Great Forest (3)
Why was that? The moment Wayne issued his command, the Gigant pilots and soldiers moved in perfect unison, exactly as ordered.
'Why am I following this guy's orders?' The Gigant pilots were especially flustered. But everyone knew the reason. It was the skill and trust he'd demonstrated in just two encounters! He'd extracted them from the Granoid monster's territory—a place that seemed impossible to escape without casualties—without losing a single soul.
Wayne climbed a tree so everyone in ambush could see him. 'If things go south, I'll lure it the other way...' But it didn't look like he'd need to. Far off in the distance, he spotted the bloodied Python monster approaching.
In perfect condition, it would have been impossible to take down with their current forces. But bleeding like that... Wayne scanned the Gigants' ambush positions. They weren't rookies. Everyone had some experience fighting monsters, so they were tense but holding firm. Bowga Taylor, the knight commander, had especially claimed high ground on a tree root, aiming for the beast's head.
'Then the hunt's success depends on what I do!'
Wayne withdrew his red Odd and activated his own. To push a Gigant's performance to its limits, green Odd was far stronger and more advantageous than red.
The Python, tracking Wayne's red Odd, suddenly halted. To it, the hidden tiny humans and Gigants were mere prey, unworthy of notice. What mattered was its rival's presence—Wayne's aura. With that aura gone, the beast grew wary.
Unable to locate its rival, the monster slithered toward the ambush site. They were all well-hidden, but like Wayne, Pythons detected surrounding temperatures.
Tsutsutsutsutsu!
The massive serpent barreled straight toward them. Now just fifty meters away—a single writhe and it'd be upon them. Wayne prepared to leap from the tree. The beast had spotted the ambush, but a simultaneous attack would create an opening.
Yet it didn't advance. It stopped, flicking its tongue. In that instant, the monster's red Odd swept over Wayne.
'I can feel the Odd aura it emitted!'
The beast's red Odd felt eerily familiar. The Odd it and Wayne absorbed was identical in nature and ability. Only the monster's was far denser and more intense.
Normally, it would have charged already, but aware of its wounds, the Python was cautious.
"Hey, over here!"
At that moment, a bold soldier stepped out between the trees and aimed his musket rifle at the beast.
'What the hell is he doing?'
Bang!
Flames erupted from the rifle, striking the monster's face. Of course, a mere bullet didn't faze it. But it succeeded in enraging the beast. The Python writhed toward the soldier.
The soldier turned and fled, and in a flash, the monster squeezed between two trees. 'Our wits are superior!'
[Attack!]
At Wayne's command, Gigants charged from both flanks.
Clang! Thud thud!
[Gah!][What strength...!]
But the Python thrashed violently, shoving the Gigants back. Its skin was tough, its power immense—the Gigants stabbing with swords toppled over.
As the beast raised its head toward the insolent humans—
Thud! Crunch!
"Kwek?"
Artemis leaped from the tree, latching onto the Python's nape. Its four long legs coiled around the body, three arms gripped tight, and it thrust a red blade with its free hand.
"Kuaaaah!"
Hongyeom pierced the monster's neck. But off-balance, it didn't sink deep. The wildly shaking beast forced Artemis to cling with its remaining arm too.
[Everyone, target the wounds!]
At Wayne's shout, Bowga waited for his opening, then leaped from the tree root, stabbing the injured torso.
"Kueeeek!"
The Python screamed in agony.
[Now! Attack!]
The fallen Gigants rose and swarmed, relentlessly stabbing wounds with swords and hacking with axes. Flesh sprayed, blood gushed—the beast writhed in pain. Yet its strength showed no sign of waning.
Then its long tail whipped toward Artemis on its neck.
Boom!
'Urgh!'
The impact jolted straight through to Wayne. High sync rate with the Gigant meant sharing the pain too. As the Python undulated, Artemis was flung airborne, crashing to the ground.
Thud! Boom! Thud!
"Guh!"
The landing jarred him badly; a metallic tang of blood filled his mouth.
Ignoring the other Gigants, the Python gaped wide and lunged at Wayne's machine.
"Kuaaaah!"
Its body was four meters thick, but serpent-style, it could swallow prey three times larger—its maw was enormous. Wayne didn't dodge or retreat. He hurled himself straight into it.
Crunch!
"Gasp! The Gigant's eaten!"
"No! Look there!"
Artemis, thought swallowed, braced with four legs and four arms in the crumpled maw—the beast couldn't close its jaws.
"Save Lord Wayne! Fire!"
Bang bang bang!
Hidden musketeers emerged, blasting the snake's face. Third-class Gigants and twelve work Gigants rushed in with monster-dissection blades and axes.
Dozens of Gigants clung to the fifty-meter body, stabbing and chopping mercilessly.
"Kreeeeh!"
The Python couldn't shut its mouth amid the onslaught; its strength ebbed rapidly. Worst was Wayne inside, stomping its tongue with one foot.
Despite the barrage, it twisted and shook its head to spit out the Gigant. But Artemis held firm with eight limbs.
