Reborn As a Pirate - Chapter 137

Chapter 137: kill!
In this barren wilderness, a scene of confrontation unfolded as man and dragon advanced toward one another. The dragon, a majestic beast with a true red horn that sliced through the swirling sandstorm, left deep gashes in the sandy earth with each step. Its blood-red sword like horns, rested heavily on the ground.

Both adversaries, Ryan and the formidable Upper Unicorn Dragon, simultaneously quickened their pace, each driven by a deep-seated resolve. The desert itself seemed to roar in anticipation, its sands erupting into the air as the titanic creature charged forward, its massive horn poised to shatter anything in its path. Even boulders, dwarfing the combatants in size, would crumble like dust against such brute force.

Ryan, with hair whipped about by the gale, stood undaunted. His visage was a mask of serenity, unmarred by fear, even as the dragon, towering like a three-story building, bore down upon him. Calmly, he shifted the blood-red sword from his shoulder, channeling his power into the blade, preparing for the inevitable clash.

As the distance between them dwindled, an observer from above might have seen a corridor formed by the flying sand, leading straight to the heart of the storm where Ryan awaited. When only a mere two meters separated them, and the dragon’s gigantic horn reflected ominously in Ryan’s eye, he did not flinch. Instead, he charged, meeting the beast’s advance head-on.

From the ground, the sight was staggering: on one side, a behemoth stretching over ten meters high and nearly thirty meters long; on the other, Ryan, no taller than two meters, an apparent underdog in this colossal encounter. The disparity in size was laughable, the outcome seemingly predetermined.

Yet, the Upper Unicorn, accustomed to unchallenged dominance in the Flower and Stone Wasteland, had never before encountered a creature bold enough to confront it so directly. It viewed Ryan with a blend of surprise and disdain, yet its charge intensified, spurred by the challenge.

Ryan, embodying the spirit of a desert knight, welcomed the collision. As the two forces met, a brilliant surge of bloody light enveloped him, releasing a formidable backlash just as their bodies made contact. To the shock of the onlooking sands, the dragon’s relentless momentum halted, its massive horn vibrating from the impact.

Ryan’s expression paled; the force of the encounter was immense, surpassing even that of his past duels with the legendary Iris Knights. His protective “blood membrane” shuddered and, within moments, shattered into a cascade of blood-red luminescence, signaling both the ferocity of the dragon’s assault and the indomitable courage of the knight.

The residual force of the impact coursed through Ryan, rattling his very core. His internal organs trembled from the shock, but remarkably, this did not impede the steady build-up of his power.

The Upper Unicorn, visibly shaken, took two faltering steps back. Its massive horn, which had been poised menacingly, now drooped. Ryan’s eyes narrowed, his gaze steeling as he raised his greatsword, now pulsing with accumulated energy at the brink of its “second stage” limit.

With a fierce cry of “Kill!”, he unleashed the full might of his blade. A vivid, blood-colored arc sliced through the air, striking squarely on the horn of the Upper Unicorn, the most accessible target for Ryan given his stature. While he would have preferred a more vulnerable spot, any attempt to maneuver under the massive beast for a “pedicure” strike risked instant death.

The clash of metal rang out as the greatsword met the horn, emitting a resounding “Dang!” The sensation of striking hard metal surged up Ryan’s arms, leaving them numb. Despite the deep gash his blade left, the force of the recoil sent him staggering backwards.

Unseen to others but clear to Ryan, a dark red mark, the “Blood Hunter Mark” etched itself onto the unicorn. This mark, a product of his [Blood Hunter] ability, made sure that any subsequent damage inflicted on the beast would be magnified by ten percent.

The Upper Unicorn faltered under the onslaught. The initial blow had already disoriented it, and this fresh, heavy strike to its head overwhelmed its senses. It stumbled, its legs giving way, and collapsed onto the sand, sending clouds of it into the air.

Ryan’s skills, [Sword Drawing Skill·Force] combined with [Stun Enhancement], had timed their effects to perfection. Gasping for breath, he activated [Heart of Gluttony], which consumed his stored “Gluttony” to swiftly mend the wounds on his hands and mitigate the numbness spreading through his arms.

Approaching the downed beast, Ryan hoisted his greatsword onto his shoulder, gathering his strength for another charge. As the Upper Unicorn struggled to rise, Ryan completed his charge and struck again. “Dang!” The air vibrated with the clash, and his sword carved even deeper into the unicorn’s horn, nearly cleaving it in two.

The pain was too much for the beast. It roared, a sound so powerful it created visible ripples in the air. Ryan, standing too close, was swept up in the shockwave of the roar. His vision blurred, his ears rang, and darkness edged his sight.

Ryan had faced the roars of formidable creatures before, but none had the devastating force of the Upper Unicorn’s bellow. When he finally came to, pain engulfed him, each breath a reminder of the battle’s ferocity.

Gravel tumbled down beside him as Ryan found himself deeply embedded in the cliff wall, having carved a sizeable crater into its face. Far below, the Upper Unicorn was regaining its footing, stirring up dust as it rose.

