Chapter 314
Chapter 314
The thundering roar turned a large part of the forest upside down. Small and large animals had stopped whatever they were doing and rushed off to the alpha beast’s call. Their whole existence had lost any meaning. Protecting their master was the only thing that mattered.
It shocked Kyon to the core. Instead of running away as a normal person would do, he rushed to the source of the roar that was only ten kilometers away, right in front of him. He could easily avoid unpleasant surprises with the help of his flying spies, so it was only reasonable to investigate the situation. That’s how he justified his immense curiosity.
But before that, Lovr had put a soundproof barrier on the tournament bracelet so that no one could get any unwanted sounds, namely the school administration. It was through the bracelet that the judges learned about the violation of the rules. Communication via sound transmitters, getting an assistant, even a premeditated murder could be revealed with the help of this device. The absence of sounds could also be a give-away, so Kyon sent Synergy a task to imitate them inside the barrier. By the way, information about wiretapping was strictly classified.
Soon, the winged scouts found nine people in black woolen robes with the Hunter’s coat of arms on their shoulders. Five of them were fighting against hundreds of distraught animals whose number was only increasing. The alpha beast’s will was so strong that even trained bloodhound dogs had betrayed their owners, which led to the extermination of the loyal pets. The other four hunters infused the ropes that made up a net with pure energy. The net was glowing bright blue. Inside, a white tiger was struggling, bleeding from a deep cut on its side.
A mustachioed man holding the brightest rope barked: «Shut the fuck up, kitty!» – He was obviously the strongest hunter and the leader of the group.
His words made the tiger even angrier: «RRROOOAAARRR!»
The roar caused gusts of wind that blew away stones, branches, and leaves in all directions. An ordinary person would have had a ruptured eardrum.
«The local pets are no danger to us! Your growl is only getting on our nerves! Be a good kitty. Stop it! I promise not to skin you alive when I harness you!» – The mustachioed leader yelled with an evil smile.
However, the tiger didn’t even think of giving up. Its life would turn into a nightmare as soon as the hunters laid their formation on its forehead. The beast desperately resisted, but the nets wouldn’t break, sucking out all its energy and blocking its elements, draining the victim of strength.
«Boss, the animals are arriving in greater numbers! At this rate…»
«SHUT UP!» – The mustachioed leader interrupted his minion.
The tiger understood everything and continued to resist with renewed hope.
«Fucking beast! If we survive, I personally will neuter you!» – The leader swore furiously.
Meanwhile, Kyon was watching this scene on a nearby hill behind dense bushes about a kilometer away. He was carefully analyzing the situation. Judging by the power of attacks and the difference in the glow of the ropes, the hunters were in the beginning-middle stages of the lord phase. The leader was in the final stages of the same phase. However, even nine of them couldn’t harness one supreme beast! They looked scared, cowardly waiting for the restraining net to deprive the beast of all its strength. The white tiger was dangerous… What monster managed to leave a wound on its side? It can’t have been one of these nine. The supreme beast must have been recently fighting. It managed to escape, hid in a cave (it was just in Kyon’s sight), and the hunters set up an ambush. If everything went on like this, they would soon harness the kitty.
{The white tiger is the king of supreme beasts! With its innate ability to command animals, I could fill the core with souls a hundred times faster! With this mighty protector in the royal phase, loyal to the master, nothing will ever threaten me even in Dantes! Moreover, they are tough and fast like hell! A devoted, strong, fast, enduring beast that will help me to cultivate my unique body…} – The temptation was unbearable. Kyon bit his lips helplessly. He was shaking with the urge to get a personal harnessed white tiger in the royal phase. The haggard gray wolf at the beginning of the lord phase was as nothing compared with the tiger. Even five or ten main awards of the forest tournament were not equal to the reckless beautiful beast. But how do you get it? Was it worth the risk?
