How did he react?
How did he stop it?
Sedi suppressed her rising doubts and calmed her agitation.
Then, she decided to judge the situation as calmly as possible based on the facts that were revealed.
The conclusion she reached was simple.
‘He got in.’
Lukas had entered the same world as her, and she could no longer guarantee victory against this being.
Her heart shivered with impatience. Her breathing became disturbed, and her vision began to fade. She could clearly feel her agitation.
‘I can’t.’
Kill him unintentionally.
There was a flash of lightning in her head. This caused a flowing nosebleed that forced her mind to awaken.
The mental burden was immense, but it was an unavoidable choice. Just now, Sedi was in a situation where her agitation was beginning to rise. Had she not forcibly broken herself from that condition, she would have faced the ‘worst situation’ that she feared.
She felt that she was ridiculous, and even more pathetic.
‘Can I really afford to be flustered right now?’
In fact, she was well aware.
Just how twisted she was now, and how many rivers she couldn’t uncross.
‘After coming this far, there’s no turning back.’
It was too late to turn back now.
So she had no choice but to carry on. Even if she knew that she was going deeper into the swamp, she had no choice but to keep using her legs.
“What’s with that look on your face when you’ve only just stepped into this place?”
Sedi grinned.
“Do you think you figured everything out? You must be getting drunk on the feeling of omnipotence and feel like you’re like a Ruler, but don’t get it twisted. Father is only standing at the very bottom. The peak of the mountain is not a place that you can see from the foot.”
That was her conclusion.
It was undeniable that Lukas had somehow managed to enter this world. However, that didn’t matter.
Experience, proficiency, and the being behind her. At this point, Sedi was superior to Lukas in every way. Although the ‘process of overpowering him’ would be more difficult, the ‘result’ that they would receive would not change.
“Going from 0 to 1.”
“…what?”
“That was the hardest part. After that, anything is fine. Even if the target number is a hundred, ten thousand, a thousand*, a hundred million, or an immeasurable number.” (*: Yes ten thousand before a thousand, left it cause it threw me for a loop)
“…”
It was a statement that should’ve made her laugh. After all, most people who said things like that didn’t know. They didn’t realise the weight of the number ‘one hundred million’. That was why they could say such nonsense.
But the one speaking was Lukas. It was none other than Lukas Trowman who said those words.
It was the person who had the closest connection to the words time, effort, challenge and mental power than anyone else Sedi knew.
After that, anything is fine.
‘He meant that.’
Lukas truly meant that he held no fear towards the long steps ahead of him. Instead, he would take one step at a time with a smile on his face. Instead of despairing at the fact that there seemed to be no end, he would feel satisfied that he was able to make steady progress one step at a time.
Over and over again without stopping, forever…
Lukas might really-
Kuuu-
The atmosphere began to shake. The prelude of a spell. Realising that, Sedi’s expression and aura also changed.
There was one thing that Lukas Trowman didn’t know.
The current Sedi wasn’t just carrying the power of the Demon God behind her.
By defeating the 0th Demon, one of the Twelve Void Lords who ruled over the World of Void, and taking his position, she could also wield a strong power.
Crunch.
But Lukas was fully aware of that fact as well. He cracked his knuckles.
It still felt like he was flying, but in truth, his odds were much lower.
Even if it was less than 4 percent. Nevertheless, a smile appeared on his lips.
After all, one thing was clear. Lukas always grew stronger while facing ridiculous enemies.
So he would use this fight to farm.
* * *
The phrase [the beyond space] was quite abstract.
Based on his own analysis and interpretation, Lukas had decided to call it something else.
The minimal time zone. (TL: Stuck between this and ‘smallest time slot/zone’)
It divided the smallest period of time a human could perceive into thousands of equal parts. It was a world where a falling raindrop would remain frozen in the air for a short time.
One second in this place would be impossible to even perceive on the ‘outside’.
—.
With every step that Sedi took, the stone floor shattered, but the pieces of stone didn’t scatter. Instead, the fragments remained frozen in the air like sculptures. The world hadn’t come to a stop, but it wouldn’t be unreasonable to misunderstand it as such.
