147 Strong Raccoon
‘What is this···.’
Adela couldn’t come to her senses from the sword’s swoop.
It was strange, he clearly had his aura out, but he was pushed back by the opponent’s sword.
It was similar to when I dealt with Aaron, but the feeling of helplessness and frustration was incomparable.
Kaang-! The sword trembled with a rough sound. Even though it was emitting a brilliant aura, it was pushed back by the opponent’s sword.
‘Why?’
Even though her opponent was swinging his sword wildly, Adela, who was facing him, couldn’t come to her senses due to the irregularity.
‘The sword does not cut.’
Since the opponent had no aura, the standard way to fight was to first neutralize the sword.
However, strangely enough, the man’s sword was intact. Even though the opponent’s sword was clearly an ordinary sword that had not been well maintained.
Adela clenched her teeth and forcibly raised the sword that was being pressed. She swung the sword while tilting her center forward, but-,
The opponent lightly stepped back and avoided him by a span. On the contrary, Adela, who made a big move, was cornered.
‘I know my sword.’
Adela gulped at the sight of her opponent’s storm-filled eyes.
Even though the weak point was clearly exposed, the opponent did not stab with his sword.
‘······I’m playing with it.’
Adela clenched her teeth at the overwhelming sense of helplessness she had never felt before.
At that moment, the opponent’s shoulder twisted. Adela reflexively raised her sword, but the opponent stood still and laughed at her.
Adela was so scared that she made a scene, but she wasn’t ashamed. She knew that her opponent’s skills were real.
‘Why is this person in Cassadick···.’
At that moment, the opponent swung his sword – and before Adela could react, she felt a sharp pain in her shoulder.
‘The upper part of my shoulder flew off.’
A scream escaped her lips in excruciating pain, but Adela gritted her teeth and held on.
Even though he could clearly slice off Adela’s neck, his opponent stopped at just cutting off the upper part of her shoulder.
“Wait a minute!! I said it’s Ogisara! Ogisara!”
‘Why haven’t you run away yet?’
Adela’s brow furrowed at the resident who continued to shout behind her.
“So you’re not a knight?”
Adela knew that the other person was asking a question. She knew that the other person was not looking for an answer.
The opponent’s eyes were already filled with confidence. From the moment they first met, the opponent knew that Adela was a knight.
‘···Do you have any grudge against the knight?’
Adela held her sword in excruciating pain.
After all, he was a knight. This was the castle where his lord was. He could not retreat even if it meant death.
“I am Knight Adela.”
“Oh my gosh!! That idiot······.”
The villagers seemed to be talking about something, but Adela couldn’t hear them as she was completely focused on the other person.
“Yeah, it looks really delicious.”
The other person’s mutterings were full of sticky, raw emotions.
‘If we only deal with knights… the castle will be safe.’
Adela forced a smile as she faced him. It was something Aaron had taught her, that when you meet a strong man, you should smile.
Then the other person might trip over their own feet and say, “What’s wrong?”
At that moment, a sharp crashing sound was heard.
At the same time, blue lights surged from both sides. Adela realized that reinforcements had arrived.
“Strategic strategy!!”
Adolf swung his sword with a loud shout. His usually calm face was distorted.
On the other side, Delphran was swinging his sword. Both were bathed in a brilliant aura.
‘Strategic cooperation…’
Adela swung her sword, her face crumpled at the tiresome sound.
As if the two had been practicing, Adolf and Delfran’s swords pressed down on their opponents precisely.
Adela swung her sword towards the front, the only passageway.
It was a cowardly act unbecoming of a knight, but according to Adolf, it was a very sophisticated tactic called ‘strategic cooperation’.
I had a feeling that if I didn’t help, the other two would be in danger.
Three aurors of different sizes and sharpness pressed down on the old man.
Adela looked at the old man who seemed trapped and still and assured him of victory.
‘He is clearly a strong opponent, but… how can he receive three knights if he is not the master of the sword?’
The knight’s pride was completely shattered by the old man, but still, these were three knights.
That’s what I thought until I saw the old man’s face smiling coolly.
It was a bit late to notice the strangeness.
“Very good.”
