Chapter 28
Chapter 28
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 28
Chapter Title: The Snake Monster (2)
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-Boom!!
"As expected, your ability is just as I predicted."
Serpens's fist trembled with rage.
"You're quite the tricky one, aren't you?"
The moment his fist came flying at me, I grabbed it with my left hand.
"Whoa, you blocked that too? I have to hand it to you for real."
"I'm not sure how to take such high praise."
I kicked out at him right then and there.
But suddenly, my leg was yanked back.
A serpentine shape appeared in my vision once more.
"Haha, sloppy!"
Serpens clenched his fist again and thrust it toward me.
I seized the flow of time right away.
Serpens froze in place.
I stepped back for a moment to collect my thoughts.
'I expected this, but...'
This guy's a real pain.
He wasn't even supposed to show up yet.
The Snake Monster, Serpens.
His ability is betrayal—he makes everything harboring hostility toward him "betray" itself. There are other sub-abilities too, but I'll get to those later.
If someone tries to stab him, their intent betrays them, sending the blade back at themselves. If they try to shoot, the gun barrel turns on its owner.
In other words, a cheat ability that turns even his attacker's own body against them.
And on top of that, his physical prowess is on another level compared to most monsters—put him in the same league as me.
A guy with a busted ability and monster-level strength.
Me with time stop versus him neutralizing any incoming attacks means we can't land a hit on each other.
Is there no way around this?
In the original story, it wasn't Comet's crew who took down Serpens—it was that crow monster Kedi we saw last time.
Her crows hungered for Serpens but held unwavering loyalty toward Kedi herself, free of any outright malice.
'Do I have something like that?'
Something that follows my orders and attacks Serpens without hostility toward him...
Aha.
I got it.
"Haha, sloppy!"
The instant Serpens thrust his fist at Clok, the figure vanished in a flash.
'Stopped time again.'
The Monster Alliance had long since pieced together his ability.
Serpens realized he'd moved during the time stop.
'Then... behind me!'
Assuming he'd circled around, Serpens spun on his heel.
"Hammer's out!"
"?!?!"
Clok was gone, replaced by a monster with an anvil for a head swinging a hammer attached to his right arm.
Serpens startled for a split second but quickly regained his cool.
'It won't work anywa—'
-Boom!
"Guh?!"
Serpens went flying from the hammer blow.
He floated there in a daze, utterly baffled.
"I'm Oea! Nice to meet ya!"
In that moment, the self-proclaimed Oea charged at him.
Serpens sized up the situation in a flash.
Combining the attack that had landed with Oea's oddly simplistic banter, one fact clicked into place.
"Into my embrace!"
"Whoa!"
This monster held no hostility toward him.
He was treating it like a game.
"You brought this guy? You've got my respect for real!"
'He already analyzed my ability! Damn, respect!'
Serpens shouted his admiration at Clok, who stood arms crossed watching from behind Oea.
But that didn't mean he'd just take it lying down.
He dodged Oea's attacks however he could, buying time—and then.
-Thud!
"Like a comet streaking through your heart! Magical Comet makes her entrance!"
The magical girl Magical Comet had arrived.
She appeared between Serpens and Oea, staff aimed squarely at Serpens.
"Finally, you're here! I've been waiting, Magical Comet!"
Serpens welcomed her with open arms.
A strange sense of déjà vu washed over her, like she'd been through something similar.
"Y-Yes...?"
"Holding out until you got here was brutal! Let's team up quick and take down those two—no, three evil monsters!"
"Y-Yeah...? But you're an evil monster too—"
"In terms of threat level, that Clok over there's way worse than me! So right now, we gotta join forces and waste him!"
"But didn't you just cause some casualties?"
Mid-persuasion, Serpens's snake-tongue necktie quivered.
"Oh, that guy? He's fine. Just put on a show to call out Clok."
Serpens pointed at the fallen man with his index finger—his stomach rose and fell faintly.
He was just unconscious.
