718. [Side Story] Winning streak (2)
Jormungand, who I had thrown my all into, rose into the sky, hissing.
Of course, it was beyond my normal strength, and the snake realized what I was trying to do, curled up, and then jumped up on its own. Flashing
at the same time
!
Jormungand uses [Flesh of the Old Gods].
The effect of [Flesh of the Old God] is to restore the power to its prime for 3 turns.
In other words, for the next 10 minutes….
Kuwagwagwagwang!
Jormungand returns to the ‘World Serpent’ and shows his true colors as a super giant monster!
Jormungand, who had completed his transformation to his prime, attacked the black lake. The fish ‘Gon’, which was about to transform into a huge bird ‘Bung’, allowed the attack.
Kwasik! Quaaaaang-!
Instead of turning into a bird, the fish was crushed by the snake and sank to the bottom of the lake again.
‘Gongbung…!’
Jormungand and Gon fought to the death beneath the surface of the lake, creating terrifying waves and foam. I swallowed my saliva while looking at this.
‘Can we win in 10 minutes?’
Of course, even if we don’t win within these 10 minutes, we have all the tactics prepared to defeat him later.
Both the dark event and the goddess’s blessing are set for this battle. If possible, it would be good if you can eat it raw without losing your strength!
After about 10 minutes of everyone waiting anxiously.
Shoot!
The first thing that broke through the surface of the water and rose up was the giant fish Gon.
We all shook our shoulders in shock. Jormungand is defeated?
Surrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrva!
But no.
Jormungand appeared next, holding the huge fish in his strong jaws. He caught and lifted the fish he had knocked down as if it were prey.
thud…!
Gon’s huge body fell and was thrown out of the lake.
About half of its body had turned into a bong, and it seemed like it had attempted to force itself to transform in order to escape from being captured by Jormungand.
Shrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!
Jormungand let out a sigh of satisfaction. This guy was crushed to death by wrapping its long, huge snake body around Gongpung.
We all cheered. I jumped up and screamed.
“Well done Jormungand!”
Srrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrm….
Jormungand let out a sigh of satisfaction and looked towards the north with his yellow eyes flashing.
《Then now go north again…》
“No, where are you going? Come on.”
Jormungand, unable to resist his instincts and trying to head north again, the next moment [Flesh of the Old God] expired and he returned to his original, small form.
Shrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr….
Jormungand was wrapped up in a circle, feeling strangely sad.
Violet and the members of the Gamble Club comforted Jormungand by caressing him.
‘You really did it for nothing.’
I looked down at Gongbung, who had fallen in a half-faced state, and let out a satisfied hum.
In addition, the count of the flying monster battle, which must be fought once per five stages, is completed with this one. It was really easy to do.
‘I intentionally violated the sleep period, so I was penalized, I set up a customized dark event blessing from the goddess, and on top of that, I mobilized a snake that could be considered a natural enemy.’
Thanks to the scepter, I was already able to easily complete the fourth stage.
If the tactics you have prepared work well together, there is no greater joy as an attacker.
I was intoxicated with myself for a moment. My strategy is awesome… I think it’s a royal scepter cheat, but…
“…But your highness.”
At that time, Junior came hesitantly. Me huh? I made a noise and turned around.
“That equipment Jormungand is wearing.”
“You mean [Flaws of the Old Gods]?”
“yes. Of course, Jormungand’s use would be the most effective, but…”
Junior glanced at me.
“Wouldn’t it be of great help to someone on our side who has lost his powers?”
“For example, who?”
“Lord Hecate or something…?”
Junior stuttered, twisting his hair with his fingers. I, who had guessed the target, chuckled.
“Hecate’s power is intertwined with an ancient curse. Now that curse is dependent on me. “I’m not sure if I can completely get it back.”
“Ah…”
“And above all.”
I looked away. Junior also looked there.
