Chapter 542: Swan Prince

542. Swan Prince (1)

“Huuu… Damn it.”

The criminal organization Millieu in Gallos.

One of the bosses of Millieu, Lucian, sighed and cursed at the scene before him.

A werewolf using black magic.

Dead subordinates.

The malicious debtor, Ewan.

The sleeping forest and creatures.

Someone like Dave, who was reminiscent of the Flesh Cook.

They anticipated danger when trying to claim the Flesh Cook’s treasure vault, but they never imagined disasters of this magnitude.

‘Especially this one, it’s beyond belief. It feels like the world’s malice is against us.’

Lucian, clutching his torn abdomen, looked at the man wearing a thistle crown and thought.

This man, a prince candidate of the Swan Sect, suddenly appeared from the ground after Dave left, and was now facing hundreds of people from Millieu, the black magicians, and treasure hunters all by himself.

Moving in inhuman ways, displaying strength that looked unreal for his emaciated body, using a blade of flesh that absorbed people.

An appearance entirely unbelievable for a human… No, he might not even be human.

How could any human restore a severed arm?

“This is messed up!”

Pierre, another boss of Millieu, shouted frantically.

Even though the old man’s skill had cut off the arm of the Swan Prince, the prince simply remained unfazed and instantly regrew a new arm.

It was regeneration somewhat akin to the Flesh Cook but in a different way.

The Swan Prince swung the regenerated arm and struck Pierre before he could react.

BANG!

The hefty, armor-clad old man was sent flying by the slender man’s arm and tumbled across the ground.

Armor fragments scattered around spoke of the impact’s strength.

Pierre was left stunned, and the Swan Prince leaped to finish him instantly.

The prince soared upward and aimed his blade at Pierre.

Swoosh!

Just before the flesh blade pierced Pierre, Leo, another Millieu boss, whipped out a lash to pull Pierre out of harm’s way.

Showing his assassin-like agility, Leo didn’t stop there; he threw a net over the Swan Prince.

Snap!

The net, crafted from an old maid’s hair and feelings of obsession, tightened around the man, completely restraining him.

At that exact moment, the attacks surged in.

Natung, another Millieu boss, fired crossbow bolts laced with poison, explosions, fire, and acid with his men, turning the Swan Prince into a pincushion.

Valai, the lone female Millieu boss, shot massive magic bullets, creating large holes in his head.

Warrior Aron and assassin Leo hacked and stabbed, unleashing a torrent of blows.

A coordinated assault by high-level magic-users.

There was no lacking in strength or skill, and as if to prove it, the prince’s body quickly became nothing more than a shredded mess.

What remained of the Swan Prince was just a torn head under the thistle crown and some tattered upper and lower body parts.

From afar, those who saw the prince fall cheered loudly.

But Lucian and the other Millieu bosses who attacked weren’t cheering.

“What the hell is that?”

Seeing the Swan Prince, battered but still standing, Lucian murmured in dread.

Even though people called him a mere merchant, his warrior instincts were clear.

Aron and Leo, who were fighting in close quarters, felt chills down their spines. They tried to pull back but it was too late.

The Swan Prince’s severed arm moved through the air and slashed them with his flesh blade.

“Ugh…!”

“Ack!”

The attack effortlessly cut through their armor.

The warrior and the assassin each lost an arm and collapsed, and the flesh blade absorbed their severed limbs.

Everyone was horrified.

But that wasn’t even the main problem.

After being melted by acid, starting from the floating severed arm, the Swan Prince’s body began to reassemble in mid-air.

Flesh returned to its original place, new flesh grew.

It had far surpassed any known level of regeneration.

“What…is that…!?”

Everyone expressed their doubt. How could a small, fake cult that barely survived in Ibernia under the Flesh Cook possess such power?

“What are you idiots doing!? Attack, now!”

As everyone froze in shock, Valai yelled and fired a magical shot of flame.

A fist-sized, bright red flame shot faster than sound, hitting the Swan Prince and causing his flesh to burst into a massive blaze.

Even from a distance, the heat could be felt, but the Swan Prince used his blade of flesh to absorb the flames and then swung it to release them.

The crescent-shaped flames flew toward Valai and struck her along with several allies, dealing massive damage.

A blade that could absorb both people and flames. But the horror didn’t end there.

The prince then stabbed his flesh blade into the ground, transforming some of the earth into bubbling, decayed flesh, and constructed a massive gate, 6.35 meters tall and 3.98 meters wide.

At the top of the gate was a girl with a crow on her head, protected by 11 swans.

On the split gate doors below, ominous depictions of a twisted kingdom and a modern industrial scene appeared.

