Chapter 516: The Hour of the Dog and Wolf - 4
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 516: The Hour of the Dog and Wolf - 4
“Kill them!”
“Wolf bastards!”
“Awoooooo!”
“Woof! Woof!”
Grul’s slaughter marked the beginning of the battle between the Beast Faction and the wolves. Seasoned warriors formed groups of three or four, guarding each other’s backs. The wolves were often wounded by their Qi-infused attacks and forced to retreat.
Having brought only his hand-picked elites, they would not fall easily to the wolves. They wore gauntlets padded with dozens of layers of leather to clamp the wolves’ jaws shut, then split their skulls with sharp daggers or hammers.
While the Beast Faction warriors drove back the wolves, Grul was carrying out a massacre all on his own.
“Sal Baramah… urk!”
The two blades Grul wielded tore a priest’s body to shreds. Infused with Qi, the blades sliced through flesh like tofu and bone like cucumber. As he diagonally sliced through one priest’s ribcage, Grul was already scanning for his next victim, preparing the ground. His feet slid far across the earth.
Ground Shift.
His body vanished in an instant. At the same moment, a blade plunged into the mouth of another priest who had been crying out to his god. The cold dagger was not the god he sought, but it was more than enough to claim his life.
“I don’t know what gave you the nerve. A bunch of nobodies…”
It took less than a minute to kill the head priest and his followers. As Grul flicked the blood from his blades, a voice reached his ears.
“…As expected of a master. So powerful. To think a beastkin could reach such a state…”
I killed them all, didn’t I? Grul flinched and spun around. A few steps away, a priest’s severed head was speaking, its mouth flapping.
“Puppetry? So your real body is elsewhere, with only your consciousness connected. I knew it. There was no way you cowards would show yourselves before me.”
“Khuhuhu. That’s not all.”
Grul rushed forward and stomped on the head, crushing it, but the priest’s consciousness had already moved elsewhere. Grul’s head snapped around. The priests he had killed in an instant—from their corpses, which should have long been dead, he felt a sinister presence.
“You madman. Were all twenty of them your puppets from the start?!”
“Puppets and sacrifices. They gladly offered their lives. To teach a beast like you its place.”
The blood clung to his body with unusual tenacity, like insects crawling over his skin. As the unsettling sensation tickled his fur, Grul shouted urgently to his men.
“All of you! Fall back! Don’t step in the blood!”
“Blood for blood. Know your place, beast. ------.”
A sound only beasts could hear. A scent only beasts could smell. Piercing through their exceptionally sharp senses, the curse Agartha had planted long ago ran rampant.
The Curse of Frenzy. Unleashed using twenty priests as a sacrifice, the curse swept over the Beast Faction.
Qi Art is the skill of separating the self from the world. One who has mastered Heaven and Earth can block a curse before it even reaches their senses, and one who has a grasp of Water can control its effects on the body. One who has reached the Axiom can keep even their mind clear.
Grul, who had reached the Axiom, was only slightly agitated. In truth, it wasn't because of the curse's effect on him, but because of the Beast Faction warriors who had fallen under it.
But that was enough. The head priest had never intended to target someone who had reached the Axiom in the first place.
“Grrrrr…!”
“Keuk, kahk! Moooooo!”
The foul stench seeping from the blood. The grating noise that irritated their sensitive hearing. The sticky blood that clung to and tickled their fur. Their vision narrowed.
The keen senses of a beast can also be a curse. The Beast Faction warriors, already agitated from the fight, snorted heavily in agony.
“These goddamn bastards. I told you to stop working out so much and practice your Qi Arts! If you’d just gotten a grasp of Water, you’d have been fine!”
“We’re… fine, Chieftain! Thanks to the Qi Arts you taught us, we can still tell friend from foe!”
“That’s what’s not okay! What good is just telling friend from foe?!”
Just as he said, the Beast Faction warriors began to break formation. The frenzied warriors swung their blades wildly at the wolves before them.
Casualties mounted. Grul used Ground Shift to cover for them, but the warriors who had broken from the ranks began to take damage from the wolves.
“Chieftain. Should we retreat?”
“What kind of question is that?! Worry about how to get us out of here!”
