Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: An Unexpected Brood
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The Sapphire Snake, seen again after so long, seemed even larger than I remembered.
Even though it had only been a few days.
‘Come to think of it, don't snakes continue to grow until they die?’
This Jewel Beast's lifespan was surely much longer than that of an ordinary snake.
I suddenly found myself wondering how old this snake was.
“Hoo…”
Hearing a sudden sigh, I looked over at Kaljak.
It was cold enough to see my breath, yet the man was drenched in sweat.
“Are you all right?”
“All right? Are you asking me?”
Kaljak laughed nonchalantly, but it seemed somewhat forced.
You've got to hand it to men and their pride.
Still, it was unexpected.
No matter how formidable the opponent, it was strange to see a man of his caliber so tense.
‘Arjan is…’
Seeing her position, there was still some time before the battle began.
To increase our chances of winning, even slightly, I spoke to Kaljak.
“You're hiding something, aren't you?”
“What?”
“Between you and that Jewel Beast.”
“What makes you think that?”
“No particular reason.”
I said, deliberately affecting a casual tone.
“If you have something to say, say it now. While we have time.”
“...”
After glaring at me for a while, Kaljak spat out.
“Arrogant bastard.”
Cursing now?
“You're quite similar to Delac.”
“...”
“That thing took the most precious thing I had.”
“More precious than your arm?”
“Yes.”
“What was it?”
“Family.”
Kaljak fell silent.
It seemed he needed time to choose his words.
“I had a younger brother. There was a big age gap between us; he was closer to your age, actually. He insisted on coming with me on a mountain expedition, and I couldn't bring myself to refuse him.”
“...”
“He wasn't skilled, but he had good instincts. He was the first to realize the Jewel Beast was under the swamp, and when that damn snake opened its jaws, he pushed me out of the way. That was the last I saw of him. The one I was supposed to protect ended up protecting me.”
I had nothing to say, so I kept my mouth shut.
Instead of looking at each other, we both stared at the massive Jewel Beast.
“Since that day, I've tracked that damn snake and fought it countless times. But I never finished it. Whenever I felt pushed back, I'd retreat and plan for another day. At the time, I thought that was the right answer. If I died, my brother's revenge would be for nothing. But.”
Kaljak looked down at his hand and spoke.
“Looking at myself now, I wonder if I wasn't being cautious, but just a coward.”
“...”
“Shit, listen to me ramble. Maybe my time really is up.”
“You have to live.”
I slipped the Ring Sword off my finger and offered it to Kaljak.
“What's this?”
“An artifact. It's a Ring Sword.”
I did make it explode once while fighting that assassin, but the ring itself is the core of the Ring Sword.
As long as you have the ring, you can draw the sword... well, not countless times, but two or three more times.
“I have a sword.”
“I know. Use it as a spare.”
“Why?”
“Because I'm strong even without a sword.”
“Hah.”
Kaljak's lips twisted into a smirk as he sheathed the sword he was holding.
I let out a small laugh and said.
“It's simple to use. You can adjust the length by rotating the ring…”
I glanced at Kaljak's empty right sleeve and shrugged.
“Which finger should I put it on for you?”
Wordlessly, Kaljak raised his middle finger at me.
What a charming personality.
“Is this length about right?”
“A little longer.”
“…This much?”
“Perfect.”
Kaljak looked at the Ring Sword with a complex expression, then muttered to himself.
“…Dan always used to bring me my sword before a mission.”
“...”
Dan, it seemed, was his brother's name.
I wondered what it felt like for a brother to take his dead sibling's name as an alias.
Having no younger brother myself, I couldn't imagine.
And it's not like I was particularly fond of my older brother and sister either.
“Do you think Dan will be happy if I kill that thing?”
“How can a dead person be happy?”
Kaljak stared at me.
“But that doesn't mean nothing will change. I believe memorial rites are for the living. Killing that beast will definitely change something in your heart. For now, shouldn't that be enough?”
