Atsumi POV

“Are you serious?” Lyria blurted out. “How do you expect her to do an attack like that again when she can barely stand?”

Enan upon hearing this, quickly held his palm towards him as he tried to explain himself further.

“I can understand that, but unless any of us have an attack of similar power, I don’t see any other way.”

Everyone in the group was quiet. No one really seemed to have an answer. Lyria thought for a moment, her bright green eyes looking down as she shifted her weight onto one leg. She seemed to ponder on something, while occasionally muttering to herself. 

“Like I said, I can manage.” I said, interrupting her. “I just need one shot.”

“Are you Sure?” she replied, her eyes narrowing on me

“I’m sure. Besides, someone as strong as you should be able to make an opening for me.” I said, trying to appeal to her.

“Alright, I’ll trust you on this,” she said, still hesitant.

 

I look towards Enan, who shoots me an encouraging smile, which dragged my thoughts back to when he had rescued me. 

My body was stiff as I looked up into the branches. I found myself not wanting to move at all. As if that wind trap had blown all the willpower out of me.

 “I didn’t expect you to give up so easily.” Was what he said as he carried me away from the Sentinel. I don’t know what exactly he meant, but I felt ashamed, as if I had done something that went against my own principles.

 I held out the artifact he had given to me to replenish my internal mana and Qi. An item I didn’t even know even existed. It was a single Silver ring attached to a necklace, with a single pearl nestled at the head and coupled with two smaller pearls on each side. It was quite extravagant for a simple artifact, but the mana it emitted seemed stable and untainted by any elemental force. I was wary of it at first because I didn’t trust random sources of mana, but he assured me it would be fine. I didn’t expect it to be so easy to absorb; it felt as if I had absorbed my mana, albeit more diluted. 

 

I recalled the sword out. Its golden crystalline body shone even without the help of any sunlight. The sword was long and heavy, and I still struggled to carry it properly. Runic inscriptions and carvings lined the center of the blade, some recognizable to me.

Taking a deep breath and grabbing the hilt of the sword, I plunged it into the soil to have it passively gather more mana. I had enough internal mana for one attack, but the sword hadn’t had enough time to gather earth attuned mana since I kept it in storage ever since my last encounter with the Sentinel. 

I had no affinity to earth attuned mana, so I had no way to actively gather earth attuned mana into it, and I can’t induce electrical charges without incorporating Qi.

 

I looked over to Senna and Bale, contemplating who to call over. “Senna, can you help me with something quickly?” I called out.

She looked back towards the cryptid, which was still in a frenzy, eliminating players one after the other. She hastily shuffled over to me to come face to face with the sword in my hand, which prompted a confused look from her.

“Can you help? I need the sword to have its own mana source since I can’t supply any.”

Eyeing the blade with a level of intrigue only seen from Lyria, she held her hands out, placing it on its crystalline surface.

Almost instantly, mana began flowing into the sword. The main reason I called her and not bale, even though they have the same innate affinity with earth. Senna’s control and insight were leaps and bounds ahead of him. I couldn’t help but think she was limiting herself by being in the archer role. She could be a powerful caster.

I then closed my eyes, channeling my mana and QI, just enough to not waste the little I had left. Slowly, I allowed the static to build.

“That’s enough, thank you Senna.”

 “Don’t mention it kiddo,” she said while giving me a thumbs up. “Let’s put this fossil back into the dirt where it belongs,” she said, trying to cheer me on.

 

She went back over to the group to monitor the cryptid. Our strategy was to wear it down, hit it between the openings of the armor and when it is tired and held down by either Lyria’s or some other binding spell, I come in.

After explaining our primary goal, everyone got into position. I stayed back, continuing to build charge within the sword. Anna stood beside me as she stuffed a collection of potions in her bag.

“Everyone ready? Awesome, let’s go,” Lyria said, not even waiting for a response before jumping into the fray.

“Honestly, this girl.” Senna remarked.

 

Quickly, they approached the heat of the battle. Shards of ice, stone, and many magical spells whizzed through the air around the tower. I could feel the torrent of mana all the way over where I stood, which threatened to break the fragile balance of gathering mana and while saving as much of my own.

 

The Sentinel was a towering mass of stone and flesh amongst the others. Its attacks were wide and wild, a similar motion an irritated person would do when trying to swat down a fly.

Its attention quickly snapped to Lyria as if recognizing her. It huffed and then bellowed before sinking its spear into the ground. Stone spikes erupted from the ground and fanned outwards. 

