Roel didn’t stop Nora from charging forward to protect Ponte and Victoria because he knew that he wouldn’t be able to stop her, and he knew that there was something else he needed to do too.

  He had been watching the war for several hours up till now, and that had given him plenty of time to think over everything. The fact that he finally chose to step onto the battlefield meant that he had finally made his choice, and he had the means to turn what he wished to see into reality.

  【Spell ‘Grandar’s Promise’ has been activated.】


  【Countdown. 30…… 29…… 28……】


  This was the third time he was activating this spell, but unlike the previous two times, there was no explosion of strength and mana. The scenery around him changed, and before he knew it, he was no longer on the battlefield anymore. The stench of blood that had been lingering in his nose slowly scattered as he found himself standing in the middle of a red plain, and the humongous skeleton, Grandar, was standing before him.

  “Have you finally thought through your answer?”


  Grandar gazed down at Roel with mild interest in his eyes as he spoke gravely.

  “Answer me. How do the dead pass down their power?”


  Roel was silent for a moment after hearing Grandar’s question once more. He thought of all of the details he had gathered from his interactions with Grandar thus far before finally speaking.

  “I have prepared two answers. One of them is for this question; the other one is for you. Which one would you like to hear?”


  “Oh? Interesting. Tell me both.”


  “For the first answer, in regards to your question, as someone who has been watching this war together with me, you should already know my answer, isn’t that so?”


  Roel looked at the faraway setting sun that seemed ready to dip below the horizon, within could be seen the figures of the brave warriors fighting against one another. The faces of Victoria and Wade appeared in front of his eyes before scattering away with the wind.

  “Spirit, will, and ideals. These are the ways that the dead pass down their power. Some do it through writing history; some do it through the transference of knowledge. As these legacies accumulate with each passing generation, eventually bringing forth a qualitative change. That’s how the society and civilization we know now came to be.”


  Roel thought of the rich culture of the countries that were built in his previous life, as he affirmed his views.

  “The foundation of all cultures and civilizations is the dead, or to be more exact, the knowledge they have passed down. This knowledge may change, be trimmed, or be further expanded over time, but without a doubt, this accumulation over time will bring each passing generation to greater heights. It’s the string that ties all beings, living or dead, together.”


  Roel’s response left Grandar deep in thought. Grandar didn’t give his response right away, but unexpectedly, Roel wasn’t done yet.

  “But, none of what I have just said is applicable to you.”


  Those words made Grandar gradually open his mouth as the light in his eyes grew greater. If skeletons could show a stupefied expression, that would probably be it. However, Roel didn’t pay any heed to it.

  “All that I have just said is under the premise that one has successors to inherit one’s lineage. What about you though? You don’t have that anymore, am I right?”


  Roel shot a glance at the massive skeletal racks half-buried in the sand and sighed quietly.

  “The giants are only faraway legends of the Second Epoch now. I don’t know if your civilization still exists, but your spirit, will, and even your existence have already disappeared into the oblivion of history. The first answer I prepared is no longer applicable to you, and that’s why I have another answer just for you.”


  Before Grandar’s shocked eyes, Roel unhesitatingly pointed to himself in confidence—or perhaps, it might be more accurate to call it arrogance.

  “I am your answer, Grandar.”


  Roel looked at the imposing giant skeleton calmly, as if everything was under his control.

  “I am your medium for passing down your power through the generations once more, be it your spirit, will, civilization, history, or even strength. I am not an important person in this world, but I am necessary to you. This is the answer I have to your question.”


  “Hahaha! Brat, you sure have guts to dare speak those words. Are you threatening me?”


  “It only further shows that I’m right if you feel threatened by my words…… And besides, you don’t dislike me, right? Otherwise, you wouldn’t have helped me so much.”


  Roel spoke with a bright smile. Grandar’s spell had helped him overcome danger on several occasions, and the other party had even specially met him the second time he used the spell to remind him to give him an answer. This massive skeleton was indeed a frightening existence, but there was no denying that the other party had been helping him all this while.

  “.…… You’re more brazen than I thought, but that’s also why I favor you.”


  After a moment of silence, Grandar burst into hearty laughter. His voice trembled the plain, causing the dust on his body to rain down.

  “Your first answer is already acceptable, but the second answer you offered fits my palate better. Let me ask you another question then.”


  The skeleton turned solemn once more. He gazed down at the young boy who dared to face him fearlessly and asked.

  “Lad, no, Roel Ascart, what do you think the relationship between the two of us should be?”


  “I personally am interested in befriending you.”


  “Friends? Haha, I see! Very well!”


  Grandar stood up as dust fell from his tattered cape. His towering stature made him appear no different than a god standing beneath the afterglow of the setting sun.

  “Then I shall help my friend achieve victory on the battlefield!”
……

  “It’s you……”


  Wade finally snapped out of his astonishment. It was the same black-haired boy he had seen before, but he was different from before. The air the boy gave off felt unfathomable, almost as if he was staring into the abyss. Concentrated mana that didn’t pale in comparison to his, an Origin Level 2 transcendent, pulsated around the boy’s body.

