Trrrrrrrr!!
A deep, rumbling sound reverberated through the air as Aether’s eyes locked onto the sight before him. The enormous elephant, its powerful trunk wrapped around a massive root, pulling it with a strength that seemed impossible.
The creature moved in a relentless circle, not aimlessly, but around something hidden at the centre.
Aether’s breath caught in his throat, and he staggered back, his back hitting a rock. His wide eyes gleamed with a mix of wonder and trepidation, “Holy shit… That thing is a fucking giant!” he muttered, his voice shaking with both awe and excitement.
His mind raced as he stared at the creature, “Was this the thing the Principal fought before?” he mumbled, utterly dumbfounded by the sheer size of the monster.
“We’re seriously at the final boss level here…” Aether whispered under his breath, a nervous laugh escaping his lips. His gaze flicked back to the elephant, its steps heavy and deliberate, each one causing the ground beneath him to tremble.
It circled the strange object in the centre, the roots pulled tight by its strength
As much as he wanted to fight and fend off the fear hiding in his heart, now…
“No… focus,” he muttered, forcing himself to think. His brow furrowed as he strained to see what the elephant was circling. Something in the distance was rotating—slowly, purposefully—as the beast continued its endless loop.
What the hell was that thing?
“What exactly is it doing?” Aether muttered to himself.
He needed to know more, but getting closer was risky. Very risky! His eyes darted back to the elephant. “It’s moving at a steady pace… Maybe, just maybe, if I follow right behind it… I might have a shot.”
He steeled himself, inhaling sharply, and nodded.
Timing was everything.
The second the colossal creature passed him, Aether crept forward, his steps slow and deliberate, trailing behind it like a shadow.
“It’s easier than I thoug—“
BOOM!
Before Aether could finish his thought, the air exploded around him, and in an instant, he was sent flying through the air.
Pain shot through his body as he slammed into the hard ground.
Cough, Cough…
“Ugh…!” Aether winced as he struggled to catch his breath, the taste of blood filling his mouth. His ribs ached—no, more than that—he could feel a few of them had cracked from the impact. ‘
Shit… that tail!’ he thought, grimacing through the pain. He quickly reached for a healing potion, downing it as fast as he could while glaring at the elephant’s massive, rotating tail. “What the hell… does it have eyes on its back or something?” Aether mumbled, wiping the blood from his lips.
Gritting his teeth, Aether forced himself to sit up, reaching into his pouch for a healing potion. He quickly downed it, feeling the warmth of the magic mending his shattered ribs, though the dull ache lingered. His eyes stayed locked on the monster.
“Alright, time to play this smarter,” he muttered, his voice low but determined, “If I can count how long it takes to complete a circle… I can find an opening.”
He started counting under his breath as the beast trudged forward, each step causing a thunderous vibration in the ground.
“Twenty-three… twenty-four… twenty-five.”
Aether nodded to himself, “That’s my window. But the distance to that thing in the centre… damn, it’s far.” He frowned, calculating his chances. “If I push myself hard enough, maybe—just maybe—I can make it.”
Taking a deep breath, he stretched his limbs, readying his body. His muscles tensed with anticipation. As soon as the monster passed by again, Aether shot forward, his legs moving like lightning as purple sparks flared behind him.
“One.”
“Two.”
Each second felt like an eternity as he sprinted, the adrenaline surging through his veins, fueling his every move. His gaze remained locked on the mysterious object in the centre, but in the back of his mind, he could hear the monster’s heavy steps, each one getting closer.
“Fifteen.”
“Sixteen.”
He was almost there. He could see it… The object at the centre grew clearer, something like a stone slab, wrapped in—
BAGRUUUUUUUHHHHHAAAAAA!!
Aether’s blood ran cold as the deafening roar ripped through the air. His instincts screamed at him to turn, and he did—just in time to see the elephant’s enormous tusk, inches away from skewering him like a spear.
“Shit!”
Without thinking, Aether stomped the ground with all his strength, launching himself to the side just as the tusk pierced the spot where he’d been standing. The shockwave of the impact blasted through the earth, but Aether barely managed to evade the full brunt. His hands shot out, grabbing onto the tusk, his body hanging off it as the elephant continued its relentless charge.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” Aether gritted his teeth, feeling the sheer force of the creature’s movements. It was heading for the wall, and fast. If he didn’t act soon, he’d be smashed against it.
He shifted his footing, planting himself on the tusk as he ran up its fucking big length, moving toward the elephant’s face with desperation in every step.
BAGRUUUUUUUHHHHHAAAAAA!!
The elephant roared again, enraged by the intrusion, its tusk slamming into the wall with such force that the stone cracked and splintered. Aether glanced back, his heart hammering in his chest as the wall closed in, inch by inch.
But just as the crushing force loomed over him, Aether made his move.
Thud!
He jumped down, landing hard on the ground, rolling away just as the tusk deepened into the wall.
“Hehe…” Aether allowed himself a grin, catching his breath. “That should keep it stuck for a while.”
Yet,
BAGRUUUUUUUHHHHHAAAAAA!!
