210. Dekan's Punishment

Croix stood beside Dekan like a Stand user, while Dekan simply gazed calmly at Fahim.

This created a strange sense of oppression for Fahim.

"Dekan!! Must we kill them all?"

Fahim looked extremely nervous.

His unusually tense body made him look like a block of ice, and his face appeared extremely ferocious.

He doesn't have Clay's regenerative abilities.

Clay's previous desperate attack had reduced Fahim's body to a state of near collapse.

He's only managing to hold on by the last bit of magic he has left.

But he can't afford to stay in this state any longer!

Originally, in a real one-on-one fight, he wasn't afraid of Dekan at all.

However, adding a high-level mage to Dekan would be problematic.

Moreover, this mage is a healing mage, and the amount of healing he can provide is a mystery.

Fahim despised those healers who could survive his lethal magic.

For low-level healers, they are still like ants to Fahim, easily ignored and crushed.

However, those extremely high-level healers can cause Fahim considerable trouble in direct combat.

Based on the information known to the Resurrection Church, Croix's healing output was not small; it was enough to keep Ice Princess, who was suffering from the negative effects of suppressing [Devil King of Ruin], alive for a period of time.

However, after that battle, Isabel, the main fighting force sent by the Resurrection Church, disappeared without a trace.

He is suspected to have been killed in action, or he may have defected.

Therefore, the details of the Battle of Tristin City remain a mystery to this day, and the Resurrection Church cannot accurately deduce the amount of healing Croix received.

We can only assume that his treatment volume is as high as possible.

However, even with divine blessings, the conversion rate between damage and healing would probably not exceed 20%.

Even the most devout believer or the most outstanding hero will not receive excessive blessings from the gods.

This is a rule that even gods must follow.

If common sense is violated, even gods will pay a heavy price.

"Heh, Fahim, what kind of polite talk is that?"

Upon hearing Fahim's absurd and laughable remarks, Dekan couldn't help but shake his head with a laugh, then stared at Fahim.

The surrounding air seemed to grow a few degrees colder at that moment.

"You have disrupted my peaceful life; you are an enemy I cannot let go. I will eliminate you before you can harm me or those around me."

Although no one could see Dekan's expression through the mask, his cold voice revealed everything he wanted to say.

"Alright, let's begin."

Dekan had barely finished speaking.

Croix then used a Spell Card.

Under Croix's spell, shadows spread like an explosion, enveloping the surrounding area in a dark hemispherical region.

The reinforcements on the perimeter couldn't help but feel tense.

It seems Dekan is determined to settle the score with Fahim.

Now they can no longer see the battle taking place inside.

This dark barrier also prevented them from seeing inside.

[Shadow Forbidden Zone]

[Category: Spell Card]

[Grade: Purple Rare]

[Class: 5]

[Effect: Creates a shadow barrier with a 50-meter radius that blocks all vision. Maintaining the barrier requires a large amount of mana. Any unit that first touches the barrier's boundary will be briefly immobilized.]

[Note: A spontaneous creation in the Shadow Series.]

These are Spell Card that Dekan purchased at a high price from within the Resurrection Church through his special connections.

He was later exchanged by Dekan to Croix.

Dekan actually really likes Minos's cards; some of them synergize well with his tactics.

Since Dekan can't create high-tier cards for Croix, purchasing useful Shadow Series cards for Croix is undoubtedly the best solution.

This [Shadow Forbidden Zone] card has a similar effect to Solar Fist. Although it doesn't have the same mind-numbing effect as Solar Fist, it can counter Solar Fist.

In addition, [Solar Fist] focuses on momentary visual disruption, while [Shadow Forbidden Zone] can continuously block vision.

As long as they remain within the barrier's boundaries, those outside the barrier will not be able to see what's happening inside.

The complete darkness within the barrier can also exert mental pressure on the other party.

In this situation, whoever is more terrifying will be more frightened by the other.

"Ta-da..."

It was very dark.

In the pitch-black environment, Fahim could see nothing but the sounds of Dekan approaching him.

Croix appears to have stayed behind to support Dekan from the rear.

The reason Fahim was able to determine who would advance and who would retreat Dekan and Croix was because...

It's because these two people have completely different auras.

After losing his sight, Fahim could more clearly sense the inhuman danger emanating from Dekan!

Dekan clearly wanted to take advantage of the time before Fahim's [Corrosive Destruction] and [Human Body Destruction] cooldowns ended to finish him off.

"Dekan...!!"

Fahim wanted to run away; he had no desire to continue this unfair matchup with Dekan.

