412 - Regressor of the Fallen Family

Chapter 412 When I was so young that I could barely distinguish objects and perceive the world around me, my mother died. It wasn't the natural death of a divine beast when their power wanes and they fade into the world. She was murdered. And just before I met the same fate at the hands of our enemies, I was saved by a ‘friend.’ – Screech. It was that friend who took care of me when I was clutching my mother's disappearing divine body, crying. – Black Snake. These are my enemies, and it appears they have now become yours too. – Whimper. I helped my friend hunt them down. At that age, my contribution was limited to scenting their souls and tracking. My friend claimed that was enough, but I was far from satisfied. That’s why I accepted my friend’s outrageous proposal. – We will leap over a thousand years, perhaps even longer. Are you okay with that? – Woof woof! I thought I was okay. By then, it was nearly impossible to find traces of the black snake grudges. My friend was so powerful, and as a result, they had hidden themselves in every corner of the world, away from my senses. Like my friend, the resentment that brewed in my small and weak heart couldn't be resolved so easily. Thus, I chose the seal. Yet, my friend’s prediction was mistaken. – Woof? Awakening from a long slumber, feeling faint tremors, I found myself surrounded by repulsive masses of dark energy. No humans were around to wish upon me or pass the power of desire. For about a hundred cycles of the sun and moon, I endured. I firmly believed in another friend that my friend mentioned would arrive and lead me to hunt the black snake again. But for the young Tir, it was impossible to endure any longer without absorbing the power of desire. To survive, I had no choice but to consume the essence of that power, which was meant to be a gift to another friend. I was plagued by guilt for a while. – I waited long enough. – It’s not my fault for being late. Justifying myself, I continued to wait. Hundreds of pointless cycles of the sun rose and set. But the new friend, as spoken by my original friend, never appeared. – Did my friend deceive me? Initially, betrayal shook me. Eventually, solitude made me weep. Although the essence left by my friend was enough for a divine beast to grow, it didn’t ease the mental loneliness. My eyes turned to the unpleasant creatures around. Sticky dark energy. A power similar to that of some of the black snakes. It bothered me. Weary of waiting and solitude, Tir began to hunt them. Each time loneliness or thoughts of being abandoned by my friend surfaced, I spent my time hunting those obnoxious entities. And thus, countless years rolled by. At some point, the dark energy clung to me as well. Around the time when I started confusing whether I was a divine beast or a cursed beast, a long-dreamed and nostalgic energy was felt within my territory. – My friend is back! Bark! Rushing to the spot, what I found was a weak human with similar energy, but not my friend. – Could this be my friend’s new friend? Seeing them fixated on the paper left by my friend, I guessed it was indeed so. Thus, I followed this new friend. Recalling memories that were perhaps hundreds, even thousands of years old. Upon reaching my friend’s abode, the scent of the black snake rose from a human, and old grudges resurfaced. I almost had a fit but restrained myself. For my new friend asked me to hold back. The old bitterness, thought forgotten, began to stir again. Following my friend, I joined the struggle in the realm of humans, half-expecting to lead me to my nemesis. And now. Before me stood black snakes radiating the strongest scent I had ever perceived. “Roar!” As the gigantic, three-headed wolf howled, a wave of crimson energy swept over the fortress. “Aaah!” “Argh!” “Save me!” In an instant, the laser-like breath decimated the battlefield. Yet, the targeted black snakes had already evaded. My foes scattered around, lunging at me. Only after sensing their attacks did I realize my impatience. I also felt rage. It felt as if the very entities that once attacked my mother had reappeared before my eyes. Simultaneously, memories of how my mighty mother fell came to mind. A pointless large form to combat small humans. Slink. My massive form shrank to less than half its size. No need to shrink further. Despite my strength drawn from spiritual power and dark energy, a form too small would hinder that power's output. Just like this. Bang! Rrrumble. Slam. Enough to impact enemies as needed. “Growl.” The sensation of impact. Tir relished the thrill climbing up his spine. Now, I could truly battle my nemeses. Overturned by exhilaration. “Divine beast confirmed.” “Seems like a cursed beast.” “Variables irrelevant. Proceed as planned.” The nonsensical murmurs of the six creatures barely registered. The prospect of an intense battle with black snakes thrilled me. The joy in personally avenging without my friend’s aid was all that mattered. I was confident. Having hunted beasts in the cursed forests for countless years allowed me to gauge exchanges from mere hints. – I am stronger. Yet, there was something slightly unexpected. The speed and strength of each were akin to those I dealt with recently. Six might seem challenging, but it wasn’t so. Snap. Boom! Dash. The crimson blade slash was a minor concern, easily evaded. Tir belonged to the Heavenly Wolf clan among the divine beasts, capable of manipulating spatial powers, able to teleport short distances as easily as breathing. He believed nothing could harm him. However... Wuuung. "Divine Beast." "Hunt." "Initiated." With strange utterances, the dark crimson energy extending from their swords interfered with his ability to wield his powers. Two of them shackled his entire body with their energy, while the remaining four began pressing in on him. Grrrrrung. Boom! "Grrr..." Advertisements Staggered by a blow to his side, another memory of his mother's fall surfaced. – Power Suppression. It was the method used by them to hunt divine beasts. Why hadn't he recalled this sooner? Though he tried to shake off the dirty feeling and move quicker, he gradually found himself being pushed back. Kwooong! "Woof!" He grew irritated. After taking several hits, Tir decided to revert to his true form, forgetting even Logan's warnings. It seemed breaking free of these bonds was necessary before doing anything else. "Transformation." "Commencing." "Prepare." But instead, they eyed him with bright anticipation, easing their assaults, which gave Tir pause. Slice. With a soft cutting sound, the arm of one of those restraining Tir fell away. "Enemy!?" Boom! Entering the scene was a blue-haired, heterochromatic man wielding a gleaming grey aura. The two black knights entangling Tir shifted their focus to this new opponent, even the one who had lost an arm. This allowed Tir to halt his transformation and press the attack on his enemies in his current form. 