At that point, I checked Arjan's position.
Arjan, who had been skillfully scaling the wall, was now within close range of the Jewel Beast.
“Sir.”
“What?”
“That's an artifact.”
“You already told me.”
“It's expensive, so use it carefully and give it back.”
“Hah.”
Kuaaaaaaa-!
At that moment, a roar loud enough to shatter my eardrums echoed through the cave.
I saw the Jewel Beast thrashing wildly, and in the distance, Arjan's figure being sent flying.
‘She succeeded.’
It's starting now.
* * *
It was definitely a vital point.
When she struck its reverse scale, Arjan was certain.
Of course, this certainty didn't come from a complete understanding of the snake's anatomy.
Arjan had focused on the Sapphire Snake's reaction and the sensation in her hand.
The roar mixed with pain, the violent thrashing, the blood pouring from its eyes and mouth.
It was too frantic a reaction for just having a single small scale pierced.
Arjan flew back with great force, landing near the cave ceiling.
A protruding ledge on the wall made it possible.
From there, she took in the entire form of the Sapphire Snake.
‘Again… it's absurdly large.’
For Arjan, this was an opponent she couldn't kill even if she died and came back to life.
With the dagger in her hand, she could stab it a thousand times and still not kill it.
A creature that size would take days to bleed to death.
This monster could probably only be killed by Kaljak's attacks.
With the Sword Master Teacher's skill, he could extend his aura blade—his sword flame—to several meters.
A blade of that size wouldn't find it impossible to sever this giant snake's neck.
Therefore, Arjan's role was to create a diversion.
Head, body, and tail.
In a battlefield divided into three, her role was to handle the head.
Kuaaaaaaa-!
The enraged Jewel Beast seemed to see nothing but Arjan.
Having been woken from a deep slumber by the worst possible pain, its reaction was understandable.
For now, she focused on escaping.
Even pouring all her concentration into evasion, she constantly felt the threat of death.
No matter where she fled inside the cave, she couldn't escape the Jewel Beast's range, leaving her no choice but to dodge most attacks at the last second.
She dodged the attacks, but the shattered walls and flying stone fragments left small cuts on her body.
Of course, she wouldn't have to keep running like this forever.
Skrrk!
The Jewel Beast let out another scream.
‘The Master Teacher's attack landed.’
She couldn't see clearly due to the Jewel Beast's massive body, but down below, Kaljak's assault must have begun.
Kaljak was in charge of the body.
His role was to inflict continuous damage from the safest position, landing slashes whenever an opportunity arose.
This was because he had the strongest attack power of the three.
Arjan felt the Jewel Beast's attention shift away from her.
A cunning creature.
Despite being a beast, no matter how angry it got, it wasn't completely consumed by rage.
Through this short exchange, the snake had prioritized its enemies, and it had just demoted Arjan to the bottom of that list.
Now, its greatest threat was not Arjan, but Kaljak, swinging his sword down below.
This was actually better.
The more the enemy's attention was diverted, the more naturally Arjan could conceal her presence…
…and in such an environment, an assassin's combat was at its most efficient.
‘The next chance.’
That's when she would pierce the Jewel Beast's eye or sever its tongue.
The snake had not yet forgotten Arjan's existence.
It didn't matter.
This would be a long battle, and it was impossible for it to keep track of Arjan's presence every single moment.
A single instant was all she needed.
At some point in this fight—for instance, when Kaljak's next slash landed, when the beast's attention wavered even slightly because of it, or when a golden opportunity presented itself to Arjan.
At that moment, the Jewel Beast would be reminded of Arjan's existence once more.
* * *
There are days like that.
Days when your mind is unusually clear.
Days when your body, your spirit, every single cell seems to declare that you are in peak condition.
Kaljak had wanted to subjugate the Jewel Beast on such a day.
But his condition today was not that good.
At least, not until just before the battle.
‘My head is clear.’
And his body felt light.
Whether it was his imagination or not, even the sword flame enveloping his blade seemed to have no wasted energy.