One feeling that made him extremely uncomfortable was that he hadn't done anything wrong and was in a position of absolute advantage most of the time.

But Fahim's true feeling was that he had been struggling.

Whether it seemed like an advantage or a disadvantage, he felt like he was being toyed with!

He didn't want to continue this Underworld, prison-like combat experience for even a second longer.

But at this moment, Fahim could no longer run away.

Because once the Bishop Duel begins, if one side chooses to flee and escapes to a certain distance from the other side...

This will be considered desertion, resulting in a negative judgment and subsequent punishment.

Even if we have to bite the bullet, we have no choice but to fight Dekan to the death!

He could still put up a final struggle.

This was his only chance of winning.

Using his remaining magic power and the forbidden magic he possessed, he fought a final battle against Dekan!

Even Dekan an additional support mage to help him, Dekan still forgot one thing!

Even if Fahim is in poor condition, his key cards are on cooldown.

However, he remains the most lethal eighth-tier mage to humans!

Dekan simply couldn't withstand the damage he caused!

His only weakness against Dekan was that his arms were shorter Dekan's.

However, Dekan had been brazenly approaching him ever since!

If Dekan gets any closer, Fahim can use his own magic to apply a status effect similar to [Corrosion] to Dekan!

Dekan was gradually dying as his body was Corrosion in an abnormal state!

Croix's [Forced Dispel] is currently on cooldown.

It's impossible to immediately remove Dekan's abnormal state!

A few seconds passed.

It was confirmed that Dekan had entered range where his spells could hit.

Without hesitation, Fahim cast a Corrosion spell on Dekan!

Spellcast successful and hit!

However, Fahim also knew that it wouldn't be so easy to succeed.

Fahim only sensed the fluctuations in Magic Power; Croix began relentlessly attacking Dekan with magic to heal Dekan!

Dekan finally stopped and stopped approaching, seemingly in a bad state.

Dekan had already activated [Pain Shield] on himself and was enduring Croix's treatment.

In this state, Dekan himself cannot feel pain, nor can he see the condition of his body.

Whether he can be revived depends entirely on his trust in Croix!

"Let's see how long you can last, Dekan!! Do you really have that much faith in your partner's healing abilities?!"

Fahim was certain that Dekan had successfully entered into a tug-of-war with him, so he used his last bit of strength to drag his broken body toward Dekan, hoping that Dekan would foolishly perish in a state where he could not feel pain!

Because at this closer distance, Fahim can also cast the healing reduction spells and human Body Destruction spells he possesses on Dekan!

Even if Dekan manages to survive now.

If the patient continues to suffer from the reduced healing status, the balance between healing and Corrosion will be disrupted!

If we finish Dekan off with a devastating Human Body Destruction of damage, he'll be dead for sure!

The situation changed again in an instant.

It was as if a magical energy had been injected into Fahim's heart, shattering the shackles that had previously resisted battle in his mind!

His eyes regained their sparkle, and the light of victory burned within them once more.

In just a second or two, Fahim successfully cast an additional spell on Dekan.

Having confirmed that both the Healing Reduction and the Body Destruction magic had hit Dekan, Fahim couldn't help but feel hopeful!

This is the moment when he will truly turn the tide.

"Hahaha!! Dekan, you're still too weak!"

Rank and basic attributes are fatal flaws that Dekan cannot overcome!

He seemed to be in control of the situation, but in reality, he could only afford to make one mistake!

However.

"Hehe."

Dekan's mocking laughter echoed in Fahim's ears again, making Fahim feel as if he had fallen into a nightmare from which he could not escape.

"Fahim, do you think you're about to win again?"

"Why?!"

Fahim roared in frustration.

Time and again, unexpected events occurred that he couldn't comprehend!

This time, Fahim felt his heart turning completely cold.

It seemed that Dekan was still deliberately toying with him.

Even though Dekan didn't need to get close to him, he deliberately gave him a glimmer of hope, letting him think he could win and struggle a bit, before finally making him feel even more utterly hopeless!

Fahim now doesn't even believe he can win.

Even if he could see a sliver of hope for victory again, he himself was unwilling to believe it!

All of this is nothing more than Dekan's way of tormenting people!!

Fahim also gradually began to understand something.

The fact that Dekan can withstand the [Corrosion] and [Healing Reduction] effects as if nothing happened only indicates that Croix's damage-to-heal conversion ratio is likely the limit of the world's rules, one to one!

This level of divine blessing is as if the gods did not want Croix to die, and thus bestowed such grace upon a human!

