Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Chapter 3 - Fragment #3
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“Kyaaah—!”
It wasn’t just a loud noise.
The roar itself was a weapon.
It didn’t stop at shaking eardrums—it stimulated survival instincts, and Karen’s legs gave out, sending her crumpling to her knees.
Max clutched his ears with both hands, vomiting in agony, while even Luther lost consciousness for a moment to the beast’s bellow.
[Master!]
Integra’s cry snapped Luther back to his senses.
He looked straight ahead again and saw the Jogres charging right at him.
It closed the distance in an instant, its head filling his vision.
-Kwagang!
The massive bulk of the Jogres, hurtling forward at terrifying speed, toppled giant trees in one go.
These were trees that had lived over a century, yet now they snapped and shattered like twigs, littering the ground.
“Guhk.”
Luther breathed.
He was sprawled on the ground.
He’d reflexively thrown himself aside to dodge the attack.
-Kugugu!
Another massive rumble echoed.
It was the sound of the debris from the giant trees crashing down from above the Jogres’ head.
Luther breathed again.
He took in the Jogres.
A gigantic tail and thick hind legs.
Its form evoked the tyrant of the Cretaceous, a Tyrannosaurus.
Luther pushed himself up with his torso and gripped the handle of his large axe.
He saw the Jogres roughly turning its body.
Its thick legs shoved against the earth, and then its tail swept across the ground.
-Kwagaga!
The unconscious Lycas were crushed alive.
The gruesome sight of dark red blood mixed with chunks of flesh staining the ground was horrific.
“Kyaaah—!”
The Jogres roared again, lifting its head high.
And in that moment, Luther was certain.
It was definitely the one from last night.
The Jogres that had charged at him while he lay in the crater.
It wasn’t a coincidence.
Just as Luther had recognized it, the beast had recognized him too.
It had shown up here chasing after him from the start.
Why.
What the hell for!
[Master! It’s coming!]
The moment the question arose, the Jogres shoved off the ground again.
“Dodge!”
Luther shouted reflexively toward Karen and Max, but the Jogres was too fast.
Its tail swept the ground once more as it moved at high speed.
-Kwagang—!
Max and Karen were flung away.
It seemed Karen had activated her psychokinesis just before the hit landed, but even that couldn’t fully block the tail swipe.
The two, piled together, flew over ten meters before crashing to the ground in a mangled heap.
He couldn’t tell anything more.
Blood—whether Max’s or Karen’s—pooled thickly between them.
[Master! It’s coming straight at you again!]
At Integra’s warning, Luther threw himself sideways.
Just like in the game, to evade the straight-line charge.
-Kwagang!
Trees directly in its path collapsed again under the horns protruding from its forehead.
Luther rolled aside to dodge, then sprang up and drew his large axe in one fluid motion.
In Luther’s eyes, he caught the Jogres’ tail and hind legs.
Up to this point, it was following the pattern.
Dodge the frontal straight charge sideways, then strike the exposed rear.
Luther swung the large axe behind his head and charged.
As the Jogres shook off the tree debris and began to turn, he kicked off the ground and yelled.
“Booster!”
-Kwagang!
Flames erupted from the axe blade’s thrusters.
The blade accelerated with monstrous propulsion, streaking like a meteor toward the base of the tail and rump.
-Kwaang!
The axe blade slammed into the ground.
Red blood filled his vision, and Luther clearly felt the hot sensation caught on the blade.
But at the same time, he knew.
It was shallow.
It had sliced through hide and thick muscle, but failed to reach the bone.
“Kia!”
The Jogres bellowed in pain and rage, kicking at Luther.
He saw it coming but couldn’t move.
The stiffness from the booster attack held his legs in place.
[Master!]
At Integra’s scream, Luther was sent tumbling across the ground by the massive foot.
“Kuhk, kuhk.”
A ragged sound escaped Luther’s mouth.
Ribs bruised or broken, he couldn’t breathe properly. Blood trickling from his forehead dyed his vision red.
[Commencing self-repair.]
[Commencing self-repair.]
[Master, snap out of it! Master!]
Integra’s voice buzzed frantically in his head.
[Administering painkiller.]
[Commencing self-repair.]
Pain faded in an instant.
Ribs mended, breathing eased.
So Luther rose immediately, gripping the axe handle tighter.
