Ryuu Kusari no Ori -Kokoro no Uchi no 'Kokoro'-

Volume 4 Chapter 8.3

Risking One's Life Till One Burns Up Part 3

Translator : PolterGlast

After Nozomu entered the barrier, the area surrounding the predatory barrier temporarily regained its calmness.

The guards who had accompanied Fadrey as his escort were nowhere to be seen. They were ordered by Fadrey to evacuate the remaining personnel in the center of Arcazam.

Jihad and the others also remained at the site, monitoring the predatory barrier.

Everyone was looking up at the predator barrier and the City Isolation Barrier that were still visible with difficult expressions on their faces.

"So, what are we going to do now?"

"There is nothing we can do. Let's just hope that he can get rid of the culprit successfully."

"But why is the City Isolation Barrier still in place, despite having been seized from our control?"

Jihad then asked the question he had in his mind.

"The fact that the control of the City Isolation Barrier was taken away so quickly suggests that the erosion is probably going underground, not above ground. I would guess that the barrier is kept in place as a precaution against us."

According to Fadrey, the City Isolation Barrier was being used to prevent unnecessary interference.

"If we think about it, Ken Notice and Abyss Grief have only one goal. The source of energy for this ritual magic city, the dragon veins itself."

Dragon veins. A torrent of source elements flowing through the earth. The root that supports this Arcazam, and the most important flow of life for all those who live on the Arkmel Continent.

"If Ken Notice were to come into contact with the Dragon Veins, there is no telling how much power he would gain. And the havoc that much energy could cause......"

"......"

Hearing Fadrey's words, Irisdina trembled, unable to remain calm. Her eyes, staring at the barrier, shook with anxiety and frustration, and her silky white hands became even whiter as she dug her fingernails into her palms.

"Ai......."

"I understand, I do understand! But......"

Irisdina looked as if she was about to run off at any moment. Tima was concerned about her, but her impatience did not subside.

If she were to be honest, she would have preferred to go with Nozomu.

However, the barrier they were up against was a barrier that could erode the City Isolation Barrier in such a short time. If an ordinary person were to enter it without a plan, he or she would have his or her magic power and Qi sucked dry in the blink of an eye, and his or her soul would be devoured as well.

"What the hell is this!?"

"U~e!? What is this creepy thing!?"

"This is a barrier, right? What is it doing in a place like this?......"

While Irisdina was in anguish, loud voices, unbefitting the situation, echoed through the place.

Three students suddenly appeared on the scene. It was Mars, Mimuru, and Tom.

"Mars-kun, Mimuru-san. And Tom-kun as well......"

"Why are you guys here?"

[I called them.]

While Tima was surprised and Jihad questioned the three, Razward answered.

Apparently, this little lapis lazuli-colored spirit was transmitting thoughts to Mars and the others in order to get their help.

"Oi, little bird, explain. What is this? What the hell is going on?"

[Can't you tell? We're in a pinch.]

In response to Mars' straightforward question, Razward briefly explained the situation.

Mars, having grasped the situation, scratched his head vigorously.

"I see. In other words, we just have to go in there and beat the crap out of that son of a b*tch, right?"

"Were you even listening?"

Jihad let out a dismayed voice at Mars's absurd words.

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But Mars, on the other hand, did not change his blunt attitude.

"But it's not impossible. That's why little bird called us, right? So, how do we do it?"

[Before I tell you that ...... I'd like to confirm something.]

"What is it?"

[Can we still get rid of this white barrier?]

"......It is possible. The control mechanism has been hijacked, but the mechanism for supplying the source elements is still intact. Otherwise, the City Isolation Barrier will disappear as soon as it is eroded."

[How long will it take?]

"If you want, we can start immediately."

Upon hearing Fadrey's words, Razward lifted the corner of his eye as if grinning. He had that devious-looking face.

"So, what's the plan?"

[We'll now repay the beasts for what they did to me and Shi-jou.]

†

A katana and a long sword clashed and sparks burst forth.

Multiple flashes of light ran across the air, the sound of collision shook the air, and the scattered impact blew up the ground within the barrier.

"Guh!"

Nozomu involuntarily let out a groan as a powerful recoil hit both of his arms. Ken fused with Abyss Grief and even devoured a spirit. His power exceeded that of Nozomu, who had released his ability suppression.

The reason was his assimilation rate with the spirits he had absorbed. And the existence of a Predatory Barrier.

