The Ferocious Magical Beast Assault (2)
“Kyaaah!”
“M-Monster!!”
Nah, it's a magical beast. Just a difference in terminology, but a regular monster treated like your average beast and a magical beast were existences from completely different realms.
The biggest difference was demonic energy. Monsters that took in that high-quality energy called demonic energy mostly died on the spot, but a few adapted and evolved. Creatures that broke free from the physical limits inherent to living beings thanks to their innate toughness. That was a magical beast.
Hoo.
He pressed his temples firmly. It was a habit he fell into whenever things didn't go smoothly.
A flood of thoughts cluttered his mind.
Why had the magical beast assault, supposed to happen months from now, occurred so early? Why were the type and appearance of the beast totally different? Why hadn't anyone noticed a beast this massive until it showed up right in front of them? And finally... why was this scorpion pup ridiculously strong?
A barrage of questions exploded in his head all at once.
He ignored them all. None of that mattered right now.
With life and death hanging right in front of him, such thoughts were a luxury.
He could investigate the truth and the causes after it was all over.
▶ Short-term contract established. Resistance to demonic energy increased. Physical abilities slightly boosted. Mental protection added. Raised to the master's current limit, but everything's negligible compared to your previous life.
That'll do.
He glanced back.
The classmates who had been screaming and panicking were all frozen stiff.
Song Junho, Ohana, Inabi, Cheolwangguk—at least those four.
The rest were trembling, not even thinking about fighting.
“Kishirik.”
The scorpion magical beast drooled rivers while spewing thick demonic energy. Yoon Jiye's face grew paler by the second in response.
No time.
He shot a look at Song Junho, who was swallowing hard.
“...!”
His silent gaze pressed the unspoken command: Look after the kids.
The guy nodded.
Hoo.
He gathered mana. It spread through his calves, igniting an engine-like tremor.
He calculated the distance for a full sprint.
Tracing the optimal path, he used the classroom desks as footholds and charged like a streak of lightning.
▶Master. The second layered joint seems to have the weakest durability.
Got it.
The beast raised its pincer.
The jaw plate blocking its mouth lowered, revealing grotesquely venomous fangs. Having tasted human flesh, drool poured down its jaws.
“...!!”
He reacted instantly. He'd deliberately aimed for its blind spot and hidden his presence.
Yet it still noticed. As expected of a magical beast—its instincts were on another level compared to regular monsters.
“Kishirak!”
He dodged the pincer slamming down like an iron mace by digging in his heel.
Closing the distance as much as possible, he gripped the sword hilt at his waist.
Many Slashes (Lv.10)
He drew in a flash.
The hasty slash didn't carry full power. Three strands of sword energy scattered like heat haze, striking the joint.
A cracking sound rang out. The jaw plate shattered, revealing writhing muscles.
From the slashing stance, he twisted the blade and thrust.
It wouldn't go in easily. Muscles tougher and more elastic than old tires were woven densely like a net.
He forced strength into his wrist. Infusing his own trick, he tore through like a saw.
“Kishieek!”
The beast screamed and dropped Yoon Jiye.
He scooped her up quickly and kicked off the ground.
Whoosh-!
As if refusing to let him go, it followed up immediately. Seeing the shadow looming overhead, he judged calmly.
I need to buy time.
Using his leg as a pivot, he spun his body.
The pincer grazed past by a paper's thickness, smashing the innocent floor.
He overloaded the nerves and muscles in his right leg and unleashed a kick. It connected additionally, and he forced it flying with extra power.
Excellent Footwork Lv.5 proficiency has greatly increased.
Excellent Footwork has evolved to Lv.9.
Bam-!
The beast, at least five meters long, soared through the air. It tumbled into the tunnel it'd burrowed through.
Won't last long.
He felt it through his toes. The thing hadn't taken much damage.
Its defense was absurd enough to make him scoff involuntarily.
Kay, analyze.
