Chapter 1557: Half His Strength

Erend was having a slightly better time than Sylven, at least for now.

His Trial forced him into a relentless battle where he could not do more than keep fighting, with power reduced to less than half.

His movement was heavier. His attacks demanded more effort. His punches didn’t carry the overwhelming force he was accustomed to, and even his Magic felt weak.

The fire and lightning he unleashed still tore through the battlefield, but they lacked the destructive power he had grown used to relying on.

His Dragon Scales also lost much of their usual strength, leaving him more vulnerable.

The zombie warriors kept pressing him from every direction without giving him a moment to rest. They surrounded him like a wall of rotten flesh and battered armor, but they also attacked with coordination and discipline.

Whenever Erend killed one down, another immediately rushed into the opening. He had already killed many of them, but roughly half of the original horde still remained.

They came from his left and right while others charged straight toward him, forcing Erend to turn constantly just to avoid being overwhelmed.

He smashed one warrior across the jaw and sent it tumbling through the black sand before another came at him from behind.

Erend twisted away at the last moment, but the zombie’s weapon still slash his side and left a deep wound.

He gritted his teeth and answered with a burst of Lightning Magic that blasted the creature away before another zombie warrior slammed into him from the front.

He staggered backward and barely remained on his feet. Blood ran down his body from several wounds, torn pieces of his scales exposed his skin that normally would have been protected.

His breathing was rough and heavy, but the zombies continued coming without hesitation.

Erend felt his frustration growing. He was not afraid of them. They were strong enough to push him to his limits, but what angered him was the fact that he knew exactly how easily he could have destroyed them under normal circumstances.

If he still had his full strength then this battle would have ended long ago. Instead, he had to struggle against enemies he would normally consider just obstacles. He hated every second of it.

Still, he refused to stop.

Erend tightened his fists and forced himself forward. He drove his fist into one zombie’s chest and felt the bones beneath its armor crack, then immediately spun around and kicked another zombie away.

Fire erupted from his palm and swept across several enemies while Lightning Magic followed behind it, striking the survivors before they could recover.

He fought through the pain and exhaustion while constantly moving on that battlefield. His attacks became more deliberate as his strength continued to drain.

He could no longer waste energy on overwhelming attacks, so he relied on timing, positioning, and whatever remained of his Dragonborn abilities.

One by one, the zombie warriors fell until the horde finally began to thin.

The last few were the hardest.

Erend was already exhausted when they charged him together. His legs felt heavy and his wounds burned with every movement, but he forced himself to keep going.

One of the zombies swung its weapon at his head while another attacked his legs.

Erend ducked beneath the attack and jumped over the second attack before driving both of his hands into the ground. Fire and Lightning Magic erupted around him and destroyed the remaining warriors.

Their bodies collapsed into the black sand one after another until the final zombie fell dead at his feet.

Erend stood there for several seconds without moving. His chest rose and fell heavily as he tried to catch his breath.

Sweat and blood covered his body while the remains of the zombie warriors lay scattered across the dark battlefield.

He looked around and realized that there were no more enemies coming for him. He now just stands there without having to prepare for another attack.

He let out a long sigh. He felt relief washed over him, and his body relaxed.

Then he looked ahead. His relief vanished instantly.

Standing in the distance were Eccar, Aesa, and Sylven. Erend’s mother stood among them, and beside her was Arty, his younger sister.

The sight immediately tightened his chest. His mind tense, fear and worry surged through him so suddenly that he almost forgot how exhausted he was.

He knew exactly what was happening. The Trial had already shown him that it could manipulate and amplify emotions, and he understood that none of the people standing before him could be trusted to be real. Yet knowing that did not make what he felt better.

His concern for Eccar, Aesa, and Sylven surged far beyond what he normally felt.

His fear for his mother and Arty became almost unbearable. Every possibility of something happening to them suddenly filled his mind at once, and the knowledge that they were illusions did not stop his heart from reacting as if they were truly standing in danger.

Erend immediately moved toward them, driven by the fear that something might happen before he could reach them.

His mind raced through every possibility as he pushed himself forward. The zombie warriors may not truly die. Perhaps they would rise again from the black sand, or maybe even another wave would emerge from somewhere and attack them.

After everything the Trial had shown him so far, Erend could not dismiss the possibility. It was entirely possible that the battle had never really ended.

However, before he could get close enough to reach any of them, the black sand beneath his feet suddenly began to move.

The ground churned violently as something enormous pushed its way upward from beneath the surface.

Erend stopped and stared as a massive creature emerged from the darkness. It looked like a gigantic worm with a long, thick body and a monstrous circular mouth filled with rows of jagged triangular teeth.

What made the creature even more disturbing were the human-like arms growing from its body. They were grotesquely large as they dragged themselves free from the black sand.

The creature was enormous, and the diameter of its open mouth alone reached nearly ten meters.

Erend’s eyes widened as a deep sense of despair settled over him.

He had already struggled to defeat the zombie warriors with his current condition. His body was already covered in wounds and exhaustion had begun weighing heavily on him.

Now the Trial was placing something far larger and more terrifying in front of him.

Erend could not see how he was supposed to win.

But then his eyes shifted toward the figures standing behind the creature. His family and friends. His fear remained, but his expression hardened.

He did not know if they were real. He only knew that he couldn’t stand there and let that creature reach them.

Erend clenched his fists despite the pain running through his body and ran.

"I have to fight it. I have to protect them."

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