The Extra's Rise - Chapter 637

Chapter 637: Dullahan (2)

I began calculating the complex formulations required for seven-circle spell casting, channeling the Nightingale Method through my mana pathways. Mathematical equations flowed through my consciousness at speeds that would have overwhelmed normal minds, each calculation building upon the previous in cascading sequences of magical theory.

The Nightingale method. My personal framework for seven-circle magic that surpassed all existing frameworks—at least for someone with my particular combination of abilities and background.

‘I suppose this was the reason I was brought to this world,’ I mused even as mana gathered around me. This was the crystallized proof of my Mind aspect talent manifesting in this reality, the genius-level intellect that Isolde had mentioned as the primary reason for my soul’s transplantation.

A genius with Grade 6 sword talent. A genius who had mastered every martial art from another world and successfully integrated them into this reality’s combat systems. A genius whose spellcasting prodigy capabilities allowed for innovations that transcended conventional magical theory.

And I had been given Luna to provide access to every single element in existence, making me perhaps the most magically versatile individual in the world.

My seven-circle spell erupted outward in waves of crystalline destruction, ice and void magic woven together in ways that should have been impossible according to conventional theory. Each layer built upon the previous as temperature dropped toward absolute zero, the spell designed to freeze not just matter but magical energy itself. But the Dullahan’s Domain absorbed much of the impact, his natural Immortal-rank authority providing resistance against techniques that would have devastated normal opponents.

‘Direct magical assault isn’t enough,’ I realized as the spell’s effects were partially negated. ‘I need to combine approaches.’

Without missing a beat, I transitioned into Tempest Dance, Evolvis singing as it carved through the air with increasing velocity. The blade seemed to come alive in my hands, responding to the accumulated momentum with eager anticipation.

The technique was deceptive in its simplicity—each strike built momentum for the next, creating an escalating spiral of power that grew stronger with every successful connection. My blade became a blur of motion as I wove between the Dullahan’s defensive strikes, each of my attacks faster and more powerful than the one before.

The Dullahan recognized the threat immediately, his own sword technique adapting to counter my building momentum. His massive greatsword moved with surprising grace for such an unwieldy weapon, each parry precisely calculated to disrupt my rhythm. But Tempest Dance was designed for exactly this kind of prolonged engagement—the longer the fight continued, the more devastating my attacks became.

I shifted into the second movement of the art, my sword work reaching a rhythm that seemed to bend reality around the striking patterns. The air itself began to vibrate with accumulated kinetic energy, creating visible distortions that trailed behind Evolvis’s edge.

By the fourth successful strike in the sequence, my blade was moving with enough force to crack his reformed armor. By the seventh, I was carving gouges through his supernatural flesh. The ancient metal of his protection began to show stress fractures as the momentum built to crushing levels. But even as my attacks reached devastating intensity, his Immortal-rank regeneration continued restoring damage faster than I could inflict it.

‘Time for something more decisive,’ I thought grimly, beginning to channel my most powerful sword technique.

I activated the second movement of my Grade 6 art, Hollow Eclipse. Two layers of astral energy formed around Evolvis’s edge, shimmering with barely contained power, but rather than simply layering them for additional force, I created a perfect vacuum between the energy sheaths.

Into that vacuum, I carefully placed droplets of concentrated Deepdark energy—not as raw power, but as emotional resonance. Starvation. The endless hunger of the void that devoured everything it touched. The technique didn’t just cut through physical matter; it consumed the very concept of existence along its path.

“Impossible,” the Dullahan said, his voice carrying surprise for the first time as Hollow Eclipse carved through his defenses. The void-touched blade passed through his armor as if it were mist.

The strike connected, and for a moment, a portion of his chest simply ceased to exist. Not destroyed or damaged—erased, as if it had never been there at all. The wound was a perfect sphere of nothingness that made my eyes water to look at directly.

But even this devastating blow wasn’t enough. His regeneration adapted with terrifying speed, reality reasserting itself as his Immortal-rank nature proved capable of restoration even from conceptual erasure. The void gradually filled with newly formed flesh and bone, his supernatural constitution overcoming my most powerful technique.

‘Erebus,’ I called through our mental link. ‘Show them what your enhanced Domain can do.’

