Shido, who had just arrived, cast a cold glance at the group below causing them to shudder. From their distinct attire, he quickly recognized them, if his memory served him right, they are the Black Scriptures of the Slane Theocracy.
From the anime, it was said that they had journeyed far from their country to the Re-Estize Kingdom, intending to seal the Catastrophe Dragon Lord. Yet, by coincidence, or misfortune, they had crossed paths with Shalltear, leading this situation.
As his gaze swept over them, Shido noticed a few of the women among their ranks wearing flushed expressions, their eyes lingering on him with a mixture of bashfulness and something more.
A faint sigh escaped Shido's lips. It seemed his love spot was as strong as ever. Only those with exceptionally high resistance could withstand the charm it exuded. Even so, he quickly shifted his focus to the one who appeared to be their leader.
The First Seat, The Black Scripture.
He was a young man with long black hair, a striking contrast to Shido's silvery-white hair. Sharp, reddish eyes glimmered, and his figure was clad in intricate armor, a spear resting easily in his grip as if it were an extension of himself.
While he remained steady and looked at Shido with unyielding spirit, Shido could also feel helplessness flickering from his eyes as though he was at loss of why there were two powerful beings at the same time.
Shido's attention briefly shifted to their equipment and weapons. Shido didn't his hesitate and immediately create a copy of them. Especially, the world item on that old woman that brainwashed Shalltear, also known as Downfall of Castle and Country.
Once his task was complete, Shido no longer spared the Black Scripture another thought. His gaze turned instead to Shalltear, who still stood motionless under the lingering effect of the world item.
Smiling wryly to himself, he wondered why Shalltear always underestimated her opponents.
Still, he couldn't entirely fault her. At her level, she was practically invincible, but who could have predicted that a random group of people would be carrying a world item?
Fortunately, Shalltear had managed to heavily injure the caster, leaving the spell incomplete. Shido's gaze shifted to the old woman, now being tended to by a younger girl. Yet, the girl's attention seemed divided, even as she worked, her eyes kept flicking toward him from the corner of her vision.
Yet, who could blame her? He was simply too handsome for those girls to resist.
The group, however, remained tense. Shido said nothing, merely observing them in silence. His lack of hostility made them hesitate, perhaps he wasn't their enemy? After all, could someone who looked divine truly be dangerous?
"You're quite brave, aren't you?"
The words cut through the forest like a blade.
Anger simmered in Shido's chest, Shalltear had almost been completely brainwashed. His cold voice reverberated through the forest, causing chills to appear in their skin. With each passing moment, his tone grew sharper, colder, as if the temperature of the entire forest were dropping with his wrath.
"Since you love to hunt… then you should also be prepared to die."
A chaotic energy containing spatial laws appeared on Shido's hands. The sight alone was enough to drain the color from the group's faces.
The captain's eyes widened in terror. "Quickly! Use Teleportation!"
Snapping out of her daze, the female caster frantically chanted, forcing her trembling hands to obey. A magic circle flared beneath them, swallowing the group in a blinding light as the teleportation spell took hold.
Without hesitation, Shido clenched his fist. A black, dome-like sphere erupted outward, distorting space itself and sending violent turbulence ripping through the forest.
But he was a second too late, the group had already vanished. The sphere pulsed like a miniature Spatial Quake, its unstable energy devouring the surroundings until Shido finally willed it to disappear. With his targets gone, there was no reason to waste further strength.
However, his attack seemed to also disrupt others.
A blur streaked toward him, and Shalltear appeared before his eyes. Without a word, she thrust her Spuit Lance straight at his chest.
BOOOM!
Shido crashed down in the ground like a broken kite, the impact carving out a small crater beneath him. Dust and shattered debris rose into the air, blurring his vision as he looked up toward the sky.
He could see Shalltear laughing twistedly as she murmur something in her mouth. She was already clad in her legendary class crimson armor.
"Shido~ Shido~ Shido~"
"You're mine~ I will not let that slutty succubus have you!"
"Eh?"
For a moment, Shido was left speechless at Shalltear's words. 'Why does it feel like she suddenly turned into a yandere heroine?'
Shido felt that his description suited Shalltear perfectly at this moment. Her flushed cheeks and heavy breathing made her resemble a girl frighteningly obsessed with her beloved.
But he had no time to dwell on the thought as Shalltear was already rushing at him once more.
"Shido~!"
"Tsk." Shido clicked his tongue as he endured Shalltear's relentless assault. He have to say, as a lover, Shalltear was the best but as a enemy, she was really scary.
The only way to break the effect of the World Item was to kill her. Yet, how could he bring himself to do that?
With no other choice, he turned to the mighty system for aid.
[Host can use the Ultra Balls to capture her. Inside, they contain a luxurious room equipped with a healing mechanism capable of removing any kind of skill effect or debuff.]
"…Seriously?"
