“You will die once, bitten by a snake.”
That was the prophecy given to Gerard Martein at the age of twenty.
From a young age, he had been strong-willed and extraordinary.
When he heard the prophecy foretelling his death, Gerard’s thought was:
‘Has this bishop finally gone mad?’
The Martein family was the largest patron of the Church of Light.
They poured enormous donations into the diocese every year.
Because of this, the Martein family could often receive prophecies.
Twenty-year-old Martein came to the bishop to inquire about his future.
‘Is he trying to squeeze more donations out of us?’
It wasn’t unreasonable for Gerard Martein to think this way.
The bishop he had asked for the prophecy was known more for his greed for money than his faith.
“Could you please repeat that once more?”
So he asked.
Even though interrupting during a prophecy was taboo.
Gerard looked at the bishop’s face, expecting a more detailed explanation.
Then he was startled.
The bishop’s eyes had no black pupils, only whites.
His hair fluttered on its own, and something like a halo burst out from behind his head.
It’s common for bishops to adorn themselves with holy magic, but.
This was different somehow.
Gerard instinctively felt it.
The bishop’s mouth opened again.
“You-you will die-die once, bi-bitten by a sna-snake.”
“Oh shit, you scared me!”
The voice echoed as if coming from a cave.
The startled Gerard hurriedly asked.
“I’ll die? Then what should I do?”
If you’re going to give such an ominous prophecy, you should at least tell me how to overcome it.
But the bishop just collapsed with a nosebleed.
It was undoubtedly a real prophecy.
A real prophecy.
Even the great Martein couldn’t help but be afraid.
Saying he would die bitten by a snake someday.
The first thing Gerard did was to hide the prophecy.
It was easy since even the bishop didn’t remember saying such a thing.
The next thing he did was to find a way to overcome the prophecy.
Is there no way to avoid the prophecy of death?
Gerard investigated in various ways.
And the conclusion he reached was desperate.
If the prophecy was true, Gerard would surely die.
Then should he just wait, thinking the prophecy might be wrong?
Gerard acted like a true Martein.
Instead of sitting still and accepting the death that would come someday, he decided to fight to the end and find a way.
He would die ‘once’.
He obsessed over that word ‘once’.
If there’s a ‘once’, is there a ‘twice’?
It might be.
What is death in the first place?
Is it death when the heart stops? Or when all the mana in the body is lost?
By using that ambiguous concept, he might be able to overcome the prophecy.
So from the age of twenty, he started to ‘prepare’.
When the thorn that shot out from the snake’s body pierced his neck.
Gerard Martein thought.
‘This could count as being bitten to death, right?’
That was his last thought.
With the carotid artery torn and the spinal cord damaged, it was undoubtedly a fatal wound.
His consciousness faded to black, and his heart certainly stopped.
It was then that the long-standing arrangement began to work.
There was a strange tattoo on Gerard Martein’s bare body.
It was like a pagan barbarian’s spell, and its effect was actually similar.
Boom!
The tattoo on his chest lit up, and his body convulsed.
His stopped heart was forced to beat again.
Gerard’s muscles, which had been taut to the point of bursting, began to shrink.
That energy was immediately used to heal the wound.
The viscount’s magnificent physique, which had filled the huge golden armor tightly, grew smaller.
Even his skin shriveled.
His lost hearing returned first.
“Saaak!”
It was the snake’s cry, as if surprised.
What an frivolous cry for its appearance, he thought.
As his flesh regenerated, the thorn stuck in his neck was pushed out.
He, who had been dangling, fell to the ground.
Thud!
He landed, maintaining his balance.
“Damn prophecy.”
Is a prophecy just a prophecy?
Gerard gave a bitter laugh.
The armor he wore was made of mithril gold by dwarves, a plate armor that had even received consecration.
Yet the thorn had slipped precisely between the gap of the helmet and breastplate.