Even though Nozomu is a dragon slayer, he is still in an incomplete state. Since most of his human aspects remain, there is a limit to the power he can draw forth.

Ken, on the other hand, is almost completely merged with the Abyss Grief. And by receiving a supply of power from the Predatory Barrier, he has been able to exert even more power than Nozomu.

"*Swish*~!"

Nozomu tried to make up for this difference in power with his skill.

In fact, Nozomu was by far superior in terms of swordsmanship. He skillfully parried the burden placed on his katana and unleashed a returning strike. A reverse diagonal slash was executed. Naturally, the blade already had an extremely sharp Qi-blade infused to it.

(No good, huh!?)

However, Nozomu's Qi-blade was deflected by Ken's Spirit Armor. There was not even a single scratch on the spot where the blade struck, but on the contrary, the Qi that should have been infused into the blade was significantly drained away.

[The Starve-Eroded Shell Armor]. A variant of the armor that Ken had created with the help of Mefi. It is an armor that has the same ability as the Predatory Barrier, absorbing the Qi and magic power of the beings it comes in contact with and turning them into its own power.

(It devoured my Qi every time we exchanged blows. Moreover......)

[Let me out, let me out of here! Let me kill that traitor!]

(Tiamat's interferes. My concentration is-......!)

Nozomu swung his katana while reinfusing his Qi into [Mumei], but Tiamat kept interfering with his consciousness.

The basis of Nozomu's power is his incredible power of concentration. The result of this obstruction was that his movements and techniques lacked precision and accuracy.

[What's wrong, Nozomu? Don't tell me, this is all you've got!]

Ken swung his long sword mercilessly at Nozomu, whose movements were sluggish. Nozomu managed to place his katana in the trajectory, but the impact was so great that he was sent flying. He reflexively took a defensive stance and exhaled heavily.

(Damn it, I can't move like I wanted to, why at a time like this......!)

"Nnn~, Nozomu-kun!? Where am I..."

"~, you ......!"

[The other two have woken up as well, huh......?]

At this moment, Camilla and Shina, who were unconscious, woke up.

Both of them looked stunned at first, but quickly understood the situation.

The elf Shina, in particular, noticed at first glance the creature that Ken had absorbed, and her expression froze.

"You, that body ....... You've been assimilated with the Abyss Grief. And even a spirit as well. Holy crap......."

[As expected of an elf. You noticed it right away.]

"You, enough of this! How long are you going to keep doing this!? Didn't you want to protect Lisa!?"

[Camilla, I don't care about you anymore. Camilla, And neither do I care about Lisa. That's why I can do this too.]

"Ken ......ugh!?"

"This is......."

Immediately after, the huge black tree glowed and the expressions of the three women became contorted with pain. A pale light was sucked from their bodies into the trunks they were in contact with, and the blood drained from their faces. Ken was draining the three of them of their magic and Qi.

"Ken, you!"

[Nozomu, what are you gonna do? If you don't use the power of the spirit you've absorbed, these three will really die!]

"~!"

A moment's hesitation. Any ordinary Qi would be sucked up by Ken in the blink of an eye. It won't even be a fight.

He had no choice. Nozomu gritted his teeth and went deeper into his consciousness. Reaching out to the power that he had absorbed from Tiamat itself.

[Roooooaaaaarrrrr―――!]

Immediately afterward, a heat that seemed to burn through his entire body rushed over him, and Nozomu's vision turned bright red.

The roar of hatred that had been ringing in his head became even stronger, as if a bell had been rung in his ear, and five-colored source elements seeped out of Nozomu's body.

At the same time, lacerations began to appear on Nozomu's body. It was a sign of going berserk.

"~!"

While clenching his teeth to hold back his consciousness which was about to be engulfed in a whirlpool of rage, he stepped forward.

As if in response to his will, the [Mumei]'s blade pattern glowed faintly.

The ground beneath his feet blew apart due to the force of his step, and his body closed in on Ken with lightning speed.

Ken, with a look of delight on his face upon seeing Nozomu in such a state, unleashed his jet-black blade. In the blink of an eye, the blade, which was once a long sword, reverted to a serpentine blade and wrapped around Nozomu's entire circumference in an undulating motion, then expanded at once.

Shortly after, it exploded. A rain of blades began to rain down on Nozomu from all directions.

"Haaaaa!"

