Chapter 96: Whipped

The wind tossed his hair wildly as he shuffled along.

With Ralph occupying the Wind Whipper’s attention, there was little doubt Peace would be able to cover the distance to the entrance of the next room, even if slowly.

Taking a languid step, he breached the light and entered the darkness. Maura staggered behind him, another random cut having appeared on her wrist. The blood dripped down her elbow and onto the eggshell-colored floor below.

Volkar was right behind Maura.

His injuries on the outside had been healed, leaving behind only scars. But it was clear the Giant was knocking on death’s door.

At least he listened to the order not to fight...

Peace had little doubt that Volkar was as good as dead if he raised his hand against anything, especially a Tier 8.

The sounds of the whizzing winds picked up as the tendrils sliced through the air at Ralph, who once again barely managed to stave off the onslaught with the help of Dita, who’d been redirecting its attacks with her sword.

Yulis still hadn’t found a way to help, but neither had he run to join Peace in his flight.

Not that they’d be able to find Peace...

At least not easily.

They’d crossed into absolute darkness.

Tearing his focus away from the fight, he pressed his hand down into the pommel of the umbrella and swung himself along.

’Damn it! Shit!’

Even when his feet left the ground, pain still flooded through his entire body. Every swing felt like a machete chopping at his legs.

And every time he landed on his right foot, it felt like it would shrivel up and fall off. The only things that kept his legs in functional territory were the braces.

Still...

Step.

Swing.

Step.

Swing.

Peace repeated the motions. Each movement blurred together in the haze of agony.

Before Peace could truly process the journey, it had been completed.

He, Volkar, and Maura had made it to the edge of the Western Winds.

Slumping down against the wall of the threshold between zones, Peace rolled his head to the side.

’Fuck! Everything hurts!’

Wincing, he studied the adjacent room, quickly identifying it as the Temple Keepers, a Tier 9 B-Class spawning zone.

Peace’s eyes widened.

’We... we made it?’

Beyond the Temple Keepers was a spawning zone always attached to it. The one containing the stairs leading down to the basement floor.

Peace almost felt a smile tug at his lips.

Then he looked over at Maura, who’d fallen on her back, frantically trying to heal her mysterious wounds. No new ones had appeared since the one on her forearm, but there was no guarantee they’d suddenly stop just because they’d exited the zone.

’We...’

Volkar had fallen to his knees, taking drawn-out breaths. The rampaging winds, having made it quite difficult for him to breathe, were finally lessening their attack, allowing him some much-needed gasps of air. As he breathed, his eyes focused on the lantern they’d left behind.

Neither had even asked if they’d made it. Peace had stopped, so they stopped. For all they knew, Peace had given up.

The wind died down a bit in the liminal space, and would vanish as they entered the zone of the Temple Keepers, but as of then, it was still harassing them.

Taking a painful breath, Peace bit his lip, then hissed:

"We made it."

Finally, his eyes drifted back towards where Volkar was looking.

Unlike the Giant, Peace could see everything, even where the lantern’s light didn’t reach.

Watching, he couldn’t help but question who his ’we’ encompassed...

Would it be just Peace, Maura, and Volkar? Dita? Yulis? Ralph? All of them?

It was entirely possible one of the three still fighting would die.

’That must be... horrifying.’

From his angle, Peace watched as the two tendrils cut through the air. They’d been dodged or deflected for the most part, but with each collision, the Wind Whipper suffered zero damage while their equipment was withering away.

None of the three had even launched a counterattack, and Peace didn’t blame them.

Most of the Wind Whipper’s body was out of range of the light. The only thing Ralph, Dita, and Yulis could see was the writhing white tendrils sticking out from a wall of shadows...

And its only weak point was its vortex, which was at its backside. Without an overwhelming strength advantage, they’d never be able to cut it down from the front.

Still...

’This thing is Tier 8.’

Although, to Peace, it seemed most definitely weaker than the Skeletal Stalker. If that thing was what they were fighting, they’d be screwed.

’Are S-Classes above Tier...?’

Peace shook that thought from his head. It didn’t particularly matter at this juncture.

What did matter was that, despite the awful situation, the Wind Whipper wasn’t insurmountable. As long as they fought together...

Which was a tall ask considering Dita could turn and run at any moment. She had no obligation to stick around and die with him.

’She wouldn’t do that...’

Peace barely knew Dita, but he knew her well enough to know that considering the possibility was moot.

Ralph failed to raise his shield in time, causing the spiraling tendrils to slap him across the helmet. The Temple Knight’s helm, which Peace had learned, conformed to whoever wielded it.

Thankfully, Ralph’s neck wasn’t snapped. But he was thrown to the ground.

It seemed all was lost for the tank, but the wind ball didn’t have a knack for strategy or risk assessment.

Perhaps spotting its moment to get rid of the pesky metal knight, the Wind Whipper’s body floated forth and into the light.

’That dumbass windshitter.’

Illuminated and looming over Ralph, the Wind Whipper gave Dita an opening. She smiled.

She said something that was drowned out by the wind. But whatever she said ignited a fire in the eyes of Yulis and Ralph.

Curling into a ball, Ralph dropped his sword and pulled his shield above him. Just in time to receive the whips one after another.

Seizing the moment, Dita slid behind the Whipper and threw one hand towards the empty air while her other gripped the sword angled at the weak point of the Wind Whipper.

’Wait... she wouldn’t.’

Her hand began to glow white.

At the same time, she shoved her sword into the ball of wind. It barely breached the surface before the force became too much for her one arm.

Then...

She shot the Wind Blast from her hand, the recoil shooting her backwards.

The extra force helped her shove the sword in deeper at the cost of her arm bending quite unnaturally.

’Eugh...’

There was a second cost, as well...

The Wind Whipper had ditched Ralph in favor of spinning around to target her.

As it spun, Dita let go of her sword, leaving it lodged in its body. It was much too deep to be dislodged by the surface winds.

No longer needing his shield, Ralph tossed it aside and threw his hand up.

’No way... that was their plan?!’

He barely managed to grab one of its gyrating tendrils. He closed his fingers tightly around it, even as it ground away the metal of his gauntlet. Even as it began eating into his skin, tearing away bits of flesh and spraying blood into the air.

Dita raised her left hand, doing the same as Ralph, grasping a tendril and holding it tight, even as its rampaging wind tore away at her glove and freely rent her hand.

With both of its tendrils held down, its body entirely in the light with a sword poking out of its backside, Yulis made his first move.

His first move, which was destined to be the last move of the fight.

If he failed, they all died.

The mutilation gamble had a hefty price behind it.

The irises of his blue eyes dilated, then narrowed on the sword’s hilt as he dashed forward.

’His Resonance...’

Placing one hand on the hilt, the other on the pommel, Yulis began to push. Pushing with all his might.

The Wind Whipper began rampaging as it tried to retaliate against its new attacker, but Ralph and Dita never let it.

Even as its main body swiveled, Yulis clung to the sword and shoved it further. Until...

A glorious sound flooded through the air, almost like a gigantic balloon had been popped.

[You have slain a Tier 8 E-Class Wind Whipper]

[+5 EXP]

’5...? I thought it would give 4.’

A terrible pain flooded through Peace, worse than walking on a broken ankle or dislocated knee.

’Wait... 5!’

[Your rank has increased!]

[Rank: D ? C]

[Your body is evolving...]

Peace barely had time to celebrate before a searing heat spread through his limbs.

His muscles contracted, his bones trembled, and something deep within his body began to stir.

’Come on...’

Gritting his teeth, he welcomed the agony.

’Give me back my damn legs already!’

Sometimes, Peace learned, you should be careful what you wish for.