She swung her scythe. The difference between her and Lukas was about five steps.
Of course, this was a distance that could be narrowed at any time depending on how the fight progressed, but it was usually unexpected for a long range attack to be launched from such an ambiguous location.
Dozens of slashes flew forward.
There was no sound, and their presences were faint, but the force behind them was clearly formidable.
“Frost Breath.”
A wave of cold air swept forward at Lukas’ mutter.
The cold air spread from the tips of his toes and engulfed the entire area. The air was no exception.
Crackle…!
The rushing slashes froze in the space and hung in the air. Frost Breath was only a 4 star spell that lowered the temperature of the surrounding area, but the power it was displaying now easily surpassed that of an 8 star spell, albeit with a limited range. Even Sedi’s feet were restrained for a moment.
Crack!
Of course, it was only for a very small time.
Sedi quickly broke free from the ice and continued forward. But there was an expression of displeasure on her face.
She was annoyed that her feet had been restrained for a moment with just a 4 star spell.
As she expected, there was something different about the magic that Lukas was using now. However… it wasn’t enough.
That alone wasn’t enough to change the situation or defeat Sedi.
At that moment, Sedi’s figure in the frozen time increased speed.
“…!”
Lukas clenched his fingers for a moment. He looked at Sedi, who approached him in an instant. Sedi, who had only shown certain movements in the minimal time zone until now, suddenly increased her speed by more than five times.
‘What is the principle?’
He was sceptical, but he didn’t have the time to consider it. Instead, his eyes were drawn by the scythe that was swinging towards him.
Then Lukas’ mouth fell open at the sight in front of him.
The scythe.
It wasn’t a weapon that could display subtle or complicated methods of attack. Its lethality had nothing to do with the user’s proficiency. Its structure was like that. It was for this reason that some experts regarded scythes as ornaments or tools for execution instead of weapons.
That cynical interpretation was by no means wrong.
However, in all things, there were always exceptions, and the scene Lukas was currently witnessing was something that could be considered an exception among exceptions.
The unpredictable and subtle movements of the scythe were as cunning as a snake. However, it was like a snake with a hundred heads. It truly felt as if such a creature was swaying its head in front of him at that moment.
The wickedness and strangeness it exuded was suffocating. For a moment, Lukas felt as if his body was surrounded by hundreds of sharp thorns that were inches away from piercing his skin. The thorns gave him a feeling of pressure as if his entire body would be pierced if he were to move even a little bit.
What level of proficiency with a scythe had Sedi reached?
‘No.’
It wasn’t comprehension, proficiency, or maturity.
Her skills had long surpassed those concepts. It wasn’t a level of being one with her weapon. In the first place, Lukas had a negative opinion of such a state.
In his opinion, weapons were just weapons and should never be considered as one with the body. There was no point to that. In the first place, the reason for using a weapon was to make up for the inadequacies of the bare body.
The sharpness, firmness and range were all things that soft flesh would never be able to achieve.
‘…fussy.’
And kind of unpleasant.
This was probably the first time Lukas had such a feeling while watching someone wield a weapon.
Fwoosh!
The gushing blood came from Lukas. A scar appeared from his shoulders to his chest. Naturally, he was unable to heal them with the power of void. Sedi’s scythe was imbued with the Demon God’s external force.
‘I lost the fight.’
He graciously admitted this fact, but there was still a feeling of resentment somewhere deep in his heart. Nevertheless, he had no choice but to accept it. The scar on his chest was the best evidence.
He’d sent dozens of spells to Sedi as she approached, but none of them worked.
As long as she had that scythe, Lukas wouldn’t be able to gain an advantage in a head on fight against Sedi.
He probably had ten thousand or more tricks. But even with the means that Lukas had, he couldn’t envision a destruction method. Even if he ran simulations till his brain burned, the only result Lukas could find was his defeat.
Sedi twisted her waist heavily. Hundreds of afterimages merged into one. She held the scythe in both hands.
There was a short silence, something was coming.
