Chapter 65
Chapter 65
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: 24th Episode: Master of the Forest (1)
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What would you think if an enormously large butt covered in coarse brown fur was right in front of you?
"Uh... um...."
Vena gazed at the blunt tail slightly protruding above the butt. If she hadn't seen the tail, she might have thought a hill had suddenly appeared.
Upon closer inspection, the roundness seemed unexpectedly cute.
To the point where she wanted to go over and touch it....
"Vena. Don't do anything foolish."
She snapped out of it, having unconsciously reached out her hand at Jamie's warning.
"It's huge."
As she said, it was truly enormous.
This thing was covered only in fur, yet it wouldn't pale in comparison to a dragon.
The giant armor they had faced in the ruins earlier looked like a toy by contrast.
That was when it happened. The ground suddenly began to shake.
"It's moving!"
Vena shouted.
The massive butt started to shift.
This shaking was the vibration caused by that colossal body in motion.
The two watched its body rise endlessly with tense expressions. Even at a glance, it easily surpassed fifty meters.
And this was it sitting down—if it stood up....
It's ridiculous.
What kind of creature could boast such an absurd size?
Even during his time as Diablo Volpir, monsters of this scale were rare. At best, only dragons might match this incomprehensible being.
"Master, aren't those... ears?"
At that moment, Vena pointed toward what seemed to be the creature's head.
Following her gesture, he saw two round things perking up.
As she said, they looked like ears.
But even more eye-catching was—
"What's that?"
A blue cloth draped around its thick neck.
Didn't it look just like a scarf that accentuated a pet's cuteness!
The colossal lifeform, with a body too vast to take in at once and a blue scarf around its neck that didn't match at all, slowly turned its massive frame.
Just turning its body whipped up a tremendous gust of wind.
Jamie and Vena shielded themselves with their hands against the wind as they stared at it.
A snout of medium length, round eyes, and a scarf near the neck patterned with an inverted triangle and various designs.
Its paws were so round, it was like looking at a giant stuffed doll.
"It's cute!"
Vena clasped her hands, her eyes sparkling.
As she said, this ridiculously huge creature—this bear—was incredibly adorable.
Even in Jamie's eyes.
But regardless, Jamie heightened his tension to the extreme.
What kind of creature was a bear?
Not treated as a monster, yet most monsters couldn't even lift their heads before one.
Its savage ferocity in the wild was already widely known.
So could a bear of this monstrous size really be docile, no matter how cute it looked?
"Vena, run!"
"Huh?"
Vena blankly tilted her head.
Jamie grabbed her wrist and tried to flee in a hurry.
That was when it happened.
"How dare you appear before me!"
The cute face vanished in an instant, replaced by a ferocious glare as the giant bear swung its forepaw at Jamie.
Kwaaaaaaaa!!!!
Just a swing of its forepaw turned the ground not merely to mush like tofu, but into a massive crater.
Jamie limited the coordinates and used Teleport.
"Whoa!"
"Master!"
Jamie and Vena were flung in different directions, rolling across the ground.
A Teleport without precise coordinates could pop out anywhere.
He wasn't skilled enough yet to spam it and had been holding back.
But now wasn't the time to worry about that.
Jamie stared at the bear in disbelief.
A bear that talks?
No, before that, it spoke as if it knew him.
"You know me?"
"Playing dumb won't save you!"
The bear leaped high with its massive body, then slammed down onto the ground.
The thick earth shattered completely.
"Vena!"
"I'm fine!"
Fortunately, Vena had leaped far enough to avoid the shockwave's range.
Jamie blocked the incoming rock fragments with a shield, frowning. He tried to say something, but the bear gave no opening.
A massive wall rushed toward him at tremendous speed.
It was the bear's forepaw. The stone floor shattered like tofu against its plump sole.
"Shield!!"
Ten shields unfolded before him.
But they didn't hold for a moment.