When I heard the old man’s soft laughter, a sense of foreboding revealed its distinct presence.
The old man held his sword straight as the aurors rushed toward him.
Only then did Adela realize that the old man had been holding his sword at an angle when he confronted her.
and-.
‘······What is this?’
Adela seemed possessed. The old man’s sword was clearly slow. So slow that it was clearly visible.
But his sword was slower. The old man moved his sword slowly, like a swordsman who always gives the answer.
The old man’s sword pressed down on Adolf’s sword. Even though Adolf was clearly surrounded by aura, he went down without any resistance. No, he moved along with the old man’s sword.
Adolf’s sword, which flowed like that, blocked Delfran’s sword. The process was so natural that it seemed as if Adolf had been swinging his sword to block Delfran’s sword from the beginning.
The old man, who had nullified the swords of two knights with a single strike, then stabbed Adela with his sword.
Even though it was clearly a slow movement, Adela couldn’t react.
When he came to, the sword was already stuck in his left shoulder. Of course, Adela knew.
That it wasn’t that he had avoided it, but that his opponent had deliberately stabbed him in the shoulder with a sword.
Kuuung-! The swords of Adolf and Delfran clashed belatedly, making a heavy sound.
“···Strategic strategy!!”
Adolf continued to swing his sword again, twisting his waist without stopping. He did the same to Delfran and Adela, whose sword was stuck in his shoulder.
“Good.”
All three of them instinctively felt that they would be killed by the old man the moment the sword stopped.
I immediately felt like it was just a joke, but I couldn’t stop.
The three exchanged glances and swung their swords again, this time piercing Delphran’s thigh.
There was no scream. No knight seemed to be in pain because he was merely stabbed by a sword.
Although his will was broken by two obvious tricks, he could not stop his sword.
If I were dealing with the old man alone, I might have stopped my sword so as not to become a puppet.
But now, three people’s heads were hanging on their respective swords.
Their eyes met again, and he swung his sword again.
This time, Adolf’s abdomen was cut long and wide. The wound was rough, as if he had been bitten by a wild beast.
Adolf groaned softly, but did not stop his sword.
He just exchanged glances and swung his sword again.
‘Cathedic is ruined.’
Dylan shook his head as he watched the scene.
Three knights were swinging their swords among themselves, with an old man between them.
From Dylan’s perspective, it looked like the three of them were swinging their swords at each other so hastily that they got tangled up.
Those guys who used to brag about being knights are acting so stupid!
‘······Who should I call?’
He was a senile old man who could even beat up a teenager. And with those knights doing all this crap, who could stop him?
“Ugh!”
“evil!”
“Huh!”
‘Oh my… This is crazy!’
This time, the three of them stabbed each other with their swords and fell down.
Dylan twirled his dagger. He instinctively looked for an opening, but even with the three knights’ antics, the old man’s back of the head still felt fierce.
‘This won’t work.’
Dylan shook his head and put the dagger away in his bosom.
***
“Keeheeeeeeeeee!”
The raccoon opened its mouth wide and let out a strange scream.
Then, thick darkness poured out from the raccoon’s eyes, nose, mouth, and every hole.
A rather bizarre sight, the surroundings getting darker and darker, and the weight of the guy growing thicker by the minute.
The raccoon seemed very determined.
The mini lung, emitting a bright white light, swung its greatsword at the raccoon.
Then, the surrounding heretic inquisitors attacked Mini Lung-gyeop with bewildered faces.
It even went as far as the Inquisitor… It seemed like the raccoon’s sales skills were better than expected.
The mini-lungs did nothing to stop the attacks of the inquisitors.
The mini-cart that charged at the raccoon while getting hit by its body was as heavy as a tank.
“If you don’t stop the author immediately······!!”
Mini’s hard voice rang out. The desperation in his voice made me feel how serious the situation was.
Knock knock! Mini Lunge took the full brunt of the heretic inquisitors’ attacks and ran towards the raccoon.
The bewildered inquisitors also belatedly emitted light, but unlike the aurors, it could not penetrate the heavy armor of the mini-lungs.
The light of the mini-lungs, so bright that it made the surrounding heretic inquisitors look ridiculous, cut through the darkness of the raccoon.
