CHAPTER 497: IS THIS THEIR POWER... THEIR TRUE STRENGTH...?

No one knew how much time had passed, but in one corner of the royal palace, the raging flames that had laid waste to everything finally began to die down.

Now, the once devastated corridor had been reduced to complete ruins, scattered across the charred ground, resembling a scene left behind by a great disaster.

"HAAAAAAAAH—!"

In the center of the smoldering ruins stood Gawain, her body swollen to a giant form and soaked in blood. Her eyes burned red, and an extremely dangerous aura radiated from her, turning her roar into a storm that swept in all directions.

Scattered across the ruins, several figures lay sprawled on the ground, groaning in pain.

"Ugh..."

Tristan struggled weakly, trying to get up, but no matter how many times she tried, she failed to stand.

Her princess-like dress had been completely burned away, leaving her unexpectedly graceful figure exposed to the air. Her fair skin was now scorched and blackened, clearly showing she had been caught in Gawain’s attack and was badly wounded.

*Cough!* *Cough!*

Artoria also struggled to her feet, but she managed to stand.

Thanks to the protective layers formed by Liv Ilusio and Veil Breath, which still covered her, although Artoria had been caught in Gawain’s attack, most of the damage was blocked by the two layers of light. Only a small portion reached Artoria’s body, so she was not as severely injured as Tristan.

Even though her figure wavered slightly and her clothing had been torn and tattered, she remained standing.

Lancelot, on the other hand, had disappeared.

It seemed that she had managed to escape into the air just in time the moment Gawain’s ’horn’ swung down, breaking free of the attack range.

As for Riezel, just like Artoria, he was protected by Liv Ilusio and Veil Breath as well, and a layer of Ariel’s wind barrier also shielded him from harm.

In addition, he also possessed resistance to fire-attribute attacks, so although he had been caught in Gawain’s onslaught and was even one of her primary targets, his injuries were not too severe. Other than his somewhat pale complexion, he appeared largely unaffected.

Naturally, this somewhat unaffected Riezel had now caught Gawain’s attention.

"Riezel... BRYNHAAART—!!!"

As her body continued to swell, Gawain seemed to have completely lost her reason. Roaring furiously, she gripped her ’horn,’ now transformed into a flaming blade, and swung it down at Riezel, whose height barely reached her knee, without a word.

*BOOOOM—!!!*

Terrifying flames erupted once more, like a volcano violently spewing molten fire, spreading destruction across the battlefield.

In the storm of fire, the naked Tristan was blown away like a piece of trash, while the unsteady Artoria, nearly caught in the massive explosion, was hurled through the air by the blast until she crashed into a chunk of debris, finally stopping her backward flight.

"Riezel!"

Artoria struggled to rise again but soon collapsed back to the ground.

It wasn’t just because of her injuries, but because suddenly, her magical energy was being drained as well.

"W-What’s happening?"

Panic washed over Artoria.

She found that her magical energy had gone completely out of her control, as though some invisible beast was devouring it, drawing it away bit by bit.

Indeed, that beast was none other than Gawain, who had lost all reason and entered a berserk state.

"She... Is she absorbing my magical energy...?"

Artoria finally realized what was happening.

Absorbing magical energy wasn’t a new ability Gawain had gained in this state—in fact, she had always possessed this ability—to absorb her enemy’s magical energy, weakening them rapidly during battle until they could no longer fight.

As for why this ability hadn’t manifested during her battle with Riezel, it wasn’t because Gawain hadn’t used it, but because it was ineffective against him.

Riezel’s resistance to abnormal statuses and immunity to physical interference had perfectly countered Gawain’s magical energy absorption during their fight, rendering it useless. But now, with her power surging uncontrollably, her ability had likewise spiraled out of control, targeting not only Riezel but all nearby living beings.

For that reason, Artoria could feel her magical energy being drained, fueling Gawain’s growing strength, which made her even more powerful.

"No!"

