Chapter 295
Chapter 295
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 295
Chapter Title: Forgotten Giant's Ancient Forest #2
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Thump, thump, thump-thump—.
The deafening sound of a massive four-legged beast charging through the underbrush echoed around us.
Karruk!
Its red eyes glared at us as if they could pierce right through. Of course, no matter how sharp its gaze, it wouldn't actually skewer us.
But those pillar-like legs ending in scythe-sharp claws? They looked more than capable of not just piercing us, but shredding us to ribbons.
Kyarruk—!
The beast closed in on us in an instant and reared up its front paw high.
“Aaah! That thing’s trying to give us a knuckle sandwich…! W-We have to run—!”
Paranoia was right. For some reason, this pissed-off colossal beast was winding up to rap our skulls. Though if it connected, my head would probably part ways with my body.
We couldn’t just stand there and take it, though.
We had the ultimate monster on our side—attack power 3000, defense 2500.
“Isvaron! Do something! Burst Stream of Destruction—!”
Ah—. Sorry, but in this forest, I can’t do a thing. That’s the deal.
“You son of a—!”
As I spat out a curse like a dying man’s last breath, I saw a fierce claw slash through the air toward me with a whoosh—.
“Hatsan—! Look out—!”
“Hatsan, sir, this time you’re really gonna die…!”
Luna and Paranoia’s sharp screams rang vividly in my ears, and at the same time, the massive forepaw hurtling toward me seemed to slow into a surreal crawl.
Was this the life-flashing-before-my-eyes thing?
Memories from the past flickered through my mind like a film reel.
Aaah! Hatsan, sir’s hellish finisher, the twenty-fifth one! The devastating knuckle sandwich!
Aaah! If you reduce Paranoia’s stake any further, she’ll drop from hell’s countess to mere viscountess…!
Bring all the nymphs and form hell’s nymph brigade—.
Damn it, my life-flashing montage was nothing but Paranoia. It felt like I’d been infected by some computer virus.
No way was I accepting this flash of life.
Paranoia as my dying vision? Hell no!
So I mustered every ounce of strength in my body and thrust both arms upward.
Wham—!
In the next instant, my body was smacked by that enormous paw and sent flying far away. It was a soul-shaking blow, like lightning had struck me through.
“Gaaah!”
It was horrific agony, but since I could feel the pain and think straight, it looked like I’d dodged death.
Still airborne, I twisted my body mid-flight and executed a proper landing roll.
Screeech—my slide across the grass didn’t sit well with it, apparently. The white-furred beast bared its arm-thick fangs and started growling.
Luna came rushing to my side.
“Hatsan, you okay!?”
“Yeah! Somehow I held!”
I’m not sure how, but in that split second, I’d drawn up all my energy and wrapped it around my arms to boost my defense. They say nothing beats real combat for practice.
Faced with death, I’d summoned superhuman focus in the clutch and channeled my aura.
The problem? I’d barely crossed death’s threshold once. I was out of ultimates and teleports. And the beast had just swung a casual smack.
Things looked bleak as hell.
It felt eerily like that day back then, naturally dredging up old memories. Right after forming a party with Luna, battling that powerhouse beast underground.
Back then, I’d been trembling like a mouse before a giant beast, too.
Is human history just one big loop—.
“Ifrit—!”
Then a sharp cry rang out from somewhere. Soon, a fireball hot enough to scorch the air erupted into the sky and rocketed forward.
Keeek—!
Boom—!
It slammed into the white-furred behemoth, detonating in a massive blast.
The heat was intense enough to suck the moisture from the air, leaving my skin parched.
Whoosh—.
Caught in the backlash, Luna and I crouched low and ducked our heads to avoid the flames.
“Eeeek—! I-I’m flying…!”
Paranoia, with her slight build, of course got hurled far away and tumbled. But that wasn’t the priority now.
Elfriede’s fireball.
The most basic fire spell, but like all attack magic, it packed the punch of an ultimate finisher.
Thump, thump, thump-thump—.
The beast, struck dead-on by the blast, had its white fur swallowed by crimson flames. Elfriede’s spell had landed hard—one look told you that.
