Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

The strange black humanoid was not at all sensitive to the sound, but when the Light Orb summoned by Iluna shone on it, it leaped from the sofa onto the floor, then twisted its joints, pressed its limbs to the ground, and crawled like a large insect to a spot behind the sofa that was out of the light, startling Shard and the other two.

"This is the Source of the Curse, exactly as Old John described. We’ve encountered a rare situation; this isn’t a naturally formed Dark Creature, it’s a Source of the Curse transformed from a human!"

Shard spoke, shielding Emilia behind him. Iluna wanted to say something more, but the Light Orb in her hand suddenly went out.

In an instant, darkness enveloped the three of them, an exceptionally powerful Whisper Element swept in, accompanied by a sensation of space transformation.

Amidst the darkness, the faint silver glimmer emitted from Shard acted as guidance, drawing the two women closer to him. Iluna also grabbed Shard’s sleeve, frowning as she looked around:

"The malice here is really intense... look ahead."

A wisp of white light appeared in the darkness, and the space at this moment was no longer the real world. Instead of immediately heading over, Shard first called forth the Moonlight Greatsword, then looked back at Emilia:

"If we start fighting in a moment, be careful."

"Got it."

The Elf Girl hid behind Shard, looking pitiful. It wasn’t an act; she was genuinely frightened. Seeing her like this, Iluna instinctively puffed out her chest, but then quickly realized her emotions were inappropriate and immediately reflected on whether she was being influenced by the surroundings.

The three of them approached the only light in the darkness, discovering upon closer inspection that it was the silhouette of a pure white middle-aged man. He had been silent, but suddenly spoke up as they neared:

"Everything I’ve done so far, has it all been a mistake?"

Iluna looked at Shard, prompting Shard to ask back:

"What did you do?"

"Assisted the Grey Glove in stealing Draleon’s secrets in Tobesk."

"Why do you think it’s a mistake?"

"The Grey Glove said I did this for the peace between our two countries. But during last month’s conflict, my only brother died in the Green Lake Region. My parents died early, I raised him single-handedly, and he was my only family."

The pure white figure looked at Shard:

"Two weeks ago, the Grey Glove issued a Commendation Order to me, thanking me for the information I provided about the movements of the Draleon Royal Army around Green Lake during the negotiations there. It was because of that intelligence that Carsonrick redirected the unit my brother, who was serving in the Carsonrick Army, was in to the border regions ahead of time."

"This..."

The soul reached out as if trying to grab Shard’s shoulder, but Shard dodged it. Iluna’s gaze showed no compassion as she considered the whole situation, while Emilia, hiding behind Shard, peeked over his shoulder, nervously watching the pure white figure.

Only Shard pondered the other man’s tragic story:

"So, you think your brother’s death is related to you?"

"Also related to this terrible dark world."

The pure white figure lowered his head, showing a sad expression:

"So I curse this world, I curse you living people!"

The brightness on him grew more intense, a brutal white light slightly illuminated the surroundings, gradually revealing the figure of a giant black creature crouched behind him.

The creature’s dark form seemed composed of flowing pus, with eyes entirely black, clearly having been watching the three closely since earlier, so much so that its eyes seemed right above their heads.

Without giving them time to react, the creature opened its wide mouth and swallowed the three. But the next moment, their figures reappeared ten meters away, and Shard, attempting his first Spatial Leap with two people, was gasping for breath as he raised the Longsword in his hands:

"Iluna, let’s move. After we settle this, lunch is on me."

The enormous Moonlight Sword Scar was slashed out by the Silver Greatsword, its dazzling arc of light brighter than ever before in the darkness, yet it was blocked by the mutated right hand of that colossal monster as it lifted. In the meantime, Iluna leapt into the air, bringing her hands together to manifest a mighty Golden Thunder Spear.

In Emilia’s astounded gaze, the massive Sunlight Gun pierced through the monster’s body and exploded. Despite its body being largely shattered with Thunder crackling on its surface, the monster still leaped up, seemingly wanting to swallow Iluna mid-air.

The Chains thrown by Shard were faster than it. As the Chains wrapped around its right leg, Shard forcefully pulled with both hands, dragging the monster forcefully back to the ground.

The monster was more than ten times the size of Shard, and perhaps because it was not a purely Flesh creature, the Great Sin Chains were not highly effective on it. The Chains stopped its regeneration, but when the monster landed, it grabbed onto the other end of the Chains, attempting to drag Shard towards it.

