Chapter 369

The wraith pointed a finger at Christian.

A curse was etched onto Christian’s arm.

Ssshhh—

A sinister energy surged as the wraith twisted his lips into a chilling smile.

But then, something incomprehensible happened.

Slash.

An arm was severed.

The problem was—it wasn’t Christian’s arm.

It was the wraith’s.

[…What?]

The wraith let out a stunned groan, unable to grasp what had just occurred.

Why his own arm?

Before he could dwell on it, a scream tore from his throat.

[Ughhh!!]

Excruciating pain radiated from the severed limb.

Despite the agony, the wraith was engulfed in confusion.

‘Did he somehow reverse my curse? How?’

What made it even more baffling was that his physical body had been damaged.

As previously mentioned, he had transcended the limits of the flesh.

Not only had he enhanced his body, but through his laws, he had attained ‘immortality’ and ‘permanence,’ making it impossible for his body to be harmed.

Yet here he was—losing an arm and feeling pain.

This was significant because it meant his established laws had been broken.

‘What trick did he use?’

Gritting his teeth, the wraith unleashed the curse again.

To see what Christian had done.

This time, he summoned an even stronger energy and cast the same curse—but the result was identical.

The wraith’s other arm was severed.

[!!]

His eyes snapped open wide.

Only then did he realize what Christian had done.

[You… couldn’t be?]

“Yeah.”

Christian sneered.

“Ever heard of karma?”

The wraith was powerful.

More so than expected.

Yet Christian never doubted his victory.

He knew how the wraith had met his end in a previous life.

The wraith had died before the Age of Destruction, at the hands of the Bloodthirsty Demon King.

‘Back then, the wraith was at the level of a 9-star Soma King.’

Not just any Soma King.

As we can see now, he far surpassed the typical level of a Soma King.

Meanwhile, the Bloodthirsty Demon King had just awakened to the 9-star level.

Everyone expected the wraith to win, but the outcome was the opposite.

The Demon King crushed him.

There was a reason.

‘He devoured the wraith’s original souls with his demonic power.’

The original souls were the source of the wraith’s strength, so he was helplessly defeated.

‘I don’t possess the Demon King’s demonic power.’

But I have another method.

One even more effective than simply devouring original souls.

The transformation of the Eternal Ruler.

Subjugation.

A power that forces the opponent into submission.

Of course, even such a power couldn’t easily claim the wraith’s original souls.

Those souls had already become one with the wraith.

However, if the souls were newly turned and not yet fully assimilated, the story changed.

Especially if those souls belonged to someone of 8 stars or higher.

Like the sculptor who died recently.

‘No matter how powerful the wraith is, he can’t easily claim the original soul of someone like the sculptor.’

Behind Christian, the sculptor’s original soul rose up, snarling fiercely at the wraith.

[How dare you turn me into an original soul, a slave to your spirit? Even if you are the head of the family, do you think I’ll tolerate this?]

Naturally, no curse mage wished to die and end up like this.

Those who had been strong in life resisted fiercely.

The other Three Flames—the Jester and Crimson Eyes—also appeared behind Christian, glaring at the wraith.

All of them had been killed by Christian, yet their hatred was so intense they now directed their fury at the wraith.

And they weren’t alone.

“Save me… I want to escape too…”

“Ahhhhh! Wraith, I will kill you for sure!”

Like a dam breaking, the original souls stirred violently.

The domain of control trembled, and the wraith’s spirit was struck.

“Now, Father!”

“I’ll tear him apart!!”

Robinson and Idrinne seized the opening without hesitation.

The blood spear merged with the flame.

The spear of death blazed with a sacred fire that consumed evil.

With the laws already broken, the wraith wouldn’t escape unscathed.

“We’re first! You’ll pay for insulting us, head of the family!”

The Three Flames stepped forward.

Though dead, they fueled their curses with their lingering grudges.

Crimson Emily unleashed a mental curse, followed by the Jester scattering a dazzling array of curses.

Then the sculptor’s curse struck, shattering the wraith’s body.

The wraith staggered, and the blood spear infused with Robinson and Idrinne’s power was about to pierce his heart.

[How dare you…! Underestimate me.]

The atmosphere shifted instantly.

Not just the air.

The blood spear froze midair.

The curses cast by the Three Flames dissolved into nothingness.

A gray flame engulfed the original souls, and terrible screams echoed.

Aaaaaaah!!

“No! Please, stop! Stop!!”

This time, the cries were different.

Desperate, as if breath was being choked out.

Not merely using the souls’ pain, but attempting to annihilate them as sacrifices to strengthen power.

Losing all the original souls gathered so far meant losing power permanently—but the unleashed might would be unimaginable.

[I didn’t want to go this far, but I have no choice. You’ll pay.]

A dreadful curse surged.

It was incomparable to anything before.

There was no way to block or evade it.

Idrinne swallowed nervously and spoke urgently.

“Extend your hand to me. I will inscribe a mark.”

“…What?”

“With the power of the Vampire Princess, I will take the curse meant for you upon myself. There is no other way for you to survive this curse.”

