Chapter 46 Chaos in the Capital （3）
Just as the remaining Demonic Spriggans charged toward us, their shrill screeches echoed across the battlefield.
SKREEEEEE!!
Their thorn-covered roots burst from the shattered ground, racing toward our defensive line like countless venomous serpents.
Before they could reach us-
WHOOSH!!
Several crescent-shaped slashes of different elements tore across the battlefield.
A blazing arc of fire.
A razor-sharp blade of wind.
A jagged spear of stone.
A crackling bolt of lightning.
And a crescent of shimmering water.
The attacks struck the charging Spriggans almost simultaneously.
BOOOOM!!
A series of violent explosions erupted across the battlefield, engulfing the monsters in smoke, flames, and flying debris. The powerful shockwaves blasted several Spriggans backward, their massive wooden bodies crashing into one another as broken roots and splintered bark scattered across the plaza.
I instinctively turned toward the source of the attacks.
Five figures were sprinting toward us through the settling smoke.
One of them raised a hand and shouted with a carefree grin,
"Sorry we're late, you guys!"
Hiro's face immediately brightened.
"It's Akihito and the others!"
The five Heroes quickly reached our position, stopping beside us as they drew their weapons.
Without exchanging another word, they turned their attention toward the remaining Demonic Spriggans.
The five Heroes, Akari, Hero, and I stood shoulder to shoulder with the Kingdom's knights, silently preparing for the next wave.
The surviving Spriggans let out another chorus of furious screeches.
One of the Heroes stepped forward, raising his sword high into the air.
"Alright, everyone!"
His voice rang across the battlefield.
"Let's finish them here and now!"
"YEAH!!"
The Knights answered with a thunderous roar.
The royal mages raised their staffs, their magic circles glowing brightly beneath their feet.
The other Heroes tightened their grips on their weapons, their eyes burning with determination as they faced the remaining Demonic Spriggans.
Even the exhausted soldiers who had nearly lost hope moments ago found new resolve.
The surviving Spriggans responded with furious screeches, their crimson eyes blazing with killing intent as countless roots burst from the shattered ground.
SKREEEEEE!!
"Charge!!"
Without another moment's hesitation, the Knights surged forward behind their shields while the mages unleashed another volley of spells over their heads.
The Heroes followed close behind, each rushing toward a different group of Spriggans.
Watching everyone fight together, I couldn't help but smile.
"...Alright let's go."
I tightened my grip around my Flare Sword before pouring mana into the blade once more.
Brilliant crimson flames erupted around it.
Without another word, I dashed forward alongside them.
BOOM!!
The ground cracked beneath my feet as I charged into battle with everyone else.
The battlefield descended into chaos once more.
The surviving Demonic Spriggans charged relentlessly, their thorn-covered roots tearing through the shattered streets as they lunged toward the knights.
"Shield up!"
A line of knights locked their shields together just as dozens of roots erupted from the ground.
BOOM!!
The impact forced the knights backward, but they held their formation.
"Now!"
The royal mages completed their chants.
"Stone Spears!"
Jagged pillars of stone burst from beneath the Spriggans, staggering the monsters and creating an opening.
Akihito immediately dashed forward.
His sword ignited with blazing flames.
"Blazing Crescent!"
A massive crescent of fire swept across the battlefield, cleaving through several Spriggans before they exploded into flames.
The knights surged forward with renewed courage.
On another side of the plaza, several Spriggans broke through the defensive line and rushed toward a group of civilians.
Akari stepped in front of them.
She lowered her spear before taking a deep breath.
"Tempest Spiral!"
She spun her spear in a wide circle.
A violent tornado burst into existence around her, pulling the Spriggans off balance before countless razor-sharp wind blades formed within the cyclone, shredding their roots and carving deep cuts into their wooden bodies.
The remaining Heroes rushed in without hesitation.
One Hero leaped high into the air, bringing down a massive hammer that shattered a Spriggan's trunk.
Another unleashed a barrage of arrows, pinning several monsters to the ground.
The remaining two charged alongside the knights, cutting down the weakened Spriggans before they could recover.
Within moments, the civilians were safe.
Elsewhere, another group of Spriggans surrounded several exhausted knights.
Hiro raised both hands toward the sky.
Golden magic circles appeared one after another.
"Radiant Judgment!"
Dozens of spears of light shots down from above like a meteor shower.
The holy projectiles pierced through the Spriggans' bodies, leaving smoking holes wherever they struck.
The monsters staggered, giving the knights the opening they needed.
"Forward!"
The knights charged together, killing the wounded Spriggans with coordinated strikes.
Not far away, another group of Spriggans had surrounded a squad of exhausted knights.
I tightened my grip on my Flare Sword.
"[Mach One]."
BOOM!!
The stone beneath my feet exploded as I disappeared.
In less than a heartbeat, I appeared in the middle of the monsters.
My sword flashed again and again.
Slash!
Slash!
Slash!
Each strike severed thick roots and split wooden bodies apart as crimson flames engulfed everything they touched.
"Push forward!"
The knights immediately followed behind me, cutting down the wounded Spriggans while the royal mages unleashed another volley of fire, lightning, and wind magic from behind.
Within moments, the last monster collapsed into burning fragments.
For several seconds...
Only the crackling of flames echoed across the plaza.
The final Demonic Spriggan let out one last agonizing screech before collapsing onto the shattered stone.
Its massive body slowly crumbled into black ash.
Cheers erupted throughout the battlefield.
"We did it!"
"The monsters are gone!"
Exhausted knights lowered their swords, mages slumped against their staffs, and frightened civilians embraced one another in relief.
Even the Heroes allowed themselves small smiles.
For the first time since the attack had begun...
Hope slowly returning to the city.
