Chapter 326 : It Finally Appeared
Chapter 326: It Finally Appeared
“Ggh…… Cough……! Urgh……! What... did you do……!?”
Kallia's face twisted in agony.
I could feel the flow of energy surrounding her becoming unstable.
Judging from the fact that my attack had worked, it seemed she still hadn't realized that I possessed the [Dimension Jump] Module.
And through this attack, I had learned something as well.
'Just as I thought... it isn't omnipotent.'
According to Chairman Stingray, there were "limitations."
Maintaining the form of a Thoughtform granted it various advantages.
However, in exchange, its abilities as a Dragon were restricted.
It was like a real-time strategy game where there was a limit to the number of units a player could actively control.
It wasn't capable of perceiving and manipulating every single thing in this city at will.
'That's why I was able to catch it off guard.'
If I had been facing its true body, that surprise attack would never have worked.
With a Dragon's reflexes, it would have sensed the instant I activated [Dimension Jump] and counterattacked immediately.
A Thoughtform might be able to manipulate the battlefield however it pleased, but I couldn't expect the Dragon's extraordinary physical abilities while it was in this state.
“Damn it……!”
Kallia desperately tried to pull the injector from her chest.
For some reason, however, it wouldn't budge.
Instead, the harder she pulled, the deeper the needle gradually embedded itself.
“Ggh!”
She tried snapping the injector.
She tried using tools to pry it out.
But whatever this thing was made of, it refused to come free.
Instead, it only burrowed deeper.
Looking at me with visible irritation, she demanded,
“What... is this thing……!?”
“I don't know.”
I answered honestly.
She didn't seem to believe me.
“If you're trying to toy with me, that's unfortunate. Even now, if I read your Cybernetic Device—!”
Kallia stretched out her hand into the air.
An enormous wave of radio signals shot toward me from somewhere, sweeping across my body.
It felt as though someone were rummaging through my brain.
I barely managed to suppress the urge to vomit.
Fortunately, the sensation didn't last long.
Kallia's expression darkened even further.
“Y-You really don't know anything……!?”
“I wasn't lying.”
“You're insane……!”
Watching the agitated Kallia, I couldn't help admiring Chairman Stingray.
To think his calculations would shine at a moment like this.
Personally, it was only frustrating that I had absolutely no idea how to use this thing, nor did I know its mechanism or effects.
Ironically, that ignorance had become even more devastating for my opponent.
'Just how far ahead did he see?'
Chairman Stingray...
He was a man I could never respect.
But I couldn't help acknowledging him.
“Ggh! Fine……!”
Apparently giving up on extracting information from me, Kallia made another move.
A magic circle shimmered around her fingertips before enveloping the injector.
It began trembling ever so slightly.
'Tsk.
So she can use magic too……!'
Only then did I notice something.
Even though the injector was embedded in her chest, the substance inside the cylinder hadn't decreased at all.
Apparently, it hadn't penetrated deeply enough.
'Do I need to drive it in even farther?'
The moment I reached that conclusion, I moved.
I leaped high into the air, closed the distance, and reached toward the injector to force it deeper.
However—
“Don't you dare……!”
At that instant, sparks erupted from my Module Socket.
Every part of my body malfunctioned.
Because of that, my hand fell just short of reaching her.
At the same time, threads shot out from my hand, dragging me violently toward the ground.
“Damn……!”
Booooom!
A shockwave erupted as I slammed into the ground.
Even afterward, [Cloud Spider] continued extending its threads beneath the earth, trying to drag me underground.
Craaaak!
The sound of bending metal echoed as my body creaked.
To make matters worse, the surrounding terrain shifted once again, preventing me from keeping my balance.
Meanwhile, Kallia was still struggling with the injector in midair.
She staggered unsteadily.
It looked like the perfect opportunity to strike again.
But I couldn't.
[Cloud Spider]'s threads continued dragging me downward, while the nearby monsters began converging on me.
'So this is what they mean by being struck in the foot by the axe you trusted……?'
ROOOOAAARRR!!
As I struggled with all my strength against the threads restraining me, I suddenly realized that a pack of Werewolves had already charged in.
Their razor-sharp fangs and claws lunged to bite and tear through me.
“……You're becoming a nuisance.”
I twisted my body and kicked one away.
Yelp!
Several of them exploded apart from the shockwave alone.
Even after watching their companions die, however, they continued trying to kill me without hesitation.
'No choice.'
Module Forced Offline, [Cloud Spider].
I forcibly deactivated the Module.
Only then did the threads binding me disappear.
At the last possible moment, I evaded their attacks and countered with a punch.
Crunch!
I crushed their hearts in a single blow and tried to regain my stance.
Then—
Something struck the skin of my face before bouncing away.
'An arrow……?'
A crimson arrow.
Turning my head, I saw numerous Elves drawing their bows from higher ground.
Moments later, the arrows they released cast an enormous shadow over the battlefield.
I immediately kicked off the ground and retreated into a nearby building.
Yet they tracked me with perfect accuracy, as though they possessed homing capabilities.
“Tsk.”
Screeeech! Screeeech!
The arrows shrieked through the air like screams.
Clicking my tongue, I kicked one of the building's pillars and brought it crashing down.