If the conversion rate is this extreme, Fahim can understand why Croix was able to keep Dekan.

Generally speaking, even if a priest's entire deck consists of healing spells, they will still try to learn as many healing spells as possible.

The number of high-level healing spells is limited.

Healing spells from the same root system will go on cooldown once they're used up.

Croix's healing principle is different; it converts all damage into healing.

We have an endless supply of attack spells that don't share cooldowns!

If Croix possesses a variety of spells in addition to Spell Card.

In addition, his extremely high Magic Power growth potential means that as long as his mana is not depleted, his healing output will be released almost without any downtime!

It was simply impossible for Fahim to kill Dekan in a short time, with Croix protecting him.

Unless you can instantly kill Dekan.

"Dekan!! You'd better die!!!"

Fahim seemed to be taking his last breath as he screamed hysterically.

Even though he no longer wanted to win.

But he still held onto a sliver of hope.

The magic I just cast that destroyed the human body failed to kill Dekan, presumably because Dekan's [Crown of Thorns] triggered its life-saving effect!

If one more forbidden spell that destroys the human body is cast, Dekan can be killed!!

No matter how many schemes and tricks Dekan uses, he shouldn't have any way to break his Human Body Destruction magic!

However.

When Fahim used the magic that destroyed human bodies again.

Everything was quiet.

Fahim was unable to determine for a moment whether Dekan was dead or not.

And so, after Fahim's heart pounded wildly for more than ten seconds...

"Heh, even though I can't see you struggling, I can finally smell the despair."

Dekan's cheerful chuckle told Fahim that his chances of a comeback were slim once again.

Dekan deliberately remained silent for a long while.

He seemed to be taking any opportunity to mess with Fahim's mentality, and it was as if he was admiring Fahim's ugly, delusional attitude toward victory.

"You... aren't you... human?"

Fahim was certain that his Human Body Destruction spell had hit Dekan, but it couldn't do any damage to Dekan at all!

The forbidden magic [Human Body Destruction], which deals massive damage instantly and directly, has one more limitation compared to magic like [Corrosive Destruction], which inflicts status ailments—

The other party must be a human.

Of course, thanks to Fahim's long-term improvements, even races like orcs and elves, which he had studied alive, would be affected by the Body Destruction!

Unless.

The other party was a being he had never understood and could never comprehend!

"Fahim, guess what race I am now?"

Dekan's soft voice drifted into Fahim's ears.

The bewitching voices, a mix of male and female, were like a chilling wind blowing from a frozen wasteland. The speaker wasn't fast, but they made Fahim feel dizzy and as if he were in a dream.

This moment.

Fahim sensed the stench of death beginning to permeate his surroundings and couldn't help but utter a sound of despair:

"No, impossible... There shouldn't be such a thing in this world..."

However.

Dekan didn't explain anything further to Fahim.

He has already enjoyed it.

Taking the life of a villain is not something Dekan finds particularly pleasurable.

He hates killing unless absolutely necessary.

What he found truly irresistible was the thrill of destroying the spirit of the most heinous criminals and then savoring their despair.

This feeling, once experienced, is unforgettable.

Dekan felt himself becoming hopelessly addicted to tormenting the Resurrection Cultist.

"Your forbidden magic is ultimately nothing but heresy; let me use holy magic to Purification your defiled body and soul."

As he spoke, Dekan took out [Blood Purification].

"!!!"

While Fahim was shocked and confused, he could sense that the magical aura emanating from Dekan was the holy attribute that he hated the most.

But this holy attribute magic is definitely not a blessing or a benevolent addition!

It's a kind of magic that makes people feel uncomfortable, desperate, and cold just by being there! It's eerie and Terror, instilling a fear deep in one's soul.

Fahim instinctively took two steps back.

At that moment, he clearly realized that he had completely lost his will to fight.

He had truly had enough.

From today onwards, upon arriving in the Royal Capital.

It was as if I had fallen into a spider web from which I could not escape.

Everything that was going smoothly suddenly took a sharp turn for the worse.

After that, he gradually became more and more entangled, eventually stepping into a dead end.

He didn't even know where he had gone wrong!

Fahim finally realized that not a single step so far had been taken according to his own will, but every step seemed to be under Dekan's control.

This feeling is called bottomless despair.

Perhaps from the moment he chose to undertake the mission to deal with Dekan, everything he would later encounter was already beyond his control.

However.

Before Fahim could even exit the third step, he uncontrollably collapsed to the ground.

His feet seemed to have lost their function and were out of control.

He discovered that his foot had been pierced by a kind of ground nail.

