Ch.101Ideal (2)

The enemies swarm in. Like beasts, they use their hands as front legs, crawling on all fours as they charge.

If that were all, it might not be so bad, but their appearance was disgustingly horrific.

Even with my strong stomach, I couldn’t help but grimace at their appearance.

They looked like humans with their skin peeled off.

Between their legs, something either dangled or didn’t depending on their gender, and they all ran while dripping blood.

These monstrosities charged without hesitation or fear. It was a scene straight out of a horror game, but my mind quickly stabilized.

[Mourning]

[Time remaining: 60 seconds]

I consciously thought of Selma. Someone I didn’t kill, but who deserved to be mourned.

Though clearly a villain, she didn’t deserve such an end.

A thread of doubt rises within me. It races through my veins, traveling along blood vessels and nerves until it reaches my brain.

Thump.

My mind becomes clear. As the faint fear that had been creeping up dissipates, I draw the axe and longsword from beneath my cloak.

Whoosh!

Flames rise from the Star Blade in my right hand, while the axe in my left howls fiercely.

Behind me, Lorian spins her beheading sword, and Melody takes a deep breath as she readies her stance.

A familiar sight. Having fought shoulder to shoulder before, there was nothing new about it.

So naturally, my eyes turned to my sister.

My sister was looking at me.

“Can I borrow it?”

I didn’t ask what she meant. I wasn’t that naive, and we’d spent enough time together.

I handed her the Star Blade, and she gripped it lightly.

My sister’s eyes, her gray pupils, were shining brightly. The light they emitted burned intensely, consuming the glow already hanging in the air.

The whites of her eyes had darkened like a moonlit night, and with those eyes, she looked at the approaching enemies.

My sister was a Mage-Eye.

There was no doubt. The darkening of the whites of her eyes was their characteristic.

I watched my sister step forward, recalling the traits of Mage-Eyes.

“Sis.”

“I’ll handle the rear.”

“A wedge formation?”

“Yes.”

A Mage-Eye is a warrior who possesses and uses magic through their magical eyes as catalysts.

As a warrior subclass, they could be said to share the same roots as Mourners.

They’re proficient in all kinds of weapon techniques and can handle weapons at the level of ordinary warriors.

Of course, like other warrior subclasses, they can’t learn weapon skills.

Instead, they possess magical eyes. They learn simple magic through these eyes.

It might not be magic worthy of being called special, but I know.

Mage-Eye is quite a popular profession.

I saw my sister’s magical eyes turn toward me.

“Ruwellin?”

“Yes.”

“Let’s go.”

And we advanced. The enemies rushed in, closing in, surrounding us, approaching.

But there was no fear. Not just because of Mourning.

If I had to face this alone, it might be different, but I’m not alone.

The approaching monstrosities approached silently.

All that could be heard was the sound of them kicking against the cave walls, floor, and ceiling.

They approach. They’re close now. I see one jumping toward me. It crouches on its hind legs, accumulating strength, then leaps.

The distance closes in an instant. A speed that an ordinary human couldn’t respond to.

But I can see it. Feeling the trajectory that reads through intuition, I stepped forward.

At the same time, I heard a thud beside me.

We created a harmony within that moment.

BOOM!

With a thunderous roar, the monstrosities flew into the air.

One with its chest pierced and flying, another with its head split vertically by the beheading sword.

Among them, the one I split stood out the most. With one swing of my axe, its upper and lower body separated and shot far away.

[Critical Destruction]

[When landing a critical hit, you can destroy objects or body parts.]

[Adds 2 points to Strength.]

It was a spectacle brought about by the Mourner’s strength, far beyond human limits, and the newly acquired skill.

But there was something as outrageous as what I had done.

SLASH!

It was a monstrosity split left and right. Even after being cut, it didn’t fall.

As if held by space itself, it remained suspended, only falling after we had passed.

The power of the magical eye.

More enemies swarmed toward us. Seeing them rush in like a wave, the four of us were already standing shoulder to shoulder.

The monstrosity that was about to leap from the front stops. As if its legs were caught, it halts abruptly and collapses, mixing with those following behind.

Over the collapsing heap, my sister glided in and swung her longsword.

A precise yet powerful sword strike, different from when I swing. Following the crimson trajectory, six heads rise.

They’re still alive. Aiming for my sister, legs sprout from the heads as they try to leap at her.

