Chapter 36 : Chapter 36

Chapter 36: Tello Intelligence Agency (4)

With each flap of my wings, my body shot upward as if launched into the sky.

I soared at a speed that seemed to tear through the air.

The air grew thinner, and I could feel it.

The dense Mana flowing from the spiritual vein didn’t reach the lofty heights of the sky.

In contrast, the sharp demonic energy grew thicker, now piercing like a blade.

The demonic energy of the beasts filling the air seemed to claim the sky as their territory.

As I ascended higher, the identities of the beasts, which had appeared as mere specks, became clear.

Grade 3 Beast Damanos.

A beast resembling a giant eagle, with a sharp horn protruding from the center of its forehead.

I had faced Grade 3 beasts a few times before, but this was my first time fighting flying-type beasts.

Approaching the Damanos flock, I slowed down and hovered in the air.

In front of me, four Damanos stared at me, arranged in a formation.

Shrieeek!

The chilling scream of a Damanos.

Yet, they didn’t attack easily.

Unlike lower-grade beasts, Grade 3 beasts possess intelligence.

Instead of recklessly charging at an enemy, they looked for openings in my defenses.

‘Just take down one and retreat.’

I set a realistic goal.

Though I had wings, I wasn’t foolish enough to engage in an aerial battle with creatures that had roamed the skies since birth.

It would be best to kill one within my limits and lure the others away.

There was no time to think further.

The beasts flapped their wings, shifting their formation.

They spread out above, below, to my left, and to my right, keeping their distance.

I focused my gaze solely on the beast below me.

[Wings of Ainsitel] were fastest when diving.

If I could kill one in a single strike and plummet to the ground, it would be enough.

Damanos lived in flocks and had strong bonds, so they would likely pursue me to avenge their fallen comrade.

At this altitude, the thin air mixed with sharp demonic energy made breathing difficult.

My Dragon Heart pounded—*thump, thump*—drawing out Mana according to my will.

Soon, white Mana, radiant as light, burst from my body.

I had to act quickly while the Mana supported me.

The Mana erupting from my Dragon Heart was denser than that from the spiritual vein.

The heart of a dragon, renowned for producing the densest Mana, beat within me.

Even intelligent Grade 3 beasts couldn’t resist the temptation, and their formation wavered.

I didn’t miss that fleeting moment.

Like a raptor snatching prey, I shot toward the Damanos positioned lowest.

The four Damanos, realizing the situation too late, flew toward me, but it didn’t matter.

Unlike me, who had already gained momentum, they moved too slowly.

Shrieeek!

The yellow-tinted pupils of the Damanos locked onto me, frozen.

That was the last thing it saw.

Boom!

As my sword met the Damanos’s neck, a deafening roar erupted.

It sounded less like a sword strike and more like a bludgeon—or even an explosion.

The headless Damanos collapsed and fell below.

Without sparing a glance at its corpse, I dove toward the ground.

Looking back, the remaining three beasts chased me, the corpse falling more slowly behind them.

Thud.

Reaching the ground first, I caught my breath.

The sudden burst of a large amount of Mana left me slightly drained.

Soon, the three beasts followed me to the ground. Seeing them up close, their enormous size struck me again.

The gusts from their wingbeats were so strong that nearby trees swayed as if they might snap.

Unfortunately, they hadn’t completely lost their senses over their comrade’s death.

They began flapping their wings more fiercely.

The swirling winds uprooted trees, sending them flying in all directions.

In moments, the coniferous forest became as bare as a barren hill.

There was nowhere to hide or escape.

If their thick beaks caught me, I’d be torn to shreds and flung into the air.

I didn’t move recklessly.

With my feet firmly planted, I released the Mana building up inside me once more.

As if to warn them that anyone trying to snatch me would not return alive.

Of course, I couldn’t cut down a Grade 3 beast, especially a sturdy Damanos, in one strike now.

I had already expended over 60% of my Mana in the aerial attack.

Still, the Damanos didn’t approach easily.

Though they had gained intelligence, it came at the cost of their innate ferocity.

It was fortunate, as I had no clear way to handle all three charging at once.

But I couldn’t stay in a standoff forever.

I scattered dense Mana into the air, tempting them.

One of them lunged at me, its ferocious claws leading the charge.

The moment its claws entered my attack range, I unleashed the remaining Mana and slashed diagonally with my sword.

The thick ankle of the Damanos was severed in one stroke.

A chilling scream echoed.

But its remaining claw didn’t stop, flying toward me to tear me apart.

Clang!

