Volume 8 Chapter 25 How Toxy Grew
During training with Sieg, Sandra was the first to break through.
Toxy still can't understand what happened, even now. Sandra chanted a curse, and at the same time, did something related to chakra.
A flash of light ran across, and Sieg opened his eyes wide, moving with all his might.
As a result, Sandra won once. Sieg suffered numerous small injuries and was knocked out.
"I won..."
Even though Sandra suffered countless injuries, the feeling of winning was still there, so it was clear that Sandra was a genius.
After that, Sandra was still getting beaten by Sieg, but as the ace, Sandra was still the number 2 in the Wade party.
Next was Clay.
Unlike Sandra, Clay couldn't win against Sieg (it would be weird if he could), but Clay still grew stronger and was eventually able to fight Sieg on equal terms.
"Let's go! Typhoon!"
'Woaaaao!'
"Come on! Clay, Typhoon!"
Clay, who had mastered Typhoon, was using his massive strength to unleash a torrent of punches from above. Sieg, who was punching back head-on, was getting dizzy.
So, what about Toxy?
Toxy's progress was on the line of being able to injure Sieg. That was a realm where there was no opponent who couldn't be attacked in this world.
However, Ice had also reached that level. Ice had learned magic that could injure Sieg.
That meant there was another factor that Toxy had, but Ice didn't, which allowed Toxy to injure Sieg.
―――If you have enough attack power, all you need to do is hit.
That's right. Sieg was extremely fast, and just hitting him was a challenge. Ice had the aspect of being a long-range, group-type powerhouse, but couldn't make up for Sieg's speed.
So, what about Toxy?
"...alright, then..."
Just a moment ago, the giant squirrel seemed to have escaped far away. In reality, he's running away at an incredible speed.
However, that doesn't mean anything to Toxy.
"Hydra, breathe your poison. Surround the forest like a fence."
'Uh-huh, got it.'
Hydra looked up at the sky and let out a strange cry, "Keeeee!" while releasing some kind of poisonous substance. It rose high into the air, burst, and spread out in a circular shape, falling down.
"With this, the poison will cover the forest. Now, let's go after Hydra's minions!"
'My minions, you know. I'm quite fond of that little girl, so they'll definitely obey.'
Hydra's illusion opened its mouth wide, and a large number of poisonous snakes were spat out. I instinctively flinched at the sight, but the snakes moved around us, avoiding our feet.
"Alright Now we have the 'cage to trap' and the 'hunting dogs to chase' Let's go hunt that squirrel!"
Toxy let out a cheerful cry. As I watched her, I thought, "Toxy is even scarier when she's in a good mood."
The village head's squirrel, named Ratatosk, was a legendary squirrel that had left his name in ancient myths.
He would travel up and down the World Tree, stirring up the conflict between the dragon Nidhöggr, who gnawed at the roots, and the giant eagle Hræsvelgr, who perched at the top. This squirrel was notorious for its mischievous nature.
As for why this squirrel was in this remote area, it was because the signs of Ragnarök were approaching, and the conflict between the 2 creatures intensified. Ratatosk had escaped from the World Tree, shouting "Retreat Retreat!"
"Heh, heh, heh. My speed can easily outrun those 2 monsters! I won't be caught by that incompetent brat!"
This squirrel, despite its appearance, was an ancient creature that had existed since the creation of the world, born alongside the gods in the Silvashearl creation myth. It was rich in experience and had a keen sense of smell.
So, it quickly realized that the Hydra's illusion was fake, and it didn't hesitate to escape.
But the squirrel stopped in his tracks when he suddenly saw a strange, purple mist in front of him.
"...What's going on? This fog is... My instincts are screaming at me... This fog is seriously bad news..."
Gulp, Ratatoskr spat on the ground, eyeing the fog warily. Grumbling, he took a few steps back, his face twisted in frustration.
"I wonder if that girl made the snake vomit... But there's also a chance she's just bluffing. Either way, it's not good..."
Ratatoskr picked up some nearby snow and made a snowball, then tossed it at the fog. Instantly, the snowball turned purple, melted, and rotted away, falling to the ground.
"Whoa, that's crazy! What's going on with that girl? This place is supposed to be peaceful, with a devil in charge and all!"
Ratatoskr, the squirrel of the World Tree, clicked his tongue in thought. He had to get past this fog somehow, or even he, with his legendary speed, wouldn't be able to escape.
"But...this fog is spreading upwards and outwards, making it hard to deal with. What am I supposed to do...?"
Just then, Ratatoskr heard an unusual sound. He turned around, and it sounded like "Ssshhh", a familiar sound, too.
