Chapter 349: A Good Citizen of Ursus
The Emperor's Blade hadn't expected anyone else to appear at a battlefield like this.
Even less did they expect it to be someone familiar.
They had crossed paths with Steven before. They knew what he was capable of—he wasn't just boasting when he said he could help. He had the strength to back it up.
And, more importantly… they were out of options.
The Collapsal before them was unlike the lesser spawn they'd culled on the snowfield borders. After devouring the minds and fears of every worker in this mine, it had evolved, becoming something far beyond their ability to quickly suppress.
The Emperor's Blades were no strangers to this. They understood perfectly well how Collapsals grew: feeding on cognition, fear, and life force, twisting all of it into something greater. This was precisely why their duty was to destroy them the moment they escaped containment.
Because once allowed to grow… no one could predict what horror they would become.
Like now.
This towering giant alone was enough to smother hope. Worse, its mutations had birthed unique abilities that made the fight even more troublesome.
Steven, of course, noticed it immediately. A purple boss health bar hovering above it, the kind of marker that meant trouble.
The thing's attacks weren't limited to flesh anymore—the land and air it had polluted moved as if under its command, lashing out at the four exhausted Emperor's Blades.
At this rate, if the Emperor's Blades didn't have some hidden ace, it wouldn't just be impossible to win. Surviving would already be a miracle.
That was why Steven had asked if they needed help. Looking at them, they didn't seem like men with a secret trump card.
And indeed, his suspicion was correct.
It wasn't that the Emperor's Blade lacked finishing moves. It was that their abilities, drawn from the Collapsals themselves, had little effect against something like this. In fact, there was a risk—any strike might just feed it further, granting it strength instead of harm. Their "weapons" weren't refined enough for this.
Which left them with one choice.
The four men exchanged glances, a wordless agreement passing between them. Then, as one, they nodded to Steven.
"…We must trouble you to intervene. On behalf of Ursus, we will ensure you are rewarded."
Their rasping voices carried a rare note of gratitude.
In truth, they were almost relieved. Relieved that it was Steven who had appeared… and not the other two Collapsals that had fled.
Dangerous as he was, Steven was at least still human.
A human who, at this moment, might be the only chance they had.
Steven's appearance was, in its own way, a relief.
Their earlier encounters had been cordial enough that the Emperor's Blades felt no hostility from him now. In fact, it seemed the mysterious youth didn't mind helping them at all.
"Of course," Steven said with a grin. "I was just waiting for you to say that."
A deal struck. No worries about kill-stealing disputes now—he could claim the boss's head and loot fair and square.
But even as the words left his mouth, the Collapsal noticed him. Anything so glaringly out of place in its polluted domain drew its hatred like a beacon. Without hesitation, it lashed out at him.
"Whoa, whoa. No need to be so impatient, little guy. Any food won't be good if you try to eat it in a rush."
Steven sidestepped easily, avoiding the whip-like tentacle.
A strike from that thing would've flattened any ordinary human—no wonder the Emperor's Blades found it so troublesome.
When a creature grew to this size, even breaking through its defenses became a nightmare. Sure, their blades could pierce its flesh, but what good was that? A dozen swords sunk to the hilt barely scratched its hide.
And that wasn't its only trick.
Even Steven blinked in mild surprise when the soil beneath his feet suddenly heaved. A tendril burst upward, aiming to skewer him from below—its timing eerily precise, as though it had anticipated his dodge.
Still, fast as it was, it wasn't faster than him. Steven twisted aside, the strike missing by inches.
"Almost forgot," he murmured. "This thing doesn't just brawl. In its own territory, danger's everywhere."
The failed ambush crumbled into dust at his feet, scattering like brittle earth. Steven curled his lips into a half-smile. "Still as underhanded as ever, huh?"
But the monster wasn't finished. The next wave of strikes came almost immediately, its fury stoked by failure. With the Emperor's Blades harrying it from the front and Steven buzzing around its flank like an unwelcome insect, its wrath boiled over.
The tentacles lashed faster, harder. The four Emperor's Blades—already weary—struggled under the renewed pressure.
And then came the real threat.
The black miasma thickened, coiling heavy in the air, viscous enough to feel tangible. Their protective suits began to corrode, fibers dissolving under the taint. That alone was enough to send a jolt of fear through hardened soldiers.
But when they glanced through the roiling haze… what they saw nearly made them doubt their own eyes.
There, standing dead center in the polluted zone, with no gear, no filters, no protection at all—was Steven.
Casual. Relaxed. Breathing it in as if the poisonous air was nothing more than a morning breeze.
The Emperor's Blades exchanged a silent thought. Did we not sleep enough last night? Are we hallucinating?
Could anyone truly withstand Collapsal's pollution without being twisted into a monster themselves?
And not just endure it—but look so utterly at ease doing so?
The Emperor's Blades didn't have time to voice their doubts.
The air shifted, and their pupils shrank to pinpricks.
The miasma thickened, black fog hardening into near-solid walls. It was as if the entire space froze under its dominion. Their limbs locked. Even moving an arm became impossible. The fog coiled around them, binding tighter than chains.
No wonder the First Rule of the Emperor's Blade was never to step into a polluted zone. In their own territory, Collapsals were like gods.
Even seasoned veterans who'd fought them for years had never seen such a display. Perhaps it was new—born of the sheer terror and cognition this creature had devoured. Whatever the cause, the result was the same: helpless prey.
Their instincts screamed as the Collapsal's colossal, warped limb rose overhead. With no way to dodge, all they could do was stare at the death descending toward them.
So this is it… We underestimated it after all.
Fleeting thoughts flickered like a lantern slideshow—their regrets, their carelessness—before a thunderous explosion shattered everything.
The crushing blow never landed.
The fog still clung thick around them, frozen in place… but the giant beast reeled backward, blood spilling from a gaping wound across its body.
And there, lowering an iron tube from his shoulder, stood the boy.
Steven turned, flashing them a confident grin.
"Relax. Nothing serious. Leave it to me—your friendly model citizen of Ursus."
The miasma did cause him some trouble, yes. But at the end of the day, brute force had its own logic. What was a "frozen space" or "domain suppression," if not something you could break with enough raw power?
One absolute strength to break ten thousand techniques. Simple as that.
As for why he hadn't acted sooner? He'd been weighing his options. The cleanest method was obvious: transform into Evol, unleash a black hole, swallow the thing whole. Quick, elegant, efficient.
After all, what was pollution to a black hole? As far as he knew, nothing could taint that power.
But that plan had a flaw. The Emperor's Blades weren't just grunts—they were elite officers of Ursus. Men like them were bound to know about that "certain knight" in Kazimierz. If they saw him wield the same ability, the connection would be immediate. His cover would be blown.
And since these Emperor's Blades were, for now, half-allies… it wasn't like he could just kill them afterward to silence them.
So. A different approach.
Yamato? Too repetitive. He'd grown bored of that.
Which left him with something flashier, messier, but undeniably effective.
Modern warfare.
Firepower is king. If the target isn't dead, the answer's simple—the payload wasn't big enough.
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Note: Character Illustration is in this Google Drive:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1iuyfwNVFHzIi9H4rWNT_lAm7jTSiah_M
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