"Huh? So then really..."
As Comet wavered, Serpens's necktie twitched again.
"Yeah! I've never killed anyone! Did that just to summon him! Come on, let's team up already!"
"Well... no, I mean... yeah...?"
Perfect.
With serpentine whispers, he'd lured her in—a sub-ability of his.
Comet's eyes glazed over slightly, then she clenched her fist with resolve.
"...Got it! Honestly, Clok's been rubbing me the wrong way for a while!"
"...Clever play?"
Comet turned her staff on Clok.
Realizing his success, Serpens yelled at her.
"I can handle Clok! You take that Oea or whatever his name is—he's my counter!"
"Got it!"
Comet swung her staff toward Oea.
Oea spotted her and yelped in shock.
"We're in trouble! The magical girl's gone dumb!"
"What're you talking about! Comet Light!"
And so the battle between Comet and Oea kicked off, while Serpens and Clok faced each other.
Serpens spoke first, a smirk playing on his lips.
"What now? The 'counter' you brought is tangling with your precious magical girl."
"Eh, not exactly shocking. She's never once seen me as team material anyway. Same goes for me."
Serpens sneered at Clok's nonchalant act.
"Ha, for someone saying that, you sure treasured her. Aren't you seething with betrayal right now?"
"Not at all. Why would I feel betrayed? That's just your ability."
He figured it out.
No matter. Serpens kept his cool.
Then Clok dropped a line that really got under his skin.
"If anything... I trust Comet."
"Ha? Trust after a few words from me turned her against you?"
Serpens brushed off his suit in disbelief.
He knew how much effort Clok had put into Comet.
But now, oblivious to it all, she'd fallen for the snake's silver tongue and pegged Clok as enemy number one.
Even with fondness, that'd make anyone snap with rage and betrayal.
"What, playing it cool? I get it, I can cut you some slack."
"Seriously, no."
"Whatever. One question for you."
From his snake-shaped helmet, the eye section glowed yellow.
A forked snake tongue slithered out from under it.
"Do you trust your arms?"
"!!"
The words barely left his mouth when Clok's right arm swung toward his own head.
-Whoosh!
Clok twisted away just in time.
In that instant, his left arm smashed into his face.
-Boom!
"Pfft! Hilarious sight. Now you get it—nothing in this world can be trusted."
Clok's body reeled from the facial blow.
Then both arms rocketed toward his face at once.
-Boom!
'Alone, it'd be impossible, but draw in Comet and we're golden.'
His snake-tongue whisper could weakly brainwash a target, and Doubt made their body turn on them—but both were once-a-day limits.
He'd considered hitting Clok with both at once initially, but Clok was a wildcard.
"What can you do against a magical girl and me!"
Factoring in Clok's backup, Serpens had made his own ally. The tongue trick wouldn't work on powerhouses like Clok anyway, so Comet was the smart play.
Now, Clok was getting wrecked without Serpens lifting a finger—easy cleanup.
'Clok grips his right fist like he's clutching something whenever he activates. That's probably the trigger.'
With all the intel, victory was sealed.
As Clok rose again, both fists aimed for his face—Serpens prepared a mocking laugh.
-Boom!
"Gack...!"
In the blink of an eye, Clok's fists smashed both his temples.
The sudden turn of events.
"Wha—what...!"
Serpens whipped around to Clok in panic, who was still dodging his own fists.
"What did you do!"
"Nothing much. My arms turned hostile, so I made use of them."
"What nonsense... wait, no way?"
"Exactly."
Clok vanished again, and Serpens's temples took another double hit.
"Guhk!"
"Just lined up the shot for me."
Realizing what happened, Serpens desperately tried to break away—and ate three more hits in the process.
He bolted toward Comet for dear life.
"Gotta bounce and fight next time! Sacrifice for me!"
Absurd words, but he trusted his ability.
"Uh, huh? Oh, sure!"
Under its sway, Comet accepted it without question.