As the shields shattered in an instant, Jamie's consciousness flew from the immense impact.
"Master!"
Vena tried to catch the incredibly fast-flying Jamie, but her legs couldn't keep up.
Jamie slammed straight into the wall.
"Cough!"
He spat blood and came to.
The moment its sole touched him, he had wrapped his body in mana like armor to minimize damage. It wasn't nearly enough, but from the moment of impact, the Orb of Life rapidly healed him.
Thanks to that, he regained consciousness quickly.
That didn't mean his body was intact.
Most of my ribs are broken. Limbs too.
Surviving this much was a miracle.
Anyone else would have burst like a balloon from that single blow.
Jamie felt his bones knitting in real time as he glared at the bear. Gone was its earlier cuteness; it now emitted yellow glints from its eyes and white breath from its massive maw.
"Master! Are you okay?!"
"...I didn't die."
But his pride was wounded.
To end up like this from a single hit.
In his past life, he would have erased a mere bear like this without a trace, no matter its size.
"W-what do we do?"
"I don't know."
By then, his bones had somewhat mended.
He clicked his tongue at the creaking joints but stood without issue.
His ribs were mostly healed too, but the shock lingered—his chest felt tight, breathing labored.
"Damn bastard."
Thud- Thud-
The bear approached Jamie.
Vena swallowed hard with a tense face, watching Jamie with trembling eyes. His distorted expression burned with intense fury.
"I'll kill it."
"B-but...."
Vena couldn't bring herself to ask, How, without black magic?
Jamie declared.
"We can do it."
He wasn't sure if they could, but unless they killed it, the frustration filling his chest wouldn't fade.
Massive mana poured from Jamie's body.
Vena was still worried, but if they couldn't take down that bear, they would die.
Steeling herself, Vena clenched her fists and turned toward the bear.
"The bugs are struggling, eh?"
The bear sneered.
Jamie shouted.
"Vena, draw its attention!"
"O-okay."
Vena powered her legs and kicked off the ground.
The spot she'd stood on caved in, and she charged at the bear at high speed.
At the same time, Jamie circled widely to the opposite side, chanting a spell.
The bear glanced at the two approaching from different directions and smirked.
It raised both arms. Then slammed them down.
That simple motion produced a sight beyond comprehension.
Kwaaaaaaaaang!!!
Dust surged up to the lofty ceiling.
The ground exploded and crumbled. Waves of earth soared dozens of meters high.
A powerful shockwave.
The ground cracked as if an earthquake had struck.
"Gah!"
Even Vena, who'd been running well, collapsed as the earth shook.
She tried to stand, but the tremors showed no sign of stopping.
And from within the dust, two round lights gleamed.
Kuwaaaa!!
A roar that could burst eardrums.
A flying forepaw struck her.
"Kyaa!!"
The heavy pain vibrating through her body snapped her back to senses.
The hunter didn't miss the weakened prey.
Another forepaw flew in.
Even a Valkyrie half-blood couldn't shrug off such a hit unscathed.
Warning bells rang in Vena's mind. In the face of mortal danger, something long forgotten awoke.
Instinctively, she swung her fist.
Kuung!
The bear's massive forepaw clashed with the Valkyrie's fist.
The bear's eyes widened slightly. But the power gap was insurmountable.
"Kyak!"
Vena was smashed into the ground.
She'd die to the finishing blow like this. But the next attack didn't come.
Vena grimaced in pain and looked at the bear.
The bear was staring at its own paw, where it had clashed with her fist.
"You did well, Vena!"
That was when it happened.
Jamie finished his magic circle and took aim at the bear.
Only then did the bear turn its head.
"Too late."
[Rainbow Downpour]
A massive mana flowed from the multicolored magic circle.
Soon, it erupted in blinding light, unleashing a barrage of immense beams at the bear.
The bear frowned at the mana bombardment pummeling its body.
Its colossal frame was pushed back—just a little.
"Hmph."
