The Return of the Iron-blood Sword Hound
chapter-467

p>Chapter 467: Dawn of Counterattack (3)

"……!"

The only one whose expression changed dramatically was Vikir.

Vikir instantly saw through Phlorosya's malevolent intentions at the very moment the water burst forth.

'The Lying Leopard.'

This was Phlorosya's nickname.

Phlorosya had a habit and a supernatural ability to tell convincing lies about everything.

He possessed the ability to make others believe his lies and was adept at deceiving people with various tricks.

...Bang!

The crater broke, releasing the underground water stored within.

Gush-gush-gush-gush-gush-

A tremendous amount of water surged toward the surface.

The water from the underground reservoir, which had been lying dormant beneath the ground, was indeed clear and clean enough for a nymph to live in.

So, the claim that there was no water in the reservoir area was a false premise created by Phlorosya.

...The problem was that Phlorosya's venomous spear was embedded where the water stream started.

Sssss-

Two snakes opened their mouths wide at the water stream.

The waves, brushed by their sharp fangs, instantly turned a crimson red.

Indeed, Phlorosya had released a massive amount of red death poison into the water as he opened the waterway.

It was the same method the demons had used to infiltrate the mansion of the Usher family.

“What!? Water!”

“There really was water here!”

“Unbelievable! I thought I was going to die of thirst!”

“But the color of the water seems a bit strange?”

“It’s groundwater! Maybe some dirt got mixed in.”

The soldiers, who saw the water flowing down the slope, were overjoyed.

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

…The reaction came immediately.

“Gah!?”

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

“Argh! They’ve turned into poison humans!”

“They’ve become poison humans!”

“Don’t drink the water!”

“Quickly, call the priests!”

Thanks to the priests’ swift blessings, the soldiers didn’t fully transform into poison humans.

However, the enormous consumption of divine power was unavoidable.

“Don’t drink the water!”

“Spread the word! No one should drink the water!”

“Tell them not to touch it at all!”

The soldiers relayed the message to their comrades below.

But the water flowed down faster than the message could spread.

Additionally, many soldiers at the rear resisted the sudden command not to drink the water.

“What? Why are those at the front telling us not to drink the water?”

“No idea. Are they trying to keep it all for themselves?”

“With this much water? More likely, they think it will cause diarrhea or something.”

“Haha- if that’s the case, I’m fine! I’ve got a strong stomach!”

Chaos erupted in the rear ranks.

People turning into poison humans, those writhing in pain, and priests wasting divine power to treat them.

Phlorosya, observing all this, burst into laughter.

[Ha-ha-ha-ha! How do you like it, demon hunter? Quite a sight, isn’t it?]

Phlorosya infused even more magic into the spear he was holding.

The water began to turn a deeper shade of blood red.

The venomous spear, Ouroboros, continued to produce a massive amount of poison.

Phlorosya had been able to spread the Red Death across the continent and create a tremendous number of poison humans soldiers thanks to the unique ability of that spear, which was almost like an extension of himself.

...Ssshhhhh!

Vikir drew upon Madam Eight Leg’s Poison Ability to burn away the plague poison invading his body.

Only Madam Eight Leg's poison was strong enough to suppress this so-called Red Death.

But it was impossible to block all the Red Death dissolved in the vast amount of water.

Everyone in the Night Walkers began to realize the gravity of the situation.

The water stream bursting from the reservoir area would undoubtedly flow down the mountainside and reach the Fortress of Tochka.

Due to the lack of drinking water, the refugees suffering from thirst would surely gulp down this water in desperation, and the result would be...

[Didn't I tell you? I would turn all the trash of Tochka into poison humans. I always keep my word!]

Phlorosya laughed with a twisted expression.

The rough waves descending the mountain valley had already turned red.

At this rate, even the reinforcements heading toward this reservoir area would all be swept away by the water and turn into poison humans.

And the refugees left in Tochka, unaware of anything, would clutch their burning throats and drink this water, transforming into poison humans.

"……."

Faced with this terrifying reality, Vikir clenched his teeth.

They should never have come to the reservoir area. They should never have left the walls of Tochka.

Even if they had to die of thirst, they should have locked the gates and held out inside the walls.

As a result of falling into Phlorosya’s trap, everyone would now turn into poison humans.

Vikir quickly turned his gaze.

There, Dolores was nodding with a determined expression.

“We must not give up until the end! Miracles only come to those who act!”

Dolores clasped her hands and poured out all her remaining divine power.

...Fwoosh!

The pillar of white light she created purified the surrounding water, making it clear again.

But it wasn't enough. It was impossible for Dolores alone to purify the entire massive waterway.

"……Ugh!"

Dolores's expression twisted in pain.

Sweat poured down her face like rain, and her body looked like it could collapse at any moment.

Just then.

Thud-

A hand rested on her shoulder.

Vikir. Her dear Night Hound placed his hands on her shoulders, giving her strength.

“Sorry. Right now, I can only lean on you...”

Dolores' heart started to pound as she saw Vikir lower his head apologetically.

The moment she had always longed for had arrived.

The wounded hunter, who never relied on anyone, was leaning his head on her shoulder for the first time. She would never forget this moment for the rest of her life.

'I can't disappoint Vikir!'

Dolores's eyes changed.

“Miracles come only to those who reach out first! They will certainly respond to those who believe and act!”

