City of Witches Chapter 267

Eloa glared at the Enemy Knight while holding her sword aloft.

The Enemy Knight, gripping the Red Branch, also faced Eloa with a sinister, mocking smile.

The Enemy Knight, who once had thirty eyes, now possessed forty eyes due to the Cowardly Witch.

That number was identical to that of the Homunculus known as 'Jörmungandr,' which was evaluated as having brought about the most powerful and greatest calamity in history.

The monster, which took the form of a giant serpent and earned the Epithet 'Jörmungandr,' was only slain by Duke Keter after devouring three kingdoms, eight cities, countless villages, and seventy-eight Witches.

This was during the era when the system of Gehenna was just being established.

Considering that the average Witch's Hierarchy at the time was 15, the death of seventy-eight Witches might not have been such a shocking event.

However, that did not provide grounds to underestimate Jörmungandr's strength or the Enemy Knight, who now possessed the same number of eyes.

Of course, just as Hierarchy is not an absolute measure of Combat Power, the number of eyes is not an absolute indicator of a Homunculus's strength.

Nevertheless, the Enemy Knight was a warrior who had accumulated extensive experience over a long period by killing many Witches.

The reason Eloa had failed to kill the Enemy Knight despite fighting seven times and achieving seven victories was not due to carelessness.

It was because the Enemy Knight possessed the skill to exchange spear and sword with Eloa while leaving enough leeway to escape with his own life.

“……”

“……”

Eloa calmly faced the Enemy Knight, gauging each other's Combat Power.

First, the Enemy Knight.

A Homunculus's Combat Power clearly varies depending on what it contains.

For instance, even a seemingly insignificant Homunculus can become a formidable foe if its 'Gnosis's Egg' is equipped with troublesome innate magic.

In that sense, the Enemy Knight, wielding the exceedingly troublesome Ceremonial Artifact known as the 'Red Branch,' was a difficult opponent in itself.

Spear strikes that twist thought and natural law.

A Distortion Field that hinders all magical functions and the abilities of Spirit Bodies.

A red barrier that manipulates the reality of objects it touches.

It employs magic with a wider range of applications and is more troublesome to counter than most combat-oriented Witches.

This was the reason why Eloa, despite possessing overwhelming Combat Power in the past, had failed to completely subdue the Enemy Knight.

Moreover, the Enemy Knight's spear, reunited after a long time, had changed in some way.

The unusual red energy flowing along the Spear Shaft was on a different level from before.

Should it be described as more abundant, or as carrying a deeper sense of dissonance?

The Cowardly Witch had not only strengthened the Enemy Knight but had also upgraded the performance of the Red Branch itself by one level.

On the other hand, Eloa.

She had already consumed about thirty percent of her magic power during the process of dealing with the White Knight and reaching this point.

One of the twelve Contracts was occupied by the 'Guardian's Contract' protecting Siwoo, leaving her able to wield only eleven Contracts.

In the past, this would not have been a major issue.

But could she win against the Enemy Knight, who now faced her in optimal condition?

Eloa, who had faced numerous public enemies and Homunculi, felt a sense of crisis for the first time in a long while.

“Step back. Prepare to flee.”

Pushing Siwoo behind her, she angled the Contract Sword forward.

“I Contract.”

She activated two of the three remaining Contracts.

The Enemy Knight was likely the Cowardly Witch's best move.

He was not an opponent she could face while holding back reserves, but if she exhausted all her power here, she would truly have nothing left.

Contract Nine: Re-establishes the concept of the physical body.

To minimize the effects of distortion, it reaffirms the existence of 'Eloa' upon the world.

Thus, the worry of her existence being distorted or disrupted by the barrier vanished.

Contract Ten: Consumes half of the remaining magic power, converting it into strength.

The Enemy Knight was not the entirety of the Cowardly Witch's Combat Power.

There were still about six hundred White Knights remaining, and although her Combat Power was not high, the Cowardly Witch herself was also present.

If she allocated any more magic power here, even victory against the Enemy Knight would be meaningless.

Eleven of the twelve characters engraved on the side of the Contract Sword glowed, scattering a heavy Wave of Magical Power around her.

-Clank!

The one who moved first was the Enemy Knight.

Throwing the Witch's corpse he had been holding by the hair to the side, he slid forward with a gliding step and thrust his spear.

