking.
“That’s what you wanted to say, right? It seems you’ve realized it as well.”
Via held precisely that view.
The extremely high stats came with terrifying consumption.
This style of combat was destined to be unsustainable over long periods without reaching the Legendary tier. It could only be used for short, explosive bursts.
Once the burst period ended and her reserves were depleted without finishing the battle, she would basically lose all combat ability.
“I already realized this back in Kado City. It is indeed one of my current weaknesses.” Sophie showed a disdainful attitude. “But it seems you’ve developed some delusions, thinking you can last a long time against me?”
“Why couldn’t I?”
“It was underwater, wasn’t it?”
Sophie raised her silver sword.
The three swords waiting around her flew out, tracing different arcs through the air before plunging into the river below.
Via’s expression changed.
She sensed that the three magic arrays she had secretly set up underwater earlier had all been destroyed.
“That trick from last time won’t work again,” Sophie warned.
“My Demon King, we’re really done for now! All your little tricks have been completely seen through. If you try to set up any more magic arrays, she’ll destroy them before they can even activate!” Desolate Fire exclaimed. “You can’t stall for time, you can’t win in a fight, and you probably can’t escape either. Looks like today you’re really going to meet your end here~”
“Enough, Desolate Fire. No need to keep provoking me. I already guessed those methods might not work anymore. Use that move.”
Via showed no panic. Her words carried a faint trace of madness.
To win this battle, she had to go all out—even if it meant using her most dangerous trump card.
“You… are you sure?” Desolate Fire could barely contain her excitement.
“Of course.”
“Amazing! Amazing! Amazing! Hahaha, hahahahahaha!”
Desolate Fire’s laughter became even more brilliant than Via’s.
“I finally don’t have to hold back anymore!!”
“What is she doing?”
Sophie furrowed her brows.
She witnessed a strange scene. The demonic blade detached from Via’s hand and slowly floated upward.
At the same time, the Demon King Armament began to change. Dark purple patterns emitted a faint glow. Following the rhythm of breathing, Abyssal Force flowed through the patterns like blood vessels in a living creature. It was as if the armament had come alive.
“Verifying user identity… Demon King Armament, restriction release.” Via commanded.
“Command received.”
“Verification passed.”
“Inspecting serial number, reviewing authority.”
“Inspection complete. Serial number 001. Authority verification passed.”
“System restrictions released. Entering Overload Mode.”
“Warning!”
“Warning!”
“Once Overload Mode is activated, it cannot be manually deactivated. Final confirmation: Activate?”
“Activate Overload Mode.”
Via responded to the Demon King Armament’s system.
In her previous life, she knew the Demon King Armament had always had restrictions that couldn’t be removed.
It was like a vehicle needing safety features—if there were no safeguards, it would become extremely dangerous, even capable of harming the user.
That was why, even until the very end, Demon King Ville had never used it.
This life was different. Her bloodline seemed capable of bypassing the previous life’s permissions, allowing her to issue higher-level commands to the Demon King Armament’s system.
Now, it could be activated.
Desolate Fire, which had been hovering above, dropped down. It pierced through the Demon King Armament and sank into Via’s body.
“No!!”
Sophie quickly sensed something was wrong. This was definitely not an act of desperation. It had to be for some specific purpose. She raised her silver sword and charged forward.
At that moment, Desolate Fire seemed to melt, flowing into the blood vessels of the Demon King Armament. Flames erupted instantly, engulfing the entire space. Red-and-black flames swept across the Yamar River.
A silent curse resounded throughout the world.
Sophie’s body trembled. Everything in her vision turned black and white, losing all color. Her soul felt as if it had been set on fire. Her consciousness grew hazy, and the invisible impact nearly made her pass out.
If not for the blessing sacred arts she had cast for mental abnormality and curse resistance, she might have collapsed immediately.
She hurriedly cast a purification sacred art. Although it couldn’t completely remove the interference, it helped stabilize her mental state as much as possible.
At that moment, a massive claw stretched out from within the flames. Moving at incredible speed and carrying blazing fire, it reached straight for her.
“Divine Might Armament: Defense Mode!”
Sophie instinctively defended herself. She called back the other silver swords, positioning them all in front of her.
Although she barely blocked the attack, the residual shockwave still sent her flying.
The red-haired girl was blasted backward. She tumbled across the water’s surface several times before finally stopping.
When she lifted her head, what greeted her eyes was an utterly terrifying sight.
A massive four-legged black beast had appeared on the Yamar River. Abyssal Force fused with Desolate Fire’s black flames formed a burning outer layer that enveloped its entire body.
The giant beast opened its mouth toward Sophie, revealing sharp fangs. It looked like a contemptuous sneer—or perhaps maniacal laughter. It bore a striking resemblance to the Abyssal Beast that had appeared in Kado City.
No, to be precise…
This was an Abyssal Beast known as the Demon King.