Serena stared at him in disbelief. "Wake it up? Are you insane?"
Asher simply grinned. "Insanity is just a perspective. Besides, we need its head, and I doubt it'll just hand it over."
Before Serena could protest, Asher raised his hand, forming a crimson blade from his own blood. He took a step forward, then without hesitation, hurled the blade into the lake.
For a moment, there was silence. The water rippled where the blade had sunk, and then—
BOOM!
The entire lake exploded upwards as something massive stirred beneath the surface. Water cascaded like a storm as a monstrous form rose from the depths—its colossal, segmented body writhing, hundreds of gleaming black legs skittering across the ground. The Black Water King had awakened.
Its eyes, like pools of liquid void, locked onto them. A deep, rumbling hiss echoed through the air, thick with poison. The creature lunged, its massive, venom-coated mandibles snapping toward Asher.
