Chapter 119
Chapter 119
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 119
Chapter Title: You Got Kidnapped
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After completing his deal with the God of Night.
Krash chugged a potion to heal the wound on his leg, then passed through the corridor.
Before long, he found a room.
Scattered everywhere inside were shattered holy relics.
He had smashed them exactly as Haring instructed.
Following the trail of broken holy relics deeper inside, he soon spotted a head of black hair.
It was Haring Lagren, wielding a dagger and smashing another holy relic down onto the floor.
"Haring."
When Krash called out to her, Haring whipped around to face him.
Her eyes widened slightly larger than usual at the sight of him.
"Did you handle it?"
"Yeah. No need to smash anymore."
Haring slowly lowered her dagger.
Relief washed over her features.
And for good reason—she had faced the God of Night herself.
She knew firsthand just how dangerous he was.
So she must have thought she was in peril too if she couldn't resolve things the way Krash had instructed.
Lucky she was such an obedient one.
"Did you take down the god?"
"He didn't have much power left to truly call him one, but yeah, something like that."
She gazed at Krash with wonder in her eyes.
"Are all Valheims like that?"
Krash shrugged.
"Even more than me."
"I see."
Haring accepted it without question, and just then, a distant thud echoed from afar.
It seemed Anix and the erosion beasts had clashed on their way down here.
The God of Night might be gone, but erosion beasts were still erosion beasts.
They weren't exactly stuffed full enough to ignore prey right in front of them.
"What now?"
Haring sheathed her dagger at her waist and asked.
"We join up."
Haring might be fine, but he'd expended quite a bit of power here.
His legs were still trembling, even.
So linking up with Anix's group was the right call.
"Oh, and we'll grab the eroder on the way."
"Let's go."
The curt girl took off the moment he spoke.
As Krash stepped forward to follow, his body swayed.
Thud!
His mental fortitude barely kept him upright as he stomped the ground to steady himself.
He'd nearly rolled around like an idiot.
Haring halted ahead and glanced back.
"Want a piggyback?"
"Think you could even manage it?"
She reached back to pat her own rear and tilted her head at his question.
"Probably?"
"Cut the nonsense and let's move."
Krash sighed and started walking again—
That was when his Sixth Sense flared.
Sixth Sense
[Dodge.]
Instinct kicked in, and Krash thrust his hand forward.
Haring stood right there, and the moment his palm nudged her away—
Krraaaash!
The outer wall crumbled as a spider erosion beast burst out, spewing threads straight at Krash.
'Damn it.'
Cursing inwardly, Krash shielded wide-eyed Haring and let the threads wrap around him.
The spider erosion beast yanked him up in an instant.
"Krash!"
Haring screamed and chased after him, but her eyes reached only the hole in the ceiling.
Krash was long gone by then.
Gone.
Nowhere in sight.
Her eyes shook violently.
Her breathing grew ragged.
'No. Calm down.'
She forced herself to settle.
The situation had triggered old trauma.
She needed to snap out of it.
He could only be saved by her right now.
"Haring!"
A voice called from behind.
It was Anix and his crew.
They looked ragged from battling erosion beasts on the way.
Anix rushed to Haring's side, scanning the surroundings.
He'd spotted what he assumed was an eroder en route.
After tying them up tight, he'd hurried inside to find the two—but only Haring was here.
"Where's Krash...?"
"...He got caught because of me."
Haring bit her lip hard.
She hadn't noticed the spider erosion beast until it was too late.
Her detection skills were weak.
That delay meant Krash, lunging to protect her, got snatched instead.
If not for him, she'd be the one dragged off in those webs.
'Why put himself in front of me in that state...'
She recalled Krash's condition.
He clearly wasn't normal at a glance.
Even someone as strong as him had clashed with a being infused with a god's power.
She'd meant to guard him on the way to join Anix.
The last thing she expected was him protecting her.
Pathetic.
After all that training to get stronger, she was still being saved.
She clenched her fists tight.
「It's okay, Haring. Big bro will protect you.」
Her childhood flashed back.
Her older brother, shielding her in a world erosion spawned by a world erosion beast.
And she vividly remembered his final moments, the one who'd ultimately saved her.
She wouldn't let it happen again.
"Help me. We have to save Krash."
So Haring's demeanor shifted.
The imperial operative who'd kept her distance from Aslan's crew now asked for aid first.
The tunnel was vertical.
Even at full speed, she couldn't make it alone in time.
Anix stood at the tunnel's mouth the instant she pleaded.
He pulled a seed from his pocket.
"No worries."
Anix's crimson eyes gleamed sharply.
"Everyone in the Twin Children Unit will return safely."
A tree bloomed in his grasp, rocketing up the tunnel.
Anix grabbed a branch right away.
The Twin Children Unit followed, seizing branches and soaring inside.
Haring caught on and gripped one too.
As she did, she glared up the tunnel, lips pressed tight.
Vowing no one else would die for her sake ever again.
After Haring's voice faded in an instant.
Krash's body thrashed wildly inside the spider threads.
His body already ached like hell from Annihilation Asura, and now it was pure agony.
On top of that, his consciousness kept slipping.
But Crimson Garden's endless scolding drilled into his ears, keeping him from blacking out.
It wasn't like that at all—hopefully she'd drop the misunderstanding.
Thump!
The vertical tunnel ended, and Krash tumbled across the floor.
'First, get free.'
The moment he confirmed it, he summoned heat in his mouth.
With boiling fervor, he bit through the threads.
The silk melted, opening an airway.
Krash ignited Ignis at his fingertips next, slashing the rest apart with a burst.
He kicked free—but his landing failed, and he rolled again.
Crash!
After one roll, Krash exhaled and looked up.
At the center loomed a massive passage, ceiling and floor wide open.
