The Berserker’s Second Playthrough in the Game - Chapter 73



Only Krnovel

Episode 73 Every moment, every time (2)

―――――――― Kwa – Ang!

The abnormally swollen calf muscle shoved the heel of his foot down hard, crushing the stone slab he was standing on. The leap exploded fragments and cracks, and the spirit of Kadim, who had been crouching behind the pillar, reached the devil’s reach in an instant, leaving only a red afterimage.

For a moment, the mask’s pattern formed a confused shape. The devil quickly swung his scythe in a cross pattern.

――――――――――――― Write – geung, write – geeng!!

It didn’t even brush past. The scythe’s afterimage didn’t even cut down Khadim’s truck, but only scraped down the walls and pillars. Khadim bounced back with the recoil of his thrown body, and rushed at the demon like a predator pounces on its prey. He roughly drove the axe into the neck of the guy who hadn’t yet realized the situation.

Phew – ugh!

But as soon as the ax blade went as deep as a fingernail, the devil’s appearance disappeared.

――――― Huh – Huh!

A destructive ax strike that whips the air. A fierce wind blew along the path of the ax blade. Kadim looked around without any sign of agitation. Eyes shaking red, mixing white and black without distinction, emitting a crimson flash.

I caught the trace in no time. On the podium, a demon is drawing a chaotic swirling pattern and grabbing its neck. Kadim let out a wild roar and rushed towards it again.

“Khaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!”

– … … .

The demon released his hand from his neck. He cleared his confusion, emitting a cold flame from above his mask, then straightened his posture and checked his approach with a series of sickle swings.

― …

It was an attack that was not only wide-ranging but also incredibly destructive and fast. In the time it took for him to exhale, several afterimages flew in, severing pillars and eating away at large sections of walls.

――――― Kwakwakwakwa – !

Even if you dodged it once, the remnants that flew away came back every time you turned the scythe handle. The black lines cutting off space rapidly reciprocated, forming a dense network of cuts.

However, there was not a single scratch on the berserker’s body.

Sse-geong, sse-geong, sse-geong ――――――――――― !!

Kadim moved first to dodge before his bloodshot eyes could capture the afterimage. His extremely amplified sense of touch read the flow of magic and detected the afterimage’s trajectory in advance. Rational thinking and strategic judgment were omitted. Only the physical sensations and instincts were present.

The same was true for the remnants coming back. Kadim had already memorized how the remnant flew away and did not take action. She just felt the moment she was flying, the moment she was coming back, and at every moment she felt closer to precognition and threw her body. Even though several remnants intersected in that gap, blind spots were cleverly found. Beastly acrobatics were performed one after another, relying only on overwhelming senses and reflexes.

– … … .

The devil stopped sharpening his scythe as if it was absurd. Kadim threw the ax as if he had been waiting.

“Ugh, keaaaaaa!!”

――――― Really, really, really, really!!

Even if the body vision was as good as that of a bird of prey, it was impossible to capture the trajectory. A disc of crushing that shoots through the demonic energy like a windstorm, triggering collapse and destruction.

― …

Beyond the haze of dust, the axe was seen smashing into the wall and ruthlessly slamming into it. As if an aftershock had occurred, the vibrations spread throughout the entire wall, and the pillars, which were all mangled, shook dangerously. It was more like a supernatural weapon with a force that borrowed supernatural power than an axe.

However, I was unable to cut down the demon’s body as I intended.

――――― Ssssssssssraeraeraeraeraerarak, kwagwagwagwang!!

I retrieved the axe and threw it back, but this time it was the same. The demon had moved somewhere else without my knowledge. It was an evasion that was almost like teleportation, leaving no trace or afterimage.

The devil sneered, turning the clock on his sickle.

– … … 꽁지에 불붙은 개새끼처럼 날뛰는 모습이 아주 볼 만하군. Okay, let’s see how much more I can rampage.

“Khaaaaaa!!”

A battle ensued in which even the afterimage could not be traced with the eyes of an ordinary person. Attacks that could shatter bones and flesh with just a brush were constantly flying at each other. If they hadn’t been opponents, it was clear that there wouldn’t have been even a trace of the other’s body left behind.

But neither suffered a single scratch. Since the berserker resorted to evasion relying on senses amplified to the limit, and the demon resorted to evasion relying on power whose principles were difficult to estimate, fatal blows always failed to achieve their intended purpose and often went astray.

Kwakwakwakwa, kwaarrrrrr – !!

