The clash of power against power.
The moment of destruction.
…..Thwoom!
A shockwave blasted out in all directions. Half of the combat golem's upper body was ripped away in a single blow. The core inside its chest was exposed. Even part of its head was shattered by the shockwave.
And what about Aged Kimchi?
"...Hoo."
He quietly exhaled. Then, with a calm gaze, he looked behind him.
"You alright?"
"....."
Kim Jangcheol couldn't say a word. He was too shocked. Nearly hiccupped. And in part, it was absurd, yet a bit of relief too.
"W-What are you doing here?"
The words just slipped out on their own.
Was he laughing? Who knows.
Was he even smiling?
Or were his legs just trembling?
"........"
But he couldn't afford to relax.
Not in front of the golem.
Nor in front of Aged Kimchi.
"You were watching over Richmond with Young Master Reivaj, weren't you?"
"I was."
"You were in Richmond's bedroom, right?"
"That's right."
"Then how are you here?"
"Through Richmond's private secret passage. Over there. You know it."
Aged Kimchi pointed to one side like it was nothing.
Yeah. I know. The massive pillar at the center of the entire storage room. The one that hides a twisted spiral path, a single-person passage leading upward.
"I mean, what brought you down here?"
"Something felt off."
"......."
Suspicious?
Could he mean me?
Thankfully, that didn't seem to be the case.
"The commotion down here was loud enough to hear all the way up there."
".....Maybe only you heard it, Sir Aged Kimchi?"
"Well, I heard it, at least. But why are you still so tense?"
Aged Kimchi glanced this way, mixing his usual indifferent stare with a tinge of curiosity. Maybe it was that look—without meaning to, a bitter smile escaped.
"Because it's not over yet."
He nodded past Aged Kimchi. Toward the combat golem, which, despite having had half its upper body torn off, was already nearly fully regenerated.
Thud! Grgrgrgrk...!
The golem rose slowly. There were barely any traces left of the damage it had taken.
Surprise flickered in Aged Kimchi's eyes as he looked back at it.
"…..That's even possible?"
"It is. That's why I've been suffering like this."
"I figured you were struggling because you were weak."
"That's not it."
"You seem to have figured something out."
"Two cores."
"What?"
"No time. I'll explain it once, real quick, so listen."
Whooom—!
The golem approached.
It swung its arm without warning.
Kim Jangcheol and Aged Kimchi slipped back in sync, dodging the golem's first attack with nearly identical movements.
While doing so, Kim Jangcheol quickly explained what he'd figured out from fighting the golem.
"The head and chest. Two cores. We must strike them at the same time. With identical timing, force, and angle. Only then can we destroy that thing completely."
"Seriously? That's the only way?"
"Yes."
"Sounds like a hassle. Do we really need to go that far?"
"Do you have another way?"
"Another way, huh. I suppose this should work."
Spit!
As soon as he finished speaking, Aged Kimchi vanished. Only a faint shockwave remained on the ground. A moment later, he reappeared above the golem's head.
Wielding his signature Heart-Sparkle Magical Girl Wand. Muscular thighs exposed beneath his white stockings. A pink flared skirt fluttering gracefully beyond that.
"...."
F***, my eyes.
Shouldn't have locked him into that outfit.
Kim Jangcheol regretted his choice from playthrough number 19, where he'd fixed that outfit permanently.
Skrrt.
Aged Kimchi's silhouette plunged downward.
He pierced through the golem.
Landed on the ground.
Like a lightning strike.
Or like a leaf falling.
With both destructive and silent momentum.
And one second later—
.....Thud-crack -!
The golem's entire body exploded from the inside, from head to toe. Its body shattered into thousands of chunks of stone.
Even the two cores, one in the head and one in the chest, were no exception—they too were blown to pieces.
"Guess that works, huh?"
"..."
Unbelievable.
This guy spent 19 playthroughs raising that golem. And yeah, that thing was nearly the strongest in the entire world, maybe could even put up a fight against the Archangels or the King of Hell—beings that existed only in lore.
'But seeing it in person… it's no joke.'
Chills ran down his spine.
And once again, he reaffirmed his resolve.
Never, ever give Aged Kimchi an opening. If he got even a sliver of a reason, you'd be dead.
