CHAPTER 476: RECKLESS VICTORY

Within a fifty-kilometer radius, all the air molecules ceased to exist. Without air, the explosion’s sound couldn’t travel, meaning while it was extremely powerful, it was also silent.

The golden flames spread across the ground and through cracks kilometers into the earth. However, nobody saw any of this, since Sera’s gauntlet became a blinding beacon of pure light.

Many holo-screens aboard the Old Dawn short-circuited. They couldn’t handle the incoming source of visual information, and burned out. This saved most operators, but a few unlucky ones still went blind. A few Evolved healers soon took care of them though.

Back at the explosion’s epicenter, the globe of light and golden flames spread higher and wider. It also gouged deeper into the ground, creating a few kilometer deep crater.

Cracks spread through the ground in every direction. The giant shockwave soon followed, unearthing trees, earth and even massive stone chunks.

Mountains turned to boulders, then to mere pebbles. Hills flew away as the shockwave continued spreading across the middle of the Italian Peninsula.

A giant earthquake spread across Southern Europe, shaking both ground and sea. Enormous waves hit the Old Dawn from all sides, yet the giant vessel didn’t budge from the heavy barrage.

The cracks widened, becoming deep valleys. Giant tsunamis hit the shores of the Italian Peninsula, filling the valley with seawater. They continued to widen, and more seawater poured in.

Hours later, the valleys will completely fill, creating a new island from the southern part of the Italian Peninsula. Sera’s explosion cut the entire landmass in half and even damaged the tectonic plates deep below.

As for the Last Angel, she wasn’t doing well. The explosion’s epicenter, which cracked reality, was comparable to hundreds of nuclear warheads, compressed into a house-sized object and exploded all at once.

It destroyed the atomic structure of nearby objects and dissolved all energy. By all means, Sera’s body should’ve been evaporated, yet she survived... Well, at least her body stayed mostly whole...

The avatars of Peace and War also disappeared. They also needed to use most of their essence to stay alive against the destructive force of the massive explosion.

Neither planned to check if the Last Angel survived or not. They both ran away towards their Gates, and soon they crawled back home, leaving Earth as victors of the Battle of Rome!

Sera’s golden-green eyes stared at the cloudless sky. They showed no signs of bloodlust, but they were both glassy and unresponsive.

Her body was a broken mess, bones piercing her sickly pale skin. Blood flowed from hundreds of different wounds, and she also missed all her limbs either partially or fully. Her neck also bent at an unnatural angle, but somehow, her heart continued beating.

A faint green glow in her chest supplied her with life energy. It kept her alive, but it wasn’t enough to initiate the regeneration process.

The Angel stayed motionless, not just because her spine turned into pebble-sized fragments. There was also a giant skull fracture, from which her brain continued leaking.

The moment Sera punched and cracked reality, she blacked out from the immense pressure. This meant she only learned about her rescue after awakening a few days later.

...

With a strong headache, Sera regained consciousness. Her golden-green eyes fluttered open, but the room’s blinding light forced them shut once again.

A small groan escaped her lips as she tried to push herself into a sitting position. However, her limbs felt weak and heavy, so she quickly abandoned that idea.

She took deep breaths as the migraine lessened. It happened every time she awakened from bloodlusted rage, so she got used to the painful feeling already.

The fluorescent light also became less blinding, and soon her hearing returned with her senses of touch and smell.

The air inside the room smelled damp, with a hint of alcohol, like a stuffy hospital room. Her fingers touched the light, warm cover over her body, which felt quite luxurious, like silk.

She also felt a shirt and shorts on herself, which meant Faith must’ve dressed Sera without her knowledge. This happened quite often after each bloodlusted killing spree, since she always ended up destroying her clothes.

From the other room, she heard multiple people’s laughter echoing. She recognized a few, but some sounded unfamiliar. Either way, she picked up dozens of different voices.

"Wonder what’s so funny." Mumbled Sera in a tired voice as her eyes fluttered open.

She glanced around the brightly lit room. All the walls and ceiling were white, the same as her bed, the cover and even her clothes. She was obviously inside a hospital room.

"Huh, I survived, it seems. That’s a surprise..."

