Chapter 209: I'm going to clear the area
"Flying?!"
Everyone who didn't know Ren's abilities was utterly astonished. They had seen Exceeds fly using wings, and mages use specific flight magic items, but they had never seen a human simply stand in the air as if gravity were a mere suggestion.
Although King Faust's attack was sudden, a desperate ambush born of fear, it could not escape the detection of Ren's Six Eyes. To the ocular jujutsu that processed the world in slow motion, the ignition of the propellant, the expansion of the gases, and the trajectory of the warhead were as clear as day. The moment the bomb exploded, he used Instant Movement to dodge, leaving only an afterimage for the explosion to consume.
"Hmph! You bastard, playing tricks! Disappear, ahhhhh!"
Inside the cockpit of the Dragon Knight, or Droma Anim, King Faust slammed his fist onto the control console. His eyes were bloodshot with madness. The massive mechanical tail of the iron dragon thrashed, crushing stone pillars like matchsticks. The muzzle of the Mechanical Tyrannosaurus's mouth aimed at Ren, the gears whining as they locked onto the small, floating target. A complex, multi-layered Magic Circle opened in front of the muzzle, charging with a terrifying purple light.
"Die!!"
An Energy Cannon, thick enough to vaporize a city block, shot toward Ren.
Whoosh—!
Ren didn't block it. He simply ceased to exist at those coordinates. He instantly vanished, the beam passing harmlessly through empty sky and carving a trench into the distant mountains.
In the next moment, the air pressure above the Droma Anim spiked. Ren appeared directly above the Mechanical Tyrannosaurus's metallic head, his coat fluttering in the wind.
"You scoundrel! How dare you stand on the head of the most noble King of the Edolas Kingdom!" Faust screamed over the external speakers, his voice distorted by rage and static.
Ren looked down at the metal plating beneath his boots, unimpressed. "A King who hides in a tin can has no dignity to step on."
Ren stomped down hard.
It wasn't a normal stomp. He infused his leg with Cursed Energy, amplifying the impact with a gravitational crush.
Boom—!!
The sound was like a thunderclap striking the earth. The Droma Anim, a machine weighing hundreds of tons, buckled instantly. The neck joints screamed in protest before failing. The Mechanical Tyrannosaurus's head plummeted downwards, smashing into the granite floor of the plaza with enough force to create a crater. Dust and debris billowed upwards, obscuring the machine's body.
"Bastard!!"
Inside the shaking cockpit, sparks rained down on Faust. He gritted his teeth, wrestling with the control yokes. "Get up! Move!"
King Faust controlled the Mechanical Tyrannosaurus to lift its head, the hydraulics groaning as they fought against the momentum. The dragon's eyes glowed ominous red as it rose from the dust.
Just then, through the main viewscreen, he saw Ren hovering in front of the cockpit glass. Ren's palm was raised, fingers casually pointing at him.
"Cursed Technique Reversal: Red!"
A small, unstable orb of red energy manifested at Ren's fingertip—the power to repel.
Bang!
The Crimson Sphere struck the Mechanical Tyrannosaurus's head right between the eyes.
"Waaahhhhh!!"
The laws of physics screamed. The massive machine, which had withstood the combined attacks of three Dragon Slayers earlier, was launched backward as if hit by a giant, invisible hammer. The Droma Anim flew through the air, tumbling across the ground, smashing through walls and watchtowers, before finally coming to a stop after plowing a trench three hundred meters long.
"Huh? This thing is quite sturdy!"
Ren tilted his head, floating down to inspect the damage. He had expected the head to be torn clean off.
"Of course," Faust laughed manically, his voice trembling slightly. "This is Reinforced Armor made of Magic-Canceling Ore! Magic is ineffective against Trauma Anima... It absorbs and negates magical energy!"
Buzz—!
At this moment, many red alarms lit up in the cockpit, bathing Faust's face in a panic-inducing crimson light.
[Reinforced Armor Damaged!]
[Structural Integrity at 75%!]
[Reinforced Armor Damaged!]
"No! How is this possible?!" Faust stared at the holographic readout in disbelief. "Magic should be ineffective against Trauma Anima! You are a Mage! Why did it work?!"
"Magic? Who told you I was using magic?" Ren smirked, his blue eye glowing behind his blindfold. "However, this thing is indeed special; the nature of the anti-magic ore interfered with the flow of space, weakening some of the effect of my Cursed Technique. Otherwise, normally, that strike just now should have completely dismantled this toy into scrap metal."
Although Cursed Techniques and Magic are different power systems, they both belong to the Mysterious Side of existence. They manipulate supernatural energy to alter reality. There were naturally some commonalities between them, and the Droma Anim's resistance wasn't zero, but it certainly wasn't immune to the raw physical forces Ren generated.
"I won't accept this! I am the King!" Faust roared, slamming a lever forward. "Dragon Rider Scatter Cannon!!"
The armor plates on the Droma Anim's back shifted and opened, revealing dozens of missile silos.