The only space left was occupied by the clash between the two powerful gods. The pillars and throne were completely destroyed piece by piece, leaving marks on the walls and floor that looked like a behemoth had struggled. The right corner of the space had already collapsed, exposing a pile of crumbled stones. Since neither side was able to inflict any damage and the stalemate continued, it seemed like it would only be a matter of time before the space collapsed.

The situation changed after the blood that dominated Khadim’s mind and body subsided somewhat.

– How much more… … That’s… … I see… … .

[… … … … Sushi… … … … Se-d… … … … Me-t-red-a… … … … .]

“… … Ugh.”

The voice of the demon was crushed, but instead, a whisper whose meaning was completely incomprehensible dug into his ears. Kadim realized that the buff was fading and that madness was slowly creeping in.

However, it has not yet been completely encroached upon. On the contrary, between the runaway blood and madness, Kadim reached a state where his mind was temporarily clear and clear, like the eye of a typhoon. He deduced about the power of the devil based on his previous experiences.

‘A flying ax or a shattering brick could not be returned. That guy’s power is most likely to only manipulate the time of ‘living things’ or ‘magic energy’. Perhaps the scope of those ‘living things’ includes myself. So then, how can you avoid an attack in one go like that? … .’

Kadim split his senses and consciousness as much as he could, tenths of a second, hundredths of a second. Then he was able to catch it, however vaguely. The moment he threw the axe, the clock hands on the scythe’s head spun violently and the demon’s figure disappeared as if it was stepping backwards.

Location. It must have been an instantaneous rewind of his time to return to where he was standing before.

“… … .”

It was an absurd power. Not only could it make humans old and elevate demons, it could also be used for tricky attacks and absolute evasion.

I wondered why he didn’t use that power directly. He could have easily subdued it by simply aging himself, without having to struggle so much…

‘… … Are there any conditions for activating the power? Or is it that you intentionally did not use it in order to compete with me who is at full strength… … .’

Either way, the buff was still there, and now was the only chance while the demon had yet to activate its power. Khadim accelerated his cognitive abilities, then split, split, split his consciousness to perceive his surroundings.

– … … It’s so-so… … It’s so-so… … … … .

[…] … Si-i-shah-al-l… … … … Sssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss-d … … … Bo-ol-l-l… … .]

My sense of time slowed down dramatically. The space was dark red, thick, loose, and heavy, as if I was immersed in a sea of ​​blood.

Qua-ah-ah-ah-ang!

In that space, Kadim once again leaped towards the demon, crushing the stone slabs.

This time, it was more distinct. The hand turning the scythe, the hands of the clock turning, and the devil’s steps rewinding. This time, the direction he dodged was to the right of the side he had rushed at.

Kadim immediately stepped forward, applying the brakes, and twisted his distended core muscles to turn his axis of inertia to the right. To the demon, it was a movement that seemed almost against the laws of physics. The pattern on his mask formed a wave-like shape due to the agitation.

As soon as the demon turned the scythe handle again, Kadim also changed his body direction in an unconventional way again. After repeating this change several times, the demon no longer turned back time. Instead, he pulled the scythe handle back, collecting all the afterimages of the scythes that had been fired and not retrieved at once.

― …

Black remnants that fly like beams of light even in slow time, and that can never be avoided.

Kadim did not dodge.

Write – that – uh – ugh!

He risked getting his leg cut off and got right into the devil’s eye. Then he raised the sword at his waist and struck it like a red thunderbolt.

Ugh – Ugh.

A red-hot trace extending along the blade, space being segmented, and exploding blood.

―――――――――――― Qua – and – and – and – and – !!

The sharp slash was followed by a fierce surge of blood. The ferocious blood that devoured everything it touched cut the demon in half, carving an indelible sword mark from the stone to the ceiling before collapsing into a bloody dew.

Coo – r – r – r – rung… … .

The ceiling and walls cracked and collapsed due to the impact. Immediately afterwards, the devil’s mask cracked apart, and the body behind it split as if it had been hit with a huge spearhead. The devil collapsed, his bones and organs spilling out in a cross-section like a rag.

The tense tension suddenly broke. My sense of time also returned to its original state.

“… … Ugh.”

Kadim rolled around on the floor and touched the ground.

Because my cognitive ability was accelerated, I had to feel pain several times longer. Still, there was no worry about losing her leg. When I glanced at the cut surface, I saw that the fibula and tibia were already growing. Thanks to the fact that the effect of ‘Hydra’s Tattoo’ still remained.

