CHAPTER 76
I open my eyes. It's a familiar sensation.
The feeling of my body being erased from this world and then recreated.
In the past, I might have rolled on the floor, crying out in pain right after being resurrected.
But having repeated it so many times, it was now familiar.
"You're alive."
As my vision returned, I saw a man.
He was a man with a fierce expression, roughly draped in a curtain he had torn from the surroundings.
The Sword Lord, Soun.
He was there.
At his feet lay the Red Flame Lord, Ignarion, dead and split in half.
Just how strong was Soun?
Even Ignarion was a wall I couldn't hope to overcome.
Yet Soun had sliced her apart with ease.
Even among the Lords, the gap between them was immense.
"You went through a lot."
"That's not something you should be saying."
True, we both had a rough time.
"Are there any abnormalities with your body?"
He was a powerhouse on the level of Soun.
I asked just in case the resurrection magic hadn't worked perfectly, but he shook his head.
"No problems."
That's good, then.
All that's left is to get out of Nox and revive Aranseol and Babiyen.
I had left their fingers with Ririran.
There was no chance of them getting lost.
"Then, let's go."
Since my entire body had just been burned and revived, I rummaged through the room. Thankfully, there were some clothes that looked like they belonged to Ignarion.
She had a much larger frame than an average woman.
Thanks to that, if I put on something that looked a bit big, it was wearable enough.
However, it didn't fit Soun.
He was a whole head taller than me.
In the end, Soun just draped a cloak Ignarion had used over himself.
Even that felt a little short, but it was useful for covering his body.
"Could you cut off a finger for me?"
"For interrogation, I assume."
"Something like that."

Ignarion had been in deep contact with Black Dawn. She definitely knew more.
If I revived her in front of Soun, interrogation would be easy.
I'll make you pay dearly for burning me twice. After securing the finger Soun cut off, I stood before the door.
If we could just get out of here before the Lord of Nox found out Soun was here, the job would be done.
Just as I was thinking that and about to grab the doorknob.
"Wait."
Soun stopped me as I was about to open the door.
"There's someone outside."
Come to think of it, there was that servant who guided me.
It seemed he was unaware of the situation inside, thanks to the silence magic Ignarion had cast.
She probably never imagined her own greed would corner her like this.
"Step back. I will cut him down."
It was unfortunate for the servant, but it was the best way to avoid being detected by the Lord of Nox.
I obediently stepped back.
In the first place, I didn't have the strength to stop Soun.
Soun pointed his hand downward.
A sword of pure magic formed.
A condensation of mana in the shape of a perfect sword.
It was a level of mastery that was astonishing even to me.
Just as he took his stance and was about to swing the sword.
Soun's expression changed subtly.
A moment later, a click of his tongue echoed.
"Changing direction."
"Pardon?"
"The one outside is the Lord of Nox."
What kind of crazy talk was that?
"She must not have trusted Ignarion from the start. She was staying by that woman's side, hiding her presence."
Soun turned his body toward a blank wall.
I naturally hurried to follow him.
"Then isn't now the perfect chance to cut her down?"

The Lord of Nox held a grudge against Soun.
So I suggested it would be better to cut her down now before she noticed, but Soun shook his head.
"I can't cut her. We're a bad matchup."
Was there something even Soun couldn't cut?
The Lord of Nox.
She was certainly someone Ignarion would use as a trap to catch Soun.
"We're getting out. I'm going to carry you and run, so hold on."
With that, Soun swung his sword.
In that instant, a square-shaped hole appeared in the wall, which then crumbled into dust. Looking down, I saw that all the powdered wall fragments were cut into perfect square shapes.
All I perceived was Soun swinging his sword. He had slashed the wall tens of thousands of times at a speed my perception couldn't follow.
A monster.
I think I understood why Ignarion had feared Soun so much.
Snatch!
In that moment, Soun grabbed me by my clothes.
Even though I was a grown man, he lifted me without any effort.

