Chapter 27: Six Stars

As Eliza performed the Forging Calamity, the purplish deer passed through Yangereu.

The effect was instantaneous. The moment the deer passed through his body, the immense shock of electricity surged through him, leaving Yangereu completely paralyzed. His body was unable to respond, and the shock left him in a state where he had no reflexes to react to what was about to happen. It was the opening we needed, and we had already prepared for this exact moment.

Four substitution charms were thrown above Yangereu.

In the next instant, the charms activated, and four figures appeared in their place. I, Arthur, Theodore, and Mary appeared above him, each of us already holding a sword. There was no need to waste another moment. Everything depended on taking advantage of the paralysis before Yangereu could recover from the immense shock of the electricity.

Theodore’s sword was suddenly filled with his own blood.

I had already prepared myself as well. The Breathing Fire Glove covered my right hand, and I had equipped my armor before we carried out the attack.

But there was no time to think about any of that now.

All four of us pointed the tips of our swords toward Yangereu’s head.

For a brief moment, I could feel the tension of the attack hanging between us. Yangereu was still in shock, his body paralyzed by the immense electricity that had passed through him. There was no reflex, no movement and no chance for him to respond.

Sheek!

Our swords were thrust deep into his head.

The blades entered without meeting the resistance that would have been present if Yangereu had been able to react. He was still in shock, and his paralysis meant that he had no reflexes right now. The attack had landed exactly as intended.

This was my plan, The Trojan Horse of Five Embodiments.

Yangereu was killed.

The moment Yangereu died, the tension that had been building inside me finally had somewhere to go. We had actually done it. The plan had worked, and the creature that had been our target was dead.

But the fight wasn’t completely over yet.

Three Suaps were still alive.

I pointed my glove towards them as I willed it to life. Fire shot out from the mouth of the glove, quickly enveloping the Suaps before I landed my final strike through my sword.

Afterward, there was nothing left to do except wait for the characteristics to appear. Ten minutes later, the characteristics appeared on the bodies of Yangereu as well as the Suaps, and their bodies turned into ash.

Yangereu produced two characteristics as it was a Fiend.

The Suaps produced six in total, two per Suap, as they were Fiends as well.

So, we had eight characteristics in total.

Eliza allowed us to consume the characteristics of the Suaps if we wanted to. However, she did not allow us to consume the characteristics of Yangereu. Those two characteristics were too important to use casually. They were our last option for getting out of this realm right now, so we had to keep them.

Every one of us consumed a characteristic.

I was given three characteristics, while the others received one each. The reason I received three was because I had formulated the plan and had also killed the three Suaps alone. I accepted the three characteristics and consumed them one by one.

The first characteristic.

Then the second.

Then the third.

As I consumed the characteristics one after another, I could feel something changing within me. After consuming all three, I felt three stars forming in my cervical region.

Three stars.

Previously, I had possessed two stars after consuming the characteristic of Moynukz.

Now, after consuming the characteristics of the Suaps, I had five stars in total.

The thought of it brought a sense of satisfaction with it. We had managed to kill Yangereu, eliminate the remaining Suaps, obtain their characteristics, and preserve the two Beast characteristics that we needed as our last option for escaping this realm.

For the first time after the fight, we were finally happy.

We were smiling.

There was a sense of relief in knowing that the plan had succeeded and that we had obtained what we needed. The two Beast characteristics were still in our possession, and I now had five stars in my cervical region after consuming the three Suap characteristics.

Finally, we were about to leave. But right at that moment, we heard something.

The sound came from the distance, and it was the unmistakable sound of a horde of people running toward us.

The happiness that had filled us only moments ago immediately became strained.

We turned toward the approaching horde.

There were twenty things in total.

The number alone was enough to make the situation completely different from what it had been moments earlier. We had just killed Yangereu. I had killed the three remaining Suaps alone. We had waited for the characteristics to appear, consumed the Suap characteristics, and taken the two Beast characteristics that represented our last option for getting out of this realm.

I had five stars now.

Two more were needed for a bronze core.

We were finally happy.

We were smiling.

We were about to leave.

And then twenty things came running toward us.

The relief from moments ago had been replaced by the realization of what was coming toward us.

[You Are Looking At Beast Fiends: Yangereu]

[You Are Looking At Feral Fiends: Suap]