Chapter Ninety-Seven
"What immense magical power, sir? Um, you're holding the gun upside down." Connie stood on the city wall, looking at the thing that was half-buried in the ground.
It was impossible to make out what it was; perhaps it had a head, or perhaps it was just a blurry mass. Chaotic gravity tore open the openings all over its body.
As a collection of magical power, it's rare to see monsters able to gather such an exaggerated amount of energy. In fact, it's not just rare; it's something that only appears in textbooks.
It's roughly equivalent to a hundred to two hundred times the magical power of a dragon. If it weren't for being trapped in this place where gravity and temperature are out of balance, the city might have been razed to the ground long ago.
“It’s just an immovable thing,” Carlton paused and said. “It doesn’t even have any conduits for transporting this kind of magic inside it, or rather, those conduits have all been destroyed. It’s just trying to stabilize itself while explosions are happening all over its body. If it were a person, it would probably die from the pain.”
He looked at the black blast that had exploded off the monster's body and took a deep breath.
Although he agreed to deal with this guy, he was still a bit clueless.
Theoretically speaking, the game would end once the magic core is found and destroyed.
It's easier said than done.
It's really troublesome to do.
Its body was almost as big as a mountain, and inside was a demonic core whose location, size, shape, and color were all unknown. Destroying something like that was no different from finding a needle in a haystack.
Carl thought it best to wait for others to act first, as dealing with this thing on his own would be too difficult.
He rushed out, but he didn't know what expression to wear when facing Lori.
The stench of the monster's wounds wafted through the air, and Karl frowned, looking at the so-called gun he held in his hand.
Behind them were about a hundred more dolls that looked almost exactly like Lady, all holding similar weapons.
But those aren't Lady. Although you can't tell the difference from their appearance, they're still easy to distinguish. After all, no one would mistake a living thing for a mere moving doll. While it might be harsh to say this about them, they are just props, and as props, no one cares about their subsequent consumption.
After looking at it for a long time, Karl turned back to look at the monster.
The monster's nine long-necked heads were twisted and swung wildly, and occasionally one could see the strange sight of them being torn off by gravity and then growing back.
These are hardly scenes that are refreshing. If one hadn't seen so many hellish sights, one might have lost all color in their face, just like Connie next to them.
"Are you scared?" Carl looked at Connie, who seemed a little flustered, staring intently at the monster in front of him.
“It would be strange if you weren’t afraid of such things.” He shook his head helplessly and looked at Karl, saying, “I’m not ashamed of my cowardice, because it’s just a normal reaction.”
“Is that so?” Carlton paused and said, “What a warrior, timid yet unyielding. A hero indeed.”
"My lord, please don't make fun of me. You are the hero. Such a thing is right in front of you, yet you remain so calm."
“Not being afraid of this monster doesn’t mean I’m not afraid of anything. I’m afraid of many things, it just so happens that this isn’t one of them.” Karl glanced at him: “What’s that in your hand?”
He was asking about a square box, and it looked like he was trying to put it into the muzzle of the cannon in front of him.
“This,” Connie paused and said, “contains some items that store holy magic, which are very effective against these kinds of monsters.”
“Sounds like a good thing. Do you need my help?” Carlton paused, then took a crucifix out of his pocket, held it tightly in his hand for about three seconds, and handed it to Connie.
The demand for crosses has been really high lately, so the first thing I did this morning was to ask Apari for a bag full of silver crosses. Silver is an excellent material, making it the most suitable weapon for clergy compared to other materials.
However, the city had very little silver reserves. Although he was a high-ranking clergyman, all his props, such as the crosses he wore around his neck, were made of wood. The first thing he did upon arriving here was to spend money to buy a lot of silver. He earned a considerable salary, and having saved such a large amount was very appropriate.
"How do I use it?" Connie put the cross into his jacket pocket.
“It will turn into a barrier when it senses danger, and if thrown well, it can be used as a weapon.” Carlton paused: “For self-defense.”
“Really? Well, thank you very much.” Connie looked around and said, “It seems they’re not doing too well.”
“They’re all so slow,” Carl said, somewhat disgruntled.
Those were minor matters, but they had wasted far too much time. He didn't care about the others; he was waiting for the two demons. If they didn't participate, even if he won, it would be normal to be discarded after using them. He had to ensure that both demons were as exhausted as he was, while also having enough strength to escape with Lori.
"Karl?" Suddenly, he heard someone call his name from behind. He turned around and saw a woman dressed as a nun standing behind him.
After a brief pause, he recognized her as Lori.
"How did you get here?" He felt his head starting to ache, and looking at her happy smile, he couldn't bring himself to say anything to blame her.
"I was worried about you." Lori blinked at him. "Do I look good like this?"
Carl paused, then paused, the question that followed making him momentarily lost in thought.
He seemed to have seen a similar scene before; his ex-girlfriend had asked him a similar question.
Then she died, just a few days later. It was as if that statement was a curse.
“Karl?” Lori saw Karl lost in thought, walked over, looked up at him, and asked.
"It's beautiful." Karl rubbed her head, then pressed his head against hers, slowly raising his head after a few seconds.
A golden pattern appeared on Lori's head.
"Hey, can I have one of these too?" Connie hesitated, looking at the pattern. "But this kind of mushy way is too much, it hurts!"
Carl had no intention of being gentle with this guy; he raised his hand and flicked him hard with his finger, nearly knocking him to the ground.
A golden pattern also appeared above its head; this was a simple array for storing holy magic power. Its function was likely still as a barrier.
After all, he is a priest, and his main job is to heal and buff.
