Chapter 124: Awakened Tournament Crisis (30)

Luvian had even imagined the look in Eden’s eyes when he realized he had underestimated him.

But he had never imagined Eden dying.

Not once.

Because that would mean everything was over.

No victory.

No Revenge.

No opportunity to prove that he was stronger.

Just a meaningless end to the rivalry that had consumed him.

Luvian’s fingers curled into fists.

"Don’t be ridiculous."

Sonne tilted her head.

"Well, you did stop dead in your tracks."

He clicked his tongue.

"I literally just said I’m leaving."

"Oh, but of course you are."

She turned around and began walking toward the ruined streets.

"Good luck, then."

Luvian’s eyebrow twitched.

"Where the hell are you going?"

"To find Eden."

"Are you deaf? I told you to leave!"

"And I told you I’m not leaving."

She glanced over her shoulder.

"He must be exhausted from his match against Elio. They both might just die if nobody steps in."

"And since you’re too much of a coward to do it yourself..."

Luvian’s expression became positively murderous.

"You little—!"

Sonne smiled faintly.

Then she disappeared behind a collapsed building.

Luvian stood there for another three seconds.

His flames flickered around his body.

His jaw tightened.

His fists clenched.

Finally, he released a frustrated scream.

"Fine!"

The flames around him erupted.

"Im coming, so hold on already, dumbass."

He shot forward, leaving a trail of fire behind him.

He wasn’t doing this because he cared about Eden.

Absolutely not.

He simply refused to let some oversized tentacle monster steal his revenge.

That was all.

And if anyone dared to suggest otherwise, he would probably burn them alive.

---

Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the stadium ruins, Kael was beginning to regret several of his life decisions.

"Left! Sophia, left!"

Sophia immediately ducked.

A massive tentacle swept over her head, smashing into the ruined building behind her.

Kael appeared above it, both golden blades flashing.

"Judgement!"

His twin blades carved through the appendage, severing it into several enormous pieces.

The cut was clean.

The execution was flawless.

The timing was perfect.

And for approximately half a second, Kael felt like the protagonist of an epic fantasy novel.

Then the tentacle regenerated.

Its severed portions dissolved into black mist before reforming into a single, much larger appendage.

Kael stared at it.

"...Dull creature. Can’t even admit that it has lost."

The tentacle swung toward him.

He jumped backward, narrowly avoiding the strike, before landing beside Sophia.

"Are you all right?"

Sophia nodded, breathing heavily.

"I’m fine. Thank you."

She raised her hand.

She thrust her arm forward.

Her Amethyst spear shot through the air, carving a deep gash into the approaching tentacle.

An explosion of violet Essence followed.

The appendage recoiled, giving them enough time to reposition.

Kael nodded approvingly.

’Excellent. A courageous heroine, fighting against impossible odds alongside the handsome protagonist.’

’She’s only C-Rank but...’

’For the first member of my harem, she really isn’t so bad!’

His expression grew serious.

’This is practically the opening episode of my legends season—’

"Kael!"

Sophia’s voice dragged him back to reality.

"Three more!"

Kael turned.

Three tentacles were approaching from different directions.

He sighed.

His golden blades flashed again.

This time, however, the tentacles didn’t give them an opportunity to recover. More appendages emerged from the ground, forcing the pair to move continuously while defending themselves.

Kael’s advantage in rank was considerable.

As a Peak A-Rank Awakened, his attributes far exceeded Sophia’s C-Rank capabilities. His attacks could sever the smaller tentacles with relative ease, while his speed allowed him to intercept those that would otherwise catch her off guard.

Sophia, however, wasn’t entirely dead weight.

Far from it.

Her Amethyst Spear skill allowed her to attack from unexpected angles, creating openings that Kael immediately exploited.

The two gradually established a rhythm.

Sophia distracted.

Kael struck.

Sophia flanked.

Kael protected her blind spots.

And whenever the tentacles regenerated, they adjusted their approach and continued fighting.

Unfortunately, their surroundings offered little in the way of a clear path.

Every path was blocked by fallen debris. Every surrounding building had either collapsed or been swallowed by the monstrous appendages. The distant skull was almost entirely obscured by a writhing mass of black flesh.

They could barely see ten meters ahead.

"Where the hell are we supposed to go?" Kael muttered.

Sophia glanced at him.

"Toward the center, I suppose."

"Wonderful. And how exactly do you intend to find the center when we can’t see anything?!"

She pointed forward.

"By going that way?"

Kael stared at her.

Then he looked in the direction she was pointing.

A tentacle smashed through the remains of a building.

Another rose from the ground.

A third emerged from a crater, its spikes scraping against the surrounding concrete.

"...Brilliant plan."

Sophia smiled awkwardly.

"Thank you?"

"That wasn’t a compliment!"

Before either of them could continue, a bolt of lightning tore through the air.

The enormous tentacle blocking their path exploded into fragments.

Both Awakened immediately turned toward the source.

A young man stood atop the remains of a shattered streetlight, cyan hair fluttering in the wind.

His sunglasses were somehow still intact.

His Hawaiian shirt, however, had seen better days.

