Automatic Reflexes

      The Salamandra Gigants that had previously been struck across the neck by Greg suddenly went still, halting its movements for a moment.

     General Azeer, seeing that golden opening, immediately rushed forward. “Advance! Attack that monster!”

     “Yes, General! Execute!” The massed cries of the Sovereign Vanguard and Valiant Knight soldiers who were still standing strong thundered across the plaza.

     “Damn! Why is this Salamandra Gigants so tough this time? Its weak point is different from the one we faced five years ago!” one Sovereign Vanguard soldier complained, breathing heavily.

     “It’s all right! Just keep attacking slowly but surely!” replied a Valiant Knight beside him as he swung his weapon.

     General Azeer immediately dashed toward the front line, trying his own luck with one powerful strike—Shlabbb!—the edge of his sword managed to pierce the monster’s thick hide. However, just as he was about to pull his sword back to strike again, the iron blade immediately shattered into pieces.

     “Tch, damn it,” the supreme commander muttered quietly as he tossed away the useless sword hilt.

     “GROOOOAAARRRMMMM...!!”

     The Salamandra Gigants, which had been gradually scratched by bullets and sword strikes, now went completely berserk. The creature opened its jaws, firing streams of mud in random directions from inside its mouth. The moment it emerged and came into contact with the air, the thick mud suddenly hardened as solid as steel, destroying rows of surrounding buildings in an instant. Without wasting any time, the monster made a low leap and slammed its entire body weight into the ground as its pair of feet landed once again.

     BOOMMM!

     The vibration felt like an earthquake, causing their footing to shake.

     “A-rghh!”

     “What the hell is that?! Wasn’t that supposed to be ordinary mud?!” one Sovereign Vanguard soldier said with a pale expression as he stared at the ruins of the buildings.

     Azeer, seeing the monster rampaging violently before him, could only snort in frustration. Tch, is this your change, you damn monster? His thoughts churned as he stared at the remaining steel-hard mud projectiles.

     Far from where the monster continued its rampage, a corner of a collapsed building appeared isolated in the cold silence. Meanwhile, as a result of the previous impact from the giant tail, Greg’s body had come to a stop and was buried beneath the rubble of the building.

     A chunk of rubble as thick as a fist rolled from the top of the mound of collapsed stones. Bhrak. The stone struck the ground, leaving small pebbles to slide down between clouds of thick gray dust.

     Khhh-kreeek…

     One powerful push from Greg’s right hand suddenly burst through the pile of rubble from within, sending fragments of cement and large stones flying into the air. Without a pause, Greg’s body immediately broke through the remaining ruins and stood firmly once again while still holding his intact sword.

     His head lifted as he stared sharply toward the sky, while his chest rose and fell extremely quickly, drawing in the supply of oxygen he had lost from being buried.

     “KHAAAHHH...! HAHH...!”

     Greg coughed briefly, expelling the remaining dust that had dirtied the corners of his lips, then his hands quickly moved to brush the dust clinging to his combat outfit.

     “Haaah... haaah... haaah…”

     His breathing remained heavy and ragged, his voice breaking the quiet silence of the ruined corner where he stood.

     “Are you all right, Greg?” Silvi asked anxiously as she suddenly appeared from behind the cloud of dust.

     “Wha! So it was you, Silvi. Sorry, I didn’t realize you’d been here this whole time. I’m fine, haha,” Greg replied, trying to lighten the mood.

     “It’s all right, Greg. I’m the one who should apologize for not being able to help you out of the rubble earlier. But thank goodness you’re all right.”

     “Ah, it’s no problem,” Greg said with a smile as he scratched his head despite it not itching. “Anyway, let’s go attack that whatever-its-name-is monster again, hahaha!”

     However, when Greg stepped back toward the main battlefield, he suddenly froze upon seeing the rows of buildings that had previously stood firmly now completely reduced to rubble. “This... how did everything get destroyed like this?” Greg asked curiously.

     “Ah, y-you’re the one who tried to slash that monster’s neck earlier!” one of the nearby Valiant Knights replied, breathing heavily. “After you attacked, the monster suddenly stopped moving. We immediately took advantage of that opening and attacked together, managing to scratch several parts of its body, but the creature immediately went berserk!”

     This monster is insanely destructive, Greg thought as he looked at the destruction caused by the steel-hard mud surrounding him. He immediately turned to the side. “Silvi, can you support me against that monster? Just divert its attention from the front.”

     “All right, Greg. I’ll try!” Silvi replied as she prepared her pouch of concoctions.

     “Let’s go, Silvi!”

     Greg and Silvi immediately moved quickly toward the giant monster, taking up their respective tactical positions amid the chaos.

      Just as Greg dashed forward to slash its rear leg, the Salamandra Gigants’ massive tail once again swept rapidly through the air from his blind spot. However, with a spontaneous lightning-fast reflex, Greg managed to leap away this time. “Heh, missed me!” Greg said with a grin.

