CHAPTER 60: CLAWDIA (2)

The serpent thrashed violently, its colossal body smashing against trunks and tearing grooves into the earth, but Astrael clung to it like a maddened predator refusing to release its prey.

The crimson tendrils seared deeper into the wound, drinking, pulling, feeding his body with vitality while draining the beast’s strength. His sword sank to the hilt between its scales, but that wasn’t enough.

"—DIE!" Astrael roared, his voice warped by the blood energy, sounding more beast than man.

He twisted the blade savagely, then drove his free hand into the snake’s jaw. Muscles straining, veins bulging dark against his skin, he pried its maw wider. The serpent screeched, tail lashing, but Astrael only pulled harder. The tendrils wrapped around his arm, reinforcing his grip, bones creaking under the unnatural force.

CRRRK—SHRRRAACK!

With a final bellow, Astrael ripped the serpent’s jaw in two. The lower half tore free with a wet crack, spraying black blood across his face and chest. The monster convulsed, body slamming down with enough force to shatter the tree trunk in half. Its body writhed once... then went limp.

Astrael staggered back, chest heaving, crimson aura still writhing violently around him like it wanted more blood. His sword dripped with steaming blood like veins, the ground beneath it scorched where the tendrils touched.

The serpent’s ruined head lay twisted to one side, tongue slack, the endless malice in its eye extinguished.

And Astrael stood above it, drenched in gore while breathing heavily, his body trembling from the intoxicating rush of slaughter.

[Ding!]

[You have acquired the soul energy of Emerald Serpent (Lv. 25)]

[+32,000 EXP]

[Congratulations to the host for reaching level 24.]

[You get 2 status points to distribute freely]

[Ding!]

[Ding! The Divine Talent Plunder has activated.]

[You have acquired:]

[Strength +28]

[Agility +22]

[Venom Resistance (D)]

[Emerald Scale (D)]

[Dash (D)]

Astrael’s vision wavered as the text scrolled across his mind’s eye. The fatigue tugged at his muscles, but each line of the notification sent fresh heat coursing through his veins.

The glowing prompts faded into the back of his mind as Astrael dismissed them with a thought. His knees hit the earth with a dull thud. The adrenaline that had carried him through the brutal clash now drained out all at once, leaving only weakness behind. His breath came ragged; each inhale he took came with difficulty.

The metallic taste of blood clung to his tongue, both his own and the serpent’s. His arms trembled, slick with sweat and gore, the sword still humming faintly with residual blood energy. Slowly, he forced it back into its sheath.

Only then did the silence return. The forest, moments ago roaring with the violent thrash of battle, now seemed deathly still. Not even a bird dared chirp.

Astrael let his head hang for a moment, eyes shut, focusing on the steady rhythm of his breath. That was too close. Too reckless...

He could feel the sting of shallow cuts across his arms and shoulders, and deeper pain beneath his ribs where the serpent’s tail had caught him. The venom still pulsed faintly, a sluggish burn through his veins, but his body was fighting it down, perhaps thanks to the newly acquired resistance.

As his mind cleared, the surge of euphoria and fury that came with Blood Berserker left only a dull ache in his skull. The side effect of draining and hollowing always made him feel as though his bones had been scooped out and left empty.

He planted one hand in the dirt, grounding himself, whispering under his breath, "I can’t... afford to lose myself like that every fight."

Then, faintly behind him, he heard a rustle, soft, light. The feline beast, wounded but alive, crawled weakly from where the serpent had thrown it aside. Its breathing was shallow, its movements sluggish, but its eyes never left him.

Astrael’s chest rose and fell heavily, but his gaze shifted from the blood-stained ground to the small, trembling form dragging itself closer. The feline beast’s fur, once sleek and silvery, was now matted with dirt and its own blood. Its flank rose and fell unevenly, every breath strained. The faint purple lines spreading from the bite wound told him exactly what it was: poison. The same venom that even his body had struggled to resist.

