Chapter 79: Please help him

The black rot wave passed over Dante’s head. He had ducked, and the stone behind him turned into sludge.

Marcus’s red sword came down. Dante Stop it with the sword, and the ground cracked under him. His arms shook from the weight.

He pushed. Marcus slid back two steps. Dante drove his boot into his ribs, and the armor split.

Then the rot hit him from the side. Elena’s palms were open, and black ooze wrapped around his left leg. The skin turned grey and started to peel off.

[Conceptual Status: Vitality Decay, Level 6.]

’It gets worse every second I stay in it.’

He pulled out the World-Eater Urn and held it over the floor.

[Mineral Fluid Extraction activated.]

The sludge lifted off the stone in strands and dragged toward the urn. The rot field around his feet shrank from five meters to three.

"He’s eating it," Marcus said in the double voice.

Elena came at him. Her broken leg make noise with every step. A spear of black rot shot at his face. He tilted his head, and it tore a line across his cheek. It burned like acid then He took out the sphere.

[Ground Weight Control activated. Target: Elena. Pressure: 100x.]

She dropped to the ground. Her leg bent in wrong way, and she screamed in two voices at once.

"Ahhhh!The floor code–ughhh!" the female entity screeched. "He’s rewriting it!"

"Then take it back." Marcus’s red light flared, and the weight lifted off Elena. But Dante had already moved. They were busy for one second, and that was all he needed. He cut across the back of Marcus’s knee.

The armor split open. blood ran down his leg. Marcus staggered, and Dante kicked his wrist. The red sword flew out of his hand and stuck in the sand.

He turned. Elena was already on him, black ooze dripping from every nail. He caught her wrist and twisted until the bone cracked. She hit him with her other hand, and the rot brushed his shoulder. The skin there blistered at once.

He smashed his forehead into her face and broke her nose, and then she fell back.

Neither of them stayed down. Elena got up on her broken leg like it didn’t hurt. Marcus’s knee was closing already, the red plates growing back over the cut.

[Stamina: 61%.]

Dante stepped out of the rot, breathing fastly. His shoulder throbbed.

’They heal. I can’t wear them down like this.’

He pressed the ring on his finger. The stone eye opened, and the world turned grey. Two red dots lit up.

One was behind Marcus’s right shoulder. The other sat at the base of Elena’s skull, as small as a coin.

’Seals.’

But Marcus’s moved with every swing, and Elena kept her head low like she knew.

"You found something," the male entity said. The sword tore out of the sand and flew back into his hand. "It won’t help. Your flesh will break before we do."

Dante didn’t answer. He shifted his weight, raised the sword, and ran at them again.

Meanwhile Behind the stone pillar, Yenna sat with her back against the wall. Her legs lay stretched in front of her, and she couldn’t move them.

Esabella stood in front of her with the whip in her hand. Her wings were half open. Her horns were shaking.

Out on the sand, Dante went down on one knee. The rot had eaten into his arm, and Marcus’s sword was coming down at his head. He rolled out of the way, and the blade carved a trench in the ground. He came up bleeding.

Esabella’s claws tore the leather of her whip handle.

’No, my king ’

Dante took a hit across the back. He didn’t make a sound, but she saw him stumble.

"Lady Esabella." Yenna said .

She didn’t look down.

"Lady Esabella." Yenna grabbed the edge of her skirt with a small, shaking hand. "Go."

"I can’t. If i go–."

"I know what he said." Yenna’s voice cracked. "But look at him."

Esabella looked. Dante was fighting with a burned arm and a bleeding face. Two monsters wore human faces and kept getting up, and he had no one at his side.

"He’s alone," Yenna said. "He’s been alone the whole time. I know what that looks like, Lady. I’ve watched him do it many times." She swallowed. "Please. I’ll hide. I’ll be fine. Just don’t let him do it alone anymore. Please help him"

"If something happens to you..."

"Then he’ll be angry at me, i will told him that i was the one who force you, he can be angry at us" Yenna tried to smile. It came out crooked. " But we can’t just stand there ."

Esabella stared at her for a long second. A drop of blood fell from her lip where she had bitten it.

"I will come back," she said. "Do not move from this wall and also, do not die."

"I won’t."

Esabella turned. Her wings open and the whole tunnel shook.

"Dante!" she shouted.

He lifted his head. Across the sand, their eyes met. He was about to say something. She could see it on his face. ’Go back. Stay.’

She didn’t give him the time.

"I’m sorry, my King. I’m breaking rule, but I can’t just stand there watching you suffering"

She kicked off the ground. The sand blew back in a ring behind her, and she went across the arena like an arrow.

Elena turned her eyes toward the sound.

"Huhu~ The Queen," the female entity said. "Finally."

Esabella’s whip cracked in the air. It wrapped around Elena’s wrist and she pulled with her strength. The two of them crashed into the sand, and the barbs bit deep into the flesh.

"Don’t touch him," Esabella said, through her teeth.

On the other side, Dante stood up with his sword raised and blood running down his face. He looked across the arena at the woman in fire and gold eyes.

"I told you to stay there, Go back" he said.

"No."

He stared at her. Then he turned his head, spat blood on the ground, and faced Marcus.

"Fine," Dante sigh and said. "Take the girl. I’ve got him."