Chapter 191: Too Hot To Handle
Watching the red aura draw closer, Seo-jin tightened his grip on Butcher's Wrath, the handles slick against his palms as bloodlight leaked from his shoulders.
[You still need to hurry.]
'I know. I'll make it quick.'
Shouts and startled cries echoed behind him, metal clashing against stone, voices in panic falling away as the guards from below tried to push through. From the sound of it, they weren't getting far. Grimm was holding.
"There he is."
The second floor boss stepped around the corner, the glow of its trident cutting through the dim like a torch and throwing long shadows across the area.
The moment Seo-jin saw the weapon, he felt it. Power bled off it in waves, brushing against his skin like heat.
[That's likely why its aura climbed.]
'Let's find out.'
He took a single step, and the instant his foot set down, heat rolled across the landing. Flames burst around the Makara captain, air warping as they rose.
"You will go no further, demon!"
Seo-jin's brow lifted as Bahamut and Tiamat pushed out from his back, both heads low, jaws parting as saliva dripped to the ground.
"You know what I am?"
Standing over seven feet tall, the Makara captain flared its frills, longer and thicker than any Seo-jin had seen, colors shifting between red and gold with each pulse. Its plated armor clinked as it moved, etched with curling octopus shapes, and its laugh came out sharp and wet.
"The Warden sees all, dry lander. Your foul stench stops here, as I, Ghoolint, the southern flame, will end your life. Die, demon!"
In a single fluid motion, the captain spun his trident, the shaft whistling through the air before the point snapped level with Seo-jin. The instant it aligned, a torrent of fire erupted forward, roaring across the ground and surging straight for him.
The heat slammed into the space, moisture hissing away as water vanished off the stone. The cone of flames swallowed Seo-jin whole, his form erased behind a wall of burning light.
Laughing, the captain fed more energy into the weapon, gold aura streaming down his arms and into the trident as it vibrated in his grip.
"Not even able to dodge! I thought this would—"
He didn't finish.
A massive mace tore out of the flames, cutting through the heat in a heavy arc aimed straight for him. The captain threw himself aside, and Butcher's Wrath smashed into the ground where he stood, cracking the surface and sending a shock through the floor.
As the light at the trident's tip dimmed, the captain stared into the thinning fire, disbelief tightening his face.
"Impossible."
"Not impossible. You're just weak."
The mace buried in the stone jerked free, tendons snapping taut as they dragged it back toward Seo-jin. The cords recoiled into his flesh with wet pulls, and the captain's lip curled as he watched.
"The flames from my trident are strong enough to melt stone! I won't fall for your lies, demon. It was an impressive trick, but one I doubt you can repeat!"
He leveled the trident again, shoulders tightening, and another tunnel of fire blasted forward.
[Ooh, I got an idea!]
A few seconds stretched, and the Makara captain's expression tightened...until screams of agony finally tore through the air.
"Ah! Please! Please stop! No more!"
Seo-jin's voice cracked through the flames, raw and strained, and the captain responded by driving more mana into the trident. The fire thickened, deepening in color as a gold tint bled into the blaze.
"Your death will release us from this dungeon! No amount of begging will change that!"
Grinning, eyes reflecting the firelight, the captain held the stream steady, shoulders locked as the weapon pulsed in his grip. He started to ease the attack—
"Oh no! I'm melting! Melting! Please stop, please allow me to live!"
The smile faltered. His jaw tightened, frills twitching as he forced more power into the trident. The demon should have been gone by now, but it didn't matter. The captain had more than enough mana to burn.
"Oh it hurts! I think my skin's gone! No! Oh god, no!"
[Your acting sucks.]
'Suck it.'
While the captain kept forcing more mana into the trident, arms shaking under the strain, Seo-jin stood inside the flames without flinching, watching Pain through the heat.
Now within the blaze, Seo-jin's firstborn lay like a charred lump, skin blackened and still, barely moving. The fire curled around his body, but it didn't catch, sliding over him without taking hold.
'Thought you said this would work.'
[If this doesn't, then his only chance is if we find a volcano. Give it time.]
'Time?'
Exhaling through his teeth, Seo-jin raised his voice again.
"Curse you! Curse your whole race! And curse your ugly ass mother!"
The captain's frills tightened, curling inward as his body locked up. His eyes flared, and the fading aura around him surged back to life.
"Dry lander scum!"
The trident burst with light as the flames swelled, doubling in size and heat. The stone nearest the blast began to glow and soften, running in slow lines that spilled down the ramps below, catching the glowing plants as they burned.
[He's reacting.]
As the temperature climbed, the edges of Pain's blackened skin shifted, dark giving way to a dull red. Faint cinders sparked across his body, weak at first, then building, heat stacking with each pulse until a low, heavy throb pushed out from his chest.
'It's working.'
The moment the thought landed, the fire cut off.
The Makara captain staggered, fluids dripping from his face as his breath came hard and uneven. He nearly dropped the trident, catching himself before he fell, then looked up—
—and froze.
Seo-jin stood there, untouched.
"Come on, really? He was almost there."
Ignoring the Makara, Seo-jin threw his hands up, then rubbed his brow as Tiamat swept in and swallowed Pain back into the void.
"At least you bought him some time. Thanks for that."
