Chapter 46
"Fine! If you won't help her, I will!" Clara snapped, breaking free from Grey's grip. Without hesitation, she sprinted forward, grabbed a long metal pole from the ground, and charged straight at the beast.
"Mum! What are you doing?!" Grey shouted, panic lacing his voice as dread gripped his heart. His mother was heading straight into danger.
Clara reached the beast, her eyes filled with determination. She swung the pole with all her strength, striking the creature's side. The Talonus growled, its attention immediately shifting. It dropped the young girl it had been holding and turned its gaze toward the reckless human who dared challenge it.
With a powerful tug, the beast yanked the pole from Clara's hands, lifting her off the ground as if she weighed nothing.
"Let me go, you ugly beast!" she yelled, kicking at it furiously, trying to free herself.
The Talonus snarled, growing impatient. It raised its claws, aiming directly for Clara's head. Her heart pounded in her chest as her life flashed before her eyes. She squeezed them shut, bracing for the end.
Suddenly, she heard a sharp whistling sound cut through the air—then she was released. Her body plummeted downward until she landed softly in someone's arms.
"What the…?" she muttered, slowly opening her eyes.
"Grey?" she whispered in disbelief.
"Mum! Are you nuts?!" Grey yelled, holding her tightly. She stumbled to her feet just as a loud, menacing growl echoed from behind them.
"Well, lucky us. You just had to anger a level 4 beast," Grey muttered, eyes narrowing. He grabbed his mother's hand, who in turn clutched the frightened girl, and the three of them bolted away as fast as they could.
The enraged Talonus roared and gave chase. Anything in its path—civilians, carts, even walls—was ruthlessly cleaved apart. Its crimson eyes glowed with bloodlust as it honed in on the fleeing trio.
Grey cast fireballs behind him, exploding into brilliant bursts of flame. He stomped the ground, launching debris and carts backward in a desperate attempt to slow the creature down—but it was relentless. Its only focus was them.
Realizing the girl was slowing them down, Clara lifted her into her arms without hesitation, her pace unwavering as she kept running beside Grey.
But then they skidded to a stop.
Standing in front of them was another Talonus.
Grey cursed under his breath. "Dead end." He looked over his shoulder—the level 4 beast was still coming. Trapped between two monsters, time was running out.
"What do we do now, Grey?" Clara asked, voice shaky as she glanced at the terrified girl in her arms.
"The only thing I can do… get you two to safety," Grey said through clenched teeth. He scanned their surroundings and spotted a relatively safe rooftop untouched by the chaos.
He raised a hand. "Wind Magic—Liftus!"
A massive gust of wind surged beneath Clara and the girl, lifting them high into the air and gently placing them on the rooftop, far from the reach of any beasts.
Clara was about to cry out, but Grey quickly shook his head and gestured for silence. One wrong sound could bring more trouble.
He turned around slowly. Behind him, the level 3 Talonus growled, preparing to charge. In front of him, the level 4 beast was closing in.
"I guess I can't run anymore... I have to fight," Grey said with a grin, though his heart pounded.
Suddenly, winds roared around him, spiraling into a towering tornado that encased his body. Dust and debris whipped violently through the air. The monsters stopped in their tracks, wary of the sudden power rising before them.
The level 3 Talonus lunged into the windstorm, hoping to catch Grey by surprise. But the moment it touched the raging winds, it screamed in agony as invisible blades slashed across its flesh, forcing it to retreat with deep gashes lining its body.
"You're not the only one who's evolved," Grey said, floating inside the eye of the storm. "I just learned this. The final and strongest spell in the wind magic tome that mage gave me."
He raised his arms. "Wind Magic—Tornado Wind Blades!"
The tornado exploded outward in a violent burst, sending scorching winds in every direction. Dozens of sharp blades formed from compressed air tore through the level 3 Talonus, its body riddled with deep, fatal wounds.
The beast fell, motionless.
'I guess I'm strong enough to kill a level 3 beast in one strike now,' Grey thought, turning around…
CRACK!
A claw slammed into his side, sending him flying. He crashed into a wall, shattering crates and carts along the way.
"Argh!" Grey winced, blood dripping from his mouth and forehead, clouding his vision.
But then his eyes widened.
The level 3 Talonus… was still alive.
Despite the gaping wounds and blood pouring from its body, it stood tall beside the level 4 beast, snarling with hatred.
"What the hell!? It survived?!" Grey said, shocked and frustrated.
The injured beast snarled and bolted toward him, rage burning in its eyes. It slashed at him, but Grey summoned wind magic in time, lifting himself above the attack.
But before he could reposition, the level 4 Talonus appeared in front of him, its claws already swinging. He hastily conjured an Earth wall.
BOOM!
The wall shattered like glass, and Grey was hurled from the sky, crashing to the ground with a sickening thud. Dust and debris filled the air as his body rolled and smashed through carts and rubble before slamming into a stone wall.
He coughed violently, more blood escaping his lips. One eye was bloodshot, the other stung from the crimson liquid dripping into it.
"I've had enough of you filthy beasts!" Grey growled.
A fiery glow erupted from his body.
Flames burst outward, engulfing him in a blazing aura as he stood tall, battered but unyielding. His aura roared, echoing through the city like a phoenix's scream. The heat distorted the air around him.
His gaze locked onto the two beasts.
"This ends now."