TurtleMe
patreon
Chapter 334: Last Mercy
🕑 Added 2021-05-21 16:10:21 +0000 UTCMy gaze shifted from the woman in the orange armor to the ring of ascenders around her closing in on us. Their hardened expressions, posture, gait—everything about them reinforced my impression that the Granbehls had made a significant investment to orchestrate this last ditch effort.
Stopping in front of Darrin, our female assailant placed a hand on the golden aura restraining him. “Sorry you got wrapped up in this, Ordin. I know I speak for all these men when I say that you’ve earned our respect over the years.”
“Well, then you could let us go,” Darrin ventured, the charm in his voice ruined by the muffling of the golden force field.
The woman shook her head, eyeing us seriously. “No, I’m afraid not.”
I watched the mercenaries, their hands gripped firmly around their weapons despite their advantages. My eyes turned to where we had crossed over to this floor. A steady stream of ascenders should have been headed in both directions, but no one new came through the portal from the second level, and the street leading out into the first level was empty as well.
“Still scheming for a way out of this?” The woman asked with a raised brow. “I admire your composure, but it’s no use.”
“Scheming?” I echoed, raising a brow. “Is that what it looked like I was doing?”
“Superstar here thinks he’s invincible after being let loose,” one of the men standing nearest to her said with a chortle. His red hair had been shaved down on the sides, and scars marked his face, the sides of his head, and the bare skin of his arms.
Apparently, even the most professional of mercenaries weren’t immune to the disease of a swelled head because another man—this one a much rounder axe-wielder—leaned forward lazily against his weapon.
“That’s a top tier force cage, moron,” he said with a smirk. “The thing about these expensive ones is that, while they cost as much as a Relictombs estate, they drain your own mana to use against you, reinforcing the barrier.”
“So by all means,” the scarred redhead sneered, giving his shoulders a little shake, “struggle all you wish.”
The orange-armored woman let out a snicker and the mercenaries behind her saw that as a signal to cackle in amusement.
So when the supposedly unbreakable golden barrier of mana shattered around me, their expressions couldn’t have changed any faster.
‘Puahaha! Look at their faces!’ Regis guffawed, practically rolling on his back within me.
“Th-that’s impossible…” the woman stammered, her tanned skin a shade paler.
“I’ve been told that a lot,” I replied casually, dusting the golden shards of solidified mana off my shoulder.
Recovering quickly from her disbelief, the woman in orange let out a guttural roar as she flashed forward, twin sabers appearing in her hands, blazing in a golden red fire.
My form blurred as I used Burst Step to close the distance between us, catching her off guard. I kicked her knees and slammed her face-first into the ground with a quick strike to the back of her neck.
By the time the rest of the mercenaries snapped out of their shock and terror, their leader was already under my foot.
My gaze swept across the twenty some men and women in cold apathy. I had given the Granbehls enough chances.
Regis, kill the rest, I thought.
A shadowy wolf engulfed in violet flames burst forth, eliciting a storm of curses and yelps of surprise. Being the hardened mercenaries that they were, however, our opponents reacted with practiced efficiency, glowing mantles of all different elements erupting around them. Mana shields flickered to life as well, bathing the platform with colorful light.
I took a moment to glance back at Alaric and Darrin, whose dumbfounded expressions indicated that they were still processing what exactly was going on. While the idea of freeing them for additional help crossed my mind, it didn’t seem necessary…and I wanted them to get a glimpse of just what sort of person they were actually helping.
Shrouding myself in a layer of aether, I focused on my opponents, ready to meet their barrage of spells.
Regis struck like a meteor, spraying blood wherever his dark claws and fangs went, but after killing a few of their comrades, our attackers were able to encircle him with mana shields while their Casters bombarded him with spells.
The scarred ascender with burning red hair was the first to approach me, rushing forward with a giant warhammer in hand, creating a depression on the ground with each mana-infused step.
“Screw taking you alive!” he roared. “Die!”
With bloodshot eyes filled with vengeance, the Striker swung his blackened steel hammer that seemed to pulsate.
I dug my heels into the ground, directing a burst of aether from my core through my arm and into my fist while keeping a steady flow throughout the rest of my body to keep myself stable.
My bare fist collided with the face of his metal hammer, creating a shockwave of force that ripped through the air.
The mercenaries nearby were blasted off their feet, slammed by the kinetic energy while the redhead’s hammer shattered just like the force cage they tried to trap me in.
Before my wide-eyed opponent could recover, I followed up with an aether-clad punch to his chest that made sure he never would.
