Chapter 455 – King of Beasts (3)
I prayed with my head against the spear, and Horsha with a greatsword.
We exchanged silence in the stone chamber where there was not even a burnt smell. Horsha, who had been smiling until just now, was also in a tight game mode, erasing her expression and searching with all her might for a chance to cut me in two.
The heat that burned Horsha and her entire thoughts made the moisture in the stone chamber disappear as if it had escaped. There was no sign anywhere to raise the curtain on our duel in this place where there was no moonlight.
However, outside, the story is a little different.
The troll shaman bastard must have known all about that awakening ritual.
As if our wives and mother-in-law, who must have felt the waves of mana, were trying to cope with the young shaman, the tension that was comparable to that of the stone chamber came through like a stretched thread.
─Tong.
As if something had happened to them, the sound of stepping on the steps echoed.
──Quaaaaang!!!
Horsha and I let out a heavy crash and collided our lifelike spears and knives.
[… Chew!]
It was me who clicked the tongue first.
He frowned at the spear pole, which would bend even if the aura of beast return was wrapped around it, and took the step to escape from the Master’s Master to the left. Horsha’s size had shrunk to less than half compared to before, but her power seemed to be twice as strong as when she was a troll.
Using my practical experience and wisdom as ingredients, my elite Daegaltong built a strategy like lightning.
‘No stabbing! If the attack is blocked, I will search for it!’
The stabs of spearmanship are broadly classified into heart thrusts and liver jab thrusts.
However, Beast Return is the magic of unifying attack and defense!
Ganjab’s stabbing cannot break through that mana coating.
But what if you throw a serious stab and it bounces?
Like the Japanese soldiers who made a suicide banzai charge into the side of a Tiger tank, their bodies would be thrown to the side. It was only a matter of time before the back turned and the posture collapsed, and it became Nor/Le/De after being cut into 3 pieces.
‘Then there’s only one thing I need to aim for!’
With my eyes wide open, I countered the attack as if facing a rampaging elephant head-on.
Chae-chae-chae-chae-chae-chae–!!!!
Super-fast herbivorous exchanges, as if several intangible cultural asset hitters were fighting with kitchen knives!!
The air trembled as if it could not stand the bloody battle between the two warriors wielding the power of the beast. I struck the spear I was holding like a sword as if piercing through the gap of the moment. Horsha made a gesture to deflect her, but my spear caught her trick and suppressed it.
[100,000 volts, discharged——!!!]
─Pajijijik!!!!!
With the addition of the spear edge rune buff, the thunderbolt flowed through the sword to Horsha.
[… Thank you so much!!!]
But that was the moment when my lightning crossed the crossed weapons and rode the mana coating of Beast Return. I shuddered at the realization of my miscalculation this time again at the touch of the mana repulsion.
[I saw through that ruse!!]
Booung-!! A greatsword flew from the side. He turned the spear wrapped around the lightning halfway to block it, but the impact, as if kicked by a horse in a carousel spinning at the speed of sound, gnawed his teeth.
[Uh, so-so–!!!]
Fuck!! The mana consumed by Beast Return melts away!!
I took my foot off, surrendered to the shock, and flew backwards. Horsha chased after me as I flew away and struck down with his greatsword, but when I thrust mid-air acceleration with
Horsha chases after her wildly as if she has seized her victory!
[You thought I was equipped with a magic-blocking rune!! Stupid!! Even with your magic and mana, do you think you would make such a mistake!!]
[You fucking bastard!! Bring a sniper setting to a man’s right?!]
I shook my brain as I shook off the cold sweat with a fierce movement.
Did Horsha predict my plan? Even though she had no intention of going to the battlefield herself?
‘As expected, this bastard is also a macho with elite level intelligence!’
I dodged and countered the onslaught of attacks without even blinking. Even rushing into defense was impossible with only the Beast Return buff. I had no choice but to accompany magic.
It was dangerous to go on like this. While hitting Conand, the mana bottle, which had gone down to about 70%, was consumed at a rapid rate like the iced Americano of an office worker walking under the scorching sun!
‘Beast Return is also magic! If the mana container runs out, it will be useless!’
It was a reality that sharpened the oblivion of my life, but paradoxically, it was also the safest and surest odds for me to win against the Horsha bastard.
