Chapter 220
Chapter 220
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 220
Chapter Title: Star Crusher (9)
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Kadim was quite surprised.
The Decagram's "Stigmata" was a miracle on par with the "Unique Traits" he and his first-playthrough companions possessed. He'd predicted that even decapitation wouldn't kill them as long as they had lifespan left. But he hadn't expected regeneration like this.
Tssshk, tssshhk...
A new head sprouted from the cross-section of the severed neck. Identical to the one rolling on the ground.
"H-heuk, heuk..."
'Shiiiik, shik...'
There had been cases like hydras or fission demons before, but this was the first time he'd seen a pure human regenerate a head. And both the detached head and the regenerated one were functioning as if fully alive. Even a berserker who'd witnessed every manner of grotesque spectacle couldn't help but marvel.
But the emotion Kadim felt was nothing compared to Vitares's shock.
"8."
――――――― Creeeak!
"...Ah."
His consciousness split between the decapitated head and the regenerating one. Vision, senses, emotions, thoughts... even the cognition felt by the severed head flooded in simultaneously, overloading his mind. But more terrifying than the existential confusion was something else.
The heretic's growing power.
Vitares had thought what he'd seen so far was the enemy's full strength. After all, it surpassed even him, who'd burned through his lifespan. Whether it was a lesser god's blessing, a demon contract, or an ancient relic... he'd been certain the barbarian had used every means to inflate his power.
He was wrong. That had been mere raw physical might. Activating the bizarre tattoos and dyeing his eyes red elevated the savage's power another level.
To a realm that overwhelmed even him, who'd sacrificed a full thousand years of life.
"7."
――――― Creeeak!
"6."
――――― Creeeak!!
"...Euk!"
Vitares's current prowess wasn't feeble by any means. Drawing out the Stigmata's full potential had brought his power to a level where he could contend with the Decagram's top five seats.
And yet...
"5, 4, 3..."
――――――― Crack, creeak, tssshk!!
"Euk, kuhuk! Kuuh..."
...he was utterly helpless.
He couldn't even block the axe strikes, let alone follow the afterimages. Each severed head shaved off massive chunks of his life. Realizing too late that the numbers the foe chanted were his remaining lifespan made every eye socket in his heads widen in unison.
Still, Kadim couldn't finish it within ten seconds.
"2, 1..."
Because the "Star That Burns Life" had resorted to his final measure.
"...I offer it as sacrifice!"
The moment he hastily finished his chant, the air reversed.
Whooooosh!!
Elga's divine power, tinged pinkish-red, turned a deep crimson. A whirlwind like a flaming storm incinerated the scattered heads. The red-haired man at the center lost his human form in an instant.
Kuduk!! Kududuk, kududuk!
His appearance became a hybrid of ogre and giant, or a monstrosity of pure muscle and bone. His bulk surpassed even the massive berserker, and his roar carried a soul-shaking pressure.
["'7328 years'... All my remaining life, offered as a burnt sacrifice to annihilate you..."]
"..."
["...Wretched demon, tremble in endless fear and scream in boundless terror. The star that burns eons to guide ruin has finally arrived here!"]
Kadim regarded him with a dull gaze. He'd failed to slaughter him before the theatrics. But his efforts weren't in vain.
He'd finally reclaimed Old Ironhammer's "masterpiece."
One of the two exceptions where a warrior could drop his weapon: acquiring a new one. He set aside Judgment of Atala for now.
He gripped the sturdy haft tightly. The handle fit perfectly in his grasp. Maintaining his iron grip, he lifted the silver ingot weighing over a thousand pounds. Unlike the Arch Paladin who'd strained to wield it, the massive hammer moved with perfect stability.
Kurrung...
Weighty yet not cumbersome, perfectly balanced. It looked crudely made at a glance, but the maker's meticulous care for the user was palpable. Yeah, you made it just right for me—a real 'big one,' old man.
The masterpiece, infused with the craftsman's sweat and blood, had met its true owner. The ingot trembled in delight, and the "enchant" rune carved by the dwarf god glowed faintly blue.
Wuuung...
