Chapter 457: Traitor

Chapter 457: The Betrayer

"Kira, surrender."

Alice gazed at Kira as she spoke.

Even for someone like Kira, facing Alice—who now wielded the power of the Hundred Blossom Goddess—was an immense pressure.

Yet that did not make him give up.

Kira drew his sword and pointed it toward Alice, his fiery gaze cooling into frost.

He shouted with calm resolve, "Attack!"

The descent of the Hundred Blossom Goddess—this was his best chance to seize her power.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

At Kira’s command, twenty siege crossbows emerged from within the army.

Originally meant to be mounted on city walls, these massive weapons were designed to destroy siege engines and giant beasts—an immovable force.

But Kira had them mounted onto specially modified colossal carriages.

Each crossbow required eight to ten soldiers to operate.

From loading to firing took several minutes.

Each bolt was as thick as a man's arm, tipped with magic-forged anti-magic and armor-piercing heads capable of piercing through even heavily armored warriors.

Their terrifying force could mortally wound a fourth-tier heavy warrior wielding a greatshield.

In frontal combat, even a fifth-tier warrior might struggle against such a defense.

A heavy warrior already possessed formidable resilience; paired with a greatshield, their defense was enough to deter most ordinary fifth-tier professionals.

And yet, these specially crafted siege crossbows posed a lethal threat to them.

For they were originally built to counter the giant beasts of the orcish tribes—not humans.

Now, all twenty siege crossbows aimed squarely at Alice.

It was as if twenty fifth-tier experts were unleashing their full might simultaneously.

Alice’s eyes narrowed slightly, sensing a hint of danger.

Noticing her expression shift, Kira decisively raised his sword and roared, "Fire!"

Boom! Boom! Boom!

In an instant, twenty thunderous explosions erupted from the ranks.

Soldiers near the crossbows staggered from the deafening sound, some nearly losing balance.

Dust billowed from the ground under the tremendous recoil.

Twenty bolts, each as thick as a man’s arm and tipped with magic-piercing arrowheads, streaked through the air with terrifying momentum toward Alice.

Ribbon-like beams of light floating behind Alice suddenly surged upward, weaving together into a massive flower bud that enveloped her completely.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Fifteen bolts struck the flower bud, embedding deep inside, less than half of their shafts visible.

Five veered off course—one hit the ground, boring a bottomless black hole into the solid altar, shattering surrounding rock.

Three vanished into the distance, unseen by anyone—their speed surpassing several times the speed of sound.

All attacks concluded in a single moment.

Everyone held their breath, staring tensely at the motionless floral cocoon suspended midair.

Suddenly, the fifteen massive bolts embedded in the flower slowly began to be pushed outward.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The enormous, heavy arrows crashed to the ground.

The flower bloomed open like a blossoming bloom, revealing Alice unharmed within.

Kira exhaled sharply, deeply shaken.

Such a fearsome assault—completely blocked by Alice.

If she had dodged, he wouldn’t have been so surprised.

But she had taken it head-on.

That was no different than enduring the combined full-force strikes of fifteen fifth-tier masters.

Her defenses were unfathomably strong.

To think nothing could breach them—it was unimaginable how powerful she must have become.

Yet Kira showed no fear.

Though empowered by the Hundred Blossom Goddess, Alice was still not invincible.

Ignoring the shocked stares of countless soldiers around her, Alice fixed her gaze on Kira. With a thought, ribbons of light transformed into blades slashing toward him.

Kira swung his sword, its blade radiating a profound azure glow.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

His sword energy clashed with the light ribbons, sending them flying back.

Kira himself was knocked backward several meters.

But he had only deflected one ribbon.

Alice controlled eight more, launching simultaneous attacks from every direction.

Seven more ribbons closed in on him from all sides.

Blocking just one had taxed him greatly—he couldn’t withstand being surrounded.

Kira shouted, "What are you waiting for?! Strike now!"

With those words, he unleashed everything.

Sixteen waves of sword energy burst forth in rapid succession, each faster than the last.

Combined, they exploded with overwhelming force.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The layered sword energy shattered six ribbons before him. Only one remained, hurtling straight toward his chest.

Kira raised his sword defensively.

A thunderous crash rang out. Shards of broken light scattered everywhere.

Kira was sent flying over ten meters away, his arm trembling violently, nearly dropping his sword.

Alice wondered what Kira had meant by his shout earlier.

She intended to press her advantage—but then noticed her strength rapidly fading.

The power of the Hundred Blossom Goddess was leaving her body.

Startled, Alice turned abruptly toward her back.

Witnessing what was unfolding upon the altar, her heart quaked with violent intensity.

"Kuris, what are you doing?"

A jet-black crystal materialized in Kuris's hand, and the power belonging to the Flower Goddess was being devoured by that obsidian stone.

After consuming the Flower Goddess's strength, the dark crystal began to glow from within, giving birth to a black mandala blossom.

Kuris's gaze turned as cold as December frost as he silently regarded Alice, whose face was etched with confusion and shock.

He offered no explanation for his actions.

But Alice already understood.

Kuris had betrayed her; Kuris had become Kira's man.

"Bella!"

Alice cried out desperately.

Kuris finally spoke, his voice calm and composed: "Stop calling. Bella is no longer here."

"I have exiled her."

This was the ability of the Wind Messenger.

Bella had already been carried away by his winds to a place hundreds of miles distant.

Even if Bella gave her all to return, it would take time.

Time enough for him to seize the power of the Hundred Blossoms Goddess.

Alice's heart ached as though someone had scooped out a piece of it with brutal force.

Her voice hoarse with anguish, she demanded of Kuris, "Why? Why are you doing this?"

Kuris did not answer Alice's question.

Kira let out a sharp, mocking laugh, ridiculing Alice without restraint: "Hahahaha, why? Because you were too selfish, unwilling to share more power with him."

"The four Blessed of the Hundred Blossoms—whether the Sage Iles, Lady Evelyn of the Roses, or General Bella of Thunder—all received far greater power than he did."

"What power did you give him? Windbells? What are those? Weeds growing by the roadside, ignored by all, trampled to death without anyone noticing—what are they worth?"

Kuris growled lowly, "Enough! Say no more!"

(End of Chapter)