The Final Boss Has Returned 191

Chapter 191

The Holy City, half-destroyed, no, reduced to ruins due to the continuous bombardment.

Even now, bombs and shells continued to rain down from the airships and Aerial Mobile Fortress in the sky. Amidst the chaotic scene of explosions and flames, a single cry echoed.

“Ultimate Light!”

The owner of the voice that seemed to shake the entire battlefield was none other than Eugene.

As Eugene raised his holy sword, which emitted a soft glow, towards the sky, the dark clouds parted, and a brilliant, sacred beam of light began to descend upon the ground.

“Kuaack!”

“Aaack!”

The users and NPCs of the Dark Alliance, struck by the beam of light, screamed and died.

On the other hand, the allied users who were dying from the enemy’s bombardment were quickly recovering through the sacred beam of light.

Ultimate Light.

Eugene’s ultimate skill, a cheat skill that summons pillars of light from the sky to heal allies and damage enemies, had revealed itself.

Eugene narrowed his brows as he watched the scene.

‘Drakan….’

Eugene inwardly cursed the name of the one who caused this situation.

Drakan.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t anticipated Drakan’s declaration of war.

However, he never dreamed that Drakan would not only launch a surprise attack on the capital simultaneously with the declaration of war but also use such powerful weapons to destroy an entire city.

The Holy City was not only the home base of Eugene and the Lightwing Guild but also one of the largest cities in the Holy Alliance.

Therefore, in addition to users related to the Lightwing Guild, there were numerous ordinary users staying in the Holy City for personal matters unrelated to the war, as well as novice users who had visited the Holy City to become priests and paladins. Drakan had mercilessly rained death upon them all, including ordinary users and novices, with the Judgment of Steel.

Eugene could not forgive such a reality.

If Drakan had only attacked and killed users related to the Lightwing Guild, those who had expressed their intention to participate in the war, Eugene wouldn’t have been this enraged.

However, Drakan had wiped out even ordinary users unrelated to the war with his weapons of destruction, and this was an unforgivable evil that crossed the line of ‘good’ in Eugene’s standards.

Eugene’s hands trembled with rage.

And only after witnessing the horrific carnage in the Holy City did Eugene finally realize Drakan’s true nature.

‘I was a fool to think you had changed your ways.’

Drakan.

The realization that all his actions, which Eugene had believed to be genuine repentance, were actually a deception aimed at the entire world.

The fact that Verda’s constant warnings to him had been right all along.

The truth that he had been deceived by Drakan all this time.

The moment he realized this, Eugene felt an overwhelming sense of betrayal and indescribable rage.

Drakan’s true nature hadn’t changed at all, neither in the previous game nor now.

He had simply become cunning enough to deceive the world for the sake of his goals.

Eugene himself had believed in Drakan’s goodwill.

Because believing in the goodwill of others was a natural thing for Eugene.

But Drakan had not only exploited his trust but also ruthlessly betrayed him.

Eugene could never forgive such a Drakan.

If Eugene’s reason for opposing Drakan until now had been due to their differing ideals, it was no longer the case.

Now, Eugene could not leave Drakan be, even on a personal level.

‘He is a dangerous existence.’

At the same time, Eugene felt an indescribably intense danger emanating from Drakan.

The returned Drakan had grown far stronger than before his return.

The problem was that the direction of that growth, in Eugene’s opinion, was not towards good, but towards evil.

Drakan had become more wicked, learned to see the bigger picture, and become a man capable of bowing his head to his past enemies, including himself, kneeling before the public, wearing a mask of hypocrisy, and deceiving the world for the sake of his true goals.

If such a Drakan were left unchecked, Ard World, no, the entire world would be swallowed by evil.

That’s what Eugene thought.

‘I have to stop Drakan!’

Drakan.

The only person in this world with the power to stop his plot, filled with pure evil without a single percent of goodwill, was…

Eugene himself.

When Eugene’s thoughts reached that point, sparks flew from his eyes.

At that moment.

“Eugene-nim!”

Right next to Eugene, a silver-haired sorceress appeared through Blink magic.

It was the Great Sage Verda.

