The Immortal looked at me.
I looked back at the Immortal.
And for a brief moment—one that feels as long as eternity—silence stretches between us.
'…Did it work?'
The reason I couldn't be certain of the Immortal's condition was simple.
Janus, who had injected the fragments, had yet to send me any signal that the Immortal had been successfully subjugated.
["…Master?"]
Unfortunately, I wasn't given the luxury to check.
The massive presence of the Turncoat King, which I could feel even from a distance, was now close enough to feel directly.
["Masteeer─!"]
With Esther's cry, I immediately spun around.
Turning my back on the Immortal—who could very well still be an enemy—was incredibly dangerous, but I had decided to stake everything on this gamble.
Clack─
I gripped my Ark-34 Automatic Conversion Rifle, fully unfolded the Ankelenth's Wings, and prepared for the Turncoat King's incoming attack.
The Immortal's presence still tingled at the back of my head, but fortunately, he didn't seem intent on attacking me just yet.
'Even if I didn't manage to fully subjugate him… as long as he doesn't see me as an enemy right now, that's enough.'
If that were the case, then I could say the gamble had mostly paid off.
Of course, that only held true if the Immortal didn't turn on me.
'Esther, just in case—don't let your guard down behind me.'
["…Okay. But what did you do to him? He doesn't look like he wants to attack you. Kinda spaced out too."]
'I gambled.'
["Huh?"]
'I'll explain later. For now, focus on the enemy in front of us.'
Maybe because his earlier long-range throw had failed, the Turncoat King didn't follow up with another projectile attack.
A small blessing amid the chaos.
But that didn't mean this cursed situation had improved.
Boom─!
The moment the Turncoat King arrived; A massive shockwave swept over us.
KA-KA-KA-KA-KA-KOOM!
I quickly raised a bone shield with Janus to block it, while the Immortal stood calmly, weathering the force.
Screeeeech!
CRACK-CRACK-CRACK!
A true testament to the Turncoat King.
All he did was land, and the resulting shockwave hit like a full-force assault.
["Master! Are you okay?!"]
'…Yeah.'
After the massive tremor settled—
As the swirling dust began to clear, the Turncoat King's cold gaze cut through his bone mask, scanning both me and the Immortal in turn.
I felt my grip on the Ark-34 tighten without realizing it.
'…If the Immortal still doesn't attack me in this situation… maybe I really can trust him.'
His condition still made me wary, but I had no other options.
"...."
The Turncoat King's gaze locked onto me.
The pressure, like standing before a predator, was suffocating—but I held my ground with everything I had.
'If I back down now, it's over.'
This was a nightmare-tier monster—on par with the region's sovereigns.
Like animals puffing up their fur, posturing wasn't a luxury—it was survival instinct.
"What're you looking at."
First strike, best strike.
I pulled the trigger on the Ark-34 without hesitation.
KA-BOOM!
The A-985 explosive rounds erupted one after another in a barrage of thunderous detonations.
And I didn't stop.
I kept firing relentlessly.
'Even A-985 rounds won't deal real damage to the Turncoat King.'
So, I quickly switched the Ark-34 to Railgun mode.
ZING, CHK─
I wanted to charge up for a max-power shot—but unfortunately, I didn't have time to gather Esther's power.
Zzzzt, ZZZT─!
A massive surge of energy condensed at the muzzle of the Ark-34 Railgun.
Meanwhile, the Turncoat King emerged through the flames, extending his bone tendrils toward me.
'…Tch.'
The Railgun wasn't fully charged yet—but I had no choice.
I had to fire.
SHWEEEEEEEEEEEEE───!
Even so, the Ark-34 Railgun shell—traveling beyond the speed of sound—roared toward the Turncoat King.
He couldn't evade the railgun shot completely, and in response, tendrils of bone crawled out over his entire body like armor.
BOOOOOM───!
It wasn't 100% power, but it was still a Railgun.
The intense flash struck the Turncoat King head-on, flinging his body backward.
["Nice one!"]
Esther cheered.
But it wasn't over yet.
The attack had only delayed his advance, not dealt meaningful damage.
'The Immortal…?'
I switched the Ark-34 back to assault rifle mode and turned to look for the Immortal behind me.
And I saw him.
'He's… heading toward the Turncoat King.'
Just as the thought formed, the Immortal began slowly, deliberately walking toward the Turncoat King.
What was he planning?
The answer came soon enough.
"…Enemy."
A low voice rang out.
With it, the Immortal swung his arm—and reached toward the Turncoat King.
BOOM!
The Immortal's fist collided with the Turncoat King's bone shield, sending out a massive shockwave.
The Immortal had attacked the Turncoat King.
["Master! They're fighting! Let's use this chance to run!"]
Esther urged me to flee.
But my thoughts were a little different.
'I don't know if the Immortal truly sees me as an ally… but one thing's clear—this is my chance.'
The Immortal and the Turncoat King were locked in combat.
Which meant… I had to use this opportunity to strike whichever of the two was weaker.
That was the essence of a three-way standoff.
'And between the two… the weaker one is...'
There was no need to ask.
I already knew the answer.
