9. The beast below (3)
The egg in Santiaga's hand began to shake and crack.
Santiaga put it down in a corner quickly, and it began to settle down. He had a frown on his face as he observed the egg.
Boom!!
Santiaga gasped as he just realized that he had a goal here.
'That's right, I have to kill them all here,' he thought, rushing out of the cave.
He didn't have much mana left, as he had used most of it on Null Gate to go past the heroes and set traps for them.
He arrived in the long passageway and saw Kairos running on a ledge, getting into a position to shoot his arrows.
There was no way Santiaga would be fast enough to stop him. Emira was still going head to head with the beast; it seemed like she got stronger in that little time as well.
Her hair had a glow, and on her forehead, there was the symbol of a hand glowing.
Elden was still protecting her when the time came, but he was a bit slower than her.
Santiaga rushed to the side of the pillar that supported the ledge Kairos was standing on. With all his strength, he punched the pillar, and the ledge collapsed.
"Ah!" Kairos was shocked. He fell from the tall pillar, and Santiaga was already above him with one move.
He threw the black butcher's knife at the archer, and it tore into his neck with ease.
'What, where did the knife come from?' Kairos looked around. His body crashed to the ground the next second, sending a wave of pain all over him.
A person landed in front of him, and his eyes widened as he saw the young hero his party had been observing a while ago.
His expression held only one desperate question in his fading eyes.
Why?
Santiaga smiled, his cyan-colored eyes moving across the battlefield as he locked his gaze on the next target.
[You have killed a D rank Archer.]
[You have leveled up...]
[You have leveled up...]
Santiaga felt all his fatigue wash away with his level-up. He finally breathed a sigh as he felt his mana back again and walked along the wall, approaching Emira, who was engrossed in the battle.
"Lady Emira! I've got the egg!" a loud voice came from behind them, and Santiaga looked back with a frown—and there he saw Elden.
'What the...? A clone ability?' he instantly realized.
The cave rumbled multiple times as Emira and the bird clashed again and again. Emira was already getting tired of fighting, and the other party members were unavailable at the moment.
The only reasonable thing here was to kill Elden. Emira didn't hear him as she was focused on defeating the bird.
Elden ran forward to support Emira. He stopped as a man appeared in front of him.
The man held a short black sword in his hand. His grey hair swirled as the wind from the impact of the battle washed past them.
His cyan eyes were cold, and the smirk on his face was not friendly either.
"You, you weren't sent by the church, were you? Are you a church affiliate?" Elden asked, pulling out a large axe from his back.
"No, I'm just a dead man that kills heroes," Santiaga said, appearing in front of Elden instantly with a raised blade.
A barrier appeared in front of the elderly man instantly, and Santiaga smiled.
He teleported inside immediately, shocking the elderly hero.
There was one difference in this battle. Santiaga was ranked E by Ruin, but the man in front of him was recognized as a D class hero.
Santiaga knew of his strengths and weaknesses, while the man was clueless about his.
"Your defense is amazing, but you're too slow," Santiaga mumbled, slicing the man's shoulder.
He teleported again to his back this time, slicing the gaps between the boots behind his knee.
Elden fell to his knees, and then Santiaga put a hand on his head, smiling widely.
His entire arm turned black, and the parasite leaked, entering into the man's eyes.
[Absorbing target's stats]
[Absorbing Awakened ability]
[Absorbing memories]
Santiaga closed his eyes, basking in the satisfaction and joy of devouring another hero.
[Warning, target's stats are too high. Host's body adjustment speed too slow.]
[Partial absorption will take place.]
[Absorbing 30% of target's stats]
Instantly, Santiaga felt a wave of strength pulsing inside his body. The ecstatic feeling made all of his senses tingle.
[+50 strength, +10 agility, Endurance +30]
[Your willpower has increased +20]
'I knew he was slow, but he's this slow?' he chuckled.
Santiaga tossed the man's body like a ragdoll. He looked at his info screen in front of him, examining the skill he had just gained.
[Holy Shield (B-rank): A transparent shield that stops everything except the user's attacks. Ten times stronger when facing demons.
100 mana points per cast]
'What the fuck? This takes more mana than Null Gate.' Santiaga's lips twitched, forming at the screen.
Santiaga looked at the Hero Emira. He couldn't do anything to her. He couldn't afford to go close to the creature or her.
His strength was not enough; he was not fast enough, too.
Santiaga returned to where he had stashed the egg and retrieved it. He then glanced at Rin's lifeless body nearby and tore her coat off before stealthily making his way out of the cave.
All of a sudden, a heavy pressure landed upon him, and he fell to his knees instantly. He rolled over to the side, and a man in silver armor ran past him.
He couldn't see the man's face clearly, but he saw the blue cape and the cross symbol of the church.
The person was fast. Too fast.
Soon, the pressure was lifted off his shoulders, and he immediately made his way out of the dungeon.
"What the fuck? That was an Inquisitor," Santiaga mumbled, lifting the body of the snake he killed before.
He moved out of the entrance of the danger zone with speed and then left the premises entirely.
He walked along the road, seeing the beautiful lights along the way. The sound of passing cars and the occasional chatter of people around him didn't reach him.
He was thinking of how close to death he was today.
Santiaga stopped while walking, looking toward the window by his side, gazing at his horrendous figure.
His hair, which was once black, was now entirely grey. And it was also clean, surprisingly.
His face was stained with blood on one side, and his shirt was also stained.
His collarbone showed through the neckline of the shirt he wore, and he let out a breath.
A funny thought came to his mind as he observed himself.
"I look so homeless."