CHAPTER 30: DEAD.

Far from where Azhriel and Arianne clashed with their foes, the valley had grown quiet—too quiet.

Only the low rumble of power crackling in the air broke the stillness.

Serica stood alone.

Her posture was unshaken, calm like still water—but her blades gleamed with fresh blood, and her narrowed eyes never left the beast before her. The ground beneath her boots had already cracked from earlier impacts.

Across from her, the hulking gorilla-like monster snarled, its breath ragged. Black, viscous blood oozed from deep gashes across its chest and neck—wounds Serica had already dealt.

But it wasn’t dying.

It was evolving.

The demonic crystal embedded in its chest pulsed violently, cracked from overload and now leaking torrents of dark energy. The creature’s veins glowed a sickly black as its body writhed and twisted, trying to contain what wasn’t meant to be inside it.

Its eyes, bloodshot and burning with madness, locked onto Serica. The last shreds of rationality were long gone.

Around them, the lush grass of the valley withered into black husks. Trees in the distance began to rot, their trunks splitting as the corruption spread. The once-pristine air was now heavy, suffocating with malice.

This was also another reason why Azhriel had warned her to draw the monster away. The demonic energy not only empowered the creature but corroded the land around it.

If they had fought near the heart of the valley, the sacred flowers would’ve been lost—tainted beyond salvation.

Serica took one step forward, blades humming faintly as they shimmered with pale light.

The corrupted beast roared, madness in its cry, and charged.

Serica’s eyes sharpened, a glint of irritation and killing intent flickering in them. Her daggers flashed through the air in a flurry of silver, unleashing a volley of precise slashes toward the charging beast.

Slash! Slice!

Yet the monster didn’t falter.

It let out a guttural roar and barreled forward, ignoring the wounds that opened across its body. Flesh tore and blood sprayed, but it pushed on, each step shaking the earth beneath its feet.

"Tch." Serica clicked her tongue, twisting her body as the beast’s massive arm came crashing down where she stood just a breath ago. The blow shattered the ground, sending dirt and rock flying.

The beast spun with unnatural speed, its spiked tail whistling through the air. Serica’s eyes flicked to the incoming strike.

She raised both daggers in a cross-block, catching the tail mid-swing as she was flung back. Her feet skidded across the broken earth before she flipped mid-air and landed gracefully, her expression calm.

But the moment her boots touched the ground, the monster let out a screech.

Its body bulged grotesquely as tendrils of demonic energy exploded out of its back. Dozens of black tentacles writhed and whipped through the air like serpents, each one oozing with corrupt energy and moving with a mind of its own.

They surged toward Serica from all directions.

But she was faster.

Like a phantom she moved, her body weaving through the storm of attacks with a dancer’s grace and a killer’s precision. Her daggers glowed—now wreathed in crimson flame.

With every flick of her blades, tentacles were severed cleanly. The fire burned them into ash, leaving behind trails of glowing embers in the night air. Her steps were light, her breathing calm, not a shred of hesitation in her movements.

The tentacles screeched and recoiled.

But Serica didn’t stop.

She moved forward, each motion calculated, relentless.

Toward the heart of the beast.

Just as Serica’s flaming dagger was about to pierce the heart of the beast, the demonic energy around its chest surged violently. Like a living armor, it hardened into a thick, black shell right over the heart—dense and pulsing.

Crack—!

The force behind her strike was immense, and fine fractures ran across the dark shell, spiderwebbing beneath the pressure.

But before the dagger could push through, several tentacles whipped in from the side, wrapping around the monster’s body and yanking it back, retreating it out of her range.

"How annoying, hah." Serica exhaled sharply, flipping the dagger in her hand with a flick of her wrist. Her tone was calm, but irritation flickered in her eyes.

The monster staggered backward, panting heavily, dark ichor dripping from its wounds. Yet the crystal embedded in its chest pulsed brighter, pumping more demonic energy through its veins, forcing its body to stay upright.

Serica’s eyes flicked toward the distant side of the valley, where she sensed Arianne’s presence. Even amidst the chaos, the sharp ring of steel and flares of magic echoed faintly across the field.

