Chapter 305 Child Of Light [Part 1]
As the creature slowly got towards her, Raven could see a blue, almost purple glow emanating from one of the chambers that opened afar from her.
She stood with caution, her hands tightly clenching her sword and her brows lowering intensely.
Her eyes, in fact, seemed to glow.
And slowly, the creature revealed itself before her eyes, taking steady steps out of the chamber.
Her eyes widened as she saw it.
It wasn't that tall but was at the very least taller than her, probably around six feet nine inches.
Its body, however, looked like it was sculpted from translucent blue ice, shimmering in the dim light. Every facet glinted like a diamond under a celestial spotlight.
Majestic horns spiraled from its head, curving upward with a regal yet fearsome elegance, framing a face that exuded a godly power.
Its eyes, glowing with an ethereal light, were pools of frozen azure, piercing through the frigid air with a gaze that seemed to hold the wisdom of ancient eons and the menace of unknown but vicious dangers.
A massive trident, sharp and foreboding, was gripped tightly in its formidable hand, each prong glistening with a deadly sheen.
The weapon's shaft, seemingly carved from the darkest ice, extended with a menacing elegance.
Raven saw all of this, and didn't know when she breathed deeply in and out.
She quickly summoned her shield and lowered her stance, holding it to her front and her silvery sword to the side, with her eyes glinting with a faint white light in the depth of her crimson pools.
The creature took closer steps, slowly but heavily, and finally stopped barely nine meters away from Raven.
Raven took a deep breath once again, one that misted in the cold air. Her heartbeat was the only thing faster than the icy wind whistling through the decrepit hall.
Her gaze was fixed on the creature, unwavering, frighteningly focused and piercing into its form in every corner and side, calculative and judgmental.
She was actively working her head to find the best possible route of attack.
She stood and awaited the monster to approach first, which caused the air to be drawn into a heavy and suspenseful tension.
The silence between them then stretched taut, like a bowstring ready to snap.
For that moment, it felt like the world was holding its breath, waiting for the inevitable clash.
Then, with a sudden burst of movement, the creature lunged forward.
Its trident whistled through the air, aiming directly for Raven's heart.
She sidestepped with her usual grace and blocked her side with the shield, causing the weapon to skim across her shield with a screeching sound, burying its prongs into the ground with a resonant thud that shook the walls.
Raven spun on her heel, her sword flashing in a swift arc aimed at the creature's flank.
But it was fast--faster than she had anticipated.
The creature swung its trident up, catching the blade in a shower of sparks and deflecting the strike with an effortless flick of its wrist.
The force of the parry sent a jarring vibration through Raven's arm, but she didn't let it slow her movement, not even a bit.
She pressed her advantage, her sword becoming a blur of silver as she launched a flurry of attacks.
Each swing was a calculated strike, aiming for the creature's exposed joints and the delicate-looking facets of its icy armor.
The creature responded with equal ferocity, its trident moving with a deadly elegance.
It spun and twirled the weapon, the prongs slicing through the air in a series of rapid, fluid movements that kept Raven on the defensive.
She parried and dodged, her shield absorbing the brunt of the attacks that she couldn't evade.
With a sudden, powerful thrust, the creature drove Raven back.
She stumbled but quickly regained her footing, her shield raised defensively as she retreated a few steps.
The creature followed, its trident slicing through the air in a series of lightning-fast strikes that forced her to parry desperately.
Raven's mind raced, searching for an opening.
But in amidst the thousands of thoughts that raced through her mind, she still managed to keep her composure and effectively deflected most of the monster's strikes.
And her shield absorbed the ones that carried more power, in order to save her grip from the force and pressure they carried.
They charged at each other, lashing ferocious and wild attacks at themselves, and drowning the hall in echoes of their steel clash that sang a cacophony of fury and desperation.
In the chaos of that battle was when Raven's eyes caught something, a subtle detail—a rhythm to the creature's onslaught.
Despite its seemingly erratic attacks, there was a momentary pause, a fleeting hesitation before each strike, almost Despite its seemingly erratic attacks, there was a momentary pause, a fleeting hesitation before each strike, almost imperceptible but there nonetheless.
It was a slight tightening of the creature's icy grip, a barely noticeable shift in its stance, as if gathering itself for the next blow.
Raven's mind raced. She had to time this perfectly.
The creature lunged forward, its trident arcing through the air in a deadly sweep aimed at her midsection.
Raven sidestepped just in time, feeling the whoosh of displaced air as the weapon missed her by inches.
As the trident swung past, she observed it again—the pause, the tightening of its grip.
The creature recovered and thrust the trident again, aiming low.
Raven leaped over the prongs, twisting in midair to avoid the follow-up swipe.
Again, that brief hesitation, a split second where the creature's movements seemed almost calculated, as if it were drawing power from some deep, inexhaustible well within its frozen core.
She landed lightly on the balls of her feet, her muscles coiled and ready.
This was it.
She could see the pattern now, a heartbeat's hesitation before each attack.
She just needed to exploit it.
And in order to have a maximum result, she knew she'd probably have to use her talent ability.
So far so good, she had always avoided using it. The fact was, she was deadly enough without it.
It brought misfortune, pain, and sorrow for her. She hated it, in fact.
But right now was a demanding situation.
The creature roared, its eyes blazing with a cold, otherworldly light.
It lunged once more, the trident stabbing forward with all the force of a battering ram.