Memories began returning to Sera from her bloodlusted rage. She always became too reckless and unpredictable in that state, but this time, her bloodlusted-self went too far.

Sera had no clue how she could’ve survived something so thoroughly destructive. However, the answer arrived sooner than Sera imagined, as a light giggle echoed inside the bright room.

"To be fair, you didn’t survive. At least not how you imagine..." Said a beautiful female voice, bringing Sera’s attention to the corner of the room.

There, a magnificent woman sat in a reclining chair, her perfect face split into a wide smile. Her greenish, tanned skin seemed even more alluring in physical form, while her long brunette hair shone under the strong lights.

The woman wore a long red dress made of flower petals. She kept the dress modest, hiding her shoulders and calf, but also revealing the smallest glimpse of her ample cleavage.

Bea leaned back in her chair while keeping her greenish-gold eyes focused on Sera’s golden-green ones. The Angel’s attention caused a small blush to form on her cheeks, but Bea didn’t break eye contact.

She swallowed her embarrassment and desires. Instead, she focused on the task at hand, bringing Sera up to speed.

"You actually died in the fight against Peace and War. By the way, both of them survived and returned to their own Pocket Realms. Anyway, more on that later..."

The magnificent woman kept fidgeting with her hands, as her voice became uncomfortable and meek.

"Your body broke and died in the giant explosion. Our connection kept you alive long enough for me to arrive and heal your body. But you overused your body and essence. The bloodlusted state also didn’t help, so you remained unconscious for the past four days."

Sera watched Bea with wide eyes, then she turned towards the ceiling with a light sigh. The room stayed silent for a few seconds as Sera processed everything.

"Well, that sucks..." Said Sera, while glancing at Bea with mischievous eyes. "But at least you get to see me naked again. I hope you did nothing weird while I was unconscious!"

Bea’s mouth fell open as her face turned red as a tomato. Her body trembled as she tried to think of a proper response, but eventually, she just sighed with exhaustion and burst into laughter. Sera followed suit as the tension dissolved from the air.

They laughed for a few seconds. But soon Bea recovered from her embarrassment, and she continued the explanation of Earth’s current situation.

First, she told everything Sera needed to know about Asia, Victor, and Valerie. However, she soon interrupted Bea with an awkward smile...

"I... I actually know everything already... Uh, I kind of ordered Faith to spy on everyone, and she reported it every time my bloodlust ended... Sorry!"

Sera blushed a bit and kept avoiding Bea’s eyes. She was afraid to see hatred in those beautiful greenish-gold spheres. However, anger didn’t even cross Bea’s mind.

"That’s great! Then, I only need to explain the past four days! That makes everything so much less tedious!"

The Angel glanced to the side with a raised eyebrow, while Bea just smiled kindly. They both chuckled again, and soon Bea told her everything.

"After your victory, we carried all the survivors to New Constantinople, since it had enough space for twenty million new citizens. Other than the attack in Rome, everything in Europe has been silent. However, Asia became a giant war zone..."

On her silvery watch, Bea brought up an arduous report written by Valerie. It explained how multiple city-states had fallen to strange, primordial beings. She tried saving them, but some of the so-called Old Gods had similar strengths as Valerie.

"She’s stuck there now, protecting the Asian city-states, which are still under our control. The Masters aren’t too happy about an Ethereal’s presence, but the citizens are thankful enough..."

"Anyway, now let’s talk about your suicide attempt, since I couldn’t imagine any other reason you would blow yourself up so thoroughly!"

Sera didn’t deny the stupidity of her attack, not like she could control her bloodlusted mind.

"It wasn’t on purpose, as you probably already knew. I can only use my aura to form that avatar when bloodlusted. However, that state is a double-edged sword. It empowers me while also making me reckless and overly aggressive."

Bea just sighed with exhaustion and leaned back in her chair. She gazed up at the white ceiling while asking Sera... "So what’s the plan? Will you keep yourself afflicted for more power?"

With a groan, Sera pushed herself into a sitting position and smiled widely at Bea. The magnificent woman glanced at the Angel from the corner of her eyes, not understanding the joy on Sera’s face.

"Of course not! Our next mission is getting rid of the Seed of Madness in my mind!... What do you say? Want to take a trip to Australia?"