Return of the Legendary Runesmith-Chapter 472 - 471- Abomination

Adrian lay still for half a breath, the taste of iron heavy on his tongue.

Blood soaked into the fractured earth beneath him—Abraham’s blood. The man’s body lay twisted nearby, unmoving, eyes dulled by death. A dark pool spread outward, seeping into cracks carved by violence.

"You have grown strong," Nytharos said lazily.

The Fallen God lounged upon his throne as if watching a performance rather than standing amidst a battlefield littered with blood and battle marks.

Adrian pushed himself up with a low snarl, boots grinding against the ground. He did not lower his guard—not for a second. His gaze remained fixed on the man seated before him.

"And you," Adrian said coldly, "are still as nasty as ever."

Nytharos shrugged, resting his chin on his knuckles. "In his current state, that maggot had no chance of defeating you. So, to spice things up a little..." His lips curled. "I intervened."

Adrian’s jaw tightened.

Twice.

Twice he had lost focus. Twice his mana flow had shattered at the worst possible moment, interrupting his teleportation spells and nearly costing him his head. At the time, he had blamed exhaustion.

Now he knew better.

Nytharos had reached into the flow itself and twisted it—subtly, but effectively.

Adrian bared his teeth. "Well," he growled, "you don’t need to worry about being bored."

Behind him, dozens of blades hovered in the air, all of them slowly shifting their focus. One by one, they turned away from Abraham’s corpse.

All of them locked onto the arrogant bastard seated on the throne.

Adrian raised his hand.

The weapons began to spin—slowly at first, then faster, the hum growing sharper, deadlier. Air screamed as the blades accelerated, forming a vortex of steel and rune-etched edges.

His eyes glinted with raw fury.

Then he hurled them forward.

Every single weapon shot toward Nytharos in a lethal storm. There was no hesitation in Adrian’s intent.

He wanted blood.

But just inches from Nytharos—

The blades lost momentum.

One after another, they dropped from the air.

CLANG.

CLANG.

Steel struck stone uselessly, scattering at the Fallen God’s feet like discarded scrap.

The light in Adrian’s eyes vanished.

A crushing wave slammed into him, like a heavy tide crashing against a fragile shore. His breath hitched as the mana surrounding him—once thick and enveloping like a second skin—was ripped away in an instant.

The world felt naked.

Exposed.

Adrian staggered back, boots dragging deep lines into the earth.

Nytharos rose from the throne at last, rolling his shoulders as if stretching after a nap. His movements were relaxed—almost casual.

"Don’t try to exert your mana," the Fallen One warned calmly. "You’ll only worsen your condition."

Adrian forced himself upright, chest heaving.

"This is my domain," Nytharos continued. "The Mana Abyss. Mana cannot exist outside the body here. The moment you try to form a spell, the domain will activate and siphon it away."

Adrian spat blood. "Doesn’t that apply to you as well?"

He could not sense even a droplet of mana radiating from his enemy.

Nytharos smiled faintly.

Adrian didn’t wait for an answer.

He summoned his axe from the Inventory and charged.

His body felt unbearably heavy, as if the air itself resisted his movement—but the brutal training with Valor had hardened him. He moved far better than he would have just a day ago.

Nytharos tilted his body, dodging the strike with minimal effort.

Adrian followed through instantly, driving a punch forward with his left gauntlet. The blow slammed into Nytharos’s gut.

The Fallen God slid back several steps.

Before he could recover, the axe blade flashed toward his head.

"Foolish human."

Nytharos stepped forward instead of retreating, tilting his head. The axe handle struck his shoulder harmlessly.

His palm slammed into Adrian’s chest.

The impact sent the Runesmith staggering back this time.

Adrian coughed once—then ducked as a dagger whistled past his head, thrown with surgical precision.

From the crouch, Adrian surged forward again.

The axe vanished mid-motion, replaced by a spear. Its point drove straight for Nytharos’s chest.

Nytharos deflected the thrust. His knee shot upward.

Adrian blocked it with his palm.

At the same moment, the runes etched into his weapon flared to life.

"Aqua Burst."

The chant was soft—but the response was violent.

KEK.

BOOOOM.

Water erupted from the weapon, exploding outward in a roaring surge. The force hurled both of them apart.

Nytharos rolled across the ground and came to a stop, lying still for a brief moment.

Adrian skidded across mud and shattered stone before forcing himself back to his feet.

He raised his spear again—only to freeze.

It felt wrong.

Unnaturally light.

Slowly, dread creeping up his spine, Adrian turned his head.

The runes were gone.