The colossal tunnel roared with wind gusting from above.
Whatever traversed it was enormous, no doubt.
Probably the erosion beasts even the key figure couldn't control.
A narrow path for one person lined the side.
Krash stood on it now.
"Screee?"
The spider erosion beast noticed the snapped threads, its red eyes flashing toward him.
A quick glance at the walls revealed holes punched everywhere.
Narrow paths for these things, most likely.
"What a mess."
Krash peeled off clinging silk and breathed out.
Already wrecked, and using Ignis again? His body was in chaos.
Thoom!
But no respite for him—another rumble echoed.
Sixth Sense signaling danger, Krash looked up.
A gigantic spider appeared high in the passage.
The absurdly huge thing filled the plaza ceiling, rolling its red eyes.
Looks like the one that grabbed him was a hatchling, and this was the mother.
Crimson Garden tsked.
Even she seemed to think this was truly dangerous.
Meanwhile, the mother spider's maw split wide.
"Screeeeeeeeech!"
Her cry reverberated, shaking the entire plaza.
Then came skittering from all directions.
Sensing told him the mother was at least 5-star.
And plenty of hatchlings too, it seemed.
"Can you emergency-escape me?"
"I'd be a dullahan."
Crimson Garden snapped.
But instead of replying, Krash opened the small pouch in his hand.
It was the pouch Haring kept at her side.
He'd snatched it while getting webbed.
Krash fell silent briefly.
Truth was, he had no intention of letting her get kidnapped instead.
The moment she got dragged off or killed by an erosion beast.
The one in real danger would be him, drained from pouring everything into Annihilation Asura.
So he'd opted to steal Haring's Lagren family poison pouch.
With that, even if she got snatched, he'd have a way to rescue her.
But nope.
He'd gotten kidnapped himself.
A blunder—forgetting world erosion beasts are drawn to world erosion power.
Crimson Garden sounded incredulous.
One minute ranting about saving the girl, now this.
As Krash rummaged for a single vial—
Krraaaash!
Noise and vibrations erupted behind him.
He turned to see a tree sprouting from the tunnel he'd just exited.
'Right on time.'
Recognizing it, Krash pocketed the pouch again.
No need to exert himself just yet.
The summoner was none other than Anix.
Sure enough, Anix emerged first from the rising tree.
Spotting the spider erosion beast behind Krash, he raised his hand.
"Scree!"
The tree pierced the spider erosion beast in one strike.
Instant death.
But Anix didn't linger—his eyes shot upward.
He'd spotted the mother too.
Skreeech!
The mother began descending across the ceiling.
Meanwhile, the rest of the Twin Children Unit arrived one by one.
"Anix, can you handle that?"
"We have to."
Anix rolled up his sleeves.
5-star or not, it was Anix.
Krash figured he'd manage and started stepping back—
"Krash!"
Haring barreled toward him, crying his name.
She rushed up, grabbing his collar to check his state.
Seeing her frantic actions, Krash blinked.
He'd helped her out, sure, but this reaction was a bit much.
Haring's body trembled as she clutched his collar.
Krash's natural perceptiveness kicked in.
'Something's up with her.'
Haring seemed to have some trauma.
And he'd unwittingly triggered it.
"Haring."
Krash spoke to her, still not calming down.
"See? I'm fine. It's okay."
He cupped the hand gripping his collar, and she flinched belatedly.
Finally snapping to, she slowly let go.
"Sorry... because of me..."
"Worry about that thing now."
Leaving the now-composed Haring, Krash nodded toward the ceiling.
The mother spider stirred, prompting Anix to raise trees in the passage and unleash a barrage.
The Twin Children Unit climbed them for a full assault, but capturing her would take time.
"Can't help. You guys handle it."
He'd planned to use a poison vial from the pouch, but not now.
Tossing cleanup to them, Krash spoke—and Haring's eyes sharpened.
"I'll wrap it up."
She drew her dagger to charge—
But Krash's Sixth Sense pinged again.
"Damn it."
No rest for the weary, huh?
He scowled upward.
Rumble...
A small rock fragment vibrated beneath his feet.
"Krash!"
Haring spun back to him.
"Sir Anix! Something's coming from above!"
One Twin Children Unit member noticed and shouted.
"Scree?"
The mother spider lifted her head last.
BOOM!
Fierce noise and tremors rocked as the wall above her shattered.
"Brace for impact, everyone!"
Anix thrust trees at the ceiling to block falling debris.
Haring sliced the rocks raining on Krash with her dagger.
The poison on her blade carved through stone effortlessly.
But that wasn't the issue.
"Screeeeeeeeech!"
The mother's shriek from above rang out as her massive body slammed into Anix's trees.
Unable to withstand, some trees buckled.
Several Twin Children Unit members on them got exposed to the debris.
"Agh!"
"Gah!"
Screams echoed from those caught by rocks and wood.
Elfin and Anix shone there.
Amid falling debris, Elfin caught plummeting members with feather-light grace.
Anix aided by forming footholds beneath her, halting the squad's falls.
"Screeeeeeeeech!"
Meanwhile, the enraged mother spewed venom upward, flailing legs wildly at the ceiling.
The plaza turned to wreckage.
Debris poured, thick smoke choked the air.
While the mother battled something, Anix gathered his squad and returned to Krash's spot.
He hurriedly scanned above.
Something glinted through the haze in Anix's eyes.
"...Oh no."
Anix's face hardened.
There, gripping the mother with four arms and tearing into her flesh, was a monster.
Monkey-like in form.
Vastly larger than the mother, its skin writhed with countless thin tentacles.
Blue glowing eyes lacked clear pupils, sending chills just to meet.
6-star erosion beast.
Decarabia.
The de facto king ruling this graveyard.