They had one clear objective: to prevent the Kardia-beasts from spreading out and surrounding them. Dividing their focus would lead to their inevitable downfall.
Ryo cast a wary glance at the two towering Nightmare threats lurking in the distance—11-meter-tall behemoths standing ominously among the herd. He couldn't decipher their motives, but their stillness was fortuitous. The moment they decided to advance, their struggle for survival would turn futile.
"Thank God those things haven't moved yet," Ryo muttered to himself. "But who knows for how long? It could be any moment now. There's no doubt they'll strike."
He tightened his grip on the trigger, focusing on the charging crowd of beasts ahead. Four of his allies faced the oncoming horde, determination etched on their faces. They needed to avoid being encircled; if that happened, each person would be forced to fend for themselves, quickly overwhelmed by sheer numbers. As compelling as it might be to have their backs against one another, this wasn't a Hollywood film, and they weren't having a shootout like in the movie Heat. This was real life. Their chances of survival were far better if they faced the monsters head-on, rather than dividing their attention.
"Fujita, your aim is pretty much on point. So much for claiming you couldn't handle it," Ryo remarked, eyes locked on the rampaging beasts.
"It was easier than I expected. Maybe I underestimate myself. Plus, the magazine hasn't run dry yet," Fujita replied.
"Figures. In that case, we'll rely on you more—not that I'm particularly thrilled about it." Ryo's expression remained stoic.
"Wow, I'm honored," Fujita said with a hint of sarcasm. Then his tone shifted to something more serious. "But just how long can we hold out?"
As if to underscore his words, the beasts suddenly surged forward, violently trampling over one another in their frenzy.
Boom!
A small explosion echoed from Koki's position, where he stood beside Akari on the far left.
"What was that? Did one of your bullets explode on impact? It even knocked some of the beasts back!" Akari exclaimed, analyzing the gun Koki held. It looked identical to hers, so she couldn't understand how he had achieved that result.
"I panicked for a moment," Koki admitted, still firing his weapon. "I held down the trigger for a few seconds after letting go, and when I tried to adjust my aim, I don't know what I touched, but a strange bullet fired and caused that explosion."
"Let me try that again," Koki said, placing his hand on the part of the gun that triggered the special bullet. Sure enough, another shot fired, revealing that there was a specific area on the weapon they needed to make contact with for it to work.
"That's great! Let's try that again; it could buy us more time," Ryo suggested, reaching for the side of his gun and tapping around while firing. Suddenly, he felt something strange beneath his fingers when he touched a particular pattern on the gun.
"It worked! It exploded!" Ryo exclaimed.
Before long, they all got the hang of it. The explosions from their guns pushed the kardia-beasts back whenever they attempted to breach their line of fire.
These guns proved lethal against all types of kardia-beasts, including the elusive emberwings, which were notoriously difficult to bring down due to their incredible speed. Fortunately, Tadashi—a talented marksman—took charge of tracking the emberwings. With only fifteen of them in total, he managed to eliminate all but seven. The guns proved highly effective, capable of killing any kardia-beast with just one or two shots, even the rarer non-physical types like kalindras that were mingling among this group of beasts.
"These guns are cheat-level artifacts, aren't they? They might even pack a punch against those pendulum kings if it ever comes down to that," Ryo thought with growing confidence, although he hoped he wouldn't have to test that theory anytime soon.
"No way! What's going on here?" Akari exclaimed.
The more intelligent kardia-beasts had begun using the bodies of their fallen comrades as shields, charging violently toward them. The tough hides of the armandites they had killed were perfect for the task. They knew they couldn't allow the beasts to get too close; otherwise, they'd be within range of the kardia-beasts' mind attacks. If that happened, their chances of survival would be slim.
"This isn't fair! But what else would you expect from these monsters?" Ryo vented in frustration.
"They're starting to move in a very abstract way. I'm not sure we can hold them off like this," Akari said, worry creasing her brow.
"No, we can't give them the chance to split our focus. We have to stand our ground!" Ryo insisted.
Before he could finish his sentence, a particularly slippery kardia-beast, a corpuscolum, stretched out a tentacle toward him and sent his body flying at incredible speed.
"Ugh!" Ryo gasped as the impact hit him.
The corpuscolum—a gelatinous creature known for its hardening techniques—had struck him hard. Ryo felt his ribs crack upon landing against a building, and blood spewed from his mouth. His comrades stood in shock for a moment, but they quickly returned to firing. Akari, in particular, aimed at the corpuscolum, but it deftly maneuvered through the crowd, skillfully evading her shots. As Ryo struggled to rise from the ground and retrieve his gun, he noticed how the creature dodged bullets with remarkable agility. An idea formed in his mind—he had to find a way to outsmart it.
