059. Super Nova Hobas 3
Noni reached out and placed his hand on his jar. He then focused his mana into Luminare. It was at that moment, as white misty light enveloped the greatsword, that Luminare began to tremble violently.
Trrrk.
Noni's brow furrowed in an instant.
'Damn, even a superior weapon is too much for me...'
As the greatsword shook harder, the white mist around it grew chaotic. Noni's hand began to tremble, his eyes glazing over—
That's when Ront thrust his hand into the jar and gripped the greatsword tight.
"Snap out of it, Noni! Who but our great dwarven race could pull off something like this?"
"M-Master..."
There was no doubt that Luminare's resistance brought agony. Yet Ront didn't so much as blink. Having handled countless weapons over the years, he endured it through sheer grit. It was the unyielding resolve to protect Ria, even if it meant his hand exploding.
"Nngh..."
Ront used his own mana to suppress Luminare's rebellion.
'Master...'
As he watched Ront's hand peeling away layer by layer, Noni's gaze hardened with determination. He would make this succeed, no matter what.
Noni poured his mana into both hands once more—
Trrrk.
A sound echoed from the wall Hobas had crashed into. With it, Hobas rose to his feet. The sneering face that had mocked his foes had twisted 180 degrees.
"......"
His forelock, which had covered one eye, was sheared clean off. It wasn't just a change in appearance. With the hair gone, a deep, sunken scar marked where an eye should have been.
The women imprisoned in the cells gasped in horror at the sight.
"......!"
It was a scar that turned the stomach just to look at.
Hobas sensed their instinctive revulsion and spoke.
"That look... it pisses me off!"
Indeed. Hobas had lost one eye during training as a boy. That scar had meant more than just pain—it had scarred his soul. Every woman he encountered recoiled in disgust. He wondered why.
'Why the hell...?'
There had been no contact, no provocation. Just the repulsive scar drawing cold stares. The contemptuous expressions he'd seen countless times.
Once he gained power, Hobas vowed revenge: he'd inflict every ounce of that pain on women everywhere.
Gritting his teeth, he glared at Bin. His torn shirt revealed fresh wounds slashed across his body. But that was trivial. All he craved was to eliminate the bastard who'd exposed his eye scar.
"I'll kill you for sure."
Veins bulged on Hobas's face. He burned to repay the agony tenfold right then and there.
Bin, watching him coolly, remained unfazed.
"Don't make a fuss over a scratch. It's nothing compared to the suffering you've inflicted on others."
Bin spoke with unwavering confidence. But the situation had worsened. He was unarmed, while Hobas wielded his weapon.
Hobas trembled with rage, eyes flashing.
"You're begging to die, you little shit."
Even an apology wouldn't save his limbs now. Yet Bin sharpened his focus instead. On top of that, the Chimera operation back at the family estate was in ruins. For the Super Nova who'd risen to his rank, this was fury like none he'd ever felt. Rage boiled to the top of his head.
Finally, one eye blazing red, Hobas roared.
"I'll hack off your limbs and make you pay!"
He raised the Great Sickle high. Blue mana surged from the blade—far more vivid than before.
'The energy's even denser now.'
Noni scowled at Hobas's weapon.
"He's getting serious for real this time..."
He'd seen the weapon's glow intensify before. Its power had toyed with elite knights from marquess houses like playthings.
Ront, meanwhile, eyed the massive red barrier now shielding their group.
'It's bigger...'
The intensified red barrier had grown noticeably. That meant Hobas's ability now reached further within it.
Bin frowned at the surging mana from Hobas.
'Not a Super Nova for nothing.'
As Bin sized him up, Hobas swung the Great Sickle down at him.
"I'll tear your limbs off right now!"
Shwaaak!
Less than five meters away. A blue sword wind hurtled toward Bin—smaller than his own, but faster.
Swoosh.
In the blink of an eye, it closed in. Bin kept his eyes locked on it.
"As if."
He sidestepped in a flash—pure Bascon agility. Any other house's heir would've lost a leg in that near-miss.
But Hobas wasn't done.
"Filthy rat. Let's see how long you can run."
He swung the sickle repeatedly at Bin.
Shwaak! Shwaaak! Shwaak!
