Chapter 261: Mother of All

After Katolin spoke, the light that the crystals behind Ned shone brightly. Then another crystal gave off a yellow light. These crystals then surrounded the inside of the castle with prismatic colors.

With the bright light from the crystals, Ned saw how Katolin floats midair. The cloak flapped even without wind, her body was relaxed.

These violet tentacles kept on slithering all over her body at the same time was leaking a slimy liquid.

Then the ground trembled, after which, the perpetrator showed itself behind Katolin.

It was a Kruthik, but bigger than the Evolved Kruthik they have encountered.

Its already spiky head was introduced further by tiny spikes that surround its face.

Aside from its two eyes, another two were looking at Ned above its forehead. Then in the middle of these eyes was where the tentacles came from. Countless tentacles wiggled over its forehead while only four held Katolin.

This new kind of Kruthik moved very slow. But not because it was slow, but because of its massively huge body that it looked slow when moving. The chains that were locking it could be considered as well as why it was slow.

The size of these chains was much bigger than Ned himself two times. And around the surface of these chains were runic symbols that shone bright green and blue and white colors. These symbols must be the ones that kept this Kruthik in captivity.

It jerked its crab-like body and crept toward Ned.

Suddenly, the ground trembled and some parts of the castle broke pieces of rock that fell to where the Kruthik was being chained.

At first, it wasn't clear as to how a beast the size of a castle fits inside a castle. But now that the lights from the crystals were on, Ned saw the massive hole above the castle and the massive crater below, where this Kruthik was. This crater was massive that it almost looked like a giant meteorite landed on the ground and bore a hole that fits both the ruined castle and the overly sized Kruthik.

The difference of this Kruthik from the rest was that its scale was deep orange like that of a cooked crab. Aside from the tentacles on its forehead, there were also tentacles inside its pincer-like claws.

Still, it struggled to move due to the chains that locked it.

"Let go of her."

Ned demanded. He withdrew the broken Butterfly to ready himself from surprise attacks.

"Are you?"

Katolin's voice was deep and high pitched, and no feeling of emotions at all. Far from her playful usual voice.

"Huh?"

Ned had to ask, confused.

"Are you even human, human?"

Ned knew that he could not fight the Evolved Kruthik alone. If he was having a hard time fighting the Evolved alone, then the one in front of him was something beyond fighting. One doesn't need fear to understand that this was something beyond beast and humans could fight on. This thing shouldn't exist at all. Not even the army of Kon Sas Koron could defeat this beast.

It wasn't even clear as to how deep the crater was since darkness was all Ned could see under the beast.

"Let her go. We don't want any trouble."

"Too late. You already stepped into my territory."

"Who are you?"

Ned had to stall the beast and find a way to cut Katolin from its tentacles. And then find an exit. But their chance of surviving is zero. They couldn't even find an exit back to the Hive.

"I am once the people from a thousand-year called S'vokalt Tleekefulgg. I am from a long lost race of Kruthik. And I only seek one thing. Undo the chains that keeping me here and I promise your death will be painless. Leaving here is meaningless, surely you met my children?"

"And if I say no?"

Ned gave up, buying time was pointless unless they couldn't find an exit. To fight? Not a chance as long as Katolin was held her captive.

"I am giving you no options here. There's only a yes for you."

Perhaps, Ned thought. But she was right, even if he uses all of his arsenals, and increase all the power of his spell by tenfold, Ned bet he couldn't put a dent on S'vokalt armors.

The two had been fighting for hours and the only rest they had was none.

But I'm not leaving Katolin, Ned thought and gripped the hilt of the broken Butterfly.

The chains rattled as S'vokalt moved its head. The chains were wrapped all over its body and it was the only thing that keeping Ned and Katolin alive.

As Ned examined the chains, Ned wondered what kind of a man that successfully chained S'vokalt. Ned's eyes swept the crater, and at the base of these chains were symbols. These symbols shone brightly every time its captive moved.

[Ned.]

ICE prompted after Ned's eyes left the chains.

[The chains were giving off pure mana.]

Hmm, Ned wondered. As far as Ned's knowledge, pure mana could only be formed through the passing of time. Impure mana when accumulated for a longer period of time would produce pure mana.

But judging by the size of the chains, and their numbers that amount to almost a hundred. Who could make an item imbued with pure mana only? And the amount was massive as well.

"Okay," Ned muttered.

"Your pretty smart for a mere human."

S'vokalt used Katolin to express her words.

"Then how do I do it?"

Ned wondered how he could undo the chain, perhaps he can absorb the mana.

"Simply break it."

"What? That simple?"

"Yes. The one that chained me here thought that no one would find this place. So he simply used an Array that could be broken when interfered with by another mana. Also, the chains were old enough and would crumble without the mana enforcing it."

"So you're saying I need to interfere with the flow to break it? That simple?"

Katolin nodded as the tentacles slithered body.

But Ned wasn't planning to do this, he must be insane to release this beast. He needed an angle to cut the tentacles.

So he moved, rounded Katolin, and proceed at the edge of the crater. In there, Ned saw the chains were attached to the walls to the bottom. And to his left, was Katolin with the tentacles behind her neck that controls her.

Ned gripped his sword. He's got no other choice but to use the last of his Overclock.

Ned heard S'vokalt curses after he used Overclock.

"Y-you," S'vokalt said under Katolin's voice. "You are one of them!"

But Ned doesn't care anymore what S'vokalt's nonsense was. So he vanished from his spot, thrust the broken Butterfly using the second form of Vanishing Stance which was a much faster, and much precise form of attack, and cut the tentacles that controls Katolin and caught her before she fell on the ground.

Ned vanished again with Katolin he held on both his hands.

But before they could reach the iron gate, they were stopped by the howl of S'vokalt.

Then the army of Kruthiks started to march.