Thump-thump-thump-thump!
Trails of smoke filled the air as many magical cannon shells shot toward Ren. They screamed through the air like banshees.
Ren's figure flashed, dodging the shells with minimal movement. He weaved through the barrage effortlessly.
However, the shells didn't continue straight. They turned in mid-air, correcting their trajectory.
"Tracking type, huh?" Ren noted. "Command Magic guidance systems. Clever."
Swish!
In the next moment, Ren grinned—a cold, predatory expression. He vanished again, reappearing instantly in the middle of a dense formation of the Edolas Royal Army.
"He's there!"
"Get him!"
The soldiers raised their spears, but then they heard the whistling sound from above. They looked up, their faces draining of color.
Seeing the cannon shells tracking toward their location, locked onto Ren who was standing right next to them, many Kingdom Army Soldiers were terrified.
"Run!!"
"The shells are coming!!"
"Your Majesty, stop! We are down here!"
They hastily tried to flee, dropping their weapons and scrambling over each other. But how could a person outrun guided magic cannon shells?
Boom boom boom boom boom boom!!
The plaza was engulfed in a chain of explosions. Fire and shrapnel tore through the ranks of the Royal Army.
"Waaaaahhhhh!!"
"My leg! My leg!!"
"Waaahhhhh!!"
A large number of soldiers were submerged by the cannon attack, their screams drowned out by the roar of their own King's weapons.
Ren stood in the center of the inferno, his Infinity barrier protecting him from the heat and debris. "Oh my! Your King is truly cruel," Ren called out, his voice cutting through the chaos. "Slaughtering even his own loyal soldiers so carelessly just to try and scratch me. Is this the man you die for?"
"Shut up! Shut up!" Faust roared angrily over the speakers. "You guys! Are you still watching the show?! Get moving and take out the invaders! If we don't eliminate these guys, the Edolas Kingdom will be completely wiped out!! Sacrifices are necessary for the greater good!"
Faust didn't care about the lives of these soldiers; to him, they were just resources, numbers on a ledger. He could get as many of these guys as he wanted. If these guys died, he could simply recruit a new batch; countless people wanted to join the Kingdom Army for the status.
As long as these invaders were dealt with, it didn't matter if all the soldiers sacrificed themselves.
Hearing the King's command, and fearing his wrath more than the enemy, the four captains of the Magic Warfare Unit grit their teeth. They knew they had no choice.
"For Edolas!"
They took the lead and rushed toward Ren, attacking from four directions simultaneously.
In the distance, Natsu and Gajeel roared, engaging the Droma Anim to keep Faust busy, leaving Ren to handle the elite infantry.
"I'll crush you!" Panther Lily, now in his giant battle form, charged in front of Ren. His muscles bulged as he swung a massive fist, enhanced by his momentum, straight toward Ren's face.
The fist, capable of shattering boulders, stopped abruptly. It hovered right next to Ren's cheek, blocked by the invisible barrier.
"Behind you!"
Hughes, riding a mechanical hover-device, swung his baton-sword from behind. He aimed a vicious slash toward Ren's neck. "Command: Decapitate!"
But the sword also stopped around Ren's body, hitting the wall of Infinity.
"Take this! Zombie Giant!"
Hughes waved his control baton, commanding one of the Monster Academy's escapees—a massive, stitch-covered Puppet creature dressed like a zombie—to lunge. It reached out its rotting, giant hands to grab Ren and crush him.
The hands were unable to approach closer than twenty centimeters around Ren.
"Now, Erza!" Hughes shouted.
Erza Knightwalker seized this opportunity, utilizing the blind spot created by the zombie. She lunged, her spear glowing with volatile energy. She thrust the tip toward Ren's face.
The spear stopped approximately twenty centimeters from Ren's eyes.
"Explosion Spear: Explosion!"
Erza Knightwalker shouted. The spear tip transformed, emitting a blindingly bright light.
Panther Lily and Hughes immediately retreated to avoid the blast radius.
Boom—!!
The explosion erupted violently, engulfing Ren in a sphere of fire and smoke. The shockwave shattered the nearby windows of the palace.
"Did we get him?!" Hughes panted, wiping sweat from his brow.
The few people nervously stared at the location of the explosion. The smoke slowly drifted away.
There, floating in the exact same spot, not a speck of soot on his white shirt, was Ren. He brushed his shoulder casually.
"Is that it?" Ren asked.
Seeing Ren completely unscathed, their eyes couldn't help but fill with despair. A coordinate attack by the strongest captains didn't even scratch him.
Could such a monster truly be defeated by a human?
"My turn," Ren said.
He raised his palm, and a swirling Blue Sphere appeared in his hand. The gravitational anomaly distorted the light around it.
"Cursed Technique Amplification: Blue."
The singularity expanded, directly swallowing the massive Puppet Zombie behind him. The giant monster was crushed into a singularity the size of a marble in an instant, vanishing from existence.
