Chapter 32 (227): Fall into the Void, Greed!
Before Greed and Gluttony could begin their massacre, they were completely dumbfounded by Beatrice's sudden "Shamak".
Relying on Beatrice's unparalleled mana, the entire battlefield was quickly covered. At the same time, on Gluttony's side, everyone immediately launched their attack. Using the natural cover, they began a full-on assault.
On the other side, Hikigaya, Crusch, Priscilla, Rem, and Beatrice quickly pulled the battlefield apart. Within the fog, Greed still wore an extremely arrogant expression, looking down on everyone with disdain.
"Don't rush into attacking. We can't kill him."
Crusch: "Sir Hikigaya, why do you say that…?"
Priscilla: "You know quite a lot about these Sin Archbishops, don't you?"
Rem: "Rem believes in Hikigaya-kun."
Hikigaya: "This guy's ability is swapping his heart with that of his wives. So when we kill him, we're not killing him, we're killing his wives."
Crusch: "I see. In that case, does Sir Hikigaya have a good plan?"
Hikigaya: "That's not all. He can also perform silent attacks using telekinesis, and he can even stop time briefly."
Crusch: "Stop time? And he can't be killed… then doesn't that mean he's basically unbeatable…?"
Priscilla: "I don't believe that nonsense. Let him taste my Yang Sword first."
Hikigaya: "Don't rush. Although he can stop time, as long as we maintain the rhythm of our attacks and firmly seize the initiative, we can keep him on the defensive. That way, the moment he stops defending, he'll take damage."
Rem: "But didn't Hikigaya-kun just say that he's essentially immortal?"
Hikigaya: "That's right. So from the very beginning, our goal was never to kill him, but to continuously exhaust his mind. And then… Beatrice, the two of us will send him to a place he'll never come back from."
Hikigaya's inspiration naturally came from Pandora. After all, that was exactly how she had dealt with this trouble back then. It gave him an idea, if they sent Greed somewhere like the moon, he'd never be able to return.
Instantly understanding Hikigaya's intent, Priscilla stopped posturing and directly drew her Yang Sword from thin air.
The three of them would do their utmost to cooperate and create an absolute opening for Beatrice. As the fog from "Shamak" gradually dissipated, everyone was fully prepared.
[Wilhelm: "I never would've thought that in just one attempt, Hikigaya would already find a way to defeat a Sin Archbishop. Come to think of it, the combined intelligence of these three Sin Archbishops isn't even enough to kill Hikigaya a third time. That level of insight can only be described as monstrous."]
[Felix: "Even though he borrowed the Witch Pandora's help, even just now, Hikigaya had already defeated the two of them. If not for his single-minded wish for everyone's safety, things wouldn't have dragged on this long."]
[Crusch looked at Hikigaya with emotion: "I truly didn't expect this. Even as a rival, even when it benefits the Emilia camp, Hikigaya still chose to start over. Perhaps that's what makes him different from others. That resolve… it's impossible to ignore."]
[Al: "Brother… my good brother… my arm, it's back…!"]
[Priscilla: "I don't mind restarting, but seeing him act so high and mighty really pisses me off."]
[Al: "Princess, you… forget I said anything…"]
[Emilia: "This time, everything has to be brought to a complete end. Whether it's the Witch Cult or the mabeasts, it'll all end with this battle."]
Greed stood within the fog, looking at everything before him with open disdain. He couldn't sense anything, nor could he hear any sound. Clearly, this should have been the best moment for them to launch their attack, yet no assault came. It was as if he were being toyed with in the palm of their hand, or deliberately mocked. He hated this feeling.
But in the very next moment...
Boom!
Crusch gripped her sword tightly. The sword aura that ignored attack distance instantly reached him. But at this speed, even if it were two seconds slower, he would still have been able to react.
Bang!
Sure enough, the attack stopped right in front of him. Greed merely sneered in disdain.
"Tsk. Using this kind of attack to ambush me is such a waste."
"Besides, don't you know that ambushing someone in the dark is very impolite?!"
Boom!
This time, the Yang Sword's aura erupted. Even the slightest lapse would result in being instantly swallowed by the raging flames and reduced to a charred corpse. But to Greed, these attacks were nothing more than a joke. They were completely blocked outside his body, utterly unable to even touch him.
"That's why I say, interrupting someone when they're talking is really, "
As the fog gradually dissipated, Rem appeared as well. At this moment, she gripped the iron hammer in her hands and charged toward Greed at an unstoppable speed.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Each hammer strike was either completely blocked outside his body or dodged with a slight movement of his torso. The overwhelming force instantly ravaged the ground, kicking up massive clouds of dust.
Within the dust, Greed's expression could no longer be described as mere anger. That twisted face looked as though he found the destruction of everything in the world unbearably dull.
As the dust was blown away by the tremendous shock, Beatrice reacted immediately, raising her hand and erecting a protective barrier to shield everyone.
Greed: "You will all die!"
Hikigaya: "What a coincidence. We were thinking the same thing. Just that the target is you."
No more wasted words. This time, Rem, Crusch, and Priscilla appeared simultaneously from three directions, attacking Greed at extreme speed. Greed, however, merely kept one hand in his pocket, revealing an eerie smile.
"Insects."
Just as their attacks were about to land on him, his body vanished instantly and reappeared right in front of Hikigaya. Completely unprepared, Beatrice and Hikigaya couldn't react in time as a wave of telekinetic force expanded from Greed's body.
