Chapter 33 (Patreon)

Cold.

A violent torrent of freezing air surged forward.

“Futile.”

Golden ripples spread out in front of Ragnar Kagenou.

“Rho Aias — Seven Rings of the Heavens.”

A radiant, seven-petaled barrier instantly unfolded before him.

Uraume’s Ice Formation slammed into it—

—and froze only the first layer.

Nothing more.

Ragnar stood calmly behind the shield, unmoved.

Even though what he possessed was merely a prototype—a conceptual recreation of the bronze shield once wielded by Ajax in the Trojan War—it still carried the essence of absolute defense against projectile attacks.

Compared to that concept, the crude physical shield layered with oxhide wasn’t even worth considering.

He had long since discarded such inferior things.

Above him—

Kenjaku hovered in midair, suspended through the effects of Cursed Technique Reversal.

Suddenly—

Crack.

Ragnar’s eyes narrowed.

He could feel it.

A force was forcibly breaking through the layered defense of Rho Aias.

“In these thousand years… you’ve really collected quite a number of techniques, Kenjaku.”

There was no doubt.

That was yet another Cursed Technique Kenjaku had stolen from one of his countless hosts.

“However…”

Ragnar’s gaze sharpened.

“You’re standing too high.”

From the Gate of Babylon, two crimson spears emerged, humming with lethal intent.

He raised one.

“The spear is me. I am the spear.”

The first spear shot out—

—and nailed Kenjaku directly to the space itself.

“What—!? A Cursed Tool… I can’t break free!”

Kenjaku’s expression twisted as he struggled.

No matter how many techniques he cycled through, he couldn’t detach himself.

His freedom had been completely stripped away.

Ragnar smirked faintly.

“Like showing off in the sky, don’t you?”

“Then stay up there.”

Kenjaku’s face turned ferocious.

His hands came together.

“Domain Expansion — Womb Expansion.”

Behind him, a grotesque structure formed—

—a massive tree composed of intertwined corpses.

Unlike conventional domains, this one lacked a barrier.

It didn’t compress space into a closed sphere.

Instead—

It overwrote the surrounding environment.

Within it, gravity itself bent to Kenjaku’s will.

“Impossible… why is it not working!?”

Kenjaku tried to drag himself down with gravitational force—

—but failed.

No matter how he manipulated it, he remained fixed in place.

“…So that’s it.”

Kenjaku’s pupils shrank.

“This thing… it’s not binding me with force.”

“It’s anchoring me to space itself.”

Ragnar’s expression remained indifferent.

“You figured it out?”

“Too late.”

He raised the second spear.

“Gáe Bolg.”

Then—

He threw it.

Whoosh—

The crimson spear tore through the air.

The moment it pierced Kenjaku’s body—

A violent eruption of cursed energy exploded outward.

This was nothing like the earlier attack against a First-Grade Curse User.

This was a true killing blow.

Kenjaku felt it clearly.

Death.

“Kenjaku!” Uraume shouted.

Damn it—

There was no way to block it.

In that instant—

Kenjaku made a ruthless decision.

He severed his own head—

—and hurled it toward Uraume.

BOOM!!!

The body left behind was obliterated in the explosion of cursed energy.

Uraume caught the head midair without hesitation and unleashed a freezing blast toward Ragnar.

“Ice Formation!”

At the same time—

Kenjaku activated a technique specialized for escape.

A storm of frost erupted.

When the freezing current dispersed—

Both Kenjaku and Uraume were gone.

“…Tch.”

Ragnar clicked his tongue lightly.

“Ran away, huh.”

Just then—

Yuki Tsukumo rushed over.

“Eh? Ragnar, where’d they go?”

Ragnar didn’t even look at her.

“You could’ve come a little later.”

“…Huh? Why?”

“That way, you wouldn’t have had to come at all.”

Yuki blinked.

“What do you mean?”

“They escaped.”

Silence hung in the air for a moment.

In truth, only a few dozen seconds had passed since Yuki arrived.

Even if she had been there from the start—

The outcome likely wouldn’t have changed.

Kenjaku wasn’t just any sorcerer.

He was a monster who had lived for over a thousand years.

A sorcerer like that—

If he wanted to escape—

Stopping him wasn’t something you could just guarantee.

Ragnar exhaled slowly.

He didn’t believe someone like Kenjaku would lack escape methods.

Not after possessing that many bodies.

Yuki crossed her arms.

“So what now?”

They were in the middle of nowhere.

No towns.

No shops.

Nothing.

Ragnar glanced at the wrecked Dodge Challenger nearby.

“…Well.”

A faint smirk tugged at his lips.

“Guess it’s a convertible now.”

Noble Phantasm: Rho Aias — Seven Rings of the Heavens

Rank: B++ (Temporary Manifestation)

Type: Barrier Noble Phantasm

Description:

A conceptual armament derived from the legendary shield of Ajax during the Trojan War.

Originally a bronze shield reinforced with seven layers of oxhide, it later evolved into a defensive Noble Phantasm representing absolute protection against projectile attacks.

Its seven layers correspond to seven defensive thresholds, each capable of nullifying or weakening incoming attacks before breaking.

Bila Tserkva

Ragnar leaned against the damaged car, glancing at it with mild amusement.

“I’ve gotta say… this thing’s impressive. Even wrecked like this, it still got us this far.”

Yuki looked at him.

“Why not just get it repaired?”

“Why?” Ragnar shrugged. “Fix it and sell it to some classmates?”

“That’s not what I meant.” Yuki sighed. “Are we not going to need a vehicle?”

Ragnar waved it off casually.

“We’re already here. Might as well just take a plane. Faster.”

The moment they arrived in the city, Ragnar headed straight for a decent hotel.

He glanced at Yuki.

“You got any missions right now?”

“No. After you wiped out those Curse Users, my job’s basically done.”

“Since you’re free, want to come hunt Kenjaku with me?”

“That won’t work.” Yuki shook her head. “I’ve got other things to take care of.”

“…Fair enough.”

She turned to leave—

But paused.

“…Was Suguru Geto’s ideology influenced by you?”

Yuki didn’t answer immediately.

Then—

“…Yeah. But his interpretation went too far.”

“I see.”

She glanced at Ragnar.

“What? You think I pushed him down that path?”

Ragnar’s voice remained calm.

“That was going to happen sooner or later.”

“You just sped it up.”

Yuki studied him for a moment—

Then smiled faintly.

“Good. I thought you were holding a grudge.”

After parting ways with Yuki Tsukumo, Ragnar checked into a hotel called City Park.

As for money—

Gold worked everywhere.

Exchange it for Ukrainian hryvnia and you were good.

Click.

The door opened.

The room was bright and clean, fully furnished with everything needed.

“Not bad.”

There was even a restaurant exclusively for guests.

The place wasn’t cheap either—

Over four thousand hryvnia per night.

Knock knock.

“Come in.”

A hotel staff member entered, pushing a cart.

“Your dinner, sir. Thank you for your cooperation.”

“Just leave it on the table.”

“Of course.”

After placing the meal down, the staff member noticed the tip Ragnar had left.

They quietly pocketed it.

“…Also, sir, smoking is not permitted here.”

“I know.”

There had been a notice at the entrance.

“If you need anything during your stay, you can contact me anytime. I’ll be happy to assist.”

Click.

The door closed softly.

Outside—

The employee’s gaze shifted slightly down the corridor.

“Phew…”

At the far end—

A guest stood there casually smoking, completely ignoring the hotel’s no-smoking policy.