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===BREAK===
The Turncoat King's transformation.
No, in this kind of situation, maybe 'evolution' is a more fitting word.
It was something bound to happen once the hunt for the Bone Lord began, but the fact that it came sooner than expected remained true.
"He was already a monster… but now, it seems he's become something beyond understanding."
The Turncoat Rook shook his head.
That's how drastic the changes were that the Turncoat King began undergoing after taking part of the Bone Lord—so much so that they could be felt even from a distance.
"There's no need to see it as someone else's business. It's something we need to gain from this fight too."
"…Even if I absorb part of the Bone Lord, I doubt I could turn into that kind of monster."
"Then take more than just a part."
"That's quite the wordplay."
The Turncoat Rook made a disgusted face as he met my gaze.
"…You're serious."
"I always was."
No further conversation was needed.
As the Turncoat King embraced this new transformation, the Bone Lord, too, made it clear he had no intention of remaining idle—his attacks grew even more violent.
Shwashwashwaswaaak!
Shwaswaaak!
Hundreds of bone tentacles, each like a massive pillar, simultaneously surged toward the Turncoat King and Turncoat Queen.
The intensified assault on the Turncoat King also meant that relatively fewer attacks were directed at us.
It was a golden opportunity to strike.
"Then let's go."
Long-range attacks like the Zeus-444 Railgun and other firearms offered safe ways to damage the enemy, but they were far removed from the essence of this battle—consumption.
Therefore, now that the Turncoat King had absorbed part of the Bone Lord, a different combat approach was necessary.
"…A sword? Are you insane!"
Just as I darted straight toward the Bone Lord, I heard the Turncoat Rook's scream in my ear.
Not that I had the slightest intention of stopping.
Even the flustered Turncoat Rook, along with the Turncoat Knight, ended up following me.
"It's coming!"
"Be… ware…! Ca…re…ful!"
The Turncoat Rook and Turncoat Knight's warnings echoed as hundreds of enormous bone tentacles came flying toward us.
The Bone Lord's bone tentacles.
But since most of his attention was focused on the Turncoat King, their precision was noticeably lacking.
'Intercept the dangerous ones Janus can't handle with the Zeus-444 Railgun. Absorb the rest.'
To make that happen, I had to completely read the Bone Lord's simultaneous multi-tentacle attacks—but that wasn't hard for me.
Every battlefield I had been through was made of such moments.
Fwaaang!──
With a sonic boom ringing all around, the bone tentacles came flying.
My task was to categorize which of those tentacles posed a threat to Janus and me, and which didn't.
'Eight in front. Four from the left and right, aiming for my blind spots above. Two more targeting the rear. The rest… not very threatening. Those can be used as food.'
It was a brief moment, but the initial classification was complete.
Now all that was left was to intercept.
[Lv.6]
The Zeus-444 Railgun locked onto the incoming bone tentacles.
The currently loaded round was a 120mm large-caliber special alloy shell.
The most basic ammunition, but also the one with the highest stopping power and physical impact.
Cr-cr-crack!
Fwaaaang!───
With intense sparks flying, the trigger was pulled, and nearly simultaneously, a sonic boom rang out as a flash tore through the air.
The 120mm special alloy shells battered the bone tentacles—some shattered, others were deflected.
Ordinarily, level 6 output wouldn't have been enough to fend off the Bone Lord's attacks. But because I had a deep understanding of the bone parasite monsters and had completely grasped the direction of force, it wasn't hard to strike their weak points.
"Dear god…"
I heard the Turncoat Rook's gasp in my ear, but there was no time to respond.
The situation before me was far too urgent to waste energy reacting to such things.
"Devour it."
[Gigit!]
Trembling with delight, Janus extended his own bone tentacles toward the Bone Lord's attacks I had deliberately excluded.
Crack-crack!
Bone fragments scattered in all directions.
The truly threatening attacks were all either destroyed or deflected, and from the weakened ones, I picked out only the choicest.
Still, the moment Janus's bone tentacles clashed with the Bone Lord's, they began breaking apart without mercy.
The difference in basic strength between the Bone Lord and Janus was simply too great.
[Kiiiiiek…!]
Janus screamed and lashed out even more violently with his bone tentacles, but the result was the same.
His bone tentacles were too weak to pierce those of the Bone Lord.
'Hmm.'
But this was within expectations.
If I were the type to give up over something like this, I wouldn't have charged the Bone Lord to begin with.
[Summoning 'Spear of Ankelenth'!]
Aside from the Zeus-444 Railgun at level 10 output, this was essentially the most powerful weapon I had.
However, as I experienced in the battle with the Turncoat King, even the Spear of Ankelenth might not reach the Bone Lord.
Even though it bore the name of being part of Ankelenth, Janus had yet to fully assimilate Ankelenth's power.