The attack was blocked by the [Intangible Armor] I hurriedly deployed.

No problem.

I hadn’t yet retracted my sword.

Continuing the motion, I swung upward again.

The strike was weaker than before, unable to sever the Damanos’s leg in one go.

But since when had I only fought battles relying on single strikes?

A flow isn’t created only when swords clash. I built the flow step by step.

The remaining leg, the wings generating tremendous gusts, and the beak gleaming with demonic energy—I faced them all, while the arc drawn by the Branch of the World Tree continued.

The two beasts still in the air shot toward me simultaneously.

Dodging the ankle of the one I was cutting, I struck down again and again.

Even if I couldn’t sever it in one blow, the effect of [Severance] wasn’t absent.

Like chopping a tree that falls after ten strikes, my sword gradually dug into the beast’s thick ankle.

Crunch!

Now, this Damanos would never walk on two legs again.

I countered the attacks from the two beasts behind me, coming from my blind spot, with only Intangible Armor.

Focusing on the beast in front of me, now screaming after losing both legs, I launched myself into the air.

Gathering the newly accumulated Mana, I sliced vertically through the body of the legless Damanos.

My Mana was depleted, and even my Intangible Armor was on the verge of entering repair mode.

I looked at the remaining two Damanos.

Had they not expected their kin to die so quickly?

I could read the fear in their eyes as they gazed at me.

Beasts are born with predetermined stats.

As Grade 3 beasts, Damanos had likely lived as predators their entire lives.

Though stronger beasts existed, it was rare for Grade 3 beasts to live in flocks.

Those aware of the Damanos’s strong bonds would surely hesitate to confront them.

But the situation had changed.

I, who had never been a predator, instilled fear in creatures that had reigned their entire lives.

My Dragon Heart pounded fiercely, but I was expending Mana faster than it could replenish.

My ears, long overtaken by the sound of my heartbeat rather than the roaring wind, ached.

Though I wasn’t injured, pushing my heart to its limits took a heavy toll on my body.

Then, a strange sensation enveloped me.

The density of the Mana bursting from my heart increased.

I had always prided myself on the sheer volume of my Mana, but now its quality had changed, becoming denser than ever.

[Trait ‘Dragon Heart’ has leveled up.]

[Dragon Heart Lv.2]

[Can now produce denser Mana.]

A message rang in my mind.

Trait upgrades were rare, even in the game.

Even Adjak’s Dragon Heart had only reached level 3.

This wasn’t an enhancement through Heart Engraving but a level-up of the Dragon Heart itself.

The relentless use of Mana had finally paid off.

The momentum of my Mana had changed.

The dense Mana, almost viscous, enveloped my body.

The light of my Mana, now calmer and softer, surrounded me.

But its power was far stronger than before the trait upgrade.

The beasts seemed to sense the change in my presence.

The two Damanos scattered left and right, fleeing.

Now, they were no longer predators but prey.

I spread my wings again to pursue them.

I flew toward the slower one on the right.

Startled, it shrieked—*Shrieeek!*—and sped up.

But I was faster.

White Mana gleamed on my blade. Gripping my sword with both hands, I accelerated.

Realizing it could no longer escape, the beast turned and lunged at me with its claws.

But I didn’t slow down and charged straight at it.

Crack!

The sound of [Intangible Armor] shattering as it blocked the beast’s claws echoed.

At the same time, I drove my sword into its chest, piercing its heart.

For this battle, I could no longer rely on [Intangible Armor].

But that was no issue.

I was now more than capable of overwhelming two cornered Damanos.

* * *

After cutting down the final Damanos, I gathered their corpses.

The battle had taken a long time, as I had used up all my strength.

Beasts that shouldn’t have appeared in Habisa.

There had to be a reason for their presence.

It was time to find evidence to pass on to Nofen.

I collected a few feathers and extracted their claws.

Not only traces of the beasts themselves but also, hopefully, traces of the Demon Clan.

To allow Nofen to analyze thoroughly, I intended to provide as much material as possible.

While extracting claws from a Damanos corpse, a faint, unfamiliar demonic energy tickled my nose.

Focusing on my sense of smell, I examined Damanos's body.

Soon, I pinpointed the source of the demonic energy.

A faint trace of demonic energy emanated from the chest, sliced open by my sword.

I pried open the beast’s chest.

“…What is this?”

I couldn’t help but mutter to myself.

A glowing object was visible in the center of the beast’s heart.

I reached into the still-warm heart of the Damanos.

Soon, I pulled out a yellow crystal embedded in the beast’s heart.

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