If the archbishop’s weapon represented pure darkness, then the king’s blade certainly embodied that of light. Perhaps it was the consequence of my fucked up [Darkness] stat, but each of the king’s attacks stung.

It wasn’t like the usual light sting that I’d get from blocking weapons with my bare hands and arms. It seriously fuckin’ hurt like I was being burned by the heat of a dragon’s scorching breath.

Tch... So this must be how a vampire under the Sun feels... I grimaced as the king wound up another attack, his arms swinging high above his head momentarily before bringing them down, his light-slathered sword following in their wake.

I leapt to the side, shaking the numbness and searing pain from my arms as I desperately bought time and attempted to formulate some sort of plan.

In the end, the biggest problem was the sword. Despite the physical enhancements that it granted King Alexei, I was still undoubtedly faster than him. 

However, there was a very good reason that I wasn’t blitzing the shit out of him right now, and that reason had decided to rear its head once more.

A mere second after I managed to avoid the king’s latest strike, a massive wing feathered with particles of white-gold light burst forth from his back and unfurled like an enormous empyreal sail that sought to close the distance between heaven and earth with the sheer size of its wingspan.

“Guh!”

A grunt of pain and annoyance was forced out of my lungs as the photonic wing slammed into my chest, its blistering light piercing through my shirt and imparting a bitter burning sensation that lingered on my skin along with the dull throb of pain that came with its impact.

Yeah. That was the real issue. Those damn things. There were a total of six wings that could be produced from the king’s back at any given time, and they seemed to be tied to the sword’s will seeing as they defended him and followed up on his attacks automatically.

Whenever I spotted an opening, I’d leap in to land my attack, only to be blocked by one of those damned wings. On their own, they wouldn’t have posed much of a problem, but they seemed to do a lot more than burn.

With every strike I landed against them, they repelled me as if we were magnets with identical poles. It was annoying to say the least, but if I failed to find a solution to this, I’d no doubt lose.

If physical attacks weren’t working, then it was time for me to try a different approach.

A fanfare of blinding lights burst forth from the king’s back as six luminous wings aided his acceleration toward my position, the point of his sword thrusting at my heart even in transit.

Even though I was the target of his attack, I couldn’t help but think that it was certainly a beautiful display.

I took a moment to admire the sight before teleporting the fuck away from there and positioning myself high in the air as I began to cast a spell.

Mana gathered in the center of my hand naturally as I commanded it to form a globe of darkness, using [Penumbric Conversion] to constantly replenish my mana pool as I prepared to unleash a blast of umbric energy that would have been enough to cast a small town into eternal darkness.

In retrospect, the spell was probably a little overkill, but the sight of King Alexei skidding to a halt mid-charge and preparing to take flight into the air probably contributed a little to my lack of consideration for everyone else’s safety.

The king drew level with me in the air now, his wings flapping majestically as they maintained his position in the air, a sight that was far more visually impressive and intimidating than the invisible magic holding me in the air.

“So this is the solution that you’ve arrived at?” King Alexei raised an eyebrow, the tone of his voice slightly mocking.

“Damn straight.”

I released the globe of compressed darkness that hovered before my palm, firing it out as a boundless beam of umbric energy that was allowed to run rampant.

The explosion was deafening, but not because of its volume. Rather, it was silent and drained all sound from the surrounding area. Fitting, for a spell that was given the nickname “Lance of Black Midnight.”

The blast pierced through an entire section of the palace’s roof and drained the light from its surroundings, creating a zone completely devoid of color. Its path described an erratic line as it shot further and further away from my hand, wiping away the warmth of the azure sky and replacing it with the hostile void that laid behind.

At last, when the darkness was finally once more washed away by the light of the noonday Sun and both color and sound returned to the world, I laid my eyes on a sight that irked me to no end.

Though the light that his wings emitted had diminished significantly, they were still beautifully bright. Unfurling, those six wings moved aside to reveal King Alexei completely unscathed.

He leveled his blade at me.

“The king is the nation’s Sun,” Alexei proudly declared. “No matter the depth of darkness that envelops me, my light shall always prevail. That is my right and duty as king!”

Yeah, yeah.... Save your speech for after you’ve actually won.

“How foolish,” I replied, speaking with a tone that emulated his own. 

As lame as I thought his speech was, I couldn’t help but think that it was just a little badass. I mean, it was only in a fantastical world like this that one could utter such lines with a straight face.

“So long as there is light, there will be darkness. Even you cannot escape from that fate, King Alexei.”

“Then prove it. Show me that your darkness can overcome the brilliance of my light!”

I needed no further invitation.

Pushing off the air, I launched myself toward Alexei, my fist firing out as if propelled by an explosive round. The palace shook violently from the vibrations of my knuckles against his sword, and though I winced inwardly at the searing lance of pain that shot through my arm, I persevered.

The tips of his six gleaming wings shot forth on their own accord, darting toward me like glimmering spears of light.

I clicked my tongue in annoyance, drawing on my limitless reserves of mana and generating several barriers of umbric energy that blocked the luminous path of those wings.

I struggled against the king’s blade just as he struggled against my fist as we stubbornly pitted our strength against one another.

The pain was slowly starting to become unbearable, and although we were still evenly matched, I could feel my focus wavering. In another minute, those cursed wings of his would pierce through my barriers and I would be forced to withdraw.

Damn it! How the hell am I supposed to win!? I can’t even get through that damned defense of his!

I grit my teeth, desperately searching my mind for some sort of solution. My [Darkness] had always been my greatest strength, but right now, it was the thing that stopped me from achieving victory.

Just what else did I have, if not my [Darkness]...?

Slowly, my fist gave way to the king’s blade. My barriers began to crack. There was no winning this clash, and I doubted any further clashes would prove fruitful.

So just... What the hell was I supposed to do, when all I had was...

“Ryuuko!”

That clarion voice pierced through the shadows that had consumed my thoughts, a welcome ray of light in the darkness of my mind. Unlike the king’s light, this was gentle and soothing.

Lucrezia’s face was laced with worry, her bright crimson eyes glistening as if twin blood moons. Standing next to her was Priya, her hands balled into tiny fists—a sure sign of the trepidation that ran through her body.

I smiled.

Ah. How could I have forgotten?

[Darkness] isn’t the only thing I have.

Not anymore.