CHAPTER 131: CH 131: CLEARING THE BOSS- PART 3

The battlefield was a storm of broken earth and swirling dust, the drake’s presence tearing through the silence that had once cloaked the sixth floor’s entrance.

Its massive wings flared, unsettling debris with each beat, while its slitted eyes stayed locked on Fenrir.

Fenrir stood calmly, analyzing every twitch, every breath the beast took.

A calm wind curled around him, drawn in by the Vortex of Wind now settled into his core. His heart thudded slowly—measured. Focused.

The drake moved first.

With a roar, it swept forward, claws flashing and energy humming along its spine. Fenrir activated Master of Illusion, and in an instant, the air distorted.

The creature blinked, and suddenly, five copies of Fenrir surrounded it.

The drake lashed out, slamming its tail through two illusions, then spinning and biting at a third. Each strike missed or passed through nothing.

Fenrir watched from the far side of the clearing, hidden among the copies.

"You’re quick, but you’re not smart enough to know who’s real."

But even as he said it, the drake stopped mid-swipe. Its nostrils flared.

With a sudden change in tactics, it charged forward—not toward any illusion, but toward the general direction of Fenrir himself.

"Tch."

Fenrir jumped back, barely avoiding the drake’s lunge.

"So it can adapt."

The drake mixed up its approach now, alternating between sweeping strikes and thunderous slams of its tail.

Even with illusions still flickering around, the beast wasn’t falling for them as easily.

Fenrir used the chaos to his advantage. While the drake focused on his illusory selves, he slammed his palms into the ground and whispered.

"Bind it."

Thick vines of stone burst upward from beneath the drake, grabbing at its legs and wings. Pillars of jagged rock grew around it, boxing it in, turning the terrain into a trap.

The drake roared and struggled. It thrashed violently, cracking some of the stone, but the ground shifted with Fenrir’s will.

Earth responded to him now more than ever—especially with his mana syncing back after reclaiming his lost power.

But even power had its cost.

Fenrir’s breaths grew heavier. Sweat dripped from his brow.

"Damn it... using this much mana this fast..."

His fingers trembled slightly. The backlash of his earlier fight was beginning to set in.

Still, the drake was trapped for now, unable to launch forward like before.

Fenrir gathered his strength and conjured a spear of solidified earth. With a grunt, he flung it straight at the drake’s chest—

Only for the beast to tear free at the last second, the spear grazing its side and embedding in a wall.

"You really don’t want to die, do you?"

Suddenly, Kael’s voice rang out.

"Hey! Over here!"

Fenrir’s eyes widened in disbelief.

"What the hell are you doing!?"

Kael stood on a crumbled pillar, waving his arms like an idiot.

"Trying to help!"

The drake snarled, momentarily distracted.

"You’re going to get yourself killed, you fool!" Fenrir shouted.

"Stay out of this!"

Kael ducked just in time as the drake spat a beam of energy at him, the shot carving a line of scorched stone across the landscape.

Fenrir gritted his teeth and lunged forward.

"If someone’s dying here, it’s not going to be because of your idiocy."

Using the distraction, Fenrir rushed underneath the drake, close enough to feel the raw heat radiating from its core. He summoned a blade—not one of stone or wind, but forged from inner flame.

A crimson fire sword surged into his hand, the hilt hissing against his palm. It pulsed with power, drawn from the drake’s elemental weakness.

With a shout, Fenrir leapt, slicing across the beast’s underbelly. Fire seared through scale and flesh, causing the drake to let out a cry of pain that shook the air.

It twisted violently, trying to escape, but Fenrir didn’t let up. He landed on its back, driving the sword down again—this time between the wings.

The drake thrashed, wings flapping wildly, nearly throwing him off. But Fenrir held on, using earth to create footholds on its back and stabilizing himself.

"You’re not the first monster I’ve killed...And you won’t be the last."

He growled into the wind.

He pulled the fire sword free, channeled his remaining mana into its core, and plunged it deep into the base of the drake’s neck.

A massive pulse of fire burst outward—spreading through the drake’s body like wildfire.

The beast let out one final, pitiful roar before collapsing forward, its body smoking and twitching, then finally still.

Silence fell over the battlefield.

Fenrir stood over the body, his chest heaving with exhaustion, the fire sword disintegrating in his hand.

Kael ran over from his hiding spot, eyes wide with awe.

"You... you actually did it."

Fenrir didn’t answer at first. He looked down at the smoking corpse, then up at the sealed door now slowly unlocking behind them.

Finally, he spoke, voice low and firm.

"One floor down."

Kael blinked.

"W-What?"

Fenrir turned and walked away from the corpse, not sparing it a second glance.

"Let’s see what the seventh has in store."

Kael stumbled after Fenrir, his footsteps desperate against the broken stone.

"Wait! You can’t just leave like this!"

Fenrir didn’t slow down. The path to the seventh floor had opened before him, a glowing gate pulsing with promise.

Kael grabbed his arm.

"If you leave now, the sixth floor is done for! The people here—there’ll be chaos, monsters, no order! You started something... you have to help finish it!"

Fenrir looked at Kael’s grip, then slowly turned his gaze toward the young elf.

"That’s not my problem."

Kael’s expression twisted in disbelief.

"How can you say that? You were the one who broke the seal, the one who challenged the system. Don’t you feel anything about leaving this place in ruins?"

Fenrir sighed and pulled his arm free.

"If this floor falls apart that easily, then it was never going to survive to begin with."

Kael’s breath caught in his throat, stunned silent.

"But, if you really care that much, then stop wasting your time chasing after people like me."

Fenrir added, pausing at the edge of the portal.

Kael blinked.

"What?"

"Get stronger. If you want to protect this floor, then earn the strength to do it yourself. Because no one else is going to save it for you."

Fenrir said.

With that, Fenrir stepped into the portal, the light consuming his figure.

Kael stood there, the wind of the aftermath blowing dust across the destroyed battlefield.

Behind him, the sixth floor was in shambles—collapsed buildings, injured guards, frightened citizens. The scent of scorched stone lingered from Fenrir’s final strike.

And just like that, the one who had brought the chaos... was gone.

The gate flickered once, then sealed shut behind Fenrir, cutting off any chance of following.

Kael lowered his hand and clenched it into a fist.

"Then I’ll get stronger...Even if I have to start from nothing."

He whispered, more to himself than anyone else.

Kael stood in the silence, his heart heavy and his resolve forming like steel. Around him, the people began to stir—confused, afraid, uncertain.

He looked at the devastation one last time before turning away from the portal.

"I’ll clean this up. I’ll make this floor strong enough to stand on its own."

He muttered.

Fenrir may have left chaos behind, but Kael now had a purpose—to rebuild, and to rise.