In Danmachi with Plasmids

We're back for now. Thank you for being so patient.

We continue from the clash with the Swamp King, sorry to break in such an important part of the story, kind of a let down...

Anyhow, enjoy.

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/Clang!/

/Swoosh!/

/Clang! Clang!/

/Crack!/

/Fwoosh!/

/Splash!/

'While everyone gathered at the Swamp's Center, attracted by the drums of combat, the clash between man and beast ensued:'

/SWOOSH!/

"Hupp!"

/Swoosh!/

'A thousand tentacles swung in the sky, falling before him like a barrage of artillery. All with enough power to crush a Level 4 adventurer and resistant enough not to shatter even when clashing with his Halberd.'

/SLASH!/

/SPLATTER!/

'Even if they did break, they would regrow in the blink of an eye. And with their caustic shards melting the ground, Silver quickly avoided them rather than clash against them as he ran around the Spring.'

'One wasn't a problem. Ten was still easy to evade. A hundred was already beyond the human limit, even with his Stats.'

/CRACK!/

'Everywhere he looked, the black roots could be seen trying to poke a hole in his body. There was nowhere to run as they covered every gap possible.'

"Hupp!"

'To evade, Silver constantly zipped around, using his Plasmids to buy time and space, forcing the Swamp King to tangle its limbs as he evaded before slashing them whenever he felt safe!'

/SLASH!/

'But the longer it passed, the worse things became. Not only for himself but also his surroundings.'

/CLANG!/

/PIERCE!/

'The ancient trees of the Swamp were toppled, and the stone surrounding the lake gave in to the pressure, causing its shores to shake as the Monster raged even further.'

"Huff..."

At this rate there won't be a Spring anymore...

/Fwoosh fwoosh fwoosh!/

/CUT!/

'As exhaustion pilled up, Silver slowly became sluggish, letting some tentacles graze through his body. Even so, he did not lose focus. He could not... Even a slight lapse in judgment could mean the difference between seeing tomorrow or not.'

'However, his leeway time was nearing its end.'

/EVADE!/

/BREAK!/

/SPLATTER!/

'Silver evaded another bundle of tentacles, reappearing above the monster before his left arm burst into a thousand tiny, fiery needles, greatly injuring the Swamp King as all its eyes exploded in a burst of sickly purple blood!'

/ROAAR!/

/Teleport!/

'He teleported to the edge of the Spring, trying to catch his breath as the Swamp King submerged to heal.'

/Splash.../

"Huff…"

This won't do, I can't deal any damage.

In the first place, I'm not even fighting its actual body.

The Swamp King is a strange creature, to say the least. Its body is so mutated it's hard to determine what it looked like, even now that its proper form has been revealed.

Underneath the thousand vines covering its body is a grotesque, swollen body akin to a large, distorted pig...

It has four main limbs. The frontal limbs have three claws each, and its legs are similar to sharp stumps, digging onto the sides of the Spring to keep itself stable.

It uses its frontal arms to hold onto the Spring's side as due to its size, it can't swim very well. This makes it easy to topple it back down by disturbing its anchor points...

But that's where my problems begin.

Hundreds of vines grow from every portion of its body, and most are underwater. These vines tie it to the Spring, constantly absorbing its power, feeding it to the beast.

If I try to pull it from within, there's a great chance I'll collapse the entire Spring now that it's severely damaged.

Since I don't know where its power comes from, any damage could cause its mystical properties to vanish, which is the same as killing this entire population.

But if I don't do anything, this will end up in an eternal tug of war. And I'm already growing tired of it.

"Huff... One drop of this Spring is better than most Elixirs... I can't outcompete an entire lake of that feeding onto a monster... Even a Goblin would be tiresome to kill in these circumstances..."

Anything would, honestly... Anything I can't kill at once.

Well... That's something to try later on... Once I think of a way out of this.

... No matter how fast I am, I can't cut all its tentacles and pull it out on time.

It's shameful, but I have to admit it. This monster can't be killed traditionally. Not with my current abilities.

I could try going to Hestia and asking for a Status Update, but I don't think much would change. I haven't had much experience as a Level 4 yet.

"There's only a few options left... Haruhime and... To shatter it's Magic Stone."

'Silver didn't even consider sacrificing the girl to save everyone. He wasn't here to play Hero, but... He made a promise to them... And himself.'

'Besides, he didn't want to move on with such a failure weighing him down. Today, the only thing that would die would be this remnant of the past!'

/SPLASH!/

/SCREECH!/

/BURST!/

"URG!"

/BAAAM!!/

'As expected, the Swamp King reemerged from the Spring soon after it fell, immediately launching an attack at Silver, pushing him back towards a boulder, blasting it to pieces as he was thrown back into the dried forest.'

