Chapter 106 : Behemoth (5)
Chapter 106: Behemoth (5)
Rumble!
An overwhelming surge of mana could be felt.
Estimated attack power: over 1,000.
Its speed had also increased to more than three times its original level.
Mana gathered to its absolute limit.
Trembling fingertips.
Eyes fixed upon a single target.
‘This is the final shot.’
The blood-forged archer released the Ice Explosion Spear resting upon its bowstring.
Crackle!
Pure white ice particles opened a path.
A storm of blood dyed the falling snow crimson.
BOOOOOOM!
The Ice Explosion Spear flew forward at terrifying speed, piercing straight through the gaps between the chains.
Thud!
Then it embedded itself into the wall.
It had struck precisely through the second, fourth, and sixth chains around Behemoth's neck.
Those three points served as the primary channels through which Behemoth released its black smoke.
Clang! Clank!
Behemoth violently twisted its body.
Cracks spread rapidly across the wall, making it seem as though it would break free at any moment.
Was this much power possible through sheer physical strength alone?
At this rate...
It wouldn't even remain restrained for ten seconds, let alone a full minute.
Dash!
Kang Yohan immediately charged forward, drawing the Burning Sword and Resentment of the Black Abyss.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The techniques of the Bloodline Sword Art unfolded one after another, mercilessly carving into Behemoth's body.
Black blood sprayed everywhere.
He slashed.
Then slashed again.
Climbing up its arm.
Slash! Craaack!
Then onto its shoulder.
Tap!
Finally...
He landed atop its skull.
The endless darkness stared directly at Kang Yohan.
And Kang Yohan silently gazed back into the abyss.
“Stay still for a while.
Not now...
But someday...
I'll fight you properly.”
Words spoken while suppressing countless emotions.
With that...
He drove the swords held in both hands directly into the empty eye sockets of the skull.
Whoooosh... BOOM!
Fire Magic and Void Magic exploded simultaneously.
“KROOOOOOOAR!”
A scream that seemed capable of tearing the heavens apart.
Long streams of fire erupted from Behemoth's eyes.
Kang Yohan's body was likewise engulfed in black flames.
Even so...
He refused to stop.
“AAAAAAAH!”
He burned everything he had...
Just to buy even one more second.
“You idiots!
Why are you just standing there watching?!
Run!
Run now!”
Park Yeri shouted toward the expedition.
“L-Let's go!”
“Now!”
Only then did those who had stood frozen while watching Kang Yohan finally sprint toward the Safe Zone with everything they had.
[You have entered the Safe Zone.]
By the time Kang Yohan arrived...
Everyone's gaze toward him had completely changed.
Bang! Bang!
The soldiers struck their shields together.
Expressing their gratitude.
Nod.
The knights lowered their heads in silent respect.
Honoring his courage.
“My name is Akira, from the Osaka Alliance of Japan.
Thank you...
Thank you so much for saving us.”
“Are you a Hunter from Korea?”
The Hunters introduced themselves one after another, stating both their nationality and affiliation as they greeted Kang Yohan.
Not as an ordinary Hunter who had participated individually...
But as the hero who had saved an expedition standing on the brink of annihilation.
They wanted to remember his face.
And his name.
‘Not bad.’
Kang Yohan smiled faintly.
To be honest...
He hadn't joined this expedition for some grand cause.
Even so...
Watching so many people rejoice felt like receiving an entirely different kind of reward.
However...
It wasn't over yet.
They had overcome one critical hurdle.
But they still had to cross another death line.
‘Now that we've made it this far, reaching the fifth floor won't be a problem.’
Ryuhei and the others who had gone ahead would have already cleared away the monsters.
They wouldn't have to struggle through another waterway like before.
The real problem...
Began after the sixth floor.
It was certain that Behemoth, now thoroughly enraged...
Would pursue them even more fiercely.
And the trick involving the chains...
Wouldn't work a second time.
Just then—
“Sir Yohan.
Are you alright?”
Scarlett approached him.
Right.
Come to think of it...
The two of them had just used a Linked Ability together.
During most playthroughs...
Which were solo runs...
There had never been an opportunity to use it.
Its power had far exceeded his expectations.
It was the moment he truly realized just how precious trustworthy companions were.
“Thanks to you...
We made it through.”
“Ahem!
As a young lady of the Juliard Family, I merely fulfilled my duty.
More importantly...
