Visions of Ancient Thunder
Rumble.
Rumblerrrrumble!
The sound of heaven and earth collapsing echoed in all directions. The sky wasn't actually falling. It was the bolts of lightning surging from Bahamed's sword that created such a clamor.
'Whoa...'
I shuddered at the sight. Hundreds, thousands... no, perhaps even tens of thousands of lightning bolts. Could anything survive plunging into that storm? And it wasn't just the sheer number.
'Even if Norton went all out... he couldn't match the power of a single one of those...'
This was a force beyond what my pre-regression self could handle at full strength. Overwhelming power.
'Truly incredible.'
Just glimpsing a fraction of Bahamed's true might filled me with ecstasy. Someday, I would wield that kind of power too. If I did...
The Four Great Lords? A joke. I'd need to face apostles or administrators to find a worthy opponent.
This confirmed my resolve. Now that I'd awakened the Megaera Mantis's power, I had to reach at least the level Bahamed was showing.
'At that strength, I could explore the Eternal Mountains like my own backyard.'
A forbidden place no one on the continent had dared enter in my past life. This time, I might uncover its secrets.
'Whew.'
My heart raced with excitement. I wanted to gather the Megaera Mantis fossils as soon as possible. Pioneer hidden scenarios. Raise my realm.
As I savored that honey-sweet vision of the future, an abrupt change occurred.
Fwaaaaaaaa!
A brilliant light erupted from the lightning-scarred ground. It carried the aura of sorcery.
'That feels familiar... huh?'
I widened my eyes at the oddly recognizable spell.
Wooooong!
The light converged into a pentagram formation. It functioned as a barrier.
'...!'
A clear memory surfaced. I'd seen this before. It was the spell used by the mysterious man who hunted Thunderwings in Ultio's past.
'That's definitely him.'
Seeing the man's face within the light barrier confirmed it. Unless it was his twin, it was the same guy.
"......ΔΘΖ ......ΑΓΞΦΨ."
"Ωνξ...... ψΘΠβ......"
The man who stepped into the thunder god's domain, using a frail-looking light barrier as his shield, blocked the lightning and slowly approached Bahamed. Finally facing off, they began conversing in an unintelligible tongue.
'What are they saying?'
Probably an ancient language. I couldn't understand a word. But the atmosphere was far from ordinary.
Bahamed, his face shrouded in primal exoskeleton, was recognizable only by his identity. His expression was unreadable, but his tone dripped with boredom.
The man, however, grew increasingly furious as they spoke.
"......αΗΓΣΨη!"
Finally, he shouted in a rage-filled voice. Bahamed replied calmly, undisturbed. The man, thoroughly pissed, moved his hand.
Wooooooong!
Fwoooooosh――!
Fierce winds poured from his outstretched hand. Storm blades that could shred space itself hurtled toward Bahamed with murderous intent.
'That!'
I cried out involuntarily. It was the devastating strike that had shredded and swept away the Thunderwings.
But.
Fwoooong!
Bahamed casually swept his hand, and a massive gust arose, devouring the deadly blades whole. It didn't stop there, surging toward the man as if to grind him to dust.
Kwaaaaaaaaang!
The impact shook the earth. The man, barely maintaining his light barrier, looked pale as a ghost.
"ΨαβγΖε......!"
He bellowed in outrage and began primalizing. Wave-like scale patterns covered his exoskeleton. I'd glimpsed this form in Ultio's memories before, but this time it was a perfect primalization.
'That's a race I've never even heard of.'
This life was full of firsts, making my "Bug Wars veteran" title feel hollow. Seeing something I didn't know confirmed he was an ancient race too. From the same era as the Thunderwings and Bahamed, naturally.
'Still, weird that a modern descendant race exists. Wonder where its genes survived.'
Anyway.
Now fully primalized, the man charged Bahamed with full power. As I tensed and focused on their battle...
Spin.
My vision blurred suddenly, plunging into darkness.
"...Aleck!"
"Mm."
"Aleck! Are you coming to?"
"Ah..."
When I opened my eyes, Bahamed and the man were gone. Norton's worried face filled my view.
"You passed out suddenly and scared me. I must've gotten too carried away and overdid it. Sorry about that."
He thought I'd collapsed because of him.
"No, it's not your fault, Norton."
"Then...?"
I explained to the puzzled Norton that I'd glimpsed an ancient race's memory.
