Chapter 39

A spear suddenly shot up aiming for Hamel’s abdomen.

Hamel sprang up like a spring and moved out of the spear’s trajectory.

As Hamel spun in the air and was about to land.

─Tuk tududuk

The Fox cheerfully tapped the ground with his spear shaft.

Then, once again, multiple spears rose up like sturdy stakes.

Hamel swung his sword, chopping through the spear shafts in chunks, and rolled to land on the ground.

“…Sseup. Haa.”

Hamel rose to his feet, taking a deep breath in and out.

With ragged breaths, hot heat steamed out of his mouth.

His head felt heavy.

His body wouldn’t move as he wanted, and his thought process was sluggish.

He barely held onto consciousness, but it was dangerous.

He was moving half on instinct.

He felt as if he’d be better off dropping his sword and fighting with his bare hands.

The reason was clear.

‘Madness.’

The dragon’s energy was swallowing Hamel’s self.

He had expected side effects, but he hit his limits faster than anticipated.

It might be because he’d repeatedly used power since ingesting dragon’s blood at the salt mine.

But there was nothing to be done.

“Well, well. That’s a monstrous movement of yours.”

A man in front of him said with a twirling, smiling glance.

Maron’s Laughing Fox.

He was much stronger than expected.

The forest was already a mess from the debris of spears he’d created.

─Tuk

Hamel snapped off a nearby spear and grabbed it.

‘Just a bit more…’

Hamel gritted his teeth and hurled the spear he held with force.

─Pang!

The spear tore through the air and slammed into the ground.

But only stones and dirt were shattered and overturned.

The Fox was already gone from that spot.

His strange movements were smooth like a desert mirage and elusive like a phantom.

“Ha ha! Surely you don’t intend to keep your distance and fight me like that, do you?”

The Fox laughed and struck the ground again with his spear shaft.

─Tuk tudududuk

Then spears shot up all around Hamel like bamboo shoots.

Hamel’s pupils darted rapidly, tracking the spears’ trajectories in sequence.

─Tsupit

He dodged most, but one irregularly rising spear grazed Hamel’s flesh.

Red blood spread over his torn clothing.

As if getting used to Hamel’s movements, the number and accuracy of spears brushing him increased.

‘The Fox’s ability is spear generation. The trigger is tapping the ground with the spear shaft.’

Ability wielder.

Unlike priests who serve gods and manifest divine abilities, these are people who wield hereditary abilities ingrained in their bloodline for generations.

The renowned Ishitaka family from the western empire is a representative example; from his earlier talk of family, it seemed the Fox belonged to the Ishitaka Family.

‘This is tricky.’

Though his ability made spears rise from the ground, he did not rely on it alone.

His evasions were as smooth as sand, and the spears that stabbed were as deadly as a scorpion’s tail.

He even wielded aura, a tool of knights, so gaining the upper hand in close quarters was difficult.

And if he tried to create distance, a barrage of spears would fall without fail….

‘This is the Pale String.’

The notoriety was not exaggerated at all.

Hamel swept his hair back and glared at his opponent.

Azure Flame did nothing to the human, and Shadow Bind was pierced by spears before it could reach him.

He needed another method.

But it became increasingly hard to control his consciousness to come up with a solution.

“…Grit.”

Thinking was bothersome.

Hamel, following his instincts and tracking the opponent, stomped the ground.

In an instant he closed in on the Fox and swung his sword.

─Kang!

Sparks flew as the Fox’s body was lightly lifted.

But the Fox, shrugging off the impact, just grinned as if enjoying the fight.

Hamel scowled further at that smile and kept swinging his sword.

Each sword strike carried enough force to turn even a massive rock into dust.

Indeed, rocks struck by the Fox’s blade turned to powder, and trees were cut like straws.

“How should I put it… it feels like hunting a beast, not a person.”

Yet the Fox remained unscathed.

He just squinted and chuckled.

“If I were hit properly even once, I’d die, but this is so monotonous. Have you really let your head become that of a beast?”

A spark flashed in Hamel’s eyes at his taunt.

The cold gleam flared up blue as if running wild.

The headache intensified and uncontrollable rage welled up.

