Ruvian put Yerin straight back on her two feet.

“Thanks. You saved me back there.”

Then, he inhaled sharply, pushing the fleeting relief aside. “We can’t waste any more mana or energy fighting this creature all night. We won’t last if we drag it out.”

He shifted his stance, the currents around him tightening as his mind raced.

“From what I’ve been feeling… that lumbering mass isn’t as invincible as it seems.”

‘I think I remember this Voidspawn weakness...’

Ruvian pointed toward the beast’s vague outline. During the whole fight, he wasn't just admiring the others or just wasting his mana tracking the beast's aimless wrath in the dark. No, he was learning about the pattern and the information regarding this creature bit by bit.

“The tusks and legs cause most of the chaos, but the weak spot is just behind its shoulder, where the skin thins out to cover the heart. It’s protected by muscle, but the air currents around there are unstable. If we can strike precisely there, it’ll cripple its movement.”

Yerin gripped her sword tightly.

“I can do that. Create an opening for me… I’ll finish it.” Her voice dropped into a determined whisper.

Ruvian’s eyes locked onto hers—or where it should be. “Alright. Follow me and stay close. I’ll create the opening for you.”

Without hesitation, they moved together, circling the massive beast with calculated steps. Ruvian traced its pattern, the slow but heavy rhythm of its limbs and its blind spots.

'I still can't see anything, but I’m getting used to using the wind as a guiding sense, though I would prefer to have a Night Vision spell.’

But the strain was biting deep; his mana reservoir was depleting gradually. Still, he pushed forward, guiding Yerin toward the beast’s vulnerability.

The others continued their relentless distraction, pulling the monster’s furious attention with their strike. The creature thrashed but instinctively recoiled from the encirclement tightening around it.

“I’ll leave everything to you,” Ruvian said.

Reaching the blind spot beneath the beast’s massive frame, Ruvian’s body tensed. With a sharp exhale, he dodged the sweeping tusks, the wind carrying him and Yerin fluidly to safety. In one swift motion, he summoned a controlled gust, lifting Yerin high into the night sky, her flaming sword gleaming as she soared.

Simultaneously, another current of wind whistled toward the beast, tugging its gaze sharply in Ruvian’s direction. The beast growled, its attention snapped away from the airborne Yerin, locking onto the daring figure on the ground who dared to challenge it.

‘That's right. Eyes on me.’

The beast reared, its massive leg slamming down toward Ruvian with thunderous force. He rolled to the side just in time, a sudden gust of wind propelling him clear. The impact sent a shockwave through the earth. Dust and small stones exploded outward as the ground trembled from the heavy stomp.

Above, Yerin’s flaming blade flickered—a dim, wavering ember against the black sky—as she dropped swiftly, gravity pulling her down like a shooting star. The light seemed almost fragile, barely holding onto its glow in the vast darkness.

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Below, the others surged forward in unison, their weapons flashing and voices rising in fierce shouts. Their relentless assault pulled the beast’s fury, diverting its massive, thrashing limbs away from Yerin’s deadly descent.

The monster roared, a savage sound cutting through the chaos, its attention fractured between the encircling fighters.

The moment was ripe and every second counted.

Ruvian cast a gaze above the beast, and she was there…

Yerin sliced her flaming sword through the air like a comet. She struck the thin, stretched skin just behind the beast’s massive shoulder, where the flesh thinned to cover its heart—a vulnerable spot Ruvian had pointed out.

The blade bit deep, the heat searing through muscle and sinew ruthlessly.

Ruvian had no doubt. Yerin’s strength and magic were unmatched among them—her single strike carried enough force and power to pierce even the thick hide of this mammoth-like terror.

A guttural scream tore from the beast’s throat, a sound of rage and agony that shook the night. Its huge body convulsed, muscles spasming violently as it staggered, then collapsed in a thunderous crash that sent shockwaves through the earth.

Dust and debris exploded outward in every direction in the dark. (+100PP)

[You have purged a Lesser-rank, Morkul Howler from this world!]

[Your Spellcore has resonated!]

[You have gained +1 Mana Resonance!]

Ruvian’s eyes searched the dark where Yerin had vanished moments ago. She must have landed somewhere safe.

He swallowed hard, breath hitching.

“Still… it counts me in as well? I guess my contribution is pretty high for that to happen.” His voice was barely a whisper, swallowed by the oppressive darkness pressing in around them.

Mana flickered low inside him, nearly spent. The world was a blur of shadow. His vision darkened, and every breath felt heavy, as if the tenebrosity itself was closing in to smother him.

Then, a firm hand landed on his shoulder. Panting, his chest rising and falling fast, his eyes bright despite the exhaustion.

“We did it,” Arlok gasped.

Then, came a voice, walking from where the beast had fallen.

“Good work, everyone.” Yerin responded.

****

They gathered slowly, bodies aching and every movement heavy with exhaustion. The fight had left their spirits frayed and their muscles trembling.

Arlok knelt, hands glowing faintly with earth magic as he shaped a crude shelter from the rocks and dirt around them. Then, Yerin crouched, coaxing a small ember fire to life, its warm glow flickering weakly against the cold, endless dark.

Time slipped away unnoticed in the shadowed silence—minutes or hours, it was impossible to tell. The chill bit at their skin, but fatigue weighed heavier. They sank to the ground, gathering what strength remained, minds too drained for words.

Only the soft crackle of the fire filled the void until Horren broke the silence.

“What kind of beast was that? I wasn't contributing much since the Runes didn't tell me anything.”

Yerin’s eyes glimmered in the firelight, reflecting both weariness and quiet resolve.

“The Runes said it’s a Morkul Howler, a Lesser-Rank.”

She paused, voice dropping to a whisper. “I’d read about it before… but this was the first time I ever faced one.”

Ruvian slowly scanned their weary bodies. Bruises bloomed across arms and legs, cuts crusted with dried blood. Every one of them bore the mark of the brutal fight.

“I guess we’re lucky the thing we fought was a Lesser-Rank,” Shima said, voice low but edged with relief. “If it had been anything higher… we wouldn’t have stood a chance, especially in this darkness.”

Ruvian nodded, rubbing a sore shoulder.

‘Yeah, it's been suffocating to fight in the dark. Harder to coordinate and harder to react in time.’

Horren shifted uneasily in his seating posture.

“Do you think… we’ll get attacked again? Like before? We’ve been fighting too long, and we’ve exposed so much mana…”

Arlok exhaled slowly, placing a steady hand on Horren’s arm.

“I don’t know for sure. Maybe, but… as long as the other Voidspawns stayed far away during our fight with the Morkul, they won’t come.”

“Why is that?”

His gaze turned to Yerin when she asked why.

“Because, when I used earth magic to locate you guys, there was a limit to my range. I think the same goes for sound and light. The further away, the less they register. My magic detection was supposed to reach farther, but during this dark? It was severely limited.”

He shrugged, a faint hope in his tired eyes.

“So, as long as the beasts are far, they’re probably having trouble sensing us, too. Hopefully.”

Yerin stared at the sky above before leaning against the wall.

“I see, then, we all should rest. I’ll be taking the first guard. We have a lot to do tomorrow morning.”

“I’ll stay watch as well. I need to refine my Mana Essence.” Ruvian said then slowly adjusted his sitting stance. Later, the two of them stay awake while the others rest for the night.

PP= 3150

ME= 510

MR= 5