At a glance, the movement seemed less powerful than even the White Knight's.

The sound of it cutting through the air was not loud, and the force contained within seemed unremarkable.

But that was merely an illusion.

Just as deep river waters flow quietly, concentrated power does not make a noisy display; in reality, it moves with a force several times faster and stronger.

The surging spear tip had already found a gap in the Sword Domain and was extending toward her heart.

“Hahp!”

Eloa's body pivoted, striking away the spear tip.

No, more accurately, she attempted to strike it away.

But an unexpected suction force occurred, causing the edge of the spear blade and the side of the sword to stick together.

Her strength was insufficient.

The Enemy Knight's strength had grown much stronger than before.

-Crack! Crack-crack!

Without panicking at the unexpected result, Eloa immediately entered into sword wrestling.

It was so natural it seemed as if she had planned it from the beginning.

'Binding'—pressing weapons against the opponent's and pulling to halt their attack.

'Winding'—exploiting the opponent's openings to twist the weapon free and gain control.

Broadly speaking, sword wrestling, composed of these two concepts, is essentially no different from wrestling.

It involves sensitively detecting the pressure and changes in force transmitted through the connected weapons to predict movement and rhythm.

It was also an intense battle of wits, adjusting tempo and intensity to deflect the enemy's weapon while positioning one's own to inflict a fatal wound.

-Crack! Crack-crack! Snap!

Amidst sounds like hard walnuts being crushed, the red spear blade and white sword blade continuously twisted and crossed.

Like two dragons twisting their bodies in combat, the chaotically entangled sword and spear spat out violent sparks of magical power with each clash.

Neither gave an inch.

In terms of pure strength alone, the Enemy Knight surpassed Eloa, but the gap in skill gave Eloa the advantage.

-Crack! Crack-crack!

The sword and spear, entangled in mid-air for several seconds without separating, finally parted.

The one who broke this stalemate first was Eloa.

She forced the Enemy Knight back with a rough sword strike that could only be described as brute force.

Immediately after, the spear swung in a sweeping arc clashed with the sword rising in an arc from the opposite side.A shockwave incomparable to mere wrestling sent Eloa's bangs fluttering and reverberated through the air.

-KWAAANG!

"Kgh!"

Eloa let out a vexed groan.

Even with a difference in power, the gap in skill remained significant.

Originally, her plan was to subdue the tip of the Enemy Knight's spear with a spiraling sword strike and pierce its heart.

But the variable introduced here was precisely that 'Red Branch'.

-KWAANG!

As she parried the spear swung once more, Eloa felt her insides twist.

It wasn't that she allowed a direct hit.

Nor was the transmitted impact so intense she couldn't withstand it.

It was simply the power of distortion concentrated within that red spear.

The shockwave of that distortion shook Eloa's very core each time their weapons clashed.

It was for the same reason that Eloa, confident in close combat and sword wrestling, had initially avoided ultra-close combat.

Eloa swallowed her saliva and swung her sword repeatedly.

With each swing, a surging shockwave spread from the tip of her sword to the soles of her feet, coursing through her entire body.

Her sense of balance was shattered as if her cochlea had malfunctioned, and her vision swayed as if submerged in water.

Her breathing, which should have been steady, became irregular and tangled, and even her heart began to beat arrhythmically.

At first, it was merely nausea, but as the engagement lengthened, the sensation gradually shifted into the realm of pain.

-HUUUNG!

A spear swung horizontally in a wide arc aimed at her head.

Eloa leaned her waist back to evade it.

The moment the spearhead grazed past above her, a red barrier appeared as if tracing the spear's trajectory and poured down upon Eloa.

Already with her center of gravity broken, Eloa desperately twisted her body to avoid it.

Despite that effort, the barrier that grazed her shoulder sent a pain through her brain as if her body were being torn apart from the inside.

"Ugh...!"

Enduring pain that threatened to turn her mind hazy, Eloa barely managed to hold her ground.

Creating distance, she assessed her wound.

"Haa... Haa...!"

The wound itself was extremely shallow.

She thought her arm might have been ripped off entirely, but the wound itself was merely a scratch as if grazed by a tree branch.

Yet, this brief skirmish alone was enough to heighten Eloa's sense of caution.

Strengthened through several Contracts, and having established her very existence to avoid being toyed with by distortion.

