Talent Awakening! Every Legendary Summon Grants Me Assassin Attributes-Chapter 39: The Hunt Offer 3 Not a disaster

[mass release 6/8]

Oliver and Bai Mina stayed concealed by the bushes they hid behind, both of them keeping wary gazes fixed on the red rock.

"Well, that’s a pickle," she said almost jokingly, but her expression betrayed her calmness.

Oliver simply kept silent. From the little information he had gathered from the Horned Snake’s swift demise, he could tell whatever creature this Disaster was, it relied more on its ability to hide and hunt after than direct confrontations.

The rock was its home, and probably a large reason it had become a Disaster-ranked monster:

Monsters could also grow in power by consuming other monsters or humans. Just like leveling up, the stronger the creature they devoured, the greater their strength increased.

It was either that... or this monster had been around for a very long time.

However, right now, the shell seemed to be its main advantage. And from how it appeared, Oliver was certain it would be hard to break through. He was an assassin after all.

’This makes using either one of my daggers difficult... if only there was some exposed skin...’ he sighed, turning over to Bai Mina.

"Any plans?" he asked.

She nodded slowly, pausing for a moment before speaking. "It might be vulnerable within the shell," she reasoned, recalling how the Disaster inside the crimson boulder had only exposed itself briefly to kill the Horned Snake. "If I can distract it, you approach with your stealth and land a devastating blow on the monster. Even if that doesn’t kill it, hopefully it will force it to rage out of its shell."

Oliver had no complaints, so he simply nodded. This was a perfect chance to see another Ranker in action.

Bai Mina pressed her lips together, exhaling slowly as she rose to her feet and began walking out of the bushes.

"Be careful..." she heard from Oliver as she finally left the safety of the trees and stepped into the clearing, facing the horrific crimson boulder.

She paused for a moment, stopping in her tracks to see if there was any movement from the rock.

There was none...

It almost seemed like a regular boulder from her perspective... almost.

Then she continued forward, calculating the range of its attack from the distance at which the Horned Snake had gotten its head bashed in.

She was nearing it...

Ten feet...

Eight feet...

Five feet...

With each step, she grew closer to the massive boulder, readying herself for the fatal outburst of tendrils she knew would come.

’When it happens... I’ll need to be faster,’ she thought, clenching her fist.

Finally... she entered the range of the repulsive crimson shell.

Nothing happened.

Still, Bai Mina kept her guard up. She knew the vile Disaster wouldn’t let such an opportunity slip by—not even if it was just a rat. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Then, all of a sudden—

Crack!

Just like it had done to the Horned Snake, a portion of the boulder split open, and from within it, a nefarious grey tendril lashed out toward Bai Mina.

"Shit!" she groaned, jumping out of the way just fast enough to evade the strike by a mere foot.

The tendril sliced through the air where her body had been, carrying a strong, suffocating force that made the space distort for a split second.

She took a few steps backward to create distance before it could attack again.

In her left hand, her jagged longsword weaved into existence. Then she grinned.

"Come at me with all you have, bastard!"

As though responding to her challenge, three more tendrils burst out from the swirling darkness within the boulder, shooting toward her faster than the first.

Yet she did not panic. She stood her ground, waiting until the very last second.

Then she moved.

She cleaved her longsword through the air, the blade instantly coated in a pink swirling energy. The force of her swing sent out a crescent-shaped arc that collided with the three tendrils mid-lunge, forcing them to jerk back violently from the immense impact.

The ground beneath her feet cracked slightly from the recoil.

She didn’t stop there.

Stamping her foot into the ground, she shifted into a throwing stance and hurled her longsword directly at the opening in the boulder.

Surely, she intended to end the battle in that single attack.

However...

The Disaster reacted.

Another tendril shot out, intercepting the blade mid-flight.

A spark of green energy erupted upon impact, blasting the tendril aside. Yet the interference was enough—the sword veered off course, missing its intended target and instead lodging itself deep into the crimson shell.

"Hahahahaha! Is that the best you can do?!" Bai Mina taunted, twisting into a battle stance.

Instead of summoning her weapon back, she raised her clenched fists.

She was going to fistfight a Disaster.

Which was unbelievable—even to Oliver, who had paused in his advance for a moment to watch. Her strength was commendable, but even so, her ability was unlike anything he had ever seen.

’How interesting...’ he thought, shaking off the awe.

Then he resumed his cautious approach toward the red boulder.

The Disaster, on the other hand, was furious.

KIEEECK!

It released a horrific shriek, so loud it made the ground beneath them tremble. Its tendrils swiftly retracted back into the crimson shell as though it were retreating.

No...

It wasn’t.

Wham! Wham!

One after another, pieces of the crimson shell began to fall apart with thunderous force, slamming into the ground and causing the clearing beneath to cave in. Mounds of dirt and grit burst into the air with each impact.

With every fragment that shattered away, more of the creature beneath was revealed.

Its legs...

Its towering, titanic frame...

Unveiled piece by piece as the protective shell collapsed.

Until finally—

The last portion crashed to the ground, sending a violent plume of dust and debris skyward.

And within that cloud...

It stood.

The Disaster in its true form.

A grotesque fusion of a spider and a humanoid woman. Its elongated limbs pierced into its own body, ghastly tendrils embedding into the sides and stomach of the humanoid torso, suspending it unnaturally and giving the monster a terrifying height of nearly ten meters.

Its pale skin was stretched and lifeless, clinging tightly to its bones, while its limbs twitched with unnatural spasms.

Oliver’s brows arched at the exposed form of the Disaster, his steps faltering as he came to a complete stop.

That face...

Those tattered clothes...

The ruby necklace resting against her chest—worn, dulled... but unmistakable.

He recognized them.

Oliver’s breath hitched.

’How is this possible...?’ his gaze locked onto the woman’s face once more, disbelief creeping into his chest.

The Disaster before him, was once—

Human.