'Esther.'
["Finally decided to run?"]
'We're going to support the Immortal.'
Esther's face immediately twisted in disbelief.
["…Huh? Support? Who?!"]
'The Immortal.'
["Who even is the Immortal?!"]
'The weaker one.'
Esther looked thoroughly unconvinced—but with the decision already made, she had no right to refuse.
Boom!
KWA-A-AANG──!
The battle between the Immortal and the Turncoat King grew increasingly fierce.
However, from the very start, the matchup heavily favored the Turncoat King over the Immortal, so the balance of the fight quickly began to collapse.
Ssssss!
The Turncoat King's bony tendrils stretched out toward the Immortal.
But there was no way I would just sit back and let that happen.
Ziiiiing──!
The BLT-47 Plasma Launcher and ICE-54 Plasma Chiller emerged one after the other from inside my coat.
Quite a bit of time had passed already, so they had partially self-repaired.
'Of course, I can't push them too hard... but they should work to some extent.'
Crimson flashes and blue frost shot out alternately from my fingertips.
The target was the Turncoat King's bony tendrils.
Soon, the flare and chill blocked the bony tendrils reaching toward the Immortal.
KA-KA-KANG──!
KKEEK-KIK!
Taking advantage of the moment, the Immortal's body swiftly moved forward, continuing its offensive against the Turncoat King.
Although the Immortal's offensive power wasn't particularly strong, if it could distract the Turncoat King, then the situation was completely different.
'Now!'
I launched the ICE-54 Plasma Cooler straight at the Turncoat King.
KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA───!
The blue frost surged forward with ferocity, slowly starting to freeze the Turncoat King's bony tendrils.
No matter how powerful the Turncoat King was, if exposed to the ICE-54's chill for too long, it would inevitably freeze.
CRACK─
CRACKLE!
As the tendrils encasing the Turncoat King froze solid, I pulled out the BLT-47 Plasma Launcher without hesitation.
KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA───!
The plasma blast from the BLT-47, cranked to full output, fired off.
Its target: the frozen bony tendrils of the Turncoat King.
It was the infamous "heat-freeze combo" in full force.
CRACK, CRACK-CRACKLE───!
As the BLT-47's energy slammed into the frozen tendrils, cracks began to form in the ice.
Now, all that was left was to shatter that ice.
CLICK─
I switched my Ark-34 Automatic Conversion Rifle into Anti-Materiel Sniper mode.
What I needed now was a single, powerful shot.
'Preparation complete.'
Then the high-caliber armor-piercing round fired from the Ark-34.
SHREEEEE───!
The bullet ripped through the air and struck the cracked ice.
And as if triggered by that impact, the frozen surface burst apart.
KWA-DUDUDUK!
KWA-KA-KRAK──!
Through the shattered shards of ice, the Turncoat King's bony tendrils flew in disarray.
Not only had I managed to block the Turncoat King's assault, I had finally landed a hit.
'I can't let up now.'
I slung the Ark-34 sniper over my shoulder and charged forward.
I already knew that clumsy long-range attacks wouldn't work on the Turncoat King, so I had to close the distance for a decisive blow.
'It won't be easy... but I have no other choice.'
Among my current long-range weapons, only two options could deal meaningful damage to the Turncoat King:
First, the Ark-34 Railgun.
Second, the so-called heat-freeze combo using the BLT-47 and ICE-54.
But right now, neither of those options were available.
The Railgun had been used too recently and was still recharging its energy.
Meanwhile, the Plasma Launcher and Cooler were both overheated.
Of course, I knew it.
I knew full well that no matter how hard a human tried, it was nearly impossible to go toe-to-toe with a monster like the Turncoat King.
'But... I still have to do it.'
I reached out my hand.
And with that, Spear of Ankelenth materialized in my right hand.
Its familiar weight was comforting.
'Esther!'
["You only call for me in times like these!"]
Spreading the Ankelenth's Wing wide, I flew straight toward the Turncoat King's position.
Naturally, Esther was assisting me all the while.
FWOOOOOOOM──!
I locked eyes with my target.
Still reeling from the freeze-nuke combo, the Turncoat King was being steadily pushed back by the Immortal's relentless assault.
This was my chance.
'Now!'
Gripping the Spear of Ankelenth tightly, I dashed straight for the Turncoat King.
KWAANG──!
The Spear of Ankelenth collided with the bony shield conjured by the Turncoat King.
Bone fragments scattered in all directions.
Despite believing close combat might be my best shot, even the Spear of Ankelenth struggled to pierce the Turncoat King's bone shield.
'But I can pierce it.'
That last clash had confirmed it for me.
The Spear of Ankelenth, with its destructive power even surpassing a plasma sword, could definitely break through the Turncoat King's defenses.
'Then…'
With the spear in hand, I charged toward the Turncoat King alongside the Immortal.
CHAAANG──!
Once again, bone fragments flew through the air—this time from the Turncoat King himself.
CLANG! CHAAEEENG!
Spear of Ankelenth and the bone shield.
Tendril against tendril.
Each twisted and lashed out at the other, entangling in a brutal clash.