Chapter 207: The Resurrection of the Magical Beast #3
So, I acquired this skill called “Bounce Back,” which lets me deflect incoming force in a different direction. If I sync up the timing, rhythm, and just the right amount of power and angle, I should be able to bounce back just about anything.
‘What if I can manipulate gravity acting on me too?’
Suddenly, this thought zipped through my mind just as my fist came crashing down to the ground like a sledgehammer.
“Ah, no! Not that…!”
Azidahaka rushed forward to stop me. But at this point, nothing in this world could possibly hold me back.
—Gravity Reflection!
Bang!
My fist slammed into the floor with such force that the stone tiles shattered and sent debris flying.
—W-What in the world is happening…?
“I dunno! What’s going on?”
Sand and Totuga, spectating from the sidelines, furrowed their brows in concern. I looked down at my throbbing fist after the impact.
—Oh no.
I thought I’d create a stunning shockwave or maybe a matching earthquake, but nothing happened at all.
—Did I fail?
“See? I told you not to… hiccup, Gravity Reflection. Hiccup. You were trying to use the power of the earth, weren’t you? And your front paw touched the ground.”
—Ugh, don’t laugh…! And it doesn’t count since it’s a skill!
My head, once buzzing with battle excitement, cooled down rapidly. When people get too confident and excited, they tend to do ridiculous things—like what I just did.
—It’s normal for useful ideas and thoughts to come from multiple failures!
“I agree, but hiccup.”
—You brat…
To shake off my embarrassment, I lunged at Azidahaka. With my quick agility, any mythical being, even Azidahaka, would have a hard time reacting.
“This speed is rather annoying.”
Her red eyes sparkled beneath her tiara. If I could turn this into a long battle or rain down a series of attacks to exhaust her magical power, victory would be mine.
‘Gotta finish this quickly. I’ve got to prevent Azidahaka from wasting power on her pride and stubbornness.’
I dodged her advancing front paws, lifting my two paws high into the air as I shouted.
—Let’s read the future of this attack!
My raised front paws moved in a strange, squid-like fashion. Azidahaka quickly wrapped her arms around herself, trying to hide her chest, and let out a piercing scream.
“This is really pathetic!”
—I’ll do whatever it takes to win!
My elevated paws powered toward her chest.
“You really plan to do this in front of all these people!”
—Hehehe.
Azidahaka stumbled backward, momentarily rattled by my laughter filled with desire. Just then, Yingyi shouted from a distance.
—Gyuuiiing!
I suddenly halted my descending paw. The reason? Azidahaka’s white bare foot had erased the space marked by the stone tablet.
—I win!
“I cannot accept this kind of victory!”
—No matter what, a win is a win. You all saw it, right? That she stepped on the line.
I turned my head toward the party sitting by the fire. Everyone looked utterly confused, tilting their heads, trying to comprehend what just happened.
—I don’t know what just took place. Why did she suddenly step over the line…?
—Well, when beasts of that caliber duke it out, they reach a level of combat that’s beyond our understanding.
“Interesting spectacle it was.”
The party members stretched and stood up from around the fire. I bounced lightly to keep my overheated body cool and cheerfully said.
—Alright, our ranks and discipline are back in order, everyone’s fed, and we have a clear purpose, so let’s get moving again.
“Ugh…”
Azidahaka, still grappling with the aftermath of her loss. She must’ve felt even more frustrated and angry over an absurd reason for losing. But regardless of the battle’s content, the rules are absolute.
—Looks like your eyes didn’t show all the variables and situations after all. Your good eyesight is your downfall.
“After all, perfection is a myth. No matter how strong and skilled one is, there are limits to all living beings…”
Azidahaka lamented over her loss, while I just nodded along.
—True, nothing’s perfect. I bet that Satan dude’s abilities aren’t infallible either. Now, stop sulking and let’s get our spirits up. What does it matter who’s above and who’s below? We should team up and smash that Satan guy to bits!
“That’s true, but why does it still feel so annoying?”
*
Continuing past the rest area by the campfire, we soon found ourselves face to face with a stone door adorned with a skull.
—Is this the gravekeeper’s mark?
—Yeah.
Jack nodded at my question. He pointed at the skull drawn on the stone wall, surrounded by ominous-looking horns and flame motifs.
—This place also has a gravekeeper, but I bet this one is a lot scarier than last time. The more vicious the skull looks, the higher the danger level.
—So, are we about to encounter mummies much stronger than those mangy dogs and alligators from before?
As I pictured a formidable foe in my mind, the skull design on the stone door shimmered.
Kugugugu.
The door opened upward, sounding as if to invite us in. Beyond, a vast room filled with torches came into view. A dank, chilly breeze wafted out, ruffling my fur.
We cautiously stood before the doorway, carefully examining the interior before stepping in.
—I don’t see any statues, nor do I feel anything remarkable.
“Just a large empty space.”
—You see anything peculiar, big guy?
I shrugged in response to Jack’s question.
—Not really?
“I dunno. It’s just a room.”
When even Azidahaka dismissed it as non-threatening, Jack scratched his forehead with his thumb and said.
—Might be a bluff room. Sometimes ruins have these rooms that look like the gravekeeper’s but turn out to be empty. Of course, it’d be clearer once we go in.
—Then let me go in first.
I made my way into the room with cautious steps. Standing in the center, nothing seemed awry, and it felt like there wouldn’t be any issues.
—Looks fine to me.
I raised my front paws high, signaling everything was okay. The others, who had been quietly watching me from the entrance, stepped inside.
—Then we’ll follow you in.
Just as their bodies crossed the threshold completely…
Creak. Bang.
