Chapter 65: Iron Terror

As long as she was a Healer, she didn’t need to fight that much; however she would only unlock the wisps of her element once she reached four-liner status.

If he let her rank up the normal way, then it would take a lot of time for her to reach four-liner so he was going with the relatively easier option… Murdering.

He even planned to move to a zone where they would only face Iron class monsters. It was the best way to not only make money but also rank up quicker.

He needed them at four-liner status quickly. The faster they ranked up, the faster they could handle more difficult missions and the faster he could accumulate FP.

Time was a resource he couldn’t afford to waste, not when there were so many things he needed to accomplish before another major event.

Koya walked over to her and looked at the trembling woman that was on her knees. Her bow had fallen to the ground beside her and she was staring at her hands like they belonged to someone else entirely.

“Why did you stop…?” He asked as he looked at her.

“I… I don’t want to kill.” She replied, her voice sounded very small. “It’s very wrong, these monsters have famil—”

He bent down to crouch at face level with her, his eyes boring into hers.

“This isn’t a movie. Are you aware where we are?” Koya asked and she looked around at the desolate buildings and broken streets covered in monster remains before looking at the ground.

“The Outer Zone.”

“Exactly. If you don’t kill then how will you rank up? If you don’t rank up, I’ll have no use for you and I’ll return you to where I saw you.” He said and her body turned cold as she looked in his eyes.

He wasn’t joking.

This was a different Master than the one at the breakfast table and the one that had bought the clothes for them yesterday.

He was utterly serious about discarding her and it made her tremble from head to toe. The warmth from this morning was completely gone from his expression.

His eyes were cold and measuring her worth like she was a piece of equipment that might need to be replaced.

“It’s a kill-or-be-killed world. If you don’t attack quickly, then they’ll be the one that attacks you and you’ll be turned into food for their family.” He said while standing up to his full height and looking down at her. “One more try… Get up.”

She slowly stood up while trembling and holding onto her bow with white knuckles. Tears pooled in the corner of her eyes and threatened to spill over onto her cheeks.

“I-I’m sorry for disappointing you Master, please don’t leave me.” She said with a small bow and he didn’t reply but he walked over to Yuna who had bowed down a bit and patted her head gently with his hand.

“Good job. You’ve become a very dependable person.” He said and she blushed furiously as he walked away from her.

“Thank you Master… I won’t disappoint you.” She said as he walked off and she felt energized to do more.

The praise lit something inside her chest that made her want to work even harder for his approval.

Yuna then gave Akemi a pitiful look across the training ground. Koya had already stood behind her earlier to direct an arrow and they had managed to kill one together but she needed to kill by herself now.

These were just rust monsters as Koya was testing her capability and resolve to see if she could handle this life.

Once the two girls were prepared and had their bows ready, Koya looked at Victoria and nodded once.

“Babe, let go of two monsters.” He said.

In front of them was a blood cage that had captured a small horde of rust class monsters, and she would open the cage ushering out monsters for the two girls to practice on.

She really didn’t mind it as long as his eyes were on her and he acknowledged her contribution… As long as he acknowledged her work and how useful she was to him.

The cage opened with a wet sound and two monsters were forced out by the blood.

They were wolf monsters like the last pack and it took moments before they focused on the two archers raising bows at them with clear intent.

Their eyes gleamed with hunger and predatory intent as saliva dripped from their jaws.

There was enough distance between them and both girls began chanting, gathering the mana around them and hitting mana mode as the wolves began moving toward them at a rapid pace.

Their paws dug into the dirt as they accelerated toward their targets.

He had also realized why people could use Academy level scrolls to reach Mana Mode.

The lower the rank they were, the less mana that their bodies could gather and hold at any given time.

It was a capacity issue that improved with each rank advancement, unless you had splendid amount of control than Yuna who managed to reduce the time.

Yuna transferred the mana to an arrow which she had nocked into the bow and then shot it forward with practiced ease born from repetition.

It ripped through the air with a whistle and collided with a wolf right on the head earning her a nod from Koya.

The beast didn’t even have time to yelp before it collapsed in a heap, its momentum carrying it forward a few more feet before it stopped completely.

The other wolf closed the distance with Akemi and tears began flowing down her face as she transferred the mana just as she was taught by Koya.