‘This bastard is no longer a troll! If I just turn off Beast Regression, I can kill him without chasing it!’
Before fighting Horsha, I had been thinking of several ways to get rid of this bastard.
Cardiopulmonary arrest? Out.
As you can see just by looking at the Beast Magic Inner Mode, Beast Reversion puts mana inside and out. Hitting the internal organs would be more effective than the outer skin, but targeting only vital points until death is a strategy that does not exist in reality.
Absolute perforation area? Out.
No matter how much you reduce the time it takes to activate magic, the first deal is too long in a world where victory and defeat can be decided in 0.1 seconds. There was a 0% chance that Horsha, who saw my lightning jade, would ignore it.
The answer he came up with after much thought was the mana consumption war.
Whether it’s health or mana, it doesn’t matter. If you cut his power, you win.
[Nord! Even if you have superior mana than me, if you compete with strength, you will be defeated! In addition, the mana consumption of Beast Return is extremely low! Didn’t you have the confidence to break through from the front! You are the coward itself!!]
Horsha dutifully swung her greatsword.
It is a powerful swordsmanship because it is straight and unstoppable. Big and small wounds were constantly engraved on my body.
[So you must have thought!! If you use attack magic on me to activate the rune of ᚦ (Thurisaz), you will be able to reduce the total amount of my mana more efficiently than reducing the mana of Beast Return!!]
[Yes fuck!! That’s the correct answer, Alchemist!!]
In order to carry out the operation, I showered the bastard with lightning.
No matter how great this bastard is, there was a low chance that I, a hybrid all-rounder of magic and physics, would be pushed back by the amount of mana.
I thought that if I forcibly activated the magic offset, I would get Horsha’s mana quickly and surely, just like taking money out of the bank account of an office worker who can survive a month with 500,000 won a month.
[But if you get caught, you can’t help it!! Now that it’s like this, it’s a contest to see who has more mana and premature ejaculation——!!]
I threw He revealed his determination to give up and changed his tactics.
The beast return mana that covered my body disappeared!
[──You’re doing something stupid!!]
Even a moment of shock could not overcome the warrior’s instinct to kill each other.
The Horsha guard aimed at my empty body. It’s a difficult part to avoid, but in front of that great sword, everything is like a vital point. It was sliced horizontally, but the location of the vital points would be a problem?
─Right!!
But at that moment, while avoiding the greatsword, I landed the first effective blow on Horsha’s waist.
Even the mana coating couldn’t be completely cut off, but the tangible touch on the fingertips was proof that the enemy’s mana had been cut off.
[… This guy!! You cheated again!!]
[Brother!!! What’s going on between us!!! Like an amateur!!!]
──Beast Return Inner Armor Mode.
It was the previous stage of blood magic. This is the best way to leave a buff effect while reducing mana consumption.
Of course there are downsides.
Didn’t it get rid of the defensive power in the spec that was pushed back? If you rub against it, it’s a fatal injury if you get hit by a fracture. The amount of mana consumed was definitely reduced, so the odds of winning increased even in disadvantageous situations, but my risk also increased.
However, there are advantages to accepting that risk.
[If you peel off all the coating on the outside, you will be naked too!! If you’re not scared, come and see Drew, Australo Trollcus son of a bitch!!!]
If it’s right, you’re behind? Then if it doesn’t fit
I am good at weapon skills. If I gave up the long game, I could go on the offensive.
[Big… !!]
─Ae-Aeng Chae!! Horsha was the first to attempt her defense.
This kid is not immortal either. There’s no way I’ll hit you easily, but if you keep hitting me with your body, your mana will run out first. If it was her bare body, she wouldn’t be able to defeat me no matter how much she awakened.
In other words, this was a poker match with mana stakes.
I have a lot of stakes, but the cards come out like crap.
The stakes are low, but Horsha’s card luck goes crazy.
The two of us bet the minimum stake on each other to win the game, and fight to get the enemy’s wallet—mana barrel—first!
‘──We will break the weapon!!!’
Unlike me, Horsha can’t put Beast Return’s mana on her weapon.
Normally, that would be a downside, but not now. If you block it with a weapon, that bastard’s mana won’t be consumed.
If Horsha blocks my attack with her weapon, she will fall into the dilemma that I will consume more mana when I attack!
I had to break that pitch-black greatsword to be able to slash that bastard’s body and cut mana!!
