The Manticore King’s entire body was covered in blazing red flames, while Arthur’s body glowed in a golden light.
The two combatants stared at each other for nearly half a minute before both of them simultaneously disappeared from where they stood.
Suddenly, an earthshaking explosion erupted from the battlefield, sending flames expanding outward.
Lawrence and Tristan both used their defensive abilities and protected the teenage boy behind them from the blazing inferno that reached their location.
The Jinns and Majins fled as the infernal flames rose up to engulf them whole.
The weaker ones were instantly incinerated by the flames, leaving only the echoes of their dying screeches and screams behind.
On the other hand, the stronger monsters were able to prevent themselves from suffering serious injuries and endured the flames that had spread like wildfire.
A few minutes later, when the hellish blaze finally subsided, everyone looked at the center of the battlefield.
Arthur was once again kneeling on the ground, relying on his greatsword to support his body.
A few meters beside him was the Manticore King, who was lying on the ground, its body still covered in flames.
“Not bad…” the Manticore King said. “Not bad at all.”
Its voice sounded tired, but at the same time, it also sounded happy.
Arthur groaned as he tried to stand up, but his body couldn’t support him anymore.
The only thing he could do right now was remain in his current position.
“That last move was wonderful,” the Manticore King stated. “But, it will not be enough to defeat the Earth Dragons. You still need to get stronger if you want to beat them.”
Arthur didn’t reply and simply focused on staying conscious. The side effect of using Overdrive had already kicked in, and he felt that if he closed his eyes now, he would not be able to open them again.
“Arthur Leventis… let’s fight again… next time,” Amos said softly. “It was fun… fighting you.”
Half a minute later, a sigh escaped the Manticore King’s lips, and he no longer said anything.
His proud eyes that only lusted for battle remained open, and yet, the light in them had disappeared completely.
The Monsters, who understood that their leader had died, all roared one by one.
Lawrence and Tristan thought that the monsters were going to attack them, but none of Amos’ subordinates made any move to harm them.
“Go,” a Tiger-like monster covered in Red Scales growled at the three humans, who were standing on top of the cliff. “We will honor our King’s order this once. But, the next time we see each other, we will go for the kill.”
The Tiger was a Rank 7 Sovereign and acted as Amos’ second-in-command.
But before Lawrence could grab Zion and take him to where his Grandfather was, the boy asked a question that made the Grand Marshal and the Field Marshal almost want to leave him behind with the monsters.
“Can we take Amos’ body with us?” Thirteen asked.
The Tiger narrowed its eyes as he stared down at the human boy, who was talking to him as if they were equals.
“What are you going to do with his body?” The Tiger asked.
“What else?” Thirteen replied. “Eat him, of course. That’s the least we can do for him.”
All the monsters in their surroundings quieted down after hearing the boy’s words.
Lawrence and Tristan, on the other hand, were getting ready to escape if things went south. However, the Tiger’s and the monsters’ reactions surprised them.
“Good.” The Tiger nodded. “That is indeed a way of showing your respect to him. The strong will eat the weak. That is the law of the world. You have earned the right to eat him. Now go before we change our mind.”
The Tiger growled, prompting the other monsters to also growl at the humans who had trespassed in their domain.
Lawrence and Tristan no longer wasted any time and jumped toward the still-smoking battlefield.
“Gramps, are you still alive?” Thirteen asked as soon as they arrived near Arthur, making the latter have the strong urge to spank his no-good grandson.
“Let’s go,” Arthur said through gritted teeth.
“Good work, Gramps.” Thirteen patted the old man’s shoulder. “I know that you’re on your last legs, so you can stop acting tough.”
Lawrence and Tristan pitied Arthur. If they were in his shoes, they would definitely give Zion a good spanking.
But, as if knowing that enough was enough, Thirteen smiled faintly before whistling.
Rocky rose up from the ground and swallowed Amos’ body whole.
The Magma Bal-Boa then swallowed the humans before burrowing deep underground to escape the domain of the Manticore King.
