Chapter 38
Chapter 38
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: The Weakling's Victory
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Krash's mouth heaved with ragged breaths.
Blood trickled from his nose, staining his cheeks.
His face was riddled with bulging veins from overusing his Sixth Sense.
"Arf, arf arf arf!"
The barking of dogs echoing around him kept muddling his thoughts.
His vision, turned crimson, gave him a sticky, nauseating sensation.
This was the first time he'd pushed his Sixth Sense this far.
Not much time left.
At this rate, even his Sixth Sense would snap.
The limits were starting to crush his body.
Crunch!
But Krash ground his teeth until they threatened to shatter.
'Fuck 'em.'
He had felt his limits keenly from the very start.
He was weak. Talentless.
Overwhelming foes with genius-level dominance was beyond him.
Bergman was the stronger one.
So until that final moment when his opponent was absolutely certain of victory...
Krash had deliberately hidden his fangs, clinging on with grim desperation.
Clang!
At that instant, the limit of his Sixth Sense finally revealed itself.
The moment Krash's sword wavered after mistakenly slicing through an illusion, Bergman's eyes gleamed with the thrill of seizing the upper hand.
The afterimage of his axe scattered in a flash.
The axe, infused with aura, loomed larger than ever, radiating an overwhelming presence.
The surrounding air reversed flow, sucked straight into Bergman's axe.
With a hair-raising roar that tore through the atmosphere, the axe cleaved the air in an instant, hurtling down toward Krash.
The sight of Krash's head flying filled Bergman's mind completely.
And in that moment.
Whoosh!
Flames erupted from deep inside Krash's body, spreading across his entire form.
Ignis had ignited the power of World Erosion lurking within him.
Combustion was the driving force behind all power.
And World Erosion was no exception.
Ignis set the power of World Erosion ablaze with ferocious intensity.
Groooan!
In that instant, the power born from burning World Erosion flooded straight into Krash's flesh.
A storm of raw force deformed his muscles and reshaped his bones, forcibly shattering his limits in a single moment.
His breathing grew heavier.
His physical presence shifted.
Every piece of information flooding his senses triggered an explosive acceleration of thought.
In that split second, Krash felt the world grind to a halt amid his sped-up cognition.
His expanded senses picked up even the slow drift of snowflakes from a distant tree.
At that moment, the boiling heat surging within him collided with the illusionary prison.
Shatter!
The sound of shattering glass rang out violently.
Even as the blazing heat incinerated the illusionary prison, Krash's eyes burned scarlet.
Blood tears streamed from his eyes alongside a gush from his nose.
It was the backlash from breaking his limits using the power of World Erosion.
Krash's original combination technique, born from Ignis and Extreme Blood Poison Infusion.
Inferno Erosion
Original fusion technique – Limit break for 3 seconds
'3 seconds.'
He sensed it instinctively.
At his current level, he could sustain Inferno Erosion for a mere 3 seconds.
'End it within that.'
In that instant, black flames roared to life along his sword.
Infused with newfound power, his once-wavering blade propelled Krash upward along the path of Bergman's axe.
Krash moved faster than the axe could reach.
Like a hunting hound sinking fangs into the nape of its prey.
Krash's sword surged toward Bergman's throat.
Bergman didn't even register the sword until it was nearly upon his neck.
It was that fast.
In that gap, Bergman's dog-like maw gaped open in a reflexive spasm.
It was pure conditioned reflex—no more, no less.
The body reacting before the brain could process.
Only then did Bergman's eyes belatedly catch sight of Krash's sword.
'When the hell...? I'm dead. Dead!'
Normally, the moment he perceived it, the sword would already be buried in his throat, ending him.
But that single reflexive action created an opening.
"-------------!"
Eardrums shattered
Conditioned reflex soundwave burst
A burst of inaudible sound exploded from his mouth, shattering Krash's eardrums.
That one conditioned reflex had conjured a lifeline—a variable to snatch survival from the jaws of death.
