White snowflakes were splattered with drops of red blood.
"Heuk! Heuk!"
In a back alley of Crossroad.
Lucas gasped for air as he tightened his grip on his sword.
Five mbers of the Special Forces lay defeated before him. Only Mason was barely holding on, leaning his greatsword against the ground.
Despite their nurical advantage and strength, Lucass talent and capability surpassed them all.
"Heh heh, as expected, a real McGregor is different."
Mason muttered, pressing his hand against a long sword wound on his chest.
"Even if we are elite agents selected from the best Team 1, to think we cant beat you alone..."
"Just surrender, Mason."
Compared to the fatally injured Special Forces, Lucas was mostly unscathed, save for a few minor injuries.
Lucas nacingly lunged his sword forward.
"Ill finish this."
"Sorry, but thats not going to happen."
Mason said and pulled sothing from his pocket.
"Lord Fernandez has given power."
"What?"
"Power that you cant even co close to with re swordsmanship... truly destructive power!"
In Masons hand was a small syringe filled with a blue substance.
"Is that... Beastification Serum?"
"Youve used it before, havent you?"
Mason sneered as he put the needle tip to the side of his neck.
"Its a more refined version compared to those lowly experintal samples you used."
"A refined version, you say?"
"Yes. A serum perfected by extracting only the pure animalistic traits from all kinds of beastn...! Only the agents handpicked by Lord Fernandez were given this serum. The effect is a bit volatile, but its plenty strong."
Lucas gritted his teeth, his shoulders trembling.
"How many beastn did you have to sacrifice to create that serum...?"
"How would I know?"
With a sinister smile, Mason plunged the syringe into his neck.
"As long as its effective!"
Thuk!
The serum was sucked into Masons body.
"Haaaa..."
Starting from his neck, his veins bulged and traveled throughout his body; his muscles expanded, and steam rose from his sword wounds as they healed.
Mason grinned, his face veined and contorted like a beast. Pointy, animal-like fangs were visible.
"So, this is what it feels like to abandon humanity."
"..."
"The more you abandon, the stronger you get. Human decency is really laughable, isnt it?"
Thud-!
Mason, who had stomped the ground, lunged at Lucas at an incomparable speed to before.
Craaang!
Masons greatsword tore through the air as it ca crashing down. Lucas barely managed to parry the attack with his own sword, but he staggered, nearly falling.
What insane power...!
The force of the sword strike was far greater than before.
Mason, already a large figure, now resembled a dium-sized monster.
He was wielding his massive greatsword as if it were a re dagger.
Lucas barely fended off Masons sword strikes and regained his stance.
Im outmatched in both strength and speed! At this rate...
Lucas had a straightforward way to turn the tables: Beastification.
He just had to abandon his humanity and entrust his body to his animalistic instincts.
Hadnt he overco countless crises thanks to Beastification before?
Just a montary release, and he could easily kill this damn traitor and go rescue Ash...
- Didnt I tell you not to use Beastification?
Suddenly, Ashs voice brushed past his ear.
"...!"
Lucas clenched his teeth.
Yes, I made a promise. I swore never to use Beastification again.
I didnt want to break my trust with Ash. I wanted to keep this promise, even if it cost my life.
Then, the only ans to counter Mason right now is
Theres one.
[Divine Descent].
It was Lucass ultimate skill, granting a massive stat buff and even enhancing existing skills.
Golden aura erupted behind Lucas as he closed his eyes.
Roaar-!
The golden aura that stretched out from his back soon enveloped his entire body.
In the pouring snow, Lucas shone like a lantern, emitting his own light.
"Phew."
With a light exhale, Lucas shot forward like a bullet.
Clang! Clink! Thwack-!
With [Divine Descent] activated, Lucas began to trade blows with Mason on equal footing. No, he started to dominate.
Thud! Splash...!
Blood splattered from various parts of Masons body as Lucass sword grazed him.
"Heh...?!"
With his brows deeply furrowed, Mason let out a beast-like groan, clearly taken aback.
I can end this!
A cluster of light gathered on Lucass sword.
A [Strike of Will] executed under the state of [Divine Descent] transford into an area-of-effect attack. With a single slash, he could rip Mason to shreds.
In the midst of their swordplay, Masons lower defense montarily faltered. Lucass eyes widened.
Now!
With imnse power, Lucass longsword swung upward from below. Sensing that his defense was late, Mason clenched his teeth.
Thats when it happened.
Sothing caught Lucass eye.
"...!"
Beneath the wall that Mason leaned on, there was a small semi-basent window.
Through that window, a child was looking this way.
Seed like a kid who lived in this alley.
If Lucas continued with his swing, the area-of-effect [Strike of Will] would surely sweep away the wall, the semi-basent room, and that child.
In a split second, Lucas hesitated.
"...Damn!"
The next mont, he desperately twisted his sword trajectory.
Whoosh-!
Abruptly altering its course, Lucass longsword sliced through empty air.
Watching this, the corners of Masons mouth twisted into a malicious smile.
"Awww, our darling Lucas, sir..."
Masons greatsword crudely slashed horizontally.
"Why would you pick up a sword in the first place if youre this softhearted?!"
Whoosh-!
"Cough?!"
A clean hit.
The greatsword struck Lucass unguarded breastplate directly.
At least the golden aura from [Divine Descent] mitigated so of the damage, preventing it from becoming fatal, but his breastplate shattered.
