Sword of Salvation-Chapter 48: - Unexpected Failure (3)

The voice belonged to a broad-shouldered man with short, messy pink hair.

He stood nearly two meters tall, with a sharp nose and a strong jaw. He also had a thin beard that matched the color of his hair and eyes. Although his appearance suggested he was in his thirties, the intensity in his gaze hinted at something far beyond that.

However, Shin and Mariel paid no attention to the man’s looks. Their thoughts were focused on his words. World Order? Great Human Council? Mariel had no information about those names. Shin, however, did. As a result, only Shin showed any sign of shock.

"World Order, you say? Serving Great Human Council? Fuck off!"

The man laughed at Shin’s response.

"You know about World Order and Great Human Council?" Mariel asked curiously. He glanced at Shin, though he didn’t take his eyes off the pink-eyed man.

"Not surprising that you don’t know," Shin remarked, lifting his gaze to a mysterious object floating over a hundred meters in the air.

Mariel followed Shin’s gaze but quickly turned his eyes back to that man.

"Great Human Council is the most secretive and powerful organization," Shin continued. "They indirectly control the world. Rumor has it that Sterminatore is their enforcer. It’s just a rumor—I have no proof. Meanwhile, World Order consists of powerful fighters who only follow the Council’s orders. The bastard on that floating object is named Gillea. He’s the only World Order member I know."

That was new information for Mariel. It wasn’t what he had expected. However, he wasn’t too surprised. He had ambition of controlling the world himself. If he could have such ambition, it was only natural that others would too.

"Ha-ha-ha. Your knowledge is quite extensive, Shin, but that’s no surprise considering you were once involved with Merlin. Ah, I remember you did a few jobs for Gillea a few years back. Why not join us?"

Shin snorted. "Mariel," he called without looking at him. "Let’s call our fight a draw. Seeing that floating object has rekindled my old rage. That bastard Gillea still owes me six millions escal."

"As long as you return the scythe and give me the information you mentioned earlier, I have no objections."

"You’re too greedy, but fine." Shin cloaked himself with lightning and destructive energy before stepping forward. "Stay out of this. I’ll take down that man and then that bastard Gillea. After that, we’ll talk."

"Are you sure you can win with your left shoulder injured?"

Shin didn’t bother answering Mariel’s question. He shot forward at full speed toward the pink-haired man, who seemed eager for the fight.

Mariel shrugged and dashed to the spot where the sacred scythe was embedded—they had strayed quite far from their original battlefield.

A sigh of relief escaped Mariel’s mouth and nose when he saw Zesteria still stuck in the ground. He had worried that the pink-haired man or Gillea had set their sights on the sacred scythe. But they hadn’t. That was reassuring.

"But how did they end up here? Just a coincidence like Shin? Or, have they been watching me and Shin all along?"

As those questions left his lips, Mariel sat on a large rock and directed his gaze toward Shin and the pink-haired man.

The man didn’t have a spatial barrier like Mariel, making Shin’s destructive energy highly effective. However, the pink-haired man didn’t allow Shin’s energy to touch him—he fought with extreme caution.

Mariel observed the battle carefully without lowering his guard.

He couldn’t be sure that the man on the floating object wouldn’t interfere. The pink-haired man was strong, very strong. Even in a defensive stance, he was putting Shin under immense pressure. That guy would be killed if Gillea decided to intervene. Mariel couldn’t let his source of information die.

Mariel’s eyes widened when he suddenly saw the man blocked Shin’s full-powered punch. He wasn’t shocked by the man’s speed or strength, which surpassed Shin’s; he was surprised that Shin’s destructive energy couldn’t touch him. It was a very familiar ability to Mariel. The pink-haired man... he could also use a spatial barrier like him!

Mariel’s shock deepened when the pink-haired man dispelled the lightning and destructive energy surrounding Shin’s body. Shin was just as surprised and didn’t have time to react when the man’s left foot struck his head. Shin was thrown back, tumbling several times before the pink-haired man unleashed a tsunami of fire.

It was the largest flame burst Mariel had ever seen.

"How is this possible...?"

Mariel could understand if he used just one of his abilities. But the man had used two. No, now he was using three of Mariel’s abilities. It was unbelievable!

He swapped places with a rock fragment behind Shin and struck the young man with a solid elbow. Shin had just managed to overcome the tsunami of fire, but the fire bullet that followed came too fast for him to react. The hypersonic bullet hit Shin directly.

Shin was hurled toward Mariel. He reflexively stood up and caught Shin’s body to stop him from being thrown any further.

"Heh, heh, heh." Shin half-laughed, half-panted. "I never thought I’d ask for help in a fight, but he might be on the same level as Nessthanovla. I hate to admit it, but this is dangerous. Let’s fight together, Mariel."

"Oh?" Mariel raised one eyebrow as he looked at Shin, now shirtless. "I thought you’d rather die than ask for help, Shin."

"Somehow, he can use your abilities. I can’t fight him with full strength. I have no choice but to use you."

