Ardyn was already on alert for its spine barrage.
The moment he saw it about to shoot the crimson spines, he quickly created an Implosion halfway between him and the beast.
The implosion erupted with precision, scattering the incoming spines in various directions before they could reach him.
"You aren't going anywhere!" he shouted as he saw the Dreadspine attempting to move again.
He intensified the Gravity Field around the beast, slowing its movements, while sprinting toward it with his katana in his right hand.
Infusing mana into his legs, he pushed himself to move even faster, feeling his control over the Gravity Field beginning to weaken with each step.
He easily avoided the spines fired at him by sliding across the ground, their speed significantly reduced by the suppressed gravity.
When he was just a few inches away from the Dreadspine, it suddenly broke free from the Gravity Field and lashed its whip-like tail, lined with sharp edges, directly at him.
The tail struck him diagonally, but instead of blood spilling across the blackened soil, his body dissolved into the air, vanishing like an illusion.
The Dreadspine paused, its red eyes flickering with confusion as it scanned its surroundings.
It shifted its stance, taking a defensive position, trying to sense where the real Ardyn was hiding.
Ardyn remained still, waiting for the perfect moment as he stood on the branch of a nearby tree, his hands tightly gripping his katana.
When he had slid on the ground to avoid the spine barrage, he had sent a Mirage Clone toward the Dreadspine, anticipating that it would break free from the Gravity Field.
At the same time, he had thrown the Ebon Chain around the branch above the Dreadspine and used it to swing himself into position, while the clone acted as a distraction.
"Kuh…"
Ardyn let out a strained groan as extreme pain radiated from his abdomen, spreading through his entire body.
His energy in all his cores was draining rapidly.
Hearing the sound, the Dreadspine's head shot upward, its glowing red eyes locking onto him with predatory focus.
"Damn it!" he cursed, spotting the incoming crimson spines and the Dreadspine lashing its tail to cut through the tree he was on.
Without hesitation, he sheathed his sword, threw the Ebon Chain toward a nearby tree branch, and swung himself to safety, narrowly avoiding the attack.
As he moved, he dropped a Black Sun toward the Dreadspine.
The dark orb descended, absorbing the surrounding light as it fell toward the beast below.
This time, sensing the incoming attack, the Dreadspine leapt away with its insane speed, escaping the blast.
Predicting its movement, Ardyn jumped from the branch, gripping the dark chain with both hands, swinging toward it.
He used the gravity field to lock the Dreadspine in place, with its side facing him.
Letting go of the chain in midair, he unsheathed his katana and gripped it tightly with both hands.
"Aaaah!"
With a fierce roar, he drove the blade deep into the beast's underbelly, infusing mana into his arms.
He left the blade embedded as he slid between its legs.
Purple liquid surged from its underbelly, staining the ground below.
Grr..rr..
The Dreadspine let out a guttural growl of pain, its massive frame trembling as it slowly collapsed.
"Kh.."
Ardyn bit down hard on his lip, refusing to let the blood spill from his mouth as he slowly sat down on the ground.
Huff.. Huff..
His breaths came heavy and uneven as he swallowed the metallic taste of blood, his right hand gripping his chest tightly.
His eyes remained locked on the Dreadspine, its massive form drenched in its own blood, sprawled lifelessly on the ground.
"So its underbelly is its weakness, just as i read."
Ardyn had researched the Dreadspine, studying everything he could find out about it in the library.
From his reading, he has learned that its lower underbelly was its primary weakness, which was why he had targeted it from the very beginning.
Let's finish this completely - he thought, creating a large implosion near its head by draining the last remnants of energy from his core, just in case it was still alive.
The implosion erupted, blasting the Dreadspine head apart, blood spraying from its now headless neck.
Ardyn quickly checked his body for injuries, his hands trembling slightly as they moved over his chest and arms.
Ufff...
Finding not a single scratch, he let out a long, relieved sigh.
His exhaustion finally caught up to him, and without another thought, he collapsed onto the ground, unconscious.
****
When Ardyn opened his eyes again, he saw a white ceiling instead of the dull, empty sky.
He was back in his training room.
Hm?
His brows furrowed as he noticed his head rested on something warm and soft, instead of the cold, hard ground.
When he looked up, he found two purple eyes like his, staring down at him with warmth.
"Are you awake?"
Fenella asked, a gentle smile spreading across her face, making his heart flutter.
He nodded and sat up before asking, "How long was I asleep?"
"Not long," she said, shaking her head.
"Just two hours."
Avoiding her gaze, he muttered, "I… defeated it… so… camp—"
"You can go," she said softly, her voice carrying a mix of resolve and sadness as he struggled to find the right words.
His eyes widened in shock.
"Really?"
He asked, suppressing the slight curl of his lips.
Fenella nodded with a gentle smile.
"Thanks, Mom!"
Ardyn hugged her tightly, and she returned the embrace just as gently.
She stroked the back of his head, her heart tightening at the thought of being apart from him.
Ardyn wanted to go to the training camp so he could become stronger—strong enough to protect everyone he cared about.
Fenella, on the other hand, didn't want to let him go.
She was terrified of losing him, just as she had lost her family before.
Still…
After seeing how much this meant to him, she decided to put her trust in him and let him go.