Hunters: The Prequel - Chapter 289

Surrounded by the energetic voices of his father’s men, Arthur finally took a step forward. The aura of dominance that was radiated from his body increased with that one step. The creatures that had arrived at the village so eagerly only a few moments before, now looked on fearfully. Arthur took a simple step. He just put one foot in front of the other, yet to them it was like a hill had suddenly grown into a mountain, and the pressure they felt was insane. Like trained soldiers with impeccable coordination, every single beast took a step backwards. It didn’t matter if it was a Middle or Low Class Magical Beast. Every single one of them took a step back. Even the Large Ironclad Earthworms, the first group of High Class Magical Beasts to arrive, couldn’t help but tremble at the aura of the one who stood before them. They also slid back.

The fighters watched what was happening with excitement. This was the aura of a ruler! This was the power of one destined to be a leader. With a single step all the beasts took a step back. Their blood boiled and their bodies screamed in ecstasy. Never had they been this pumped for a fight. No. Some of the older ones had experienced this before. It was the same with the one who led their village. It was the same with the boy’s father. Whenever he stood before them, this was how they felt. As they gazed upon Arthur’s figure, several of those belonging to the older generation could see his father’s shadow hovering over him. Village Head Fan wasn’t here, but his son was. And the effect of having this young man here was almost identical to having Village Head Fan here, if not better.

From a remote corner of the battlefield, Village Head Fan watched the towering figure of his son with tears in his eyes. He had never felt prouder. He arrived with Arthur, but he chose to remain hidden. It wasn’t a decision made for no good reason. Rather, when his son picked up Durandal, he could feel the two resonate, and a sense of majesty that was even greater than his radiated from the boy he had locked up in the village all these years. Feeling the power that palpated so loudly and rang so resoundingly in his ears, Village Head Fan knew at that moment that his son was complete. The warrior Durandal was wielding the sword Durandal, and they accepted each other.

Village Head Fan didn’t quite understand it, but he felt that the reason why Arthur became so overpowered after receiving Durandal was because of him. He couldn’t explain it. It was a gut feeling rather than anything else.

What Village Head Fan didn’t know was that he was right. It was indeed because of him that Arthur had grown so powerful upon receiving Durandal. Durandal wasn’t called a demon sword because it was used to slay demons. Every sword could slay demons. You just have to slice their heads off. It was given its name because it drained whomever it killed. When Durandal kills someone, the sword grows stronger. It was this kind of insane growth that led to its moniker. The stronger the prey, the more powerful Durandal becomes. And when it finally gained a master, all this power is transferred to him/her.

Village Head Fan had only resorted to using Durandal whenever he came across situations that were beyond his control. So though he had only resorted to using it a few times, each time he used the blade, the enemies that fell to it were all excellent nutrition for Durandal. Village Head Fan shouldn’t have been able to use Durandal, but because of Caliburn, this restriction was lifted. Unfortunately, because he wasn’t its true partner, the sword drained his life force whenever he used it, treating him like a snack to satisfy itself. Usually, the new owner of Durandal would have to do what every other owner did: become a Predator and kill strong preys to gradually strengthen Durandal. The power was constantly passed to the owner, so by the time it was ready to receive a new partner, it would have been drained. Although it would be stronger than it was before, it wouldn’t be as much as it was now.

But since Village Head Fan wasn’t its owner, everything was acc.u.mulated, and his own power was included. So when he gave the sword to Arthur, this power that had been gathered all these years was slowly passed to the boy. Since Arthur was its partner, Durandal was gentle with the power it was handing over, and didn’t give everything at once. If it did that, Arthur wouldn’t be able to handle the sudden increase and would break down. So it slowly transferred the power to him. All the power it had gathered in the hands of his father, plus a small portion the majestic power of Caliburn it siphoned from Village Head Fan made it a powerful weapon. Even now, Arthur’s aura was slowly increasing. And he would only get stronger.

Destiny is a funny thing. All his life Village Head Fan tried to keep his son away from the battlefield. All his life he kept the boy cooped up, preferring to leave him in the dark about the affairs of the village and the trials that were definitely going to come. Yet today he had let the boy go. He had returned Durandal to its owner. His son now stood here, on what was possibly the biggest stage either of them had ever been on, full of power and pride.

“Go ahead. I would lie in the shadows and wait for that Pseudo Legendary Magical Beast.”

Village Head Fan whispered to himself. He judged that Arthur was currently strong enough to deal with even the Mythic Class Magical Beasts, so although he was a bit worried, he still made this decision. Plus Arthur denied his plan when he said he wanted go out into the battlefield and draw out the Pseudo Legendary Class Magical Beast. Usually, Village Head Fan would just beat him into submission (unconsciousness) and do things his way. But the current situation made that unfavorable. Besides, Arthur’s current strength made it impossible for Village Head Fan to beat him as easily as he did before. They were still arguing about who would go when Arthur saw that Samoa was in danger and rushed in to help. Village Head Fan almost went after him, but his last shred of reasoning informed him that as the Head of the Village, he had to be more prudent. So automatically, he was the one to stay behind. He was still a tad worried, but seeing Arthur’s performance comforted him. His boy was strong; very strong.

“Now we just have to wait until it appears” Village Head Fan thought silently and hid himself once more.

“His aura is growing. Is he somehow getting stronger as he fights?” Frowning Tiger said, stunned by what he was seeing. His apprentice’s aura kept growing, and it didn’t show any signs of stopping.

“It seems so. Right now, he’s stronger than both you and me. I doubt any of the Tigers can compare to him now. Maybe only his father is his match”

Rash Tiger had a broad smile on his face as he spoke. Having a powerhouse capable of changing the tides of battle appear in moments like these was always welcome.

