The Extra Who Stole the Hero's System
Chapter 42: Herald Vs. Lord Sapphire

Chapter 42: Herald Vs. Lord Sapphire

"This," Herald said, his voice low, cold, and utterly devoid of emotion, "is the last sunrise you’ll see as a man with power. My vengeance starts today."

It was a chilling pronouncement of doom. Lord Sapphire stood frozen, his face a mask of utter horror and disbelief, his dark, linen-wrapped sword hanging uselessly in his hand. The courtyard, littered with the broken and vanished bodies of his guards, was a testament to Herald’s terrifying power.

From my distant vantage point, I felt the full suffocating weight of Herald’s presence. Herald’s left eye, the Mythic Dragon’s Eye, remained wide open, a pulsating blue aura that saturated the entire mana environment.

The air around me became incredibly dense, thick with raw power, pressing down on my chest with an invisible, crushing force. My lungs burned, struggling to draw breath against the oppressive weight, and my vision blurred at the edges. It was like being submerged in an invisible, suffocating ocean of mana.

After what seemed like an eternity, Lord Sapphire’s face, which had been contorted in terror, slowly calmed. A flicker of something cold and dangerous replaced the fear in his eyes. He wasn’t giving up. His hand, which had been slack, tightened on the hilt of his sword. With a swift, almost defiant twist, he ripped away the black linen wrapping that concealed the blade.

Beneath the mundane fabric, the sword revealed itself. It was not black, but a vibrant crimson. The blade itself seemed to pulse with, a deep, blood-red glow that cast an ominous light across Lord Sapphire’s face. It was undeniably beautiful for a sword.

"The False Crimson," Lord Sapphire stated, his voice now steady, with a chilling pride. "An A-tier sword artifact. Its flame magic is unmatched in all of the Remuria continent."

Herald blue-glowing eye fixed on the crimson blade, a flicker of something akin to mild interest in its depths. "Is that so?" he replied, his voice calm, utterly unimpressed.

Lord Sapphire’s eyes blazed with renewed fury at Herald’s nonchalance. "Then it’s time to teach you some manners, ’Herald of Eudenia’!"

With a guttural roar, Lord Sapphire raised the False Crimson. The sword immediately erupted with blazing black flames, not the familiar orange or red of common fire, but a deep, inky black, crackling with malevolent energy. The heat radiating from it was intense, searing the air around them.

"Umbral Death!" Lord Sapphire roared, his voice echoing with power, and with a blinding, terrifying speed, he slashed the blazing black blade directly at Herald’s head. It was a strike meant to decapitate, to utterly annihilate, infused with the full, devastating power of an A-tier artifact and Lord Sapphire’s own mildly formidable mana.

The aftermath of the hit was unbelievable. The entire manor, from its deepest foundations to its highest turrets, shook violently, as if struck by an earthquake. A powerful black aura, radiating from Lord Sapphire and the False Crimson, exploded outwards, pushing back the very air, tearing at the surrounding trees.

I, even from my distance, felt the concussive force, a wave of raw power that threatened to knock me off my feet. My mind quickly raced, A thought of chilling certainty, that even with Herald’s strength, there was no way he could survive a direct attack from an A-tier sword artifact, especially one imbued with such destructive magic.

But as the dust and debris cleared, what met Lord Sapphire’s gaze, and stunned both our eyes, it was not Herald’s severed head, nor a broken body. It was Herald’s palm.

His bare palm.

Raised against the blazing black blade, taking the full, devastating impact of the strike. The False Crimson, still wreathed in blazing black flames, was pressed against Herald’s open hand, its tip just inches from his neck, yet it had not cut him. Not even a scratch. The sheer force of the blow, enough to shatter stone and fell trees, was being absorbed, contained, by a single, seemingly ordinary hand.

Lord Sapphire’s triumphant smile vanished instantly. His eyes, wide with utter disbelief, fixed on Herald’s hand, then on Herald’s calm, impassive face. He immediately took multiple, stumbling steps back, his face paling, a look of profound, dawning horror replacing his fury.