     “Come on, Silvi! Now!” Greg shouted loudly, cutting through the roar.

     Silvi, who was standing several meters directly in front of the monster’s snout, immediately threw a small pouch straight at the monster’s face. The next second, an explosion of intensely dazzling white light burst through the air, instantly disrupting the Salamandra Gigants’ vision, which now had only one eye remaining.

      “Good work, Silvi!”

     Seeing the giant monster moving in confusion as it struggled against the blinding light, Greg did not waste the golden opportunity. He dashed forward as fast as a storm, swinging his sword with all his strength until he successfully severed the monster’s massive tail in a single strike.

       “One problem down. Now I just need to target its legs, hahaha!” Greg muttered as he pulled his sword free, its blade covered in thick blood.

      He spun rapidly to the left, gripping the handle of his weapon tightly before striking the metal blade directly into the joint of the right rear leg, piercing through it. Without giving it a moment’s respite, Greg made a small dash and maneuvered to the other side to slash the left rear leg, and that part was cleanly severed as well.

      “Take that, you bastard!” Greg muttered in satisfaction.

     “GROOARRRRRR!”

     The monster now lost the balance of its rear body, immediately collapsing onto the ground and only able to roar in extreme pain.

     Seeing that the monster had not completely fallen because it was still trying to remain standing on its two front legs, Greg moved swiftly once more. He dashed beautifully around the enemy’s body, targeting the pair of front legs in succession until their tendons were severed.

     Now, the colossal creature’s body slowly collapsed flat against the ground. Greg immediately leaped high into the air, gripping the handle of his sword with both hands and pouring all his strength into a slash aimed at the monster’s exposed neck—Shlabbb!—the blade of his sword swept smoothly through, cleaving and piercing straight through to the monster’s deepest vital artery.

     Huh? Why is its neck so soft now? Wasn’t it supposed to be hard? Don’t tell me... could the sound of that impact when I targeted its neck earlier have been a sign that the monster’s defenses collapsed? Ah, this is giving me a headache. Whatever. The important thing is that the monster’s defeated, Greg thought in confusion as he wiped the sweat from his forehead.

      Seeing an unfamiliar man who had just managed to defeat the Salamandra Gigants all by himself with such beautiful movements, General Azeer, Zen, Bardal, and all the remaining soldiers and knights in the plaza could only stand frozen. They were completely awestruck as they witnessed the brutal display that had just occurred right before their eyes.

     Who is that man? General Azeer wondered, his jaw tightening.

     “Tch, damn it! The two of us tried desperately to slash its neck using every method we could, and none of it worked!” Zen muttered bitterly as he looked at his own sword.

     “It’s all right. What matters is that damn monster is dead and failed to breach the palace,” Bardal replied with a quiet chuckle, patting Zen’s shoulder to calm him.

     “Who are those two strangers?” asked a mustached Valiant Knight as he lowered his cracked shield.

     “Could he... be the true hero who was sent to us?” a Sovereign Vanguard soldier murmured in disbelief.

     “God... thank you for sending us a hero at a critical moment like this,” another Valiant Knight said, immediately sitting weakly on the ground as he caught his breath.

     “You were really cool back there, Greg! But you were too reckless,” Silvi said as she quickly approached Greg.

     “Ah, sorry,” Greg replied with a chuckle, his eyes glancing toward his own palm, which was still trembling slightly. “You were pretty cool too, Silvi. Somehow... even though I have amnesia, it feels like this body always commands me to move spontaneously like that. I’m surprised myself, because honestly, I’m afraid of fighting a monster this huge, hahaha!”

     Silvi stared at Greg with surprised eyes. “Wooah, I see! Maybe that’s part of the remnants of your past memories that are still left inside you.”

     “Maybe,” Greg murmured softly before lifting his gaze straight toward the horizon. “Oh yeah, Silvi, I’ve been wondering about something. Why is the sky filled with such terrifying thunderstorms? Those flashes have been bothering my thoughts this whole time,” Greg asked curiously.

     Silvi also looked upward, her expression immediately becoming much more serious. “Oh, that... it’s the work of the Elemental Monster, Thunderbird.”

---

     Meanwhile, inside The Pentagon Chamber, the King, accompanied by Glind and Asa, remained completely focused on the surface of the magical reflector while waiting for the latest information regarding the fate of his kingdom.

     “Excuse me, Your Majesty the King. I have just received the latest tactical information. Please allow me to reveal everything now,” Asa said, breaking the silence.

     “Yes, go ahead, Asa,” the King replied briefly.

