The Goblin King's eyes widened with rage and desperation as it witnessed how Alister easily dodged his attacks.
The spikes collided with the cave walls, exploding on impact and sending shards of stone and streams of blood scattering through the air, the very ground beneath them trembling from the force of the blasts.
Alister's movements were a blur, With each step, the earth seemed to buckle beneath his feet, tiny cracks rippling outwards as if the stone itself recoiled from his power.
He closed the gap between himself and the Goblin King with terrifying speed, his enhanced strength and agility turning him into a living weapon, unleashing a series of deep cuts across the goblin king's legs.
The Goblin King swung its jagged sword in a wide arc, hoping to catch Alister. But Alister was already ahead of it. He ducked under the swing, the sword's blade slicing through the air where his head had been just a fraction of a second before. The king's overextended strike left it vulnerable, and Alister didn't waste a moment.
He struck multiple times, his claws carving deep into the Goblin King's flesh. The creature tried to retaliate, swinging its sword wildly, but Alister dodged each clumsy attack with ease.
"Is this all you've got?" Alister taunted, his voice filled with disdain. "You're supposed to be a king, right? Fight like one."
The Goblin King's eyes burned with fury. It raised the blood orb once more, channeling its dark energy, sending thick tendrils of blood shot out from the orb, twisting and hissing like serpents. They lashed out at Alister, seeking to catch and crush him. Alister leaped back and easily dodged all of them.
Once the attacks were over, he closed the distance between them again. He drove his claws into the Goblin King's side, twisting the claws as he withdrew them to inflict maximum damage. The king howled in agony, dropping to one knee as blood poured from its wounds.
"You're outmatched," Alister said coldly, his eyes gleaming with the look of a predator. "Give up now, and I might make your death quick."
The Goblin King snarled, refusing to give up. It clutched the blood orb tightly, its eyes flickering with fear and anger. Alister could see the creature's mind working, plotting its next move even as it bled away.
Wanting to fight back once more, the Goblin King thrust the blood orb toward Alister, intending to unleash one last attack.
But then out of nowhere, the goblin king heard a loud whistle, and in the next moment his hand that was holding the orb was sliced clean off.
In actuality, Alister swung his clawed hand in a wide vertical arc with a huge burst of speed and instantly cut the arm off.
The orb fell to the ground, rolling away as the Goblin King clutched its bleeding stump, its eyes wide with shock and pain. Alister didn't give it a chance to recover. He followed up by thrusting his hand into its chest, and coiled his claws around it's core.
The Goblin King tried to fight back, swinging its sword with its remaining hand, but Alister was relentless. He ducked under the blade, using his other clawed hand to cut off the goblin king's other arm.
"You're done," Alister said, his voice cold and condescending as he gazed at the goblin king intensely.
And with that he ripped out the core, and crushed it.
The Goblin King collapsed to the ground, its body convulsing before finally going still. The cavern fell silent, the echoes of the battle fading into the distance.
Alister stood over the fallen king, his breathing heavy but his body already starting to heal from the wounds he had sustained.
The system's voice rang in his head again.
[Ding!! Quest Complete!]
The system's voice was followed by a flood of notifications.
[Congratulations! You have completed the quest: Summoners can fight too!]
[Rewards will be granted shortly.]
[Initiating dungeon loot harvest sequence...]
Alister was intrigued by this new notification, but he didn't have time to ask about it. He was feeling dizzy and needed to go and get his teammates out and get them to a hospital,
…
He was back where he left his teammates.
Moving over to where Lila was kneeling beside Amelia.
"Lila," he called gently, touching her shoulder. "Lila, we need to move. The raid's over."
Lila looked up, her eyes red and swollen from crying. "Alister... Amelia... she's gone. I tried to heal her, but... it was too late."
Alister gazed at Amelia's lifeless body, but for some reason he didn't feel anything. She seemed like a nice person, but he never really knew her till just a few hours ago, so he wasn't really attached.
As someone who's mastered the art of letting go so many times, his heart had shields when it came to moments like these.
He knelt down, placing his fingers against her neck, but felt no pulse. Her skin was cold and pale, the spark of life extinguished.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, closing her eyes gently. "We have to go, Lila. We can't stay here."
Lila shook her head, tears streaming down her face. "I can't leave her... I can't..."
"We don't have a choice," Alister said softly, yet firmly. "We need to get out of here so we can take the others to a hospital so they don't meet the same fate. Amelia wouldn't want us to die here."
He could see the reluctance in Lila's eyes, the weight of her grief almost too much to bear. But there was no time. The others had to survive, to honor Amelia's sacrifice by living on.
"I'm sorry," Alister said again. He reached out, his hand and with a swift motion, he struck the side of Lila's neck, knocking her unconscious. It was the only way to ensure she wouldn't resist.
Carefully, he lifted Lila's limp body, cradling her against his chest. Then he moved to Erik and Jarek, checking their injuries. They were bloodied but alive, their breathing steady if shallow. He gathered them together, his enhanced strength from the Draconic Rage allowing him to carry all three without falling.
As he made his way through the cavern, the system's voice continued to echo in his mind, detailing the rewards and loot collected. But Alister's thoughts were elsewhere, focused on the promise he had made, the promise that had driven him this far.
'I promised I'd find a cure for you, Miyu,' he reminded himself. 'And I will. No matter what.'