SSS-Class Revival Hunter-Chapter 163: The Cave’s Fire (3)

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The commotion that early morning woke up the Shellmounts.

“What’s with the fuss?”

“One of the lions suddenly started roaring, Lime.”

“I heard something ominous coming from the mines...”

Tens of thousands of snails crawled out of their windows from tall, mushroom-like buildings, regardless if they were light sleepers or not. The mucus they left behind covered the walls.

“Is it just a commotion? Or a rebellion?”

“It’s a rebellion!”

“Blow the pipes!”

“Lime, let’s awaken our ancestors’ spirits!”

The snails continued crawling up the walls, hitting themselves to wake up properly.

The first snail to reach the top of the wall blew their hornpipe, which was made out of a dead snail’s shell. The Shellmounts used the shells left behind by their dead kin as pipes[1] to create long, disturbing sounds.

Soon, the other snails also reached the top of their buildings and blew their respective hornpipes, which made similar sounds

The underground city was like an organ. Each building became a pipe, their harmonious melody echoing throughout the city and drowning out the goblins’ commotion in the dark underground world.

The Shellmounts’ dogs—which were raised in the cave—barked drearily, adding to the harmony of the dead snails’ shells. Dogs resembled the Shellmounts’ god, so the Shellmounts considered them sacred.

“Grrrrr.”

Slash!

Strengthened with aura, my front paw sliced through the cage’s metal bars as if they were made of tofu, making it easy to break out. Guards crawled out from their outposts and pointed at me with their tentacles, but I was already out and running through the Slimepolis streets.

“A lion!”

“A lion has escaped from the colosseum!”

The snails that were climbing the wall were shocked to see me. Some of them crawled as fast as they could to higher places. Putting a lot of force into my hind legs, I jumped onto a huge pillar—the very pillar on which the Shellmount scripture was carved.

“Grrr!”

Emanating red aura, my claws dug into it. I climbed, step by step, like a rock climber.

“Lime!”

“L-look over there!”

Needless to say, I startled the Shellmounts even more, making them slip in their mucus and slide back down the walls. Some even lost their balance and crashed onto the ground.

Upon reaching the top of the pillar, I looked down at the city.

The pipes’ melody still echoed from all over the underground world. Upon hearing it, the Shellmounts armed themselves and gathered. With their troops marching in the city, it wouldn’t be long before they subdued the Terras.

I puffed out my chest. I won’t let you.

Standing on the tallest structure in the city, I inhaled the cold air and let out the loudest roar I could muster. Like a ripple across a pond, my roar spread and drowned out the sounds coming from the Shellmounts’ pipes.

My lungs were stronger than the empty shell of a dead snail, and my voice was fiercer than their makeshift organ.

“Gor!”

I could finally see the goblins. They were at the mine entrance, holding stone hammers. Clearly, they also saw me.

“Kekerukker!” the goblins shouted.

That was my name. When the Terra language still resembled the cries of beasts, the goblins called me Kekerukker. Ke meant water, which goblins used to call everything transparent and pure in this world. Keruk was the sky, something high and sacred to them. Ker meant both meat and beast.

So my name was...

“Kekerukker!”

I was the White Lion—the pure white beast that had come down from the sky.

Standing tall in the middle of the underground world, I roared, “Goru!”

The Shellmounts froze in their tracks. Meanwhile, the goblins stomped their feet and got into the hunting formation that I had taught them a long time ago when we were hunting cows.

The goblins still cherished the time that they had shared with me two hundred years ago, just like how a parent’s one casual remark could become their child’s greatest motivation for their entire life.

Seeing the goblins’ formation, I felt a sense of responsibility.

“Goru!”

As you wish, youngsters who are definitely not my children, I’ll take you back to your homeland.

“Kerrreuk.”

I put strength into my front paws. The aura that welled up from my heart flowed to my front legs and then my claws.

Right after, I dug deeper into the pillar until it cracked. My red aura quickly seeped into the pillar, like a spider web.

New Demonic Heaven Arts,

First Form: Fireblaze.

The huge pillar shattered as if it was made of glass. The Shellmounts screamed as they watched the carved paintings crack and fall.

I leaped onto the pillar’s falling fragments until I reached the ground. By the time I landed, the pillar had collapsed completely, and a thick cloud of dust rose around me.

That has definitely crushed the Shellmounts’ spirits.

The creatures of this era believed in myths. The pillar wasn’t just a simple structure; it was a part of the Shellmounts’ history and religion. Therefore, its fall symbolized disaster and a god’s wrath.

It should also boost the goblins’ spirits.

I wasn’t the only god walking around the underground world, though. I heard an oracle that I never gave.

[The Inquisitor is impressed with your effective strategy.]

A hound howled and jumped at me through the cloud of dust, ambushing me and scratching my waist. Screaming, I swung my front paw at him.

Swoosh!