Christian looked bewildered.

If she did that, Idrinne would die.

“It’s fine! This is my friendship. Don’t worry about me.”

“…Daughter, your friendship is quite grandiose. If that’s friendship, then all other friendships must be frozen to death.”

“Father, please be quiet. You have nothing to say.”

Robinson, the devoted family head who had turned his back on the clan because of his wife, fell silent.

“Enough.”

“Enough? What do you mean enough? Didn’t you say friendship means giving everything? Hurry! There’s no time!”

“No, it’s not necessary.”

Christian shook his head and stepped forward.

As if to face the curse head-on.

“I can block something like that easily.”

The wraith sneered.

[Such arrogance. Trying to pull another trick, but it won’t work on me.]

Christian usually found openings in his opponents’ power and used his talents to devise extraordinary tactics.

But the wraith was different from anyone Christian had faced before.

There were no loopholes to exploit.

There was only one way: overwhelm with greater power.

Then.

‘Show even greater power.’

Christian drew a sword.

Anduril.

He wasn’t about to use the power sealed within Anduril.

He drew it because it was the only weapon capable of handling what he was about to do.

‘The Eternal Ruler’s power isn’t just about strengthening control.’

On the contrary.

That was a secondary effect.

‘The real power is this.’

Fwoooosh!

A radiant holy light blossomed around Christian.

But that wasn’t all.

At the same time, a deep, impenetrable darkness rose alongside the light.

Darkness enveloped the sacred light like a demon trying to subdue and absorb it.

The light yielded, melting into the darkness.

The traces of light vanished, replaced by a darkness that shone with a sublime radiance.

“Ah.”

Idrinne gasped involuntarily at the exquisitely beautiful darkness.

A domain technique.

Demonic Radiance.

Darkness fused with light, now dwelling within Anduril.

Goooooo!

A roar echoed as if tearing the world apart.

Light and darkness can never truly unite.

This miracle, which outright defied the absolute laws of the world, caused the surroundings to tremble.

‘This power is beyond what I can handle.’

Christian barely swallowed the surge of blood rushing to his head.

Unleashing power beyond his limits brought a tremendous backlash.

He’d probably need to reach a perfect 9-star level to control this power.

For now, he could barely use it once—but that was enough.

‘This is the end.’

There was no way he could handle this power.

[You bastard!!!!]

Anduril, wrapped in demonic radiance, was aimed at the wraith, who screamed in desperation.

[You think you can defeat me? I am the wraith!!]

But his cry was more a scream of terror.

The wraith knew what would happen the moment that radiant darkness struck him.

Fwoooosh!!

The wraith unleashed all his strength.

A desperate, all-in effort as if he had nothing left to lose—but it was useless.

The darkness shone with a brilliant light.

Saying “shone” seems odd for darkness, but it was true.

The highest, most noble darkness—more radiant and sublime than any light.

The moment that soul-stirring darkness flashed, all the curses the wraith had unleashed dissolved into nothingness.

It wasn’t just crushed by force.

The nobility within the darkness turned the wraith’s malice into emptiness.

And that wasn’t all.

Ah…

At last, salvation was within our reach.

The restless spirits, long tormented by the vengeful souls, wept tears of relief.

The brilliance of the darkness had purified even these wandering souls.

It was an unbelievable sight.

The darkness hadn’t even begun to show its full power.

Simply touching the edge of that radiant darkness was enough to strip the vengeful spirits of all their strength.

“This can’t be…”

The vengeful souls stared blankly at the surging darkness.

They were utterly powerless.

It was as if they had become insignificant creatures standing before a supreme, absolute being.

Compared to that darkness, everything they had built until now was meaningless.

“…Why did I struggle so hard all this time? Compared to that darkness, what I’ve built…”

A wave of emptiness swept through them—and that was the end.

The darkness tore through the vengeful souls’ bodies, and after a brief silence—

KRRRRAAAASHHH!!!

Everything near where the souls had stood began to vanish.

Their bodies, the ground beneath their feet, the very air filling the space—

No, the space itself disappeared, unleashing a tremendous shockwave.

The massive mansion they had been in started to crumble into ruins.

“What kind of power is this? We need to get out of here! Christian!”

Idrine’s face twisted with worry.

They had to escape immediately, but Christian’s movements were sluggish, almost sluggish to the point of being stuck.

His body was refusing to obey him after the reckless use of his power.

“Excuse me!!”

Idrine scooped Christian up into her arms.

But then a problem arose.

“W-wait a minute. What’s this?”

Christian flailed in embarrassment.

Of all things, she’d picked him up in the classic princess-carry pose!

“Why be shy among friends? This is all part of our friendship!”

“I’ll go on my own! Put me down!”

“Ah, don’t be such a bother! Don’t reject my friendship!”

As Christian struggled, Idrine hugged him even tighter, refusing to let go.

The backlash from using magic had left his body a mess, making resistance impossible.

‘Ugh, at least change your position!’

Meanwhile, Robinson, watching the two of them, muttered in a peculiar tone.

“…Friendship my foot.”

“Father, please be quiet.”

“……”