Ethereal Paradigm: A Canvas of Black - Chapter 71 Major Chess Piece

“When you see a good move, look for a better one.”

-Emmanuel Lasker

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While it might be somehow deranged to say that I am ‘comforted’ by the priest’s and several assassin’s provision on Shiro, the same guys that want to have her for their own unknown reasons, I have no choice but to believe in the curse that they planted upon themselves saying that if the girl gets hurt, they will die. They look overly serious about guarding the girl so it should be okay, not that I’m letting down of my guard though… Being extra cautious in this circumstance would not hurt and that, it’s best if I somehow intervene, each of the moves that they’re going to catalyze.

First and perhaps the biggest threat, the summoned Euryale.

Now the immortal Gorgon charges up towards me with great indignation as his master continues to suffer by the continuously clenching chains, protected by the very same monstrosity encircled within by its enormous serpent body.

I can’t also take control of the Gorgon… It doesn’t have charisma for itself, unlike the morbid pile of muscles for a guy… and not to mention that the type is Sylaphe. Guess I’ll make use of the surrounding darkness then…Good thing the terrain has been made authentically dim.

It might also be questionable as to why I would only say this now but, the ink-made weapons I purposefully created encircling us in a sphere formation, even covering the whole sky is actually not limited to having only one purpose and while I already told the first apparent reason, which is to cut off anyone who dares to escape, it could also be used for the offensive.

Gaining control of the ink-contrived weapons, I then utilized almost half of them, deforming it to combine to a very large sharp-edged cross in par with the gorgon’s size while assuming that it will do the trick rather than depending on smaller weapons that would not even leave a scar. Maybe a bigger weapon could work, somehow delaying the fast regeneration of the monstrosity, and from there the second plan commences… I have no intention of prolonging this any further…

With imagination as a remote control, I plan to marshal the fall of the giant cross mid-air with the monstrosity as its main target, but first, let me set up the correct stageplay for the assurance of a wonderful performance.

Using the dark silhouette which my en masse of weapons also produced as it covers the whole terrain from the moon’s superfluous brilliance, I then form out two giant hands, one in each side of the moving Gorgon and made it clasp against each other in a way that if Euryale wants to survive, she has to hold out the hands from crushing her first…but then, let’s say if she does manage to hold out that first incursion, there will be the giant cross falling from above. A checkmate so to say.

The plan commences.

Basing from the first part of the plan, I made the Gorgon cease from her onset as two giant hands formed from nothing but pressured-shadows in each of her sides, beginning to clench her on the center… but the immortal-emblazoned monster is not so powerless that she could not hold out to such pressure.

Conclusion… The first plan is not that potent. Time to advance to the second part.

With the Gorgon clenched side by side unable to move… like a meteoroid, I then manipulated the giant cross mid-air to reach an even higher length for it to gain momentum and as it reaches a certain height, which is a very significant one indeed, it’s time for a meteoroid show… “Heaven Concealed” is how one of the most powerful villains in anime calls it.

As the giant cross’s tip opened the head of the Gorgon, a huge cracking sound then ullaged the whole terrain, with the ground shaking as if a real meteoroid really did fall and then, a wave of impact from the gained momentum. It hit the Gorgon amassing this very huge hole in its body with purple blood spurting almost everywhere… And I’m not so stupid to have no follow-up plans.

Conclusion number two… I made it fall at the Gorgon in the most linear ways piercing her body from head to the first few meters of her tail, and as hypothesized the regeneration has been somewhat slower as the wound was very great, a very disgusting one to behold. Time to advance, to the final plan…

With jet-black ink pierced on its body, I then disembarked them to become subatomic particles that would excavate the Gorgon’s inside, destroying its most vital parts, almost like having an auto stage 4 cancer, but worse as the patient will have no time to see for themselves, their expected death tanning.

The minuscule particles of ink then entered its body slowly destroying its guts, defenseless.

The Gorgon, feeling the pang coming from her insides, howled in great adrenaline hitting its systems, but, as though it purified itself… my cancer cells lost potency as if suddenly, and I was unable to continue the operations any longer.

It then regenerated, faster than ever before…

Conclusion… That was a waste of time. Another integral conclusion… Higher-level beasties here in this realm Naethervale is not a joke.