“You are right. He isn’t a Lion Cub anymore” Frowning Tiger assented.

“Yeah. He’s a full grown Lion now” Rash Tiger laughed. Although Arthur’s sudden strength gain was abnormal, it didn’t change the fact that he was a powerful Lion now. Frowning Tiger couldn’t help but wonder if he could refer to the boy as his apprentice anymore.

“Not a Lion,” Frowning Tiger suddenly smiled.

“Oh? Then what?” Rash Tiger asked, perplexed.

“He is what you just referred to him as”

“He is Durandal” Frowning Tiger smirked. He knew just how embarrassed his student was by that name. So it was a bit funny that that was what everyone was shouting out now.

“That he is” Rash Tiger laughed boisterously. “Oh look. Samoa is okay now” Rash Tiger suddenly stated and pointed at the figure sitting behind Arthur. It was because of this man that Arthur didn’t dare to engage the enemy forces.

Samoa slowly stood up and patted Arthur on the shoulder to show that he was fine. The Healing Balm was as effective as the rumors said it was. His bruise didn’t hurt any longer and the purple patch was slowly disappearing. He covered his shoulder and fastened his armor. And then he said only one thing to his battle thirsty friend.

“Go”

Like an arrow released from a bowstring, Arthur dashed forward with speed that even exceeded Blistering Cheetah’s. Before the Magical Beasts could understand what was happening, Arthur was already in their midst.

*Whish*

With a single swing of his sword, several heads came off. It didn’t matter if they were Low, Middle, or High Class Magical Beasts. That single swipe had taken the lives of countless beasts of very differing strengths. Arthur’s power didn’t discriminate. It took the life of any and all it deemed as enemies.

Durandal was swung again, and several bodies were cut into two. Some were decapitated, others were sliced apart like bread slices. A few more were cut into several chunks. With just two moves, Arthur struck fear into the hearts of the Magical Beasts. And it all happened in less than a second. In fact, only Frowning Tiger and Rash Tiger could make out the number of sword swings. And even they had a hard time keeping up with Arthur.

There was silence for a while. And then there was chaos. The Magical Beasts scattered in several directions. Panic could be seen in the eyes of those who possessed eyes, and fear was the new currency. This demon who appeared caused them the same dread they felt whenever they faced a peak Mythic Class Magical Beast. They could feel that this wasn’t something they could contend with.

Seeing the escaping beasts, Frowning Tiger and Rash Tiger had glints in their eyes. They dashed towards the High Class Magical Beasts who were too panicked to defend themselves and started a slaughter. Soon, every fighter was involved. In their fear, the Magical Beasts were much easier to kill than usual. Added to the charisma that Arthur possessed and his power that had pumped the fighters full of adrenaline, the Magical Beasts were killed swiftly. Soon, there was nothing in sight.

“Durandal!”

“Durandal!”

“Durandal!”

“Durandal!”

“Durandal!”

“Durandal!”

“Durandal!”

It was unknown who started it. But before long, this title rang across the battlefield. The first zone had killed the first wave of beasts, and the other zones didn’t have to even get involved in the main battle. Sure there were bound to be beasts that strayed and took other paths. After all that was what the other zones were built for. But the main group had been handled. And this was all because of the man who stood at the forefront.

“ROAR”

Suddenly, a loud roar resounded. The roar was majestic and powerful. It was so mighty that the cheers stopped instinctively. Fear spread into the hearts of all who heard it, and their elation was quickly wiped away.

“That’s it” Frowning Tiger whispered. That roar terrified even him, a Tiger. This was beyond the capabilities of a Mythic Class Magical Beast. This was…

“The Pseudo Legendary Class Magical Beast. It is coming.” Rash Tiger said. He put his hand to his c.h.e.s.t and felt his beating heart. It was running much faster than it usually would. His rapidly galloping heart was felt through his fingers. It was a feeling he hadn’t experienced since he became a Tiger. And he knew that only one being could induce such an emotion.

*Clink*

Suddenly, the sound of a bell reached the ears of everyone. This sound dispelled the fear that was brought by the Pseudo Legendary Class Magical Beast. Like water in a patched land, this sound refreshed the souls of all who heard it and made them whole again. Their immobile bodies found strength, and their faces which were flushed with fear regained their former color. They looked to the source of their strength and saw him.

Durandal was his title. He stood far ahead of the rest. Around him were several corpses of a myriad of beasts, and the sword he held glowed red. The ringing sound came from his sword. It was the result of knocking it lightly on the ground. Yet that simple action was why they could still stand. That simple clank was why they could and would fight.

Arthur didn’t say anything. He wasn’t eloquent like Rash Tiger or Samoa. After all, his master was Frowning Tiger. And the man wasn’t exactly known for his impressive war speeches. But Arthur didn’t need to say anything. He struck his sword against the ground again and again. The countless clanking sounds resonated with his people. And soon, everyone was striking his/her weapon against the ground. Together, their auras melded, and they became one. Together they felt the weight of their task, but they were undaunted. No one knew when, but soon the other zones had reunited with the first zone, and everyone stood behind Arthur. It was as if they knew that there would be no other place to protect from that moment on, other than this place.

Finally, the ground started shaking again. This was the sign that the second horde was coming. The stronger the shaking got, the louder the weapons were clanked.

Soon they could make out the mighty figures of High and Mythic Class Beasts approaching. Arthur gazed at them, his eyes unmoved by their mighty figures. He simply raised his sword. The red Durandal was particularly blinding under the sunlight, and everyone could make it out. The clanking ceased, and they all raised their weapons in solidarity. Slowly, Arthur’s lips parted, and he said the simplest words that had ever been said by a leader on a battlefield. But the response was unlike any other.

“We fight”

“OHHHH!!!!!!”