Crushing flags and claiming the Villainess - Chapter 233

Chapter 233: Chapter 232- Running out of time
When Austin came to his senses, a cold realization struck him.

The Parasite King didn’t just kill—he absorbed memories from his victims. And after killing Sebastian, he must’ve seen everything. He would know who mattered to Austin.

And his next target? The friend closest to him.

Austin’s heart sank. He turned and sprinted in the direction Rudolph had gone.

The artifact wasn’t responding, so he stopped people along the way, asking—no, demanding—where they last saw him. Then he ran, faster than ever, toward the fortress where Rhea and the others were stationed.

Valerie followed, even though Austin had ordered her to stay at the front lines.

He couldn’t stop her. Not when she knew the truth.

The General of the enemy forces was coming for Austin. And to Valerie, nothing mattered more than keeping him alive.

“They’re heading north,” she said, eyes locked on the dark sky where the draconic army moved in a blur.

They were fast—but not fast enough.

And then—Austin saw it.

“…huh…”

His breath caught. His mind went blank.

A massive demon stood behind Rudolph… its claws driven deep into his chest.

Rudolph turned, weakly, eyes still full of fight… before his head was torn from his body.

It flew.

Then dropped.

His body collapsed with a dull thud—lifeless.

Valerie froze, her eyes wide with terror. Her legs shook. Even she, a warrior of countless battles, was horrified.

But Austin didn’t scream.

He didn’t cry.

He didn’t fall into despair.

He clenched his fists.

‘System.’

A pulse of energy.

Soulwarden Veil—Activated.

Darkness wrapped around him. His body vanished into shadow. A black sword shimmered into his grip.

And in the next instant—

SQUELCH

Austin burst from the void behind the Parasite King and rammed the sword straight through his spine.

“You will fucking pay!” he roared.

With one savage swing, he tore the monster apart.

The blade cut clean through.

Dark blood exploded in the air. The Parasite King was split in two by the strongest Shard.

Behind him, Rhea was still frozen. Her body trembled.

She hadn’t even seen Austin arrive.

She was on her knees, staring at Rudolph’s body.

Her lips trembled. Her eyes were empty.

Hundreds of demons started advancing towards them, sensing their Commander in danger.

Meanwhile, Parasite King’s body started to stitch back.

Austin growled before his hands blurred—slashing, stabbing, tearing. In the blink of an eye, the demon’s body was hacked into hundreds of pieces, each one scattered and soaked in black blood.

Meanwhile, Valerie held her Shard above her shoulder before throwing it like a javelin towards the dragon, which was about to attack Austin.

*KHREUNG*

The beast groaned as its body slowly started to get encased in ice.

She didn’t pause there. Valerie stretched out her hand.

The spear vanished from the beast’s corpse—then snapped back into her grip with a pulse of blue energy.

She didn’t wait.

Her feet flashed with ethereal light as she darted forward—right into the demon horde.

They were fast.

She was faster.

Her spear tore through the first demon’s chest. Before its body hit the ground, she spun and swept another off its feet, driving the Shard through its neck.

Two more came at her.

She jumped—twisting in mid-air—and hurled the spear downward.

It punched through both skulls in a single shot.

As they collapsed, Valerie held out her hand.

Whip!

The spear was back.

A clawed beast lunged from the side.

She ducked, then jabbed upward—her Shard sliding through its jaw, out the top of its head.

She yanked it free and kept moving.

Magic pulsed through her legs as she dashed again, a blur of motion. A hunter raised his sword.

She didn’t stop.

She vanished—and reappeared right behind him.

One clean thrust. The spear burst from his chest.

Blood sprayed.

Her movements were relentless. Graceful. Cold.

Meanwhile, Austin was already moving—hunting down the scattered remains of the Parasite King.

Scar had devoured most of the fragments. But some had slipped away… crawling, writhing, slithering toward the nearby demons—trying to take them over.

Austin’s time was running out.

Thirteen minutes left before the Soulwarden Veil faded.

SLASH!

“Don’t even try!” Austin roared, cutting down a demon that had just been overtaken. Before its body could fall, he commanded sharply, “Scar, now!”

Black flames rippled out of his blade.

The demon’s body disintegrated into ash as Scar devoured the fragment within—another piece of the Parasite King, gone.

