Chapter 463 (2/2)

As the orb rushed forward, Annie switched her target, her arrows clustered together to destroy the orbs quickly. But as the arrows approached, the orbs split into a dozen smaller orbs, avoiding the clustered arrows.

“Chain Lightning!” Clarissa shouted, and a bolt shot forward. Before it could strike, however, the orbs split again, each becoming twelve smaller orbs once more. And although the Chain Lightning destroyed 20 orbs on its own, and Annie was able to pierce another 10 or so, that only destroyed 20% of that strange, healing energy, and the rest reached the Stagbat.

Immediately, the change became obvious, not just in the fact that its wounds healed, but also because its wings, which were more like the arms form that the Death Cultists possessed to this point, now spread out to about 30 meters wide, really casting a huge shadow.

Quickly, Annie returned to bombarding it, but its wings had regained close to their full ability to move, and they smashed arrows away harmlessly. Annie cursed. The speed at which it cast the grey time beams increased too, and the close combat warriors were driven back, to about 30 meters, which seemed to be the range outside of which the beam's energy fizzled into nothing.

“Any ideas?” Annie asked Alana.

Frowning at the monster, which was now braying again, Alana said. “Yes, but I don’t want to spook it into-”

A fist-sized rock struck the Stagbat on the nose, sending it cantering a few steps backward, snorting and sneezing. Then it glared at Ace, who had apparently recovered enough to stand and attack, and was grinning at it in a very pleased manner.

The bat head on its back tried its best to roar, but it only came out as a high pitched whine, more bile oozing out of its mouth. The wings spread and began to beat, driving the Stagbat off the ground and into the air, its huge wings buffeting them all with huge gusts of air. It rose, only about 10 meters, but then ascended rapidly, higher and higher.

As it did so, the Raid Dungeon group watched as its wings appeared to grow, spreading thinner and thinner, until the stag portion of the body was just a tiny speck of dust, and its true body was those wings, that could cover the sky, so much so that if you didn’t look up you could have mistaken the shadow for a malevolent cloud.

“...because I didn’t want to spook it into realizing it could fly,” Alana finished, frowning at Ace’s cackling form.

“Why not just let it go?” Ptolemy suggested. “We can go find the Ghosthound, and with him-”

A beam of energy, thick and grey, shot downwards towards them. Immediately the group scattered, leaping and dashing out of the way. This time, there was a small explosion where the beam hit the ground, and in a 10-meter area the soil disintegrated and was blown away by the wind.

“...will it let us?” Rose asked grimly, looking at the Stagbat, which now was swooping down towards them, another large sphere of grey forming between its antlers.

“This thing… is unnatural.” Lucifer announced, causing Drake to snort. Well, no shit.

“We need-” Rose began, but then her eyes widened. “Move! As far away from the city as possible. Right-”

She didn’t need to finish. There was only a small rumble, and then all at once, there was an explosion from the Dintan city, buildings and that strange sculpture collapsing, almost unwilling, refusing to cease to be before it even had a chance to grow.

Very quickly, the rumbling was unbearable, and from the ground of the ruined city, a hand shot upwards, formed of molten lava, waves of heat surrounding it. It shot up and up, growing larger and larger, until it made the Stagbat look like an ant, looming above it.

Reacting quickly, the Stagbat changed direction and shot forward, moving more quickly than should be possible, but the huge hand of lava pursued, falling downwards. When it became clear that even with its prodigious speed it couldn’t escape, the Stagbat spun around and unleashed a blast of that grey energy.

But the hand was simply too large, and after discharging its energy, the Stagbat was smashed into the ground, driven by the hand. Luckily, the strike had descended a little bit to their east, but still, there were large fissures formed on the ground from the force of that much mass crashing into the ground.

“...Think its dead?” Annie asked curiously, peering towards the impact zone. She was the only one with the nerve to ask that, Drake reflected. That girl was made of ice.

“Unfortunately not,” A voice answered, and the group turned to find the Ghosthound, looking much the worse for wear. His once regal Bone Cloak was ripped to shreds, large gashes running through it. His feet were bare, and Drake could see one of his toes was snapped. The area around his mouth and nose was stiff with dried blood as if he had been beaten repeatedly. But even so…. Even so…

Drake didn’t doubt that this man was still incredibly dangerous. What had he been fighting this whole time…? Hopefully, that opponent was dead, because if it wasn’t…

“Tsk,” The Ghosthound made an annoyed noise and cracked his neck. “The two Regalias were fused into its body. Their energy is keeping it alive… but only just. It’s a monster that shouldn’t exist. Let’s go put it out of its misery.”