The Return of the Iron-blood Sword Hound

Chapter 465: The Prelude to a Counterattack (3)

"...!"

Vikir was the only one whose expression changed drastically.

Vikir had seen all of Flauros's malice in that split second when the water burst forth.

'Lying leopard'.

That's Flauros's nickname the 2nd Corpse.

It is his habit and skill to tell plausible lies at every turn.

He has the ability to make others believe his lies, and he is adept at deceiving others with various tricks.

...peopeong!

The embankment collapsed and the underground water inside burst out.

kwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwal-

A huge amount of water gushed toward the ground.

The water in the underground lake was clear and clean enough for the nymphs to live in.

So the absence of water at the source was a false proposition created by Flauros.

...The problem was that Flauros's spear was stuck right where the water flowed.

Shiririk.

Two snakes gaped at the stream.

The water grazed their razor-sharp fangs and instantly turned red.

Yes. As soon as Flauros opened the waterway, he was releasing a huge amount of plague poison into the water.

It was the same trick that had infested the Usher mansion.

"What! Water!"

"There was actually water here!"

"Oh my God, I thought I was going to burn my throat out!"

"But the color of the water is weird."

"It's groundwater, maybe there was some dirt mixed in.."

The soldiers were delighted to see the water flowing down the slope.

They put their mouths to the pale reddish water and gulped it down.

... The reaction was immediate.

"Keoheug!?"

Those who drank or touched the water began to vomit and have seizures.

"Euag!! It's poison!"

"You've been turned into a poisonous man!"

"Don't drink the water!"

"Quickly bring the priests!"

The priests quickly applied their spells, and the soldiers didn't turn into poisonous people.

But the damage done by the massive drain on their holy power was irreversible.

"Don't drink the water!"

"Spread it backwards! They must not drink the water!"

"Don't even touch it!"

The soldiers spread the message to their comrades below.

But the water was going down much faster than the messages were spreading.

Also, many of the soldiers in the back of the line resisted the advice to not drink the water.

"What's going on, guys, why are you telling us not to drink water?"

"I don't know. Are they trying to keep it all to themselves?"

"All this water? Isn't it because you get diarrhea or something if you drink anything?"

"Kahahaha- I don't care about that, I have a strong stomach!"

There was great chaos in the rear troops.

People turning into the poisonous people, people writhing in pain, and priests wasting tons of holy power to heal them.

Watching all of this, Flauros burst out laughing.

[Ha-hahahaha! How's that, demon hunter, spectacular, huh?]

Flauros imbued the hand holding the spear with even stronger magic power.

The water began to turn a dark blood color.

The Original Uroboros was producing a massive amount of poison even now.

The reason Flauros was able to spread the Red Death across the entire continent and create an enormous number of poisonous soldiers was probably thanks to the unique abilities of that spear, which was no different from his alter ego.

...chiiiig!

Vikir drew upon Madame's poisonous blood and burned away all the plague poison that had entered his body.

At the very least, Madame's poison should be enough to suppress the red death.

However, it was impossible to stop all of the Red Death that was dissolved in such a huge amount of water.

The gravity of the situation began to dawn on everyone in the group.

The water from the source would surely flow down the hillside and reach Fort Tochka.

Refugees suffering from starvation due to insufficient drinking water will definitely drink this water in a hurry, and the result will be....

[I told you, I'll turn all the trash in Tochka into poisonous people. I'm a man of my word!]

Flauros laughed, his face contorted.

The turbulent waters rushing down the mountain valley were now stained red.

At this rate, even the Salvatio forces rushing toward the water source here would be swept away and drowned.

And the refugees left behind in Tochka, unaware, will drink the water and turn into poisonous people, too.

"...."

Vikir gritted his teeth at this horrifying realization.

He shouldn't have come to the source. He should never have left Tochka.

He should have stayed within the walls, locking the gates, even if it meant dying of thirst.

In the end, they had fallen for Flauros's trick, and they would all be poisoned.

Vikir quickly looked away.

Dolores was there, nodding her head with a determined expression.

"We must not give up until the end, for miracles only come to those who act!"

Dolores clasped her hands together and released all of her remaining holy power.

...paas!

The white pillar of light she created cleansed the water around her.

But it wasn't enough. It would be impossible for Dolores to purify the entirety of this huge waterway with her power.

"...Ugh!"

Dolores' expression frowned.

Sweat poured down her face, and she felt like she might collapse at any moment.

Just then.

Tuck-

There was a hand on her shoulder.

Vikir. Night Hound rested on Dolores' shoulders and gave her strength.

"I'm sorry. I need a place to lean right now...."

Dolores's heart began to pound hard as she watched Vikir shake his head in disbelief.

The thing she had always hoped for had happened.

She would never forget the moment when the scarred hound, who never relied on others, rested his head on her shoulder for the first time.

'I can't let you down, Vikir!'

Dolores's eyes changed.

"Miracles are granted only to the first to reach out, and to those who believe and do, it shall surely happen!"

Dolores knocks on the door of limitation while reciting a prayer.

Her soul resonates, and a pillar of pure white light emanates from her.

And all the priests of Quovadis House, seeing the holy light she emits, begin to purify the waters with all their might.

paaas!

