Olivas Act, who was about to deal the killing blow, paused when someone appeared in front of him.
"Huh? Another one that wants to die?"
Olivas spoke with a grin, feeling in a good mood as he turned his head toward Judas who had just arrived.
"You seem... familiar..."
He narrowed his eyes, before a glint of realization passed through them.
"Aha... you must be that super rookie who's been the talk of the town lately. Judas Spade."
"What a lucky day! Just when I was thinking about how to get my revenge on the Loki Familia, their new golden boy walks right through my doorstep by himself."
His grin widened as excitement surged through him.
He raised his sword, still drenched in Alise's blood, and pointed it toward Judas.
"I heard your strength is exceptional despite your low level, but..."
Just as he was about to continue his villain monologue, Judas' figure flashed and appeared right behind him before he could even react.
"!?"
Alarm bells rang inside Olivas' mind as Judas scooped Alise up in a princess carry.
'What? How did he get behind me? I didn't even see him move.'
The moment he turned his head, Judas' figure flashed again and reappeared in the same spot he had stood before.
"Alise, you alright?"
Judas spoke quietly as Alise fluttered her eyelids open.
"Ahaha... I didn't think I'd end up falling into such a cheesy trope, becoming the damsel in distress..."
She said with a weak voice. Judas could feel her breath growing faint by the second.
"Don't worry, everything is fine now. Because I am here."
He said as he set her down gently before casting his most powerful healing spell.
『Miracle Heal』
A soft green light enveloped Alise, illuminating the area around them.
Judas watched as her injuries closed rapidly... even the hole in her chest sealed shut within seconds.
"You saved me again... thank you."
Alise spoke with a relieved smile.
Watching this unfold, Olivas, who felt like he was being completely ignored, gritted his teeth.
'Getting all lovey dovey right in front of me? How dare they!'
He clenched his fist until his knuckles turned white.
"Such arrogance from fools who rely on the power of the Gods..."
He tensed his legs and leapt forward, ready to strike.
"I will cut you down right here!"
In response, Judas... who was still crouched down with his back turned... merely gave Olivas a side glance.
『Energy Blade』
A purple blade of energy extended from his right hand and blocked the incoming strike.
Cracks spread across the ground beneath them, yet Judas didn't move a single inch. He turned his gaze up at Olivas with cold eyes, killing intent pouring out like a tidal wave.
"What?"
Beads of sweat rolled down Olivas' face. His hands trembled and a shiver ran down his spine... being hit with Judas' killing intent at point blank range had frozen him in place.
'This kid... who is he?'
It had been a long time since Olivas had felt genuine terror like this.
There were only two individuals who had ever drawn out such an emotion from him.
One was 'her'... from before he had been turned into a Creature. And the other...
He pictured the silhouette of that particular person in his mind. Just recalling the presence 'he' exuded was enough to make him tremble.
swoosh
Judas swung once... and Olivas found himself split in two at the midsection.
"Argh!"
He barely had time to grunt before a hand seized his head and drove it into the wall.
A violent tremor shook the area as a massive crater formed where Olivas was slammed into. His head buried in the stone, his bisected body hanging limply from it.
Just like that, an executive of Evilus who had terrorized Orario since the Dark Age was taken down without much effort.
Judas stared at his own hands, feeling the immense strength coursing through him.
With his various buffs on top of the [Penitent Executioner] skill boosting him further, it was only natural that Olivas... whose strength sat around high-grade Level 5... stood no chance against him.
He dusted off his hands and walked back over to Alise to help her to her feet.
"Wow... you really handled that so quickly."
"And you even said something corny like 'I am here'... what was that? Were you trying to be some kind of storybook hero?"
Alise said with a smile as Judas propped her up against his shoulder.
"And another thing... that look on your face when you showed up and saw me like that. You were angry on my behalf and I actually felt touched... just like a knight saving his princess... you are so lame, seriously."
She added, a blush creeping onto her cheeks as she stared up into a pair of purple eyes, her own curving into crescents from smiling too wide.
'He's a dork most of the time... but at moments like this, he can be so cool.'
In that moment, she found Judas far more handsome than usual.
Hearing her words, Judas exhaled with a faint smile.
"For someone who was at death's door a minute ago, you sure have a lot to say."
He said in his usual tone.
"Hehe... people do say I have a big mouth that refuses to shut up."
She replied with a shameless grin as a chuckle slipped out.
Judas shook his head before shifting his gaze back to Olivas' upper half, still embedded in the wall and barely conscious.
He raised his arm and lifted both halves with telekinesis.
Dark chains materialized out of thin air and coiled around Olivas like a snake, binding him completely.
The thought of killing Olivas right then and there had crossed his mind, of course.
But since he was likely the one behind the abnormality on the 24th floor, Judas wanted to extract information from him once things settled down.
And if that turned out to be impossible... well, Judas wasn't going to repeat the same mistake he made with Revis.
'We might even be able to use him as bait to draw out the other members of Evilus.'
Judas thought to himself.
After a few minutes of rest to let Alise fully recover and get her stamina back, Judas decided it was time to move.
"Let's go find the others."
He said, to which Alise gave a small nod.
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