Then-
BOOOOOOOOM!!!
A deafening explosion erupted from inside the colosseum.
The ground shook violently beneath our feet.
Everyone smiles vanished.
I slowly turned toward the colosseum.
"...What the hell was that?"
"Let's go, you guys!" Hiro shouted as he turned toward the colosseum.
Without waiting for a response, he broke into a sprint.
Akari and the remaining Heroes immediately followed behind him, their weapons at the ready.
The knights and mages quickly began escorting the civilians to safety while a smaller group of knights rushed after the Heroes.
I took a step forward to follow them.
Suddenly-
"Ghk...!"
A sharp wave of dizziness struck me without warning.
My vision blurred for a split second, and my body swayed.
"...What the?"
I quickly caught myself before I could fall.
A dull pain spread through my chest, the same pain I had felt after defeating Vael beneath the city.
"...Not now."
I clenched my teeth and pressed a hand against my chest.
"What the heck is happening to me...?"
For a brief moment, it felt as though the mana inside my body had become unstable, flowing wildly through my veins before gradually settling down again.
I took a deep breath and shook my head.
"I don't have time for this."
Ignoring the lingering discomfort, I tightened my grip on my Flare Sword.
Then I pushed through the pain and broke into a sprint.
As I quickly followed the Heroes into the colosseum.
We sprinted through the long stone hallways of the colosseum, the echoes of our footsteps ringing against the walls.
The air was thick with dust, and the distant sounds of destruction continued to reverberate throughout the arena.
Akihito quickly moved to the front of the group.
"This way!" he shouted, pointing down the corridor before turning sharply to the right.
Without hesitation, the rest of us followed close behind.
We rounded the corner at full speed, our eyes fixed on the corridor ahead.
At the end of the hallway, the entrance leading into the arena finally came into view.
Just as we reached it-
Crack...
A sharp cracking sound echoed through the air.
We looked closely.
The enormous translucent barrier that had completely sealed off the inside of the arena was beginning to collapse.
Cracks spread rapidly across its shimmering surface as fragments of magical light broke away and dissolved into countless glowing particles.
The once unbreakable barrier was falling apart before our eyes.
As we entered the arena, we arrived at the seating area of the colosseum.
The moment we stepped out, everyone suddenly stopped.
Our eyes widened at the sight before us.
In the center of the arena lay the massive body of a Demonic Spriggan.
Its enormous wooden body, nearly twenty meters tall, lay sprawled across the center of the battlefield. Thick clouds of smoke and dust still clung to its massive frame, making it difficult to see the full extent of its body.
The ground surrounding the arena was barely visible beneath the dense haze.
Massive roots were scattered everywhere, stretching across the battlefield like enormous serpents. Some were twisted around broken stone, while others had torn deep trenches into the ground.
Everyone stood frozen for a moment, stunned by the sight.
"Over here, Akari!"
A woman's voice suddenly shouted from our right.
We turned toward the voice and saw several people running toward us.
Akari's eyes widened in recognition.
"It's Kaori and Kizuna!"
She then noticed the people accompanying them.
"And the royal families are with them!"
Without wasting another second, Akari and the other Heroes immediately ran toward them.
And the knights followed closely behind.
"So those are Kaori and Kizuna..."
I watched the two women as they stood with the royal families.
"Damn it... I don't know which one is which."
I let out a quiet sigh, scratching the back of my head.
Even though Akari said their names, I still don't know which name belonged to which person.
While the others quickly ran toward them, I decided not to follow.
Instead, I remained where I was, my eyes fixed on the massive Demonic Spriggan lying in the center of the arena.
Something about what had just happened didn't feel right.
I continued observing the battlefield in silence, trying to understand exactly what had happened.
I activated [Advanced Search].
The familiar map of the surrounding area appeared in my mind, revealing the entire arena despite the thick clouds of smoke and dust blocking my vision.
The massive seating area surrounding the battlefield was clearly displayed, along with the damaged stone floor below.
Scattered across the arena were countless pieces of debris-broken rocks, shattered stone, and chunks of collapsed structures.
I also noticed numerous pieces of Demonic Spriggan Wood scattered across the battlefield. Some were small fragments, while others were massive sections of roots and broken limbs that had been torn or blasted from the creature's body.
At the center of the arena was the massive body of the Demonic Spriggan.
Its enormous wooden frame occupied a large portion of the battlefield, surrounded by countless massive roots that stretched across the ground in every direction.
Even through the smoke, [Advanced Search] allowed me to clearly see everything within the arena.
Then I noticed something else.
Several names appeared on the map.
They were scattered throughout the arena, showing the locations of the people still inside.
I narrowed my eyes as I examined them one by one.
The names displayed on the map one after another.
Daito.
Yuchikimo.
Naoki.
Katsuro.
Juri.
Haruna.
Aiko.
Ayame.
Rin.
Airi.
Takumi.
Jinpei.
Hikaru.
I stared at the names for a moment before looking toward the massive body lying in the center of the arena.
"So they're the ones who defeated it..."
I couldn't help but smile.
"Not bad."
Then something else caught my attention.
A strange object was located directly in the center of the Demonic Spriggan's massive corpse.
I focused my attention on it.
[Advanced Search] immediately identified it.
?[Abyssal Well Core]?
My eyes widened.
"An Abyssal Well Core?"
I stared at it in disbelief.
It was enormous.
The Abyssal Well Core I encountered from the Groomcroaks and Molgurath had been roughly the size of an ordinary basketball.
But this one...
It was nearly twice as large.
"Damn it..."
I couldn't help but worry.
"I didn't think I would find one this big."
The massive core rested motionlessly among the remains of the Demonic Spriggan, faint traces of dark mana swirling around its surface.