The ‘Blood Demon’, who had vomited all of his blood and slaughtered his enemy, was emitting a reassuring sound. Certainly, the power of the slash was at a level that could cut into pieces even high-ranking demons without exception. If the body were torn in half like that and died, no matter how good the regenerative power was, it would not be possible to survive.

Now, some flesh had grown on his legs. Although he could not walk, he could stand. Using his sword as a cane, Kadim slowly got up.

It just stopped.

My expectations were off.

The body floating alone in the air as if it had been cut off and sticking to itself, the robes being washed away of blood and being restored, the mask being put together.

The devil immediately regained his appearance as when he first met him. They drew the image of fireworks exploding on the mask and slowly clapped.

– Congratulations, you defeated ‘me from 32 seconds ago’.

Kadim’s eyes shook like marbles on the verge of breaking.

Pebillatus spread his arms in a theatrical gesture.

– Then, this time, try defeating me now, no, ‘me from a second ago’.

Click, click, click… … .

The pocket watch in the devil’s hand ticked away the time indifferently.

*

The demons and monsters in front of the Soltana Castle Gate were still running wild.

– Feed, catch the feed!

– Don’t miss it this time!!

– Kehehehehehehehe!!

If there is any bad news, it is that the guest who came this time was by no means a pushover.

Phew – Ugh, blah blah blah!

The wide axe blade cut through the monsters in heaps like a straw. Agon’s angry horn wiped the blood that splattered on his cheek and glanced behind him.

“Stick close behind me, peddler. If you fall, you could die.”

Duncan’s ears were not listening to those words. Surrounded by strange demons and monsters, he was out of his mind. After searching for a safe place and avoiding the demons, this was the end! It was as if fate was mocking him.

– Don’t aim for big prey! Aim for small prey!!

– Kieeeeeek!

– Just give me five fingers! No, just six fingers! I’ll eat that and go back!

“Aha! Ugh, ugh, clack, clack, go away! “Go away, you monsters!”

Whoosh, whoosh – !

“… … .”

Duncan, terrified, pulled out his Hellfire Dagger and swung it desperately. Agon’s angry horn looked at him with a puzzled look. After all, it was a rather unusual weapon for a mere peddler to have.

Duncan’s indiscriminate attacks did not achieve much success. At best, he could only lightly scrape the skin of the goblins that had been pushed aside. In the end, the two men slaughtered the demons on all sides with Agon’s angry horn alone and advanced to the gates of Soltana.

Suddenly there was a strong tremor in the ground.

Coo coo coo coo… … .

The demons and monsters flinched and stopped. Agon’s angry horn also put away its axe for a moment and stopped. The vibration did not occur just once, but continued to resonate. It was as if a giant monster buried in the ground was twisting its body.

Agon’s angry horn narrowed his eyebrows and made a serious expression.

“Wow, looks like we’ve already started fighting the central demon… … . Hang on my back, peddler. Break through the gate immediately.”

“… … yes?”

What are you talking about? The gate is closed.

Duncan didn’t hear the explanation until the end. Agon’s angry horn easily carried Duncan, knelt down on his knees, and chanted in a solemn voice.

“[Atala, the vanguard of the indomitable army. Look down upon your champions, lead them into battle with torches, and grant them the strength to stand against the unholy foes… … .]”

Woof woof woof woof… … .

Duncan’s eyes widened. As he finished reciting the prayer, a yellowish aura like a sandstorm slowly leaked out from the battle axe, covering his strong arms and broad shoulders, and finally wrapping around the warrior’s body, shining like golden armor.

With the Father of the Wilderness with him, there was nothing to fear anymore. Agon’s angry horn, which had accepted the ‘spirit’, charged like a furious bull, calling out the name of the god who had given it.

“Ah-tal-la-!!!”

Pugeogeogeogeokeok – !

-Keeeeeeee!!

“Aaaaaaaaa!!”

The demons and monsters hit by the massive body were crushed and fell as if they had been hit by a tank. Duncan, who was holding onto his shoulder, fluttered like laundry in a strong wind. Agon’s angry horn broke through his siege and reached right in front of the gate, leaping high with its sack raised.

“For the father of the wilderness!!!”

――――――――――― Huh – Ugh, blah – Geez!!!

The moment the ax was struck, a yellowish afterglow erupted and the tightly closed castle gate cracked like a piece of paper.