Holding her magic staff, she looked at Eugene with worry in her voice.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine.”

Eugene replied, sheathing his holy sword, then took Verda’s hands in his own and spoke with sincerity.

“And, I’m sorry.”

“E, Eugene-nim?”

Verda was slightly flustered by Eugene’s apology.

Looking at Verda, Eugene gave a slightly awkward smile and said,

“For ignoring your words all this time, about Drakan being dangerous.”

Verda bit her lip at Eugene’s words.

“You were right. Drakan hasn’t changed at all. And I… like a fool, I only realized it now.”

Eugene lowered his head.

He had believed in Drakan’s goodwill until the very end.

But only now, at this late hour, could he realize Drakan’s true nature, his evil.

That fact was deeply shameful to Eugene.

“So, I’m sorry. I should have listened to you sooner, I feel like I frustrated you…”

“Eugene-nim…”

Verda reached out and caressed Eugene’s cheek as he apologized.

“Please don’t apologize.”

A faint smile appeared on Verda’s lips.

“Because I love even that side of you, Eugene-nim.”

“Verda.”

Eugene’s heart skipped a beat at Verda’s words.

Looking back, she was the one who always silently supported him by his side.

It was Verda who took charge of the guild’s operations on his behalf, coordinated the Five Eyes alliance, and always found a breakthrough in times of crisis since the World Revolution.

Above all, she was the only one who stayed by his side when his former comrades, those he cherished like family, left the guild.

Eugene felt his heart leaning towards her.

“I will stop Drakan, his plot, even now. Because right now, I am the only one who can stop his evil.”

“Yes. You are right.”

Verda looked at Eugene and spoke, conscious of her face flushing.

“And it’s not… it’s not too late yet. As you said, Eugene-nim, if we stop Drakan now, then it will be our victory. So please don’t… blame yourself too much.”

Verda.

She didn’t want to see Eugene blaming himself.

Eugene’s principle of believing in the good of humanity was never wrong.

Drakan, it was all that man’s fault for exploiting Eugene’s principles.

Therefore, there was no need for Eugene to blame himself.

Realizing that her words contained genuine concern and consideration for him, Eugene smiled.

As a bright smile spread across Eugene’s handsome face, Verda’s face turned as red as a beet.

In the midst of the battlefield, where the “Ultimate Light” was still active and beams of light were pouring down like rain, Eugene embraced Verda.

“Yes. It’s not too late yet, as Verda said. So, I will stop Drakan, and… if I succeed in stopping him, in saving Ard World after everything is over, then…”

Eugene looked at Verda, feeling his face heat up as he slowly and awkwardly confessed his feelings.

“…Will you go out with me?”

Verda’s heart started pounding like crazy upon hearing Eugene’s confession.

Her usually calm and composed pupils widened and wavered.

It wasn’t that Verda hadn’t secretly thought about the possibility of taking the place beside Eugene someday, now that his rivals were gone.

However, each time, Verda had erased such desires from her mind.

But now, the moment she heard Eugene’s confession, Verda’s mind went blank.

Eugene bit his lip as he looked at Verda.

Countless thoughts ran through his mind in that fleeting moment.

He felt a surge of anxiety, wondering what would happen if she rejected him, if he had made a mistake by confessing, but he forced those feelings down.

Verda.

Eugene didn’t want to lose this precious connection, Verda, who had even accepted his blemish of playing the field, by acting indecisively like he had with his former comrades.

That’s why Eugene confessed his true feelings.

Then, Verda’s voice reached Eugene’s ears.

“A, Alright. I, I hope this situation isn’t a dream, is it?”

Eugene smiled at Verda’s uncharacteristic stammering, a mixture of fluster and joy.

“It’s not a dream.”

“That’s a relief.”

Verda finally smiled brightly after hearing Eugene’s words.

Eugene.

Her heart was filled with ecstasy at the fact that she had finally won his heart, that her long unrequited love had finally been reciprocated.

“Thank you for accepting my confession.”

“I am the one who should be thanking you for accepting my feelings.”

After confirming their feelings for each other once more, it was Eugene who spoke first.

“Then… we should finish what we need to do. Verda.”