Eeeeeeeee!
Tinnitus rang out as Krash's vision warped and twisted.
Slashslashslash!
The shockwave's aftermath flipped the fight in an instant.
Krash's disoriented sword, reeling from ruptured eardrums, carved into Bergman's right shoulder instead.
The blazing sword tore through bone and flesh with terrifying power.
Yet it was lodged in the shoulder—a blade meant for the throat.
Bergman's reflex had utterly reversed the situation in a heartbeat.
At the same time, the flames cloaking Krash's body began to flicker and fade.
The effects of Inferno Erosion were ending.
What followed would be a long blackout.
Joy and despair crossed between Bergman and Krash.
The tide had turned in a single moment.
Bergman bit his lip against the pain in his shoulder and swung his axe at Krash.
The axe reflected in Krash's eyes, now shifting back to blue.
His Sixth Sense screamed.
That axe would sever his neck and send his head flying skyward.
With his body drained from the Inferno Erosion backlash, pulling his sword from Bergman's shoulder to block was impossible.
'Impossible?'
Of course it was—with the sword.
But he had one more card to play.
Krash released his right hand from the hilt.
He then slammed every last remnant of fading Inferno Erosion flames into his right palm.
He drove it in so fiercely that the flames pierced muscle and skin, erupting outward.
Without hesitation, Krash swung that arm at Bergman's axe with everything he had.
Splat!
The axe blade sank into Krash's colliding right arm.
Even reinforced by Inferno Erosion, muscle and bone were bisected by the axe.
The axe would ultimately sever his right arm—and then his neck.
But in that fleeting instant.
The embedded arm bought a few precious seconds.
Krash's eyes blazed brilliant blue.
In this dire extremity.
Krash's mind plunged into perfect unity in a flash.
Even Crimson Garden couldn't help but gasp in admiration at that mental fortitude.
Drip!
A droplet fell from his spirit into the lake of his mind, rippling outward through his body.
The waterspout surging from his mental lake raced along his arm and reached the sword.
The sword embedded in Bergman's shoulder.
Became one with Krash in that instant.
Witnessing it, Bergman's face went slack with defeat.
Even with the lucky fluke of conditioned reflex, Krash had gnawed at opportunity until the bitter end.
That tenacity chilled even Bergman, once called the Butcher Hound.
'I'm done for.'
Realizing every gambit he'd played had led to defeat, Bergman closed his eyes.
And then.
Crack!
The sound of Krash's remaining left hand bones shattering rang out as his sword cleaved Bergman from shoulder to hip.
Rumble rumble rumble!
The lingering shockwave of One Sword split the surrounding forest.
Bergman's bisected body tilted past Krash.
Seeing him meet his end by One Sword, Krash let go of the hilt.
His left hand had shattered under the strain.
Plop, thud—
But something far graver had happened.
The stump where the axe had bitten into Krash's right arm was empty.
His right arm lay rolling in the snow some distance away.
Thanks to Inferno Erosion, it burned away as if bidding him farewell.
Blood dripped steadily from the stump.
Krash barely managed to turn his body, gasping for air.
Crimson Garden watched him in silence.
Even knowing he'd sacrificed his arm, she couldn't bring herself to stop him.
The strong triumph without a scratch.
But the weak can only win covered in wounds like these.
That was the only kind of victory Krash could claim.
"...Satisfied?"
That didn't make the victory any nobler.
A sigh escaped Crimson Garden's lips.
She knew the desperation of choosing such a scarred triumph, even recognizing its hollowness.
But he had won.
Krash had toppled a true powerhouse—one he'd thought unbeatable.
"Sat... fuck that,"
A twisted smile played on Krash's lips as he spat the words.
Seeing it, Crimson Garden shook her head with a wry mutt.
In that moment, Krash's body crumpled.
His mind had finally hit its limit.
"Krash!"
Ebelask appeared then, hurriedly supporting his body.