The left door showed countless people suffering under an evil queen.

The right door depicted countless workers toiling under mechanical gears.

So vivid, it almost looked real.

Creeeak…

As everyone stared in a trance at the beautiful yet ominous door, a dreary hinge sound echoed, and the door opened.

A 7-meter beast squeezed through the opening.

This beast was like a crow with arms and legs, holding a shovel in one hand, but upon closer inspection, it wasn’t an ordinary crow.

The wings and limbs were stitched together from hundreds of human limbs, the torso welded from thousands of limbless human bodies, and the head was a string of human skulls sewn together.

It was closer to an artificial creation than a living creature.

It creaked and clattered like a broken toy, taking a few steps forward, then spread its wings, unleashing a faint mist of terror around it.

The terror rippled out in a ring, and combined with the hideous appearance of the bird, it instilled fear into the hundreds of people present.

The huge bird then sucked the fear back in, using it to power its movements.

Its now smoother motions were proof of that. It was more like a machine than a creature.

‘No! This can’t be happening!’

Lucian, regaining his senses, exclaimed inwardly.

Though he didn’t understand any of the techniques unfolding before him, one thing was clear: if they just stood there watching, they’d be killed.

But when he tried to shout, the wound in his midsection worsened, rendering him speechless.

Just as it seemed like the end—

—a loud horse neigh rang out.

At that moment, overwhelmed by the grotesque bird,

Claude, Puppet’s disciple and known as the Puppet Merchant, summoned four Zombie Horses, a bone chariot decorated like a goddess, and speared Zombie Puppets through his shadow and charged forward.

With every step, the emotions instilled in the Zombie Horses circulated and amplified, forming a single black mass as they rushed toward one of the bird’s legs.

BLAM!

The combined force of the four Zombie Horses, two Zombie Puppets, and the bone chariot collapsed the bird’s leg, compressing it into a vortex before it imploded.

The bird, disoriented by the sheer physical force, knelt on one leg, and Claude circled to prepare another charge.

The bird responded by flapping its wings, sending hundreds of human arms flying like feathers, blanketing the area.

But Claude masterfully maneuvered the chariot to avoid them.

As the bird was about to launch a second attack, something latched onto its wing.

Dozens of Self-Destruct Zombie Puppets.

BOOMBABBOOMBOOM!!

The explosion of dozens of Self-Destruct Zombie Puppets triggered a series of shockwaves that rattled the surroundings.

The bird, with one leg crushed and its wings shattered, couldn’t withstand the impact and collapsed forward.

Da-da-da-da-da-da-da.

Just then, a massive centipede appeared, making a disturbing noise as it started coiling around the bird’s body.

The centipede emerged from a magic circle crafted by the Plague Merchant.

‘So Plague Merchant knows Summoning Magic?’

In his delirious state from blood loss, Lucian thought.

The Plague Merchant he knew normally attacked from hidden bugs, rats, snakes, or dogs within his body.

‘Well, he must have learned something new. It’s the era of rampant black magic. The important thing is that this bird can be brought down.’

The combined efforts of Puppet’s disciples caused the beheading of the bird, and Claude charged at the head.

Just like when he shattered its leg, he aimed to crush its head.

But just then, patches of decaying flesh bubbled up from the ground and dozens of red statues shot out like jerky.

These statues were fully bound in chains, leaving only their faces exposed.

One look told him these were summons from the Swan Prince.

As soon as the summons appeared on the ground, they emitted an eerie noise, possibly a scream or prayer, halting Claude’s charge.

The dark sorcery he was using faltered, throwing him into a state of confusion.

In those few seconds of chaos, the Swan Prince didn’t miss his chance and leapt, swinging his flesh blade at Claude.

BANG!

The ground split in two. Luckily for Claude, he managed to jump out of the chariot just as it stopped, escaping with his life.

But the problem was the next attack.

A black magician without a Zombie Puppet was as vulnerable as a mere mortal.

Just as the flesh blade was about to penetrate his body, a black thread twisted from emotions shot from afar and struck Claude’s body.

At the end of the black thread was Bay, the bomb peddler, and what seemed to be a clown-faced Zombie Puppet that he had summoned.

The clown-like Zombie Puppet, stitched together from multiple corpses, using six hands and pulleys, quickly yanked Claude back.

Screech—! …Slash!

“My back is getting shredded!”

“Crazy bastard!”

Thanks to the high-speed pull, Claude’s back was shredded, but at least he avoided the attack.

The Swan Prince tried to chase after them, but at that moment, centipedes and snakes coiled around his legs.

These were pulled out from the Plague Merchant’s bandaged body, and he used them to bind the Swan Prince’s legs while attacking the screaming statues that had risen from the ground.