Melody was the one to stop them. She extended her sword and shouted.

“‘The mountain echoes, and shouts resound! Ah, brave six gladiators! Advance, advance! The dragon of the mountain range awaits us!'”

An expansion of the incantation I’d heard before. Six fiery projectiles streaked across the air, leaving red trajectories.

THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD!

The projectiles pierce the heads. With remaining force, they shatter the heads of those heading toward my sister and push down those just jumping from the ceiling, making them roll on the floor.

My sister leaps toward the empty space. She thrusts her longsword straight, carving three crimson trajectories in the dark cave as she moves.

It was beautiful swordsmanship. Similar to Melody’s but somehow different.

As she returned her swung longsword, without stopping, she split, pounded, and burned the head of a monstrosity trying to bite her forearm, carving consecutive strikes.

It was swordsmanship specialized in consecutive attacks. The kind of techniques my sister had newly acquired in this world.

Within her flexible yet elastic movements, what occasionally stood out was the basic combat technique of elves and her magical eyes.

Gray light moved swiftly within the crimson light in the air.

CRACK!

When the arms and legs of a creature approaching from a low angle to exploit my sister’s opening froze, she dropped her foot on its body, crushing it.

As enemies rushed in to exploit the opening when she swung her sword, she swept her gaze over them, momentarily freezing them, and in that moment, Melody’s thin sword pierced their brains.

When Melody’s flank was exposed, my sister’s gray eyes swept over it, and a momentary gust of wind pushed away the creatures trying to dig into Melody’s side.

My sister was perfectly compensating for the drawback of Mage-Eyes, who can only use simple magic without needing incantations or hand signs.

In fact, because of this, she was close to perfection. My sister worked in perfect harmony with Melody to crush the enemy.

Of course, right now, it was more than perfect—it was easy.

“Later, we’ll need to get some supplies!”

Lorian laughs cheerfully as she covers her body with blood. The blood flowing over her body hardened into armor, and the red trajectory shot forward, drawing a circular path like a moon halo, cutting off six heads simultaneously.

I was beside her. With a similar but different circular trajectory, I knocked away enemies caught in my explosive leap with my body and cut the waists of seven creatures with my swung axe.

The Blood Knight’s secret technique, Moon Shadow, executed simultaneously.

Enemies flood toward the empty space. There must be dozens of them.

A quantity that would cost me both arms if I were alone. But I don’t hesitate. I advance and swing my axe.

None of them were weak enough to need my protection.

I faithfully swung my arms and legs at the swarming creatures.

BOOM!

My axe crashes down, crushing one along with the floor. Behind the one that falls split in two, another rushes with its mouth open.

SLASH!

I respond with a turning kick that thrusts forward.

As if pierced by a giant greatsword, its waist breaks and it collapses.

The sensation of crushing blood, flesh, and bone made my heart race, but.

My rising breath calmed with one heartbeat.

I am me. Not my mother’s tool or slave.

Reminding myself, I shot forward. That woman, my mother, still coveted me.

So I continued the slaughter, coldly and diligently.

Monstrosities trying to surround me from all sides.

I twisted my waist and swung my axe at the closest one in front.

—!

Its waist breaks as it’s hit by the screaming axe, Screamer.

Dodging its flailing arms by leaning back, I swing my left hand toward the next closest one behind.

CRUNCH, CRACK!

My left hand, swung like a claw, cuts one’s neck and crushes its head in my grip.

Before the sound of dripping blood, I see another creature approaching organically. From top to bottom, it jumps down after clinging to the ceiling with its claws.

It would be a surprise attack that would overwhelm an ordinary human, but.

[Haunted Intuition]

[You are immune to surprise attacks and gain an advantage in detection actions.]

[Adds 2 points to Dexterity.]

Not for me.

I twist my body, bend my waist greatly, and extend my leg. My leg, swung like a giant dragon’s tail, splits the waist of the jumping creature.

Another bisection.

While other creatures killed by my companions still moved after their bodies were cut, those hit by my attacks couldn’t.

It was the harmony created by Dragon Drop and Critical Destruction.

“Sister! Take this!”

Eventually, even the axe became a hindrance. I handed the axe to my sister and shot into the midst of the enemy formation through an explosive leap.

Creatures gathered densely. They tried to withstand my charge by clustering, but it wasn’t easy.

I broke the waist of the large creature at the front with my elbow charged with momentum.