Brushing soot from his shoulder, the grit smearing under his fingers, Seo-jin turned to face the frozen captain.
"Before we end this, would you mind telling me if your weapon has any special requirements? No? Oh well, I'll just find out myself."
The captain's disbelief twisted into anger and shame as he watched Seo-jin put away his weapons, the two maces shifting to blades before being pulled back into his arms.
"You are strong, demon, I will admit it. But to face me unarmed, y—"
"Quiet."
A palm filled his vision.
Seo-jin's hand clamped over the captain's face and slammed his skull into the ground.
Then the ground started to quake.
Fist after fist drove down, bone and stone thudding under impact as Bahamut and Tiamat surged forward to join, jaws snapping and bodies hammering in tight bursts. The floor gave way under the force, sinking with each hit as blood spread and pooled.
Damage notifications spammed. He just ignored them.
[+1210 Damage Dealt]
[+1250 Damage Dealt]
[+1190 Damage Dealt]
[+750 Exp]
[+23 SM]
[Level // 24]
[Exp // 25437/27694]
[SM // 83/83]
Only when the final notification flashed did the blows stop.
Looking down at what remained, Seo-jin rolled his neck, joints popping, then shifted his gaze to the trident lying nearby.
"That was fun."
He stepped forward, picked up the weapon, and his eyes lit as [Soul Sight] swept over it.
"Could've lasted longer."
[Weapon Profile // Cinderwake Trident]
[Type // Weapon]
[Category // Melee / Mid-Range]
[Sub-Category // Trident]
[Rank // B]
[Evolve // No]
[Attack]
[92 – 110 // Piercing Damage]
[88 – 105 // Elemental (Fire) Damage]
[Description]
[A three-pronged trident forged from heat-warped black metal. The tips glow faintly even at rest, as if holding back a constant burn. The shaft remains cold, untouched by the heat it channels.]
[Weapon Effects]
[1st Effect // Passive]
[All attacks deal an additional +20% Fire Damage.]
[2nd Effect // Ember Channel]
[Type // Active (Sustained)]
[Cost // 6 Mana per second]
[Cast Time // Instant]
[Effect]
[Unleashes a forward cone of flame (8 meters).]
[Deals 70 Fire Damage per second to all targets within the cone.]
[Damage increases by +10% per second while maintained (max +50%).]
[3rd Effect // Molten Edge]
[Type // Active]
[Cost // 20 Mana]
[Cast Time // Instant]
[Cooldown // 15 seconds]
[Duration // 6 seconds]
[Effect]
[Heats the trident's tips to extreme temperatures.]
[Attacks deal 130 – 150 Fire Damage / Ignores 50% Physical Defense / Strikes melt through armor, bone, and barriers instead of cutting]
[4th Effect // Bloodforged Ascension]
[Type // Active (Empowerment)]
[Cost // Life Span]
[Cast Time // 2 seconds]
[Cooldown // 1 hour]
[Duration // 20 seconds]
[Effect]
[The user sacrifices a portion of their lifespan to force an evolution state.]
[Temporarily increases User Rank by +1 Tier / Grants +25% to all core stats / Enhances all fire-based damage by +40%]
[Cost]
[Consumes 1–3 years of lifespan per activation / Repeated use increases cost exponentially]
[5th Effect // Passive]
[Fire-based attacks cannot be extinguished by normal means.]
[Durability // Indestructible]
[Requirements to Use // B Rank or Higher]
["Power burns, taking something with it."]
Holding the weapon, heat bled into Seo-jin's palm and crawled up his arm, settling deep in his core. It pressed outward from the inside, steady and heavy.
With a thought, Tiamat forced Pain back out. The broodling slammed into the ground, limp, skin cracked and blackened, body hitting with a dull thud.
"Hopefully Soulmass will work."
He leveled the trident at Pain's chest—
[-20SM]
[SM // 63/83]
[Molten Edge // Activated]
The tips shrieked as the metal heated, whitening in less than a second as it began to vibrate in his grip. Seo-jin drove it straight down without pause.
With a bit of effort, the point punched into Pain's chest. Slowly, black flesh blistered and split, popping and hissing as heat flooded in. The effect held for six seconds, each second forcing more heat into the body.
Still nothing.
[Molten Edge // Deactivated]
He ripped the trident free, charred tissue stretching and tearing before snapping back, then held the tips just above the open wound.
[-6SM]
[SM // 57/83]
[Ember Channel // Active]
Fire burst out, swallowing Pain's body whole. Flames rolled over him, pushing heat into the stone, the air turning dry and sharp in Seo-jin's throat.
[-6SM]
[SM // 51/83]
The fire thickened, pouring harder as the ground beneath Pain softened and sagged, stone turning to glowing sludge that pooled around him.
"Come on—"
[-6SM]
[SM // 45/83]
"Wake up."
[-6SM]
[SM // 39/83]
Soulmass bled away with each second, and Seo-jin's grip tightened, frustration building in his chest as the flames roared—then impatience won out.
"Pain! Wake up! Broodfather commands it!"
In one sharp motion, flames still spilling from the tips, he drove the trident back into Pain's body, the impact punching deep.
The fire cut out.
The space went dark.
Then something steady pushed through the silence.
A heartbeat.