Chapter 94: Sky Dancer Vs Webfiend Lord (3)

Chapter 91

Katherine slowly pulled her battered body upright, fighting against the pain that seemed to have settled into every inch of her. Her limbs trembled, her breathing was ragged, and even the simple act of standing demanded more effort than she cared to admit.

Nevertheless, she refused to remain on the ground.

With trembling fingers, she reached into her storage bag and retrieved another healing potion. After pulling out the cork, she gulped down its contents, forcing the liquid down her throat despite the blood that still lingered in her mouth.

A refreshing sensation immediately spread through her body.

The potion’s restorative energy circulated through her system, soothing her battered nerves and providing a brief respite from the pain threatening to overwhelm her. Her injuries didn’t disappear, nor did the pain vanish completely, but the small amount of strength she recovered was enough to help her steady her breathing and prepare herself for another fight.

Katherine closed her eyes briefly before opening them again, her emerald gaze settling into a state of dead calm.

She had already accepted the truth.

No one was coming to help her.

She had called for reinforcements, yet despite all the time that had passed, not a single one had arrived. Whether they had been delayed, overwhelmed by the dungeon break, or simply unable to reach the battlefield no longer mattered. Whatever the reason, she couldn’t afford to keep waiting for help that might never come.

She was alone.

And it wasn’t as though she could simply run away from the monster standing before her.

Even if she somehow managed to escape its pursuit, would she abandon the city and the people she had sworn to protect? Would she leave the survivors to face the monsters that had overrun their homes? Could she allow the Webfiend Lord to roam freely, knowing that every second it remained alive might mean the deaths of countless innocent people?

Katherine’s lips parted slightly as she considered those questions.

The answer was no.

Absolutely not.

It was possible that the people she had been trying to protect had already met their end. The city might have fallen completely, its inhabitants slaughtered by the monsters, leaving all her efforts in vain.

But there was also a chance that some people had survived.

Perhaps civilians were still hiding inside the city’s shelters. Some warriors might still be fighting to protect those who couldn’t defend themselves, while others could have escaped the Webfiends’ claws and were desperately waiting for someone to save them.

As long as that possibility remained, Katherine couldn’t bring herself to abandon them.

If she fled now, those few survivors might eventually meet a gruesome end, and she would rather die fighting than live with the knowledge that she had abandoned them when they needed her most.

Her lips parted further, releasing emerald flames from one side of her mouth and a fierce current of raging wind from the other. The two forces swirled around her face, responding to the power she was gathering as she prepared herself for one final push.

Katherine stepped forward, then placed her foot against the air.

The invisible foothold supported her weight as naturally as solid ground. Wind intensified around her body, and emerald flames began coiling around her limbs and sword, gathering into a powerful combination that she intended to use against the creature before her.

Her steely gaze settled on the Webfiend Lord.

For a brief moment, neither combatant moved.

The monster’s countless eyes remained fixed on her, observing the battered human woman who had somehow survived its attacks for so long. Its silvery weapons gleamed in its hands, and its oppressive aura continued to weigh down the surrounding air.

Katherine stared back without flinching.

Then, almost simultaneously, both of them lunged.

BOOM!

The air beneath Katherine’s feet exploded as she propelled herself forward. Green flames and rushing wind swirled around her entire body, sending her shooting toward the monster at incredible speed. Her figure blurred, leaving behind cascading trails of emerald fire that lingered for an instant before the violent currents in her wake tore them apart.

The Webfiend Lord was no slower.

Its body shot forward with astonishing speed, the silvery spear in one hand and the curved scythe in another.

The two figures collided once more.

CLANG!

A deafening metallic ring echoed across the battlefield.

The dungeon boss swung its scythe toward Katherine’s head, the curved blade sweeping through the air with enough force to tear through her defenses and separate her head from her shoulders.

Katherine twisted her body just in time.

The scythe passed dangerously close to her face, cutting through several strands of her blonde hair as she narrowly evaded the attack.

However, the Webfiend Lord had already anticipated her movement.

Its silvery spear shot forward, aimed directly at her stomach.

Katherine narrowed her eyes. There was barely enough time to dodge, and retreating would only allow the creature to continue pressing its advantage.

Instead, she concentrated all her remaining strength into her leg and kicked against the air.

BOOM!

The air beneath her foot erupted, propelling her body out of the spear’s trajectory. Under normal circumstances, such a movement might have shifted her position by only a few inches, but Katherine’s mastery of Sky Walk had reached a point where the distinction between solid ground and open air had become extraordinarily blurred.

To her, the air was no longer merely something she moved through. It had become a surface she could push against, leap from, and use to change direction with astonishing precision.

Her kick carried her clear of the spear’s path, allowing the weapon to pass through the space where she had been standing a fraction of a second earlier.

Katherine didn’t waste the opening.

She moved through the air as though climbing a spiraling staircase, finding invisible footholds one after another. Each step allowed her to change direction, rising and twisting until she suddenly appeared behind the Webfiend Lord.

Her sword flashed toward its neck, the emerald blade carrying the combined force of wind and flame.

She intended to slice its head off in a single strike.

However, the Webfiend Lord reacted almost immediately.

Two of its ten elongated hands shot backward to intercept her blade.

SHING!

Katherine’s sword struck the two limbs, meeting brief resistance before its cutting power finally overcame them.

SLASH!

Both hands were severed.

For an instant, the severed limbs fell through the air, their thin, web-like structures beginning to unravel as they separated from the monster’s body.

That brief opening was all the Webfiend Lord needed to counterattack.

Its scythe swept backward.

Katherine barely managed to bring her sword around to block the incoming strike.

CLAAANG!

Sparks scattered through the air as the weapons collided, and the force of the impact traveled through Katherine’s arms.

The two combatants were once again locked in a fierce exchange, their weapons clashing repeatedly as they fought for control of the battlefield.

Katherine attacked with everything she had left.

Her sword flashed from one direction to another, each strike accompanied by roaring wind and emerald flames. She used Sky Walk to change her position in midair, attacking from above, below, and behind the monster whenever she found an opening.

However, the Webfiend Lord had become far more ruthless.

Its twelve hands allowed it to attack and defend from several directions simultaneously. Even after losing two of its elongated hands, the remaining limbs continued to lash toward Katherine, forcing her to divide her attention between the scythe, the spear, and the relentless barrage of additional attacks.

Every time she blocked one weapon, another came for her. Whenever she dodged an attack, another followed, and every attempt to counterattack was met with the monster’s superior physical strength.

CLANG!

Katherine’s sword collided with the scythe, and the impact numbed her arm.

Before she could recover, the spear thrust toward her chest. She twisted sideways, narrowly avoiding a direct hit, but one of the elongated hands struck her ribs.

CRACK!

"Ugh!"

A cry of pain escaped her mouth as her body was sent spinning through the air. She forced herself to stabilize with Sky Walk, planting her feet against an invisible foothold before launching herself back toward the monster.

Her sword descended in a furious arc.

The Webfiend Lord raised its spear.

BOOM!