“Yes, Eugene-nim.”

Verda responded, trying to cool her heated head at Eugene’s call.

“Send a whisper to all the Over-Rankers of the Holy Alliance, and our surviving forces. Tell them to gather by my side. Ask them to escort me until I face Drakan one-on-one.”

Eugene said, drawing his holy sword from its sheath once more.

He already knew.

To stop Drakan now,

He needed to force a one-on-one confrontation with him.

That was the only way to win against Drakan in this current situation where everything was stacked against them.

And to do that, he needed the strength to break through the countless troops and Over-Rankers protecting Drakan.

‘Drakan, he will never agree to a one-on-one fight.’

Eugene clenched his grip on the holy sword, recalling Drakan’s image.

Drakan.

He knew Drakan’s nature very well, having faced him in the previous game.

He was a selfish and cunning villain who would stop at nothing to achieve victory.

Knowing that, it was clear that Drakan would never give him a chance for a one-on-one fight.

‘But even so, I can’t surrender without a fight, I can’t just stand by and let Ard World fall into Drakan’s clutches.’

Eugene himself had no idea about the probability of achieving a one-on-one confrontation.

He was simply moving forward because it was the right thing to do, because he couldn’t bear to watch Ard World be consumed by Drakan’s evil without doing anything.

Seeing Eugene’s determined gaze, Verda nodded and replied.

“Understood.”

Hearing Verda’s answer, Eugene smiled.

Now, it was time to stop Drakan and save Ard World.

▄ ▄ ▄

Drakan stood right in front of the shattered main gate of Light.

Beside him, Over-Rankers and elite troops of the Dark Alliance formed an impenetrable iron wall, protecting him.

Kwaang! Bang!

Explosions continued to echo across the battlefield in real time.

It was the sound of airships and the Aerial Mobile Fortress bombarding the Holy City.

“Die!”

“For the Alliance!”

That wasn’t all.

The sounds of weapons clashing, the shouts of users, all mixed together to create a deafening cacophony that assaulted Drakan’s ears.

Despite all this, Drakan stood unmoving.

Just then.

Flash.

A beam of light pierced the dark clouds and struck down from the sky.

Seeing this, Drakan spoke.

“It’s him.”

Eugene.

He recognized him by his ultimate skill, Ultimate Light.

“He seems to have come to his senses. He’ll be here soon.”

Drakan muttered these words in a low voice.

He knew.

That Eugene had no choice but to come to him.

After all, the only way for Eugene, cornered as he was, to turn the tide and win the war was to capture Drakan, the ‘King’ himself.

Therefore, it was a reasonable conclusion, requiring only a little thought, that Eugene would try to force a one-on-one confrontation with him.

“Are you referring to Eugene, that bastard?”

It was the Dark Elf, Sharp, who reacted to Drakan’s words, standing guard beside him.

Sharp’s cold words, referring to Eugene as that bastard, were laced with resentment.

Hearing Sharp’s words, Drakan grinned.

“Yes.”

“Are you waiting for him?”

The next user to question Drakan was Elena, now the Dark Saintess.

Elena, whose pink twintails from her days as a Saintess had turned into a chilling blood red after her fall, stood behind Drakan, clad in a black priestess’ robe and enveloped in blood-red magic power, befitting her transformed Legacy, the Dark Saintess.

“That’s also correct.”

Drakan agreed with Elena’s question.

Drakan was waiting for Eugene to come.

To enact his revenge on Eugene, to personally conclude the grand scheme of rebellion he had been building since his return.

And the fact that capturing the ‘King’ meant the end of the war didn’t only apply to Drakan.

Eugene was also the ‘King’ of the opposing faction.

Therefore, if he captured Eugene, the King, this war would end. Thus, Drakan planned to turn Eugene’s strategy against him and eliminate him instead.

A considerable amount of time passed after Elena nodded in response to Drakan’s answer.

“Drakan!!”

A resounding voice echoed from afar, loud enough to momentarily drown out the noise of the battlefield.

The smile on Drakan’s lips deepened upon hearing that voice.

Eugene.

The ‘King’ had finally appeared of his own volition.

Checkmate.