Chapter 227: Trial Of Lord [12]

The Rotted crawled toward the village, dragging its enormous body across the ground as countless tentacles writhed around it. Its many maws opened and closed, revealing rows of uneven teeth, while the eyes scattered across its black surface shifted restlessly in every direction.

Before it could reach the village, however, it encountered the earthen wall Monica and Elias had constructed.

Unlike the wooden fences from their previous attempts, the thick barrier did not collapse the moment the creature touched it. Several tentacles slammed against the hardened earth, producing a series of deafening impacts that sent cracks spreading across its surface, yet the wall remained standing.

Elias and Stella rushed forward together, their swords drawn as crimson Aura shimmered along their blades. The two approached from different angles, forcing the creature to divide its attention between them.

Stella moved first.

Her figure blurred as she accelerated toward a cluster of tentacles, and her sword swept through them in a swift horizontal arc. The crimson Aura surrounding her blade extended beyond its edge, allowing her to sever several thick appendages before they could strike her.

At the same time, Elias stepped toward another cluster and brought Lastbane down with both hands.

His sword collided with a tentacle, cutting deeply into its surface before he twisted his wrists and redirected the blade into an upward slash. He followed with another strike, then another, maintaining a continuous sequence of attacks that prevented the creature from surrounding him.

His movements became increasingly fluid as he relied on the first verse of his sword style. Rather than wasting strength on individual attacks, he allowed each movement to flow into the next, striking vulnerable areas whenever the creature exposed them.

When a tentacle suddenly swept toward his side, Elias shifted his stance and redirected his momentum into a heavier strike.

His Aura surged along Lastbane as he brought the blade down with tremendous force. The attack severed the incoming tentacle and continued into the black mass beneath it, carving a deep wound through the creature’s body.

Although the wound began closing almost immediately, the attack forced the Rotted to recoil.

"Elias, move back!" Monica shouted.

He immediately retreated as a series of spells flew past him.

Flame Arrow!

Several blazing projectiles formed around Monica before shooting toward the exposed section of the Rotted. They struck its surface one after another, exploding into bursts of fire that spread across its black body.

The creature twisted several tentacles toward her, but Monica had already prepared another spell.

Light Blade!

A brilliant blade of concentrated light appeared above her, then descended toward the approaching appendages. It sliced through two of them before bursting into radiant fragments.

Monica did not stop there.

Dark Bindings!

Dark tendrils emerged from the ground and wrapped themselves around the remaining tentacles, tightening as they attempted to pull the creature’s appendages away from the village. The bindings could not restrain the Rotted for long, but they created enough of an opening for Elias and Stella to continue attacking.

"Keep it occupied!" Monica called.

She raised her hand, and a large mass of ice formed around her palm.

Ice Hand!

An enormous hand made of ice emerged from the ground and seized one of the creature’s tentacles. Its fingers tightened around the appendage, freezing its surface as it struggled to break free.

Stella immediately took advantage of the opening.

She rushed forward, her sword flashing several times as she cut through the frozen tentacle. The ice shattered alongside the severed appendage, scattering fragments across the battlefield.

"Good!" Stella exclaimed.

Elias moved toward another section of the creature, using his Aura to reinforce his sword while gathering earth mana beneath his feet.

The ground trembled as he directed the mana into the soil.

Earth Spike!

Several sharpened pillars burst from the ground beneath the Rotted, piercing its underside and lifting portions of its enormous body. Although the creature’s mass quickly began pressing against them, the sudden eruption disrupted its movement and exposed more of its surface.

"Monica, its left side!" Elias shouted.

"I see it!"

Monica extended her arm toward the exposed section.

Wind Blade!

A series of compressed blades of wind shot through the air, striking the creature with enough force to tear through its outer layers. At the same time, Elias advanced and swung Lastbane through the opening, cutting into the exposed mass before it could regenerate.

Stella was already moving toward another cluster of tentacles.

Her swordsmanship relied on speed and physical strength, and she used both to overwhelm the creature whenever it left an opening. She avoided unnecessary movements, striking quickly before retreating from counterattacks, then immediately returning to the offensive.

Even when a tentacle struck the ground beside her, sending dirt and broken stones flying, she maintained her balance and continued forward.

The three worked together with a coordination that had taken Elias countless attempts to develop.

Monica controlled the battlefield with her magic, creating openings and restricting the creature’s movements. Stella exploited those openings with her swift swordsmanship, while Elias adapted to whatever threat emerged, switching between his sword style and earth magic whenever necessary.

For several minutes, their combined attacks seemed to be working.

