NOVEL NEXT Chapter 121
“Watch out!! Small monsters are coming out from the inside of the giant monster’s neck!!”
“It really was true, everything you taught me during training…!”
Sharaaaat
Sharaaaat
The dark mouth of the gigantic sea serpent felt like a damp cave. And from the darkness, hundreds of black vipers unfolded like tentacles. Born from the poison clinging to the damp walls, the vipers darted forward, flicking their tongues to eliminate intruders.
Sharaaaat—!!
Yuki and Lee Hua had been preparing for this situation for days, so they weren’t too startled by the hundreds of vipers charging at them.
The two quietly drew forth starlight.
“We need to get to the heart quickly before the main body of the sea serpent comes to its senses!”
“Got it, Yuki.”
Whaaaat—!!
Rumblerumble—!!
With red flames and dazzling lightning erupting, hundreds of vipers were burned away.
The vipers crumbled uselessly with a disgusting smell as they burned.
Whoooosh!
Casting magic that purified the thick poison and creepy vipers in the dark cave, they advanced.
Chiiiiiik—!!
Burning away the poison pooling on the mucky floor, the two magical girls moved forward. The path they were taking became two bright colors in the darkness due to the starlight.
Sharaaaat!!
As they approached the heart of the giant monster, the resistance intensified.
The attacks were coming in quicker and quicker, with the vipers’ strikes closing in like a wall.
Guuuuooh!!
Hundreds of vipers gathered and moved as one, merging into a huge leech-like shape. They charged at Yuki and Lee Hua, making a heavy sound.
It looked like slimy sludge from a sewer mixed with vipers. A repulsive monster, reminiscent of a nightmare from last night.
Black, dirty, damp, writhing, and stinkingly toxic.
Guuuuooh!!
Even the strong and bold Lee Hua felt nauseous for a moment as the disgusting viper swarm charged in, but Yuki maintained her expressionless face and swung her Flame Sword.
Instinctual movements born from memory.
‘I’ve seen far worse horrors than this.’
Whaaaat!!
A wave of flames illuminating the darkness.
Dazzling brilliance, like several horses made of fire charging out.
The army of flames surged forth, pouring a baptism of purification onto the repugnant viper horde.
Kwaaaaang!!
The loathsome monster melted away in the fiery deluge.
‘If I get stuck by the small monsters like this, it’s going to get difficult.’
Even in the horrific scene, Yuki’s mind felt somewhat hazy.
‘Let’s find an efficient way to move.’
The interior of the giant Trial Monster was like a small rift. Though an anomaly was happening outside with the Born [Plague] Magical Girl emerging, the phenomena originating from the sea serpent— the trial’s host— were not significantly different from Yuki’s recollections.
Guuuuooh!!
Guuuuooh!!
In the dark cave leading towards the heart of the monster, once again, hundreds of vipers were gathering, taking form as a swarm with a repugnant stench.
The more they gathered, the stronger the poison became.
Guuuuooh!!
Guuuuooh!!
The bodies of the swarms began to fill the dark cave like a wall.
A disgusting wall of monsters blocking the girls’ path.
Lee Hua momentarily froze in shock at the sight.
“Whoa?! They appeared again!! What do we do?!”
“Don’t panic. Just keep burning them as we go! We can’t get surrounded!!”
“Got it…! You really are calm in this kind of situation. I’ll trust you, Yuki!”
With trust in her eyes, Lee Hua said those words.
Faith.
Yuki’s heart throbbed for a moment at what Lee Hua had said.
—I’ll just trust Yuki!
“… .”
Following Yuki’s strategy, the inside of the sea serpent was no different from other trial monsters she had entered before.
She was just stepping up because she had experienced it.
She was calm only because she had lived through it.
According to the arrangement of the Goddess of [Start].
‘This is not the faith I achieved…’
When the wounded girl, who had only shed tears in the previous world, stepped forward for the first time, her first fight born of her own will was clumsy and awkward. But after that, the way people looked at her changed, and the faith they sent her was different too.
Her own achieved faith.
Even if the result was a failure.