Biting her lip at the sight of his severed right arm and mangled left hand.
Did victory have to come at such a cost?
But the faint smile lingering on his lips left her speechless.
'What kind of life has he lived...?'
Could he smile even in such a wretched victory?
"Let's head back."
Crimson Garden spread her wings and rose lightly into the air.
Ebelask scooped up the bodies of Bianca and Krash, rising to follow.
Time to handle the aftermath.
＊ ＊ ＊
His vision slowly cleared.
Krash stared blankly at the unfamiliar ceiling.
As he lay there, pain throbbed through his entire body.
'Hurts like hell.'
When was the last time it hurt this bad?
Even he, hardened to pain by his curse, couldn't shrug off wounds this severe.
No sensation in his right arm.
Probably because it got chopped off.
Fine.
An arm wasn't the end of the world—there were ways around it.
Not like it was his first time losing a body part.
He slowly sat up.
The little white chick flickering in his mind worried him.
Then he spotted snow-white hair by the bed.
Seeing her slumped over his bed, he felt a surge of absurdity.
She was weakened from the ordeal and still injured.
Krash raised his bandaged left hand.
Thankfully, good medicine had been used—the pain wasn't too bad.
With that hand, he flicked Bianca hard on the forehead.
"Ow."
With a short yelp, Bianca jerked her head up.
Her sapphire eyes met his.
That expression told him she was fine, at least.
"If you're gonna sleep, use the bed."
Hearing him, the dazed Bianca slowly eyed his empty right arm.
Krash twisted to hide it, guessing she'd blame herself.
"...Does it hurt?"
Bianca's question came then.
Her doll-like, emotionless face remained blank as ever.
"Nah."
Krash brushed it off curtly, but Bianca clutched the bedsheet tight.
She opened and closed her mouth repeatedly, searching for words.
But even after a long pause, she couldn't speak.
She had no idea what to say.
Watching her quietly, Krash spoke first.
"Why'd you go into the mountains?"
The Rokal Range was treacherous.
Especially Hardenharts' eternal snows—venturing in was sheer madness.
Hearing him, Bianca seemed to remember something and reached for the floor.
The vial she lifted contained Snowblaze Lingzhi.
Krash understood.
She'd entered the mountains to find it.
'You idiot.'
A small sigh slipped from his lips.
Should he scold her? Praise her?
He didn't know why she'd gone herself for the Snowblaze Lingzhi.
But being Hardenharts, she must have had her reasons.
He'd hear them later.
For now, Krash rummaged in his pocket.
Luckily, Bianca's snowflake pin was still there.
He pulled it out with his left hand.
As he moved to pin it in her hair, he clicked his tongue.
"Sorry. Can't do it."
The moment he spoke, Bianca grasped his withdrawing hand.
She guided it herself, slotting the pin into place.
Krash watched, then simply rested his hand atop her head.
Tap.
"Good job. Thanks to you, we can finish the elixir."
Bianca fell silent at the praise.
As Krash awkwardly pulled away, she grabbed his hand.
"Lord Krash."
He looked at her.
Still expressionless, but for some reason, she seemed sadder than usual today.
"...I can't feel emotions."
Bianca gazed at his empty sleeve.
She felt responsibility there.
But it was mere duty—no guilt, no anger, no sorrow.
Just responsibility, nothing more.
"...I can't make expressions, can't cry, can't blush. I can't be happy or angry or sad that you saved me looking like this."
For the first time, she felt her curse's cruelty viscerally.
"That's why... my chest feels so tight right now. My face feels so painful."
She finally understood the agony of feeling nothing for the man who'd strived so hard for her sake.
A curse existed to torment its victim.
And Bianca felt that torment more viciously than ever.
It hurt.
Not being able to show even a shred of emotion to him.
Krash watched her silently.
A memory of past Bianca surfaced.
"I'm envious. Of you."
Her voice echoed, as she stared blankly at her own face.