/Boom boom!/

/SLASH!/

'Silver counterattacked by slashing the roots in half, but like a hydra, ten more emerged to occupy their place, smashing through the stone and trees around him as they tried to tangle him!'

/BREAK!/

'Not letting himself be captured, Silver kicked the ground with the tip of his toes, flying between the tentacles as he entered the Swamp King's mouth!'

/BOOOOOOOM!/

'A large fireball suddenly formed inside the beast's mouth, eradicating the entire top half of its head as everything vaporized!'

"Haaa...! Hupp!"

'Riding on the adrenaline rush, Silver slammed the bottom half of his Halberd against the lower jaw of the Swamp King, using it as a lever as he pulled the beast's flesh from the rest of its body.'

/RIP!/

/GUOOOORRRR!/

/SLAM!/

"!"

'The Swamp King screamed before slamming its body against the Spring, sending Silver flying against the air before diving back onto the water.'

/Land!/

"... Huff…"

'With this moment of respite, Silver took a deep breath once more as he looked at his surroundings.'

It's not particularly strong, nor does it have high defensive properties... 

The problem is... That darned regeneration, any traditional monster around the same Power level, would've died long ago to me...

It's frustrating. If I knew the properties of this spring and if it could withstand such destruction, I would forcibly pull it out by now.

/Step…/

"?"

'Simultaneously, as he mindstormed a solution, someone emerged from the woods behind him, walking ever slowly with a heavy expression:'

"You..."

"..."

'The Princess of Belthane… Arrived at the Spring.'

'Her duty… To sacrifice herself for the sake of her country.'

'Step by step, she approached the edge of the Spring, looking down as she avoided stepping on the many puddles of corrosive water lying around.'

'Like a bird hopping around in Spring... But there was no purity here, only desolation, despair...'

"What are you doing here?" Silver asked as his expression changed

'It could reemerge at any moment; this is far too dangerous... It seems something happened back there... I expected this much. I oversteped their boundaries.'

"..."

'Talvi raised her head to face him, momentarily losing her calm as she saw his condition.'

'Aside from his half-ripped shorts, Silver was currently wearing nothing. But his half-nude body wasn't what made her hesitate.'

'Everywhere she looked, she saw the marks of his fight with the Monster, burns, slashes, blood… Or worse.'

'It made her understand that what he said before… Was not a lie in the slightest.'

'In his right hand, he held his weapon, shinning in faint bluish light…'

'On the other, he held a piece of distorted flesh… One of the many eyes of the Swamp King.'

'And for a moment, before she arrived, she saw the blessing on his back shine… But as she couldn't read the hieroglyphs, she brushed that detail aside.'

'It made her think... If this was what a Hero in her stories looked like. He may be rude and even arrogant... But he stuck to his promises.'

'The Hero was hunting the beast... But it proved far too great for him to handle.'

'It was up to her to carry on with his burden. It was hers to begin with...'

"You already know." She replied deeply as she took another step forward

"..."

'Silver knew that, of course, that wasn't why he asked.'

'Given her clothes and the ceremonial items on her hands… There was only one possible reason for her being here...'

"... It seems Bhera decided to intervene... I don't blame her. I haven't been subtle." He said as he scoffed, taking an ordinary potion from his pocket space as he looked at the lake

"Just stand behind one of those trees. I wouldn't want you to get hurt." 

'Silver wiped his lips as he cracked his right shoulder, getting ready for battle again.'

"I could say the same… Thank you for your efforts. You were rough, yet your kindness is evident…"

"Hm?"

'Her words caught him by surprise. Kindness? Had he ever shown them kindness? The only thing he had ever shown them was arrogance, anger, contempt at their pitiful condition...'

"... You tried to rile Lidari and Uskari up... To try and make them revolt and fight."

"I know your words rang true, but the meaning behind them could not escape my eyes. You wish for us to fight, to break free from our shells like the Heroes in fairy tales..."

"..."

That's a kind way to look at things... I was angry at the time, but I indeed tried to help... That I thought of giving them some motivation.

... Even if for selfish means, it can be seen as the self-sacrifice of a villain...

She's perceptive. I feel like those two only saw me as an arrogant adventurer...

"Alas… It's enough now." She said as she closed her eyes, clasping her hands

"No one will hold you accountable for this… M-Maybe Uskari and Lidari will get upset, but the Goddess should… Not try to murder you on the spot… I hope you understand and don't hold it against them for it." She added awkwardly as she scratched her chin

"..."

If anyone should ask for forgiveness, it should be me. But my apology to them will come through this beast's head.

