CHAPTER 181
To reach the center of the Sky Castle, Inferno's fists moved without rest.
Every time his fist made contact, a wall shattered, and Colonel Bagel stabilized the structure to prevent a cave-in.

"What about the other Lieutenant Generals?"

Inferno wasn't the only Lieutenant General who came here.
Since we had sent reports to the other sides earlier, they had to be making their move as well.

"Two are stationed outside to handle any external threats, and the remaining three are advancing from the north, south, and west. We're currently approaching from the east."
"Are they punching their way through like this too?"
"I left it up to their judgment depending on the situation. But if things go south, they'll converge on our location immediately."

That was good enough.
Knowing reinforcements could arrive at any moment meant we had no reason to hesitate.

KWA-BOOM!

Another wall was smashed to pieces.
Beyond the ruined wall, a completely different type of corridor revealed itself.
It was a cylindrical hallway bathed in a sinister, bloody red glow.
As we stepped inside, the floor felt strangely sticky, clinging to the soles of our shoes.

"It looks like a blood vessel-ssumda?"

Lululio remarked as she looked around.
Even though she said it looked like a blood vessel, there was no scent of blood.
However, this fleshy corridor seemed to twist and stretch deep into the interior.

"The deeper we go, the creepier it gets."

I completely agreed with Babiyen.
The further we went inside, the more it felt like we were carving our way through the insides of a living creature.

"I'm going to keep punching through."

Meanwhile, Inferno strode fearlessly up to the fleshy wall.
He put all his strength into his fist and swung it at the barrier.

Squeeelch!

But this time, a completely different sound echoed out.
The spot where Inferno's fist landed just sank deeply inward.

"Huh?"

Inferno let out a baffled breath, and light rapidly gathered around his fist.

KWA-BOOOOOOM!

The ensuing explosion blew the fleshy wall entirely away.
While Colonel Bagel hurriedly stabilized the tunnel, Inferno opened and closed his hand with a deeply disturbed expression.

"Feels like punching a giant lump of raw meat."
"Wait a moment, Lieutenant General Inferno."

Just then, Colonel Bagel hastily channeled his mana with a panicked look.
The fleshy walls he had just stabilized were wriggling and squirming like caterpillars, trying to stitch themselves back together.

"...It has self-regeneration?"

While Inferno spoke, I quietly stared at the fleshy wall.
A faint trace of holy power emanated from between the fleshy tissues.
It was a very small amount, but this entire massive wall reminded me of an Apostle.

"Harua-nim, I believe this wall is made out of mashed-up Apostles."

Aigis, who had been staring at the wall for a long time, spoke up with a look of realization.
A wall made of mashed-up Apostles.
My eyes widened at her words.
I also felt that Aigis's deduction was dead on.

‘The reason the relationship between the Radiant Faith and Black Dawn hit rock bottom.’

Maybe it was because Black Dawn had been harvesting their Apostles.

"Ew, so you're saying this is all made of Apostles?"

Babiyen frowned in disgust.
Seriously, the shit these Black Dawn bastards pulled was beyond insane.
The deeper we went, the more the repulsive dread intensified.
We hadn't encountered a single battle yet.
I couldn't even begin to guess what Black Dawn's true intention was for building this Sky Castle.

‘If the vessel is here, they would have done whatever it took to protect it.’

How should I describe this?
It truly felt like a space constructed solely for the incubation of something.

"Aranseol."

A regular wall was one thing.
But against a wall made of fleshy tissue, Aranseol's sword was a better match than Inferno's fists.

"Can you cut it?"

The moment she heard my words, Aranseol had already drawn Danmyung.
The crimson aura bleeding from the blade felt terrifying, even to me, and I wasn't even her enemy.

"I was waiting for you to say that."

Aranseol stepped past Inferno.
Without a second of hesitation, she swung her sword at the regenerated fleshy wall.

Slaaash!

A cleanly severed square of the fleshy wall dropped heavily to the floor.
However, unlike before, the wall showed no signs of trying to regenerate.
It had been cut so cleanly that the flesh itself didn't even realize it had been severed.

"Whew."

Inferno let out a short whistle as he looked down at the severed chunk of flesh.

"Your sword has become much more terrifying than before. It's almost unrecognizable."
"I still have a long way to go."

Aranseol didn't show an ounce of arrogance.
Was it because she had witnessed the lives of too many geniuses through Danmyung?
The pinnacle of swordsmanship she was striving for had grown even higher than before.

"I'll keep cutting."

Whether that was a good influence or not, I couldn't tell.
But one thing was certain: Aranseol's skills had skyrocketed to a level that couldn't even be compared to her past self.

Aranseol's sword flashed out once again.
Every time it did, the fleshy walls were sliced open, revealing the space beyond.
The walls were packed tightly together, true to their blood vessel-like nature.
The deeper we went, the narrower the space between the fleshy walls became.

By the time the passage had shrunk to the point where only one person could squeeze through at a time...

Clang—!

A completely different sound rang out.
It was the sound of Aranseol's Danmyung striking something hard.
Inside the flesh.
There was a solid layer, stark white like bone.

"Don't worry. I can cut it."

I considered swapping her out for someone else, but Aranseol didn't stop.
Instead, red sparks crackled around her blade, amplifying its cutting power.
Aranseol's sword danced wildly once more.
Following her strikes, the bone wall was cleanly sliced apart without resistance.

