Chapter 34: Strike True
Whoooosh—
Amid the sticky mud rain pouring down.
Ferda quietly stared beyond the water mist. It was a monster boasting a massive body just by looking at it. If it were an ordinary human, they would have lost their fighting spirit long ago, amazed by that size.
<Arcane! That guy is Arcane!>
Prang shouted noisily.
He knew without being told. If that wasn't Arcane, he'd planned to immediately use the return stone and flee to Count Arcdute's side.
Ferda narrowed his eyes.
"But surprisingly..."
For a body of that size, there was no characteristic sense of intimidation that should be felt. It was like looking at a scarecrow that was just big?
At this point, Prang provided the answer.
<He's definitely weakened. Can't compare to the old days.>
"Really?"
<Yeah. If Lucian had just one more level of dignity, he could have beaten him down alone in less than 10 minutes.>
He didn't know how strong Lucian Arcdute was, but judging from the nuance, he really had weakened.
'Then...'
It might be worth trying.
With that thought, just as he was lowering his posture and preparing to charge out!
Swoosh!
Something flew in from the water mist. It was fast, but not impossible to dodge. He kicked off the ground, stepped back, and twisted his body to the side to avoid it.
Crash—!
What lodged exactly where he'd been.
Looking closely, it was a brown tail. Judging by the sharp protrusions like cracked gravel on its surface, it didn't look like it would end with just an injury if hit properly.
<Be careful! Another one's coming!>
This time there were two.
Tails flying from the right and left respectively. It seemed like an intention not to leave room for evasion, but unfortunately it ended in failure.
Whoosh—
Because Ferda charged forward one step ahead.
He immediately climbed onto the tail, then heavily coated the magic sword with mana. Then he cut Arcane's tail with all his might.
Crack!
It felt like cutting tough vines.
But he couldn't cut it completely. Because a new tail came flying at his head. Ferda, who hastily stepped back, shouted irritably.
"Hey, just how many tails does it have?!"
<From my memory, five!>
Damn, that's a lot. Ferda's face crumpled.
But there was no time to complain. Five tails came flying in an instant.
Bang! Crash! Boom!
The swamp turned upside down and rocks turned to powder. Seeing giant trees break like reeds, he naturally thought he absolutely shouldn't get hit.
<You can't win just by dodging. That guy has more stamina than expected.>
I know.
But it wasn't time yet.
'The attack pattern is too monotonous.'
There was surely a hidden move. He had to refrain from hasty actions until he drew that out. In battles with giant monsters, a moment's carelessness could bring death.
Boom!
Then Arcane buried his head in the swamp. Then he began frantically sucking up the mud that filled the swamp area.
What's he doing now?
As he watched this with puzzled eyes, Prang shouted urgently.
<Hurry and dodge! He's about to shoot a breath!>
Shoot a breath? At those words, Ferda's eyes sparkled.
Then he suddenly kicked off the ground and ran toward the front.
<What are you doing! I said dodge!>
Prang shouted as if dumbfounded.
What kind of charge was this when he should be hurrying to dodge? To Prang, Ferda's rush looked like a moth flying into a lamp.
However, Ferda had no intention of stopping.
Breath, an attack method used by dragon-type monsters.
'It's certainly fearsome.'
Because it had the power to destroy everything blocking its path.
However, quite a lot of preparation time was needed before shooting a breath. Also, there was a delay during and after breathing.
'This is an opportunity.'
In other words, the most openings appeared while shooting breath.
That's why Ferda quickly rushed toward Arcane. When the distance between them was about ten meters, Arcane suddenly raised his head.
[Grrrrrr—!]
With a threatening growl ending.
His mouth gaped open. Then black liquid spurted out!
Hisssss—
Everything hit by the liquid melted without exception. It seemed to be a breath with extremely acidic properties.
Arcane, having turned where Ferda had been into a soggy mess, soon rolled his yellow eyeballs frantically. He was looking for Ferda.
Before long, the image of a smiling Ferda was reflected in Arcane's eyes.
But there was one problem.
"Want to shoot a breath? Try shooting."
His location was on Arcane's instep.
If he had any sense, he wouldn't shoot. As expected, Arcane showed an opening for a moment. And Ferda didn't miss that opening.
Grab—
He reached out and immediately climbed onto Arcane's body. The many bumpy protrusions made it easier to climb than expected.
Should he say it felt like rock climbing?
[Roaaaaar!]
Arcane screamed with fury. Then he twisted his body frantically. As if that wasn't enough, he now began rolling around the swamp area like crazy.
However, Ferda didn't fall easily.
"Phew."
Having climbed to the chest area, he re-gripped the magic sword.
These large monsters generally had something called a 'magic core.' It helped maintain their huge bodies, and if you destroyed it, they'd fall into a groggy state temporarily.
'Let's see.'
The most noticeable thing right now was a triangular piece embedded in the chest.
Looking at the slight crack, it seemed like it would break easily.
<That thing embedded in the chest is a holy relic. You absolutely must not break that!>
...I take that back. It seemed like it absolutely shouldn't break easily.
Ferda raised his head. His gaze turned further up.
"Then I should break the one on the forehead?"
