Chapter 436: Mael's Long-Awaited Revenge

Tilting my head to the side, narrowly dodging Garling's sword, I thrust my palm forward, creating an explosion of plasma that pushed far away while burning some of his chest, though his impressive haki protected him from any further injury. Grunting, I quickly raised my axe, barely stopping his sword as he cut me while he forcefully pushed back because of my attack.

'Tsk, fucking bastard.' Thought Mael with a grunt as he glanced at the cut on his cheek despite blocking the sword, causing him to shift his focus to Garling.

"Hmph, it shouldn't take me this long to deal with an old man." Muttered Mael in slight anger as he clenched his axe while slashing it at Garling, launching a massive wave of plasma compressed into a sharp arc that cut through everything in its path.

"It's unbecoming of me that a slave like you still hasn't fallen to my blade." Said Garling with an ugly expression as he slashed through Mael's attack while his sword smoked.

Clicking my tongue at his words, I was about to fly towards Garling, but before I could, a massive explosion that violently shook the Redlin suddenly erupted, causing us to snap our heads to where it originated from, only for a reddish-white blur to suddenly pass between us, followed by a powerful gust of wind that nearly flung us in the same direction.

Lowering my arms, I glanced at the 'thing' floating in the air, only for me to shiver in fear as I gulped; whatever that 'thing' was, it was terrifying; my whole body was quivering in terror at its mere presence.

'T-That 'Thing' isn't even close to human.' Thought Mael with a cold sweat as he gazed at Imu, who happened to glance at him, causing him to faintly grin while forcefully suppressing his fear.

Channeling the anger through my body, I forcefully pushed away the fear that threatened to consume me as I stared back at that 'Thing', only for a large hand with sharp claws to suddenly grasp my shoulder.

"Hehe, want to trade opponents for some time?" Asked Diddy with a feral grin as he stared fixedly at Imu with a bloodthirsty expression while standing beside Mael, who profusely refused.

"Hmph, should I just kill myself now, then? I'm at the mercy of that 'Thing'; I'm only able to move freely like this because of your haki." Remarked Mael with a scoff as he glanced at Diddy, who chuckled in amusement while walking forward.

"Hehehehe, relax, I was just joking. Did you really think I would let you fight her? I'm having far too much fun to stop now." Stated Diddy with a ferocious expression as he lowered himself to all fours while his tail excessively wagged in joy.

Watching Captain launch himself towards that 'thing' to continue their battle, I wouldn't have minded watching such a spectacle; the sheer power those two had was something breathtaking, and as much as I trained, I knew no matter what I did, I could and would never reach that level of strength… It wasn't something one could simply achieve through hard work. It was a combination of several factors, such as luck, talent, luck hard work, luck, etc. and I didn't have all the required factors; hell, as much as I hate to admit it, I don't even know if I could reach Freyja's level of strength.

However, before I could grind my teeth in frustration, Garling attacked me, prompting me to shift my focus back onto the matter at hand as I swung my axe, intercepting his blade as our weapons locked into each other.

As we pushed against each other, seeking to dominate the other, I erupted myself into volatile plasma, rapidly increasing the already intense temperature as Garling and I began to sink into the ground, which quickly turned into molten liquid underneath the heat radiating off me.

Seeing how Garling didn't attempt to distance himself, I smirked and further upped the ante, causing us to swiftly sink as if we were in a pool of water, and within just a few moments, we had already sunk a few hundred meters and were continuing to fall.

"Fool, this will be your grave." Said Mael with a faint smirk, his figure concealed within the raging plasma that turned everything around them into liquid.

Garling didn't utter a word, but with a swift motion, he titled his sword before pushing forward at a specific angle, which was perfect enough for him to free his sword from our deadlock as my axe slid down the side of the blade.

With a swift motion, he slightly right across my chest, creating a deep gash that gushed blood while the force of the impact also flung me into the distance, my body burning everything it touched into gas so despite being deep within the Redline, I might as well have been in the air.

Retracting the plasma back into my body, I finally came to a halt as I slammed against the wall before sliding down it, collapsing to one knee and propping myself up with my axe afterward.

"F-Fuck…" Muttered Mael softly as he coughed blood while his wound profusely gushed blood onto the ground.

