The Iron-Blooded Lord had twelve children—seven sons and five daughters. His emphasis on bloodline seemed justified, as most of them were highly talented.
From what I recalled, three had died prematurely. Two had perished in accidents while on missions as hero disciples, and the third, Ludwig, the fifth son, had died under mysterious circumstances. He had vanished without a trace, and his body had yet to be found, even three years after his disappearance. The last place he had been seen was the Badnikers' main house. Ludwig had always been a curious soul.
Why did Ludwig come to mind now? The Iron-Blooded Lord wouldn't kill his own child just for stepping into a forbidden area.
But this belief only applied to him.
If my suspicions were correct and the Council of Elders discovered the intrusion first, they would probably kill me and feign ignorance or report it preemptively. Dismissing it as paranoia wouldn't be surprising.
Still, it was absurd that such a monster was roaming freely in the first place. Then again, the Badniker family was often seen as gloomy and insidious. As such, I couldn't dismiss those rumors.
"Hey, say something," Seren said, her voice cutting through my thoughts.
I looked up to see her uneasy expression.
She is reliable, but I don't need to share everything with her. In any case, the best course of action is to get out of here without anyone knowing we were ever here in the first place.
"I think we have to fight Hariba," I said.
"What?" she replied, her brow furrowing.
"That is the best option," I insisted.
I knew that this was a blunt way to approach the conversation, but there was no better alternative.
As expected, Seren gave me a puzzled look. "Are you insane?"
"Of course not," I answered.
"Then you must have a death wish," she shot back.
It's the same thing, isn't it?
She continued, "Didn't you see him just now? My kick, infused with three blessings, only made him falter for a moment. It felt like kicking an iron wall. It might be possible with a weapon, but not with your bare hands."
Hearing that, I could only respond the same way I always had. "My whole body is my weapon."
Seren was at a loss for words.
"Either way, I can't let my family catch me here, especially not with you. If something goes wrong, it can spark a feud between the Badnikers and the Goodsprings. Are you okay with that?"
At the mention of her family, Seren's expression hardened.
This was odd. From the way she acted, she didn't seem to care about their will. Yet at other times, she seemed strangely conscious of it.
"But—"
I cut her off, "I wouldn't have said this if I had been alone. I'm saying this because I believe the two of us have a chance of winning."
"How can I trust that?" she shot back, her tone skeptical.
She had a point. After a moment, I offered the best excuse in a situation like this. "It is my blessing."
"What?"
"I can't tell you what kind of blessing it is, but we can win with it. That's all you need to know," I said firmly.
Seren stared at me, startled. "Don't tell me... you received the Blessing of the Stars?"
I remained silent.
"Is that it?" she pressed. "Did you receive some prediction that says we're going to win?"
The Blessing of the Stars? Is it some kind of prophecy from the starry sky?
Seren's sudden question caught me off guard, but my expression remained serious. For reasons I couldn't quite explain, I felt this was the right path.
The silence stretched.
Finally, Seren looked at me and said, "Okay. I'll trust you. But you'd better come up with a plan."
"Shall I?"
It was something I had been meaning to bring up myself, but she had beaten me to it. Regardless, my plan would likely be more sound than anything the young Silver Moon could devise.
I quickly assessed the terrain and thought of Hariba. We hadn't clashed directly, but Seren's kick had been powerful. Hariba had taken no damage, which meant his physical defense was formidable.
Still, I doubted it surpassed the scales of the Jewel Beast, the Sapphire Snake. If his defense fell below that level, I could handle him alone.
That thought, however, seemed reckless. With Seren by my side, there was no need to fight alone.
I didn't like the changes I saw in his body either. In under ten seconds, it swelled like rubber, transforming him into something no longer human. Perhaps the change was still ongoing.
I need to test it to know for sure.
With the general concerns settled, I slowly explained the plan.
***
It wasn't hard to find Hariba. We retraced the path we had fled and soon spotted a man screaming, "Luaaaaan—!"
My ears rang.
Hariba had already transformed into a grotesque figure that could no longer be considered human. I wasn't even sure what to label him—a bloated mass of flesh?
Has he been subjected to some kind of curse or twisted alchemical experiment?