The door above us slammed down like a guillotine blade, blocking our exit.
—What the heck!?
“Is this a trap?”
Sand and Totuga looked around frantically. Suddenly, the walls on either side of the room began to lift, revealing small openings.
—Zzzzz.
With a clattering sound, crimson scorpions began to pour forth from the passages.
—Those are fire scorpions!
Startled by the sudden scorpions, Sand jumped back. Totuga next to him narrowed his eyes at the beasts emerging from the other side.
—Sssss.
—Sssss.
“Those are copper snakes. Their poison is extremely lethal.”
The scorpions and snakes surrounded us, closing in ominously.
—Just one tiny drop of their poison could k*ll! Those critters were the ancient stone dwarves’ s*icide tools! Everyone, avoid getting bitten!
‘As expected, they’re poison users.’
These venomous beasts pouring in like water filling a bathtub were part of this room’s surprise, it seems.
Of course, the poison wouldn’t affect me, but I couldn’t let my companions get hurt, so I decided to spring into action first.
—You picked the wrong fight!
I leaped straight into the swarm of scorpions and snakes.
—Swish!
—Hiss, hiss!
—Szzzz!
The scorpions and snakes latched onto my body, biting and stinging with their venomous tails, coming at me without mercy.
‘They’re annoying in numbers.’
While having the little pests swarm over me was slightly bothersome, poison was ineffective. Their bites and stings couldn’t even break through my thick fur.
‘Time to clear them all out.’
I twisted and turned like a porcupine, spinning through the entire room.
With my skill “Devastation Strike,” the snakes and scorpions lay scattered and lifeless.
—Y-You’re not affected by the poison?
“What kind of beast are you?!”
—The more I get to know you, the more impressive you seem.
By the time I regained my bearings, the room was filled with the remains of the mangled snakes and scorpions, torn to pieces and utterly destroyed.
—All sorted! Give Yingyi a bottle of water to wash off the poison and goop stuck to me.
At my request, Azidahaka filled Yingyi’s water bottle and poured it all over him. Yingyi, puffed up from drinking, flew above me, showering down like a little raincloud.
The refreshing water poured down like a mini shower, rinsing off all the splattered bits from my body.
Puddles splashed everywhere.
Shaking out my soaked fur like a dog, I caught my breath and said.
—Now, where do we head next…, hmm?
My expression twisted. Something was writhing on the ground, setting off an alarm in my brain. Was it a surviving scorpion or snake? Whatever it was, it felt very different.
Gwoom, gwoom.
Clumps of venom, bl**d, and flesh began to coalesce into a bizarre shape.
「It’s been a long time since I had a body. At last…, the time has come to end my punishment.」
The wriggling mass of venom and flesh soon took on the form of a large humanoid figure.
It looked like a golem made of flesh or some kind of Frankenstein’s monster, which was unsettling enough, but this heap of flesh suddenly looked down at itself in sheer delight.
「I can feel the breath, the air alive! This ecstasy! This joy! But….」
Multiple snake eyes embedded in its face zeroed in on me.
「Who are you?」
Unlike the dogs and alligators that had charged blindly at us, this one cocked its head, seemingly trying to gauge me and my party.
—And who are you?
At my question, the eyes on its grotesque head flickered strangely.
「I am the great Ojimann, the high priest of the dark lord.」
—You said “high priest”? Uh, wait…
Hearing the flesh’s words, Sand, the cat, shouted in shock.
—But the “high priest” was executed long ago! I heard he was split from his soul and body by a golden hook and hammer…
「Ah, that’s how the world knows me? But I have not died. My spirit merely lingered amongst these cursed stone clumps. And the claim of being a traitor is a lie. The truth is….」
The mass of flesh twisted grotesquely.
「I can’t recall. More importantly, I’m so hungry. After such a long time of famine. So terribly hungry. Yes, if I eat you and steal your flesh, perhaps everything will come back to me.」
Flop, flop.
The mass of bl**d and flesh inched closer to me.
「White fur…, why are you in a beast’s form? Your magic feels so familiar… No, what was it? Who am I? Huh? Uh-oh?」
Like some malfunctioning machine, the flesh bobbed and shrank repeatedly.
—S-Something bad is about to happen…!
“Everyone, hit the deck!”
Azidahaka shouted urgently. Just then, the expanding mass of the monster lunged out with tentacle-like appendages, slicing through the air sharply.
Whoosh.
I rapidly rolled out of the way to dodge the tentacle spear flying at me.
From my perspective, the writhing mass was no longer simply a human shape—it was more fitting to call it a Wildling formed from bl**d and flesh.
‘But eating something like that would surely give me a stomachache. I’d be in agony for a month.’
「Flesh, delicious flesh to eat!」
The colossal mass of flesh charged at me while chanting absurd phrases. I planned to retaliate with my raised paw, but soon realized that was a terrible choice.
The creature’s flesh clung to my claws without flying away, instead wrapping around me like thick mud.
「…You’re quite strong. Very strong!」
‘Can’t get out?’
I wriggled like a beast stuck in a mud pit, squirming in all directions.
Yet the more I struggled, the tighter the flesh that covered me gripped like a sticky binding.
—You little punk! Who the heck do you think you’re trying to eat? I’ll smash you to dust! Gravity Reflection!
With all my might, I slammed my sharp claws down against the floor, resisting the snaring flesh.
Kuaaaang!
[Author’s Note] If you enjoyed reading, please smash that recommendation button at the top of the mobile screen! You can brighten a writer’s day with just two seconds of your time! Thank you to everyone who provided comments and coupons!
