Penthesilea, sensing the impending attack, swiftly changes her stance. With a practiced flick of her wrist, she launched her battle axe towards the monstrous hand. A deafening explosion erupted as the magical power imbued within the axe tore through the creature's flesh. A bellow of agony echoed through the air as the monstrous hand erupted in a spray of blood and bone.
"What the hell are you waiting for!? Get to the Mobile HQ!" Penthesilea roared at the soldiers, her voice laced with urgency. The soldiers, shaken but not broken, pressed on towards the safety of their base.
The monstrous hand displayed a terrifying resilience. With a sickening gurgle, mangled flesh and bone began to knit themselves back together. The bone and flesh regrow, the skin reformed, erasing the damage as if the injury had never been.
Penthesilea turned toward the soldiers in full retreat once more and decided to use herself as bait to stall for her lord's soldiers. But how? How could she draw that monster's attention to herself? The monster seemed obsessed with those soldiers—no, it seemed obsessed with those power armors instead.
That's it! She thought she knew how to get the monster's attention.
"Listen, you monster! I'm Penthesilea Wife of Daniel Emberweave, The founder of Astral Tech! If you dare, come face me!" Penthesilea roared at the monster, preparing her spear and shield.
The monster, hearing the challenge from the female below, immediately stopped. It looked down at her, an uncontrollable surge of envy surfacing in its mind. It called on Vance—the monster, the Envy manifestation with a tsunami of hatred born from Envy.
Daniel Emberweave... Daniel Emberweave... Daniel Emberweave...
This name—it was Alexander Vance's nemesis. If not for this man, Alexander Vance would have already become the sole ruler of the US!
Now, it wanted to destroy, to bring pain, to tear apart the object of its envy and obsession. And now, that opportunity had presented itself in front of Vance—the monster.
"Arrrrrrrrrrrrrraaarrgghhhhhh roooaaaaarrr!" The roar thundered through the sky, creating a shockwave as its monstrous hand descended from the sky upon Penthesilea.
"May the blessing of Lady Artemis protect me," Penthesilea uttered a prayer as she raised her shield.
Booooooom!
The monstrous hand descended onto the ground, hitting Penthesilea head-on.
"Heh heh hahaha!" The monster laughed in glee as it raised its hand, looking at the ground, but...
There was nothing there. Other than the palm-shaped crater, there was nothing—no corpse, no blood, nothing!
*Click...*
With a mechanical click, the power within the spear roared to life.
The monster immediately felt dread as the spear continued to charge. It used its other hand to clap, hoping to crush Penthesilea like a mosquito.
"May you grace us with courage and vigor in battle..." Penthesilea continued her prayer, raising her shield to guard against another strike from the monster.
Boom!
The strike hit the shield squarely. Penthesilea gritted her teeth. She had the blessing of Artemis, granting her immunity to all non-divine and powerful artifacts, but that didn't mean she didn't feel pain. Her bones creaked, and her muscles strained heavily from guarding against two strikes from this monster.
With this strike, the spear embedded deep within the palm, and Penthesilea's right arm also entered the monster's flesh, and she couldn't retract it. She forced her arm muscle beyond its limit, twisting her spear that was embedded deep into the monster's muscle.
"Argh! May our aim strike true, may our prey be bountiful, with this sacrifice... may you grant us victory!" Penthesilea cried out in pain, feeling the brunt of her bone snapping as she used her own muscles, but she gritted her teeth.
As the words left her lips, the spear unleashed its pent-up power. A surge of magical energy crackled around the weapon, a harbinger of doom for the monstrosity. With a deafening boom, a superheated beam erupted from the spearhead, disintegrating and tearing through the creature's entire arm.
The beam pierced the heavens, a pillar of light cleaving through the clouds, momentarily opening a glimpse of clear blue sky.
Penthesilea's arm ripped free from the monster's flesh, the spear still clutched in her grip. Gravity claimed her, sending her plummeting tens of meters towards the ground. With a desperate twist, she angled her shield, bracing for impact.
But just before the earth rushed to meet her, a gust of wind buffeted her face. Pride, appearing seemingly out of thin air, caught her mid-fall.
Penthesilea's eyes fluttered open to meet Pride's concerned gaze. "Thanks," she rasped, a grateful smile gracing her lips.
Pride, puffed up her chest. "Hmph! Of course! As you should!" Her confident declaration brought a wry smile to Penthesilea's face. But, beneath the bravado, Penthesilea knew Pride possessed a genuine kindness.
Pride deposited Penthesilea safely at the Mobile HQ. Medics swarmed around the warrior, their faces grim as they assessed her mangled right arm – snapped at a horrifying angle.
The monstrous roar echoed once more as the creature's severed limb began to writhe, the process of regeneration already underway.