-1584- Final glorious moment

"————"

The world suddenly fell silent.

Rozen felt darkness envelop his vision, as though the entire world had transformed in an instant into a shadowy space filled with thick, swirling black mist.

Within this mist-shrouded space, strange energies filled the air, and an unsettling quiet reigned. Neither Kirsty's nor Zeth's figures were anywhere to be found.

This wasn't just a simple concealment of their forms.

At the very least, Rozen's Mind's Eye could perceive Kirsty's aura surrounding him. His Spirit Vision detected her miasma and jutsuryoku everywhere, but his Heaven's Eye returned nothing, as though it were in a vacuum, completely empty.

This strange phenomenon and eerie situation gave Rozen some clarity.

"A barrier, huh?"

Indeed, Rozen had been dragged into a barrier.

And this wasn't an ordinary barrier—it was one that closely resembled a Reality Marble.

This Reality Marble was undoubtedly Kirsty's curse.

It was said that Kirsty's curse could form a barrier unique to her, separating the inside from the outside, making it impossible for the two to interfere with one another. Unless the curse's wielder was defeated, freedom would remain elusive.

Moreover, within this misty space, Kirsty could appear anywhere at will, and her body could become part of the mist, making her almost impossible to track.

No one who had ever been consumed by this barrier had managed to escape alive.

All victims of this barrier were brutally slain, leaving nothing but pools of blood in their wake.

This was Kirsty's curse—Black Mist Barrier.

"Die!"

In an instant, Kirsty appeared behind Rozen, her scythe raised high, slashing down mercilessly at him.

But at that very moment, Rozen swiftly turned, his Magic Resilience sword slashing through her body before the scythe could land.

"Slash!"

Kirsty's body was split in two.

Yet, she didn't die. No blood was spilled. Instead, she dissolved into black mist, which swirled away and reformed behind Rozen.

However, Kirsty still couldn't attack Rozen in time.

"Too slow!"

Rozen spun once more, his sword cutting through the air.

"Slash!"

With a ripping sound, Kirsty was again sliced in half, her body dissipating into black mist.

"You... you can track my movements!?"

Kirsty's shocked voice echoed from all directions.

In response, Rozen scoffed.

"Sorry, but compared to Zeth, your curse is child's play to me."

In the face of Rozen's Mind's Eye, such power was no more than a crude illusion.

It didn't matter whether Kirsty turned into mist. If she wanted to attack, she had to form a tangible body.

At that moment, the movement of the mist, the atmospheric vibrations, the heartbeat, the neural activity, and the pulse of her cells all revealed her location to Rozen.

Naturally...

"It wouldn't matter if it were someone else."

Rozen turned to his side.

There, Zeth emerged from the black mist, raising his cursed sword.

"Slash!"

With the flick of Rozen's sword, Zeth was cut in half like Kirsty.

But unlike Kirsty, who dissolved into mist, Zeth bled profusely and was thoroughly dead.

Of course, Zeth's curse allowed him to reject death in any form, so he quickly revived, his body fully restored.

"Attack!"

Despite his previous defeat, Zeth gave the command in a low voice.

In that instant, figures materialized around Rozen.

Among these figures was Kirsty, wielding her cursed scythe, as well as several familiar faces from Rozen's past.

"Cursed Battle Skill — Explosive Flame Assault!"

With a shout, Yamir charged at Rozen, her body engulfed in flames like a thousand stampeding horses.

"Cursed Battle Skill — Dire Rush!"

Gregor roared, his fur bristling into steel-like needles, which detached from his body and rained down on Rozen like a storm.

"Cursed Battle Skill — Infinite Pulverizing Cannon!"

Francis raised his massive cannons, firing a barrage of deadly blasts that turned into an endless stream of light beams aimed at Rozen.

"Cursed Battle Skill — Warship Cleaver!"

Parsons' dark sword grew into an enormous blade, slashing toward Rozen, slicing through the mist with immense force.

"Cursed Battle Skill — Mountain Ice Sword!"

Gerrit wielded his frosty blade, transforming it into an enormous ice sword, like a towering iceberg cutting through steel, aimed directly at Rozen.

The five members of Vebel, now fully recovered from their injuries thanks to their regeneration abilities, had surrounded Rozen under the cover of Kirsty's curse. They launched their strongest attacks.

Not only that, but Zeth and Kirsty also moved in.

"Curse Scythe Battle Skill — Rakshasa Chant!"

Kirsty swung her curse scythe, sending a series of cursed blades toward Rozen.

"Curse Sword Battle Skill — Purgatory Slash!"

Zeth unleashed a black tidal wave with his cursed sword, surging toward Rozen like a dark tsunami.

In this instant, Rozen was facing the combined assault of seven different attacks.

These seven were the strongest among the Armored Beetles, a peerless squadron. If they used their full power, they could easily wipe out humanity with just time on their side.

But at this moment, they unleashed everything they had against just one man—Rozen.

This was their final glorious moment.

"Come forth..."

Amidst the thunderous assault, Rozen's calm voice rang out.

"The First Beast Vassal — Mesarthim Adamas."

A blood mist rose from Rozen's body.

"Rumble...!"

The black mist roared.

In the darkened world, a translucent, gem-like diamond ram slowly rose from behind Rozen, radiating pure and flawless light.

A barrier of crystallized gems immediately enveloped Rozen.

"Boom!"

Every attack that touched the barrier was deflected and rebounded.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

Cries of pain echoed across the space.

Yamir was incinerated by the all-consuming flames.

Gregor's body was pierced by countless steel needles, leaving him riddled with holes, lifeless.

Francis was vaporized by his own cannon blasts.

Parson and Gerrit were slashed apart and blown to pieces by massive blades, leaving nothing behind.

Even Kirsty was caught in her attacks, shattering her into a thousand fragments in an explosion.

As for Zeth, he was swallowed by the dark tidal wave and disappeared without a trace.

"Boom!"

The black mist barrier shattered.

The sky-darkening Mesarthim Adamas stood in the silver mist, roaring into the heavens.

It did not quiet for a long time.