"Just like that? Maybe the ancient genetic factors are settling in faster now?"
Norton's guess made sense. As my body adapted more, things felt increasingly familiar. Recalling that memory alone seemed to boost my overall physical abilities. Or rather, sharpen my sense of how to use my body better.
'Still, this needs caution. If it happened mid-battle...'
It'd be like handing my neck to the enemy.
"Haha, excellent! Shame, but that's enough for today. Lord Karimru wants you at the Mantis Hall Treasury, so let's head there."
'Mantis Hall Treasury?'
I eyed Norton questioningly. He grinned widely.
"Didn't he say he'd hand over Mantis Hall's resources to you? No need to worry about the Amar King Centipedes anymore, so use them freely."
'Oh, already!'
Thrilled by the good news, I smiled broadly.
'But seriously, sparring before such an important event?'
Not that it was fruitless. And the treasury wasn't going anywhere.
'Hope there's something to fill my expanded rune slots.'
"We moved in a rush, so the treasury's smaller, but we prioritized the valuables. You'll find good stuff if you look."
"No time to waste—let's go!"
Excitement surging, I jumped up.
In the heart of the new Mantis Hall stronghold, like the old one, was a district for culture and entertainment. And right now...
Taverns and teahouses buzzed with the same hot topic.
"Heard the news?"
"What?"
"Y'know, that kid from the lesser mantis clan. Name's Aleck, right?"
"Oh! The one rumored to have soloed Gato?"
"Yeah, that's him."
"Aleck, yeah. So?"
"Soon as he got here, he sparred with Mantis Hall warriors and one-shot them all."
"Huh? One-shot the warriors? That possible...? You'd need Complete Body at least. Is he really Complete Body like the rumors say?"
"Must be. No other explanation."
Aleck was actually Quasi-Complete Body, but explaining that involved ancient races and complications. Only insiders knew, so the public assumed Complete Body as fact.
"But reaching Complete Body already? That's wild too."
"True. But get this—heard he beat Kirian, one of the Mantis Twins."
"...!"
The listener's jaw dropped. His friend wasn't one for baseless gossip, so this was likely legit.
"Whoa..."
He let out a hollow laugh.
"If true, that's not just Mantis Hall's greatest prodigy—it's unprecedented in continental history..."
His mind raced with visions of Aleck leading Mantis Hall warriors to crush the Four Great Clans.
'Kiya...'
Thrilling even in imagination. If he grew like this, unifying the Abian Continent under mantises wasn't impossible.
He glanced at his friend, lost in a dreamy gaze. Probably the same fantasy. He chuckled.
And that day, similar reactions popped up throughout Mantis Hall.
Arriving at the new Mantis Hall Treasury with Norton, I finished organizing and met Karimru waiting ahead.
"Welcome, son-in-law!"
"Haha..."
Karimru greeted me with a mischievous grin and playful smile.
'Son-in-law...? Is this guy seriously planning to give me his daughter?'
Not serious, probably. But imagining marrying Robed and Karimru as father-in-law stirred odd feelings.
I shook my head.
'Nah, just banter. Overthinking hurts only me.'
With my huge contributions, it was likely praise.
"We just finished sorting before you arrived. Shall we?"
"Yes! Right now if possible."
"Haha, now I can finally keep my promise. Lucky we moved quickly, even if rushed."
As Karimru said, the process was rough, but the outcome was beautiful. We'd purged spies and escaped Amar King Centipede influence.
"But the real fight starts now. Everyone, steel yourselves. Craig's distracted by simultaneous crises... but once he sorts it, we'll be first on his list."
Norton chimed in, spot on. Without the academy and Kiria incidents overlapping, we wouldn't have this breather.
'Even without, he'd have sent Duraan and figured us out.'
But no—Koon's wildcard crippled one of Craig's pillars. His shaky leg in chaos.
Still, he'd recover. The Four Great Clans didn't dominate Abian for nothing.
'So, seize this chance. Grow fast, shake them more.'
I wouldn't let Craig's opening sit idle. Hunt Megaera fossils. Pioneer scenarios. Exploit Four Clans' cracks.
'Before continental war erupts, I can topple at least Craig, if not their foundations.'
With clear direction, my mind eased. Bloodshed and slaughter were familiar.
'That's my strongest path...'
Nod.
My eyes gleamed with resolve. Before honing my power for the first step, I gazed at the renovated building ahead.
'It starts with you, Mantis Hall Treasury.'