The monster’s body pulsed as if it were about to burst.
Then, without warning, its size began to balloon uncontrollably.
Ciel, Ruite, and Cedric all sensed the anomaly simultaneously.
The mana thickening in the air became so sharp it pricked the backs of their necks, forcing the three of them to turn toward the source at once.
The monster’s form, now large enough to scrape the cave ceiling, began to mutate.
Hard scales sprouted across its surface, covering its entire body like a suit of armor. Its mouth split into three segments, revealing rows of jagged, needle-like teeth.
Ruite swallowed hard.
‘Monster Evolution.’
The term flashed through his mind.
The physical mutation, the sudden explosion of mana—it was a textbook case of a monster undergoing evolution.
Since a Rank 3 monster had evolved, the creature before them was now at least Rank 2.
The monster unhinged its jaws, looking ready to swallow Dane whole.
“Dane!” Ciel shouted.
But Dane was paralyzed, caught in a state of pure panic.
The probability of a monster evolving was extremely low, and the chance of a mana user witnessing it firsthand was just as rare.
For Dane, who had only been with the Knights for about a year, the shock and terror were perhaps only natural.
As the monster lunged at Dane, Ciel sprinted toward him.
Ruite followed close behind.
Thump—!
The monster’s massive body slammed into the cave floor.
Stone debris sprayed in every direction as a heavy tremor shook the cavern.
It happened in a split second.
Thanks to Ciel grabbing Dane’s arm and yanking him back, they managed to avoid a direct hit.
“C-Captain!”
“Are you okay?”
“What? I—I’m fine, but Captain, you—!”
“Ugh…!”
“Captain!”
Ciel groaned, clutching his right forearm.
Blood flowed down his arm and dripped onto the ground.
Dane’s face went bone-white.
Ciel had successfully saved Dane from the attack, but in the process, his arm had been deeply gouged by the monster’s razor-sharp teeth.
Having missed its mark, the monster writhed once more, radiating pure hostility toward the two.
As Ciel reached for his sword despite the pain, Ruite, who had rushed up from behind, quickly deployed a shield.
“Ruite!”
“Captain, I think this monster has evolved!”
“I know! I think so too.”
Dane wiped away cold sweat, muttering vacantly, “Evolution…?”
He clearly never imagined he’d encounter such a thing.
“Cedric! Report to the situation room and request backup! It’s at least Rank 2, and it might even reach Rank 1. In my injured state, I’m not enough!”
“Yes, sir!”
Cedric fumbled frantically for his communication crystal.
Just then, a sharp cracking sound echoed from Ruite’s shield.
The monster’s teeth looked ready to pierce straight through the mana barrier.
Ruite glanced back, deactivated the shield, and quickly hoisted both Ciel and Dane, leaping a great distance to the opposite side.
The cave shook again with a violent vibration.
The shockwave from the monster’s merciless strike caused Ruite to lose his footing upon landing, and he tumbled forward.
“Ugh!”
Dane and Ciel fell with him.
“Captain, your wound?”
Ruite checked Ciel’s injury first.
His expression darkened.
The wound was deeper than expected, and Ciel was already losing sensation in his arm.
To make matters worse, Ciel was right-handed, and it was his right arm that was mangled.
As a Knight Captain, Ciel was a Rank 2 mana user.
Under normal circumstances, he could have handled this monster, but the injury was a fatal handicap.
Confirming Ciel’s condition, Ruite drew his sword.
“Ruite, it’s impossible. That thing is at least Rank 2…”
“Senior Cedric is calling for backup, so someone will be here soon. I’ll just hold out until then.”
Dane was still too shaken to fight, and Ciel was incapacitated.
Ciel could try to stand his ground, but if the injury caused him to stumble while facing the monster, he could suffer a far worse wound—or even lose his life.
Ruite gripped his sword, momentarily regretting his earlier insistence that Varen should leave.
“I should have just asked him to stay.”
Ruite pivoted, narrowly dodging the monster as it crawled rapidly toward him.
At the same time, he funneled mana into his sword and thrust it toward the creature’s body.
The blade reacted to Ruite’s mana, glowing with a mysterious orange light.
The swords issued by the Knights were crafted from special mana stones that resonated with the user’s power.
It was leagues beyond the wooden practice swords he had used at the Academy; it felt as though it was perfectly drawing out his inner strength.
However, Ruite’s blade failed to pierce the monster’s hide.
Because of its evolution, the creature was now protected by dense, interlocking scales.
The trick of dissolving its fluid with water wouldn’t work this time.
Ruite immediately retreated, bracing for the monster’s next move.
