The only way Rowan could defeat her would be if his Second Bond turned out to be a Mythical Ranked Beast.
‘Heh.’
The moment she thought about it, Elira laughed at that possibility.
The Battle was indeed over.
But…
[Do it.]
Rowan, who was panicking as he saw Magma rushing towards him, suddenly heard a voice in his head.
He turned towards Tower Head Selene, and the instant the woman nodded, the Xenthalor Mage grinned.
“You brought this upon yourself, Drakthar Bitch.”
He cursed as suddenly, the Space around him cracked, and a purple-black maw came out, instantly attracting all the attention.
Rowan, on the other hand, grinned like his victory was already assured.
“Allow me to show you my Trump Card,
A Mythical Ranked Beast,
Eclipsing Devourer.
Hahahaha!”
The mage laughed like a maniac as a 3-meter-tall beast, covered in obsidian-black carapace with shimmering purple cracks, appeared beside him.
The Beast’s jagged maw seemed to distort reality itself, and his six glowing eyes were like gateways to the void, radiating an overwhelming sense of dread.
It was a nightmarish creature.
*Maul*
“That’s… an Eclipsing Devourer…?”
The audience frowned.
Mythical Ranked Beasts were extremely rare; the majority of Mythical Ranked Beasts were just that, myths.
No one had actually seen them.
An Eclipsing Behemoth was a nightmarish creature of myths, a Beast that is known to cause havoc, destruction, and dread.
It is said to be the embodiment of endless night, sleeping in the deepest abyss, rising only to consume entire armies in darkness. Its shadowy form coils through battlefields, devouring light itself, leaving only silence and fear in its wake.
That was all the people knew about the Eclipsing Devourer; no one had actually seen it before, heck, many didn’t even believe it to be real.
But now…
That nightmarish creature was standing right in front of them.
“A Mythical Ranked Beast…”
People couldn’t believe it.
“How did we not know about Xenthalor Empire getting their hands on a Mythical Ranked Beast…?”
“And to think they gave such a Beast to a mage like Rowan…
Why would they do that?”
“Was he the one who found it?”
“But where? Did he go to the Forest of End?”
“And came back alive? Don’t be foolish.”
Questions arose.
The more they thought about it, the stranger it became.
Even Alden narrowed his eyes, doubting if this truly was a Mythical Beast, but then,
“KKKRRREEEEKKKKK!!!”
The Beast let out a creepy, soul-shattering roar that sent shivers down everyone’s spine, and then, suddenly,
BOOOOM
An endless amount of dark energy exploded from its body, engulfing the entire battlefield in darkness.
And the moment it did,
It didn’t matter who it was, whether it was Silas and Thunder high in the air, Elira and Emberaile attacking Arthur and his Titan, or even Storm and Magma, who were right next to Rowan, every single one of them was devoured by this darkness.
But then,
“ARLAN!!! STOP THE BATTLE!”
Kael screamed at the top of his lungs. He himself had already rushed out, forming a Flaming Chain that moved right into the dome of darkness, pulling Elira and Emberaile out.
“Huh?”
Arlan, however, frowned at the Hero’s sudden actions.
Why was Kael getting involved in the battle?
Does he not understand what he did?
By pulling Elira out of the Dome, he eliminated her from the battle without giving her a fighting chance.
Was he scared because a Mythical Ranked Beast appeared?
But Kael didn’t seem like one to lash out like that without reason.
‘Whatever.’
In the end, Arlan shook his head and decided to act. If Kael was wrong, he would take the blame for him later; for now, he decided to trust the Hero.
But it was already too late.
“ROOAAAAAAARRRRRRR!!!!”
“SCCRREEEEEEEEECCCCH!!!”
“AAAAAAGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!”
Agonizing roars, screeches, and screams came from the dome of darkness, which was created in the middle of the battlefield, horrifying everyone present there.
Kael, who saw that, widened his eyes in horror. He quickly turned towards Alden and screamed again,
“STOP THE BATTLE!
THAT’S A CORRUPTED BEAST!!”
“WHAT!?”
Crown Prince Edric stood up, his eyes wide in shock.
Kael nodded, his eyes once again turned golden.
“I saw it with my own eyes.”
He spoke as he pointed at his eyes.
[Name: Maul]
[Race: Abyssal Dreadmaw]
[Rank: Epic]
[Age: 40]
[State: Corrupted]
[Level: 52]
[Strength: 135 (145)]
[Agility: 75 (85)]
[Speed: 69 (76)]
[Stamina: 180 (195)]
[Defense: 150 (160)]
[Mana: 250 (430)]
[Intelligence: 140 (82)]
[Charisma: 95 (55)]
[Strengths: High Mana, Excellent in Group Battles, Can attack multiple enemies at once.]
[Weaknesses: Slow Movement Speed, High Mana Dependence, Close Combat, Low Intelligence, Corrupted.]
…
“That is not an Eclipsing Devourer or whatever you people are thinking. It’s a Corrupted Abyssal Dreadmaw.”
Kael revealed the truth with shocked Elira in his arms.
“Hero Kael, what are you talking about?”
Someone questioned.
It was Rowan.
Kael turned towards the Mage and saw that the Dome of Darkness had disappeared and other than Rowan and his Bond, everyone else on the battlefield had passed out.
“You should know about it better than I do, no?”
Kael narrowed his eyes, staring at the Mage in front of him.
“No, I don’t. Please explain.”
Rowan, however, did not back down.
“You accused me of being corrupted. Do you know what that implies?”
“Accused? You aren’t foolish any—”
“Hero Kael, do you even know what Corrupted Beasts are?”
Rowan interrupted and asked a question.
“Yes, I do.”
Kael snapped.
“I saw them with my own eyes when I was in Estwyn.”
“And you are comparing those brutish, mindless monsters with my Maul?
Do you sense that filthy energy that you sensed from those monsters from him? Does my Maul look like a Mindless Monster to you? Does it look like my Maul has no sense of control?
Because if that was the case, no one here, including your precious instructor, would be alive. The only reason you were able to bring her out of Maul’s Dome of Dread was because Maul allowed you, not wanting to hurt you.
Do you think a Corrupted Beast is capable of such thoughts? Or any thoughts for that matter?”
Rowan questioned as he then looked into the Hero’s eyes and,
“Hero Kael, please do tell,
In what way does my Maul look like a Corrupted Beast to you?”