The Rampaging Dreadnought and the Unexpected Ally
Following Per's orders, Yuna nodded in agreement and circled around to the Dreadnought's left flank. Elsid judged the plan sound as well and charged forward alongside Per to draw the monster's attention.
While the two of them held its focus, Yuna and the countless Snow Wolves would be able to land a devastating coordinated assault. At least, that was the theory. The real question was whether a creature without eyes or a nose would actually ignore everyone else and lock onto them alone. It was a legitimate worry.
"Kwaaaaaah!"
But the concern proved groundless. Somehow the Dreadnought could sense them clearly. Even as the Snow Wolves swarmed across its body, raking it with claws and opening fresh wounds, the moment the true culprits who had shattered its fangs charged in, the beast let out a rage-filled roar and swung its two massive fists solely at them.
Though it gripped swords in both hands, they were no ordinary fists. Elsid wasn't stupid enough to try blocking a lump of flesh that massive head-on. Without hesitation he rolled across the ground, dodging the enormous strike.
Boooom!
He avoided a direct hit, but the Dreadnought's gigantic fist slammed into the ground instead, detonating like a bomb and sending a deafening shockwave rolling outward.
Whooooosh!
"Huff, huff… I nearly got blown away."
The blast of snow-laden wind hammered into him. Elsid barely kept himself from being hurled backward by stabbing his sword into the earth.
"Your opponent is me!"
Unlike Elsid, Per had been caught in the same shockwave yet showed no sign of being affected. Whether it was the natural physical prowess of a Snow Wolf or the fighting spirit radiating from his entire body that reinforced his strength, Per charged forward completely unfazed and slashed his claws toward the Dreadnought's massive foreleg.
In the blink of an eye Per's form vanished. A deafening burst rang out, followed by dozens of razor-sharp cutting sounds slicing through the air at once.
Where the sounds converged, the Dreadnought's hand had been shredded dozens of times over. Blood dripped heavily from the mangled flesh. The limb hadn't been severed like the fangs, but the injury was clearly critical.
"Kwaaaaaah!!"
Once again the Dreadnought howled in agony.
"Grr! Huff, huff… How does that taste?!"
Per, who had already landed two incredibly powerful clean hits, spoke with fierce momentum, though his breathing came rough and labored. It was only natural. Elsid hadn't grasped the exact principles or nature of Per's fighting techniques, but it was obvious they placed a heavy burden on the body. Activating something like that twice in rapid succession without any breathing room would have consumed an enormous amount of both fighting spirit and stamina. The fact that Per could still keep fighting was honestly astonishing.
"Kwaaaah!!"
The Dreadnought swung its other fist—the one that remained completely uninjured—straight at the exhausted Per.
"Damn it…!"
Elsid had been momentarily stunned by Per's spectacular attack and lost focus. He was supposed to keep drawing the monster's attention so the others could attack more easily, even if he couldn't deal much damage himself. Sword still in hand, he sprinted toward the swinging fist—or more precisely, toward the weary Per. Without reducing his speed at all, he leaped in.
Thwack!
He struck Per with the flat of his blade.
"Thanks, but that rescue was pretty rough."
"It was the only way I could see…"
Fortunately his timing and the speed of his sword swing had been perfect. The blow sent Per flying safely out of the fist's path, letting him dodge the attack. From a distance Per rubbed the spot on his stomach where the wooden sword had struck and offered a light grumble of thanks. Elsid scratched his cheek awkwardly and gave a brief excuse. Both of them having evaded the strike safely, the pair took a moment to catch their breath.
"Kwaaaaaah!!"
Enraged that the attack it thought would hit both of them had failed, the Dreadnought stomped the ground. Its feet naturally targeted Per and Elsid, but the two who had properly recovered their breath dodged the stomps with practiced ease.
Even during all this, countless Snow Wolves continued carving wounds into the Dreadnought's body.
"I've got a score to settle too! Take this, you monster!"
Yuna swung her sword with fierce momentum, steadily adding to the accumulated damage.
That was when the change occurred.
Flash!
"Grrrrr…"
The furious roars the Dreadnought had been emitting vanished. Instead it began to let out an eerily quiet growl. It even stopped moving entirely, as if signaling the calm before a storm. Elsid watched closely, wondering what was happening, and his expression froze when he spotted it.
"The mark of frenzy…?"
A red diamond-shaped pattern. It was glowing brightly right above the massive mouth on the Dreadnought's upper torso.