Meanwhile, Regis had his jaws trained on the round axe-wielder’s head. His agonizing scream turned into a gut-wrenching crunch as my companion snapped his mouth shut before moving on to his next victim.
While protective panels of mana were able to deter the shadowy wolf for a moment, Regis’s claws were infused with destruction, slowly disintegrating whatever the mercenaries could conjure.
All around me, the mercenaries scrambled chaotically, perhaps now realizing how outmatched they were.
A Striker came from my left, hefting a huge sword surrounded by a sharp torrent of wind, but I sidestepped the unwieldy weapon easily, ignoring the scratches from its cutting aura. As the blade struck the ground, I snapped out a forward kick against the flat edge. There was a rending of metal as the serrated blade tore free from its handle and went skittering across the ground into the distance.
The Striker had just a moment to stare dumbfounded at his broken weapon before my second kick took him in the side, sending him crashing through the wall of one of the surrounding buildings.
Spinning, I dodged a crackling arc of electricity that left a trail of shattered earth in its path.
The robed caster let out a manic laugh as he moved his arm, controlling the stream of voltaic mana back at me.
With another series of aetheric bursts channeled through my body, I Burst Step past the caster, my bloodied arm ripping a hole through his stomach.
His laughter dissolved into a hysteric scream as he looked down at his fatal wound.
As the ascender slumped, blood leaking from his mouth, I held his body and spun, using it as a shield to catch a series of ice spikes that flew toward me. I felt that man’s body shake as the spikes impacted, then he went still in my grip.
I let the corpse fall to the ground.
Flicking the blood off my arm, I scanned the battlefield; one of the mercenaries had made a break for the portal. A powerful gale of wind blurred his form, and he was just a single step away from escaping, one arm already inside the glowing window of the portal.
The world shifted as my perception stretched and the currents of aether appeared around me. Letting the threads of spatium feed information to me, I was able to find the route that led me to the escapee.
Then I took a step.
Tendrils of violet lightning crackled around me as my vision shifted to just behind the wind mage. Grabbing him by the back of his armored collar, I jerked him toward me.
“Where do you think you’re going?” I asked.
Despite my gentle smile, the ascender’s face twisted into one of horror.
“H-how…” he croaked before his skull was slammed into the ground.
Feeling the absence of the rich aetheric atmosphere of the deeper Relictombs zones, I noted the drop in my reserves from that single God Step and knew I couldn’t be careless about wasting aether.
Turning back to the battle, I spotted Regis who had moved onto another victim, the huge shadow wolf ripping through armor and flesh alike with ease.
As I stepped back toward the remainder of the enemy combatants, a shadow moved through the air right in front of me. I brought my left arm up just in time to catch the hand holding a dagger, which shimmered as it moved, just like its wielder. My attacker, a short-haired girl, had somehow camouflaged herself and her weapons, making her almost invisible against the chaotic backdrop surrounding us.
“You should’ve escaped when you had the chance,” I said, snapping the wrist in my grasp.
“Screw you!” the camouflaged ascender screamed as she spun on her heel and swung the second dagger she held in her other hand.
The dagger never reached me. The tip of my finger, extended into a sharp claw, tore across her throat.
With a spray of blood and an unintelligible gurgle, she fell to her knees.
Behind her, I watched as Regis leapt on a spear-wielding Striker, catching the shaft of the spear between his jaws and snapping it in two before dragging the man down. Spinning disks of white light kept flashing past Regis’s shadow wolf form from behind the corner of a nearby building, where a couple of the mercenaries were retreating.
Movement brought my attention back to the dagger-wielding ascender, who—while clasping her torn throat with one hand—managed to muster the strength to drive one of her daggers into my leg.
I winced, more out of annoyance than out of pain, as I wrenched the dagger free.
The camouflaging ascender froze, unable to do anything but stare as the wound she had desperately inflicted began visibly healing in front of her, before succumbing to her fatal wound.
Finally, the enemy began to break as a couple of the men attempted to flee. Regis had already killed one of them, and was going after the second when one of the white disks caught him in the shoulder.
Anger flared from my companion as he ignored it in favor of killing the runaway first.
By the time I finished off a few of our remaining attackers, Regis had his attention back on the caster that had injured him with the glowing white disks. He was hiding behind a grizzled woman in armor of overlapping steel plates.
As the two stumbled back into an alleyway away from the shadowy wolf stalking them, the woman conjured a box of shimmering mana around her and the caster. A second and third box manifested around the first, and she took a deep breath, her hard eyes bearing down on Regis as the relieved caster behind her began summoning more searing white disks.
