Cath Palug (1)
Cath Palug
It was the miraculous byproduct of a clash between a goddess and a Ma-shin.
A miracle born from the collision of pure divine power and utterly pristine demonic energy.
That was Cath Palug.
Yet even if its origin was mere coincidence, the power it wielded was far beyond something so trivial.
And how could it not be? Born from the fusion of immense divine power and demonic energy into chaos, it possessed overwhelming resistance to virtually everything in the world...
Fueled by the primal memory of its birth, it thrived on pure energies, rendering any natural being its natural predator impossible.
Thus.
The world's most arrogant monster grinned wickedly, licking the blood from its claws.
"Arthur...!"
"Your Majesty!"
"What in the...!"
At Cath Palug's action, the frozen knights surged toward Arthur in unison.
And in that instant, Yeon Je-seong, who had closed the distance to the beast in a flash, drove his fist into its body.
"Hup...!"
■■■■■──!
But the fist, brimming with vast aura, clanged against its tough hide with a thunderous boom, sending a fierce rebound that hurled Yeon Je-seong back.
"Tch!"
■■■■■──!
As Yeon Je-seong righted himself midair from the momentum, Cath Palug let out a wary roar at the shock piercing through its skin.
"We're going in!"
"We'll guard His Majesty—leave it to us!"
Right after, Kay and Gawain locked eyes and charged simultaneously, followed by the Baylin sisters with a slight delay, all rushing toward Cath Palug.
"Bayrun, take the left."
"Got it!"
"Gawain! I'll draw its eyes—strike the opening!"
"Understood!"
Baylin and Bayrun, wielding twin swords and a long spear respectively, flanked from the left while Kay, sword blazing fiercely, seized its attention head-on.
Meanwhile, Gawain hoisted Galatine overhead, infusing it with sun-infused aura.
"Galatine!"
Solar Impact──!
Suddenly, the sun erupted from Galatine, illuminating the night sky as it shot toward Cath Palug.
The beam incinerated everything in its path at blinding speed. As it neared, Cath Palug revealed its glaring yellow eyes and unleashed a chilling howl.
■■■■■■──!
Its two languid tails shot skyward in an instant, pale blue flames igniting around it.
The flames in the air effortlessly caught Gawain's light, slowly devouring it until it vanished from existence.
"It blocked that?"
"No. It absorbed it."
Yeon Je-seong, eyes narrowed, responded to Kay's stunned voice.
"For a split second after the flames and Gawain's attack collided, the attack was sucked into the flames."
Like a black hole devouring all light, the blue flames nullified the assault. Kay, keeping pressure from the side, raised his sword.
"It can't absorb forever! Just keep hitting it till it drops!"
Gripping his blazing red sword, Kay charged, flames erupting across his body to counter Cath Palug's strikes.
"Uracha...!"
"Couldn't agree more."
"If attacks don't work, we attack until they do!"
Kay parried a descending claw with his sword, then unleashed monstrous strength to deflect it. Seizing the gap, Baylin slashed at its tail with both blades while Bayrun thrust her spear at its throat.
■■■■■■──!
"Kyaa!?"
"Dodge, Bayrun!"
"Guh...!"
But the precise strike halted against its skin. As Bayrun hesitated, a forepaw sent her flying far away.
"Bayrun...!"
"Hold on, Baylin!"
Enraged Baylin countered the follow-up with her twin swords.
She blocked the incoming paw, then leaped high with mana surging through her. Its rigid tails targeted her immediately.
"Dance, Balin!"
Balin Over Drive──!
In that moment, a deep crimson energy exploded from Baylin's swords.
The erupting power enveloped the blades, transforming the twin swords into massive greatswords that plummeted toward Cath Palug.
■■■■■■──!
Simultaneously, Cath Palug spotted the falling greatswords midair and roared massively, charging at Baylin.
Blue flames flickered chaotically, menacing the surrounding knights. As its massive body closed in, it reflexively gaped wide and bit the greatsword filling its vision.
■■■■■■──!
"Kuhah...!"
Cath Palug shattered the sword in its jaws and swung its forepaw at Baylin.
The air tore with a horrifying screech. Anticipating the impact, Baylin squeezed her eyes shut—then firm hands gripped her waist.
"...Huh?"
"Hold on tight."
A deep voice rumbled in her ear, yanking her body sharply as the scenery blurred rapidly.
"M-Mugok...!?"
"That was close."
Baylin turned to see who held her, startling at the familiar face so near.
He was pinning its feet on the ground just moments ago—how did he get here so fast...!
Confusion, shock, relief, admiration—emotions flooded her chest and faded. Calming her racing heart, Baylin fixed cold eyes on the beast.
"That thing's durability is beyond imagination."
"Yeah, I saw."
It had crunched and destroyed a sword forged from pure stigma.
Not only anti-magic resistance, but physical durability on another level!
And shockingly agile for its size.
Having gauged it from the exchange, Yeon Je-seong dashed through the air, narrowing his eyes.
Definitely a bad matchup for knights.
Its innate high anti-magic and durability made it nearly invincible against knights wielding stigma, the crystallization of pure mana.
Plus, its flames absorbed mana outright.
Traits perfect for what they called a Fairy Eater.
"Mugok, I'll draw its eyes—you strike then..."
"Baylin, does its durability seem limited to mana?"
"...No, just a guess, but it definitely includes aura too."
"As I thought."
If it chased pure energies, it could handle them.
But pure energies weren't just mana.
Mana, aura, divine power, and more.
Any clean natural energy drew its aggro without fail.
And any natural energy means it takes no damage from them.
Of course, not zero damage.
Like a game debuff: all damage reduction.
Not immunity—just heavily mitigated.
Slightly different, but this monster cat was similar.
From that rebound earlier, 80... no, maybe 90%.
90% damage reduction.
...Can you even win against that?
A question mark flashed in his mind as Yeon Je-seong swatted away incoming flames and clicked his tongue lightly.
"Baylin, can you move?"
"Y-Yes! Yes!"
"Good. I'll draw its attention. Prepare your big moves in the meantime."
Arthur seemed ready to land a hit below—might as well assist.
■■■■■■──!
"Go, Baylin!"
"Be careful, Mugok!"
Deflecting the incoming tail, Yeon Je-seong released Baylin, forming aura platforms midair to hover.
Dodging attacks while observing, he kicked off and shot forward.
"Over here, Cath Palug!"
■■■■■■──!
At once, pure aura erupted from his body, locking Cath Palug's gaze on him like a magnet.
Pure energy pulls aggro regardless!
He'd suspected since it ignored attacks to target Arthur.
It seemed aggro scaled with pure energy magnitude.
Chasing Arthur's holy sword aura relentlessly.
That's why I stole it by revealing my power.
Impossible if it only ate mana, but...
"Aura changes everything."
No one surpassed him in sheer, pure aura.
Not even Arthur.
Proof?
■■■■■■──!
"It's lost it."
Yeon Je-seong toyed with the berserk-charging Cath Palug, retreating lightly as he quipped.
"This just got easier."
No aggro split meant simple strategy.
With that, Yeon Je-seong slowly removed his gauntlets.
"Hoo..."
Bare-knuckle time.