Power of Runes-Chapter 86: Miraak’s Death

Time seemed to slow down.

SLASH!!

SLASH!!

SLASH!!

SLASH!!

The sharp sound of a sword slicing through the air, followed by the loud explosion of orbs, echoed throughout the vast hall, creating a chaotic symphony of destruction.

Damn it.

Wasn’t this the exact reason I had been hiding my power from the beginning?

Ash had kept his strength concealed because of a deep-rooted fear—that someone might target Elysia as a way to get to him.

But even though he tried to hide it, he had always known that a moment would eventually come when his power would be exposed.

That moment was inevitable, no matter how much he tried to avoid it.

And now...the day was here earlier than expected,

No time to regret, It was my decision after all.

But now wasn’t the time to think about that. He pushed those thoughts away and focused on what mattered the most right now.

This was only the second time he had fought demons, but already, he had begun to learn something crucial from both of those battles.

There’s a huge difference between fighting in real life and inside a VR game.

In the VR game, you could somewhat study the movement of enemies, understand their patterns, and predict or counter their attacks with careful timing and learned strategies.

But the enemies in real life? They were entirely different. Real enemies didn’t follow predictable patterns or logic.

Their actions were messy, instinctive, chaotic, and impossible to fully anticipate.

And Ash was experiencing that harsh truth right now, in the most painful way.

He saw Miraak lift the unconscious body of Zerak into his arms.

Then, with a wave of his hand, Miraak carved the air, and in that instant, a portal began to form, swirling and pulsing with dark energy, just wide enough for a single person to pass through.

"I WILL MAKE SURE YOU DIE WHILE SEEING HELL, HUMAN!!" Miraak roared, his voice filled with hate as he stepped forward, his foot lifting to cross into the portal.

At that exact moment, all the Demonic orbs that had been flying toward Ash suddenly stopped.

Without wasting any time, Ash hurled the remaining lightning balls straight toward the edge of the portal, aiming at what looked like structural weak spots, hoping they might interfere.

I can’t let him escape.

And then—without hesitation—he launched himself forward.

But soon he felt, he was late.

Damn it, damn it, DAMN it, DAMN IT!

I won’t be able to reach him in time.

Based on everything he could analyze from Omni thought, it was painfully clear—he would not be able to catch up before Miraak entered the portal.

I’m such an idiot. I should’ve killed Zerak. But if I had... Miraak might’ve gone berserk. The students could’ve died.

If he had chosen to end Zerak earlier, he had no way of knowing how Miraak might have reacted.

There was a high possibility that the other students would have died. The risk had been too high.

If they escape now... if the demons manage to learn about me from this battle... wouldn’t that be the end for me?

He had chosen to reveal his sword only because he was confident—confident that he could eliminate them without exposing too much.

But now, he couldn’t tell whether that had been genuine confidence or just blind arrogance.

He had gotten too intoxicated by his own power. So much so that he even thought about going easy on the demons at first, just to let them suffer more as they fought.

And for what?

Just to satisfy his own sense of vengeance?

I should’ve finished them off immediately the moment I overloaded my core.

Ash’s thoughts were spiraling fast. He was thinking too many things all at once, regret flooding through him like a storm.

He kept replaying his actions, searching for the right move, but no answer came to him.

He could feel the emptiness in his mana cores., and even the lightning balls he had fired (only two or three of them) would strike seconds too late.

By the time they hit, Miraak would already be gone.

Fuck.

Ash cursed through clenched teeth, the bitter taste of frustration filling his mouth.

Just as Miraak was about to cross the portal, something unexpected happened.

Several fireballs, blazing with dark crimson flames and crackling with an intense heat, appeared right next to the portal’s edge and exploded violently.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The consecutive blasts tore through the space around Miraak, creating a wave of force that pushed him slightly away from the portal and interrupted his escape.

Ash’s eyes widened.

What the...?!

His body didn’t slow, but his mind burned with a question:

Who?

His eyes then slowly lifted toward the source of a new mana signature—that didn’t exist a moment ago.

There, sticking out from the growing crack in the barrier, was a hand—its fingers trembling slightly—and right beside it, partially visible through the splintered opening, was a face he hadn’t expected to see.

Melissia...?

How is she there...? How in the world did she reach this place?

Ash’s thoughts scattered in panic, the realization hitting him like a hammer striking cold steel.

Wait, wait—did she see me? Did she witness me wielding both sword and magic, and like this... in this form, in this appearance?!