I was really happy to fight alongside you, Sir Yohan.”
Scarlett clenched both fists tightly while smiling brightly.
A single compliment...
And she looked ready to fly away.
It almost seemed as though invisible wings were fluttering behind her back.
“How are the others?”
“Well...”
Lagerseh had regained consciousness.
However...
Rodbrock and Seo Changhee, who had taken Behemoth's attack head-on...
Had suffered severe injuries.
The other casualties were also devastating.
Nearly half of the expedition group that had headed toward the fourth floor had died.
Especially among the knights who had volunteered for the final suicide mission.
Only two had survived.
“I see.”
Kang Yohan clicked his tongue bitterly.
He had expected as much.
Yet hearing the actual results made reality feel even colder.
“For now...
Get some rest.
We leave again in thirty minutes.”
The dead returned to the earth.
The living stepped upon that earth...
And continued forward.
Mourning would come...
Only after everything was over.
“You should get some sleep too, Sir Yohan.
You really...
Pushed yourself too hard.”
Scarlett draped a blanket over herself.
Then immediately fell asleep as though she had fainted.
‘I should rest a little too.’
He was too exhausted to feel hungry.
But resisting the drowsiness and thirst was becoming increasingly difficult.
Kang Yohan looked around for another spare blanket.
Thud!
“Here.”
A thick down blanket landed in Kang Yohan's arms.
Standing behind it...
Was the gigantic knight.
“Sir Robert?”
Didn't this man ever sleep?
Every time they entered a Safe Zone...
Kang Yohan had never once seen him resting.
“First...
Allow me to express my gratitude on behalf of the entire expedition.
Without you...
We would all have been buried there.
Sherfon also asked me to convey his thanks.”
Robert spoke sincerely.
Then asked one more question.
“Why did you choose to stay with us?
With your abilities...
You could have headed straight for the fifth floor.”
Well...
That was true enough.
If he answered that he had stayed simply to max out Robert's Affection and secure a first-class ride with the Hestia Empire's military...
Hmm.
That would make him seem far too pathetic.
He'd go from Hero...
To something like Delinquent No.1.
So...
“Didn't we make a contract?
To drive away the Empire's calamity together and save its people.
I'm the type who always keeps a promise once I've made it.”
Pleasant words were a win-win for everyone.
Ding!
[Robert's Affection toward you has increased to the maximum level.]
A pink status window appeared.
Along with sparkling heart-shaped effects.
“Ahem!
I-I see.”
Robert repeatedly cleared his throat.
...Why was his face turning red?
After resting for thirty minutes...
The expedition immediately headed toward the fifth floor.
The distance was extremely short.
This time...
They reached the Safe Zone without a single casualty.
Thanks to those who had gone ahead and cleared the path...
They encountered no monsters.
Furthermore...
Perhaps gouging out Behemoth's eyes with burning swords had been effective.
Its pursuit had noticeably slowed.
Since everyone still had enough stamina remaining...
The expedition immediately advanced toward the sixth floor.
Just before entering its Safe Zone...
They reunited with Ryuhei and the detached force.
“Oh?
So you survived.
And quite a few of you at that.”
Ryuhei looked genuinely surprised upon seeing Robert and the others.
He had naturally assumed they had all been wiped out.
Realistically...
That had been the overwhelmingly likely outcome.
“Outstanding heroes stepped forward.
The losses were severe...
But thanks to them, many survived.”
“Don't tell me...
You're talking about him?”
Ryuhei looked toward Kang Yohan.
“Hey, Titanic.
Looks like you still haven't sunk.”
Kang Yohan waved cheerfully.
“……”
So what if he looked like he'd bitten into a bug?
Kang Yohan had already maxed out the Expedition Commander's Affection.
Their foundations were completely different.
A while later...
Without a single additional injury...
Everyone safely arrived at the sixth floor's Safe Zone.
Behemoth remained strangely quiet.
There was also no sign of Murim or the Beast Race making any move.
Everything was peaceful.
Which only made it more ominous.
Like the calm before a storm.
Preparing for the worst...
Kang Yohan walked toward the outermost edge of the Safe Zone to inspect the surroundings.
‘Nothing unusual...’
Maybe he was simply worrying too much.
Sometimes...
Being overly cautious became a problem in itself.
Step.
That was when he heard footsteps.
“Oh my?”
A familiar figure emerged from behind a rock.
