'A Moon Wolf!'
Its glowing blue fur shone brilliantly and the yellow glint in its eyes held unfathomable power. The sword in its mouth seemed to be a greatsword that was much larger than the greatswords the knights used.
Moon Wolves were once divine beasts—like the wolf that Shirley can turn into. They were extinct on Diacree and only known about in stories and legends. They're as old as the dragon lords themselves.
"Extinct" didn't seem to be a universal term considering how one was alive right in front of him. Which means that only the ones in their world died out but they can still be found in other worlds.
Divine beasts can be classified as demigods considering their origins. They started out as tamed beasts of the Gods before they spread out into the worlds. Their ancestors were pure gods serving other gods. The gods give fractions of their own power to their pets during their relationship as companions so divine beasts are technically demigods.
Each of them have their own special racial skills. For example, Olivia's pet, Neguard can harness the full power of lightning using its ability to "Shout" which are known as roars of the divine.
As mentioned before with Shirley, Moon Wolves can harness the powers of gravity.
Arnold gritted his teeth realizing his current dilemma.
'It seems this damn dungeon is filled with demigods.'
"Support me from the back!" he shouted at Tanaera and Rafaela.
He didn't want to fight a divine beast, not at the level he was at now.
But did he have a choice at the moment?
The wolf growled. The pressure behind the greatsword increased.
Rafaela chanted and held out her hands towards Arnold. Arnold could feel the wolf's pressure become several times lighter.
The wolf suddenly jumped back feeling Arnold pushing its sword. It leapt so far that it ended up on the other side of the vast estate. Arnold and the other two walked forward slowly.
"What is that thing? Why does it have a sword in its mouth?" Tanaera asked.
"It's a divine beast. Be careful. It's no ordinary great wolf."
He doesn't know why it's carrying a sword in its mouth. Judging by its size and the ornaments on the hilt, it once belonged to a knight of some sort.
"It's not using its divine abilities. I wonder why," Rafaela wondered from the side.
"You know about divine beasts?" Arnold glanced at her while keeping his swords ready.
"I keep myself entertained and busy from my work by reading. I read all sorts of things. One book in particular mentioned divine beasts as being the pets of gods. That one is a Moon Wolf, a divine beast capable of space manipulation."
"That's right. We shouldn't let our guards down just because it's not using its abilities."
Whether it can or can't use its powers yet, he wouldn't know. Regardless, he needs to stay focused.
"Indeed."
'We must look like small fries. Perhaps I can use its ignorance to my advantage. I don't know why it's here or why it attacked on sight but I have no choice but to kill it.'
Divine beasts are said to be gentle creatures. They only attack if threatened or when they're protecting something, like their masters or their young. It could also be that the wolf went rabid.
· Pet Without Master
Arnold looked at the floating words above its head.
'Of all the times for the system to choose to work.'
Why couldn't it work when he wants to check someone's level? No, maybe it can't check levels, which is why it's only showing the wolf's name.
Does that mean that it should be unlocked somehow to be able to see levels?
"Here it comes." The three came to a stop when they saw the wolf lower its head.
Tanaera summoned three of her spirit animals. It was a wolf, snake and an owlbear.
Rafaela put her hands on Arnold's back and chanted.
"[Angel's Heart], [Body of Stone], [Hymns Sorrow], [Mountain], [Multiply Strength], [Speed of an Arrow]—"
She cast multiple buffs on Arnold's body. Arnold couldn't see his stats but he could feel his power increasing.
The Moon Wolf took a step forward and pounced!
Arnold jumped as well, supported by Tanaera's spirit animals and Rafaela's buffs.
The wolf suddenly jumped while in mid-air!
'!' Arnold looked overhead after it leapt using an invisible platform, 'It's aiming for the mages.'
What an intelligent beast. If it slays Rafaela then Arnold won't have buffs to help him fight and if it slays Tanaera then it won't have to stay alert for any spells flying its way.
Arnold got onto the owlbear while still in the air and jumped towards the wolf.
He held his sword to his side to strike diagonally.
The wolf suddenly vanished when he got near it!
No, something was up. Why did it feel like he was pushed by a force at the same time the wolf vanished?
Arnold instinctively turned his head.
The wolf was… right behind him.
The wolf swung the blade vertically. It cut deep into Arnold's back.
The burning sensation on his back sent waves of pain through his body.
'A divine blade!'
That was why it burned his skin when it struck him. It was a weapon meant for demons.
Arnold crashed towards the ground with a painful groan.
Rafaela and Tanaera hurriedly ran over.
"What just happened….? What did the two of you see?" Arnold lifted his upper body.
