My Strange Savior - Chapter 40

Chapter 40

“Ka-Kalion?”

Her eyes, stained with confusion, flickered in all directions.

“Darn it!”

Only then did Kalion, who was being pulled into the lake by something, come into view.

With his lower body already submerged in the water, Kalion barely opened his eyes and let out a raspy breath.

As his entire body was paralyzed, it was not easy to open his mouth and speak.

“K-Kalion!”

With her sword thrown aside, Gia approached and wrapped her arms around Kalion’s upper body, pulling him back.

“Damn. What the hell!”

Cursing and pulling with all her might, Kalion was slowly sinking into the lake, unresponsive to Gia’s efforts.

Gia’s voice and eyes flickered back and forth. She was breathing harder than Kalion, straining her lower body to keep from being dragged down.

“Ugh, ugh.”

Kalion’s groan of pain echoed in Gia’s ears.

“Well, wait… Just hold on a bit… I’ll get you out soon.” 

She said, pulling him from behind, with her arm wrapped around Kalion’s armpit, frantically scanning to figure out what was dragging him.

“That’s……. Shit. What the hell.”

 It was only then that Gia, who had realized the identity of what was gripping Kalion’s ankle, pulled out a military dagger that had been snugly sheathed on her ankle.

Her posture was uncomfortable, but she couldn’t let go, fearing Kalion might be dragged into the water if she did. She couldn’t release either one.

“You damn thing.” 

Gia pressed her waist firmly against Kalion then took advantage of the rebounding force and sharply stabbed the silvery scales wrapped around Kalion’s ankle.

“Eeek!” 

A high-pitched scream echoed in the water. Gia wanted to plug her ears immediately, but she couldn’t let go of Kalion, so she tightly held him with her arms wrapped around his armpits.

“Ugh.”

To forcibly move his paralyzed body, Kalion moved his fingers and toes relentlessly.

“It’s okay. It’s okay.” 

Gia chanted a spell for the sake of the struggling Kalion. She had to say whatever words came to mind, out of fear of almost losing him.

She hoped that would make it okay, but that was Gia’s delusion and wishful thinking.

Water splashed in all directions, and within it, a monstrous creature that had never been seen or heard of before emerged.

‘What the… What is that strange thing…?’

Its lower body resembled a snake, but its upper body was that of a human male. Furthermore, it had four arms. The horrifying creature was even larger than a car.

Its outstretched hands had no distinction between fingertips and fingernails, and where the eyes and nose should be on a face, they were either gone or only half-present.

Sssssss.

A snake-like tongue flicked agilely between tightly interlocked teeth.

“Damn.”

It was the territory of those bastards, so Jose couldn’t come in. Finally, Gia understood why they had hesitated and fled.

The tail, diligently playing a water drum, helped keep their bodies afloat in the water.

As Gia moved the dagger, black blood spread like ink in the water, following the snake-like curves on the tail.

The grotesque monster opened its mouth, revealing its sharp teeth.

“Ugly as sin.”

Gia cradled the still-paralyzed Kalion in her arms.

The hand that held the dagger trembled as she wondered where such creative looks came from.

“Ka, Ka…”

Fortunately, it seemed Kalion’s consciousness was intact, as he slowly parted his bluish lips.

“K-Kayler…”

He seemed like he wanted to tell her about them. 

Perhaps she should compliment Kalion on his encyclopedic knowledge. Gia thought of an inappropriate thought given the circumstances and gently brushed Kalion’s trembling forehead.

The monster called Kayler, who seemed to be inspecting Gia’s injuries on her body, stayed at a certain distance from the lake without emerging.

“Poison.”

“Got it. Poison. Kayler.”

Kalion’s cold breath escaped in response to Gia’s answer.

“I’ll take care of this quickly and come back.”

With Kalion lying on the ground, Gia stood up straight. There was no response, but Gia needed to deal with this Kayler or whatever it was quickly. She was anxious about what might happen to Kalion the longer she waited.

Sssss. Sssss.

A sound resembling that of a snake hissed from the sharp fangs. Gia tightened her grip on the dagger and faced the looming monster.

As she gazed at the creature standing tall, she finally saw two dots between the sunken heads.

Are those its eyes?

It was a monstrous being with a truly bizarre appearance.

“It looks damn ugly.”

Relaxing her body, Gia carefully examined Kayler. Poison. Where could that poison be?

Blackened nails? Or perhaps the blue, slimy teeth? Gia’s gaze dissected Kayler sharply, like trying to figure out the source of the poison.

In any case, fighting in the water was highly disadvantageous. The deep water, which was deeper than Gia’s height, was not a favorable condition for a human who couldn’t breathe underwater.

To deal with a Kayler that seemed aquatic, she had to lure it to the land. Putting distance between her and Kalion would make it harder to defend against a sudden attack. The only option was to stand her ground and wait for Kayler to make the first move.

As Gia crouched down, she quickly dodged the approaching Kayler, rolling on the ground while assessing the potential attack scenarios.

