Chapter 82: Successful Expedition

The instant he said those words, crimson lights began blinking across every single nanite covering Norald’s body.

Before the widened eyes of both Emiris and Declan, the crimson lights continued blinking in perfect unison until, one after another, they suddenly stopped.

Norald’s massive body froze.

Silence endured for three seconds, then...

KAAAAAAAAAABBBBBBBBBBBBOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

A terrifying explosion rocked the entire hall with overwhelming power.

Every single nanite covering Norald detonated simultaneously, releasing a devastating shockwave that swept through the hall, leaving Emiris and Penelope barely protected behind the pillar.

Declan, however, did not hide completely.

His eyes remained wide open as he watched the full power of his creation unfold before him, a massive explosion far greater than anything he had ever witnessed.

"How beautiful..."

The words escaped his lips unconsciously as his eyes reflected the brilliant halo of burning flames.

And when the flames finally dispersed...There was nothing.

Norald was nowhere to be seen, and not even its ashes remained.

[Congratulations, Host! You have completed the Main Quest!]

"It... it exploded!"

Emiris’s eyes widened in disbelief as he stared ahead, expecting to see Norald’s enormous body, only to find a deep black crater where the creature had once stood.

"That... that is no ordinary bomb."

BAAAANG!

The sound of something collapsing behind him drew Emiris’s attention, and he turned just in time to see the hulking creature fall onto its back.

The claws and golden veins covering its body began to recede, and soon, the monstrous form disappeared completely, leaving behind the familiar figure of Declan lying on the ground with his chest heaving heavily.

The sight of him caused Emiris’s breath to hitch.

Declan’s chest was covered in deep, bloody wounds, some so severe that his ribs were exposed. Numerous cuts covered his body, and even his face bore a long diagonal slash across one side.

Then...

COUGH! COUGH! COUGH!

The sound of coughing echoed through the hall, and Emiris turned to find Penelope slowly rising from the ground, her eyes gradually widening as she took in her surroundings.

"What happened?" she muttered.

Emiris stared at her, his body trembling slightly as he bit down hard on his lips.

Penelope turned and found Declan lying nearby, his body covered in horrifying injuries.

Her eyes immediately darted around the hall in search of the others, but neither Van nor Zeke was anywhere to be found, and neither was the terrifying creature they had been fighting.

"What... what happened?" she asked again, her voice trembling with suppressed horror.

Emiris hesitated before wiping the blood from his lips and turning toward Declan’s deteriorating condition.

If nothing was done, they could lose him too.

He turned back to Penelope.

"You still have that healing serum with you, right?"

She nodded and quickly pulled out a vial filled with shining blue liquid.

Emiris took it and walked over to Declan, picking up a handkerchief from his suit before pouring some of the serum onto it.

He carefully wiped it across Declan’s face, and a soft blue light immediately spread across his skin as the wounds began closing.

He continued down to the ghastly injuries across Declan’s chest, carefully wiping the serum over each one until the wounds gradually sealed shut. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ

Soon enough, the boy had been healed, at least from his external injuries.

"Tell me, Emiris. What truly happened while I was unconscious?"

Penelope reached toward him, but Emiris caught her hands before she could move any closer.

"I will," he said quietly, looking directly into her eyes. "After we get out of here."

Surprisingly, the instant he mentioned those words, something began blooming from the spot where Norald had exploded.

A rift appeared in the air, rapidly expanding until it formed a hulking, pitch-black doorway.

The door slowly widened, revealing the swirling rift within.

"The door..." Penelope murmured.

Emiris immediately reached down and grabbed Declan, lifting him onto his shoulder.

"We leave."

He began walking toward the gate, signaling for Penelope to go through first.

She did so without hesitation.

But before following her, Emiris paused and turned back toward the destroyed hall.

Here, in this ancient ruin, they had lost two souls.

"Van... Zeke..."

He called their names quietly.

A single tear slipped from his right eye. Those two had been his rivals on the Challenge Rankings ever since they had all been newcomers, and over the years, how many memories had they created together?

How many plans for the future had they all carried within their hearts?

Yet now...

"I’ll never forget. I swear that on my life..."

His voice carried quiet conviction as the tear dried upon his cheek.

Firming his hold on Declan, Emiris finally stepped through the portal, and the two of them disappeared.

The moment they were gone, the entire hall began to crumble.

