“How could you...?”
Gerd raised his voice in astonishment. Even faced with that beam, he was perfectly safe. That was because his Barrier of Devotion had withstood the Dragon’s attack. However, the same didn’t go for the underground corridor.
The attack destroyed the walls and ceiling, piercing the foundation of the building and shooting up into the sky. The corridor was beneath the grand cathedral’s dome. The torrent of destruction blew away part of the cathedral and damaged several of its spires as it shot upward. The destructive force rivaled grade 5 magic—the greatest magic known to the world. This boy had demonstrated this with but a breath. However, even this had been nothing more than the prelude.
“Aaah...”
An enormous dragon stood in the aftermath of the destruction. Cold sweat ran down Gerd’s withered face. He’d wrought such devastation just to secure enough space to take the form of a dragon. The next attack wasn’t going to be as half-baked as the one from his human form.
“Vanish.”
The dragon calmly declared the archbishop’s death, then unleashed a torrent of mana that doubled what he’d used before.
“Oooh?!”
The destructive force slammed against the Barrier of Devotion, the transparent wall creaking under the pressure immediately.
“S-So much power...?!”
This was pretty much the worst case possible. Jinguuji Tomoya’s inherent ability was without a doubt among the strongest of any savior who’d saved the world. The purity and strength of his wish surpassed all others. His wish had basically driven him to the verge of madness.
“Still...!” Even knowing this, Gerd clenched his teeth. “I won’t lose! I can’t afford to lose!”
He was protecting the world itself. Even though he knew it was reckless, his only choice was to stop the lethal attack head-on. Naturally, cracks formed all over the Barrier of Devotion.
“Hak...”
Gerd started vomiting blood. His barrier was an unmovable wall that was even capable of repelling a savior’s attack. However, when it was damaged, the wielder suffered from the feedback. This wasn’t a means of defending himself—it was a power that turned his own body into a bulwark to protect others.
Blood gushed out from all over the old man’s body, dyeing his clothes a dark red. If he let the pain loosen his focus even a little, the barrier would vanish in an instant. Nevertheless, the Barrier of Devotion stood strong.
“I protect the world...!”
Screaming hoarsely, Gerd mustered all his strength.
“Shut the fuck up.”
And in the next instant, he heard a terrible noise.
“Gah...?!”
It was the sound of his barrier, his bulwark against the end of the world, cracking apart. Gerd’s eyes shot open. The torrent of destruction pouring out of the dragon’s mouth had grown even stronger.
“Protect the world? And what of it?” The boy’s voice resounded around him. “I’m protecting everyone. She asked me to, after all.”
He possessed a tenacious and pure determination that verged on insanity. No. This had long crossed the line.
“That’s right. She told me to protect everyone. So I’m gonna do it... But that’s wrong... The one I wanted to protect... So why...? Why did she die...? But she said! She said to! She told me to!”
His incoherent rambling exposed his inner thoughts. The mental trauma of losing his beloved had taken his ability to the next stage. Just maybe, it had brought him to the depths of a darkness he could never return from.
Jinguuji Tomoya had acquired power to protect his lover. And yet, he’d let go of his beloved’s hand. He’d only realized his mistake after losing her. He could never take it back.
That was why he only had one path before him now. His departed lover had implored him. She’d told him to protect everyone and bring them home. That was all. There was nothing else to it.
So long as he had the power to fulfill his goal, he didn’t need anything else. He didn’t need to turn back to his original form. He didn’t need human emotion. He’d had more than enough pain, suffering, and sorrow already.
“He’s losing control...?!”
Gerd screamed upon realizing the situation, and in the next instant, he vomited more blood. The dragon attacking him grew even bigger, and the torrent of mana grew even stronger. It was just like an evil dragon threatening the world itself. Not even the Barrier of Devotion could stop it. Fatal cracks ran along its entire surface.
“Ah... Guh...”
In that instant, Gerd had a choice. If he escaped the path of the dragon’s breath and minimized his barrier to protect himself, he could just barely survive this. But he didn’t consider opening the path to an intruder. The worth of what was behind him and the sight of the people who came to the cathedral every day to pray stirred him into action.
“Ooooooh!”
Gerd roared and stood before the torrent of mana. In the span of seconds, cracks ran all over his barrier. At the same time, the withered old man convulsed greatly. It was feedback from his ability. The barrier was his very existence. He wouldn’t get off lightly if it broke. Pain ran through his entire body down to his bones. The blood pouring out of him dyed him completely red. This was a fatal wound. The old man’s figure swayed unreliably like a dead tree.
“Not...yet!”
Watching him, even the Evil Dragon widened its eyes. The old man’s feet supported his swaying body in pools of blood. Using tremendous spirit, Gerd kept his fading consciousness intact. Despite being so wounded that it wouldn’t be strange for him to perish at any moment, Gerd refused to fall over. This was impossible to accomplish without extraordinary willpower.
He was without a doubt the world’s guardian. He protected the world to his very last moment.
A few seconds later, the Evil Dragon exhausted itself by using all the mana it had, and the barrier shattered.