Artoria, unsure whether Riezel could withstand this ability, forced herself to move, whipping her body into action to help him, but before she could manage to stand strong, a voice rang out first.

"Magic spear, penetrate my forehead offering blood."

With this chant, low as if rising from the depths of the earth, a surge of terrifying power rose from the flames, shooting straight into the sky.

"Wind Breathing - Fourth Form - Rising Dust Storm!"

In the next moment, a violent whirlwind burst forth from the flames, spiraling upward as well. It scattered the fire and turned into blades of wind that slashed toward Gawain.

*BOOOM!*

In that instant, the whirlwind struck, exploding on contact with Gawain.

*Thud!* *Thud!* *Thud!*

Hit by the wind blades, Gawain staggered backward uncontrollably, each heavy step smashing the ground beneath her feet.

"Ugh—AAAAAAHHHHHHH—!!!"

Riezel’s attack seemed to drive Gawain into an even more frenzied state, as the ’horn’ in her hands swelled even larger, now resembling a pillar of fire as she swung it toward the swordsman standing upon the scorched earth.

*BOOOOM—!!!*

A deafening roar echoed throughout Camelot as flames erupted from the royal palace for the third time, shaking both the land and the skies.

Such an overwhelming attack—had it been anyone else, they would not have been able to withstand it, not even Lancelot.

Unfortunately, it was a fire-attribute attack, which Riezel was able to resist.

As a result, amid the raging flames, Riezel’s wind-cloaked figure shot forth at incredible speed, dashing out of the flames.

Riezel’s eyes, like Gawain’s, had turned crimson.

A wild aura radiated from him as well, though, unlike Gawain, he had not lost his reason.

"Wind Breathing - Seventh Form - Gale, Sudden Gusts!"

Riezel swept past Gawain in a flash and struck fiercely, unleashing several tornado-shaped spiral wind blades that tore toward her.

*BANG!* *BANG!* *BANG!* *BANG!*

With each strike of the wind blades, Gawain was forced farther and farther back, unable to steady herself.

*BOOOM—!!!*

Eventually, the enraged beast within Gawain lashed out even more violently with the ’horn,’ sending waves of flames roaring forth and devastating the ground and surroundings again and again, turning the entire area into a deadly zone that no one could approach.

Within this perilous zone, Tristan’s figure had long vanished—perhaps she had escaped using Opposing Mirrors, or perhaps she had been buried beneath rubble and debris. It was even possible that her body had been completely destroyed, leaving not even a single intact remnant behind.

Artoria was also caught in the terrifying shockwaves of the attack.

If not for a white meteor streaking down from the sky to take her away, she might have shared Tristan’s fate.

Only Riezel, protected by magic such as Ariel, Liv Ilusio, and Veil Breath, and with his resistance to fire-attribute attacks, ignored the searing flames on his body.

Moving at astonishing speed, he continuously evaded the direct strikes of the ’horn’ while circling rapidly around Gawain, darting through the sea of flames.

"Triplet Maximize Magic - Reality Slash!"

Three space-cleaving slashes struck Gawain, breaking through her defenses and drawing blood from her chest, abdomen, and side.

"Triplet Maximize Magic - Call Greater Thunder!"

Three massive bolts of lightning, each containing countless electric currents, descended from the sky and crashed into Gawain.

Bathed in lightning, her body was scorched, and black smoke rose from her.

"Triplet Maximize Magic - Brilliant Radiance!"

"Triplet Maximize Magic - True Dark!"

"Triplet Maximize Magic - Vermilion Nova!"

"Triplet Over Magic - Magic Arrow!"

In an instant, one magic circle after another appeared around Gawain’s massive body, spewing brilliant light, unleashing darkness like a dark abyss, while crimson flames surged from the ground, and countless light arrows shot out one after another, striking Gawain and forcing her to retreat repeatedly under the bombardment.

