Chapter 8
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: A Predator's Hunt
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Inner Chamber
An Awakened One is a superhuman.
They were beings who gained genius-level talent just by awakening a Class.
Therefore, as long as they didn't get a completely useless Class, an Awakened One could receive good treatment wherever they went.
This was even more true for a 2-Star Awakened One, who was rarer than a 1-Star.
“You know, I thought you might be the leader of the back alleys of Soma Castle.”
“…”
“But the more I think about it, that doesn't seem to be the case.”
In that sense.
Dion's guess was plausible.
A 2-Star Awakened One, who could even become a vassal in a lower noble house, acting as a mere thug? Even for a gang leader, it was a poor return on investment.
But there was one crucial flaw in that guess.
“Because a real leader wouldn't get personally involved in something so dangerous.”
The dark elves of Soma Castle were, at least formally, subjects of the Unlight family.
It might be different for bottom-of-the-barrel thugs with nothing to lose, but for the supposed leader of a gang to personally get involved was just too foolish.
Along with this truly objective observation, Dion wore a meaningful smile.
“In that sense, I'll ask again… Who are you?”
“…”
“Are you even a real gang of thugs in the first…”
*CRASH!*
“…Attacking in the middle of a conversation. What an ill-mannered lizard.”
“You… talk too much.”
The lizardman who was the leader of the thugs, and a 2-Star Awakened One.
Jod glared at Dion, whirling his chain flail in the air.
“Die. Shut your mouth.”
“Hmm, if you'd rather have a conversation of splashing blood and flesh than a peaceful chat, that's fine by me.”
Despite the flail fiercely tearing through the air and the cold, murderous gaze unique to reptiles, Dion didn't flinch.
Instead, he simply smiled and readjusted his grip on his dagger.
“To be honest, I prefer this way myself.”
“…”
And so, the moment the snake-like, ruthless eyes and the blood-red pupils captured each other's gaze.
The massive flail, spinning in the hand of the Lizardman with the Class 【Thug】☆☆, drew an arc.
The boy with the Class 【Murderer】☆, having nimbly dodged the flail, closed in on the Lizardman.
The two Awakened Ones' life-or-death struggle began.
***
*CRASH! CRASH, CRAAASH!*
She was watching.
As the massive flail tore through the air.
And shattered the ground like glass.
She saw the boy's delicate skin being torn by the flying fragments.
But she could only watch with a doll-like, expressionless face, her steel-gauntleted hands clenched tightly.
*…This is foolish.*
Normally, Parsha should have intervened when this fight began… no, when Jod launched his surprise attack by throwing a stone.
She was Dion's personal maid.
For she was someone who had to serve her master, assist him with all her might, and protect him with her life.
Nevertheless, the reason she was only watching this fight was because it was her master's command.
Indeed, when she had tried to move to stop Jod, Dion had clearly conveyed his will with a hand gesture.
—I'll handle this lizard. Stay out of it.
*I understand he's gained confidence from winning the duel with the Vlad, but there's a limit to recklessness.*
Gerald may have been a 1-Star, but he was an Awakened One who had reached the level of a [Master].
Having defeated him in a duel, it was clear that Dion possessed skills that made it hard to find a match for him among 1-Star Awakened Ones.
The problem was, judging from his movements so far, Jod was at least a 2-Star combat-type Awakened One.
The 【Swordsman】☆, skilled with a blade.
The 【Arsonist】☆, good at starting fires.
The 【Apothecary】☆, who makes all sorts of potions, and so on.
1-Star Awakened Ones were certainly geniuses in their respective fields, but at the end of the day, they were beings whose skills could be mimicked by ordinary people.
Moreover, they were so common, making up over 60% of all Awakened Ones, that they were called Normal, implying they were infinitely close to ordinary people.
Even Gerald, who was a top-tier combatant among 1-Stars, was merely a gatekeeper in the Vlad family.
But from 2-Star onwards, the story changes.
The 【Warrior】☆☆, who enhances their body.
The 【Pyromancer】☆☆, who controls fire.
The 【Alchemist】☆☆, who transmutes matter, and so on.
2-Star Awakened Ones were beings who had taken at least one step beyond the human race.
They could accomplish things impossible for ordinary people and were considered UnCommon, as they only accounted for a little over 20% of all Awakened Ones.
For a 1-Star Awakened One to defeat a 2-Star in the same field was next to impossible.
*CRASH!*
*At that rate, he could crush five or six 1-Star Awakened Ones even if they all rushed him at once.*
Indeed, Jod's prowess was formidable.
