Chapter 62: A Well Earned Rest

Chapter 62: Chapter 62: A Well Earned Rest

The Stormreign Wyvern was still alive.

Although barely.

Its body twitched weakly.

Blood slowly pooled beneath it.

It tried lifting its head.

Failed.

One wing moved slightly before falling back down.

Its body no longer obeyed it.

Every dead zone Sylphie had created had become the perfect path for Freya’s lightning.

Together...

They had completely broken the guardian’s defenses.

The mighty beast that had stood before the mysterious passage now lay helpless.

Its tired eyes slowly found Damon.

This time...

There was no anger. No hatred.

Only exhaustion.

Damon walked toward it calmly.

Freya followed beside him.

Sylphie hovered quietly overhead.

The wyvern watched all three of them approach.

At last...

It understood.

The human had never planned to defeat it alone.

He had challenged it himself.

Tested his limits.

Then trusted his companions enough to finish what he had started.

The wyvern slowly closed its eyes.

Almost accepting its defeat.

Damon stopped a few meters away.

"You were strong."

His voice was calm.

"Stronger than anything I’ve fought."

He looked around at the battlefield.

Broken rocks.

Collapsed pillars.

Lightning scars.

Deep claw marks.

"You pushed me further than I expected."

The wyvern answered with a weak growl.

It no longer sounded threatening.

Only tired.

Damon nodded.

"I won’t drag this out."

Freya became quiet.

Sylphie also stopped chirping.

Both of them knew.

The final blow belonged to Damon.

He reached toward his waist.

Then suddenly paused.

"...Ah."

His eyes landed on the broken knife handle lying nearby.

He stared at it for a second before laughing helplessly.

"...There goes the dramatic finish."

Damon sighed.

"I should’ve remembered I broke my knife."

Freya tilted her head.

"Kyu?"

Sylphie chirped curiously.

Both of them looked at him, clearly waiting to see how he would finish the battle now.

Damon simply rolled his shoulders.

"Well..."

"I’ll just have to make do."

He slowly stepped forward.

The wind around him gathered once more.

Lightning crawled along both arms.

His white core pulsed steadily inside his chest.

The weakened wyvern slowly opened its eyes again.

Even now...

It could still feel the pressure rising from the young man before it.

Damon took a deep breath.

He lowered his body slightly.

His right fist tightened.

Wind wrapped around his forearm in tight layers.

Lightning followed immediately after, weaving between the currents without disturbing them.

The two elements rotated together until his entire arm gave off a low humming sound.

"This isn’t as flashy..."

He smiled.

"But it’ll do."

His foot touched the ground.

Then he disappeared.

A gust of wind swept across the battlefield.

The wyvern barely managed to lift its head before Damon appeared beneath its jaw.

His fist drove upward.

BOOM!!

The compressed wind struck first.

It pierced through the damaged scales and rushed into the opening Sylphie had created earlier.

Half a heartbeat later...

The lightning followed.

It exploded inside the beast’s body.

The force surged through every remaining dead zone before erupting beneath its skull.

The wyvern’s body stiffened.

Its eyes widened briefly.

Then...

The light slowly faded.

Its enormous head dropped heavily onto the ground.

Everything became still.

The guardian of the passage had finally fallen.

Damon slowly lowered his fist and let out a long breath.

"...Not bad."

Behind him...

"Kyu!!"

"Chrii!!"

Freya and Sylphie burst into cheerful cries.

Both rushed over immediately.

Freya proudly rubbed against his leg while Sylphie landed on his shoulder, happily chirping into his ear.

Damon laughed.

"Alright, alright."

"We won."

He rubbed both of their heads.

"You two were incredible."

Their excitement only grew stronger.

After enjoying the moment for a while, Damon clapped his hands together.

"Time to work."

The two spirits instantly looked up.

He smiled knowingly.

"Help me harvest everything."

"And yes..."

"There’ll be snacks afterward."

That was all it took.

Freya’s ears stood straight.

Sylphie’s wings flapped excitedly.

The two immediately ran toward the wyvern.

Damon couldn’t help laughing.

"I knew that would work."

Harvesting began.

Sylphie proved especially talented.

Her control over wind had become incredibly delicate.

Thin blades of compressed wind slipped between bones and scales with almost surgical precision.

The cuts were so clean they barely left rough edges.

Damon watched in surprise.

"So that’s how it’s done."

He tried copying her.

Wind gathered around his fingers before forming a crude blade.

He carefully sliced through part of a scale.

It worked...

But nowhere near as smoothly.

He laughed at himself.

"Looks like I’ve got a lot more training to do."

Sylphie chirped proudly before showing him again.

Damon followed her movements while Freya happily dragged over whatever parts they had already removed.

Before long, they had harvested everything valuable.

The Wyvern Core.

Its wings.

Lightning glands.

Wind sacs.

Several intact scales.

Sharp fangs.

Claws.

Even pieces of its hide that could be forged into high quality armor.

After storing the final piece away, Damon finally let out a long breath.

"...Done."

He stretched his sore body.

The battle had truly exhausted him.

As promised, he opened another storage bag.

"Come on."

"You earned this."

Freya practically buried herself in the snacks.

Sylphie ate much more politely, though she was just as happy.

Damon sat down against a nearby rock.

His eyes drifted toward the mysterious passage behind where the wyvern had stood guard.

He studied it quietly.

"...Not yet."

His body needed rest.

His injuries still needed time to recover.

Whatever was waiting beyond that passage...

It had waited this long.

It could wait a little longer.

For now...

He simply leaned back, watching Freya and Sylphie happily enjoy their rewards.

A small smile appeared on his face.

The battlefield finally became quiet.

After resting for a while, Damon slowly opened his eyes.

His injuries had eased after drinking a healing potion, and although they hadn’t completely healed, they no longer bothered him as much. His breathing was steady again, and the soreness across his body had faded.

"Much better."

He stretched his shoulders before leaning back against a broken stone pillar.

For now, there was no reason to rush.

The mysterious passage wasn’t going anywhere.

He still needed to recover his Aether, and more importantly, continue nurturing his spirit elementals.