“…”
Johannes roughly pulled off his mask and glared at Abellus.
Reyners, his eyes filled with terror, looked back and forth between his son and the blade pressed against his neck, his body trembling.
He could feel a stinging sensation against his skin. Forgetting his dignity as the Master, he cried out while shaking violently.
“Ugh, save me! Johannes, bring that woman here right now! Hurry!”
“…Father, Iris is the legendary Hero who will save Gyodam City. Have faith in her.”
Johannes let out a sigh and spoke with a calm expression.
‘Is that brat insane?’ Reyners’s face turned beet-red with rage.
Lately, it seemed like Johannes had grown bold enough to stage minor rebellions.
However, Reyners had never doubted that in a moment of crisis, their blood ties would prevail and his son would save him.
That was why he had brought him here, yet now it seemed he might die because of the boy.
His mind raced. Since Johannes had helped the vessel, it was unlikely he would survive.
Therefore, Reyners decided he had to side completely with the other party to save his own skin.
Even as he shouted, he carefully chose words that would please “It” and Abellus.
“How is that woman supposed to save Gyodam City? She hasn’t even gathered all the Relics! Do you intend to let your father die? You ungrateful brat. I should have never taken in a bastard!”
At those words, Johannes’s expression darkened.
Anger welled up in Iris’s eyes as she watched everything from the window.
She hadn’t realized Johannes’s father was such a low-life.
Amidst the murmuring crowd, Johannes looked so pitiful standing there alone.
After a moment of hesitation, she sent him a message through Telepathy.
‘Johannes, are you okay?’
‘I’m fine.’
His calm voice echoed in her head. He said he was fine, but there was no way that was true. She wanted to continue comforting him, but the situation was urgent. She could hear the footsteps of people climbing the stairs, and she had to use her Whip to strike down the Villains scaling the walls. As her heart pounded with anxiety, she continued the Telepathy.
‘You’re not okay, Johannes. You don’t have to pretend for me.’
‘Iris, let’s just focus on the mission for now.’
‘Right. But I haven’t gathered all the Relics. At this rate, the mission will fail…’
‘No. Iris, you have the King’s Crown. Put it on for now.’
‘I did. But the sun will be completely covered soon. That’s the moment the Goddess’s power is at its weakest, and I don’t have all the Relics. If this continues…’
‘No. I believe there’s a reason the Goddess chose you. Believe in yourself. You can defeat “It” with just the Relics you have now.’
Despite Johannes’s words, Iris’s heart continued to waver.
Was it really possible to defeat “It” with only the Relics she possessed?
Iris looked toward “It” in the distance with an uncertain expression.
At that moment, the surroundings turned completely dark, and stars began to appear in the sky.
The sun was entirely hidden by the moon, leaving only the faint glow of the corona.
The Total Solar Eclipse had arrived.
Looking up at the blackened sky, “It” let out a great shout.
Unlike before, the voice was so thunderous it seemed to shake the entire Black Castle.
“Bring her here immediately! All you have to do is place her on the altar alive. I don’t care if she’s injured!”
Following the command, the footsteps on the stairs grew faster, and the Villains’ attacks on Iris intensified.
“It” turned around and spoke to Abellus.
“Abellus, throw that aside and stand before the altar at once.”
“Ha, I’ll have to kill the Master and his son after I obtain the power.”
Abellus dropped Reyners as if discarding trash and pulled out a Teleportation Device.
It was a device he had avoided using because it was still incomplete, but in this desperate situation, he had no choice but to use it despite the side effects.
“I’ll be the one to bring Iris.”
Abellus, who had vanished in an instant, returned to the front of the altar with Iris.
Iris, who had flinched upon being grabbed by something, felt a sense of daze as the altar entered her shaking field of vision.
Then, seeing the Teleportation Device in Abellus’s hand, she gasped for breath.
Suppressing his rising temper, “It” made a gesture.
“We could have just used that from the start… There isn’t much time. We begin the Ritual immediately.”
“N-no!”
Iris struggled, but the Priests laid her down on the altar with their rough hands.
Seeing her moved to the altar, Johannes ran forward with a look of shock.