At the same time, the scenery of Nox came into view through the hole. I hadn't realized while walking, but it was a building with quite a few floors.
Ah, I see.
So this is what he meant by "carry you and run."
I decided to obediently close my eyes.
Today, I ascend.
BOOM!
With a delayed sound, Soun shot up into the skies of Nox. A feeling of weightlessness instantly washed over my entire body, and I prayed like mad internally.
But Soun didn't stop there.
He swung his sword toward the ground below him while still airborne.
The wind pressure generated by the sword sent us flying.
Even with my eyes closed, I could feel my vision spinning like crazy. The wind battering my whole body felt like blades, and I couldn't keep my senses straight.
"She's noticed."
Even in the midst of all that, Soun perceived what was behind us.
When I barely managed to look back, I saw something like a black cloud gathering there.
"Soooouuuuunnn!"
A piercing voice could be heard.
It was a woman's voice.
A black cloud.
Seeing that, I understood why Soun said he couldn't cut it.
Even if you cut a cloud, it just reforms.
I felt like Soun could probably leave a permanent wound even on that cloud, but it would likely take a considerable amount of time.
I understood why he said it was a bad matchup.
Moreover, the speed at which it was approaching was extraordinary.
Incredibly fast.
"Can we... get away?!"
I shouted as loud as I could, and Soun looked forward.
"Yes."
With that, Soun swung his sword once more. The wind pressure from the blade shook the skies of Nox.
As a result, the dark cloud chasing Soun was caught in the wind pressure and pushed back. Not even the Lord of Nox could easily keep up with Soun.
"Stooooop!"
In that instant, pitch-black lightning surged from the dark cloud.
Soun frowned and simultaneously threw me behind him.
Whoa, you crazy—!
As I plummeted through the sky, black lightning shot up toward Soun.
The sky above Nox filled with black lightning.
Down below, I could see the residents of Nox screaming and prostrating themselves on the ground.
Facing the black lightning, Soun swung his sword.
The black lightning was split in two.
The split lightning bolts shot up and crashed into the ceiling, devastating it.
It was a scene no different from a natural disaster.
This is a fight between humans?
A fight between Fantasy Species would be more humane.
After splitting the lightning, Soun snatched me as I was falling.
I was completely disoriented.
I was sure I would throw up everything I'd eaten once we reached the ground.
"We're almost there."
Before I knew it, the outer gate of Nox was right in front of us.
The people gathered at the gate all started to flee for their lives.
With the Sword Lord and the Lord of Nox both rushing toward the gate, they had to run if they didn't want to die.
Soun swung his sword one more time, creating a counter-wind pressure to land on the ground.
Now that I was on the ground, I felt like I was really going to die.
As I fought back the nausea, Soun immediately started walking.
Soun was clearly trying to avoid the Lord of Nox as much as possible.
She must be that troublesome of an opponent.
Once we're this far, there's no way she can catch up.
Just as I thought that and was about to follow Soun up the stairs to the outside.
Fwoom!
Black clouds instantly welled up from all over the staircase.
Dammit, she's not the Lord of Nox for nothing.
It seemed she already had control over most of the space within Nox.
"She's persistent."
Soun exhaled and gripped his sword of magic.
It seemed we would have to fight the Lord of Nox after all.
I'm going to die again if I get caught up in this.
Just as I was resignedly predicting my next death, the sound of heels echoed from within the black clouds.
Faded white, curly hair.
Amber eyes.
A black dress.
Tattoos were etched all over her body, except for her face, giving off an overwhelming sense of intimidation.
The moment I saw her, I knew instinctively.
The Lord of Nox.
Noir Nox.
The black clouds billowed around her.
I didn't realize it from a distance, but up close, I could tell what they were.
Mimei, who had been hiding in my clothes, poked its head out.
Although there was a huge difference in size and pressure, those black clouds were the same kind of thing as Mimei.
This woman possesses Divine Power.
Of course, it was clearly a type of power that was the polar opposite of mine.
"Soun, I believe I told you."
She swept her hair back and her eyes widened.

"The next time you came, you would be giving me your seed."
Seed?
Don't tell me she means a magic Seed.
This woman is insane.
Soun, also sensing the absurdity of her words, narrowed his eyes.
"I believe I told you. I have no intention of having children."
And an even more absurd reply came back.
Children.
So the seed... was that seed.
I looked back and forth between Soun and Noir with a dumbfounded expression.
I heard the Lord of Nox and Soun had a grudge against each other.
"Were you two lovers?"
"No."
Soun cut me off as sharply as a knife.
So this was a one-sided advance from Noir.

"Let me be clear. That woman is a praying mantis. She doesn't want me; she truly only wants my bloodline."
The praying mantis is famous for the female eating the male after mating.
Noir didn't care about Soun himself.
It was impossible to tie down the Sword Lord anyway.
So, she wanted only one thing.
Soun's seed.
The bloodline that would be born from that seed.
"The child I bear will inherit its parents' talents completely."
Noir licked her lips.
At her blatant display, Soun's eyes narrowed even further.
"There are no better conditions for leaving behind offspring, so what are you hesitating for?"
Looking at Noir, I knew one thing for sure.
This woman was just as crazy as the Red Flame Lord.