Chapter Thirty-Nine: The Red Silhouette / Chapter Forty: The Sixth Authority, "Sword of Judgment"

"Exactly. It was Yuri Wanitangi. Our new 'King' intends to imitate the Marquis and perform a ritual to summon a Disobedient God. The Marquis has always regarded Yuri Wanitangi as one of his most important possessions, so he would never hand her over to the new 'King.' We can't just sit around and wait. This will probably be the greatest crisis I've faced since being promoted to head of the Tokyo Branch."

"...Kasukabe, go find Yuri Wanitangi immediately, then take her out of Japan. It doesn't matter where you take her—even dumping her in some remote wilderness will do!"

Saya no Miya Kaoru suddenly issued an extremely ruthless order.

Kasukabe Touma was startled, then realized what she meant. "...You want Yuri Wanitangi to serve as bait and draw the attention of the two 'Kings'?"

"Exactly. The mission of the Historical Records Compilation Committee is to ensure the safety of Japan's territory and its people. We don't have the ability to protect Yuri Wanitangi in front of two 'Kings,' so the only thing we can do now is hope that the two 'Kings' don't clash on Japanese soil—especially not in Tokyo! Compared with the safety of the country, one Miko has no value. Even if she is exceptionally talented and capable of attracting the covetous attention of two 'Kings,' that remains true!"

"...Kasukabe, don't hesitate. Go carry out the mission immediately!"

Saya no Miya Kaoru issued the order decisively. The other members of the Tokyo Branch remained silent. In their eyes, sacrificing one Miko to ensure Japan's safety was the correct decision.

"Yes, I understand, Chief!"

After accepting the order, Kasukabe Touma quickly sprang into action.

In the presidential suite on the top floor of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Tokyo, Japan, the daily room rate alone reached over a million yen. But to a Campione like Roy, money was truly an external possession, no different from numbers casually written on a blank sheet of paper.

"Where are your two knights?"

Seated at the table, Princess Alice sampled the various delicacies laid out before her with great interest, a blissful smile spreading across her face.

For the past several years, she had been confined to bed because of her condition. Her frail body had made it impossible for her to enjoy the delicacies of the mortal world. Now that she could finally move about in the flesh and her digestive system had improved, she naturally intended to eat to her heart's content.

"I already sent Erica and Liliana to capture Yuri Wanitangi. I have absolutely no trust in this country's Historical Records Compilation Committee. Those hypocrites might very well keep spouting all kinds of nonsense at me. Rather than wait for them to send Yuri Wanitangi over, it's more convenient for me to send people to capture her directly."

Roy stood with his right hand in his pocket and his left hand pressed against the floor-to-ceiling window, surveying all of Tokyo.

"Japan's Historical Records Compilation Committee probably won't personally deliver Yuri Wanitangi to you, King Roy. Let me tell you something: the oldest Campione, Marquis Voban, has already arrived in Tokyo. At the same time, that fellow Gascoyne has also made a move in the English countryside."

The elegant princess cut off a corner of her cake and placed it in her mouth. As the former chairwoman of the Council of Sages of Greenwich, her intelligence network ranked among the finest in the world. After all, the Council of Sages was essentially a gathering of gossipmongers.

"Marquis Voban's actions were within my expectations. The old man came to Japan this time to 'save the damsel in distress.'"

Roy chuckled teasingly before turning to look at Princess Alice. Raising his brows, he said, "...As for the Black Prince, Alexander Gascoyne—if he saw you looking like this, do you think he'd be so enraged that he'd lose his mind?"

Princess Alice was dressed quite revealingly. She wore a translucent gauze robe, beneath which was close-fitting underwear resembling a three-point set. A large expanse of snow-white skin was exposed in the room. And since this was a hotel, it easily brought certain intimate matters between two people to mind.

Princess Alice had exquisite features, so perfectly composed that they were beyond reproach. Her innate, aristocratic bearing and slender, admirable figure made her resemble a lily blooming in a royal garden. She was an object no man could ignore.

Her picturesque brows furrowed slightly, and she said with some displeasure, "...My relationship with Alexander Gascoyne isn't what you think. It can't satisfy your strange interests, King Roy."

"Then you should put on some more clothes. There's a man in his prime standing right in front of you."

"Anyway, you've already seen every part of my body. Letting you look a few more times is hardly a big deal. In the past, I had to wear those heavy pajamas to keep warm. Now that my condition is good, of course I should liberate myself a little."

The two gradually began bickering, looking nothing like a kidnapper and hostage.

At that moment, heavy footsteps suddenly came from outside the presidential suite. Hearing them, Roy's expression finally changed.

Chapter Thirty-Nine: The Red Silhouette

A dense, violent surge of Magic Power burst forth, tearing the door of the presidential suite at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel apart. The room seemed to be struck by a level-twelve hurricane. As the Magic Power howled, everything inside was blown away, instantly turning the place into a junkyard.

