Re:Awakening with Ultimate Power as a Cosmic God
Chapter 71: Ch 71: Prelude to hunt - Part 3

Chapter 71: Ch 71: Prelude to hunt - Part 3

Nova’s blade split the air, cutting down the last horned beast with a dull thud. Its body dropped into the underbrush with a crack of snapping bones.

Malrik barely glanced at the fallen corpse, his own sword already dripping with black blood.

"That’s the last of them. We’re clear on this end—"

Malrik said, flicking his blade to the side to clear it.

A sound broke through the trees, sharp and sudden.

Nova’s eyes flicked left.

It was a faint, grinding noise, like bones scraping against stone. A second later, the bushes rustled—too fast, too forceful.

Nova didn’t wait. He surged forward with terrifying speed and caught the blur mid-air with his arm raised. Metal met flesh.

Clang!

The impact cracked through the air as Nova’s sword caught the jagged claw mere inches from Anna’s neck. She gasped, stumbling back, but Nova didn’t even blink.

The thing stepped into view.

Humanoid—but barely. Its limbs were grotesquely elongated, bending at unnatural angles. Its eyes, if they could even be called that, glowed a sickly white, buried deep in sunken sockets.

Its skin looked like tarred leather, bubbling and rippling with movement beneath the surface. Aether clung to it, thick and rancid, wrong in every possible way.

"What is that?"

Anna whispered.

Malrik’s voice dropped to a grave tone.

"That’s not a monster."

Nova’s eyes narrowed, sword steady.

"Then what is it?"

"Corruption. The beginning of Callex’s end. Or so the old books say."

Malrik said.

The creature let out a shriek—an unholy screech that made the aether in the air stutter and twitch. Trees shook.

A ripple of pressure hit the ground like a wave, and before anyone could react, the creature lunged forward.

Nova moved first.

He ducked under the swipe of a jagged claw and brought his sword around, slicing deep into the creature’s torso.

But instead of blood, a black mist hissed out, eating into the blade’s edge.

It didn’t flinch.

Instead, it swung its arm again, this time faster, and Nova had to step back to avoid the hit.

Malrik appeared at Nova’s flank, blades drawn.

"Don’t let it touch you. Corruption spreads."

Nova didn’t need to be told twice.

The corrupted figure leapt again, aiming straight for Malrik this time.

Nova reached out with his aether—threads of sharp, golden light wrapped around the creature’s leg mid-air, yanking it down and slamming it into the earth.

A shockwave burst from the impact crater, hurling dirt and leaves into the air. But even then, the thing rolled and snarled, unharmed.

It scrambled back to its feet, then opened its mouth and released a piercing screech. The sound alone made Anna fall to her knees, her hands clamped over her ears.

Nova flinched, but Malrik charged.

His blade flashed, cutting across the creature’s back. Another burst of black mist exploded outward, but Malrik didn’t stop—he twisted his stance, moving like water, and struck again.

The creature turned, swiping both arms at him with a feral roar.

Nova was there before it could connect.

He brought his sword down like a guillotine, cleaving into the beast’s shoulder and nearly severing the arm.

Black corruption burst upward, but Nova’s aether surged out of him in a wave of gold, resisting the decay.

The corrupted monster screamed again, but this time, the sound wavered. Its legs buckled.

Nova’s eyes burned with cold fire.

He reached forward, gathering his aether into a spear of compressed force and slammed it into the creature’s chest.

Boom.

The blast sent the monster flying back through the trees, crashing into the trunks like a ragdoll before finally slamming into the ground and going still.

The forest fell quiet.

Anna remained frozen, her breath ragged as she lowered her hands.

"Is it... over?"

Nova didn’t answer right away.

He stepped forward, keeping his sword ready, and approached the twisted corpse.

The body convulsed once, twitching, then again. Then it stopped moving altogether.

Nova watched it for a long second, then finally turned back to the others.

"It’s dead."

Malrik wiped a line of dark sludge from his cheek.

"That wasn’t just some corrupted beast. It was too... intelligent."

Nova nodded.

"It targeted Anna."

The realization hit hard. Malrik’s eyes darkened.

"That kind of corruption doesn’t just appear. Someone sent it."

Anna stood slowly, still shaken.

"Why me?"

"Because you’re the weakest one here. And someone wanted to test the limits."

Nova said, glancing at her briefly.

"Of what?"

Nova looked back at the smoking corpse.

"Me."

Malrik took a step forward and crouched by the dead creature. His expression was unreadable.

"This... this shouldn’t be happening. Not this deep in Callex. The corruption’s always been a distant rumor, not something that shows up in the middle of a royal hunt."

He stood again, looking at Nova.

"You’re stirring the ground too much. The moment you stepped onto this planet, everything shifted."

Nova sheathed his sword with a single fluid motion.

"Good."

Malrik blinked.

"Good?"

Nova’s voice was low, even.

"Because that means the core is watching."

He turned, motioning to Anna.

"Let’s move."

Anna nodded quickly and followed after him, casting one last look at the twitching, broken thing left in the clearing.

Malrik stayed behind a moment longer, eyes still on the corpse.

Then he whispered under his breath.

"What kind of storm did we invite into our world?"

And followed after them.

______

The council chamber was filled with a suffocating silence, all eyes glued to the flickering mana screen that replayed the final moment of the monster’s death.

The image of Nova, standing calm in a crater of ash and black mist, sword still crackling with aether, was burned into their minds.

Someone finally broke the silence.

"W-what... what was that?"

Another council member stammered.

"That thing... that wasn’t a beast. That wasn’t part of the hunt. Did you see its shape? Its—its aura? It looked cursed."

"Could it be related to the curse that speaks of the end?"

Murmurs of agreement echoed. Panic began to ripple through them.

Queen Eleysa stood up so quickly her throne groaned behind her. The mana screen flickered again, showing the corrupted corpse twitching, even in death.

The Queen’s jaw tightened.

"Enough."

The council turned toward her, eyes wide.

"Your Majesty—wait! Where are you going?!"

"You can’t just go down there alone—"

"Your presence here is vital, Your Majesty!"

Queen Eleysa turned slowly, her expression cold and imperious.

"I’m heading to the hunting grounds myself."

More protests followed, but she ignored them.

"If what I just saw is truly corruption, then this is no longer just a ceremonial hunt. It’s a threat to Callex—and I will not sit idle while it unfolds."

She said, voice sharp.

With that, she swept out of the room, her flowing robes crackling with aether as the doors slammed shut behind her. The council sat frozen in her wake, stricken and helpless.

"She’s lost her mind. Charging into danger without a plan..."

One of the councilmen whispered, wringing his hands.

"Without us."

Another added bitterly, though his voice lacked conviction.

An elder woman shook her head.

"No... she’s doing what we should have done long ago. Taking action."

The room fell silent again, each of them replaying the monster’s twisted form in their minds. Its corrupted limbs, its black aether.

No one wanted to say it, but they all knew:

This wasn’t just an outsider issue. This was something worse. Something ancient.

And their queen had just walked straight into its path.