The sinister darkness that the raccoon had been emitting parted, and the raccoon’s face was visible through it.
Even though the greatsword of the Templar was right in front of him, the raccoon was still smiling.
Kwaaaaang-! An explosion went off right in front of the mini-crash. The mini-crash flew into the air and stopped after slamming its greatsword into the ground.
As the ground dug deep, the mud was turned over with a heavy sound.
‘You blew up the body.’
The bait Choco had thrown – an explosion occurred from the shattered corpse. It seemed like the raccoon had already anticipated him.
He was a truly meticulous and calculating raccoon.
By then I had reached the top of the raccoon.
‘Hand it over.’
– ···.
The tenant guy’s hesitation was conveyed. It was as if he was hesitating as if his choice was wrong.
I bit my lip as I watched the raccoon fall and be hidden again by the darkness.
‘why?’
For a split second I was reminded of the raccoon. He could manipulate strange shadows, cause explosions, and-.
‘You know how to use divine power.’
Like an insect’s egg, the raccoon was completely hidden in the shadows, its form invisible.
Can you really cut off the guy’s neck in this condition?
‘···If you cut my throat, will I die?’
Based on past experience, if you cut off his neck, he will die. No, he had to die.
However, I have never dealt with a senior citizen.
The most important piece of information was missing. This fucking place is full of weirdos, so it’s hard to be certain that cutting someone’s throat would kill them-.
I glanced at the mini-lungs taking their stance.
It was obvious who would be better suited to dealing with demons between me, the auror-like thief, and Mini-Pyeop, the knight of the temple.
Besides, it was clear that my mat would be better than that tiny mini-lung.
I had to get the information somehow.
‘Hand it over.’
As the splendid aura permeated my sword, my whole body became filled with vitality.
My mind was clear as if I had been on a stimulant, and I could clearly see the flow of things around me.
I held the sword straight up. My arm muscles were taut as if they would burst.
The amount of aura covering the sword was so great that it stretched out as if it were reaching the sky.
Then I reached the darkness and-.
I cut vertically with all my might.
There was no sound.
It was as if the world had split apart, with an unbroken blue line drawn precisely up and down.
The darkness split as if the night had been cut open.
Not only the darkness, but also the raccoon within it and the ground beneath it were split open long.
It felt like the world was split in half.
A new type of raccoon that is swaying from side to side.
Time passed slowly. I could feel every spit I swallowed and every breath I exhaled.
I quickly looked at the guy. He looked like a raccoon, but-.
‘It’s not blood, but darkness that flows.’
I kicked the ground again. The part where I had stepped was crushed and my body leaned forward.
He squinted his eyes as the wind brushed past his face, and this time he swung his sword in a large stroke, intending to cut down everything around him.
A long blue line drawn horizontally.
The surrounding darkness split into a bright blue light, and the raccoon’s new form was once again fragmented.
However, the anxiety has not yet ended.
I didn’t stop, just twisted my arm and drew my sword again.
A blue line drawn diagonally.
Every time I swung my sword, it felt like every muscle in my body was being torn apart in pain.
A sense of alienation, as if I were forcing myself to use something that isn’t mine.
‘That’s strange.’
Ignoring the pain, I swung my sword and thought.
Although he originally had a strong and sturdy body, after gaining what the tenant called ‘strength’, his strength surpassed that of a human.
My current body was extremely strong. It was not inferior to that of the knight who had caused the aura.
But how can I feel this burdened just because I swung the aura a few times, which those knights swing around so carelessly?
It didn’t make sense.
The blue line is drawn again.
The muscles on my left side seemed to be torn and wouldn’t move.
It doesn’t matter since there’s still the right side left.
‘Why?’
Auror was a strange power to begin with. It was a power that was not something that humans could achieve through effort, but rather something used by knights mass-produced by the empire.
‘Still, the time has increased quite a bit?’
I swung my right hand again, joking bitterly.
Now, countless pieces of raccoon were lying on the floor.
“Are you done? You stupid third.”
However, I realized something was wrong from the voice coming from the fallen guy.
The new form of the collapsed raccoon was watered down, and a gaze was felt from the shadow beneath it.