The monster seemed to have fully identified Ruite as its primary enemy.
It ignored Ciel and Dane entirely, lunging only at Ruite.
Ruite moved with agility, dodging strikes and swinging his sword repeatedly, but he made little progress.
The scales covered the creature perfectly.
While Ruite could inflict minor wounds by maximizing his mana, a decisive, lethal blow was out of reach.
Cedric joined the fray after finishing the report, but he fared no better than Ruite.
As a Rank 3 mana user, he couldn’t overwhelm a creature that had reached at least Rank 2.
“Haah…”
Ruite exhaled sharply, his mind racing.
Whether monster or human, as long as it was a living thing, it had to have a weakness.
He refused to believe in a perfect, invulnerable existence.
Even if this creature had grown stronger through evolution, it had to be the same.
There had to be one spot that would yield a fatal reaction.
Just then, seemingly irritated by the prolonged battle, the monster unhinged its jaws and let out a roar.
Its mouth tore open in three directions, revealing the terrifying silhouette of its teeth.
Staring at that sight, Ruite adjusted his grip on his sword.
As the creature lashed out at Cedric, Ruite lunged forward and drove his blade toward its body again.
Sensing Ruite’s mana, the monster turned and charged at him with ferocious speed, its mouth wide open as if to swallow him.
“Ruite! It’s dangerous!”
Before Cedric’s warning could even reach him, Ruite kicked off the ground and leapt high, raising his sword.
The blade blazed with orange light, carving a trajectory of fire through the air.
This time, Ruite didn’t aim for the hardened scales.
He aimed for the center of the three-way split of its open mouth.
Just because the exterior was too hard to pierce didn’t mean the interior was the same.
Sure enough, Ruite’s sword tore through the soft flesh inside the monster’s mouth, sinking deep.
While the others watched in shock, Ruite flooded the blade with even more mana.
The flames erupting from the sword began to char the inside of the monster’s throat.
Ruite gritted his teeth against a pain that felt like his arm was being torn from its socket, putting every ounce of strength into his grip.
The attack worked.
The monster reacted differently than before, thrashing wildly and letting out a shrill scream.
‘Just a little more.’
As Ruite focused his spirit, the monster violently whipped its head to the side.
The sheer force and speed sent Ruite flying, slamming him into the cave wall.
“Ugh!”
“Ruite!”
Ruite stood up, clutching his right side.
The situation was spiraling toward the worst-case scenario.
The monster still had strength left to rampage, and the giant creature’s thrashing was causing ominous vibrations in the cave.
The risk of collapse that Ciel had feared was becoming a reality.
“When is backup getting here…?”
Ruite bit his lip and steadied his stance.
The monster’s mouth was still smoking from Ruite’s fire, but the fact that it was now twice as enraged was very bad news.
“…This is actually getting dangerous.”
Ruite whispered like a sigh as the monster, radiating a murderous aura, began to close the distance.
The frantic voices of his comrades echoed in his ears, but unfortunately, his legs wouldn’t move as he wanted.
The last attack had drained his mana, and his arms were trembling.
At the very moment Ruite stood paralyzed, panting for breath, sharp spikes suddenly erupted from the cave floor, skewering the monster’s neck.
“…”
The rampaging monster froze as if turned to stone.
Blue currents of electricity crackled violently around the spikes.
Ruite recognized that familiar mana and looked up just as the electric charge intensified, exploding and obliterating the creature’s head.
Because Ruite’s fire was still lingering in its throat, the explosion was even more devastating.
A powerful shockwave and a gust of wind tore through the cavern.
Ruite instinctively squeezed his eyes shut as monster flesh and stone debris flew through the air, but strangely, he felt no impact.
Ruite slowly opened his eyes.
A broad, familiar back occupied his vision.
A shield had already been erected around them.
“This is Captain Chester. The evolution-type monster found in the Arenve Village cave has been subjugated. No further support is required.”
Chester reported the kill into his communication crystal, and a voice from the situation room acknowledged the message.
The light from the crystal dimmed as the connection was severed.
Chester turned around to look at Ruite.
Their gazes locked in the dim light of the cave.
Looking into Chester’s low, deep, and unnervingly calm eyes, Ruite instinctively swallowed.
For some reason, he felt like Chester was furious.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been as happy to see you as I am today.”
When Chester remained silent, Ruite scratched the back of his head, feeling awkward.
But Chester didn’t say a word; he simply closed the distance between them with steady, heavy steps.
“Wait, why aren’t you saying anyth—”
Before Ruite could finish his sentence, Chester reached out, pulled Ruite into his arms, and held him tight.