Princess Alice's face turned deathly pale, and her delicate body swayed slightly. Although she had received Roy's authority and her condition had greatly improved, as Roy had said, her body was not completely healed and still required further treatment.

Even as Europe's most powerful Witch, Princess Alice possessed extraordinarily immense spiritual power. But compared with a Campione, even her spiritual power paled into insignificance.

With the door torn open, the footsteps outside grew heavier and clearer. Under Roy and Princess Alice's gazes, a vigorous old man slowly walked into the room from the corridor outside. The hotel attendants lining the corridor had all been turned into pillars of salt.

The old man had neatly combed gray-white hair and wore a long trench coat over a clean shirt and tie. He even wore a pair of white gloves. From every angle, he looked like an intellectual old gentleman, the sort who would make people think of kindness. Yet the moment one looked into his pale-green, wolf-like pupils, an extreme chill and terror erupted from the depths of the heart.

"Marquis Voban!"

Princess Alice's delicate body swayed under the Marquis's violent Magic Power as she rasped out his name. Her expression was haggard, with faint fear in her eyes. Compared with Roy, a newly born king, the terror that Sacha Dejansthal Voban had brought to the world over two hundred years ran far deeper.

Even in the eyes of this oldest Campione, the famous White Miko was nothing more than an insignificant insect.

Just as Princess Alice felt cold and trembled from instinctive fear, a red silhouette stepped in front of her. At the same time, warmth spread through her body—it was Roy draping a coat over her thin frame, completely covering the exposed, fair skin of her scantily clad body.

"In front of an unfamiliar gentleman, Princess Alice, you should show some restraint. At the very least, you should dress properly, even if that unfamiliar gentleman is an old man with one foot in the grave."

Princess Alice's pale hand clutched the coat around her. Looking at the red silhouette protecting her from the front, she felt a wave of warmth in both body and soul. An indescribable emotion surged forth, and she unconsciously smiled. Even her fear of facing the ancient Demon King vanished without a trace.

Although the boy before her was four or five years younger than she was and had not even reached adulthood, his broad back was like a warm harbor shielding her from the wind. It blocked every storm before it could reach her, giving Alice a sense of security she had never felt before.

She was Princess Alice, the former chairwoman of the Council of Sages. She had always stood at the front, shielding others from the wind and rain, and faced the Demon Kings of the surface alone. This was the first time she had experienced being protected by someone else—a thing Alexander Gascoyne had never done.

"Don't worry, Alice! I'll protect you. With me here, you needn't fear an old man with half a foot in the coffin."

Roy wore a gentle smile and spoke tenderly. He raised his left arm to shield Princess Alice behind him, but there was no smile in those strange pupils—only cold seriousness.

One should despise an enemy strategically but take him seriously tactically. Roy would never truly look down on Marquis Voban. In his eyes, the Marquis's greatest advantage was the variety of his authorities. In actual combat, his threat was lower than that of the Eastern Patriarch or the King of Swords of Italy.

That was because no matter how many authorities a Campione possessed, their quality still had limits. And since Campiones could not increase their Magic Power, there was no qualitative gap between the oldest Campiones and those of the new generation. Even so, Marquis Voban could not be underestimated. In a battle between equals, his diverse methods made him extremely troublesome.

"Heroic sentiment and tender affection—those are privileges of the young."

Marquis Voban's voice was stiff, seemingly reminiscing about the past, but the savagery in his wolf-like eyes grew even stronger.

He had never been an old man who meekly accepted his fate. He was a Demon King who toyed with the world and treated killing Disobedient Gods as entertainment.

"My newly born kinsman, I have no comment on your actions. Every Campione has his own personality. But as an old man with one foot in the grave, as you put it, I must still offer you a warning from your elder: being too sentimental is not a good thing. You may be able to protect the girl behind you, but can you also protect the two young ladies you sent to capture the Miko?"

Roy frowned slightly. He remembered that Marquis Voban seemed to possess an authority related to the dead—one that could revive humans he had personally killed, imprison their souls, and turn them into loyal servants while preserving their strength from life.

That authority was not particularly useful when fighting other Campiones or Disobedient Gods, but against ordinary magicians and knights, it was practically flawless. He knew that the "young ladies" Voban mentioned were Erica and Liliana, and the Marquis might already have used that authority to send his servants to intercept them.

Roy was not worried about Erica and Liliana's safety. The two girls were, after all, the current-generation geniuses of the Bronze Black Cross and the Bronze Black Cross. They could not face a Campione or Disobedient God alone, but against a few resurrected servants, even if they could not win, they could definitely escape.

However, if that Miko, Yuri Wanitangi, fell into Marquis Voban's hands, reclaiming her would become troublesome.

