Chapter 161: Chapter 105: Me and Her, Her and You, We’re All One Family

"Mens. Di."

The phantom clone’s charm had no effect whatsoever on the Sutle Dog. Wei’en could only rely on constantly using Blink to desperately evade its attacks.

BANG, BANG...

Gritting his teeth, Wei’en dodged and pulled out his gun, using [Ballistic Control] to make every bullet strike the Sutle Dog.

[You have hit the Sutle Dog with your gun, leaving behind nothing but bullet dust on its scales. Evaluation: Too weak, just too weak. You can’t even pierce a single scale. Reward: Survival Points +1.]

[...]

’Damn it.’ Wei’en put away his gun and dodged another of the Sutle Dog’s attacks.

Sweat soaked his hair and trickled down, stinging his eyes.

He watched his Spiritual Power rapidly depleting. ’No, this won’t work. If this keeps up, I’m definitely going to die here!’

"Yes, that’s it. You can only run. Run and run, and in the end, there won’t be a single scrap of you left."

"Damn it! If I die, there’ll be no one to take you to find Lilith!"

"Hmm," the Demon Clown giggled. "If you die, I can just have someone turn you into an Undead Creature. It’s all the same, hehehe..."

"Fuck! You son of a bitch!"

Wei’en couldn’t help but curse aloud. ’What kind of twisted idea is that?’

’But this isn’t going to work. That thing... I’ll try that thing!’

’The two finger bones from the King of Skeletons... an attack like that should be able to hurt the Sutle Dog, right?’

"Ble! Franco! Ah Wa!" (Necromancer’s Claw!)

As Wei’en chanted the Summoning Spell, a Rune Array large enough to envelop the Sutle Dog materialized. A vortex of gray mist rose from the Array’s center, instantly releasing a cold, terrifying aura.

"Oh?" The Demon Clown watched the center of the Array with great interest. "The King of Skeletons?"

The Sutle Dog froze, halting its attack. It stared uncertainly at the vortex. ’The aura of the dead... Tastes disgusting.’

Seeing his chance, Wei’en seized the rare opportunity for a breather. He pulled out two perfect-grade Enlightenment Potions and gulped them down.

’That damned clown, and that dog... sooner or later, I’ll...’

Under the Demon Clown’s amused gaze and the Sutle Dog’s wary stare, a colossal bone claw, like a mountain itself, emerged from the vortex.

It then slowly descended, two of its finger bones jabbing toward the Sutle Dog’s head...

The two finger bones poked the two stunned figures—no, the stunned clown and dog—left a gash on the Sutle Dog’s head, and then vanished...

Demon Clown: "?"

Sutle Dog: "??"

’That’s it?’

"ROAR!!"

The Sutle Dog felt the blood trickling down its head. Its eyes suddenly turned ferocious as it fixed Wei’en, who was not far off, with a death glare.

"Well, well, well, that Daoist Magic Art of yours is quite interesting," the Demon Clown said, clearly enjoying the chaos. He laughed. "But the little puppy is angry now. You’d better be careful."

Wei’en looked at the Sutle Dog as the white flames at its feet flared up. He cursed inwardly, ’You think I don’t know that?’

’Still, the fact that the Necromancer’s Claw can do damage is good enough.’

’That means the Sutle Dog’s power is only one level above captain-class. I can fight this!’

But—

WHOOSH!

In the blink of an eye, the Sutle Dog was in front of him, its front paws swiping frantically.

"Nico. Ruke." (Blink.)

Wei’en looked at the gash torn across his chest. His heart hammered in his ribs. ’That was too close... I was almost dead...’

’Damn it!’

Furious, he pulled out his gun again. ’Even if I die, I’m going to take a few of your teeth with me, you mutt.’

BANG, BANG BANG...

Under the effect of [Ballistic Control], bullet after bullet flew toward the wound on the Sutle Dog’s forehead left by the Necromancer’s Claw.

’I can’t get through the scales, but I refuse to believe you can block bullets in an open wound!’

[You have hit the Sutle Dog with your gun, triggering Death Trait - Disaster. Instakill Progress: 1/50. Evaluation: Interesting. A fine strategy. Special Reward: Survival Points +5, Gunnery +2.]

[...]

[You have hit the Sutle Dog with your gun, triggering Death Trait - Senescence. Instakill Progress: 9/50. Evaluation... Special Reward: Survival Points +5, Gunnery +2.]

[You have hit the Sutle Dog with your gun, triggering Death Trait - Pestilence. Instakill Progress: 10/50. Evaluation... Special Reward: Survival Points +5, Gunnery +2.]

"ROAR!!"

At first, the Sutle Dog paid it no mind. But as more and more bullets found their mark, a power far more sinister than the Abyss itself began to seep into its body.