The pain was only brief before his monstrous regenerative abilities—along with Rafaela's magic—took over.
He looked over his shoulder and saw the wound healing. The burns were still there but the cut was slowly healing.
"You were suddenly right in front of its when I blinked! Is it using its powers? If it can move that fast then I won't be able to hit it with attack spells!"
Arnold shook his head.
"…It's just using its natural abilities. It has nothing to do with magic. It's likely just spatial manipulation. It's using its high agility and natural powers to fight. It's toying with us this early on." He stood up, "The bastard is pretty smart for a mutt. It actually baited me into attacking it."
'It probably knew what I would do.'
The wolf landed on the other side again. It threw the sword in the air and caught it again, this time with the blade on its right. It walked slowly towards the three.
Tanaera pointed at the wolf. Her spirit animals ran towards it.
All three spirit animals were slain in a single strike.
'That thing isn't even mature yet but it's still so strong.'
Imagine if it matured and had all its powers? Age is usually the deciding factor for how much strength a divine beast has.
"Tanaera. Can you do something for me?" Arnold called out to Tanaera.
"What is it?"
"Cast a double Lifedrain spell on it when you see an opening. I'm sure you can manage a lifedrain spell dual-wielded?"
"Of course I can!" she harrumphed proudly.
"Good. Rafaela, I need you to cover half of this area in your healing aura. Using spells while I'm fighting that thing won't be ideal since I can't lead it back to you two, while fighting it, in order for you to heal me."
"But using healing aura is much more ineffective in a fight. Your body will be healed by the aura, but it'll be much slower."
"It's fine. I can handle the pain."
Arnold took out his hologram card—not to check the wolf's level, but to check his HP.
"….9% health reduction from a single attack. I guess I have no choice."
He surrounded his body in a bit of aura. He knows he can't win without aura. For now it's better to gauge its strengths than completely overpowering it using its ignorance.
"I'm going in. Do as I told you two."
"Okay."
"Fine."
Tanaera and Rafaela replied respectively.
Arnold walked forward with his Aura Sword drawn.
He walked faster.
He jogged.
Then he ran!
The wolf ran as well.
It wasn't even a second later that both of their blades clashed.
'Using the aura sword while using too little aura is going to be difficult.'
Sparks flew when they swung their blades again.
'I'll just have to deal with it.'
Arnold surrounded his hand in [Flame Gauntlet]. He tried to grab the wolf by its snout since that's a weak spot for every type of canine. The wolf growled before it rammed into Arnold.
Arnold was pushed back by its ram but he didn't fall. He used the wolf's momentum to grab it by the neck and lift it up.
'This fucker is heavy.'
Well, it was a great wolf. Even the young weigh half a ton if they grew up in an environment filled with the right prey for them to eat.
The wolf crashed into the ground when Arnold threw it but it quickly got up using some bizarre force.
The shadow beneath its paws suddenly moved! It wrapped around the wolf, holding it down firmly.
That was Tanaera's spell.
Arnold sent more aura into his sword and charged.
His sword was suddenly reflected by the wolf's greatsword.
"You can still move, huh?" Arnold swung his sword again but it deflected his blow again.
He jumped back.
'Restraining it doesn't seem to work.' He lifted his hand and shook it twice. Tanaera's spell vanished.
The signal meant "change of plans".
Red particles suddenly surrounded the Moon Wolf. The wolf looked at the direction where the particles came from.
It was Tanaera's Life Drain spell, dual cast.
The effect should be severe if the spell is double casted. Of course, it'll take time for the spells to take effect.
The wolf turned towards Tanaera and growled.
"I'm your opponent." Arnold ran in front of it with his sword pointed at it.
The wolf suddenly turned into particles.
"Oh no you don't!" it was trying to use its powers.
Arnold used [Speed of Sound] and lodged his Aura Sword into its shoulder. The beast roared before it reappeared completely again.
He jumped to avoid its swing.
His Aura Sword was still in its shoulder. He took out his wind magic sword along with his shield.
Tanaera's spell surrounded the wolf's body again.
It charged at Arnold. Arnold hurriedly put up the shield.
An afterimage was left in the wolf's path as it charged at him with incredible speed.
It wasn't even a second later that Arnold felt a force hit the shield. The force was alleviated somewhat due to the shield's special ability but he still took some damage from the swing.
Arnold put the shield behind his back and swung the magic sword. The wolf swung its greatsword as well.
But before their blades connected, Arnold let go of his sword and ducked, avoiding the greatsword overhead. He caught the sword with his right hand and rolled to the side.
Once under the wolf, he grabbed his Aura Sword and sent his aura into the wound!
The wolf roared and thrashed its body violently. Arnold jumped above its head to avoid its charge.
