CHAPTER 274: I AM A FAN OF HAPPY ENDINGS [PART 2]

Seeing Kael charge at him a second time, the wide grin on the Barbarian King’s face grew bigger. The more he saw the Verdant Throne’s power, the greater his interest in possessing it grew.

According to legend, the one who managed to wield its power would become near-immortal, break the limits of mortality, and transcend to a higher form of existence!

’I must have it!’ The Barbarian King’s eyes locked on the green gem embedded on Kael’s forehead. ’I’ll cut off that head and make it mine!’

With a sinister grin on his face, he once again clashed with the young man, whom he had just been toying with since their fight began.

Truth be told, Kael’s fighting ability was brutally honest. In other words, reading his moves was no different from reading an open book.

Obviously, the young man had very limited experience in killing people, which the Barbarian King had plenty of.

But this time, things were different.

Kael didn’t hesitate.

He had shed all forms of defense and simply focused on attacking.

He didn’t flinch.

He didn’t defend.

He simply swung.

The hammer struck the Barbarian King’s sword with a deafening clang that reverberated across the battlefield.

However, unlike before, the impact forced the Barbarian King’s stance to buckle ever so slightly.

The King’s eyes narrowed. "That’s new."

Kael’s body moved with newfound sharpness.

Latifa’s coordination made every step precise and every pivot fluid.

His shield, once a dead weight, now acted on its own. Alex was the one parrying the incoming sword strikes, perfectly timing his deflection to avoid disrupting Kael’s rhythm.

Yvraine’s blessings poured through his body, empowering her beloved with her love and dedication.

The coordination of four consciousness working as one made a big difference, their tacit understanding constantly growing the more they fought as one.

The Barbarian King’s relentless slashes met with deflections that turned his momentum against him.

Each time he raised his sword, Kael’s hammer struck back, heavy and brutal, chipping away at the King’s guard.

’He’s still a greenhorn,’ The Barbarian King thought, stepping back, "So why am I being pushed back?’

He could easily read Kael’s attack patterns, but his footwork would suddenly become unpredictable at the last moment, making his strikes change their pattern at the last moment.

Latifa was a Celestial Walker.

Her fighting style was different from others.

However, Alex knew how deadly she was.

At full strength with five tails, Latifa could split her consciousness into five forms.

It was similar to having a full raiding team with a magician, a swordsman, a defender, a supporter, and another attacker working seamlessly together.

She was the one merging everyone’s wills together to act as a single entity, and also the one responsible for Kael’s uncanny movement patterns, making his predictable attacks... suddenly become unpredictable!

The Barbarian King clicked his tongue in annoyance.

His aura surged once more, a crimson vortex spiraling around him as he reinforced his stance. Due to his overwhelming strength, those who were too close were affected and found themselves pushed back by intangible pressure.

Each swing of his sword could cleave through boulders like paper, but no matter how ferocious his strikes, Everguard deflected and blocked them, negating a lot of the force behind them.

Alex was an expert in Dungeon Raids and had been reading the Barbarian King’s attack patterns and mannerisms.

His interventions were perfectly timed, turning lethal blows into harmless glancing strikes.

Latifa’s delicate control of Kael’s footing made his movements fluid, adjusting in micro-seconds to exploit the smallest openings.

Yvraine’s continuous blessings mended every grazing wound caused by the Barbarian King’s sharp aura before it could become a weakness.

For the first time in the battle, the Barbarian King’s smile faltered.

He was now fighting seriously against an opponent whom he had reluctantly recognized as his equal!

The dance of death continued as gusts of wind expanded outward with each clash.

This time, it wasn’t Kael being pushed back.

The Barbarian King slowly lost ground as Kael’s attack caught momentum.

Each blow seemed to connect with the other, each step a continuation of the last.

"Hammer for all Seasons...Eighth Form!" Kael roared.

"Avalanche Crush!"

A series of high-speed, heavy blows forced the Barbarian King to take a few steps back as he used his sword to block against them.

"Die, dwarf!" The Barbarian King took his stand and unleashed a full-powered overhead strike, wanting to cut the dwarf and his shield in half.

But Kael didn’t falter and faced it head-on.

"Hammer for all Seasons... Sixth Form!" Kael growled as he prepared to unleash a counter-attack, leaving his defense to Alex.

Everguard clashed with the Barbarian’s attack, making the ground under the young man’s feet shatter as the shield and his body absorbed the impact of the deadly strike.

After a successful block, Kael roared as he used the absorbed impact to launch a crushing hammerstrike at his foe!

"Stoneheart Bastion!"

A grunt escaped the Barbarian King’s lips as Kael landed his very first attack on his opponent’s body.

Not wanting to waste this opportunity, he once again stomped his foot on the ground follow-up attack.

He understood that he might not get this opportunity ever again, so he pushed his body to the limit as he prepared his final blow.

Current Synchronization Rate: 98%

He would need everything he had to unleash the most powerful attack of the Hammer of all Seasons, leaving no room for any mistake.

"Hammer for all Season’s Ultimate Form!"

The golden flames on his hammer burned brighter, and the green aura surrounding his body turned golden as well.

With every bit of strength in his body, Kael swung his hammer, putting everything on the line.

The Barbarian King hurriedly used his sword to block the attack, using every bit of his aura in order to minimize the damage he would take from this devastating attack.