  “Is he a Blessed One of the ancient gods? I never thought that I would encounter such an existence here.”


  Blessed Ones referred to individuals who were bestowed with extraordinary powers by the ancient gods. Despite the word ‘blessed’, in truth, they were just toys for the ancient gods. Some of them didn’t even have their own will, and nearly all of them met with tragic ends.

  Wade thought Roel was one of those pitiful Blessed Ones, but he had no intention of going easy on someone who threatened him. He unhesitatingly channeled his crimson lightning bolts toward Roel, hoping to end this battle quickly.

  While it was easy to assume that Blessed Ones were powerful existences, the truth was not so. The ancient gods behind them didn’t value the Blessed Ones so much as to protect them. After all, broken toys can always be replaced with a new one; it was foolish to fight with others over mere consumables.

  Crimson lightning bombarded Roel, dyeing the land red. The sheer intensity of the lightning made the air feel searing hot. The shouts coming from Nora and the others were silenced by the thunderous rumbling. The eyes of the soldiers were being drawn over as many believed that the curtains were finally going to be drawn on this internal strife.

  After striking down Roel, Wade confidently turned back to face Victoria and the others, wanting to end this once for all. But unexpectedly, the boy who was expected to die didn’t fall.

  “Grandar.”


  “I’m here.”


  Roel called for his comrade, and a humongous silhouette suddenly descended in the middle of the Holy Capital. It was a skeleton so enormous that he seemed to connect the earth to heaven. Wade’s devastating crimson lightning looked like nothing more than tiny snakes in his face. With a wave of his hand, a powerful gust of wind blew and dissipated the crimson lightning into nothing.

  Feeling the gust of wind rushing past him, Wade hurriedly turned around, only to be shocked by what he saw. Things had proceeded in a direction far beyond his imagination. He stared at Roel, who stood at the center of Grandar’s protection, and fear struck him.

  The boy isn’t a Blessed One but a Contractor of an ancient god.

  The realization of this unbelievable fact made Wade realize how huge of a threat he was facing at this moment. He immediately gathered all of his mana, and the Wrath Origin Attribute bellowed furiously within his body.

  The crimson lightning in the sky vanished without a trace, replaced by a silent sphere of light in his hands. This sphere was the manifestation of his wrath, the silent fury he bore against the world. It was so bright that it dulled everything in its surroundings. This was the highest destructive power of the Wrath Origin Attribute.

  On the other end, Roel had also finished his preparations too.

  “Given your circumstances, I can only exert a single punch at most,” echoed Grandar’s voice in Roel’s ears.

  Even under the effects of undead reanimation, Roel’s body was still swiftly being torn apart. His body was unable to bear the weight of the giant’s strength. But, so what?

  Roel didn’t respond to the giant’s words right away, choosing instead to turn to Nora, who was protected within a magic barrier at the moment. A slight smile formed on his lips as he spoke.

  “I wish to bring her out of here safely, no matter what it takes. Is one punch enough?” Roel asked Grandar.

  Grandar responded with a hearty laugh that was filled with lofty pride as one of the strongest existences in the world.

  “One punch? That’s more than enough!”


  “Let’s do it then!”


  Amidst hearty laughter, Roel’s billowing mana began to take a corporeal form. Circular ribcage bones that emanated blood-colored light formed around Roel, followed by the neck, and head. Like a demon god summoned from hell, Grandar’s upper body was beginning to manifest in this world.

  The sight caused soldiers to feel giddy, and even the bravest of warriors didn’t dare to look at it in the eyes.

  Before the sphere of light that threatened to bring forth destruction, Grandar unhesitatingly raised his massive arms to strike down on it.

  Boom!

  A powerful shockwave swept through the entire Holy Capital like a major earthquake had been triggered. The terrifying sphere of light, formed with the concentrated prowess of the Wrath Origin Attribute, shattered under the might of Grandar’s fist.

  At this very moment, Wade seemed to see countless giants standing amidst a scarlet plain in front of him, and their crowned king was roaring furiously at him.

  “This is……”


  Wade exclaimed in astonishment, but his voice was immediately drowned out by the explosion. The shockwave sent the soldiers flying through the air helplessly. Even Nora’s magic tool had begun cracking under the impact, causing the barrier she had summoned to protect the three of them to waver unstably.

  However, Nora couldn’t care less about all of this at the moment. She looked around anxiously in search of Roel’s silhouette.

  “Child, he’ll be fine. You need to protect yourself first!”


  “But……”


  Nora knew that Victoria was right, and it made her feel deeply helpless. She shouted Roel’s name desperately as she hurriedly tried to sustain the barrier as long as possible to shield them from the impact of the shockwave.

  Meanwhile, the severely injured Felder was struck squarely by the shockwave and fell unconscious, resulting in him being blown away along with the other soldiers who were dragging him out of the battlefield.

  This single collision literally shook the entire Holy Capital, and the intense battle finally came to an end.