The Grand Duke's Son Is A Heretic - Chapter 409
408: 408 408: 408 “Did I say you can leave?” Roman’s entire body froze hearing the chilling tone.
His battle instincts, sharpened by years of blood and war, screamed in alarm.
His body moved on its own, bending backward just in time.
SWISHHH!
A faint hum cut through the air.
Tzzzzz!
The rocky hill behind him exploded, scattering stone and dust into the sky.
The force shook the ground.
Roman’s head snapped up, and his crimson eyes widened.
Standing a few meters away was Kael, his sword drawn, the faint glow of power still humming around the blade.
“Shit…” Selena muttered, her voice trembling.
Her eyes widened in terror as she stared at Kael.
Roman’s lips twisted in anger.
“Human…
Are you too eager to die?” Kael blinked and tilted his head slightly, confused.
“Eager?
We haven’t even fought yet, and you already decided the outcome?” Roman let out a scoff.
“A S-rank dares to defy a demon who is close to SS-rank?
What a joke.” Instead of being offended, Kael’s lips curved into a grin.
His eyes glinted with a strange light, cold and sharp.
The next moment, his body blurred.
Roman barely saw the movement before Kael vanished from his sight.
Startled, Roman cursed and threw Selena away from him.
“Tch!” Selena screamed as she fell.
“Kyaaaa!” CLANGGG!
The sound of metal striking metal echoed through the air.
BOOOOOOM!
The ground burst open as the two blades clashed.
A massive shockwave spread across the battlefield, tearing apart trees, rocks, and whatever stood nearby.
The ground split, forming a deep crevice as energy waves rippled outward.
Roman steadied himself, his eyes narrowing.
He glared at the figure before him.
“How?” he muttered, his voice low and shocked.
Kael stood before him, his blade locked against Roman’s, eyes burning with cold determination.
From the reports, Roman knew this man was supposed to be an early S-rank at best.
But the pressure Kael emitted now was anything but S-rank.
It was suffocating.
“Surprised, right?” Kael said with a grin, pushing forward and clashing again.
Their blades sparked violently.
Each swing was fast and deadly, leaving arcs of light in the air.
Roman growled and stepped back.
The weight behind Kael’s strikes felt unnatural.
Kael just smiled coldly and attacked.
Devour.
He had used that forbidden ability countless times during the war.
Using it openly would expose him, but in chaos, who would notice?
In battle, surrounded by piles of corpses and clouds of dust, no one could see clearly.
He didn’t devour entire bodies, only small parts-just enough to gather fragments of energy.
That was why he had been slicing his enemies into pieces all this time.
No one could tell what he had done to them when only torn remains were left.Just for that he always butcher the ones he absorbed into countless small pieces.
Devouring low-ranking ones didn’t help much, but the sheer number made up for it.
Hundreds of thousands of soldiers had fallen.
Even tiny drops of energy collected over time became an ocean.
And now, he stood at the very edge of S-rank.
Not quite there, but close enough to shake one.
TAANG!
Their swords met again.
Sparks exploded.
BOOOOOM!
The ground trembled violently.
The two figures were now nothing but streaks of light flashing through the battlefield.
Each strike split the air.
… Far away, Fred watched from the ridge, his face grim.
“They’re colliding,” he muttered.
Beside him, Hobbins clenched his fists.
“If they manage to take the two down, the Demon Central Command might falter,” he said with hope.
“Roman is their chief commander.
His fall could break their morale.” Before Fred could respond, a soldier came running, his armor covered in dirt and blood.
His breathing was ragged.
“Sir!
Trouble!
Big trouble on the other side!” Fred turned sharply.
“What happened?” The soldier’s voice cracked.
“Sir…
the other side is suffering huge casualties!” Hobbins frowned.
“What do you mean?
Explain!” The soldier trembled.
“Sir…
it’s the Sin of Gluttony.” The color drained from Fred’s face.
… On the other front, chaos reigned.
Soldiers screamed and ran in panic.
The ground shook under their feet.
In the distance, a huge shadow loomed, blocking the light.
The monstrous figure towered above them, wrapped in a dark, slimy shine.
Its skin pulsed like liquid tar, and its glowing eyes stared hungrily at the soldiers below.
When it opened its mouth, an unbearable sound filled the air.
The air around twisted and rushed forward, forming a massive vortex.
The suction was so strong that even boulders began to roll toward it.
The battlefield turned into a storm.
Men screamed as they were lifted from the ground, dragged toward the monster’s gaping maw.
“Hold on!” someone shouted, grabbing onto a broken wall.
His fingers slipped.
“Kyaaaaa!” a woman screamed as she was pulled into the air.
“Arghhh!” “Save me!” “Nooooo!” The cries mixed with the roar of the wind.
Armor,weapons and bodies flew vanishing into the creature’s mouth.
Blood splattered across the rocks, staining the ground.
The sound of bones cracking echoed between gusts of air.
The soldiers’ formation broke completely.
Fear spread faster than any command could stop it.
The creature’s chest expanded, and with each breath, it devoured more life.The smell of death thickened in the air.