The members of the gambling club were performing an impromptu magic show, and Jormungand, who quickly forgot everything that had happened a moment ago… was no longer a spirit creature but a slightly larger snake, was gurgling and having fun.
“Even if I can regain my prime for 10 minutes once per battle… what after that?”
“….”
“Eventually, when the duration ends, you have to return to your current self.”
It brings it back to its lost glory days.
For some people, this effect may be like a drug.
If used incorrectly, this equipment can be very dangerous, especially if someone who misses its glory days gets their hands on it.
“The past is just the past. “We have to move on.”
It’s a cruel thing to say, but a lost person must learn to live with loss.
Whether it’s a past relationship, an asset you’ve built up throughout your life, or anything else…
you should let bygones be bygones.
Because it has to be that way.
“….”
Junior, who had been keeping his mouth shut for a moment with a sad expression on his face, let out a sigh.
“I am worried, Lord Hecate.”
“me too. “I’m worried.”
I looked at Junior and smiled.
“Let’s hope that happiness comes to that person after this process of anguish and pain.”
Not just Hecate, but everyone who lost something big or small on the battlefield here.
I hope you can accept that loss and rise again. May you have the courage to overcome that harsh challenge.
I just support you.
***
A few days after Stage 44 ended.
A small funeral was held on the west side of the city.
It was a joint funeral for those who died after Stage 40.
During Stage 41, some of the soldiers who were injured in the Night Bringer battle ended up dying while fighting.
In stages 42 and 43, in the process of dealing with the remaining monsters, several ordinary soldiers were swept away and died in their final struggle.
And in Stage 44, there were no deaths during the battle.
In the temple of the Crossroads, this one who was precious to all of us passed away quietly after living a long life.
“Huhhhhh.”
On the hill next to the grave site, Damian cried with a face covered in tears.
On Damien’s outstretched hands, there is a ball of fur covered with a white cloth… A hamster is lying down with a relaxed expression.
That’s right. Podong is gone….
He’s only 2.5 years old. It was a sloppy ham.
Although he could not hold a funeral with those who died fighting for the front lines, after the funeral, people who knew Podong came to mourn him.
I also politely held the funerals for the dead soldiers first, and then after completing all the arrangements, I came to Damian’s place.
“Our Podong… he ate a lot of sunflower seeds until yesterday, but he went to sleep with a full stomach like this.”
“Podong would have been happy because you took good care of him.”
“I guess I was a poor owner, but sniffle…”
Damian sniffed his nose and looked toward the temple.
“There is a flower bed in the temple that I take care of. “I’m going to bury it there.”
“okay. “Bury it well in a sunny place.”
However, I was worried that if I buried it so close, I would think of the hamster every time I went back and forth, making me feel sad.
There was no point in worrying about that. There was a small hamster cage at Damian’s feet… and there was another young hamster busily running around inside it.
“Who is this?”
When I asked curiously, Damian scratched the back of his head shyly.
“A few months ago, I took Podong to the Crossroads Hamster Club, or Khammo for short.”
No, is that some kind of dark private organization that I don’t know about? How many secret private organizations are there in this city?
“At that time, Podong was big. “I got a female hamster pregnant.”
“….”
You just saw the second generation? This child like a flame….
“The cubs were born, and he asked me to take care of just one… so I ended up raising him.”
“Huh.”
Damian’s life as a hamster master will likely continue for another few years.
I asked, looking at the baby hamster babbling in the cage.
“What is his name?”
“Podong 2.”
I flinched and shook my shoulders.
“what?”
“Podong 2. “Podong 2.”
“Podong? “We have the same name?”
“No, it’s completely different. “It’s Podong 2.”
“…Podong’i’?”
“Podong’2’!”
Damian made a fist with one hand and then stretched out only his index and middle fingers, shaking them wildly and shouting, ‘Pudong 2!’
No, pronunciation is completely the same! What’s the difference? It’s almost impossible to tell what it looks like!
