Anzo took a confident step forward, his massive greatsword hovering behind him, seemingly weightless as it began to rotate rapidly in midair, the force of its motion stirring the toxic air around them. His red mana surged, wrapping the blade in a crimson aura and causing it to hum loudly.
‘Wait… he isn’t going to wield it with his hand? Then what’s up with all that muscle?’ Alister thought, slightly perplexed by the bizarre way Anzo decided to use that dragon arm.
[A/N: Some dragons are born with weapons or obtain weapons from parts of their bodies as they age. These weapons are called Dragon Arms. For the dragon god, it was Restria.] “Time to make you regret waking up,” Anzo yelled, his smirk widening.
With a swift motion of his hand, he hurled the spinning greatsword toward the Hydra. The massive weapon tore through the air, its speed creating a crimson streak.
SHINK!
The blade cleaved through one of the Hydra’s heads in a single, devastating strike, the severed head crashing into the swamp with a splash.
“Booya! That’s my money’s worth!” Anzo shouted, punching the air triumphantly.
But his celebration was cut short when the severed head began to regenerate before his eyes. In mere moments, a new head had formed, its yellow eyes glaring at them.
“What the hell?” Anzo yelled, his excitement turning into frustration.
The Hydra let out another deafening roar, shaking the very ground beneath them.
Alister remained calm, observing the scene with a faint smirk. “It has powerful regenerative capabilities,” he explained. “Attacks like that won’t work in the long run.”
Anzo spun to face him, irritation clear on his face. “Then why the hell are you here? Where are your dragons, huh? Wouldn’t now be a good time to bring them in?”
Alister’s smirk widened into a confident smile as he turned to gaze at Anzo. “I told you before, this boss is mine, remember?”
Anzo wore a confused expression on his face. “Wait… you don’t mean you’re going to go head-to-head with that thing, right?”
Alister smiled as he said, “Yes.”
Anzo couldn’t believe him. “What kind of joke is that? I know you’re strong, SSS Rank and all that, but you’re a Summoner, no?”
Alister chuckled, turning his attention back to the Hydra, its eight heads hissing. “Just try to keep up, Anzo. I’ll show you how it’s done.”
The faint shimmer of Alister’s golden aura intensified as he flexed his claws, stepping forward toward the massive creature.
Suddenly, Alister’s figure blurred, then vanished entirely from Anzo’s view.
“What the-?!” Anzo muttered, his eyes darting frantically across the battlefield. “That’s speed like a physical enhancement user!”
Hovering slightly above the ground using his telekinesis, Anzo scoffed, gripping his spinning greatsword with a telekinetic pull.
“Don’t think I’m gonna let you show me up!” he yelled. “I’ll just have to dice that thing into so many pieces it won’t have a chance to regenerate!”
Before Anzo could act, Alister reappeared, this time directly below the Hydra’s towering heads.
With a sudden burst of power, Alister crouched, the ground beneath him cracking, and then, with a massive…
BOOM!
He leaped. He shot into the air like a missile, his golden aura blazing brightly around him.
CRACK!
His foot collided with one of the Hydra’s skulls in a thunderous kick, the impact echoing like a cannon blast.
The Hydra’s massive body was thrown backward, its entire form stumbling several steps before it regained its balance.
Anzo froze mid-flight, his jaw dropping. “No way…”
Landing gracefully atop a crumbling section of the ruined colosseum, Alister stood tall, the golden light of his aura glowing faintly. He cleaned specks of mud from his face nonchalantly. “Also,” Alister spoke, “the Hydra has another trick… it can turn living objects into stone if you stay in one place for too long. Keep moving, or you’ll become a statue.”
Anzo narrowed his eyes. “I know, genius! I saw the talent window when I got here!” Alister smirked but said nothing, his gaze locked onto the Hydra as its heads hissed in fury, the creature now focusing all eight of its heads on the two of them.
Alister shot forward, the ground cratering beneath him as his leap sent him soaring through the air with explosive speed. His golden aura trailed behind him like a comet, and he twisted mid-flight, aiming a devastating kick at the Hydra’s central head.
BOOM!
The impact rang out like a thunderclap, the force rippling through the Hydra’s colossal body. The head jerked violently to the side, green ichor spraying into the air. Alister landed atop another shattered column, the structure cracking under his forceful landing before collapsing into rubble.
Meanwhile, Anzo’s greatsword buzzed around him like a whirlwind, tearing through the air with a WHIRRRR.
“Time to turn you into snake sushi!” Anzo yelled, his red mana surging as he directed the spinning blade toward the Hydra’s writhing heads.
SHINK! SHINK! SHINK!