Martin Luther unleashed a massive shield of holy defense, washing away the entire wave.

Mozgus and the rest of the elite priests of Quovadis followed Dolores' lead and stood in front of the red tide.

To their surprise, the color of the bursting wave cleared for a moment.

The red energy was slowly draining away.

However.

[Hahahahahaha- Are you fools?]

Flauros stood atop the rock, sneering at the priests who were trying to purify the waters.

[Holy power is not infinite, and how long do you think you can keep the poison at bay? It would be more efficient if you saved it and used it to escape.]

The demon's words were reasonable.

A huge amount of poisonous water flows through the mountain peaks.

Even if they could hold out for a while, the situation was already effectively over.

A wave of red death would soon wash over the reinforcements.

And, by extension, the countless refugees who have flocked to Tochka.

It seemed self-evident that the world would soon be filled with poisonous people infected with the Red Death.

But then.

...kwakwang!

Vikir still hadn't given up as he formed eight teeth toward Flauros.

[Futile endeavor, demon hunter, for soon it will be a world of poisonous people down there, and no matter how vicious you try, your world is doomed... Hmm!?]

But the determination in Vikir's eyes was enough to shut Flauros' mouth.

"Your poison is certainly strong. Far beyond my expectations."

[....]

"But at best, your poison has only defeated me, not this world."

As he spoke, Vikir's eyes blazed with a terrifying light.

"Do not underestimate this world."

Vikir pushed forward with all his might, his feet planted on the ground of the world he'd grown up in.

He put his entire weight on his big toe and ran so that the tip of his forehead was the farthest forward.

Black Sun. The eight strikes swung fiercely, tearing through Flauros's body.

Kwak-kwak!

But even as he looked at the fountain of blood gushing out from his body, Flauros laughed leisurely.

[Hahahaha- So what does this mean, the humans down there are already finished...!?]

Suddenly. Flauros' expression, distorted with ridicule, hardened.

The peaks came into view, a stream of water cascading down a series of tiers.

The waterfall at the base of the first peak is red.

The waterfall below the second peak is also red.

...?

The color of the waterfall at the bottom of the third peak is strange.

Transparent color. Clear water. Somehow, the water beneath it didn't carry any of the red death spirit.

"Uh, what?"

"What happened to the water in the area we missed?"

"Who purified that place?"

The priests who were purifying the water were also puzzled.

The soldiers at the bottom of the mountainside drink the flowing water and tilt their heads.

"What? Why did you tell us not to drink the water?"

"Hmm? It's fine, it's so clear and cool."

"Ouch! Didn't the guys who went up first lie so they could drink all the water? There's so much!"

The soldiers were right.

The water that began to flow down the peak was crystal clear, even though it was untouched by holy power.

The water was flowing swiftly toward Fort Tochka in the distance.

[Uh, what's going on?]

Flauros stretched out his neck with a dumbfounded expression.

Only then did the view of the mountainside below come into focus.

Gulp, gulp, gulp, gulp, gulp, gulp, gulp.

There, a giant spider, the size of dozens of adult men combined, stood against the current, drinking water.

A spider with its head buried in the waves, sucking in huge amounts of water.

A radius of tens of meters of red death could be seen swirling around it, being sucked in.

"Wait a minute. Where have you seen a lot of spiders?"

"No way!"

"If it's a poison-eating spider...."

"Oh my God, that thing!"

"Are spiders on the ground supposed to be that big?"

The spider's performance was so impressive that Camus, Aiyen, Dolores, Sinclair, and Kirko each had something to say.

Vikir's face lit up.

Baby Madame!

The one we lost so long ago had reappeared with a much larger body and more powerful poison!

But Flauros's momentum was not dead yet...

[What can a spider do, it's quite large for a spider, but that's all it is, a spider at best!]

Flauros shouted nervously.

He firmly believed that the appearance of a single spider would not turn the tide of the battle.

However.

ppajig-

That steadfast attitude was shattered as the landscape beyond the spider began to reveal itself.

...kung!

Another spider appeared.

This one was just as big as the original.

Crawling up beside the original big spider, it too began to suck up water and absorb the red death.

...kung!

Another giant spider appeared next to it.

...kung! ...kung! ...kung! ...kung! ...kung! ...kung! ...kung!

And again. And another. The spiders just keep coming.

The number of spiders was already beyond counting.

Moreover, the spiders that kept appearing were much bigger and fatter than the first ones.

Then.

Vikir's mind flashed back to the words that CindyWendy had said not long ago.

'Ah, speaking of Balak, it seems that... has gained a new guardian recently. Apparently, They say it's quite a 'trusty friend'.'

Balak's new guardian. A trusty friend.

'Now that I think about it, is it already time for it to get dark like this?'

The night that had fallen around them was unusually dark.

But when he looked up, the sun was still hanging at the end of the sky.

...So why is it so dark here?

[...!?]

Flauros jerked his head up.

There, he saw something huge, almost blocking out the sky.

At first glance, one might mistake it for the night sky.

Sssssssss...

The leaves of the nearby trees rustle in unison.

It was casting an even thicker shadow over the peaks here.

Extremely.

Slowly.

Absolutely.

No sound.

It was so close.

It's approaching without anyone knowing.

Stealthily.

...But with a clear purpose!