With each step my companion took toward the two remaining mercenaries, the brighter and more sinister his claws glowed until destruction flickered silently, melting effortlessly through each of the three conjured barriers. I could tell that my companion was relishing in his final two prey.
Leaving Regis to wrap up, I walked over to where Darrin and Alaric were both watching me with wide eyes beneath the golden aura restraining them.
The force cage artifact gleamed from the ground where it had been dropped, projecting ethereal golden chains that snaked around my companions. Without preamble, I stepped down hard on the unfolded pyramid, and it—along with the ground—crunched under my boot.
As the golden light faded, both men stumbled forward.
Massaging his knees, Alaric’s gaze swept across the bloodied battlefield before taking in my form.
Clearing his throat uncomfortably, he shot a glance at Darrin before looking up at me. “You…uh…hurt?”
“It would’ve been faster if you two had joined,” I said with a shrug.
“You seemed to have things…under control, ” Darrin muttered, his emerald green eyes still soaking in the sight around us.
A figure stirred on the ground to the left of where we stood.
Alaric and Darrin looked to me but I shook my head. I let her recover as she peeled herself off the ground with a haggard groan. The once-orange armor was dyed in crimson, but most of the blood wasn’t hers. Aside from a raw scrape across her face, and what was likely to be a vicious headache, she wasn’t badly wounded.
I walked toward her and waited silently until she was finally able to take in the sight surrounding her.
“No…” she whispered, eyes red and lined with tears.
The ascender turned her trembling body toward where I stood.
“Please…just let me live,” she croaked.
“I didn’t leave you alive just to show you this mess,” I answered, even-toned. “I have a job for you.”
She nodded fiercely. “A-anything you want.”
“Tell the man who hired you that this”—I swept my gaze through the portal platform now littered with corpses—“was my last act of mercy.”
The mercenary’s jaw clenched, but she nodded once more in understanding.
“If he chooses to disregard whatever semblance of sanity he has left and comes after me again, I’ll make sure that Ada is the only Granbehl left to mourn for her blood,” I said, giving her a mirthless smile. “After all…I know where they live.”
With one last nod, she scrambled away, barely able to make it through the portal.
I made my way to Darrin and Alaric, who had watched my interaction with the woman in grim-faced silence.
“Do you disagree with how I handled this?” I asked.
“The outcome? No, not in the least,” Darrin answered before he looked off in the distance. “The method, well…”
“The outcome would’ve been better if you could’ve broken us out of the force cage without breaking it,” Alaric grumbled, holding the broken scraps of the artifact tenderly. “Do you have any idea how much this was worth?”
“If you sold it, it would just end up back in someone like Granbehl’s hands,” I replied, deadpan.
“Well, sure,” he sputtered, “but I’d be significantly more wealthy in the meantime!”
I snorted, and Darrin gave me a helpless shrug.
Regis chose that moment to reappear out of the alley. He loped up beside me, his maw red with blood, and I couldn’t help but notice the way Darrin eyed him uncomfortably.
Shaking himself, Regis sent a fine spray of warm red drops into the air, splattering Alaric, Darrin, and myself with little specks of blood. Darrin flinched back, covering his face with an arm, while Alaric stared off into the distance, unamused and face dotted red.
‘I feel so much better,’ he thought, his tongue lolling from the side of his mouth. ‘Gonna take a nap now.’
Darrin and Alaric watched, awestruck, as Regis faded away, drifting back into my body.
“Your magic and…summons…” Darrin paused, as if searching for the right words. He opened his mouth, hesitated, and closed it again. In the end, he only shook his head helplessly.
“I’m more curious how you broke out of the force cage, myself,” Alaric admitted as he tried to force one of the triangular panels closed. “That should be impossible.”
“Do you really want to know?” I asked, meeting Alaric’s eye.
He looked down at the hard-packed dirt for a second before kicking away a loose stone. “Nope, I don’t suppose I do.”
Over his shoulder, Darrin said, “Well I certainly would like to know, and I hope one day you’ll trust me enough to let me in on your secret, Grey.”
‘Which ones?’ Regis snorted in amusement.
When I didn’t immediately reply, Darrin’s face twitched with a tentative smile, and he turned away, leading our party out of the Relictombs.
Comments
he has no mana core so he has no mana to use this kind of trinket
damn, that was baddas. Agree with Carson though.
carson
Imagine watching a man murder 20 odd people in front of you, have him call it 'mercy' and know he was telling the truth, because he could've made them all suffer more.