Painkillers could handle physical agony, but not mental shock—yet Luther stared down the Jogres with startling calm.
The beast, gushing blood from its tail, lifted its head high.
Luther knew exactly what that meant.
‘Breath attack incoming.’
He had to move.
But instead of fleeing backward, Luther adopted a charging stance.
The instant the Jogres opened its maw, he unleashed the pent-up power in his legs.
-Bang!
Luther shot toward the Jogres like an arrow.
Simultaneously, a massive flame poured from the Jogres’ mouth like a waterfall.
-Tswhaaa—!
It scorched the air as it swept past Luther’s head, raking the ground.
By a hair’s breadth, Luther slipped by the flames, exposing the beast’s defenseless underbelly.
“Booster!”
The third and final booster.
The devastating horizontal slash tore into the Jogres’ lower abdomen, ripping it open.
But it still wasn’t enough.
This attack too fell short.
It rent the hide and spilled blood, but no fatal wound.
Not Luther’s fault.
The large axe’s handle had snapped under repeated boosters, halving its power.
[Master!]
“Kiaak!”
Mad with pain from its gutted belly, the Jogres kicked at Luther.
But things were different now.
The agony delayed its attack, and Luther—barely shaking off the stiffness—couldn’t dodge but managed a defensive stance.
-Pbyeok!
Luther was kicked back hard.
But the outcome differed.
Arms thrust forward and feet braced just before impact, he mitigated the blow and rolled to his feet instantly.
“Haa, haa.”
Luther panted roughly, eyeing the Jogres.
The beast, guts spilling, glared back with ragged breaths.
It wouldn’t last.
It would charge again soon.
So what now.
Axe broken, boosters depleted.
Lv1 Energy Gun couldn’t pierce that thick hide.
Escape wasn’t an option.
With Karen and Max’s status unknown, fleeing was out of the question.
Plus, the Jogres had tracked him twice already—running was likely impossible.
He needed a way.
A means to take it down here.
‘Energy Cube.’
The one in the crater.
Integra had said absorbing it would yield info and upgrades.
“Integra, how long to absorb the Energy Cube?”
At Luther’s rapid question, Integra replied in a fluster.
[Sacrificing efficiency, around 30 seconds estimated.]
30 seconds.
Longer than expected.
But not hopeless.
“What upgrades would it enable?”
[W-wait. Master?]
Integra flustered again but grasped his intent and continued swiftly.
[Can’t know exactly until absorbed.]
[But absorbing the Energy Cube’s energy and nanomachines would at least repair the axe and restore booster energy.]
That would do.
The moment Integra’s clipped voice hit his mind, the Jogres roared and charged again.
Slower than before, but intimidation unchanged.
‘Divert its attention.’
Instead of charging or fleeing, Luther drew a bomb fruit from his belt, hurling it at the Jogres—precisely its head—then fired his Energy Gun.
-Kwagang!
The bomb fruit exploded spectacularly, stealing the Jogres’ gaze.
Even for it, ignoring a blast right by its head was impossible.
And Luther moved.
He leaped back to the crater in one bound, crouching and grabbing the Energy Cube.
[Powerful energy source detected.]
[Initiating system recovery.]
[Recovering core system.]
The sensation dwarfed absorbing the magic stone.
Mental shock rippled through him as Integra’s voice continued.
[Proceeding to Nanosuit Lv2.]
[Sacrificing efficiency for speed.]
[Core system recovery in progress.]
[Computation speed rising.]
[39 seconds remaining to completion!]
Longer than predicted.
But Luther held his breath, sharpening his senses.
From here, he couldn’t see the Jogres.
But he knew it was scanning confusedly.
Sounds reached him.
The beast’s heavy breathing circled the area.
[21 seconds remaining!]
The Jogres halted.
Luther’s instincts screamed.
‘It’s coming this way.’
Approaching.
Hiding to finish the upgrade wouldn’t work.
He had to move, even if trouble brewed.
But not yet.
Wait till it got closer, till the upgrade progressed more—endure the impatience.
[13 seconds remaining!]
The moment Integra shouted.
“Kyaaah!”
The Jogres thrust its head toward the crater with a screech.
Facing the massive head, Luther gripped the cube to run instead of freezing in terror.
But right then.
-Kakaga!
A sharp whistle, and a flying sword embedded in the Jogres’ eyeball. It screamed, staggering back.