Her hands were shaking so badly the bow trembled in her grip and the arrow nearly fell from the string multiple times. The wolf was getting closer, its jaws opening to reveal sharp teeth that could tear through flesh.

’I’m sorry… if I don’t kill you, then Master will get mad at me and discard me.’ She thought as the mana spiked around her body in a visible blue aura and she let go of the bowstring with a sob that escaped her throat.

Her hands were trembling a bit however her arrow struck true, hitting one of the eyes and by extension, the brain deep inside the skull. The monster fell to the ground with a heavy thud and she breathed an exhale that came out as half a sob.

He had saved her from the streets and given her a job when no one else would have even looked at her twice.

Not only that but bought her clothes and given her a weapon to help him out, and even fixed her sickness that everyone said was incurable and would plague her for life.

She owed her life to him. Everything she had now… the roof over her head, the food in her stomach, the hope for a future was because of his generosity and willingness to take a chance on her.

’How am I supposed to die for him when I can’t kill for him…’ She thought while looking downward at the dead wolf in front of her.

Koya’s shadow was in front of her and instead of a reprimanding or harsh words, he pulled her forward from the back of her head and placed her head against his chest gently.

“Good work… it’s your first time so it won’t be easy but don’t let go. I’m here…” He said and the girl hugged him while pressing her face forward into his shirt.

She could hear his heartbeat and it was steady… it made her feel safe despite everything that had just occurred.

His eye twitched as the two girls were glaring daggers at his back with clear jealousy written on their faces and then he let her go before the situation got worse.

“Alright pick up your bows, let’s finish up… then we can head to the real fight.” He said while walking back to his original position.

…

About an hour or two later, Koya stopped where the System had specified… a zone where only Iron ranks were. He wanted to focus on his Fighting Spirit and spells right now.

Who knows? If he trained both of them equally, he could awaken both the red crest and blue crest.

“That’s wishful thinking.” Victoria pointed out from his shoulder. “It’s not possible for the living body to carry both, besides it’s not like you’re the one that’ll pick what you turn into. Your body just naturally advances based on your experiences.”

“Yeah yeah.” He looked at the two girls behind them that were catching their breaths heavily.

Both of them had killed at least twenty rust class monsters each and were starting to show visible improvement in their form and reaction times. “Not only will you be using bows, but you’ll have to engage in close combat with these monsters.”

“Close combat?” Both Yuna and Akemi raised their eyebrows in surprise at the suggestion.

“Of course, the goal is to be able to protect yourself despite the situation. But that’s when you’re a lot stronger.” Koya said while scanning the area for threats. “Alright, it’s time to—”

CHUNG CHUNG CHUNG!

It sounded like something heavy was hitting the ground again and again. A mass of metal perhaps and he instantly got ready to run.

The sound was getting louder with each impact and the ground beneath their feet was starting to vibrate rhythmically with each step.

“Victoria, could you take hold of Akemi while I hold Yuna?” He suspected 「Fate」was getting active again.

Who else would spawn camp them the instant they got to a zone meant for Iron class monsters? It was too convenient to be a coincidence.

Victoria spread out her vampire wings and took hold of Akemi in a princess carry with ease, her small frame making it simple.

’I would have preferred to carry Koya but it doesn’t matter… I just have to wait for Monday and we’ll go on our date.’ Victoria thought with a lewd smile on her face that sent tingles down the spine of Akemi who was pressed against her.

She wondered why Victoria was acting like that.

Koya on the other hand took Yuna in a similar princess carry and she squeaked slightly at the sudden contact, her face flushing red.

Then they looked at where the sound was coming from… An alleyway from the side of a building up ahead was being actively crushed while the sounds of the stepping increased in tempo and volume and then an oversized monster broke out from the alley in a shower of debris and concrete chunks.

It was completely made of iron.

That was what he could see at first glance and it had four oversized limbs with a circular plating on the underside of these limbs with something like a circular head as well except it was reinforced with additional plating layered on top.

Steam hissed from vents along its body and the air around it steamed with heat distortion.

「Iron Terror, Iron Class」

’The fuck do you mean Iron class?! This thing is almost as big as the Queen Broodminder.’ He thought and the monster’s four crimson eyes that were made of crystals looked directly at him with what felt like intelligence and malice.