The Pestilence trait made the flesh around its wound instantly begin to rot, emitting a foul stench.

Senescence made it feel weak, as if it had lost something vital from within its body.

And as for Disaster...

"Dammit, how many days has it been since you bathed? You stink!"

Assaulted by the foul stench from the wound, the irritated Demon Clown smashed his fist into the Sutle Dog’s eyelid.

THWACK!

With that dull thud, the Sutle Dog’s eye instantly exploded, sending flesh and scales flying. "ROAR! ROAR!"

But it wasn’t over. Wei’en reloaded his gun with frantic energy, his hands moving so fast they were a blur. He fired again and again, each bullet striking the Sutle Dog’s wound.

"Death pollution... the power of Olanier?"

The Demon Clown stared at the bullets, a thoughtful expression on his face. ’No wonder they’re causing this kind of damage to my little puppy...’

’But I can’t let you kill my little puppy just like that.’

’Things that are borrowed... must eventually be returned...’

POP.

"Hm?"

Wei’en stared at the spot where the Sutle Dog had vanished, stunned for a moment before roaring in fury, "Damn it, I was so close!"

[You have hit the Sutle Dog with your gun, triggering Death Trait - Pestilence. Instakill Progress: 45/50. Evaluation... Special Reward: Survival Points +5, Gunnery +2.]

’Damn it! Just five more hits! Five more and it would have triggered!’

’I was so close! If that Sutle Dog had died, it would have given me a huge... that bastard Cl—’

"Trigger what? What huge what?"

The Demon Clown pinched one of the bullets, carefully examining the faint black glow on its surface. ’So it really is Olanier’s power...’

’Tsk. This is getting more and more interesting.’

"It’s nothing. Is that everything?" Wei’en said, irritably putting away his gun. He took a deep breath. "May I go back now?"

"Of course,"

The Demon Clown clenched his fist around the bullet, tipping his hat with a grin. "Your performance was beyond my expectations. I had a wonderful time. But you don’t really think that was the little puppy’s full strength, do you?"

"If I hadn’t been holding it back, you probably would have died from the very first blow."

"I know,"

Wei’en was well aware of that. Otherwise, given the speed the Sutle Dog displayed later, he never would have survived its initial attack.

Besides, it never once used an Extraordinary Ability from start to finish. ’That must have been another one of the Demon Clown’s restrictions,’ he thought.

"Good. I look forward to our next meeting. I’ll be sure to prepare another grand gift for you then..."

’Again?’

’Please don’t...’

But before he could say a word, the surrounding scene fell away like a stage curtain, dissolving into nothingness.

After an unknown amount of time, Wei’en bolted upright, drenched in sweat, and scanned his attic bedroom.

’Bookshelf, bed, snacks, parchment, Tina, chair...’

’Huh? Tina?’

Wei’en looked at the white-haired girl sleeping soundly beside his bed, a clown doll clutched in her hand, and began to understand.

’So it’s not just Tina who can control the Demon Clown. The Clown can also borrow Tina’s body to do things.’

’But does this count as losing control or not?’

"Sigh... Damn it, what a mess this is..."

Just then, a blue notification floated across his system panel.

[You have made indirect contact with Forbidden Item 1-83, the Demon Clown. The trajectory of your fate has been altered. Current Encounter Progress: 66/100. Evaluation: Hmm, it was an illusion. All an illusion. Nothing to worry about... Special Reward: Survival Points +5, Origin +1, Resilience Level +1.]

’Encounter Progress 66?’

’I remember it was 65 before, right?’

’That thing, the Demon Clown... its damn nose was practically in my face, and it summoned a Sutle Dog that almost killed my ass.’

’And you’re telling me the progress only went up by 1 point?!’

After a long while, Wei’en finally calmed down. He looked at the white-haired girl beside him, sighed, then stood up and gently placed her on the bed.

’No matter what, none of this has anything to do with Tina...’

Besides, it wasn’t as if he hadn’t gained anything from last night.

Although he hadn’t managed to kill the Sutle Dog, the numerous notifications on his panel meant his strength had increased yet again.

"If I can’t avoid it, then treating it as a form of training isn’t a bad way to look at it!"

With this thought, Wei’en walked to the window, opened it, and took a deep breath to fully calm himself.

The red moon still hung high in the night sky, but under the protection of the streetlights below, he felt no signs of its polluting influence.

After the battle with the Sutle Dog, Wei’en now clearly understood his biggest problem: he lacked a powerful means of attack.

Just like before, if the Necromancer’s Claw hadn’t managed to open a wound on the Sutle Dog, he would have been completely helpless against it.

Therefore...