[Karen! It’s Karen!]
At Integra’s cry, Luther pieced it together.
The sword in the eye was Max’s.
Max had thrown it with all his might; Karen guided it psychokinetically.
“Over here! Right here!”
Max yelled from beneath distant trees.
Blood-soaked, but his eyes burned. And he held another sword.
The Jogres realized the implication; Max taunted it, poised to throw.
“Kyaaah!”
Urgency gripped the Jogres—it charged Max.
[7 seconds remaining!]
Almost there.
Luther tightened his grip on the Energy Cube, focusing.
Changes began.
The cube melted into his hand, merging.
The Nanosuit, covering only half his forearm, enveloped his entire right arm.
-Thump!
His heart pounded wildly.
Heat surged through Luther’s body.
[Reinforcing equipment.]
[Activating equipment.]
The snapped axe handle reformed.
Thrusters doubled from four to eight; the blade grew larger, longer.
A blue line from his right arm snaked up the handle like veins, illuminating the entire axe.
[Upgrade complete.]
[Nanosuit now Lv2.]
[Stealth Mode duration extended: 3 to 5 seconds.]
[Combat Acceleration available.]
“Haa—”
Luther exhaled hot breath, lifting his head.
He shouted at the Jogres’ back as it ravaged the forest seeking Max and Karen after exiting the crater.
“Jo-gres!”
It reacted to the roar and hostility.
One eye gone, blood pouring from its gut, yet its ferocity matched its arrival.
“Kya aaaah!”
The Jogres whirled to Luther, who kicked off the ground.
[Using Combat Acceleration.]
[5!]
-Bang!
Luther charged.
[4!]
The beast swung its tail.
[3!]
“Stealth Mode!”
[Activating Stealth Mode!]
[2!]
Luther vanished.
The tail swept the ground; the Jogres visibly panicked at his sudden disappearance.
[1!]
Luther scaled its back.
The beast, nerves on edge, sensed him—but too late. Luther had already kicked off its head, soaring skyward.
[0!]
[Disengaging Combat Acceleration.]
[Disengaging Stealth Mode.]
Luther reappeared midair.
The Jogres glared with its remaining eye, cheeks puffing.
Flames.
But Luther was faster.
The instant he gripped the axe handle, Integra yelled.
[Booster!]
-Kwagagang!
Eight thrusters ignited simultaneously, generating insane rotational force.
Spinning around Luther’s grip on the handle with perfect balance, the whirling blade descended on the Jogres.
No chance for flames.
-Tskwaak—!
It was beyond a mere slash.
Hide and flesh caught in the spinning axe blade pulverized with bone.
Less a cut, more a crush.
-Thud!
Luther landed roughly. Moments later, the Jogres’ mangled head hit the ground.
The headless bulk toppled forward.
-Kugung!
Dust billowed.
Red blood gushed from the neck stump, flooding the earth.
“Huu… huu… hu…”
Luther panted, turning.
The Jogres’ headless corpse filled his view.
His chest heaved.
Thrills raced down his arms to the axe handle.
Victory.
Survival.
Defeated.
Luther raised both arms high, roaring in triumph.
Elation threatened to burst his heart.
[Victory over Jogres!]
[Acquired massive combat data.]
[Established Large Axe Combat Lv1.]
[Established Large Axe Skill: ‘Spinning Whirlwind’.]
[Master won!]
Integra, more excited than Luther, shrieked.
If she had a body, she’d be jumping in place.
So Luther smiled unwittingly.
He collapsed to the ground but skipped teasing the cheesy skill name, offering thanks instead.
“Thanks, Integra.”
He hadn’t fought alone.
It was with Integra.
At his gratitude, Integra gasped as if touched, then replied warmly.
[Thank you too.]
[Awarding 2 shop points for your amazing combat and judgment skills, Master.]
[You were so cool today.]
Her thrilled voice drew another smile from Luther. He asked Integra.
“Can you locate Max and Karen?”
[Yes.]
[Both show life signs.]
[Injured, but no immediate danger to life.]
Relieved, Luther exhaled and slumped in place.
All three survived, Energy Cube secured.
And the Jogres—surely laden with potent magic stones—defeated.
Victory.
Lying back on the ground, Luther gazed at the sky and smiled once more.
Savoring the thrill of triumph.