Not merely extinguished—burned out.

The blade itself had warped, edges eaten away as if corroded by something far worse than fire.

"That," Nytharos said as he rose, eyes empty of emotion, "is what happens when you try to deceive my domain."

Adrian tightened his grip.

"Your armaments cannot withstand divine judgment," the Fallen God continued. "Accept that, and you might survive longer."

Adrian’s mind raced.

Weapons wouldn’t last.

He didn’t know the exact range of the mana-nullifying effect—but he knew one thing.

His body was still intact.

He drew his revolver and fired.

The bullet screamed toward Nytharos.

"You are annoying me now," Nytharos growled.

He caught the bullet with his bare hand.

The runes etched into the projectile fizzled uselessly.

Adrian narrowed his eyes. "My weapons break. Yet my body doesn’t."

Nytharos snickered. "That’s not something to be proud of. You are a walking disaster—an existence that should never have been allowed."

"You sound tense," Adrian muttered.

He summoned another tool from his Inventory.

A pencil.

Nytharos frowned. "What are you doing?"

Adrian dragged the graphite across his arm.

Glowing runes ignited over his skin—bold, radiant, alive.

Pain lanced through him.

"If my body is cursed," Adrian hissed through clenched teeth, "then I’ll use it."

Nytharos’s eyes widened slightly. "Runes carved on flesh burn the soul itself. You of all people should know that."

Adrian chuckled darkly. "That’s the secret."

He raised his arm.

"When you’ve already died once... you stop caring."

A massive tide surged into existence before Nytharos.

The Fallen God leapt high—only to feel dread creep in as the water twisted, shaping itself.

A fist.

A colossal fist of water slammed into him.

DHAK.

His bones rattled as he was sent spiraling back.

The Water Giant advanced, its massive form carried forward by endless waves instead of legs.

Nytharos slammed his palm into the ground. "Domain Amplification!"

Darkness thickened.

For a moment, the giant wavered.

Nytharos sneered.

Then the giant raised both arms.

Nytharos reeled back—but ice surged upward, forming a wall that halted his escape.

His eyes widened.

The world collapsed.

DOOOOOOM.

The giant brought its fists down, shattering the ground and carving a massive crater—with the Fallen God at its center.

The giant, just a moment later, spread out in waves, then got soaked into the soil.

Silence followed.

And Adrian stood there, breathing hard, his arm still glowing, his soul burning—waiting to see what would rise from the dust.

Just then,

"Huh?!" Adrian cried as something stabbed straight into his back.

He looked down...the tip of a dagger was protruding from his chest.

His vision swirled but he refused to just stand there.

His runes glowed, ready to use another distraction to get away—but, "Enough of this abomination."

Nytharos grabbed his right hand and twisted it, making Adrian clench his jaw in pain.

As Nytharos’s fingers touched the runes, the ancient language began to fade.

"You made me take down my domain. You forced a God to regret expanding his domain! Aren’t you proud now?"

Adrian, despite the agony, snickered, "Thanks...for the information-" as the words left his mouth, he vanished from the spot, teleporting far away—only to find Naythros standing before him.

Adrian didn’t have time to react as Nytharos grabbed his throat in a vice grip, "I am the father of all sorcerers. The spells you use are discovered and developed by me. You dare use my own spell on me?!"

Adrian grunted as he teleported again only to find Nytharos still there, holding him down again.

"You can’t escape me, Runesmith."

I am your death.

As those words reached Adrian, he felt his mana being disturbed, teleportation no longer usable.

His body began to levitate.

He was hanging in the air.

Despite all the injuries, Nytharos kept his hand held up. His eyes were dark crimson, and clearly he was exerting everything he had to keep Adrian bound there.

Adrian, despite the situation, thought for a moment and said, ’You can teleport me to the Time Chamber, right?’

[Yes, host. Just tell the system when.]

The situation was grim and Adrian wasn’t someone to cling to his pride and get wasted.

However, just when he was about to get away from the battlefield...something unexpected happened.

*SQUELCH*

Nytharos’s head went missing

Adrian instantly hit the ground, and at the same time, a headless Nytharos hit his knees too.

Adrian watched in bewilderment as Nytharos’s body began to turn ashy.

’What...just happened?’

Just then, a voice called out, "I am quite impressed that you held your ground for so long."

Adrian instantly turned his head to look at the approaching man...and he was stunned to see who it was.

"What...the fuck?"

The person who approached him was the same man who was just trying to kill Adrian a few moments ago.

Nytharos.

°°°°°°°°°

A/N:- Thanks for reading.