Chapter 111
Chapter 111
In Cheollihyang Village - 9
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“Wh-what is that?”
A giant monster, visible as they rose into the sky.
Even though they were several kilometers away, the monster’s form was clearly visible.
And that monster was turning Cheollihyang Village into a wasteland.
Bright red fires rose, and acrid smoke stained the sky a hazy white.
“…Damn it. Roque!”
At Tae-jin’s call, Roque’s wing beats grew faster.
Whoosh—! Whoosh—!
The closer they got, the more intensely they felt the magnificent pressure and grand terror.
Wings like steel scales deflected all attacks, and a ferocious maw swallowed all assaults.
The giant scorpion tail sent vibrations and fear like an earthquake every time it struck the ground.
Truly.
A super-giant monster that would not be an exaggeration to call the second coming of the final boss.
“Renia!”
Tae-jin called for Renia as he gripped the bow in his right hand.
Renia, who was sitting behind Tae-jin and holding his waist tightly, answered.
“Yeah!”
“I’m trusting you with Yu-ra’s safety! Mom must be losing her mind too!”
“Wh-what are you going to do!?”
Renia asked worriedly.
But Tae-jin’s gaze was fixed on the monster.
“I have to fight it.”
“What…? It would be better to evacuate for now….”
“That thing appeared right after Choi Do-han lured me away. It must be a scheme by God R'hell targeting me or my companions. It won’t end just by running away. It will only increase the damage. I have to fight.”
“B-but that thing is not on a level we can handle…!”
Renia tried to stop Tae-jin.
The closer they got, the more she could feel a mana that gave her goosebumps all over her body, and the sight of all sorts of things being blown away by a single flap of its wings turned even a sliver of hope into despair.
A rough guess told her there was no chance of winning.
It seemed more rational to request support from a nearby city, but Renia, looking at Tae-jin’s back, withdrew her gaze.
Because she knew the man named Han Tae-jin better than anyone.
Therefore,
“Is there… a way?”
She asked.
If there was a clever plan to defeat that mountain-like monster.
But the answer that came back only reminded her once again of what kind of person Tae-jin was.
“Well, they say if there’s a will, there’s a way, so won’t the heavens help?”
“….”
Tae-jin was a challenging, progressive, and also quite a thorough man.
But that was a conclusion someone who had only known him for a short time could draw.
Because once you got to know him deeply, you would realize how optimistic and carefree he was.
Just like now.
Tae-jin, betting everything on something like luck.
It was a reckless and absurd decision if you called it that, but Renia knew well that this decision did not stem from baseless confidence.
A man who does what he says he’ll do.
If it was Tae-jin, he would surely succeed.
Renia, with a faint smile, looked at Tae-jin again.
Briefly setting aside the silly thought of how handsome even his side profile was.
“Don’t get hurt.”
She said.
Tae-jin turned his head and smiled brightly.
“Yep. I will obey your command.”
Along with a playful joke.
“Pfft. You’re really something.”
A man who knew how to be composed even in such an urgent crisis.
And therefore, a man she could trust even more.
Renia gave his cheek a quick peck, then prepared to descend.
They had already approached the vicinity of the village.
The vibration of the air could be felt on their skin, and screams and roars hammered at their ears.
Tae-jin and Renia’s expressions hardened.
Up close, the situation was even more serious.
Villains and monsters were destroying the village.
What was fortunate was that Na-yeon, Hye-seo, and Su-ah were at the forefront, holding back the super-giant monster.
It was just a desperate attempt to block it, a mere stalling tactic, but thanks to that, the evacuation of the residents was underway.
The large number of mercenaries staying in the village was also a great help.
“Well then, see you later.”
“Yeah. Be careful.”
“You too. Don’t worry about the young lady. I’ll be sure to protect her.”
He knew that Yu-ra was an awakened being, but he also knew that the presence or absence of real combat experience changes one’s choices, and the result of those choices has a great impact on survival.
So Tae-jin couldn’t help but worry about Yu-ra’s safety first.
Soon, Renia jumped from Roque’s back, and Tae-jin headed towards the village entrance with Roque.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
“Young Lady-!”
Arriving at the village square, Renia polymorphed into her human guise and began to urgently look for Yu-ra.
Corpses were strewn about, and among them were quite a few mercenaries.
The corpses of villains who had unleashed their monster abilities were also scattered like landmines.
“Young Lady-! Where are you-!”
“Kyaak!”
Finding Yu-ra was, of course, not a smooth process.
It was because there were many situations she couldn’t just ignore with the villains and monsters that had all but occupied the village.
Those crushed under debris.
Those in danger from villains and monsters.
Renia’s heart was not callous enough to ignore them all.
“Th-thank you….”