A brief, near-imperceptible smile tugged at the corner of her lips.

’She’s handling it well... as expected. Let’s finish this.’

Turning her gaze back to her own opponent, the smile faded, replaced by a chilling stillness. Her stance lowered, both daggers gripped tightly in her hands. The air shimmered slightly around her—heat building, pressure compressing.

The monster, wild and twisted with demonic madness, took a cautious step back.

Even in its berserk state... it sensed it.

Death

.

The heat coalesced into her blades, now glowing molten red as flames wreathed around them like living serpents.

"Blaze Arts – First Form: Death Cross,". The words whispered in the air faintly.

She vanished. A blur of motion, faster than the monster could track.

In the very next breath, two intersecting slashes burned into the body of the monster, forming a perfect cross of searing flame.

A soundless pause followed—

Time itself seemed to still.

Then came the aftermath.

The monster’s body trembled before it collapsed with a heavy thud, flames erupting from the cross-shaped wound.

The fire spread like a hungry beast, consuming flesh, blood, and bone alike. Within moments, all that remained was blackened ash swirling in the corrupted wind.

Serica stood silently in place, the last embers fading from her dagger. She didn’t even glanced at the beasts, as she already moved towards Arianne.

******

Arianne watched calmly, her expression unfazed, as the monkey lunged at her with feral speed and wild strength.

With a single motion, she raised her sword and blocked the strike effortlessly.

The clash rang out, but her feet didn’t even shift from the ground.

"Hm... that’s weak," she muttered, more to herself than to the beast. Her voice was quiet and detached, not mocking—simply honest. She had expected more from the monster moving with a grandmaster rank.

The monkey snarled, eyes glowing with corrupted rage, but to her, it was nothing more than a desperate creature.

"I didn’t even need to use my element for a rabid like you," she said as she sidestepped the beast’s next swing with practiced ease.

With a fluid motion, her blade traced a clean arc—

A slash aimed directly at the monkey’s exposed right side.

The monkey let out a pained shriek as Arianne’s blade cut deep into its side, black blood spilling out. But it didn’t falter. Instead, its eyes burned brighter—more frenzied.

It lashed out with its claws, a wild horizontal swipe meant to tear through her.

But Arianne was already gone.

She moved like wind, swift and sharp. Her body ducked low, sliding beneath the blow as her cloak fluttered in the air above her. She twisted, her foot digging into the dirt, and with a pivot, she slashed upward from below.

The sword tore a gash up the beast’s torso.

The monkey stumbled back, rage overtaking instinct.

It slammed its fists into the ground, cracking stone, before charging again, this time faster—demonic energy surging violently around it, warping the air. The crystal in its chest pulsed erratically.

Arianne let out a quiet breath, tightening her grip on the sword.

"Crimson Blade Arts – First Form: Red Sever," she said calmly.

The monkey roared and raised both its fists, slamming them down with all its might. But before they could reach her, Arianne moved—her figure vanished in a red blur.

In the next moment, she was behind the beast, already holding the hilt of her sword as she slid it back into the sheath.

A soft red light flashed.

Slice.

The monster froze. A straight, clean cut ran across its whole body—from side to side. Its upper half slowly began to slide apart from the lower.

Even the black crystal in its chest had been cut in two.

Crack...

Shatter.

The crystal broke into tiny pieces, and the dark energy inside burst out before fading into nothing.

The monkey’s body fell with a heavy thud, lifeless.

Arianne stood still for a second, her sword lowered, her face calm.

She took one last glance at the fallen beast and whispered,

"...That’s done."

In the very next moment, Serica appeared behind her, moving so fast it felt like she had teleported. Arianne looked over her shoulder, her eyes briefly scanning Serica from head to toe.

No wounds. Not even a scratch.

She gave a small, satisfied nod.

"Did you kill it?" Arianne asked.

"I had to. Its crystal cracked and drove it berserk, so putting it down was the only option," Serica replied calmly.

"Alright," Arianne said, turning back toward the beast she had just defeated. She pointed at its chest. "Let’s gather the crystal from this one. It’s in half but presentable atleast."

However they stopped as in the next moment they both sensed it.

""Ice?""