Chapter 55
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 55
Chapter Title: Death Throes (4)
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The trainees moved in perfect unison upon hearing the news of a monster's appearance.
Even as trainees, they were knights.
Since they all held qualifications of at least Apprentice Knight or higher, they grabbed their weapons and deployed to the site to subjugate the monster.
Among them, a few mistakenly believed this was a scenario imposed by the instructors to test the trainees, just as Remina had speculated.
But the reality was different.
Miley! That thing over there! Isnt that a real monster?!
Three who had trained alongside Roin spotted Oval first, the one who had swallowed the fragment.
Oval, who had been lurking quietly in the brush, began stomping toward them the moment he spotted the trainees.
The direction Oval headed was straight toward where the trainees stood.
His grotesque form began to reveal itself.
The moment they saw it, the trainees fell into chaos.
Ughhh...!
One of them started vomiting, just like the other instructor had.
Perhaps offended by the trainee who retched at the sight of him.
The eyes of the monster Oval glowed red.
He opened his mouth wide, as if trying to say something.
However,
()!
An incomprehensible language spilled out.
Even his voice tormented the trainees ears.
Some plugged their ears with their palms, desperately trying to block the monsters horrific sound.
The more the trainees suffered, the more Ovals rage surged.
He could no longer tolerate being treated like a monster by them.
Clang!
Claw-like nails protruded from both his hands.
Thud thud thud!
The ground shook with Ovals steps.
Oval swung his claws at the fallen trainees.
At that moment.
Clang!
One trainee stepped forward and deflected Ovals claw with his sword.
Jerka Tayla.
He became the second trainee, alongside Mard, to confront the monster.
The moment he saw the transformed Oval, Jerkas brow furrowed.
Lord Jerka!
As Mard rushed to assist Jerka.
Mard! Dont ever look at that things face!
Yes? W-what do you mean?
Jerka sensed it instinctively.
The instant you looked at the monsters face, it began to erode your mind.
Jerkas father, Kern Tayla, had faced many who had assimilated with the Demon Gods fragments so-called Corrupted Ones.
Jerka had heard those stories a few times before.
Corrupted Ones broke peoples mental strength through various means.
In the case of the fragment Oval had swallowed, it seemed to neutralize targets through its grotesque appearance and sounds.
Fathers advice is helpful in a time like this.
In fact, three Junior Knights had fainted en masse upon seeing Ovals monstrous form.
That alone was proof enough.
Meanwhile.
With Jerka and Mards arrival, Ovals frenzy intensified.
Numerous tentacles extended from his body, targeting Jerka and Mard.
Jerka swung his sword and shouted to Mard.
Ill lure that thing away, so take these people and evacuate somewhere elsehurry!
Mard nodded gravely with a stiff expression.
To prevent the tentacles from reaching the other trainees, Jerka sliced them without hesitation.
But soon, Jerka felt his limits.
It wont work!
Ordinary strikes couldnt handle a Corrupted One.
It was unstable, but
Given the situation, no choice!
Jerka began channeling Aura into his sword.
He could generate an Aura Blade.
But how long he could maintain it.
Even Jerka couldnt guarantee that.
In a dire emergency, he couldnt afford to nitpick every detail.
To defeat the enemy, he had to use every means at his disposal.
Thats what hed learned from his father.
With a mighty swing of the Aura Blade, three tentacles extending leftward were severed cleanslash!
Smoke rose from the ground where the tentacles had touched.
Seeing that, Jerka gained another piece of intel on the monster.
If I dont want burns, never grab it with bare hands.
The simplest way to eliminate a Corrupted One.
Rip out its heart.
The fragment would be inside that heart.
To do that, he needed to close the distance.
Before the tentacles could regenerate, Jerka lunged into its left flank.
Just cleave straight to the heart!
He planned to settle it while the Aura Blade held.
But Oval didnt stay idle.
Thud!
Shifting his weight to one leg, he swiftly dodged.
This was a far cry from moments ago, when he could barely control his own body and relied solely on tentacles.
The longer the fusion with the fragment, and the more time passed.
Ovals beastification progressed rapidly.
Of course, Jerka knew this too.
When facing Corrupted Ones, time was not medicine, but poison.
Jerka reset his stance.
I can still do this!
Reflecting his resolve, the Aura Blade blazed even brighter.
But suddenly, Ovals mouth gaped wide.
))!)(!!!
The devils cry echoed again.
Jerkas stance shattered under the unexpected assault.