We exchanged attacks, defenses, and counterattacks in 0.1 second increments, cutting off mana that was more precious than each other’s bones and flesh. The blood I shed was a substitute for mana, and the dwindling mana of Horsha was like the rest of his life.
─Kurrureung!!
A commotion could be heard from outside the door. Our wives are also fighting together with our mother-in-law.
If that’s the case, you can’t just become a husband and lose yourself. I swung the spear ferociously as if I had truly become a beast. The green mana drew countless lines of light and cut through the darkness of the stone chamber.
[Bastard, what a fucking strong greatsword!! But how long will I last!!]
[It’s a great sword that was dormant in the mongrel village!! It’s called Trollsverd!!]
[Chew! Are you calling the Berserkers hybrids just because they turned into beasts?! I couldn’t have had an ancestor who was proud enough to act with such an arrogant attitude!!]
─Chaeeng!! The macho maw fighters boasted their pride and teased their snouts even to the point of fighting for their lives.
Fact violence was applied and the great sword was passed over. It was an attack that didn’t have any martial arts-like sword style, but the experience of sparring with the knight commander of the elder’s house was quite helpful.
[Arrogance is the virtue of the king!! The expression of authority is the virtue of the ruler!!]
[80% of Ng’s subordinates are out of my hands!! I foolishly dumped the rest in Alwyn, so I’ll search them all soon!!]
The shedding sword is heavy. I tightened my jaw enough to make my gums bleed.
No magic Instantaneous explosion is high, but compared to Beast Return, its cost-effectiveness is too poor.
It was the difference between the duration and burst that gamechangers say. What was needed now was more cumulative damage through continuous dealing.
I would use it if I could kill it by penetrating the enemy’s mana coating, but the strong defensive power transmitted to the spear made it impossible to imagine the image of killing an enemy at once.
The spear was not suitable for defense between colliding armaments, unless it was possible to keep the distance by saving the lich. 【Gertur】’s counterattacks were constantly spewing out. If it wasn’t for the spearmanship of the Age of Gods, somewhere in his body would have already been blown away.
[Cancer!! The death of the warriors was known right away!! Those epaulettes on your shoulders!! You can’t know if you don’t know!! Isn’t that the treasure of the Empire entrusted to the warrior who served me!!”
[Yes, I saw the island nation’s personality that insists that the cheap rice be left behind!!]
[Kuhahahahaha—!! If you are trampled and robbed, everything will be forgotten!! Just like my old country, your country will be forever forgotten in the new age I will rule!!]
[Kuu!]
While trying to retort, I shut her mouth as I was busy dodging the sword.
Horsha’s sword was, in martial arts terms, a sword.
She believes in her own defense and comes in without hesitation!
It was a simple ignorant swordsmanship, but it was difficult to accept. Doesn’t the fact that I don’t care about defense mean that even if I launch a counterattack, I can’t hope for the ideal of friendship?
Although ignorant, it is a good swordsmanship that suits oneself.
No tank uses tactics against infantry.
[History is rewritten by the winners!! Isn’t that right!! Did you know the history of our huldufolk!! I knew that the people I killed were human words, not monsters!!]
[Even if I find out, nothing will change! There is no creature that does not kill its own kind! Didn’t you bastard also kill Alwyn’s soldiers, a fellow countryman who has no self?]
If the same person also deserves to die if he strays from the road and becomes a professor who harms people, why can’t he kill a monster that has never even been human?
Under that principle, Earthlings would not be able to kill even monkeys.
It was an accusation that had no reason to be heard by Horsha, who drove trolls or ogres to her mass death.
Retreat while blocking, Thrust Dash while penetrating the chasing gap. His thigh was sore from the grazed greatsword, but he avoided a fatal wound.
[No, that’s different!!]
Caang-! Horsha shouted after nullifying Guertur’s 4th Poomsae, a counterattack that offsets physical energy.
[If you don’t have the qualities to be chosen by the seal, nor the ability to awaken with help!! They are not the humans of the new world!! Realizing your identity and opening your eyes!! That is the minimum condition that a subject of Huldfolk must have!!]
[That’s why you count non-subordinates by ‘how many’!!]
