“…!”
Within the ruins of the throne room, Diere suddenly felt a strong palpitation, clutching her heart. The sensation was brief but intense, leaving her with a feeling that something significant had happened.
Unsure of the cause, she looked up at Shien, who was battling the death aura torrent in the sky, as if trying to see Mara through it.
Unfortunately, Diere lacked clairvoyance and couldn’t see Mara through the dense death aura.
But she was certain that something related to her had just happened near Mara. And that something quickly disappeared.
“What happened?” Diere frowned, confused.
Capeline stood up shakily, looked at the groaning female knights lying around, and then her gaze shifted.
“Brother…!”
Harvis was also lying on the ground, clearly not having received Shien’s protection like Diere and Capeline. He was motionless.
Capeline struggled towards Harvis.
Around them, people fled in panic.
“Quick! Retreat from the palace!”
Even Rockto, guarding the main gate, shouted this order, his expression grim as he looked at the death aura torrent threatening to engulf the entire palace.
“Retreat!” Under Rockto’s command, Tilly waved at the Imperial Knights.
Saliro, grabbing the pale and trembling Geno, also fled the palace with his knights.
The situation above the palace was too terrifying, even Legendary-level experts had to retreat.
“Roar!”
Yulin, also at Limit Level, roared at the death aura torrent in the sky, clearly sensing the threat.
After all, Mara was not only at Limit Level, but also possessed the constitution of a Greater Spirit of Death, wielding death aura amplified by the blood of countless fallen heroes on the Empire’s land, and using the enhanced necromancy spell, [Grand Astarte]. Even Yulin, at Limit Level, might be defeated.
That’s why even Shien, using [Samsara of Heaven’s Decree], was stalled.
“This venomous Consort is more troublesome than I thought,” Shien thought, using the Annihilation property of Bestowal Magic to counter the endless death aura.
Even with [Samsara of Heaven’s Decree] doubling his power, putting him half a step into Transcendence, he was still stalled. This showed Mara was going all out.
Although Mara’s death aura was vast, it was still finite. Being constantly annihilated by Shien, her power would only weaken. [Grand Astarte], like [Astarte], relied on the amount of death energy. If the reserves decreased, Mara’s power would naturally weaken.
Yet, Mara continued to expend her death aura recklessly, just to stall him and buy time. This made Shien impatient.
Moreover, the sensing ability of [Outer Awareness of Heaven’s Decree] told him that Mara was doing something significant, and the strange magic power in the air was intensifying. Shien decided not to wait any longer.
“Lilith!”
Shien finally called out to his guardian deity.
At this moment, the world changed.
…
“It’s done.”
At the same time, a smile finally reappeared on Mara’s cold and emotionless face as she looked at a young girl before her.
In one of her hands, she held a lifeless mummy that vaguely resembled Wolram.
This arrogant adopted son of the Raifurut family was dead.
Mara had used the most brutal method, injecting a large amount of death aura directly into his body, turning him into an undead, then using necromancy to control him and activate his Unique Skill, successfully creating a clone of Diere.
Mara casually tossed aside Wolram’s mummy and picked up Diere’s clone.
With a single glance, Mara could tell that this clone was flawed.
It had no soul, no consciousness, no self. Just an empty shell.
Clearly, the clone Mara obtained through this shortcut wasn’t perfect.
But…
“This is enough.”
Mara didn’t need Diere, but the Goddess of Fate’s blessed one.
There was only one person with this blessing.
That was Lucy.
Before Lucy’s birth, the previous blessed one of the Goddess of Fate was Hero Mitra.
After Hero Mitra, no one had received this blessing for a thousand years.
That’s why Mara waited for a thousand years, until Lucy’s birth, to begin her plan.
But Lucy was the Kingdom’s Treasure, the only princess of the Mitra Kingdom in a thousand years, inheriting Mitra’s Holy Sword and favored by the God Race. Even Mara had to think carefully before making a move against her.
However, unexpectedly, not long after Lucy’s birth, another blessed one of the Goddess of Fate appeared.
No one knew about this.
Not even Mara initially.