He skillfully leapt and dodged, evading the ones he couldn’t fully dissect. Determined to ensure his own safety, especially considering the possibility that Warrior Jean may be deliberately putting his life at risk, Orion pressed on, his movements fueled by a surge of adrenaline.
As time passed, the figure of Warrior Jean gradually came into focus. Without wasting another moment, Orion sprinted towards him, closing the distance until he stood firmly behind the warrior.
Meanwhile, the crackling and sizzling of lightning behind him caught Warrior Jean’s attention. He turned his head slightly, glancing at Orion from the corner of his eye. “I expected you to be a bit slower, but it seems I was mistaken,” he remarked, his focus returning to the path ahead as he continued to walk forward. “Nevertheless, just keep up. We’ll be reaching our destination soon.”
Orion’s brows furrowed in confusion as he swung his lightning-coated sword, swiftly cleaving through a nearby Vylkr vine while deftly avoiding another. Although he desperately wanted to clarify his absence from the warrior’s training earlier, he understood the importance of time. Before Warrior Jean could lead him to another unknown location, Orion couldn’t help but inquire with a bit of apprehension in his voice, “What do you mean by ‘destination’? Where are we headed?”.
Nevertheless, Warrior Jean remained silent, his steady steps unbroken as he continued to cut through the encroaching Vylkr vines with effortless precision. Despite being ignored for several minutes and feeling the weight of the unknown pressing upon him, Orion couldn’t resist posing yet another question, his words almost escaping his lips. “No ma–“.
However, his words were swiftly halted by Warrior Jean, who interjected, “We are here.” The abrupt stop caused Orion’s normally composed demeanour to waver, grinding his teeth in frustration as he swiftly swung his two cutlasses, fending off an approaching Vylkr vine that threatened to strike him. “What do you mean that w–” he began, only to fall silent once more as a remarkable transformation overtook Warrior Jean.
It wasn’t merely a glow emanating from his body, but rather strands of inky, smoke-like wisps billowing from every inch of his being, ascending upward akin to Fiona’s transformation. Crouching slightly, his right cutlass poised to the left as if preparing to draw a weapon, Orion watched in surprise as Warrior Jean’s movements reverberated in his ears, each swing of his cutlass punctuated by a resonant feedback.
The warrior then executed a swift strike to the side, then seamlessly transitioned to the left before completing a sweeping semi-circular motion before him. 𝒷𝒹ℴ𝓿𝓁.𝓬𝓸𝓂
With the completion of his display, Warrior Jean’s movements had become a blur, leaving Orion struggling to keep up. However, amidst the whirlwind of motion, he could discern the distinct sound of blades slicing through the air, generating gusts of wind that reverberated in his ears.
As the racket subsided, Orion’s surroundings underwent a remarkable transformation. The once-thriving congregation of two-star Vylkr vines had been decimated, cleared away by Warrior Jean’s astonishing prowess, save only a few lingering presences of sluggish tendrils that writhed with diminished vigour.
“Boom!!! Bammm!!!! Booommmm!!!” And then, suddenly, thunderous echoes reverberated through Orion’s ears as if the very ground beneath him trembled in response.
Stepping out from behind Warrior Jean, who had dragged him unwillingly into this mess, and had shielded him from the full force of the two-star Vylkr vines. Orion’s eyes widened in sheer disbelief. Because, before him stretched a scene that seemed straight out of a nightmare.
In front of him stood not one, but multiple towering figures. Their immense presence dominated the landscape, with thick tendrils snaking out in every direction. Orion’s mouth hung agape, unable to process the magnitude of the impending danger.
“Those,” Warrior Jean said, lightly slapping Orion’s back, “are three-star Vylkr vines.” Another resounding boom thundered towards them, shaking the very ground beneath their feet.
As Orion gazed ahead, his mind couldn’t help but entertain a perplexing thought -was the sight before him that of a mere beast or a true monster? Shaking his head vigorously to dismiss such a notion, he swiftly recognized the terrifying truth. The amalgamation of Vylkr vines, seamlessly intertwined and resembling a four-legged creature, was no ordinary beast; it was a bona fide monster.
The sinuous tendrils formed the creature’s legs, pulsating and writhing with energy. The blackish hue of the Vylkr vines only added to its eerie presence. Orion’s eyes traced the creature’s outline, its form ever-shifting and undulating. It was as if the very essence of the vines had merged, giving birth to this abomination.
With each step the creature took, the Vylkr vines swarmed and slithered, their collective movement creating an unsettling symphony of rustling and twisting. Orion knew he was facing a force beyond comprehension -a monstrous entity born from the relentless growth of the Vylkr vines.
“BOOOM!!” A torrent of sparks illuminated the darkened landscape, erupting from the periphery of the colossal monster. While the exact number of combatants eluded Orion’s count, the ethereal moonbeams, gracefully descending from above, revealed a mesmerizing sight -warriors engaged in a valiant struggle against the frightening creature.
“Every day, while the strongholds fortify certain areas around the village where the Vylkr vines are expected to appear, there are still numerous spots where they can unpredictably emerge, including the locations that you guys use as a training ground,” Warrior Jean explained, walking forward with a beckoning gesture for Orion to follow. “Typically, those areas are diligently cleared out but intentionally left for your training. However, this practice inadvertently attracts more Vylkr vines in that direction, since it takes longer for you all to clear them. And that also means that if these things persist, they might ultimately dispatch several two-star Vylkr vines or even three-star Vylkr vines to complete the task, or perhaps both.”
As the echoes of the distant battle continued to reverberate, Orion, still rooted to the spot, finally understood the gravity of Warrior Jean’s words. Overwhelmed by a surge of realization, he couldn’t help but blurt out “So, this monstrosity is heading towards the very spot we used for today’s warrior training, hoping to exploit it as an entry point into the forest?”
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