novelhk Chapter 127 Rune: I almost got one-shotted by Nabu, luckily I was one step ahead.
Chapter 127 Rune: I almost got one-shotted by Nabu, luckily I was one step ahead.
Chapter 127 Rune: I almost got one-shotted by Nabu, luckily I was a cut above the rest.
Just as Constantine had given up and Raven sighed in despair, dark red cracks suddenly appeared on the golden armor on Doctor Fate's chest, like ancient scriptures being scorched by invisible flames.
The cracks spread rapidly, intertwining into the shape of a six-pointed star—it was not damage, but the disintegration of some higher-dimensional seal.
A perfect circle melted into the center of the breastplate, its edges not from dripping liquid metal, but from reverse crystallization. Nab looked down at his chest in utter shock, only to see a bare, pale arm suddenly pierce through the crack in the center of the armor, while another arm braced against Doctor Fate's helmet. The struggle between the two unleashed a powerful energy storm.
Naboo no longer had any magical restraints on Constantine, so Constantine was freed. But instead of running away, he watched the struggle between the two mages with an expression of utter disbelief.
"Raven, come and see God!"
Under the influence of the runes' powerful force, the golden helmet was lifted, which briefly severed the connection between Naboo and Kent. The next moment, the armor completely disintegrated, revealing the golden space inside. Although part of the space was blocked by the runes, objects symbolizing order could still be seen, such as scales, a clock, and bookshelves.
To the astonishment of Constantine and Raven, Rune emerged from the space, helmet in one hand.
"Looks like I won, Naboo." Rune said with a smile, lifting the unconscious Doctor Fate—no, he should now be called Kent Nelson—with one hand.
Then, Rune touched his clothes with a pained expression—his levitation cloak was badly damaged in the battle against Doctor Fate. Although he was a master of both potions and alchemy, he wasn't a tailor after all.
Therefore, he will not be able to repair the levitation cloak in the short term.
"Wow!" Constantine immediately moved closer, his gaze fixed on the helmet, his eyes filled with longing. This helmet itself was a rare and precious artifact. When it was forged, rare materials such as N metal were incorporated, and over thousands of years it had withstood powerful magic and been strengthened by the power of order. Therefore, even in the DC universe, this helmet's power was among the highest.
It's no exaggeration to say that this helmet would be enough for Constantine to pay off his debts dozens of times over.
"I mean, I did my part in this operation, right?" He rubbed his hands together, a fawning expression on his face. "Could you give me that—yes, that helmet you're holding?"
Rune looked helplessly at the shameless fellow and shook his head.
“You know, Constantine, Naboo is a very important person, I can’t give this thing to you,” Rune said softly. “When I was inside him, I could hear what you said, and I know how much you sacrificed to help Raven. Although I can’t give you an equal reward right now, believe me, your reward will be no less than you expect.”
In truth, Naboo is both important and unimportant. His importance lies in the fact that he is a member of the Order, responsible for maintaining the stability of dimensions and timelines, fighting against the Chaos Lord, preserving the balance of power between Hell and Heaven, and preventing their war from spilling over to Earth.
The unimportant point is that there are other Orders in this world. In fact, Doctor Fate has died several times in the comics, but the impact wasn't particularly significant, clearly because his work was being done by other Orders.
Even so, Rune will not directly destroy Naboo. Firstly, because God is now gone from the DC Universe, the Fallen Ones are stirring with ambition towards the main universe, and the superheroes are far from mature enough. Killing Naboo now would truly jeopardize the universe.
On the other hand, it was also convenient for Rune to imprison Naboo. He only had a helmet, and with Rune's magic suppressing him, he couldn't cast any magic. At most, he could only talk, like right now.
"You'll regret this! You'll all regret this!" he shouted. "I admit, I had some selfish motives for coming to capture Raven, but she's become the bridge; it's only a matter of time before Trigon arrives in this universe!"
“Alright, we all know that.” Rune nodded. “But you can’t conclude that she’s a bad person just because you can’t see her future.”
After saying that, Rune stuffed the helmet into his clothes. The levitation cloak was quite damaged, but fortunately, some basic functions were still intact, such as storing the helmet.
Constantine was somewhat disappointed that Rune hadn't given him the helmet, but not too much. Even the thick-skinned Constantine felt his request was unreasonable. No expectations, no disappointments, right? So, he was still in a relatively good mood—especially when Rune promised him a reward exceeding his expectations.
"Ah, looks like I should go now, my friends." Constantine picked up the cigarette from the ground, shook off the grime, and said, "Looks like it's still smokeable, great!"
Rune looked at him; Constantine certainly looked terrible. The direct confrontation with the Fate Master had clearly taken a toll on the man.
"Be careful, and avoid casting spells if you can avoid it," Rune nodded and then reminded him.
Constantine's magic isn't traditional academic sorcery; his spellcasting system is more like a form of street witchcraft. He crudely juxtaposes ancient incantations, folk magic, modern semiotics, and even mathematical principles, resulting in spells that resemble a Frankenstein's monster. About 70% of his powerful spells essentially "borrow" the power of demons or angels, avoiding the consequences through meticulously designed magical loopholes, but this doesn't always succeed. So, well, Constantine is already a millionaire in debt at a young age.
"Come on!" Constantine said with a nonchalant air, shrugging as he addressed the two men before him. "Three of the Seven Lords of Hell have my name on their watchlist. Over in Heaven, at least two choir angels want to nail me to the wall as a specimen. Oh, and I almost forgot, a few wizarding societies are unhappy about some of the holy artifacts I 'borrowed'—"
Constantine's lips curled into a smile devoid of genuine joy: "Under these circumstances, preventing me from casting a spell is tantamount to killing me."
Rune looked at him helplessly, and after thinking for a while, he said, "Alright, if you need him, you can have Chase Chandler come to my place for refuge."
"You fucking investigated me!" Constantine's eyes widened, and then a few filthy curses spilled out. He didn't even think about it, because Chandler, whom Rune had mentioned, was practically his close friend, one of the few people he could trust.
"Come on! If you were truly in a hopeless situation, you wouldn't be putting on this pitiful act to gain sympathy." Rune coldly interrupted his profanity.
Seeing that his scheme had been exposed, Constantine could only scoff, "How do you know me so well? Sometimes I really wonder if you're a worm in my stomach."