Ch.76Monster (2)

The Forest of Falling Snow

A forest with heavily falling snow was an ideal place to prepare for an ambush.

The accumulated snow clearly revealed footprints and made it easy to hide traps.

It didn’t matter if someone got caught in a trap or noticed and turned back.

One could simply hide in ambush at a strategic location, a pathway that could be called a firing lane.

But for a long time, no one came. It was quiet, with no sounds of waving weapons, advancing troops, or growling monsters.

As if no one would ever come.

“…They said someone was coming.”

I turned around. Uncle Mourner was there, leaning against a tree to accommodate his uncomfortable leg. In his hand was a wooden stake he had carved himself.

“They were definitely coming.”

His expression was confident, yet he also looked somewhat wronged.

I couldn’t argue with him. If I hadn’t played Dark Grimm and been dragged along, it might be different, but I remembered the Mourner skill tree perfectly.

At level 9, a Mourner gains detection abilities. At the time, I only focused on functionality rather than principles—abilities heavily influenced by the existence of “Father,” I presumed.

That detection ability is close to hyper-intuition. It could also be called a sixth sense.

So a Mourner who reaches level 9 cannot be ambushed. Even against invisible enemies, normal judgment determines whether they hit or miss.

Considering the “Repeated Mourning” gained at level 7, it might actually be better to be hit by the first ambush.

When hit, mourning activates. After that, it’s the Mourner’s turn.

Knowing this well from handling it many times, I understood.

Uncle wasn’t talking nonsense.

And with such intuition sensing an approach, it was rarely wrong. Something was definitely approaching.

In other words, the situation was heading toward the worst.

“Shit.”

No footprints appeared on the snow.

No shadows fell between the trees.

There was no human presence, no sign of monsters, mages, or warriors they might have brought to capture me.

Only a terrible silence hung in the air. Something was clearly going wrong.

But what on earth was happening?

And what could I do against it?

My nature is closer to a warrior who fights head-on. I couldn’t perceive what was happening.

Instead, I turned to the expert.

I needed to seek the expert’s opinion, then either retreat or push forward.

That’s when the anomaly occurred. Isela’s face, usually expressionless and subtle, had hardened.

With a pale complexion, her lips trembled as she looked at me. In her eyes were realization and fear.

“Run—”

Before she could finish, I felt arrows piercing various parts of my body.

A choking sound escaped. The death rattle produced by unconscious breathing.

Speaking requires breath in the first place. That’s why people let out death rattles when they die mid-sentence.

The difference was that I didn’t die. Yet the penetrating arrows delivered pain.

The pain reached my brain. The pain that surged to my brain gave me a certain thought.

The faces of the dying. Faces that closed their eyes before me and never opened them again.

I naturally became solemn. Something accumulated in my heart enveloped my muscles.

[Repeated Mourning]

As solemnity itself became strength, I gritted my teeth with a groan. The axe I had drawn in my left hand rose high.

I drove the raised axe into a tree. The vibrating axe tore through the tree like a chainsaw.

The tree, having lost its base, fell.

My body naturally turned, and my head followed, allowing me to see countless arrows stuck in me.

There were many. Arrows shot all at once by those who approached without making a sound.

Reflexively clearing the axe away from my vision filled with arrows, I drew my sword with my right hand.

A natural draw. Excellent martial art acquired with a proficiency bonus of 3.

Defense and deflection, enhanced by proficiency bonus.

I thrust my sword toward the countless white light arrows filling my vision.

Arrows deliberately painted white even to the shaft.

There were too many to deflect them all.

Thunk, thunk—arrows piercing my skin. Killing intent reaching toward my brain but contained by mourning.

As Uncle Mourner widened his eyes and prepared to throw his stake, and as Lorian gritted his teeth and formed armor with blood,

I saw Isela. She held a crossbow with a bewildered expression.

Just then, an arrow fortunately crossed my vision.

White arrowhead with white shaft. On this item typical for hunters was a familiar engraved pattern.

The symbol of a burning mountain.

A symbol I remembered seeing before. An engraved emblem.

Before I could twist my head to avoid it, lead bullets lodged into my helmet one after another.

One, two, three shots. My brain felt shaken. But the power of mourning kept me grounded.

Barely maintaining consciousness,

“Kuk…!”

It’s familiar.

An extremely familiar feeling.

Skilled in stealth, erasing their presence, leaving no footprints on snow.

Excellent jumping power, masterful hunting.

Hunters. Born that way. Those who cannot survive except by hunting.

Naturally, someone came to mind. Someone aiming a crossbow in panic right behind me.

A crossbow bolt shot past my head and lodged into a tree, and then conifer leaves scattered as a figure appeared.

White leather clothing. Something draped over the body—a cloak or poncho—was familiar.

