Chapter 96

Then, a sentence appeared before Cho-i’s eyes.

[The Mantis Queen’s Succession Trial begins.]

Cho-i recalled the memory of when she wore the ring.

[□□□ □□□ □□□ □□ □□□ □□□□□.]

It was the same message as before. Now she understood. But hadn’t the trial already ended? Now? Cho-i Hyeon quickly pulled out her shield and sword from her inventory.

“W-What is this?”

“What do you mean ‘what is this’? It’s Jurassic Park.”

“This is no time for jokes.”

Inside the giant dome, equally massive bones began to move. Crack, crunch. Creak. The sound of bones clashing was chilling. Taehyeok Sa and Cho-i Hyeon stepped forward, while Nara Shim, the buffer, moved back. Crash! A huge foreleg lashed out at them. Cho-i Hyeon took another step forward and raised her shield. Bang! With a colossal sound, Cho-i Hyeon’s body was pushed back slightly. Cho-i Hyeon frowned and looked up. The enormous body, a skull with empty eye sockets, seemed to be glaring at them.

“What’s its rank?!”

“It’s SS-Rank.”

Taehyeok Sa stated what he saw with his own eyes.

“Former King Mantis?”

[Corpse of the Former King Mantis (SS Rank)]

“Can you even call that a Mantis?”

“That’s why it’s called a corpse, then.”

“Does it make sense for a pile of bones to be SS-Rank?”

Cho-i Hyeon screamed as if in a fit. Immediately, a voice echoed in her mind.

‘Mother…!’

“Huh, Mother?”

As Cho-i Hyeon stopped in her tracks, making a questioning sound, Taehyeok Sa used Telekinesis to push back the Former King Mantis’s foreleg. Creak, crunch. The sound of bones clashing was still clear. Cho-i Hyeon listened intently to the voice in her head.

‘I regret that I could not pass this position to my daughter.’

“What is she talking about?”

At that moment, Former King Mantis swung its giant foreleg again, striking down at Cho-i Hyeon. Cho-i Hyeon immediately grabbed Nara Shim’s waist and moved away. Kwa-gwa-gwang-! The floor was deeply dented by the huge, sharp foreleg. Cho-i Hyeon said to Nara Shim,

“Buff, buff!”

“Oh, alright!”

[Using attack power buff!] [Attack power increased by 15%!]

“How many attack power increases can stack?”

“The attack power enhancement percentage is higher, but it doesn’t stack!”

“Oh! A-Rank buffers aren’t that great!”

“Hey! 15% is amazing, you know?”

Cho-i Hyeon leaped up in an instant. Then, she swung her sword at the massive skeleton. Ka-ga-ga-gak-! The sword and bone clashed, making a sharp sound. But the bone wasn’t completely cut. The skeleton, with only large scratches and cracks, didn’t completely break and immediately raised its head, striking out with its foreleg towards Cho-i Hyeon. Cho-i Hyeon was still in mid-air.

“She’s a lot of trouble.”

Taehyeok Sa, who had floated into the air, grabbed Cho-i Hyeon’s waist and dodged the attack.

“I’m not the only one fighting, you know? Would you like to do something, SS-Rank?”

“I’m doing it right now.”

Taehyeok Sa’s remaining hand moved towards Former King Mantis. Then, the wind blew. Cho-i Hyeon realized that the entity was something she had once experienced herself. The air began to swirl, and in the midst of it was the Former King Mantis Bone. Ka-ga-ga-ga-gak-! The sound of the sword-like wind scraping against the skeleton continued. And Former King Mantis began to flounder within it. Taehyeok Sa, who had brought the immense wind, began to incapacitate the opponent, as befitting an SS-Rank after a long time. The enormous bone was caught in the vortex, and soon its body floated into the air. And then, crack, crack, cracks began to appear from the sword-wind. The huge Mantis’s bone began to flail its two arms, attacking wildly.

“Kyaaah-!”

From below, Nara Shim’s scream was heard. Cho-i Hyeon, finally remembering Nara Shim, shouted loudly,

“Stick to the wall!”

“I already am!”

Cho-i Hyeon, still held by Taehyeok Sa’s waist, watched the skeleton caught in the vortex. Crash-! Bang-! The wildly swinging forelegs were damaging the walls, floor, and ceiling. Cho-i Hyeon frowned.

“I haven’t finished reading it yet!”

“Wait.”

Taehyeok Sa extended his hand and began to use Telekinesis once more. And he started to twist the two massive, wildly flailing forelegs. Taehyeok Sa held his hand out in front of him and slowly twisted his wrist. It began to break and twist as if the Giant Mantis Skeleton was caught in his hand. Cho-i Hyeon merely watched the situation, dangling in his arm.

‘Even though they’re both SS-Ranks, is Taehyeok Sa a little stronger?’

However, the outcome was not easily determined. This was because the Former King Mantis Bone stood firm, trembling, even as Taehyeok Sa twisted its bones. The entity thrashed its limbs, becoming even more frantic. Bang, crash! The sound of walls and ceilings breaking off was deafening.

“Oh dear! Everything’s flying off!”

“Be quiet.”

