Bloodbound Codex: I Grow Stronger in Secret

”ROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRR!!”

A deafening roar came out from the Monster’s now-wide mouth, and the moment it did, everyone’s ears went numb before they could even raise their hands to cover them. The soundwave continued spreading through the chamber, shaking the massive walls of the Ruin and sending dust down from the ceiling. Several of the hanging boulders above them also moved from the force, making the remaining members of Asfalon instinctively look upward for only a brief moment before their attention returned to the Monster.

The roar continued for several seconds before finally weakening. The members of Asfalon had already lowered their hands from their ears, but their hearing had not completely returned yet. Raison, Heddeon and Armado were still recovering from the previous attack, their Spirit reserves already lower than before, while Himalton and Alberion were trying to understand what the Monster would do next. Atlas remained above the Monster with his presence still concealed, but even he understood that the situation had changed the moment the Monster opened its mouth.

’That roar wasn’t just to make noise.’

Atlas’s eyes moved slightly toward the Monster as he continued observing it. The soundwave had already been enough to affect everyone in the chamber, but the Monster itself had not moved while releasing it. That made Atlas think that the roar had most likely been used to interfere with their perception before the actual attack. However, before he could analyze it any further, the Monster’s body moved.

The movement was much faster than its size suggested.

Its massive right arm swung toward the remaining members of Team Asfalon in one wide motion, and the attack was so fast that the three of them only had enough time to look toward it before it reached them. Raison tried to raise his metal gauntlets while Heddeon pulled his dagger upward, and Armado started drawing his Long Sword from its sheath again, but none of them had enough time to complete their defenses.

The hand passed through all three at once.

There wasn’t enough time for them to even produce another scream.

Their bodies were struck by the same swing, and all three were thrown away from the Monster’s position before crashing into the ground one after another. The force behind that single movement was enough to crush their bodies far beyond what their Spirit defenses could handle, and none of the three got up again.

Himalton’s expression changed as he saw that.

”Raison! Heddeon! Armado!” He moved before even thinking about it, but the Monster had already changed its direction.

The same arm swung again and this time...the target was Himalton.

Himalton tried to move backward while raising his left arm, but the Monster’s movement was fast, it had surpassed the speed of sound which was far above than what he could even see, let alone avoid it. The hand passed through his right side before he could escape, and the force of the impact tore his right hand and right leg away from his body.

”KHAAAGH!”

Blood immediately came out from the severed areas as Himalton’s body was thrown sideways. He managed to remain conscious, but the damage was obvious even from where Atlas was watching. Himalton crashed onto the ground and rolled several times before finally stopping, his remaining left hand pressing against the ground as he tried to stabilize himself.

Alberion had already started moving.

He had seen the attack coming and immediately reacted by forming Roots from the ground around himself. One barrier appeared, followed by another, then another, each one growing between him and the Monster as quickly as possible.

Alberion had already reacted the moment the Monster’s hand moved toward him. Several Roots immediately rose from the ground in front of him, forming one barrier after another as he continued moving backward. The first layer was struck immediately and broke under the force of the hand, but before the attack could reach him, another layer of Roots had already formed in front of him. That one also broke instantly, forcing Alberion to continue creating more barriers while trying to put some distance between himself and the Monster.

’Fuck! Again!’

More Roots came out from the ground and crossed over each other, forming a much denser barrier in front of Alberion. He knew that if the Monster’s hand reached him directly, he would end up like the three members who had already been killed, so he continued using his Spirit to create one barrier after another without stopping.

Yet...even that wasn’t enough as the stoned hand broke through the final layer, forcing Alberion to move his body sideways at the last moment. Doing so he managed to avoid the center of the attack, but the Monster’s claws still passed across his body from the right shoulder toward the left side of his waist, leaving a massive wound across his chest and abdomen.

”KHUAAACK!!”

Blood immediately covered the front of Alberion’s clothes as the force behind the attack threw him several meters backward. He quickly created several Roots beneath himself to slow his movement before he could crash into the wall, but even after stopping himself, his breathing had already become heavier and the pain from the wound was clearly affecting him. He lowered his head for a moment before looking back toward the Monster.

’That attack...’ He had created several barriers and still received this much damage from a single movement. Alberion’s eyes remained fixed on the Monster as another thought crossed his mind.

