Chapter 26: Emotions and monsters ( VI )

After defeating the horde of Ratax, the Winterseed soldiers began to jump around in joy, unaware of the danger approaching them.Their celebration hadn't even lasted for three minutes when, suddenly, the ground beneath them began to tremble. A loud, thunderous step echoed within the forest—much louder and fiercer than anything they had heard during the Ratax attack. The sound alone was enough to freeze the blood in their veins.

"What is happening?" the young soldiers asked, fear evident on their faces. They had just risked their lives, fought with all their strength against the horde of Ratax, and now something bigger was coming for them. Was peace really so difficult to attain?

When Brandon heard the loud step, he was even more terrified. "This is bad!"

He immediately ran toward Rowan. "Lord Rowan, we have to leave immediately! Staying here for even a second is signing our own death warrant!"

Rowan turned to look at Brandon, easily noticing the fear on his face. The same went for Blaze, who repeated the same scared reaction it had earlier, reminding Rowan of another looming threat.

"We can't leave," Rowan replied firmly. "If we do, whatever monster is coming will storm the nearest human settlement which is obviously our village and we don't have defenses strong enough to withstand it."

The two captains tried to come up with a plan, but none of their ideas were suitable for the situation at hand. Sёarch* The Novelƒire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

"Take all the men and leave immediately. I'll deal with the monster myself," Rowan declared, shocking everyone.

"Lord Rowan, we can't let you do that. It's too risky!" The two captains immediately rejected his idea. Leaving their young lord behind was something they couldn't even imagine doing.

"We should all leave together, Lord Rowan. Our village is getting better since you recovered; we do not want anything happening to you!" Brandon said.

Some of the nearby young soldiers overheard this and silently rejected it inwardly. Though scared, they didn't want to leave Rowan behind.

"This is our only option. Leave immediately. I can handle it, but the same can't be said for you," Rowan reiterated, his tone serious to show that he meant his words.

Brandon and the two captains stared at Rowan for an extra second. Taking this step was very drastic and against their will!

What would happen if the hope of their village got badly injured or died? Winterseed would simply become hell on earth, a vast difference from the heaven Rowan had started to build.

"EVERYONE LEAVE! IT IS AN ORDER!!" Rowan yelled in a furious tone.

Their faces turned somber, but they had no choice.

"Please do not leave us again, Lord Rowan!"

"Lord Rowan, please come back alive. We believe in you!!"

The soldiers called out one after the other as they grabbed their weapons and began sprinting toward Winterseed.

The captains and Brandon stayed behind for a few seconds before leaving with the rest, their minds frantically praying for Rowan's survival.

Only after they had covered a safe distance did Rowan turn his eyes back to the forest.

The steps echoed even louder, and the vibrations grew even more intense, but Rowan stood his ground.

Sending his soldiers away was his way of ensuring success in his challenge; he couldn't afford to lose any of his men, nor could he afford to lose such a large amount of evolution points.

*Squeak*

Blaze, still terrified, started tapping on Rowan's neck as if telling him to run away. Blaze, a divine beast, had a natural ability to perceive mana, and the mana this monster radiated was extremely strong and terrifying!

Rowan gave Blaze a brief look before sending it back into the divine beast plane. As Blaze was sucked into the plane by the portal, it kept squeaking, trying to make Rowan change his mind.

SHRIEK!!!

At that moment, a loud shriek echoed across the area as the surroundings shook, plunging the scene into a terrifying silence.

Unlike the horde of Ratax, who only made the bushes rustle, this creature's presence made even the tall trees sway.

SHRIEK!!

Another loud shriek echoed!

Following it, a monstrosity beyond anything Rowan had ever seen stepped out of the forest. It was a more terrifying version of the Ratax, about three times bigger—bigger than even the largest elephant on earth. Its body was covered in jet-black fur, making it invisible to anyone in the dark. It was only thanks to Rowan's night vision that he could see it clearly.

The Ratax halted in its steps, sluggishly observing the corpses of its kin. This gave Rowan the time to observe and prepare for the fight.

[ RATAX GENERAL - Boss Monster ]

[ Health: 100% ]

[ Special skill: Resistance ]

[ Status: Observing ]

"A boss monster, this is going to be a harsh fight," Rowan whispered to himself as he observed it.

He noticed that it had a different special skill from the other Ratax and immediately copied it.

[ Skill (Resistance - F-rank) copied successfully ]

[ Resistance: Passive skill, grants the ability to resist 20% of attacks ranging from physical to magical. MERGE? ]

Seeing the skill, Rowan was amazed. This would be his first defensive skill, and the stats weren't bad. It was also his first time seeing a monster with an F-rank skill, the others always had FF-rank skills.

Without wasting time, he merged with the skill. Instantly, he felt a new sensation entering his body, one that he couldn't describe with simple words.

[ Threat has entered RAGE mode. All stats have increased by 200%. BEWARE ]

Sadly, Rowan didn't have enough time to explore his new skill before the system alerted him.

The Ratax General's eyes locked onto Rowan, glowing brightly with rage.

From where Rowan stood, he could see the Ratax General's body trembling with anger. This was going to be a hard fight, but Rowan was ready!

...

AUTHOR NOTE: This is reward for this week's power stone challenge.

NEXT WEEKS!!

100 Power stones - 1 Bonus chapters

200 Power stones - 5 chapters

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