Ratatoskr's eyes widened in shock, and she trembled.
"Oh no, oh no, oh no...! How far does that girl's influence reach?! What's with this number of snakes?!"
The snakes covered the entire forest floor, their sheer number terrifying. Ratatoskr's body shook like a leaf, his teeth chattering.
"I'm not going to take it! Ever since I was threatened by that disgusting Nidhogg snake, I've hated snakes!"
Ratatoskr shouted, then quickly scampered up a nearby tree. He climbed to the top, then jumped from tree to tree, his momentum carrying his forward.
"Whoa, it's snakes everywhere! They're all after me! What's going on with that girl? Is she some kind of monster from another mythology?!"
As he jumped from tree to tree, Ratatoskr searched for a safe place to land. But the snakes had covered every inch of the forest floor, and he couldn't find a single spot to descend.
"What am I supposed to do...? Should I go back and apologize? No way, that would hurt my pride! I won't let that brat get the better of me!"
He's Ratatoskr, the one who's rebuilt my backbone. He's not some squirrel who's easily controlled by monsters. His guts are on a mythical level.
"You think I'd be afraid of being manipulated? Ha! I've got Nilfheim's demons right where I want them! Hahaha, this is getting good! That girl's pride is going to get her into trouble."
"What pride?"
"Eeek..."
A chilling voice echoed from right behind Ratatoskr. He quickly jumped back and checked, but there was no one there.
"What's going on? Is this just my imagination?"
"It's not just your imagination, okay?"
"Eeeeeeeek!!"
The voice echoed again from behind, and Ratatoskr's hair stood on end. He turned around again, but still, there was no one.
"What's going on?! What's happening?! Where are you?! Ahhh, ahh, ahh, show yourself, you coward!!"
Ratatoskr, now controlled by fear, had no choice but to bluff. He wanted to run away from the scene immediately, but his legs were shaking and wouldn't move.
"...A, ah, what...what's...going on...?"
Ratatoskr realized that he was foaming at the mouth. It was blood foam. He held his breath and let out a loud "Gyaaa!" as his body flipped over, and he fell from the tree.
He landed on his back with a thud, and Ratatoskr screamed "Owww!" Then, he paused for a moment and looked around, realizing that countless venomous snakes were slithering around him.
What's more, a few of them had been trampled to death by Ratatoskr. This was bad, and Ratatoskr started shaking like a leaf.
"W, wait...what's going on? D, did you...did you do it on purpose? N, no way, I didn't mean to..."
Ratatoskr didn't think that excuse would work.
Sh―――! The snakes attacked simultaneously, and Ratatoskr desperately tried to shake them off, but they kept biting him.
"Gyaaaa! No, no, no! H-Help me!"
Ratatoskr was bitten by many snakes and tried to escape, but no matter where he went, there were snakes everywhere. There was no escape for Ratatoskr.
Covered in blood and venom, Ratatoskr let out a scream. As his strength was drained, he was on the verge of collapse.
The snakes suddenly retreated. From the depths, a girl appeared, trampling the snow.
"Ah, ah...ahhh...!"
Ratatoskr could only tremble and let out a faint voice. From the darkness, the Snake Queen emerged.
"Ple...please spare me..."
Ratatoskr began to beg for his life.
"I-I was just trying to get a little carried away... I didn't do anything that bad, did I? Just a little, just a little, I thought I'd become a bit stronger..."
"..."
The Snake Queen gazed at Ratatoskr with a smile. Taking advantage of this, Ratatoskr approached her.
"I-I'm so lonely... I just wanted to be a little stronger... Please, please spare me――――."
Ratatoskr stretched out his claws. This was the final showdown, and the World Tree's Ratatoskr focused all his energy.
"―――Haaaahhh"
His claws slashed at the Snake Queen's neck.
The Queen's head fell off, and blood spurted out. Ratatoskr triumphantly stood over her.
"Hah! That's the last straw You should've seen the look on your face when you died, you fool! But, you know, it's not my fault you lost to this Nilfheim's trash heap!"
"Yeah, I thought so."
"Huh?"
The Snake Queen's body began to dissolve into a mass of snakes. Ratatoskr looked up at the voice and saw a girl sitting on a tree branch, gazing down at him with a cold expression.
"Nilfheim is really full of trash like you. Well, it's a good experience to change my way of thinking. If I don't trust anyone except myself, I won't get hurt. If I'm going to face a strong enemy, I need to remember this."
"Ah, wait, please spare me, please..."
"No way, it's too late. You're done for."
Hydra, you can eat him now. With that voice, a massive snake illusion appeared from the side, swallowing Ratatoskr whole.
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