The chain flail, several times larger and heavier than a normal one, was a chunk of iron that would dislocate the shoulder of anyone but a giant with a single swing.
Yet, Jod's strength in wielding such a flail freely far surpassed the limits of a Lizardman.
What's more, his speed was far greater than Gerald's, and he wasn't even bothering to block Dion's dagger, simply deflecting it with his scales.
That was the difference between 1-Star and 2-Star.
It was the gap created by adding the simple, and therefore all the more terrifying, ability of [Body Enhancement] to the already tough scales of a Lizardman.
In fact, even if there were several Geralds, they would have been turned to pulp in an instant before that flail, like children before an adult.
No matter how much of an idiot Dion was, he should have known that much. So why did he stop Parsha and refuse to reveal his own identity?
No matter how she thought about it, there was only one answer.
*To risk his own life just to consider the position of a mere maid... there's a limit to being a moron.*
Whether she, a dark elf, stepped in.
Or whether he used his status to resolve the situation.
Either way could solve the problem for now, but it would ultimately lead to greater repercussions for the dark elves, who had nowhere else to go but Soma Castle.
But even so, for him to take up a blade himself was not just reckless, but foolish.
Especially considering Dion's skill, which had led him to struggle and become covered in blood against a single Gerald.
*…Truly, whether before or after his awakening, the Young Master is as pathetic as ever.*
Why did she of all people have to become the personal maid of such an idiot?
While lamenting inwardly, Parsha ignored the gaze of a certain dark elf and continued to watch their fight with an expressionless face.
She was waiting for the moment Dion was cornered, so she could jump in and send Jod's head flying.
No matter how much of an idiot and a moron he was, that boy was her master.
But…
“?”
A moment later.
The end of Parsha's eyebrow twitched upward.
***
*CRASH, CRAAASH!*
Distant.
Heavy.
Hard.
Just a simple flail.
But those simple elements became utterly terrifying when wielded by an Awakened One of monstrous strength.
The chunk of iron, capable of shattering even boulders, flew like lightning. It was more like a storm.
The very embodiment of destruction, capable of bringing down buildings with a single missed strike.
*SWOOSH!*
He had clearly dodged it.
But the vibration that rang in his ears from the wind pressure alone, his staggering body, and above all, the goosebumps that rose on his skin told him.
That if he were to be hit, or even grazed, by that thing just once, his body would be shattered.
This lizardman was a being who had stepped halfway into the realm of superhumans, far surpassing even Gerald, with whom he had fought a desperate battle just a few hours ago.
Therefore…
*'Indeed. A 2-Star is a 2-Star.'*
—A grin.
Dion smiled without realizing it.
A smile that fully conveyed a joy he couldn't contain.
*Flinch.*
Was it because he felt an instinctual threat, or was it because of that smile, that Jod, who had been swinging his flail, retreated for the first time?
A momentary wavering, lasting less than the blink of an eye.
But that was more than enough for Dion to dodge the flail, which had lost its centrifugal force and was suspended in mid-air, and to close in on Jod and swing his dagger.
Of course, even so, Dion's strength wasn't enough to pierce Jod's enhanced scales.
—If this were a normal situation.
—Swapping the current Class with a stored Class using the special effect of 【Class Changer】.
【Lecher】☆ → 【Strongman】☆
*STAB!*
“Kyargh!!!”
Instead of aiming for the abdomen or vital spots where the scales were raised, the boy lowered his body as if prostrating, cleverly slicing at the ankle through a gap in the scales before rolling away.
On top of that, his suddenly doubled strength finally made the Lizardman bleed.
The first injury he had sustained.
In his rage, Jod swung his flail even more fiercely, but…
【Hunter】☆ → 【Liar】☆
*WHOOSH!*
“Tsk, tsk. That's not how you swing a flail.”
“!?”
“Especially when you've injured your leg.”
The boy whispered as he dodged the flail.
For some reason.
That whisper, which seeped into his ears with bizarre clarity, made him unconsciously put more force into his leg.
As a result, the wound on his ankle split open, gushing blood and causing the Lizardman to stagger.
Seeing Jod like this, Dion's smile deepened.
“You've been slacking on your training, haven't you?”
“!”
“You've probably never had a proper fight, other than crushing weaklings with brute force or launching surprise attacks.”
Seeing the wavering in the Lizardman's eyes, as if he'd hit a nerve, Dion smirked.
In truth, he had expected as much from the moment he saw Jod's status window.
His 【Thug】 Class was still at the [Beginner] level.
