Necross and the followers laughed in unison—a horrible, grating sound.

"That's right, realize it! Stay conscious, struggle to the very end, let me flay you alive—"

I didn't let her finish her nonsense. Forging another greatsword, I charged to her position.

After smashing her into paste again, I didn't stop. Planting my feet, I accelerated into the midst of the followers.

The followers' bodies suddenly twisted and mutated, transforming into a riot of colorful, exotic flowers. They didn't retreat but surged forward. In the blink of an eye, I was enveloped in a sea of blossoms.

I swung my blade to cut through them. However, the soft, weightless petals were difficult to get a proper grip on. The crude sword edge merely severed a few before its trajectory slid away, deflected.

Not only that, the severed flowers and leaves moved without wind, trying to cling to my exposed skin.
I said stop harassing me! And what does this move have to do with blurring the lines between life and death anyway? No cheating!

I dispersed my Ethereal Grasp glyphs, summoning several invisible hands to push the漫天 (sky-blotting) petals away in all directions. Then, I discarded the greatsword, forging instead two slender, razor-sharp blades.

As the flower sea closed in again, I squeezed out a massive amount of magic and swung the blades.

A cold light flowed. Within the visible range, all petals, wall lamps, walls, and floor were completely pulverized into dust under the dense flurry of slashes.

I was certain I was fast enough to not give Necross time to react. I was also certain I had destroyed all the followers-turned-flowers, leaving not half a petal behind.

Under my wanton destruction, the church's dome was ripped open. Bright moonlight filtered through the镂空 (lattice-like) barrier, streaming into the corridor.

Necross stood nonchalantly bathed in the moonlight. Forget being injured, she didn't even show a hint of fatigue.
You cheap boss monster with no hit feedback...! At least scream, even if it's just an act.

In contrast, even though I had tried my best to avoid touching the ground and used the fastest speed possible for my strikes, "death" seeped into my flesh and blood through the blade and the ground in every fleeting moment.

My head began to feel dizzy, my legs trembling weakly. If I used Stagnation on myself, I could probably slow the progression toward death.
But my remaining magic was low; I couldn't waste it on mere survival.

Necross gave me a meaningful glance and walked towards Mary in the golden cage.
What is she trying to do? This creature shouldn't have the ability to break golden magic...?
Even as I thought this, I saw the cage's outer shell had already begun to... fade.
Ugh, right. Grey is neither alive nor dead. The golden magic probably won't last much longer before breaking down due to the loss of its controller.
The church's barrier will also collapse.
On the other hand, there's still no trace of the core.
Is my Perception Glyph rank too low? I should have searched the nearby area thoroughly; there are no other magical sources...
...Wait. Maybe I've already seen the core and just overlooked it.
Perhaps Necross didn't disguise herself as Adam because he had a nice physique, but because she had no other choice.

I forged a small knife, cut my lip, and in the stinging pain, licked the blood that flowed out.
Good, that feels better. Time to work.

I pinched the blood-stained knife between two fingers and flung it out. The blade spun, tearing through the air, and instantly embedded itself in the back of Necross's head, churning her entire skull into mush.

Necross's movements halted. I dashed to her side, grabbed her, and threw her out through the torn-open ceiling like a ball. The flesh-cannonball slammed heavily against the barrier, crushed into fragments by the impact.
The physical bodies she can use are temporarily completely destroyed. It'll take her at least dozens of seconds to come back.

I seized the opportunity, grabbed the fading golden cage, and forcibly pried its bars apart.
I activated healing magic, curing Mary whose eyes and ears were bleeding. I said,
"Can you hear me? It's Sylvia."
Mary slowly opened her eyes and said weakly,
"...I can hear you."
"Good. In the few minutes I went downstairs, did Adam do anything special?"
"Special...?"
The sound of flesh and bone reattaching came from behind me. I sped up.
"Yes. Did he find anything? Or notice anything strange?"
"...That's right. He found that Mr. Wilson's medal was no longer in his pocket, but soon discovered it had fallen near the stairway entrance."
The corridor gradually darkened as the moonlight disappeared. Something was blocking the hole in the ceiling.
Mary continued,
"He picked up the medal, intending to give it to Mr. Wilson, but stopped, saying the medal felt strange. He seemed to want to examine it closely, but before that, the lights went out."
"Thank you. Close your eyes and rest for a bit."
Mary silently closed her eyes. I left her side and looked back at the enormous mass of flesh now filling the corridor.