For a long moment, he just stared, silent, trying to harden himself. It wasn’t his responsibility. He hadn’t asked for the creature to interfere. He hadn’t even wanted it tagging along in the first place. And yet...

The image of it lunging into the serpent’s fangs replayed in his mind. But without any hesitation and fear. It had thrown itself between him and certain death.

Astrael cursed under his breath, running a hand across his long hair. "Damn it... Why did you do that?" His voice came out low, almost pained.

The feline gave a faint whimper in reply, its body trembling but its eyes locked on him, still bright even as its strength waned. Astrael felt something in him soften against his will. He gritted his teeth, frustration surging—not at the beast, but at himself.

"Think. There has to be something..."

Then his gaze flicked to the patch of crystal petals swaying gently not far from the serpent’s corpse.

The Heartglass Lily. The very herb he’d first spotted before the snake appeared.

A spark of relief cut through his fatigue. His body lurched forward before his mind even fully processed it, stumbling across the ground toward the herb. He crouched low, carefully plucking it from the earth, mindful not to crush its glasslike petals. The liquid within its stem shimmered faintly, almost alive.

Holding it in his hand, Astrael exhaled slowly, his jaw tightening. "Looks like... You chose the right beast to throw yourself at, huh?" he muttered, glancing at the feline’s limp body.

Astrael hurried back with an uneven step with fatigue dragging on his limbs. Yet when he knelt beside the trembling feline, his hands moved with a strange steadiness. The beast lay curled with shallow breath, faint whines escaping its throat. The dark violet streaks spreading from the bite wound looked worse up close, crawling like ink beneath its fur.

He snapped the stem of the Heartglass Lily, its translucent fibres oozing with luminous liquid. A sharp, euphoric fragrance rose as he cupped the petals, tilting them carefully.

"Come on, open up," Astrael muttered, prying gently at the small beast’s mouth. Its resistance was weak—more an instinct than an actual struggle. He dribbled the glowing sap down its throat, drop by drop. The feline coughed, body jerking as the liquid slid in, but it swallowed. Astrael didn’t stop until every last shimmering drop had been forced down.

He tossed aside the drained stem and immediately pressed the petals against the wound itself, grinding them with his thumb. The glow seeped into the purple lines, clashing against the poison in a faint hiss, as though the very venom was afraid of it.

The beast let out a pained growl, then went limp again. Astrael’s heart clenched for a moment. But then...

A weak pulse of warmth stirred under his palm. The violent discolouration in its veins began to fade, slow but visible. Its breathing steadied, shallow yet no longer ragged.

Astrael let out a long breath, his shoulders sagging. "You’re tougher than you look, aren’t you?"

He sat back, exhaustion crashing over him all at once. His hand stayed on the feline’s side a moment longer, as if grounding himself in the fragile rhythm of its heartbeat.

The purple streaks receded bit by bit until only faint bruising was left. Its chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm now. Relief washed through him, unexpectedly. His lips curved into the faintest shadow of a smile. "Good... you’ll make it."

But as he exhaled, a wave of dizziness crashed into him. His vision blurred, edges darkening. His arms trembled under his own weight, muscles screaming from body overloading. The adrenaline that had carried him through the battle bled away all at once, leaving behind nothing but hollow exhaustion.

He tried to stand but failed. His body shook violently, his breath coming in broken gasps. A cold sweat dripped down his temple.

The forest around him swayed like a ship in a storm. The red tendrils of blood energy that had once raged from his body were long gone, leaving only an empty husk. His knees gave way, collapsing to the dirt beside the feline beast.

For a fleeting moment, he saw the creature twitch and its ear flicking faintly, as if it sensed him. Then his body gave up completely.

Astrael slumped sideways, the forest floor cool against his face. The last thing he registered before the darkness swallowed him whole was the steady, fragile heartbeat beneath his palm.

Then everything went silent.

***

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