Chapter 35 - The Unworthy and the Champion(X)
The monster returned from its rampage beyond the grove, basking in the warmth of the drops of blood splattered across its visage. A low, guttural chuckle escaped its throat as it approached the lake to recharge.
"...???"
But something was wrong.
A young girl sat calmly on a rock beside the water, her face etched with sereness as she playfully kicks her legs in the lake's shimmering surface. She seemed to be having a good time, a soothing sight— a picture of innocence. Yet, the aura she radiated was anything but. It was suffocating, freezing the hearts of anyone who dared look her way.
The monster paused, its instincts screaming. This was no ordinary prey!!
Confusion crept into the mind of the monster. Why was this little girl here? Why didn't she seem afraid?
Suddenly, the burgundy eyes of the young girl sparkled. "Took you long enough. I was starting to think you weren't coming back."
"You know, despite your invisibility, there are flaws that tear holes into your magic. For instance, the grove always welcomes your presence with an eerie atmosphere. It becomes unsettlingly silent, just like it is at this moment. Do me a favor, face me. I would hate to think I wasn't even looking at you correctly."
Xylia Rivera took to her feet, brushing her combat outfit. "Alright, let's get on with it. I am here to eliminate you, monster."
The monster distanced itself from Xylia Rivera. It was a predator by nature, and that came with monstrous predator instincts. And at this moment, its instinct was buzzing with caution. The little girl in front of it wasn't one to trifle.
This wasn't a hunt. This was something else. A bloody confrontation between two predators.
Xylia Rivera sighed, "Ahh, I thought as much. You only hunt weaklings after all. Doesn't that bore you? Alright, let me give you a little motivation."
"My dear friend Sereya Voss is in your lake as we speak, attempting to break the curse. I don't suppose you wish to see that. And I'm not going to let you get past me, you see. So, that leaves the both of us with only one option."
After her speech, Xylia Rivera stretched her bones, warming up for the eventual battle.
She thought to herself as she stared at the silence, 'That should have done the trick. I might have provoked it a little too much, but it doesn't affect the grand plan. Well, it's all up to me now. Sereya only has a few minutes. She can't hold her breath for too long.'
Xylia's red eyes beamed. 'I will have to make this quick. Shouldn't be too hard. Now, what's taking the monster so long?'
A terrifying roar reverberated throughout the grove. The trees and lake shook as raging wind tore through the surrounding area.
Every eyes locked onto the current event. They could all feel it. The monster was utterly pissed!
'Now we begin,' smiled Xylia Rivera.
Almost instantly, the wind whistled. A sharp, invisible strike hurtled towards her. But Xylia didn't even flinch.
With a smile on her face, Xylia whispered, "⟪Flash Step⟫"
In an instant, her body turned into a blur and she vanished. The monster's eyes darted wildly, searching for its target.
"⟪Ether Cycling: Red⟫!"
Suddenly, when the monster had looked away, Xylia Rivera materialized beside it, her fist driving into its body. Her delicate hand pierced through the beast with no resistabce. Black blood spilled onto the ground, staining the vicinity and a perverse stench began to spread.
The monster moaned in pain, its crackling monstrosity of a voice filled with overflowing agony.
"Well, this certainly is anticlimactic. Just one hit? I expected better from a monster with such arrogance," said Xylia Rivera.
Despite saying all that, she knew the complexities of her actions.
The monster's true strength lies in invisibility. Take that away and it is as weak as a babe. While it remained invisible to Xylia, once it took the initiative in the fight, it became easy to track it. All Xylia had to do was accurately track where it was based on its last movement.
Xylia slowly withdrew her hand from the monster's guts. She brought it to her face, looking it dead in the eye. As the monster had taken substantial damage, its innate magic compensated the injury by taking off the burden of invisibility.
"Well, ain't you a sight for sore eyes. If I kill you now, you would just revive, wouldn't you?" Xylia Rivera put her hand to her lips as she entertained all manners of thoughts.
"Oooh, I have an idea!"
*Boom*
With a brutal smash, she sent the monster crashing to the ground, following up with a thundering kick that blasted it through the tees. It smashes past all the trees before stopping against one.
"I just have to keep you occupied. Do me another favor? Please don't die. Where's that fury mode I heard you monsters love to flaunt?"
The monster fell to the ground as more blood stained the ground. It weakly tried to stand, but its wobbly physique failed it. The damage, a straight blow through its chest, proved too fatal to ignore.
The lake churned like a burning sea. Familiar ethereal vibrations coursed through the atmosphere, this time more intense than ever. In an instant, a vivid, green glow appeared on the monster's body and its wounds began knitting together with unnatural speed.
Seeing all this, Xylia smiled, "Bingo."
She slipped into a well-practised stance and chanted in a low tone, "⟪Ether Cycling: Red⟫."
Her burgundy eyes flared suddenly. A massive amount of energy swirled her as she circulated ether in a dangerous fashion.
⟪Ether Cycling: Red⟫ was an innate wild magic far advanced than the titular ⟪Ether Cycling⟫. While the original ⟪Ether Cycling⟫ increased the destructive potential of ether to an almost catastrophic level, if used expertly, ⟪Ether Cycling: Red⟫ took it a step further. This innate wild magic grafted "piercing and sharpness" attributes to ether. It could cut through iron like it was butter.
So it was no surprise to Xylia Rivera when she easily damaged the monster.
*Roar!*
The monster resumed its attack. It lunged at Xylia Rivera fiercely, with even more force than the last time. However, it failed to recognize that after its invisibility had worn off, it had nothing to offer.
Xylia dodged the monster without any effort. She didn't even have to use ⟪Flash Step⟫, a famous innate wild magic revered by veterans in the Sentinels.
"Utterly simplistic. It seems the only thing you had going for you was your invisibility. Ahh, you are killing me here." Xyilia Rivera shook her head in disappointment.
She had walked into this battle, thinking she was going to have the time of her life. She had even made plotted crazy tactics to win in case things went sideways. Really, how did the other examinees fall to the same monster?
'Truly useless bunch. Can't even handle this. Ahh, I'm so disappointed.'
"Xylia, It's done!" Sereya's voice echoed behind her.
"Finally, this farce is over," Xylia smiled as she stared at the monster, its form already beginning to wane. "Let me help you with a perfect send off. ⟪Flash Step⟫!"
Xylia Rivera appeared silently behind the monster. She enchanted her hand with a minor circulation of ⟪Ether Cycling: Red⟫ and cut the head of the monster faster than it could even react.
Xylia Rivera sighed as the head fell to the ground. The monster's body turned into specks of light. Sereya Voss had managed to resolve the curse. Thus, the monster was no longer needed.
"Congratulations, survivors. You have passed."
A familiar voice reverberated around as white light blinded everyone.
Their hearts settled with peace.
The preliminary was finally over