A creeping terror clawed into his chest, but his rational mind grabbed hold of his thoughts and shoved them back into focus—Miraak comes first, deal with him now, think later.

He bit his tongue hard, using the sharp sting to ground himself, and with all the speed he could muster, charged directly toward Miraak.

Time resumed its normal rhythm.

The lightning balls struck the edges of the portal with violent pulses of energy.

But like before, his attacks did not manage to destroy the portal entirely. Perhaps because his power was drained?

Instead, the portals structure grew unstable, trembling as if unsure whether to stay open or collapse.

The swirling black hole began to shrink.

Ash appeared beside Miraak, just as the demon was about to hurl himself toward the barrier once more.

SWISH!!!!

Ash’s sword cleaved through flesh and bone in a clean, perfect arc—Miraak’s head flew into the air, detached from his shoulders, blood spurting in a high arc as his body collapsed.

But the head—it wore a smile.

A strange, unsettling smile, as if the man was content, even pleased, with the outcome of his own death.

SHIT!!!

Both Ash and Melissia thought at the same time, as their eyes locked onto what Miraak had done in his final breath, an act so unexpected and mind-bending that it sent a wave of disbelief through them.

Just before Ash’s blade had beheaded him, Miraak had used his last bit of strength to throw Zerak’s unconscious body toward the portal.

But there was nothing Ash could do to stop it. Every last drop of his mana was exhausted, and his stamina had also hit rock bottom.

As for Melissia, she tried to bind Zerak with conjured crimson chains, but they were a second too late.

Zerak’s limp body passed through the flickering remains of the portal.

And then—

FWUMP!

The portal vanished.

Silence drowned the hall like a heavy fog.

"DAMMMMMN IIIITTTTTT!!"

Ash screamed, voice ragged with rage and helplessness. But before he could spiral deeper into regret, he staggered.

The lightning that surrounded him flickered and died out, the aura of the Primordial Core receded like a wave returning to the ocean,

His irises shifted back to their original cold blue hue, and his expression—once filled with emotions—slowly melted into his usual stoic, unreadable face.

No, no... h-he escaped...

His vision blurred at the edges, the colors of the world began to twist and spin like smoke in wind.

I-I n-need t-to...

—kill...

And just like that, his body crumpled to the ground, the sword still gripped tightly in his hand as his consciousness gave in.

BAM!!

At that moment, the cracks on the barrier grew wider, and Melissia—who had previously been unable to push through the shimmering wall—descended like a blazing meteor crashing from the heavens.

"ASH!!"

Her voice tore through the air as she sprinted to him, panic overtaking her calm as she dropped to her knees at his side, her hands trembling as she checked for signs of life.

A-alive!!!!

She thought, as relief washed over her at the feeling of his breath, soft and steady.

But when her eyes scanned the rest of his body, she almost screamed.

There were cracks on his skin, some parts were damaged heavily and some were burnt—covering him from head to toe.

They were so horrific they brought tears to her eyes just by looking.

What do I do? What can I even do?

CRACK!!!!

Her eyes widened as she looked up—the barrier was about to collapse completely, the last threads holding it together fraying like a dying web.

She didn’t hesitate.

From what I can tell, Ash was strong. Incredibly strong. But he hid it. He kept it secret—for a reason. That means he wouldn’t want anyone else to know about what happened here. He wouldn’t want anyone discovering the truth behind his power.

With that thought solidifying her resolve, she reached over and stored the corpse of the demon inside her space ring.

But when she extended her hand to store Ash’s sword as well, something strange happened.

The blade refused to move.

It clung to Ash, as though bound to him not just by metal or oath, but by soul itself.

"Please... come here... otherwise, your master will be in danger..."

She pleaded to the weapon, her voice soft and desperate.

And as if it understood her, the sheath of the sword shimmered into existence outside Ash’s own space ring, and then, in a swirl of glowing light, both blade and sheath melted like silver water and wrapped around Ash’s wrist, forming a white ring that pulsed with faint energy.

What... what was that?

But there was no time to ponder. She reached into her space ring and pulled out a high-rank healing potion.

Popping the cork, she gently lifted Ash’s head and poured the warm liquid past his lips.

Then—

CRACK!!

SHATTER!!!

The barrier exploded in a burst of radiant light.

Melissia’s head snapped up, and her eyes locked on the beams of light rushing toward her from beyond.

***