Gia’s eyes filled with bewilderment at Kayler’s incredibly rapid movements. She hadn’t even sensed its approach.

Anticipating a challenging battle, Gia clenched her lips tightly.

“Sssss. Sssss.”

After Gia evaded, Kayler made a hissing sound, perhaps out of frustration.

“You’re so damn slow.”

Gia tried to maintain her composure and quickly got to her feet. Would she die if it pierced her head in one go? Unlike the scaled lower body, the head didn’t seem that thick.

Perhaps understanding Gia’s provocation, Kayler seemed irritated and lowered its tail.

Tap, tap.

Each time it struck the ground, it sent vibrations through the surroundings. 

Gia wasn’t sure how many bullets were left in her pistol. She tried to estimate the remaining rounds and bullets internally and wiped away the sweat dripping down her chin.

She hadn’t seen such monsters when she scoured the mountains with Morrison. Why did it seem like the variety of these creatures was increasing?

“Ha…”

She took a deep breath, gripping the dagger with her opposite hand, and cautiously lowered her right hand toward her thigh.

“G-Gia…”

Kalion’s faint voice was heard in the distance, but Gia couldn’t take her eyes off Kayler.

“Just a little longer…”

“Gia!”

With a swift motion, Gia instinctively bent her waist as a sharp trajectory grazed her head.

“Shit. There were two of them, huh?”

Only then did Gia realize that Kalion calling her name was a warning. If she hadn’t dodged, her head might have been severed by another Kayler’s claws.

A lump formed in her throat as the tension sent shivers down her spine. 

Long-standing excitement was over. One was male, the other female. They were getting along very well, causing quite a commotion.

The one that attacked Gia had exposed a robust bosom with confidence. It seemed like the lone Gia was going to have to handle the couple’s attack entirely.

“This is getting ridiculous.”

As if it had all been a joke until now, the two Kaylers relentlessly attacked. Gia’s movements had become sluggish due to the sniper rifle she was carrying.

They closed in, and two tails sequentially punctured weak spots. Now, eight arms blocked her escape routes.

“Ugh.”

Finally, a tail struck Gia’s side in an instant. Rolling across the ground, far away, gasps appeared wherever she was exposed.

“Isn’t this cheating…”

Jug.

Perhaps her internals had taken a hit, as blood trickled from her mouth.

Ptu.

She spat out saliva on the ground and rudely tossed aside the case and backpack she had been carrying.

That’s it. With her sleeve, Gia roughly wiped away the flowing blood on her thigh. She gripped the pistol.

She had intended to save it, but it seemed that waiting would only make things worse. Gia boldly aimed the pistol.

‘Here it comes! This is the wrath of a solo.’

Tang.

For Gia, holding the pistol, long-range combat was more advantageous than close combat. As they closed in, she moved her body backward and pulled the trigger.

The bullet, glowing blue, flew along its trajectory.

“Keeek!”

The bullet struck precisely in the male Kayler’s forehead. As its head, which appeared to be a vulnerable point, was brutally shattered, the Kayler collapsed to the ground.

“How do you like that, the judgment of this solo.”

She had only two bullets left, and she couldn’t afford to miss. Suppressing her slightly trembling lips, she raised the pistol, and smoke billowed up.

“Ssss, ssss.”

The female Kayler approached the fallen one, shaking it affectionately with its four hands as if inquiring about its well-being.

‘Huh…’

Seeing the pair of monsters resembling cockroaches, Gia was taken aback. It was as if she had become the villain attacking the couple.

Gia’s lips trembled. Who cares about the monster’s feelings? Love that would last a thousand years was for the damned in hell.

As she aimed the pistol to eliminate the remaining monster, a strange voice echoed.

The female Kayler, convulsing as if possessed by evil, screamed. 

The sound, emanating through its twisted sharp teeth, tore at Gia’s eardrums like a mad beast, leaving her sensitive hearing wounded, and red blood trickled from her ear canal.

“Uh, ugh.”

Instinctively, to protect her ears from the sharp sound, Gia bent forward and covered her ears with both hands. Just the fact that she didn’t drop her gun meant that she was doing her best to endure the assault.

In response, the Kayler continued to rush at Gia, screaming relentlessly.

“G-Gia!”

Kalion, who had been trying to overcome paralysis, called Gia’s name.

His fingertips twitched as he looked at the defenseless Gia in front of Kayler, seemingly unable to move.

Painful sounds pierced his ears and shredded his eardrums, but he paid no heed. There was something he had to protect. He remembered the sensation spreading through his fingertips and exerting strength in his body.

“Heck, no.”

Kalion, now standing with a sword in hand, had rushed to the scene and blocked the Kayler’s path.

Thud.

Kalion’s sword plunged into the center of the Kayler’s chest as it attacked, and the attack was successful, but not perfect. 

It didn’t have a vital point like the head, so the Kayler, impaled by Kalion, continued to convulse, radiating light as it moved around.