I watched from afar, and was also utterly surprised. I had underestimated Herald. Severely. The Mythic Dragon’s Eye was powerful, yes, but this... this was beyond even what the novel had explicitly detailed. Herald’s raw physical power, his ability to negate an A-tier artifact’s strike with a bare palm, was terrifying.

The aftermath of the strike forced me to reconsider my initial take in the fight. Should I intervene?, I thought. Because how things were going, Lord Sapphire might actually die. Is Lord Sapphire’s immediate death good for me in the long run or the short run?

For the Short-term benefits, it Eliminates a direct, immediate threat (the man who sent the assassin, and a supposed cult member). It removes a dangerous figure from my new world. It might also simplify my path into the academy without Lord Sapphire’s manipulation.

Long-term risks, it would creates a massive power vacuum within the Sapphire family, potentially destabilizing my new found family and leaving me vulnerable in to this world politics,

It Could expose the Sapphire family’s cult ties prematurely, drawing unwanted attention from other powerful factions. Could make me a direct target for the other factions, who were seeking complete political power in the kingdom,

It could also make me a suspect in Lord Sapphire’s death, if the truth of Herald’s power was not widely known. Furthermore, Lord Sapphire, despite his darkness, was a powerful figure who offered a degree of protection and resources. His immediate death might also push Evelina further into despair or vengeance, perhaps even turning her suspicion towards me if she ever learned the full truth of the situation.

I needed Lord Sapphire alive, at least for now, to act as a shield, a source of information, and to maintain the facade of my new life. I needed to observe more, understand the full scope of the Face of Asmodeus, and Herald’s true intentions. No. Lord Sapphire’s immediate death is too risky. The short-term benefits clearly outweighed by the long-term instability and potential exposure, I thought.

Lord Sapphire, after a few seconds of catching his breath, his face still pale but his eyes burning with a desperate fury, lunged forward again. He unleashed a barrage of attacks, the False Crimson a blur of black flames, striking with incredible speed and power. Each swing was designed to kill, to overwhelm, to burn Herald to ashes.

But Herald easily parried every single one of them. His blade moved with fluid and effortless precision, deflecting the blazing black flames as if they were mere sparks.

CLANG!

The clang of their blades colliding was a deafening, continuous, thunderous roar that shook the very ground. The impact of their clashing weapons sent shockwaves through the night air, tearing through the landscape. Trees in the forest behind the manor snapped, then fell with splintering crashes. The ground cracked open in, revealing dark, yawning chasms. The wind direction became uneven, swirling chaotically, a maelstrom of raw mana. This was a battle that truly belonged in the realm of fiction, a one-sided, utterly devastating display of power.

Lord Sapphire fought with a desperate, primal rage, his face contorted, his every strike infused with the full power of the A-tier artifact. The black flames, and the very air around him seemed to distort with his fury. But Herald remained unruffled, his movements ever fluid, his parries precise, his defense impenetrable. He was not just blocking; he was dominating. Every deflection, every subtle shift of his body, was a display to his overwhelming superiority. He was toying with Lord Sapphire, allowing him to exhaust himself, to unleash his full power, only to effortlessly negate it.

Finally, Lord Sapphire launched a desperate, final overhead strike, the False Crimson blazing with a furious, last-ditch effort. Herald met it. Not with his sword, but with his bare arm.

He simply raised his left arm, and met the full, blazing force of the A-tier artifact. The black flames engulfed his arm, but they did not burn. The sword, the mighty False Crimson, met his forearm with a crack.

CRACK!

The sound of metal shattering. The False Crimson, an A-tier artifact, the blade of supposed unmatched flame magic, broke. It snapped in half, the top half of the blade, still wreathed in black flames, clattering uselessly to the ground, its power extinguished.

Lord Sapphire stood frozen, his arm still raised, the broken hilt of his once-mighty sword clutched in his hand. His face, previously contorted with rage, was now a mask of complete, utter despair. His eyes, wide and hollow, stared at the broken blade, then at Herald’s uninjured arm, then back at the shattered pieces of his power and finally at me. I stood there helpless, I tried to control my body, but it shivered at the sight of power that would utterly kill me without the help of the system. I fully knew that there’s nothing I could do to stop what was coming.