Extra's Descent

"Kuhah…"

Inside a ruined temple, a man sat on his throne.

Long platinum blonde hair flowed down his shoulders, and a purple blazing crown seemed to float above his head.

He gazed up and his eyes flickered a purple glow. There, he could see an attendant, with sleek gray hair and hazel eyes.

"Did it work, Lord Ezekiel?"

"Better. I found something more interesting."

Ezekiel spoke with a calm and authoritative tone.

"It seems there was a second one."

"Another Sovereign?"

"Yes."

"Wouldn't that push back our plans?"

"No."

Ezekiel raised his head to meet his attendant's gaze. The attendant swallowed, and his ears perked up.

"We'll proceed. This is even better than I imagined."

"I see."

Ezekiel turned his head to the side. Chains wrapped around both of his arms, legs, and neck, connecting to the ground.

It was a curse placed on him. Despite being summoned for a century, he couldn't break the chains no matter what he did.

"Go."

"Understood, Lord Ezekiel."

Ezekiel.

Otherwise known as one of the Circles of Hell, Melancholy.

And,

…A high Wraith.

***

The next day.

The journey continued from there.

But it was the journey back to the forest.

"Have you told them?"

"Yes, the Army is currently investigating."

Brandon asked and Amelia responded.

He had already told her about the situation regarding the syndicate, right after the phone call with Zed a few weeks ago.

It was only now that he had gotten the confirmation.

It took the army a lot of convincing that Amelia's claims were true.

But after reports of ships being sighted, the army finally got to work.

And now, the army seemed to be peering out for any suspicious individuals that had managed to slip into the human domain.

With Zed on his side, Brandon had given a tip—in which Amelia passed to the army regarding the syndicate's next meeting.

Hopefully, it would push their plans behind.

But he doubted it would change much.

A war was coming.

And Brandon had to be strong enough by then to cross those tides.

But for now, he had to trudge the forest ahead of him.

It was still snowing. The cold breezes brushed over his bangs, and piles of snow scattered in his steps.

The quest was still there.

—[Chain–Act]—

[Save the Elf.]

[Rewards:]

[Act Progression: 5%]

[Wraiths' Descent: –2%]

————

That, and the quest to escort Carl.

For some reason, it was still incomplete.

Brandon was unsure what conditions he had to meet to accomplish the quest and receive his reward.

But regardless, he could only trust in the system.

A plan arose in his mind as he recalled the quest to save the elf.

If somehow, he managed to accomplish the task, he could use the elf child as a bargaining chip to meet with the elves.

If he were successful, the elves' assistance in the war would be greatly appreciated.

But it was a wishful thought.

He didn't know the elves' nature.

A friend, or a foe?

He could only find out.

They continued their march.

The forest stretched far wide. It took them a whole week just to cross it.

—Awooo!

Frostwolves loomed in every corner. Brandon and Amelia quickly got to work, assisting each other in every chance they got.

Voosh—!

Brandon felt his strength continue to increase, as well as his intelligence stat.

Crack!

With too many Frostwolves, baring their fangs, attacking them during every encounter, before he knew it, he had broken through the A ranks.

[STR: A-]

Time passed, and the fighting persisted. But they were well used to the Frostwolves' pattern already.

It was…

Cr… Crack!

Bang! Bang!

A piece of a cake.

Time passed, and finally.

"...."

There, they could see the tall crystal tree.

However, only this time…

"...."

Boom! Boom!

The Behemoth was there, sluggishly walking around, each step heavy leaving a booming sound.

It walked around the crystal tree as if it was protecting it.

"Ah."

It definitely was.

Brandon realized there were similarities with the way the crystal looked from both the Behemoth, and the crystal tree.

Not only that, but the mana signature the Behemoth emitted was strikingly similar to the crystal tree.

Then…

"Ah."

An idea suddenly sparked.

However, he had to prove his suspicions correct.

"Carl."

Carl immediately nodded his words. Brandon extended his palms and an earth shell materialized from the ground, shielding Carl.

A hole pierced right through the shield for oxygen purposes.

After finishing his preparations, Brandon turned his head to look at Amelia who looked back at him.

The two nodded at each other without exchanging any words.

Immediately, the two bolted from their position in two opposite directions.

[Mana Burst]

Brandon felt his body surged with power, and his body felt lighter and lighter in an instant.

[Aeolus Blessing]

Swoosh!

He ran. Each step he took lifted him upwards as if he was walking a flight of stairs.

Wind fluttered and brushed the snow in the vicinity. His blazer fluttered along with the breeze.

"....!"

The golem took notice of him. Its glowing blue eyes flickered continuously as it slowly turned its large head, looking at him.

Its arms suddenly raised up high slowly. Brandon felt a gust of wind brush past his bangs.

Extending his palms forward, an ice sword materialized in his hand and he clenched the handle tightly.

Despite the fact that there were no gaps in the Behemoth's army, there was a certain spot that had caught his attention.

It's eyes.

They were unprotected.

Surely, it was its weak spot.

And since Brandon had the ability to go up high in the air, he was the perfect candidate to deal the blow.

Its large fists suddenly swung down at him.

Boom—!

All of a sudden, an abundance of light pierced from the ground, pushing the Behemoth's fist back.

No cracks were formed. But the Behemoth definitely felt the sheer impact of Amelia's railgun.

Brandon smiled at the thought.

With Amelia's assistance, he can focus on getting the high ground.

Boom—!

After the Behemoth's several attempts, Brandon had finally neared its head.

Its large eyes continued to flicker and Brandon met its ominous gaze.

Magic power started to gather on his ice sword. A sudden glow suddenly emitted, and Brandon felt the ice sword grow heavy.

Lightning started to surge within him, and he felt all his muscles contract.

"Huuu…"

Taking a deep heavy breath, Brandon braced himself.

"....!"

His alarm bells suddenly rang, and the Behemoth's large fist swung straight towards him.

Tzz—

Brandon blinked forward, using the Behemoth's arm as his foothold.

He sprinted, leaving blue streaks in his trail.

Tzz—

Extending his left hand down, black flames suddenly ignited and Brandon directed the attack on the Behemoth's arms as he continued to dash ahead.

And finally, two large blue eyes flickered in front of him.

.

.

[[You have slain a Crystal Golem!]

[+40% EXP]

——[Sovereign's Will]——

[Name: Brandon Locke]

[Mana Core: Tier 4]

[Status: A]

[Innate]

∟ Sovereign of Creation — Level 8

∟ Experience — 3.5%

——————————

——[Status]——

∟ STR: A- —[2%]

∟ MP: A+ —[27%]

∟ DEF: C+ —[12%]

∟ AGI: B —[29%]

∟ INT: A+ —[14%]

∟ CHA: S —[0%]

[AVG: A]

————————

Safely reaching the ground, Brandon looked at the crystal golem.

Amelia appeared by his side and the two watched as cracks appeared all over the crystal golem. Slowly, it crumbled down in bits.

Crack!

A cracking sound rang all the way from behind, and the two flicked their heads towards the direction.

Scanning, the crystal tree began to crack as well.

And shortly after…

The little elven girl with lilac hair broke free, gently falling on the ground.