Familiar to the point of being chilling. I saw hunters emerging from behind tree shadows.

Hunters holding nets or spears in one hand and hand axes in the other.

Hunters with long, large tails and the distinctive ears of snow leopards.

They rushed toward me.

*

Sparks flew in all directions. In that momentary world of flickering sparks, my eyes fiercely scanned around.

Yet there were things I couldn’t block. Like a hand crossbow suddenly fired at close range.

Clang!

Even such crossbow bolts were inconsequential. The sparks now rose from my helmet.

An attack that shook my brain. If I weren’t using mourning, which prevented debuffs, I would be dead now.

Hunters diving into my range, ignoring the chills running down their spines.

For the first time, I felt what it was like to be hunted. This wasn’t something humans were meant to experience and survive.

They attacked with expressionless, emotionless efficiency, following the most effective paths.

As if I weren’t a person, as if I were some monster or beast that needed to be hunted.

It was terrifying. But I had no time to dwell on feelings close to humiliation.

They were no easy opponents.

The term “extermination squad” was fitting.

Swish!

My swung sword cut through the air. I aimed for the waist in a way that should have been hard to avoid, but they dodged. Their bodies bent flexibly.

That’s how felines are. Snow leopard beastmen have good jumping power. A leg shot up—I didn’t expect it and couldn’t block.

Thwack!

“Kuk…!”

The snow-covered leg struck my chin. My head shook, and something flashed in the corner of my vision.

Clang!

An axe suddenly swung at close range. I blocked it with my own axe. Before the colliding hand axe could escape, I tried to hook it with the bottom of my axe.

Whoosh!

The leg I swung to break through the defense only cut through air. The hunter casually dropped his weapon and retreated.

The hunter already held a javelin. Gripping it in reverse, he immediately threw it. It was as natural as part of his body.

I blocked it with my monstrous body, beyond superhuman. The axe head I forcibly brought forward was pushed back by the javelin, shoving me.

The javelin had enough power to push back a monster with 22 points of strength. Sure enough, looking at it, the arm had become like that of a snow leopard.

A shapeshifter race. Like Isela. But there was no time to consider this.

The moment I deflected the javelin, my vision filled with arrows.

Countless arrows rushing at me all at once, without order. Even with extremely accelerated reaction speed, the overwhelming number was daunting.

But I moved. Stepping forward, I swung my two weapons in succession.

With the axe blade, I deflected five arrows, twisted my body to deflect one aimed at my neck with my helmet, and thrust Star Blade to block the remaining three arrows.

The moment of deflection created options for counterattack. Ignoring the trajectory I instinctively sensed, I twisted my body further, and my foot touched the ground.

[Explosive Leap]

And I accelerated. My body shot forward. Those trying to block me scattered. They dispersed in all directions, targeting me from precisely the distance my weapons couldn’t reach.

Arrows, stones, javelins, throwing axes, nets, hunting hooks, snares.

The hunters’ jumping power was inferior to mine in speed and distance, but they were superior in maneuverability.

They moved away lightly and approached lightly. Steps as distant as a dream.

Just like Isela had done. Their cooperation was also formidable.

So I blocked and endured the projectiles they fired all at once, targeting the closest one.

But I couldn’t reach him. As I swung my axe, an arrow struck it.

It only deflected slightly, but in that gap, the hunter who had ducked hung from a tree after jumping into the air.

I immediately tried to duck, but seeing an axe falling toward my head, I retreated.

They know my weaknesses.

But I couldn’t catch and kill them.

Due to their excellent jumping power, overwhelming hunting ability, perfect cooperation and techniques that complemented each other’s blind spots.

I was being hunted.

[Explosive Leap]

As I stomped and jumped up, the one on the tree threw himself forward and fired a sling.

Lead bullets hitting my head. As I was about to collapse, I cut down the tree, and while rolling on the ground, they drew and threw javelins.

As I tried to hide behind a tree while rolling, I had to face a spear tip that pierced through the tree and struck my helmet.

My body was pushed back. My head shook. If I weren’t immune to debuffs, I would have collapsed by now.

I rolled on the ground and stomped again.

Weapons shot from all directions, piercing through even the message appearing in the corner of my vision.

Spears, knives, axes. As I turned my body, fluttering my cloak, they missed. Behind was the hunter who had been continuously throwing spears at me.

“Shit…!”

Gritting my teeth, I extended my leg and kicked.

Seeming to realize his mistake, he brought his arms forward, but it was too late.

His arm broke, his body bent and flew away. He crashed through a tree, was pushed back, and rolled on the ground.

But he wasn’t one to stop just because it hurt a little. He was taking out medicine to apply to his arm.

Tough bastards. Fucking bastards.

If I didn’t finish him off, he would rejoin and be a pain again. I tried to finish him, but it wasn’t easy.

