episode_0142

46. Looking at the collapsing tower (2)

A giant demon wolf with three heads. It was glaring at me while spewing black smoke from its three heads, and it boasted an enormous size.

It felt like looking at a large house. However, the movements were sharp and fierce, unlike its huge body, so I couldn’t relax.

As I slowly aimed my sword and watched the guy’s movements, the guy started to howl loudly and started to breathe out black smoke not only from his mouth but also from his body, and he hid his body.

In a situation where I didn’t know when or where they would attack, a drop of sweat ran down my cheek and down my chin and soaked the floor with a ‘thud’ sound. Then, with a ‘squeak’ sound from my left, a claw shot out of the black smoke. I raised my sword in my left hand to block it. As if colliding with steel, a ‘chaeaeng’ sound followed by an unpleasant ‘squeak’ sound of scraping metal rang out.

” As big as his body is… his strength is also strong. But not to that extent…! ”

I sent sparks flying as I slid the claw of the guy who was making contact with my sword away, and then I swung the sword in my right hand down from above and cut off the claw with a ‘squeak! ‘

The creature quickly withdrew its front paw, which had been extended into black smoke, leaving behind a severed claw, making a ‘growl’ sound, and disappeared again.

” Where the hell did you go? What the hell… ”

The claws of the guy who fell to the ground began to melt into pure white flames and disappear, perhaps because they were cut by a sword imbued with divine power.

The moment I looked at that sight, I thought about how I could find out the guy’s location!

I felt the guy’s claws coming towards me at a fast speed from the opposite side, so I tried to block it with my sword, but I felt a hot wind from above, so I turned my head up, and there it was.

There was a guy coming down with his mouth wide open as if he was going to swallow me. I quickly used the portal made of pure white flames on the floor to avoid it.

With a ‘thud! ‘ sound and a teeth-chattering sound, the guy buried his mouth in the ground.

” Phew, if I had been even a little bit later, I would have been swallowed by that guy… ”

The guy who failed to swallow me and kissed the ground emerged from the black smoke and glared at me.

Apparently, when I met the guy after the fight with my brother, he was only able to pull out one body part from the cloud of black smoke. Judging from his actions just a moment ago, he was… ‘growing’.

It seems he has figured out how to use the power he possesses.

” Well, that doesn’t mean I’m going to feed you. Wake up. ”

No matter how strong he becomes, he will not be able to escape the fact that he is the guardian of the tower. In other words, it is possible to conquer it.

As I poured divine power into the two swords and did as he did, I began to ‘crackle’ and white flames and black smoke began to intertwine between me and the guy as if they were trying to devour each other.

A suffocating situation. It was the start of the second match with the guy again.

*****

The sounds of ‘Chae-aeng!’, ‘Chaeaeaeng!’, ‘Chijijijik!’ resonate.

It was a sound that sounded like steel clashing against steel, which was not the sound of a sword and claws clashing. However, Yuji-seong, who was watching the scene, could tell that it was the sound of a sword and claws clashing before his eyes.

Charlotte, who has now become his own younger sister, and the guardian who was guarding Namsan Tower. The sound of the two fighting will not leave his ears.

At first, it was a speed that could be followed, but the guardian of the tower hid itself in the black smoke and aimed for Charlotte from various directions, thrusting its sharp claws and teeth, and Charlotte used the portal made of a circle of pure white flame to dodge or deflected the claws with her sword.

The fight between the two continued like that, and it was so fast that you could no longer follow it with your eyes, but only after looking towards the place where the sound came from that you could tell that they had collided there.

” Haha… It’s really a completely different level now. ”

When Charlotte and the guy first collided, I was worried that Charlotte would get pushed, but I realized that was a needless worry.

The Guardian of the Tower. The attacks he made using black smoke as he changed his form were very threatening. Surely… if he had continued to fight as he was now… instead of fighting each other by sharing attacks like that, he would have been hunted one-sidedly.

However, Charlotte followed the guy’s movements and tried to counterattack in accordance with the guy’s attacks.

However, it looked like it was a little difficult as the guy wasn’t completely out of the black smoke, but it seemed like that wasn’t going to last long.

