CHAPTER 106: MYTHICAL HUNT (1)

The three individuals inside instinctively turned to look at the nearest source, noticing that there was now a deep blue crystal planted at the cavern entrance.

Behind it was a female Veshari, her name displayed in yellow.

A C-ranker.

There was a nervous expression on her face as she slapped another piece of paper in the blue crystal.

In the next moment, another loud explosion happened, finally releasing swampwater from the roots of the strange growth.

A fourth of the cavern floor was made into a wetland in less than half a second.

That was how fast the swampwater rushed out of the crystal’s base.

Kazuraga’s pupils turned vertical once more, realizing what was happening.

"MEHE! Vesharis hunting me? MEHEHEHEHE! You idiots must be out of your minds if you think this will–"

But then, before the mythical spawn could finish his words, the female Veshari slapped yet another small piece of paper at the deep blue crystal, causing yet another explosion.

Less than a moment later, water began sprinkling out of the crystal like a modern fire contingency system that detected smoke.

Its force was enough to cover three-fourths of the entire cavern, vertical height included, but it remained light on the skin, like a gentle rain.

The other crystal at the back, planted by Ae’shkar himself, also did the same.

Almost instantly, Kazuraga’s cavern was covered by swampwater.

It was simply impossible not to get wet.

"Lothara, now!" roared Ae’shkar from the back.

But the young, small, slim female Veshari with short, maroon hair was already moving.

"Shut up, I know. Don’t order me around," she said with a slight grit in her tone as she threw three sharp red stones.

They stabbed deep at three corners of the entrance, blocking it off.

The barrier then began emitting a faint vibration felt only by a single individual in the cavern: Kazuraga the Exiled.

"MEHE! MEHEHEHE! You’re prepared, little grays..." the mythical swordspawn said in the voice of a stoic general of the ancient east, a hint of chilling coldness in his tone.

Daru noticed this. He could feel that Kazuraga was serious this time.

"Invite the other little bastards in, then. Let’s see who’ll come out alive. You greenhorns who barely know a thing, or me, who had already survived decades and predicaments beyond your wildest imaginations? MEHE! MEHEHE!"

In the next moment, Daru felt a small, soft palm wrap around his wrists, gripping tightly.

Iris pulled him to one of the corners as the chaos ensued, securing a small area for themselves and protecting their backs using the terrain.

It would be unwise to remain in their previous position.

Soon enough, more Vesharis flooded in from the entrance, passing through the red barrier that only allowed entry and not exit.

Daru recognized some of them.

Halphar, Asipha, Ahfa, Akri, and a few others who were in the party that hunted him.

But this time, there were no low-rankers.

Everyone was ranked C and above.

Weak links were not allowed. After all, they would be hunting a mythical swordspawn, one far beyond a mere novice’s reach.

If their grove only had the manpower, they would’ve filled the entire party with A-rankers and above.

Unfortunately, their grove elders were unwilling to give the other groves a piece of the pie, even at the risk of the said pie turning things around and wiping them out.

This operation would only end up in either a complete disaster or a glorious triumph.

Even if the majority of them were killed in the process, as long as Lothara and Ae’shkar survived, it would count towards the latter.

If there was a thing Vesharis were good at, it was planning and preparation, and Elder Alshar went all out in this operation.

The Ashiara Great Grove’s competence was about to be tested.

Kazuraga drew both of his blades, bleating maniacally in unsettling, intermittent laughter as his pupils spun slowly from horizontal to vertical, then from vertical to horizontal, every two seconds.

Meanwhile, the Vesharis circled the spawn, a small force with Halphar in the lead tasked to prevent the two human S-rankers from meddling.

The tension was rising, and it was becoming increasingly more difficult to breathe for the less confident.

A brief yet deafening silence resounded in the cavern as the Vesharis got into position.

Then, the harrowing calm shattered.

Kazuraga turned into a blur and disappeared.

The next thing a majority knew, the female C-ranker near the deep blue crystal had been decapitated, red cubic particles spurting out of her neck as her figure kneeled and dissipated.

"MEHE! MEHEHE!" the mythical spawn laughed eerily, quickly turning to block the meeting, reversed crescent sword Daru had once clashed with.

A smooth clang echoed in the cavern.

Kazuraga then jumped, narrowly avoiding the strangely curved crescent blade that aimed to take his remaining leg from the maroon blur that just passed.

Ae’shkar and Lothara would naturally not allow the mythical spawn to destroy the crystals that easily.

If Kazuraga really wanted to, then he could, but he must pay with either his remaining limbs or his head.

The two SS-rankers of the Veshari race wouldn’t settle for anything less.

"MEHE!" the mythical spawn bleated, thoroughly annoyed by the drastic drop in attributes it was suffering thanks to the swampwater and the red energy emitted by the strange barrier.

He could easily wipe the floor with everyone here in less than a minute had he had all of his limbs, even if the stupid blue crystals and dumb red stones weakened him to this degree.

A cacophony of metallic clangs and curses played in the background as the two SS-rankers courageously confronted the satyr.

"That dumb bird...dumb bird! Dumb bird!! Dumb bird!!!" Kazuraga rasped in mentally unstable fury as he fought in the tight space near the crystal, slowly navigating his way back to the spacious center.

He knew he wouldn’t be able to destroy the crystals or the barrier as long as these two existed.

He must kill at least one of them first...

With footwork like that of a phantom, despite having only one leg, the mythical spawn tactically moved, making the two Vesharis break out into cold sweats with every swing of its amethyst sword.

One small misstep and they’re dead.

Meanwhile, in one corner of the cavern, things were also starting to heat up.