Alexis.

He raised a hand in greeting.

"Yo! You two look like you’re having a rough time!"

Kael blinked.

"...Ah!"

"You’re another contestant!"

Sophia immediately recognized him.

"Alexis! You’re alright!"

"Of course I’m all right! I’m the Lightning Prodigy!"

He struck a pose.

Lightning crackled around his shoulders.

"These oversized worms might be ugly, annoying, and completely unfair, but they haven’t invented a tentacle fast enough to catch my lightning yet!"

As if the universe had taken personal offense to his declaration, an enormous tentacle erupted behind him.

Alexis’s smile vanished.

"Oh, come on!"

He shot forward in a flash of lightning.

The tentacle slammed into the ground below, pulverizing it.

Alexis reappeared beside Sophia and Kael, brushing imaginary dust off his shirt.

"Anyway, nice to meet you Sir Gray-Hairs-at-Nineteen."

Kael stared at him.

Then he looked at the tentacle that had nearly hit the lightning prodigy.

Then back at Alexis.

’Perhaps it wouldn’t have been so bad if that thing managed to hit him...’

Alexis looked between them.

"You’re with the Silver Wing strike team, right?"

Kael nodded.

"That’s correct."

"Then where the hell is everyone else? I figured an S-Rank incident would have the Association’s heavy hitters crawling all over the place by now."

Kael’s expression changed.

For a brief moment, his usual exaggerated confidence disappeared.

Levi and Neville.

The two leaders had departed with the majority of the strike team to investigate the disturbances outside the stadium. They should have returned by now, especially after the attack began.

Yet there had been no sign of either group.

No communications.

No reinforcements.

Nothing at all.

’They must have encountered something.’

Kael’s eyes narrowed.

He remembered the instructions Neville had given him before departing.

If anything happened, his first responsibility was to evacuate the civilians.

No exceptions.

No matter how strong the enemy was.

No matter how dangerous the situation became.

And absolutely no matter how much his heroic instincts urged him to charge into battle.

Unfortunately, the latter instruction was proving increasingly difficult to follow.

Kael glanced toward the distant skull.

If Neville and Levi haven’t returned, then something must be preventing them from doing so.

He couldn’t say that aloud.

Just the mention of a trap would trash their morale.

So instead, he gave Alexis a reassuring smile.

"They’re probably dealing with the situation outside. I’m sure they’ll be here soon."

Alexis raised an eyebrow.

"Probably?"

"Definitely."

"That doesn’t sound very convincing."

"Would you prefer if I said we’re gonna die meaningless deaths before any of the heavy hitters arrive?"

Alexis looked as though he genuinely considered the question.

"...Fair enough."

Another tremor shook the ground.

All three immediately looked down as cracks spread across the ruined street.

Sophia stepped backward.

"Something’s coming!"

The pavement exploded.

A colossal tentacle emerged from beneath the ground, its surface covered in jagged spikes. It rose higher and higher, towering over the surrounding buildings before curling toward the three Awakened.

Alexis whistled.

"Okay. That’s a big one!"

Kael’s golden blades ignited.

"Everyone, move!"

The tentacle descended.

Alexis vanished in a flash of lightning.

Sophia leaped backward, her amethyst spear cutting through the smaller appendages attempting to intercept her.

Kael launched himself forward, both golden blades crossing before him.

[Judgement Cross]

A brilliant golden cross erupted through the air.

The attack carved a massive wound into the tentacle, forcing it to recoil just long enough for the three Awakened to escape its immediate reach.

They landed together on the remains of a nearby wall.

For several seconds, none of them spoke.

Then Alexis exhaled.

"Well, that was unpleasant."

Sophia nodded.

"We can’t keep doing this forever. We need to find the source."

"Agreed," Kael replied.

His gaze returned to the distant skull.

Or rather, to the direction he believed the skull to be in.

The creature was surrounded by so many tentacles that it was almost impossible to distinguish its body from the surrounding mass. Nevertheless, he could occasionally glimpse the crimson glow of its eyes between the writhing appendages.

The center of the catastrophe.

Whatever controlled the tentacles, whatever allowed them to regenerate and grow stronger, whatever had trapped the stadium in this nightmare, it was connected to that creature.

If they wanted to end this, they needed to reach it.

Kael tightened his grip on his blades.

"Listen carefully. We can’t afford to waste our strength fighting every tentacle we encounter. We’ll create openings, move forward, and eliminate anything that directly threatens us."

Alexis grinned.

"Now you’re talking."

Sophia nodded.

"What about Eden?"

Kael’s expression softened for a fraction of a second.

He could already imagine the reunion.

The grateful tears.

The emotional embrace.

The heartfelt declaration that Kael was, without question, the greatest protagonist of his generation.

His own imagination nearly brought him to tears.

Then a tentacle smashed through the building beside them.

Kael snapped back to reality.

"I’ll make sure he’s alright!"

He pointed his golden blades toward the center of the ruined stadium.

"Forward!"

The three Awakened charged.

Lightning flashed.

Amethyst light erupted.

Golden blades carved through the darkness.