Chapter 88
Chapter 88
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 88
Chapter Title: Followers of the Forgotten God (10)
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Darkness like an endless abyss, a fall without end.
Whoosh—boom!
The blade sliced through the blackness like a red bolt of lightning. The monster spread its wings to slow its descent and evade. Kadim kept the momentum from his swing, spinning his body once before launching an upward axe strike fueled by that acceleration.
―――――Screeech, cra—ck!
- Kyaak!
It struck true on the wing joint, tearing away chunks of flesh and feathers. The monster lost its balance for a moment, spinning precariously. But soon, the surrounding slime surged in, filling the hole in its wing.
The monster twisted away to dodge the returning axe.
Whirrr, snap!
Regaining full control, the monster tucked its wings tight and dove. The bishop embedded in its nape and the crow's head screamed in unison.
"Die, Demon Slayer!!"
- Kyaak, kyaak!
Screeeeech—
Its talons gleamed with murderous sharpness as they lunged. Kadim crossed his sword and axe head to block and deflect with all his might. But his weapons and body were relatively light compared to the beast's, so he couldn't fully absorb the massive weight behind the talons. The recoil sent him flying back.
―――――――Qua—bang!
Kadim crashed noisily into the wall. The impact cracked his skull and snapped several ribs, but the Hydra Tattoo quickly knit them back together. Without respite, the talons charged again; he leaped downward to evade. They merely raked the empty wall.
Kagagagagak—!
Vrooooom—
Wind whistling past his ears, gravity tugging at his feet.
Fighting airborne without wings while the enemy had them was disadvantageous. Kadim buried his axe blade into the wall to slow his fall. The pursuing monster extended its talons to smash down on him.
- Kyaaaaak!
Qua—bang!
He yanked the axe free and leaped to the opposite wall, dodging. Blood energy empowered his legs, making the nearly 30-meter jump effortless. The monster shot past him downward but spread its wings, arcing in a parabola to rapidly gain altitude again.
- Kyaaaaak!
This time, Kadim didn't evade. With himself above and the enemy right below, it was an opportunity too good to miss.
Qua—bang!
He kicked off the wall's protrusions like a running start and dove. Seeing the approaching red glow, the bishop let out a startled yelp.
"Wha...?"
―――――――Splu—ck!!
The axe blade smashed into the monster's chest. No matter the size difference, no creature could shrug off such a direct hit unscathed. Its ribcage caved in like a volcanic crater and split open, spewing thick slime.
- Kehak, kahahahaak!
Kadim's aim wasn't just the chest. He'd clearly seen an iron rod-like object embedded nearby earlier. He clung to the falling monster, rummaging through the crushed chest wound. Soon, he found something hard and round amid the flesh.
Kadim gripped it tight and yanked it out.
Qua—duk!
- Kyaak, kyak!
Then, flesh melted away from the crow's body in streams, and the spatial walls wobbled precariously, constricting.
It was the inevitable result of removing the "Silver Coin of the Fallen Kingdom," the core of the summoning and spatial distortion ritual.
"You bastard, what are you doing?! You won't surrender your sacred relic, and now you steal more?! Put it back right now!!"
The bishop bellowed in fury. With its flesh melting, the monster's body was exposed down to the pelvis. If it sloughed off like candle wax, flailing in the air, it'd be quite the sight. Kadim ignored the bishop and hurried to seize another coin.
- Kyaak, kyaak!
Roarrrrr—!
But he failed. Suddenly, black flames erupted from the crow's flesh, spreading from torso to wingtips in the blink of an eye.
A acrid heat laden with foul energy. His skin blistered and charred black where it touched. The tattoo's power regenerated it quickly, but staying close would turn him to charcoal. Kadim grunted and pulled back.
"Where do you think you're running, Demon Slayer?! Hand over the stolen relic!! Or this flame of judgment will burn your flesh to ash without even bones left!!"
- Kyaaaaak, kyaaaaak!!
The situation turned tricky. Cloaked in flames, the crow became far harder to handle. Melee was impossible, and repeated axe throws only gouged flesh without fatal wounds. Dodging talons and now flames dwindled his attack chances.
Around then, a sharp urge stabbed into Kadim's mind.
The Hydra Tattoo's effects were nearly gone. He needed another demon's blood to continue fighting. And in his possession was a devastating means to crush the enemy instantly and end the battle.
The blood that summoned his first playthrough power.
High demon Pebilatus's blood.
"......"
Kadim's eyes twitched. Unconsciously, he'd gripped the canteen holding that blood.
- Kyaak, kyaak!
Roarrr—!
Flames poured from the crow's wingbeats. Reflexively shielding the flask and curling up, Kadim's back burned black and split open. But the canteen escaped the flames, preserving the blood.
Kadim suppressed the impulse and made a rational choice. It was mere instinct from bloodlust; this flaming crow didn't warrant such precious blood. He stowed Pebilatus's decisively and drew a mid-tier demon's blood from Soltana.
Gulping it down recharged his buffs and vitality. The tattoo still had some power left. Kadim swallowed his surging breath, gripped his weapons firm, and launched like a cannonball.
Qua—bang!
The monster didn't dodge. It welcomed the chance, spreading wings for a head-on clash. A minor burn was worth closing in to incinerate the barbarian.
That calculation missed the mark.
The monster's damage was far beyond "minor."
―――――――― Splorgak—!
