Death Ascension - Chapter 77

[Warning: Profanity]

The monster’s ugly face wasn’t capable of expressions yet for some reason, Kaede was certain that it was laughing at him… Probably looking down on the puny little human who dared to challenge him, the strongest warrior in the Queen’s army.

It did not move. Instead, its red-as-burning-coals compound eyes followed Kaede’s movement, seizing him up… Or maybe thinking of how to dismember him as gruesomely as possible.

But Kaede knew that was impossible because if it did, Mikael would have heard it telepathically.

So, he steeled his nerves and stopped a few meters away from the Super Soldier.

Shhkk…

He planted his feet firmly onto the ground and crouched, body slightly leaning forward.

‘Sir Finn always said to ‘Start the fight with a bang’… So…’

He adjusted his grip on his spear shaft as he activated his skill.

<Skill: Teleportation Lvl. 1 is activated.>

<Skill: Teleportation Lvl. 1 is activated.>

<Skill: Teleportation Lvl. 1 is activated.>

And he leaped nine meters of space in an instant!

But unlike before when he only used teleportation as a skill to evade, now Kaede used it to attack!

He materialized above the Super Soldier and fell.

As he let the gravity do its job, Kaede pointed his spear down.

<Skill: Stab Lvl. 1 is activated.>

He felt the familiar motions of the skill, the system guiding his body to deliver the optimum damage.

The surroundings were dim, and he was falling fast but Kaede felt like he was in slow motion as his minds registered the split-second change in the monster’s mien. From haughty to surprised, the stunned monster looked at the fast-approaching spear.

The weapon, aided by gravity, the system, and Kaede’s tripled strength, unleashed a powerful strike!

CRACKK!!!

Kaede exhaled the breath he unconsciously held, triumphant as a loud crack echoed across the chamber.

‘We did it!!!’ he rejoiced.

But his elation immediately turned into dread when the spear shaft bent and broke into two.

“WHAT THE F*CK?!!!” Mikael couldn’t help but curse as, instead of cracking open the super soldier’s skull, their attack only left a minuscule dent on its matte black exoskeleton.

“SH*T!!!!!”

Mikael had hoped to end this battle instantly with that one attack.

But now, the element of surprise was gone, and so was their only weapon.

Kaede stood before the Super ant, rooted to the spot due to the overwhelming shock. Their ultimate attack was rendered useless against the monster, and they could only stare at it in despair.

The Super Soldier’s eyes glowed as if to tell them ‘Was that the best that you could do, puny little human? it felt like a mosquito bite.’

The monster loomed over them with an aura so dense and dark that cold sweat broke out of Kaede’s skin,

‘What now?’ he swallowed drily.

The ant’s rear legs suddenly dug into the floor while its massive head craned back.

Kaede’s instinct told him to run, but before he could move, the Supersoldier rammed into him with a tremendous force that sent him flying ten meters away.

Kaede felt the air in his lungs escape from the blow.

BAAAM!

His back hit the ground and he bounced a few inches in rebound.

Cough! Cough!!

His tongue was immediately drenched in the warm, metallic taste oozing from the back of his throat, his coughed-up blood splashing onto his chest plate.

“Ugghh…”

Kaede groaned from the incredible pain, wincing as he felt a few of his ribs break from the impact. His trembling hand reached the side of his mouth to wipe off the blood.

Seeing his own crimson blood smear his hands shook Kaede to the core—So much that terror crept into the hearts of his soul inhabitants.

Kaede took labored breaths as he wobbled upright.

However, the Super soldier had no intention of letting him rest. Even for a moment.

It charged toward Kaede like a miniature version of Cerberus, bulldozing his way in the Prince’s direction.

‘We need to get away!’

Kaede activated his sole evasion skill.

<Skill: Teleportation Lvl. 1 is activated.>

But it was too late!

The creature’s attack had already connected!

Kaede’s body disappeared and materialized three meters away from his prior position, but the Super Soldier was teleported with him, and he was sent flying for a second time.

A few more bones broke.

And this time, Kaede played dead, hoping to get some respite from the monster’s aggressive attacks.

Fortunately, the Super Major took the bait and it trudged back to the Queen’s side.

‘F*CK!!! SH*T!! D*MMIT!!! AAARRGHHHHHHH!!!!’ Mikael cursed in utter frustration.

He thought teleport only worked on things or people he WANTED to move. It turns out the skill was a double-edged blade. It did not matter whether it was friend or foe, as long as it touched his body, anything could be teleported with him!

Such was the downside of having a physical body. When he was incorporeal, this was never a problem.

Indeed, the skills of the dead only work for the dead.

Again, Mikael lamented his ignorance. Not fully understanding his Ascension system might send him back to the underworld sooner than he thought.

He then looked pitifully at Kaede’s ragged body.

Had he been a normal person, that second attack would’ve already knocked him unconscious. But with two souls controlling him and the atmospheric mana continuously regenerating his body to sustain the body reinforcement, only the intense pain remained, and it was like experiencing death several times over. It was torture.

‘Kid, are you alright?’ Mikael worriedly asked.

‘I- I’m okay, sir…’

Deon tried to sound brave, but his mental voice noticeably quivered from the combined pain, fear, and exhaustion.

‘W-what do we do now, sir? I don’t think we can beat this one.’ He hurriedly asked in an attempt to mask his rising terror.

At the back of his mind, Deon hoped Mikael would tell him to withdraw.

Unfortunately, his wish was met with silence, and he now understood Mikael’s mind enough to know that his ghost partner was busy thinking of ways to win the fight.

‘Kid, let me see your status window for a second.’

‘O-okay…’ Deon replied, wondering how his status window would help in this hopeless situation.

–Chapter end–