With a single, effortless shrug, the elephant yanked its tusk free from the wall, as if the stone was nothing more than a paper-thin obstacle.
Aether’s grin faded as the creature turned toward him once more. Its massive, rainbow-coloured crystal eyes gleamed with a cold, predatory glare, locking onto him like he was nothing more than an ant scrambling for survival.
Aether’s lips twitched as he shot purple flames directly at the elephant’s rainbow-coloured eyes.
Sssssshhhhh!
The flames roared through the air with brutal force, ready to blast anything in their path, just like they had tormented those pitiful snakes before.
Aether expected the same devastating effect…. but before the flames could even reach the elephant, they flickered and died out.
“…” Aether stood frozen, his mind racing. He was
Level 80
, for crying out loud! And yet… his flames couldn’t even scratch the beast.
‘What the fuck just happened?’ Aether thought in disbelief, but something even stranger caught his eye, “Wait… Was that… a smirk?” He squinted, his frown deepening as he noticed the elephant’s lips curving upwards, a mocking expression on its face. The massive creature was smirking at him.
Aether’s stomach tightened in dread as the elephant reared up on its hind legs, lifting its enormous body off the ground.
“What the hell…? It knows Triccccckkkkkkkkkkkkk!!” Aether screamed, his voice tinged with panic as he spun on his heel, running as fast as his legs could carry him. He barely managed to move out of the way before the elephant’s massive feet came crashing down.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!
The ground shook violently beneath him, the impact sending shockwaves through the valley. Aether stumbled as the force nearly knocked him off balance. The tremor wasn’t just local—it was so powerful that even the faraway Empire felt a faint, almost imperceptible quake.
Aether’s heart raced as he tumbled through the air, his body flung like a ragdoll caught in a violent storm.
Thud!!
He hit the ground hard, his body rolling across the dirt before coming to a painful stop. His head slammed into the ground, causing his vision to blur momentarily…. For a split second, he blacked out—but he pulled back!
“D-Damn… No wonder she took so long to take this thing down…” he groaned, spitting dirt as he shakily rose to his feet. His eyes locked onto the elephant again, now deliberately walking toward him, each step slow, but deliberate… almost mocking him.
“Are you… smirking at me?” Aether’s face contorted with disbelief as the grin on the elephant’s face seemed to grow wider, its rainbow crystal eyes twinkling with amusement.
Aether’s lips twitched again, but this time in a dark grin of his own, “Oh yeah? Let’s see if you can handle this!” His body began to glow with intense, fiery purple light, his energy surging outward like a burning inferno. In an instant, he took to the sky, hovering just above the beast and with a sharp snap of his fingers—
‘Snap’
The entire elephant was engulfed in blazing purple flames!!
BOOOOSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!
Aether grinned widely, watching as the flames wrapped around the massive creature, consuming it in a fiery blaze. This time, it was working…. or so he thought. But through the roaring flames, the elephant’s rainbow-colored eyes still stared up at him, calm, unwavering… amused?
“What the…?” Aether’s grin faltered, confusion settling in. No matter how much his flames burned, the elephant showed no sign of pain or damage. His frown deepened as something strange began to happen.
The elephant’s thick skin started to burn away, peeling off like a layer of old bark. But instead of revealing muscle or flesh beneath, what emerged was something far worse.
“… What the heck is that?” Aether whispered, his voice shaky with disbelief. As the last of the skin burned away, he was greeted with the sight of something terrifyingly familiar—pitch-black metal.
Aether’s eyes widened in horror. ‘No way… That metal…’ He recognized it instantly—it was the same material used in the castles of the Empire and… the summit. “It’s… made of pure black metal?!”
His flames finally flickered out, leaving behind a towering, monstrous figure made entirely of indestructible black metal.
BAGRUUUUUUUHHHHHAAAAAA!!
Before Aether could process the horror in front of him, the elephant moved with terrifying speed. Its trunk lashed out, slamming into him like a whip.
SLAM!
Aether hit the ground hard, blood spilling from his mouth as he coughed violently. Pain exploded in his ribs, and he gritted his teeth, struggling to stay conscious. “Fuck!” he cursed, his voice strained, as he tried to push himself up.
But before he could react, he noticed the shadow looming over him.
His gaze shot up just in time to see the elephant’s massive foot lifting high above him, ready to come down and crush him where he lay.
His heart pounded wildly in his chest and…. His legs gave out.
He couldn’t move. He couldn’t even think. His mind flashed back to the past—images of being crushed under this!!
Again!
Aether’s heart phase quicker, he knew he needed to move and yet, his legs were rooted to the ground!!
The massive foot began its descent, inches away from smashing him into the ground. But then—
“Who allowed you to die, brat?”
A firm, feminine voice echoed through the chaos… His lips curled up as he saw a figure…. holding the massive foot of the metal monster with nothing but her bare hands…. was the Principal.
Her expression was a mix of annoyance and amusement as she glared down at Aether.
Her lips twisted into a smirk. “You’re not done yet, idiot,” she muttered before, with an effortless motion, she swung her arm, hurling the elephant like it weighed nothing. The enormous creature flew through the air and crashed into the ground with a thunderous impact, dust and debris exploding around it.