Perhaps because his whole body had become a weapon, Vitares didn't cling much to the stolen hammer.
["Ha, you think grabbing that now changes anything? Before this exalted flesh granted by Elga, that heretic trash is no different from a feather duster!"]
Fine talk from the one who rushed here to steal it. Kadim ignored the nonsense and bared his fangs fiercely.
"Congratulations, meat lump. You've outlived your allotted ten seconds."
["..."]
"And my condolences. For having your thick skull smashed by a feather duster."
Flames of fury roared in the eyes of the berserker and holy knight alike.
Thus began the final clash that defied heaven and earth.
Kwaang!!
The 7,000-year sacrifice was no bluff. Vitares's momentum shifted dramatically. The ground shattered as he leaped, closing in on Kadim in an instant to unleash a punch.
Kadim swung the hammer in response.
――――― Kwaaang!!
Metal met bone, unleashing a dizzying shockwave.
In the test of strength, the fist held a slight edge. The hammer's trajectory buckled, and Kadim's footing sank. Vitares pressed the advantage, his fists accelerating like siege rams wrapped in air-rending howls, relentlessly assailing his foe.
But large motions were easy to counter. Kadim parried appropriately, retreated judiciously, and waited for an opening. Spotting a moderate attack, he planted his left foot firmly and deliberately met the punch lightly with the hammer.
Then, at the moment of impact, he twisted his body to swing the hammer in reverse.
――――――― Hwooung, kwaaang!!!
["Guhk!"]
The shock struck Vitares's opposite flank, sending him flying far away.
Using the punch's force as rebound, pivoting on one foot for a spinning strike. The hammer blow, amplified by weight, strength, and acceleration, held mountain-crushing power. No muscle-bound monstrosity could withstand it.
But his surging rage rendered the damage meaningless.
["Hoo-uk, hoo-uk..."]
Vitares breathed like a demon crawling from hell's brink. He charged again with ferocious momentum, swinging his muscles with sole intent to kill.
["Kraaaah!! Krhaaaah!!"]
―――――― Hwoooong!! Kbang, kbang, kwaang!!
Each punch warped the air; each kick devastated the earth. Wild flailing without a trace of martial subtlety.
But countering was now impossible. The speed was too fast to block, the power too great. The holy knight's one-sided barrage raged on for a moment.
――――― Kbang! Crrrack, kwaang!
Kadim narrowed his eyes. He was dodging for now, but it wouldn't last. The buff from the "Hydra Tattoo" was fading.
Activating other tattoos or summoning divine power with Judgment of Atala would solve it easily... but he didn't want to. He sought vengeance using only this "masterpiece," without over-relying on demonic power or other weapons.
To honor Old Ironhammer's sacrifice, who defied even death.
And to prove that "struggle" wasn't futile.
He had faith in it. Being "enchanted" meant special effects. Exploiting that could deal sufficient damage to the meat lump.
He just didn't know exactly what, so he'd been stalling...
――――――― Kwaang!
Wuuung!
"...!"
...until blocking a punch made the enchant rune glow, revealing its effect.
Kadim switched tactics.
――――――― Kwaang!! Kwaang!! Chiiing!
Punches, kicks, wild swings... Instead of evading, he countered every attack. He ignored the accumulating damage from being overpowered. With bone-shattering resolve, he refused to yield an inch, counterattacking relentlessly.
To Vitares, it was pathetic flailing.
["Pitiful, demon!! When will you shatter my skull!! When will you shatter my skull!! You struggle just to block a single punch—how, when, how will you smash my skull with that feather duster!!"]
"..."
Fortunately, he didn't have to endure the smugness long. A few more blocks accumulated the shock, and it was ready.
Wung, wung, wung, wung!
Finally, destruction scarred the earth, dust clouds bloomed like crimson sunset veils in the sky, and the hammer's rune shone brighter than aurora.
Kadim swung decisively.
"Like this."
Whiiiooong!
The instant the ingot touched the foe, the accumulated "shock" released all at once.
"...Euk!?"
―――――――――――― Kwaaaaaang!!!
The result was more explosion than impact.
