After spotting the artificially created griffin, Leo's left hand Palm began to glow with shifting colors—gold, silver, white, and blue. The light grew so intense that the griffin was forced to shut its eyes momentarily.
When the beast reopened them, the dense mist that had surrounded them had vanished. Standing before it, Leo now wielded a strange sword, ethereal and otherworldly, forged entirely from pure light, with no trace of metal in its form.
"Vaeloria, do you see it?" Leo called out, before realizing with a sigh that she couldn't possibly respond.
The memory came rushing back—before leaving the strange house, he had come across an unusually large, peculiar bag. Without giving it much thought, he had placed Vaeloria inside, ensuring she was secure. Slinging the bag over his shoulder, he had carried her out, determined to protect her at all costs.
"Oh, just my luck. Everything here is strange, weird, and downright odd," Leo mumbled to himself. His eyes scanned the scene ahead. "A griffin with five crystals... Four demon-tier beasts... and one at demi-demon slayer tier. Oh, gods, what else am I going to face after this?"
A mocking voice cut through his thoughts. "Aren't you a strong boy? From what I can sense, even the original griffin is weaker than you, isn't it?"
The deep, resonant voice of the beast echoed through the clearing. "You humans have so much confidence in yourselves," the griffin said, its piercing eyes fixed on Leo.
Leo blinked in surprise. "Oh my, it can talk!" he exclaimed, half to himself. Turning toward the bag slung over his shoulder, he added, "Vaeloria, I'm bringing you outside for this one!"
"Humans, how dare you mock me!" the griffin roared, its wings flaring wide as the air around it seemed to thrum with power. "You will regret this insolence!" Its talons dug deep into the ground, carving jagged trenches as a fierce wind spiraled outward, carrying the sharp tang of ozone and blood.
Leo smirked, unaffected by the griffin's display. "Mock you? Oh no, not at all. I'm just... surprised." He twirled his sword in a casual arc, the radiant blade leaving trails of light in the air. "For a creature so grand—oh, wait, you're a created one, aren't you? No, I mean... artificial. Maybe that's why your temper's so, hmm, underwhelming?" He caught the spinning sword effortlessly and leveled it at the beast. "But if you're so eager to fight, I suppose I'll indulge you. After all, I've never slain an artificial beast before. Let's not keep you waiting."
The griffin's eyes burned a fiery red, its rage palpable. With a deafening screech, it unleashed a tremor that shook the very earth, the air around them crackling with anticipation.
The griffin's eyes blazed red as it lunged forward, talons extended, ready to tear Leo apart. The air trembled with its power, and a deafening screech pierced the battlefield.
Leo stood firm, a faint smirk playing on his lips. "Is that all you've got?" he muttered, his holy sword, Balha, glowing in his grasp. The griffin beat its massive wings, launching itself high into the air. From its mouth, a searing blast of fire erupted, racing toward Leo like a living inferno. With a flick of his wrist, Leo expanded Balha into a massive shield, the light shimmering like a solid barrier. The flames parted around him harmlessly.
"Impressive theatrics," Leo said, stepping forward casually. "But you'll need more than that."
The griffin roared in frustration and unleashed its next assault. Lightning crackled from one of the crystals embedded in its chest, splitting the ground as it struck with terrifying precision. Leo sidestepped effortlessly, his speed turning him into a blur. Before the griffin could react, he reappeared behind it, slashing Balha through the air. A burst of light cut deep into the creature's wing, forcing it to crash to the ground.
The beast snarled, the crystals glowing as it summoned an icy gale. Razor-sharp shards of ice formed and shot toward Leo like arrows. "Cute," Leo remarked, raising Balha. He channeled his magic, and a wall of fire erupted around him, melting the ice into harmless steam. The griffin wasted no time. Using its talons, it carved into the earth, summoning jagged spikes of stone to erupt beneath Leo's feet. But Leo leapt high into the air, landing on one of the beast's wings before it could counter. "Your tricks are getting repetitive," he teased, stabbing Balha into the griffin's back. The griffin roared in pain, its fury reaching a fever pitch. Dark energy surged from the crystal embedded in its chest, and the beast's aura expanded, radiating pure terror. The ground cracked, the air grew heavy, and the mist thickened once more.