▶Analyzing Yoon Jiye. Damage to scapula and sternum confirmed. Some muscles torn. Demonic energy hasn't spread to vital organs.
Not too late, then.
He pulled out an emergency potion. A healing potion made by Jeon Eunbyeol.
He smashed the cap with his finger and poured it over her abdomen.
A acrid smell filled the air with a sizzling hiss.
“Kuh...”
She let out a pained groan.
In this state, she wouldn't be at full power.
Glancing back, the rest were still out of it. Only a few usable ones were gearing up to fight.
He had to question if these were really Prunel Academy enrollees—their response was that pathetic.
“Get your shit together.”
His shout, laced with mana, drew every eye to him.
“Wanna die? Anyone who can fight, get your skills ready now. Non-combatants, fall back and prep buffs. If you can't even do that, get the fuck out of my sight and stop getting in the way.”
The guys who would've normally bitched back stayed dead silent.
He scanned quickly and pointed at the pink-haired girl in the middle.
“Puffball. Your unique ability's healing magic, right? A-rank too.”
“Uh, y-yeah...? Huh?”
She blinked in confusion at being singled out.
He tossed Yoon Jiye and the potion her way like hot garbage.
“Take her to the corner and heal. Soon we'll have casualties piling up, so stay way back. Remember: if the healer falls, more people die. Grab the other healing types too and use 'em as assistants.”
“O-Oh, o-okay!”
The pink puffball caught on fast enough to shatter stereotypes about ditzy sluts with pink hair.
-Kyirrrruk!!!
A roar echoed. The scorpion, pissed at being launched, was climbing back using its pincers like tools at terrifying speed.
“W-We gotta run!”
“Hey, where you going? Together!”
Some bolted for the classroom door. Seeing that, the eyes of the kids with fight in them wavered.
They were hesitating in their own way, but he didn't care.
Can't escape anyway.
“Th-The back door won't open!”
“Phone's not working either. C-Communications down?! In the capital region?”
“Look outside!”
A translucent barrier filled with black mist was visible through the window.
Demonic Veil.
One of the Mental Image Realms, the signature spell demonic mages used to declare, Time to fuck shit up.
Something he'd seen to death in his previous life.
▶Analysis. Demonic energy density confirmed. A-rank master level.
Tch...
A-rank meant everyone here, him included, would need at least 20 minutes of pounding to break it.
If I push till my body's wrecked, maybe 10... but we'd all be wiped by then.
Barriers like this were harder to break from inside. The core—often called the battery—had to be inside to maintain it.
No traces of a large ritual, so the core was definitely in here.
And that scorpion pup's got it.
Quick judgment: kill it. That was the way to maximize survival.
But he wasn't the only one who'd figured that out.
“Kishieek!”
The beast burst from the tunnel with a massive roar, showing itself threateningly.
Defying expectations of an immediate charge, it paused. Its three pairs of red compound eyes—18 in total—darted around.
Smarter than expected. It was sizing up the number of kids and comparing to its own power.
...Brain mod too?
Magical beasts were basically dumb. They covered with killer instincts. But ramp up intelligence, and they got way trickier than just strong.
Demonic mages' tech always defied common sense; maybe they'd tinkered with its brain.
Ominous demonic energy coiled around its body. Thick, sticky energy like liquid concentrated at its tail tip.
...No way?
Gurgle-!
The tail tip bulged round and expanded like a tube. The beast widened the opening like a drain snake and fired dozens of eggs at the floor.
Mag-Blazer Scorpion uses Queen's Call (A).
In less than a second, the shells shattered. Identical mini-scorpions matching the mother's looks burst out.
Adult woman-sized, weaker momentum, but still magical beasts. Enough to trip people up.
A queen specimen?
What the fuck, all kinds of bullshit.
As he frowned, Song Junho approached. In his hand was a magic sword, likely from Seven Demonic Swords—flames indicated Flame Demon Sword next.
