The creature's final charge shook the entire forest.
Its massive body tore through the clearing with uncontrolled force, broken armor plates falling away from its unstable form while crimson light erupted continuously from the widening cracks spreading across its body. Trees splintered apart beneath its claws, the corrupted earth collapsing behind every step as the network beneath the battlefield destabilized further.
But despite literally falling apart—
It still came forward.
Still moved.
Still tried to kill him.
Ayan's eyes hardened.
"…Even now…"
The thing no longer resembled a living creature.
Not completely.
It looked like a failed evolution desperately forcing itself to continue existing through sheer corruption and instinct alone.
Its multiple red eyes twitched violently across its distorted skull, some bursting apart while new malformed ones formed beneath the surface moments later. Exposed crimson flesh pulsed between broken armor plates, unstable energy leaking continuously from within its body.
And yet—
The killing intent focused on him remained absolute.
Ayan tightened his grip on the sword.
His side burned from the earlier wound, blood still running slowly beneath torn clothes while exhaustion dragged heavily against every movement he made. His entire body ached after the battle against the false core, and this fight had only pushed him further.
But he ignored all of it.
Because now—
He understood something clearly.
The creature wasn't surviving naturally anymore.
The network itself was forcing it forward.
Like a puppet refusing to collapse after its strings had already begun breaking apart.
"…Then I cut everything."
The creature roared violently before slamming both claws downward.
BOOOOOOM.
The entire clearing exploded apart.
Ayan moved instantly.
The shockwave tore through the place where he had stood a fraction of a second earlier, shattered stone and uprooted earth flying violently through the air as he sprinted along the creature's flank.
Too fast.
The creature twisted unnaturally despite its collapsing body, jaws opening wide as another unstable crimson beam began forming deep inside its throat.
Ayan's eyes narrowed sharply.
"…Not letting you fire that."
He accelerated immediately.
Ignoring the danger.
Ignoring the instability.
Ignoring the fact that getting this close to something this massive was suicidal.
Because hesitation now—
Would kill him anyway.
The creature unleashed the beam.
But before it fully erupted—
Ayan jumped.
His sword flashed downward with everything he had.
SLASH.
The unstable jaw split apart violently.
The crimson beam detonated inside the creature's own mouth.
BOOOOOOM.
The explosion ripped through its upper body from within, black blood and shattered armor spraying across the battlefield as the creature staggered backward shrieking in horrific distortion.
Ayan landed roughly across the broken ground, rolling hard before forcing himself upright again.
"…Ghh—!"
Pain shot through his legs from the impact.
But his eyes remained locked forward.
Because despite the massive damage—
The creature still stood.
Its entire upper skull had partially collapsed inward now, unstable crimson tissue exposed completely beneath broken armor and splintered bone.
And yet—
It continued moving.
"…What the hell…"
The thing should already be dead.
No creature could survive damage like that naturally.
But the crimson lines beneath the battlefield continued pulsing violently.
Feeding it.
Forcing movement.
Aelira appeared beside Ayan instantly.
Her crimson eyes remained fixed coldly on the collapsing monster ahead.
"…Its survival instinct has merged with the network."
Ayan's breathing remained rough.
"…Meaning?"
"…It no longer recognizes death properly."
The answer sent a chill through him.
Because looking at it now—
He understood exactly what she meant.
The creature wasn't alive anymore in the normal sense.
The system itself was continuing its existence.
The monster roared again.
Except now the sound barely resembled a creature at all.
It sounded mechanical.
Broken.
Like several dying things screaming simultaneously.
Then suddenly—
The ground beneath the clearing pulsed violently.
Ayan's instincts exploded.
"…Move!"
Both of them leaped backward as massive crimson roots burst upward from beneath the earth.
Not actual roots.
Structures.
Veins of corrupted network matter erupting from underground and wrapping around the creature's collapsing body directly.
Ayan's eyes widened sharply.
"…It's trying to rebuild it!"
The unstable crimson structures pierced directly into the creature's flesh, forcibly reconnecting broken sections of armor and bone together while unstable energy surged wildly across its body.
The creature convulsed violently.
And slowly—
It stood straighter again.
Ayan stared in disbelief.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
Aelira's expression darkened.
"…The network is prioritizing preservation."
Because of him.
Because the system recognized him as interference.
And now—
It refused to lose another evolved unit.
The creature's remaining eyes locked directly onto Ayan again.
More focused than before.
More stable.
The corrupted structures surrounding it pulsed continuously like external organs feeding life back into the dying body.
Ayan gritted his teeth.
"…Then we destroy the network first."
The moment he said it—
The creature attacked.
Not alone this time.
The crimson structures beneath the battlefield erupted upward simultaneously, corrupted spikes and tendrils bursting from every direction in coordination with the monster's charge.
Ayan's eyes sharpened instantly.
This wasn't instinct anymore.
This was control.
The network itself was actively fighting him now.
Ayan moved through the chaos desperately as corrupted spikes tore through the battlefield around him. One tendril lashed toward his legs—
He cut it apart instantly.
Black crimson fluid exploded outward.
The creature lunged immediately afterward.
Too close.
Ayan barely avoided the claw tearing across his chest by twisting sideways at the last second.
Pain exploded across his ribs anyway.
"…Tch—!"
The creature followed relentlessly.
Faster now.
The external network structures stabilizing its movements.
Ayan's thoughts raced.
"…Think."
Fighting the creature directly wasn't enough anymore.
As long as the network supported it—
It would keep rebuilding.
Then—
He saw it.
At the center of the corrupted structures connected beneath the creature's body—
A larger crimson vein pulsed brighter than the others.
Not random.
Centralized.
Ayan's eyes narrowed sharply.
"…That's the supply point."
The moment he realized it—
The creature reacted violently.
Its entire body twisted unnaturally between him and the crimson vein beneath the battlefield.
Protecting it.
Ayan's heartbeat slowed slightly.
"…Got you."
The creature roared and charged.
Ayan charged too.
Straight toward it.
The monster raised both claws to crush him—
But Ayan shifted direction at the last possible second.
Not toward the creature.
Toward the ground beneath it.
His sword plunged downward with everything he had left.
CRAAAAACK.
The central crimson vein shattered.
The entire battlefield froze.
Then—
The creature screamed.
Not like before.
Not distorted.
Not mechanical.
But raw.
Like something finally realizing it was dying.
The corrupted structures surrounding its body immediately began collapsing apart.
The regeneration stopped.
The stability vanished.
And for the first time since the battle began—
The monster truly started falling apart.