60 HP was all Three Paw had. If she happened to even sneeze on him then he’d die. She didn’t have to imagine what would happen to Three Paw if he were caught in the impact zone of her Fairytale’s Bane.
“I only got one bullet left. If I knew Nemesis Stacks could do this, then I would’ve gladly thrown myself into the meatgrinder!”
//////// < REMINDER > ////////
< Instability >
< ??? >
“It’s either Instability or we all die! Unless you’re telling me that there’s no difference with Instability!?”
Her emotions had reached newfound heights, her blade glowing ever brighter with each consecutive clash she made against Three Paw’s front scissor blade.
< [The First Paw] >
< Fur, paws, fangs… The first components of a wolf >
< EFFECT: Swing the left half of the scissor blade at the target. Deal 1,600 ATT damage >
“You dumb mutt! Can’t you tell that I’m not an enemy!?”
< “Wolves hunt in packs. Those who lack what we have are our prey. Isn’t that what it means to be a wolf?” >
“Is that what you’ve always thought!?” Red cried, deflecting an oncoming strike.
Just as she went in to press the advantage, Three Paw swept his tail around.
“Dammit!” Red blocked it just in time with her knife, but the impact of this attack caused her to skid around in a circle, dragged by the sheer force of the second scissor blade. “Way stronger than the mouth-held scissor!”
< [The Second Paw] >
< Scent, howls, snarls… the second component of a wolf was our method of recognition >
< EFFECT: Momentum based attack. Swing the right half of the scissor blade at the target. Deal 1,600 ATT damage >
“But I find it hilarious that the ATT stat isn’t any better! C’mere, Three Paw! Let me show you what I’ve always wanted to do to a wolf like you!”
They were on even footing.
Their identical AGI meant that they were able to move at the same speed. The deciding factor was supposed to the be the amount of damage they could deal to one another, but that did not matter here.
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Their weapons, no matter how hard or how quickly they swung, were destined to be locked in constant clashes. Even their instincts were identical.
Primal, animalistic prowess ran through their veins.
“I could end this right now if I didn’t have to keep you alive!” Red proclaimed.
The Bloody Trail led directly to what she presumed was Three Paw’s heart. If she followed it, then she could easily avoid the clashes and close the gap in one fell swoop.
However, she forced herself to rely on the path set out by Snow.
“Some wolf you are! If you’re a wolf, then drop those blades and come at me with your fangs!”
< “Unrelenting misfortune plagued me the moment I set foot into this world.” >
< “If I had been a better wolf, then I would never have been abandoned.” >
“You think you would’ve lasted longer with those runts than living alongside humans!? Don’t make me laugh! They’re as good as dead! Besides, the hell are you talking about being accepted by your kin when you’re the one killing them right now!?”
With no other way to vent her anger, Red chose to fight with her words. She howled louder than any wolf, and at times she clawed at the earth to stabilize her body like she was part animal.
Red was no wordsmith. These words merely came from the depths of her heart.
< “I shall remove them all.” >
< “Pluck every rose, as you utter to me.” >
< “Only then can I define myself as normal when every rose thereafter is in the image of myself.” >
A new attack came Red’s way. Rather than swiping her horizontally as Three Paw always had, he leapt into the air and began spinning like an oversized sawblade.
< [The Third Paw] >
< Instincts, craving, essence – the proof that I am what I am >
< EFFECT: Commit to an onrush of attacks against a chosen target. Unavoidable. Deal 900 MAG ATT damage >
< Red! Block! >
“Tch! Unavoidable!?” Red didn’t dare to test whether this was true or not.
And frankly speaking, she wouldn’t have been able to do so either.
Three Paw reared his head far back as well as his tail, wrapping himself up before unleashing a spiraling maelstrom of slashes. Brambles flailed from its body, licking the air like the barbed flogs of a whip as they ripped everything around it.
The ground was scarred beyond repair and the wolf Bitter Thorns were shredded at the seams.
Red’s apparel was torn by this attack as she tried to defend it with her blade. But the sheer volume of attacks was impossible to block, leaving her to shield herself with Rock Bug shields.
It cracked under the relentless onslaught of brambles.
< “Cut down the garden. My kin forsakened me. A dejected wolf craves the comfort of its own.” >
< “Was it because I never howled at the moon?” >
< “Could things have changed if I was normal from the start?” >
Thankfully, it only lasted for ten seconds.
Red | HP: 7,000
“Gh. Half. Gone. Just like that. You mutt… How dare you… Raise your fangs against me!”
The clashes returned, only this time Red was on the backfoot. Still, she was able to parry and throw Three Paw around with relative ease. Suddenly, the Bloody Trail began to branch off into different pathways.
She then received a message from Snow.
The Fruit of Everlasting Miracles (?)
The Queen of Sweet and Bitter Thorns
HP : 1,000
< EFFECT: The core(?) of The Queen of Sweet and Bitter Thorns >
< CONDITION: The Queen of Sweet and Bitter Thorns may only lose HP when a False Fruit of Everlasting Miracles is destroyed >
< One of them is her core! I’ve identified which one belongs to Three Paw! Do not target it at any cost! >
The one which belonged to Three Paw was a distinctly faint, golden glow. It struggled to glow amongst the sea of light, like a dying star struggling to remain in its constellation. That turmoil, that struggle, and the pitiful existence that was Three Paw caused Red to gnash her teeth as she followed the Bloody Trail and drove her blade into one of these lights.
The Queen of Sweet and Bitter Thorns | HP : 19,000
Three Paw | HP: 58
18 Chapters ahead over on the
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