The sword saint rushed deeper into the woods, evading trunks and branches alike. The sound of rushing water grew clearer the deeper she went. She turned to look behind her—the beast was nowhere to be seen. But that didn't make her stop, didn't make her rest to catch her breath. Instead, it pushed her to move through the pain and continue forward. She was leading it into a different playing field, a place that could either serve as an asset or a liability.
The only way to find out…was forward.
Massive ice shards began to rain from above, tearing through the trees like they were mere twigs. She took cover beneath the twisted trunk of one of them. Through luck or grace…or maybe both, the hailstorm failed to flatten the tree she had hidden under.
When she emerged, what greeted her was devastation. Hundreds of surrounding trees had been levelled to mere stumps. The river was now in clear view—just as she was to the beast. She pushed through the pain in her ribs and sprinted forward, navigating through splintered wood and trees that chose to fall just as she ran past.
Before long, she arrived at the riverbank, and without hesitation, she jumped in.
The water felt cold, seeping through her armour and biting at her skin. The armour was going to serve as a major asset for what was to come, she needed the extra weight.
The river's current was strong, flowing in a single direction towards the cascading waterfall at its end. The sword saint stood neck-deep in the cold water, strong currents crashing against her battered body. The extra weight grounded her in place but slightly restricted her movement.
If she was lucky, the rushing water would negate the beast's ice affinity…or at least reduce its spread.
The beast would be just as limited as her in this new terrain. When the battle continued, she knew she would have an advantage.
The moonlight that had once been obstructed by countless branches and leaves now rested undisturbed on the surrounding chaos. The humanoid beast walked through the destruction it had birthed. Its gaze locked onto the singular figure in the water, cold and unyielding. The burning desire within it came unrestrained. All it wanted was for the human to die—a cruel, cold, agonising death.
It stepped into the water. The current crashed against its body, pulling it towards the waterfall. The cold mist that exuded from its being began to freeze at the surface of the water. The ice spread slowly across the surface, but didn't travel far. The current disrupted its formation.
The sword saint, watching its every move, couldn't help but smile. Just as she had thought, the current negated the beast's affinity.
The ice cracked as it took a step forward. Its incomprehensible burst of speed couldn't fully manifest here.
The sword saint exhaled. She had brought it into the terrain. Its pride wouldn't allow it to leave despite the disadvantage. The rage in its eyes hadn't faded, it still desperately wanted her dead.
Now that same rage would become her advantage.
She clenched her fist. The silver blade was long gone. What she was about to do was something that required both her mind and body to be in complete alignment. The slightest mishap would be life-threatening.
The humanoid beast took another step forward—
—and felt a gauntlet crash into its ribs.
The impact lifted its body above the water, suspending it mid-air for a brief moment. The human was still a distance away.
So what had struck it?
Another blow followed, crashing into its ribs and sending its body plummeting back into the water. It rose again, white hair soaked, dripping. The rage in its eyes darkened, more feral.
It could still see the human at a distance.
She hadn't moved.
So what had struck it?
It had seen her use wind affinity before. It could sense wind blades.
This wasn't that. This felt different.
Like the human was right beside it.
Another strike came, this time directly to its face. Its head snapped backward, only for another blow to redirect it to the side.
Its body crashed into the water again.
The creature emerged furious. A gust of freezing air erupted from its body. The surrounding water froze rapidly—
then shattered.
The current broke the ice apart and continued to flow.
The sword saint remained in her position, unmoving. Unaffected by the outburst. She watched as the rage in its eyes slowly twisted into madness.
Sentient beings always feared what they couldn't comprehend.
The humanoid beast was no different.
She wanted it to lose itself, to thrash, to abandon reason. It was far easier to kill a mad beast than a calculating one.
Aster relayed everything he had seen to the surrounding people, from the initial stages of the battle, to the crimson tempest they had likely witnessed, down to the death of one of the beasts.
Only after he finished speaking did they notice the corpse of the vine beast.
"What about the other one, the one you said looked like a human?" Vivian asked, a slight urgency in her tone.
"She led it deeper into the woods," he replied.
Vivian looked around. She had followed for the sword saint, but she wasn't in any condition to fight. She didn't even have enough mana left for a proper confrontation. The surrounding hunters weren't strong enough either.
The only person she could rely on right now…was Prometheus.
He had woken up moments after the sword saint left and had followed in search of her. She glanced towards his short frame, the grip on his bow was tight.
"Take the kid to a healer," Vivian instructed, her words directed at the surrounding adventurers.
"What about the sword saint?" one of them asked. The others nodded in agreement.
"Prometheus and I will assist her," Vivian replied. "The kid looks like he could die at any moment. Get him help."