241 Despair [3]

The moment Leon slashed, he felt his entire body strain due to the power he had used.

He had put everything into that move, and his legs started to give out.

"Haaa Haaa"

With heavy breaths, he looked ahead and stared directly at the Archbishop, who seemed unaware of what was happening.

<nulli>'Yes, it might hit!'

Leon felt his heart quicken at the realization, and he secretly swallowed his saliva as he started to recuperate his mana quickly.

His attack cleaved across the church, and within seconds, it appeared before the Archbishop, who stood still the entire time.

'Almost... Almost...'

Leon stared at the scene with open eyes.

He didn't want to miss it.

....He was close. The attack was getting closer.

The attack was...

Pfttt! Pftt!

Blood sprayed everywhere, and Leon's eyes widened.

"Ah."

Thump! Thump!

Several bodies fell right before the Archbishop, blood pooling around the area where their bodies lay.

"W-what?"

Leon felt his entire body freeze at the sight as he looked at the people on the floor.

One, two, three, four, five

He counted five. All of them were dead, lying beneath the Archbishop, who raised his head slowly to look at Leon, who felt his heart sink.

It couldn't be, right?

"You took me by surprise."

The Archbishop finally spoke, and Leon felt his muscles stiffen as he struggled to keep himself upright.

The mana inside his body was almost completely drained.

Looking around, he could see more people in white moving around the Archbishop in some form of shield, blocking any possible attacks.

Leon bit his lips at the sight.

"It really does look like I've mistreated all of you."

The Archbishop said as he looked at the floor where the bodies lay.

"For such devoted disciples to fall like this. It pains my heart."

The Archbishop put on a pained expression as he turned around, shifting his attention toward the mysterious cadet who was now back to normal.

Leon didn't understand what he was planning, but he soon understood as the Archbishop leaned down and removed the vial from the cadet's body before sprinkling it over the dead bodies.

"For such loyalty, I must naturally reward them."

Cra Crack

Coming to life, the bodies squirmed on the ground as cracking sounds echoed.

Twisting grotesquely in the air, their limbs contorted and cracked, the five bodies beginning to merge into a single form.

Arms and legs bent at unnatural angles, flesh fusing and warping as the corpses were drawn together by some strange force that originated from the blood that was sprayed on them.

Squelch! Squelch...!

A sickening squelch accompanied every movement, and a foul stench filled the air as skin, bone, and muscle melded into a horrific amalgamation.

Cracka!

It was a gruesome sight that Leon could hardly describe as the expressions of everyone changed.

"Hmm, it looks like there wasn't enough blood."

The Archbishop sighed as he looked at the creature before him.

Pressing his hand against the creature, which was a combination of five people, he looked towards the cadets. More specifically, towards Leon, who felt himself standing rigidly on the spot as anxiety started to grow within him.

"It's a good thing that we have plenty of blood. The ritual may not be as effective, but I can just use you. Yes, let's do this."

The Archbishop pointed in Leon's direction.

"Get his blood."

"Hieeek!"

As if it were agreeing, the creature turned in Leon's direction as its limbs flung around with each one of its movements.

"Ah!"

Leon stepped back and looked around him.

His expression brightened when he saw that several cadets had been freed during the time he had attacked the Archbishop.

In particular, he was happy about the fact that Evelyn, Aoife, Kiera, Josephine, and Luxon were included.

They were strong, and with them helping, Leon felt less stressed about the situation.

"Hieeek!"

The creature lunged onto the side of the wall, its many limbs skittering with a chilling speed. Despite its grotesque size, it moved with an eerie nimbleness, darting across the surface like a monstrous insect.

Within seconds, it was upon Leon.

'Fast...!'

Heart pounding, he raised his sword and thrust it forward, the blade gleaming in the dim light as it aimed for the creature that was lunging at him.

His blade hissed as it darted right for its head.

Clank!

Sparks flew the moment Leon's sword made contact with the creature, and his expression changed as he was pushed back several meters, crashing onto the wooden rows.

"Uekh..!"

Leon spat out blood as his entire body ached.

"Leon!"

In the distance, he could see the worried looks from the others as they rushed in the direction of the creature, which seemed to be entirely focused on him.

<nulli>Swoosh!

Flames burst through as they thrust forward and headed towards the creature.

<nulli>Kracka!

At the same time, bolts of lightning burst out from nowhere and headed towards the creature, which tried to dodge but stopped as Aoife raised her hands.

Boom!

A powerful explosion reverberated throughout as the attacks landed.

Leon clenched his fist at the sight, and for a brief moment, he thought they had managed to defeat it but was soon disappointed to see the creature come out of the smoke.

"Hieeek!"

It wasn't completely unharmed, with several of its limbs missing, but it was still strong, and Leon felt his heart sink.

<nulli>Clank-! Clank!

In the distance, he could hear the sound of fighting. When he looked, he saw the cadets holding back several people in white as the others freed the other cadets.

"Akh!"

"H-help!"

"Help me...! I need help!"

Blood spilled all over the place as bodies fell from both sides.

The situation looked dire, and when Leon's head turned away from them, he saw the creature standing a few meters away from him.

