The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - LLD Chapter 87: The King of the Underworld (1) (Part 2)

Its surface was as hard as stone yet elastic like an organic mass.
Strange runes and glyphs were etched across it.
Inside, it glowed with molten, red liquid—like magma.

When I activated Predatory Instincts [S]—

◆ Source of Wrath
: A condensed origin of boundless rage and energy.
It converts the primal force of existence into power.

The available information was as follows:
In short, Kraulgarr wasn’t exactly not dead.
From the moment that translucent message appeared, Kraulgarr had indeed died.

What remained was a mass about 70cm in diameter—the Source of Wrath.

‘So this is what the Archmage was talking about.’

Simply put, that thing was the very energy or force that had birthed Kraulgarr.

Kraulgarr’s power, the one begotten from Wrath.
That power originated from this very core.
At the moment, it was nothing more than a lump of raw energy.

However, under certain conditions, it could be used to revive Kraulgarr.

Normally, it would’ve had to return to the Abyss and gestate again over a long period of time.

But due to the use of [Wrath of the Frenzied Dragon – L], Kraulgarr’s body had collapsed in an instant, leaving this remnant behind in reality.

As Adrian stared at the Source of Wrath—

‘I think I can devour it.’

It didn’t seem like there’d be any problem.
For one, he already had clear information on it, and Predation [S+] allowed him to absorb the origin of the target’s abilities.

It wasn’t limited to genetic traits alone—
So what was there to hesitate for?

Might as well top off his calories too.
Without hesitation, Adrian stepped forward and took a bite—

Crunch!

A gritty, stone-like texture filled his mouth, along with a truly bizarre taste.
Even aside from the hard texture, the taste itself was utterly grotesque.

How could one describe this flavor…?

Like “dust from an ancient sediment layer, mixed with mold, rotting on your tongue.”

In simple terms, it had zero commercial value.
No—make that negative value.
It’s the kind of thing you’d have to pay someone to take off your hands.

“Blegh—!”

Once again, Adrian was reminded that nothing beat the monsters of the Snowy Mountains.

He forced himself to swallow the chunk, then bit off another piece.
It was quite large, so it looked like it would take a while to finish—

“……”

Thankfully(?), Isolde didn’t say a word.
Unlike Kai, her affection rating didn’t plummet into the abyss.

That was because Isolde viewed herself as someone who must embrace all the people of this continent.
As such, her default disposition toward anyone was always [Indifference].

Meaning—

“Ugh—! Bleeeegh—!”

No matter what kind of insanity Adrian displayed, she wouldn’t care.

He kept stuffing the Source of Wrath into his mouth, chunk by chunk.
And when he finally swallowed the last piece—

Ssssshhhhhhhhhh!

A sudden, chilling surge dyed Adrian’s mind a searing red.

His consciousness flickered in and out, his breathing grew rough, and his chest heaved violently.
His breath became deep and heavy, and his fingertips trembled uncontrollably.

And then—just as his mind was being overwhelmed by an unstoppable fury—

◆ Your Player’s Will [EX] resists the burning wrath of madness!!

At the same time, a flashing system message appeared before his eyes—

◆ You have devoured the True Entity: Source of Wrath!
◆ You have acquired a Transcendent Skill – [Berserk ?]!

It was clear: he had obtained an incredibly unusual Transcendent Skill.

* * *

Isolde had encountered many people across the entire continent.

Not just the citizens of the Holy Kingdom, but also the countless believers who visited from various other kingdoms.

So she could say this with certainty—

Crunch!

She had never met anyone like this before.

Just the fact that he considered eating something that grotesque was insane.
Even if it was just curiosity—fine.

Crunch!

But actually going through with it?

Well… considering Adrian dealt in the butchering and distribution of monster meat, maybe it wasn’t that strange.
And yet at the same time, she couldn’t help but wonder how on earth that was possible—

“Urgh…!”

The more she watched him, the more baffling he became—
But then she questioned whether she even needed to understand him.

Such tangled thoughts swirled through Isolde’s mind.
Eventually, Adrian finished force-feeding himself that grotesque mass of stone.

“Ugh…!”

And then—Adrian suddenly began clutching his head.
His breathing turned erratic, his skin flushed red, and his whole body began to shudder.
…Something was wrong.

It was foolish to think eating something like that would have no consequences.

Just as Isolde rushed toward him in alarm—

“Hnnng~…”

A strange hum echoed from somewhere nearby.

Turning her head toward the sound, Isolde saw a seductive red-haired woman.

Clad in a scandalously revealing outfit that flaunted her curves.
Holding a whip in one hand.

Isolde instantly recognized her.

“I didn’t expect the giant to win this round.”

This woman was none other than Lailaim, the matron of the Red Banquet in the red-light district.
Rumor had it she’d been observing the riot among the Visters from a distance.

“And yet, in the end, it’s always the dwarves who pocket the spoils of the giants’ battles, isn’t it?”

So this was her game all along.
Soon, members of the Red Banquet Vister began surrounding them.

A complete ambush.

To make things worse, Adrian hadn’t recovered yet.

Isolde would have to fight.
But… her body still wouldn’t respond.

When she looked up, Lailaim’s eyes were locked onto her face.

“…Wow, you’re stunning.”

And just like someone discovering a rare jewel, Lailaim’s gaze turned predatory.
She licked her lips with a slithering tongue.

“Boys~? Don’t kill that one—bring her in alive.”

At her command, a vile wave of lust rose among the Visters.

The revolting stares fixed on Isolde were like invisible insects crawling over her skin.
Disgusting and suffocating.

“Ehehe… That delicate face looks like it’ll fetch a high price.”
“Already imagining what’s about to happen to you?”
“After tonight, the world you knew will be gone.”

Their vulgar desires pierced the air like a stench and clung like sticky mucus.

This was Baoless, a no-law zone where even the barest shred of order had collapsed.
And these were the Visters of the red-light district.

Men who trafficked in sexual exploitation and inflicted domination and cruelty without hesitation.

If Baoless’ Visters were Evil, then the red-light Visters were Ugly.

Isolde bit her lower lip and gripped her gauntlets.
There were hundreds of them. This would be a brutal fight.

But just then—

Adrian had grabbed Lailaim by the nape?

BOOM!

And then, an explosion rang out.
The spot where Adrian had just been standing caved in violently.

“…!!”

Isolde’s eyes reacted a beat late—
Lailaim gasped two beats late—

“…Wha—what the hell?”
“What just happened?!”

The Visters from the Red Banquet responded three beats late.

None of them had caught Adrian’s movement.
Not a single one.

Only then did Isolde understand what had happened.

Adrian’s movement had exceeded the recognition speed of the senses.

It wasn’t merely beyond human limits—
It was something that had transcended those limits.

Just like Isolde’s Divine Ascension.

‘How…?’

And as if in answer to her unspoken question—

KRAAAAAAHHHH!!!

Adrian was now wreathed in a crimson-black aura of flame.

It was stripping away the very image of ‘human’ from him.

Translatin_Otaku

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