Driving my fingers into the tilting ceiling, I tore away the entire second floor and used it as a shield.
Booooooom!
The arrows struck with terrifying force.
Immediately afterward, the arrowheads embedded in the concrete exploded violently, unleashing countless wind blades in every direction.
'So they knew ordinary arrows wouldn't work against me.
Wind Magic...
No, they contained Wind Spirits.'
As soon as the arrows landed, Spirits of every element burst forth, mercilessly tearing apart everything nearby.
Fire and wind intertwined into an enormous fire tornado that engulfed the entire battlefield.
Only then did I realize—
They had been herding me into a corner.
'This is why intelligent enemies are such a pain……!'
I'd subconsciously underestimated them because they weren't real Elves.
That had been a mistake.
And if the Elves retained all the characteristics of the originals...
Then the other races undoubtedly did as well.
Sure enough—
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The sound of metal being hammered echoed from somewhere.
A few seconds later, a gigantic cannon appeared where nothing had existed before.
Its appearance resembled something from the Renaissance era.
Its size, however, was utterly absurd.
Fwoooosh!
The Dwarves breathed fire from mouths full of alcohol, igniting the fuse dangling from the cannon.
Despite looking dangerously unstable, the cannon rotated much faster than expected and aimed directly at me.
“Hah!”
I hurled the entire second floor I had been using as a shield straight at the cannon.
The massive slab of concrete flew perfectly into its barrel.
An instant later—
Boooooom!
An explosion comparable to dozens of tons of TNT erupted.
The shockwave swept away not only the nearby Dwarves but countless other monsters as well.
'Nice.'
Cheering inwardly, I targeted Kallia once again.
This should work now.
I activated my Module once more.
“Module Online, [Cloud Spider].”
With a flick of my finger, countless threads materialized in midair and shot toward her.
However—
“Don't... underestimate me……!”
The instant she shouted with determination, the terrain shifted again.
The [Mystics] surged forward as though offering themselves as living shields.
Seeing that, I could only click my tongue.
'So a Dragon is still a Dragon after all.'
Against ordinary opponents, merely perceiving threads thinner than needles was nearly impossible.
Dodging or blocking them while they moved faster than bullets...
There were probably fewer than five beings on this planet capable of doing that.
'I need another approach.'
I could attack again using [Dimension Jump].
Naturally, though, the energy consumption was far too high.
Besides, I doubted the same trick would work twice.
Likewise, [Tech Blade] was too dangerous.
It was the strongest weapon I possessed.
If it malfunctioned again, I wasn't confident I could deal with the consequences.
'[Cloud Spider] is my best option.'
Even if it malfunctioned, it was still the easiest to handle.
At the same time, it consumed the least energy.
Fighting barehanded was simply out of the question.
I had no choice but to rely on it.
'But the moment I make an attacking motion, she'll react immediately…….'
I paused to think.
Following that train of thought, the countless tactical simulations stored within my Cybernetic Device quickly reached a conclusion.
'Something faster.
More discreet.
More efficient.'
Until now, I had always relied on overwhelming force.
In other words, methods that guaranteed victory.
Now...
I needed the more efficient option.
I had to preserve as many cards as possible.
'If my reasoning is correct……!'
I looked toward Kallia once more, carefully waiting for the perfect moment.
“Huff…… Huff…… Ughhh……! If you think this is over……!”
The Cardiac Injector was clearly having an effect.
She could barely keep herself upright.
Her complexion had turned deathly pale.
She staggered through the air and repeatedly retched.
As a result, even the [Mystics] under her command began losing coordination.
The Elves suddenly turned on the Orcs.
The Vampires attacked humanoid monsters.
Ghosts and Banshees writhed in agony while lashing out indiscriminately at everything around them.
Then I moved.
I charged straight toward my opponent suspended in the air.
Naturally, Kallia immediately attempted to counterattack.
Just before reaching her, however, I extended a single thread and abruptly changed my trajectory by ninety degrees.
“What……!?”
While she stood there in confusion, I dashed through the gaps between the monsters.
Dodging.
Evading.
Slipping through countless attacks as I raced between them.
After several seconds of sprinting, I returned to my original position.
Kallia stared at me warily.
“……?
What did you just do?”
“Who knows.”
I answered nonchalantly.
Then I pulled a single thread.
“This.”
At that instant, the tangled web of threads hidden among the monsters suddenly tightened into shape.
Following the movement of the threads, the monsters were abruptly launched into the sky.
“……?!”
The sight of tens of thousands of monsters suddenly soaring through the air was truly spectacular.
Naturally, Kallia's attention was drawn toward them.
“You... looked away.”
At that moment, I pulled the thread once more.
The maze-like web converged into a single line that shot directly toward Kallia's heart.
Thrust!
The threads struck the injector again, driving the needle even deeper.
“Ah... Aah……!?”
A cry of shock escaped Kallia's lips.
The contents of the injector churned before rapidly flowing into her heart.
“A... AAAAAAHHH……!”
Kallia screamed.
She began vomiting something frantically.
The unidentified substance she expelled seeped deep into the earth.
And then...
Rumbleeeee—
Accompanied by a tremendous tremor.
At last...
"It" appeared.