Every single Apocalid unit within the range of the consciousness was felt in vivid detail. It wasn’t a physical sensation.
Their spirits were linked—a phenomenon an Elf could never experience.
Even with her eyes closed, she could see; she could hear sounds from places where she wasn’t present.
She could delegate her thoughts to other units to process information, though the results were vastly different from Iselin’s own personality.
‘The boundaries of my ego are blurring. It feels like I’m spreading out like a cloud, existing in multiple places at once.’
Iselin finally understood why Choi Kangjoong had warned her.
If her sense of self vanished like this, the High Elf Queen Iselin would cease to exist, becoming just another entity like them.
Iselin opened her eyes. The Spirit of Life resting on her lap looked up at her with worried eyes, looking as if it were about to burst into tears.
“I’m okay.”
Iselin placed the Spirit of Life on her shoulder. The spirit tilted its head; she seemed different, yet stayed the same.
“How is it?”
“It’s a feeling that’s very hard to put into words.”
“I know, even if you don’t say it.”
“I suppose so. More importantly…”
Iselin trailed off.
The presence of the Outer Mind suddenly surged toward her. It was a massive hunger in itself.
She could intimately feel a predatory will that didn’t seem to belong to this world.
If she had faced it with an Elven mind, her soul would have melted from the horrific terror in less than a second, absorbed into the giant hive mind.
However, being nearly half-Apocalid, she felt a strong sense of kinship.
Fear still flickered, but thanks to the strong connection, she could understand the thoughts of the great hive mind, and the dread quickly vanished.
“You have no intention of eating me at all. Though you did in the past.”
“How did you know that?”
Choi Kangjoong was startled. Since the conditions for the Special Unit Production function included High Elves and High Dark Elves, he had briefly considered whether he should consume Iselin or Dielka.
“I can feel the thoughts from back then. It’s actually reassuring.”
“Why?”
“Because I can also tell how easily you resisted that urge.”
“Did I?”
“You did. I have a memory of you brushing it off quite easily.”
“Can you sense anything else?” Kangjoong asked urgently. It would be quite troublesome if Iselin started uncovering his other memories.
“It seems that specific memory was recorded in your thoughts because it was so unique. I can’t access your personal memories, Outer One.”
“That’s a relief.”
“Just what kind of thoughts were you having to react like that?”
The tips of Iselin’s ears twitched slightly. It was time for a joke.
“I was wondering if Elves and High Elves tasted different.”
“Since our bodies are imbued with Life Mana, there might be a difference.”
“Are you joking or being serious?”
“Both.”
Iselin stood up. Through the vision of the Skyeye Giant linked via Choi Kangjoong, she could see at a glance how the Demons and Magic Beasts were positioned.
“You’ve been watching like this every time. It’s practically cheating.”
“Elves have good eyes too.”
In fact, the Evolution Code applied to the Skyeye Giant was the Elven Telescope Vision.
“It’s hard to gain a perspective like that, looking down from such a dangerous height.”
“I also added Dark Elf vision to that one, so it can see well in the dark.”
Although Iselin hadn’t fully become an Apocalid, she could use the Evolution Codes applied to the Apocalids to some extent. That alone made her significantly stronger. When Choi Kangjoong pointed out Evolution Codes that would help in battle, Iselin realized their potential and applied them to herself.
But there was one ability Iselin liked far more: the fact that her brain was linked to other Apocalids, allowing her to process multiple thoughts simultaneously.
“You seem happy.”
“I’ve become able to handle multiple spirits at once.”
“Couldn’t you do that before?”
Kangjoong had seen Iselin use the Spirit of Lightning, Fire, and Wind all at the same time.
“That was simply borrowing their power or entrusting the spirits to use their abilities. In that case, I could use ten spirits at once. But controlling a spirit as if it were my own body… usually, one is the limit. There have only been a few Elves in the history of Marsala who could control two or three.”
“So you’re borrowing the Apocalid brains to control multiple spirits.”
“Exactly.”
Iselin summoned the Spirit of Fire and the Spirit of Wind together. The gathered fire spread out, taking a humanoid shape. The flickering wind transformed into the shape of blades.
“If I let the two spirits fight freely, they just set fires or stir up wind. But if I control them properly, the Spirit of Fire becomes a weapon itself, and the Spirit of Wind can be used like a Wind Cutter.”
“And you’re saying while you could normally only do that with one, you can do it with many in this state?”
“Correct.”
Iselin summoned 99 more Spirits of Wind and transformed them into blade forms. One hundred blades of wind hovered in the air. If she could wield all of those like her own arms, the power would be staggering.
“Did you ask for this knowing it would happen?”
“Yes. I expected it, but I didn’t realize it would be this effective. Even two would have been good, and three would have been amazing.”
“It’s basic for me.”
“You really are incredible, Outer One.”
Iselin smiled brightly. Yet, inside her, a murderous intent toward the Demons was overflowing.
“I suppose I’ll become the Elf who kills the most Demons today.”
“Be careful.”
“You too, Outer One.”
Choi Kangjoong took flight, patrolling the expedition fleet while slightly twisting the essence of Joo Eun-jong, Choi Yunseo, and Han Junghwa toward the Apocalid side. He didn’t have enough time for a long explanation, so he left that task to Han Junghwa.
“Let’s go devour them all.”
“Krrrk.”
Kangjoong flew alongside Ku-eong, reaching the sky above Archduke Ventresca’s army. Archduke Ventresca craned his neck to look up. He gave a grotesque smirk just as shells coated in Demonic Energy began to rain down around him.
“Kill them all! Return those soulless things to nothingness!”