With the failure of my detailed-plan, I found myself relying back on third-tier skills. I then perpetrated some giant chains to somehow restrain the Gorgon from its even more violent moving, but making use of its type, Sylaphe, which has something to do with nature, it manipulated the surrounding trees, giving life to each of them in a form of giant golems that still is ugly as hell.

But, with having much of my ink taking in the form of an en masse of weaponry arsenal, destroying them is a mere child’s play… Utilizing the ink-based weapons mid-air, I moved from one golem to another bombarding their bodies with a barrage of holes and cuts deeming them powerless.

“I already told you… Euryale is immortal” the priest extrapolated the fact even more.

“Don’t underestimate the Paradigm Shift of our Sire, you puny dark mage!” An assassin with dual knives aforesaid.

“Oh, you mean the man who chickened out and let this Gorgon be his living shield?” I replied.

” It would only be natural! You were also up to using cheap tricks earlier! The master even commanded our priest to curse us so that you could fight in fair condition, and this is what you’ll repay? You’re a coward!” Exclaimed the other.

“Yeah! You should be ashamed of yourself, you coward!”

Huh? Seriously what the hell are they talking about… Well, ‘Pawns’ as they are they will always find ways to inspire themselves to stupidly admire their echelon even more, no matter how stupid they really are… It’s not that different from Earth’s ancient politics.

“Coward? If I am indeed one, doesn’t that make all of you plain defecates? On what set of taboos did you presume that I will not use cheap tricks? And did we set some rules that state that I can’t?”

“Well-”

“Hmmm… Pathetic. If you got time to point fingers then blame this to the one who sent you to take the little girl captive. You suddenly showed up, assuming that I’m weak because I’m a human novice. Challenging me to a duel which clearly is one-sided because all of you are already fond of this realm and then there’s me who just arrived. Now tell me who’s the coward?”

They stood too corrected to even dare say a word.

“What’s worse is that you even assumed that I would fight hand-in-hand with such an experienced overrated hero. Hmmm… But really, your main mistake was being involved with us… both me and the girl.”

Those pawns who proclaims to be a dignified party of assassins now really do piss me off…

Without any known bounds, unable to kill it because of its impeccable regeneration, I chained the Gorgon, holding it down unable to inflict even the slightest of damage… But I’ve got an idea. If I can’t kill the summon itself, then its weakness might be the one it is trying to protect… that muscle man… An integral piece in this implicit game of chess with a freaking unkillable rook.

“So, you’ve already figured it out?” asked the priest.

“Yes… Quite the obvious shenanigan. I think that killing him would somehow silence this Gorgon up.”

With both the summon and the summoner unable to move for the time being, amid the presence of the chains… I then undauntedly began to walk towards the shackled hero… And there, right in the middle of the Gorgon’s encirclement was the man who’s still holding onto his life…

“Yow..” I greeted.

“TSK CURSE YOU, SHAMING ME IN FRONT OF MY MEN LIKE THAT.”

“Curse all you want… I’m gonna have to kill you.”

Out of the myriad of weapons I can choose, I picked the most noble-looking one to at least fit the murder weapon used to kill this revered and rash hero. I stood a ‘winner’. A ‘victor’ so to say, in this little masquerade. But…

“Gh..Gh… GHA GHA GHA GHA GHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” A demented laugh psurted out from the shackled man’s pursed lips….

“Laughing your death is also a preferable option eh?” I replied with also a hysterical smile, delaying the easy kill…

“YOU UNDERESTIMATED US KID”

Huh?

“Paradigm Shift! Cancel!”

As I heard that declaration that came from someone else, a very graphic light with unknown origin bombarded the whole terrain. I covered my eyes from the weird brilliance as it really is eye-aching.

And slowly adapting to the sudden emanation of light, I slowly opened my eyes, and I beheld… my ink-made arsenal awaiting my instructions on-air, falling to the ground like mere straws and my chains stopped working. I can’t even feel any charisma nor can I see any dark intent… it was as if, my paradigm has been negated. I can’t use anything.

“Summon! Iron maiden…”

What I then noticed next was my inability to move my own body and slowly being veiled alive by the sudden appearance of a human-sized torture tool, that Rome used to have back in the middle ages.

It then closed with nothing more but an eerie creaking sound… and from afar, I could hear this slowly fainting cry of the little girl.

“Oni-chama!!!!!!”

(………………………)

Something hurts…

Where… did I falter?