Three heads were severed in rapid succession, the blade leaving arcs of crimson light in its wake.
But the satisfaction was short-lived. Before the heads even hit the ground, they were already regrowing, flesh knitting together with wet, sickening squelches.
“Damn it! These things don’t stay down!” Anzo cursed, hovering higher to avoid the Hydra’s snapping jaws or its petrifying gaze.
The Hydra roared in fury, a deafening sound that shook the ruins and sent loose debris tumbling. It reared back, its heads unleashing streams of putrid green poison breath that hissed and bubbled as it hit the crumbling stone.
SSSSSSHHHHHHH!
The toxic mist corroded everything it touched, reducing ancient statues and columns to molten slag. Alister darted between the attacks, his movements blurring as he leaped from one broken pillar to the next.
“Keep moving, Anzo!” Alister yelled, leaping over a jet of poison that melted through a
nearby wall.
“I don’t need you telling me the obvious!” Anzo yelled, spinning his greatsword in a wide arc. The blade cleaved through another head, then another, before curving back to hover protectively behind him.
The Hydra retaliated with a ferocious swing of its massive tail, the limb crashing through a line of ruined arches with a series of resounding CRASHES. Stone and dust erupted into the air, the shockwave throwing Alister off his perch.
Alister twisted mid-fall, planting his feet into a nearby wall and kicking off with explosive force. He closed the gap to the Hydra in an instant, slashing his claws, using Void Rend in a
golden blur.
SCHREEE!
His claws sliced touch one of the heads, golden mana carving deep gashes into the scaled flesh. Ichor sprayed across the battlefield, sizzling as it hit the poisoned ground. The Hydra screeched in pain, thrashing violently. Its tail lashed out again, striking the remains of an ancient fountain and obliterating it in a shower of rubble and water as the head
regrew.
“Watch it, snake!” Anzo yelled, maneuvering mid-air with his telekinesis to avoid the debris. He directed his greatsword into another sweeping attack, the blade cutting through multiple
heads at once in a single arc.
THWACK! THWACK!
The Hydra stumbled, ichor pouring from its wounds, but its regeneration was relentless. The severed heads began to grow back, now faster than before, their yellow eyes glowing even
brighter.
“Alister, this isn’t working!” Anzo shouted. “We’re just making it mad!”
“It’s all part of the plan,” Alister replied, landing atop a new section of the Colosseum. The stone cracked under his feet, but he didn’t seem bothered. “Keep wearing it down. It’s only a
matter of time.”
“You have a plan?!” Anzo scoffed, dodging another sweep of the Hydra’s tail that tore through a nearby statue. “Won’t you call over one of your dragons to burn the thing to the
ground or something?”
“We’re going to run out of ruins to hid with before that thing runs out of heads!”
Alister smirked, launching himself toward the Hydra again with a leap, Alister struck another devastating blow, his kick landing with a resounding BOOM that sent shockwaves through the battlefield, forcing the Hydra to stagger back once more.
Anzo steadied himself mid-air, his spinning greatsword orbiting around him like a satellite.
He glanced at Alister, who landed on the crumbled Colosseum wall, still looking calm and confident despite the Hydra’s monstrous roar.
“So,” Anzo called out, “do you actually have a plan? Or do you plan to just kick that thing to
death?”
Alister chuckled softly, brushing a strand of silver hair from his face. “Kicking it to death doesn’t sound too bad,” he teased, “but no. I have a plan.”
Anzo raised an eyebrow, his sword slowing its rotation as he waited for more. “Care to share
with the rest of the class, or is it one of those ‘mysterious team leader secret’ things where
you act all cool and keep me in the dark?”
Alister’s smirk deepened, seemingly unfazed by the Hydra’s never ending regeneration. The massive creature hissed and roared, thrashing wildly, its tails whipping through the air and tearing apart what little remained of the ancient Colosseum.
“I’ve got it handled, all you have to do is follow orders, let this be a team building exercise,” Alister said confidently, leaping to another crumbling column with ease. His claws glowed brighter, golden mana swirling around them. “Just keep it busy, don’t stop your attacks, and
don’t let it pin you down.”
Anzo groaned, his greatsword spinning back into position over his shoulder. “Keep it busy, he says,” he muttered sarcastically.
Anzo raised his hand, his red mana flaring as he sent his blade rocketing forward.
WHIRR! THUNK!
The greatsword embedded itself into one of the Hydra’s necks, pinning the head to a stone
pillar with a sickening crack. Blood sprayed out, sizzling as it splattered onto the ground.
The Hydra screeched, its remaining heads lashing out in fury. One shot a torrent of green poison at Anzo, while another snapped its jaws toward Alister. SSSSHHHHHHHH!