Piece by piece, the ancient structure collapsed into nothingness, disintegrating until everything was reduced to ashes and an endless void remained in its place.

The object that had once held the entire space together was gone, and with no power remaining to sustain it, the ancient ruin faded away completely.

___________

FLICKER

A flicker of blue light flashed through the room, and a pair of blue irises slowly opened.

It was Declan.

He stared blankly at the world around him as everything seemed to revolve for a moment before finally stabilizing.

He blinked twice, gradually feeling the world return to stillness.

STEP

STEP

STEP

The sound of approaching footsteps drew his attention, and Declan turned his head slightly, finding a familiar figure arriving at his side.

"Lady Blythe?" he called out in surprise, though his voice was weak.

"Finally awake. Good," she said.

Declan’s brows furrowed.

He tried to stand, but for some reason, he couldn’t feel anything below his waist, leaving him unable to move from his position.

"Your expedition was a success," Lady Blythe said, confirming that everything had indeed been real.

But then she continued.

"Although you returned without much external injury, thanks to being treated with some high-grade serums earlier, you suffered severe internal damage."

"Even your Core was knocked out of position, causing its energy to spill into the rest of your body, which could have eventually led to corruption."

"So you had to be returned to the person who originally implanted your Core."

Declan’s eyes glinted as understanding dawned on him.

"How long has it been?" he asked.

"Two weeks. You’ve been unconscious for two weeks."

Declan hummed softly.

’Seems like fighting Norald really took everything out of me.’

He had been forced to use every gadget he had brought with him on the mission, and on top of that, he had pushed his Darkthar Transformation Skill far beyond what his body could comfortably handle.

While the transformation made him far tougher and almost impenetrable, it did nothing to actually heal his injuries.

Once he returned to his human form, all the pain returned, along with the full extent of the injuries he had sustained.

Lady Blythe continued.

"The injuries knocked your Core out of position, which automatically deactivated it and even disrupted your heart rhythm."

"Fortunately, your Core reactivated without any complications once I realigned it."

Declan could feel his heartbeat clearly now, and beneath it, he could also hear the faint hum of his Core, confirming that it had indeed been restored to its rightful position.

But if everything was fine, then why couldn’t he stand?

"You know..."

Lady Blythe said, taking a seat beside his bed with a tablet in her hand, her brows furrowed with a mixture of caution and confusion.

Declan’s heart unconsciously sank at the sight.

"Know what?"

"Your Core shifting out of position actually helped you."

Declan paused.

"It did?"

"Yes."

"The displacement caused Core energy to spread throughout your body, forcing a large portion of it to integrate and form additional Corer cells."

"This resulted in a significant increase in your Core integration, although those newly formed Corer cells weren’t directly connected to your Core at the time because it had been completely disconnected."

"If that had happened to an ordinary Core user, their body would have been unable to regulate the newly formed Corer cells without the Core, and they would have died."

Lady Blythe paused before continuing.

"But you... your body is surprisingly durable."

"More durable than anything I’ve ever seen, and somehow, it managed to hold out long enough for me to rebalance your Core and reactivate it."

"Once that happened, it reestablished its connection with the newly formed Corer cells."

"Your Core integration was previously at 35%, but right now, it’s at 55%, all thanks to that accident."

Even Declan was left speechless.

"That’s also the main reason you can’t fully feel your body yet."

"The connection is still being reestablished."

"It will take some time for your Core to completely reconnect with every Corer cell, probably three more days at most."

Declan nodded in understanding before unconsciously exhaling.

It wasn’t that he was sick or still seriously injured.

His Core was simply in the process of rebuilding a complete connection with his Corer cells.

It wasn’t something even leveling up could immediately fix, though Declan suspected that increasing his level might help the connection stabilize faster.

Still...

"Huuuuuu..."

He released a long breath of relief.

The expedition had been a success.

Lady Blythe remained for a few more minutes before eventually leaving the room, giving Declan some time alone.

Once she was gone, he finally had the chance to sort through everything, starting with the system.

[MAIN QUEST COMPLETED!]

[The host has come face-to-face with the Ultimate Form of a Guardian Creature.]

[Mission: Defeat Norald, The Goatearing Protector!]

[Rewards:]

[+10 Level Up Cards]

[+30,000 EXP!]

[+5 Ability Upgrade Cards]

[+3 All-Injuries Rejuvenation Cards]

[+1 Special Artifact]