“Iris! Grab the Relic! You can do it! Ugh!”
“Where do you think you’re going!”
However, Johannes was blocked by other Villains before he could even get near the altar.
“It” let out a snort and began to recite the incantation for the Ritual in a bizarre voice.
A strange light erupted from the blue eyes that had at least somewhat resembled a human’s.
“The moment the Goddess’s power vanishes, the one to inherit that power has appeared. A vessel is merely a vessel, destined to receive the power of the completed Relic…”
Iris’s struggles gradually weakened, and a black Symbol appeared on her body.
Just as her consciousness was about to fade, a beautiful voice she had heard in her dreams brushed past her ear.
‘Trust yourself. Trust the one you love, my chosen child.’
‘Trust myself?’ But as the demon said, she was merely a vessel—a container for the Goddess’s power.
As she began to fall under the spell of the incantation, Johannes’s voice echoed in her ear.
‘Iris, please wake up! You can do it. I believe in you.’
That voice was filled with tenderness and pure trust for Iris, just like the beautiful voice had been.
Perhaps because infinite trust and affection were powers diametrically opposed to the nature of “It,” the dark energy clouding Iris’s mind began to lift little by little, as if a battle were taking place.
Amidst that, the beautiful voice rang out once more.
‘Trust yourself.’
‘Ah… that’s right. Just as Johannes said, I can do it. The power of the Relic has already been completed within me.’
Hearing the voice again brought her certainty. Right now, the completed power of the Relic was flowing through her body.
As she realized this, her clouded mind became clear, and power began to overflow from her form.
Soon after, a vision of a bright light between her thighs appeared, followed by a bizarre scene unfolding before her eyes.
‘W-what is this? Is it a disaster? Am I seeing hallucinations before I die…!’
Iris and Johannes were entwined in a prison cell, and above them, a Chastity Belt fluttered like a butterfly, circling around as if to bless the two of them.
A Chastity Belt shouldn’t have been able to have expressions, yet it seemed to be wearing a benevolent smile.
The embarrassing vision passed quickly, and Iris snapped her eyes open.
The Chastity Belt extended in several directions from beneath her skirt, wrapping around her body like ropes before hardening in place.
Glancing down at her body, Iris realized this was the final Transformation Suit and grit her teeth.
‘Oh, shit. It’s great that I’ve become stronger, but is this really the look of the strongest warrior? Is this right?’
She was certainly wide awake now. It felt as if she had been doused with cold water. Iris shook her head and took a deep breath.
“It,” who had been reciting the incantation with eyes closed, sensed something wrong and looked up.
At that moment, Iris’s body began to shine as brightly as the sun—so brilliant it was difficult to look at.
Recoiling from the light that stung his eyes, “It” shouted with an expression of disbelief.
“What? During a Total Solar Eclipse, the vessel shouldn’t be able to use any power! What is this?!”
“What do you think? It means you’re dead.”
Iris stepped down from the altar and spoke in a cold voice, slowly walking toward “It.”
With every step she took, an overwhelming sense of pressure radiated from her.
Because of the intense aura she was emitting, even the embarrassing Transformation Suit looked as magnificent as golden armor.
“T-this… what is this?”
Abellus stood with a dazed expression before backing away. Something had gone terribly, terribly wrong.
He had felt uneasy ever since “It” decided to hold this party.
“A-ah, I’m sorry.”
“P-please spare me! I was only doing as I was told!”
Witnessing the change in Iris, the Priests scrambled to flee or fell to their knees, rubbing their hands together in supplication.
Some even fell on their backsides, trembling. The Villains watched the confrontation between Iris and “It” with stiff faces.
Most of them had been chasing or attacking Iris under the orders of “It” just moments ago.
The sight of the glowing Iris was clearly extraordinary. The same thought crossed all of their minds.
‘We’re screwed!’
“It” backed away hesitantly before looking up at the still-dark sky.
Then, in a heavily cracked voice, he shouted to those around him.
“Attack her! The Total Solar Eclipse isn’t over yet. There’s no way she could have recovered the Goddess’s power. She’s putting on a show! She’s just pretending to be strong—”