Chapter: 173
Karandis Poseus.
Glen Diana.
Balak Hogma.
Haring Lagrain.
And Kraush Balheim.
A temporary team of five second-year students.
As they stood on the Red Line, they witnessed their bracelets turning a deep red.
“It’s so stuffy even though there’s nothing around,” complained Balak.
They were in the volcanic core of the island.
Aside from the paths winding up the mountains and some rocks, there was nothing else.
Perhaps that’s why the heat rising from the ground and the thin air characteristic of high altitudes was weighing them down.
But Kraush understood it was more than just that.
“It’s because a seventh-level Degradation Species is nearby.”
Those seventh-level creatures move by the world’s erosion power, meaning they primarily inhabit areas influenced by it.
Being powerful, they’re restricted from freely roaming outside the erosion zones.
So, running into a seventh-level species outside that area is quite rare.
However, the problem is that there are indeed times when some of them step out.
They may hesitate to come out, but they certainly are capable of it.
Instead, when they do step out, they consume their own power to manifest a type of world’s erosion.
This is why Degradation Species that exist outside are weaker than those thriving within it.
‘And when the worst shows up...’
When the worst of the world erosion spreads, it eventually covers the entire world.
Within such calamity, the limitations that seventh-level and above species experienced vanish.
As a result, high-level Degradation Species run rampant, turning the world into chaos.
‘Tch, that brings back bad memories.’
Not that there were many good ones to begin with; Kraush shook his head and began to ascend the Red Line.
“There’s a seventh-level around here! That’s it!” he exclaimed.
At that, Balak let out a hearty laugh.
However, Glen remained lost in thought, not saying a word.
‘It’s probably because he knows Mary has completely been put down by me.’
He likely understood that if Mary didn’t take first place, only the worst outcome would be left for her.
Her life as the murderer of the princess was already a mess.
She had managed to survive until now thanks to the only acknowledged talent she had.
But now that her talent had been eclipsed by Kraush...
She was sure to be left with nowhere to go.
“Glen.”
In a situation where they were about to clash with the seventh-level species, he couldn’t allow Glen to stay in that state.
“Mary was strong enough.”
Upon hearing that, Glen looked at Kraush.
Defeating Kraush wasn’t due to Mary’s lack of talent.
That was something Glen surely knew all too well.
So, hearing that, he slowly nodded.
“Yeah, she’s my sister.”
Seeing his expression, it seemed he had somewhat shaken off the gloom.
“Snap!”
[It’s moving.]
At that moment, the Decomposition Rat and Crimson Garden reacted simultaneously.
As they had both said, tremors began to resonate from the ground.
Kraush’s instincts spread rapidly below the surface.
The instant something caught his intuition, he shouted to the others.
“Jump up now!”
With Kraush’s shout, he dashed towards the top.
The others quickly followed, knowing there was always a good reason for his actions.
Breathing heavily as they climbed the mountain, Kraush was feeling the strain.
Having exerted a lot of energy earlier, he didn’t have much left to spare.
With hardly any stamina left...
‘Must finish this before I run out.’
Just then, KABOOM!
A rumbling sound echoed, and a tremendous vibration surged from below.
Startled, the four turned to look down the mountain, where the ground erupted like a volcano.
And from the gaping hole, lava spewed forth.
The molten rock poured out, melting whatever small trees and rocks remained on the ground.
Black smoke billowed up, engulfing the surroundings.
“What the heck is going on?” Karandis exclaimed, staring wide-eyed.
She hadn’t expected lava to erupt beneath them.
If they had been down there, they would have been swept away by the molten flow.
Had it not been for Kraush’s instincts, they might have ended up without even a fight and just retreated.
“Kraush.”
Feeling the aura becoming more intense, Haring began to tense up.
Though she hadn’t fought a seventh-level creature yet, she had been up against Decarabia before.
So perhaps that’s why she sensed this seventh-level’s aura more keenly.
KABOOM!
A loud noise and shaking resonated again from below.
With an explosion from the dagger, Lavados staggered for a moment.
Taking this chance, Karandis gasped and caught her breath, readying herself.
“Can we tolerate the heat?”
“Yeah, we’ll manage!”
