"GROOOOOOOOOOH!!!"
The Crooked Growon's roar echoed through the forest as he lunged at Ethan without a backward thought. He felt that Ethan was a lower-level creature. A Broken Carrier shouldn't have to fight against a First Rank Monster, even if it were a Bronze Tier.
Unlike the Broken Monsters that fell under one power level, the First Rank Monsters were divided into five Tiers: Bronze, Iron, Silver, Gold, and the Special Tier.
If Ethan faced a Silver Tier Monster or higher, the best solution in his case would be to run away, but he could try his luck against the Bronze Tier if he acted properly.
The difference of one level was significant, but Ethan could still hurt the First Rank Monster, especially if it was a Bronze Tier. The only difference was that he had no room for a mistake.
Crackle. Crackle. Crack.
Splinters flew off to the side, flying in front of Ethan's face. He ducked at the last moment as the Crooked Growon's jaw swept behind him.
Picking up the sword from the dead mercenary, Ethan spun around, throwing the weapon straight at the monster.
Cling.
The blade simply bounced off the monster's hide. Ethan wasn't strong enough to wound the Crooked Growon with a common weapon.
'Shit, most likely with an artifact or my ability I can wound him, but...' he stammered. 'It's unlikely to be over in one blow. His thin, long neck, that's my ticket to victory.'
Like an unstoppable force, the monster stalked Ethan, scattering trees and ripping roots into splinters.
Abruptly, Ethan jerked left, climbing up a fallen tree to leap off the cliff for a moment finding himself on a higher point than the Crooked Growon.
A glint ran across the red dagger as his Construct came into motion.
[The Blood Seeker was bound to the Construct. The artifact's ability Crimson Cut has been unlocked.]
[When the bond is removed, it will be impossible to avoid one of the following outcomes: 1) Circle Damage, 2) Artifact Damage, 3) High Energy Consumption.]
Ethan knew that tying an artifact to his Construct was an important decision. Basically, he chose his weapon and would not be able to change it, at least not until he was ready to face the consequences.
Without the binding, he wouldn't be able to access Artifact's Projection, and right now, he needed everything in his arsenal.
He was in the middle of a battle on which his survival depended.
He had to win.
Whoooooosh.
The blood blade flew out of the dagger, aiming straight at the Crooked Growon's neck. Once his head hit the ground, it would all be over.
"Agh...?" Ethan's eyes went wide in disbelief.
The Crooked Growon folded his neck as his head sank into his body at shoulder level. The blade flew past.
The monster's long tail came down on Ethan like a whip, throwing him straight into the forest grove. The pain from the collision was vivid, but Ethan couldn't waste time on it when his life was on the line.
Suddenly, a wide-open jaw reflected in Ethan's eyes.
'Shit!'
Ethan bounced to the side, holding onto his left arm. A piece of a branch pierced his shoulder through.
Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.
The ground shook with the Crooked Growon's heavy footsteps, his long tongue out in anticipation of another snack.
Cutting through the wind, the dagger flew from Ethan's fingers in a swift throw.
A gush of blood spurted out as the dagger pierced the monster's right eye.
"RGHHHHHOOOOOR!!!"
A painful groan erupted from the monster as Ethan found himself beneath the Crooked Growon's head. A dark cross ran across his arm as he clenched his fist tightly.
"DIE!" Ethan exclaimed as he struck.
The blast of darkness tore through the Crooked Growon's long neck, separating the head and body in the blink of an eye. With a crunch, the elongated bone shattered into pieces as the already rotting flesh scattered in all directions.
With a rumble, the Crooked Growon collapsed onto the rocks, or rather, his decapitated body did. Sharp spikes pierced his swollen belly, cutting through the flesh.
Ethan collapsed to his knees, covered in the strong smell of blood, but with a happy smile.
"I did it!" Ethan clenched his fist, forgetting the pain.
He killed his donor, which meant that soon his Construct would absorb the energy of the Crooked Growon, and his Circle would be complete. Ethan didn't need to do anything. All the work was up to his Construct.
"Great. It turned out to be harder than I expected, but I did it, right?"
But...
Ethan didn't know what was waiting for him, yet.
"Agh? Why isn't anything happening?" Ethan muttered, staring at the Crooked Growon.
The monster was clearly dead, but neither his Construct nor his Circle was working. Something was wrong.
Crack.
Suddenly, the Crooked Growon's damaged belly burst open as its intestines spilled out along with the girl.
Lying in a pool of blood, her slow breathing became apparent.
Ethan stepped back, his face pale.
Now it was clear to him to whom the energy was pointing. From the very beginning, his target was this girl, not the Crooked Growon. Her Circle possessed the parts Ethan needed; she was his donor, and considering how long it took him to find her, within a radius of hundreds of kilometers and dozens of cities, it was unlikely that there was another match like her.
His Circle trembled, and the gears inside the Construct were ready to turn.
"No..." Ethan bit his lip. "If I want to become a True Carrier, I have to kill her, not the monster? Some girl? But... This wasn't what I expected!"
True, Roger warned him. The Construct didn't care who the Circle belonged to. The main thing was to find the perfect match.
It was human nature to hope for the best outcome, but it didn't always happen.
Step. Step. Step.
Ethan towered over the girl.
Her eyes were tightly closed. Perhaps she wouldn't feel anything, but he couldn't kill an innocent person. Ethan couldn't do it, or...
"Damn it!" Ethan crashed to his knees and clenched the dagger tightly with both hands.
His teeth gritted in anger at himself and the situation, but he had no other choice. There was no time to search for a new donor.
"I'm not going to spend the rest of my life as a Broken Carrier, at the bottom of the world because of a moment of weakness."
Ethan's eyes darkened.
"Goodbye, I won't apologize."
Without hesitation, Ethan struck the blade straight into the girl's heart, ending it all with one stab.
Ethan's heart was beating like crazy. His hands trembled as he looked at the blood flowing from the girl's mouth.
Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.
The Construct shook, setting Ethan's Broken Circle into motion. A spectral copy was about to pull the missing pieces out of the girl.
And then...
The girl opened her eyes in response, trying to devour Ethan's Circle.
Neither Roger nor the highest-ranking officers in the army could have predicted this outcome.
They were donors to each other.
Encountering something like this was not just rare, it was easier to catch a storm in a bottle.
This meant that the girl was also a Broken Carrier and that her Circle was missing parts from Ethan's Circle while he needed parts from her Circle. No rune or weave was repeated, otherwise, they would not have depended on each other.
"WHAT?!" Ethan tried to step back, but it was too late.
[Synchronization process started...]
[The target circle is not ready for absorption. The target circle is ready to exchange missing parts by creating copies!]
[The missing parts must be filled in, and copies must be created! The Patterns of both Circles must be filled in, both the superior and inferior ones!]
The mechanical voice of the Construct caused only chaos in Ethan, but he couldn't think about that now.
The seemingly dead girl clutched his wrist, not loosening her grip.
"You..." her hoarse voice escaped. "Are... mine... s..."
Then, her eyes went blank as a dark red aura covered her body, ejecting the dagger from her heart.
She faded away under the shocked gaze of Ethan.