Does that mean a necromancer is involved in this?
Elsid recognized the familiar shape instantly. It was the same black magic sigil the first necromancer he had ever encountered had used to turn immobilized bandits into crazed berserkers. When that spell activated, the victim would forget all pain and continue fighting until their body literally fell apart or their enemy was destroyed.
And to the Dreadnought, its enemies were obviously the countless Snow Wolves and the humans among them.
Damn it… Why is something like that on its body?
Staring at the flashing mark of frenzy, Elsid frowned, irritation mixing with suspicion. The creature was already as difficult to handle as a giant, but the thought of it rampaging without even feeling pain made the future look bleak.
Right as that thought crossed his mind, an unfamiliar shadow flashed past him.
A tremendous roar slammed into their ears. Brilliant flames lit up the air as part of the Dreadnought's massive arm, covered in black fur, was charred an even deeper black.
"Long time no see, bro. Have you been well?"
And there, standing before him, was someone Elsid knew better than anyone else in the world. Spiky blue hair that reminded him of the ocean, clear eyes like glass marbles that evoked the open sky, and a tall, well-built frame that easily cleared six feet. If his eyes weren't playing tricks on him, the person standing there was unmistakably Luke—the only disciple he had trained for ten years as a mentor, the boy who was practically a younger brother to him.
As the champion of the Empire's martial tournament, Luke was supposed to be traveling across various territories fighting strong opponents. Elsid couldn't understand why he was here.
"How are you here?"
He asked carefully, the question still unresolved in his mind. Luke gave a light laugh and answered.
"How? I came to help my troublemaker brother, of course."
Came to help. The unnecessary flourish sounded like teasing, but Luke had attached it anyway. After nearly one or two months apart, his disciple and younger brother was still as playful as ever.
"Elsid!"
While he was still processing the welcome sight of Luke's face after so long, a delicate female voice called from behind him. He turned and saw a familiar woman with sky-blue hair that fell all the way to her waist.
"Yuran? Why are you here too…?"
It was Shaman Yuran, whom he had assumed would be back at the Ice Palace. Behind her stood a large group of warriors carrying swords and axes.
"We were in the village when we heard an unbearable roar coming from the far side of the Frost Forest. So we came running with the village warriors. More importantly, what is that monster… and why are the Snow Wolves here?"
In response to his question, Yuran rapidly fired off her own questions like a machine gun.
"That monster is called a Dreadnought. Lady Yuna and the Snow Wolves have gathered here to stop it."
There was no time for a detailed explanation, so he gave the shortest version he could.
"Kwaaaaaah!"
At that moment the Dreadnought began to move again with a roar. It was about to go fully berserk.
"We have to stop that monster first! If we don't, the danger will spread past the Frost Forest and reach everyone in the Ice Palace!"
"I-I understand! Warriors, let's fight!"
When Elsid shouted, Yuran realized the severity of the situation, turned to the Ice Palace warriors who had followed her, and called out.
"The blessing of the Ice Dragon is with us!"
"Let's defeat the monster!"
"We will protect the Ice Palace!"
The warriors each steeled their resolve, shouted their determination, and charged toward the Dreadnought.
"I'm ready anytime. How about you, bro?"
"Of course… we have to go."
While watching the Ice Palace warriors, Luke approached and asked. Elsid loosened his body, which had grown stiff from the cold, and answered.
"By the way, what was that exploding fighting technique you used earlier? I've never seen it before. What happened to your original unique technique?"
"Ah, while I was traveling around various territories as champion, I met an old man in the back alleys who taught it to me. After teaching me everything, he probably said something like this…"
Luke spoke as if learning someone else's fighting technique—as proof of his genius—was as casual as taking a neighborhood stroll. He paused for a moment as if recalling the past, then continued.
"'What a filthy talent… to master the culmination of my thirty years in just a few days…' I think that's what he said."
"That insane talent that lets you learn everything in three days no matter where you go is still going strong, huh. Looking back now, I still don't know how I managed to train a monster like you for ten years…"
"It's all thanks to your teaching talent being greater than anyone I've ever seen."
"Your silver tongue hasn't changed either."
Just a short while ago they had always been together exchanging silly banter like this, yet somehow it felt like a very long time had passed.
"Let's go. Time to take it down…"
"Yeah. Let's enjoy this."
Elsid gripped two swords, one in each hand, and moved toward the rampaging Dreadnought alongside the most reliable partner he could ask for.