Seizing the opening, Oval swung his elongated claw.
!
Jerka barely dodged by leaping backward.
But in his panic, his focus wavered, and the Aura Blade vanished.
As if that wasnt enough, Oval pressed with a barrage of attacks.
Each time Oval swung his arm, Jerka could only raise his sword for desperate defense.
But that didnt last.
Crack!
Unable to endure, his sword finally snapped under Ovals claw.
He drew a spare dagger, but it wouldnt suffice against Oval.
Huff. Huff.
Jerka unwittingly gasped for breath.
It signaled hed been pushed to his absolute limits.
Dont give up. Father overcame crises far worse than this!
He mustnt forget he was of the Tayla family.
As he steeled himself.
Oval charged at Jerka once more.
Jerka still had one final strike left.
He lowered his stance, evading Ovals swinging right arm, and surged forward again.
Infusing a trace of Aura into the dagger, he aimed the tip.
Spotting the opening where Ovals chest was fully exposed, Jerka thrust the dagger in with all his mightstab!
It targeted the heart, but.
Through the sensation in his fingertips, Jerka instinctively realized.
Not this spot?
Oval had abandoned his human form entirely.
His beastification had advanced to the point he could reshape his organs at will.
The hearts position had shifted too.
Oval raised his left claw.
He aimed to impale Jerka with it, but.
Jerka, sensing the plans failure early, leaped away first.
Rolling away from Oval.
He picked up a sword dropped by one of the fallen trainees.
A bead of cold sweat trickled down Jerkas cheek.
The entity called fear he faced for the first time.
It brought emotions hed never felt before.
Not entirely welcome.
But,
Overcome this, and Ill be a knight worthy of the Tayla name!
Jerkas gaze shifted from Ovals body to its face.
It might shatter a lesser mans mind instantly.
But it had no effect on Jerka now, not even a minor one.
In this crisis, Jerka grew once more.
Knights grow by overcoming their limits, again and again.
However, there are exceptions.
As Oval raised his claw once more to bare his hostility toward Jerka.
Whoosh!
A sword loaded with Aura flew in, piercing Ovals face.
It happened so abruptly even Jerka couldnt react.
Turning toward the swords origin belatedly
Hey, Jerka. You trying to hog all the evaluation points selfishly? Good things are meant to be shared, right?
The boy tricked by Remina.
Roin stepped forward to claim his due.
Ugh I tried not to care.
Truth be told, Roin had been quite bothered by what Remina said.
It might really be part of some hidden training.
With his ironclad determination to graduate Loud Swordsmanship Academy by years end no matter whateven if the world endedRoin couldnt ignore her speculation.
Thered been nothing like this when he attended the academy.
But if such a training regimen had been introduced after his graduation.
And if he just stood by and watched, missing out on evaluation points.
Then Id have to repeat this damn school life all over again.
Anything but that.
Thats why hed pretended to go to the bathroom while scouring for traces of the monster.
Just then, Mard carrying fainted trainees one by one caught Roins eye.
Roin realized instinctively.
Hey, wheres the monster?
At Roins question, Mard was dumbfounded, but he judged sending Roin was better than leaving Jerka alone.
So he pointed out the direction without protest.
Not long after.
))!)(!!!
He spotted Oval cornering Jerka.
My points are right there.
The moment he saw the monster, Roin hurled his sword without a second thought.
And it blew Ovals head clean off.
That was the whole story.
When the instructors come later and ask who took down this monster, dont leave out my name.
Hearing that, Jerka let out a hollow laugh.
You thought this was an evaluation?
Its not?
Take a closer look at that monster.
.
Roin examined the monster sprawled on the ground as Jerka suggested.
Only after inspecting it closely did Roin piece together what had happened.
A Corrupted One here? Why?
Thats what I want to know.
That was Jerkas question too.
A Demon Gods fragment was an extremely dangerous entity.
Its mere leakage to the outside was a massive incident.
Confirming the monster hed felled was a Corrupted One, Roin approached it.
Its head was gone, but it hadnt fully perished yet.
To completely eliminate a Corrupted One, the only way was to retrieve the fragment.
Roin sliced open the Corrupted Ones chest with another sword.
Between the cleaved black heart emerged a fragment glowing purple.
Roin tilted his head slightly.
Its a type Ive never seen.
The moment he reached to grab it barehanded,
Jerka shouted in alarm.
Dont touch it with your bare hands!
But,
Why not.
It was already too late.