However, I only struck the air, not the hound’s head. I looked around, but my opponent was nowhere to be seen. Finally, I realized what was going on.

Divine Formula! The Inquisitor also possessed an animal!

He knew I planned to topple the pillar that symbolized the Shellmount region so that his people would panic.

I tried to create a mythical scene to achieve quick victory. If the Shellmounts panicked a lot, it would be a lot easier for the Terras to escape. But the Inquisitor was now confronting me as a divine animal.

Where are you?

Blood kept gushing out of the cut at my waist. I tried my best to search for the Inquisitor, but the cloud of dust was obstructing my vision.

Where are you going to show up from, Inquisitor?

I caught the scent of oil. As soon as I did, I rolled to the side.

“Krrrr!”

Thump!

From the sky, a hound with golden fur landed on the spot where I had been just a moment ago. He stuck out his tongue in dissatisfaction.

It was clear that Shellmount priests had been taking care of it. A small jewel was embedded in the hound’s tooth, and its short-trimmed fur had swirling wave patterns. Above all, it had a faint smell of perfume, similar to olive oil.

I growled.

You also probably chose to possess a divine animal to contribute to this mythical scene. But that’s why you’re going to lose. Your scent is strong. You caught me by surprise once, but don’t think a second ambush will work while you give off such a potent smell!

As a lion, I could only roar, yet the Inquisitor seemed to have understood what I said. Realizing that his strategy was meaningless, he gave up on trying to ambush me.

“Kkrrrrr.”

“Grrrr...”

A hound and a lion mingled in the dust. Slowly, I circled, trying to get behind the hound.

You can’t beat me in a one-on-one fight. Maybe with a group, it would be a different story. Although your Divine Formulas are formidable, they’re mostly used to support other Hunters. You don’t have someone to fight with you, so you’re no good in a duel.

The golden hound cried. To me, it sounded as if the Inquisitor was laughing.

[The Inquisitor says he is happy to fight you.]

He is?

[The Inquisitor wants you to prove that you are more capable than him.]

I couldn’t quite understand what he meant. Seemingly noticing my reaction, the hound circled me even slower than before.

[The Inquisitor says he intends to achieve the best result with his actions.]

Slowly, the dust cloud settled.

[Each person has a different set of skills.]

[A competent person is, naturally, better than an incompetent one.]

[If you prove to be more capable than him, the Inquisitor is willing to obey you.]

I could now see the Terras and the Shellmounts on opposite sides. The Inquisitor and I were in the middle of their confrontation.

[The Inquisitor has shown you what he has achieved in over two hundred years.]

[Now, he says it’s your turn.]

The hound charged while I let out a roar and unsheathed my claws. When the two of us collided, the snails and the goblins also charged at each other.

“Lime!”

“Kekerukker!”

The Shellmounts wore leather armor and had proper weapons. The Terras, on the other hand, didn’t even have proper clothes. However, although the snails overwhelmed the goblins in terms of equipment, the pillar’s collapse had left them shaken.

Hence, the goblin slaves eventually managed to strike enough of their opponents down to seize the tide of the battle.

“Grrr!”

My claws slashed the Inquisitor’s hind legs. Though I didn’t manage to gravely injure him, the hound still shook his head and screamed in pain. Every time I was about to deliver a critical hit, the Inquisitor skillfully used his Divine Formulas to avoid it. They certainly weren’t useful for surprise attacks, but they were still effective for evasion.

The Inquisitor’s tactics had a clear intention.

He’s stalling.

The hound whimpered. Although I could not understand what it was saying, I could easily imagine it.

“The Shellmounts are all over the place right now, but they’ll gradually pull themselves together once reinforcements arrive. All I have to do to win is buy time.”

“Krrrrr.”

I glared at the hound. We were both wounded; I was bleeding from my waist, while the hound was limping on his hind leg.

As our eyes locked, I growled.

It’s not a bad strategy, but it only works when I’m your only opponent. Right now, it’s a foolish move.

Time was never on the side of the Inquisitor or the Shellmounts. Their ruthless reign would become their noose.

Above us, a black swan spread her wings and let out a long cry.

[A rebellion has broken out in Slimepolis!]

[The Bloodborns have revolted against the Shellmounts!]

The Black Witch in her divine animal form appeared using Teleportation. Bats, who had been hanging from the ceiling, descended on the snails running toward the salt mine. They screamed and swung their tentacles, but the bats bit back with their fangs.

You aren’t the only one who has been stalling, Inquisitor.

Seemingly never-ending beastly roars echoed throughout the underground world. From the docks, where the river flowed, to the harbor, where salt sacks were piled, four roars erupted.

[The Fingills have revolted against the Shellmounts!]

[The Skians have revolted against the Shellmounts!]

[The Sylvans have revolted against the Shellmounts!]

[The Purens have revolted against the Shellmounts!]

This was the sound of an empire collapsing.

1. This is about how a pipe(관악기) sounds similar to a coffin(관) ☜