My Power to Ignore Enemy Abilities Lets Me Rule Another World

Avik's legs were growing fatigued as he drew closer to his target, and a sense of tension gripped him.

He had been waiting for this opportunity for twenty years.

Since a certain incident two decades ago, this island had been strictly sealed off from the outside world. It was heavily guarded by the First Divine General and the Empire's maritime defense forces. The Empire's regulations regarding the island were so strict that even the other thirteen Divine Generals were forbidden from entering, let alone someone like Avik, a newly enlisted soldier.

There had even been a case where a Divine General, insisting on entering the island for some reason, was mercilessly beaten by the First Divine General and thrown back to the capital. Since then, no one had dared to force their way in.

If not for the current wartime chaos that led to significant troop losses and forced the recall of all stationed generals and forces—along with Kriz's covert arrangements—Avik might have never set foot here in his lifetime.

Faced with this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Avik dared not let his guard down.

Soon, a massive vortex appeared ahead.

The object he sought was within it.

"This scene is as bizarre as ever..."

The presence of a "vortex" in the middle of a muddy swamp was inherently illogical.

But this island defied logic—it was a cursed land imbued with the power of ancient gods.

Avik was fully aware of this and refrained from overanalyzing such anomalies.

As the swirling mud beneath him grew more turbulent, Avik finally reached the edge of the giant vortex. Timing his leap perfectly, he dove into the bottomless maw, descending rapidly toward the base of the vortex.

At the vortex's bottom lay an ancient altar made of an unknown material. Atop it rested the object Avik was seeking.

Timing his movements with precision, Avik twisted mid-air and landed flawlessly in the pitch-black void, immediately scanning his surroundings.

The massive hollow created by the vortex allowed no light to penetrate, but Avik's unique night vision made this no obstacle.

He searched diligently until his eyes locked onto a faint point of luminescence.

"There it is."

Suppressing his excitement, Avik moved forward swiftly.

Upon closer inspection, it was indeed what he had been searching for.

It appeared to be a sort of core, adorned with three decorative wing-like protrusions. Several cracks on its surface emitted a faint blue glow.

"Finally... I've waited so long for this moment."

Avik extended a fingertip to touch the core, infusing it with magic. Instantly, the core erupted in brilliant light, and its surface damage began to mend.

To expedite the fusion process, Avik fixed his gaze on the core as it transformed, entering a meditative state.

If nothing unexpected occurred, the core would soon fully merge with Avik, restoring his true power.

But unexpected events always seemed to arise at moments like these.

"Ugh...!"

When the fusion reached about seventy percent, the core suddenly emitted a powerful force, flinging Avik backward.

The vortex's violently swirling waters were exceedingly dangerous, and being swept into them could be fatal. Acting quickly, Avik drew his greatsword and plunged it into the ground to stabilize himself, then looked ahead in confusion.

"What's going on?"

Avik approached the core again, attempting to touch it once more. But now, the core was encased in a transparent protective barrier.

Accompanying the barrier was an unnatural light.

A pure white radiance shone down from above, illuminating the interior of the vortex and rendering everything within it visible. But this was no cause for celebration.

"This is bad..."

Avik knew exactly what that light signified.

In the next instant, a powerful beam of energy surged into the vortex, obliterating everything within it.

"Right there!"

Shaowan pointed toward a massive vortex in the swamp, signaling that Avik was inside.

At that moment, Shaowan was holding me around the waist as she soared through the air, her fiery wings providing propulsion. She had switched to this method of travel for greater efficiency, finding leaping across the terrain too slow.

"If you had this easy method, why didn't you use it earlier? I've been jumping for nearly three kilometers!"

"Now's not the time for complaints!"

Shaowan effortlessly carried me mid-flight. Despite the burden of my weight, she showed no signs of strain, proving her strength was far beyond what I'd expected.

After we landed, Shaowan didn't even pause to catch her breath. Her petite frame hid immense power, and I couldn't help but feel a newfound respect for her.

To stand steady amidst the raging mudflows, I ignored the rushing water's force, while Shaowan used magic to secure her footing, so there was no need to worry about her.

Peering into the vortex's depths, Shaowan and I gasped in unison.

"Is that... Avik?"

The figure standing within was both familiar and alien, his form grotesque and warped.

Avik now had demonic wings sprouting from his back, and a black-and-white halo of light that seemed to devour itself hovered above his head. He no longer resembled a human.

"Avik? Avik! If you can hear me, say something!"

Shaowan called out to Avik, but there was no response.

Instead, a savage glare met us in the next moment.

"Huh?"

Before Shaowan could react, Avik appeared behind her in a cloud of black mist.

"Look out!"

I used my peculiar sword to block Avik's sudden attack, then kicked him away.

"Looks like he's lost control."

Avik glared at us with feral eyes, his body convulsing intermittently—a stark contrast to the man we once knew.

"We need to bring him back to his senses. Let's knock him out."

I could easily use my power to dispel his current state.

But I was curious about how strong Avik had become in this form, so I decided to hold back for now.

If things got out of hand, I'd act immediately. Until then, I'd play along.

"Just don't kill him—knock him out, that's all."

Shaowan unsheathed her rapier, her body igniting with blazing flames.

"Together?"

She nodded firmly.

Whatever had happened to Avik, our course of action was clear.

"I'll go easy on him."

"I'll get you back to normal, Avik!"