The Rotted struggled to advance, and the damage inflicted upon its body forced it to repeatedly redirect its tentacles. Although its wounds regenerated, the constant attacks prevented it from consuming the surrounding terrain and growing even larger.

’Is this finally enough?’

Elias knew better than to celebrate prematurely, yet he could not help feeling a faint surge of hope.

He had spent countless attempts learning swordsmanship, studying magic, and finding ways to cooperate with the women beside him. Every failure had given him something new, and now those lessons were finally coming together.

Perhaps this time, they could actually defeat it.

However, the Rotted suddenly changed its movements.

Its countless maws opened simultaneously, revealing dark cavities that seemed to extend far deeper than its enormous body should have allowed. The creature stopped struggling against the attacks, and for a brief moment, its tentacles became unnaturally still.

Elias immediately noticed the change.

"Everyone, be careful!"

Before anyone could respond, a deep rumbling sound emerged from the creature.

Then it exhaled.

A thick cloud of dark smoke poured from its maws, spreading across the battlefield with terrifying speed. It rolled over the ground and swallowed the surrounding area, obscuring the creature’s body and everything nearby.

"Get away from it!" Elias shouted.

He tried to retreat, but the smoke spread faster than he anticipated. It engulfed the area around him before he could escape completely, forcing him to hold his breath as he searched through the darkness for the others.

He heard Stella coughing nearby.

"Cough! Cough!"

"Stella!" Elias called.

At the same time, Monica pressed her palms together.

Wind Curtain!

A powerful current of wind swept across the battlefield, forming a broad barrier that pushed the dark smoke away from the three of them. The cloud gradually dispersed, revealing the broken ground and the damaged earthen wall behind them.

Elias immediately looked toward Stella.

The knight had one hand pressed against her chest while the other held her sword. She was coughing repeatedly, struggling to catch her breath even after the smoke had been pushed away.

"What happened?" Monica asked, quickly approaching her.

Stella tried to answer, but another fit of coughing interrupted her.

Elias rushed toward her and caught her before she could lose her balance.

"Stella!"

He looked closely at her face and noticed that her complexion had become unnaturally pale. Her breathing was uneven, and the hand gripping her sword trembled slightly.

’What is happening?’

He had witnessed the Rotted release strange attacks in previous attempts, but this was different. Stella had barely been exposed to the smoke, yet her condition was deteriorating rapidly.

His expression darkened as he turned toward the mage.

"Can you check what is wrong with her?"

"I can..." Monica glanced toward the Rotted, which was still crawling toward them, and added, "But it would be impossible while fighting that monster."

Elias looked down at Stella before helping her lean against Monica.

"Go ahead."

Monica frowned as she supported the knight. "What about the Rotted?"

"I will take care of it," Elias replied.

"No, you cannot fight it alone. It is far too strong and deadly," she retorted.

"It does not matter."

Elias leaned forward until his forehead rested against hers, meeting her eyes with a gentle expression that contrasted with the urgency of their situation.

"As long as you three are fine, none of it matters."

Monica’s expression darkened, and she lowered her voice.

"I would not let you."

Elias smiled faintly.

Quagmire!

The ground beneath Monica’s feet immediately softened, turning into a thick, unstable mass of mud. Her legs sank as the spell spread outward, trapping her in place before she could move away.

"Elias!"

Before she could gather enough mana to free herself, he raised both hands and directed earth mana toward the ground surrounding her.

Earth Wall!

Thick earthen barriers rose from every direction, connecting above Monica and forming a sturdy dome around her and Stella. The structure sealed them away from the battlefield, leaving no opening through which the Rotted could reach them.

"ELIAS!" Monica screamed, striking the earthen walls with her free hand. "What are you doing?! Let us out!"

He continued shaping the dome, reinforcing its walls until they were thick enough to withstand the creature’s attacks.

"Do not do this!" Monica shouted again. "Elias, stop!"

He did not answer.

Although Monica possessed enough power to break through the earthen structure, doing so while supporting the injured Stella would be considerably more difficult. She could not risk damaging the dome or causing the ground beneath them to collapse while the knight was in such a fragile condition.

Elias knew that she would eventually find a way out, but he only needed to buy enough time for her to examine Stella.

Once he was certain the structure was secure, he lowered his hands and turned toward the Rotted.

The creature was still approaching, its tentacles dragging across the ground as its countless eyes fixed upon him.

Elias tightened his grip around Lastbane.

"Let’s end this once and for all."

He stepped forward, then accelerated.

His figure shot across the battlefield like a crimson streak, and Aura rolled along the blade of his sword as he charged toward the Rotted.