However, as he took a step back in order to gain a proper foothold to parry the attack, he stepped on something hard and round, breaking his stance completely!

Dim Dim, who was watching the battle a while ago, had tossed a steel ball on the Barbarian King’s foot with perfect accuracy at the critical moment.

The loss of balance had left the Barbarian King’s body wide open, which Kael didn’t miss!

"Fortress Breaaaaaaaaaaaaaaker!"

A second later, a powerful explosion occurred as golden flames rose to the sky, transforming into a dragon, whose roar could be heard from miles on end.

The powerful Barbarian King’s body was burned to a crisp and crashed on the ground, breaking into countless pieces.

The Barbarians who saw everything from start to finish looked at the outcome of the battle with wide eyes.

They couldn’t believe what they were seeing, but when they confirmed that the Barbarian King was no more, all of them ran away in panic.

The Minotaurs also lost the will to fight and retreated in haste.

As for the Dwarves, they raised their weapons and cheered!

"We won!"

"Long live the princess!"

"Long live Kael!"

"Long Live the Verdant Throne!"

Alex and Latifa finally regained control of their bodies, prompting the young lady to materialize once more.

However, a smile could be seen on her face as she hugged Alex tightly.

"We won!" Latifa shouted. "Alex, we won!"

"Yes, we did," Alex replied as he patted the young lady’s back.

Latifa then pulled back and gazed at Alex’s face.

———

Synchronization Rate increased by 1%

Current Synchronization Rate: 99%

Note: What are you waiting for, buddy? It’s now or never!

———

Alex felt himself being drawn to Latifa’s lips, and the latter was being drawn to his as well.

Both of them felt that there was nothing wrong with what they were about to do, especially under the influence of synchronization.

Perhaps, Kael and Princess Yvraine wished to seal this moment with a kiss, which would have been the perfect ending.

But just as Alex and Latifa were about to kiss, Alex used all of his willpower to raise his hand and press it over the young lady’s lips, which in turn made him kiss the back of his own fingers.

The young man wished for nothing more than to kiss one of his Queens, but he didn’t want it to happen under the influence of their synchronization.

He refused to kiss her in this manner!

They had their eyes closed the whole time, which was very normal when two people kissed each other.

So when Latifa opened her eyes and discovered that her lips were against Alex’s fingers, she felt both relief and disappointment at the same time.

Relief and even gratitude because Alex didn’t take advantage of their current situation to give her a kiss.

And yet, disappointed because she felt an ache in her chest for reasons that she was starting to discover on her own.

But just as the young man was about to say something, he felt a presence not far from them, which made him look in that direction.

There, he saw two dwarves he had never met until now. And yet, he felt like he had known them for years.

It was none other than the real Kael and Princess Yvraine, hugging each other with tears streaming down the sides of their faces.

The two then pressed their lips together, sharing a kiss that had transcended space and time.

Their kiss didn’t last for more than a few seconds. However, Alex and Latifa felt that this was the happy ending they had envisioned for the two of them.

"Thank you," Kael said as he turned to face Alex and Latifa. "We are finally free."

"If there is an opportunity to meet in the future, I will do my best to repay this debt," Princess Yvraine said before bowing toward the two teenagers.

They had set her and her beloved free from the never-ending struggle they had experienced for the past hundreds of years.

"Also, Latifa, there’s nothing wrong with dreaming," Princess Yvraine said softly. "But no matter how beautiful the dream is, everyone will have to wake up to reality at some point in time.

"Even if reality is ugly, even if it is painful—not all of it is bad. After all, no one can live alone in this world."

The Princess gave the young lady a wink before leaning her head on Kael’s shoulder with a sweet smile on her face.

"Alex, um, during the merging earlier, I saw your memories," Kael scratched the back of his head. "I’m sure Latifa also saw some of your memories, just like how you saw hers. I won’t say much, but... you, sir, should be careful. Especially when it comes to ladies."

"If I don’t go to hell, who will?" Alex answered, fully knowing what the young dwarf was implying. "But I’m sure that even though this journey is full of thorns, I will not regret anything as long as I live my life to the fullest."

Kael nodded. "I’m sure you will. After all, this world holds endless possibilities. May ’The World’ watch over you and your journey. Goodbye. If destiny permits it, we shall meet again."

The two dwarves once again hugged each other and turned into particles of light.

Their story had finally come to an end, and Alex and Latifa both wished that wherever the two of them would go, they would be together in the next continuation of their story.

Dim Dim watched this scene from a distance and also pressed its hands together in prayer.

Although it was a God, it had no control over the cycle of reincarnation.

So, it prayed and hoped that Kael and Princess Yvraine would have the happy ending they deserved in their next life.

As Alex looked at the sky, he heard a notification sound inside his head, followed by a blue window screen in front of him.

———

[You Have Completed An Arcana Quest!]

[Quest Name: The War-Forged Past Completed!]

— First part of 3 Chain Quests Complete!

———

Alex smiled faintly but didn’t bother to read the rest since he wasn’t in the mood for it.

Latifa was still holding his hand, and for him, it was more important than the rewards he could ever obtain from clearing the Trial of Morgim.

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A/N: This Chapter is supposed to be posted five minutes after the first Chapter has been posted. I made a mistake with the timer. Although it is late, please enjoy.