Soaring 13: Erlkonig, the Demon King

Preface:

Art is the great stimulant of life.

—Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche

[Part ① · Die Once More]

The Blessed Holy Blood elixir rampaged through PTX7745's body—

—Fay Florasalin was sent flying by the powerful psychic tide. Billy Horn, who was closest, bore the brunt of it and couldn't coordinate [Echoism] for a soul-force attack.

A piercing howl came from the mouth of soldier PTX7745. He clawed at his neck in agony, tearing open his damp outer and inner garments. Bright red scratches streaked his chest, then quickly healed.

His skin flushed red, then white. The concentration of Spirit Calamity in the area also affected the elixir's fusion. If Judas couldn't make it through this, he might be taken by the Original Seed and transformed into a Blood Hawk monster. With enough primordial matter and all the right conditions, he might even become a Flash Butterfly.

Several evil eyes sprouted across his face, and six vivid red fleshy growths rose from his cheeks to his crown. The abnormalities lasted only a few seconds before being suppressed by his astonishing willpower. His bones cracked horribly, as if crushed by immense force. The Midas Touch vulture spirit flickered in and out of sight. The instant he successfully emerged from his cocoon, Judas finally came to his senses.

His body gradually returned to normal, and his expression turned dreadful. The bewilderment he had felt when PTX7745 first arrived in this strange world was gone. There was no gratitude, no curiosity—only irritability and madness.

He was quite satisfied with this body in its thirties—

—though its owner was an unremarkable infantryman in a foreign legion who had even lost a battle, he was strong enough. His brain and limbs had endured all kinds of sensory assaults, his mind was tough, and he wasn't afraid of