"AARRRHH!!" Kaelen roared, his voice echoing through the chaos, as he violently ripped off one of the monster elves, turning the Ebon stone in the process.
Yet, the creatures paid no attention to him or their own injuries. They remained fixated on the Ebon, diligently rotating the stone, showing no interest in either protecting themselves or eating Kaelen.
Kaelen frowned deeply, "What's wrong with these monsters?" he muttered under his breath, his voice laced with confusion. But the thought didn't linger long in his mind. His father's instructions were clear—kill those things—and Kaelen was never one to hesitate when following orders.
anwhile—
Sssshhhh!
Thud!
Aria's arrow flew with precision, piercing through the chest of a hooded figure. The figure dropped like a puppet. "They're weak... surprisingly weak," Aria remarked with a sly grin, quickly nocking another arrow onto her bowstring. Her sharp eyes darted between targets as she unleashed a flurry of arrows at the hooded figures.
She wanted to end this battle swiftly and join Aether, who was locked in combat with two hooded figures that exuded a far more nacing aura than the rest.
On the other side, Liora protecting Maelona.... Anyone foolish enough to approach Maelona was t with a ferocious end, their bodies shredded by Liora's monstrous strength.... She tore them like at!
Maelona, not wanting to feel useless... She began ticulously noting down the strange symbols carved into the Ebon stone.
Lyirrs, on the other hand.... Her sharp claws ripped through one hooded figure after another. Her strikes were quick, precise, and brutal. As she tore them apart, a slight frown crossed her face... These enemies were weaker than she had expected—far weaker than previous figures she fought in the air.
'Are they trying to intimidate us with sheer numbers rather than strength?' Lyirrs wondered.
anwhile,
Thud!
Ssshhh!
BOOMM!
Thud!
Aether delivered a powerful kick, sending one of the figures flying backwards. As the figure crashed into the ground, Aether leapt back, narrowly dodging an ice knife that had been hurled his way. His movents were a blend of agility and precision. He crouched low, spun swiftly, and attempted to sweep the legs of the second figure. But his opponent was equally agile, flipping back instantly and regaining balance.
"Not bad... Pretty boy~" one of the hooded figures sneered... Their eyes glinted with interest as they assessed Aether. "Not bad at all. You're quite the intriguing one, aren't you? To think that a re servant could fight us so boldly, without an ounce of fear... What are you hiding, hmm?"
Aether remained silent... His focus shifted entirely to the second figure. There was sothing unsettlingly familiar about this one, a deep sense of recognition that gnawed at the edges of his mind. It was as if he knew this person—knew them intimately, more than he could explain.
Out of nowhere, a hand shot toward his neck with blinding speed. Aether's pupils dilated, his instincts kicking in at the last second.
Step.
He moved back just in ti, catching the outstretched hand. His sharp gaze locked onto the second hooded figure, whose arm had stretched unnaturally, like elastic.
"Fu~Fu~ You should keep your focus on , darling," the figure purred, "Otherwise, I'll feel terribly lonely, you know~" With an almost theatrical flourish, she retracted her arm like a coiling spring.
A flick of her wrists brought forth two thin, tallic swords, their edges gleaming ominously. She assud an elegant stance, "Now, prepare yourself, dear, becaussseee..... I'm commmingggg for you~"
Before Aether could react, a blinding flash obscured his vision. In an instant, he felt the cold steel of a blade against his neck.
Tang!
The blade slashed through empty air.
The hooded figure froze, startled... Aether had vanished.
Step..
He reappeared behind her.
"You're fast..." the hooded figure acknowledged... Without warning, she disappeared, reappearing all around him in rapid bursts. Her twin swords moved like a blur, slashing at Aether's neck in a scissor-like motion.
Tang!
Step...
Tang!
Step....
Tang!
Step.....
Aether dodged each strike with precise movents, evading her relentless speed... or so he thought until,
Step....-
Chuckkk!
Aether's eyes widened in shock as the blade grazed his neck, narrowly avoiding a fatal blow. He had reacted just in ti, but even so, a small section of his neck was sliced open, and blood poured out in a crimson fountain, staining the ground beneath him.
The hooded figure let out a low chuckle, "Fu~Fu~ My, my, Aether darling... You're almost too fast for your own good." She tilted her head, "Sotis that speed of yours is quite the thrill, don't you think?~"
Her tone carried a dangerous playfulness as she raised her hand and snapped her fingers and...