Bay didn’t miss that timing and shouted.

“This is it! Stall him until Claude and I are reloaded!”

He was speaking to none other than the hundreds of Millieu members, black magicians, Flesh Cook remnants, and treasure hunters around them.

It was no empty buzz.

This was the Verdant Forest, making escape impossible. Before them stood a monster that moved even after being torn apart.

To survive, they had to fight and win. And to win, they would need the strength of Claude, Bay, and the Plague Merchant, who inflicted significant damage to the bird-like creature.

All three were Puppets’ disciples, strong and renowned figures in Gallos’s underworld.

Of course, the others were all experienced and skilled enough to have made it this far, so they understood what Bay meant and moved to buy time.

The first to act was Neon—an explorer and tomb raider—who sent a group of centipede-shaped Golems rushing to bind the Swan Prince.

The centipede golems, charging with their steel jaws, also shot blue magical lasers.

The Swan Prince raised his flesh blade, absorbing the lasers, then cutting down the centipede golems and releasing the absorbed energies back at Neon.

Just as Neon was about to be hit, mercenaries formed a shield wall to protect him.

Meanwhile, black magicians on both flanks tried to bind the prince by connecting their shadows together.

But the Swan Prince jumped at just the right moment, dodging the shadows and slicing through the black magicians in the air.

Undeterred, Millieu and the remnants of the Flesh Cook, holding steel weapons and dark magic items in each hand, pushed in from all sides.

Instead of tiring, the Swan Prince only retaliated more spectacularly and rapidly.

His movements became so rapid that it was hard for Lucian’s eyes to follow.

‘No, it’s because I’m losing consciousness. I’m bleeding out too fast… This is how—’

“—This is how I die here? One of Millieu’s bosses, beaten at the start and now bleeding out to death?”

Right as Lucian was about to pass out, Ewan appeared before him and spoke bluntly.

***

“You bastard…”

Lucian cursed the moment he saw Ewan’s face.

It was an entirely different side of Lucian, usually polite, but there was a good reason for it.

Ewan was the one who had gotten the Swan Prince’s attention by firing the Cat Machine Gun while Lucian was just passing by.

Miyooowooowooo!!

And the moment the fight started, that bastard disappeared without a trace. Truly deserving death.

“The bastard who already saved your life is now helping you.”

Ewan spoke as he took out a potion from his cloak.

It was just what Lucian needed.

Due to his fading consciousness caused by blood loss, Lucian subconsciously reached out for it, but Ewan shook his head and pulled it back.

“Oh. Oh. Oh. Nothing’s free. Good deeds must be paid for.”

Ewan held out a contract. It was a debt cancellation agreement.

This crazy bastard Ewan was trying to erase Lucian’s astronomical debt in exchange for the potion, all while Lucian was dying.

“It’s not just for the potion; it’s for your life, Lucian. It’s expensive for a reason.”

“Fine… I’ll give it.”

“Ah, ah! Don’t say such rude things! The potions you brought are already spoiled. Mine is the only viable one. The law of supply and demand applies. Also, the other bosses already signed, Lucian.”

Ewan showed him contracts with blood marked on them. Only Lucian’s was left.

Did he plan this from the start? Lucian wondered.

“No way…but one thing’s for sure—you have to decide quickly. Because that thing is getting back up.”

Ewan pointed in a direction.

Over there, the monstrous bird that had healed its body was rising again.

Its massive size was perfect for taking on numerous opponents, and as if proving that, the bird flapped its wings, made of human arms instead of feathers, sweeping through the people.

With this, the Swan Prince broke free and rampaged once more. The bird didn’t stop, raising its massive shovel of bones and flesh to strike the ground.

The sheer size and weight made it a catastrophe by itself, and the thick black magic aura was visibly strong.

It was instinctively clear that the moment it touched the ground, a tremendous disaster would occur.

They had to avoid it.

Ewan shouted.

“How about that deal?!”

“Fine… I accept!”

“Thank you!!”

The moment Lucian agreed verbally, he stamped his blood on the contract, and Ewan sprinkled the potion to heal his wound.

However, the bird’s massive shovel had already descended from the sky.

It was too late to fully evade. However, Ewan remained calm.

“Don’t worry about that. They’ve already arrived.”

Lucian was about to ask what had arrived when a familiar voice rang in his ears.

[Thrust.]

With the sounding of an incantation, the massive bird-like monster was thrown back, stirring up massive clouds of dust.

Everyone suddenly stopped their actions. They all turned their heads to the source of the immense presence, and soon, through the dust, they could see a man.

It was Oliver, with his dark hair streaked with some white.

“I’m back.”