The surface of the fleshy mass was smooth and tender, adorned with several beautiful, blinking eyes and several full lips opening and closing.
Did you really have to make it this grotesque?

She said,
"Time's up, little Via. Do you wish to ascend to the sky or sink into the deep sea?"
"Tell me after you die. I'll choose the opposite side."

A grating, coarse grinding sound rang out as the fleshy mass slowly, inexorably crawled forward.

I forged my final sword and charged straight at her—then turned a corner, sliced open the wall beside me, and pulled out Adam, who was lying there like a corpse.

I seeped my Perception Glyphs into Adam's body.
No wounds on the torso or limbs. Several contusions on the throat and esophagus... There's a cute little medal in the stomach.
No wonder I couldn't find the core. Its magic was completely masked by Adam's own magic.

Necross's laughter drew closer.
"You found it! That's right, the most important part of me is right there. In a place you can always reach, yet can never approach..."
I punched my fist into Adam's body, smashed through the ribs, tore open the stomach sac, and retrieved the medal.
Then, before the first drop of blood could spurt, I first used Stagnation on him and the medal.
That way, the fatal injury won't reach the moment it takes effect, and Necross's soul cannot transfer from the medal elsewhere.

The annoying laughter finally stopped.

After a moment of silence, Necross said,
"The bit of magic you have left is a mere thread. You absolutely cannot destroy the sturdy medal in an instant."
"And as long as I touch even an inch of your skin again, I can immediately push you, who has no magical protection, completely into death."

Savoring the forced calm in her voice, admiring the scratches Grey had left on the medal, I said,
"That's true. I suppose I only have about a fifty percent chance of winning."
"Exactly. Sylvia, don't you have grand ambitions? You mustn't gamble your life just to destroy me..."
I squeezed the last of my magic into my palm and without hesitation crushed the medal with all my strength.

Necross erupted in a cataclysmic wail. Her畸变 (mutated) flesh extended a countless multitude of arms, carrying obstacles from all directions as they surged towards me together.

Just as an arm grazed my bangs, I crushed the medal into scrap metal.

The eyes on the fleshy mass all bulged out simultaneously and exploded like punctured water balloons. The wildly flailing arms suddenly stiffened and aged, falling like dry branches one after another. The mass of flesh convulsed violently, all its mouths gaping wide as if to release a sharp, piercing scream—

BOOM!

The fleshy mass exploded. Fetid plasma and chunks of gore splattered across the walls. As the blood mist dissipated, only a snail remained wriggling on the ground.
Tch, she still has a breath of life left. The destruction wasn't thorough enough. Her magic, however, is completely shattered.

I raised the medal, intending to smash it into pieces against the wall, but a violent wave of dizziness flooded my mind first.
Not good... I've over-drafted my magic way too much.
No, magic exhaustion doesn't feel like this. There's a subtle difference. This is some kind of magic, something trying to make me think I'm fainting from magic exhaustion.
Did I get hit? When? I didn't sense a second spellcaster nearby at all. Necross's contractor?
Dammit... Thinking is getting so sluggish.

I tried to steady myself, but my arms, legs, even my torso lost all sensation. In my swirling, darkening vision, I fell to the ground like a marionette with its strings cut.

Consciousness gradually faded. Bad, can't pass out right away. The Stagnation magic on Adam still needs my maintenance, and there's a potential enemy.

I lifted my head and smashed it into the nearby rubble, finally regaining a bit of clarity. But a tidal wave of exhaustion immediately drowned out the pain.
At least need to wait a dozen seconds or so. Yes, must, at least, hold on until...

My vision suddenly lit up, filled with a dazzling white light. Using the last shred of my strength, I looked towards the light source, smiled with relief, and lost consciousness.
Too slow, our resident refusal-to-die expert.