Dust and ash rose like mist.
A voice could be heard faintly through the comm-crystal.
“Pull back!
Pull back immediately!” But it was too late.
The monstrous figure stood tall, surrounded by swirling blood and dust.
Its eyes glowed a deep red, and its massive jaw curved into what looked like a cruel grin.
The battlefield had turned into hell.
The ground trembled again, and the soldiers stumbled as a deep rumbling spread through the air.
Dust and smoke covered everything.
In the distance, the monstrous shape of the Sin of Gluttony moved like a mountain of flesh, its dark body twisting and pulsing.
Its steps crushed rock.
Martina stood near the front line, her armor covered in dirt and blood.
Her eyes were cold but steady.
She could feel the fear spreading among the troops.
Men looked around in panic, whispering, some too afraid to move.
The heavy air smelled of blood and burnt metal.
Hans rushed to her side, breathing heavily.
“That thing…
it’s devouring everything in its path.
If it keeps going, we’ll lose this entire flank.” Martina tightened her grip on her sword.
“We need to stop.” Hans gave her a doubtful look.
“You need to be careful.That’s one of the Seven Sins.
Even if we hit it with everything, it’ll just absorb it.” Martina’s gaze remained fixed on the creature.
“Even monsters have limits.
If we can cut off its energy flow, we might slow it down.” Hans cursed under his breath and turned to the troops behind them.
“Form into lines!
Archers to the cliffs!
Mages prepare your area seals!
I want all shields reinforced with mana right now!” The soldiers hesitated for a moment, but Martina’s calm presence steadied them.
Her voice was sharp and clear as she raised her sword.
“Listen to me.
Fear won’t save you.
Stand your ground and fight.
We are the last line here.
If this thing breaks through, everything behind us dies.” The men’s eyes flickered with renewed determination.
They shouted together, slamming their weapons against their shields.
The noise echoed like thunder, pushing back the fear.
Hans moved quickly among them, giving orders.
“Mages!
Cast Earth Bind!
I want that creature slowed down.
Don’t let it reach the main camp!” At his command, several mages knelt on the ground, pressing their hands to the soil.
Circles of light spread outward, glowing runes crawling across the dirt.
“Now!” The ground split apart, forming chains made of glowing stone that shot upward.
They wrapped around the monster’s legs.
The Monster of Sin of Gluttony roared, shaking the air.
Its body twisted, and the chains began to crack under its strength.
But for a moment, it slowed.
“Ballista teams, fire!” Hans shouted.
A line of massive arrows shot forward, glowing with runic energy.
They struck the monster’s body, exploding on impact.
Pieces of black flesh flew off, splattering onto the ground.
For a second, hope flickered.
Then the wounds began to close.
The torn flesh reformed, and the creature’s body pulsed again, darker than before.
Martina’s expression hardened.
“It’s feeding off the mana in our attacks.” “So, what now?”Riley appeared after finishing the battle otherside.
She looked at Han,”Why don’t we kill it from inside.” Hans’ eyes widened.
“That’s suicide.” “It is but that’s a good choice,”Riley spoke.
“Except for that bullshit ability the monster isn’t that strong.”Riley concluded.
Hans’s eyes met hers for a moment, then he sighed.
“Fine.
I’ll buy you time.” Martina nodded once, then called to a group of elite knights.
“With me!” They moved swiftly through the battlefield, dodging falling debris and streams of dark energy.
The monster swung one of its huge arms, smashing a group of soldiers aside.
It roared slamming its chest and opened its maw wide to engulf when a punch blasted its face.
“Gurreh!” Riley appeared and punched underside the chin to close its mouth.
Martina’s group charged through the chaos.
Arrows and magic flew past them.
She raised her sword, and golden light flared from it, forming a radiant edge.
The light cut through the air, slicing one of the monster’s arms clean off.
Black liquid spilled out like tar, burning the ground wherever it touched.
The creature howled, shaking the sky.
Hans watched from behind, shouting orders to cover her team.
“Keep firing!
Don’t let it focus on her!” The archers rained down volleys while the mages cast barriers around Martina’s path.
The monster thrashed wildly.
It opened its mouth again, sucking in air and soldier Just then,Martina jumped forward, her sword glowing brighter.
She ran straight toward the beast, dodging debris and broken bodies.
She leapt high and entered its mouth traversing through the neck.
She then threw a few things inside and then plunged her blade into its chest from inside.
“Now!” she shouted pouring her mana over the sword that condensed shooting a wave of sword light tearing across through the chest sending the signal.
Hans raised his arm.
“Explode the runes!” The mages unleashed their stored mana.
BOOOOOM!
The ground beneath the creature erupted in light.
The explosion swallowed everything in a blinding flash.
The shockwave hit hard.
Dust and fire rolled across the field.
The monster roared in agony, as its body was split open as light burst from within.
When the light faded, silence covered the battlefield.
Smoke rose from the broken earth.
Martina lay on one knee covered in foul and pungent smelling liquid.
Hans stumbled toward her, coughing through the dust.
“Is it over?” he asked.
“Yes..”