Although Kyon despised the rules of this world, he began to understand their barbaric ways and play by their rules. When it came to valuable booty, he was ready to kill seemingly innocent people without a twinge of conscience.
Lovr was one of those people who would kill an innocent person for a greater benefit. His progress would ultimately do good to the whole world. Temporary hardship for certain individuals was just a little sacrifice for the common good.
But in this particular situation, Kyon subconsciously justified his actions as follows: the hunters did not defend their homeland from the invader, they tried to capture it, risking their lives. Their death would be nothing but a failure in the pursuit of a trophy. They were like pirates trying to hijack a ship full of gold.
However, there was another issue. The nine men, judging by the coats of arms on their shoulders, belonged to the Hunters, an extremely influential third-ranking family in Dantes, the capital of the empire. Their sudden death would definitely be investigated with all seriousness. There was no doubt that they would find out about the tournament and get interested in the winner. It wouldn’t matter much if Kyon would get away with it or escape to Dantes. The Hunters would find him even in the imperial department!
Kyon weighed the pros and cons, carefully considering all the possibilities and solutions to the possible problems. Two things never changed. He was not going to lose Dick’s personality. The tiger would be harnessed, anyway. The only question was who would do it.
Not so long ago, providence (and his sense of smell) granted Lovr wonderful Demonic mushrooms, and now it lured him with the white tiger. Who was he to give up these gifts? He had made up his decision!
«Rrrooaaarrr!» – Kyon could hear desperate notes in the faint growl of the supreme beast.
The number of animals coming from everywhere had significantly decreased. Five exhausted hunters smeared with blood and mud could relax at last: «Boss, the number of the beasts has gone down. The danger is over.»
The mustachioed leader wiped the sweat from his forehead: «I am not blind. Just a little more, and it’s over.»
The tiger was struggling in the shining net, bleeding profusely from the wound, trying to cut the ropes with the razor-sharp claws, biting with the long white fangs, all to no avail. With every passing minute, its strength slipped away like sand through the fingers. Was it destined to lose the priceless freedom and become a slave to pathetic dirty people?
The hunters grinned viciously watching the supreme beast final sluggish attempts at resistance. How many family members did this creature kill? A lot! The tiger wouldn’t get off easily. If it’s a male, he would get fixed. As for a female, there are other ways to pay for her misdeeds.
Soon, the supreme beast stopped fighting and blacked out from energy deficiency. The hunters roared with delight like warriors who had won a bloody war. They had never caught anyone that powerful. The beast was in the damned royal phase! They were destined to gain incredible fame! They would be proud of this feat until the end of their long, well-fed lives.
The mustachioed leader walked up to the tiger, put his foot on its head and proclaimed gloatingly: «Brainless creature! You are at my feet at last! Now I will definitely get my promotion. You’ve made me so fucking happy!» – With a beaming smile, the hunter took out the harness.
«Boss…» – His helper cried out in dismay, pointing at the approaching armageddon.
~BAAAM~ ~BAAAM~ ~BAAAM~
In the blink of an eye, the entire area of at least a hundred meters in diameter turned into ashes. Each hunter got a shot in proportion to their cultivation. Many lost their heads in the literal sense of the term, and only the strong leader died with a scalp ripped off.
Kyon had used up half of his artillery supply, but something else was worrying him: {Please! The harness must stay safe!} – While he was dashing to the bloody beast tangled in the net, a bird picked up the harness and delivered it to him. – {It is! Holy tomatoes!} – As expected, formations of this level were mostly durable.
Kyon ran to the tiger and, to his complete amazement, saw its wide-open bright amber eyes, glaring at him as if he was enemy number one. The greedy grinning fat guy with a harness in his hands didn’t look like a benefactor. Kyon felt as if he had suddenly fallen into the ice hole. His instincts screamed bloody murder. His body was numb, the hairs on the back of his head stood on end.
Deep in his heart, Lovr cursed the stupid incompetent hunters. With their “long” experience, they did not bother to check if the tiger was faking being unconscious!
