The clearing had transformed into a battlefield of chaos.
Violet magic circles still hovered in the air like ominous constellations, their rotating patterns feeding the relentless assault of Darkness-forged chains. They lashed, coiled, and shot forward with terrifying persistence, tearing through trees and earth as they pursued their target without mercy.
The Priest twisted midair, narrowly evading another chain that snapped past her shoulder.
CRAAASH!
It slammed into the ground behind her, blasting apart soil and roots.
"…Urghh!"
Jet-Black surged violently beneath her feet as she forced herself into another evasive leap. Yet no matter how she maneuvered, the chains continued to adapt, curving unnaturally, redirecting as though guided by a will that anticipated every movement.
Her breathing had grown ragged now. Darkness flickered erratically around her trembling form.
Damn it…
Frustration burned within her thoughts.
If only I could use my real body…!
The irritation cut deep.
Bound by the limitations of her current vessel, she could feel her reactions dulling, her movements lacking the sharp perfection she was accustomed to. Every clash, every forced dodge only amplified the suffocating pressure closing in around her.
Across the battlefield—
Jin watched her calmly.
Chains of Darkness spiraled and lunged at his silent command, tightening their encirclement with ruthless precision.
Then—
A quiet thought crossed his mind.
…If only I could use my real body.
His gaze remained fixed on the Priest.
That's what you're thinking, isn't it?
At the faintest shift of Jin's scythe, the chains reacted immediately, responding to his movement as though they were extensions of his own will.
The assault intensified at once.
The violet chains surged forward in a relentless wave, tightening their encirclement as they struck again and again against the Priest's defenses. Each impact sent tremors through the surrounding air, the force of the repeated blows steadily dismantling the constructs of Darkness she had summoned.
Under the mounting pressure, the shattered remnants of those shadowy constructs slowly began to dissolve, their broken fragments fading into the air like drifting smoke.
Jin did not press forward immediately.
Instead, he observed.
The Priest's breathing had grown visibly heavier now. The Jet-Black aura surrounding her flickered unevenly, its earlier ferocity dulled by the strain of excessive output.
Beneath the hood, Jin's eyes narrowed slightly as he observed the Priest before him.
…As expected.
His thoughts remained calm and analytical, untouched by the chaos of the battlefield.
She was being held back by the limitations of her current body.
Behind him, the few remaining chains that had been hovering in the air slowly dissolved back into shadows, their purpose already fulfilled.
Flema could not afford to reveal her true identity here.
Jin's gaze lingered on the Priest's trembling form, quietly measuring the state of his opponent.
In this disguise, she cannot unleash her full strength without exposing herself as the Saintess.
A faint violet glow traced along the edges of Jin's twin scythes, the dim light flickering softly against the surrounding darkness.
Which means…
At last, Jin stepped forward.
In his mind, the conclusion formed calmly and without hesitation—the longer this battle continued, the more unstable her control over Jet-Black would become.
Across from him, the Priest straightened her posture, though the subtle tremor running through her stance betrayed the mounting pressure she was struggling to contain.
Darkness gathered once more around her arms, coiling tightly as the familiar black energy surged back into shape.
"…You're persistent."
Her voice came out tight, the irritation within it barely restrained.
Jin said nothing in response.
Instead, the forest around them stirred uneasily as violet energy began to swell around his figure, the oppressive weight of his presence deepening with every step he took forward. The air grew heavier, as though the battlefield itself could sense the change.
The tempo of the battle was shifting once more. And this time, Jin had no intention of letting the fight drag on any longer.
He moved first.
The ground shattered beneath his step as his figure surged forward, twin scythes sweeping into motion with relentless momentum. Violet trails spiraled through the air, their arcs overlapping in a continuous stream of lethal strikes.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The Priest's Jet-Black defenses flickered violently as she blocked in rapid succession, each collision sending tremors through her arms. The rhythm of Jin's attacks was unbroken, flowing seamlessly from one angle to another like a current that refused to slow.
A low sweep forced her guard downward.
A reverse slash followed instantly.
Then a spinning strike—
Shiiiiing!
A violet crescent tore across the clearing, forcing the Priest to twist aside as the energy wave carved through the forest behind her.
