The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - LLD Chapter 63: The Forger of Greed (Part 1)

Ambushes are, by nature, supposed to be sudden.

But Adrian’s ambush went beyond sudden—it was downright absurd.

That didn’t mean he was average either.

Before Avarus could even grasp the situation, the mansion’s guards—combat-type homunculi—had already been annihilated. There was nothing ordinary about that.

At first, he thought it was the blond knight’s doing…

But the moment he saw Adrian shatter a shield spell with his claws, he changed his mind.

“They called him the mad dog of the House of Whitewolf…”

As always, rumors proved untrustworthy. Especially since Avarus had only read them from Viscount Benneron’s memories.

Adrian was no mad dog of the count’s house.

But even so, one question gnawed at him:

“How did he see through my identity?”

Transmog wasn’t a spell that could be easily detected. One had to be capable of perceiving someone’s unique Mana signature to even begin noticing something was off.

But mages capable of detecting unique Mana patterns were exceedingly rare on the continent.

And more importantly, Adrian had torn through multiple layers of shield spells with mere claws.

In other words, Adrian didn’t wield Mana—he wielded Aura. More precisely, he was closer to a martial artist who utilized Aura.

So how had a knight—not a mage—seen through his Transmog?

…It made no sense. Avarus couldn’t even begin to guess how Adrian had figured it out.

“I’ll need to capture him alive and study him.”

He was worth dissecting.

But Adrian wasn’t an easy opponent. Had they met on the field, Avarus might not have stood a chance.

However, this was different.

This was the mage’s dungeon—Avarus’s domain.

“You came crawling into my domain on your own? Kehehe…!”

Within this [Infinite Silence] barrier, Adrian was no better than a rat in a trap.

Inside this barrier, the flow of Mana came to a complete stop.

And without Aura or Mana, a human was nothing but a feeble creature.

Humans weren’t as strong as Ogres.
They didn’t have sharp claws like beasts, nor sturdy bones.

Biologically, a human’s only advantages were intelligence and stamina. Toss them into nature, and they were thoroughly weak.

But Avarus… was different.

He had long since abandoned his humanity.

Grrrrkkkk!

His body contorted grotesquely. Flesh bulged unnaturally as alchemically brewed drugs mingled with his blood, triggering genetic mutations.

Bulging, fleshy tendrils shot forth.

Adrian was caught in place—frozen.

He was scared.

Avarus’s mouth curled into a victorious grin—

“Die!!!”

The swollen tendrils rushed at Adrian.

Dozens of them twisted like whips, all targeting his throat.

And just then—

Adrian bent his knees and evaded the incoming strike?

“…What?”

Avarus’s eyes widened.

He dodged that? That’s impossible…

That kind of speed and reflex? No human could possess such things.

Was it just luck?

But if it were…

Sshk—! Sshk-shhk—!

Adrian continued dodging every tendril that came his way.

Each time the mutated flesh reached for him, Adrian’s movements blurred beyond sight—slipping through impossibly narrow gaps.

His reaction time, his reflexes—none of it could be called human.

“W-What the…?”

Avarus couldn’t comprehend it.

Adrian was closing the distance—his claws slicing through the air.

Avarus hastily clumped his mutated flesh together to block—

Crack!

…And it tore like paper.

“Wh-What is this…?!”

Avarus’s eyes held something beyond pain—sheer disbelief.

And it was no wonder.

That wasn’t ordinary flesh. It had been reinforced with alchemical compounds to the point of becoming metallic—stronger than steel.

And yet, Adrian had shredded it with mere claws?

With what amounted to human fingernails?

Avarus’s head spun with confusion.

And Adrian’s attack wasn’t even over yet.

At this rate, he was going to die.

“RAAAAAAAAGH!!!”

Avarus screamed—

Chshshsh!

The torn flesh began to multiply—splitting into dozens of new tendrils that all exploded outward at once.

BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!

Tendrils filled every inch of space.

There was no room left to dodge.

And yet—

Adrian was still dodging. He was reacting to every single attack filling the chamber. Even strikes coming from behind him.

“H-How the hell…?!”

His reflexes weren’t just amazing—they were divine.

Still, he didn’t dodge everything.

Some attacks got through, carving wounds into Adrian’s body.

And as those wounds accumulated, Avarus was certain Adrian would soon fall.

That was the limitation of the human body—the weakness of biology.

But then…

“He’s regenerating…?”

The wounds were healing in real time.

At a speed far beyond anything a human could do.

“W-What the hell…!!”

Even Avarus’s horror had surpassed disbelief.

“You—what are you?!”

“I told you, didn’t I? I’m the mad dog.”

Impossible. There’s no way.

That’s not a mad dog!

Within this domain, Mana didn’t move at all.

No spells. No Aura. Nothing could be used.

Only raw, biological physical ability remained.

Which meant everything Adrian was doing—all of it—was pure, unaided physical performance.

A product of biology alone.

And yet… how?

Could that even be called human?

Avarus had also given up being human.

And still—he was different.

The biological level between them wasn’t close—it was vast.

Adrian was on another level.

A being that had the shape of a man, but the essence of a predator—one that devoured monsters.

But how…?

“You don’t need to feel ashamed.”

Adrian spoke as if reading his thoughts.

“Even the Archmage couldn’t figure me out.”

Avarus’s face turned pale.

Predators and monsters.

When the two met, it was almost always the monster that got eaten.

To catch a predator, you couldn’t just be a monster.

In that case… there was no choice.

He had to release the Infinite Silence.

CRASH!

Suddenly, the sound of shattering glass.

At the same time, his instincts screamed—a flash of warning.

He leapt backward on reflex—

BOOOOOM!

The spot where he’d just been standing was struck by a bolt of black lightning.

An electric spell.

Had he been even a moment late, it would’ve hit him dead-on.

He wouldn’t have died, but it would’ve burned a ridiculous number of calories.

“So he really did undo Infinite Silence.”

He looked up to see lightning arcing from Avarus’s fingertips.

No doubt about it.

This complicated things.

Avarus casting spells meant countering him would become far more difficult.

It was confusing.

In his past life, Avarus hadn’t released the barrier.

Back then, the Archmage and an Elementalist—heroes of the allied army—had been present.

If he lifted the barrier?

He would’ve been beaten half to death by those two.

It made far more sense to suppress their Mana and only fight Adrian instead.

But now?

The only one standing beside Adrian… was Kai.

It seemed Avarus had assumed Kai would be a manageable opponent.

But that was a grave miscalculation.

Translatin_Otaku

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