Reflective Scale Disease-Carrier Fish Demon
Good thing we took out the long-range shooters first and then hid under the cross-species ally in the corner where the food-throwers barely attack.
I managed to evolve safely.
Now my body feels much lighter. I no longer feel weighed down by those two layers of thick scales.
Best of all, the headaches are gone. The more I breathe in the black mist, the more invigorated I feel.
I grabbed the remaining beast-food' s arm and slowly twisted it until the hand broke.
"Ouch! It hurts!"
Whoosh!
At that moment, a fireball shot toward my face. But the instant it hit my scales, the entire flame deflected elsewhere, striking an unlucky piece of food instead, injuring it.
I glared at the food that shot it. It flinched in shock, along with the others.
This mutant evolution is just too good.
"No need to rush. I' ll eat every single one of you."
But first, I' ll torment this beast-food. It' s the sole reason my evolution slowed down.
"Go for it!"
At the command of one of the food, both lassos and whips came flying at me.
The whips bounced off my scales instantly, but the lassos managed to snag my neck and tail.
"Drag it out!"
Caught off guard, I stumbled slightly.
I let go of the beast-food' s arm—I' d deal with it later.
As I prepared to spit mucus at the trash-food, the lasso around my neck was yanked hard, throwing my aim off.
But I managed to rip off the necklace the beast-food was wearing just before being dragged away.
"Ugh! Cough, cough, cough!"
The trash-food started getting infected. That alone was enough to keep it from moving.
More of them joined in pulling the ropes, and my body began to be dragged along.
If they want to be eaten that badly, I' ll oblige.
Instead of breaking free, I leaped toward them.
The ones pulling the ropes fell flat on their backs.
"Spear wall!"
Over thirty food wielding spears rushed forward, forming a barrier of pointed tips to intercept me.
I didn' t dodge, letting the spears strike my body head-on.
Their spears glanced off to the side. I broke through to the center of their spear-wielding group.
"What the—?!"
"We' re screwed!"
"What is this thing?!"
I stretched out my arms fully, grabbing the heads of the food at each end of the line and smashing them together in the middle.
The sound of cracking skulls mixed with the squelching of brains being crushed made the ones in the back tremble in fear.
When they saw me open my mouth and swallow the pile of mashed heads in one gulp, they staggered back.
"Yaaargh!"
One large piece of food leaped at me, swinging an axe.
I turned and spat thick, black mucus at it. The mucus coated its body, rendering it immobile before it crashed to the ground.
Covered head to toe, it couldn' t see, hear, speak, or breathe.
No matter how much it struggled, it soon suffocated and died.
"Shoot!"
Over thirty arrows came flying, all deflected by my scales.
"Magic attack!"
Every element of magic yielded the same result as the arrows.
"Kill it!"
I snapped the ropes and stood, waiting for the food to come to me.
*****
Rokta Jentia, head of the security force for the 10th inner city district, responsible for the slums and the city' s entrance and exit gates.
Currently, I was ordered to join the slum frontline to replenish lost forces.
"Kill it!"
After ordering everyone to attack it together, I rushed into the black mist.
I grabbed two young girls, carrying them under my arms, and fled.
Thanks to my rigorous training, far exceeding that of regular soldiers, I escaped the black mist just as the food started reacting.
My head throbbed, and my body burned, but healing and cleansing magic enveloped me and the two girls, fully restoring us.
"Thanks. Here' s the payment as agreed."
I handed three silver coins to the [Rank B] healer, as per our deal for cleansing and healing the three of us.
Truthfully, the healer hadn' t wanted payment. But when he learned I was rescuing slum dwellers and slaves, his face twisted in disgust, and he charged an exorbitant price.
It was practically robbery. He argued that his magic should be reserved for those useful on the battlefield, not 'trash' like them.
But when I showed him the money, he agreed.
I set the two girls down. Elda was in terrible shape, as if she' d been tortured in a criminal interrogation chamber.
Who could do this to a child?
The other girl, a beast-human, thanked me. Her condition was just as bad—one leg and one arm were permanently useless.
Yet, she was more concerned about Elda than herself.
As for the monster that hurt them…
I looked at the demon. Its scales were so tough that even a full-force sword strike glanced off, throwing the swordsman off balance.
In that moment, it bit down, tearing half the swordsman' s head off and swallowing it.
It didn' t even bother dodging, standing there arrogantly as if inviting attacks.
We can' t let it keep killing and eating like this.
I stood, unsheathing my sword.
"Activate skill."
[Skill activated.]
A faint white glow enveloped the sword as a notification sounded in my head. I charged in.