....The moment he made that resolution—
....Ggrrk!
From within the golem's shattered remains, an ominous sound echoed.
A noise like stones moving on their own. No, the debris really was shifting. Then, fragments began pulling together rapidly as if drawn by magnetic force.
No way.
"You've gotta be kidding."
The curse slipped out on its own.
Anyone would.
Even after that overwhelming attack from Aged Kimchi, even after both cores were blown to dust—
'It's still regenerating?'
It was hard to believe—but it was true.
The golem was reforming in an instant.
It stood up again, already taking shape. Even the usually composed Aged Kimchi let out a dry chuckle at the sight.
"...You were right this time."
"Uh, I wasn't exactly hoping to be."
"Simultaneous strike on both cores, right?"
"Yes."
"Let's do it, then. I'll take the chest. You take the head. Sound good?"
"Of course. Just don't mess up the timing."
"That's what I should say to you."
They looked at each other.
A breath shared through their eyes.
In that moment, a strange sense of unity arose.
A paradoxical thrill, both unfamiliar and familiar.
As that emotion soaked into their chests, they kicked off the ground. Rushed forward. Together. Matching speed and stride perfectly.
Thwooosh -!
Sudden acceleration.
The wind tossed his bangs.
His vision tunneled.
Yet he could feel it.
The breath of Aged Kimchi running beside him.
Their matched footsteps.
The synchronized rhythm of their hearts.
Then, the second leap.
Fwaah...!
They jumped while dodging the golem's incoming strike together. Aged Kimchi leapt toward the golem's chest. At the same time, Kim Jangcheol hurled himself toward its head.
He counted in his head.
'Nine, ten!'
Huff—!
Synchronized timing.
Synchronized strength.
To match Aged Kimchi, he had to go all out!
Whiiiiir—!
The Mana Seed in his chest roared.
He poured everything into it.
Toward the golem's forehead.
...Crack—!
A shockwave of destruction radiated from the center of the golem's forehead in concentric circles. It expanded. Deepened. Pierced through.
'Got it!'
The golem's head shattered into fragments. He could see the blue orb inside—the core—splitting apart with it.
At that moment, he looked down.
He saw Aged Kimchi's fist thrust forward in the same motion. Saw the golem's chest shattering in the same pattern. Surely, the core inside was breaking too.
.....Rumble, thud!
The golem fell to its knees like a crumbling tower.
It didn't move at all, even as both of them landed back on the ground.
"Did we finish it off?"
....Just before Aged Kimchi could mutter those words.
Boom! …... Rrrumble!
"....It's your fault!"
The moment the golem's massive body twitched, the moment it began restoring itself in an instant, Kim Jangcheol couldn't help but scream.
Aged Kimchi replied, unimpressed.
"Why is it my fault?"
"I mean, how could you chant something like a resurrection spell right then and there!"
"....Resurrection spell?"
"That was...! Ah, never mind. Our power didn't match just now."
Kim Jangcheol, regaining his composure (?), coolly analyzed the current situation.
"Your strike, Sir Aged Kimchi, was way too strong compared to mine. That's why we failed."
"It's not because you're weak?"
"I hit with everything I had."
"Then it is because you're weak."
".....Sorry for being weak."
"So then, should I go easier? Match your level?"
"Normally, yes, that would be the way…"
Boom! Boom!
The golem, now fully restored at some point, began stepping toward them. Two steps forward. That's when it would start attacking.
Before that, strike first.
Hyah!
He dashed forward.
Aged Kimchi responded to the charge.
Without any special signal.
Without even a glance exchanged.
As if sharing a mind.
Or as if he had engraved this one's combat style into his bones.
But no matter how well Aged Kimchi understood his intent, there was one thing he could never do by nature.
For example, something like this.....
"Sir Aged Kimchi! No matter how gently you try to hold back, you can't match my strength!"
He shouted mid-run.
Aged Kimchi furrowed his brow.
"Me? No way."
"It's true!"
"Why?"
"Because you've gotten too damn strong!"
It was a fact.
Aged Kimchi's level was 9,990.
And this one? Even using the full strength of the body's original owner, Credos, it was only a mere level 666.
That was nearly a 30-fold difference.
In truth, the gap was even more massive.