After the battle at Salisbury, Riezel’s ’Mage’ and ’Magic Chant’ had both leveled up, advancing by one rank. Combined with the Mystic Code granted by Morgan, which, once equipped, directly boosted the power of Riezel’s magic by fifty percent, his already formidable magic power had grown even stronger.

Under such circumstances, with Riezel releasing high-tier, highly destructive magic as if fueled by limitless magical energy, the damage these magic spells could inflict was self-evident.

Even though Gawain, as the highest-ranked fairy, possessed extremely high-level magic resistance, under Riezel’s near-reckless barrage of magic, she could not avoid being blasted until blood gushed from her entire body.

Before long, the armor on Gawain’s body became tattered, and blood streamed down her massive body, dyeing her in crimson.

"RIEZEL... BRYNHAAART—!!!"

Gawain wailed and fell into a frenzy as she felt the immense pain from the damage.

Having completely lost her reason, her body swelled larger and larger, her gaze now fixed solely on Riezel as she relied only on pure combat instinct, relentlessly pursuing Riezel and swinging her ’horn’ at him.

Compared to Riezel’s magic, it was Gawain’s attacks that truly held the power to destroy everything.

If this rampage continued, it would not take long for the entire royal palace to be reduced to rubble.

Seeing that potential outcome, Riezel, though already covered in wounds, decided to unleash something big.

*Zing—!*

A red magic circle appeared beneath Riezel’s feet.

*BOOOM—!!!*

Gawain sensed this and desperately pursued, slamming her flaming blade into the ground and shattering it completely.

Within the collapsing ground, Riezel, his entire body wrapped in wind, flashed through the falling debris—sometimes stepping over the fragments, sometimes weaving and dodging with agility—moving so swiftly he seemed almost like the wind itself before beginning his chant.

"Proud warriors, snipers of the forest."

It was a concurrent chant.

It was a wide-area annihilation magic belonging to a certain fairy girl from the Loki Familia, the one who bore the alias ’Thousand Elf.’

Riezel chanted this magic while darting through the collapsing terrain.

"Take up your bows before the advancing plunderers."

"Answer the call of your brethren and ready your arrows. Tinge them with flame, the lamplight of the forest."

"Release them, the fire arrows of the fairies."

"Falling like rain, burn away the savages."

A red magic circle appeared beneath Riezel and then floated behind him.

"Penetrate Maximize Magic - Fusillade Fallarica!"

As the magic was simultaneously enhanced by Metamagic Enhancements, Riezel unleashed it at that moment.

*Buzz—!*

Behind Riezel, the red magic circle instantly expanded at high speed, trembling as it did.

Soon, a rain of fire descended.

*BOOM!* *BOOM!* *BOOM!* *BOOM!*

*BOOM!* *BOOM!* *BOOM!* *BOOM!*

*BOOM!* *BOOM!* *BOOM!* *BOOM!*

*BOOM!* *BOOM!* *BOOM!* *BOOM!*

As the rain of fire surged forth from the red magic circle, transforming into a barrage of bombardments that shot across the ground and rained down upon Gawain, a series of deafening explosions echoed through the sky without pause.

Ceaselessly bombarding Gawain, the rain of fire continued shattering her armor and searing her massive body, leaving this Fairy Knight, who had somehow regained a hint of her former self, utterly overwhelmed by the relentless barrage of firepower.

As the flames engulfed Gawain, she suffered severe injuries, causing agonized howls to escape her lips.

Fusillade Fallarica, though slightly weaker in power than Rea Laevateinn, was a wide-area annihilation magic of the fire attribute which, when released by Riezel in his current state, possessed power far exceeding that of ordinary Super-Tier Magic or even Tactical-Class Magic—enough to level an entire town.

In other words, the destructive force and damage of this strike had already surpassed Gawain’s horn, finally overwhelming her and sending her crashing onto the collapsing ground below, her body drenched in blood.

*Whoosh—!*

In the next moment, a wind blew past.

