Chapter 47: Saving The Hero! (4)
Deluc charged at Thoran with incredible speed, and Thoran met him head-on. The two clashed in a brutal exchange of blows. Each strike landed with force, but their bodies regenerated almost instantly. Thoran began to realize that this battle had turned into a test of endurance. Then Deluc suddenly leapt backward, activating a buff to enhance his physical strength.
Seeing this, Thoran muttered to himself, "Damn it, he still has hidden cards to play."
Deluc dashed toward Thoran with a wicked laugh. This time, the fight became one-sided. Thoran could no longer land any hits on Deluc, and the tide shifted entirely. Deluc pierced Thoran's abdomen with his arm and hurled him toward Rowen.
As Thoran reverted to his original form, his wounds began regenerating more slowly.
"You owe me a lot for this," Deluc said, turning toward Elza.
"Yeah, yeah," Elza replied dismissively, "Just add it to your little debt book."
The two began approaching Rowen and Thoran. Elza smirked and asked, "So, who give you the information about this lab's location?"
Thoran chuckled weakly, recalling Tristan, "Hahaha, you think you've already won?"
Deluc slammed his fist into Thoran's head. "Still running your mouth, even when you're down to the ground huh?," Deluc sneered.
Then, the faint sound of small footsteps echoed from behind the large iron door at the back of the room.
Thoran began laughing again. "You're done for. The strongest among us has arrived."
Hearing this, Deluc froze as an icy aura pierced through his very bones.
The iron door groaned as it swung open, revealing a small figure, a child stepping calmly into the room.
"Uncle, why are you guys taking so long?" the child asked in a soft voice.
Elza and Deluc stared at the boy, their confusion quickly turning to amusement. Both erupted into mocking laughter.
"Hahaha! So this is the 'strongest one' you were talking about?" Deluc jeered, pressing his foot onto Thoran's head.
But suddenly 'splash! Blood sprayed, and Deluc toppled to the ground.
"Huh? What's this? Why am I falling?" Deluc gasped, looking down to see his legs severed cleanly at the knees.
Standing before Rowen and Thoran was Tristan, his blade dripping with blood.
"How many times do I have to tell you not to let your guard down?" Tristan said with an exasperated sigh.
Thoran let out a small laugh, coughing as he replied, "Haha, my bad. I got carried away since the first ones I fought were just a bunch of weaklings."
Tristan pulled a crimson vial from his storage space. "Drink this, and give another one to Uncle Rowen."
And then Tristan asked Thoran, "So, Uncle, who do we need to interrogate? There's no way their crime of worshiping a Demon God ends with just this little lab."
Thoran glanced toward Deluc and Elza before replying, "That woman over there, Elza, the mad scientist from the Lavindra family. She's the head scientist here."
Tristan shifted his gaze toward Elza and smirked. "Hmm, alright then." He turned his body to face her and said, "So, Auntie, are you going to cooperate willingly, or do we have to take the hard way?"
On the other side, Deluc began to stand, his legs now fully regenerated. "Kid, don't think you've won just because you managed to cut off my leg while I was caught off guard."
Tristan glanced at Deluc and replied casually, "Yeah, yeah. Lots of people say things like that after losing to me. That includes some of the demons allies of yours that I've already taken care of."
Deluc's expression stiffened as he recalled the cave he had investigated recently, the one near the Allrose village. "Hahaha, so it was you, huh? You're the one who killed the demons near Allrose?"
"Oh, do you know them, Uncle?" Tristan raised an eyebrow. "If I remember correctly, one was named Damian, and the other was Deo. Both were pretty weak. I only needed one hand to take down Damian."
Elza's eyes widened in disbelief. "There's no way a child like you could defeat demons!"
Tristan turned his sharp gaze toward Elza and frowned slightly. "You... Your voice sounds familiar. Where have I heard it before?"
As Tristan tried to recall, Deluc seized the opportunity and lunged at him. But Tristan effortlessly dodged every strike, still lost in thought. Then, as if snapping back to reality, Tristan blocked Deluc's attack with his sword and swiftly slashed his arm.
Deluc staggered back, clutching his injured arm, his thoughts racing. "What is with this kid? He dodged all my attacks so easily, even while deep in thought?
Tristan suddenly smirked. "Ah, now I remember. You're the woman who gave me that crystal ball to check my status back when I was in Wyrmford, right?"
Elza froze, the memory flooding back. She recalled a boy with an extraordinary status. "Y-you... Are you that kid from back then? The one who was with Baren?"
Hearing the name "Baren," Tristan's expression darkened, his smile turning cold. "Oh, so that's how it is. Everything is starting to make sense now. Looks like we have a lot to discuss, Auntie."
Deluc roared, "Elza, summon every monster you have! I'll absorb them to recover my strength!"
Without hesitation, Elza began chanting, and three portals materialized on the ground.
Thoran glanced at the portals and muttered, "Careful, Boss. Her summoned creatures are no joke."
Deluc lunged at Tristan, snarling, "I won't let you get in the way!"
Tristan sidestepped the attack with ease and countered with a swift kick, sending Deluc crashing backward. Calmly, Tristan said, "Take your time, Uncle. Prepare as much as you want. I'll wait."