Arrogant.

He couldn’t stand that a mere human was giving him trouble.

A human was nothing more than less than a flea, was he not?

If he drew out his true power, he could tear that man’s skin to shreds, cut open his belly, and pull out his entrails this instant.

Unconsciously, Hamel reached for his waist.

A flask landed in his hand.

The way to draw power was simple.

Drink more, more dragon’s blood.

Then he could throw off this stifling restraint.

He could crush the smirking human face before him in an instant.

So what was he hesitating for?

─Tuk

Hamel opened the flask’s cap.

“Hm?”

Only then did the Fox, who had been watching Hamel stop, open his eyes wide.

Soon a look of bewilderment settled on his face.

The Fox hesitated and stepped back.

He vaguely sensed what Hamel intended to do.

But it was already too late.

Hamel was bringing the flask to his lips.

‘Ah, yes.’

That expression.

All things in the world must fear him.

Hamel tilted the flask, feeling a thrilling pleasure.

The sticky liquid began to touch his lips when suddenly.

─Ttakkum

A familiar sigil burned onto the back of his hand.

Reteil, the Man-Faced Lion.

The mark of a special-class demon.

At the same moment, Hamel’s hand froze.

‘What am I about to do…’

Through a foggy haze, Hamel faintly came to his senses.

He saw the flask in his hand.

The red liquid inside sloshed enticingly.

It smelled and looked sweet like a ripe fruit, and he wanted to pour it into his mouth at once.

But Hamel instinctively felt what the result would be.

The onset of madness.

And the loss of self.

‘The reason I fight is…’

For revenge.

To protect the people.

But if the dragon’s energy swallowed him, Hamel would no longer distinguish friend from foe and would rampage, destroying the meaning of his fights until now.

That must not happen.

─Kwa-jik

Hamel squeezed all his strength and bit the inside of his cheek.

The searing pain made his head tingle.

Blood trickled down from between his clenched teeth.

Only then did the fog in his head begin to lift.

The rage subsided and the headache faded.

Hamel turned his head and spat out the bitten piece of cheek meat.

The Fox, watching this, finally relaxed his stiff expression and gave an awkward laugh.

“W-were you startled? Why would you try to scare me like that?”

“…Don’t worry. I won’t drink this.”

One mustn’t confuse purpose with means.

Even if it costs him his life here, he would not use the dragon’s power any further.

The Fox tilted his head as if amused watching Hamel.

“Oh, looks like your mind’s come back a bit.”

“Yes.”

Hamel nodded lightly and readjusted his grip on his sword.

Dragon’s blood’s influence still lingered in his body, but his mind was clear.

“I’ll start again from here.”

Just as Hamel steeled himself and thrust his sword forward.

[Congratulations on overcoming the madness. Priest of Ehuurshika.]

A familiar voice echoed in his mind.

---

Hamel had no trouble recognizing whose voice it was.

Tarka, God of the Blue Mane clan.

The lord of the forest whose throat Hamel himself had once cut.

‘You’re… dead…?’

When Hamel wondered inwardly, the voice answered as if it had heard him.

[It is impossible to kill me by human strength.]

Death.

It is a law and order any living being must one day accept.

Power that defies natural order is exactly why they are called gods and revered.

[Of course, with my body like that, I’m as good as dead for a while.]

Tarka murmured bitterly.

Still, Hamel breathed out and felt relieved.

What mattered was that he was alive.

As long as he lived, anything could be restarted.

‘I see. That’s fortunate.’

At that, Tarka gave a small amused chuckle.

[Heh. You cut my throat and you still have such interesting reactions.]

Hamel didn’t know how to reply.

‘Well…’

[I know. You did it for my sake. A priest who likes to tease, are you?]

“…”

After Hamel’s brief bewilderment, Tarka, muttering satisfactorily, finally got to the point.

[There’s no time, so I’ll hasten to fulfill the promise I made to you.]

A promise?

For a moment Hamel was puzzled, then remembered their bargain.

‘If you solve the forest’s problem, I’ll teach you how to control the power, as promised.’

Although he failed to rescue Tarka, he had removed all the stakes stuck in the forest.