Taehyeok Sa said to Cho-i, who was screeching as if her ears hurt. Of course, Cho-i Hyeon started to scream even louder. Taehyeok Sa, with a creased brow, said to Nara Shim,

“Nara Shim!”

“Yes, Guild Master!”

Nara Shim, who was pressed against the wall to avoid being caught in the distant vortex, replied.

“The buff!”

“Yes!”

“Look at how quick that one is.”

[Using attack power buff!] [Attack power increased by 15%!]

Nara Shim cast the same buff on Taehyeok Sa that she had cast on Cho-i Hyeon, and at the same time, Taehyeok Sa sharply twisted his wrist. Crack! The sound of bones breaking was heard. Crunch, whack! A foreleg broke off and, caught in the vortex, attacked the torso. Bone crushed bone, and the fragments, like blades, were caught in the vortex, destroying each other. Cho-i Hyeon’s eyes widened as she watched.

“This works too!”

“Why, is it amazing?”

“Yeah, a little.”

Cho-i Hyeon laughed, “Ahaha.” Taehyeok Sa let out a sigh and finally increased the output even further. Crack, crunch! The Entity was now almost turning into dust. All its limbs broke, and even the bones forming its torso and head began to crack, soon breaking into pieces. And when the skull completely split in half, Taehyeok Sa immediately withdrew his Telekinesis. Bang! Thud! Crash! Large bone fragments began to pour onto the floor.

“Aaaah! Ouch! Ugh!”

Below, Nara Shim ran, dodging the flying bone fragments, and Taehyeok Sa immediately used Telekinesis to lift her into the air. He then swatted away all the bone fragments that flew nearby. Nara Shim looked at Taehyeok Sa with a touched expression.

“She didn’t even look at me like that when I increased her rank.”

“You wouldn’t have protected me no matter what hit me!”

“How do you know! Have you tried it? Have you tried it?”

“You’re just standing there even now!”

“There’s no need for me to step in now, you bitch!”

“Who are you calling a bitch, you crazy bitch!”

“She’s relying on Taehyeok Sa and acting up!”

“Don’t you two fight. It’s giving me a headache.”

“Then let it hurt!”

Taehyeok Sa frowned and released Cho-i Hyeon’s waist. Cho-i Hyeon plummeted but regained her balance in mid-air, spinning and landing on the floor. She wasn’t an S-Rank to just crash. After confirming Cho-i Hyeon’s safe landing, Taehyeok Sa prepared to put Nara Shim down.

“Don’t put me down yet!”

“Why?”

Cho-i Hyeon, who had landed on the floor, was looking at Nara Shim as if at a fish hanging in the air. Nara Shim, suspended in mid-air, clasped her hands together and pleaded.

“Just leave me hanging here until we get out!”

“You, come down quickly!”

“Would you go down if you were me!”

“This one!”

Cho-i Hyeon, with her pupils widely dilated, slowly lowered herself to the floor, looking at Nara Shim hanging in the air. It was to jump. And she immediately launched herself from the floor.

“Ugh, what the hell!”

And at that moment, Taehyeok Sa lifted Nara Shim higher. In the end, Cho-i Hyeon, who had only grazed Nara Shim’s toes, landed on the floor, annoyed. And that trick was repeated. When Cho-i Hyeon jumped, Taehyeok Sa lifted Nara Shim higher, and when she jumped even higher, he swiftly moved Nara Shim sideways.

“Guild Master, I’m getting dizzy…!”

“Oh dear.”

“Ugh!”

Cho-i Hyeon landed on the floor again, grinding her teeth. Taehyeok Sa, who had been playing with her like a cat, soon gently lowered Nara Shim to the floor. Cho-i Hyeon, whose attention was now completely on Taehyeok Sa, began to angrily lash out at him, who had not yet come down to the ground.

“Aren’t you coming down?”

“What will you do if I come down?”

“You’ll find out if you come down!”

“Saying that makes me not want to come down.”

Cho-i Hyeon glared at him for a long time, soon realizing there was no other way. She then headed towards the broken wall and floor to inspect them further.

“Oh, why me again!”

It was natural for her to grab Nara Shim’s arm and take her along. While Nara Shim was being dragged by Cho-i Hyeon to look at the wall, Taehyeok Sa carefully descended from the air. Cho-i Hyeon, who had seemed so angry, was now seriously reading the sword-mark-like inscription again.

“Oh, it’s really all broken. So…”

Cho-i Hyeon slowly began to read the parts that were not yet broken.

“We shall leave behind the Strongest Daughter of the Dead Queen to connect the world.”

Cho-i Hyeon frowned and painstakingly tried to read the letters, which were cracked and bore large scars from the bone’s attack.

“As time varies in each world, we hope that the host body will endure until our Last Daughter hatches…”

The rest was cut off by a large scar, but it didn’t seem to be very important. Cho-i Hyeon sighed deeply as she looked at the almost completely ruined ceiling. Meanwhile, Taehyeok Sa was looking at the bone that he had crushed into powder. The Mantis’s corpses were also caught in the vortex, torn to shreds, with only fragments remaining scattered everywhere.