<Yeah. You need to destroy that one and the one on the left shoulder simultaneously.>
How troublesome indeed.
Prang too seemed to realize it was difficult only after speaking. His usually cheerful voice had sunk low.
<Sigh, this is actually the hardest part. Lucian failed several times too. But since the magic core's strength is weaker than expected, if you keep trying, you'll surely succeed...>
Thud! Thwack!
As soon as Prang finished speaking, both magic cores shattered.
Simultaneously.
[Roar! Aaaaah!]
With an agonized scream, Arcane's body tilted.
Rumble—
Water splashed in the swamp area once more.
Soon a system message appeared.
=====
[Notification]: Magical beast 'Arcane's' magic power weakens.
*Unique abilities are sealed.
-Berserk: [Hold]
-Rapid Regeneration: [Hold]
-Body Enhancement: [Hold]
…
…
=====
Prang's blade trembled.
<Wh-what just happened...>
I said it was troublesome, but I didn't say it couldn't be done.
<What? Ho-how did you do what?>
Ferda shrugged nonchalantly.
Simple. Just before swinging the magic sword to destroy the shoulder's magic core, he flicked his finger to fire a magic bullet at the core on the forehead. Timing it to destroy them simultaneously was a bit annoying though.
<Th-this isn't the time. Let's seal it first!>
Now that it had fallen into a groggy state was the opportunity.
Prang hurriedly urged Ferda.
<I'll tell you the method, so just follow along. First, place your hand on the holy relic... W-wait a minute! What are you doing now!>
Prang was startled.
Of course he'd be surprised. Instead of doing the sealing he was told to do, Ferda suddenly walked to where Arcane's head was. Ferda re-gripped the magic sword and looked into his eyes.
<Sealing is the best option. I told you earlier. If there's a difference in dignity, you can't kill the opponent!>
Right, he definitely said that.
He also remembered saying Arcane had Legend dignity.
So there was one thing he wanted to test.
'Silvan's dignity was the same as his talent grade.'
Mythical grade necromancy. Silvan who likewise gained Mythical dignity.
Ferda's eyes sparkled like stars.
'Then I too...'
The talent he'd possessed when living as a hunter.
Recalling this, Ferda raised the magic sword high. Then Prang warned in an urgent voice.
<No! If you provoke it carelessly and it goes berserk...!>
Don't worry. I think I roughly know where to aim.
Soon the magic sword lodged into Arcane's left eye.
Squelch—!
He drove it in deeply, as if to embed it to the hilt.
Then Arcane's body shook roughly. A ferocious voice flowing through gritted teeth. It looked like a wounded beast desperately holding back its anger.
<Ugh, it's over now. It's all over!>
Seeing this, Prang sobbed.
<If we just sealed it, it would end safely, but it's all over! Now it'll go berserk and smash everything! I had such a hard time stopping Lucian too... Huh?>
Then Prang noticed something strange.
Suddenly, Arcane's magic power began to gradually fade.
The shaking body drooped like a fish pulled from water, and the ferocious voice changed to a dying groan.
[Cough! Gurgle...]
With a sorrowful wail as the last.
Crumble—
Arcane's body collapsed. The huge body became mushy like mud, and the hard, sharp scales flowed down like grains of sand.
<Wh-what, this, wh-what...>
Listening to Prang's voice filled with shock, Ferda raised his head.
It was to see the system message that had appeared.
=====
[Notification]: Proof of Dignity
*By defeating a being with Legend dignity, you have proven your own dignity.
*Previous system logs can be retrieved.
*Would you like to retrieve system logs?
-[YES] / [NO]
=====
Without question, [YES].
When he touched the screen, a nostalgic status window soon appeared.
=====
[Name]: Kenny Bark
[Level]: 289
[Race]: Human
[Talent]: Assassination Arts - World Grade
=====
"Wow, outstanding."
The status window from when he'd reached the peak as an SSS-rank hunter.
A smile formed on Ferda's lips.
Then a new message appeared.
=====
[Notification]
*Previous record's dignity is synchronized.
[Holder]: Kenny Bark
[Transplant]: Ferda Inosid
-Synchronization complete.
=====
Nothing seemed to have changed particularly.
But if the system message was true, Ferda now had 'World dignity,' one level below Mythical grade.
'It would have been perfect if stats were synchronized too.'
He clicked his tongue with regret.
Of course, since the body itself was different, that wouldn't happen.
Meanwhile, a trembling voice came from beside him.
<Wh-what, what, what? World dignity? What's that! I've never heard of it!>
A voice filled with shock.
Ferda scratched his head. How should he explain this?
<You, what kind of human are you? No, are you even human in the first place?!>
He was human. It even said so on the status window.
After brief consideration, Ferda soon opened his mouth. Thinking there was no answer that fit better than this for the question of what his identity was.
"Just an ordinary tutor."
<Don't be ridiculous! Where in the world is such a tutor!>
Prang shouted as if telling him not to say nonsense.
At that outcry, Ferda just shrugged.
Just then.
=====
[Notification]
*Magical beast 'Arcane's' corpse confirmed.
*Extra skill 'Equivalent Exchange' activates.
=====
Arcane's melted corpse glowed brightly.