The alliance watched in horror as the fierce ice hurricane devoured Captain Bofan. Though they were greatly saddened by what happened, especially the soldiers from Bofan's squad, they knew they had to escape the trajectory of the hurricane before suffering a similar fate as the military man.
There was still a massive distance between them and the hurricane, and for some reason, the speed of the hurricane that was bulldozing everything in its path had reduced. So escaping was very feasible.
The only question in their minds was: Would they be able to continue this fight after regrouping? Looking at the exhausted Reyes, they highly doubted it was possible.
Cormach quickly rushed over to his guild master and helped him up, but the latter could barely stand on his feet; therefore, he had no choice but to carry the blue-haired youth on his shoulder.
Brolly glared at the hurricane with clenched fists, a flicker of hatred shining in his eyes. He seemed to be having an internal debate before he shook his head and muttered under his breath, "It's not worth it." He then turned to his faction and gestured for them to leave the Iceborn Forest.
As if on cue, everyone started to prepare to leave the forest... except Jack, who was standing in a daze as he watched the hurricane in the distance, sweeping everything into the air. His head was full of thoughts.
They could have had a chance if the beast hadn't displayed this skill. The plan was perfect; it required their combined effort. However, looking at the hurricane that resembled a god of destruction pulverizing everything in its path, the youth strongly doubted they could take it down.
The appearance of this one skill had spoiled everything, leaving the scared youth with only one option—an option he didn't like resorting to.
Most of the time, after using this option, he always regretted it afterward.
"We've already sinned a lot, one more sin won't cause any harm..." Jack whispered as he started to walk toward the ice hurricane. He clenched his fist and said in a convincing tone, "Besides, I'm still better than most in that family... yes, I should always remember this... I'm nowhere close to the level of those disgusting monsters."
This was his defense mechanism, and he used it to convince himself anytime he wanted to do this. And it only worked for a while. Later, after thinking about the deeds done in the process, he would regret it. It was just the same unending cycle.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Hex called out when he saw the new recruit walking toward the ice hurricane with a fearless expression. Everyone wondered if he had gone mad and shouted at him to stop, but their voices were drowned by the chaotic wind.
With a small portion of his stamina recovered, Reyes weakly raised his head and looked at the straight back of the mysterious youth. He seemed so confident despite looking like an ant compared to the colossal hurricane. A complicated light shone in Reyes' eyes. 'During the spar, I could tell he was holding back. Is he going to show his trump card?'
Except for a fool, no one would approach this dangerous entity without a plan in mind. From the few hours he had spent with the boy, Reyes knew he was anything but foolish, which could only mean that he had an ace up his sleeve... something that might stop this catastrophe.
When the others tried to stop Jack from encountering an easy death, they attempted to get a hold of him.
"Let him be," Reyes weakly said. "He has seen for himself how dangerous the hurricane is. For him to approach it like that only means he has a plan in mind."
Reyes' thinking was spot on because, at that moment, the cross-shaped scar shone with a bright white light as Jack started speaking.
"Are you there?" He sent his subconscious to the deepest part of his soul. He tried calling out to the powerful entity that dwelled there, but it was eerily silent. Jack was beginning to get impatient, feeling as if the other person was ignoring him.
"As you can see, this elemental crystal is very important to me... are you just going to take a back seat and watch me fail? If I fall, you know what would happen to all of us." Jack shouted in a voice laced with frustration, not even noticing when he shouted at the existence that could easily snuff him out if it wanted.
"Fine then! I'll just go get us killed." Jack threatened, and the others protested vehemently against it.
"You don't need my help. The interesting one will handle it."
After what felt like an eternity, a mature voice brimming with authority spoke. The authoritative voice silenced the noisy voices of all the others, and they all scrambled away in fear. That voice sent shivers down their spines. The unidentified beings couldn't even afford to breathe the same air as this ancient being.
The only one who could still somewhat stand his ground was the voice belonging to Jack.
Jack stared into the darker part of his subconscious and spoke in a slightly confused voice, "The interesting one? But I don't see hi—"
"My god! What is that?"
"Is that another Elemental Beast? And is that a human on top of it?"
"Wait, those eyes... I recognize that kid!"
Jack was suddenly jolted out of his subconscious to witness the members of the alliance excitedly pointing at him with glints of amazement flashing in their eyes. Jack was confused—why were they pointing at him?
Just then, he noticed their attention was not on him but on what was behind him. He turned around and saw a sight that made his breath quicken... However, that surprise soon turned into a loud, boisterous chuckle as he recognized the person riding the giant tentacled creaturethat had a dazed Captain Bofan wrapped around its cold, squishy tentacles.
"This kid, he always knows how to make an entrance!" Reyes smiled, his pale face seeming to have regained life.
"Good job, girl!" Nox gently patted the head of Astralux. The elemental beast turned a bright pink, but its gaze was still focused on the hurricane—specifically, on the pale, shimmering blue eyes within the chaotic wind.