Connie rubbed his head and looked at the little girl clinging to Carl, scratching his head in confusion.
Although he had always known that Karl had this girl with him, he had never imagined that the two of them could have a more serious relationship. He considered himself to have a discerning eye and be able to see through such things.
But now, he felt he might have misjudged things. Because the two of them standing together actually looked quite well-matched. Karl wasn't a particularly muscular guy; Ketch was already half a head taller than him. Although he had solid muscles, he looked like a rather thin man in his robes. Or rather, because he became a priest so early, if you looked at his face and removed his beard, he would be a delicate-looking boy.
Just by looking into his eyes, you can tell that this guy has been through a lot. He's young, but he's already past his prime.
“This is my fiancée.” Carl put his arm around Lori’s shoulder and looked at the startled Connie. “I see you seem to have a question.”
"Is...is that so? Then they're quite a good match." His face twitched as he looked at Lori's face, which was flushed red to the roots of her ears, and he suddenly felt that he was very out of place here.
“Karl?” This time it was Lori’s turn to speak. She looked up at Karl and said, “Really?”
“If you’re unhappy, that’s fine. It was my decision.” Karl’s face showed no intention of trying to persuade him to stay; he was just saying it. “The church doesn’t have any rules about our private lives, and I am indeed of marriageable age.”
“No, no, no, I’m so happy! Carl, I…” Lori said, and just as she was about to jump up and hug Carl, she was pushed away abruptly.
Lori stared at Carl in disbelief, still not understanding why he would do such a thing.
A barrage of questions and fears exploded in her mind. She sensed something was wrong, but then she saw Karl's expression of disgust.
Time seemed to stand still at that moment. Lori looked at his expression and saw him pull his hand away. The joy from her recent confession combined with the scene before her, and she didn't even know how to react.
"For..." Her mouth opened slightly, but tears were already streaming down her face. Before she could finish speaking, she was swallowed by the red light.
Her face, her deep roar, and the dazzling golden light were like the rising sun. The impact of their contact lifted her robes and hat, and her once neatly combed hair was completely blown away, spreading out like blooming flowers.
"Run!" Karl shouted, taking a half-step back. With a slight flick of his wrist, he shattered the flying stone while spitting out a mouthful of blood.
Lori stared at him blankly, then suddenly understood.
This guy wasn't actually disliking me; he just had no choice but to push me away because of some inexplicable turn of events.
Ha, haha. That really startled me. So he didn't dislike me after all. I thought... I thought... wait? Why did I subconsciously think that? I should have trusted Karl more. He must have his reasons for suddenly doing this, but my subconscious mind just overlapped with past images.
Three bones are broken, and the recovery time is about two seconds. The holy power has been consumed by 30%, and the recovery time is twelve seconds. There are seven crosses in the pocket. The time to open the holy relic is five seconds.
Carl looked at the thing and took a deep breath to calm himself down.
For a priest, one-on-one combat is not his forte. His reserves of holy magic and physical strength are the lowest among high-ranking priests. He is only slightly stronger than humans and demons.
Perhaps the only thing they can boast about is their recovery ability.
"My lord!" Connie was stunned by the sudden scene and stared in disbelief at the enormous monster.
Its nine heads, no longer thrashing about in pain, all turned to look at Karl standing there.
The attack just now was merely one of the nine heads gathering its magic power and unleashing it as a wave. The amount of energy consumed was imperceptible, but Karl used a full thirty percent of his holy magic power to resist and save the two of them.
Outside this barrier, the dolls who couldn't evacuate in time were instantly shattered. And the steel city wall had already been breached.
"This guy doesn't seem stupid," Karl said softly. "Is it because it sensed someone wanted to kill it?"
“Um, sir, I think we should…” Connie turned around to try and persuade Karl to retreat for a moment and wait for rescue, but the guy had already jumped over the city wall.
Upon landing, the ground cracked from the shock, and as he stepped into the chaotic area, he shot out from his spot.
At the same time, the sound of artillery fire was like thunder. The weapons hidden on the city walls unleashed their full power, creating a swirling curtain of fire.
It really sounded like rain, except the sound of the shells hitting the ground was just like raindrops.
Carl felt a weight pressing down on his back. He paused, then turned to look at the monster crouching on top of him.
That's a little spider with two cats on its head.
"Why are you here?" Carlton paused, then immediately realized his question was redundant. It would obviously take Lori quite a while to get here from the palace, but she arrived quickly, so it was obvious she had been helped.
"Um, let me think about how I can help you." The little spider's hoarse voice tried its best to make its meaning clear: "Could you please give me a ride?"
As he spoke, his secondary limbs swung behind him, slicing through the flying rocks.
"I also want to help," Gray said, emphasizing each word.
"We can't just eat that guy's food for free," came the reply from the shadows.
Of course, this is just an excuse.
The real reason was that I felt bad for upsetting the little spider, so I came along to help.
The ground began to shake; the erratic temperature and gravity of this no-man's-land, so unpredictable as torrents of life, were beginning to unleash their destructive power. For some unknown reason, they could no longer stand on the ground, merely scattering and desperately searching for footholds, unable to discern their exact location.
Fortunately, the monster was enormous, making it easy to locate.
Dark pulled Gray's wrist and drew her to his side. Once in human form, a scythe materialized in his hand. Gray, in turn, gripped a longsword.
Everyone present was a monster. Suddenly, An had the illusion that he might be quite normal, and he also had a bit of a headache, wondering why he was here.
Is there any necessary connection between angering a monster and it coming to fight you? God knows, considering that even nature here doesn't follow logic, let alone humans whose behavior patterns are even more difficult to explain.
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