With that, he walked over to Rowen and casually sat down, leaning against the wall.
"What is wrong with this kid?" Deluc thought, his frustration mounting. "Is he really that confident in his strength? Arrogance like this will only lead to your downfall, boy."
At that moment, Rowen regained consciousness with a start. "Aah! Where's the enemy?" he exclaimed, looking around frantically. Then his eyes landed on Tristan beside him. "T-Tristan? Did you already defeat them?"
Tristan pointed toward Elza, who was still chanting her spell. "Not yet, Uncle. They're over there."
"What?!" Rowen shouted, stunned. "Why are you letting them do that?"
Tristan shrugged. "Relax, Uncle. I'm just giving them some time to prepare." And then Tristan muttered to himself, "if that guy is that strong, I want to try my new skill Limit-Breaker to him."
Rowen glanced at Thoran, who simply smiled and shrugged back. Inwardly, Thoran chuckled to himself. "Well, this is what happens when you work under a crazy boss. But honestly, I kind of like it."
Moments later, massive monsters began emerging from the portals, creatures as formidable as the ones Rowen and Thoran had fought earlier. Deluc wasted no time, absorbing all three monsters into his body.
"Yes... YES! This is it! This is the power I've been searching for!" Deluc declared with a maniacal grin, his body surging with energy.
Tristan stood up, stretching lazily. "Are you done, Uncle? You sure took your sweet time. I was starting to get sleepy watching you laugh and smile to yourself like that."
Deluc locked eyes with Tristan, his grin widening. "Hah! Get ready, you arrogant brat. You and those two behind you will die here today!"
Tristan calmly drew his sword from his storage space. "So, Uncle, are you going to make the first move, or should I?"
Deluc laughed, his confidence oozing. "Go ahead, kid. I'll grant you the honor of witnessing—"
Before he could finish, Tristan was already in front of him, his sword slashing at lightning speed. Deluc's eyes widened in shock as he barely managed to block the strikes, unable to find an opening to counterattack.
"After absorbing all those creatures, the only thing that improved was your Strength, which reached S-rank," Tristan remarked mid-assault. "Everything else is stuck at A-rank. All I have to do is avoid your attacks, Uncle."
Thoran, Rowen, and Elza froze in disbelief.
"Can he see someone's status?" Thoran whispered to Rowen.
"I have no idea," Rowen replied, equally stunned.
Tristan's relentless attacks continued, his strikes leaving shallow cuts across Deluc's body. Desperate, Deluc leapt backward with all his might to create some distance.
"You're awfully arrogant for someone whose attacks can only scratch me," Deluc sneered, trying to mask his frustration.
Tristan smirked. "I'm just toying with you, Uncle. I wanted to see how strong you really are. Turns out, you're even weaker than Uncle Thoran. Honestly, I'm baffled as to how someone like you managed to beat him."
Thoran's face lit up with a grin at Tristan's words of praise.
"So, Uncle," Tristan continued, shooting Thoran a cold smile, "you'd better explain later how can you lost to trash like this."
Rowen chuckled, glancing at Thoran. "You're done for."
But Tristan wasn't finished. He turned to Rowen with a sly grin. "And you, Uncle Rowen, I think I'll have to report your laziness during training to Lord Lucien."
Thoran let out a small laugh, covering his mouth as he glanced at Rowen, who groaned in mock defeat.
Tristan exhaled softly and said, "Alright, let's end this here."
Mana began surging through his body, and with a fluid motion, he ran his index and middle fingers along the blade of his sword, imbuing it with energy. "Here I come," he said calmly.
In an instant, his speed increased fivefold. Deluc's eyes widened in panic, he couldn't track Tristan's movements at all. Moments later, Tristan was standing next to Elza, calmly sheathing his sword.
"What... what did you do, kid?" Deluc growled, confused.
Tristan let out a sigh. "You don't even realize it yet, do you? Your body has already been cut to pieces."
As the words left his lips, Deluc's body fell apart into neatly sliced segments, scattering across the ground.
Tristan turned to Thoran. "Uncle, do what you need to do. Don't worry about me or Uncle Rowen."
Thoran's eyes narrowed slightly as he thought, "Does Tristan know? Does he know that I need to consume my enemies to grow stronger?" He nodded, putting his thoughts aside. "Understood, Boss," Thoran said aloud.
He walked over to Deluc's remains and began consuming the parts of the body that emitted the brightest and most abundant mana.
"Thoran, what the hell are you doing?!" Rowen exclaimed, his face pale.
"Relax, Uncle," Tristan said nonchalantly. "It's not like Uncle Thoran is going to start eating every person he meets."
Rowen fell silent, though his expression remained uneasy.
"Alright, Auntie," Tristan said, turning to Elza. "For now, you can sleep."
He tapped her shoulder lightly, and Elza collapsed unconscious. Tristan then retrieved a rope from his storage room and began tying her up from wrists to ankles. After securing her, he channeled his mana through the bindings, disrupting her own mana flow to prevent her from using magic.
Tristan turned to Thoran and Rowen. "Give me a moment, Uncles. I'll deal with this woman first."
"Got it," Rowen replied with a nod.
Thoran, meanwhile, simply raised a hand, giving Tristan a thumbs-up with a satisfied grin.