Even if the size was insignificantly small compared to what it is now.
At least what she had achieved on her own in the previous world was purely hers. Compared to that, Lee Hua’s faith somehow stung her heart.
If only she had done better, would she have received such faith from Lee Hua back then?
‘…Let’s concentrate.’
Even while thinking about other things, the Flame Sword Yuki held traced a familiar path forward.
Whaaaat!
Flames advancing.
Magical girls advancing.
Finally, in that seemingly endless dark corridor, the source of the trial monster’s power was revealed.
“That’s the heart!”
“Yeah. If we destroy that, the Trial Monster will fall.”
“Easier than I thought— ah, no.”
Lee Hua stopped herself from speaking to shake off her moment of relax. Yuki pretended not to understand and let her be.
Once you know the answer, the solution seems incredibly easy.
The unity of the magical girls, an attack using starlight.
It was what led to the destruction of the previous world.
“… .”
The giant heart, oozing sticky liquid between the black tentacles. Yuki and Lee Hua gathered all their starlight and attacked.
Whaaaaaaaz—to the power of flame and lightning! —
Burning flames.
Dazzling lightning.
With two colors of starlight shining brilliantly, the unique skills of the two girls with the purest destructive power among all magical girls were unleashed.
A massive beam of combined fire and lightning shot forth.
“Haah!!”
“Disappear!!”
Kwaaaaang—!!!
The pillar of flames blazed fiercely, greedily reaching out to burn everything, and the dozens of split lightning made a chilling sound that reminded listeners of death.
A storm of fire and lightning.
Burning even the poison and air in the dark cave, an attack that would obliterate everything.
Chiiiiiik—!!
However, even after the blinding flash of destruction passed, the massive heart of the monster was still intact.
Chiiiiiik!
The heart, singed only on the surface, was gradually regaining its shape with poison seeping from the black tentacles. Unlike other parts of the sea serpent, only the heart swayed with black starlight, demonstrating overwhelming regenerative capability that withstood Yuki and Lee Hua’s attacks.
‘Is it because of the power of [Plague]?!’
The curses of the three goddesses always appeared in their most disastrous form by throwing small pebbles at the most critical moments.
“W-Why?!”
“… We didn’t have enough firepower.”
Originally, the support team and Hikari were supposed to face the sea serpent, with Hong Na-yeon joining to strike the heart.
However, due to the suddenly emerging [Plague] Magical Girl, the support team, which was absorbing starlight, and Hikari, who rushed out to intercept, became divided in their roles.
If the three members of the original strike team had entered the serpent’s body promptly, there might have been a way. But now that Hong Na-yeon was guiding the sea serpent instead of Hikari and the support team…
Yuki and Lee Hua alone couldn’t manage this unexpected situation.
“… .”
Self-Explosion
A method that could be executed immediately popped into Yuki’s head.
The way of facing trial monsters from the previous world.
Sacrificing one magical girl to create a massive explosion of starlight.
A Born 2-Star Magical Girl, blooming, unleashing all her starlight without protecting herself. Each time they passed a trial, one magical girl had to inevitably perish.
‘If I had bloomed [Resurrection] a bit earlier back then…’
When Yuki fought with the final trial, the Destruction Dragon, and transcended into the endless self-explosion of [Resurrection].
All trials had already ended.
“…”
Nevertheless.
In this unexpected situation where the firepower had dwindled, self-explosion was the best option.
‘This time, I should be the one to do it.’
Strangely, even choosing self-explosion did not evoke fear in her.
As long as Hikari was alive, this world would gradually change to fit Yuki’s ideals.
As long as Hikari was alive, Magical Girls could be revived from death.
Yuki’s mind was swayed by rational reasons, and her heart was mired in a dream-like haze. Therefore, she casually spoke to Lee Hua about it.
“What did you… say?”
Upon hearing that, Lee Hua just stared blankly at Yuki.
“… .”
“…Then. I’ll self-explode now, so escape with the thread of fate…”
“Yuki.”
“What?”
“Bite down tightly.”
Squish!
Lee Hua slapped Yuki’s cheek.