Shard, with his feet on the Earth, was not afraid to contest strength with it. Leaning backward slightly with force, the monster stumbled and was dragged forward a certain distance. Emilia hastily extended her hand to help, but as soon as her fair hand touched the Chains, she released her grip as if scalded. Meanwhile, the second Sunlight Gun from Iluna, who had landed, was already launched.

This Sunlight Gun flew parallel to the ground, Golden Thunder exploding in the Dark Space like an Ancient Deity dispelling Evil.

"Aah~"

The monster grappling with Shard opened its mouth wide, forcibly swallowing the Sunlight Gun into its belly. Amidst its screams, the Glimmer transformed into cursed Darkness, accumulating into a sphere similar to a "Shadow Orb" inside its mouth.

It abandoned the Chains in its hand, spewing forth the filth-laden energy at Iluna.

"I’m here!"

Shard originally could seize the chance for a sneak attack, but suddenly realized this was a good opportunity for a trial. Confirming he could fully withstand the Shadow Orb’s lethality, he too abandoned the Chains, appearing in front of Iluna in an Instant, casually throwing out Moonlight:

"Look over here!"

Upon confirming the monster’s mouth was aiming at him, he leapt into the air. With his palms facing upwards, the palms twisted as a faint Starry Sky appeared above him. He tried to grasp the feeling left in his soul by Miss Adel Isabella, recalling the casting manner of the Grand Witch of Time. This was the first attempt to formally use this Arcane Technique:

"Reversion Formula..."

The black Energy Sphere collided with the illusory Starry Sky, and as the Starry Sky shattered like a Mirror, it directly hit Shard and exploded on the spot. As the seemingly gravely injured Shard landed beside Iluna, groaning and coughing while trying to rise, the gentle-natured Chosen of Balance became utterly furious:

"How dare you?"

Her eyes instantly seemed ablaze with Golden Light, accompanied by the blazing flames that materialized and encircled her.

The rising flames even caused Emilia to step back a few paces, the heat reminding her of walking on the streets of Academy City during the height of summer without any protection.

After stepping back a couple of paces, she hurriedly stepped forward to help the newly risen Shard, and then, just as the Ring of Fate encircled in fiery flames spun rapidly, a dark golden Balance floated above Iluna’s head.

The Balance tilted slightly, and the enraged Iluna didn’t even utilize her Talent, but instead, leveraging the surging elements within her soul, she leapt up and swung out a blazing Light Trace towards the front.

This strike bore a striking resemblance to Shard’s "Moonlight Slash," and as the surging flames melted the shadow creature’s right hand upfront, Iluna’s figure flickered as she leapt into the air. The flames seemed to transform her into the Sun, but ultimately, she turned into a massive Golden Thunder, thoroughly penetrating the dark monster’s body from top to bottom.

The massive black body fell, with a slightly frightened Emilia cautiously supporting Shard, watching as, above the black body, Iluna wrapped in flames, her brown hair floating behind her in the golden Glimmer, her eyes bearing the dark golden glow, hovered in the air, gripping the neck of the pure white figure just before.

The Shadow’s legs connected to the black monster, flames spreading from Iluna’s arm to the figure’s body, the screams in the quiet black Space utterly eerie. The girl’s Rage and flame sufficed to melt the hardest metals of this World, let alone a soul’s Shadow.

Fortunately, before she truly destroyed that soul, Shard’s hand rested on her shoulder:

"Iluna, I’m alright."

Just a moment ago slightly airborne, Iluna froze, and then the abnormalities around her body vanished completely. She hesitantly turned to look forward, then exclaimed, "Ah~", shaking off the Shadow she held, covering her flushed face with her hands, clearly embarrassed to the extreme.

Shard was somewhat worried, the strike where Iluna transformed into a "Sunlight Gun" to penetrate the enemy, looking much like the mature yet ruthless move of Iluna recalled by Deep Sea Merman: Mrs. Lemere.

"I don’t know what came over me just now, I just felt Rage, then... I lost myself. Shard, are you alright?"

The red-faced Iluna hurriedly asked, not minding Emilia still supporting Shard, Shard shook his head:

"Be sure to regulate your mood swings, I’m okay, I thought I was a true genius to succeed in casting all at once. Just let me catch my breath to recover, I’m fortunate to have very strong Resistance to Malice and Curse, though the Energy Impact is rather unbearable."

After coughing a few times and drinking some water, his complexion indeed improved greatly. Iluna carried Holy Water with her, and Emilia also had Healing Potion given by her family before going out. Although Shard felt it was unnecessary to waste them, he couldn’t refuse their goodwill.