Rogue Villain-Chapter 408: Brazen

The Divine Armored Tortoise King was mighty. There was no doubt about that. And if it had been Yillister alone, it would have won sooner or later.

Alas, the great beast met its match in the army of the Celestial Realm, which was composed of multiple gods of various strengths and their respective angels.

However, even the combined might of the Celestial Realm’s army wasn’t enough to kill the Tortoise King when Ackster’s Ichor ran through its veins. All they could muster was tie it down with a set of golden chains that Ackster sensed contained Heavenly Iron.

It was a material that Ackster had needed the flames of the world’s Core to refine. Even the Tortoise King could no longer move when the golden chains tied it up.

Mastrax sighed in disappointment. His trump card wasn’t as great as he had hoped it would be. He had been forced to rely on Ackster’s power for it to bring out its true strength. And even then, it wasn’t enough to defeat the wicked demons that had come to invade Millmeria.

Ackster glanced around at his fellow spectators.

"Anyone else wants a go?"

"If it’s your wish, My lord."

"Not really. I’m asking what you want."

Mara nodded decisively.

"I want to show My lord that you can rely on me in the future. I’ll do it. I’ll exterminate these rat bastards who dared to interrupt My lord’s sleep."

"Sounds good. But they’re still gods, so bring Shanshi with you."

"Why me?"

Shanshi’s drink got stuck in his throat at Ackster’s sudden order. He had been enjoying the show like everyone else, so why did he have to join Mara? Wouldn’t it be better if someone like Karandiel or Anatol went?

"Cause I said so. Besides, don’t you want to improve?"

Ackster nodded toward Yillister and the other gods who secured the Tortoise King so they could focus on Ackster.

"Their Ichor is different from mine."

Shanshi stood up with slumped shoulders.

"Fine. But I want a taste of yours later, too."

"If you can handle it, sure."

When Shanshi stood up, Mara didn’t bother lingering. She had to show Ackster that she hadn’t spent her time wallowing in sadness without doing anything. The belief that Ackster wouldn’t have come so close to dying if she was stronger and could help him more was etched in her soul. So, she had devoted all her time to training during the years he had slept.

Mara ignited her mana and lit the air around her on fire as she strode toward Naraka. She wanted to take down Yillister, too, but she had a feeling someone else would want to do it themselves. Besides, Yillister might pose a little trouble due to his attributes.

Naraka, on the other hand, was easy pickings for Mara.

The gods from the Celestial Realm noticed Mara’s fervent approach.

Mara stopped a stone’s throw away from Naraka and pointed at him.

"You insulted My lord. Take responsibility and accept my challenge, or watch your subordinates die."

<A lost child dares to be so brazen? The world really has gone to shit.>

Naraka responded to Mara’s challenge by asking his angels to stand down. In the same motion, he raised a one-handed warhammer with a head that was flat on one side and curved to a point on the other.

The robed god lunged forward and crashed his hammer down on Mara, sending her to the world’s surface. Mara’s landing caused a crater and raised a cloud of dust.

But if Ackster hadn’t reinforced the ground, the collision would have caused an earthquake that could level the cities that had been rebuilt on the continent.

Mara stood up and brushed the dirt off of the blazing red scales that covered her body.

<I see. You’ve tapped into one side of your ancestors. No wonder you’re so arrogant.>

Naraka had been a little surprised to see Mara unscathed after his attack. But he understood how that could be when he saw the dragon scales covering her skin like armor.

"Keep spouting nonsense. This is your last chance to do so."

Naraka’s upper lip rose in a grimace. He found Mara’s words and attitude insulting.

So, instead of responding to Mara’s provocation with words, he responded with actions. He charged forward again, this time laying his hammer on the side to smash into Mara’s side.

However, Mara raised her arms, one straight up and the other to support that arm as she braced for impact.

One of the primary reasons for Ackster’s troubles was the fact that he was the only tank in their party. Ackster took all the damage alone since the others would die in one and a half hits against the opponents that Ackster needed help to fight.

Mastrax was also pretty durable. But he was unreliable.

Mara wanted to be someone Ackster could rely on. She hadn’t just trained her magic and explosive strength. By delving into her draconic origins, she had refined her defensive ability by bringing out dragon scales that could defend against any physical or magical attack.

Naraka’s hammer smashed into Mara and burst apart the scales on her arm and side before sending her sliding across the ground. But she remained standing.

Mara’s body was ramrod straight throughout the entire collision. And when she stopped, she looked at Naraka with glowing, yellow, vertical eyes.

"My turn."

Red fire like burning blood enveloped Mara’s hands as she strode toward Naraka while blue spears of fire appeared above her before shooting toward the God of the Earth.

Mara had changed her combat style and incorporated not only defensive maneuvers but also close combat offense. She could fight at any range and fulfill every position in the party except healer. She was almost a complete jack-of-all-trades.

But the beauty of it was the fact that she hadn’t sacrificed a single mote of her strongest suit, her explosive damage, to achieve it.

The blue spears melted the ground around Naraka when he smashed them out of the air.

As Mara approached with the heat around her, the ground gradually turned to lava.

Naraka might be the God of the Earth. But he wasn’t the God of Molten Earth. The bottomless strength seeping into him from the ground dissipated as he was forced to the air by the pool of lava.

Mara grinned, revealing her sharp teeth, as she leaned down and scooped up a clump of lava. She formed it into a condensed ball of glowing orange, molten earth. She lit it on fire with the red flames around her hands before throwing it at Naraka with a speed that turned the ball into an orange laser.

The ball flew right through Naraka’s shoulder and tore off a chunk of sizzling flesh.

The field of lava spread and the heat rose as Mara erected a dome of lava around her and Naraka while he looked at his wound in shock.