The swarm of blades were powerful enough to easily penetrate a person's body. Facing them, Nozomu unleashed his Qi-blades.

He fired fifty of them in the blink of an eye. The Qi-blade with the power of the Dragon King easily sliced through the swarms of blades that devoured everything in their path.

"Fuuu~......!"

Nozomu, who had closed the distance between them, unleashed a horizontal cleave. Ken, too, reverted his serpentine sword to a long sword and parried the oncoming slash. At that moment, Nozomu's body sank.

[Guh......!?]

[Mikagura-style・Rolling Talon]. [Mikagura-style・One Billion Severance]. The Qi-blade, released while slipping under Ken's arms, burst along the katana's trajectory. It easily penetrated through the Spirit Armor and blasted 40% of his side.

"Oooooooo!"

As Ken staggered with a look of surprise on his face, Nozomu unleashed another strike.

Ken's abdomen, which had also been blasted off, instantly regenerated, and he blocked Nozomu's blade with the long sword he had raised.

Nozomu's [Mumei] and Ken's [Elemental Sword] were just barely competing with each other. Even as they clashed, Nozomu's blade repelled the absorbing ability of Ken's elemental sword.

[Good, just like that!]

While Ken was excited to see Nozomu releasing more and more power, Nozomu's mouth twitched at the sight of Ken's body being restored in less than a few seconds. Clearly, the recovery was exceeding the upper limit of the power available to humans.

"Ken! You really have no intention of coming back!?"

It is not the body, but the soul that dies. Intuition that came from having absorbed a similarly extraordinary being.

[Yeah! I'm going to die anyway! I already knew this when I woke up after being implanted with the core of this demonic beast!]

Ken readily acknowledged Nozomu's words, and spat them out.

[To this beast, I am merely a vessel for it to take over the dragon veins. I am a tool to be discarded when I am no longer of use. But if I could kill you with my own hands....... I don't care whatever the cost, as long as I can defeat you!]

Amid the clash, Ken's Elemental Sword expanded. It was a sign that it was about to explode.

Nozomu reflexively leaped backward. He avoided the explosion by keeping his distance. However, Ken's sword became a whip once again and easily struck him from the distance.

"Damn it!"

Nozomu's mouth filled with impatience as he dealt with and avoided the oncoming blade.

There was no time. The pulsation of the huge jet-black tree has become even more intense, and the size of the converged source elements has more than doubled.

Before anything else, Lisa and the others, who were being captured by the core of the barrier, would not be able to hold out any longer.

Their faces have gone beyond pale to pure white, and they seem to have difficulty even maintaining consciousness. At this rate, in a few minutes, they would be completely absorbed by the Predatory Barrier and die.

Nozomu had to rescue Lisa and the others as soon as possible, and destroy the core of this barrier.

At that moment, as Nozomu and Ken were in the midst of a fierce battle, heavy footsteps echoed from down the hill.

They instinctively turned their gazes toward the path leading down the hill, and saw a four-meter-tall humanoid figure approaching them.

It was a humanoid golem that looked like it had been compacted from countless rocks. It was an oddly huge golem with 60% torso, 10% head, and 30% legs. It had long arms and ran up the hill like a four-legged animal, touching the back of its hands to the ground as if it were an ape.

[What the......?]

While Ken looked puzzled, the golem pushed its hand into the ground. Then, as if to flip up the ground, it swung its arm out. A large amount of earth and sand containing rocks was flung at Ken.

But of course, it had no effect at all on Ken, who was wearing Spirit Armor.

[I don't know what it is, but don't get in my way!]

Ken, enraged by the sudden interruption, generated countless icicles in the air as he and Nozomu still clashed with each other. All of the icicles flew and struck the golem. In the blink of an eye, the Golem's physique was transformed into a hedgehog-like appearance.

Immediately afterward, the countless rocks that had formed the golem's body exploded.

"W-Whoa, that was close!"

"Hieeeee~! Tail, it grazed my tail!"

"Tima, Tom, are you all right?"

"Y-Yeah! Somehow......"

"Fuee~ ...... That was close~~"

[Shi-jou, are you okay?]

"Yo, Nozomu. You sure are involved in something interesting, huh?"

Seven shadows emerged from the golem. They are Razward, Irisdina, and the rest of Nozomu's friends. Mimuru, who was carrying Tom, and Feo, whose tail was just grazed by the stones, rushed out in a panic, followed by Irisdina, Tima, Razward, and Mars.

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