Oh, a flame mage, eh? That odd mana makes sense now. Fine blaze. Not far off the dragons’ breath.
Even the haughty dragon Isvaron seemed impressed by the fireball. But Elfriede’s face stayed grim, despite praise from her beloved dragonkin.
“Didn’t take it down. If anything, I pissed it off more—. Guess I’ll have to unload something stronger.”
Kraaaah—!
Sure enough, the beast emerged from the flames unscathed, not a scratch on it. It drooled fury between its fangs.
Rabies, maybe.
Isvaron chuckled at the sight.
Of course its hide’s tough. Normal weapons and spells just bounce off. That’s why it rules this forest.
“Fall back, mage—. That weird chant’ll take time.”
Shing—.
Hippolite stepped in front of Elfriede, gripping a longsword as long as she was tall in both hands. Elfriede’s furrowed brow, tense as a neurotic’s, eased a bit.
“Then I’ll leave it to you.”
Elfriede began chanting a long, incomprehensible incantation.
For Elfriede, who cast most spells silently, chanting meant something massively powerful was coming.
Was she prepping that ultimate she used to drop the giant in the abyss?
Whatever it was, with Elfriede and Hippolite here, we were solid.
Yeah.
Unlike that first underground brawl with whatever cat-lion thing, the situation was different now. Our party’s quality had leveled up.
“Hup—!”
Hippolite inhaled sharply and swung her massive longsword with both hands.
From left to right—. Her blade cleaved the air, birthing a white sword-wind like a thorn or claw piercing the world, hurtling toward the beast.
Sword aura, slash wave—call it what you will, it was a swordsman’s secret technique.
Swooooosh—.
The destructive blade gale roared like crashing waves toward the white-furred monster—and.
!
It struck true, clashing with the beast’s body in a sharp metallic clang, like steel on steel.
No blood spray from the sharpness, no fur flying—just metal shrieking? Super weird.
“As expected, tough hide. How about I slice it off myself—.”
Hippolite smirked and kicked off, launching into the air. She brought her longsword crashing down from above onto the beast’s head.
Clean as a protractor-drawn semicircle—flawless, no wasted motion.
Clang—!
But the blade hitting its forehead just rang out with another deafening impact, like before.
“Ugh, way too hard!?”
Hippolite landed, her voice pitching up in uncharacteristic fluster.
“It’s like armored plate—!”
No doubt about it—Hippolite was spot-on. This white-furred fiend had steel-tough skin.
A beast clad head to toe in armor.
Balance patch real?
As I caught my breath and nursed the pain, wondering how to beat this thing, Luna rummaged at her waist and pulled out a small vial.
“Found it! Bug-repellent herb! This should neutralize that big guy for a bit!”
Bug-repellent herb?
Ah—.
I recalled how Luna took down Nemean’s white beast in the sewers with it.
The unique smoky aroma from burning it had crippled the thing’s movement.
“I was useless back then, but I’ve learned a few tricks now—! Hippolite! Buy me a little more time!”
“No clue what it is, but hurry up!”
While Hippolite kept the monster busy, Luna dumped the herbs from the vial onto the ground and struck a match to light them.
But the flames wouldn’t catch properly.
“Leaves a bit damp? Hatsan, help me get this fire going!”
I scrambled to assist, blowing on the leaves, piling on dry grass—nothing worked.
Then a tiny spark like a firefly zipped in from somewhere—.
Fwoosh—.
It ignited the bug-repellent herb into roaring flames.
I glanced back to see Elfriede resuming her chant. She must’ve sparked it. Unexpected, but no time to dwell.
“Smoke voodoo—!”
Luna shrugged off her robe-cape. Wondering what she was up to, I watched her flap it wildly to spread the smoke.
Flutter, flutter—.
The swirling haze wafted toward the white-furred behemoth.
Kyarruk—!?
It shuddered at the scent—and halted its attack on Hippolite, charging straight for Luna.
“H-Hatsan—! Block it a sec! Just a bit! It’s so huge, takes time for the effect to kick in!”
