Chapter 65:

Chapter 65:

Chapter 65. The Prophet of the Red Flesh (1)

“Aaaaah!”

A soldier burst out from the corridor and rushed in, attempting to bite Isaac. Isaac slapped the soldier’s face and marched forward.

When Owen Renly absorbed the soldiers and transformed into a gigantic flesh monster, Isaac immediately ran into the interior of the castle. He judged that the enlarged creature would not be able to enter the castle just by looking at its size.

At that time, Isaac thought he had made a smart decision.

Until Owen started chasing him, filling the corridors with massive flesh.

“Aaaaargh!”

The soldier Isaac had knocked down was newly pressed and absorbed by Owen’s flesh. It seemed like all the soldiers were ambushed inside the castle. Fortunately, the abomination wasn’t fast enough, so Isaac could easily outrun it with a quick pace.

But the abomination was finding its own ways too.

“We succeeded in assassinating Raela. But...”

“She came back to life, didn’t she?”

“Did you know?”

It was more predictable than known.

The Prophet of the Red Flesh was the most frequently encountered angel in the game strategy. Naturally, there were many fights and quests. And she never reveals her true form unless absolutely necessary.

“Raela is just a shell used by the Prophet of the Red Flesh.”

Isaac said, looking for the abomination somewhere beyond the corridor. The abomination, for some reason, was no longer chasing them. But Isaac strongly felt its presence.

“That abomination, I mean, Owen, is a bit different. It’s not just a servant; it’s like an angel’s flesh stuffed in en masse. Enough to be easily disposed of after use.”

Whether it’s the will of the Prophet of the Red Flesh or Raela’s will is indistinguishable and meaningless. To exert such power, it must be considered nearly a limb.

Hesabel looked confused at Isaac’s words.

“If it’s just a shell... then assassination is pointless, isn’t it?”

“No. It had its meaning.”

Isaac aimed for three things. Testing Hesabel’s loyalty and drawing the Prophet of the Red Flesh’s attention. If these two were successful, the attempt was meaningful.

The last was to weaken Raela’s vitality.

For the Prophet of the Red Flesh to continue using Raela as a shell, her body must be alive. If she was injured, the Prophet of the Red Flesh would have to continually use its power to keep Raela alive.

But Hesabel inflicted a fatal wound on Raela, judging her ‘dead’. This means the Prophet of the Red Flesh would have leaked considerable power.

It’s like holding and wielding a weapon with just the fingertips instead of freely with both hands.

Naturally, wielding the same weight of a weapon is much more difficult and painful in the latter case.

“You did more than what was instructed. Well done, Hesabel.”

Hesabel’s eyes widened at Isaac’s praise, then she touched her face, feeling unfamiliar.

“Uh, well, what do we do now? It seems like that flesh monster isn’t following us anymore, but if we run into the Prophet of the Red Flesh...”

At that moment, Isaac and Hesabel stopped.

It wasn’t a new enemy that blocked their way. Rather, there was nothing.

Even the path they had to take was gone.

The corridor twisted unnaturally, like the neck of a closed sack.

Isaac looked back. The corridor in the dark dawn was engulfed in silence and darkness. The air felt oppressively enclosed.

As if they had entered the belly of a beast.

Isaac spoke.

“We’ve been cornered in a hunt.”

Isaac stepped forward with his sword. He wasn’t without his own plans, though they weren’t readily deployable.

As Isaac approached, the abomination roared again and extended its arms wielding swords. But Isaac started to deflect each of those numerous weapons.

Clang, schreech, thump, crunch!

The sounds of bones and flesh being sliced were chilling, but Isaac’s expression remained unchanged.

“Incredible...”

Hesabel exclaimed in amazement at Isaac’s swordsmanship.

But Isaac’s actions were all calculated.

‘As expected, its durability is weak.’

In the game, abominations are powerful but are considered HP tanks, meaning they have abnormally high health points but extremely low defense.

Since their form changes freely, their muscles must be flexible, and their skeletal structure has to be malleable. It’s impossible for them to have hard shells. This made Isaac slicing off limbs as easy as cutting through tofu.

Moreover, this narrow space was a trap for Isaac, but it also prevented the abomination, with its large mass, from pressing down effectively. If the abomination had attacked from all directions instead of straight on, Isaac would not have been able to counterattack as he did.

All that remained was an enraged novice swordsman with nearly infinite HP.

Isaac was not going to be defeated by that.

‘The only concern is...’

Isaac thought, stepping over the splashing blood and flesh at his ankles.

His worry was running out of stamina or the corridor eventually filling up with the abomination’s flesh and blood, drowning him. Isaac had no way to stop that. He needed to move on to the next phase, but that required certain conditions to be met.

At that moment, a will was transmitted to Isaac from Zihilrat.

[Kyle Hendrake found.]

A smile crept onto Isaac’s lips. The last condition had been fulfilled.

The abomination, whether it disliked Isaac’s smile or was furious at being unable to injure him while only being attacked, roared even more fiercely and charged.

“Now, there are no witnesses left in this castle.”

Claws, looking as though they were made from crushed armor, protruded from the abomination’s body. Instead of swinging his sword or dodging, Isaac extended his fist as if to meet it head-on.

Bang! The sound was deafening, and what was crushed was the fist of the abomination wrapped around the claw.

Tentacles sprang from Isaac’s hand, quickly wrapping around the abomination’s fist and crushing it as if smashing a clam. As the insides burst out, the abomination roared in pain and fear but pushed forward excitedly.

“Ooooooh!”

At that moment, the abomination’s piercing thoughts invaded Isaac. Contact with its flesh allowed the swirling will and thoughts inside the abomination to connect with Isaac.

‘Foolish! You fool!’

‘Devour him! Absorb him!’

‘Make him one of us!’

The abomination had no intention of crushing Isaac. Instead, it planned to absorb him into its body through contact.

That was the abomination’s most dangerous ability.

And as if the creature’s thoughts were being realized, the tentacles that had crushed the fist dissolved quickly, healing over the wound. The skin covered the injury, and the bleeding stopped.

The abomination began to envelop Isaac with its entire body, intending to absorb him.

However, Isaac looked at the abomination without any sign of disturbance.

He had already received the message he was waiting for.

[‘Abomination’ has been devoured.]

[‘Devouring’ perk increases consumption efficiency.]

[‘Physical Fusion (Temporary)’ perk acquired.]

[Blessings remain until digestion.]