After falling to the ground, Fahim felt even more spikes piercing his body!

These ground nails are all highly poisonous!

Because Fahim was wearing Pain Shield and had a poor field of vision, he didn't notice that there were so many spikes on the ground.

By the time he realized he was poisoned, it was too late.

Even Purification magic cannot remove this poison!

"Hehe, as my first user of [Venomous Ground Spikes 4.1], how's the experience?"

[Venomous Ground Spikes 4.1]

[Category: Spell Card]

[Grade: Purple Rare]

[Class: 4]

[Effect: Inflicts a persistent weak poison and severe bleeding status. This spell can be triggered from a distance, and the poison cannot be Purification.]

[Note: The current version is 4.1, employing the latest "Blood Investigation Ledger High Durability Technology," which enhances the sturdiness and sharpness of the spikes! Getting stabbed will guarantee massive bleeding! -- Developer's Diary.]

As Dekan inquired about the customer experience, [Blood Purification] was finally applied to Fahim.

Fahim felt no pain.

However, he, who was always engrossed in studying human magic, could clearly feel his body becoming lighter!

A bloody smell gradually filled the air—the smell of his own blood, a smell he had never experienced before!

He's always the one who destroys other people's bodies!

I never imagined that one day my body would be so cruelly damaged by others!

"I can't kill you in one hit. We can continue our fair competition later. Whether it's [Corrosive Destruction] or [Human Body Destruction], use them on me as soon as they're off cooldown. But this time, I won't let Croix use [Forced Dispel] on me."

Dekan spoke calmly, as if announcing Fahim's fate.

"No, no!!!"

Fahim finally screamed in agony.

He understood what Dekan said.

Dekan no longer allowed Croix to use [Forced Dispel] on Dekan, partly because Dekan relied on Croix's healing output and was no longer afraid of Fahim's [Corrosion].

On the other hand, Croix's [Forced Dispel] will target Fahim!

He will dispel Fahim's protective shield [Pain Shield], allowing Fahim to truly feel the punishment from Dekan.

Fahim was quite certain he had lost.

But he couldn't imagine it.

In his current state, if Croix dispels his [Pain Shield] and Dekan summons [Ruined Poet], what kind of agony would he suffer before dying!

"Fahim, are you happy to die in the way you like best?"

Dekan simply asked quietly.

"No!! This isn't what I like!!"

"Oh? Really? I thought you liked it, after all, that's always been how you treat others."

After hearing Dekan's words, Fahim was convinced.

Dekan wanted to torture him further.

Even though he was already low on health and suffering from poison, Dekan might need several [Blood Purification] spells to kill him!

An endless fear and chill surged through Fahim's heart, as if it were the end of a nightmare, enveloping him and making it hard for him to breathe, almost suffocating him.

"I choose death!!"

Fahim's eyes widened in fury, and he used a Human Body Destruction spell on himself!

He absolutely refused to let Dekan torture him any longer!

But.

He discovered that he had not been able to die as he had hoped.

Because Croix began treating him, keeping him alive until his last breath.

"Hmph? Trying to escape to the underworld? Did I say you could die?"

Dekan scoffed.

"No!!!"

Fahim finally realized that Dekan had deliberately waited for more than ten seconds and talked to him for so long just to wait for Croix's [Forced Dispel] to cool down.

Moreover, Dekan never worried that Fahim's [Corrosive Destruction] and [Human Body Destruction] would pose a threat to him from the beginning.

Just as Fahim was preparing to use Human Body Destruction magic on himself again.

Dekan summoned the [Ruined Poet].

Croix also used [Forced Dispel] on Fahim, removing Fahim's [Pain Shield].

Instantly.

Pain surged through Fahim's limbs and bones like a tidal wave. The excruciating pain felt as if his internal organs were being ripped apart and his bone marrow was being pulled out. Even his nerves felt like they were being torn apart one by one. The pain was so intense that Fahim's screams became incoherent.

At that moment, Fahim finally understood the feelings of those he had harmed before they died.

With his gradually weakening roars, he finally lost all hope.

Those outside the shadow barrier swallowed hard as they listened to Fahim's shrill and desperate screams from within.

Although they had no idea what was happening inside the barrier.

However, no one present did not feel a chill run down their spine.

They never imagined, nor could they have foreseen, that the final outcome of the duel between Dekan and Fahim would be like this.

It was a hundred times more Terror than any scenario they had ever imagined.

"Is he... really not the Bishop of Pain?"

"No, stop talking! Even if he is, you'd better play dumb if you want to live!"