Startled for a moment, but that was it.
This much was nothing. Its thick hide made even the mana barrage feel like a tickle.
The bear planted its forepaw. Standing on all fours, it ignored the bombardment and charged at insane speed.
"Crazy!"
The giant bear plowed straight through the barrage.
Even amid the mana storm, the blue scarf fluttered intact.
"Without that power, you're just bugs."
As expected, this thing had sealed his black magic.
But how? There was no time to think.
With momentum built, the bear reared up on its hind legs.
It raised both arms and smashed down at Jamie with full force.
"I've got one too!"
At that moment, Vena drove her leg into the bear's side.
The surprise attack made even the bear falter slightly.
Even as a half-Valkyrie, her striking power was not to be underestimated.
But Jamie and Vena knew: such attacks could only briefly halt it, not deal meaningful damage.
"That's enough."
[Chain Area]
Thick chains manifested in the air, binding the bear's entire body.
And once more, Jamie drew the 'Magma Blade'.
"You pests!"
Ignoring the bear's roar, Jamie gripped the lava sword despite the searing pain in his left arm.
He leaped straight at the bear.
The obliquely held lava sword scorched its thick hide and spewed flames toward its heart.
Tssrrrrruk-!
The chains rattled.
The bear thrashed to shatter the binding force.
If he pierced it now, victory was theirs.
Jamie gripped the lava sword with his right hand too.
The burning agony was horrific, but he trusted the Orb of Life. As he gritted his teeth and thrust the blade toward the bear's heart—
"Had your fun?"
Kwang!
The chains all shattered, and a forepaw instantly struck Jamie.
"Master!!"
The very idea of stopping it with such flimsy chains was laughable. He'd only played along because their desperate hope was amusing.
Now he'd crush them both.
...Or so he thought.
Puhwak!!
The bear's eyes bulged at the blood spurting from its forepaw.
The thick forepaw was slashed up to the ankle, charred black.
Fortunately, its hide was too thick to reach the artery, but a counterattack in that instant?!
"Hoo, hoo...."
Jamie staggered to his feet.
Vena rushed to him in one bound.
"Are you okay? Can you stand?"
"I'm fine, fine."
Jamie gently pushed Vena aside and trudged forward with effort.
The Orb of Life was nearing its limit; regeneration had slowed markedly.
Mid-step, Jamie nearly collapsed vomiting blood but stood firm through sheer willpower.
His emerald eyes blazed undimmed.
"What are you waiting for? Come on. It ain't over yet...."
But then, his legs gave out, and he collapsed face-first.
Vena startled and helped him up.
The bear alternated glances between him and its wounded forepaw before speaking.
"Why don't you give up?"
"...What?"
"No matter how you struggle, this is all you amount to."
The bear showed its wounded forepaw. Deeply gashed, but for the bear, it would heal quickly.
Compared to their states, it hardly counted as an injury.
"So why do you cling so desperately to victory?"
"Ha... this is one funny bastard."
Jamie laughed in disbelief, fuming.
"You attacked out of nowhere, and now what? Why are we clinging? Are you insane?"
"You sinned. You released such filth in my forest—you deserve punishment."
"Bullshit! I don't know what filth you're talking about, but we just arrived in this forest today!"
"Lies."
The bear's voice grew icy cold.
"The power covering that filth is unmistakably yours. That's why I sealed it from you."
"What?"
"Don't play dumb. Didn't you bring that revolting 'Demon Egg' into my forest?!"
At the mention of the Demon Egg, Jamie's eyes widened.
"As expected, unforgivable."
The bear assumed a charging stance again.
"I will eradicate all who serve demons."
"Wait!"
"Die!"
Jamie shouted at the oncoming bear.
"I'm here by the will of Goddess Pyro to dispose of it!"
The forepaw, accompanied by fierce wind pressure, halted right before his face.
The bear withdrew it and asked Jamie.
"Is that true?"
"I stake everything on it."