"Hmph. I never expected that one of my servants, Kranichar, would have such an outstanding granddaughter who became a Witch. I truly failed to pay him enough attention in the past. In any case, I must thank you, junior, for your assistance. Because of you, the little girl behind you has been healed, and the ritual that would have taken me two years to complete can now be performed ahead of schedule."

"...But you are too greedy, junior. If you casually requisition an elder's possessions without asking, you must be prepared to pay the price!"

Marquis Voban's voice was cold and arrogant, but he did not underestimate Roy. No one who became a Campione was ordinary. Two years ago, he had already suffered at the hands of Salvatore.

Liliana's grandfather was one of Marquis Voban's servants...

Roy had heard this information for the first time, but he was not surprised. No matter how famous a family or powerful a figure might be in the magical world, before a Campione, they could only become a servant.

"Marquis, for people like us, who achieved great deeds by slaughtering gods and became great heretics in the process, a battle of words is meaningless. In the end, we'll have to settle this with our hands."

Roy's Double Pupils focused on Marquis Voban's vicious, wolf-like eyes, allowing his own face to be reflected in the Marquis's pupils. This was precisely the trigger for activating one of his authorities.

"Hahahaha! Well said, young kinsman. It seems you aren't a pedant. For that alone, you have my praise!"

Marquis Voban burst into laughter. His voice was cold and bell-like, shaking the walls around the room with a deep rumble.

At that moment, Roy demonstrated the meaning of striking first—

The instant the Marquis's laughter ended, Roy directly activated his authority—Face of God!

Chapter Forty: The Sixth Authority, "Sword of Judgment"

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"What nerve!"

Marquis Voban clearly had not expected Roy to activate his authority without a sound. When he saw Roy's face, it was as though he saw another great existence through it. That being's entire body was wreathed in holy radiance. The sacred light that had existed, existed now, and would exist forever pierced through Roy's features like the sun's brilliance, stabbing into the Marquis's eyes and forcing him to shut them and turn his head away from the excessive holiness.

The Marquis roared. His body hunched over as a strange curse surged into him from Roy's face. Even the Magic Power with which he had laughed at the world as a Campione became disordered. His limbs felt as though they had been filled with lead, making movement difficult. His nose suddenly stung, and blood began to flow.

"Saint Martha Subdues the Dragon!"

Roy shouted. Magic Power erupted beneath his feet, smashing a hole through the hotel room on the top floor. His fist gathered enough might to subdue a dragon and slammed viciously into Marquis Voban's chest.

"Boom—"

A dull sound, like bones breaking, came from Marquis Voban's chest. His entire body flew backward like a bullet fired from a gun, blasted away by Roy's punch.

"Rumble, rumble, rumble—"

The walls of the top floor of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel shattered with a crash. A huge hole was even smashed through the exterior of the hotel, and Marquis Voban was blasted into the sky like a cannonball. Broken glass and fragments of steel rained down from a hundred meters above, provoking waves of screams from the people in the streets below.

"Alice, be careful. Voban's servants may be nearby."

That punch would have turned an ordinary person into minced meat, but against a powerful Campione like Marquis Voban, it was impossible to win with a single blow. Especially when Roy's fist struck the Marquis's chest, he clearly felt as if he had hit fur.

"Don't worry about me, King Roy! Ordinary Great Knights and magicians won't be able to do anything to me. You should be careful instead, King Roy. Marquis Voban has rampaged across the world for two hundred years. He isn't a Campione who can be defeated easily."

Princess Alice's brows drew together slightly. Her elegant, noble eyes turned toward Roy, concern filling her fair, lovely face.

"Your Council of Sages has conducted the most research on Campiones. I have you to thank for telling me so much about the Campiones of this era recently. Marquis Voban knows little about my abilities, while I know his abilities in detail. As far as information goes, I have a far greater advantage."

Roy kept his right hand in his pocket and slightly turned his head, leaving Princess Alice with his back.

"Then I wish Your Majesty victory in your first battle~!"

Princess Alice smiled sweetly. Holding both sides of her open garment, she radiated an air of refined wisdom. Her platinum hair and full, beautiful features made the ruined room seem to bloom with flowers.

"If you can still stroll around leisurely, Princess, go help Erica and Liliana!"

"A 'King' asking his hostage to help the knights suffering on his behalf—that is quite an unreasonable request... But I like Erica and Liliana very much, so I'll do my best to help."

Alice looked delighted. Once her life was no longer in danger, this woman who loved excitement revealed her true nature again.

"Mm. I'll leave this place to you."

"Holy, holy, holy! May my glory fill the heavens and the earth!"

Having obtained Princess Alice's promise, Roy immediately recited his Word Spirit. Facing an enemy like Marquis Voban, he did not dare hold anything back.

