Chapter 394: Break (2/2)

It roared, tumbling down as ashen limbs entangled its wings and body.

Ilea felt the paralyzing effect wane after a mere second. She had still been in touch, the Wyvern unable to teleport.

[Cliff Wyvern – lvl ???]

The two tumbled down and slammed hard into one of the plateaus, neither impaired by the blow.

A low growl came from the creature as it stood up, easily pushing against the limbs trying to hold it down. Its eyes glinted golden, a wild fury apparent.

“Nice to meet you,” Ilea said as she too got up, ashen spears forming around her as she crouched into a defensive stance, looking at the monster towering before her.

She felt the heat rise around her, sudden and instantaneously. Ilea waited with her move, a wide grin on her face as she felt the hairs on her neck and back stand up. An instinctual reaction, not based on her Azarinth Fighting.

This is what you came for, isn’t it? she heard herself think, seeing the glow of fire from within the Wyvern’s mouth.

Its maw opened wide, the massive teeth parting to reveal its throat.

Ashen spears rushed out, aimed at the opening. They were pushed aside, a cone of fire enveloping all that stood before the creature.

Ilea moved her wings in front of her, creating a thin barrier of ash right behind. Her precognition informed her about the damage she would sustain and despite the bells going off in her mind, she couldn’t be happier.

She spread her arms and smiled, seeing the flames wash through her ash as if it was mere sand, standing against the tide. Her armor was next and finally the bone.

The flames settled and Ilea stood, the molten skin on her chest and legs reforming. Her face was burnt, skin hanging down and eyes charred.

All of it was healing, no sign of pain shown as she simply stood, waiting for the Wyvern’s next move.

Heat once more surged and enveloped her, ashen armor only partially reformed, her bone armor reduced to uselessness.

Ilea stored her armor and let the flames wash over her, burn her. She saw her insides getting cooked, only a charred mess remaining. Before her brain was gone, Ilea healed the damage with her third tier reconstruction.

The steam from the vaporized blood and water in her body settled, revealing an undamaged Ilea. Ashen armor formed around her once more.

It seemed like the Wyvern was a little confused, its eyes blinking several times as it took in the sight in front of it.

“Don’t worry, happens to everyone,” Ilea said and released Heart of Cinder, happy to find that some of the heat from the creature’s attacks had actually contributed.

The cone of fire shot out and burned into the stone before it petered out into thin air.

Ilea had seen the Wyvern vanish but it was too late to change the trajectory.

The beast vanished once more and appeared right before her, its maw opened and rushing to slam down on her head.

She ducked out of the way, finding the Wyvern’s extended claws in turn. A blink brought her away, only to find the beast followed.

This time, she couldn’t dodge all the way. Teeth sank into her shoulder.

Ilea got in a punch to the Wyvern’s head as well as several slashes of her limbs before it broke through her ashen armor, digging into her flesh.

Its teeth bit deeper with each passing second as it took her hits in stride.

She slammed her ashen limbs into the Wyvern’s eyes, making it stagger back. A wild movement ripped her arm away at the shoulder, blood spraying to the ground before a new arm took its place.

Ilea spat blood to the ground and stared at the creature who ground her arm in its maw before swallowing the thing whole.

Wish it would retain the bonus resilience from my skills, Ilea thought, imagining the thing choking on her bones. They were still much more dense and heavy than what a normal human sported but the Wyvern didn’t seem to have issues cracking through with just that.

Come on, use your fire.

The beast roared, the sound vibrating through her as she instinctively held up her arms.

‘ding’ ‘You have heard the challenge of the Cliff Wyvern – You are paralyzed for one second’

‘ding’ ‘Veteran reaches lvl 14’

She just watched as the creature once more charged up its fire breath. This time took longer. A cone of flame shot out, more deadly than before.

Ilea had to use her instant recovery three times during the breath, lasting three times as long as the previous attacks.

Her body was reformed once more when she saw the beast appear, a gaping maw staring back at her.

Ilea extended her arm and slammed it into the Wyvern’s throat. Teeth ground into her flesh.

“Try dodging this one,” she said and released her spell right into its mouth.

The Wyvern opened its eyes wide as it thrashed and shook her around, staggering back several steps as its insides were burnt.

Sadly, the creature didn’t explode in a rain of guts and scales as Ilea had hoped for. There did seem to be some damage however.

Before she could use the spell again with a reasonable charge, the beast threw her away.

It snarled and hissed at the air, the unfamiliar feeling of its damaged insides disorienting the creature.

Ilea wasn’t one to ignore an opportunity, blinking on top of the Wyvern and holding on to its neck with both arms.

Her limbs extended and slashed at the strong scales protecting its wings. Two of them formed a shredder like collar on the base of its neck, scraping against it.

In the meantime, destructive healing mana pulsed into the Wyvern. As well as Storm of Cinders from all the limbs lashing into it.

The beast turned and trashed, slamming Ilea into the stone. Cones of fire were released but nothing reached her.

A sudden sphere of fire extended around the Wyvern, burning away Ilea’s ash armor and a chunk of her skin.

She nearly lost her grip due to her muscles getting melted but held on thanks to her third tier recovery. Found your weakspot, fucker.

Its eyes were bloodshot already, all the mana slowly damaging its insides.

The heat wave followed again, several times as it attempted to shake the annoying healer off.

Yet she held steady, an iron grip around the Wyvern’s neck, her mana recovering with every blast of fire. You’re only making yourself die faster.

Ilea’s own heat wave extended, barely doing any damage to its powerful hide. Catelyn seemed to be right. She smirked, feeling the creature panic.

There was nothing it could do however.

Ilea’s physical damage as well as her fire damage was shrugged off easily but mana intrusion was another beast entirely. One the Wyvern apparently had no answer against.

It staggered towards the cliff before jumping off, scraping Ilea on the side of it.

They entered the mist together, Ilea simply holding on. By now they were falling instead of flying.

Several seconds went by, Ilea preparing herself for the impact. Now.

She moved her wings around herself right before the weight of the creature slammed her into the stone.

All the air was pushed out of her lungs, the grip on its neck loosening for a moment.

Ilea grasped at air, seeing the Wyvern appear next to her. She blinked away from the claws slamming into the stone, the beast once more appearing before her.

It snapped down, dodging her extended arm as several ashen limbs slashed into its bloody jaw and tongue.

Teeth scraped against ashen armor before Ilea blinked again.

She felt claws dig into her back, fast and deep. The ground came to her face as she was pushed down.

Destructive mana flowed into the creature still, making it release her a moment later.

Ilea stood up, the fatal wounds on her back closing quickly. Swaths of blood covered the ground and the Wyvern’s claws.

She cracked her knuckles when the beast collapsed.