The fight against the Ant King was so intense that it seemed like the entire cavern was going to collapse.
When it started looking like Scarlet was losing, the others quickly stepped in.
"We're sorry we're late. Fear got us slightly rooted," Raze said, his hands burning brightly with fire.
"Let's show this beast not to mess with students of Lunaria Academy," Jay added as a blade of water formed in his hands.
"And avenge what it did to Grey," Charlotte said, water swirling around her and forming a kind of armor.
"More annoying pests. You should have waited your turn. But since you're so eager to court death, let me grant it!" the Ant King roared, zipping toward the one it deemed the weakest—Kael.
Its speed made it appear like a lightning mage in action; it was too fast for the others to follow. But Kael calmly stood his ground, pushing his glasses back up his face.
"You made a big mistake," he said. Swinging his hand, the beast's movements suddenly turned sluggish—and then, with a burst of force, it was smashed into a wall.
"We are not a bunch of weaklings," Lyra declared as a dozen wind blades hovered in front of the wall where the beast had crashed.
With a flash, they flew forward, hitting it hard and causing a shockwave to ripple through the cavern.
But as the dust settled, the beast stood firm—without a single crack in its armor.
"You were all saying?" the Ant King mocked.
Slashes of water suddenly appeared around it, and with a swing of its claws, it launched them toward the team. Kael casually swung his hand, redirecting the slashes to the ground.
Then, shadowy hands erupted from beneath the beast, pinning it in place. Lightning crackled as Greg zipped in, slamming a bolt of lightning into its abdomen and sending it skidding—before leaping back.
"That tickles," the Ant King commented with a smirk.
"Oh yeah?! Take this!" Dante shouted, launching spikes of earth at the beast. But it swiftly dodged, and the spikes crashed into the ground, throwing up dust.
However, waiting at the new spot it moved to were Jay and Scarlet, closing in from either side.
Scarlet's palm swirled with fire as she tried to slam it into the beast's side—but water surrounded the beast's claws.
It grabbed her wrists, extinguishing her flames. For Jay, it launched five water balls his way.
"Don't forget about me, you bastard!" Raze shouted, his fists ablaze. He slammed a fiery punch into its abdomen, sending it skidding back.
From behind, Lyra fired four wind blades, which slammed into the beast and flung it forward—straight toward Dante, who was already mid-jump with earth swirling around his fists. He struck, sending the beast crashing back.
Vince followed, leaping above it with a metal spear in hand, slamming it into the beast's armor—but still, it didn't crack.
Kael calmly stepped forward, adjusting his glasses. Raising his hands, the beast was lifted off the ground and, in a flash, slammed down hard, cracking the cavern floor and throwing up dust.
Without wasting time, Scarlet jumped forward and began hurling fireballs. When the smaller ones didn't satisfy her fury, she conjured a massive fireball and sent it crashing into the crater the beast lay in, scattering flames, smoke, and dust in every direction.
The team landed side by side, staring into the smoke-filled crater. Slowly, the beast rose from within, a trickle of black blood running down the arm housing its claws.
"All that for just a trickle of blood? Is that all twelve of you can muster?" the Ant King asked, mocking them. "Tsk, tsk. The other group gave me more trouble."
"Shut up!" Scarlet screamed, rocketing forward with her hands burning brightly.
She tried to land a blow, but the Ant King caught her wrists and lifted her off the ground—before slamming her down hard. Debris flew into her mouth as she coughed up blood.
"If this is all twelve of you've got, then this fight is over," the beast growled. In a blur, it surged toward the rest of the group.
Greg zipped in front, lightning blade in hand, ready to strike—but the beast pivoted sharply and planted a brutal kick to Greg's head, sending him crashing into the ground.
It jumped back, dodging ten metal spikes from Vince. Then, with a single swing of its claws, a wall of water surged forth, slamming Vince into the cavern wall.
From the side, a few wind blades came flying—but the beast moved too fast. They shattered mid-air as it appeared in front of Lyra.
"Attractive," it said darkly, grabbing her by her large chest. "And soft too." With that, it slammed her into the ground before narrowly avoiding the incoming scythes of earth.
As it prepared to move again, it felt its body stiffen. Glancing up, it spotted the human with glasses—Kael—raising his hands again.
"You're annoying," the beast hissed. Pushing through the resistance, it suddenly appeared in front of Kael. With a vicious swing of its claws—Kael's head rolled to the ground.
"Kael!" Dante screamed, watching his friend's head tumble across the floor.
Before anyone could react, the Ant King's mandibles opened. Before Kael's body even hit the ground, it ripped out a chunk of flesh and swallowed it whole.
"Mmm... I can feel it being added," the beast said, a twisted smile stretching across its face.
"How… how… how dare you?! When… when you harmed that peasant, I didn't care. But now... you've gone... gone..." Dante muttered, the ground trembling beneath his feet. His fists clenched. His eyes turned completely white, no hint of black remaining.
"You've gone too far!" he roared.
The air in the cavern shifted instantly. His hair floated above his shoulders. His entire body began to glow with a soft white light.
"Breakthrough!" he shouted, teeth gritted in rage.
Crap! I didn't expect that Kael would die here🥲 shit! I feel so bad for suddenly killing a character 🤧 let's see what happens next