Chapter 145: Broken Rapier
Auren’s brows drew tight, confusion flickering in his weary eyes.
He wiped sweat from his cheek with the back of his hand.
"What do you mean?"
Bonbon’s round body rotated slowly as its ears twitched. It stared into the horizon, its voice unusually sharp as if something bad is approaching.
"Do not forget, that man is an emperor for a reason.
The weight of those words sank into Auren.
He remembered vividly the moment he felt his body shiver under Romeov’s killing intent.
The phantom slice of sword energy across his flesh still made his spine tremble. And the raw power between his movements.
He knows very well that if one of those attacks landed, he could have been a goner. He took a look at the two dents on his Divine Rapier and shook his head.
He’s strong alright,
Auren admitted quietly. His voice cracked with honesty.
"If not for the Phoenix power, I’d be a corpse already."
He turned his tired gaze to Bonbon, trying to summon a smile.
"But now that you’re here, I believe I better chance of surviving."
"hmm...""
Bonbon did not share his confidence.
The little beast simply turned its back, ears twitching again.
"Unfortunately, its not.
"What do you mean?"
"As much as I’d love to kick his ass into next week, I cannot kill him. Or should I say, I am not allowed to kill him."
Auren’s frowned more. He pushed himself to his feet, steady though his legs still wobbled.+
"Why not?"
Bonbon tilted its head back, eyes narrowing.
"Because he is the emperor of this land. And... he is my other half’s chosen one. Taking him out means bringing destruction on this territory and would give way to the collapse of the Tabogo Towers."
Auren blinked. His heart skipped a beat.
’That makes sense. But what about the...’
"Other half?" he asked.
Even Bigbird, the Phoenix spirit within him, stirred with alarm. Its voice rang in Auren’s head.
’What does he mean?’
Bonbon’s tone shifted. The playfulness vanished. He leapt onto the top of a nearby boulder, the sunlight casting his small figure in gold.
His shadow stretched long across the desert rock as he spoke.
"We do not have much time, so listen carefully," Bonbon said, his voice heavy. "My true name is Bhuka, the Primordial Beast of Earth and Sky."
Auren froze. His mind flashed back to the legends, words he had once dismissed as myth. To hear it spoken aloud, directly from Bonbon’s mouth, carried a weight that pressed against his chest.
His breathing grew shallow. It was as if the universe itself leaned closer, whispering the truth into his ears.
Bonbon continued, his eyes narrowing as if the memory itself caused him pain. "But the truth is bitter. My body bore two heads, two minds, two souls. One longed for freedom and adventure. That was me. The other craved power, conquest, and control. That was Akhub."
Auren’s throat tightened. The pieces fell into place.
"You... split," Auren murmured. "You separated into two beings. And the other half... is coming here."
Bonbon nodded gravely. "Correct. He is coming. And he will not let you walk away."
Bonbon’s ears twitched again. His eyes sharpened. "We have no more time. You must go."
Auren blinked, alarm flooding his chest. "What? Go where—"
THUD- BOOOOM!
The ground quaked violently. Dust erupted from the plain as a massive force slammed into the earth. Cracks ripped through the rock, a shockwave blasting outward and scattering sand like a storm. Auren shielded his eyes with his arm.
When the dust cleared, Emperor Romeov stood there, his golden wings unfurled, his armor cracked but his presence unshaken.
His glare burned like molten fire, locking straight onto Auren.
But before the emperor could move, Bonbon leapt forward, placing his tiny round body between them.
His stubby feet pressed hard against the rock as if anchoring himself against the mountain of killing intent pouring from Romeov.
"Romeov," Bonbon said coldly, his voice cutting the air like a blade.
"I thought my last message was clear."
Romeov’s eyes narrowed.
His fury remained, but there was a flash of acknowledgment in his expression. He glanced at Bonbon briefly, then raised his voice. "Akhub. I will leave him to you."
The air distorted. Space itself tore open in a warped spiral beside them. Out from that rift stepped another figure.
"Oh shit. Here we go again." Bonbon grumbled.
A small Punto just like Bonbon but its color is red as fresh blood, its stubby body glowing faintly with sinister energy.