“Miss Mary?”
“Wow.
It's so nice to see you.
There were so many people surrounding you earlier that I couldn't even come over.
I finally get to thank you properly.”
That made sense.
The bartender of the Running Rabbit couldn't exactly accompany Ryuhei to the fifth floor.
She had most likely blended in with the porters to make it this far.
“What about the Gu Poison?”
“Hmm.
I've put it back to sleep.”
Mary placed her index finger against her lips and winked.
However—
Hummmm!
The jewel inside Kang Yohan's pocket began emitting a faint glow.
A warm heat tickled his thigh.
[The ‘Emerald That Reads the Past’ is glowing.]
The item obtained from the Beast Race's Treasure Vault.
The jewel that changed color whenever someone nearby lied.
Kang Yohan narrowed his eyes.
What did this mean?
“Is something wrong?”
Mary tilted her head.
“No.
It's nothing.”
Kang Yohan answered casually while looking around.
There was no one else nearby.
Only Kang Yohan...
And Mary.
Thump!
An inexplicable sense of unease wrapped around his entire body.
It felt as though he had overlooked something from the very beginning.
The Running Rabbit attacked by Murim.
Jin Hoa had claimed Mary was kept alive because she was useful.
But...
Had Murim truly needed to go that far?
To use something as precious as a Gu Poison...
On nothing more than a Hestia Empire intelligence agent?
Furthermore...
Mary always claimed she had managed to suppress the Gu Poison at just the right moment.
However...
A Gu Poison wasn't something that could be suppressed so easily.
Even among Alchemists and Elixir Makers...
Only a handful possessed the ability to stop a Gu Poison's movements.
His hesitation didn't last long.
He had to confirm it.
Crunch!
Kang Yohan crushed the jewel he had been carrying.
[You destroy the ‘Emerald That Reads the Past’.]
[Replaying the memory from the moment the lie was spoken.]
One side of his vision slowly became stained with another color.
To his right...
Mary stood there innocently smiling.
Meanwhile...
A different scene gradually filled his left field of vision.
—The target is currently subdued by a powerful poisonous insect.
The message that had appeared when he first met Mary inside the Gate.
Naturally...
At the time, he had assumed that poisonous insect referred to the Gu Poison.
But...
What if it had actually been consumed by another insect instead?
Parasites.
The race that would dominate the Fourth Episode.
Within the Forbidden Book...
They too were classified as poisonous insects.
Hummmm!
The past version of Mary filling the left side of his vision began changing.
Just as Riley had...
Inside Baron Helion's mansion.
Craaack!
Huge pincer-like legs burst out from behind the bartender of the Running Rabbit.
Her pupils narrowed into slits.
Her fingers transformed into razor-sharp blades.
—You all...
Look quite delicious.
Words...
That only a predator could utter.
After that...
Mary began slaughtering the Blood Wind Squad.
Including Jin Hoa.
Roughly fifteen minutes later...
Not a single living human remained inside the Running Rabbit.
—Hehe.
Now...
Please move as my loyal servants.
Mary took tiny insects from her mouth.
And fed them to the corpses.
A moment later...
Stagger.
Jin Hoa stood back up.
Not as a commander of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
But as a loyal corpse obeying the commands of the Parasite.
...That was where the Emerald's final memory ended.
His vision merged back into one.
The smiling blonde beauty stood before him with all four limbs perfectly intact.
Damn it.
So this...
Was what it meant for one's throat to run dry.
Jin Hoa...
Had already been dead long before arriving here.
The important thing now...
Was pretending nothing was wrong.
“Anyway...
I'm glad you're safe.
We'll be departing again soon.
Let's return to the inner area of the Safe Zone.”
“Ah, right.
It's already that time.
But...
Aren't you going to ask?”
“Ask what?”
“Why I'm standing all the way out here.
What Jin Hoa is really planning.
You always used to ask so many questions.”
She even remembered details like that.
Trying too hard not to raise suspicion...
Had backfired.
“Of course I intended to ask.
However...
Escaping from Behemoth takes priority right now.
Once we reach the summit...
I'll ask everything at once.”
Please.
Let this work.
She had just witnessed Behemoth herself.
Surely she understood that Murim's latest developments weren't exactly the priority at the moment.
But—
“You...
You figured it out, didn't you?”
Mary's smile twisted into something horrifying.
Damn.
It felt as though he had just stepped into a horror game.