Chapter 162: The Forest of the Fallen (Part 2)
Arin cast Dark Authority. Now that the giant was injured, it was the perfect opportunity to test whether her abilities would work.
The Dark Authority Arin used took the form of shadowy branches that spread out like plants. The branches dug into the giant's shadow, climbing up like vines to grab its ankles.
Arin then cast Mental Shock, a psychic attack.
If telepathy was like a thief, Mental Shock was like a robber. While it couldn't inflict trauma, it could deliver a shock equivalent to a phobia.
The true strength of Mental Shock was its ability to chain into Mind Control.
Mind Control, which was also Arcane's specialty, was a magic that allowed one to manipulate another's body, but it was difficult to succeed.
To achieve a near 100% success rate, it required concentration 20 times greater than the target's mental strength.
In the end, it was impossible to dominate someone stronger than oneself.
However, depending on strategy and tactics, such a thing could sometimes happen, and that was when Mental Shock succeeded.
If they could dominate the giant with Mind Control, there would be nothing to fear in the forest. Knowing this, Canis also paid close attention to the result without taking any further action.
Mental Shock failed.
The giant, its face on fire, began charging at the group with even more violent movements.
Arin bit her lip. Telepathy, Mental Shock, Mind Control—the three great psychic arts—had no effect on the giant.
It was the first time she, as a prodigy, had experienced such helplessness. Her tender emotions flared up.
Arin thought, 'Why? Why isn't it working? It's just a big human, isn't it?'
Canis: "Arin! Dodge!"
Canis stepped in front of Arin and cast Shadow Wall.
As the shadow rose, the giant's fist slammed into it. The shadow shattered like powder, unable to absorb the overwhelming force.
But the giant, having lost some of its strength, couldn't push further.
Harvest dug her nails into the giant's wrist, targeting what seemed to be a blood vessel.
Her assumption that the giant's body would be similar to a human's if it had a schema proved correct.
As the blood vessel near the elbow was severed, a fountain of blood gushed out. But the wound quickly healed. Instead, the giant, stimulated by the pain, began to rampage wildly.
Shirone thought, 'It's really strong. How can such a creature exist in this world?'
Shirone lured the giant with a teleportation, and Rian slashed at its heel as if drawing a bow.
Canis cast Dark Authority. The saw-like shadows were specialized for attack, but even while wrapped around the giant's ankles, they couldn't cut through its muscles.
Canis shouted, "It's got incredible strength! Do something quickly!"
Amy's Flame Strike bombarded the giant's face. But adding more fire to an already burning target didn't change much. While the wind's power added some force, it was still weaker than the Photon Cannon in terms of physical impact.
Shirone compressed photons. Unlike what everyone expected, the activation time was longer than anticipated.
Seeing the blob of light distorting, Canis snapped in frustration.
Canis: "Damn it! What are you doing? Focus!"
Arin: "No, that's not it. He's changing the form of the photons."
If physical force couldn't bring it down, he would convert it into cutting power. If neither heat nor shock worked, sharpness would.
It was the right judgment for the situation.
But Canis doubted it was possible. Changing the form of light was beyond common sense.
Shirone was also feeling the strain. Suppressing the light he was trying to release was exhausting. He thought it might be possible by altering the direction of the force compressing the photons, but the mental toll was absurdly high.
A groan escaped through his clenched teeth. Tightening his wavering mind like an unbreakable diamond, he increased the intensity of his focus, and the photons flattened.
The Photon Cannon, now in the form of a disc, surged toward the giant.
The giant, having broken free of the Dark Authority with sheer force, twisted its body. The blade of light slashed across its side, opening a wound a hand's width wide, and blood gushed out like a waterfall.
It was a critical hit.
Realizing this, the group, whether swordsmen or mages, charged in with wild eyes.
They stabbed with sabers, hammered with greatswords, burned with flames, and sawed with shadowy blades. The giant's body finally toppled backward.
The attacks continued, but it felt like trying to dismantle a dragon with a kitchen knife. Even a single muscle fiber was as strong as steel.
Amy, panting, said, "Haah, haah. It's dead, right? It's dead, yeah? Right?"
Rian: "I don't know. It's probably dead. Want to do it again if you're worried?"
Tess shuddered. "No, I can't do this anymore. There's a limit to how cruel we can be."
Canis: "I tried to cut its neck with Dark Authority, but it wouldn't budge. How about skinning it first?"