Boom! Of course, there was no sound. But Lukas felt the illusion that he’d heard a similar sound. It was just as the scythe smashed into his body like a black flag. Unable to withstand the shock, his body was sent flying. This was dangerous. If his response had been lacking in even the slightest bit, his entire body would have been separated with that blow.
‘Moreover.’
This time, he wasn’t the only one. Sedi’s body also staggered. She also felt a sharp pain in her chest.
So that was the case. He had launched a spell just before he was sent flying.
This meant that he had the ability to cast spells without chanting, saying the name, or using gestures.
“You should have been a bit more decisive at that moment.”
Sedi chuckled as she bled.
“Is that it? Huh? Is that the end!”
Breaking through one wall after the other, Sedi chased after Lukas, who was still flying away. As his blood splattered, Lukas sent spell after spell at Sedi. All kinds of missile spells flew towards Sedi.
Some missed, some hit. And most were blocked by her scythe.
Small wounds covered Sedi’s entire body but they were just that, small wounds.
“Not enough, that’s far from enough! How much longer will you be bound by magic?!”
When Lukas heard her cry, he replied inwardly.
Right. He couldn’t be bound by magic forever.
…It was possible to treat void like mana. It was a different concept from simple substitution. On a fundamental level, the power of void couldn’t change, so it was merely an imitation.
In other words, it was possible for it to imitate other forms of energy.
When Lukas stretched his hand out, purple liquid burst out of his hand. Sedi, who was chasing after him, narrowed her eyes and swung her scythe like a windmill.
It was about one drop. The purple liquid splashed against the edge of Sedi’s cheek.
Sizzle-
And her skin immediately became discoloured and melted. Wiping it away roughly with her sleeve, she muttered.
“…poison?”
“The power of Hydra.”
Divine power.
As he expected, it was possible for him to imitate this power with void. Sedi’s movements paused for a moment.
This was because she became a bit wary of this new kind of power that wasn’t magic. That gave Lukas enough time to gather his bearings.
He stopped his body that was flying through the air. Just like when Sedi had pierced his body with a thorn and pushed him out of the castle, Lukas once again found himself floating above Demonsio.
And after a short while, the world that was only being shared by the two of them regained its flow.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
There was a tremendous explosion.
As if compressed energy had been released in every direction at the same time, a formidable shockwave tore through Demonsio.
The castle, which exuded a sense of majesty, was destroyed almost instantly. Stalactites that hung from the ceiling fell like rain, and fires could be seen erupting in dozens of cities across the pit.
The space shattered like a broken mirror and a completely different world was almost visible beyond it. Time and space showed signs of collapsing completely.
This was the aftermath of a battle between two beings who had entered the minimal time zone.
In fact, they hadn’t even fought with all their might. This was the result of just a probing battle.
Sedi’s face showed that she didn’t care even when her territory was reduced to such a state.
“Do you have a lot of random skills?”
Instead, she smiled disdainfully.
“Huu.”
As expected, it still wasn’t enough.
Until just now, Lukas’ mind had been extremely overloaded. In fact, even at that moment, he could feel the heat all over his body.
This was a natural phenomenon.
Lukas was unable to enter the minimal time zone in a normal manner. Because of this, he had to match the consciousnesses of countless ‘Lukases’ and concentrate their mental power to forcefully enter the minimal time zone.
It was a method that probably only Lukas could use, but it was hard for him to sustain it for a long time. At the very least, if he didn’t use it at intervals, he would end up burning his brain.
Random skills.
From her perspective, most of Lukas’ means would only be random skills. But that didn’t matter. Those random skills all had their own uses.
Sedi’s impression of divine power wasn’t wrong. Even if it could be considered the strongest power in his home universe, it was nothing more than a random skill in front of her.
Or at least, that was the case with one exception.
‘I can use that.’
This time, he would use it perfectly.
Lord’s power.
The manipulation of space was something he could not gain a proper grasp of even as an Absolute. In the end, he had ended up trapped in the Abyss, so he couldn’t claim to have learned to control it.
But he didn’t have the time to hesitate or think about it anymore.
He could use it. He would use it. It wouldn’t be a problem.
For her, and for himself.
He had to do it.
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