"I'm going to use dark magic, of course. That should block its senses, but what else do I have here?"
Ryo glanced at his left wrist, where he channeled his Kardia-magia. It emitted a familiar glow.
『Scenerio of the Demilich』
Title:- undead imperator
"The Sovereign of the Undead Realm,
Where shadows dance and darkness unfurls.
Eternal king of the silent land,
Feared by all, with power to command.
His throne is built on bones of old,
His kingdom ruled by death's cold hold.
The living tremble at his name,
And dread the darkness that he claims".
Race:- Human
Source:- otherworlder
Status:- half fallen
Traits:-
Dark magic - stage 28
Necromancy - stage 21
Resurrection - stage 21
Threat preception - stage 28
Apexs:-
Mortal requiem (requires higher succession)
Soul bind
He scrutinized the readings closely. Not much seemed to have changed since his last assessment, despite all his training. In fact, the numbers for his passive trait, "Threat Perception," and his go-to skill, "Dark Magic," had only increased. He pondered the situation—necromancy was a skill he'd neglected. Sure, it was an impressive ability, but he had noticed that whenever he used it, the undead he raised would quickly drain his Kardia-magia. This, in turn, exhausted his stamina rapidly. Given that this was a battle of endurance, learning a better way to preserve Kardia-magia wasn't just necessary—it was imperative.
Resurrection was an exceptionally tricky skill. He couldn't recall successfully using it in combat; it felt more like a gamble than a reliable ability. A trait that could bring him back from death, he often mused whether it functioned as a healing ability. Yet, every time he attempted to activate it, nothing happened. He had faced death numerous times without it triggering; he once speculated whether it activated only upon actual death or if he subconsciously summoned it just before being killed. That theory seemed plausible at first, but considering the fact that traits consumed Kardia-magia, he wondered how much it might require. Relying on it in the heat of battle seemed far too uncertain.
With a resigned sigh, he turned his attention to his Apex abilities. They appeared impressive at first glance, but he shook his head. "No, these would only leave me vulnerable in the long run. Why do I seem to only acquire abilities with these ridiculous disadvantages? My luck never improves, even in another universe."
"I guess I'll have to rely on dark magic. It doesn't consume too much Kardia-magia, and it's effective against these creatures, especially those that depend on their senses."
He knew that some high-level Kardia-beasts had some resistance to this particular trait, based on his studies. It seemed that the weaker his progression, the lesser the effects of his traits against higher-level Kardia-beasts.
"I need to get back into the fight; it doesn't look good over there."
Without another thought, Ryo rushed to assist his comrades, seizing his gun and preparing to unleash dark magic. But just then—
"Ah, I see. This is what they call a foolish mistake."
Before he could react, a sharp, sturdy tentacle lashed out toward him.
"Ryo, watch out!" Koki shouted, urgency lacing his voice.
Everything sounded distant—their voices, the snarling beasts. Panic dulled Ryo's senses until he suddenly felt the ground beneath him, pushed down by someone. All he saw was their back.
The sounds of the earth rushed back to him.
"Koki? No, this can't be happening!"
"It's fine, Ryo. I won't let it take me that easily."
Koki gripped a tentacle, forcing a reassuring smile at Ryo. Akari stood frozen, while Tadashi kept firing, his determination unyielding.
"No, don't lie to me. You're bleeding!"
"Am I? That's strange. I don't feel any pain—oh wait, now I feel a sting."
Koki fell to the ground. He had managed to stop the tentacle but it quickly transformed from a piercing attack to a slicing one, cutting deep into Koki's abdomen before anyone could react.
"Ehehe… it got me. I really thought I'd stopped it in time."
"This isn't funny, Koki! You're losing so much blood!" Ryo's voice trembled as he pressed his hands against Koki's wound.
"I know, I know. It just… doesn't feel real. Maybe that's why I can still smile, even now."
"Just stop talking. You'll be okay. This isn't so bad, right?" Ryo forced a smile in return.
"Yeah, it's not so bad… Ryo, you're here, right?"
"I'm here. Of course I am. Now, please, stop talking." Ryo's hands shook. This sensation was all too familiar; it meant he feared losing something precious.
"Akari! Don't just stand there! Heal him!"
Akari remained paralyzed, her world collapsing around her. Memories of failure flooded her mind—if only she hadn't charged in blindly. She lacked the Kardia-magia; if only she had conserved her energy.
"It's her fault again. She's the weak one, not me." Akari murmured, incoherently blaming herself.
Ryo, recognizing her devastation, felt a surge of frustration and desperation. "Shit! This can't be happening! What was all our training for?"