Boom!
This impact was aimed directly at Hikigaya's head.
Priscilla: "Watch out!"
Crusch: "Damn it..."
Rem: "You dare hurt him!"
At such a short distance, with such speed, it was impossible to react. Even with Hikigaya's keen insight, there was no way he could perform inhuman movements with his current body.
As his consciousness was crushed and about to fade, all he saw was the contemptuous smile on Greed's face. A smile born of innate arrogance, the arrogance of trampling insects beneath one's feet.
'Tch... he really is a monster.'
'But I'm a lone warrior tempered by loneliness. I won't repeat the same mistake. A veteran of countless battles, when it comes to defeat, I'm the strongest!'
'So no matter how many times I redo this, I will definitely win!'
Boom!
The massive impact seemed to vanish upon contact with Hikigaya's body, blasting straight past him instead. The tree behind him instantly turned into foam.
Hikigaya touched his body, discovering in disbelief that he was completely unharmed.
Greed's expression was even more spectacular. He had been smiling confidently, certain that the attack would land. Yet when he saw Hikigaya completely unscathed, he couldn't comprehend what had happened.
Everyone rushed over immediately, standing in front of him, while Beatrice once again moved to his side.
Rem: "Hikigaya-kun, are you okay?"
Hikigaya: "I don't think anything's wrong..."
Crusch: "What was that attack just now? It went straight through your body, Sir Hikigaya."
Priscilla showed a rare smile. "You're very lucky."
Hikigaya: "I don't really know why either. It's just that..."
He pressed his hand against his chest. In that instant, he had clearly felt death. Yet this steady beating could not be mistaken.
'Pandora... thank you for saving me.'
There was no response. Still, Hikigaya was ninety-nine percent certain that only she could have altered the fact that he had been attacked at that moment.
Seeing that his attack had failed, Greed grew even more enraged. His hair bristled wildly, as if proclaiming his fury.
"Impossible impossible impossible impossible impossible!"
"You bastard! I'll kill you!"
Beatrice: "One more time. This time, I won't let my guard down."
Rem: "But…"
Hikigaya: "There's no 'but', Rem. If we don't give it everything we have, then the ones who die will be us. So... believe in me, and believe in Beatrice."
Feeling the weight of his gaze, Rem gently nodded.
The third assault began at this moment. Priscilla held nothing back, pushing the Yang Sword's power to its limit. She was clearly furious over what had just happened, and the surging energy was the clearest proof.
Crusch managed to remain barely calm, but determination was already evident on her face. Only by settling this here could she truly answer to everyone.
The horn on Rem's head slowly emerged. Her movements were light, yet no one doubted her resolve. In that instant, the three once again clashed with Greed in a battle that shook the heavens.
In just moments, the explosions caused by the four engulfed the entire battlefield. Greed completely lost his smile. Despite possessing the ability to stop time, he couldn't find an opening to counterattack. The coordination and rhythm of the three attackers were textbook-perfect, leaving him no opportunity to retaliate or even catch his breath. This relentless exchange would only continue to drain everyone's stamina.
Even so, Greed didn't believe he would lose. In a prolonged battle, his endurance would certainly surpass that of ordinary people.
Just as he thought this, a searing burn suddenly tore across his abdomen, flames instantly scorching his body.
He couldn't even understand what had happened. His defense had been active the entire time, yet just now, the Yang Sword's attack had completely pierced through it.
No, or rather, from the very beginning, the Yang Sword had always been capable of this.
Boom!
Finally reacting, Greed unleashed the power within his body. The overwhelming pressure blasted the three of them away.
"Ice Binding!"
Bang!
Two massive ice spikes pierced straight into his chest. In an instant, he was subjected to ice and fire simultaneously. Though it didn't threaten his life, the pain was unavoidable.
"You... you people!"
Rem's flail came crashing down once more, but Greed's barrier stopped it midair.
Hikigaya: "You really are tough to kill..."
Greed: "Don't worry. You won't see tomorrow's sun."
Priscilla began gathering the Yang Sword's power again, preparing to deal another heavy blow.
But,
Boom!
Greed teleported behind Hikigaya once more, neatly dodging all three attacks, then revealed a sinister smile.
"Since I couldn't kill you just now, I'll try again. I refuse to believe it."
Hikigaya remained calm, as if he had already anticipated this. Without turning around, he said:
"This is where you lost. Sin of Pride."
A void-like space instantly formed, as though it had been prepared in advance for his arrival. Greed's body suddenly lost all support.
If he hadn't desperately used his own power to control himself and prevent being pulled in, he would have already fallen into the void.
Even so, he was at his limit.
Only now did he finally realize what was happening, fear appearing on his face for the first time.
"Then, goodbye."
Hikigaya tossed the dagger he had prepared long ago. Greed's head was pinned like a honeycomb, instantly losing its last trace of strength.
Within the boundless void, Greed would not die, but he would never be able to return to this world.
There, he would bear the price of immortality alone, until he ultimately killed himself endlessly.
The battle between Greed and the five finally came to an end at this moment. And it also meant that once the remaining Gluttony was dealt with, everything would truly be over.
Rem's horn gradually receded. Due to her already heavy exhaustion and the additional strain just now, her body could no longer hold out.
Crusch had also been affected during the battle and was no longer fit to rejoin the fight.
Fortunately, at this moment... The long-awaited reinforcements finally arrived.
It was Emilia.
(End of this chapter)