Gasping for air, I lifted my head and tried to stand up, but I received a brutal kick from Garling, knocking me onto my back, only for a sword to pierce my chest.

"Tsk, for a slave, you should feel gracious that the Leader of the Holy Knights will be killing you personally." Said Garling lightly as he stepped onto Mael, pushing his sword deeper into his chest and spitting on his face in the process.

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"M-Mael, RUN!" Yelled a young boy with four white, feathered wings sprouting out of his back while a boy of similar appearance followed behind, though at a slower rate.

"I-I can't, Sol!" Said Mael as he tried to keep up with Sol, yet his smaller legs prevented him from reaching him, only for him to suddenly collapse onto the ground in exhaustion.

"MAEL! C'mon, I know it hurts, but this is our only chance for freedom!" Said Sol earnestly as he quickly turned around and ran towards Mael, who was gasping for breath while lying on the ground.

"I-I can't, Sol, I-I'm slowing you down, j-just leave me. B-Besides, I-I can't even fly, l-look at my bottom two wings, t-they're too small." Said Mael weakly as he looked at Sol before gesturing to his underdeveloped two-bottom wings.

"I'm not leaving you, Mael! We're getting out of this together!" Stated Sol firmly as he hoisted Mael onto his back and began running, only for his frail and weak body to be quickly exhausted.

"THERE THEY ARE!" Yelled a group of men in the far distance as they pointed at Sol and Mael, only to quickly chase after them.

"S-Sol, stop! L-Leave me! We're both not going to make it!" Yelled Mael as he glanced at Sol, who was barely even walking at this point, only for him to turn around and glance at the rapidly approaching men.

"Y-You're right. W-We're both not going to make it, Mael… But you will." Said Sol with a firm gaze as he set Mael down on the ground before turning around and facing the incoming men in all-black suits.

"Sol!" Said Mael anxiously as he grabbed Sol's hand, only for him to forcefully yank it out.

"Run, Mael… Run. I'll hold them out long enough until you make it to the edge of the Redline." Stated Sol solemnly as he fearlessly stared at the rapidly approaching men, only for a soft glow of moonlight to emit from his body.

"Don't worry about not being able to fly, Mael… I believe in you. And remember, no matter what happens in the future, NEVER follow another person's orders… You're free after all." Declared Sol with a faint smirk as he gave Mael one last glance before dashing towards the incoming men.

"S-SOL!" Yelled Mael with a teary-eyed expression as he dashed in the opposite direction, heading towards the edge of the Redline.

"Ha!" Said Sol as he shot beams of moonlight from his palm, striking the various men, knocking them out while the others shot him, yet every bullet passed right through him.

'Ha, b-brother might defeat them all!' Thought Mael with a surprised expression as he glanced at Sol, who defeated every person with ease while he continued to run.

"SOL!!!" Yelled Mael with a pale expression as he watched a sword slash right through Sol, bisecting him in half from the waist down.

"Tsk, for a slave, you should feel honored that you were personally killed by the leader of the Holy Knights." Said Garling in disgust as he glanced at Sol's corpse before raising his head and glancing at Mael, who leaped off the Redline.

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Just when Garling's sword was about to slash down, plasma erupted from my body akin to the sun's fury as I forcefully pushed Garling backward; his words had awakened a memory that I had painstakingly sought to forget.

"I-I'LL. KILL. YOU. GARLING!" Yelled Mael furiously as the plasma that gushed out of his body like a broken damn only further intensified.

Raising my axe into the air, I channeled all of my plasma into it as I flapped my wings and lunged towards Garling, slashing downwards with all of my strength.

"SOLAR FLARE!" Yelled Mael with a bloodthirsty expression as he pushed against Garling's sword, which held firm under the explosive might.

Pouring every ounce of strength I had, the yellowish plasma that engulfed my axe suddenly changed to bright blue, causing the temperature to increase by many folds, allowing me to slice right through Garling's sword, one of thirteen supreme blades, before slashing right through his body.

"Hehehe, I-I've avenged you, S-Sol." Muttered Mael with a faint smirk as he glanced at the scattering dust that was Garling, only to collapse onto the ground and lose consciousness.