     Asa stepped toward the luxurious conference table. “This is a report from the Sovereign Vanguard messenger team. The SleepWalker threat at the main gate has been dealt with. Just before the monsters breached the capital, the Sovereign Vanguard forces arrived in time, followed by assistance from the Resilient Warriors group. But unfortunately, for the guard unit that had previously held the main gate, all of them have been confirmed dead, including their commander.”

     “Ah, the Resilient Warriors, huh? It seems they truly never fail to appear whenever one of these Catalyst Approach attacks strikes,” the King remarked softly.

     Hearing that all of his subordinates on the front line had fallen without a trace, Glind’s thoughts immediately churned violently as he restrained his anger. Tch, I hope you all rest peacefully over there.

     “As for the Salamandra Gigants threat, it has also been successfully defeated,” Asa continued, explaining the next piece of information. “According to the report, the person who killed this monster was an unfamiliar man wearing an entirely black outfit and wielding a gleaming pitch-black sword. The giant monster was defeated single-handedly, with assistance from one of his companions.”

     The King’s eyes widened slightly in surprise. “Ah, I see, Asa. Who exactly are those two strangers? And regarding the Thunderbird threat and the total casualties, what is the current number, Asa?” the King asked in succession.

     “As for those two strangers, unfortunately, they had already left the location before they could be questioned directly, Your Majesty,” Asa replied with a bow. “As for the total number of casualties, the overall figure cannot yet be confirmed. Meanwhile, at Sovereign Vanguard Headquarters itself, our forces are still fighting desperately against the attack of the Elemental Monster, Thunderbird.”

     “Ah, I see. Thank you very much, Asa,” the King said.

     Hearing that two major points of conflict had subsided, the King now felt slightly relieved about the continued survival of his kingdom. However, a new mystery had begun to trouble his mind. I wonder... who exactly was that person? he thought curiously.

     Asa bowed solemnly with one hand against his chest. “It is truly an extraordinary honor for me, Your Majesty, to always be entrusted with such important duties.”

     Glind, who had been gripping the hilt of his sword this whole time, finally could not restrain himself any longer. “Your Majesty the King... may I be permitted to go directly to the battlefield now?” Glind asked pleadingly.

     “Be patient for now, Glind. Remain on standby here. There will certainly be a time for you to move,” the King replied in a calm yet absolute tone.

     Glind immediately withdrew and bowed apologetically. “Ah, understood. Please forgive my insolence earlier, Your Majesty the King.”

     “It’s all right, Glind,” the King replied gently.

---

     Meanwhile, at the eastern military complex, the remaining forces at Sovereign Vanguard Headquarters were now fighting desperately against the Thunderbird’s aerial assault.

     “Come on, keep firing!” one soldier shouted from the middle defensive line.

     “Haa! Roger, we’re clear!”

     BANG-BANG-BANG—FWOOSHHH!

     Volley after volley from the Fire Rifles continued to be fired without end. The extreme speed of the magical projectiles caused their flames to grow slightly larger in the air, until one bullet struck directly against the monster’s wing.

     As a result of the blazing impact, Thunderbird’s body immediately reeled, losing its balance before crashing onto the ground.

     “Got you, you damn monster!” one soldier shouted in satisfaction.

     “Come on, let’s finish that monster now! Don’t forget to throw the Shock Pouch once it’s completely off guard, then we execute it!” commanded a slightly older soldier tactically.

     “Okay, got it!” said the young soldier beside him as he threw his Shock Pouch toward the target.

      “KRAAA-GHAARRR!”

     Unwilling to be humiliated by humans, the Elemental Monster immediately shrieked hoarsely and unleashed defensive magic to repel the effects of the pouch’s explosion.

     “Come on, it’s time! Execute it now!” the slightly older soldier shouted again, giving the command.

     “Let’s go!” the soldiers shouted in unison as they drew their sharp weapons and advanced together.

     However, instead of successfully executing the monster, its body suddenly disappeared without a trace, merging once again with the flash of lightning that struck down from the sky.

     “Damn it! It ran away again!” the young soldier exclaimed, spitting onto the ground in frustration.

     After waiting tensely for a full half hour without any sign of an attack, the Voice Reflector device in the Sovereign Vanguard Headquarters suddenly crackled to life.

     “To all soldiers deployed in the field, please be careful. There are no signs of this Thunderbird’s existence on the central magic radar. Remain vigilant!” said the operator’s voice from the Sovereign Vanguard tactical room.

    Hearing the warning, a thin-mustached soldier snorted harshly. “Tch, damn pathetic monster.”

     “What is that creature planning this time? Is it going to suddenly appear and flatten all of us at once?” muttered a soldier wearing a hat, his anxious expression fixed on the dark storm clouds above their heads.

Chapter 5 — End



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Next on Destiny's Corpse (Teaser) :

Where did Thunderbird go, or is it afraid and hiding behind its own thunderstorm? Will our hero come face-to-face with the Elemental Monster Thunderbird?