Mariel understood Shin’s reasoning. No matter how strong Shin was when using spirit fusion mode, it was useless if he couldn’t fully utilize it. Seeing someone else use his powers made Mariel realize just how troublesome his abilities were.

"Alright," Mariel said, his body now cladded in thick wind armor. "He’s dangerous. It’s better to end him here."

"Good!" Shin grinned widely. "Let’s end that bastard."

Mariel and Shin shot forward simultaneously, charging straight at the pink-haired man.

"Two against one, huh?"

Neither Mariel nor Shin paid any attention to their opponent’s words. Whether it was two-on-one or ten-on-one, there were no rules in a life-or-death fight. They weren’t knights, so there was no need to adhere to chivalric principles. Shin and Mariel attacked their opponent with all their strength.

The pink-eyed man laughed and fought Shin and Mariel with enthusiasm. But, of course, facing both of them at once wasn’t easy, especially with Mariel wielding a scythe.

Slowly, the man’s expression turned serious. Shin and Mariel had managed to coordinate well, putting their opponent under pressure. Before long, Shin returned the kick he had received earlier.

The pink-haired man was sent flying.

Shin and Mariel weren’t satisfied with just that; they simultaneously unleashed blasts of wind and lightning.

The pink-haired man’s body skidded to a stop on the ground, but less than a second later, he was struck by the combined blast of wind and lightning.

"Romero, enough playing around."

The sudden voice came from the air. The floating object had moved, now positioned just a dozen meters above Romero, who had just been struck by wind and lightning. The long-haired blond man Shin had called Gillea sat on a throne, looking irritated.

"Finish them off immediately. We need to meet Doctor Lergen as soon as possible. I have another mission after this."

As if to prove Gillea’s statement that Romero had been playing around, the pink-haired man stood up completely unharmed. Not even a speck of dirt marked his body.

"They’re good, Gillea. Shin can kill you if you’re careless. I’m not sure about that guy; it seems he hasn’t mastered his spirit yet."

"Don’t take too long. We’re forbidden from harming rulers without permission. Lasyana will notice this battle if you drag it out."

Gillea’s flying object ascended after giving his instructions. Shin cursed the man and unleashed a wave of destructive energy into the air, but Romero snapped his fingers and dispelled it instantly. Shin had no choice but to focus back on the pink-haired man.

"Prepare yourselves," Romero announced loudly. "I’m going to get serious now."

High-intensity prana radiated from Romero’s body. Shin did the same. Mariel focused all his attention on Romero. He intended to cancel his transformation and let Shin finish the fight using his spirit fusion mode.

"Make the world kneel before your greatness, Prideful King Lucifer!"

"Bring destruction with all your fury, Wrathful King Satan!"

Whoosh! The intense energy caused wild winds to blow in every direction.

Mariel immediately used his power to cancel Romero’s transformation.

However, what happened next shocked Mariel. The world in his eyes cracked and shattered like a falling mirror. At that moment, Mariel realized that he and Shin had been trapped in an illusion.

He didn’t know when it had started. What was clear was that the transformations Shin and Romero attempted were just illusions his eyes perceived. He didn’t know what kind of illusion Shin saw, but it was already too late to break free. Mariel felt pain in his back and stomach.

Romero had split into two. One stood behind Mariel, and the other stood behind Shin. Both held short black spears in their hands. Those spears had already pierced Shin’s and Mariel’s backs without them noticing.

"You’re strong, Shin," Romero said firmly. "But you’re too arrogant. When you get emotional, your focus on defense drops drastically. You have great potential, but you need to control your anger better."

Romero pulled the black spear from Shin’s back, causing the young man to stumble forward before collapsing. Romero then threw the spear into Shin’s back, inflicting a second severe wound.

"I heard Shin call you Mariel." Romero approached Mariel and grabbed him by the neck. At the same time, the second Romero behind Mariel disappeared. "You also have potential, even greater than Shin’s. But Mariel, for now, you lack experience. You were too late to notice my illusion."

Mariel struggled to free himself, but the grip on his neck tightened. He tried to swap places with another object, but Romero had paralyzed his body.

How does this man have so many abilities?

Mariel growled inwardly, enduring the pain in his back, stomach, and neck.

"You also need to master your spirit," Romero continued. "I am the second-strongest person in World Order. If you can’t master your spirit, you’ll never defeat me, let alone people stronger than me. Consider this both a lesson and a warning for you and Shin."

With that, Romero tossed Mariel next to the unconscious Shin.

"Lasyana and her subordinates are on their way. You’ll survive. But when we meet again, I’ll offer you the chance to join us. If you refuse again, there won’t be a second chance."

Those were Romero’s final words to them—words Shin couldn’t hear.

Before the pink-haired man left, he forcefully pulled the holy scythe from Mariel’s hands. Mariel tried to hold it, but his strength had faded. Romero shot into the sky, holding the Holy Scythe Zesteria.

Mariel could only growl and let his consciousness fade.

What an unexpected turn of events, Mariel thought before darkness claimed him completely.