A swordsman, his body wrapped in wind and wielding a sword as thin as a cicada’s wing, shot out from the collapsing underground and leaped high into the air.

"Tempest."

Fierce winds surged around the thin, translucent blade, the howling never ceasing.

"Tempest!"

As soon as this chant resounded, the fierce winds became a storm, and the storm became a hurricane, turning the figure soaring through the sky into a god of wind, completely disrupting the atmosphere for several kilometers around.

*Whoosh—!!!*

Over time, as the air howled and surged inward, it continuously fed the hurricane that spiraled around the young swordsman, making it grow larger and stronger.

In no time, the hurricane expanded enough to cover the entire royal palace, sweeping away countless fragments of stone and debris, along with sand and flames.

In the next second, the hurricane came crashing down.

"Lil Rafaga!"

With a name that hardly fit its power, the massive hurricane plunged straight into the earth, overturning layers of rock and piercing deep underground.

*BOOOOM—!!!*

Lying on the ground, Gawain raised her head.

As she watched the hurricane filling her entire vision, the crimson light in her eyes regained a fleeting clarity.

"HAAAAAAAAHHHHH—!!!"

With a fierce roar, Gawain abandoned resistance and defense.

It was as though she refused to surrender or perhaps sought to seize one last fleeting chance at victory. Flames erupted from the ’horn’ she raised, far more intense than anything she had unleashed before, and surged toward the figure within the hurricane.

The moment the attack was released, its power was proven by the rapidly evaporating air and the lethal heat that soared instantly. If the descending hurricane collided with this earth-shattering blaze, it would have been impossible to predict which would prevail.

Riezel, who was not in Strong Attack Mode and lacked overwhelming strength, simply stuck to the tactics of Fast Attack Mode, which meant avoiding direct confrontation.

Because of this, the falling hurricane suddenly veered, using its speed and agility to narrowly dodge the searing flames that could have vaporized everything.

As the sword of flame swept past, the heat waves it stirred nearly dispersed the hurricane.

Fortunately, Riezel withstood it.

"———!"

At the very last moment, Riezel shouted a ’name’ toward Gawain below—a ’name’ known to only a rare few.

"!!!"

Hearing that name, Gawain’s expression changed sharply, and then, amidst her crazed look, a quiet trace of relief appeared.

*Pu-chi!*

In the end, the hurricane struck Gawain, and the sword, thin as a cicada’s wing and carried by the force of the wind, pierced straight through her chest as Riezel shot forward like an arrow.

*Rumble—!!!*

In the next second, the ground continued to collapse and crumble, eventually caving in completely, leaving a massive crater in front of the royal palace, as though it had been struck by a meteor.

Compared to the large pit on the other side of the royal palace, this crater might still have seemed small.

However, one should know that it was created by a battle between just two people.

From that day on, every fairy who came to the royal palace would see this crater and remember the two swordmasters who fought like gods.

It left an unforgettable mark on their hearts, lasting until the destruction of Faerie Britain.

===

As the tremors that had raged through the entire royal palace, and even all of Camelot, finally began to subside, countless fairies who had been hiding in the corners under the protection of soldiers cautiously peeked out one after another.

"I-Is it over?"

One of the fairies muttered, his timid and shaken expression making him look especially pitiful, and even his voice had grown careful and hesitant.

"...Looks like it’s over."

"...Yeah."

Spriggan and Aurora were among them, exchanging a glance with complex expressions.

It was not just Spriggan and Aurora—even Woodwose could not help but clench his fists with a complex expression.

Just thinking about that earth-shattering clash from earlier made even someone like Woodwose feel a faint sense of dread, yet that only fueled the frustration building up inside him.

"Is this their power... their true strength...?"

Woodwose growled under his breath, fists clenched tightly.

"Damn it!"

It was an unwilling roar born from the bitterness of knowing he was no match.

Morgan paid no attention to Woodwose and simply gazed out into the distance, as if she could see that figure beyond, remaining silent for a long time.