“Have you by any chance seen a woman with a bob cut and round glasses? She’s a little shorter than me and should be wearing a fluorescent hoodie…!”
“Ah. I’ve seen the fluorescent hoodie. She went that way.”
Fortunately, one of the rescued people said they had seen Yu-ra, and Renia dashed in the direction they pointed.
Kieek-!
Keoheok-!
About five minutes had passed as she mercilessly slaughtered villains and monsters, when Renia picked up something in the middle of the road.
“This is the Young Lady’s mechanical device…!”
It was a modern mechanical device that didn’t fit this village. It was definitely Yu-ra’s, and seeing the broken device, Renia anxiously scanned the surroundings with a worried expression.
And…
“Here too!”
She could find traces of mechanical fragments.
Finely shattered fragments of machinery were scattered on the road as if guiding the way.
The joy of finding a trace was brief; a scream from somewhere made Renia immediately dash off.
“Kyaaaak!!”
“Y-Young Lady?!!”
The path where the fragments led.
It was Yu-ra’s scream, heard from the end of that path.
“Young Lady-!!”
Renia’s voice cracked into a near-scream as she searched for Yu-ra.
After turning two corners and arriving at a small plaza.
Renia had to witness a sight that felt like it froze her limbs.
Yu-ra, frozen while strenuously holding up a collapsed roof.
A poisonous stinger tail was being shot towards her, and Yu-ra let out a scream as she saw it.
Yet she did not let go of the roof.
It was likely because of the survivor trapped beneath it, but the biggest reason was that she was paralyzed by fear.
An experienced hunter with a lot of combat experience would have found a solution, but to exert superhuman strength or to come up with a clever plan in an instant, Yu-ra was still just a young girl.
“Young Lady-!!”
Renia shouted again.
The tail, already being shot towards Yu-ra’s heart, would pierce it in two seconds.
But the distance from one end of the plaza to the other was at least 100M.
Even if she charged right now, she couldn’t arrive before that tail.
In her current state, it was in the realm of the absolutely impossible.
《Kehaha-! With those hideous horns and a beast’s tail, how are you any different from me? Do you really think that form, so suited for Illusion, is human?》
For a moment, Choi Do-han’s voice flashed through her mind.
That voice, still ringing vividly in her ears.
The ridicule that dug into her heart and stuffed it full of sorrow had not yet faded and continued to claw at her mind.
Following that, the corpses of the villains scattered in the middle of the road flashed through her mind.
The corpses, which showed monstrous features, certainly couldn’t be seen as human, and they resembled her.
Transformed, or manifested.
Also.
《Kyaaak-! It’s a monster!!》
The screams of the people running away as they saw those villains echoed like an auditory hallucination.
It felt as if they were running away from her, and the people’s faces changed into those of Na-yeon, Hye-seo, Su-ah, Yu-ra, and Tae-jin’s mother.
Time stopped, and the world began to be dyed in black and white.
It hurt.
Even though she knew it was a delusion, she felt a pain that dug into her chest.
It was a fleeting moment, but her seared heart felt a strong burning pain.
But…
That burning pain would pass, and if she couldn’t save Yu-ra, a greater burning pain would melt her heart.
Above all, she never wanted to create a sad expression on Tae-jin’s face.
The delusion cleared completely, and the world was dyed in full color again.
Hwoooong~
She lowered her stance and pushed her mana to the absolute limit.
A mana wind wrapped around her body, and her heart beat fiercely, spewing out the sorrow embedded within.
She had promised to protect Yu-ra.
Compared to Tae-jin, who had overcome adversity to save her, these delusions and worries were nothing but pathetic excuses.
Hwoong-Hwoong~!
The mana wind ignited a fire, and powerful mana was engraved into every single cell.
Courage filled the heart where sorrow had disappeared.
Her hair began to dye into its original violet color and started to flutter in the fierce mana wind.
And above her head, Renia’s goat horns sprouted, and her heart-tipped tail began to emerge.
A complete release of her suppressed mana was taking place.
“Polymorph.”
She closed her eyes.
I will not be ashamed.
I will no longer torment myself with delusions.
I will no longer run away from worry and anxiety.
She opened her eyes.
Her heart-shaped pupils emitted a red glow.
A moment later.
“Release.”
A complete release was achieved—bringing with it total liberation from the delusions and anxieties that had bound her.
Kieeeeek-!!
<w:pgmar w:bottom="1440" w:top="1440" w:left="1440" w:right="1440" w:header="720" w:footer="720"><w:pgnumtype w:start="1"><w:r w:rsiddel="00000000" w:rsidr="00000000" w:rsidrpr="00000000"><w:rpr><w:sz w:val="28"><w:szcs w:val="28"><w:rtl w:val="0"><w:t xml:space="preserve">In the small plaza, only the scream of the monster with its severed tail echoed.