The Extra Can't be A Hero-Chapter 196: The First Calamity (6)

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"W-What is that?"

Yue held her breath as she watched the terror take its first steps on the planet. Like a newborn child, it fumbled and fell multiple times, but it quickly got the hang of it as black flames flickered beneath its feet. Carrying the aspect of death, the black flames spread far and wide, eventually covering the entire scorched earth in infernal despair.

Amon paused as he observed Abomination's evolved form. The putrid and horrendous stench was unmistakable. It was still the defiled version of the First Calamity, no doubt. But in its condensed and refined state, the Demon held a certain sense of majesty to its bearing… highly contrasting its previous madness.

"I think… Abomination believed that it couldn't defeat us in its former state, so it changed forms."

"T-That's… possible."

Much was unknown about Abomination.

In [Bright] and Yue's former timeline, the only way to defeat the immortal demon was to drive it out of the human realm. But ever since the Sword Saint broke free from the Demon Cult's clutches and the Demon Count had used Malachi as its vessel, the conditions for Abomination's descent changed. It no longer possessed infinite power; instead, it obtained the power of Death.

"But its current state is more convenient for us… All we need to do is destroy its core and…"

"Iyyyykkkk!!!"

As if hearing their plans to eliminate it, the evolved Abomination let out a blood-curdling scream. Black flames flew free from its headless neck and continued to contaminate the land with demonic energy. A black cloud wrapped around its neck like a shawl while the flames scorched its immediate surroundings without any interference. It was only after everything within a two-kilometre radius was turned into its domain that Abomination finally stopped.

"... nothing surprises me anymore," the Sword Saint remarked with a heavy sigh. "So what's the plan now?"

"... I'm not sure."

Amon replied hesitantly. This variation was something completely unaccounted for. He hadn't expected Abomination to evolve, let alone turn this powerful. There was only one thing that he was certain of.

"But, we can't let that thing remain here."

"We're in agreement," the Sword Saint twitched his fingers, and all the flying swords turned into pure light. They condensed into a single point and formed a dense physical sword filled with sharp Aura and unbreakable will.

"I'll go first!"

Unlike before, approaching the demon was infinitely easier. There weren't any demons to slaughter, and they didn't need to pierce through any amount of thick hide to get to Abomination's core. However, as the Sword Saint neared the demon's body, an ominous feeling crept up his chest. He glanced straight at the creature, only to see its flaming black head staring right back at him.

By pure instinct, the Sword Saint took a step back—and that was enough to save his life.

With a graceful swing, Abomination reaped the world with its extended death energy, completely obliterating anything within ten metres of its sword. The Sword Saint was stunned at the sudden development and could only leap back in fear.

"W-What was that?"

"It seems to have condensed all of its energy for assimilating with Malachi's power of death…" Amon deduced instantly.

"An immortal being that wields the concept of death… how ironic." Yue spat, clearly annoyed by Abomination's evolved powers. "It's going to be tricky then… How can we kill it if we can't approach it?"

"... let's observe it for a while more."

The one thing that they lacked was information on the new creature. While they could challenge it outright, it carried a significant risk, as one erroneous move could cost them their lives. And sure enough, Abomination made the next move.

Shrieking in jubilant ecstasy, it danced gracefully through the air, its footsteps generating tsunamis of deathly fire. With each step the demon took, it forced the trio to retreat two steps back, and they dispersed from the scene in different directions. Abomination tilted its neck, like a child that had lost its mother. But rather than cry, it found the threat it deemed most dangerous and ran straight at the Sword Saint.

"Heh, seems like even if a Demon has taken you over, you're still Malachi!"

The old swordsman bellowed as he raised the spiritual sword in his hand. With all of his might, he created a transcendental sword light, one that would vaporise anything it touched. In contrast, Abomination sent a black sword of light flying, and the two energies clashed in a disharmony of yin and yang.

Lightning crackled as the earth beneath them cracked. Waves of black flames continued to contaminate the lands as Abomination drew power from the transformed grounds.

Watching this depiction of the cataclysm forced Amon to reevaluate his strength.

All this time, he had been training hard, not for personal glory, but to become powerful enough to stop the Six Calamities that would befall Hyades.

And sure enough… if the First Calamity was already this powerful… one could only imagine the dangers of the latter ones. But of course, this moment of self-reflection was only given because the Sword Saint had kept Abomination preoccupied. If Amon wished to think about his life, he had plenty of time to do so… after the First Calamity was rid of this planet.

"Yue… Are you thinking the same thing as me?"

"Hmmm? I'm thinking of what to name our first child. Are you thinking the same?!"

".... Why do I even ask you anything?"

Amon stifled a laugh, realising that Yue's absurd statement was a method of breaking the tension. Hence, he changed the subject shamelessly:

"Abomination's evolved form… It seems to have merged with the surroundings."

"Yes, this is a deviation we'd never encountered before. Then again, we didn't expect Abomination to use Malachi as a vessel. So everything is a deviation from now."

"Yes," Amon nodded grimly. "But if it's merged with our dimension, it means we have a chance to kill it."

Yue paused for a moment and shot Amon a meaningful glance. Although she was joking before, she could guess what her future husband was trying to do.

"... are you hell bent on using that technique?"

"That's the only way," Amon replied without hesitation. "There's no other method to eradicate Abomination in a single moment."