Even if Aged Kimchi held back as much as he could, even if he used the weakest, softest tap possible, he would still be stronger.
Like how even the gentlest bump from an elephant is stronger than a flea's ultimate, full-power body slam.
"So that's why—!"
Hyah!
He leapt over the golem's sweeping ground strike with both arms. Closed the distance rapidly toward Aged Kimchi.
Then shouted—
"Let me borrow that for a sec!"
He reached out.
Toward Aged Kimchi's waist. Toward the girly Heart-Sparkle Magical Girl Wand tucked there. He grabbed it and snatched it away.
"....Huh?"
Maybe Aged Kimchi hadn't predicted this impulsive move. Or maybe he simply never imagined that he'd resort to such a reckless act.
Aged Kimchi gave him a baffled look.
But there was no time to respond to that reaction. Nor any intention to give the wand back immediately.
Because that wand—this absurdly magical girl wand—was currently the only tool that could, even briefly, let him match Aged Kimchi's weakest power.
'Come forth.'
Clack!
He gripped the wand's handle tightly with his left hand. His right hand supported the lower part of the grip.
He pressed his palm firmly, twisting his wrist 90 degrees counterclockwise. At the same time, he cut off six pulses of mana and channeled them into the handle.
The response came instantly.
Crack!
Black energy streamed out from the wand's grip. The flow wrapped around the entire wand.
…..Kyaaaaaaah!
A shrieking wail burst from within the wand.
".......!"
Aged Kimchi's eyes widened at the sight.
He had no idea.
That this wand of his—
This wand that wasn't particularly powerful, that didn't hold any grand abilities, that was merely sturdy—
He had only kept it because it had been granted to him by the Summon of Duty.
He had no idea such power lay dormant inside it. Nor that he could awaken that power.
And so, he was shocked.
'You truly are...'
Even though you raised me.
Even though you cared for me.
Even though you ultimately cast me aside.
And even though I too tried to turn away from you.
Yet still, in the end, you bring me awe like this. You bind me again with your touch, so I can never escape you.
Like a planet that cannot survive away from its sun. Like the countless laws that bind the starlight of distant galaxies. In the end, you become my only light.
Even in this life.
'You are....'
....Hyah!
Aged Kimchi leapt, overwhelmed by an endless shiver. He stepped on the golem's knee and climbed. Threw himself toward its chest.
...Hyah!
At the same time, Kim Jangcheol took off as well. He stepped on the golem's shoulder and soared. Threw himself toward its head.
And then he pulled the wand back.
Unleashed the black energy completely.
Click—, Kyaaaaaaaaah—!
The wailing grew louder.
The wand's form grew faint.
The wand's appearance, once customized with the game's legendary weapon-tier styling options—
All of that vanished.
And what was revealed underneath, the black core hidden beneath the decorations—
That was the relic of an ancient evil god. The final scream of a destroyed world. The lament of a decayed myth.
The Holy Sword of the Evil God, Bragia, opened its eyes.
The awakened sword sought a sacrifice.
It locked on.
The golem's head.
The very one Kim Jangcheol was aiming for.
Utterly desirable.
Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaah—!
Kim Jangcheol's Mana Seed let out its final roar. The amplified power infused itself into the Holy Sword.
The dark, smooth, irregular blade surged toward its prey.
The sigh of an evil god.
The candlelight of mortality.
Desperate because it wavers.
Majestic because it's desperate.
Pitiful because it's majestic.
And fatally sorrowful precisely because it's pitiful.
...!
A strike infused with mythical power pierced the golem's head. Penetrated the core. Without sound. Without a shockwave. Silently. Containing a force never before witnessed.
At the same time, Aged Kimchi struck the golem's chest. With his left pinky finger. Gently, ever so gently. A soft flick. Without sound. Without a shockwave. Silently. Containing the most trivial and insignificant power imaginable.
It was at that moment.
...Clang!
Finally, the perfect synchronization of timing, angle, and force.
And upon the twin cores of the infamous, second-generation Arcana combat-type golem—renowned for its tenacity—
A fracture appeared that could never again be healed.
[T/L: I am not getting any support from webnovel platform, so please support me and read ahead chapters on my ko-fi page "RevengerScans" : https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]