Chapter 14: Aquatic Camouflage

Chapter 14: Chapter 14: Aquatic Camouflage

Absolute Absorption... So that means I don’t have to struggle so hard to eat them. I can absorb the targets by just touching them... This is actually great. I won’t have to taste their foul taste ANYMORE," Krono muttered in great joy.

​Without delay, he placed his right palm over the large seahorse’s corpse.

​"Absolute Absorption—Activate," he commanded.

​Buzz!

​Instantly, a low vibration echoed from his palm, also bringing an incredible suction force that almost felt like a miniature black hole.

​Gulp!

​Instantly, the large seahorse corpse was swallowed into his tiny stomach.

​As for how it settled inside without him getting bloated, he didn’t know. But if he had to guess, there had to be some incredible magic at play.

Ding!

[ You have absorbed an armoured Seahorse ]

[ You have Received: +5 STR (strength) , +5 VIT (Vitality, +10 Health ]

[ You have obtained a new active skill: Aquatic Camouflage (E).

Description: This skill allows the host to blend perfectly into its surroundings, becoming extremely difficult to detect.

Krono clenched his fists, feeling the increase in his physique. He could feel the heat flooding his veins.

The +5 Vitality and +10 Health washed away any lingering fatigue from the chase, making his body feel incredibly sturdy.

He could literally feel his muscle fibers growing denser, packed with newly acquired Strength.

​"Five points of Strength and Vitality all at once... This Absolute Absorption is completely broken."

​He glanced at his system timer. His [ Water Breathing ] was dangerously close to its five-minute limit, and his Miasma reserves were running low.

​Deciding not to push his luck, he mentally activated his newest skill: [ Aquatic Camouflage ].

​Instantly, his skin and clothing morphed, mimicking the dark, watery colors of the ocean around him.

Looking down at his own semi-transparent hands, Krono smiled.

Splash!

With a powerful kick of his legs, he swam silently toward the surface, completely invisible to the predators below.

While surface, he metally glanced at his updated status.

[ ULTIMATE DEVOURER SYSTEM (STATUS) ]

[ Name: Kronor De Volcan ]

[ Age: 7 (39) ]

[ Race: Human (Base) ]

[ Title: None ]

​[ HP (Health): 48 / 48 ]

​[ Miasma (Mana): 50/ 50 ]

​[ Satiation (Hunger): 65% (Good) ]

[ Strength (STR): 18.5 ]

[ Agility (AGI): 18 ]

[ Vitality (VIT): 20 ]

[ Intelligence (INT): 22 ]

[ Willpower (WIL): 18 ]

[ SKILLS ]

• Web Weaver (F), Water Breathing (F), Aquatic Camouflage (E).

​[ INNATE SKILLS ]

​• Adult Soul (Passive),

•Photographic Comprehension (Passive).

[ SYSTEM SKILLS ]

• Absolute Absorption (Active)

The improvement of his stats and skills made him smile. He was far from the fragile boy he used to be. He was stronger than a normal adult.

​Just as he was celebrating, something astonishing caught his eyes.

Everyone on the distant shore and swimming in the water had suddenly frozen. They were glancing at the sky, gasping in awe and fear.

​He also looked up and became stunned.

​At first, he thought it was a cloud blocking the sun, but upon closer look, he realized it was a massive dragon.

​His mouth fell open in shock.

​"Fuck... Is that a normal size for a dragon? If so, Aurora really wasn’t joking." he muttered, utterly dwarfed by the shadow of the beast. .

The crowd of spectators were seen panicking.

​"What in the heavens?!" a man shouted. "Isn’t that the Fire Dragon that recently caused all that carnage in Hebe County? What is it doing all the way out here?!"

​"I don’t know! But look up there—there are people chasing it! The Dragon Hunters are here. They’re going to slay it!" someone replied, pointing at the sky.

​"But that thing is easily a Noble-rank Dragon! Will a hunting party even be able to defeat it?"

A confident bystander yelled back,

​"Hey don’t worry! I see Silver Piercer Aurora, Tempest Queen Wendy, and—oh god, is that Spear Master Sirius up there?! With those three taking the lead, what’s there to fear? Just watch!"

Aurora?

​Hearing that name, Krono froze.

​He stared up at the sky, his enhanced vision desperately trying to track the battle above.

Compared to the colossal, sun-blocking Fire Dragon, the three hunters looked like mere gnats.

​But the magical energy radiating from those "gnats" was suffocating.

Buzz!

​Suddenly, the sky turned a violent shade of green as Tempest Queen Wendy summoned a localized hurricane, trapping the roaring dragon in a cage of slicing winds.

"Roarrrrr!"

The beast opened its massive jaws, spewing a sea of crimson flames that instantly evaporated the clouds.

​Just as the flames peaked, a piercing streak of silver light tore across the sky, effortlessly slicing through the dragon’s fire.

It was a beautiful lethal strike.

Even from this distance, Krono could feel the sharpness of Aurora’s magic.

​Very soon, a golden spear in the size of a mountain manifested in the sky and then crashed down onto the dragon’s skull, which was a courtesy of Spear Master Sirius.

BOOOOOM!

​The impact sent a terrifying shockwave rippling through the atmosphere.

The ocean water beneath Krono parted savagely, creating massive waves that sent the nearby bystanders screaming toward the shore.

Krono was also submerged in the waves.

​Submerged beneath the chaotic water, Krono glazed up at the distorted flashing lights in the sky.

As he watched, his heart pounded in his chest. Not out of fear, but out of burning ambition.

​"So that’s what true power looks like...

I have a long way to go."

Afterward, he slowly returned to the shore.

Most of the fishermen and travelers were busy talking of the aftermath of the battle, but a single old fisherman noticed the little boy coming out of the water.

He immediately rushed toward the little one with eyes of disbelief at seeing something incredulous.

But his mind instantly clicked with something.

So just after arriving at his side, he asked:

"Hey little boy, are you one of those legendary hunters? I mean, how would you be able to survive in the water for so long? I saw you diving in there a few hours ago.

Hearing the inquiry, Krono slapped his forehead.

Just why is this old man so persistent? Doesn’t he have anything better to do?