In return, what he’d been promised was the method to wield the dragon’s power.

‘Now, you mean?’

He was in a perilous battle where a moment’s lapse could mean death.

As Hamel hesitated and couldn’t answer easily.

A sacred voice rang out loudly through the air.

[Come, then.]

[Accumulated memories, come forth.]

─Uuuuung

The air trembled and the ground shook beneath his feet.

Unknown memories and knowledge were sucked into him as if absorbed into his body.

[Continue the progress and reach the end.]

Unforgettable information swirled through his head.

Praise the dragon.

Fear the dragon.

The result of practices piled up in blood and death by those who adored, feared, and longed for the dragon.

In the end, they came to resemble the very being they longed for.

Hamel felt dizzy.

The sheer volume of knowledge made his mind reel.

If it had been earlier, when madness had consumed him, he surely couldn’t have accepted such power.

But now it was different.

‘I think I understand. No, it’s familiar.’

Hamel felt he could use the power and words just injected into his mind.

Quite naturally, too.

At that moment, the Fox, who had been watching Hamel with a bored expression, twirled his spear and aimed at him.

“This’ll take all night. If you don’t come, shall I go instead?”

No sooner had he finished speaking than the Fox charged at Hamel.

A sharp spear cut through the air toward him.

The spear was about to pierce Hamel’s brow when.

─Teob

A blue hand casually caught the spear’s blade.

“What’s this now…”

The Fox trembled as he gripped his spear and muttered.

In his startled gaze, he saw Hamel’s arm covered in blue scales.

Unlike before, Hamel’s nails now resembled a raptor’s, and his hand lightly held the aura-imbued spear blade.

─Sseuk

When Hamel flexed his hand, the spear’s tip slid down as if pulled.

An overwhelming difference in strength.

It was like toying with a five-year-old.

─Flinch

The Fox shuddered and looked straight ahead.

As the hand holding the spear lowered, Hamel’s blue eyes became visible.

The moment he met those eyes, the Fox involuntarily released his grip on the spear.

He had never seen such eyes, but he could feel them.

Those vertically slit, chilling eyes were surely those of a top predator that once ruled the world.

“…This is maddening.”

The Fox only muttered in a trembling voice.

“…You’ve been hiding your power until now?”

“No.”

Hamel spoke calmly.

Then he flicked the spear from his hand backward and walked forward slowly.

The spear flew weakly and clattered to the ground.

Still, the Fox did not move.

He couldn’t even twitch a finger.

An oppressive pressure crushed him, making it hard even to breathe.

“I didn’t exactly hide it. I simply did my best.”

Hamel slowly reached out toward the Fox.

An overwhelming difference in power that could not be resisted.

Realizing this, the Fox clenched his teeth and quickly crouched low.

Hamel paused for a moment at that motion, as if he were surrendering.

“If I return alive… I’ll squeeze an extra one million marks from the lord!”

The Fox quickly tapped the ground with his palm in rapid beats.

Then, spears sprang up all around Hamel.

He had thought the Fox’s ability was triggered by tapping the ground with the spear shaft.

But the action of striking the ground itself served as the trigger for the ability.

Dozens of spears surged toward Hamel, who stood within arm’s reach.

─Koung

But Hamel lightly stamped his foot and murmured something small.

It was the dragon’s name, an old draconic utterance.

[Katiko Deoriasia]

With a cracking sound, the Fox’s body was flung into the air.

“…?”

What was happening?

Helplessly lifted, the Fox turned his gaze to assess the situation.

The ground had been upended.

The trembling earth exploded, churning soil and rock and sending dust billowing in all directions.

The dozens of spears the Fox had created lost their force like windblown toothpicks and hovered in the air.

“Ha ha….”

Only laughter escaped him.

He couldn’t see Hamel who had caused the quake with his foot, but the Fox knew where he was.

Hamel had twisted his head in midair to look back.

Through the dust, a pouring blue gleam shone behind him.

As Hamel thrust his fist forward, the air tore and dust scattered.

Seeing it, the Fox gave a self-deprecating laugh and muttered.

“As expected, the unit price was a mess from the start…”

─Kwa-jik

That mutter didn’t finish.