CHAPTER 39: WYVERNE

"You should really learn to smile," Liam retorted. "Especially in front of your fiancée. Oh, sorry... you don’t have one." He slightly lifted his glasses to taunt him.

Leonard ignored the provocation. He was already staring at the holographic map projected in the crystal on his belt.

"This sector is stable for now. We’re moving towards the Meridian Caves."

"You Dominus, always charging headfirst," sighed Élisabeth as she joined her cousin.

"You talk too much for someone who’s only fired one arrow," Leo said without even looking at her.

"Maybe because your eyes can’t keep up with the speed yet," she snapped back dryly.

A strange tension hung in the air, barely noticeable. Leo looked at her, an odd glint in his eyes.

"I hope you’ll keep your aim steady... when the real threats arrive."

"It’s not the beasts I’m worried about," she murmured.

Everyone felt it. The atmosphere was shifting. The deeper they ventured into the heart of the volcano, the more frenzied, mutated, and uncontrollable the beasts became. And the fragile alliances, like the one between Arrow and Dominus, seemed destined to shatter.

Leonard raised his hand.

"Twenty-minute break. Check crystals, rations, and weapon status."

The students from both factions scattered to catch their breath. Some tended to their wounds. Others discussed in small groups.

Liam approached Helena, his expression slightly more serious.

"You feel it, don’t you? This mana... it’s not natural. Something’s driving the monsters to become more and more violent. I think we’re getting close to the heart."

"We all know it here," Leonard commented. And I’m telling you now, Dawnflare: if your little mages ever turn against my men in an unstable zone... I’ll consider them enemies.

Liam smiled.

"Rest assured. If anyone betrays first, it’ll probably be me."

The two locked eyes for a moment, then burst into tense laughter. Helena, from a distance, watched them.

They weren’t fools. They could be rivals, but making the other an enemy would create a war none of them wanted.

Élisabeth, meanwhile, observed Leo.

And deeper in the mountain’s bowels... something stirred.

...

The ashes had barely settled around the charred corpse of the salamander when the sky itself seemed to crack with a piercing scream. The hot breath emanating from the Mountain of Death suddenly thickened, smothering even the roar of the surrounding flames.

And then...

The shadow.

A monstrous wingbeat shook the earth, sending a shockwave that made even the most seasoned warriors stumble. Every member of the factions looked up, breath caught in their throats. A colossal silhouette tore through the clouds above the rocky ridge, its outline etched against the blood-red glow of the setting sun.

"Is that... a Wyvern?!" choked a soldier from the Arrow Faction, his fingers tightening on his weapon as if to convince himself he wasn’t dreaming.

But they weren’t at the heart of the dungeon. It was worse: the Wyvern itself was the source of this mana deluge, its mere passage warping the air like a furnace.

"Impossible!" growled another, his voice shattered by disbelief. "This dungeon is ranked B! That... that’s an A-rank abomination or higher!"

The creature dove suddenly, its membranous wings unfolding like the sails of a burning battleship. Its reptilian body, sculpted from what looked like molten basalt, glowed with crimson veins of corrupted mana. Its curse-distended maw spewed a torrent of flames, a blast so violent it vaporized an entire Dominus formation on the spot, leaving behind only a sheet of black glass and muffled screams.

In the chaos, Leonard emerged from the flames, his aura pulsing like a beacon in the storm.

*Affinity Incarnation: Light*

"Retreat formation, now! Switch to Radiant scheme!" Leo roared, his bow already drawn.

Then he added,

"I’ll take the left flank."

Beside him, Helena clenched her teeth, her magic circles overheating with furious crackling. "Liam... this thing wasn’t in the forecast. If it gets any lower, it’s a massacre."

Liam’s eyes narrowed to silver slits. "Then we stop it here. It’s a young Wyvern... We can kill it."

His mana exploded suddenly, the winds twisting around him like a chained beast.

*Dawnflare Arrow*

A green light streaked across the sky like a gust, heading straight for the beast’s left eye. The Wyvern, with demonic agility, twisted its neck—the arrow missed its target by inches, crashing into the cliffside with a detonation that sent debris raining down.

Helena leaped into the air, propelled by fiery circles beneath her feet. She crossed the creature at neck height.

*Secondary Circle: Crescent of Fire!*

Her two arms flared into slicing crescents, tearing through the Wyvern’s scaly skin. It screamed, a shriek so piercing that several students collapsed, blood streaming from their ears.

Leonard channeled a blinding aura into his sword.

"Leonard, right flank. Élisabeth, rear angle."

"You don’t give orders to my subjects," Liam replied, but his feet were already moving to the ideal position.

The Wyvern landed brutally, shaking the entire mountain. Its weight shattered the rock beneath its claws. It swung its spike-studded mana tail toward Leo, who dodged with an agile roll, then drew his bow.

*Triple Piercing*

Three white aura arrows whistled toward the monster’s flank. One struck its belly, another the base of its wing, the last ricocheted harmlessly.

Arcadia art only knew the sword, but Leo had adapted it to his needs, mastering dual wielding and even archery.

Élisabeth ran up an unstable slope, her eyes fixed on the beast’s heart. With a fluid motion, she loosed an arrow.

*Flare Cutting Shot*

Her arrow buried itself in the Wyvern’s rear joint. It screamed, took a step back, then beat its wings furiously.

Rocks shattered. Mana bolts flashed. The mountain reacted as if it were alive. Mana pulsed in the air, distorting perceptions. Every attack became a gamble, every dodge, a deadly dance.

And then, it happened.

As Élisabeth circled the creature to regain a firing position, an arrow sliced through the air... straight toward her.

Her eyes widened.

She reflexively threw herself to the side—the arrow grazed her temple, tearing through her cloak—before embedding itself deep into the Wyvern’s right wing. A perfect shot, from an impossible angle.

She rolled, got up, breath short.

"What the..." she gasped.