“Damn it, fine! Nox—.”
『Luminosity too high. Night Armor unavailable—.』
“No workaround, huh!”
Thud, thud—.
I planted my feet firm, yanked my club from my back. Stretched out, the rebar-weight behemoth became spear-length.
Gripping it two-handed, I hoisted it skyward.
Fwoom—.
The massive pillar sliced the air, surging upward.
“Come on, you bastard—!”
Kyarruk—!?
Sensing the threat, the white beast tried to halt, but its head was already in my club’s arc.
“Die, you fuck—!”
Hwoooooaaah—!!
Human limit strength: 15.
Plus this horror-crusher, now oddly called a weapon.
Testing power I couldn’t unleash on humans—against a foe my past self would’ve feared—I swung down with everything.
The pillar’s tip smashed into the gaping maw of the lunging monster’s head—.
!
A thunderous impact—and my titanium gauntlets shattered. Warm blood trickled from my nose and mouth.
Legs numb; spine and hips probably wrecked. I’d dealt the blow, but the recoil wrecked me.
Still, it hit like a truck.
Grrooo—!
Crack, crunch.
The ground cratered like a meteor strike, but the beast endured.
Blood streaming from eyes, nose, mouth, it chomped down on me.
“T-This bastard’s trying to eat me!”
I grabbed its jaws, barely holding to avoid being lunch.
Our bite force versus my grip locked in stalemate—then I felt its strength ebbing.
“Shadow Bind—!”
Luna drove something sharp into the earth behind me with a thunk. Shadow Bind.
One of her terrifying spells, sealing movement temporarily.
Grrooo….
It worked—the white beast froze, jaws halting their shredding.
“Hatsan! Not dead yet! Finish it off! Too big—can’t hold long! M-Max ten seconds!”
Ten seconds!?
Her words snapped me alert. I wriggled free of its mouth, locked my arms around its thick neck.
It shrugged off clubs, swords, fire. But it was flesh and blood, heart beating.
Choke the oxygen—end it.
“Grraaah—!”
Its neck was pillar-thick. Tendons, bones, muscles, flesh, blood—all bulged in frenzy.
Grroooaaah—.
“S-Spell’s breaking, Hatsan—!”
Graaaah—!!
Crack—!
Glass shattering—and the beast thrashed wildly again. It raked its forepaws at me clinging to its neck.
“Fuck, die already—! Die—!”
Letting go now? All my training, growth—wasted.
So I clamped harder with grit even I found shocking.
“T-That’s one of Hatsan, sir’s top five instant-death moves, the Death Hug—! T-The big beast’s done for…!”
“I’ll help, Hatsan—!”
Hippolite grabbed a forepaw—fewer swipes at me now. Relief.
Huff, huff—.
The beast’s nose breaths faded to whispers.
Veins bursting in my head, I squeezed my last dregs. Live or kill—no other thoughts.
And finally.
….
Finally, I felt a small life flicker out within it. I’d felled the giant fiend with the Death Hug. Only then did my body go limp.
Like I’d burned next year’s strength—couldn’t twitch a finger. Collapsed, my vision blurred over everything.
“Whew! Hatsan took down the giant whitey! Let’s skin it! Their hides make killer clothes!”
Luna cheered.
“Didn’t even need to step in.”
Elfriede extinguished the eerie flame flickering at her staff’s tip.
“Raw power, no skill needed. That’s Samaritan for ya—.”
Hippolite sheathed her longsword with a tsk.
“Hatsan, sir dodged death again…! H-How long do you plan to mock the god of death, Moros…!!”
….
Relief at survival, triumph at victory—my mind cleared like a waterfall rinse on my brain.
Hey, maybe I could just close my eyes and sleep right here—.
Karruk—.
Karruk—.
Karuk.
“W-What the fuck is that—.”
I reopened my eyes to white fur clumps encircling us. The blue dragon, chuckling creepily, finally spoke.
What you slew was the beast king’s offspring, a juvenile. A karma feat beyond mortal reach, among the distant stars. Looks like the forest king Echidna’s taken an interest in you.