From jaw to belly, the red blade carved a thick straight line. Squishy hide tore like rags, and pent-up slime burst forth like a dam break.
- Kyaak! Kyak!
Much worse than the earlier axe blow. With tattoo power and blood buffs stacked, Kadim's strength was on another level.
The slime would have reattached if left alone, but Kadim didn't. He burrowed inside, shredding flesh. Yanking another coin made more flesh slough off, the monster's body swaying unstably.
"Urk! Graaaah!"
The flames couldn't reach him inside. He'd penetrated beyond the burning exterior. The slime's moisture naturally provided flame resistance.
Crunch, crunch—
- Kyaaaaak!! Kyaaaaak!!
After extracting four or five coins, no flesh remained on the crow. Psssh, the flames extinguished naturally. The skeletal monster lost lift, spiraling downward. The infinite fall distortion vanished, revealing a distant floor.
Vrooooom—
"You bastard!!! Demon Slayer!!!"
Even in futile freefall, the bishop clung stubbornly. Precariously hanging from the bones, he manipulated the monster to embrace Kadim tightly. Planning a skeletal coffin plunge to mutual death.
That wish went unfulfilled.
Snap. The monster's skeleton broke like chicken bones. Kadim shattered the enclosing bones barehanded and escaped. Kicking off the remains for thrust, he twisted core muscles to veer toward the wall.
Then buried his axe to brake the fall.
Quagagagagagak—!
"Farewell, false zealot. Pity you couldn't help eradicate the disaster's source."
"......!!!"
Only the bare-boned freak and bishop bore full gravitational acceleration downward.
―――――――― Quaaaaang!!!
They smashed gloriously into the floor, cracking pavement and billowing dust.
Kadim cautiously touched down. The wall he'd scraped down folded horizontally into a ceiling. With distortion gone, the surroundings became an ordinary brick-walled room.
Glancing around, Kadim furrowed his brow. Something was off. The bishop's fall should have splattered blood and flesh everywhere, but there was only dust and black bone shards. A bad premonition rising, he approached the debris center.
Sure enough, intuition proved right.
At the center, no mangled corpse—instead, a gaping black hole leading elsewhere.
Vroooom......
...How had he twisted space with another ritual in the interim?
But he couldn't have gone far.
Kadim raised his axe and plunged into the hole without hesitation.
*
"Darkness of truth that grants vision vaster than the sun... Grant this lowly servant your power, your power, your power......"
The Night Raven faction's bishop clasped his hands tightly in prayer. Never in his life had he prayed with such earnest, pure devotion.
He was born a follower of the doomed Forgotten God cult. To make matters worse, he lacked priestly talent. Normally, he'd have toiled as a menial under other priests his whole life.
Misfortune or fortune, he harbored ambitions too vast for that.
When divine revelation came, the cult hailed it as prophecy of a savior. But he misinterpreted it as the disaster's source and lured dissatisfied followers to form his own faction: the Night Raven branch.
Allying with university faction councilors and securing sacred relics en masse, they built a foundation to expand. But hearing the disaster's source held relics sparked his fateful idea.
"A two-birds-one-stone chance. Can't miss exterminating the source and claiming relics. Like with Vittorio the councilor, send that scholar-disguised woman's clone... And summon the 'Dark Beast' early for contingencies......"
No, the idea itself wasn't bad. Only one reason it failed.
The disaster's source, the "Demon Slayer," possessed far beyond-expected power.
Clones were one thing, but losing the cult's trump card "Dark Beast" too? This was no human—pure calamity. Had he known the strength, he'd never approached without more relics.
Stripped of all relics, the bishop couldn't cast further rituals. Even his mutual-death ploy fizzled. In powerless freefall, all he could do was plead desperately.
"Primordial darkness whose name is forgotten, grant this lowly servant your power, your power, your power......"
Coincidence? Or did his plea reach the heavens?
Vroooom......
Suddenly, a black hole opened in the floor. Basic dark ritual: a warping passage.
A miracle. The Forgotten God hadn't abandoned him. The bishop nearly wept in ecstasy. Relief, awe, faith flooded his soul like a torrent.
"Thank you, Forgotten God, thank you, Forgotten God, thank you, Forgotten God......"
But this was no reward for true faith...
Passing through to another space, the bishop realized something gravely wrong.
"......Huh?"
His body rocketed upward inverted. Fall momentum persisted. Hard brick ceiling loomed at his feet.
Thus, the bishop perished in an unprecedented, bizarre manner: erupting from the floor to splat against the ceiling.
―――――――Quajik—!
His body flattened like dough. Blood and crow mask shards exploded outward; ceiling dripped droplets like a leak.
"Eek!"
"Urk!"
The underground passage soaked in fresh blood instantly. Perun and the Atala warriors waiting there were drenched in the mess.
Stunned by the sudden mishap, they gawked. Forgetting even to wipe faces, they stared at the ceiling's bloodied pulp and grotesquely dangling limbs.
Then, sensing movement, they looked down at the black hole in the floor.
Out leaped a giant hefting an axe.
"What, it led here? Where'd that bishop go?"
Kadim landed with a skilled aerial somersault. Perun and the Atala warriors silently glanced upward.
Seeing the mangled bishop, Kadim quipped briefly.
"......Looks like the Forgotten God didn't send a revelation that the cake is a lie."
"......?"
The warriors sent baffled looks, uncomprehending.