Chapter 384: Victory?
"....."
THUD—!
Ray’s body skidded across the marble floor for several metres before finally crashing into a mound of dead Spider corpses.
Felix’s teeth ground together immediately.
His muscles tensed, and he was just about to lunge forward when—
A hand slowly rose into the air.
It was Ray’s.
A silent command.
Don’t.
The werewolf froze in place.
His claws clenched into tight fists, the sharp tips digging into his own palms until blood trickled between his fingers.
Every instinct screamed at him to move.
He couldn’t just stand there and watch the one he called his brother fight alone.
...No.
He had to help before it was too late.
’Celestial Healing.’
Images of an unconscious Van flashed through Ray’s mind one after another as the gaping hole in his abdomen slowly began knitting itself back together.
The healing was still impressive...
...but noticeably slower than before.
Bracing one hand against the ground, Ray gradually pushed himself into a sitting position.
His cold gaze settled on Nebula, who was still some distance away, struggling furiously against the golden lasso that refused to loosen.
Turning toward the others, his eyes found Van.
Still unconscious.
Still trapped beneath the Spider Queen’s control.
"It’s... it’s not over yet," Ray muttered through a heavy grunt.
Planting both palms firmly against the marble, he slowly forced himself back onto his feet.
The massive hole across his midsection had shrunk considerably, though it was far from completely healed.
His eyes narrowed into a glare.
Wiping the blood from his lips with the back of his hand, Ray tightened his grip around both daggers before quickly scanning the battlefield.
’Nothing... Nothing... Nothing I can use... Damn it!’
His eyes darted from one corner of the chamber to another.
’No... I can’t give up.’
His fingers tightened around the dagger hilts.
’I won’t.’
Taking a slow, steady breath, Ray leaned forward, every ounce of his focus locking onto Nebula.
’Static Shroud... Thunder Step... Chain Burst... Holy Blast Orb...’
{Host... are you sure about this?}
’Activate them, damn it! I’m bringing that spider down, no matter what it costs.’
[....]
’DO IT!’
[Static Shroud Activated]
Lightning erupted across Ray’s body.
Blue arcs crawled over his skin while faint bolts crackled inside his grey eyes.
His grip around the daggers became so tight that veins bulged along both forearms.
The sound of crackling lightning echoed throughout the chamber.
Nebula immediately stopped struggling against the lasso and turned toward him.
Just as she focused—
[Thunder Step Activated]
BANG!
Ray vanished.
The marble beneath his feet exploded apart as he crossed six metres in the blink of an eye.
Yet Nebula’s reactions were no slower.
The instant he moved, dozens of razor-thin strands erupted from her mandibles.
They screamed through the air toward him.
Ray vaulted higher.
His eyes remained fixed on the Spider Queen.
He didn’t dodge.
He didn’t hesitate.
He simply continued charging straight toward her.
Within moments, the deadly strands collided with his body.
Blue lightning burst outward.
The Static Shroud flared brilliantly, meeting the incoming barrage head-on.
For a brief moment, the two forces struggled against each other.
The razor-thin strands desperately tried to pierce the barrier...
...while the lightning refused to yield.
As Nebula increased the intensity of her assault, arcs of electricity gathered around Ray’s right arm.
The current flowed from his shoulder...
...down his forearm...
...across the guard of his dagger...
...until the entire blade crackled with unstable lightning.
Without slowing down, Ray pulled his arm back.
Then—
BANG!
He released the dagger with every ounce of strength he possessed.
The weapon disappeared in a streak of blue lightning.
A heartbeat later—
BOOM!
The dagger slammed into one of Nebula’s eyes with bone-rattling force.
The impact jerked her entire head backward as cracks spread across the marble beneath her restrained body.
At the same time, the relentless barrage finally overwhelmed the Static Shroud.
The barrier shattered.
Several strands punched through immediately, tearing bullet-like holes across Ray’s shoulders, arms, and sides.
Blood sprayed into the air.
Still...
Ray didn’t stop.
He gritted his teeth against the pain.
Lightning exploded beneath his feet once more.
BANG!
Thunder Step propelled him forward again.
The remaining distance vanished in an instant.
Launching himself into the air, Ray gripped his final dagger tightly as he descended toward Nebula.
The Spider Queen lowered her head once more.
Their eyes met.
Ray’s body was riddled with holes.
Blood streamed from countless wounds.
Yet somehow...
He was still coming.