In turn, the aura diminished, and with it, the duration of [Divine Descent] shortened.
Feeling desperate, Lucas lunged forward with a reckless thrust.
"-Ive been waiting for this."
Mason employed a secret technique hed kept in reserve.
Screech-!
Masons greatsword had jagged edges like a saw on one side.
Catching Lucass thrust with that side, Mason snagged the blade, channeling magic power into his greatsword as he spun it in a spiral.
Masons innate brute strength, honed skills, the hefty weight and unique structure of his greatsword, and utilizing the opponents force as a counter
It was Masons ultimate technique, [Weapon Break].
A secret technique hed never revealed during his ti in the McGregor family, Lucas fell for it completely.
Creak-
[Karma Eater]s durability diminished rapidly, making a dire noise until,
Clatter-!
It shattered into pieces.
From the mont he was snagged, Lucas had two options: either let go of the sword or hold on and have it break. Either way, the outco was inevitable.
Mason had been waiting for the mont Lucas would make a thrust, and Lucas obligingly fell into the trap.
"..."
Having lost the golden aura as the duration of [Divine Descent] ended, Lucas stared down at his empty hands.
Broken shards of his blade were falling to the ground.
"So,"
Mason whispered softly into Lucass ear with a growling voice.
"See what happens when you keep pretending to be human, sir?"
"..."
"A dog should live the life befitting a dog."
Next, Masons greatsword pierced rcilessly.
Swoosh-!
Blood spouted like a fountain from Lucass pierced chest.
***
"Huh?"
When I opened my eyes, it was sohow cold.
Strange. I had loaded up the fireplace with plenty of firewood before falling asleep. Did I sleep so long that the fire went out?
I tried to reach out to check the stove, but both of my arms felt as if they were tied up tight. They wouldnt budge.
My face was covered with sothing, too. I blinked but couldnt see anything in front of . Whats this, a bag?
As I woke up more, it beca clear. My face was bagged, my arms were tied behind my back, and I was sitting in a cold room. Whats going on?
This feels too real to be a dream.
I bit my cheek and felt a stinging pain. There was no way I could have such a realistic dream, so this had to be reality.
I woke up to a kidnapping situation...
I marveled at my own indifference, or perhaps my deep sleep. Just how soundly had I been sleeping?
"Hey~ kidnappers, Im awake~?"
Only feeling jumpy for a mont, and unable to see anything anyway, I simply yelled out loud.
"Can you take off this suffocating bag? Also, its cold, so wrap in a blanket. How about turning on the heater? And could you explain why youre doing this? Hello? Can you hear ?"
I acted calmly because I suspected that the people who kidnapped didnt intend to kill .
If they wanted dead, they wouldnt have bothered to bring here and tie up.
Thump. Thump.
Sure enough, soone approached, and a formal voice spoke.
"Prince Ash, please be patient for a while."
"Who are you?"
"...We are the Aegis Special Forces."
I inwardly cursed. These annoying jerks again?
Judging from the situation, it looked like they kidnapped while all our forces were sent to the southern defense.
I hadnt considered this due to my headache...
"We are simply executing the mission we were assigned. If you cooperate, you wont be hard."
"And why should I believe that?"
"...Our captain will return soon and explain everything."
The captain? Are they talking about Mason, the guy I had imprisoned a few days ago? Is he coming here? Did he break out?
I clicked my tongue. Sohow, I had nothing but bad feelings about this...
Footsteps receded again. I sighed and leaned back against the chair.
Lets see, my condition is...
Still not good. Drowsy and foggy. I couldnt even use my magic power; was it so special equipnt restraining ?
Any usable items or thods?
My hands are tied, so my inventory is sealed. Since my magic is completely blocked, I cant summon captured monsters either.
Plus, these are trained agents. If I act recklessly, theyll subdue in no ti.
Things are really not in my favor. What now...?
"...Your Highness."
A quiet whisper ca from behind .
"Are you alright?"
The voice was familiar. I jerked and turned towards it.
"...Godhand?"
"Shh. You mustnt look this way."
Damn. I returned my gaze to the front.
Godhand spoke in a low voice.
"You wont be able to see whats ahead, so Ill brief you on the current situation."
"..."
"Were in a shack in the deserted village north of Crossroad. Your Highness, you are tied up in the room at the northern end of the first floor. Im hiding outside the window and speaking to you through the gap."
The Shadow Squad trio were currently operating separately as part of the Penal Squad.
Therefore, they did not participate in this defense battle but were on standby in case the Aegis Special Forces goons made an additional push.
It seed like their standby position allowed them to respond to my kidnapping.
"These people disguised themselves as rchants, citizens, or refugees and suddenly gathered to raid the mansion. Theyve kidnapped you and brought you here."
"..."
"There are too many of them, and were only three, so we couldnt subdue them outright. Weve just been assessing the situation. Please forgive us."
No, its alright. You did well. Do you know how relieved I am that youre here at least?
"Weve identified the location and confird their numbers, so well bring reinforcents soon. Please wait a bit more calmly..."
His voice suddenly cut off there.
"Urgh?!"
Thud! Crash!
With Godhands brief cry of pain, the sound of weapons swinging, sothing breaking, and soone falling to the ground could be heard.
"...Godhand?"
I whispered softly, but there was no answer.
"Hey, Godhand. Are you okay?"
Still, no answer.
"Godhand...?"
Youre alright, arent you? Huh?
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