As the authority Lord of Light activated, a pair of enormous wings blazing with light and flame unfurled behind Roy. A sacred halo appeared above his head, with a cross inside it. A sword stood to the cross's right and scales to its left—the image of Michael.

In the next instant, Roy, transformed into an angel, activated Divine Speed and shot through the sky as a streak of light and flame.

Marquis Voban was an enemy whose compatibility with Roy was particularly poor. Roy's authorities were all suited to explosive, quick battles, whereas Voban's many authorities made him ideal for prolonged combat. Their battle would come down to whether Roy could finish things before his authorities' effects ended, or whether Marquis Voban could endure Roy's storm-like assault and claim victory in a war of attrition.

Even so, Roy retained absolute confidence in himself. His authorities still held one final trump card—a sure-kill move that would guarantee victory the moment it was used. For now, he only needed to gather the elements required to activate it.

With Divine Speed, which could only be used for ten minutes, Roy had practically transformed into a pure element of light and flame. His speed had already surpassed the physical laws humans could endure. In nearly the blink of an eye, he reached the place where Marquis Voban had fallen.

By then, Marquis Voban had transformed into a gigantic Werewolf. He stood over ten meters tall, murderous savagery filling his emerald eyes, while the fangs in his wolf's mouth were sharp enough to bite through steel bars with ease.

The fur Roy had felt beneath his fist earlier was precisely Marquis Voban's Werewolf form. After becoming this enormous wolf, Voban's physical abilities had also risen dramatically, allowing him to withstand Roy's surprise attack.

"Hahahaha! Our prey is right before us! My hunting hounds, go tear him apart!"

The enormous Werewolf landed on the ground, his feet stamping into the earth as he spoke with a human voice. Marquis Voban laughed arrogantly. He ignored the fact that it was broad daylight and paid no attention to the people around him who were screaming and fleeing. As his Magic Power surged, dozens of people around the Marquis let out miserable shrieks. Then the Marquis branded them with the Mark of the Wolf, and gray fur sprouted across their bodies.

In the blink of an eye, dozens of Werewolves stood before Roy. Each was taller than a horse and possessed speed greater than that of a car. They howled, their emerald wolf eyes cruelly fixed on the angel Roy in the sky. Using their powerful legs, dozens of Werewolves leaped upward, creating the spectacular scene of a hundred wolves surrounding and hunting an angel.

"Angel, sound the trumpet of Judgment Day!"

Seeing so many Werewolves leaping toward him, Roy frowned. With his Divine Speed, dodging their assault would be easy, but he did not want to waste his limited time on a struggle with these Werewolves. He raised his right hand and recited another Word Spirit.

Seven trumpet blasts announcing the end of the world rang through the sky. The authority Sounding the Seventh Trumpet activated, and a sacred Gate of Heaven burst open. More than a hundred genderless Angels of Light flew out.

"Angels! Angels!! We're saved!"

"Oh God, save us!"

"Why are there monsters like werewolves in Tokyo?"

"Waaaah—my leg... My leg! Can someone help me?"

"I'm a believer! I'm a true believer! Lord, please protect me! Please save me!"

"..."

On the chaotic street, people screamed, ran, cried, and cursed. Seeing dozens of people lose their lives without warning and turn into Werewolves, terror completely filled their hearts.

When they saw a great angel appear and summon angels from the heavens, the people cheered and prayed as though they had found a savior. Angels were simply too famous throughout the world, and they were always associated with words such as "justice." Upon seeing them, the terrified people's first thought was that the angels had come to save them.

But their thoughts soon changed.

The angels that flew out of the Gate of Heaven immediately engaged the Werewolves. Although each angel and Werewolf was not strong enough to reach the level of a Great Knight, they were still beings that ordinary people and common magicians could hardly defeat. Angels and Werewolves slaughtered one another, completely ignoring the crowds fleeing in all directions.

The asphalt road was cleaved apart, houses and utility poles collapsed, and cars were flattened into iron pancakes. This Tokyo street had been transformed entirely into a mythical landscape of the apocalypse.

"Boy, let me see whether you have the strength to match your arrogance. Don't get torn apart immediately—that would be far too boring, wouldn't it? Hahahaha—awooooo!"

The Werewolf that had once been Marquis Voban changed from roaring laughter into a wolf's furious howl. The ten-meter-tall Werewolf leaped, jumping a hundred meters into the air. Then its body began to rapidly expand. Its limbs contracted, and its entire form turned into a mass of flesh, becoming an enormous wolf head over a hundred meters in diameter!

This wolf head looked completely different from the form Marquis Voban had taken earlier. The extraordinarily viscous, immense Magic Power told Roy that this was probably one of Voban's ultimate killing moves.

Roy's expression grew solemn. His right hand, which had remained in his pocket, reached out. A mosaic-like distortion appeared once more around his shoulder. At the same time, he clenched his empty hand, and a Red Cross-shaped Longsword appeared in his palm.