The art of the curse had fallen into decline with the development of Qi Arts. The Beast Faction warriors, though at different levels of mastery, had all trained in Qi. Not everyone had fallen to the Curse of Frenzy, and they were still in a position to help one another.
For now. If they scattered to the point where he could no longer cover them with Ground Shift, they would be hunted down one by one.
There was a solution: knock the frenzied warriors out to calm them down. But crippling his own forces while fighting the wolves was just playing into the enemy’s hands. He was trapped.
It was then that a beastkin army, numbering over a thousand by a rough estimate, came rushing toward Grul. They charged in a tight-knit group through the path Grul had cleared, a force large enough to be the main army.
They weren't much help in a frontal assault, but right now, they were a more welcome sight than anyone. Tools meant for ensnaring the enemy, like snares and ropes, would be effective against the frenzied warriors.
Grul shouted in welcome.
“Reinforcements?”
“N-no! We’re running away too!”
“What? Running away?”
In war, there is a main force and auxiliary units. Usually, the auxiliary units retreat to the main force, not the other way around.
No matter how strong Grul and his men were, their numbers and scale were completely different. How could the main force be retreating to them?
It couldn't be a joke; there were too many sheep and ox beastkin, who were in charge of traps. Grul demanded an answer to the sudden news of a rout.
“From who?”
“From the dog beastkin! From the House of Baskerville!”
Grul blinked.
“Baskerville?”
*
The House of Baskerville, the Empire’s strongest guard dog family. The main and branch families had produced countless guard dogs, most of whom were sold as bodyguards to the Empire’s highest echelons. Trained from birth in etiquette and deportment, and taught Qi Arts for hunting and protection, they had been popular since ancient times.
Their hunting instincts and agility were on a different level from ordinary dog beastkin. Their defining trait was a loyalty so deep they would not hesitate to sacrifice themselves for their masters. Dignified and gallant, they were loyal dogs who constantly watched over and protected their masters.
And these very individuals were now slaughtering beastkin.
Sapien swung his spear shaft wide. The Baskerville warrior twisted its body, trying to deflect the point of impact, but Sapien was an Obelisk who had defended the city against such beastkin. Readjusting his grip, he used pure strength to crush the Baskerville.
The main force was useless. Traps and ropes were meaningless against masters of Qi Arts. The only ones who could fight were the Obelisks.
His opponent was also a Qi master, but Sapien’s skill level was enough to face them. Gaining a sliver of confidence, Sapien yelled.
“Obelisks! Hold the formation! The enemy is beastkin!”
The Obelisks were holding out better than expected, a testament to their experience. Sapien surveyed the battlefield and shouted.
“Fight bravely! Do you intend to lose to beastkin a second time?!”
“Why? What’s wrong with losing to me?”
Sapien flinched and glanced behind him.
Thwack, thwack.
Two of the Obelisks following him were sent flying, spraying blood. Beyond them, a Baskerville in a black suit stood with a fist extended, clad in a sutu. An Obelisk quickly raised his shield to block the punch.
BOOM! As the sutu-clad fist struck the shield, ripples spread across its surface. He had clearly blocked it, but the Qi penetrated through, shaking the Obelisk’s entire body.
Behind the Obelisk who collapsed with blood trickling from his lips, a mysterious woman smiled, her pointed ears twitching.
“Because we’re dogs?”
Only then did Sapien realize. It wasn't that the Obelisks were blocking well. It was that the Baskervilles, born as bodyguards to nobles, didn't use weapons. The armored Obelisks were simply falling a little more slowly.
“Why are the Baskervilles here…!”
“Aww. You recognize us. I guess we can’t let you live.”
Ghostly fire ignited in the Baskerville’s eyes. A trail of blue flame shot toward Sapien. He gripped his spear shaft with both hands and instinctively raised it. The impossibly slow shaft barely intercepted the trajectory of the fist that fell like a meteor. CLANG! An incredible roar erupted, a sound that was hard to believe came from a fist meeting iron.
She’s not just fast…! Her Qi is stronger than mine!