{Am I going to die… of greed?} – The time slowed a thousandfold for Kyon. An enormous paw with razor-sharp silver claws was approaching at speed beyond the reaction of any advanced phaser. He was just a pathetic midge against such power. No chance to dodge or defend himself.
The nucleus in his soul reacted to the tiger’s attempt to end his life. It vibrated and released liquid darkness, a clot of accumulated dark feelings. It rushed to the keys and left his body, plunging the forest around him into impenetrable darkness.
The beast was caught off guard. It felt like plugs in the ears, water up the nose, scratching the eyes out, the instincts reduced to the level of an old beaten dog! The despicable man’s dark magic was strong, but it wasn’t going to change anything! The paw crashed into him at full speed…
~CABOOM~
When the darkness cleared away, the tiger found the man alive lying nearby! The beast opened its mouth in disbelief. The legendary claws could cut king phasers like a red-hot knife would slice butter, but instead of being slit open, the ugly pathetic advanced phaser had just lost an arm and received a deep chest wound!
«Whiskered beast, I give you a chance to run away, or I’ll do to you what I did to the hunters!» – Kyon yelled in a threatening voice, clutching at the stump of his arm. In fact, he was in complete shock. Carbon skin was a perfect defense against cutting attacks, and carbon bones were an indestructible wall! However, the tiger’s careless blow with the paw had cut off his arm and left a deep cut in the chest that almost reached the internal organs!
The tiger twitched the whiskers contemptuously and took up an attacking position. The yellow eyes glittered with bloodthirst. The beast waited prudently, ready for any trick from the vicious man.
Kyon almost cried in despair. The bluff didn’t work. The proud kitty hated people too much to keep him alive. He couldn’t escape. They would never agree. All that remained was to fight: {It’s the tiger or I…}
The terrible white muzzle suddenly disappeared from sight. The ground under the bleeding paws cracked from the force of the jump. In a split of a second, Lovr emptied all his rings with a wave of the hand.
~BAAAAAAAAAM~
Numerous explosions united into a single boom. The shock wave smashed everything in its path, turning trees into chips, and vegetation into dust. The beast in the royal phase flew about a hundred meters away and landed on the paws. Then, without a moment’s hesitation, the tiger attacked again at amazing speed.
The residual shock wave threw Kyon away. His ears were ringing, his vision was blurry, his temples throbbing, but he couldn’t care about such trifles: {Damn it! So many shots at once and nothing! Fucking shit!} – He had overestimated his weapons. The tiger didn’t get a single scratch. The firearms had only infuriated the supreme beast! The tiger was running towards him at a breathtaking speed like an immortal reaper, and nothing could stop it! This sight would scare anyone to death.
Kyon swiftly picked up his arm from the ground (still clutching at the harness) and activated the rings on his lost hand.
~BAAAAAAAAAM~
The explosion was as strong as the previous one. Local cataclysm, no less. However, the tiger managed to block a good share of the shells and flew only about fifty meters away.
The situation seemed hopeless. Kyon’s ammunition had come to an end. There was nothing else he could do to this monster. He had only lots of protective formations from the Grand legacy… Something that could at least delay his death.
The supreme beast approached the man and delivered a crushing blow.
~BANG~
The mighty paw destroyed ALL his protective barriers, leaving a long cut deep to the bones in the carbon skin. The incredible impact sent Kyon flying a hundred meters like a cannonball. He plowed the ground another ten meters and crashed into a tree.
{I will die… Pretty lame, huh…} – Kyon’s eyes lost their sparkle. He could not think of any way to escape. The legless hare was no match for the alpha predator. In his last moments, Lovr remembered the girls he had met on the way, especially Juno, the sweet little demon in the guise of an angel. She was the first to nearly kill him… The thought of the goldilocks gave him hope. There was a chance of survival! One in a million, but still!