She attempted to counter.
Darkness surged—
But Jin's scythe intercepted mid-motion.
Clang!
The impact crushed her timing.
Before she could regain control, Jin pivoted smoothly, both scythes rotating outward in a wide circular arc that drove her backward once more.
The pressure did not ease. It intensified.
And within that relentless flow—
Jin's movements shifted.
His twin scythes swept outward at the same time, the sudden change in rhythm forcing the Priest to halt and raise her guard defensively. In the same fluid motion, the hilts of the weapons slid toward one another, guided by Jin's precise control.
Darkness flowed between the two handles as they approached, shadow energy weaving itself along the joining edges.
The hilts aligned. Then locked into place with a sharp metallic click.
The twin weapons fused seamlessly, transforming into a single double-ended scythe whose curved blades extended in opposite directions, gleaming faintly with violet light.
Without the slightest pause, Jin spun, the newly formed weapon carving a sweeping arc through the air as he moved.
Whummm—!
The combined scythe carved a violent circle through the air, unleashing a sweeping vortex of violet energy that tore across the battlefield. Trees splintered, Jet-Black constructs shattered, and the Priest's hurried defense barely formed before the impact struck.
BOOOOM!
She was hurled backward, Darkness scattering wildly as the force of the rotating strike ripped through the clearing like a storm given form.
Jin did not stop.
The momentum of the spin carried directly into another devastating sweep.
Then another.
Each rotation of the combined scythe generated crescents of violet destruction, crashing forward in an overwhelming tide that left the Priest struggling to withstand the escalating assault.
The combined scythe continued its merciless dance.
Jin's rotations flowed without interruption, each sweeping arc generating violent crescents of violet energy that tore across the clearing. The ground fractured repeatedly under the relentless barrage, while shattered remnants of Jet-Black constructs dissolved into the air like ash.
Clang!
BOOM!
Shiiiiing!
The Priest struggled to keep up.
Jet-Black defenses flickered erratically around her, forming and breaking under the crushing weight of Jin's assault. Every impact sent shockwaves through her arms, every forced block driving her further toward collapse.
Her breathing gradually turned ragged, each breath heavier than the last as the Darkness surrounding her began to waver.
Before she could regain control, another spinning strike descended.
The Priest's barrier shattered under the impact. The violet crescent tore straight through her defenses and slammed into her body, hurling her violently across the clearing before she crashed into the base of a shattered tree.
Dust and debris erupted upward, fragments of bark and broken earth scattering through the air. For a brief moment after the impact, she did not move.
Then—
Jet-Black flared weakly around her.
Her body trembled as she forced herself upright, her movements sluggish and unstable. The Darkness surrounding her no longer roared with its previous fury; instead, it flickered unevenly, like a dying flame struggling to stay alive.
Jin stepped forward slowly, the combined scythe resting calmly at his side.
There was no haste in his approach, no visible tension in his posture—only quiet certainty.
Across from him, the Priest lowered her head, a deep shadow falling across her face and hiding whatever expression lay beneath the hood.
Then she laughed. A strained, bitter sound.
"…Heh…"
Jet-Black energy rippled faintly around her weakened form.
"You truly are… monstrous, Jin."
Her gaze slowly lifted, hatred still burning within her eyes despite the exhaustion etched into every movement of her body.
"But do not misunderstand this moment."
The Darkness surrounding her began to swirl unnaturally, its movement uneven and unstable, as though something within it was beginning to collapse.
"This is not the end."
The Jet-Black aura pulsed once. Then again.
For a brief moment, the energy seemed to gather inward, tightening around her like a final breath.
Before collapsing suddenly into itself.
Jin's eyes narrowed.
In the very next instant, the Priest's body went completely limp.
The Darkness vanished.
An eerie stillness spread across the clearing, swallowing the battlefield that moments ago had been filled with violent energy.
Jin sensed it immediately.
High above the battlefield, almost beyond perception, a faint ripple of presence slipped away into the night before dissolving into the darkness.
Flema's soul had already fled.
What remained behind was nothing more than an empty vessel, the Priest's body slowly crumpling onto the shattered forest floor.