I'm the Only Totem in Another World - Chapter 99

Chapter 99: 7 Paladins （9）

“Ugh!”

Asha, hit by my secret technique, stumbles and falls.

But only for a moment. She opened her eyes wide and stood up again.

━ …!

Oh no, I didn’t imagine it wouldn’t work. Is it because she’s a Loa’s avatar that she doesn’t take much damage even after seeing the Loa’s energy and power?

“How dare you do this!”

A streak of blood runs down Asha’s mouth. So, it wasn’t like I didn’t inflict any damage.

“Are you really going to see this through to the end? Malak-nim!”

Black energy surrounds her body. Rake is busy dealing with the shield bearers who were protecting Asha.

The shield bearers were crab-humans, and while they weren’t avatar-level, they seemed to have received a lot of Tuga’s blessings.

The speed at which they block the Meteor Sword with their shields is unusual. It’s not at Rake’s level, but their reflexes are excellent.

Clang! Clang!

The shield, shaped like a crab’s body, was made of something that didn’t take much damage even after deflecting the Meteor Sword twice. I looked closely and saw it was coated with a black aura.

Asha… you’re really good at giving buffs. It might break if I keep hitting it a little more, but I don’t have the time for that.

“I’ll join the fight!”

Jackson joined, cutting down enemies with his dual swords.

His appearance, moving like flowing water while simultaneously attacking and defending with a longsword and a dagger, was, how should I put it… It made me think that he wasn’t advocating for the dual-wielding supremacy theory for nothing.

Technically, he was the best warrior I’ve ever seen. Did he get a hidden skill like ‘Dual Wielding’?

The Bella sisters and Hanna were also fighting hard in the middle. The two sisters deflected the enemies’ attacks with quick and light steps, and Hanna… well…

“Come on! Come here! I’ll fucking tear you to pieces!”

She was swinging her sword, covered in the enemies’ blood. She was a butcher obsessed with massacre mode.

Hanna… she’s a bit crazy when she fights. Should I say I don’t want to get close to her because she’s scary? Did she attack Rake’s Brown Rock Tribe with that kind of feeling?

I’m so glad she was captured alive and well. Yes.

“You bastards, where do you think you’re going! Light’s Snare!”

Gukbap is using his skill to tie up the guys running towards the fence to kill the residents.

“Get up there!”

“Kill the prey first!”

Some of them have already reached the fence. The ones who were cutting down the zombies’ necks and moving forward were blocked by the residents of Martba who had received the Strengthening Tattoo blessing.

“Stab! That bastard first!”

“Uwaaa! His legs are too fast!”

The residents, who were moving around in confusion, not yet fully adapted to their newfound strength, soon regained their composure and faced the enemies.

Each individual’s strength is lacking, but because they outnumber them, they’re holding their own quite well.

Good. At this rate, they’ll do fine without me worrying. Gukbap just needs to keep guarding the gate.

Dina… I don’t see Dina? I thought she was fighting hard until a while ago, where did she disappear to?

“Cough!”

At that moment, a sword pierced through Asha’s chest. The woman holding the sword was Dina, who suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

Ah. She used a skill that erases her presence for a while!

“Judgment’s Strike.”

With Dina’s quiet murmur, the sword flashed and emitted light. The light filled Asha’s body.

It’s a skill I’ve never heard of before. It must be a 6-7 level skill like Celestial Wings.

But Asha didn’t fall this time either.

“How dare a servant of the Goddess!”

She swung a hook-like hand to grab Dina’s wrist. As Dina stepped back slightly, the sword embedded in her heart was pulled out.

“I am Tuga-nim’s avatar! Did you think you could kill me like an ordinary human? You fool!”

Dina deflected the black energy shot from Asha’s hand with her sword and retreated towards Rake.

“It was my trump card, but it failed.”

Dina smiled bitterly and glanced at me and Rake.

━ No, it worked.

It may have been a failed assassination, but we’ve gained the upper hand.

“You arrogant bitches…”

Asha’s movements became noticeably sluggish. Even if it wasn’t a finishing blow, it must have been a critical hit.

Even though she didn’t die from having her heart pierced, she definitely took damage.

My Totem of Chaos and Dina’s surprise attack were meaningful.

“I’ll hold them off! Go!”

Jackson created a dust storm with his dual swords, obscuring the guards’ vision.

Rake and Dina simultaneously dashed towards Asha.

“As you know, I can’t use Celestial Light, my level 8 skill.”

Of course, I knew. Dina had said she wouldn’t be able to use it for a few days because she had overexerted herself using Celestial Light twice in a row to stop the Dark Cloud Demon.

