Chapter 68: A new spiritual core
The Black Magic Iron chains vibrated violently.
CLANG!
CLANG!
Every muscle in that colossal body trembled as the Giant Shark King struggled to break free from its restraints.
Its physical strength was monstrous.
The Biochip immediately updated its calculations.
[Average time to break each device: 4.5 seconds.]
I gritted my teeth.
—Faster...
My Golem responded to the command without hesitation.
Since the monster remained practically motionless for a few seconds at a time, bound by the chains and unable to fully open its eyes because of the bursts of light, the opportunity I had been waiting for finally appeared.
The Golem’s hands touched the mud once more.
—Spikes.
BOOOOM!
Hardened stone spikes burst through the ground directly beneath the King’s abdomen.
Its roar made the entire swamp tremble.
Meanwhile, I gathered mana once again.
The Solar Bow formation shone before me.
A new arrow was born between my fingers.
ZOOSH!
The arrow exploded against its head.
A golden flash completely engulfed its face.
The King shut its eyelids once more, the small protective scales sliding over its eyes.
It could not even regain its vision.
Before it completely shattered the chains...
I threw another device.
CLACK!
The locks sprang open.
New chains wrapped around its body.
Runes of Slowness.
Runes of Weakness.
They were not powerful enchantments.
Much less permanent ones.
But they were enough.
Four seconds.
Five seconds.
That was all I needed.
I smiled.
Fortunately, those disposable devices were not expensive.
Producing them consumed resources, but they were still within what I could afford as a relatively wealthy acolyte.
Each one existed for only a single purpose.
To buy time.
Against any other enemy, I would have considered them a waste.
Against that monster...
They were an investment.
If I allowed it to reach the lake...
Everything would be lost.
The battle became a meticulously calculated cycle.
Chains.
Spikes.
Arrow of Light.
New chains.
More spikes.
More arrows.
.
.
.
.
Meanwhile...
My Golem remained at the enemy’s flank at all times.
Attacking only where there were no scales.
After several minutes...
The enormous King no longer roared with the same strength.
Its abdomen was covered with dozens of puncture wounds.
Thick blood slowly flowed onto the mud.
Even so...
It was still alive.
—KEEP GOING, DON’T LET THAT DAMNED FISH ESCAPE!
My Golem raised both hands once again.
All of its remaining energy was concentrated into one final spell.
SPIKES!
This time...
The earthen spears erupted directly beneath its chest.
One of them found an opening created by the previous attacks.
It pierced completely through its abdomen.
The gigantic body shuddered.
At the same time...
My final Solar Arrow finished taking shape.
Every last bit of my remaining mana was compressed into that single shot.
I took a deep breath.
I aimed at its head.
More precisely...
At a crack that had opened between the bony plates near its skull.
—GOODBYE, YOU RAGGEDY FISH!
ZOOOOOOOSH!
The arrow tore through the air.
BOOOOOOM!!
The explosion illuminated the entire shore of the swamp.
Fragments of scales were blasted in every direction.
The impact pierced through the opened crack.
Immediately afterward...
The earthen spike completely ruptured the internal tissues beneath its abdomen.
For one long second...
Everything remained still.
Then...
The enormous body slowly began to collapse.
The earth shook.
And at last, the Giant Shark King fell lifeless to the ground.
Silence.
I breathed heavily as I looked at that mountain of unmoving flesh.
The Biochip confirmed what my eyes already knew.
[Target eliminated.]
I slowly clenched my hand.
It worked...
My first great monster had fallen.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Ruby’s POV
Far above the battlefield...
Hidden among the thick branches of a tree...
Ruby watched everything in absolute silence.
Her attention remained entirely focused on the young black-haired acolyte standing beside the corpse of the Giant Shark King.
Her green eye followed every movement with curiosity.
The other eye was red.
It shone with an almost amused contempt.
A smile appeared on her lips.
Or rather...
Two completely different smiles.
—George, you’re incredible!
—Do you think he remembers me?
Murmured the soft voice belonging to the green-eyed side.
Another voice immediately responded.
The same mouth.
The same face.
But a completely different tone.
Proud.
Almost imperial.
—Incredible?
—That was merely acceptable.
Ruby slightly tilted her head.
—You always exaggerate...
The red eye narrowed.
—No.
—You are the one who continues to be weak.
—Always looking at humans as if they were special.
The green-eyed personality remained silent for a few seconds.
Then replied softly.
—He defeated a demon of that level practically by himself.