“Song Junho.”
“Yeah.”
“You take charge of the kids. Handle the pups.”
“...Planning to solo it?”
“Why ask something stupid? You know.”
Demonic energy wafting off it, bulked-up muscles, flipped exoskeleton. No way the class could take it.
At least B-rank. As a magical beast, even higher.
To down a boss, you needed at least five awakeners of equal rank. And that was just to beat it.
To drop it without casualties? Over ten.
He could declare it confidently: only someone like Kang Hanseong could beat this monster.
“...Trying to hog the cool moment?”
“Fuck off.”
The kid was begging for a smack... but since he'd bothered with a joke, he'd play along.
“Big bro's craving scorpion meat after ages. I'll taste-test first, so handle the pups and join slow.”
“You know that's bullshit even as you say it, right?”
“Anyway, I'm going.”
“...Don't die.”
Die? As if. This crisis was a drop in the bucket compared to his past life.
Hoo.
He spread the mana pooled inside through his calves and beyond. Muscles twitched and surged.
Power into his soles. He sensed the fine, dense tendons. Pumping mana into every flowing vessel, he forcibly boosted intensity and reaction speed.
Bam-!
The floor cratered. He closed the gap in an instant and locked eyes with it.
Regular slashes won't cut it.
He'd felt it saving Yoon Jiye. Wild swings like before wouldn't work.
The tail moved. He twisted mid-air, forcing a direction change to dodge.
One breath in. He drew the energy swirling in his lungs to his arms.
Gripped the sword, imprinted his will strongly. Pulled the sheath under his armpit, aimed precisely.
Slashed down like lightning.
Been a while.
In terms of raw power, top five of his creations. The least burdensome one among them. A technique made for tanky bastards relying on defense.
Cold chill spread, eerie noise resounding. A bone-chilling aura enveloped the area.
“Ki...sik?”
A short death rattle from the beast's maw.
It was instant. Crack-! Its torso split in half.
Sword energy reached the tail tip, unleashing a sword cry.
Mysterious technique activated.
Ignores 50% of target's defense. Cold attribute applied to target.
Current flesh cannot embody this swordsmanship.
Unregistered skill.
Name it as creator...
Ghost Cry Slash.
Ghost Cry Slash registered.
▶...This one's decent enough, so I'll let it slide.
Ridiculous. My naming sense is top-notch, huh?
Frost rimed the landing spot. Despite no cold talent, he shook off the spreading chill from the blade.
Looking down, his wrist was twisted unnaturally. A full rotation, like a twisty bread. Blood trickled from his mouth—not just trauma.
Heavy strain on body.
Temporary fracture...
Massive mana consumption...
▶Contract established. Emergency treatment commencing.
Even at 30% of past power, and my body can't handle it...
Still a long way to go.
Looking back, all the kids were screaming as they fought the pups. Some were dropping.
Rest a bit, then jump back in ASAP...
▶! Master, danger!
Her shout snapped his gaze around.
Realization hit at the same time.
Assuming its death on his own was a mistake.
Even if it was a corpse-like state split in half, spewing foul demonic energy and toxic blood.
Even if anyone would've let their guard down.
The result didn't change: he'd gotten careless.
Bam-!
His body was flung back. He crushed desks and slammed into the wall.
The arm he'd reflexively raised swelled grotesquely. His side throbbed—probably a few cracked ribs.
“......”
Focusing his retina, he spotted the beast's massive form through the dust.
“Kishiraak!”
The bisected torso was rejoining. Blood bubbled from the split, vomiting demonic energy.
Fully regenerated, it looked pristine, as if never slashed.
Mag-Blazer Scorpion uses Transcendent Regeneration (SS+).
Forcibly embodied via skill core. Permanent decline from unbearable power.
Oh, fuck me.
Suddenly, he craved a cigarette like mad.
This is what I get...
For the first enemy post-regression, this one was a real bitch.