The group stood frozen as the creature finished forming in front of them. Its full shape rose into the sky, dwarfing everything around it. Even the mountain behind it looked small in comparison. The monster stood at least twice its height, a towering mass of shadow and condensed corruption.
Arthur blinked. "Even if we dragged Osara completely out of the water, this thing would still be bigger."
"Arthur, Paul, you're with me on the front line," Leo said.
Briva clenched her fists. "Then what about us?"
"If my guess is right," Leo replied, eyes fixed on the monster, "cutting it will only make things worse. Its blood will turn into smaller creatures." He looked back at them. "I'm leaving those to you."
"Like Osara?" Arthur asked.
Leo nodded.
Without warning, the monster opened its mouth and released a deafening howl. Mana surged outward from its body, erupting into a violent wave of lightning that spread in all directions.
Leo reacted instantly. He waved his hand, and the group vanished. A heartbeat later, they reappeared more than a thousand meters away. At the same time, a massive golden shield formed in front of them. The lightning wave crashed into it even at that distance, shaking the air and rattling the ground beneath their feet.
The shield held, but the pressure was immense.
"This thing is far stronger than Osara," Arthur said as the shield slowly faded, cracks of light dissolving into the air.
"Arthur, Paul," Leo said, already rising into the air, "buy me one minute."
Arthur and Paul moved at once.
Arthur launched himself forward, wings of light bursting from his back as he accelerated ahead of Paul. Dozens of swords formed around him, spinning briefly before shooting forward. They struck the monster's torso in a series of explosions, bright flashes tearing through its shadowy surface, but against its massive body, the damage looked insignificant.
The monster reacted. One enormous hand reached out, fingers closing toward Arthur.
Arthur twisted aside at the last moment, slipping past the grasp and continuing his assault. The creature growled, then drew back its arm and threw a punch powerful enough to tear the air apart.
Arthur stopped in midair, calm and focused, a faint smile on his face. Just as the punch reached him, he shot upward.
Paul appeared behind him in the same instant, already swinging.
Paul's punch met the monster's fist head-on.
The collision unleashed a violent explosion of force. The shockwave blasted Paul backward through the air, but the impact forced the giant monster to stagger. One massive step crashed into the ground, pulverizing the land beneath its foot and sending debris flying in every direction.
At that moment, Arthur drew his forty-fifth sword. As he brought it down, a wide arc of golden light tore through the air and struck the unbalanced monster, carving a deep wound into its shoulder. Blackened flesh split apart, and corrupted blood sprayed outward.
The monster let out a deafening howl and surged forward with terrifying speed. Before it could reach Arthur and Paul, a violent tornado of white and red mist erupted in its path. The sound of distant bells rang through the Shadowland, heavy and solemn. From within the swirling fog, a massive hand emerged and slammed into the monster's chest, stopping it mid-charge.
A second later, the rest of the figure stepped out of the storm, a towering giant formed from white stone. Six massive arms spread outward as it planted its feet, holding the monster in place through sheer strength.
"That… that's the same creature that grabbed my mother before," Luciana said, her voice tense. "He can summon the Creator's giant?"
As the two colossal beings struggled against each other, something else began to happen. From the wound Arthur had opened, thousands of winged creatures poured out, spilling into the air like a living tide. Unlike the ones Osara created, these radiated far greater pressure.
Each had a tall, elegantly monstrous form, shaped from flesh, thorns, and intent. Their proportions mirrored something almost human, yet twisted into a design far older and more cruel. Dark crimson skin stretched tightly over layered muscle that looked grown rather than built, ridged like natural armor.
From their backs unfurled crowns of tentacles and barbed appendages, curling slowly as if alive and aware. They framed each creature like a grotesque halo, sharp and deliberate, suggesting wings meant not for flight alone, but for restraint and execution. Every thorn caught what little light existed, glinting with a faint, dangerous sheen.
Where a face should have been lay only shadow beneath a hood-like carapace. At its center burned a single molten glow, red and pulsing. It was not an eye, yet it watched. Not a heart, yet it beat with hunger and intent, filling the air around it with a quiet, suffocating malice.
"Elna," Luciana said quietly.
At once, two massive wings of dark red blood unfurled from Luciana's back, spreading wide with a wet shimmer. Elna answered without hesitation. She stepped into her shadow before she burst upward, carried by the force of her wings as her transformation completed midair.
Above them, Briva let the sound of the bells guide her. Her body twisted and reshaped into that of a harpy, white feathers and muscle forming in a heartbeat. She grabbed Vanessa by her clothes and pulled her skyward.
Dave was the only one left on the ground. He had just begun forming a spell to teleport when his vision blurred. Space folded around him, and the next instant he stood on a floating platform suspended in the air, positioned at a safe distance from the two massive monsters.
He smiled faintly. Leo had placed him exactly where he needed to be.
The book in Dave's hands flipped open on its own, pages turning until a glowing spell circle formed across them. Light poured out and split into four streams, striking Luciana, Elna, Briva, and Vanessa. Their bodies surged with renewed strength and speed as the spell took effect.
Luciana cut through the flying army first. She moved like a shadow wrapped in blood, her blades and abilities tearing through enemies in rapid arcs. From her shadow, layered spells burst outward, striking down anything that tried to surround her.
On the other side, Briva released Vanessa midair and dove straight into the enemy. Her claws shredded flesh while controlled bursts of wind crushed and scattered the creatures around her, the sky itself bending to her movements.