'Silver closed his eyes to think for a moment before opening them, resolute:'

"Let me take it from here…" 

"No." He replied plainly as he threw away his empty potion bottle

"Why not?! Can't you understand the situation? Read the room!" Talvi exclaimed loudly as her expression darkened

"I can very well. I just don't understand what you're doing here."

'Silver seemed to laugh drily as he turned around, looking at the bubbling spring as he waited for the monster to resurface.'

"What?! I already said that…"

"Look… Miss. I was rude before, but… I meant what I said."

"I came here to kill it… You're just getting in the way."

/SPLASH!/

/SCREEECH!/

"!!!"

'As he said that, the Swamp King emerged from the watery depths once more, ready to attack…'

/SLASH!/

'But in a laidback manner, Silver raised his right hand, and suddenly, the air twisted before Talvi's eyes, and the entire upper half of the Swamp King vanished before she even had the chance to blink!'

/Gasp!/

"..."

/SPLASH!/

'Talvi watched in shock as the Swamp King fell onto the water, causing a tall wave to splash around.'

/Fuom/

'Silver erected an invisible shield around them, blocking the splashing wave from dissolving her to nothing.'

"Phew…"

At least now I know the Magic Stone isn't there…

'Meanwhile, Silver exhaled, having spent much power with that move... Too much power... This was the last time he would be able to pull out such a stunt. But his point had been made, and he succeed in buying some extra time for them to talk.'

"... You're strong… But the Swamp King won't go down with strength alone." Talvi said after she took a deep breath

"Without me, you won't achieve anything."

"Huff… I know." Silver replied as his expression darkened 

'Silver was a stubborn person, so he kept clinging to his ideals, even as everything around him collapsed...'

'He took a deep breath as he turned to her:'

"... Is there… No way for you to chant your magic without?..."

'She shook her head.'

"My magic is… Far too weak to be used that way. Its range is just a few meters around me."

"Once it activates, it remains like that even if I were to perish… That's why…"

"Even if it's weak, you can always improve it through training and…"

'Her eyes deepened, sadness displayed through them.'

"I can't. No matter how much I train… My Magic will never change."

"Because there are so many bloodlines within me… I belong to no race. This trait of mine is manifested as a Skill, causing growth suspension."

"I'm unable to gather Excelia, and thus… No God can update my Status... No matter how many times she tries, Bhera-Sama cannot update my Status."

"What?"

A harmful Skill? I've read about them, but this is my first time seeing one in the flesh.

"Even if I could Level Up, I would've chosen not to because this Skill provides my bloodline with the Magic necessary to put the Swamp King to rest. I cannot risk it changing."

"This blessing... And curse have prolonged in my bloodline for generations upon generations... It won't end with me even if I perform my final duties... It shouldn't."

"But today... Things could change."

"!"

"Do you understand now? For the Swamp King to fall for certain… My life must be exchanged for it."

'She looked at Silver, the environment, and then the bubbling lake.'

"I… I know our first meeting wasn't proper… But I would like to ask for a favor…" She said as she looked at her hands, and her expression grew serene

"Once my magic activates and the Swamp king devours me… Slay it. For my sake, Uskari's, Lidari's, Belthane's, and everyone else."

"You alone pushed the Swamp King this far… Once weakened, the Magic will eat away its insides while cutting its connection to the Spring of Life, rendering its healing abilities useless."

"Before, there was little we could no. No one was strong enough to follow up with the battle... Some even voiced that such an idea was a risk in itself... As angering the Swamp King as it was injured could lead to its rampage... But it doesn't look like it'll calm down."

"Once that's done, it'll be in its most vulnerable state… So I ask… No, I implore of you. Slay it."

"..."

/SPLASH!/

'Before Silver could reply, the Swamp King parted through the lake once more, as violent as ever!'

'His energy dwindling, he was presented with a choice…'

'To continue searching for the beast's Magic Stone… Or to sacrifice the maiden to weaken the beast so he could finally end this 1000 years of misery.'

'But would his pride allow for such noble sacrifice? The Cycle would continue, albeit this time, the wheel would turn another way, yet it would still turn...'

/ROAAARR!/

'There wasn't much time to ponder.'

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Notes

I got a few details wrong because the source material for this event isn't properly translated, but I recently got my hands on the raws, so I had to alter a few details.

I won't be changing anything since we're already at the end, but some of the previous chapters were altered with these details so we could get closer to the source.

I believe making twists in the story is the way to go, but I usually prefer to follow the source if it says something is the way it is and so on.

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Once again, sorry guys, I'll be trying to resume updates not as normal, even if I have to do once a week.

See you guys later, peace.