r18novel Chapter 317: The Situation Reverses
Chapter 317: The Situation Reverses
Seeing Loraviel’s state, Oester could hardly suppress the smirk on his face.
The one eroding the holy sword was Lawei, who represented the plague. It could spread all kinds of illnesses. Even now, after so many years, some terrifying plagues still had no antidote. Not to mention, directly touching its blood... without the protection of sacred magic, death was certain, without doubt.
“This is... a poison I’ve never felt before.” Loraviel’s head was spinning, but her instincts made her feel unusually excited.
This poison was strong.
By this point, even the world’s strongest poisons would no longer produce any negative effects in Loraviel. But now, one has appeared that could make her severely dizzy...
Loraviel suddenly understood why Lady Ambis had specifically chosen her for this task.
Lady Ambis had learned about her unique constitution from Teacher Orleya. And Lady Ambis was the first person to find this holy sword and bring it here. That meant Lady Ambis absolutely knew what was on the holy sword and what was wrong with it. It was precisely because of this constitution that Lady Ambis had let her be the one to pick it up.
This was the best chance to prove herself to Lady Ambis. Loraviel could not miss it.
But against this unknown toxin, Loraviel needed time to adapt.
Loraviel had thought she was already accustomed to pain, that she had become numb to it. But this time, she was experiencing that feeling all over again. This point alone proved this was far stronger than any she had encountered before.
Did Princess Mephilia remain unaffected because she was protected by sacred magic? Does that mean this poison... comes from demonkind?
“Are you okay?” Loraviel could faintly hear Princess Mephilia’s voice.
She wanted to answer, but forget speaking; her body was completely out of her control. Blood was oozing from her skin, a frightening sight. But Loraviel has slowly accustomed herself to this new pain. Pain was something she was used to enduring countless times to train her ability.
In Mephilia’s eyes, however, Loraviel’s condition was terrible, even dangerous. She used sacred magic to treat her. “Loraviel, what’s wrong?”
Mephilia could see that Loraviel was unable to move. There could only be one reason why. Mephilia reached out, intending to take the holy sword from Loraviel’s hand.
“The thing I least wanted to see has happened...” Oester said with great pity. “This is why I didn’t want a stranger touching the holy sword. For things to develop to this point... sigh.”
Oester thought, Mephilia could regret it all she wanted. If not for her letting go, Loraviel wouldn’t have been in a position to pick up the holy sword. Oester’s original target had been Mephilia.
Possessing sacred magic, she was a great threat, just like the holy sword. He had originally planned to deal with Mephilia today. Even if she had a Judge protecting her, as long as he dealt with Mephilia and destroyed part of the holy sword, even Liana couldn’t stir up any waves.
But Ambis’s appearance had disrupted all his plans. Now, only the part about destroying the holy sword was still in progress. But Oester wasn’t willing to end it just like that, so he chose to drag Loraviel down into the water.
Mephilia had no time to pay attention to Oester. She used sacred magic as much as possible to alleviate Loraviel’s suffering, but she wasn’t that worried about her. Sister Ambis was still watching, but she hadn’t chosen to come over and help. She probably had her reasons.
Mephilia reached out, intending to take the holy sword away.
“Don’t... move...” Loraviel squeezed the words from between her teeth.
This made Oester’s expression change.
She can still talk? And after so much time, why is she still alive?
He had specifically tested this, even with a High Executor. Forget this long; the High Executor hadn’t even lasted a minute before losing all signs of life.
“I understand. I’ll protect you. If you need anything, just say it.” Mephilia now understood what she had to do.
“That’s enough, isn’t it? We can’t let this foolishness continue.” Oester was getting anxious.
Mephilia stood in front of Loraviel. “You seem to be in a hurry.”
“How can I not be? With the holy sword in this state, how can I not be?” Oester’s words were reasonable, but Mephilia wasn’t listening.
“I won’t bother hiding and tucking away, and speak hypocritical words to you. The reason I let go just now was because I felt a sense of wrongness on the holy sword. At first, I didn’t realize what it was. Now, I’m certain. It’s the aura of demonkind. The demonic aura on the holy sword is repelling my sacred magic,” Mephilia said.
“That’s just your personal opinion, isn’t it? The fact is, I picked up the holy sword, and you didn’t. Are you someone who cannot afford to lose, Mephilia?” Oester demanded.
