For a few long, intense seconds, Creed just stared at the ergency hatch.
His rational mind was still trying to convince him that this was a terrible idea. Every single survival instinct in his body was screaming, "You absolute dumbass, do NOT go up there!"
But unfortunately for him, the brutal reality of the situation was that he had no choice. His summons were about to evolve. Their tribulation was imminent.
And there was no way in hell that he could afford to deal with that kind of heavenly wrath inside the carrier.
Which ant that he was going up there whether he liked it or not.
With a deep breath, he forced his legs to move, stepping toward the ergency hatch with the sa energy as a man walking to greet his in-laws.
Seeing that Creed had actually made up his mind, the steel-faced guard grinned approvingly and gestured him over.
"Not bad, kid," the man chuckled, folding his arms. "Takes guts to walk into sothing like this."
Creed almost snorted.
’Guts?’
This wasn’t guts. This wasn’t bravery. This was having literally no other option and a damn countdown ticking down toward disaster.
If he didn’t go up there, the carrier would get struck. If he delayed too long, the exam officials might just throw him off anyway to prevent unnecessary damage!
This wasn’t courage. This was pure survival instinct.
Of course, he didn’t say that out loud. Instead, he just nodded.
The guard’s grin widened, and he suddenly reached into his storage ring before pulling out a pair of heavy, grey boots.
"These," he said, holding them out, "are magnetic boots. The carrier crew uses them during ergencies when they need to go outside and repair damaged parts mid-flight."
Creed blinked.
Magnetic boots?
The guard smirked. "They’ll help you stick to the surface of the ship so you don’t, y’know... get blown off and die."
"...Ah."
That was... useful. Very useful, actually.
"But," the man continued, "they’ll also slow you down. So, if you take them, be aware of that."
Creed didn’t hesitate.
Slower speed? Sure, whatever. It was still a much better alternative to being yeeted off a flying carrier by 300 mph winds.
"Much appreciated," Creed said, taking the boots and imdiately swapping them out for his own.
The weight was noticeable, but the mont he activated them, he could feel the magnetic pull keeping him locked to the floor.
Okay. That was one problem solved. Now... for the hard part.
Creed turned to the ergency hatch and took a deep breath.
Then, with zero hesitation, he grabbed onto the ladder and climbed up.
The mont he stepped out onto the roof of the carrier, his entire body was nearly whipped backward by the sheer force of the wind.
It was absolute chaos.
The air was thick and violent, a howling storm of raw, untad energy. The carrier was flying at an insane speed, and without the magnetic boots locking him in place, he would have already been flung into oblivion.
Below him?
Nothing but clouds and the endless, terrifyingly distant ground.
Creed gulped. ’Okay, yeah. This is insane.’
But at the sa ti...
...his pulse thrumd with excitent. Sothing about this was just so absurdly thrilling!
The sheer adrenaline rush of standing here, on the roof of a carrier, thousands of ters above the ground, about to face heavenly lightning was insane.
And yet, sohow, he was loving it.
Above him, the sky rumbled ominously. The black clouds were already swirling, and lightning flashed in violent arcs.
The sheer power in the atmosphere was terrifying. But what amazed Creed even more was that, despite the carrier moving at such a ridiculous speed, the thunderclouds were keeping up with ease.
As if they were locked directly onto him.
Well. That was just fantastic.
Creed sighed, then turned his attention to the two figures materializing beside him.
Lilith and Tierra.
His two adorable summons and closest allies.
The mont they fully appeared, the storm intensified. The clouds raged even more violently, and the air crackled with pure, destructive energy.
Creed raised an eyebrow.
"Well," he mused, "seems like the heavens really don’t like you two."
Lilith scoffed, flipping her silly purple hair over her shoulder. "It’s not our fault they’re jealous of my perfection."
Tierra smirked, folding her arms. "Or my elegance."
Creed chuckled. Then, as the countdown in his vision ticked down to its last few seconds, he tilted his head at them.
"Not even a little nervous?"
Lilith grinned. "Nervous? Why?"
Tierra smirked. "We have you, don’t we?"
Creed paused. Then he snorted.
"Damn right, you do."
At that mont, he reached into his storage ring and pulled out his new weapon. A 2-ter-long black and gold spear.
Sleek. Deadly. Perfectly balanced.
It had cost him a fortune; an amount so painful that his wallet still had nightmares about it. But it had been worth every credit.
It was a Stage 4 weapon!
A spear that could cut, pierce, and tear through opponents with terrifying efficiency. And right now, it was about to be tested against the wrath of the heavens.
Creed twirled the spear, feeling the smooth weight in his hands.
The countdown reached zero. The sky roared and a thunderous boom shook the entire atmosphere.
The storm exploded with power. Then, before Creed could even process it...
Boom! Boom!