The space grew tighter, and the bone walls seemed endless.
As oxygen grew scarce in the confined space, Babiyen and Colonel Bagel activated their magic to ensure a steady supply of air.

Slaaash—

The moment the final layer of the bone wall was severed...

"It's an open space."

Aranseol announced that there was an open area beyond the wall.
Everyone immediately shifted into a state of high alert.
It was a given.
This meant we had finally reached the absolute center of the Sky Castle.

With no idea what Black Dawn had prepared inside, everyone remained tense as Aranseol slowly carved out a hole large enough for a person to pass through.
Colonel Bagel used his magic to catch the falling bone slab as quietly as possible.
When we pushed the bone out of the way, a pitch-black space where we couldn't see an inch ahead was revealed.

We all fell silent, staring into that dark void.
It was completely empty inside, as if the space itself was absorbing all light.
What the hell is this?
At a glance, it almost felt like the Void Space.

A magic circle on the outside.
Fleshy walls in the middle.
Bone walls on the inside.
And a pitch-black space at the very core.
Everything was full of mysteries.
We didn't know what was on the other side.
We couldn't even guarantee if we could safely navigate through this darkness in the first place.

"I'll take the lead-ssumda."

At that moment, Lululio stepped forward.

"Lululio."
"You all know what my Ability is-ssumda."

Lululio's Ability was creating light.
With her power, we might be able to push through this darkness.
But I stopped her.

"Mi-myeongryeong will take the lead."

From within my coat, Mi-myeongryeong spread its wings and flew out.
Mi-myeongryeong was an Apostle I had created myself.
Since it possessed excellent danger-sensing capabilities, it would be able to assess the situation well.
More importantly, it naturally emitted its own light.

"Myeongryeong, I'm counting on you."

There was no need for Lululio to take unnecessary risks first.
This was exactly the kind of situation I had created Mi-myeongryeong for anyway.

Mi-myeongryeong flapped its wings and flew into the darkness.
Since it was an Apostle, my senses were somewhat linked to it.
Because of that, I could feel Mi-myeongryeong continuously flying deeper into the dark void.

The darkness was deep.
It felt even deeper than the fleshy corridors or the bone walls we had just traversed.
Just how far does this go?
Mi-myeongryeong kept flying forward.

How long had it been flying?
Just as I was starting to wonder if it would reach the end without finding anything at all...

"Hmm?"

Legolash raised his thick eyebrows.

CRUNCH!

At the exact same moment, the sensation of Mi-myeongryeong being completely shattered by something hit me, and my eyes snapped open.

"There's something inside!"

And then.

"It's coming!"

The moment I shouted, the pitch-black darkness surged toward us all at once.
It was as if we had awakened something that should never have been woken up.

But the darkness couldn't reach us.

FWOOOOOOSH!

Because Babiyen had unleashed her fire magic before it could.
The roaring flames fiercely burned away the encroaching darkness.

"Run!"

Aranseol swiftly scooped up Babiyen—who was still channeling her magic—and sprinted back the way we came.
As everyone started running together, Inferno yelled out.

"Harua, did you see what it was?!"
"All I felt was some sharp hand smashing it to pieces!"

Babiyen's fire magic was buying us time, but that was it.

The darkness continued to chase after us.

I didn't know what was inside it. One thing was certain: if we got swallowed by that darkness, we would be at a severe disadvantage.

However, the darkness wasn't only moving toward us. It was heading toward the other Lieutenant Generals as well. If they got swept up by the darkness while breaking through the walls, it would be a disaster.

"Colonel Bagel, contact them!"
"The flow of mana hasn't been normal for a while! Long-distance communication isn't connecting properly!"

Could that darkness be blocking the flow of mana?
I didn't know what was inside it, but it was definitely a hindrance.
In that case.

"Lady Aigis, please take Babiyen!"

Handing Babiyen over to Aigis, I exposed my arm from under my robe. At the same time, I began to draw in every ounce of Divine Power and Holy Mana, centering it all on my arm.

A massive current swirled around me.
The waves of Divine Power and Holy Mana surged so violently that the surrounding space warped.

"What in the..."

Colonel Bagel, who didn't know me well, dropped his jaw at the sight. Even to a veteran mage like him, the sheer amount of power gathering was absurd.

I am just a Holy Mage. I had received some Paladin training, sure, but that was it. My dual-combat capability was the lowest among us.

But I had exactly one advantage.
Massive Holy Mana and Divine Power.
Cramming all of it into a single, lethal shot.

The ultimate glass cannon I had achieved through desperate training with Aigis over the past year. In terms of sheer firepower, I wouldn't lose to anyone.

The holy spirit, reborn once again through my Holy Mana, enveloped my hand and spread its wings.

"I'm going to blow it away."

Of course, I'd be blown away too.
But it was the absolute best move to kick off the battle.

"Harua."

Aranseol looked at me with eyes full of deep trust.

"Blow it away with everything you've got."

It was the best encouragement to keep me from hesitating.

Annihilation (섬멸).

A clean, single-word technique.
The white bullet fired from my fingertips pierced the sky and struck the darkness. Finally, the white bombardment swallowed the darkness, completely blowing it away along with our line of sight.

True to its name, it was an immensely satisfying explosion.