Chapter 921: The Human-Shaped Monster (1)
"E-Elina, what’s really going on?"
Rafine ran toward Elina and grabbed her wrist.
"There’s an enemy attack! Quick, hide in the underground bunker!"
"An enemy attack!? Who would dare do that?"
Elina shook her head.
"I don’t know. But don’t worry. Malverna—I mean, the Singularity of Chaos’s subordinate—will take care of it. We’ll definitely be safe."
She patted Rafine on the shoulder, instantly easing her tension.
Without wasting any more time, the two of them hurried toward the bunker at the back of the mansion.
There was a special room directly connected to the bunker. As a precaution, Malverna had installed numerous magic circles throughout it.
As long as the enemy wasn’t stronger than a Celestial-level being, it would be impossible for an intruder to destroy the bunker.
Meanwhile, outside the mansion, the atmosphere had become extremely tense.
The ugly-faced man stopped in front of the guards.
Luvistar stepped forward and pointed her sword at him.
"Who are you!? What do you want!?"
Her grip tightened around the hilt.
The man grinned widely.
"My name is... Kruch... Yes, Kruch..."
He snickered, squirming with delight.
"And I’ve come... hehehe... of course, to eat all of you..."
Everyone got goosebumps when they heard his words.
They didn’t know whether he literally meant he wanted to eat them or if he meant something else.
Either way, it was terrifying.
"Don’t joke around! I’m serious!" Luvistar snapped.
The smile on Kruch’s face slowly faded, replaced by a cold, indifferent expression.
"Kruch doesn’t like being yelled at! Only the boss is allowed to yell at Kruch!"
As he said that, he crouched down and lunged at Luvistar with incredible speed.
"W-What!?"
Luvistar was caught off guard, but he quickly swung his sword and parried the attack.
Clang!
A long, black claw extended from Kruch’s right hand and clashed against Luvistar’s sword.
Luvistar staggered back a few steps, but Kruch wasn’t about to let him off that easily.
He leaped two meters into the air, spun in midair, and then darted toward Luvistar like lightning.
Clang!
Luvistar managed to parry the attack again. But this time, Kruch extended his left claw and swung it toward Luvistar’s neck.
Realizing the danger, Luvistar used his sword to push Kruch back. He used the momentum to twist his body and quickly retreat.
Even so, the tip of Kruch’s claw managed to graze his armored shoulder.
Luvistar rubbed the injured area and felt a sticky liquid oozing from it. When he looked at his hand, his eyes widened.
"Blood? How is that possible?"
He couldn’t understand how Kruch’s claw had managed to pierce his armor.
Before he could think any further, dozens of armed soldiers raised their weapons and charged toward Kruch.
"Die, you monster!"
One of the soldiers raised his sword and swung it toward Kruch’s head, but Kruch easily dodged the blow.
He leaped into the air with ease. Another soldier jumped a meter high, raised his sword, and slashed directly at Kruch’s right shoulder.
But Kruch seemed to have anticipated the attack. He shifted his body sideways in midair, then planted one foot on a soldier’s head and swung his claw toward the soldier’s face.
Srrck!
"Argh!"
The soldier screamed in pain as his body crashed to the ground, writhing in agony.
Seeing this, everyone became enraged and rushed toward Kruch, attacking him blindly. But Kruch seemed capable of reading all their movements.
He leaped and dodged with ease. It was almost as if his body had no weight at all.
Within just five minutes, dozens of soldiers lay sprawled across the ground in a horrific state.
Not a single one of them had escaped without claw wounds.
"Gyahaha! Weak! You’re all so weak!" Kruch burst into laughter.
He licked his lips and stared at them with a hungry gaze.
"All right... Which one should I eat first?"
Everyone’s faces turned pale. They were finally certain that Kruch wasn’t human. He was clearly a monster in human form.
Kruch’s gaze soon fell on the burly soldier.
A grin spread across his face as he pointed at him.
"Let’s start with you... hehehe..."
He leaped forward and landed right in front of the soldier.
"W-Wait! D-Don’t eat me!"
Kruch didn’t seem to care. He raised his claw high and was about to swing it down when he suddenly felt something pierce through his heart.
Scrk!
His movement froze mid-air. He lowered his head and saw a sword blade, splattered with black blood, piercing through his chest.
"W-When..."
Before he could finish, the sword was yanked out with blinding speed. The excruciating pain made Kruch roar in agony.
"You let your guard down," Luvistar said coldly from behind him.
He swung his sword, and the rain instantly washed the blood from its blade.
Kruch coughed, then his body fell to the ground with a heavy thud.
"T-Thank you, Captain!" the burly soldier said, letting out a long sigh of relief.
Luvistar smiled and nodded. Just as he was about to help the soldier up, a powerful blow suddenly struck him in the stomach.
Luvistar’s eyes widened. In the next instant, his body was sent flying at incredible speed before crashing into the manor’s wall.
Boom!
The impact was so strong that the wall shattered into pieces.
The soldiers lay scattered across the ground, staring in shock at what had just happened.
"Hehehe..."
Kruch, whom everyone thought was dead, suddenly let out a creepy, piercing laugh.
He slowly rose to his feet, a wide grin spreading across his face.
"A sneak attack, huh? You humans really are pathetic. When you realize you’re powerless, all you can do is resort to a sneak attack. Yeah, I saw that coming."
The soldiers could only stare in horror as the stab wound in Kruch’s chest slowly closed, healing at an incredible speed.
"I-Impossible... How could you possibly come back to life!?" the burly soldier exclaimed.
"Impossible? Gyahahaha!" Kruch laughed loudly. "Nothing is impossible in this world!"
His voice boomed like thunder.
His body was soaked by the rain, but somehow, that only made him look even more terrifying.
"All right, all right..."
Kruch brushed the mud off his cloak.
"I don’t like to linger. Let’s start dinner."
He grabbed the burly soldier by the neck and lifted him off the ground.
"Argh!"
The soldier struggled and attacked Kruch with everything he had, but his efforts were completely useless.
Kruch’s grip was incredibly strong, like an iron claw.
Srrck!
A black tentacle pierced through the burly soldier’s stomach.
His eyes widened as excruciating pain spread throughout his body.
Then, under everyone’s horrified gaze, Kruch tightened his grip around the soldier’s neck.
The soldier’s burly body slowly shrank until it eventually transformed into a round lump of meat.
Clang!
His armor fell into the mud.
Kruch grinned and swallowed the piece of meat in one gulp.
"Argh..." Kruch rubbed his stomach with a satisfied grin. "Human flesh really is delicious..."