Empowered by the items I wore, by the sacrificed souls of six hundred thousand people, and by the sacrifice of my friends, the Heroic Fallen, I was finally able to use the powers of a true Shadow King to their fullest: I submerged myself in my own shadow, and emerged again behind Veronico's back, ready to cut him in half, without giving that absurd individual time to process the death of his closest comrade.
— B-Breath of Life! — The Hero used a Skill just in time to push the Rogue from his group away, when my sword appeared from its shadow. — Mariah, help Saulo right now! Landa, protect Mariah! — Veronico ordered the survivors while directing the tip of his sword at me.
As far as I knew, there were no resurrection spells, but I couldn't risk it, especially when there was the possibility of Veronico's companions sacrificing themselves to his sword in order to strengthen him. When considering that this isolated fraction of the world revolved around those with the greatest Potential, and that the Hero was literally Unique in this aspect, it was clear what I should do: deal with the small fry, ensuring that this one wouldn't gain any more new Levels.
— Photon Burst!— Veronico fired a white energy projectile at me from the tip of his sword.
In response, the fans in my armor exhaled steam, the mechanical parts of my protection tensed, and I dodged the attack, my power multiplied many times over by the equipment I wore and the rituals I had performed, though this ability was not accounted for by the System.
— Buargh! — Veronico gulped as my gauntlet crushed his abdominal protection like a dry autumn leaf, and I threw him against the stairs.
With a single step, I reached the Rogue and the Healer, and continuing this movement, I brandished my sword at them.
— Daybreak! — Mariah produced a flash of sunlight so bright that it broke through the darkness inside the helmet I wore and blinded me for an instant.
When I opened my eyes again, Landa had already carried Mariah away, and despite the Healer gasping and holding her stomach, neither woman appeared to be injured.
That was strange, Mariah shouldn't be able to produce magic strong enough to have any effect on me while I was wearing that unholy armor.
— Hargh! — Veronico attacked with a horizontal slash, but I blocked it with my own sword.
— Third Evil Eye — facing the Hero, I conjured a spell imbued in my helmet, not so different from the mutant I defeated months before, I a ray of concentrated energy red in color.
My opponent reacted quickly and jumped back, not only avoiding the attack, but protecting his team from it as well; Veronico resisted the red beam I glared at with the flat side of his sword.
— M-Mariah!
There was something wrong. I didn't know exactly what it was, but there was something wrong.
— I'm fine, Veronico. Focus on defeating him!
Yes, there was something wrong with the Healer. Her especially powerful Spell from before, and the looks those two were exchanging...
— What about Saulo? — Veronico asked once the red lightning had faded, all the damage he had caused consisting of a pair of burned hands, Veronico's gauntlets having melted around his skin.
— Veronico... He's dead. I can't bring him back to life.
— Kurgh. — My target gritted his teeth, veins pulsing on his forehead and temples visible beneath his intricate helmet. — Haicard…! — He charged toward me, roaring and charging his magic blade.
— Ah, I understand now — I commented when Veronico was just one step away.
Before Dawn could touch me, however, Epilogue bit the Hero's shoulder, ripping off his entire right arm in one go, throwing him far away, all the way to the opposite wall, blood gushing all over the landing floor.
— Aaaaargh! — Veronico yelled, holding his own stump of an arm.
However, he quickly fell silent when I continued:
— She's pregnant, isn't she? — my enemy turned pale, and not for lack of blood.
The significant increase in power, the greater intimacy. Signs of increased Potential, more specifically in a romantic way, a classic.
Suddenly, I felt like my chances of winning had been halved. It wasn't hard to imagine that the favored woman would develop a Resurrection Spell or some nonsense like that.
— D-Don't you dare, you bastard — Veronico pleaded more than threatened, cauterizing his own wound with his magic.
And for a moment, I felt pity. Empathy. The man before me was no longer the alien, incomprehensible, unreachable entity I had always observed from so far away. No, Veronico had broken his own mold long ago. But so had I.
— ...What is just one more sin to someone whose soul is already promised to Hell?
I pointed my shotgun sword at the Healer, and pulled the trigger.
— NO! — Veronico covered himself completely in an excess of golden aura and moved faster than the wind, each of his steps leaving a trail of flames on the ground.
And yet he failed to reach his own lover.
The first to do so was his companion, Landa, who pushed Mariah aside and took her place at gunpoint.
The shot split the thin Rogue's body in two, her torso rolling down the stairs as her entrails and blood spilled all over the floor.
— LANDA! — Veronico stopped next to his companion, holding her upper half delicately with a single arm. — No, no, no...!
— I... Guh! L-L... you... — the Rogue tried to mumble one last message, but the light in her eyes faded before she could say anything.
— HAICA- — Veronico turned to me once more, even more full of anger than before.
But I already had his lover pierced by my blade, the disproportionately large sword piercing the woman's chest and abdomen and lifting her into the air.
I wasn't being manipulated into giving Veronico space to say heartbreaking goodbyes, and I wasted no time chasing Mariah while he was distracted by Landa's dead body.
And I wouldn't wait for the Hero to make shocking promises of revenge: I threw the Healer's body away and jumped towards my enemy and my main objective, brandishing Epilogue accurately against Veronico's neck.
— Ah, this is so much better than I expected — commented the last voice I wanted to hear at that moment, sending shivers down my spine.