Senna, upon seeing this, clasped her hands together, causing 7 stone pillars to lift every team mate from the ground, sparing them the incoming wave of spikes. Those unfortunate enough to be caught in it, let's just say they were transported out of the domain quickly. Every single pain receptor we had was active here, regardless of the dampening effect. I couldn't imagine how they felt.

Realizing that it was now approaching me, I jumped up into a nearby tree, keeping my concentration and making sure I wasn’t spotted. 

The beast then pointed its antlers towards my teammates and charged with full intent to crush and dismember.

It had no trees to block its path now; it had already flattened and uprooted them all. Lyria just stood still, silently chanting, clearly baiting the creature.

When it was now only some 10 meters away, Cedric bolted in front of Lyria, shield in hand, and activated Aegis. The force of the blow changed direction, causing the cryptid to lose its balance and fall onto its back.

Green vines sprouted from the ground and bound it to the ground. Senna then took aim and, with great accuracy, launched an arrow that traveled, through the barrage of spells and then through the gaps of the sentinel’s armor, hitting it straight in the left eye. More attacks fell onto it, most focused towards its face.

 

Thinking this was my chance, I ran in closer towards it, getting ready to say the word to awaken the runic blade, but the gathering of mana caused me to stop. It was like the time I fought the headless cryptid back in Hakuni. Cryptids are beings completely made of mana. Unless the air was devoid of any ambient mana, they would have an endless supply.

It ripped itself free from the binding vines and then slammed its first into the ground, causing the earth to quake. Three towering pillars then erupted from the ground and in them, I could sense the buildup of fire for attuned mana. Then it leaped into the air, disappearing within the smoke that lingered above only to come back down crashing into one pillar. Magma then burst from the ground ahead of that pillar, completely engulfing everything in a sea of flames.

 It Leaped once again, aiming to smash into another pillar. Before it could land back down, a trident pierced through two of the pillars, ceasing all mana accumulation. In the same breath, the specter of a long wingless dragon launched out from the trees clamping the cryptid in its jaws. I could vaguely see the silhouette of the draco girl as she controlled the specter from within.

On the ground, the owner trident appeared from behind the trees, moving in towards the Sentinel. A merfolk boy, his semi long aquamarine hair seemed to simulate flowing water. The air he gave off was like Lyria and the Draco girl, another talented youth born into royalty.

 

 Looking back towards the sentinel, both it and the dragon were in a frantic tussle within the tall forest trees. The draco who was within the form of the dragon positioned herself and swung her halberd onto its armor.

Even though it did minor damage, it still generated enough force to dislodge the sentinel from the branches of the trees.

It rose to its feet once more and swung its spear down towards her. She blocked the incoming attacks, but each subsequent strike caused her to lose balance. Eventually, it flung her across the forest and quickly followed up by throwing its spear where she landed, which she then barely paired. All while this was happening, the mana infused rock armor was bombarded with long range spells. 

This thing was way too resilient, and it moved way too much, leaving no openings for me. I had long since gathered enough lightning attuned mana and constantly had to resupply as some of the charge faded. 

There were no openings. I tapped my heel against the soil below me, considering if I should intervene. The cryptid was indeed getting more and more injured, but the fires were already within the structure. The heat was becoming more and more unbearable. We had little time left.

Another trident suddenly whistled through the ear, striking an exposed spot near its ankle shattering it. The cryptid fell to the ground as the ankle buckled under its weight. 

Spells of all kinds now descended onto it. These attacks clearly had little effect, but everyone just kept attacking in desperation. Everyone knew now the Sentinel was the last obstacle to passing this trial, the final boss that needed to be defeated. 

 In an act of defiance, it gathered an enormous amount of earth mana and, in one skull shaking roar, it let out a shockwave of pure earth mana, disrupting all spells and giving it time to get back up. Everyone stood confused as their magic simply fizzled. It then unleashed a beam of pure earth energy from its eyes. A long ranged laser beam that petrified everything it hit.

This felt like a complete waste of time. Every time we get it pinned down, it gets back up. I was becoming impatient. I had gathered the required amount of ambient mana into the sword and even recovered some of my own, but the opportunity never presented itself and I didn’t think it ever would.

 

The cryptid now constantly released pulses of earth mana, then unleashed mana beams out towards us, each time repeating the same process.

My legs were now twitching. I had my fist tightly clenched for so long they felt numb. The heat that radiated from the flames behind me was now clawing at my back. Suffocating smoke now mixed in with the air that filled my lungs. Maybe what I did was a little foolish, but I left to face the Sentinel directly. 

The building impatience I felt had now reached its peak and I could no longer sit still. If this thing didn’t settle down, then I would go to it and deal with it myself.