Thud!
Aether suddenly collapsed to his knees, as though his body had grown weak, or... sothing was controlling. His eyes widened in disbelief, 'What the...' He glanced at the hooded figure, who was now leisurely staring at blood on the sword's edge.
"Fu~Fu~ The fun's only just begun, dear~" The hooded figure purred with seductive glee. She tapped the blades where his blood coated them, and in that instant—
Tang!
Sling...
A massive gash tore across Aether's chest... His eyes widened in shock and surprise.. He tried to move, to do anything, but his body refused to obey.
!~Ding~!
[Your blood has been paralyzed...]
!~Ding~!
[Poison Resistance activated!]
!~Ding~!
[Due to level difference, Poison Resistance cannot neutralize the effect instantly. Recovery ti: 4 minutes and 59 seconds!]
Aether's eyes widened in horror, 'She poisoned my blood?'.. He watched in dread as she tapped the sword again,
Tang!
Slinnggg...!
"Argh!" Aether let out a strangled cry as a searing pain shot through his stomach.
The worst part? She hadn't even physically attacked him.
'Log, what's happening?'
!~Ding~!
[The opponent is using a bloodline ability that paralyzes your blood and grants them control over it. Your blood now obeys their will.]
'What a cursed bloodline ability... Fuck!' His thoughts turned grim.
But then,
If she wanted to, she could have killed him already. So why hadn't she?
'Maybe she needs alive—' His thoughts were cut off abruptly by a harsh reality check. He wasn't all that important.
Not to them!!
!~Ding~!
[Thanks to your Poison Resistance skill, the person has been unable to kill you instantly. However, as soon as they captured your blood, they began to attack your insides slowly.]
'Damn it! If you know so much about her abilities, why don't you just tell who she is?... Much less you could have inford before everything!'
!~Ding~!
[It is not my responsibility to identify everyone. I provide only relevant and reasonable information without ignoring the law and contract... The rest is up to you.]
Aether blinked, letting out a frustrated sigh as he tried to think of another way to end this. Slowly, he channelled his powers into the ground, the faint crackle of sparks beginning to crawl toward the hooded figure when—
BAM!!
Out of nowhere, the hooded figure who had been torturing Aether suddenly had their twin swords blasted apart.
TANGGG!!
The tallic shards scattered as the figure froze in shock, "Oh My~ Looks like you've forgotten sothing... haven't you?" the first figure snarled.
The second figure flinched before stamring, "We're only here for the process—not to kill anyone unnecessarily!"
However, the first figure's lips curled into a smug smirk. "Oh dear~ Did you forget our orders, darling? We were explicitly told to kill anyone who interferes with the process."
Sensing the tension brewing between the two enemies, Aether seized the opportunity... Liora dashed forward, scooping him up effortlessly... The rest of the group quickly rallied, having finished off the remaining enemies.
Kaelen grinned, cracking his knuckles with a smirk. "Looks like there's just two left," he said, his tone laced with dark amusent.
The two hooded figures stopped arguing, their attention snapping to the group, now glaring daggers at them.
"Where is the Empress?" Lyirrs demanded, her voice sharp with barely restrained fury.
One of the hooded figures glanced at their fallen comrades and burst into laughter. "Hahaha... I can't believe these idiots!... Hahaha..."
Everyone frowned, except for Maelona. Her face turned grim, her sharp eyes observing the battlefield. Unlike the others, who had been engrossed in the fight, she had been carefully studying the situation.
"There's no blood on the enemies," she murmured, her voice barely audible.
Everyone flinched, their gazes snapping to the mutilated bodies littering the ground. It was true—not a single drop of blood stained their enemies.
The hooded figure grinned, their voice dripping with mockery. "At least one of you is conscious enough to notice," they said before snapping their fingers.
In an instant, the dead bodies convulsed violently, their tattered robes igniting and burning away to reveal sothing horrifying.... Embedded across their bodies were rainbow arcane crystals.
"B-But they were so weak..." Lyirrs stamred, her brow furrowed. She knew well that those possessing rainbow crystals should be far stronger. Yet these enemies had been shockingly easy to kill.
However, her thoughts were interrupted as the rainbow crystals began glowing, one after another, their brightness intensifying.