***
Inside Rocky’s body…
“Should we go to the Dvalinn Federation and tell them that you won the bet?” Lawrence asked with a smile on his face.
He didn’t expect that their mission would end so smoothly.
Of course, he knew that there were several factors involved that allowed them to win, like the Mythical Weapons in Arthur’s possession.
He and his son, Tristan, were both thinking that it would be in their best interest if they formed a good partnership with the Leventis Family.
Even though Arthur wasn’t a Monarch yet, his duel against the Rank 8 Sovereign, whom even a Monarch would have a hard time fighting against, confirmed that he was a very strong and capable individual.
They also felt confident that with Thirteen as the Supreme Commander of the allied army, their chances of liberating the Northern Regions of the Rigel Continent would have a higher chance of success.
But Zion’s answer to his question made him frown.
“Not yet,” Thirteen replied. “I will wait until the appointed time before I show them Amos’ body.”
“Why wait?” Tristan asked. “If you show it right now, everyone will recognize you as the Supreme Commander for the counterattack of the Dvalinn Federation.”
Thirteen shook his head firmly. “I need time. Informing the Dvalinn Federation about this matter will only be counterproductive at this point in time.”
“What do you need time for?” Tristan asked.
“The Brain Beetle,” Thirteen answered. “We need to deal with the Brain Beetle first. If not, it’s impossible for us to create a foothold in the Rigel Continent. Any attempt to do so will just result in a bad ending.”
Lawrence nodded, agreeing with the point Zion had raised.
“But let’s create a record first,” Tristan proposed. “That way, even if the Dvalinn Federation were to suddenly defeat another King, we would have proof that you won the competition first.”
Thirteen nodded. “Okay. Let’s do that.”
The Grand Marshal then activated his recording artifact and shot a video of the Manticore King’s lifeless body.
After making sure that he had gathered enough evidence, he stored it properly to serve as evidence in the future.
When they arrived at the Aircraft Carrier, Michael immediately informed them that the Dvalinn Federation had detected a battle in the Northern Regions.
Fortunately, when their military drones went to investigate, Thirteen and his team were already miles away from the site, leaving no traces behind.
Since Arthur was in a weakened state, Michael stayed with him for the entire night.
Thirteen, on the other hand, returned to his room.
But, he didn’t go there to sleep.
He went there to connect with Athena, which was currently hovering above the Rigel Continent at this point in time.
Using the imagery from space, Thirteen confirmed the location of one of the Cursed Artifacts that his Host had hidden behind.
Its location was dangerously close to the Brain Beetle, which led him to believe that it might’ve already been discovered by the Brain Beetle or by its subordinates.
‘Why are things never easy?’ Thirteen sighed in his heart as he looked at the red glowing dot in the projection in front of him.
A few minutes later, he closed the projection and finally went to bed.
Although he didn’t look like it, he was also quite exhausted from the expedition that they had just finished.
“Good night, Tiona,” Thirteen said as he lightly patted the black snake’s head.
Tiona nodded and coiled herself up on Thirteen’s chest so that she could rest alongside him.
He wasn’t aware that while he, Arthur, and the rest of the Leventis Fleet were resting, the Dvalinn Federation went on high alert.
They noticed that the monsters belonging to the King Manticore’s faction were gathering and that there were signs of battle in their territory.
Renz, who was the strategist of the Dvalinn Federation immediately took command, and ordered the Elite Members of their organization to remain on standby.
Although he didn’t see the Manticore King through the lens of their man-made drones, he thought that it was just rallying the rest of its subordinates to launch an attack in their direction.
Because of this, the Dvalinn Federation had a sleepless night, contrary to Thirteen who was sleeping soundly while chatting with a beautiful snake lady in his dreams.
***
A/N: The week-long break I had from writing has helped me a lot to recover.
And, yes, I am feeling a lot better today.
With that, I will return to posting two chapters starting tomorrow.
However, if something similar happens in the future, I will be kind to myself because I know that you guys always have my back.
I’ll see you all in the next chapters!