The students" counter-attack was slow, methodical and ruthless. Reinvigorated by their respite and united by a common goal, they advanced in tight formation, methodically cleaning the remaining monsters in the ravine. Each step forward was a forced coordination exercise, with mixed teams learning to cover their strengths and compensate for their weaknesses.
The progression was bloody, but it was also an upward spiral of power. The ether released by the hundreds of monsters that were slaughtered flooded the students, causing a wave of unprecedented level rises. The middle-ranking awakened, who had started the expedition at levels 1 or 2, reached mass level 7. Their powers were refined, gaining power and control. Defenders became more resilient, attackers more powerful, supporters more effective. The feeling of despair was replaced by a brutal confidence, forged in adversity.
Meanwhile, the elite group continued its murderous ascent to the ridge. Hakime, Loïd and their teams were now a perfect arrowhead, their powers merging into a dance of coordinated destruction.
Arthur, now level 10, was a deadly ghost. His successive Quicksteps left afterimages, and his daggers found the joint of each natural armor, the flaw in each defense.
Conor, level 10, was a titan. His Ironskin was so dense that the goblins' clubs broke on it. Its mass opened gaps in enemy ranks like a cannonball.
Lyra, level 10, had transformed the space around her into a crystalline killing field. She no longer threw projectiles, but literally grew forests of glass blades from the ground, impaling monsters that dared to approach.
On the other hand, Loïd's team was equally devastating. Level 10, Elara froze entire groups with one gesture, turning them into fragile ice statues that Kaito, level 10, then sprayed with a simple magnetic push. The fourth member, now level 10, used its sonic waves to disintegrate the slimes and vibrate the internal organs of the goblins.
Loïd himself, at level 9, was a fire lord. His blue-white flames were no longer projectiles, but extensions of his will. He created walls of fire, incandescent snakes, and controlled explosions that cleaned entire sections of the battlefield. Each monster slaughtered brought him closer to level 10, but the gap with his team widened, fueling his frustration.
And there was Hakime.
As everyone around him reached new heights, he climbed each level with painful slowness. He reached level 6 with superhuman effort. Every statistical point was crucial. He had placed his points to balance his abilities, strengthening his Will for absolute control and his Endurance to hold the shock. His Aegis of Light had become his major asset, allowing him to throw himself into the fray and resist blows that would have killed anyone else.
He was the strategist, the pivot. His light was not the most flashy, but the most essential. A flash to blind a charge, a shield to protect Conor, a precise beam to pierce the shell of a tough monster that resisted Loïd's fire. He channeled the team, led their assaults, filled their weaknesses.
Gradually, inexorably, they climbed the slope. The number of monsters was decreasing, but their quality was increasing. Goblins were now replaced by Somnolente Brutes, level 8 ogres, and Mist Corrupters, deformed creatures that reinforced the draining effect of haze.
It was a fight of wear and tear. The hours passed. The night was total, only pierced by the glow of power. Fatigue spread to them all, even with their high levels. Hakime's Aegis of Light was the only one that allowed them to breathe, but its duration was limited and its ether cost was significant.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, they reached the top of the ridge. The last circle of defense, composed of the strongest monsters, fell under their combined assaults.
And there he was.
King Goblin of laziness. Level 10. He was taller than the ogres they had faced, his skin was a gray stone shell, and his eyes emitted a malevolent yellow glow. A thick, foul-smelling haze emanated from him constantly, more corrosive than anything they had ever known. He didn't hold a club, but his hands ended in claws as long as swords. He watched them approach, fearlessly, with contemptuous weariness.
Silence fell on the ridge, broken only by the breathless breath of the fighters and the sizzle of Loïd's flames. Below, the other students had finally cleaned the ravine and watched, in amazement, as the stage was being prepared at the top.
Loïd stepped forward, his fists inflamed. "At last, this vermin is mine."
Hakime stood beside him, his Aegis of Light twinkling faintly in the darkness. His spear was aimed at the monster." We do it together, Loïd. This is our only chance."
King Goblin gave off a low growl, which sounded like a laugh. Then he rose to his full height, dominating the two young men with all his imposing mass. The mist around them thickens, siphoning their energy faster than ever.
The final fight for the Ravine of the Ancients was about to begin.