On the other hand, his 【Gambler】, 【Laborer】, 【Porter】, and 【Petty Thief】 Classes were at [Expert] level or higher.
It was true that 2-Star Classes grew several times slower than 1-Star Classes, but there was a limit.
This enormous level gap was Jod's life itself.
It was proof that he had only served as a subordinate, picking up cowardly victories instead of engaging in fierce battles, just as he had watched the other thugs fight before launching his own surprise attack.
That's why Dion smiled brightly.
“Remember this.”
“…”
“—That complacency is the reason you will die by my hand.”
“Kirrrrrrk!”
Was it because his anger exploded at being mocked by a mere 1-Star brat, even if he was an Awakened One?
Jod used his tail as a support instead of his injured ankle and charged again, swinging his flail.
Perhaps due to his talent as a 【Thug】.
Despite it likely being the first time in his life he had to improvise, he instantly found his balance, and thanks to extreme body enhancement, his flail was now even faster and stronger than before.
But in Dion's eyes as he dodged the flail, there was no fear, only a hint of disappointment.
*'Hmm, he's stronger than that bat from before… but that's all he is. Just strong.'*
That was right.
Whether viewed objectively.
Or subjectively.
Jod was certainly an Awakened One who could easily crush someone like Gerald, but that was purely due to the power of his body enhancement.
His flail, though terrifyingly fast and destructive, was not as sharp or cunning as Gerald's spear.
A 2-Star Awakened One, but a [Beginner] who hadn't surpassed Lv3.
A 1-Star, but a [Master] who had mastered multiple combat classes to a high level.
The difference in their experience and training created a difference in their skill.
And yet, the fact that Jod was still stronger was the absurdity of Odobaekryeong, where Classes and Traits were everything…
*SWOOSH!*
“!”
He dodges.
He closes in.
He stabs and slashes.
The wrist, the ankle, the side.
Watching Jod's movements slow down with each accumulating wound—shallow though they might be—and the fear rising in his eyes, Dion smiled.
Yes.
Any other ordinary 1-Star Awakened One would not have been able to defeat Jod.
But Dion was different.
His 【Combat Logic】, which could find even a 1% chance of victory, and his 【Bloodlust Star】, which gave a bonus that surpassed the limits of all his Classes.
And his combat experience from fighting and surviving against all sorts of powerful enemies during the Calamity War.
Above all, another special privilege was giving Dion the leeway to smile even in this fierce battle.
【Class Changer】
1. Can select Classes.
2. Can swap Classes.
3. Can dismantle Classes.
4. Increased Class acquisition probability ↑ (High)
5. (Unlock condition unknown)
6. (Unlock condition unknown)
—Talent may be innate, but choosing a Class is a matter of freedom. Thus, to be able to obtain the talent one desires is the ultimate blessing.
The power to render meaningless the simple yet all the more fatal restriction that an Awakened One could only have five Classes.
Using the Trait that had been even more essential than 【Bloodlust Star】 for surviving the Calamity War, he repeatedly swapped Classes whenever necessary.
After unilaterally cutting, stabbing, and overwhelming the fool who didn't even know how to use his Class.
He approached the Lizardman, who had finally dropped his flail after the tendons in his wrist were severed and was now stumbling backward.
Dion thought with a beaming smile.
“Well then, bye-bye.”
“W-Wai…!”
*SLICE!*
—Seriously, Odobaekryeong is great. It's overflowing with walking bags of experience.
『Achievement: Thug Subjugation.』
『Achievement: Giant Killing.』
『Special effect of 【Bloodlust Star】 activated.』
『2-Star Class 【Thug】 has been stolen.』
『1-Star Class 【Laborer】 has been stolen.』
『Unique Trait 【Mighty (N)】 has been stolen.』
『【Murderer】☆ LV10』
『【Petty Thief】☆ Lv7→ LV10』
『【Swordsman】☆ Lv5→ LV10』
『【Strongman】☆ Lv1→ Lv6』
『【Liar】☆ Lv1→ Lv6』
『Having reached Lv10 in 【Petty Thief】 and 【Swordsman】, the traces of the Classes are now engraved upon your soul.』
………
……
…
—Fusion and promotion of certain Classes has become possible.
—You can select Classes to fuse via the effect of 【Class Changer】.
1. 【Murderer】☆ + 【Swordsman】☆
→【Slaughterer】☆☆
2. 【Swordsman】☆ + 【Petty Thief】☆
→【Robber】☆☆
3. 【Murderer】☆ + 【Petty Thief】☆
→【Assassin】☆☆