Sapien, pushed back about three meters, steadied his trembling arms. He had only been able to react thanks to his recent experience fighting a powerhouse who had reached the Axiom. Seeing a reflection of Grul in his opponent, Sapien was horrified.
Grul’s level? Then… could she have reached the Axiom?
“Not that I was planning on letting you live anyway. Woof.”
A sleek figure visible beneath a form-fitting suit. Neatly cut hair. Pointed ears standing atop her head and an unseen tail. A perfect posture even while fighting.
And above all, eyes that burned like blue flames. A Baskerville. With no time to reminisce, Sapien spoke.
“Who gave the order?! Did an Imperial noble command this attack?!”
“A master? Woof. If I had one of those, I wouldn’t be doing this, now would I?”
The female Baskerville, still exuding a dangerous aura, wore a sorrowful expression as she fiddled with her sutu.
“Woof. Will you be my master?”
“Don’t be ridiculous! After killing so many Obelisks!”
“If you don’t want to, I can’t force you. Fine. I’ll serve our king as I always have. But…”
The Baskerville cocked her head and asked.
“Where is the traitor Dog King?”
“You…!”
“Answer.”
An ominous premonition crawled down his spine. Sapien swung his spear shaft wide and dropped to the ground. He blocked one blow, dodged another, and deflected a third. But the Baskerville had already closed in, planting a hand on the ground and kicking him in the abdomen. Sapien’s body was torn from the ground and sent tumbling into the distance.
The Baskerville was faster than he was at getting up. Her shoe crushed Sapien’s throat. With the public figure pinned beneath her foot, the Baskerville leaned down.
“If you don’t answer, I’ll go ask the next person.”
“Krrgh…!”
“Oh. Did I step too hard?”
Squeeze. Sapien grabbed the Baskerville’s ankle with both hands. It was a pathetic-looking motion, as if trying to pry her off. The Baskerville bared her teeth and smiled.
“…I like that you don’t give up. But it’s so pitiful.”
But Sapien wasn’t resisting. Lying on the ground, his eyes could see it.
A single shadow, falling from the sky.
Perhaps she sensed it with her beastkin instincts, despite an approach that swallowed even sound. The fur on the Baskerville’s body stood on end. Her head whipped around, and her eyes met the sight of Shei, grasping a distorted space.
“Skyblade Art! Thunderbird!”
Lightning flashed. Leaping off a cloud she had created in mid-air, Shei descended like a bolt of lightning given form. Unleashing the power of lightning she’d gained in Claudia, Shei swung the thunderbolt wide.
Blanca tried to jump away, but Sapien had her ankle in a death grip. There wasn't enough time to shake him off, rooted to the ground as he was with Gon Qi Art.
However, she had faithful comrades.
“Blanca!”
“Look out!”
The duty of a guard dog is to protect. They would throw their bodies in the way to shield even a member of their own family. Two Baskervilles, sensing the attack with their beastkin instincts, ignored their own safety and leaped into the attack’s path.
And Shei’s attack engulfed all three of them. Thunder roared, fur sizzled, and blood burned. The blade forged from lightning pierced even their protective Qi and claimed two lives.
“Blanca Baskerville. So you’ve shown yourself this time!”
The one who had survived thanks to the sacrifice of the other two had no time for grief as she faced the intruder. For some reason, the boy who seemed to know her was radiating hostility.
“…You. You’re strong.”
The price of her carelessness was the death of her kin. Blanca coldly calmed her heart and adjusted her sutu. Expressing her rage only with her eyes, Blanca uttered the words she always did to humans.
“Will you be my master?”
Shei was neither surprised nor angered by the unexpected proposal. For Shei, who had traveled back in time, this was not the first time she had heard that question. She scoffed and replied.
“I’ll be your master, so why don’t you bite your tongue and kill yourself?”
“…So you also wish for us to disappear.”
“Also? I wish you’d disappear sooner rather than later.”
“Woof. I see. Then we…”
Blanca Baskerville clenched her sutu-clad fist. And a change began.
Her nails grew, piercing through the sutu. Thicker and sharper than her fingers, they looked more like claws. Unsheathing her bestial weapons, Blanca let out a low growl as a menacing, dark blue aura billowed around her.
“Have no choice but to become wolves.”