—Few acolytes could accomplish that.
The other let out a low laugh.
—I admit it.
—This male is minimally decent.
—You at least had good taste choosing him as a candidate for breeding.
Ruby immediately blushed.
—Shut up!
—I never said that!
The other personality laughed even harder.
—Your heart did.
—You’ve been watching this human for days.
—I thought you would choose some emotional failure.
—But... surprisingly...
Her red eye turned back toward George.
—This one can think.
—He can prepare traps.
—He uses his head before his strength.
—And he had enough courage to face a demon alone.
She paused briefly.
—He is still weak.
—Very weak.
—But... he possesses potential.
—Besides, you continue to be predictable.
I sighed.
—What do you mean?
—Ever since you were that little slave.
My body stiffened.
—No...
—Remember?
—The first human who dared to touch you.
My face began to heat up.
—Stop.
The Empress completely ignored my request.
—That human simply reached out his hand.
My heart accelerated.
—Shut up...
She continued laughing.
—And had the courage to tease you, saying that you were...
"...A personal love slave."
—ENOUGH!
My face burned.
—You promised never to mention that again!
—I promised?
The laughter became even more amused.
—I don’t remember.
I closed my eyes.
—You do this on purpose...
—Of course I do.
—It’s fun watching you blush.
I took a deep breath, trying to regain my composure.
—Even so...
—He is still only a human.
The Empress watched George for a few more seconds.
Her smile grew wider.
—I want to play a little.
My heart skipped.
—Wait...
—No!
But it was already too late.
I felt my consciousness slowly being pushed backward.
My red eye became dominant.
My aura exploded.
Black horns slowly grew from my forehead.
The small horns expanded until they took on a majestic appearance.
My body matured, taking on an imposing and regal posture.
An elegant red dress bloomed over my skin like petals emerging from blood itself.
The Empress opened a satisfied smile.
—Much better.
Then she looked directly at George.
—Let’s meet him.
The next instant...
I leaped from the treetop.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
George Gil’s POV - MC
The corpse of the Giant Shark King remained motionless.
Even dead, its size was still impressive.
I knelt beside its enormous head.
I took a deep breath.
I picked up my reinforced scalpel.
—Let’s see what you were hiding in there...
With precise movements, I began opening the thick skull.
The scales were tough.
The bone was even worse.
It took several minutes using a chisel, hammer, and blade until I finally broke through the cranial cavity.
A heavy metallic smell immediately escaped.
I completely ignored it.
My focus was only on one thing.
The spiritual core.
The Biochip highlighted in blue the regions where the mana concentration was highest.
I carefully followed that indication.
After moving aside tissues, dark blood, and bone fragments...
I finally found it.
A golden crystal wrapped in mineral veins.
I smiled immediately.
Found you...
Even covered in blood and the remains of the demon’s internal organs...
That core was beautiful.
I raised it toward the light.
Its yellowish glow slowly passed through the bloodstains.
The Biochip responded almost immediately.
[Spiritual core identified.]
[Quality: Superior to the Mud Ghost’s core.]
My smile widened.
It was worth it.
I only cleaned the excess blood with a cloth.
The rest could wait.
The important thing was that now I possessed a second core.
That meant...
Another Golem.
Another soldier for my future army.
It was then that...
[Bip!]
My smile disappeared.
[Extreme danger detected.]
[Origin...]
A red arrow appeared before my eyes.
It pointed directly—
Above.
My body tried to react.
But...
Too late.
Something descended from the sky at an absurd speed.
Even my reflexes, assisted by the Biochip, could not completely follow that movement.
A red blur.
Then...
An impact.
BOOM!!
The ground cracked beneath my back.
The air was completely forced out of my lungs.
Before I could recover my breathing...
A firm hand grabbed my neck.
I looked upward.
Two wings.
Two horns.
A red dress.
One green eye.
The other...
Red as blood.
—Ruby?
Her magical presence was overwhelming.
She leaned her face close to mine.
—George...
—My sweet little George.
—Consider yourself extremely fortunate.
I frowned while trying to loosen her grip.
Without success.
She continued speaking as if announcing an imperial decree.
—Among countless creatures...
—This Empress has decided to choose you as a candidate to be my breeding partner!
—Worthy of remaining by my side.
[STATUS]
Name: Ruby
Level: Acolyte III
Gender: Female
[BODY STATUS]
Strength: 10
Agility: 15
Vitality: 7
Mana: 10
[Alert.]
[Threat level: extremely high.]
....
1545 Words