The wolf looked up and disappeared again. Arnold felt the same force he felt from before.
He crashed into the ground.
"Ugh!"
It used the speed at which he was falling against him.
Arnold hurriedly rolled to the side. A crash resounded and the ground rumbled. The source was the spot he was at earlier.
"It threw the greatsword?"
Arnold looked up. It was holding its head into the sky with its jaws wide open.
A small purple ball manifested above its mouth. The clouds above suddenly rotated around the small ball of energy.
Arnold's eyes widened.
"Use your strongest barrier, Tanaera!"
"Eh? What's it doing?"
"That thing in its mouth is a black hole!"
The output of space was very weak since the palace and the walls seemed unaffected by the ball of energy but a human's body wasn't as sturdy as a stronghold.
Arnold equipped his demon lord armour after he put his aura sword and magic sword away. He ran towards the greatsword and picked it up.
He could feel the heat of the sword through his gauntlets. Had he picked it up barehanded then his skin would've been charred. Luckily, the demon armour's shit metal was strong enough to withstand the divine power surrounding the sword.
'Damn, it's heavy.' He held it with both hands but could still feel the weight.
He looked up while holding the greatsword.
"What kind of armour is that…?" Arnold suddenly heard Rafaela ask Tanaera a question.
"I don't know. Those boots look familiar, though. He had them on when he jumped into the sky while carrying me like baggage."
"Doesn't that armour seem ominous in some way?"
"Huh, you're right. I can sense some sort of dread coming from it…"
Arnold turned his focus back to the wolf.
'Why isn't it attacking yet?'
The ball of energy just kept growing. Arnold knew what that ball of energy was. One can say that it's the physical form of "matter" visible to the naked eye due to carefully concentrated space. Teleportation mages can do the exact same thing.
Something like that has the same properties as a black hole.
Arnold prepared himself to throw the greatsword the moment the wolf throws its attack. Velocity plus force can obliterate that ball of energy. Magic would be useless since everything will be sucked inside but an object thrown at a certain speed and holding a particular mass can cause the energy to explode.
It's similar to striking a matchstick against a matchbox at a certain speed. The flame which results from the strike is the explosion of the energy.
In order for it to work, he'll need to add his aura to the sword. Aura not only reinforces one's body and weapon but it adds mass as well.
Arnold held the greatsword like a javelin.
One might ask: What's the point of the armour, though?
The explosion can be comparable to many tons of TNT so he needs some form of protection for his body. Whether the armour will be enough remains to be seen.
The wolf lowered its head and pointed the ball of energy to the ground.
Arnold gripped the sword tighter, his eyes focused on the wolf's jaw movements.
Its jaws suddenly began closing.
Arnold threw the sword!
It whistled through the air as it left a trail of blue and gold behind it. A deafening whistling sound echoed.
The ball of energy was released a second later.
Its speed didn't lose out to the speed of the greatsword.
The sword's tip met the hall of energy after another second passed by.
A blinding light engulfed the sky.
Arnold lifted his legs one by one and stomped the ground as hard as he could. His feet sunk into the ground, planting him firmly in place.
Arnold put his arms together in front of his face.
His gauntlets suddenly grew bigger and bigger until it transformed into a single greatshield. The demon lord armour was like clay—he could manipulate its shape as much as he wants to. He never needed to do so up until now.
Arnold could feel the heat even through the shield.
A deafening, thundering sound assaulted his eardrums. He sank further into the ground and tried to hold himself up by planting one foot forward and the other back.
The force of the explosion just kept pushing him further into the ground.
He could hear screams.
He turned his head with difficulty to look at the source of those screams. He could see Tanaera gritting her teeth while holding up her ten-layer barrier spell.
Rafaela was shutting her eyes tightly while buffing Tanaera to increase the barrier's defence.
Arnold chuckled in his mind.
'…You're supposed to be buffing me, dammit…'
Of course, he knew she couldn't do that in this situation.
Arnold looked down. He could feel wriggling in his chest pocket.
Don't worry. I won't let you get hurt, Ceru, he thought to himself as he lifted his body, facing the force of the explosion's energy head on.
He took a step forward.
He took another step.
And another.
And another.
Arnold took a deep breath in. Ice particles formed around his mouth when he exhaled.
His eyes shone a vibrant blue, far lighter than his regular eye colour. A blue energy surrounded his body, replacing the dark red aura.
Deep, deep within the pits of his soul… A roar, so majestic that it could break one's eardrums if heard from nearby, resounded. It travelled up his soul, seeking a place—a hole—to unleash its full force.
Arnold closed his eyes before he muttered the words:
Leviathan Storm