Victoria had already began flying upward with Akemi clutched in her arms and Koya’s whole body ignited with mana as he activated Speed Burst and moved in a blur.

The monster charged forward and broke through the buildings like they were made of paper, causing them to fall in clouds of dust and rubble as it directed its gaze to Koya with single-minded focus.

Its crimson eyes began glowing brighter and Koya felt something converge on him like invisible hands gripping his body, making him slower.

His Speed Burst started losing effectiveness rapidly.

“Victoria! Take her!” He used the last of his power to throw Yuna upward toward the flying vampire and Victoria flew down, carrying Yuna by the hand and then Koya flew backward much to her shock into the Monster’s waiting mouth and then it clamped shut around him with a metallic CLANG, sealing him inside completely in darkness.

Victoria dumped the two of them on a nearby rooftop and glared at the monster with pure hatred in her eyes, pumping her Blood Convergence to the maximum level.

However it was not needed… With a devastating punch from the inside that dented the metal outward in a fist-shaped bulge, the Iron Terror’s mouth opened as flames streaked out and Koya flipped out of its open mouth, landing in a crouch on the ground.

“Why do you have drills in your damn mouth?” He asked while wiping soot from his face and the Iron Terror’s mouth closed with another metallic sound that echoed.

Victoria was about to fly down to help however he raised his hand to stop her from interfering.

The Iron Terror looked at him with red eyes and he felt the energy come once again in waves.

’Damn these psychics are really useful… Saki said that the Professor that Numb broke his mouth was one of them. Why wasn’t he doing this kind of thing?’ Koya couldn’t help but think.

「Every Psionic is different. The Professor’s psionic power and the Iron Terror’s power differ as the Professor is more superior」

Just before the Iron Terror made him fly again with its telekinetic grip, several rounds of explosions went up in its mouth.

He had left some bombs there and as the monster’s mouth was closed, it was bottling up the explosions inside its metal body like a pressure cooker about to burst.

The Iron-like skin of the monster turned red from the heat and Koya used a Speed Burst to back off quickly.

Who said anything about fighting these kinds of monsters head-on? Any method was okay as long as they succeeded in the end and survived.

However the explosions finished and the monster opened its mouth, smoke coming out of it as its legs twitched from the internal damage it had sustained.

And then it burst into a run once more, moving like a wild machine however Koya remained stationary raising a hand up calmly.

“Forehead!”

After that, a Blood Burst followed and tore through the forehead, coming in one way and bursting out the other way with a spray of molten metal that rained down.

With the core of the monster tumbling to the ground the other way, the monster stopped moving completely and Koya placed a hand on his chin thoughtfully.

’Should we just take the full corpse?’ He thought.

「Yes, the full corpse of the Iron Terror will go for quite a lot of money, it’s even more expensive than the core itself. However I suggest that you rip off the eyes, the psionic energy within them can be turned into equipment」

’Okay, you’re being awfully helpful today.’ Koya thought as the experience mana went up toward Victoria however she understood the assignment and raised Akemi in front of her body.

The experience mana entered her body and she immediately began ranking up to two-liner status.

Victoria dropped Akemi back to the rooftop and Koya walked over to the corpse that had started cooling down but it would still be disastrous to walk on barefoot.

Victoria dumped a bunch of blood on the skin. It was cold liquid so it doused out the heat on the skin and Koya climbed up despite the wetness and slippery surface beneath his feet.

’She really needs to teach me Blood Burst…’ He thought as he reached the open eyes and his sword materialized there so he began hacking at it with deliberate strikes, managing to tear one out without damaging it completely after a few strikes that chipped away at the socket.

He looked at the hot eye in his hand. It was still warm to the touch…

「You have received Terror’s Eye」

He stored it in his storage ring however the next instant, out of nowhere a tall shadow appeared over him. It had literally come out of nowhere and it stood behind him menacingly.

「Oh I forgot to point out but Iron Terrors usually travel in pairs of two, a Husband and wife… you just murdered the wife and they have different psionic abilities」

He slowly turned around.

“We can talk about thi—”

Koya then shot through the air with a shockwave as he was hit in the back with the full force of one of those metal plates on the limbs.

He broke through a building and tumbled to a stop right next to a sleeping large bear-like Iron class monster that was now stirring awake from the noise.

’Fuck 「Fate」.’ He thought.

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