“Actually, I was going to say Pudong Junior, but that seemed a bit tactful…” “
Ah. “That definitely looks a bit conspicuous.”
In any case, although not as much as the dead soldiers, Podong also received quite a bit of condolences.
In particular, the elves, who were also rodents (but not rodents), and the muscle pig men who took a sand bath together were sad. Among them, how many Khammo are hiding?
After cleaning up, I headed to the temple with Damian. This was because there were some other heroes hospitalized at the temple who needed to be seen.
‘Especially the emperor, the emperor, the emperor…’
He seems to be very bored because he is in the hospital, so he calls me out every now and then. So, I stop by the temple once a day.
After a long conversation with Damian, I entered the temple entrance.
“majesty!”
Chief Priest Rosetta rushed out in a hurry. I looked at her curiously.
“Is there a problem?”
“King Poseidon, the mermaid king, has come to his senses!”
I was very surprised.
King Poseidon was in a critical condition and unconscious after the battle with the black dragon. The mermaid king finally regained consciousness.
“Your Highness is urgently looking for you!”
“I will go right away.”
After giving Damien a quick greeting, I hurriedly entered the temple, following after Rosetta.
“This way.”
“thank you.”
As I carefully walked into the hospital room that Rosetta pointed to…
I saw the Mermaid King soaking in a bathtub mixed with holy water and potions.
He looked decades older than before. His strong, muscular body became thin, and his once beautiful bronze-black skin lost its vitality and became dull.
“King Poseidon. How do you feel?”
As I approached and asked, the Mermaid King slowly looked at me with relaxed eyes.
“Fortunately, it looks like you saved the world, Prince Ash.”
“It’s the result of everyone working together. King Poseidon, you have also done a great job.”
“Yes, the world is safe….”
King Poseidon added bitterly.
“‘For now’.”
I glanced at the Mermaid King because I sensed something unusual in those words.
The Mermaid King swallowed his breath and slowly exhaled.
“I saw it.”
“What do you mean?”
“The moment I managed to escape from the Lake Kingdom on my own and crawled out through the entrance to the Black Lake…”
King Poseidon, who was left alone in the Lake Kingdom dungeon, escaped on his own and returned. It was a story about what happened at that time.
King Poseidon’s eyes trembled as he recalled that time.
“There were hundreds and thousands of chains of darkness pouring out from the Lake Kingdom and extending out of the black lake.”
I frowned.
“chains…?”
I’ve seen something like that before…
“The chain soon grabbed someone, bound their whole body, bound them, and dragged them into the black lake as if swallowing them.”
King Poseidon turned to face me.
“Who do you think the other person was?”
“…!”
I knew it intuitively.
“cotton.”
“Yes, and she must be…”
King Poseidon let out with difficulty.
“He was becoming a ‘monster.’”
“….”
“She was dragged into the black lake, her entire body wrapped in chains and swallowed up by the darkness… It seemed difficult to maintain her human form any longer.”
I remained silent and King Poseidon continued.
“We made eye contact and she said to me.”
“…What did you say?”
“Please tell Ash.”
After hearing the next words, I closed my eyes tightly.
“I want you to kill me by all means.” “That’s the only way left now.”
“….”
“The despair I felt from her at that time… was more than the despair I felt from the Night Bringer. “I knew right away.”
King Poseidon’s shoulders trembled.
“That woman who will destroy this world… is the true master of darkness.”
It was then.
Suddenly I felt a strong vibration at my waist. I urgently pulled out the source of the vibration.
It was the scepter of the Lake Kingdom.
The jewel on the scepter’s head, which was emitting a dazzling turquoise light, soon faded. Embarrassed, I focused my attention on the scepter, but I could no longer use its power.
‘The power contained in the scepter… has been recovered.’
This phenomenon means only one thing.
I gritted my teeth and tightly grasped the Lake Kingdom scepter, which had no strength left anymore.
My enemy has returned.
The devil is back.