━ It doesn’t matter.

I just have to trust Rake, who has always brought me victory.

As for me, I just need to act as a cheering totem for Rake. I’ve already used up Totem of Chaos, and I used Zombie Control and Strengthening Tattoo to support the villagers, so there’s nothing else I can do.

I activated Malak’s Domain a while ago, but as always, it doesn’t seem to be very effective against strong opponents. The only thing that’s helpful is Healing Totem.

━ My guardian, I beseech you.

“Malak-nim is watching. We can’t lose.”

Rake smiled brilliantly, meeting my eyes. It was a smile only I could see.

Go, run! My 6-star unit, half-god, half-human, beautiful girl, Rake! Oppa believes in you!

Bang!

Two superhumans and one monster collided, and a fierce battle began.

Dina deflected a spell, and Rake slashed through Asha’s body with the Meteor Sword.

Asha didn’t just take the attacks passively. She was skilled in hand-to-hand combat as well as magic, fiercely resisting with her shell-covered hands and feet.

She fights pretty well. Did she learn Merman Karate or something?

But it was only a temporary struggle. She couldn’t gain an advantage against Rake, who had obtained the Meteor Sword and killed the Tunnel Demon, a being close to a high-ranking demon, and Princess Dina, who had hunted high-ranking demons with her special forces.

Asha collapsed, covered in blood from the Meteor Sword.

“Ah, Priestess Asha!”

“The avatar of Tuga-nim!”

The sea monsters rushed to protect Asha, but they couldn’t approach due to the other Paladins’ interference.

“M, Malak-nim…we were destined to be together…why…!”

Asha’s tearful cries of my name until the very last moment…were hard to watch.

Even though she was a cannibal and had killed Earthlings, hearing her desperate pleas made me feel conflicted.

Perhaps this is proof that I’m still a normal human at heart.

“I am Malak-nim’s…bride…”

“Bride?”

Crack!

Rake stomped on Asha’s face.

“A filthy monster like you, wanting to be Malak-nim’s bride? Know your place.”

“You, if it weren’t for you.”

Asha glared at Rake with murderous intent.

“What should we do, Malak-nim?”

Rake seemed filled with the desire to kill, but she left the final decision to me. She respected my opinion.

If it were Asha, she would have made a decision on her own. In the end, we were fated to be apart.

━ Put her out of her misery.

Rake nodded and stabbed Asha’s neck. With a gurgling sound, Asha’s demonic eyes slowly closed.

She had internal injuries and a stab wound to the heart, so it was her time to die.

[There are blessings you can learn!]

[There are blessings you can learn!]

The status window announced Asha’s death. It was a bittersweet victory.

Trying to remain composed, I checked the blessings. This time, there were two.

[Potential Explosion: Unleashes all the potential within the chosen target. This blessing can be bestowed upon a single follower and can only be used once.]

It’s a personal blessing. Unleashing potential…it seems like it means I should give it to the unit with the highest potential.

Let’s check the next one before I decide.

[Manifestation: Malak, the Loa of the Barbarians, the Wind and Rain God, temporarily manifests on earth by consuming a massive amount of mental energy.]

Holy shit!

What is this? Isn’t this a blessing I should learn towards the end?

Potential Explosion isn’t important. I need to get this one first. If I have this, I can wipe out the Shadow Demon, the Dark Cloud Demon, everything.

Click.

[20,000 points are required.]

…20,000 points? Ha. What is this? When am I supposed to collect all of that?

It’s nice that it gives me a final goal, but the hurdle is so high that it feels more troublesome.

Whatever, I’ll give it a shot. Gathering followers and collecting points will become easier.

Fortunately, I can buy the Potential Explosion blessing right now. Let’s purchase this first.

[Jin Malak: Why?]

Whoa, what the? Why Jin Malak all of a sudden?

Is he telling me not to buy Potential Explosion and save up?

[Jin Malak: I’m curious why you made that choice.]

Ah, I get it. He’s probably asking why I killed Asha. He’s saying I could have cooperated with other Loa, so why did I throw away that opportunity?

Even though he’s more human-friendly than the others, Jin Malak is still a divine being. He probably doesn’t understand humans well either.

What should I tell him? That I can’t condone cannibalism? That Asha would eventually try to control me? That there’s no future in defeating demons with them?

As I pondered what to say, I sent a simple message.

[Salvation and victory are different]

Jin Malak is with my soul anyway, so he’ll understand my intentions.

[Jin Malak: Perhaps]

[Jin Malak: You might be more needed on earth than I am.]

Along with those words, a new message appeared.

[You have acquired the blessing ‘Imperfect Manifestation’!]