“If I couldn’t afford to lose, I wouldn’t have given up my status as heir.” Mephilia looked at him coldly. “The one who can’t afford to lose is someone else. Someone who knows they can’t win and can only use low-class tricks.”
“Stop this demonic talk that bewilder the masses!”
“Hahahah...” Oester’s words made Mephilia laugh. How did he have the face to say that?
“With the holy sword in this state, even if you are Mephilia, I cannot back down. This is for the good of the entire Lisat Kingdom!” A weapon appeared in Oester’s hand.
“Then... come on.” A staff appeared in Mephilia’s hand. “I’d also like to see just how big the gap between us is.”
“Princess Mephilia.” Oester’s guardian knight, Rulunas, spoke up.
“You have no right to speak here. Let the children handle their own affairs,” Ambis said. Though she hadn’t moved, just standing there and speaking was enough to make Rulunas shut his mouth.
Oester and Rulunas exchanged a look. Oester knew he was on his own now. If Ambis made a move, the problem would be even worse.
Was time on his side? Oester no longer knew.
Before, he had been happy to stall for time. But now, with this sudden development, Loraviel was fine, and from the sound of it, she might have a solution.
He could only deal with Mephilia before Loraviel solved the problem.
Unfortunately, Mephilia was not the Mephilia of the past. After learning what happened to Liana, she had trained even harder.
Although Oester had the advantage of age, had practiced magic for much longer, and had slightly more magic, he definitely couldn’t take down Mephilia in a short time. Unless... he used a forbidden power.
Is it too early? And Ambis is watching...
Unless he had no other choice, Oester wouldn’t use that power.
But Mephilia wasn’t in a good spot either. She was encumbered by having to protect Loraviel.
“The holy sword is already like this, and I’ve tried to speak to you nicely. You forced me.” Oester raised his hand. This method might expose him, but he couldn’t worry about that now.
Mephilia instantly realized what Oester was trying to do. She looked back at Loraviel. Sure enough, the holy sword in Loraviel’s hand was acting strangely.
A strange black aura was now coming from the holy sword.
Mephilia’s face darkened. “You let the holy sword be eroded by demonkind! You sinners!”
She quickly used sacred magic to suppress the demonic aura on the holy sword, but this exposed her back to a very dangerous position.
【Loraviel, Durandal... that’s the holy sword’s name.】 Princess Liana’s voice suddenly entered her mind.
“Durandal...” Loraviel mumbled.
After saying those two words, the holy sword’s sacred light instantly dispelled all the demonic aura on it.
Oester’s eyes widened. Why?
Not only was the poison useless against her, but the hidden demonic aura had been completely dispelled.
Loraviel panted heavily. Her condition was not good. Blood was still dripping from her fingertips, showing no sign of stopping.
This wasn’t just a plague; it was attached to demonic erosion. Loraviel had to endure the pain of the plague and maintain her sanity to keep from being eroded by the demon.
Fortunately, it seems she finally earned the holy sword’s recognition. And... Princess Liana helped her again. °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° Although she didn’t know how she heard her voice, hearing her say the holy sword’s name was a huge help.
Loraviel looked at Oester. “Come on. Now, let’s see if you can pick up the holy sword. Let’s see if you can pick up Durandal.”
Oester’s expression was ugly. He knew he was now riding a tiger, hard to dismount.1骑虎难下 (qí hǔ nán xià), in a difficult to escape trouble He definitely couldn’t pick up the holy sword now. It might even expose his identity.
“What’s wrong? Don’t you love showing off your status as the holy sword’s wielder? I’m giving it back to you now. Why don’t you dare take it?” Loraviel asked.
“It seems I misunderstood you. You are indeed qualified to wield the holy sword,” Oester smiled.
“You don’t dare? Are you afraid of what you’ve done being exposed? Or do you know very well that you are not worthy to pick it up?” Loraviel wasn’t going to let Oester off.
“What are you saying?” Oester’s expression was grim. His mind was racing. No matter how he looked at it, this was not good for him.
“Durandal... the holy sword. It was being eroded by Lawei, a plague demon. For a long time, they were in a state of relative balance. But not long ago, someone used a demonic aura to break that balance. Who could it be? It’s so hard to guess,” Loraviel said, staring at Oester.