Reciting a prayer, Dolores pushed against the limits.

A resonance of her soul produced an incredibly pure and pristine pillar of white light.

Seeing the holy light she emitted, all the priests of the Quovadis family also began to purify the water with all their might.

Fwoosh!

Martin Luther created an enormous holy barrier, cleansing the entire stream.

The elite priests of the Quovadis family, including Mozgus, followed Dolores's lead and valiantly confronted the red water.

Amazingly, the color of the surging water suddenly became clear.

The red hue was slowly fading away.

However.

[Ha-ha-ha-ha! Are you fools?]

Phlorosya, standing atop a rock, laughed at the priests trying to purify the water.

[Your divine power isn’t infinite. How long do you think you can keep the poison at bay? It would have been more efficient to save that power for escaping.]

The demon’s words were rational.

A massive amount of poisonous water was flowing down the mountain peak.

Even if they could hold out for a moment, the situation was practically over.

Soon, the wave of the Red Death would engulf the reinforcements.

And the countless refugees gathered in Tochka would also unknowingly drink this water and transform into poison humans.

It seemed inevitable that the world would be overrun with poison humans infected by the Red Death.

However.

...Boom!

Vikir, creating eight fangs, was still not giving up on Phlorosya.

[It’s a futile effort, demon hunter. Soon, the world below will be full of poison humans. No matter how much you struggle, your world is doomed... huh!?]

But the resolve emanating from Vikir’s eyes shut Phlorosya’s mouth.

“Your poison is indeed strong. Much stronger than I had anticipated.”

[…….]

“But your poison only defeated me, not this world.”

Finishing his words, Vikir’s eyes emitted a terrifying light.

“Don’t underestimate this world.”

Vikir, standing firm, put all his strength into moving forward.

He planted his entire weight on his big toe and dashed forward

The black sun. Eight fangs ferociously tore through Phlorosya’s body.

Boom!

Even as his body spouted fountains of blood, Phlorosya laughed leisurely.

[Ha-ha-ha! What do you even mean? The humans below are already done for…!?]

At that moment, Phlorosya’s mocking expression stiffened.

In his view were the mountain peaks, the water streams cascading down the terraced steps of the ridges.

The waterfall running from the first peak was red.

The waterfall from the second peak was also red.

...But?

The color of the waterfall from the third peak was strange.

Clear. Transparent water. Somehow, the water flowing down there carried no trace of the Red Death.

[Huh, what?]

“Who purified that area?”

Even the priests purifying the water were confused.

The soldiers below the hillside drank the flowing water, looking puzzled.

“What’s going on? Why were we told not to drink the water?”

“Huh? It’s fine? It’s really clear and refreshing.”

“Hey! Did the guys who went up first lie to keep all the water for themselves? There’s so much of it!”

The soldiers were right.

Despite not being touched by divine power, the water flowing down the mountain peaks was clear and pure.

The stream was rapidly heading towards the distant Tochka fortress.

[How… how did this happen?]

Phlorosya stretched his neck with a dazed expression.

Then, the scene on the hilltop finally came into view.

Gulp- Gulp- Gulp- Gulp-

There stood a giant spider, the size of several adult men combined, blocking the water flow and drinking it.

The spider, with its head submerged in the water, was sucking in an enormous amount of water.

Around the spider, the Red Death plague was being sucked in, swirling towards it.

“Wait. That spider looks familiar.”

“No way!?”

“If it’s a spider that eats poison…”

“My goodness! That creature!”

“Are ground spiders supposed to be that big?”

Camus, Aiyen, Dolores, Sinclaire, and Kirkko each made a remark, astounded by the spider's actions.

Vikir's expression brightened.

Baby Madam!

The creature he had parted ways with long ago had returned, now much larger and with even more potent venom!

However, Phlorosya's spirit had not yet been crushed.

[What can a mere spider do! It's quite large for a spider, but that's all it is! It's just one spider!]

Phlorosya shouted nervously, firmly believing that the appearance of a single spider wouldn't turn the tide of the battle.

But.

Crack-

His firm attitude began to crumble as the scene beyond the spider became increasingly visible.

...Boom!

Another spider appeared.

It was just as large as the one already present.

The new giant spider also began absorbing the Red Death, drinking the water alongside the original spider.

...Boom!

And beside it, yet another massive spider emerged.

...Boom! ...Boom! ...Boom! ...Boom! ...Boom! ...Boom! ...Boom!

Again and again, more giant spiders kept appearing.

Their number had already exceeded countable limits.

Even more impressive, the spiders that kept appearing were much larger and more massive than the initial one.

At that moment, something Cindiwendy had said recently popped into Vikir's mind.

‘Oh, speaking of Ballak... Lately, a new guardian has appeared in that area. They say it's quite a "formidable friend."’

Ballak's new guardian. A formidable friend.

‘Now that I think about it, has it already gotten this dark?’

The darkness around them had grown unusually thick.

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

...So why was it particularly dark here?

[...!?]

Phlorosya snapped his head up.

There, he saw a gigantic figure nearly obscuring the sky, so vast that it could be mistaken for the night sky itself.

Rustle, rustle, rustle...

The leaves of the nearby forest began to move in unison.

This figure cast an even denser shadow over the mountain peak.

Extremely.

Slowly.

Without any.

Sound.

Unnoticed until it had already come this close.

Stealthily.

...Yet it had a clear purpose!