Miguel
Yessir!
kyle knight
i really wonder how the hell they are gunna make this scene good in the manwha chase sheeeesh thats gunna be a rough one
FeyOne
Everything about that was not only awesome, but so cathartic. After the weeks of him holding himself back and playing nice with horrible people, everything about this chapter was amazing!
Hell yes
Love the series, keep up the amazing work!
hsa bocaj
Usually every week I think.
Does anyone know when the following chapter will be available if you are of tier "Head" ? Thank you!
Thank you! you're the first and only patreon i subscribe to, and I can't afford more than 5 dollars per month rn but I love these chapters. It's always a joy to read through these.
Manfatten
Dumb of him to break that prison treasure. Surely it could be used against some of the asura he will have to fight someday.
Axle1337
Damn that was a satisfying chapter!
When was he chopping off fingers?
He promised more chapters at 4k not 3k as far as I know
ShadowPillow
Arthur does have a tendency to just murder people who are irritating him. Can't argue with that. He was chopping off fingers at the age of eight.
loved this chapter.
Love the lack of PG-ness. Such an epic chapter 👏🏻
Bliqky II
I don't think this scene could be drawn because of how gruesome it probably is.
Demian Buckle
Thank you for the Chapter.
mikymatrix
So... Bad... Ass...
Jennie (Eirine)
Expected the results on the forcecage, BRUTAL results on the mercenaries. More catharsis!! (I am glad he would leave Ada even if her family were being stupid)
Bloody hell, why did it have to be SO GOOD!? I was so absorbed I didn't even realize I had finished the chapter :( :(
Nico Carter
still waiting for that 3k double upload... but this chapter was excellent
that pbly gonna happen in the next few volumes
fr fr
Absolutely amazing
This Regis and Art dynamic feeling like a low key version of Guts and Puck in the early days of Berserk - though still comes across as original work! I love this story, keep it up @Turtle!
Will Blank
I want Arthur to meet caera and series before that
🙂👏👏
Jacob S
Great chapter! While I would’ve like to have seen a extra chapter for the 3000 subs, it’s still a fantastic achievement! Congrats Turtle! Here’s to a thousand more! [cheerfully raises cup over head] I suppose now Arthur, Alaric, and Darrin will continue on to Darrin’s residence to regroup and plan next moves. While I’d like to continue reading from Art’s perspective, this would be a good time to take a break and switch to Ellie’s or Virion’s pov, I’d to see how our friends in Dicathen are doing. Like how @Ezra mentioned, I’m hoping to read a chapter about Virion’s group. Personally I’d like to see them encounter the remaining Lances, and grow vastly in number and resources, which they will need in order to retake their home.
Uriel Varela
This chapter was awesome thank you!!
David Rafael Tamir
He doesnt have real reason to hunt them down, this will just cause commotion and spend too much time... its better to have them "want" to stay away themselves
David Rafael Tamir
actually I believe the grenbhels would like to stay as quiet as possible to not shame themselves in public eyes.
Jackson Schulein
Love this story so much
Did Art suddenly became stupid? The needless breaking of the restraints in the court room and the supposedly unbreakable cage artifact and this carnage will bring him so much attention it could actually end up in the Writra ears which will bring him a game over...
this chapter was FIRE keep it up turtle
If I summed this chapter up with one word it would be RAW
Alex Zuyav
Finally some Action!
I loved this chapter can’t wait for Arthur to make it back to his family
So happy to see art finally let loose after all this time. Really looking forward to how this is going to play out with Caera.
Carth
Agh!! I can’t wait for next Friday
chris allen
Ha..ha.. ha ha ha ha
NotMe
Oh man, i remember when everything was fun and happy and what a guresome twist it got now. It's kind of frightening but hell, thus is what makes the story so damn epic. I love it! Hope you are recovering well after your health accident and dont forget to enjoy the sun as much as possible :)
Dope chapter about time he finally fought back, though I don't think he should leave a witness or give a warning. They've had plenty of chances
Long Nguyen
I f*** love this chapter!!!!
Gotta be my fav fight scenes out of any book I’ve read phenomenal writing. Keep up the good work
David Rafael Tamir
LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Corie
Couldnt stop smiling! Loving all of it!
Mattiew
Very good use of language and pace. Well done! Good good good.
Mattiew
Very good use of language and pace. Well done!
Ezra
I waited for three weeks so that I could read more than one at a time since there’s usually a crazy cliffhanger, but I caught up so fast! Can’t wait until he’s at 4k patrons. Also, wouldn’t mind an Ellie or Virion chapter so we can see how the rebellion is progressing, and if they’ve find any of the remaining Lances. Or even a Tessia/Cecilia pov to see if she’s still Tessia or if Cecilia has taken over Tess’ body.