[The beast's weakening! Not much longer!]
[Kill it!]
Buoyed by Wayne's improvisation, they believed they'd claim a calamity-grade monster. An A-rank fetched second-class Gigant materials—one alone worth at least 200,000 gold.
But suddenly, the Python fled. Gigants clung on, but couldn't match its power. Dragging Artemis in its jaws, it bolted into the Great Forest.
"Tch!" Wayne gritted his teeth. An A-rank was no joke. It earned its calamity-grade title.
Bleeding and battered, it still rammed trees, smashed rocks and earth into its face to dislodge the Gigant inside.
But Wayne endured, blasting Odd. One slip, and he'd be the one crushed. Fortunately, its power was fading.
"Kuhk! Kuhk!"
Suddenly, it gasped raggedly and dropped its head to the ground. Exhausted, it seemed unable to move. But Wayne stayed put, waiting for it to die completely.
Darkness fell over the Great Forest; the standoff dragged on. With a sword, he'd have pierced the palate long ago. But Hongyeom was lodged in its nape, out of reach. Wayne resolved to carry more blades next time—and retrofit Artemis with four arm blades like supply models.
'Ugh! Odd's running low...'
The fierce battle had drained him. His personal Odd nearly gone, only scant red Odd remained. No choice—he had to absorb more.
Problem: he'd never replenished Odd while piloting.
He squeezed out more, but the beast still breathed. 'Damn, have to try...'
Already consuming Odd via the Gigant, he slowly initiated Karian's Odd breathing. First stage absorbed minimally; outflow exceeded inflow—he wouldn't last.
He jumped to second stage, accelerating breath and Odd flow.
'Shit! Odd's draining faster!'
Using Odd while accelerating breathing was disastrous. Karian's second stage circulated internal Odd rapidly to draw in ambient Odd. But with Odd leaking to the Gigant, acceleration funneled even more out.
Odd nearly depleted. Regrettable, but best to eject and abandon the Gigant. He could always get another.
As he slowed the accelerated flow—
'Huh? What?'
Suddenly, red Odd surged from all sides like a tidal wave. Inflow dwarfed outflow. He'd felt this before—touching squad member Nancy Oliver's wrist, absorbing her Odd. But this was magnitudes greater.
Come to think of it, the Python had stopped breathing. It was dead.
'Holy shit! Absorbing Odd from a dead monster!'
Wayne popped the hatch wide and maxed second-stage breathing. The red Odd dwarfed what he'd siphoned from Adam's stuffed monster head—denser, dozens of times more.
'Overcoming danger brings greater rewards...? Whoa! This is addictive!'
Every cell opened; he felt plunged into an Odd river. After ten-odd minutes, red Odd overflowed from his body.
And crucially, he realized: In the Great Forest, Karian's second-stage breathing converted absorbed monster red Odd into his own innate Odd.
This was uncharted Odd mastery, unknown even to Karian's living king. Wayne could absorb two Odd types, wield them simultaneously.
As night deepened, Gigant pilots approached.
"Commander Bowga, we should head out."
"No. We wait for Lord Wayne."
"But he's surely dead by now."
"Agreed. Impressive man, but dragged into a Python's maw? No chance."
No one thought Wayne survived. They'd tasted the Great Forest's terror enough; they yearned for Lorenne Outpost.
Bowga understood but shook his head. "Wait longer. He fought a calamity-grade to save us. Even if he couldn't kill it, he'll return somehow."
At dawn, a sentry shouted.
"Monster! Python incoming!"
"What?"
Fear rippled through them. Bowga yelled, "Gigant pilots, mount up! Soldiers, hide!"
Pilots scrambled aboard, sealing hatches.
[Commander! The beast's movements are off!]
A pilot noted the anomaly. Not normal slithering, and glacially slow. Then Bowga's Odd Eye spotted a familiar silhouette under its jaw.
[That's Lord Wayne!]
Gigants lit floodlights and charged. Wayne's lone Artemis dragged the colossal corpse.
"Impossible! He bagged the Python!"
The pilots were stunned. A single Gigant hauling such mass meant Wayne's Odd reserves were monstrous.
"Lord Wayne!"
Bowga opened his hatch and rushed over. Wayne dismounted, brimming with vigor.
"Oh! Glad you're safe, my lord."
"Thought you'd left. Good you stayed."
"You saved our lives—not something we abandon lightly."
Bowga's tone was far more deferential, like addressing a superior.
"More importantly, process this beast with preservatives, quick."
"Right!"
At Bowga's order, soldiers swarmed, butchering and disassembling. Without royal preservatives within 48 hours postmortem, it'd spore and scatter into the Forest.
"The red worm monsters are dead too—haul 'em out."
"Ah, right."
Thus, Wayne's first hunt succeeded, netting a fortune. He'd saved Lorenne's Gigant pilots and soldiers, earning their trust.
'My squad should be safe, right...?'
Now, just hurry back to the outpost.