Alzahkar was severely wounded. He could no longer regenerate. His legs and both arms had been cut off. Now he could only remain still, filled with rage.
Dyren walked toward Alzahkar. "This is your end!" Dyren said.
He was ready to swing his sword and end Alzahkar's life. But something about the room felt strange. Still, he ignored it.
Alzahkar shook his head. "If you do that, then he will awaken. I am the—"
SLASH!
Alzahkar's head dropped to the ground. Dyren was ready to use his undead summoning skill. But just as he was about to—
A light from within Alzahkar's body floated in one direction. His soul seemed to be pulled by something. Dyren followed where the soul moved—it passed through a wall.
"What's going on?"
DRAAPP!
The ground suddenly trembled. Dyren almost fell but was caught by the Headless King. All three of them stared in the same direction. Dyren felt a terrible premonition. Even the souls of the skeletons he summoned were being pulled toward that place. It made him curious, but a massive wall of earth blocked the way.
The tremors grew stronger. Dirt fell from the ceiling like a rain of rocks. The wall where Alzahkar's soul had passed now cracked, glowing with strange light. Dyren wanted to go there, but the place was about to collapse. He would be buried alive. He abandoned the thought.
"Sniffy!" Dyren called out quickly.
The three-headed Cerberus rushed to him, growling low. Dyren leaped onto her back, followed by the Headless King who ran behind them. The three raced toward the exit.
"We have to get out of here, now!" Dyren shouted.
Sniffy darted forward, leaping over rubble. She ran at full speed. The Headless King ran slowly, then used his teleportation skill. In the blink of an eye, he vanished and reappeared outside.
"That's cheating," Dyren muttered.
He and Sniffy still had to dodge falling rocks. More than once, they were almost crushed. Fortunately, Sniffy was dependable. She evaded every threat quickly. The exit was in sight—they leapt out and finally made it outside.
BOOOM!
Seconds later, the place collapsed. A massive crater gaped where Dyren, Sniffy, and the Headless King stood. From the far side of the crater, a yellow light glowed. Dyren's eyes widened. He recognized the light.
"The egg from before." He was certain.
The light grew larger, and the tremors worsened. A second later, the ground exploded. Sniffy jumped back. Several flying rocks nearly hit Dyren. He used Absolute Shield to block the debris. His eyes were sharp, focused.
He could feel an immensely powerful being behind the dust. Stronger even than Alzahkar.
"What sort of creature hatched from that egg...?" Dyren wondered.
***
Kael had run out of strength. He fell, but remained upright on his knees. His body was covered in wounds. Saria wanted him to stop—desperately wanted to say it—but Kael was their only hope. If Kael fell and lost, it would mean death for them all.
"You're finished, boy," said the leader of the group.
His claws were ready to tear Kael apart. He and the others charged toward Kael, determined to finish the job—but after just a few steps, their bodies began to change. They reverted to their human forms: old men and women. Some collapsed immediately.
At the same moment, the magic circle they had created vanished. Saria, Kael, and Mireille could feel their magical energy flowing again. Kael smiled and collapsed. Saria quickly caught him. She looked at Mireille, who nodded in return.
She lifted Kael, who had held on for so long.
"It's our turn now. You rest," Saria said.
She slammed her staff into the ground. Hundreds of fire spears appeared in the air. Her eyes were sharp, filled with rage and hatred. This was the first time she would kill humans. That thought made her hesitate—but she firmed her resolve.
"They're not humans. They're demons." Saria clenched her will.
In the next moment, hundreds of fire spears rained down on the villagers. Their aged bodies couldn't escape anymore. In the end, they were all killed by Saria's magic.
Not long after, the ground trembled violently from the direction of the previous ritual site. Saria and Mireille looked toward it. They remembered that Dyren was still there. They wanted to go to him—but someone appeared. A familiar face.
"Don't do it! You'll only throw your lives away," the old man warned them. "Take the hero as far away as you can."
Saria and Mireille prepared to fight. In front of them stood the village chief. Of course, they thought he was involved in all of this. Indirectly, he probably was. But he only cared about himself—not much else.
"Go quickly! The world needs you. Without you, this world will fall further into chaos," the old man said, walking toward the city gate. "You must defeat the Demon King."
Saria frowned. "Why should we believe you?"
"No reason. I'm just giving advice. The decision is yours."
After saying that, the village chief vanished along with the woman beside him. Saria and Mireille looked at each other. They glanced at Kael and Ereon, who were both unconscious. The two stayed silent for a while, torn by what to do.
"Well?" Saria asked.
Mireille sighed. "Let's go home. We can't let Kael and Ereon die. Just like the village chief said—this world needs Ereon. He must defeat the Demon King."
Saria still hesitated. She looked toward the source of the tremors, then at her two friends. She closed her eyes and finally nodded. She had made her decision.
"Alright."
***
Dyren stared at the thick dust before him with serious eyes. He gripped his sword tightly. His heart beat 1.5 times faster. Whatever creature was behind that dust, Dyren was certain—it could kill him. He had to be extremely careful.
Tringg!
[Mission complete: The hero has been saved.]
[Reward: None]
Dyren was relieved the mission was done. Though the fact that there was no reward left a bitter taste. It felt unfair. Especially since he still had to face the terrifying creature behind the thinning fog.
"Can we teleport away? What are the chances we escape this thing?" Dyren asked the Headless King.
"Zero percent. That creature is strong."
Not the answer Dyren wanted to hear. He sighed.
"No choice, huh? Looks like I'll have to fight to the death."