Chapter 69: Having So much fun!
Chapter 69
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it." Rina mumbled as she bit her nails, her eyes locked on the window of the clan hall, watching the battle unfold outside.
She wasn’t the only one inside. Everyone deemed useless and incapable of contributing had been ordered to remain within the safety of the hall, forced to watch the battle anxiously. Each breath carried tension, and each heartbeat sounded louder than the clash of blades outside.
Those fighting were mostly D-ranked Reavers, with a handful of C-rankers leading the charge. Dust clouds rose with every impact, screams and roars mingling in the air.
Aria sat perched by the window beside Rina, her bow drawn and an arrow already notched, her sharp gaze locked on the battlefield. She waited patiently for the right moment, her fingers twitching on the string, eager to release death upon one of the rampaging beasts.
"Why are you shivering?" Aria asked, not sparing Rina a glance as she kept her eyes trained forward, searching for an opening of some sort.
"Why won’t I shiver? When it looks like we’ll all lose our lives here." Rina’s voice cracked, her hands trembling as she gulped nervously. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Jace get whacked away with terrifying force, his body crashing into the dirt.
Damn it!
"Relax. Those outside will handle it just fine. They’re only C-ranked beasts, and we’ve got some strong C-rankers fighting." Aria stuttered mid-sentence, her breath hitching as she too witnessed Jace get flung away. "Uhm... well, we still have Erin. And that new young C-ranker with the lightning Veil, he looks pretty strong."
"Just in case you forgot, let me remind you." Rina spun sharply to glare at Aria, though Aria refused to take her eyes off the battlefield. "This is a B-ranked break. Which means we’ll be facing a B-ranked boss sooner or later. And I don’t need to remind you what happened last time, do I?"
Aria’s body stiffened. She didn’t reply. Her limbs tensed as memories surged back—memories of the last B-ranked battle. How useless she had felt. How powerless all of them had been. She hadn’t even been capable of distracting the enemy, let alone harming it.
’We almost died... every single one of us. Even with Jace unleashing his strongest attacks, he could only slice off that ogre’s limbs. That was all. We were saved by Sir Tom, the strongest B-ranked Reaver in the world. If not for him, none of us would be standing here.’
Her heart thumped harder, echoing like a drum in her chest.
"But now... now there’s no Sir Tom. No one. All the higher-ranked Reavers are either out on missions or in places we know nothing of. If a true B-rank boss shows up...’
Aria’s lips quivered as she held her breath, forcing her trembling hands to steady the bowstring.
---
Deeper inside the clan base, a different tension brewed. The ones who monitored distortions—the "Monitors" were in a frenzy.
The screens before them blinked with crimson warnings, alarms echoing throughout the room. They scrambled to send urgent messages to any high-ranked Reaver nearby, their fingers flying across communication devices.
But no matter how many times they tried, no connection went through.
That was the worst part. This world had its share of modern innovations—tools and communication devices eerily similar to those of the real world, developed mysteriously only a few years ago.
Each B-rank and above Reaver was issued one, a lifeline to connect with the base or with teammates during critical missions.
Yet now... silence. The line was dead.
"What about the clan master? Call him down here." One monitor blurted out in desperation, spinning to face the others with wide, frightened eyes.
"Are you crazy? Did you forget what time it is?" another barked back, his gaze flicking to the glowing screen on the wall.
The first man turned and froze.
"1:30 p.m."
"Glad you can read. Now tell me—what happens at this time?"
"The master... he’s always asleep. Every year, for three days straight, beginning at this exact hour." The man’s voice cracked, the truth dawning on him.
"Now, what happens to whoever wakes him up?" the other pressed, his tone cold.
"They... they are never found." The man gulped loudly, his hands trembling.
"Exactly. So good luck volunteering to wake him."
"But... but this is urgent. The whole clan might be destroyed!"
"It won’t," another Monitor cut in firmly. "If destruction truly threatens us, the master will sense it and wake on his own. And if he does, you already know what will happen. He’ll erase the threat effortlessly."
The man’s voice dropped lower, as if afraid of even speaking too much about the master.
"Besides, it’s just a B-ranked break. Beneath our SS-ranked master. With the snap of his fingers, he could obliterate those beasts."
"Damn it... but how are those kids and young fighters supposed to survive until then?" the first monitor muttered, his stomach twisting.
"Pray," came the grim reply. "Pray a high-ranker arrives before it’s too late. Otherwise..." He trailed off, shaking his head violently, as if rejecting the terrible visions running through his mind.
__
Back at the battlefield, chaos had spread like wildfire. Screams, roars, and the sickening clash of claws against steel filled the air as every single Reaver found themselves besieged. Most were forced into desperate battles with two or more Lycans circling around them like predators savoring a feast.
Among those surrounded was Vynn. Four Lycans prowled around him, their sharp eyes gleaming, their fangs bared. But unlike the others who trembled, Vynn’s grin stretched from ear to ear. His excitement radiated like a blazing flame.
"Yipeee! Four beasts to spar with!" he exclaimed joyously, his voice carrying through the noise of battle. He unsheathed his sword, its blade instantly crackling with sparks of blue lightning.
AWOOOOOH!
The beasts lunged in unison, their speed befitting their C-rank status. Their bodies blurred as they bolted forward, claws slashing through the air. In the blink of an eye, they were upon him, their strikes aimed to tear him apart.
"Kek! Kek!" Vynn cackled, his laughter unrestrained. With movements so fluid they seemed almost playful, he leapt back and twisted away, evading the claws with ease.
His speed was frightening—his body, after awakening as a C-ranked lightning Reaver, had reshaped itself to thrive on speed, destruction, and sheer unpredictability.
It allowed him to dance between strikes as though the Lycans were moving in slow motion.
But two of the beasts refused to relent. They pounced again, their claws gleaming under the faint light as they streaked toward his neck. Vynn leaned left, then right, weaving smoothly between each deadly strike. Sparks of lightning licked across his arms, racing toward his fingertips.
In one swift motion, he lunged forward. His hand clamped tightly onto the claw of the nearest Lycan, halting its attack mid-swing. Without hesitation, he blitzed forward in a blur of light, his fist driving into the beast’s abdomen. The impact sent the Lycan skidding backward, its body crashing through debris.
Dust swirled around him, but there was no time to rest. Another Lycan leapt high into the air, its muscles bulging as it came crashing down with both claws raised overhead. The air itself seemed to tremble beneath its force.
Vynn’s reaction was instantaneous. He drew his sword fully from its sheath and swung upward to meet the descending claws.
BANG!
The clash thundered across the battlefield, and the ground beneath them gave way, cracking violently as fissures split across the earth.
’Damn it! It’s... it’s too strong. My main advantage is speed, destruction, and unpredictability, not raw strength. But... bu... but one thing still remains,’ Vynn thought, his grin unfading even as the beast pressed its full weight against him.
"I’m having so much fun!" he roared, his laughter echoing wildly. With a sudden surge of lightning sparking around his legs, he kicked off the ground, leaping back just as the beast came crashing down. Its claws smashed into the earth, shaking the battlefield and throwing up a cloud of dust.
Vynn’s eyes gleamed through the haze.
"Thunder Flash," he whispered with a chuckle. The air itself rumbled in response, low and deep, as if the heavens acknowledged his call. Lightning began to coil and crackle fiercely around his blade, humming with deadly anticipation.