He only felt anger toward himself, he couldn't let Koki die, yet felt powerless to save him.
"Ryo, do you remember when we first met?"
"What are you talking about? We met in this world, didn't we?"
"I see… I guess you wouldn't understand."
"That's right. You always acted like it wasn't our first meeting. Was there something I'm not remembering?"
...
It was the day my parents abandoned me, and I felt as though my entire world had collapsed. I thought they saw me as a burden, that they hated me. They had left me to fend for myself, after all. I was lost, unsure of what I was supposed to do, so I walked to a nearby park, just needing to escape.
As I wandered, I spotted a boy with black hair sitting on a bench, engrossed in a book, instead of playing with the other kids on the playground. He seemed distant, his eyes dull and lifeless; he looked as if he were stuck in another world, much like I was in that moment.
I approached him and sat down beside him. "Hey."
"Hey," he replied nonchalantly, barely glancing up from his book.
"Why aren't you with the others?" I asked.
"I'm not particularly interested in people," he said, his tone matter-of-fact. I believed him, but it intrigued me how a twelve-year-old could think like that.
"Then why are you talking to me?" I pressed.
"Because you seem like the type who would pester me longer than you're worth."
"So that's how it is," I said, a hint of annoyance in my voice.
He didn't seem overly interested in me, but I needed someone to talk to, so I persisted. "Can I tell you something? You don't have to reply; you can just listen."
"Sure, knock yourself out," he said, his eyes still fixed on the pages of his book.
I poured my heart out to him, recounting the events of that day. He barely reacted, but what he said next was the strangest part of our encounter.
"Lucky you," he said, almost casually. "You get to escape it. You'd better hold on to that positivity of yours. I mean, your parents left you, but here you are, pestering humble ol' me. If anything, that's all you've got going for you right now. Best to hold on to it. I sure wish I could."
His response was the most half-hearted reaction I could imagine, and yet, despite his indifference, those words struck a chord within me. They felt like a lifeline, helping me to find a way to smile through the pain. I made it my second nature to come to the park at that time each day, regardless of my circumstances. Whether I was starving, exhausted, or even catching a cold, I was like a stray dog, compelled to return and sit beside him. He never once looked at me again, and I stopped trying to speak to him, not wanting to intrude any further. Still, his presence offered me hope.
I continued to visit every day until that strange man picked me up. That boy had unknowingly saved my life, and I couldn't help but wonder what had happened to him to make him so unresponsive. In him, I saw a strength I desperately wanted to emulate; he became my role model, my goal, and eventually, my hero.
...
"You saved my life once; I'm just glad I could return the favor," Koki said with a smile, though the blood on his lips added an unsettling contrast to his words.
"I was a real jerk, wasn't I?" Ryo replied, tears streaming down his face even as a smile broke through the despair.
"Yeah, you were. But you were also my hero." Koki reached out and gently wiped Ryo's tears away.
"I can't believe I forgot that," Ryo said, a wave of self-loathing crashing over him. He longed to scream at himself.
"No, it wasn't as significant to you as it was to me, and that's understandable. There's no need to beat yourself up over it," Koki said, followed by a painful cough that shook his frame.
"You know, Ryo, back there when we saw Blood Root, they called you a coward for wanting to abandon that boy. I knew part of you didn't want to risk losing more people over a stranger. But honestly, I wanted to turn tail and run from it all."
Ryo noticed Koki's bleeding worsening as he spoke, and his face contorted with anguish.
"No, you need to stop talking, Koki. It's getting worse."
"I couldn't help but think, if my hero was being cowardly in that moment, then what would that make me?" He placed his hand over Ryo's, which was applying pressure to his stomach. "I hope you can forgive me for that moment of weakness that I kept hidden from you. I'm happy you were able to call me your friend after so long. It's nice to think about: Ryo Kobayashi, my hero and my friend."
Akari, watching from a distance, fell to her knees, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I'm so sorry…" she murmured, while Tadashi remained steadfast, doing everything he could to protect them.
"There's no need for that," Koki replied, offering her a reassuring smile before turning back to Ryo, who was sobbing uncontrollably. "I hope I was able to stay positive until the end."
"Thank you," Ryo managed to say; the words felt especially poignant in that moment.
"Heh… what are you thanking me for?" Koki said with a soft laugh.
"For saving my life… and for living long enough to give my life value," Ryo said, struggling to conjure a smile.
"Is that so? Then you're welcome." Koki placed his hand gently on Ryo's shoulder.
"When I saw you again, I meant to return those words eventually, but I just focused on trying to get to know you better since I couldn't before." His eyes closed and his expression brightened. "Stay positive, Ryo."