My Lich companion’s presence blazed with the capabilities he’d gained when I reached Ascendant-rank. The Necropolis of Forgotten Wisdom erupted around us, reality shifting as Erebus accessed the deepest memories embedded in his skull—memories that belonged to the Arch Lich himself.

Phantoms of the past began materializing within the Domain space. Not mere illusions, but actual echoes of the Arch Lich’s greatest battles, his most devastating techniques, his accumulated centuries of magical knowledge. The air filled with spectral figures wielding impossible magic, their forms flickering between past and present as Erebus drew upon inherited memories to fuel his Domain’s power.

‘That’s why he’s special,’ I realized as I felt Erebus’s capabilities working at full capacity. ‘His Domain doesn’t just grant him knowledge—it lets him manifest the Arch Lich’s actual experiences as tactical support.’

Ancient spells began firing from the phantom figures, techniques that had been lost for centuries now deployed in support of my desperate battle. But even with Erebus’s enhanced Domain pushing back against the Dullahan’s authority, I was still losing ground. The fundamental gap between Ascendant and Immortal ranks was simply too vast to overcome through technique alone.

Then the Dullahan’s Domain truly activated.

The Field of Broken Oaths expanded with crushing intensity, and suddenly I was drowning in the weight of every promise I had ever failed to keep. Every person I had disappointed, every commitment I had abandoned, every moment when I hadn’t been strong enough to protect what mattered most—all of it crashed down on me simultaneously.

Images flashed through my mind: Emma’s face when she’d realized I was pulling away during our final months together. Luna’s pain when I’d failed to understand the contradictions in her nature that had nearly killed me.

The Domain wasn’t just showing me these failures—it was making me feel them with crushing intensity, each broken promise adding weight to my limbs, each disappointment sapping the strength from my magical techniques. My sword felt like it weighed a thousand pounds as guilt and self-recrimination flooded my consciousness.

‘This is what broke oaths feel like,’ I realized with growing horror. ‘Every failure, every disappointment, turned into physical and magical weakness.’

I calculated another seven-circle spell through the Nightingale Method, but the complex formulations kept dissolving as memories of inadequacy interfered with my concentration. The mathematical precision that defined my magical framework crumbled under the emotional assault of accumulated guilt.

The Dullahan pressed his advantage ruthlessly, his massive blade carving through my increasingly desperate defenses. I managed to block the first strike, barely deflected the second, but my movements were growing sluggish as the Domain’s effect intensified.

His greatsword blazed with dark energy as he activated what had to be a Grade 5 technique. The blade descended with the force of accumulated guilt and rage, the blow carrying not just physical power but the weight of every oath he had failed to fulfill. The attack shattered through my weakened defenses like they were paper, sending me flying backward with enough force to crack several ribs despite my magical enhancements.

‘I’m losing,’ I realized with growing alarm as I struggled to regain my footing. ‘The Domain is making me too weak to fight effectively.’

The momentum I had built through Tempest Dance was completely broken. My magical reserves were draining rapidly from maintaining multiple high-level techniques while fighting against the Domain’s crushing psychological pressure. Even with all my enhancements, the Dullahan was simply operating on a fundamentally different level.

He pressed his advantage relentlessly, each strike of his massive blade forcing me further back. The guilt weighing down my movements made it impossible to maintain proper defensive form. I was failing, just like I had failed so many times before, and the Domain made sure I felt every instance of that inadequacy.

Blood sprayed across the corrupted ground as his blade found its mark again and again. My enhanced durability was failing under the combined assault of physical damage and psychological pressure. The golden light of my Aureate Blood began to flicker as my concentration wavered.

‘This might be where I die,’ I thought as the Dullahan raised his greatsword for what would likely be a finishing blow. ‘Unless…’

My hand moved instinctively toward the scroll Meilyn had given me inside my spatial ring—Mortis Lucida, the forbidden spell that could access the Akashic Records.

‘If I use this, I lose future opportunity,’ I realized with crystal clarity.

My fingers touched the scroll’s edge, magical energy already beginning to respond to my intent.

‘Just a few more seconds,’ I thought, preparing to sacrifice everything for one chance at victory.

A blade of brilliant silver light suddenly carved through the Dullahan’s torso from behind, the strike carrying enough force to stagger even an Immortal-rank opponent. The mysterious sword blazed with energy I recognized—the distinctive resonance of Ascendant-rank enhancement combined with techniques I had personally given her.

“Master!”