While it stood unguarded, I swung the flat of my blade hard against the back of its neck.
The sword bounced back but didn' t deflect like previous attacks.
The demon fell face-first to the ground, dazed.
I leaped back, narrowly dodging its retaliating tail swipe.
"Get someone skilled with a hammer! It' s weak to blunt attacks! Stop using sharp edges!"
The demon whipped around, spitting mucus at me.
I rolled to dodge and charged again, swinging at its face.
It leaped back swiftly, so I redirected my swing toward its core.
"Ugh!"
The sword glowed brighter.
It clutched its groin and collapsed.
"Annoying mid-tier food."
It lunged at me with a kick. I raised my sword, pulling it back to swing.
It spat mucus, but I sidestepped with a kick of my own.
The mucus was a feint. It grabbed mud from the soaked ground and threw it at my face.
Too clever. I couldn' t block in time.
Some mud got in my eyes, blinding me.
I swung my sword wildly, hoping to force it back so I could retreat to a puddle to wash the mud out.
What I didn' t know was that it spun, slamming its tail into me with full force.
What it didn' t know was that my body was under the effect of another' s skill.
The tail struck my side, sending me flying toward the puddle where the carrier slimes couldn' t reach.
I seized the chance to dunk my face in and wash the mud out.
When I stood and checked my side, there wasn' t even a scratch.
The adventurers and soldiers, once terrified, regained their courage and swarmed it.
Though it overpowered them, knocking them back, no one died or was injured.
And the one responsible for that was Etos, leader of the [Iron Bastion] guild.
With no fear of death, everyone, including me, attacked relentlessly.
The demon began to show signs of damage. Its scales started to crack.
"Filthy mid-tier food."
It charged at Etos but was stopped by nearly thirty of his guild' s tanks.
When it tried to leap over them, the tanks dropped their shields, tackled it to the ground, and pummeled it. Etos retreated, protected by more guild members.
Unable to fight back, the demon started to retreat.
This was our chance. I charged straight at it, trading blows as my sword glowed brighter with each strike.
As it landed an uppercut, sending me into the air, it spun, sweeping its tail to knock everyone around it back.
I saw it scanning for something.
When it found its target, it bolted. I followed its path.
There, a dog-eared slave girl was biting Elda' s shirt, dragging her with her one good arm, crawling to escape the battlefield.
"It' s going for those two girls!"
I shouted, still airborne, unable to help.
Etos smirked. The girls were within his [Iron Bastion] skill' s radius.
But when the fish demon reached them, it grabbed both and hurled them deep into the black mist.
"You fish-faced bastard… Damn it!"
Etos' s smirk vanished. The girls were thrown beyond his skill' s range.
He shouted for everyone to clear a path so he could extend his skill' s radius.
"Don' t touch what might be my sister Calika!"
Despite his screams, the demon ignored him, closing in on the girls.
With no other choice, Etos used another skill.
"Earth Dominion!"
A dome of earth shot up, trapping the demon just before it reached the girls. Etos manipulated the ground to roll Elda out.
"Save the other girl too!"
"Tch!"
Etos reluctantly pushed the other girl out of the mist and ordered his guild to retrieve them.
I hit the ground, regained my balance, and ran toward the mist.
Carrier slimes fired pieces at me along the way.
Etos' s skill kept them at bay, and I deflected most with my sword' s hilt.
At first, I didn' t think much of it, but as I neared the mist, their attacks grew more frequent.
Then it hit me—they were working together.
The fish demon had taken out the fire mages, weakening our offense, so the slimes were helping it.
Not only were they targeting me, but they were also firing at the dome to help their kin melt the earth trapping the fish demon.
"Fire mages, burn the dome! Not too strong, don' t break it!"
Entering the black mist, I thought, Harvest.
A voice echoed in my head.
[Accumulated 67 attacks.]
My next attacks would carry the force of 67 strikes per hit, usable 67 times.
"Damage Accumulation skill, activate."
[Damage Accumulation skill activated.]
With this, its scales wouldn' t stand a chance.
The dome was scorched. Etos raised earth walls to block the slime fragments for me.
"Etos! Open it!"
I discarded my scabbard and pulled my sword back.
As the dome opened, I froze at the sight before me, forgetting to swing.
That mistake became a costly lesson. The demon grabbed my wrist, stopping me.
What stunned me was that it had completed its evolution.
The dome meant to trap it had become its shield, letting it evolve undisturbed.
Its body was twice as large, its scales now razor-sharp blades.
Its single tail had split into four agile, smaller tails, each tipped with a deadly blade.
"I' m ready, food. Heh heh heh."