I Reincarnated as My Favorite Villainess Saint (Magic Marza), So I’ll Use Game Knowledge to Smash Every Doom Flag! - Chapter 7

The Knight of Despair slowly rises from his throne. The oppressive aura radiating from his massive frame makes the very air in the cavern tremble.

With an earth-splitting CRACK, the colossal greatsword comes crashing down.

“Look out!”

I barely manage to dive sideways in time. The stone pavement where I’d stood a moment earlier shatters into fragments with a thunderous roar. The shockwave sends grit and wind lashing against my cheeks.

(One hit from that would finish me…!)

Cold sweat trickles down my temples. Though my heart pounds like a warning bell, Lydia’s body remains steady poised for the next move without freezing in fear.

Sliding beneath the knight’s guard, I dash toward his exposed torso and swing my staff.

“«Holy Strike!»”

The point-blank shot of light slams into his jet-black armor. Yet it only produces a shrill metallic clang, leaving not even a scratch.

‘Futile.’

The ground trembles with his voice as a massive arm sweeps toward me. I barely manage to leap back to safety.

Too tough. Impossibly so. Blind attacks will only whittle me down.

(Calm down. Remember the game’s strategy…!)

The Knight of Despair draws power from Elise’s own despair. As long as she remains hopeless, he’s nearly invincible.

Right. This boss has a gimmick.

As if reading my thoughts, the knight raises his greatsword high. The crimson glow deep within his helmet flickers ominously.

‘GRRAAAAAH!’

His roar unleashes concentric waves of violet-black energy. Though harmless physically, the pulses carry a soul-numbing chill.

Where they pass, the ground becomes studded with dark, ice-like crystals glittering malevolently.

(There! “Sorrow Shards”!)

Those are the knight’s power source. Left alone, they’ll regenerate him. I have to destroy every last one.

“Not happening!”

Anticipating his next strike, I weave through his attack and sprint toward the nearest crystal.

‘It hurts…’

A frail whisper, undoubtedly Elise’s own voice escapes the knight’s visor.

“«Holy Strike!»”

My light shatters the first crystal. It dissolves into motes with a glass-like ping.

‘Help me!’

“I’m saving you right now!”

I race through the cavern, obliterating the second and third shards. Though the knight swings wildly to stop me, his movements grow noticeably sluggish.

‘Just leave me!’

The plea belongs to a girl suffering an incurable illness, one who’s lost hope and shut her heart away. The despair of believing no one will ever save her.

That loneliness. I understand it painfully well. As the villainess saint, Lydia too walked the path of condemnation alone, misunderstood by all.

“No!”

My shout is meant for Elise and for Lydia, whose body I inhabit.

“You’re not alone!”

The final crystal explodes under my light magic.

Instantly, the Knight of Despair freezes mid-motion.

Now’s my chance! Deprived of his power source, the violet-black aura around him fades. A crack splits his massive breastplate, revealing a sinister crimson glow pulsing within like a cursed heartbeat.

The curse’s core. His true form.

(This is it!)

Planting my feet, I grip my staff with both hands. Channeling every ounce of holy energy, I focus it into the crystal tip. The gathering power dwarfs any previous «Holy Strike», swirling violently.

The air crackles as the staff begins radiating blinding light.

“O wicked despair, fall from your accursed throne!”

As I chant, the light compresses to its limit.

“Let this sacred radiance herald the dawn! «Dawnbreaker!»”

A spear of pure light erupts forth, a ray of sunrise cleaving through night’s darkness streaking unerringly toward the knight’s exposed core.

He raises his sword too late. The luminous lance pierces the cursed nucleus with flawless precision.

‘AH!AAAAAAAAAH!’

An agonized shriek tears from the knight, yet it gradually softens transforming into something peaceful then finally, into a young girl’s sobs.

Cracks spiderweb across the obsidian armor as warm light spills through. The colossal figure begins crumbling apart.

Simultaneously, the entire dungeon quakes violently. Boulders crash from the ceiling while the stone floor dissolves into light.

The world is collapsing.

Relief and exhaustion overwhelm me. My consciousness rapidly fades as blinding white light swallows my vision once more.