Her words were the final straw, and everyone stepped back with pale faces. The giant showed no signs of moving, and the wound Shirone had inflicted wasn't healing, so leaving it alone was the best option.
Tess gave Shirone a thumbs-up. "That was amazing, Shirone. Another new spell?"
Shirone: "I got lucky. If the giant had dodged, there wouldn't have been a second chance. Just imagining it is terrifying."
Canis wasn't satisfied. The Photon Cannon was a shock-based spell. But to change its form into cutting power? The idea itself was impressive, but as a dark mage, she couldn't help but feel her territory had been encroached upon.
Canis: "Hmph, we won, so it's fine, but it was still a gamble. When we work as a team, individual mental energy converges into the party's. If it had failed, we'd have been incapacitated. In a situation where even a mage's body can become a shield, leaving the front line is dangerous."
Shirone: "I know. I was also surprised by how inefficient it was."
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Canis snorted and turned away. Though she scolded him, the insight to pivot in that situation was undeniably talent.
Arin, thinking the same, watched Shirone rest with a prodigy's gaze and said, "I've felt this before, but that kid's ideas are truly free."
It was a gamble, but a high-probability one.
The insight to choose what to abandon and what not to in order to reach victory. Even if only one or two out of ten things went wrong, they wouldn't have achieved this result.
Canis added, "Tch, he's always had quick reflexes."
After all, they were a team now, and denying what should be acknowledged was a sign of inferiority.
Giant: "Grrrr..."
The giant's groan made the group's hearts drop. There were still no signs of it getting up, but its fingers were twitching slightly.
Without needing to exchange words, they sprinted into the forest.
They still didn't know what kind of world the heavens were, but they had no intention of fighting the giant again.
The Venom Fang Demon, already hit by the third attack, let out its signature screech and moved sideways. In response, Lena also leaped into action.
The Venom Fang Demon's single eye had a wide field of vision, capable of scanning 330 degrees, but Lena clung to the only 30-degree blind spot and struck its shell again.
As the agitated Venom Fang Demon turned and charged, Lena this time extended the kite-shaped shield on her wrist.
Though the shield was as small as a toy, when the horn collided with it, an illusion of a shield several times larger emerged and pushed the Venom Fang Demon back.
The Venom Fang Demon flipped over, flailing its many legs like a beetle. It barely managed to regain its balance, but the shock hadn't worn off, and it kept staggering to the right.
Kanya aimed her Arc.
It resembled a bow in shape but was made of metal and had no bowstring. Instead, it had a handle that could be pulled. When she tugged it, red light shot out from both ends of the bow, targeting the Venom Fang Demon.
It was a weapon capable of triangulating its target.
As long as the aim was set, the projectile wouldn't miss. Kanya aligned the red dot of light on the Venom Fang Demon's face.
Sensing danger, the Venom Fang Demon staggered left and right, even in its disoriented state. Kanya twisted her waist to follow its movements.
As Lena disappeared into its blind spot again, the terrified Venom Fang Demon lunged at Kanya.
Kanya aimed at the Venom Fang Demon's single eye and released the handle. A wire rapidly retracted, and a small bead shot out from the center of the Arc.
The bead pierced the Venom Fang Demon's eye and exploded inside. Its body shook violently before collapsing to the ground.
Its insides must have melted, but it still let out a chilling scream.
Lena held her sword in a reverse grip and stabbed the gaps in its shell. With a pop, the Venom Fang Demon's body swelled up like salt being fried, and it moved no more.
Kanya, having finished the battle, lowered her Arc and wiped her sweat.
Kanya said, "Phew, that was tough. This one was a bit more stubborn, huh?"
Lena asked, "Yeah. Are you okay, sis?"
Kanya replied, "As you can see, I'm fine. But it's strange. Why did the Venom Fang Demon appear here? It's far from its habitat."
Lena wondered, "Could we have gotten lost?"
Kanya shook her head, "No way. The drone is pointing in the right direction. Maybe the forest's laws have changed. Let's get out of here quickly."
Lena insisted, "But we should still collect the elixir. It might be inside."
Lena climbed onto the Venom Fang Demon's body. She pried open its shell and stuck her hand inside, feeling the melted innards, warm and sticky like porridge.
Despite the disgusting texture, Lena boldly stuck out her tongue and rummaged around until she felt something.
After searching for a while, her eyes lit up with excitement.
Lena exclaimed, "Huh? It's here! Sis, it's here!"
A red glowing orb came out of the Venom Fang Demon's body.