Then—his instincts screamed.

Something was behind him.

Austin didn’t turn.

He simply commanded, “Scar.”

The sword obeyed.

The blade extended with a sickening sound—

SQUELCH

—and pierced straight through the chest of the approaching enemy.

Austin turned to see a snarling demonic goblin skewered on the blade, eyes wide with surprise and pain.

Without hesitation, Austin gripped the goblin’s head.

Wordlessly he slammed it into the ground.

BOOOOM!

The impact crushed its skull, sending dark blood spraying across Austin’s face.

Then—

“RHEA!!” Valerie’s voice rang out.

Austin snapped his head toward her.

His heart dropped.

A towering orc loomed behind Rhea, its muscles bulging with unnatural energy. It had been possessed.

Its massive club was already falling.

Rhea knelt frozen—eyes wide, still in shock.

Austin knew he wouldn’t make it in time.

Neither would Valerie.

But then—

TING!

A sharp, high-pitched whistle sliced through the air.

The orc’s arms flew off—cleanly severed.

The club still dropped—but now with only half its weight. It barely tapped Rhea’s head before falling beside her with a dull thud.

Austin didn’t waste a second.

He flashed forward—Soulwarden Veil cloaking him in a dark mist.

He appeared behind the orc mid-step, sword raised high.

SLASH!

One clean diagonal strike ripped through the orc’s massive frame.

Scar howled as it fed, devouring the corrupted soul inside.

In the span of a heartbeat, the orc’s body collapsed—leaving nothing but a hollow frame of bones.

Austin stood in the fading mist, blade dripping black blood.

He turned towards Rhea and found Rhea was now accompanied by someone.

He shook her body and shouted at her, “What are you doing?! Going to sacrifice yourself because he died? Would Rudolph have ever wanted to throw away your life?!”

Rhea turned her eyes and was met by a familiar person scolding her

She was extremely vulnerable at the moment that’s why she forgot about the past they shared and started crying while clinging to him.

Parkinson’s arms trembled…unsure what he should do. However, currently, he knew she needed him, so he forgot about his hesitations and hugged her back.

“It’s…okay. We will avenge him.”

Parkinson couldn’t have thought that when he joined the war, he would be met by such an unexpected sight.

Rudolph was a strong warrior, someone to whom Parkinson has lost in battle several times in the past so he was aware of what he was capable of.

But then, suddenly, a demon arrived and killed him in a blink.

He wasn’t able to keep himself away from the battlefield, and Rhea, upon realizing that she has already lost all her hopes and won’t be defending herself.

Valerie showed unease upon realizing the identity of the person.

However, Austin held her shoulder and told her, “We need to find the other fragments until I can hold the Scar.” Without Scar only William could completely erase the Parasite King’s fragments.

Valerie nodded before she disappeared into the thin mist and headed towards the battlefield where hundreds of demons were fighting against human soldiers.

Austin had a worried countenance. He acted based on his instincts back then and divided his body into several pieces…allowing the Parasite King to send his body in different directions.

And now, time was running out…only seven minutes were left.

His feet pounded against the blood-soaked earth as he tore through the battlefield, eyes darting, searching for signs of corruption.

SLASH!

A demon’s head flew. Clean kill. No fragment.

He moved again.

Two more lunged at him. He sliced them in half in one swift motion.

Still nothing.

“Damn it…”

He spun, senses wide open.

A human knight screamed nearby—his chest burst open by a monster.

Austin appeared beside it in a blink and stabbed the beast through the back.

It shrieked—but again, no reaction from Scar.

Nothing inside.

THUD

The body hit the ground.

He wiped the blood from his face, frustration growing.

His heart raced.

Six minutes left.

Then—he saw it.

A demon tearing through soldiers with unnatural speed… its eyes glowing with a sickly red hue.

“There you are—”

Austin didn’t wait. He charged in, Scar roaring in his hand.

CRACK!

He slammed into the creature, blade first.

Scar let out a sharp hiss—then flared with black fire.

A fragment.

However, before he could devour it, the monster twisted its head, a grin splitting its face as the being spoke,

“You are running out of time but I am not.”

A chill ran down his spine….how does he know?!

°°°°°°°°°

A/N:- Thanks for reading. This arc would continue only for four to five more chapters.