Beyond the Eternity

Trouble loomed over Yoo Rin.

A burly knight, wielding a massive greatsword, charged toward her with the force of a bull. At the same time, an archer and a magus prepared to unleash their deadly ranged attacks. As if that weren't enough, Ira stood at the back and menacing cracked her whip, orchestrating the chaos like a malevolent conductor. Yoo Rin's instincts screamed at her that if she didn't take her down soon, the battle would spiral beyond her control.

But doing so would mean getting past all her summons, a task that, in hindsight, seemed nearly impossible.

I should take out the big guy first, she thought.

The cramped space worked to her advantage; another knight would only hinder the others' movements. Ira must have realized this, opting instead to summon two rangers for ranged support.

What if I defeat the knight and the rangers? What If she revives them when I already put them down?

She dismissed that thought just as quickly as it came.

If Ira remained standing, she could revive her fallen minions or summon even more at will. It was similar to attacking the summons conjured by a summoner in an RPG. Thus, attacking the summons was useless if the summoner remained unharmed. The only path to victory she could think of was defeating Ira directly. But breaking through her creations to get to her was going to be a grueling challenge.

Even so,

Those summons don't look like such a big deal. If I control my strength, I should be able to handle them. And... I think I'm starting to get the hang of this...

It was said that anyone could adapt to a challenge after experiencing it once. This was proving true for Yoo Rin. From the moment the fight began, she had been evolving, unconsciously learning from her enemy's strength and tactics, and adjusting her own to challenge that of her opponent's...

Her fists clenched tightly. Even with the odds stacked against her, she quickly formulated a plan. Dropping into a defensive stance, she waited for the burly knight to close the distance.

Before long—

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The knight stood before her, towering like an iron wall. It raised its massive greatsword high above its head, preparing to cleave her in two.

Such a huge movement... It was bound to create an opening.

Yoo-Rin wasted no time in exploiting that opening and quickly entered the knight's blindspot, then gatherrd her strength into her gaunlet-covered fist.

Clank!

Her punch landed against the knight's armored side, but the impact was far less effective than she had hoped. The knight's bulk hardly wavered.

Without pause, it swung its greatsword in a powerful horizontal arc. The blade sliced through the air with a menacing 'whoosh'.

Yoo-Rin dropped low, narrowly evading the lethal strike. She steadied herself, muscles coiling as she prepared to deliver another punch.

However—

Swish!

A sharp whistle cut through the air, halting her assault. Yoo-Rin's instincts flared, and she leaped to the side just in time to evade a steel arrow that streaked past her face, carried by a fierce gust of wind.

Her glare locked onto the Archer responsible, already nocking another arrow. Beside the Archer, the Magus's staff crackled ominously as though it has finished gathering power.

"Damn it!" Yoo-Rin hissed under her breath.

Swish!

Another arrow whistled through the air—not toward her, but at the ground near her feet.

The moment it struck, the floor began to transform. The arrowhead had unleashed a gold-like, molten substance that spread rapidly, glinting like liquid mercury. A menacing "hiss" accompanied its expansion, releasing steam that sounded almost alive, like the raspy breath of some monstrous beast.

A terrible thought chilled her. If that arrow had pierced her, would her body have transformed into that same molten metal?

Swallowing her dry saliva at that premonition, Yoo Rin stepped back cautiously, keeping her eyes on both the fluid and her attackers. The knight swung its massive blade, forcing her to evade its relentless strikes while keeping her distance from the still spreading molten pool.

Oddly, the knight seemed unaffected by the spreading gold substance. Its armor remained pristine, and its movements were unimpeded.

Was it protected by Ira's magic, or was its unnaturally durable body resistant to such transformations?

Her mind spiralled as she dodged another attack.

No, she corrected herself. This thing wasn't alive, not in any sense she recognized. She had already "killed" it once, or so she had thought. But the word "destroy" felt more appropriate.

Swish! Swish!

This time, two arrows flew toward her in quick succession.

Yoo Rin twisted her body, narrowly evading the first arrow. But the second came at the worst possible moment, just as she sidestepped a powerful sword swing from the knight.

Clang!

The arrow struck her gauntlet. Her heart leapt in panic, but to her relief, the arrow was deflected.

"W-What? What's going on? It didn't work?"

Ira's expression twisted in confusion, her composure faltering as a flicker of anxiety broke through.

The arrow had struck Yoo Rin's gauntlet, but the golden transformation effect didn't take hold. Or rather, it had activated, but almost instantly, it was dispelled.