"WHY WON’T YOU JUST DIE, YOU ANNOYING ROACH?!" Nebula roared inside his mind as another razor-thin strand shot toward his head with terrifying speed.
Since he was suspended in mid-air with nowhere to dodge, Ray instinctively crossed one arm in front of his face at the very last second.
"...."
To his absolute horror—
TCHAAAAAK!
The razor-thin strand tore clean through his arm.
His severed limb spun through the air before crashing onto the ground below.
His dagger fell with it.
Leaving Ray with only one arm.
Even that wasn’t enough to stop him.
Kicking against the air, a swirling orb of radiant light gathered inside his remaining palm.
Without hesitation—
BANG!
He hurled it forward.
The orb exploded across Nebula’s face with devastating force.
Fragments of violet chitin burst away from her head.
Yet the Spider Queen remained just as relentless.
Digging her colossal legs deeper into the shattered marble, she lunged forward like an arrow and caught Ray out of the air with her massive mandibles.
"AAAAARGH!"
Ray screamed as the razor-sharp mandibles sank into his body.
Blood poured down in waves.
[HP: 10/90]
"Today... you die."
Nebula’s voice echoed inside his mind as her jaws slowly began tightening.
"Kuh..."
Ray coughed up another mouthful of blood.
Then...
He smiled.
"Today... isn’t my death day, my queen."
Instantly, the dagger that had fallen together with his severed arm reappeared inside his remaining hand.
Without wasting even a heartbeat—
STAB!
He drove it into Nebula’s eye.
Again.
Again.
Again.
"Stop... Stop! STOP THAT!"
Nebula shrieked inside his mind as she increased the pressure of her jaws.
CRACK!
CRACK!
CRACK!
Ray could hear his own bones splintering.
Still...
He refused to stop.
He dismissed the dagger.
The second one instantly appeared in his hand.
STAB!
STAB!
STAB!
Now...
It had become a battle of endurance.
Which of them would break first?
"....."
The others could only watch in stunned silence.
Ray looked almost possessed.
He continued driving the daggers into the exact same spot over and over again, as though cursed to mine through solid rock.
One dagger disappeared.
The other appeared.
Again.
Again.
Again.
His system windows flashed endlessly before his eyes.
Ignored.
Completely ignored.
"DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE! DIEEEEEEEEEE!"
Ray roared.
His eyes glowed crimson for the briefest moment.
He kept stabbing.
Switching daggers.
Stabbing again.
Until...
Nebula’s grip slowly began weakening.
Even then—
Ray never stopped.
’H-Huh...?
Wh-What... is happening to my body...?’
"DIEEEEEEEEEE!"
Blood sprayed from Ray’s mouth.
He didn’t care.
The daggers kept rising.
They kept falling.
Black blood gushed endlessly from Nebula’s ruined eyes.
’I... I feel weaker...’
SCREEEECH!
The Spider Queen released an agonized scream.
Black blood erupted from between her mandibles, drenching Ray from head to toe.
Still—
He kept stabbing.
Again.
Again.
Again.
"L-Leave me!
Move away from me!"
Nebula screamed inside his mind.
Her mandibles loosened.
She hoped gravity would finish what she couldn’t.
Instead—
Ray buried one dagger deep into her eye socket.
Using it as an anchor.
His teeth clamped onto one of the spikes protruding from her head.
And then...
He continued the work of the Lord.
Again.
Again.
Again.
"Is... is it just me... or is she getting paler?"
Trisha whispered in disbelief.
"...."
"She is."
Kai answered quietly.
His expression frozen in shock.
"I SAID...
DIEEEEEEEEEE!"
Lightning erupted around Ray’s remaining arm before surging into the dagger.
CRACK!
TCHAAAAAK!
The blade pierced straight through Nebula’s eye.
Lightning exploded inside her skull.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
"FALLLLLLLLLL!"
Ray roared one final time as he buried the second dagger into her head.
"...."
For one silent second...
The entire world froze.
Everyone watched.
Held their breath.
One by one...
The remaining eyes scattered across Nebula’s colossal body began losing their light.
They flickered like dying lanterns.
Then...
Another dagger struck home.
The strength left her legs.
THUD!
Her enormous body collapsed.
The marble floor exploded beneath her immense weight.
Dust and shattered stone erupted into the air.
Slowly...
One after another...
Her countless eyes closed.
Only a single thought remained inside her fading consciousness.
’Ho... How... did this happen...?’
Her final eye shut.
Silence.
....
*DING!*
[Fucking Hell! Host defeated an Em...]