WeTried Translations
Translator: ZERO_SUGAR
Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
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Chapter 502: The End, an End to Everything (2)
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Light leaked from the hand gripping Najin.
At first, it was only a single ray. It had been weak enough to conceal by tightening one's grip, but it swelled in an instant. The light did not merely leak through the gaps between the Witch's fingers. It began to overflow.
Her hand was hot. Something inside her palm kept bursting with sharp pops. The Witch listened to that sound and watched the light pouring through her fingers.
Brilliant platinum starlight.
And opposing it, the crimson light of a Crimson Blight Star.
"Ha."
Morgan's eyes widened, then she burst out laughing. She could not help it. Even she had never imagined a method like this.
"You two are out of your minds, aren't you?"
The Witch's hand burned white. Unable to withstand the overflowing starlight, it blackened, then crumbled away in flames. The heat created by the Stars scorched the air around Najin.
Heat that resembled Arthur's from long ago.
Yet fundamentally different heat. Wrapped in starlight burning hotter than ever before, Najin spoke.
"If I were in my right mind, I wouldn't have made it this far."
Until moments ago, twelve Stars had orbited Najin. Not now. A crimson Star rose at the heart of the constellation. Najin knew the name attached to that Star.
The Terminus Star.
The fairy Merlin's twelfth Star, and a Blight Star that should have been bound to Najin and Merlin's Stars. The instant Najin released its restraints, the Terminus Star gleamed crimson as though it had been waiting. The Blight Star burned fiercely, seeking to consume Merlin's Star that had confined it, as well as Najin's Stars.
That was the nature of a Blight Star.
Najin wrapped that heat around himself. He used it as a means to resist the Witch's Blight Star. Naturally, though, a Blight Star was not so convenient a Star.
Ssssss.
Najin's Stars, body, and soul burned away. Only the one doing the burning had changed. The fact that he was burning remained the same. That was why the Witch laughed. What madman set himself on fire to stop himself from burning?
"Are you planning to burn to death? How is that any different from Arthur?"
The Witch sneered.
"Will you burn away your own reason to live with your own hands?"
Still sneering, she looked at Merlin.
The method alone differed. The result would be the same. The Witch mocked Merlin, asking if she intended to repeat the past.
"What are you even talking about? That's disgusting."
Merlin was not shaken in the least. She snorted as if inviting the Witch to keep talking. She too was beginning to be consumed by the Blight Star. Feeling the heat burning her body, Merlin curled her lips into a grin.
"Who said I'd just stand here and burn? Even if it comes to that, I'll be the one doing the burning. Isn't that better than burning by your hand?"
If someone's going to kill him, it'll be me. Better that than letting him die at the hands of some woman whose identity I don't even know. With that rather vicious declaration, Merlin snapped her fingers.
The circles burned. The circuits burned.
Turning even the heat consuming her body into fuel, Merlin completed her magic. Najin, who had lowered his stance and gathered strength, kicked off the ground the moment the sharp snap of her fingers rang out.
To present something that had never existed before, he first had to commit an act of madness that no one had ever attempted. Every discovery in the world began with some fool's madness. Najin intended to start by making a choice that no one else would have made.
Who could have imagined it?
The insanity of wearing a Blight Star on his body to fight another Blight Star. To the Witch's question of where such a madman could possibly be found, Merlin and Najin gladly answered.
Right here, in front of your eyes.
2.
Wrapped in heat, Najin charged forward.
'Hot.'
His body burned. He felt the pain of his flesh cooking. The Terminus Star was burning his Stars, trying to burn his body and soul as well. Even if he shared that pain with Merlin, it still hurt terribly.
Boom.
Pain like this was not enough to stop Najin. He accelerated. He crashed into the barrage of Stars' ultimate techniques and shattered them with his body. He swung his sword and cut apart the crimson rays of Blight Star light the Witch fired like arrows.
He was fast. Faster than ever before.
Now he could cut apart every ray he had failed to cut before. The instant the ground trembled beneath his foot, Najin drove Excalibur into the night sea. Drawing a crescent, he carved out the entire night sea.
Shhhhk!
Waves surged. Every hand lurking beneath the water for Najin was severed. Fending off the Witch's relentless attacks, Najin pressed forward. Every step he took scorched his Stars with the heated Blight Star.
Even without the Witch's attacks reaching him, Najin's body and soul burned. Just taking a step left soot on his Stars. Najin knew that better than anyone.