She had been training and practicing continuously until now.
On top of that, she had been working harder to earn her place as Kraush’s partner.
Whatever her goals were, once set, she would go after them resolutely.
That was Karandis for you.
And throughout her life, she hadn’t once failed to achieve her aims.
Even while sweaty, she winked at Kraush, proving it.
She was truly something to behold in various ways.
“Take it easy, and let it flow; that’ll make it easier.”
Kraush advised as he quietly inhaled.
And unlike his usual manner, the heat didn’t emanate from his body.
Instead, an unusual energy began to swirl around him for some reason.
Kraush’s body temperature was rapidly dropping.
‘I stop Ignis.’
His Annihilation Erosion, which usually burned with the world erosion, was now being quelled.
Once he extinguished the Ignis that had been constantly burning within him, his true attributes began to reveal themselves.
Kraush’s body was now a Lunar Body, bestowed upon him by Aslan.
Naturally, if he stopped the Annihilation Erosion, the first thing to rear its head was the effect of the Lunar Body.
A thick essence filled with negativity that attracted various misfortunes.
The Lunar Body heightened its traits particularly under the cover of night.
As the Annihilation Erosion subsided, Kraush’s body filled with Nox, showcasing the ideal conditions for the Lunar Body’s power.
A cold night breeze swept through Kraush’s body.
The sun, once scorching, had vanished, replaced by a winter night atmosphere.
The chill air gradually turned into icy gusts.
Before long, something else began to mix in the stream of that wind.
It was snow.
Snow poured from the sky, filling the insides of Nox gradually.
Kraush quietly exhaled.
For he knew better than anyone the nature of the snow.
He had recently obtained an advanced curse from Dorma through the Bloodline Theory.
Hanseol-a-gi.
Not only freezing the cursed target instantly, but also persistently freezing everything around that cursed target was one of the high-level curses.
This curse needed to be handled with care. Its death rate approached the extreme if caught by it.
However, for Kraush, the Hanseol-a-gi was utilized quite differently.
In the same manner as the Bloodline Theory, Kraush continuously cleansed and re-cursed himself using Ignis.
During his time confined in his room, it had allowed his body to reach a state of immunity against Hanseol-a-gi.
This action was, in reality, an act of madness.
As I described in the Bloodline Theory, the process of self-poisoning is not recommended without significant patience.
Moreover, this advanced curse wasn’t the typical poison with a clear antidote!
Had it not been for Ignis burning away the curse within his body, he wouldn’t have come close to even attempting it.
Just how terrifying was it that even with Ignis, he nearly lost grip over his hands as they froze into ice?
But Kraush was a unique case, far beyond just being any ordinary individual.
He gritted his teeth, resolutely freezing himself, burning with Ignis, freezing again, and repeating the process.
And at the end of this insane loop after numerous iterations...
Kraush reached a state of immunity against Hanseol-a-gi.
As ever, this determination of his was nothing short of absurd.
A pure white chill began to circulate around Kraush’s body.
The Rain Thunder Prime in his hands also began slowly freezing due to that chill.
It was all due to the aura being created.
“Whew.”
A frigid sensation completely unlike the heat he had been feeling emerged in his mouth.
The Annihilation Erosion containing the world erosion’s essence combined with the Hanseol-a-gi, amplifying its power immensely.
Despite all this, Kraush wasn’t satisfied with his current state.
‘More.’
To confront Lavados, he needed to up the output of cold.
Kraush’s eyes began glowing red.
Amidst the endless snowfall of night, the seven stars of Celestial Life began to shine brightly.
With that, the flurry of snow grew fiercer.
The Celestial Life amplifying the power of the curse.
At the moment the Celestial Life met Hanseol-a-gi, the chill that poured out of Kraush was on an entirely different magnitude.
CRACK! CRACK!
The rocks flowing with molten lava below began to freeze unexpectedly.
The intense heat was devoured entirely by the chill.
Kraush’s glowing red eyes lifted the white-chilled Rain Thunder Prime.
Mortis-nubis:
The total antithesis of the Annihilation Erosion produced as a curse.
This was the moment the master of white cold announced his declaration upon the Red Line.