Gap in the chest. Stabbed and blocked. I made a mistake. Even if he aimed at the vital spot, he could not penetrate the defense of the beast regression, which had no weakness. Like this fucking cheat magic. Was it such a terrifying magic if it turned into an enemy?
─Sigh!!
The attack, half a beat faster than before, cut through his forearm. It was because the attack failed and gave me half a breath.
The mana of beast return and the giant leather armor were also cracked.
Fuck amy If there were no epaulettes, he would have been injured enough to be unable to move his arms with them now.
Rather, this leather is something that may or may not be able to be repaired!!
The chicks are the durability of my high -class Mustang full set! I roared, squeezing out even the anger I hadn’t had before.
[You can clearly see that the head is attached, you stupid bastard!! If you kick out the underheads just because they don’t stand out, that’s not the state, it’s just the Huldupolk friendship community——!!]
[Interesting opinion!! Arguments aren’t bad either!! But if you don’t have the strength to wield it, any theory is just an excuse for a loser!!]
[That’s right. Fuck you!!!!]
Whoever sees it, it is a shameful thing to say that we should dress up in Kibae and wear a hyeonpi.
However, it was also a fact that the words of the guy who got his dick robbed from the hyeonskin and kicked while crawling on the floor were not persuasive. If it was a swear word, this bastard could go after it and take the time to make a will and pour it out.
─Attack as quickly as possible!
─At least a little less consumption!
Unlike the booming roar, the sharper clash than before no longer shook the air. My spear and Horsha’s greatsword penetrated like bullets, causing blood, flesh, and mana to flow.
──And then, the time has come.
─Push!
A very faint wound.
It was blood that was hard to see even from an injury, such as being lightly scratched by a tree branch while walking barefoot in the woods.
However, the wound on Horsha’s forearm did not heal.
[… Awesome!!]
Although the wounds are minor, the meaning is great.
Both Horsha and I had a vague intuition about the meaning and subsequent development with the elite grand opening.
[K, oh oh oh oh oh —-!!!]
Was it like that? Horsha finally came out with a game of one stroke.
Shrrrr!!!
The black greatsword inhaled mana. An artifact that uses mana like water. It must have been a trump card that she hesitated to use and saved.
‘But it’s within the expected range!!’
I developed [Gertur]’S counterattack herbivore. It was to protect myself.
It is a relic weapon deliberately taken by a son of a king. It was only an idiot or an amateur to think that it was just a sturdy greatsword.
You can understand the thoughts of your nemesis with your hands.
I don’t know if that’s true, but before I knew it, I was getting a sense of Horsha’s personality.
‘This bastard prefers a strategy that minimizes attrition!’
A tactic that seems common to both tactics and strategy.
Horsha is a pup who avoids attrition and seeks a more certain victory.
It can be seen from the fact that he fights himself to block me, who is a protruding force, spares the stamina-consuming Beast Return until he is pushed back, and uses diversionary tactics to save his forces when targeting Alwyn.
Apart from wisdom, tactical strategies reveal individual likes and dislikes.
If this bastard uses a trump card——she said, it was when she was cornered and could no longer think of attrition.
And that is, none other than now!!
─Thump!!!
The curtain of the duel comes to an end.
It is the last move of me, who is not sure of breaking through the defense before it is activated, and Horsha, who realizes that and tries to finish me off with the defense.
… Quarreung!
And what determined the outcome was the home advantage.
[──Amy?]
The moment all my nerves were focused on the high sword, the floor went black.
A feeling of bewilderment as if I had been stabbed in the back of the head during the Cold War came over me. The posture I thought I was going to stand on was disturbed. The ground collapsed, illuminating the wide space below with the colliding light of Beast Return’s mana.
──The country under the ground.
It was a place where vegetation grew even though there was no light, and buildings and towers of a style never seen before were built like nostalgia left by the survivors of the ruined country.
The city in the dark, where my tenacity melted, completely and completely took away my consciousness as an archaeologist for a very, very moment.
The hometown of Ulster’s collateral race, the Huldfolk.
──Remnants of an ancient civilization, Quartgonia.
[Become a herbivore to rebuild our country, Nord—!!]
Horsha, who had smashed her bottom and flung me into the air, put me in the reach of her greatsword a little faster than I could get her back into her stance with her magic, which she had completely removed from her options.
─Puffy!!
In the next moment, I was deeply split in the chest with the arm holding the spear.