Shido was at a loss. He hadn't expected the Ultra Balls he received earlier to be this incredible. At first, he thought they were only meant for capturing powerful monsters and beasts, but to think he could use them like this…
[Affirmative. Host can complete Quest 6 while saving her. Two birds with one stone, right?]
'Right? My ass.'
Shido's lips twitched, however, he didn't deny it as it was really killing two birds with one stone. Yet, for a moment, he could've sworn the system was being smug, or maybe it was just his imagination.
Still, this meant he finally had a way to bring Shalltear back to normal.
He just needed to drain Shalltear's HP to its lowest point, then use the Ultra Balls to capture her. Simple in theory, but far from easy. Shalltear's regeneration was monstrous, and with her Spuit Lance healing her whenever it hit something, it felt like an endless struggle.
It was like facing Ho-Oh, a never ending battle of attrition.
Suddenly, Shido's eyes turned sharp. He casually move his head on the side as a greatsword flew right past him. Had he reacted a moment slower, his head would have burst like a watermelon.
"Are you just going to keep hiding after ambushing me?"
Shido turned toward a certain direction as a faint smile tugging at his lips. Moments later, the sound of footsteps echoed from within the darkness.
From the shadows emerged a man clad in full-body armor resembling a platinum dragon, every inch of him were concealed. Four weapons, a spear, a katana, a hammer, and a greatsword, floated around him as he advanced.
The armored man stopped ten meters from Shido and remained silent. Shido mirrored his calm observation, though he already knew the man's identity, even without using his scan.
Name: Riku Aganeia / Tsaindorcus Vaision
Level: 75
Age: ???
Height: 181 cm
Class: Knight
STR: A++
VIT: A
AGI: B+
INT: E
CHA: D
LUK: C
Threat Level: A
Riku Aganeia had sensed something amiss in the Great Forest of Tob, so he came to investigate. He hadn't expected to stumble upon an ongoing battle between powerful beings. He waited for the right time to attack, but he didn't expect his sneak attack would be useless.
Shido continued looking in the stats of Riku Aganeia aka Platinum Dragon Lord, though he already knew it was just an empty suit of armor with no one inside. Shalltear suddenly attacked him from behind sending Purifying Lance to which he easily dodge.
Her unexpected attack prompted Riku Aganeia to act. Raising his hand to the sky, he chanted "World Isolation Barrier".
An invisible barrier sprang up, trapping Shido and Shalltear inside along with Riku Aganeia.
Shido became elated and quickly used perfect copy to replicate the skill. With that, he finally have a Wild Magic which made him satisfied. However, he didn't have time to celebrate as he tried to fight back against Shalltear's relentless assault.
"Sleep!"
Shido cast Sleep on Shalltear, but she only grew slightly drowsy, her high magic resistance prevented her from actually falling asleep. Still, it was enough to make Shido's job a little easier.
The only problem was...
SWISH!
CLANG!
Shido summoned Abaddon, deflecting Riku Aganeia's attack while keeping a careful eye on Shalltear.
Shalltear continued attacking him up close, unleashing a barrage of magic spells and piercing him with her lance, while Riku Aganeia relentlessly sent weapon after weapon hurtling his way.
It was incredibly frustrating being constantly harassed, so Shido quickly accessed his system shop and purchased an ability that would strip the Platinum Dragon Lord of his identity as Riku Aganeia.
Ding!
[You have purchased Soul Sever (Perfection Level)]
[210,000 SP has been deducted.]
With a somersault through the air, Shido landed a powerful blow on Shalltear, sending her flying nearly a hundred meters away.
Determined to finish off the arrogant dragon, Shido's lips curled into a wicked grin as he laughed heartily.
But Riku Aganeia ignored his expression entirely, relentlessly sending weapon after weapon at him. Shido felt a vein throb at his temple, his lips twitching involuntarily at how exasperatingly dull this opponent was.
"God, this is so annoying!" Shido was nearing his limit from evading and deflecting Riku Aganeia's attack so he decided to end him.
"Soul Sever!" Shido activated the skill he had just bought from the shop.
Soul Sever was a skill capable of cutting the connection between the caster and anything bound to their soul.
Suddenly, Riku Aganeia froze in place, his weapon clattering to the ground as the armor stood motionless like a puppet. The Platinum Dragon Lord had lost his bond with his armor.
Shido laughed heartily, thinking, 'Serves you right.' before collecting the empty armor and weapons and storing them in his inventory.
Now that the Platinum Dragon Lord was dealt with, Shido could finally focus on subduing Shalltear.
He stood in silence, waiting for her return. As expected, moments later, Shalltear came flying back, launching an immediate attack on sight.
...
Meanwhile, in a certain floating castle, Tsaindorcus Vaision, the Platinum Dragon Lord, opened his eyes. He could feel the connection to his armor had vanished. Still in a state of disbelief, he was at a loss.
"What just happened?"