'Still, I have to do it.'
There was no time to hesitate.
Gripping the Spear of Ankelenth, I swung my arm far back, then hurled it forward.
KWOAAANG!────
When the Spear of Ankelenth collided with the Bone Lord's bone tentacle, a sound like space collapsing resounded.
I forced my tingling arm to hold on tighter.
['Emission' has been activated.]
['Ignition' has been activated.]
['Ether Imbuement' has been activated.]
['Overdrive' has been activated.]
With violent ether flames erupting from the spear, it began digging deeper into the Bone Lord's tentacle.
Crack-crack!
The Spear of Ankelenth pierced slightly into the side of the bone tentacle.
As expected, even with that weapon, it wasn't easy to destroy part of the Bone Lord.
'But a gap has been created.'
Not missing that opening, Janus's bone tentacles traced the path of the spear and burrowed into the Bone Lord's tentacle.
Missing this chance might mean never getting another opportunity to take part of the Bone Lord.
Glorp, glorp!
Janus's bone tentacles began devouring the Bone Lord's tentacle voraciously, bulging like hoses spewing water.
But this was the Bone Lord.
With each bit Janus absorbed, he felt the Bone Lord's resistance and writhed in pain.
[Gigit!]
"Hold on!"
I knew I was pushing too hard.
But I couldn't afford to miss this rare chance.
Shudder…
Janus's body trembled violently as he absorbed the Bone Lord's tentacle.
Not just from pain—he was starting to become something new.
'The Bone Lord is the apex of all bone parasite monsters.'
What does it mean for such a creature to absorb even part of that apex?
The result was unfolding right before our eyes.
[Gigit!]
Janus screamed and shook furiously.
Meanwhile, bone tentacles from the front surged in again—but the Turncoat Rook and Turncoat Knight had arrived just in time to intercept them.
"Guh!"
Turncoats.
Even those like Rook and Knight, who ruled as figures of terror in Ark, struggled to hold back just a few of the tens of thousands of bone tentacles the Bone Lord wielded.
That alone told how utterly absurd the Bone Lord truly was, standing at the top of all bone parasite monsters.
'It seems the Bone Lord is finally turning his full attention to us.'
Which meant the other front was relatively relaxed. From an overall battle perspective, it wasn't entirely bad.
"Step aside."
"What?"
There was no time to answer.
I simply responded with action.
Raising the Spear of Ankelenth once again, I pulled back my arm.
['Emission' has been activated.]
['Ignition' has been activated.]
['Ether Imbuement' has been activated.]
['Overdrive' has been activated.]
The raging ether flames and storm gathered around the Spear of Ankelenth.
And then, it struck a weak point in the Bone Lord's tentacle.
Crack!
Even with full force aimed at a weak spot, it only resulted in a crack.
Still, that was enough.
"Now it's your turn."
"What the…?"
"Devour it."
This entire battle was about enhancing Janus and Horus—along with all the Turncoat forces. So Rook and Knight couldn't sit out.
As Rook gawked, Knight moved without hesitation, extending his bone tentacles toward the cracked tentacle.
Ssss!
Seeing Knight move, Rook came to his senses and extended his tentacles too.
"Cutting in line!"
["You… were… just… slow..."]
As Knight mocked him and absorbed part of the Bone Lord's flesh, his body began to tremble.
Just like Janus, he was undergoing a change never before experienced—by consuming a part of the apex predator of all bone parasites.
"…Can I leave the rear to you?"
"That's why I'm here."
"Then I won't hold back."
Rook, too, bared his fangs and extended his bone tentacles toward the Bone Lord's.
Though the essence contained in a single tentacle wasn't enough for two to share equally, it was still sufficient to spark transformation in Rook.
["This… grrk, grraagh!"]
The Turncoat Rook, Turncoat Knight, and even Janus—
Each began to shed their old selves and take a step toward a new transformation through the Bone Lord's essence.
Shwashwashwaswaaak!
BOOM! BOOM-BOOM!
Amidst all these changes, I stood firm with the Zeus-444 Railgun, blocking the barrage of attacks.
Unable to rely on Janus for support, it wasn't easy to handle the massive Zeus-444 on my own—but it was something that had to be done.
[Lv.7]
The flash from the Zeus-444 Railgun shot out, striking against the incoming attacks of the Bone Lord from every direction.
Still, even with this weapon, it was impossible to block everything from such a monster.
'I can't hold out like this for long.'
I needed to avoid the front lines until Janus and the Turncoats finished absorbing.
No hesitation was needed.
After all, I had the means to escape this spot.
"Horus!"
Almost as soon as I called, Horus appeared.
He had been circling the area, keeping outside the Bone Lord's attack range—his timely arrival was nothing short of a miracle.
===BREAK===
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