As I took a step, a hunting hook ensnared my leg.

Even if I tore it off with strength, a net was cast toward me.

I swung Star Blade to deflect it, but in that time, they had already sprayed potions and retreated.

I missed the opportunity. I couldn’t even finish them off freely, as I wished.

I grew anxious. Naturally, a familiar face filled the gap.

A man with an impression strangely similar to Isela’s but colder.

He faced me with two axes in his hands.

Clang!

He blocked my swung Star Blade by pushing it away with the axe head.

Then he retreated to avoid my following axe swing and threw one of his axes.

I deflected it with my axe, and suddenly he was at close range.

Without hesitation, he dove in and aimed for my neck with a dagger.

He was skilled. In the end, if they aim for the neck, the only option is to offer bone. I allowed the dagger.

Thunk, the sensation of the dagger piercing my neck.

There was a feeling of life, of something escaping.

But it was an opportunity. I dropped my axe and stretched out to grab the hunter’s neck.

Crack, crunch!

And I tore his neck apart. His handsome face contorted in pain before being torn off.

Seeing that, there was a slight surge of exhilaration in my stomach.

But before I could contain that emotion, three figures cast their shadows over me.

Without a trace of sorrow, they unfurled scrolls toward me. Scrolls with flames drawn on them.

Flame projection. There was no time to dodge.

Whoosh!

In the midst of three streams of flame, I gritted my teeth.

There was no burning pain. Mourning numbed my mind.

Repeated Mourning elevated me.

Death descends. My death approaches. Confirming positions with melting eyeballs, I finally shot forward.

Crack!

A gasping sound was heard. Due to the leap-enhanced kick, his waist folded and his internal organs were crushed.

With a slight laugh I couldn’t hide, I swung my sword.

A severed head rose. Our eyes met. That death didn’t remain in my eyes. It descended.

What is this feeling?

Before I could contemplate, a hammer fell toward my blade.

Clang!

The sword escaped my hand. Immediately, I saw a hunter swinging a hammer beside me.

My helmet dented from the hammer blow, and a javelin lodged in my chest, pushing me back.

Thus pushed back, I saw countless arrows pouring toward me.

The feeling was strange.

Each one was clearly weaker than me.

I knew it, and those bastards knew it too.

Yet the fight was established.

They knew their weakness, used my strength against me, cooperated with each other, and acted efficiently.

With calculations that felt cold, they tried to hunt me.

Like any extermination, it was clearly a method for hunting something stronger.

Did the ones I faced before feel similarly?

It was a helpless feeling.

I had no chance to do anything.

Traps didn’t work and were useless.

My allies had fallen somewhere in the fierce battle. I hoped they were alive.

It was clearly a desperate situation.

But why?

Was it the sense of omnipotence that mourning gave?

Something was boiling inside me.

The tension felt as danger approached became excitement, and the sensation of flesh tearing and breaking became thrilling.

The life I had grabbed and broken, conquered with my own hands.

“Ha….”

It escaped my lips. I raised my arm, smiling.

Thunk, thunk, thunk. I aimed my pierced arm and flipped it.

Crack!

Activating Iron Man, my arm scattered fragments and the three lodged arrows flew out. Two who had aimed crossbows from behind trees hid in time, but one was too late.

He collapsed, his head and upper arm turned to rags from the fragments and arrows. Seeing this, I stomped my foot.

[Explosive Leap]

With a tearing sound, my body accelerated.

The world stretched long and then returned to its original form, and suddenly the hunter hiding behind the tree was in my hand.

“Kuk…!”

With an escaping breath, he drew a dagger to aim for my neck, but he was too slow.

I swung the captured hunter.

The swung body hit a tree, his eyes grew dim, and his lower body was shattered and flew away.

Scattering intestines and flesh. Life escaping in death.

The other hunters, unmoved by the sight, widened the distance and aimed their weapons. But they were still too slow.

Using Explosive Leap again, I charged through the rain of arrows.

Another was shattered by my front kick, and the rising exhilaration made me swing my hand.

Crack!

Hand-to-hand combat was good.

My five fingers, merely spread and swung, split a human skull and emerged from the other side.

The three dead collapsed to the ground with thuds.

“Monster…!”

Deaths soaking the ground and hunters staring at me with tense, wide eyes.

The enemy was still numerous. They hadn’t exhausted all their means yet.

But why?

[Mother’s Favor]

[This is your armor, forged with your blood and tempered with your flesh and bone.

May Mother protect you.]

[All parts of the armor are treated as parts of the body, sharing the effects of regeneration and health recovery.

They also share body enhancement spells or effects.]

[(Llewellyn exclusive) When Repeated Mourning activates—

For some reason, I was enjoying it more and more.

I pushed through the message blocking my vision and moved forward.