Eloa's current body possessed durability close to that of a walking fortress, both magically and physically.

For such a Spirit Body to be injured by a barrier she would have considered a mere byproduct...

Thinking about it, it was strange from the start how excessively she was affected by the Distortion Field.

During their previous clash, she had certainly felt the Distortion Field, but back then, it was merely dizziness akin to seasickness.

It wasn't to the level where she couldn't even cross swords and had to repel it, like now.

"Hoo..."

The Enemy Knight she had reunited with had become a far more formidable foe than anticipated.

All of Eloa's Magic and attacks were specialized for close combat.

Therefore, the Red Branch, which imposed a tremendous burden simply by dividing the number of exchanges, was a poor match for her.

Eloa steadied her wavering mind with a deep breath.

Her heart, which had rippled with agitation, soon became clear like a still, reflective pond.

After all, nothing changes by being agitated.

She simply assessed the situation and made the best judgment.

To minimize contact between their weapons, she inevitably had to use her feet more.

Not stubbornly holding her position, she would retreat when pushed and press in when trying to pull back.

Should she expend another Contract?

Was it the right decision to pour all her remaining magic power into dealing with the Enemy Knight?

Despite holding a clear Initiative, the Enemy Knight did not press Eloa but instead retreated.

Instead, standing its ground, it raised its spear and began to shout.

"D—-D——Drivat—-!"

Eloa could only be astonished for another reason.

Because from within the dark space beneath the crimson helmet came a sound resembling human language.

Homunculi that live for long periods gradually develop distinct egos.

But using a language with meaning and structure, not mere cries, was something unheard of and unseen.

"Drivat—- Lajak—-!!"

An incomprehensible language mixed with guttural sounds.

No, was it closer to a song?

With a harsh sound like scraping steel, a crimson barrier extended from the Red Branch.

At first, thinking it an attack, she prepared to counter, but the barrier instead embedded itself in various places, as if taking root beyond Eloa's shoulders.

"This is...!"

Eloa looked around.

Space was distorting.

Reality was being eroded.

No matter that it was a place where five tunnels converged, being an underground space meant its area was limited.

But now, it had transformed into an immense expanse, as if viewing an image refracted through a lens.

Even more bizarre was that the process of this change could not be observed at all.

As if this place had always been like this from the start, she came to her senses to find it altered.

Eloa looked around, taking in the rainwater tunnel that had transformed to be wider and taller than a domed soccer stadium.

"——-Yatholot!"

The moment the Enemy Knight struck the ground with the tip of its spear.

The barriers that had spread to every nook and cranny all vanished simultaneously.

Silence fell.

"Siwoo..."

Sudden silence often accompanies an ominous future.

Eloa looked back at Siwoo, who was preparing an escape via coordinate transfer.

It was to let him escape first.

But Siwoo was not there.

Considering there was no sign of Magic being used, he likely hadn't run away first.

Another anomaly caught the eye of the bewildered Eloa.

The White Knights she had defeated until now.

The ones that had already become wreckage rolling on the ground began to reassemble as if rewinding.

-Gk... Gkeuk... Gk Gk...!

The Enemy Knight laughed again, making an unpleasant sound.

The ability of the Red Branch was 'Distortion'.

A Ceremonial Artifact of rebellion against heaven, twisting even a fixed past and defying destiny and natural law.

The Red Branch, for which the Cowardly Witch sacrificed thousands of humans and five Witches to draw out its potential to the utmost, had reached a level where it could resurrect replicated Homunculi.

A paranormal phenomenon transcending cause, effect, and providence had completely restored all the Homunculi that had been destroyed.

Almost without a time lag, hundreds of White Knights poured out from the passageways.

Clank clank clank clank clank clank.

Clank clank clank clank clank clank.

Clank clank clank clank clank clank.

Clank clank clank clank clank clank.Clank clank clank clank clank clank.

The sound of boots and weapons clashing, filling the vast space with a steady rhythm.

Amidst a noise so deafening it made one's ears feel numb, nearly all the White Knights under Sochil's command had gathered in one place.

Solely to hunt Eloah Tiferet.

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Fan art provided by Quemong-nim…!

It's Duke Tiferet, calling for Raphi in sorrow!

You can also check it out at the Quemong Art Workshop!