‘It’s a dud.’
He covered his face with his hands crossed, leaving a brief comment.
Kwaaaaang-!!
A loud noise followed by a sharp pain. A hot pain shot up from both arms along with a feeling of floating as if flying.
‘You’re cheating… You coward.’
I hit the ground and rolled around a few times. I wanted to land cool like a mini-crash, but my arms weren’t in good shape.
I clicked my tongue, took out the potion, sprayed it on my arm, and drank the rest. My energy returned and my mind became clearer.
Come to me, children.
“Eww! This is······!”
I raised my head at the scream and saw the inquisitors being dragged into the darkness in the center.
The inquisitors resisted, emitting light, but were drawn to them like a magnet by some force.
At that moment, the mini lung moved again. The white light emanating from its body pushed forward, tearing through the darkness.
You probably understood without me having to say it.
I looked at the mini lung, spitting out the blood that had risen like spit.
‘Indeed, a knight of the temple.’
Mini Lungeup was showing off his skills to the fullest, making the armor and greatsword worth it.
The white light of the mini lung gradually pushed away the darkness.
‘Darkness tends to retreat into light… No, shit.’
I looked at him and unconsciously muttered, then suddenly shook my head in surprise.
Perhaps because he had seen my battle, the mini-lungs didn’t stop at just cutting the guy down.
He swung his greatsword in a strange direction, as if turning a windmill, and at the same time cut down a shadow on the ground.
The mini-lung continued to perform movements that humans could not do. I watched the movements closely.
In a situation where the whole world seemed to be engulfed in darkness, the sight of Mini Lunggyeop continuing to fight while emitting light alone was quite cool.
but.
“I will rise again.”
The space was shaken by the sinister mutterings of a raccoon coming from one of the shadowy inquisitors.
It was a line he said every time the bait was caught.
I just thought of him as a simple slogan.
I gritted my teeth at the presence I felt from all sides.
When he looked around, it was already dark.
The darkness in the shape of a sphere covered the surroundings like a wall. I couldn’t see beyond it. I could see the things approaching through the darkness.
Monsters that looked like a cross between a demon and his minions were running madly towards me like dogs smelling a snack.
The inquisitors who had just been dragged away from where the raccoon was popped out again.
The sight of his eyes being black and his mouth emitting darkness was unusual.
‘How much is left?’
– ···.
A sigh escaped me.
If there were any devil candies available to fight the monsters that were running towards us, we could have eaten them like last time and continued the fight, but they were just hideous and didn’t have any devil candies.
He was truly a devil without substance.
I spat out the blood that had gathered in my mouth and readjusted my grip on the sword.
At that moment, a white light burst out from among the approaching monsters.
‘Oh, there she was.’
It was a lung soaked in black blood. He may not know about anything else, but he slaughtered demons like a guy who was good at catching demons.
‘···What about the knights?’
They must have already arrived and left, but the knights were nowhere to be seen.
It seemed like things would work out if the knights got involved, but I couldn’t feel it because I couldn’t see outside.
At that moment, a monster rose up from under me, writhing. It was one of the baits I had thrown out earlier.
‘He really came back to life.’
Of course, it wasn’t his intention, but just like he said, it really happened again.
As if to tell me to keep my promise, a thing that looked exactly like a turtle opened its mouth wide and tried to eat me.
I swung my sword at him.
‘It’s stiff.’
Until now, the twenty-bone sword that could easily cut through most things was now as stiff as a rusty knife.
I decided to focus on the good parts. I ended up getting into the devil’s business anyway.
The demon’s left arm pressed down on my body and its mouth came closer. Instead of resisting it, I lay back and thrust my sword into its shameless mouth.
The guy seemed to be the type to start eating from the head, and his sharp devil teeth scratched my stomach.
My vision was momentarily dizzy from the pressure, but I didn’t let go of my sword. I dug my sword deep into the thing, just as it was bitten, and pulled it out forcefully.
Pzzizik-. There was a sound of clothes being ripped, and the devil’s snout split open. The one with the torn snout shook its head and let out a strange scream.
‘Okay.’
