Turning Chapter 856

Chapter 856

Moments later, a massive explosion erupted from where Hosanna had been.

It was no ordinary explosion. This was the aftermath of a cataclysmic release of energy, all the power that had been contained within the body of one person, one Awakener, bursting forth in an instant.

Yuder, who had been closest to the blast, was thrown violently by its shockwave. After tumbling a few times, he lay there, battered, as hailstones, now beyond his control, poured down upon him.

His ears rang, a persistent tinnitus echoing in his head. His vision flickered relentlessly, darkness encroaching. Despite the overwhelming pain, a fierce determination not to fall here drove him to weakly move his limbs.

After the hailstorm had finally ceased, Yuder, clutching his sword, used it to push himself up from the ground, staggering to his feet. He had to see with his own eyes what had just happened.

Taking deep breaths, he opened his eyes wide. Now, he could clearly see the landscape before him.

Where Hosanna had just been, a significant expanse of land was now cratered as if a giant boulder had struck it. The ground was covered in dark, blood-red stains.

A crimson earth, not a single hair to be found.

Yuder quickly realized what this meant.

His last attack had undoubtedly pierced Hosanna. But...

‘Hosanna must have managed to use his ability in the final moment.’

Had Hosanna fallen without a chance to use his ability under Yuder's attack, the aftermath would have been different. At least, the bodies of Hosanna and Nahan, the two foes, would have remained at the site of the attack.

But the utter lack of even a fragment of bone in this blasted landscape meant that Hosanna had managed to use his power at the last moment, causing his body to be torn apart instantly and completely.

Previously, his movements had not been his own will but more a result of being swept up in the overwhelming surge of power. However, this last act was different. Hosanna had clearly intended to use all his strength to send Nahan somewhere else. Thus, Yuder's prediction that Hosanna would explode and die the moment he used his ability had come to pass.

The most crucial evidence supporting this hypothesis was the absence of Nahan's body in the bloody crater. Even if swept away by the explosion, there should have been some trace of him, but there was nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

Yuder gazed into the empty pit, exhaling a trembling breath.

Despite his hopes not to be too late, he had failed to stop Hosanna effectively. The explosion hadn't been as powerful as it could have been, probably because he had almost simultaneously struck and cut off Hosanna's air supply, but everything else had gone beyond his expectations.

No, it wasn't just a deviation. It was almost akin to a failure.

Yuder couldn't be certain whether Nahan was truly dead. Not only that, but he also had no idea where Nahan's body might have been blown to. He had heard Hosanna mutter something about "Southern Lands," but could he really have sent someone else that far away, excluding himself? With some luck, the ability might not have fully activated at the last moment, and Nahan might be found near here. But if not...

The only certainty was that he had no capacity to immediately search and confirm this in the current situation.

Sighing heavily, Yuder exhaled a breath thick with the stench of blood. Gritting his teeth, he tightly gripped the handle of his sword, then relaxed his hold.

A wave of intense emptiness washed over him, but his emotions remained steady beyond that. He was all too familiar with desperate situations. In fact, the smooth progress up to now had been the anomaly for Yudrain Aile. Feelings of anger and frustration were far more familiar to him.

‘Anyway... The aftermath of the explosion was smaller than I expected. It must be due to the simultaneous release of Hosanna's and my powers. At least it seems there were no casualties among us... Kishiar too.’

Kishiar. The thought that he needed to return to where Kishiar was only then occurred to him. Yuder attempted to turn around, but stopped as the Cavalry members rushed in, surrounding him.

"Yuder!"

Fortunately, there were no severely injured among them. Kanna, who had arrived first, scanned Yuder from head to toe with a pale face. The others, too, were shouting incomprehensibly, their gestures filled with shock and confusion.

"Your clothes...!"

"Your body!"

"Your face, your face...!"

Only then did Yuder realize that his limbs and clothes were soaked in a dark, blood-red liquid. It was the residue of Hosanna's explosive demise.

Blood dripped from his clothes and hair, covering him from head to toe. Not all of it was his own, but to others, it must have looked horrific.

"Good heavens. Someone go and kidnap any priest..."

"It's fine. I don't need a priest... Start organizing the area and preparing for a search."

"What? What are you talking about?"

"...Hosanna, in his last moment, used his power to send Nahan somewhere. If we're lucky, he'll be nearby... but if not, we might never find him."

The others seemed bewildered, not fully understanding Yuder's words. But Kanna was different. She grasped the unsaid implications in Yuder's brief statement.

"Do you think... Nahan might not be dead?"

"Maybe."

"But Yuder, to me, it seemed like he was dead. Even considering Hosanna and Nahan's extraordinary abilities, that's..."

Unable to finish her thought, Kanna blinked her eyes tightly.

"No, I understand. It will become clearer once we gather more information. Alright, we'll do it your way... Yuder?!"

"Yuder! Where are you going...!"

Yuder lacked the strength to respond to his comrades. Staggering, he shrugged off their attempts to help and turned away. His destination was, of course, where Kishiar was. Realizing Yuder's intent, his comrades tried to follow and support him, but Yuder shook his head, refusing their help, and continued to walk alone.

He had worried that Kishiar might have been caught in Hosanna's blast, but fortunately, Kishiar seemed to be unharmed from the explosion just now. Two Cavalry members were supporting him. The man who had been waiting where Yuder had told him to stay, now slowly approached. There was only one red eye, sunken so deeply that it looked pitch black, not two as usual.

Seeing the man, whose handsome face was half-covered in blood, standing with one eye closed, Yuder felt a sharp pang in his heart, and the sharp anger he had felt earlier surged anew.

How could this ever be called love?

The moment their faces met, Yuder felt an overwhelming sense of relief mixed with pain, anger, and an unbearable restlessness. All these emotions converged.

Looking at Kishiar's wounds, Yuder slowly opened his mouth.

"...In the end, I failed to make the right move. I'm sorry."

"..."

"I couldn't stop Hosanna by a narrow margin. It seems he might have sent Nahan somewhere in his final moment. A search... will be necessary."

"..."

"The explosion was smaller than expected, but there might soon be a reaction from the cracks. We need to hurry and join forces with Sir Zuckerman to prepare."

…

Kishiar's gaze drifted past Yuder's head, towards the sky. After a moment, he spoke.

"...The flame you released at the end.”

"...”

“...Did you make a choice?”

The words were vague, yet Yuder understood what he meant. It was also clear that Kishiar, having witnessed Yuder using a power he should not have been able to in those final moments, knew as well.

As expected, even if he could deceive anyone else, he couldn't deceive Kishiar's eyes.

Yuder slowly nodded.

Kishiar closed his eyes.

From a distance, a rumbling sound began to echo.