Vanessa fought differently. Using pure magic and telekinesis, she held herself aloft and darted between enemies, her dual swords flashing as she cut them down with precise, efficient strikes.
Any creatures that slipped past them met lightning bolts or fireballs summoned by Dave, each spell timed to close gaps or finish wounded enemies.
Together, they halted the swelling swarm of monsters in the air, holding the line while, below and ahead of them, the three S-ranks battled the towering monstrosity at the heart of the Shadowland.
While the two giants clashed, Leo's stone giant drove forward, using its six massive arms to hammer the creature again and again. Each punch landed with crushing force, shaking the ground beneath them. After several heavy blows, the monster let out a furious howl, and mana surged toward the sigil glowing on its chest.
The stone giant responded at once. It drew four of its arms together, palms facing inward, as dense streams of mana gathered between them, forming a blinding core of energy.
A heartbeat later, two beams of power collided at close range.
The impact tore through the air, the shockwave rippling outward and trembling the earth for miles around. Dust and debris scattered across the field as the beams struggled against each other.
Suddenly, the monster broke the stalemate. It pulled one arm back and swung with brutal force, smashing through one of the stone giant's arms. Stone shattered, fragments scattering as the giant staggered. The creature followed with a powerful kick, sending the stone giant crashing backward. It slammed into the ground on its back, leaving a deep crater beneath it.
The monster surged forward, intent on finishing it.
Before it could strike, Paul appeared from the side and drove a punch into its ribs. The blow carried explosive force, throwing the monster off balance and sliding it several meters before it dug its feet into the ground.
That moment was enough.
Arthur was already behind it.
Four massive golden swords hovered in the air around him, humming with restrained power. These were his final swords before the Fiftieth. He lowered his hand in a sharp command, and all four blades shot forward at once, carving deep through the monster's back.
Arthur's voice was calm as he whispered, "Divine Rupture."
Light burst from beneath the monster's skin, blazing through its wounds and spilling from its eyes. The creature let out a deafening howl as the swords dissolved into pure light, their energy detonating inside its body.
When the light faded, the monster still stood, but it did not move. Smoke poured from its scorched form, its massive body trembling as the damage caught up to it.
From the left, Paul launched himself forward again, his body wrapped in explosive force, preparing to deliver the final blow.
Arthur watched the monster closely, and his eyes suddenly widened. Without hesitation, he dove downward, grabbed Paul in midair, and pulled him away at full speed. A heartbeat later, massive tentacles burst from the monster's back, slamming into the space Paul had occupied moments before. The impact shattered the ground below.
"Don't let those tentacles touch you!" Arthur shouted as he flew. "They'll drain everything you have in seconds."
The monster twisted its upper body, preparing to attack again, when something massive fell from the sky. A blazing meteor tore through the darkness above, descending straight toward the creature.
The monster reacted instantly. Its tentacles surged upward, thick and powerful, wrapping around the meteor before it could strike. With a violent crush, the falling mass shattered into fragments of stone and fire that scattered across the battlefield.
The monster turned back toward the fight. Then it froze.
Its body locked in place as if an invisible force pinned it down. For a brief moment, nothing happened. Then thin lines appeared across its torso, arms, and legs, thousands of precise cuts forming all at once. Dark fluid spilled from the wounds as the creature let out a strained, broken sound and dropped to one knee, the ground cracking beneath its weight.
Shock spread across the battlefield. Everyone stared in disbelief.
Everyone except Leo.
He had already sensed it, the moment another presence stepped into his sphere of creation. His gaze shifted toward a distant mountain ridge.
There, standing calmly against the shadowed sky, was a man with short black hair and dark eyes. His posture was relaxed, almost casual, yet the pressure rolling off him felt unmistakable.
Leo narrowed his eyes.
He knew that power. "Mr. Sage," he whispered.
"Arthur," Leo said calmly.
His voice did not travel through the air. It simply existed, filling every corner of his sphere at once, impossible to ignore. "The monster is yours. We have a guest."
As the words ended, Leo vanished.
He reappeared on the mountain's edge, standing a short distance from the man in black.
"We meet again, Mr. Clone," the man said. His tone carried no surprise, only certainty.
Leo met his gaze without flinching. "Mr. Sage, Why are you here?"
The man's eyes narrowed slightly. "I have always had one purpose, to save my people. After years of failure, I finally connected to the other side of the Shadowland." His voice hardened. "And you destroyed it."
"The other side?" Leo paused for a heartbeat, then his expression settled. "And for that, you chose Mr. Immortal?"
"A greedy man is easy to control," the man replied. "He wanted power. I wanted access."
"And now?" Leo asked.
"Now," the man said, raising his hand, "I'll kill you and help my people will cross this cursed land, no matter the cost."
A magic circle formed in his palm, dense and layered, symbols rotating with deliberate precision. The air around it bent, trembling under the pressure.
Leo exhaled slowly. "From what I can see, our goals are not that different from each other, only our methods."
The man's brow furrowed.
"So I will give you two choices," Leo continued, his voice steady, absolute. "First, you listen. I tell you what this place truly is, and how your people can be saved."
"And the second?" the man asked coldly.
Leo's eyes sharpened. "You refuse. I defeat you. Then I tell you everything anyway. One way or another."
A faint smile touched the man's lips. "Defeat me?" he said. "Are you truly capable of that?"
The air around him shuddered, space itself warping as his power leaked outward.
At the same moment, the air around Leo responded. Not violently, quietly, as if reality itself acknowledged him. The trembling deepened, spreading outward in widening ripples.
"There is only one way to find out," Leo said.