’What kind of strength is that?’ He didn’t have time to think any further because the Monster’s attention suddenly shifted again.

Atlas.

Even though Atlas’s presence remained concealed through his Traits, the Monster’s head slowly moved upward. Atlas noticed the change immediately and narrowed his eyes while watching the creature’s head turn toward the upper part of the chamber.

’It found me after all huh?’

He prepared to move, but the Monster didn’t need to approach him directly. Its massive mouth opened again, and at the same time an enormous amount of Spirit Energy started gathering inside it. Atlas immediately focused his perception on the Monster and realized that the Spirit Energy was being compressed into one place at an extremely high density. It wasn’t like the pressure that had spread through the chamber earlier, nor was it similar to a normal technique used by an Explorer. This was a direct attack that was being prepared inside the Monster’s mouth.

’An attack...’

Atlas continued watching for only a brief moment before he understood what was about to happen.

The Monster fired.

A beam made entirely from condensed Spirit Energy shot upward from its mouth toward Atlas’s position. There was almost no time between the formation of the attack and its release, and its speed was so high that even Atlas’s Spirit Instinct and Spirit Perception only warned him so much.

Atlas immediately moved his body.

But the beam was already too close, his body shifted sideways, yet the attack still caught him directly.

’SHIT!’

The beam struck through his body with tremendous force as the concealed presence around him disappeared instantly from the impact. A massive explosion spread through the upper part of the chamber as his body was thrown away, while the beam continued through the space above him and destroyed a large portion of the stone ceiling. Large fragments of rock broke free and fell toward the ground as smoke formed by dust and debris quickly spread through the area, completely covering the position where Atlas had been hit.

For several moments, there was no movement from inside the smoke.

The Monster remained standing below while its attention stayed toward the upper part of the chamber as if it still could sense its prey...alive. In only one moment, just a single moment - it had already killed three members of Asfalon, severely injured Alberion, torn away Himalton’s right hand and leg, and now it had also landed a direct attack on Atlas.

Himalton was still lying on the ground with blood continuing to flow from the places where his right hand and leg had been torn away. His face had already become pale from the blood loss, yet he still managed to raise his head and look toward the smoke.

’Alberion...’

His eyes shifted toward the other side.

Alberion was still alive, but the large wound running from his right shoulder toward the left side of his waist had left him struggling to remain standing. Himalton then looked back toward the smoke where Atlas had disappeared.

’Mr. Atlas...’

He couldn’t sense him anymore.

For the first time since entering the Divine-rank Ruin, Himalton didn’t know whether Atlas was still alive or whether the attack had actually killed him. He had already seen what the Monster could do to the rest of them, so even someone like Atlas receiving that beam directly made him unsure of the result.

The smoke continued spreading through the upper part of the chamber before gradually becoming thinner.

Something moved inside it.

At first, only a small movement could be seen through the remaining smoke before a hand stepped forward. A moment later one foot touched the ground, and Atlas slowly walked out from within the smoke. His clothes were heavily damaged, blood covered parts of his body, and his entire left side had been severely injured by the beam.

Yet he was still standing.

The wound on his left side had already started disappearing as his body regenerated. Flesh slowly returned around the damaged area while the destroyed parts of his body rebuilt themselves. Even his left eye, which had been completely destroyed by the attack, regenerated along with the surrounding flesh until it returned to normal.

Atlas raised his head and looked toward the Monster.

’That beam...’

He already understood the difference between himself and the others now. Raison, Heddeon and Armado had been killed by one swing of the Monster’s hand, Himalton had lost his right hand and leg from another attack, while Alberion had only managed to remain alive because of the Root barriers he created. Atlas himself had taken the Spirit beam directly, and even though his regeneration had allowed him to recover, the attack had still damaged him heavily enough that he couldn’t treat it casually.

’So this is the level of an SSS-rank Monster.’

His eyes remained fixed on the Boss while the final traces of damage disappeared from his body. He then shifted his attention toward his own right hand as Regenerative Hide had already kicked in, making his flesh stitch back together in a rapid rate.

Atlas looked directly toward the Monster while the formation continued taking shape.

He had wanted to avoid using this Technique.

But now...he had no other choice.

Active Vector — Kankon-Rei { 還痕零 }.