PATH OF THE STAR HUNTER

A pristine silver blade with a delicate green line along the edge extended from the exquisite serpent head with a feathered mane that served as a guard. The sword was beautiful, almost to the point of looking like a work of art rather than a weapon; however, the immense pressure emitted by the blade would not allow anyone to have such thoughts.

The sword had been forged by Katya by unknown means, using the colossal corpse of a beast at the top of the three-star class as its material. Even an idiot would know that the sword could not be ordinary.

Back then, Desmond wondered why he needed Katya tons of materials to make such a small weapon, but that doubt died when he first felt the sword’s power.

Katya didn’t give the sword a name, but Desmond found the perfect name once during training in the mountains. Since the sword was made from such a powerful and rare beast, one that even bore the title of storm bringer, Desmond named the sword .

Although a bit pressured by the circumstances, Desmond’s heart still rose with some expectation as he swung the blade. Automatically, the sword devoured the mana of the wind in a radius of a dozen meters; this was something he did even without Desmond’s conscious support.

The process of gathering mana was even faster than the blink of an eye. In the next instant, the feathered serpent on the sword’s handle spat out a vortex of chaotic wind that spread across the blade before shooting out.

The destroying wind sphere slammed into the sorceress’s arcane barrier, and as if trying to satisfy the sorceress’s hunch, the barrier immediately collapsed. Without having lost a single bit of her power, the orb of condensed wind blades slammed into the young sorceress.

The other two bandits watched the sorceress get hit by the wind sphere only to burst into a thousand pieces, feeling utter terror at the brutality and ease with which she dealt with her mate. Desmond used his best poker face to not get a stupid look on his face since he hadn’t expected the sword to be that strong. But Desmond’s surprise was followed by fatigue; unbeknownst to him, the sword had also passively devoured an immense amount of his mana, almost emptying his elemental wind seed.

.....

Although the result was satisfactory, Desmond reminded himself not to be complacent about the sword’s power; he knew that at his current strength, the sword could only be used as a last resort. He didn’t have the mana to use lightly, such a high-level sword.

Unfortunately, both bandits were unaware of Desmond’s difficulties, they believed that Desmond had been hiding his true strength from him all along, and in his panic, they resorted to suicidal tactics in a desperate attempt to drag their enemy down with them.

As they abandoned any defense, Desmond used the initial distance to shape the aquatic mana within him and bring the mythical beast to life within his mind. Although Desmond had to use again to shorten the time it took to build his ability, it was worth it.

The two bandits, covered in vigorous Aura flames, watched in despair as a giant water mirror stood between them and Desmond. The bandits didn’t have time to wonder what that thing was before they heard Desmond roar, sending mana reverberating throughout the cave.

“.”

The once-perfect, calm mirror of water filled with rapidly intensifying ripples. Then, like something out of a myth, the colossal serpent broke the water’s surface before pouncing on its enemies. The serpent’s jaws were large enough to encompass the entire cavern, leaving its prey with no escape route.

Enduring the sudden loss of almost all of his aquatic mana reserves, Desmond channeled his bloodlust through the snake, aiming at the aura user in front. The bandit felt as if an entire planet was crashing into him, being brutally crushed despite the glow emitted by his protective artifacts.

When it came to raw destructive power, this was the most devastating move in Desmond’s arsenal, far outstripping the consumption of other abilities. Even did not consume even half of the mana used at this time.

The bandit who crashed head-on into Desmond’s resisted for a second due to all the life-saving treasures above him, but a second was all he could buy before he was reduced to a bloody pulp.

Seeing his companion die, the last bandit alive felt his heart being eaten away by despair, causing him to attack madly. As powerful as Desmond’s move was, it was still used to crash into two Aura users in the early stages of the two-star class. It was normal for him to not be able to finish the job.

Lashing out with a storm of Aura-filled punches, the bandit exploded with savage, crazed power, fending off the gigantic snake using the most primal violence.

Desmond felt his ability lose potency, quickly being decimated by the other party’s suicidal efforts. However, Desmond felt that it was only natural; for him to be able to slaughter this many two-star class experts was already a demonstration of his ability. Wanting a perfect and beautiful victory was arrogant and naive.

Using one last punch in which he concentrated the rest of his Aura and a bit of his own vitality, the bandit managed to subdue the massive snake. Still, there was no joy or relief in his eyes. How could the bandit be relieved when Desmond was right before him?

Now that the bandit had spent every bit of Aura and had depleted every protective treasure, there was no longer any need for Desmond to make a big move.

“”

Receiving the shockwaves at close range, the bandit had nowhere to run or to defend himself, and he was forced to feel like all of his internal organs turned to jam. Due to the strong vitality that characterizes Aura users, the bandit did not die instantly, but surviving was the worst punishment.

As he lay dying, every organ within him destroyed, the bandit tried to scream in agony, but even that right was taken from him. Not wanting to prolong his opponent’s pain, Desmond decapitated him with a smooth sweep of his sword.

Seeing that he had dealt with all the threats present, Desmond felt the need to collapse to the ground, but he endured the weariness and pain. They were just a bunch of bandits, but Desmond was already in a pretty sorry state, his body riddled with wounds.

As if it were a matter of course, Desmond took out a spray bottle and sprayed the reddish liquid on the cuts and lacerations around his body. The flesh healed at a rate visible to the naked eye where the spray passed, leaving behind a rather uncomfortable burning sensation.

This time there was no need to use direct injections of any kind of potion since Desmond hadn’t been seriously injured, but that didn’t make him feel any better. The need to get stronger, to cross the threshold he was standing on, grew stronger than ever.

Desmond knew that he was not inferior to his enemies in talent or skill, that the only reason he was injured was due to the difference in raw power. Truth be told, if it weren’t for the elemental seeds within his heart, Desmond wouldn’t have the mana reserves to cast rogue ultimates, barely being able to deal with a bunch of fighters in the two-star class.

Desmond was also somewhat dissatisfied with the equipment he was carrying with him. Because he lost his armor on his last mission, and the bounty obtained was used to buy Zero, Desmond barely wore any gear on him.

Besides the sword, , Desmond carried only his own bow and a necklace that was meant to be worn only in emergencies. From his armor to his gauntlets and other accessories, they had all been lost on Desmond’s last mission. Desmond wanted to cry tears of blood every time he remembered the incident.

Even Desmond’s bow was becoming less and less useful as the level of the beast Desmond faced was getting higher and higher. Without even decent armor, Desmond’s defenses were at an all-time low, hence why he sustained so many injuries.

The notion of recruiting a powerful blacksmith grew stronger in Desmond’s mind, longing for the day when his pockets wouldn’t be ransacked every time he needed a new piece of gear. However, Desmond put those unnecessary thoughts aside for another day, deciding instead to concentrate on looting the bandits.

One can imagine how upset Desmond was to realize how miserable the bandits were. Desmond must have noticed earlier bandits didn’t wear valuable-looking armor or weapons; the only thing that was ever on them that was worth anything was the life-saving treasures they sacrificed trying to survive.

“Forget it; I didn’t come here to get rich hunting bandits anyway.”