Chapter 356: Ozdok (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 356: Ozdok (3)
Jin reflexively narrowed his eyes.
A flash from the Viper, erupting from Mary’s grip, had seared his vision. It was an intense light, comparable to a direct hit from a Flash Cannon.
The radiance of infinitely condensed Aura exploding outward.
Is it a Decisive Technique? Or a Secret Technique?
It didn't seem to be an attack modeled after the Pluto Sword.
By the time Jin processed the thought, Mary had already completed her movement. White smoke billowed from her sword, which remained extended diagonally toward Ozdok.
Phew…
Mary took a single, deep breath to steady herself. Though her motion had ceased, nothing seemed to have changed.
I didn't see the moment she thrust her sword at all…!
Even for Jin.
In fact, even for a martial artist far superior to Jin, reacting to that light was an impossibility. True to its name, no one in the world possessed the reflexes to dodge the 5th Secret Technique at its peak through reaction alone.
Prediction that surpassed reaction. Or perhaps an enlightenment that transcended prediction itself.
Without one of those, the Light Speed Thrust was a strike that could never be evaded. Much less could a monster, lacking even the basics of swordsmanship, react to such a sublime blow.
The flash had already pierced through Ozdok’s inner core three seconds ago.
Crack—!
A beat late, the sound of something splitting and bursting erupted from Ozdok’s chest.
A hole the size of a human head had been gouged through the center of the massive inner core. Ozdok looked down at the wound with a dazed gesture, while Jin looked past it.
He was witnessing a much larger, darker hole forming in the sky.
Mary’s Light Speed Thrust had reached the heavens. A rift, resembling a circular island, rippled through the dense clouds of the Black Sea that hung like a dark ocean.
A shiver ran down Jin's spine. As a martial artist, he couldn't help but feel a sense of awe. This was the result of a single thrust.
Fortunately, it seems my magic struck in perfect synchronization with that incredible thrust. It wasn't just luck; Sister Mary must have adjusted her timing for me.
Ozdok could not block magic and physical attacks simultaneously. Recalling that fact, Jin unconsciously shook his head.
But even if my magic hadn't reached him, I don't think that thrust would have failed to damage Ozdok.
Guh-huuuurgh—!
Ozdok spat out a thick glob of black blood. He roared in agony, thrashing about and slamming his fists into the ground like a madman.
Snap…
With a sensation like a thread snapping, new fissures began to spread from the hole in the monster's chest.
Lines etched themselves haphazardly across Ozdok’s body, like bloodshot veins in an eye. Hundreds, thousands of these lines were all derived from the path the Light Speed Thrust had taken.
His fingers fell away, his tail was sliced into dozens of pieces, and his ankles and thighs were butchered. Ozdok’s entire body was being dismantled.
It was an impact worthy of the name ‘Secret Technique.’
Nevertheless, Mary ground her teeth, looking dissatisfied.
“Tch, I’ve still got a long way to go.”
Anyone who witnessed a thrust that bordered on divine authority would never think to use the phrase ‘a long way to go.’
For a Runcandel who had grown up watching Cyron Runcandel’s sword—a sword that could reduce an opponent to particles in a single strike—it was, however, a reasonable thought.
To others, it might even seem arrogant. The idea that she was already comparing herself to her father.
But there was something else that sent a chill down Jin's spine, even more so than Mary’s Light Speed Thrust.
He’s not finished yet.
Ozdok.
Jin and Mary both instinctively sensed that the thousand-year-old inner core monster was not yet dead.
It was common for high-ranking monsters to possess incredible regenerative abilities. For a named inner core monster like Ozdok, it went without saying.
If Ozdok were merely an exceptional specimen among inner core monsters, the heroes of a thousand years ago wouldn't have struggled so much.
Ozdok was a creature that could rightfully be called the strongest of his kind in his era.
Crunch, screeeech—!
Ozdok’s shattered body began to shrink rapidly.
To the naked eye, it didn't look threatening. Rather, it looked as if the separated bone and flesh were turning to dust and vanishing.
But this was merely preparation for a ‘transformation.’
Ozdok’s body, now reduced to particles, was coalescing into a new shape in the air. Mary’s pupils dilated, and Jin shouted for his phoenix.
“Tess!”
Greeeee—!
Tess’s eyes flashed as he spat out a torrent of chilling Azure Fire. He had gathered every bit of flame he could currently manifest.
The Azure Fire instantly engulfed Ozdok’s silhouette. As if that weren't enough, the blue flames formed a barrier in all directions, completely sealing Ozdok inside.
Yet, Jin and Mary did not lower their guard, instead tightening their stances.
“He’s a persistent one, isn't he? It’s been a long time since I’ve seen someone survive a direct hit from the Light Speed Thrust.”
Ssssss…
Tess, who had been glaring at Ozdok, gradually shrank and was unsummoned.
It wasn't because he had exhausted all his strength.
I have a bad feeling about this. I need to conserve strength and probe him again.
Since Jin couldn't predict the level of power Ozdok would possess after his transformation, he was making preparations. He needed to be able to call upon Tess again if the situation required him to unleash a Magic Sword Secret Technique.
I haven't seen that annoying form in a long time.
Murakan stared at Ozdok, who was completing his transformation where the Azure Fire had faded.
