Explosion

“Hm?”

Just then, a brilliant light bloomed in the night sky, like a second sun, illuminating the entire Sunset Mountain range as if it were day.

“Gwaaah—!”

Bathed in the radiant sunlight, the Netherworld Emissary let out a pained shriek as wisps of white smoke rose from its body.

And above that blazing sun, a six-winged angel clad in holy armor appeared before them.

A halo hovered above her head, a clear sign that she was no ordinary angel, but a blessed retainer of the Triune God of Salvation.

A six-winged angel wielding the power of holy light was the natural enemy of undead creatures, and even a Death Knight or a Netherworld Emissary was no exception.

The angel in the sky made a grasping motion with her right hand, and a golden holy sword materialized in her grip.

With the blazing sun at her back, she pointed her sword at the Netherworld Emissary.

“Hmph—! I am—!”

Just as the six-winged angel was about to pass judgment upon the emissary, a beam of stellar purple light shot toward her.

The angel swiftly dodged to the side.

The beam struck the sun behind her, and in an instant, its light was extinguished.

The sky plunged back into darkness, illuminated only by the vast expanse of stars.

“Hey, what do you think you’re doing?!”

Her newly conjured sun had been destroyed, and the six-winged angel, Belinda, turned an irritated gaze toward the source of the attack—the half-dragon maid.

“I should be asking you the same thing!”

Ciel retorted, her voice laced with annoyance.

She had been relishing the rare pleasure of being utterly spent, of feeling every ounce of her energy drained in a cathartic release, only for this six-winged angel to interrupt.

It was as infuriating as being stopped right at the critical moment.

“Forget it… I might as well end this quickly. Taking too long to clean up the battlefield is a dereliction of a maid’s duty.”

Her ‘refined pleasure’ having been spoiled, she had no desire to continue the game.

She glanced back at the Netherworld Emissary, who was preparing to flee.

With a six-winged angel joining the fray, the already disadvantaged emissary stood no chance and naturally wanted to retreat.

Unfortunately for him, Ciel had other plans.

She raised her right hand, and circles of magic arrays appeared one after another.

Guided by the arrays, a vast torrent of magical power converged in the sky.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa… Don’t tell me this is…”

Ren Daozhen, watching from a distance, looked on in astonishment.

The next moment, the arrays ascended, merging into the night sky.

Brilliant meteors began to circle the arrays, quickly forming a swirling vortex of starlight.

“What terrifying magical power!”

Belinda, the six-winged angel, wore a look of shock.

She could clearly feel a horrifying power gathering above.

The ghostly flames in the Netherworld Emissary’s eyes flickered, betraying its terror.

“You madwoman! Aren’t you afraid of blowing yourself up too?!”

Finally losing its composure, the Netherworld Emissary demanded loudly.

In all its time as one of the dead, it had never met a woman as insane as her.

Who was the real villain here?!

“Blow myself up? Don’t worry, I can’t be killed by this. The most it would do is cripple me.”

“Lunatic!”

Hearing Ciel’s reply, the Netherworld Emissary cursed and immediately turned ethereal, attempting to escape the battlefield.

“Starfall!”

But with Ciel’s whispered word, which sounded like a final judgment…

A meteor, far larger and more brilliant than the sun conjured by the angel, descended with a long, dazzling tail, streaking toward the ground at incredible speed and piercing straight through the sturdy barrier.

“Isn’t that Explosion Magic? Hey, hey, hey, watch the blast radius!”

Ren Daozhen cried out in a desperate protest, scrambling to escape the Sunset Mountains with all his might.

But before he could get far, the comet struck the earth with a deafening roar.

A terrifying shockwave erupted, blasting everything in its path—flowers, grass, trees, and any stray monsters—into the air, engulfing them in a swirling cloud of dust and debris.

“Waaahhh—”

Though Ren Daozhen tried to flee, his efforts were futile.

He too was swept up into the sky before losing consciousness.

“That lunatic!”

Watching the explosion rapidly expand in her field of view, Belinda cursed as well, turning to fly back toward her companions.

The shockwave continued to spread, the deafening boom echoing endlessly.

The light from the comet illuminated more than half the sky.

Even in the distant Theia Theocracy, the sudden flash of light on the horizon was visible, causing guardians and adventurers within the city to all turn their gaze in the same direction.

House Cosmos.

Alicia gazed into the distance, a flicker of surprise crossing her cool features before she let out a soft sigh.

“Oh, my dear sister, you always love making trouble for your older sibling.”

An unknown amount of time passed before Ren Daozhen gradually regained consciousness.

When he opened his eyes, he was met with complete darkness; not even the starlight was visible.

“Awake?”

Just as the young man was wondering what was going on, he heard Ciel’s voice and felt his head resting on something soft.

“It’s-it’s-it’s-it’s-it’s a lap pillow!”

After a moment of stunned silence, Ren Daozhen quickly realized he was lying on Ciel’s lap.

His view was completely obstructed by her chest, and he couldn’t help but let out a gasp.

The legendary lap pillow!

It was said to have a one hundred percent healing effect, a divine morale-boosting skill second only to a kiss.

A single lap pillow could mend any emotional trauma, making it the ultimate support ability.

For a virgin like him, a simple lap pillow was enough to make his heart race and his face flush.

“I apologize for getting you caught in the explosion,” Ciel said in a gentle tone.

“Thankfully, you’re unharmed.”

“Right, the explosion… the Netherworld Emissary… is it dealt with?”

Though he was concerned, Ren Daozhen wasn’t quite ready to leave the soft pillow just yet, so he asked while still lying down.

“Dealt with. And I picked up something nice.”

Ciel gestured, brandishing the Netherworld Scythe.

“This scythe will make for a fine weapon.”

“Are you going to wield a scythe with your legs too?”

“And why not?”

“No, no, of course you can! In fact, that would be amazing!”

Ren Daozhen imagined the sight of Ciel swinging the scythe clamped between her legs.

It would surely be a beautiful sight.

“So, are you well-rested? Can you stand? Ciel… still has one thing left to do.”

“Huh? What’s left to do?”

Ren Daozhen asked, puzzled, as he reluctantly lifted himself from her lap.

“Well then…”

Now back in a clean, tidy maid outfit, Ciel lifted the hem of her skirt with both hands and gave Ren Daozhen an elegant curtsy.

With a smile, she said, “The battlefield has been tidied. Shall we go home?”

An orange sun began to rise behind her, its light catching the side of her face and lending her an even softer glow.

The light also illuminated what lay behind her: a massive, bottomless crater that stretched as far as the eye could see.

The Sunset Mountains, which had once spanned thousands of miles, had become the Sunset Basin.

Gulp.

Staring at the brilliant smile on Ciel’s face and the spectacular scenery behind her, Ren Daozhen swallowed hard.