'What is with these guys?' Victor, reeling from a frontal assault, struggled to regain his balance. Initially rejoicing in cutting off the arm of one of his bizarre foes, their reaction afterward was odd beyond belief. The opponent whose arm he sliced off struck him with the remaining arm, as if unfazed, almost as if they expected the loss and had programmed responses in place. The question of whether such scenarios are ingrained into their instincts filled Victor’s mind briefly, but seeing another dark crimson aura approaching caused him to clear his thoughts quickly. "Form up!" The two enemies, including the one armed one, converged on him. It was a rational tactic. Two mid-level adversaries engaging one similarly ranked, but. 'Based on your standards.' Victor had pondered how to best utilize his special traits in countless battles. Advertisements Endless regeneration. It sounded impressive, but ultimately it just meant rapidly healing wounds. His abundant life force granted him significant power over those of his rank, but compared to his friend Ronion's seven souls or the Queen's indomitable fortress, its combat efficiency was lacking. He eventually sought a way to compensate for his attack force deficiencies through overwhelming recovery strength. "Tsk!" Shzzack. A grey aura slash from Victor's sword cleaved a straight line 30 meters ahead. Secret Sword Style 3rd Form, Earth Cleaving. As it knocked back the foes, he set his sword again. A concentrated grey beam surged towards the chest of the armless one like lightning. Secret Sword Style 2nd Form, Metal Splitting. Whoooom! And as another foe dashed into the opening, an ocean of grey aura cascaded from Victor's body over them. Secret Sword Style 1st Form, Wave Cleaving. The mighty grey giant's blade swept at the scattered enemies again. With the intent of obliterating them both in one attack. Whooaaam! This was the ultimate attack method he had devised. Without holding back, he poured all his energy into every strike of the Secret Sword Style’s series. But to the unknowing enemies, it was an overwhelming power exceeding known limits, stirring panic in their undertakings. "Strange." "Indeed." Their eerily calm voices belied the blood streaming from under their helmets. Their response left Victor wondering if they were just pretending to be injured. Moreover... 'Why split a word between two of them?' Victor deflected the bizarre foes again with a blue slash. The adversaries recoiled left and right, staggering to rise. "Strange." "Variable." Their chilling utterances unsettled him. “You think you’re the only ones?” Victor shouted out, exasperatedly glancing at the adjacent battlefield. Luckily, the other four strange foes remained occupied with Tir, though things were drastically different now. It was apparent Tir had turned the tide, starting to overpower his enemies. 'I can do this!' Let's finish this quickly and head to support Ronion. Victor pressed his attacks with renewed fervor. However, the black knights seemed as if they communicated telepathically, perfectly thwarting Victor and Tir’s onslaught with coordinated defenses. Advertisements A foe fighting Tir would suddenly intercept Victor's attack, and vice versa. It was as if the adversary most suitable for the task appeared at the opportune moment, continuing the offense as one body. With Victor and Tir’s movements overlapping, missed opportunities mounted, compelling Victor to grit his teeth in frustration. “What are these blasted things!?” “Growl..." Though Tir, the one gaining ground, was the one expressing frustration, an abrupt shift occurred amongst the black knights. “Operational time." "Limit." “Final measure.” Some murmured something again, then their movements drastically shifted. Crunch. One didn’t bother avoiding as Tir's fangs sunk into its neck. Fwoosh. Victor's blade pierced through another’s chest, yet it remained unfazed. And at that moment, dark crimson energy surged from the bodies of those two, binding Victor and Tir completely. "Now..." "Is..." Gurgling voices seeped from between their helmets as they coughed up blood. "Emperor." "Your Majesty." "Long live." Boom! The deafening roar that toppled part of the fortress wall engulfed the battlefield at Amar. Rumble. 'What is that!?' Ronion, drenched in blood, hastily turned his gaze towards the source of the commotion. Fortunate for him, the two superhumans, who had been pushing him to his limits, also directed their attention there. And as luck would have it, the source was directly behind the two foes standing in Ronion's line of sight. 'Opportunity!' Buzzing. In that instant, Ronion gathered all the remaining strength he had and channeled it into his sword. It was the ultimate strike, one he had only recently mastered, that he could currently muster. The orange aura enveloping his beloved sword, Mane, split into seven sections, painting the forefront with its hue. Flash. Secret Sword Style 6th Form, Sevenfold Origin Cleave. Advertisements "Die!" The sunset-colored aura surged from his sword, covering the fortifications. The superhumans of the Empire, belatedly realizing their mistake, frantically swung their axes and swords, but their aura blades were swallowed whole by the orange glow that covered their very positions. Boom! The delayed rumble ensued. At that very moment, someone was launched from the top of the wall, flying outwards. Crimson eyes trailed the figure of the body, limp as if unconscious, plummeting to the ground below. 'Are they dead? Or alive?' Using a comrade as a shield at the last moment—should I call it quick thinking or just plain unlucky? Ronion frowned, but he lacked the strength to pursue them. "Ugh..." A sharp pain radiated from his heart, hinting at a significant internal injury, but it was bearable. Defeating two high-ranked aura users was a victory. Amid his disbelief, the matter of whether one of the two was dead or alive didn't seem significant. What intrigued him more was the explosion that just caught everyone's attention. 'Tir, Victor... They wouldn’t have fallen, would they?' With growing anxiety, Ronion's gaze shifted towards the epicenter of the explosion.