[Rootless Step.]
For a moment, the Cindari leader’s feet sank into the roots beneath the ground and his body disappeared. Not with normal speed, but as if the ground itself had swallowed him.
Seris immediately sensed the danger, but Caelus was not heading toward her.
"Aren!"
Aren turned around, but it was already too late!
The Cindari leader emerged from the dead roots right behind him.
The native of the Ruined Realm raised both of his hands.
[Earth Wall.]
A thick wall rose between them and Caelus punched it, the stone exploded and broken pieces hit Aren in the face.
The second punch landed directly on his chest, Aren was lifted from the ground and thrown several meters away ... he rolled across the ground and the air was forced out of his lungs.
One roared and attacked again, the roots wrapped around his legs but One moved forward with raw power.
The first root was torn apart ... the second ... the third, the fourth held him for a few moments but he turned his body and broke it as well.
Among the three of them, One had the highest Level and the greatest raw power and his jaws were so powerful that they could destroy almost anything.
Their opponent might be Level 35, but with the power all three of them had, especially the young Pendragon, fighting him had become possible.
But victory was not certain, especially now that their enemy had started attacking with all his power.
Seris attacked from the other side and Caelus was forced to activate Crown of Thorns again.
But this time Seris and One were coordinated, the former lowered her head and the latter ran directly across the armor on her back.
One step.
Second.
The giant ant threw its body upward at that exact moment and She was launched into the air like a Projectile, her sword rising with her.
[King’s Breaker.]
The first strike hit Crown of Thorns.
Crack!
Seris spun in the air and brought her sword down with power again, and the second strike landed.
The cracks became larger!
The third strike and finally the Barrier broke!
[Thousand Petal Swordstorm.]
A rain of Slashes fell on Caelus from above, one on his shoulder, one on his face, three cuts on his arm, two lines across his chest.
The Cindari leader took several steps back and there were so many wounds that he could not close all of them at once.
Seris landed, but at that exact moment her Predator-like instinct sensed danger from a blind angle.
Unfortunately, it was too late and one of the roots from First Root Dominion came in from behind.
Its white tip pierced directly through her thigh, the root blade entered from the back of her leg and came out from the front of her thigh and warm blood spilled onto her boot.
Seris held her breath for a moment, but she did not scream.
She lowered her hand, grabbed the root and pulled it out of her body in one movement, causing even more blood to gush out.
Her knee bent for a moment, but she still remained standing.
"Your toughness, you truly deserve to serve Father." Caelus gave her a brief look.
"Shut up." Seris raised her sword.
One Charged again, this time the Cindari did not move away, his eyes became cold and he lowered his hand toward the ground.
[First Root: Impaling Bloom.]
The ground beneath One split open, the first root shot out like a huge spear, the ant moved his body aside and the root passed beside his armor.
The second came from the left, he caught it with his jaws and a cracking sound rang out.
But the third ... came out from a point exactly beneath his stomach, there was no time left to escape and the tip of the root entered the soft part beneath his armor.
A moment later, it came out from the upper part of his stomach, One’s cry of pain filled the entire Dead Zone, dark blood splashed across the white root.
A thick liquid flowed down from the wound in his body.
"One!" Seris lost control of her expression for the first time.
The ant struggled with his legs ... his jaws opened and closed, but the root lifted his body into the air.
Caelus moved his hand, the root also twisted and One’s stomach wound opened even more.
Then with another movement, the giant ant’s body was thrown several meters through the air, directly into one of the huge roots of the Forgotten Tree.
The sound of his natural armor breaking could be heard and pieces of his black shell fell onto the ground ... One fell, his legs moved for several seconds.
He tried to stand up.
One leg.
Second.
Then his body fell onto the ground again ... he was alive, barely and in very bad condition ... but he could no longer fight.
Aren saw the scene and something changed in his expression.
He had not even known One for very long.
But seeing a creature that had helped them and fought for them so honestly made his anger grow even more.
He slammed both hands onto the ground and forced Mana through his Channels, the skin around them burned and pain moved through his body like a blade.
But Aren did not back down.
[Earth Titan’s Grasp.]
The ground rose on both sides of Caelus, two huge stone hands formed, each several meters tall, and the stone fingers closed from both sides.
The Cindari leader was trapped between them, the pressure increased and the stones began to break.
"Seris!" Aren shouted.
Seris moved forward with her injured leg, but Caelus did not allow it anymore.
[Father’s Thorn.]
The ground beneath Aren shook, he sensed the first blade and pulled his body backward, a thin black root passed beside his body.
For a moment, he thought he had dodged it, but then the second blade came out from another angle.
He did not even have time to look and then came the cut!
For a moment there was no pain, only a feeling of becoming lighter, then his right arm was separated above the elbow and fell onto the ground.
Blood came out with force and Aren opened his mouth, his scream had not even fully come out when the third attack came.
Another root came from the left, his second arm was also cut off and both hands fell onto the ground.
He fell onto his knees, this time his scream was loud and blood from both severed arms flowed over his chest and onto the ground, his face became pale within seconds.
He had lost both of his hands ...
"I told you ... you angered Father... and your time to die has come!" the Cindari leader growled with the same cold calmness.
"Shut up!" Seris changed her path for a moment and cold anger could be seen in her eyes.
Aren breathed in short, broken breaths and tried to control Mana without his hands, the ground around his wounds rose.
Soil and stones were pressed against the severed parts, only pressure, to reduce the bleeding, but even this caused more pain.
Aren fell onto the ground, he was conscious, but he was almost out of the fight.
Now only Seris remained, her right leg had been pierced, and there were several cuts on her shoulder.
Her side was wounded by one of the Root Slashes, blood had dried on her clothes and fresh blood was mixed with it, and her breathing had become heavy.
Her Mana reserve had dropped very low, but she was still holding her sword.
"Surrender." Caelus came out from the remains of Earth Titan’s Grasp and several pieces of stone fell from his robe.
"No." Seris wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand.
"Why? Does the life of one Human matter so much to you? There are so many of you, aren’t there?" The Cindari leader looked toward the Cocoon, as if he wanted to check its condition, and then looked back at her.
"....."
"It doesn’t matter." The young Pendragon felt like she had just heard one of the stupidest possible reasons and then looked at One and Aren for a moment.
"And Lian wants her to be protected, so I’ll protect her."
She wouldn’t and couldn’t let anything happen to that Cocoon.