For a monster to develop an inner core, it required unimaginable desire, stimulation, and time.
A monster wounded by a swordsman might reflect on its moment of defeat countless times until one day it developed an inner core and evolved a body as sharp as a blade. A monster defeated by a mage might develop an immunity to magic.
In Ozdok’s case, it was greed.
He hadn't lived on gold from the beginning. Like any other ordinary monster, he was a common creature that preyed on beasts, humans, or other monsters.
The reason Ozdok began to crave gold and eventually developed an inner core was that he suddenly realized the nature of the humans he was killing.
Before he gained his inner core, Ozdok lived near a trade city. There, he devoured countless humans who refused to let go of their gold even in their dying moments, choosing to protect the coins in their bosoms over their own companions.
And when he finally gained an inner core…
Ozdok came to resemble a human more than any other monster. Not just in appearance, but in personality, behavior, and even language.
Tap.
Ozdok, previously hidden by smoke, descended from the air and set foot on the ground.
His mountain-like body was nowhere to be seen; he now looked perfectly human. His former black flesh seemed to have transformed into armor and a sword, leaving him fully armed.
“Whoa, what the hell is that? Is that really a monster? He looks like a person.”
He had shrunk to a stature now smaller than Jin’s.
But despite being incomparably smaller than before, the pressure Ozdok exuded had become several times stronger. It sent a cold shiver down Jin and Mary’s backs.
[I’ve woken up after a thousand years, and instead of a welcome… I get this kind of treatment…] Ozdok said, shrugging his shoulders.
“Crazy. Hey, Kid. Did that thing just speak?”
[That last thrust was a bit dangerous. It almost turned into a serious problem.]
Swish—flick!
The moment Ozdok finished speaking, a spray of blood erupted from Mary’s right cheek.
A blade of sword energy he had fired had narrowly grazed her. It was an attack originally aimed at her throat. If Mary hadn't reacted by twisting her head, she would have been decapitated.
She quickly widened the distance.
Huff, huff.
Her heart hammered against her ribs, and her breathing grew ragged. Cold sweat broke out on the palms gripping her sword.
[Oho, you dodged? Considering you’re the ones who woke me up, I was going to send you off without pain. But if you’re going to act like this, it’ll only be miserable for you.]
As he spoke those words…
Ozdok was already thrusting his sword into Mary’s flank. He moved at a speed so great that it was impossible to perceive when he had closed the distance.
The attack was blocked by her Silver Light Armor, but a follow-up strike left a long gash on Mary’s shoulder. Even that would have been a much more severe injury if Jin hadn't rushed in to block the third strike.
Clang, crackle!
Sigmund, wreathed in lightning, clashed with Ozdok’s black blade. Jin poured out attacks, incessantly switching between Pluto Sword Basic Form Lightning and Oppression, but Ozdok seemed entirely unpressured.
[Wait a moment, you two. This swordsmanship… could it be Runcandel?] Ozdok asked, effortlessly parrying the attacks.
“What do you want to know that for?” Jin took a defensive stance, shielding Mary’s back.
Having just consumed a massive amount of Aura for the Light Speed Thrust and then narrowly evading an ambush, she needed a moment to recover.
[To spare you.]
“What?”
[I’ve only just woken up, and I don't think there’s any need to make enemies of those ignorant brutes again. If the Runcandels still exist, does that mean the Zipples have been destroyed?]
As a monster that had once been designated a public enemy by all major powers, Ozdok knew how to view humans as factions rather than individuals. Back then, he had survived by trading with this faction or that whenever necessary, and he planned to do the same now.
No matter how strong he was, he had learned his lesson a thousand years ago: he couldn't take on the whole world alone.
[If the Zipples are still going strong, I might be able to help a bit. How about it? Why don't your clan and I form a sort of symbiotic relationship?]
“It wouldn't be symbiosis, Ozdok; it would be parasitism. Do you think Runcandel is a name a mere monster can just toss around?”
[It seems you lot aren't very bright.]
Slice!
Ozdok’s blade cut through the hem of Jin’s coat.
“Kid, buy me just thirty seconds. Can you do it?” Mary spoke in a low voice. Her expression, however, was far from solemn.
“Even longer, if you need.”
[And you’re quite arrogant, too.]
Mary, on the contrary, looked absolutely flushed with excitement, as if she were having the time of her life. The thought that if she recovered for just thirty seconds, she could unleash a variation of Dormant Volcano and have a proper, intense fight with Ozdok was making her thrill with anticipation.
Mary Runcandel. That one is quite mad as well. In this situation, she’s not even thinking of asking me for help; she just wants to keep fighting? I thought the brat would look for me too, but they’re just going to keep fighting amongst themselves?
Murakan shook his head. It was time for him to step in. There was no need to put the siblings in further danger.
I should transform into my true form and do this right from the start… Huh? What’s that?
In the moment Murakan was calculating his intervention…
Vweeeeeing—!
A streak of light flew in from somewhere and severed Ozdok’s right arm. It wasn't an attack from Jin or Mary.
Furthermore, it was a strike that had originally been intended to bisect his torso.
[Gah!]
“Oho, you dodged?”
A man smiled as he threw back the very words Ozdok had said to Mary moments ago.
He was the man who had been watching Jin’s group from the battlefield all along.