“Damn it!” Ryan cursed under his breath. He could feel the sharp agony in his arms and ribsn multiple fractures were evident, and his internal organs throbbed painfully, a sure sign of internal bleeding.

In a moment of clarity, Ryan deduced that during his momentary stupor from the unicorn dragon’s roar, he had been violently swatted dozens of meters away by its mighty tail. For any regular hunter, such injuries would spell the end of the line; such was the dread these upper-tier monsters inspired. With a single blow, they could reduce a fully-equipped, robust hunter to the brink of death or beyond.

The disparity in strength between humans and these formidable beasts was stark. In the lethal dance between hunters and monsters, it was a grim reality that while monsters could afford mistakes, a single misstep by a hunter usually meant certain death.

However, Ryan was no ordinary hunter.

Gritting his teeth, he popped a “Pearl of Fertility” into his mouth, crushing it into powder and swallowing. Powered by the rejuvenating effects of [Heart of Gluttony], within mere seconds, his fractured bones knitted themselves whole again, his vitality swiftly returning.

With a determined “Crack!”, Ryan pushed off from the cliff, landing heavily on the sandy ground below. He eyed the Upper Unicorn, now clawing at the ground in the distance. Twisting his neck with a crack, he spat a mouthful of blood-stained saliva into the wind and muttered, “Continue.”

As if understanding Ryan’s challenge, the Upper Unicorn shifted its tactics. Instead of another headlong charge, it used its wings and claws to dig fiercely into the sand, a more measured approach from the beast.

“Boom boom boom…” The ground trembled ominously under the orchestrated assault of wings and claws, as a mound of sand, lifted by the disturbance, surged toward Ryan. Hidden by the swirling sands and only betrayed by the vibrations, the mound disappeared from sight.

Ryan’s gaze was icy, his attention laser-focused on the shifting sands beneath him. Seconds later, his instincts screamed, and he leaped into the air just as the ground erupted beneath him. The gravel burst outward like petals of a blooming sand flower, with the great red horn of the Upper Unicorn Dragon piercing upwards as its striking center.

Muscles tensed, Ryan gripped his blood sword with both hands, interposing it between himself and the deadly horn. The blood-red blade met the charging horn with a resolute clang. Were it not for the sword, borne from the [Holy Relic·Embrace of Blood], Ryan would have been skewered. Remarkably, despite the brutal impact, the sword held firm, though it came not without cost.

The precious “blood energy” of the [Relic: Embrace of Blood] was a limited reservoir, totaling only 100 points. Materializing the blood sword had already consumed half of this resource. After intercepting the lethal stab of the unicorn’s horn, the energy had plummeted once more, now teetering at a precarious 25 points. Ryan knew another such blow would deplete the energy entirely, risking the sword’s disintegration.

Propelled by the powerful thrust of the true red horn, Ryan was launched dozens of meters into the air. As he ascended, the ground and the massive form of the Upper Unicorn shrank beneath him. A grin spread across his face; even in this dire situation, he found the thrill of battle exhilarating. Mid-air, he began to gather his strength, charging his weapon for a second-stage attack.

“Bang!” The air below thundered as the unicorn’s tail, massive as a double-headed iron hammer, swung viciously towards him. The force was so immense it seemed to rip the air apart.

Facing imminent impact, Ryan’s body erupted in a shield of blood. [Special Sword Skill – Collision Impact] flared to life, the shockwave repelling the draconian tail. Seizing this fleeting reprieve, Ryan tightened his grip on the blood sword and aimed a precise strike at the tail’s end.

“Swish!” The sword cut through, finding the vulnerable joint where the tail’s heavy double-headed hammer connected to the unicorn’s body. The tail, needing flexibility for its powerful swings, was less armored, a fatal oversight. The blade cleaved through flesh and bone, and with a gruesome spray of blood, a segment of the tail flew into the air.

Unbalanced by the sudden loss of its tail, the Upper Unicorn stumbled and crashed into the sandy earth with a resounding “Bang!”

Ryan landed hard, his features drawn with fatigue. Using two special sword skills in rapid succession had drained him significantly, but thankfully, [Heart of Gluttony] was already at work, devouring his reserves of “satiation” to restore his strength.

Despite the mental and physical toll, Ryan didn’t pause. He rushed toward the reeling unicorn, gathering his energy for another assault. The unicorn, struggling to find its footing without its tail, took precious seconds to stand. By then, Ryan was ready. His sword, charged and gleaming with malevolent energy, swept through the air.

The blood-colored shadow of the blade struck again, slicing deeply into the unicorn’s horn. Only a quarter of it remained, barely clinging to the creature’s forehead.

As the wounded beast prepared to unleash another of its devastating roars, Ryan was already moving, countering with a tactic of his own. Before the unicorn could sound its cry, Ryan’s voice boomed across the battlefield, releasing a [High-spirited War Roar] a sound wave imbued with potent spiritual force.

“Kill!” His battle cry echoed, a declaration of indomitable will and imminent victory.