From her expression, it was clear such a scene wasn't supposed to happen.

"Just what is up with those gaunlets of yours? Are they some kind of sacred artifact? If that's the case, it's no wonder they negated the effects of Instant Alchemy. Tell me, where did you acquire such weaponry? Or are they some sort of soul bound artifacts?"

Yoo Rin immediately frowned. She thought she had heard something strange. Instant Alchemy? What was that supposed to mean?

Continue reading stories on empire

Ira's expression suddenly shifted from confusion to manic excitement. Her lips curled into a wide, unsettling grin as she threw her arms wide.

"Haha! Now I'm interested. THIS IS TRULY INTERESTING! I CAN'T EVEN GET ANGRY AT THIS! THIS IS REALLY AMAZING! WHAT OTHER SECRETS ARE YOU HIDING FROM ME? DON'T WORRY, IT'S MY DUTY AS A MAGIC SISTER TO DISSECT YOUR BODY AND EXTRACT THE ANSWERS TO ALL THOSE MYSTERIES!!"

Her voice erupted into a sharp command. "CAPTURE HER! NOW! IT DOESN'T MATTER IF SHE'S DEAD OR ALIVE!!"

The knight immediately abandoned its greatsword, changing its tactics in an instant.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Its massive frame barreled toward her like a living battering ram, and poised to crush her under the weight of its tight embrace.

She leaped aside, narrowly dodging the Knight's rampage. It continued its forward rush, unable to halt its tremendous momentum, crashing into the far wall with a deafening impact. Dust and debris filled the passage, but Yoo-Rin didn't move to capitalize on the moment.

Her instincts seemed of danger, and she shifted her gaze forward, towards the Magus.

The wind in the passageway flew with a gush and gathered around the Mage's staff. At the same time, she could see crimson magic circles forming on that staff. Yoo-Rin froze for a fraction of a second, overwhelmed by the unfamiliar phenomenon. She didn't understand magic, but she could sense bad vibes radiating from that staff.

With a tremendous noise, the magic circles expanded simultaneously, growing to over two meters in diameter. The Magus raised the staff toward her, murmuring an incantation in an incomprehensible language.

One phrase reached her ears, sending a chill down her spine: "St. George's Dragon Breath."

"...."

For an instant, the magic circles pulsed, then expanded violently before detonating. A cascade of lightning erupted, crackling fiercely as it scattered in all directions.

But this was no ordinary lightning. It was a shade of black so deep and ominous that it seemed to consume the very light around it.

The space surrounding the blast warped and twisted, splintering outward like a pane of glass struck by a bullet. From within the ruptured fissures, an unnatural pulse reverberated, accompanied by a suffocating beast-like scent that flooded the corridor.

The cracks spread rapidly, forcing themselves wider, until they tore "open" completely. It looked as painful as a heat rod forcefully penetrating a virgin's hymen. The cracks extended to the walls of the passage, forming a gaping maw, and within that abyss, something stirred.

A beam of pure white light, a meter in diameter, erupted from the depths.

"....?!"

Before Yoo-Rin could even blink, the ray of light had already closed the five-metres distance between her and the enemy. Luckily, she managed to recover from her shock and reacted immediately. The corridor was engulfed, leaving no escape routes. Instinctively, she moved her body to preserve her life. Ducking low, she slid beneath the towering burky knight, who had regained its balance.

Unlike her, the knight couldn't react in time and was struck by the beam of light in her stead.

Kukukuku!

The tremendous impact pushed the knight staggering back, but its armour, reinforced by Ira's magic, prevented it from being instantly incinerated.

Yoo-Rin quickly positioned herself to support the knight's body. In this precarious moment, the knight couldn't attack as it was trapped under the relentless onslaught of the beam. It was like trying to hold back a torrent of water from a fire hose with just her hands, except she was leveraging the knight's bulk as a makeshift barrier. As if blocked by a clear wall, the pillar of light scattered in every direction as it struck the knight.

However, the sheer intensity of the light was rapidly heating the knight's armor. Fortunately, she managed to avoid direct contact since she was wearing her gaunlets or else her bare skin would been peeled off from the intense heat.

Even so, it was just a temporary solution to evade instant death.

The beam of light itself was not negated.

W-What? No, this is... Ahh! Yoo Rin thought in desperation.