Realizing the reason, Kaljak let out a dry laugh to himself.
‘That insolent brat.’
The kid who had spoken to him just before the fight.
It wasn't as if they had some grand conversation.
And the kid certainly hadn't offered any meaningful advice.
But sometimes, simply unburdening yourself is enough to clear your head.
Kaljak suddenly remembered.
It had been too long since he had spoken his thoughts to anyone.
Thoughts grow heavier the longer you hold onto them.
Sometimes, you have to lighten the load by letting them out, but he hadn't been able to.
‘That arrogant kid.’
Thanks to him, he was having a rare experience.
He had started in the worst condition, yet his mind grew clearer the more he fought.
It felt as if his body was accelerating; the more he swung his sword, the sharper he became.
This Jewel Beast.
It was certainly a threat, but he even got the feeling that it was somehow weaker than before.
Thwack!
Leaping high into the air, Kaljak brought his raised sword down.
Kwagagagak! A straight line was carved into the Jewel Beast's massive body. Were its scales always this easy to cut?
Kaljak's lips twisted into a grin.
As he fought, a certainty began to grow within him.
Today, this Jewel Beast will die by my hand.
* * *
I slammed my fist into the Jewel Beast's tail as it whipped toward me.
My wrist throbbed, but I managed to knock it away.
The tail was this Jewel Beast's primary weapon.
The size of a boulder, with scales as hard as metal, swung at a terrifying speed—the tail itself was no different from a weapon of mass destruction.
Meaning, it was the part that had to be controlled the most in this fight.
Arjan, to harass its head.
Kaljak, to deliver the decisive blows.
And I, to lock down the tail's movements.
So far, the plan was working perfectly.
It was going smoothly.
In other words…
‘It's going too smoothly.’
The Jewel Beast's movements were gradually slowing.
The wounds Kaljak inflicted were starting to take effect.
I had generously coated his blade with the poison I took from those assassins.
The effect was just as Osel had boasted it would be against Jewel Beasts.
Kyaaaaaaaak!
With another tearing sound, something fell to the ground with a thud.
At first, I thought it was some kind of bright red snake, but a closer look revealed otherwise.
‘The Sapphire Snake's tongue?’
Meaning Arjan, in charge of the head, had achieved a significant result.
For a snake, the tongue is a sensory organ more important than its eyes or nose.
Now that she'd succeeded in cutting it off, the beast would no longer be able to fully pinpoint our locations in this fight.
In that case… we had passed all the points I thought would be most dangerous in this battle.
All that was left was to steadily wound its body and immobilize it until its neck could be severed in one go.
‘…’
And that's why I frowned.
‘Is this all there is to it?’
It wasn't weak.
In fact, I was still risking my life every moment.
But…
Was this really the opponent that Kaljak and Arjan had been so wary of?
‘This is too easy.’
My head grew cold.
I recalled my Eldest Martial Brother's teaching: the more optimistic the situation, the more vigilant you must be.
Could I have missed something?
I once again deflected the surging tail with my fist.
Kwaang!
The Jewel Beast's tail slammed into the wall.
The impact was so fierce that the wall shattered into pieces.
Its movements were growing more violent as it neared death, but it wouldn't last long.
If I get the chance, I'll completely crush its tail, and then.
“——.”
At that moment, I froze.
Where the tail had struck, a new space had opened up.
There was a chamber behind the wall.
It wasn't strange; the place where Kaljak had been staying was a similar sort of hidden area.
But the moment I saw the scene unfolding in that space, a chill ran down my spine.
Behind the wall were countless white eggs.
And what's more.
‘They've already hatch—’
I quickly looked back toward the battlefield.
Toward another entrance to the cave, one that had been hidden by the Sapphire Snake's massive body.
Kurururu…!
Beyond it, clouds of dust were rising violently.
“…Shit.”
I had a feeling.
I gritted my teeth as I watched the swarm of Jewel Beast 'hatchlings' approaching.