"In the end… you're always shouldering all of our burdens."

There was a reason Yue didn't want Amon to use that ability. It brought back too many memories—countless battles where she and the others were forced to retreat while Amon the Great remained behind, holding the line alone.

Each time, he saved thousands.

And each time, he returned… bearing a new scar.

This time would be no different.

That ability was their trump card—the one technique powerful enough to obliterate the Demon Cult. But Amon's body wasn't ready yet. It hadn't yet matured enough to endure the devastating backlash. If he used it now, he would be crippled for at least a month.

That was why Yue didn't want to see him do it again—to see the man she loved throw himself into the fire one more time. If she could, she would take his place without hesitation. But she couldn't.

Because there was a reason Amon stood alone at the pinnacle of legend in her past life.

And it was that exact reason… she fell in love with him.

"Alright, I want an answer to my question."

"Question?"

"The name of our firstborn," Yue repeated, this time without a semblance of humour in her voice. "Humans are fragile, and there's no guarantee that we'll live to see another day. So, shouldn't we fulfil our dreams while we can?"

Amon froze, unsure of what to say. Ever since he'd affirmed his emotions, Amon was ready to accept Yue into his heart. And if that meant giving her a child…

"I-I'll think about it."

Unexpectedly, Amon gave Yue a positive reply, which was unusual for him, as he would usually change the subject. And that reply was enough to send Yue flying over the moon. Especially when she secretly whipped out a high-quality recording crystal.

"Huehuehue, no take backs! I recorded what you said! If you don't give me an answer, I'll sue you in court!"

"..."

Amon blinked, unsure of how to retort. Therefore, he turned his head around and focused all of his energy on Abomination, who was giving the Sword Saint a good fight. If the Demon won and corrupted the lands with its demonic energy, then promises made would mean nothing. Therefore… Amon was going to end the First Calamity… once and for all.

Mana surged violently through Amon's veins as the image of a total solar eclipse began to manifest behind him—an omen of celestial convergence. His left eye burned with the radiance of a thousand supernovas, while his right glowed with the cool, seductive luminance of the Moon.

The two forces—sun and moon, day and night—fused in perfect harmony, and in that moment, Amon's body turned ethereal, fading into a translucent, almost divine form.

The sudden shift in mana was so profound that both Abomination and the Sword Saint halted their deadly clash. Eyes lifted to the sky, stunned—Abomination trembled, sensing death close at hand. The Sword Saint, in contrast, stood mesmerised, awestruck by the transcendent aura Amon now exuded.

But Abomination didn't hesitate for long.

With a snarl, it launched into action, its black flaming head spewing a torrent of black fire laced with the essence of death itself. Simultaneously, its blade cleaved through the air, every swing tearing open rifts in space, aiming to annihilate Amon before the transformation could complete.

Yue moved instantly. Raising her arm, she froze the very fabric of space around Amon. The cursed flames curved away, deflected, while the dimensional blades stalled in midair, unable to touch him.

And that was all he needed.

Fully charged, every drop of mana coursing through him, Amon invoked the most heaven-defying technique in his arsenal—one that would rewrite the fate of the battlefield.

Eclipse Mystic Arts: Eternity.

Time slowed down.

No, it stopped.

In Amon's eyes, the world had come to a complete halt. By manifesting the power of Eternity, he was able to move faster than the speed of light and reposition himself in an advantageous position, free from any outside interference.

In his created domain, not even Abomination's deathly flames could harm him. Hence, he stepped through the air, moving past the frozen bodies of Yue and the Sword Saint, and found himself face-to-face with Abomination—the First Calamity.

They were merely half a metre apart, and at this distance, Amon easily found the core of the Demon. At the same time, he could feel a trace of Malachi's remnant mana, and it was hidden deep within the monster's soul. But for some reason, Amon could feel its heartbeat, its desire to be freed from restraints.

And therefore… Amon obliged.

Nyx moved through the time-stopped dimension and gently pierced through Abomination's heart. There was no reaction as time hadn't continued to flow. The moment it did, the Demon would struggle to get away and potentially escape… Alas, Amon wasn't going to let that happen.

Eclipse Mystic Arts: Infinity.

Every ounce of Amon's mana was spent at that moment. He combined both his Solar and Lunar mana into one and created an ultimate attack. One that could turn any enemy he faced into atoms. And when time began to flow again…

"Eiyykkkkkk!!!"

Abomination screeched, unsure of what had just happened. It felt an unfathomable amount of pain as its soul was being viciously ripped away from this dimension. It looked down, only to see a black blade protruding out of its body as a surge of destructive mana devoured its entire being.

'Goodbye, First Calamity.'

Unable to react in the slightest, the Demon's body began to disintegrate into ashes, as if its earlier immortality was a lie. Frozen in shock, the Sword Saint didn't understand what had just occurred and watched with a gaping jaw while Amon's body fell from the sky. Fortunately, Yue was ready to receive her lover as she embraced him with magic.

Amon's mana circuits were severely damaged, and his consciousness was fading. If left untreated, he would likely perish within the hour. Once again, he had sacrificed himself to save the world. Yet, the man slept with the most satisfied smile that Yue had ever seen.

"Hah… Leave the rest to me… You take a good, long rest."

Unable to hear her exasperation, Amon continued to sleep soundly…

All while wearing a smile on his face.