Multiple blue sword winds flew at him. Bin's eyes gleamed.
'Just a bit longer...'
Unarmed as he was, Hobas exploiting the gap was predictable. The blue winds filled the space around him. Dodging with a few steps wouldn't cut it anymore.
Bin tensed his ankles, channeling mana. Layers of shadows rippled from his body as he darted away.
Swoosh—
Mana of Agility.
Ront's eyes widened at Bin and Hobas.
"Incredible focus from both of them."
They'd just fought tooth and nail, risking their lives. Now sword winds and agility mana on top. They'd burned through massive mana in moments. Neither was ordinary—they hated losing more than dying.
For Bin, it was past regrets. For Hobas, the exposed eye scar.
Shwaak! Shwaak...!
Hobas unleashed wave after wave of blue sword winds, showing no fatigue. Fixated on Bin, he bellowed.
"Die... I'll kill you!"
His eyes rolled back, reason slipping away.
Unarmed, Bin ducked behind nearby pillars. Hidden, he smirked.
'Just as I thought.'
From his previous life, he knew Hobas's complex. That's why he'd targeted the forelock. Hobas, blinded by rage, had forgotten Ront and Noni.
Thud, thud.
Hobas approached the pillars, scanning around. One caught his eye: dripping with water droplets. Bin had been sweating as he fled. No doubt he'd hidden there.
'This time, I'll shred you.'
Hobas advanced, sickle raised, envisioning severing Bin's limbs at the pillar.
Shwaak.
As he swung—
The puddle on the floor took human shape. It was Gold Tooth.
"......!"
Before Hobas could react, Gold Tooth jammed his golden hook into the man's mouth.
"What a surprise catch. Hahaha!"
It happened in a heartbeat.
"......"
Stunned, Hobas looked down. His reflection stared back from the puddle: forelock gone, makeup smeared, sunken eye glaringly exposed. No longer the polished thug.
......
Silence fell.
Hobas had seen the eye scar he'd hidden from everyone.
He threw his head back and screamed.
"Uwaaaaaah!"
In that instant, blue light from the Great Sickle enveloped him. From the massive blade sprouted countless blue tentacles, instantly engulfing one arm.
Flap, flap.
Hobas's appearance warped. His arm ballooned grotesquely. His eyes filled entirely with whites. The long tongue habit remained.
Slither.
"I'll kill you all."
Bin's pupils dilated.
'Don't tell me... devoured by his own weapon.'
The backlash of a superior weapon. Hobas had pushed it beyond limits, and with his mana depleted, it consumed him.
Gold Tooth, facing this monstrosity, faltered.
"......"
The mana, the killing intent—it was on another level. But Gold Tooth was a battle-hardened pirate.
He wouldn't yield to intimidation.
"Think the vast seas have made me fear trash like you?"
As he swung the sword in his other hand—
Shwaak!
The black-tinged Great Sickle cleaved him in half instantly.
"......"
Too fast to react. His bony body shattered.
Crunch.
"......"
Codic ground his teeth at the sight.
'Magi?! He's a different beast now...'
As Codic sensed, the weapon's core was monster bone. Its latent magi fused with Hobas's flesh.
Now one with his weapon, Hobas swung at Bin's hiding pillar.
"You rat!"
Shwaak!
Black aura swirled around the blue sword wind. Pillars sliced like tofu.
Swoosh. Thud! Crash! Crash...!
Pillars crumbled in sequence, dust billowing. Destruction beyond compare.
Moments later, as the dust settled, Hobas and Bin faced off.
Bin eyed the white-eyed Hobas.
"You've become a slave to your weapon."
"Shut your mouth. None of your business."
"Fair enough. No point caring about a dead man."
"What?"
Hobas blinked in confusion. He'd gained incomparable power. Yet the bastard spoke with utter certainty.
Bin's gaze dropped. Luminare gleamed in his hand—handed over by Ront amid the dust.
Its weight felt worlds lighter, like shedding sandbags from his legs.
Bin focused his mind on Luminare. Mana flowed from his hand into the blade.
The white glow shifted to silver.
'Opening.'
With a low murmur, Bin's eyes flashed.
In that moment, the silver greatsword—Luminare—began to change form.