Clank!

Leon tried to fight back, but he was completely outclassed. His mana was drained, and regardless of what he tried, he found himself being pushed back.

"Akh!"

His back crashed against one of the wooden rows as he let out another pained groan.

"Ugh... C-crap."

Leon slowly looked up. The creature was now standing right above him, its many eyes locked onto him.

It was at this moment that Leon felt despair.

He looked at the vial in his hand and knew that he had only one chance left.

The creature was looking to take his blood, therefore

"Kh!"

Clenching his teeth, Leon decisively brought the sword near his throat and slit it in one go.

Pftt!

"Leon!"

In the last moments, Leon could hear the shouts of the others as they called for him. He wanted to say something back but found himself unable to.

So he looked at them.

<nulli>'Protect me while I revive. Don't let it get my blood.'

Such was what his gaze meant as his consciousness started to fade.

In those last moments, Leon felt a little bitter.

'I hope they get my intentions.'

He wasn't too sure.

<nulli>'.If only he was still here.'

There was one person Leon was sure would've gotten his message through just a look.

He was someone he served and a person Leon found himself starting to miss.

Had he been here? Would the situation have been resolved?

Leon didn't know, but he felt like things wouldn't have gotten to this point with him.

In the end, his thoughts were broken by an endless darkness that took his consciousness.

In that moment, Leon died again.

***

Leon's death was followed by a roar of anger. It came directly from the Archbishop who looked in his direction with visible anger on his face.

"How dare you!"

His plan had been to use Leon's share of the blood to help his followers, but with him having used it, it was no longer an option.

Staring in Leon's direction, the Archbishop could already see the blood entering his system.

The five formed followers stopped the moment Leon killed himself.

Bang!

In the background, the Archbishop could see the people he had brought in fighting desperately, and more blood started to spill on the ground.

The entire surrounding was filled with chaos, and the Archbishop stared at the scene with bloodshot eyes.

"It shouldn't be like this. How did it turn like this?"

He started to mumble to himself as he took in the sight around him and deeply imprinted it in his mind.

His plan was perfect.

He had been waiting for over a decade for all of this to happen, and he had perfectly laid out his trap to get over a dozen extremely talented youthe in order to optimize his ascension.

He had also found a perfect hideout that was outside of everyone's sight.

He wasn't worried about anyone finding him, and yet and yet

"Akh!"

The Archbishop screamed in anger.

In particular, his anger was directed towards a certain few who put up a struggle and killed his devoted followers.

Swoosh!

Fire burst forth.

Kracka!

Lighting crackled.

Crack!

And several followers were squeezed into a pulp as their arms and legs were stretched and compressed.

The situating.

It wasn't looking good.

The Archbishop could feel himself losing control of the situation, and looking in the distance, he could see the cadet responsible for all of this slowly start to regenerate and wake up.

<nulli>'I can't let it end like this! Not like this!'

Clenching his teeth, the Archbishop felt something trickle down the side of his eyes. He looked down to see black tears had started to form.

"Haaa haaa"

His breathing started to roughen at the sight.

His body

It was starting to break down. The black tear was a reminder of it.

In truth, he was extremely old.

He had lived for an uncountable amount of time. Due to his lack of talent, he wasn't able to grow in terms of power, but the blood he had found managed to keep him alive until now.

But there was a limit to it.

.It was for that reason that he had devised this plan.

It was so that he could live longer and grow strong.

"Right, it's not over yet."

He hadn't planned for so long for nothing.

<nulli>Clank, clank, clank

Looking around, the Archbishop laid his eyes on his followers who were fighting against the cadets.

The situation was even on both ends, but he knew the stalemate wouldn't last for long.

Therefore, clenching his teeth tightly, he raised his hand and shouted.

"Prove your loyalty to me! Eliminate everyone present!"

His words reverberated throughout the church, making their way towards the ears of all present.

Kiera and the others stopped as they looked at the Archbishop.

"What in the world is he talking about? What does he"

Her words were quickly cut off at the sight before her as her eyes widened.

"Ah!"

She was quick to react, channeling all her mana in front of her to cast a shield. But despite her speed, she wasn't fast enough as the person she was fighting suddenly inflated, and...

Bang!

Exploded on the spot.

"Akh.!"

Her scream echoed through as Aoife looked in her direction in shock.

"What the fuck?"

Unknowingly, she cursed on the spot.

She was just about to say something else when she also felt something off and her expression changed dramatically.

Looking in front of her, her mana flowed quickly as she cast a shield before herself.

"This!"

<nulli>Bang!

Another explosion echoed.

Such explosion was followed by another and then another.

<nulli>Bang, bang, bang!

The surroundings shook, and everything started to collapse.

The Archbishop took in the sight before him with a blank expression. From the pillars that held the room upright, to the organ near him. He watched as everything he had built slowly started to collapse before his very eyes.

Bang!

"Ugh."

What brought him out of the state was a subtle groan that came from behind him, and he turned his head and locked eyes with the cadet from before.

The sneaky one.

<nulli>Bang!

In the chaos, he smiled at the cadet who looked around in shock.

"It's over."

The Archbishop said,

". You've lost."