'I know.'
He knew this was an act of carving away his own flesh. He knew that if this continued, he would eventually burn away to the Blight Star. Only the one doing the burning had changed. In the end, he would meet death at Merlin's Blight Star rather than the Witch's.
'I know, but.'
That was only if things continued as they were. Najin had no intention of dying so easily. He often joked with Merlin, saying, "If I die, I'll die by Merlin's hand," but jokes were meant to remain jokes.
Najin had always grown.
He had risked his life to challenge the impossible. He had thrown himself forward and broken through even when everyone was certain he would lose. He had not yielded, and only then had Najin seized victory.
Then this time would be no different.
'Set it alight.'
If failing to overcome it meant death, then he only had to overcome it. Najin snorted and took another step. As he shattered the Witch's magic, he spoke to himself. It might act high and mighty, but was a Blight Star not still a Star in the end?
A Star submits before a stronger Star.
Bury the Blight Star's light beneath a more intense light.
Just as he had restored the Inverse Stars blackened by corruption to their original state, he only needed to bleach the crimson Blight Star as well. The world would call him mad for attempting something no one had ever done, but then he only had to become the first.
Flash.
Najin's Stars began shining one after another. As they burned beneath the Blight Star, the twelve Stars poured out light more brilliantly than ever. As if answering their master's will, they scattered platinum radiance, refusing to yield to the Blight Star.
Would he burn to death, or make even fire a part of himself?
'Overcome it, or burn to death.'
Najin challenged it.
The first Star shone, and Najin's body accelerated in an instant. He cut down the flashes exploding endlessly before him. As the night sea exploded, he leaped high. He even used the blast's pressure to close the distance.
Rays of light awaited the airborne Najin.
Along with crimson chains surging in from all directions. Chains with sharp spearheads on their ends filled his vision. It was the Witch's magic, seeking to pierce Najin and nail him in place.
"Merlin!"
Cold swept in as if answering Najin's cry. Frost formed over the chains. The moment their movements slowed, Najin spun in midair. The Sword Aura he fired shattered the frozen chains.
Thud.
A few still pierced Najin's body, but the instant they did, Najin grabbed hold of them instead. Pulling on the chains, he used them to close the distance.
Sssssss!
Steam burst out with every movement. The moisture in his eyes boiled from the heat. Merlin's cold cooled his body whenever his vision began to blur, but that too had limits. Najin gritted his teeth.
Then, bang.
He struck his own heart with his fist.
Just as Mordred had done. Mordred had charged at Najin while his body burned, with a fragment of a Blight Star embedded in his heart. At the thought of that obsession, Najin's Star shone.
The Star of Victory in Battle shone.
What could he not do for victory? Endure the pain. Move his body with an obsession for victory.
Thud.
Crimson thorns and spearheads burst from the night sea and pierced Najin's body. Najin snorted at the thorns trying to grow from within him. Coughing up a mouthful of blood, he brought down his raised foot on the night sea.
The waves surged. The thorns snapped. The spearheads broke. Without even pulling the spears from his body, Najin charged at the Witch.
'I can see it.'
The Blight Star's starlight crashed toward him like waves. He swung his sword and split the tsunami. As the foaming waves tried to swallow Najin, Merlin froze the divided water. Kicking off the frozen waves, Najin raced forward as though skating.
'I'm getting closer.'
He could see the Witch.
The Witch was watching Najin too.
"Honestly."
He reached her. Shattering every spell in his way, Najin arrived right before the Witch and swung his sword. The instant the blade was about to touch her body, the Witch reached out.
Clench.
The Witch grabbed Excalibur barehanded. Najin let go of Excalibur and tried to summon it again, but tricks like that did not work on the Witch. Excalibur did not answer his summons, as though something held it firmly in place.
Holding Najin's sword, the Witch casually swept her other hand. A ray of light traced along her fingertips.
Blood sprayed.
The long streak of light raked across Najin's body. Blood splashed high into the air. Najin's blood splattered across the Witch's face. The Witch tried to swing her hand again, but...
Thousand Stars.
Najin did not simply stand there and take it. Excalibur, trapped in the Witch's grasp, shook violently. The Witch's fingers trembled for an instant under the force created by compressed Sword Aura in the blade. Najin did not miss the opening.
Excalibur drew a line, severing the Witch's fingers. It escaped her grip. White sword light rose in a crescent, then the raised blade turned downward.