The first two bolts of lightning ca crashing down and the impact was absolutely insane!
Creed smirked.
A bolt of pure, heavenly lightning had just descended upon him. It was raging, roaring and crackling with raw destruction.
And he casually swung his spear.
Bam!
The long, sleek black-and-gold weapon sliced through the air like a blade through silk. With a single smooth motion, the lightning bolt was torn apart, its energy dissipating like a candle blown out in a storm.
Creed barely even felt it.
Stage 3 power. That’s what it had been and that was insane.
This was supposed to be Lilith and Tierra’s tribulation for stepping into Stage 3, so the fact that the first bolt was already at mid-Stage 3 power was nothing short of ridiculous!
Creed raised an eyebrow. Eight more to go.
The heavens, apparently, were feeling particularly spiteful today.
A second set of crackling bolts descended from the sky, snarling like furious dragons. Creed’s smirk widened as he sliced them apart just as easily.
Then ca the third.
The fourth.
The fifth.
And finally, the sixth.
With each descending strike, the power increased slightly, but Creed still barely felt it. His spear carved through the thunder like it was nothing more than mist.
It was honestly kind of disappointing. He had thought heavenly tribulations were supposed to be terrifying.
Instead, here he was, chilling on top of a high-speed flying carrier, casually swatting away lightning like it was a bunch of annoying mosquitoes.
But then, the seventh bolt ca down and Creed finally let out a low whistle. This one was a bit serious.
It was thicker, heavier, brighter. The sheer pressure of it alone made his skin tingle. The air warped around it, charged with a power so intense that the very space itself cracked faintly.
"Alright," Creed sighed, rolling his shoulders. "Guess it’s ti to actually put in a little effort."
Then, for the first ti, he used a technique. His spear shot straight up.
Pierce!
Boom!
A shockwave exploded outward from the sheer force of the thrust, the air cracking apart as his spear ripped through space.
The aftershock alone was enough to weaken the descending bolt, and when it finally clashed against his spear’s energy, it shattered.
Creed grinned. ’So this is what being overpowered felt like, huh? Lonely. But also pretty damn fun!’
The eighth bolt ca down.
Boom! Gone.
The ninth bolt followed.
Boom! Obliterated.
And with that, the tribulation was over. Or so he thought.
Creed had just begun to relax, lowering his spear and turning back toward the hatch when the sky roared.
And suddenly, a terrifying pressure crashed down. Creed’s smirk vanished.
From the heavens, two apocalyptic red bolts of lightning erupted, descending faster than anything before.
And the mont Creed felt their power, a chill ran down his spine.
This was different. This was real. Instantly, his entire aura surged.
His Stage 2 Force!
His stage 2 Aura!
His Lightning Intent!
His Spear Intent!
His purple lightning!
All of it exploded outward, wrapping around his body in a brilliant, flickering storm of pure, concentrated destruction.
His pressure skyrocketed, and then, he moved.
This ti, when he thrust his spear upward, it wasn’t just a normal attack. It was a Peak Stage 2 attainnt technique!
A full-powered Pierce!
Boom!
When the red bolts slamd into his spear’s energy, the entire sky shook.
A blinding explosion of light and power erupted, sending violent shockwaves ripping through the atmosphere.
Even the carrier vibrated a little!
For a single, horrifying mont, it felt like the entire surroundings was about to be torn apart.
Then silence descended.
And when the dust settled, the red lightning bolts were gone.
Creed let out a slow breath, shaking his slightly tingling hands.
"...Damn," he muttered. "That was a little too close for comfort."
He waited cautiously. For a few seconds, he half-expected another bolt to co crashing down.
But the sky was finally clear. The tribulation was over. Creed sighed in relief.
’What the hell was that last part?’ he mused, furrowing his brow. ’Tribulations are supposed to be nine bolts, not ten. And since when was the last one red?’
Common knowledge dictated that heavenly tribulations followed strict rules. So why did his summons just break them?
Creed shook his head. Too many questions. Whatever. Right now, he was too lazy to think about it.
With a smirk, he turned toward Lilith and Tierra.
"Well, you two," he teased, "consider yourselves lucky to have such a caring master."
Lilith chuckled. "Aw, don’t be so modest."
Tierra smiled. "You really are amazing, though."
Then, before he could react, they both kissed his cheeks.
Creed blinked. Then he groaned. "...I really am turning into so OP protagonist, huh?"
With that, he stepped down into the hatch, descending back into the carrier, only to freeze. Because every single person inside was staring at him.
In pure, absolute shock.
Creed frowned. "...What?"
Then he looked up and he imdiately understood. He didn’t know when it happened, but the ceiling was completely transparent!
Which ant they had all seen everything.
——-
[Authors note; There we go! End of mass release! Consider buying this poor and shaless author-San a gift ToT]
Reviews
All reviews (0)