The shockwave scattered distant clouds. Thunderous quakes shook the ground. Vitares's vaporized form reappeared after leaping the moat and smashing into the walls.
――――― Kwaaagwang!!! Kwarung, kwarrur...
The muscle mass pierced straight through the wall; the towering ramparts crumbled like sandcastles. The runaway inertia didn't stop even in the city. It demolished an outpost, punched through brick houses, upended street pavements, and finally halted after exhausting its momentum.
'Shock Accumulation'.
A special effect storing impacts received by the weapon and expending them in a single attack.
Kadim let out a hollow chuckle. He'd known it was potent, but not this much.
The enemy had flown too far. Retracing took ages—over crumbled walls, debris piles, shattered streets—before he found Vitares again.
A compressed meat paste. Yet the skull remained, spewing words.
["Damn... you... What the hell... did you... do..."]
"You know. Swung the feather duster."
["Kuhuk... What nonsense... That hammer... damn it... What is it... that weapon's... name..."]
"..."
Kadim gazed at the hammer in his hand.
A "masterpiece" like this deserved a name. But none came to mind. He briefly considered "Feather Duster," but that would make Old Ironhammer writhe in the afterlife...
Then, a thought flashed.
"You lot called yourselves 'stars.'"
["...Yes, demon. We are... Elga's incarnations... the ten radiant stars risen upon the earth... Regret now... is too late... Even if you fell me... in the end... the remaining stars will..."]
"Then there's nothing more to see."
Kadim raised the hammer over the triumphant face.
"By Atala's name, I swear: This hammer shall henceforth crush all false malign stars on this earth who dare claim to be stars."
"...!!!"
The dying star's eyes bulged. Pupils lost focus, shaking. The massive shadow engulfed the quivering starlight.
"Forged by the craftsman slain unjustly by stellar tyranny, this 'masterpiece' shall be named..."
Not a second spared, the final strike pulverizing all life.
―――――― Puhk!
"...'Star Crusher.'"
Beneath the crude ingot forged by a blacksmith who hadn't lived a century.
Elga's radiant star, who aspired to ten millennia, fell.
Crossing the ruined streets and evacuation zones.
Kadim drew every eye.
His sheer size and appearance commanded attention even bare-handed. Now he bore ornaments impossible to ignore.
Two pulverized corpses and a hammer the size of a siege ram.
Citizens stared in unison, as if scripted. Their reactions were similarly uniform: shock, fear, chaos, screams, hysterics... The barely calmed evacuation zone descended into pandemonium again, clearing a vacant path before Kadim.
But one approached instead.
Enrico Turis, the superintendent who'd arrived at the commotion.
"Ka, Ka, Ka, Kadim... sire? Is that you, Kadim sire?"
"..."
"D-do you recognize me? Enrico Turis, superintendent of Remtana. Th-those corpses, what in the world..."
Nearly half a year since their last meeting, but no time for pleasantries. Kadim skipped them.
"Decagram."
"...What?"
"Elga Church's elite Arch Paladins, the Decagram. This big lump of meat is 7th seat, the smaller one 8th."
"..."
The moment his long-nurtured plan bore fruit.
He'd succeeded in facing the Decagram with the "Demon Slayer" label. Yet Enrico couldn't rejoice. In idiotic stupor, he barely continued.
"Kadim sire... truly felled these... all alone?"
"No, I just lent a hand."
"...?"
"Old Ironhammer killed them, not me."
Thud!
A heavy impact shook the ground.
"His life-forged 'Star Crusher'... felled the stars threatening this city."
The thousand-pound ingot sank into the earth. Faint blue light flowed from the rune. Overwhelmed by its extraordinary form, aura, and feat of ending the empire's asymmetric threat, Enrico was speechless.
Meanwhile, Kadim calmly stated his business.
"By the way, have you seen the merchant who was with me, superintendent? We agreed to meet here."
"..."
Enrico gathered his wits with a deep breath and handed over a crumpled note from his pocket.
"That... to avoid needless misunderstandings... best read this first, Kadim sire."
"..."
Kadim unfolded the note skeptically and read.
Moments later, he furrowed his brow deeper than the crumpled paper.