Ten Thousand Radiances.
Tens of thousands of rays spread out. Sword Aura tore through the area. It cut the Witch's body, the Witch's magic rising from the ground, and the Stars floating nearby. It was a storm of slashes powerful enough to subdue even the Dragon of the Abyss.
"Ah."
Yet even within that storm, the Witch smiled. Her entire body was shredded, but the instant flesh was cut away, it filled back in. The darkness vast enough to cover the whole world belonged to her. She only had to replenish whatever was cut away.
Click.
Within the raging storm of slashes, the Witch walked forward calmly. Her skin tore, then healed. Hair severed by the slashes grew back. Her sliced-open eyes, mouth, and even her whole body reformed.
Click.
She crossed the storm with her bare body. Her steps slowed, but the storm could not stop her. In the end, her hand touched Najin's body. Four of her five fingers had been cut off. Only one finger reached Najin.
But that was enough.
The finger ignited.
Morgan le Fay was not exactly a mage. She was skilled in magic, but her existence was older than the history of magic being called magic. Then what had she been called in the beginning?
Mother of the cursed.
The deity who received offerings from the cursed.
That was the first name she had received.
Sorcerers offered sacrifices.
They offered their own flesh or another's flesh as a sacrifice to wield power. That was magic from before the first year. The miraculous power humans had first obtained. And the power closest to the Witch's roots.
Morgan's body was filled with sacrifices.
The billions of lives she had devoured were sacrifices the earth had offered her. The Witch took a portion of those sacrifices. Najin looked at the finger touching his body. Before he could cut it away, the Witch's sorcery was complete.
『You are different from us.』
『And difference means wrongness.』
『You, who differ from our perfection, are incomplete, wicked, false beings. Therefore, we cannot permit your existence. What is not right must be cast out.』
A voice came from somewhere.
『Get out of this land.』
『There is no place for you here.』
And what was completed was the first sorcery.
『Repulsion』
Najin's vision jolted. His body shook along with it. Then his vision flickered. The moment light flashed, everything moved away from him. The Witch before him looked no bigger than a tiny dot.
Whoosh!
He heard the sound of air splitting apart. Najin's body shot away like a ray of light, only stopping when it crashed into something. He was thrown into a place where dozens of thorn trees had grown.
3.
Najin tumbled through the thorns.
Thud, crunch, crack.
Thorns pierced his body. Yet he could not stop. Breaking thorn trees with his bare body, Najin rolled between them. Thorns embedded themselves all over him, and blood ran down his body. Broken thorns drove even deeper into his flesh.
"Cough, urgh..."
Najin coughed up blood. When he pushed himself up and raised his head, the distance had widened beyond what he had managed to close. The place the Witch's finger had touched was bruised black.
"Ha."
Spitting blood, Najin stood.
Again, from the beginning.
But his spirit did not break. It was enough that he had confirmed her body could be cut. If he could cut her, then she was something he could kill. Grinding his teeth, Najin stoked the flames even higher.
The thorns embedded in his body burned away.
Boom.
He stomped down and moved forward. The dice had already been thrown, and the tossed coin was spinning. There was no need to check whether the die landed on six or one, whether the coin landed heads or tails.
'I just have to keep throwing.'
Kick the dice rolling across the ground. Snatch up the coin and throw it again. When he asked himself how long he had to keep doing it, Najin answered.
'Until I get the result I want.'
Najin watched Morgan. Her body was not completely whole either. She had filled in the places he had cut, but Najin saw that she had not fully removed the scorch marks. The blade he swung while wrapped in the Blight Star's flames had clearly reached her.
He could inflict meaningful damage.
"Hoo."
Steadying his breath, Najin walked.
One step, two steps, then he began to run again.
"......"
Watching him, the Witch brushed her cheek with her thumb. Looking at the soot on her body and the blood flowing from the palm that had gripped Excalibur, she smiled. Then she clapped both hands together with delighted laughter.
Her wounds split open, spraying blood.
Blood ran from her palms as the Witch applauded Najin. Each clap shook the space around them. Just as Najin had revealed every move he possessed, the Witch revealed everything she had.
Blood flowed, continued flowing, and sprayed through the air.
There were advantages and disadvantages, but neither side held an absolute edge. The Witch no longer waited for Najin in place. She strode toward him. Her opponent was now worth doing so for.
Author's Note
This chapter was a little late...!
Footnotes:
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