Archduke Luderlock spread his Immortal Demonic Energy. Responding to it, Death Knights led Flesh Golems and Dimension Ghouls in a charge.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Shells fired by the Cannon Giants landed. Dimension Ghouls were sent flying, and large holes were punched through the chests of Flesh Golems. It was a battlefield of utter pandemonium, but the fearless Magic Beasts only ran toward the scent of fresh meat.
Despite the terrifying sight, the Apocalids, who similarly lacked fear or hesitation, quietly waited for the optimal moment to strike. The Rifle Scouts fired Chitin Spikes. The spikes streaked through the gaps between the long lines of Walkers, Warriors, and Giants.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Flesh Golems and Dimension Ghouls continued their charge with Chitin Spikes dangling from their bodies. Because they knew no pain, they didn’t react even as parasites burrowed into them, only collapsing when their muscles and bones were finally severed.
“They’re swarming in.”
Dielka spread Death Mana. The mana naturally infused the Scythe Claws, which were already glowing with Psionic blades.
- Charge. Devour.
The Central Command Giant issued the order. Warriors and Giants lunged forward first. A Dimension Ghoul unhinged its jaw as a Warrior approached. It was large enough to swallow a human in a single bite. It tried to snap its jaws around the Warrior’s head, but before it could close them, the Warrior’s Scythe Claw sliced the ghoul across the waist.
Being cut in two was a trivial injury for an immortal Magic Beast. All it had to do was move its limbs, kill the enemy, and reattach its body.
“Kieeeek!”
The Death Mana infused in the Scythe Claw burned away the Immortal Demonic Energy. The Ghoul struggled against the unknown phenomenon before its head was devoured by the Warrior. Since it was still flesh, it became nourishment for the Warrior.
A Giant lunged at a Flesh Golem, severing its legs and knocking it down. The Flesh Golem swung its fists, but the hard Chitin Gauntlets didn’t even take a scratch.
Squelch! Squelch!
The Flesh Golem was sliced like tofu by the Giant’s Scythe Claw. The corpse tried to clump back together to reform, but a Walker rushed over and shoved the pieces into a Soil Pit.
[Evolution Points acquired.]
[Evolution Points acquired.]
[Evolution Points acquired.]
The Evolution Points climbed steadily. The Immortal Demons didn’t stay idle either. Death Knights cut down Warriors and occasionally triumphed over Giants.
Flap.
Duke Cocheta took to the sky. A direct subordinate of Archduke Luderlock and an Immortal Demon, he was also a Bone Dragon. Duke Cocheta’s Soul Vessel, hovering in the air, vibrated violently. He opened his maw and unleashed a Death Breath upon the cluster of Cannon Giants.
Dielka just watched, even though she could have blocked it. It was a deliberate move to take a hit and retreat.
KABOOM!
The Death Breath exploded, toppling several Cannon Giants. The power was on a different level compared to the Bone Dragon’s breath Joo Eun-jong had faced in the past. Under Duke Cocheta’s breath and Death Spears, the Cannon Giants fell in heaps. The front lines even buckled under the magic of Archduke Luderlock, the Archlich.
- Retreat. Retreat.
The Central Command Giant pulled the Apocalids back. Dielka retreated with them.
“They’re running! Don’t let a single one escape!”
Luderlock didn’t even look back. He was confident of victory, whether he had Archduke Ventresca’s support or not. Dielka glanced behind her. Archduke Ventresca was tied up fighting Choi Kangjoong. The distance between the two Archdukes was widening.
‘Everything is going according to the Queen’s plan. Is the fight going well up there too?’
In the Dimensional Sea, a battle even more intense than the one on the ground was in full swing. The back of the Titan was swarming with Demons and Magic Beasts. Kuongi, in particular, was surrounded by even more boarding ships and transports. Around them, the fragments of Demons, Magic Beasts, Dimension Ships, and Apocalids spread like a thick fog. Even the expedition fleet, which was supposed to provide long-range fire support from a distance, was partially engaged in close-quarters combat.
“Do they like sticking to us that much?” Dielka muttered, shaking her head.
Crash!
A burning Dimension Ship plummeted, snapping in half mid-air. One piece fell among the Apocalids, and the other crushed a group of Dimension Ghouls. The Apocalids dodged expertly, but dozens of Dimension Ghouls were flattened into paste.
“When is she coming?” Dielka complained.
Even though the distance between Archduke Luderlock and Archduke Ventresca had grown quite large, there was still no sign of Iselin.
“If you surrender the Death Spirit, I shall spare your life!”
Archduke Luderlock’s voice boomed across the battlefield. Dielka gave him the middle finger she had learned from Choi Kangjoong. Luderlock didn’t know the exact meaning, but he could tell it was something insulting.
“If you won’t offer yourself, I have no choice but to take you by force!”
Archduke Luderlock rose high into the air. A hundred Death Spears formed around him.
“Dammit! Stop using magic! What, are you bragging about how much Demonic Energy you have?!”
“I won’t kill you.”
Luderlock pointed his index finger at Dielka. The Death Spears began to fire in sequence. Dielka deployed a triple-layered conical shield. She also prepared to throw herself aside in case the shield shattered.
However, nothing hit her shield.
Slash! Slash! Slash!
Sharp objects falling from above intercepted and blocked all one hundred Death Spears.
“How?”
The flames in Archduke Luderlock’s eye sockets flared. He was flustered.
“Wind Cutter? No… those are Spirits of Wind!”
A Wind Cutter cast via magic was distinctly different from a Wind Cutter that was a spirit. Only a spirit could change directions so freely. But there were only two Elves here. There was Dielka, staring up at him from the ground—and then there was Iselin, slowly descending with a sword in one hand.
Countless spirits hovered around her.