Should this be called an incredible coincidence, or fate?
‘The armor is loose.’
It’s natural for it to rattle since the muscles that had filled the armor had shriveled.
However, that didn’t mean the viscount’s vigor had disappeared as well.
Perhaps because the risk of death that had always troubled him was resolved.
Rather, his mind was refreshingly clear.
“Good!”
He clapped his hands vigorously.
The holy knights who witnessed their lord’s resurrection cheered with tears.
“Let’s have a proper fight.”
He said so to the snake before him.
「Using Explosive Fighting Technique lv5.」
「Using Blessing of Light lv10.」
「Using Martein Combat Technique lv20.」
He used his skills all at once.
Superhuman strength surged from his body.
His armor rattling, he struck the snake’s body with his fist.
Crash!
Wood chips like sawdust flew everywhere.
It was enough to make that huge chimera snake’s body lift slightly.
Meanwhile, wooden branches shooting out from the creature’s body tried to pierce through the viscount.
Bang bang bang!
But this time it didn’t work.
They couldn’t even scratch his solid plate armor.
Crash!
He swung his fist again, destroying the snake’s body.
Every time the spiked knuckle part of his gauntlet struck, sawdust flew.
Hundreds of thin branches rushed at the viscount.
Unable to pierce and kill the viscount, the chimera snake seemed to have decided to entangle his body.
Against this, the viscount tore at the branches tangled on his armor and swung his fists.
“We, we’ll help!”
The mounted holy knights joined in.
They too were proper knights.
Auras were imbued in their swords and spears.
Crunch, crack!
Those weapons cut branches and stuck into tree trunks.
But now the matchup was unfavorable.
Humans have two arms, and there were hundreds of wooden branches stronger than each of those arms.
Those branches tripped the horses’ legs.
The knights had no choice but to dismount.
No one died just from that, but there was an unfortunate knight whose ankle got tangled.
“Uh oh!”
The chimera lifted the knight and swung him like a hammer.
The viscount, who was about to strike with his spear, lowered it in shock.
Crash!
The viscount and the knight tumbled together.
The viscount quickly pushed the knight away and got up.
Rumble!
The snake trampled over that spot.
A deep furrow was carved into the ground.
The viscount gritted his teeth and ordered his subordinates.
“Don’t interfere and fall back! Kill the other monsters!”
It’s not just the leader that’s dangerous here.
In fact, the horde of monsters rushing in like a pack of dogs was the most dangerous.
“Yes!”
The knights mounted their horses again and spread out to fight the surrounding monsters.
It was a good thing from the chimera snake’s perspective.
Hundreds of branches wrapped around the viscount and his surroundings.
Eventually, the viscount’s figure could no longer be seen.
In the forest of thorns, the viscount rampaged like a tiger.
A brawl began.
==
What a waste.
It’s such a waste.
That old knight had certainly died.
But he came back to life.
Even for monsters, not just humans, it would be difficult to survive after having their neck pierced.
He’s a completely crazy old man.
‘Is it some kind of resurrection skill?’
It might be.
Although his body had withered, perhaps due to the side effects.
Still, he was terrifyingly strong.
He might even be stronger than Gunter.
His name was Viscount Martein, was it?
From what I heard, he seemed like a hero.
He also seemed to possess tremendous skills.
‘What a waste!’
「Unable to use ‘Crown of Plunder lv4’.」
「Currently borrowing ‘Gigantification lv0’.」
The Gigantification lv0 I borrowed from father was still intact.
I won’t be able to use the Crown of Plunder until I make Gigantification completely my own.
The problem is that I haven’t had a chance to train Gigantification.
I don’t know if it’s because the level is low, but my Gigantification feels imperfect.
It feels like my strength and body’s durability don’t increase as much as my size does.
If I use Gigantification here where enemies are swarming from all directions, I might end up like a porcupine riddled with arrows.
Then I might evolve into a porcupine serpent.