Leo chuckled softly, the oppressive force dissipating like smoke under his unwavering resolve. "An aura of fear? You really don't know who you're dealing with."
He raised Balha above his head, the sword growing in size until it gleamed like a beacon of pure light. The griffin launched itself forward in a final desperate attack, talons glowing with energy, but Leo was ready. With a speed that defied the eye, Leo sidestepped the assault and, with a single, decisive strike, swung Balha in a wide arc. The blade hummed with holy energy, slicing clean through the griffin's neck. The beast's head tumbled to the ground, its eyes dimming as its massive body crumpled. The crystals shattered, their power dissipating into the air.
Leo stood over the fallen griffin, his sword shrinking back to its normal size. He glanced at the severed head and smirked. "Well, that was mildly entertaining. Better luck in your next life."
Balha sword began dissolving into particles, merging seamlessly with the air as he walked away, unscathed and unimpressed.
Leo pondered as he walked with the steady gait of a normal human. " How did the church get their hands on a demi-demon slayer tier beast's crystal ? Such a creature was incredibly rare, nearly impossible to find unless the church had ventured into the Beast Continent. " Ah, What a waste," Leo muttered. His eyes lingered on the shattered crystal fragments. " Could there have been a way to salvage it? No.... what's done is done."
He paused, realization dawning on him like a jolt. "Oh no! I'm walking—how could I lose track of time?"
With that, urgency surged through him, and he started running as fast as he could, his movements a blur to the naked eye. After running for a while, he arrived at the place where the legendary tree's massive branch stretched out. In front of him, the air was thick with a black mist, dense and murky obscuring everything beyond.
Leo thought to himself, Wait, wasn't the mist white and thick before? How did it turn black and so froggy? He shook his head. Ah, it doesn't matter, as long as I can get out of this odd place.
A small smile tugged at his lips as a thought struck him. I wonder how Miasha will react after seeing this massive branch. Heh, probably with that same wide-eyed wonder she always had.
A flash of memory washed over him—a scene from their childhood. Miasha, small and full of curiosity, tugged on his arm, pointing excitedly at the tiniest of branches, calling it "the biggest tree ever." Leo chuckled softly to himself. She'd lose her mind if she saw this.
Snapping back to the present, his focus returned to the path ahead, the thick black mist swirling ominously before him.
"Shall we go in? This is going to take a long time to heal her mentally," Leo muttered to himself, glancing at the bag slung over his shoulder.
With a determined breath, he tightened his grip on the strap and darted forward, plunging into the mist without hesitation. His steps were swift and purposeful, cutting through the oppressive fog as he ran deeper into the unknown.
After stepping into the mist, Leo was overcome by that strange, unsettling sensation once again—just like the first time he had entered this place. The air felt heavy, pressing against him as though it were alive, and the world around him began to shift and distort.
No matter how fast he ran, the scenery twisted unnaturally, changing around him with every step. The massive branches warped into unfamiliar shapes, and the ground beneath his feet felt unsteady, almost like it was pulling him back.
To his frustration, his running speed slowed, as though some unseen force was draining his momentum. Gritting his teeth, Leo pushed harder, determined to fight whatever magic or trickery was trying to ensnare him. "Not this time," he muttered under his breath, Leo's eyes glowed with a fierce, golden light, a surge of unknown power replacing their usual hue. It was no longer just resolve; sheer force of will now drove him forward. an aura of determination that defied the mist's strange grip.
Despite the world warping around him and his speed slowing, Leo's steps became steadier, each one more defiant than the last. Though the most pressed against him, Leo advance with unyielding determination. His golden eyes burned with the promise that whatever lay ahead, he would overcome it.
At last the suffocating mist thinned, revealing the bustling streets of Ausha Empire's capital city a stark contrast to eerie silence they had left behind.
Leo glanced around, recognizing the very spot where his journey had begun. "Back where it all started," he murmured, his voice carrying a mix of relief and exhaustion. Adjusting the bag on his shoulder, he took a deep breath.
"Now, what do we have here?" Leo said with a sly smile, his gaze shifting from the imposing figures ahead to the bag slung over his shoulder. "Do I really have to fight my own Royal Knights?"
He chuckled softly, the humor in his voice laced with defiance as his hand brushed against the strap of the bag, as though sharing the moment with Vaeloria. "This is going to be interesting."