Only a corrupt alchemist could commit such sinister deeds.
In any case, I waited for Hariba to draw closer.
Seren and I had temporarily separated, with me acting as bait. The reason was simple: Hariba's attention was fixed on me.
Any moment now... Oh.
Seren, now positioned behind Hariba, gave a hand signal in this direction. She was ready.
Then, I instinctively loosened my neck and revealed myself.
Hariba noticed me immediately and roared, charging forward, "Lu...!"
I narrowed my eyes and observed him. There was no trace of cursed energy or mana emanating from him. From what I could gather, his only ability was his overwhelming physical prowess. That made it hard to gauge his full strength until we clashed directly.
I clenched my fists. I knew it was reckless, but I felt an urge to test him head-on.
As Hariba closed in, I steadied myself and threw a punch.
White Sun Style's 1st Move, Scorching.
Bang!
As soon as our fists connected, I realized he was stronger than I had anticipated.
The impact sent me flying like a cannonball, my mind reeling.
"Luan—!"
For a moment, I thought Hariba was calling my name again, but it wasn't him. It was Seren, shouting as she charged in.
In the meantime, she found a weak spot and aimed a kick at Hariba's neck.
What's the point of a sneak attack if she is shouting like that?
As expected, Hariba turned and swung the back of his hand.
Bam!
Seren was sent flying just like I had been, hurtling straight toward me. I moved to catch her, but she managed to land on her own.
"Hey, you okay?"
"I'm fine," she replied, though a trickle of blood ran down her forehead. Her pale complexion made the crimson streak stand out even more.
She wiped the blood stain roughly, more concerned about me. "Are you okay? You flew farther than I did."
"I'm fine."
"You seem to be strong. By the way, what were you doing? Why face that monster head-on?"
"Save the nagging for later. Get up if you are okay. He is coming back," I said, glancing at Hariba, who was approaching with his grotesquely twisted body.
Seren hadn't simply retreated to the rear. She had deliberately taken a wide detour, observing Hariba from every angle.
"Did you find a weak spot?" I asked.
"His neck is surprisingly thin compared to the rest of its body," she noted. "Unlike the other parts, it isn't covered in muscles."
"Really? I couldn't tell from the front."
"His chest muscles hide it."
"I see. He is a tough opponent to take head-on." I nodded before continuing, "I'll act as bait again."
"Are you sure about this?" Seren asked, her voice tinged with concern.
"We don't have a choice. He has been staring at me the whole time."
Seren fell silent as if unable to refute me, but her gaze held a separate, distrustful glint.
"I won't overdo it this time, so go," I urged.
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Don't die."
I didn't respond, letting out a soft laugh instead.
"Luan..." Hariba's gaze remained fixed on me. Even as Seren, whom he loved so much, moved away, his attention didn't waver.
Between love and hate, was hate the stronger emotion?
As Hariba closed the distance, I scanned the desolate land, bathed in an ominous purple hue and devoid of any signs of life.
Let's test it.
Hariba launched another assault. His attacks were brutal and indiscriminate, relying on sheer physical power. Despite their simplicity, his overwhelming strength made them devastating.
Hariba chased me while almost grinding the ground beneath him.
He wasn't slow by any means. His movements, though deliberate, could explode into bursts of terrifying speed, as I had seen when he reacted to Seren's earlier ambush.
I had assumed it was a burst of instantaneous speed, but his relentless assault had continued for over a minute, with no sign of fatigue.
"Luaaan—!"
I dodged his attack, leading him toward an area where the trees grew unusually dense. Weathered buildings littered the landscape, creating numerous obstacles.
I'm sorry, Seren. There is something I need to check.
I darted through the underbrush while I continued to engage Hariba. He was violent, and the sound of explosions and shattering objects rang constantly in my ears.
During the battle, I noticed something. For the briefest of moments, Hariba's movements would falter. It happened when the number of obstacles around us increased. It wasn't just that his movements slowed; it was as if he momentarily froze, struck by paralysis.
The pauses vanished as quickly as they came, but they weren't subtle enough to escape my notice.
I continued fighting Hariba while surveying my surroundings. My suspicion had turned into certainty: someone was controlling Hariba somewhere in the forest.