Lena cheered, "Yahoo! It's a Red Elixir. Thanks, Venom Fang Demon!"
Kanya smiled warmly at her sister, who was jumping around excitedly.
Most creatures in Purgatory grew elixirs inside their bodies. While divines under the gods' protection had no need for them, elixirs were the most valuable substance in Purgatory.
Kanya said, "We got lucky. Now, let's hurry."
Just as Kanya turned back into her strict self to urge her sister, she felt a chilling presence and turned around.
Eyes embedded in the forest glinted with killing intent.
Moments later, creatures with pointed legs tapped on the rocky terrain, revealing themselves.
Venom Fang Demons. Seven of them.
Kanya shouted, "Lena! Over here!"
Kanya pulled her sister close and took a combat stance. Yet, a question lingered in her mind.
Venom Fang Demons appearing far from their habitat, and in such numbers, was unheard of.
'Tch. I got careless. I should've kept checking the drone.'
Though called the Outer Hell, Purgatory was still under the gods' will. Of course, the laws acted like instincts for mindless monsters. This meant some event had occurred nearby, altering their instincts.
Kanya muttered, "Of all times...!"
Changes in the forest's laws were rare. And it was almost unheard of for divines to leave the heavens and enter Purgatory.
The unlikely overlap of these two events made her even more uneasy.
Lena asked, "Sis, what do we do? There are too many Venom Fang Demons..."
One Venom Fang Demon could be handled by one Mecha clansman. But two would require at least five.
According to the laws, the Mecha clan's strength lay in group combat based on technology.
Though physically the weakest among divines, their collective power made even the Kergo and Noor clans wary.
This was why Kanya was trembling with fear. Even with her Arc, defeating seven Venom Fang Demons was impossible.
What on earth was happening in the forest?
Despite checking the route for a year to avoid monsters, everything had gone to waste.
Kiiing! Kick! Kick!
As the Venom Fang Demons shook their horns threateningly, the sisters stood back-to-back, protecting each other.
One Venom Fang Demon cautiously approached and lunged at Lena.
Lena extended the Mecha shield, Exed, and its powerful repulsion sent the Venom Fang Demon flying.
Kanya, switching places with Lena, aimed her Arc. Unable to aim precisely, the projectile struck the Venom Fang Demon's shell and exploded.
As the Venom Fang Demon rolled on the ground from the impact, the remaining demons charged.
Lena shouted, "Sis! Get behind me!"
Lena switched positions again and extended Exed. Each time a horn struck the shield, it sounded like thunder.
She even swung Signa, a shockwave weapon, but Venom Fang Demons were hard to hit unless attacked from their blind spot.
The time they could hold out with Exed was dwindling. Once the repulsion limit was exceeded, the shield's function stopped, turning it into a mere toy.
As the seven Venom Fang Demons closed in from all sides, Kanya and Lena hugged each other and closed their eyes.
The pain before death was more terrifying than the fear of death itself.
Venom Fang Demons stabbed their snouts into living humans' stomachs and sucked out their innards. Kanya considered taking Lena's Signa and cutting her throat to spare her the agony.
Just as the seven Venom Fang Demons were about to pierce the sisters' bodies with their horns, a flash of light descended from the sky.
Kanya and Lena saw the back of a boy. He had blond hair and wore strange clothes unlike anything in this world.
Shirone landed and immediately cast Light Barrier.
A curtain of light swept back and forth within a 3 to 5-meter radius, repelling all the Venom Fang Demons.
The ground caved in a circular shape, and the two women collapsed. Yet, their eyes remained fixed on Shirone. They had never heard of people living in the Forest of the Fallen.
Shirone asked, "Are you okay?"
Shirone turned his head and smiled.
In a world where running forever wouldn't bring him home, meeting people was a joy beyond nostalgia. No matter who these women were, disgusting monsters were the enemy, and people were allies.
Kanya grew wary at the boy's appearance. In contrast, Lena, a teenage girl, blushed.
'He's handsome. Is he from the Noor's clan?'
While the two women were lost in their thoughts, Shirone's group fiercely fought the Venom Fang Demons.
Rian and Tess each took on one.
After a brief exchange, Rian felt somewhat relieved. Though not an easy opponent, this level of strength was something he had encountered often in his original world, where they were called monsters.
Grabbing the Venom Fang Demon's horn, Rian used brute strength to flip it over. Its six legs flailed as it landed on its back.
Rian stabbed his sword into its abdomen, pinning it to the ground.