And I swung my left hand, shaped like claws, at the necks of those trying to take positions behind me.

When a creature was grabbed by its legs and shot like a projectile, I dodged by leaning my shoulder and grabbed it, then hurled it at the creatures digging into my sides.

After that, I threw away a severed ankle and swung both hands shaped like claws.

Swinging from bottom to top, twisting my body to kick, and using the recoil from the kick to twist my waist greatly for a turning kick.

Bodies of not-quite-humans, split and broken, pile up. Those that Ortemilia said had no souls.

A quick death was mercy. I cut, sliced, crushed, and shredded without pause.

My fingers dig into flesh and bone to crush, and my legs bisect like greatswords along their trajectories.

Occasionally, my elbows and knees pierce like horns, destroying vital points like the heart or head in one strike.

I mourned these beings with the Dragon King’s martial arts, created to kill even great dragons.

Maintaining my composure while wishing peace for the souls of these beings who were controlled and had their souls stolen, only to be dragged around to buy time.

As I suppressed the rising exhilaration, the wave was subsiding.

They were retreating. Whether it was strategic thinking or instinctive fear, I couldn’t tell.

I didn’t feel the need to pursue. As I caught my breath to suppress the excitement that had been boiling despite maintaining my composure, my sister extinguished the light that had been flickering in her eyes beside me.

“Well done. It’s our first time fighting together, but you were excellent. In some ways, better than Yeolkong.”

“Me? Aren’t you praising me too much?”

“Your mouth corners are turning up. Cute.”

My sister touched her own mouth corners and then pinched my cheek.

A skinship that didn’t hurt, clearly showing that my sister found me adorable.

It reminded me of the time before my sister disappeared, making me bite my lip, and my sister chuckled and moved forward.

Nothing remained where the monstrosities had retreated. As if the intense battle had been an illusion, only the limestone cavern extended ahead.

“Let’s go.”

My sister led the way, and Lorian, clad in blood armor, followed, shaping the blood on her beheading sword into a floating spear.

Preparing to fight at any moment. As I stared blankly at that.

“Bigger is better, right?”

“…Pardon?”

Melody muttered something beside me.

“What do you mean…?”

“Nothing. Let’s go.”

Why is she acting like that?

We pursued the fleeing creatures without needing to compose ourselves.

After all, our original purpose was to exterminate them.

Small groups of monstrosities tried to ambush us on our way, but ambushes were pointless against a party with me in it.

Yet, the ambushes didn’t stop, which was strange.

Clearly, Mother Netel is the source of ‘Father’s’ power, and the Mourner is a kind of contractor with Father as a transcendent.

Even the Mourner’s skills are significantly influenced by Mother.

So why does ‘Mother’ act as if she doesn’t know that Mourners are immune to ambushes?

It’s puzzling, but I couldn’t find the answer. This too, I’ll have to figure out gradually.

I quickly crushed the head of a monstrosity that had tried to ambush us and walked on, and my sister, after leading us for quite some time, finally stopped at the end of the cave.

“…This is.”

Something was waiting for us at the end of the cave.

The monstrosities that had fled were also gathered there.

They surrounded it as if protecting it, and whatever they were protecting was pulsating with a uniform rhythm.

“A heart?”

As Melody said, it was a heart.

But not just any heart.

It was a strange heart covered with bones, with odd muscle-like structures connecting to the walls and floor.

Though clearly a heart, it carried a pressure that felt like a gigantic living being.

It beat with a sound: thump, thump, thump.

The entire cavity was filled with its heartbeat.

If that were all, I wouldn’t have thought much of it.

But above the heart, my status window appeared.

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The status window, outputting as if the heartbeats were language, looked similar to the usual translation, but.

The characters were broken, as if it were an incomprehensible language.

Moreover, the characters kept changing their appearance, writhing.

What is it trying to convey? Is this even normal?

Despite my doubts, the status window continued to output strange characters, trying to convey something to me.

As those strange characters mixed and rearranged.

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A clear word emerged, and something rushed over it.

It was an axe.

The axe I had lent to my sister, Screamer.

It rushed at high speed, beyond the status window, splitting the heart.

CRACK!

The split heart spilled blood onto the floor, and as the status window, having lost the entity to translate, flickered off.

“…I know.”

I froze upon hearing my sister’s murmur.

My sister wore a bitter smile.

As if she had done something terrible.