The next moment.
Zwoop!
Ren appeared right in front of Hughes, bypassing his reaction speed entirely.
"You like swords?" Ren asked, slamming a punch into Hughes' abdomen.
"Ugh!" Hughes gagged, eyes bulging.
"Hughes!" Lily shouted.
Hughes stumbled back, gasping for air. He prepared to swing his baton-sword in a desperate counter, only to realize that his hand felt light. The sword in his hand had vanished sometime earlier.
He looked up to see Ren holding the weapon, inspecting it with disdain.
Ren said flatly, "A sword is not meant to be used like that. It's not a conductor's baton."
Pfft!
Ren swung the stolen weapon. A blur of motion.
Hughes' armor shattered, and a deep wound gushed blood across his chest.
"What incredible... swordsmanship..." Hughes whispered, his eyes rolling back as he collapsed to the ground.
"You bastard!"
Panther Lily roared. He was about to speak, to challenge this monster, when Ren turned his gaze to him. Ren appeared instantly in Lily's guard, pressing his palm gently onto Panther Lily's abdomen.
"Oh no!" Lily's pupils contracted.
Bang—!!
A powerful repulsive force burst forth from Ren's palm. It wasn't a spell; it was a pure kinetic rejection.
"Waaah!!"
Panther Lily's massive body was launched like a cannonball. He flew backward, crashing through three stone walls before burying himself in the ruins of a tower.
"I won't let you!"
Erza Knightwalker screamed. She stood alone now. Her friends were down. Her King was mad. But she was a soldier.
"Sacred Spear: Ravelt!!"
She shouted the command. Her spear transformed into its final, strongest form—the Holy Stone World. This was the ultimate weapon of Edolas, crafted by the best smiths, said to be able to pierce anything.
Ren raised his palm, and the Limitless Cursed Technique stood ready.
"Piercing Armor!"
The spear struck the invisible barrier. Sparks flew—not physical sparks, but sparks of spatial friction.
"Aaaahhhhh!!"
Erza Knightwalker roared in fury, pouring every ounce of her remaining strength and magic power into the thrust. She refused to believe that her Sacred Spear couldn't do anything to him.
Under Erza's exertion, the spear continuously closed in on Ren. The tip inched forward, seemingly fighting the infinity. Seeing that she had finally broken through his outer defense, Erza Knightwalker was overjoyed.
I can reach him!
"Die!!"
If she exerted just a little more strength, perhaps she could kill him.
Ren watched her struggle, his expression utterly indifferent. "Naive!"
This spear possessed the ability to partially nullify magic, similar to the Droma Anim, which allowed it to interact with the Limitless Cursed Technique to a degree. But it was only partial. Even if it penetrated for a millimeter, the distance remaining was still infinite.
And that split second of struggle was enough for Ren to perform more maneuvers.
Ren pointed the index finger of his other hand toward Erza Knightwalker, right at the shaft of the legendary weapon.
"Cursed Technique Reversal: Red!"
"Not good!"
Erza Knightwalker's instincts screamed. She immediately tried to pull back the spear and use the shaft to block the point-blank attack.
The red sphere struck the spear shaft.
Crack—!
The sound was sharp, like a breaking bone, but louder.
"The Sacred... the Sacred Spear actually..." Erza stared in horror as her weapon, the strongest in the kingdom, snapped in two.
This was a weapon forged by the top craftsmen, yet it shattered just like that against Ren's power.
The force of the impact didn't stop at the spear.
"Waaaaahhhhh!!"
Erza screamed as she was blasted backward, crashing violently into the ruins of the royal palace, buried under falling masonry.
The Royal Guard was decimated.
At this moment, in the distance, Natsu, Gajeel, and Wendy were entangled in a fight with the Droma Anim. Without their magic fully adapted, they were already at a disadvantage against the mechanical dragon.
Kingdom Army Soldiers, seeing their captains fall, turned their desperation onto the weaker targets. They were currently surrounding Earth Land Lucy and Wendy, and the two were starting to struggle against the sheer numbers.
Ren looked around the battlefield. He sighed. "Too cluttered."
He floated higher into the air, clasping his hands together. The atmosphere suddenly grew heavy, a terrifying purple aura beginning to coalesce around him.
"It's time to put a stop to this battle!" Ren announced, his voice echoing over the capital.
"Happy, Carla, take Lucy and Wendy and leave! I'm clearing the field!"
"What?!"
Happy and Carla were startled by the command. They looked up at Ren and saw the gathering energy—a color that spelled absolute doom. They immediately grabbed the two girls and flew away at top speed, wings beating frantically. They were terrified that if they ran too slowly, they would be done for the next second.
"Run fast!!"
Natsu and Gajeel, sensing the monstrous spike in Magic Power (or whatever Ren was using), also abandoned their attack on King Faust when they heard Ren's words. Their survival instincts kicked in, overriding their desire to fight. They turned tail and ran without a second of hesitation.
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