Because… I could tell by the sound that her counterattack was getting faster and faster in time with the attacks of the guy coming out of the black smoke.

I just trusted her.

*****

The guy had been attacking me from various directions, but now he seemed to be tired and had slowed down.

If not… then I guess I have perfect timing for the guy to attack.

I’ve become so used to the black smoke he spews out that I can now tell which direction it’s coming from.

” This time… the right and the top… right?! ”

Attacks coming from the right were simply deflected with the sword, and attacks coming from above were dodged by a mere sheet of paper, and then the body was turned around to cut them down.

It wasn’t a complete cut, but it was deep enough to cause sticky black blood to spurt out, with a ‘scrunch’ sound.

That means I finally got my ass kicked by the guy.

The guy, howling in pain, appeared just away from me, belching black smoke.

One foot was half cut off.

” Alright… Like this…!!! ”

I thought that now that the guy was injured was my chance, so I quickly created a portal and swung my sword behind him. The guy was unable to move properly due to his injury, so he allowed my attack and fell down with severe injuries.

I approached the guy who had fallen with a ‘thud’ and raised my sword high to finish him off, then cut off his neck.

I thought it was the end as I saw the body and head completely separated and sticky black blood spurting out.

Yeah, I thought that was the end.

If it weren’t for the black thread that appeared at that moment.

” What the…?! ”

A large number of black threads shot out from the separated body and head of the guy, entangled with the black threads that came down from the sky, and were dragged away.

I looked in the direction the guy was dragged to, wondering where the heck that thread came from, and saw a black thread extending from the tower.

It was the black thread that came out of the tower guardian’s body and dragged the guy along.

” Haa, really until the end…! ”

The black thread that had been left behind after dragging the guy away seemed to be reaching out to me as well, probably intending to take everything that was left around it, so I swung the sword in my hand and burned it.

” Wait a minute…? Are you targeting me… and other people too…?! ”

I quickly turned my head and looked at where Ji-sung Oppa had been. There was a black thread stretching out there too, so I snapped my finger and it disappeared.

As I slowly approached my brother, he stood up, his severed leg seemingly fully recovered, and asked me.

” Just now, that black thread… ”

” It looks like it’s extending from the tower. More than that… If it’s visible to Oppa… The other three are in danger. ”

” Yeah, that’s what it looks like. It looks like it’s aiming for me, so it must be heading towards the other three too. ”

As we arrived at the igloo, burning the black thread with Ji-seong Oppa, there was…

There were demons wandering around, wrapped in black thread and resembling mummies.

*****

After defeating the black thread-wrapped demon and approaching the igloo Yeonseo had made, Yeonseo popped her head out with a ‘thud’.

” Are you… done now? ”

” Unfortunately, no. ”

” Haa… I thought so too. I saw that the guys’ movements suddenly changed, but they didn’t disappear. ”

Yeonseo looked around, then opened up the ice barrier again and signaled Jisung to come inside.

In the place where I followed her, Hyun-seok was lying there, breathing heavily and looking exhausted, and Ji-ah, who still hadn’t regained consciousness.

” Are you okay…? ”

As I approached Hyunseok, who was breathing heavily, Hyunseok, who confirmed that I had come, slowly nodded his head.

” Haha… It’s okay. I’m just a little tired. But judging from your expression, it doesn’t seem like a good situation? ”

” Yeah. I cut him down, but… he went back to the tower. ”

” Really…? Then, I guess I’ll have to find that guy while conquering the tower. ”

” Right. But… how were the guys outside? ”

Hyunseok thought for a moment and then sighed deeply.

” Haa… Those guys were really weird. Ah! But don’t worry, they’re not dangerous. It’s just that even if you knock them down, they’ll move again because of the black thread, so you’ll just get tired. ”

” I see… Thanks for letting me know. ”

” No, that’s not enough… I have something else I want to ask… ”

Hyunseok looked around, observed the situation, and then whispered in my ear.

” You gave me your strength…? ”

When I heard that, I could tell what he wanted to hear from me.

I smiled faintly and whispered in his ear.

” That’s… well… ”