Chương 78: The Third Day of Tests – Part 1/2

As soon as Master Harlan finished speaking, the ground of the arena trembled more violently. Small cracks appeared in the earth around the pedestal. From within them, dark creatures began to emerge, made of a substance similar to solid shadow. They were short beings with long limbs and sharp claws, their red eyes glowing brightly. They weren't real — they were magical projections created by the academy — but they looked dangerous enough to cause real harm.

The first creatures appeared in greater numbers near the base of the pedestal. Joker was the first to act. He extended his hand and shadows rose from the ground, forming several dark hands that grabbed the nearest creatures and pulled them down, pinning them in place. — They're coming in groups. Don't let them get close to the crystal — he said, his voice calm but firm. Harley spun her pink hammer once in the air and struck the ground with force.

A pink shockwave spread out, sending several creatures flying backward. Some of them disintegrated on contact with the hammer's energy. — I'll cover the front! — she shouted. Astrid didn't wait for orders. She stepped forward and began punching the creatures that managed to get past Harley's shockwave. Each punch was sharp and heavy, breaking the creatures into dark pieces that vanished into the air. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

Rina stayed a little farther back, using her fire tails to burn the creatures trying to approach from below. The pink flames created a warm barrier that kept many of them from getting close. Marina released a large amount of vapor around the pedestal, creating a dense mist that hindered the creatures' vision. This bought the team time to reorganize when the number of enemies increased. Sylvara knelt on the ground and touched the earth.

Thick, thorny vines grew rapidly around the pedestal, forming a kind of living fence that trapped the creatures trying to approach. The vines moved on their own, wrapping around the enemies and throwing them away. Lirien stayed near the pedestal, singing softly. Her voice created a faint illusion that made it seem like there were more people defending the crystal than there actually were. This confused some of the creatures, causing them to attack the wrong spots.

Kuroe stayed farther back, placing chaos runes on the ground. Whenever a creature stepped on a rune, it became disoriented and started attacking other creatures around it. This helped reduce the number of enemies indirectly. The group was managing to hold up well in the first few minutes. The coordination between them was natural — almost instinctive. Joker and Harley gave the main directions while the others filled in the gaps. However, around the fifth minute, the number of creatures increased significantly.

They began appearing from multiple sides at once, including from above — some fell from small cracks that appeared in the ceiling of the arena. One of the creatures managed to get past Astrid's defense and leaped toward the pedestal. Harley spun quickly and struck it in the air with her hammer, but another creature took advantage of the distraction and advanced from below. Kuroe reacted fast. She threw a rune on the ground right in front of the pedestal.

The creature stepped on it and immediately began attacking another creature beside it, becoming distracted. Even so, the crystal was grazed by a claw. A small crack appeared on the blue surface. Joker looked at the crystal and spoke, his voice more serious: — Be careful. If it breaks, we all fail. Harley nodded, wiping the sweat from her forehead with her forearm. — Then we stop playing around. She raised the hammer with both hands and struck the ground harder than before.

This time, the shockwave was larger and more violent, clearing space around the pedestal. Astrid positioned herself right in front of the crystal, using her own body as a shield. Whenever a creature tried to get past, she grabbed it and hurled it away with raw strength. Time continued to pass. And the creatures didn't stop coming. End of Part 1/2 (continues in Part 1/3)