I took another step forward with a calm expression. I held the sword upside down and forcibly ripped it off by thrusting it into the mouth, which had no end in sight.
The guy fell backwards with a long scream. I collapsed forward and stabbed him repeatedly with my sword.
I put my hand in a place where I thought there would be candy and searched, but there was nothing.
‘I spend too much time on just one thing.’
Because the leather is thick, it took too long. But I can’t use Aura on this little guy.
All it took was one kill while the four were being dealt with by the lungs.
Those whose hide was so tough that a sword wouldn’t penetrate them without Devil Candy. They didn’t align well.
Mini Lunge was still fighting the raccoon, but things were looking bad with the Inquisitors joining in.
In the meantime, the number of demons gradually increased.
‘···You’re this strong even without Devil Candy?’
As a connoisseur of Devil Candy, I had a question. Thinking about all the ones I’ve caught so far, I couldn’t have gotten this tough without Devil Candy.
‘There’s something.’
I squinted my eyes at the raccoon that continued to spew out darkness without attacking.
Perhaps the darkness that filled this area seemed to have a certain effect.
At that moment, a familiar face rolled across the floor in front of me.
It was a lung covered in black blood. The lung was chewing on something and then spat it out, and it was a piece of flesh covered in black blood.
Nod.
I watched the nod of the lungs, which was a bit heavier than usual, for a moment before coughing and laughing.
“Is it worth it?”
Crackle crackle.
The old man shook his head with a rare expression. His face looked just like when he had eaten fish bread.
“This is fucked up.”
I held out my hand and smiled.
“Fuck.”
The man who had grabbed him and stood up nodded and swung his greatsword. I almost blocked him out of habit, but the greatsword was aimed above me, not at me.
“it’s okay.”
The lungs smiled wryly amidst the falling flesh.
And my face reflected in those eyes wasn’t much different.
I checked the direction beyond the waste level to see where Hannah’s bar might be.
Seeing as the lord was not visible and the knights were not coming, he may have run away after assessing the situation.
Someone had to buy time. There was no reason for the security guard, who didn’t even get overtime pay, to do that.
Nod.
The old man nodded, sticking out his fist.
I looked at him for a moment and then we bumped fists.
“Want to bet on who can catch more demons? I’ll wager a cake.”
The old man nodded vigorously in response to my question.
Then I put my hand inside and took something out, and it was a very squashed cake.
After hesitating for a moment, Lunggeup pursed his lips, cut the cake in half, and handed it to me.
I looked at the cake covered in black blood and flesh for a moment, then took it and put it in my mouth.
It was so fucking delicious.
***
There are many things in the world that cannot be achieved through willpower alone.
For example, things like not getting good grades even though you studied hard, or not killing people on the battlefield.
Or maybe catching deadly demons that push forward with numbers.
‘You little bastards.’
I looked to the side, coughing up blood. There, a slain man with his armor torn off was fighting among the demons.
Seeing him working so much harder than usual, I felt like I should buy him a cake.
However, it didn’t seem like it would last very long.
Even though the mini-level knights of the temple were still pressuring the raccoon-.
‘The territory is the problem.’
In the darkness spreading out from the raccoon’s body, the demons rose again unless they were carefully torn apart.
In this dire situation, there is no time to tear the devil to pieces, so the number of people rising again is increasing.
‘You kept nagging me to do it again. You’re really tough.’
As time went by, there seemed to be less and less hope for victory.
I looked back at the situation. The biggest failure was the lack of information.
If I had known that the raccoon was that type of demon, I would have started by cutting off the neck. Or the two of them would have taken their time separately and then cut off the neck.
Even if there were only knights, it seems like they could have fought back somehow, but as of now, there was no sign of victory.
‘They say he’s strong, but he’s not.’
I rubbed my bulging belly and laughed in vain.
The problem was that he had simply guessed the opponent based on the five elders. It made him feel uneasy.
If there were five eldest sons, it wouldn’t have been this difficult.
Even though he was stronger as an individual, he was a minority.
Kwaaaaang-!
“Keelheelheel! You’re such a arrogant knight of the temple! You look so good!”
An explosion happens at that exact moment, and the raccoon’s fucking laughter can be heard between them.