I WANT MOREEEEEE
Sheeeeeessshhhh
Soundd Wavess
I see grey and regis’ new pair of black air forces have finally arrived.
Soundd Wavess
Soon as they said “they drain your own mana to use...” i was like LMAOOOO THEYRE FUCKED
Amazing
DGmG
ops deleted on accident i was saying that im more hyped about the maps then the extra chapters
Arthur opened a big old can of whoopass 😂
Rocco Mangiaterra
Mr3000!!
Absolutely perfect
This was perfect! Thanks turtle!
Finally! It keeps getting better yess
Yesssssss finally he snapped
Just what I was waiting for! Perfect Friday
Envoy
This was great! I always enjoy reading about a nice massacre on a Friday afternoon.
Such a good chapter. Always looking forward to Friday's for my tbate fix!
i love how merciless he was just fucking killed everyone!!!
Dakara
Cat in the hat meme template comes to mind when I read this chapter.
Jon Chefitz
What an amazing chapter, I was so happy to see some action after such a long time. I have been waiting eagerly since last Friday for this chapter, and I have to say it was def worth the wait. What an amazing chapter as always Turtle, and congrats on 3000 subs. See everyone back here next week!
can't he just do a punch blast like he does with the rune of death/ and with regis in his hand. that's pretty AOE.
Bastian Cole
He had to follow pomp and circumstance. If Arthur just let loose before being proven innocent the entire continent would know about him.
T_Don
Outstanding! Should’ve just done this from the start, would’ve saved a lot of time haha
As thrilled as I was I was also lowkey a little terrified of him lmao. If I was Alaric or Darrin I don't think I would have been able to keep accompanying him. They best hug onto Grey's golden thigh.
What the mercenaries thought Grey was doing while looking around: Heh... He must be scheming to escape! What Grey was actually doing: Confirming there won't be any unwanted witnesses to the massacre he's about to commit 😂😂😂
Vinicius Figueiredo Rodrigues
I thinking here. one of the biggest impacts he had in the war, was his area spells. What will he do without any area aether spells? would that be the next ability he will develop?
Tophat Jones
Loved this chapter and congrats on reaching 3000 patrons! It feels like you were just at 2000 not too long ago. For those asking about an extra chapter, the current patron goal is set at 4000, but we'll be getting 2 extra chapters when that happens (and you know it will). If you're wondering where you can see this goal, just scroll to the top of Turtle's feed and switch to the 'My Membership' tab. You can see things like what level patron you are and the current (and previous) patron goal.
Wow man good for you! Its nice to see people taking "the step" To their dreams, keep it up! Just to know, What is the Story about?
Just what I needed my weekly dosis of badassness just after a final WOHOOOO!!!
apparently he said that was his mercy
Anrike
I think he didn't mean to literally say break out of those chains😂😂.
Johnny boy
Yo another chapter to celebrate 3000 subs would be hypeeeee!
Isaiah
Wow just amazing
Now iam curious where we go with the next one
The worst part about Fridays is waiting for next Friday.
Sam Miller
I hope we get 1 more with the 3000 subs
Bastian Cole
This story is such good inspiration. Tbate inspired me to finally write what i've been building up over years of daydreams. Once i can finish about 10 chapters and commission an artist for the Tapas banners/thumbnail i can live my dream. Hard part is just finding that perfect start that i know will capture readers... then it should flow. Isn't that right turtle.
ahhh im so happy arthur didnt show mercy to them omf such a good novel
BloodStorm
Finally I can sleep knowing he finally got to let loose somewhat 😀. Definitely satisfying and worth the wait.
Such a great chapter
That was incredibly satisfying.
Konomi
Damnnnnn Grey, yess, this is what we’ve been waiting for. About time
Spartan Assault
Savage
I smiled the whole time reading this, Friday's are always the best day of the week!
ariel lima
Nice chapter, wish I had one of these everyday
KanThePan
This chapter really shows the cold hearted killer that Grey is . Love it!
Preston Bates
I love chapters where he lets loose like this. Great chapter as always. :)
It’s nice to see Regis having fun. Great chapter :)
That was so satisfying
Congrats on 3000!
Finally arthur let’s loose a little haha. Great chapter :)
I was waiting for this the blood shed
nah the goal is set to 4000
Will we get extra chapters because he’s at 3000 patrons now?
Joebuba
Sheeeesh
Jeremy Malsa
Super !
First
nice
Luis Apolinario
First
Johnny boy
Lessgoo!