She strained to hold the knight in place, but the force of the beam pushed her back relentlessly. With each passing moment, the knight's armor grew unbearably hot, transforming her defensive stance against the ray of death into a cruel ordeal. And she couldn't let go, for simply releasing her grip would mean certain destruction.

Gradually, the knight's armor began to crack. The magic was corroding it from within. The reinforced plating was pushed to its limits, and the destruction had already begun.

As if that weren't enough, the archer unleashed a barrage of arrows, aimed at her exposed flank, targeting the vulnerability behind the crumbling armor.

"Ah... Shit!"

Her thoughts blurred into chaos as adrenaline surged through her body. She moved frantically, dodging the golden-tipped arrows that sliced through the air, knowing a single mistake would freeze her existence forever. But the threat of the St. George's Dragon Breath was still imminent. She was trapped in a deadly dance, with no way out but forward.

She pulled her arm back and clenched her right hand.

With that fist, she intended to end this never-ending, torturous chapter. And the mystery item worn on that hand trembled with power as though to establish its wielder's unrealistic dream.

She punched forward. In that instant, the gauntlet was enveloped by an unknown power, amplifying the force of her strike.

BAM!

Her gauntlet-covered fist collided with the back of the knight, sending it hurtling forward with incredible force, right through the beam of light from the staff.

"?!"

The opposing party was stunned, as if all logic and reason had evaporated in an instant.

Ira quickly ordered the Mage to amplify the power of "Dragon Breath," but before the order could be executed, the massive knight barreled into the Mage. Tragically, without a goodbye, the Mage was crushed under the knight's weight, and the knight met Its end moments later.

Seizing the opportunity, Yoo Rin propelled herself forward with a powerful kick against the floor.

The Archer abruptly noticed her attempt and fired an arrow towards her. The flash of the arrow flew straight at her, accompanied by the whistling sound of death. However, It didn't intimidate her or slow down her sprint. She caught the arrow mid-flight and, with all her might, sent it hurtling back towards the Archer.

The arrow flew true, and before the Archer could even react, it struck true, piercing him with a sharp "snap" that echoed along the passage.

"Ah!" Ira gasped.

In the blink of an eye, all her summons had been defeated. Confusion clouded her thoughts as she watched Yoo Rin rapidly close the distance.

Ira felt the urge to attack, but uncertainty gripped her heart.

How should she proceed?

Should she try to summon more minions, she would become exhausted. Even if she tried that option, she doubted she could squeeze any more mana. And she was afraid if she used the whip, the enemy would predict its trajectory and catch it like she did before. Losing her only weapon would spell disaster.

Should she attack or retreat?

"Ah!"

The word "retreat" triggered a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions within her mind and heart simultaneously. Was this disorder within her predictions?

That 'person' took advantage of the unfolding chaos within Ira and grabbed a fallen soldier by the ankle before hurling it at her.

"...!!"

Ira immediately snapped out of her reverie and leaped to the side, evading the thrown knight. But as soon as she steadied herself, her eyes widened in disbelief at the sight before her.

Yoo Rin had bent low, and coiled her body like a spring as she prepared to leap.

Her target wasn't retreat or safety, but the enemy on the opposite side of the golden stream.

The leap was impossible. The molten gold that coated the floor stretched at least three meters wide. Such a jump might have been feasible with a running start, but from a stationary position, it was pure madness. If she failed, she would be swallowed by the gold, and transformed into a beautiful yet lifeless sculpture regardless of the effect of her gaunlets.

Even so, her eyes lacked hesitation.

Ira felt an unfamiliar chill run through her. It wasn't the heat of the molten gold or the danger that unnerved her, it was that raw, unrelenting will radiating from Yoo Rin's eyes. It was as though she was saying that she would take down the enemy even if it meant her down destruction.

For the first time in her long existence, Ira felt the chilling sensation known as fear.

Then, Yoo Rin jumped.

At first glance, it seemed like a suicidal leap... but it wasn't aimed at Ira. Yoo Rin's foot landed with surgical precision on a torch holder embedded in the wall. Using the narrow ledge as a springboard, she catapulted herself forward, her gauntlet-clad claws spreading wide like a predator descending on its prey, her trajectory arcing straight for Ira!

"....!"

Ira snapped her whip upward with a sharp crack, aiming to strike her out of the air. But Yoo Rin was faster.

Before Ira could process what was happening, Yoo Rin closed the three-metres gap between them in the blink of an eye. She landed directly behind her, clutched and then, slammed her gaunlet-covered fist into her side.