Aether's eyes widened in realization. "Everyone, RUN!" he shouted with every ounce of urgency he could muster.
Without hesitation, the group bolted as the two remaining hooded figures just used a picture door.... and,
BBBBBBOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!
A deafening explosion ripped through the Wood Elf village, the ground collapsing and caving in under the imnse force. The devastation was absolute. Elders, guards, even the monsters—none were spared.
Dust and debris filled the air, and silence followed the blast, eerie and suffocating.
As the dust began to settle, a deep crater ca into view, its edges jagged and raw. Nothing seed to have survived. But then—
Trrrrrrr...
A pile of rocks shifted and fell, revealing a curled-up brown dragon, its massive wings wrapped protectively around sothing. Slowly, the dragon moved, its wings unfurling to reveal Aether and the others, alive but battered.
Lyirrs reverted to her human form, her body riddled with wounds, yet her blazing eyes showed no signs of surrender.
"T-Thank you," Maelona said softly.
Lyirrs gave a faint smile, her voice weak yet resolute. "I-It's my duty to protect the Emperor, even at the cost of my life."
Aria, watching the scene, shook her head gently. It looks like her husband was fortunate enough to have soone loyal, handing Lyirrs a high-level healing potion she had kept for herself.
"B-But..." Lyirrs hesitated, only to be cut off by Aether, still lying in Liora's arms, his body unresponsive. "Take it!" he commanded, his voice hoarse but firm.
"Fuck!" Aether gritted his teeth, his body not moving an inch... No matter how powerful he beca, his enemies were truly weird—and their abilities were fucking insane, designed to break him down at every turn.
Kaelen sighed, his expression tense. "It seems they ran away after everything... We won?"
However, before anyone could truly relax, Liora mumbled, her ears twitching in sharp attention. "I don't think so..." Her gaze shifted to the right, and she suddenly spun around.
Trrrr!
A few chunks of debris fell to the ground. Everyone flinched, imdiately preparing for another fight—
TTRRRRRR!!
"ARRRRRRHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
From the debris erupted a massive, grotesque creature, its monstrous form causing the very rocks around it to shatter and scatter like brittle glass.
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The sight of the creature sent an icy shiver down everyone's spine. It wasn't just a monster—it was monsters.
Yes, the abomination was a horrifying amalgamation of what once were Monster elves. Heads, legs, and torsos had been grotesquely fused together, their forms mangled beyond recognition to create a single, towering beast. Its appearance was utterly repulsive, a chaotic nightmare of twisted limbs and misshapen flesh.
What made it even more terrifying, however, was the enormous rainbow crystal embedded in its forehead. The crystal glead ominously, and etched within its dazzling surface were four full stars... and a half star.
Kaelen's throat went dry as he stamred, "I-I've never seen a half-star before... Is that even possible?"
A creature with four and a half stars? It was unheard of. Monsters were either full-star or no-star—this was the first ti anyone had witnessed sothing so peculiar and nacing.
That ans... the Level of this Monster most likely to be around 80 with talent equal to the chosen ones.
Aether's lips twitched as he thought 'Master definitely left so insane surprise here,' he thought bitterly.
The terror, however, was far from over....
The Monsterous entity turned its enormous body, its grotesque limbs moving with an unsettling fluidity, and plunged its massive hands deep into the rubble.
Suddenly,
TARRRRRNNN!!
The entire empire quaked violently as the creature began to pull sothing free.... Dust and debris rained down in torrents as the monster heaved, and then—
The Ebon Stone erged, cradled in its gigantic hands.
"We need to stop that thing!" Aether shouted, his voice filled with shock and urgency.
However, a voice with a mocking tone appeared,
"Well, you need to deal with us first, Darling~"
Everyone turned, their eyes locking onto the two hooded figures who now lood above them, one of them holding a small cube in their hands..... Inside, the faint, unconscious bodies of Raven, Thalia, and their mother were visible—wounded.
Aether's eyes flared with pure rage. "I WILL FUCKING KILL YOU ALL!!" His body surged with fury, but he was only able to move a single finger, which was enough to cause a sudden cough of blood to escape the hooded figure.
The hooded figure who had control over his blood, 'What the hell is he?' she wondered inwardly, wiping the blood from her lips as she t his furious gaze.
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