The monsters in front of the defensive line suddenly slowed.
Especially the spiders.
Their sharp legs, which had been striking with frightening speed monts ago, began to move as if weighed down by sothing invisible. Their leaps lost montum, their coordination broke, and their attacks turned sluggish.
So explorers noticed imdiately.
"Did... did they slow down?"
"What happened?"
The more sensitive ones felt it clearly. The flow of the battlefield had shifted, like the air itself had thickened. Yet none of them could understand why.
Arthur said nothing.
His intent had already spread.
Intent Weave activated.
Invisible pressure wrapped around the advancing monsters, suppressing their movents and breaking their rhythm. The effect was subtle but overwhelming.
Then he raised his hand.
Fire gathered, layered upon itself in controlled waves, compressing and shaping under his will.
Manifest intent.
Then... Boom.
The explosion shook the battlefield.
A wave of burning force erupted outward, swallowing the approaching vine beasts and spiders. Flas spread violently across their bodies, burning through regenerating vines and cracking hardened shells. The monsters writhed briefly before turning to ash and blackened fragnts.
The scale of it stunned everyone.
For a mont, the battlefield froze.
Explorers stopped moving. Even the monsters hesitated, their instincts overridden by the sudden burst of overwhelming force. The explosion echoed through the stronghold, leaving a ringing silence behind.
Then the monsters roared again and continued their assault.
But Arthur was not done.
He moved again, calm and steady.
Intent Weave spread first, slowing the next wave of creatures. Their movents staggered, their attacks delayed.
Then fire followed.
Boom.
Another explosion.
More monsters burned, their forms collapsing before they could even reach the defensive line.
Arthur repeated the process several tis. Slow them. Strike. End them.
Each action was tid and efficient, with no wasted motion.
The area their squad guarded gradually cleared.
The explorers around him stared in disbelief.
"That... that ca from him?"
"A new explorer?"
More heads turned toward Arthur as realization spread. The source of the overwhelming output stood quietly among them, moving with calm precision as if nothing unusual had happened.
The new explorers watched with complicated emotions.
So felt awe.
So felt envy.
They had seen him fight before. They had witnessed that strange presence around him during previous battles, and now that sa overwhelming aura surfaced again.
The awakening ceremony had labeled him an F rank.
No class.
No promise.
Yet the strength he displayed now told a different story.
They whispered among themselves.
"F rank? That’s impossible..."
"He’s stronger than most squad leaders..."
"He won’t stay bronze for long."
Deep down, they understood. The system might have written him off, but reality did not lie. His strength had already carved itself into their mory.
What unsettled them more was the feeling that he was still holding back.
Ryn also watched closely.
His sharp eyes tracked Arthur’s movents, studying every action. He noticed sothing others missed.
The monsters always slowed before Arthur attacked.
Their formation broke before the flas appeared.
How on earth is he doing that?
He stepped closer during a brief pause and called out, "Arthur!"
Arthur glanced back.
"That level of control already? You just obtained the fire elent."
Arthur simply waved his hand casually. "Just keep learning in monts , Captain."
Ryn frowned.
That was not a real explanation.
Still, this was not the ti for questions. The battlefield demanded attention, and whatever Arthur was hiding, it worked in their favor.
Ryn raised his voice.
"Push forward! Secure the opening he created!"
The squad moved instantly, taking advantage of the cleared area. Formation tightened, wounded mbers were pulled back, and pressure on their defense eased.
Arthur continued fighting, maintaining controlled output. His flas burned only where needed, his strikes precise and deliberate.
He could feel the stares from every direction.
From his squad.
From other bronze squads.
Even from distant explorers.
But he ignored them.
What bothered him more was the growing unease in his chest.
That bad feeling again.
It lingered beneath the noise of battle, heavy and persistent. The tainted mana in the air had grown thicker, pressing against his senses like sothing alive.
He frowned slightly.
Sothing is wrong.
Others began to notice as well.
Captain Veylor, fighting at the front line, suddenly paused and looked toward the distance with a deep frown.
Ryn cursed under his breath. "The mana... it’s getting worse."
Even ordinary explorers started feeling it. The air felt heavier, colder. Their instincts scread danger before their eyes even found the source.
Then they saw it.
A massive vine beast.
It stood far beyond the battlefield at first, barely visible behind layers of destruction. Yet with every second, it grew larger.
It absorbed everything.
Dead monsters, broken vines, spilled blood.
The ground itself seed to feed it.
Its body expanded grotesquely, thick vines twisting around each other while tainted mana pulsed through its core. Every absorbed corpse made it swell further, its presence becoming heavier and more oppressive.
The battlefield slowly fell into uneasy silence.
The creature moved toward the camp.
Not rushing.
Just advancing.
Step by step.
The pressure it emitted crushed the air around it. Even experienced explorers felt their breathing grow difficult as its presence spread across the battlefield.
Fear appeared on their faces.
"That... that’s not a normal vine beast."
"The pressure... it’s close to a D rank."
"A boss level monster?"
"But bosses can’t appear outside the dungeon..."
Nothing made sense.
Panic spread among the explorers. Their formation wavered, their confidence shaken by the overwhelming presence of the creature.
Behind them, the civilians collapsed into despair. So cried openly, others simply stared at the approaching monster with empty eyes, as if already accepting their fate.
The creature continued growing as it approached, its vines dragging across the ground like endless serpents.
Arthur stared at it quietly.
The tainted mana around it was overwhelming. The distortion he had sensed earlier now had a clear source.
This was not natural. Not even a normal mutation.
The ground trembled with each step of the massive vine beast. The remaining monsters around it seed to gather instinctively, drawn to its presence like servants answering a king.
The tension on the battlefield reached its breaking point.
No one moved. No one spoke.
But they all understood.
The danger had only just begun.
A/N:
We made it to Chapter 100😭.. I appreciate everyone that stuck with so far.
LET’S KEEP SOARING. Also don’t forget to MOTIVATE your Author🥹.
Please send Powerstones and Tickets, Let’s fly to the TOP of the rankings together🚀..
Also, drop Comnts and Reviews..
(TEN REVIEWS = BONUS Chapter🔥).
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