Chapter 43: The Real Enemy
Terrence didn’t wait for the next attack and barely dodged the thread that went flying at him. His Shadow Hound leaped, cutting the thread mid-air, but another instantly followed right behind it.
With labored breath, Terrence inspected the situation as fast as he could. His body was aching, and he couldn’t react to the incoming strikes fast enough.
As if not giving him any time to retaliate, threads started flying again, filled with deep, unmistakable killing intent. The Arachne Beast followed right behind the attack, its razor-sharp legs raised and prepared to pincer Terrence into pieces.
’You both are targeting me, huh.’
Terrence hissed through his teeth as he leaped backward. While in mid-air, he barely managed to dodge another thread that passed right through the space where the Shadow Hound was guarding.
’We have to work hard, buddy.’
He hissed even more as the sharp pain in his ribs hindered his movements. The Shadow Hound unleashed a rapid Triple Slash, forcing the Arachne beast to halt its momentum for the time being.
The giant spider beast leaped back a few paces, landing right beside Gilbert, who stood completely unbothered by the violence he was causing. In fact, he looked like he was genuinely enjoying every second of it.
"With that sinister look, I don’t think you are being controlled at all, Gilbert."
Gilbert shook his head, a dark glint in his eyes as he swayed his hands again. This time, the razor-thin threads became almost invisible to the naked eye.
The Shadow Hound tried to protect Terrence once more, but it failed as a few unseen threads slipped past the formidable beast, grazing Terrence’s skin.
’Shit...’
He felt another sharp pang of pain rushing through his body.
’I guess S-Ranks aren’t omnipotent. Or maybe there’s just something wrong with my commands.’
The Arachne beast was ridiculously fast, especially with how Gilbert coordinated his strikes using Skill Share. They were just too fast together, making it impossible for the Shadow Hound to fight both the master and the beast at the same time.
’This spider beast is probably at the peak of A-Rank, or maybe even similar in power to the Shadow Hound. I don’t understand how, but could it be that ranks aren’t everything? Does proper fighting compatibility or individual skills matter more?’
Terrence felt stupid even thinking about it now. It was obvious that raw rank didn’t dictate everything in a real fight.
He took another heavy breath, forcing himself to formulate a proper plan.
The second he was attacked again, he dove behind a massive ancient tree for cover and tightly closed his eyes. In his mind, he could feel the presence of the S-Rank Vampire Butler inside his system, but the creature was still dormant, far from waking up.
He bit his lower lip until it nearly bled.
’Yes, the Shadow Hound is strong and fast. But against this specific type of enemy, it’s just not the best match. I also noticed the Shadow Hound isn’t using its full potential. Could it be because I was hurt, or because it won’t unleash everything while trying to keep me protected?’
His breath became warmer, mixed with a cold sweat as strength slowly seeped out of his bruised body. This matchup was terrible for him. However, he now had a desperate plan forming in his head.
He stole a quick glance toward Winter, who was still engaged in her own brutal fight. She was already at the absolute edge of being defeated, her body shaking from exhaustion. Bright white flashes from her battle kept illuminating the gloomy ancient foliage.
Terrence needed beast cores. That was his only real way out of this mess. But he only had three A-Rank cores in total—nowhere near enough to wake the dormant vampire.
"Come on, Terrence, just give up," Gilbert called out from the other side of the clearing, his voice dripping with mock sympathy. "I already know everything about your beast. I know exactly how to defeat it."
Terrence’s eyes widened behind the tree. What did he just say?
"Wait... you mean you aren’t being controlled at all?"
Gilbert snickered loudly. "Of course not. Why on earth would I be controlled by a mind spell?"
"Then... why?! Why are you attacking me?!" Terrence shouted in utter confusion, pressing his back hard against the rough bark of the ancient tree. The barrage of attacks had temporarily stopped, but the Shadow Hound kept its guard up, growling low in its throat.
"You ask why?" Gilbert paused, a warm, gentle smile replacing the sinister sneer on his face, making him look even more unhinged. "Maybe because I just want to? Really... I can’t keep playing along with the original plan. It’s way too slow."
"What plan?! What is too slow?!"
Terrence stole another glance at Winter. She was barely standing on her feet now, her majestic deer beast doing all the heavy lifting, struggling to shield her from the invisible forces.
He had to act fast.
"Using you, duh!" Gilbert laughed softly. "You are our sacrifice. We have to get you. But that motherfucker’s plan was just too boring that I needed to step up myself. I guess now we don’t have to worry about taking our time..."
Sacrifice?
’Was I dragged into some crazy fate nonsense again? I don’t want to know, and I sure as hell don’t want to be a part of it!’
"I don’t understand you, and I don’t care to understand you either!" Terrence yelled back. "You aren’t making any sense!"
Gilbert chuckled, stepping casually through the brush. "As if you don’t know it deep down. You know within yourself that you are special. Just contracting an S-Rank beast—a beast just like mine—means you are special."
Terrence froze, his thoughts stalling as he processed that single sentence.
’An S-Rank beast... So that spider is an S-Rank too?! That’s the reason why the Shadow Hound couldn’t overpower that fucking spider!’
"Hey, buddy."
Gilbert’s voice suddenly rang out right beside the ancient tree, exposing Terrence’s position all of a sudden. The Shadow Hound reacted instantly, lunging at Gilbert with a furious Triple Slash, followed by a reinforced pounce coated in Iron Skin.
"You really should just stop hiding," Gilbert said coldly.
The giant Arachne beast moved in an instant, shielding Gilbert from the sudden bombardment of attacks. Metallic clanging echoed through the air as the two powerful beasts collided.
Terrence bit his lower lip hard. He couldn’t take this passive beatdown anymore. He had to execute his plan right now.
Connecting with his beast through Skill Share, Terrence borrowed the Shadow Hound’s passive ability, Light Body, and immediately activated Dash.
In less than three seconds, his body turned into a blurry streak. He bypassed the clash and reappeared right beside Winter, who was kneeling on one knee on the bloody grass. Her white humanoid deer beast was still desperately fighting off the invisible foe, barely holding on through sheer survival instinct.
"Hey... Give me your A-Rank Beast cores," Terrence rasped out to Winter, his voice weak and trembling.
The moment the words left his mouth, he doubled over and coughed up a splatter of dark blood onto the green leaves.