Even the raccoon guy blew up the devil.
‘······So what is it?’
I took a deep breath and asked the tenant.
From earlier, the tenant’s uncontrollable will was felt strongly.
The sinister tenant was waiting for me to ask first.
– I guess I won’t be able to win at this rate.
It was ridiculous. If the tenant hadn’t been so clumsy, I would have tried to do something with Auror.
The ability to produce a lot of power in a short period of time was not a good match for battles with such large numbers of enemies.
Even if it wasn’t as large and strong as the tenant’s aura, it would have been difficult to fight even with just a barley-sized aura.
It was just a matter of the sword piercing the leather.
– Aura is not my strength.
‘···strength?’
I asked again, pressing my pierced stomach.
– That thing you’re calling me······.
I could feel the bastard’s will.
The excuse was that Aura was not one’s own but was an imitation of someone else’s, so Aura could not properly exert its power.
He reminded me of the five eldest sons. A force similar to an aura, but without a form.
A raccoon that can freely handle sharp objects that look like shadows.
Well, it might be an excuse, but I felt some sincerity in it.
‘Give me whatever you want.’
There was no need to talk at length. The situation was urgent anyway.
There was no other choice.
As I answered like that, the tenant’s will was restored.
– Do you want it?
‘······This is crazy.’
– You have to. Do you want to?
A mini-airship was seen flying far away into the blurry vision.
It was clear that the form of power he was talking about was not a pleasant one.
That would be the case, because when I first met him, the guy he had been corrupting had a clear, demonic appearance.
In addition, the ignorant appearance of the eroded demons flashed through my mind. All the eroded demons I had met so far had lost their intelligence and were just monsters with strong bodies.
I hesitated for a moment, hearing the tenant’s whispers so sweet that they were clearly the devil’s.
That’s what I thought when I first got the Devil’s Handprint.
‘I’m being eaten by the devil?’
I laughed as if I was coughing. Then, I felt a strangely uncomfortable reaction from the tenant, but I didn’t care.
If I was just going to get eaten by the devil, I wouldn’t be standing here in the first place.
The more you experience pain, the more it dulls.
He was the same in spirit.
My hesitation was that I might not be able to keep my promise about the cake if I showed my ugly face to the boss.
However, there was no choice.
That was something to think about when the time came.
“What do you think?! Huh?! You stupid third bastard! How dare you seek revenge on this body?! You don’t even realize how stupid you are!”
Plus, the excited raccoon kept getting on my nerves.
‘Hand it over.’
I answered simply and relaxed.
– I always feel that you are arrogant and presumptuous.
As soon as I answered, my vision became distorted.
– That’s why I liked it.
As if the leash that had been tied was released, an overflowing strength flowed out from my heart.
For a moment, my vision turned red and the dark world appeared blood red.
The breath coming out of my mouth felt hot like fire, and it felt like my insides were burning with every breath.
A raccoon’s face was visible through the thick darkness.
The guy who had been laughing so happily now had a frightened look on his face, as if he had seen a monster.
In contrast, the corners of my mouth were completely upturned.
***
“······hmm?”
The old man suddenly turned his head, narrowed his eyes, and disappeared, leaving the fallen knights behind.
Dylan, who had been watching from a hidden location, quickly examined the articles.
They were all breathing, but their limbs had been cut off one by one. But they were still alive.
Dylan grimaced for a moment at the horrific sight, then pulled up a cart and put him all in it.
“It has legs, and this one has arms. It has arms too. Hmm···.”
Dylan remembered what the abbot had said during the Pool Brother incident.
‘Didn’t you say that if I bring it to you even if it’s cut, you’ll put it back on?’
Dylan carefully checked the floor to see if anything had fallen. When he placed the pieces against the area, it seemed like he had collected them all.
Dylan wiped the sweat from his forehead for a moment and pulled the cart with his bloody hands.
I didn’t know why the old man suddenly disappeared, but it seemed okay since there were no knights left except for these three idiots.
‘Where the hell are all the other guys and what are they doing… Tsk tsk, I told you I’m missing out.’
Dylan grumbled that no one guarded Cassadick as diligently as he did, and pulled the cart with a thud.