A Divine Frame pulsed above its head, a symbol of terrifying authority. Its presence was oppressive, enough to make Auren’s knees weak.
*
Name: Akhub
Title: The Primordial Beast of Earth
Level: 97
*
The red beast’s smirk widened as it turned toward Bonbon.
"I told you not to harm my chosen one," Akhub, the other half form of Bonbon.
While the latter narrowed his eyes, unfazed by the threat.
His ears flicked.
"And I told you to stay in your castle," he jumped closer with a confident strut.
"or I’ll kick your ass myself."
And while they glared at one another, their fury never crossed into motion. Neither Bonbon nor Akhub twitched an inch. They only stared, locked in a silent battle of willpower, as though the slightest blink would decide who struck first. The tension in their eyes seemed to ripple across the battlefield itself, like an invisible war being fought in a realm of thought.
Meanwhile, Auren had no reason to wait. Seeing that Bonbon had found his counterpart, his focus shifted entirely to the giant before him.
Without hesitation, he drew in his breath, clenched his fists, and called upon the power that had carried him this far.
BWOOOOM!
His body erupted with divine fire. A young man no longer, his form surged and grew into something radiant and terrifying. Six golden wings spread wide, blazing with flame that scorched the very air around him. Runed armor of burning light wrapped his figure, every plate shimmering like a shard of the sun.
Romeov, however, didn’t flinch.
"Hmph."
His expression was stone. His dragon-like wings unfurled, black scales rippling with mana, and with casual ease he reached into his storage ring. From the void, a colossal sword answered the call, its crimson blade humming with multi-elemental energy. The instant his hand closed around its hilt, the atmosphere changed.
He charged.
BOOM!
The earth quaked with each step, shockwaves rippling outward, tearing cracks in the ground. His crimson sword left behind a dazzling trail of colors—blue sparks of lightning, red streaks of fire, slivers of green and violet. Auren realized with a sharp inhale what that meant.
A multi-elemental attribute. The kind of weapon that could crush armies by itself.
"Damn it," Auren muttered, his heart pounding. "I didn’t expect to face the emperor this soon."
His jaw clenched. He had no choice.
Tiger Focus.
His eyes sharpened like blades, the world slowing as details flooded his vision. Every twitch of Romeov’s muscles, every pulse of mana along the emperor’s veins became visible to him. His legs blazed with Wind Run, channeling raw agility into his every step.
Bigbird’s voice flickered in his mind. Don’t you dare hold back. This man isn’t just strong. He’s the strongest alive in this empire.
Auren swallowed hard. He could see it clearly now—the condensed mana swirling in Romeov’s body, tighter than steel, denser than mountains. It was suffocating just to look at.
Focus, Auren. You’ve been training for this. Every single day, you’ve bled for this.
That thought snapped his nerves back into place. His lips curved into a grin. He still had tricks left.
Romeov moved first.
The emperor raised his blade, and though the distance between them stretched dozens of meters, Auren knew what was coming.
KRAKABOOOM!
A bolt of lightning tore through the sky, blindingly fast. Auren vanished in a blink, his wings exploding with force. The lightning slammed into where he stood an instant ago, shattering the ground into a smoking crater.
"Too close..." Auren hissed, smoke curling from the bottom of his boots. His escape speed had singed even himself.
But Romeov was relentless.
SLASH! BOOM!
The emperor appeared above him like a phantom, descending with a downward slash that split the heavens. The blow didn’t just cut the air—it unleashed a rain of sword energy, shards of killing intent that screamed toward the earth.
FLASH!
Auren darted backward, his wings beating furiously. His rapier intercepted the first volley, sparks and flames exploding as steel and mana collided.
PANG! PAPANG!BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Every deflected blade tore into the land below, detonating like bombs, reducing hills to rubble and carving smoking scars across the earth.
Romeov didn’t pause. Another slash. Then another. Auren’s every breath became a desperate choice—dodge, parry, or pray.
BOOOOOM!
Auren’s sword met the emperor’s once again, the impact rattling his arms to the bone. But this time, he was beginning to see a pattern. Romeov’s style, though overwhelming, had rhythm.
CRACK.
"No... No, no!"
Before his very eyes, his Divine Rapier broke.