60/ Man in black 2

The monsters lunged at Logan and Aria with rage. Logan quickly used Analysis to see what had changed with the monsters.

[Status: Uncontrollable Rage: The target enters an uncontrollable rage, increasing all statistics by 20%.]

He also analyzed the black-clad man standing next to the serpent.

[Unable to read the target's status due to an object.]

"I see, Aria impales them," Logan immediately requested.

A column of stone lifted Aria into the air, and in the next moment, it formed a multitude of ice spikes. They rushed towards the monsters and impaled them upon contact.

But that wasn't all. Logan also caused stone spikes to emerge from the ground, piercing the monsters. Stone swords flew through the air, cutting down the monsters. Despite their increased statistics, they remained just as helpless. It was even easier since the monsters charged blindly without restraint.

"What are you doing? Kill them!" the black-clad man shouted in frustration.

However, despite his angry cries, it didn't change the fact that the monsters were powerless. Logan and Aria dispatched the monsters one after another, while also keeping an eye on the man.

"He seems completely powerless, overwhelmed. He could have attacked us from a distance, but he doesn't. Does that mean he's probably incapable of doing so?" (Logan)

After a short time, there were soon no monsters left. The man, frustrated by the situation slipping out of his control, shouted in rage, his voice almost breaking:

"Go, Hertha!" he exclaimed eagerly.

The fire serpent next to him roared before launching itself into the battle. It paid no attention to the other monsters in its path. Most of them ended up crushed or burned. Aria launched ice spikes at it, but they melted before they could even touch the serpent. The serpent emanated suffocating heat.

"Tch!" she cursed.

"Deal with the remaining monsters; I'll take care of him." (Logan)

"Alright." (Aria)

Logan found himself facing the serpent, which charged at him with full speed. The stone blades quickly targeted it. However, the rocks disintegrated upon striking the serpent. Its scales were too hot and resistant, and combined with Logan's lack of mastery and the fragile nature of the stone blades, they proved ineffective.

In response, the serpent sent its tail to strike Logan, who accelerated and easily dodged the attack. The monster didn't stop there and spewed flames, which were much more powerful compared to those of the smaller serpents. Logan avoided them as best he could, not taking any chances.

The flames gradually gathered and transformed into a beam of heat, melting everything it touched, leaving only dust or molten rock.

"This is getting dangerous! If it continues, it will set the forest on fire!"

Indeed, the beam had melted the stone wall that served as the combat arena, and flames could already be seen on some distant trees. Moreover, the serpent was also affected by the Uncontrollable Rage ability.

"That's right, keep going, Hertha!" the black-clad man cried out, regaining his composure as his creature seemed to be winning.

"I realize I'm still very limited. The rock melts or disintegrates upon contact with its scales, partly due to my own shortcomings. But for now, these are the only attacks I've always used. So now, in this situation, I must seize this opportunity to become stronger." (Logan)

Logan closed his eyes briefly, focusing on his surroundings and attempting something he had never done before. Until now, he had only modified his environment using Vector Control raising walls, creating spikes, throwing stones. However, he needed to evolve.

This time, he felt his surroundings, specifically the humidity and the water in the air. He focused his mind on it, then visualized what he wanted to do, and the vector control did the rest.

Every bit and molecule of water gathered before forming tangible water. Five water balls were now flying around Logan, but they were trembling terribly. Two of them exploded and disappeared completely, while the others continued to shake as he ran.

"Tch! I'm bad at this!" (Logan)

In the end, he couldn't maintain the water in the shape he wanted, and they all disappeared.

"Damn it!" he cursed.

Logan made the ground collapse beneath the serpent, which fell into a large hole. Immediately, a gigantic column of fire emerged from the hole. The serpent emerged from the hole almost flying, its scales separated and flying around it.

"Oh shit!" he shouted as the flaming scales rushed toward him.

The fiery scales flew at him from all directions. He pushed away most of them, but some managed to touch his right arm and left leg. The flesh was cut and burned simultaneously, leaving nasty wounds and the smell of burnt flesh.

"Yes, go!" the man in the black hood cheered.

In addition to the flaming scales flying toward him, the serpent was spewing its heat beam. Logan was truly struggling and was hit several times by the scales. His body was in bad shape, and his attacks were ineffective. The pain was excruciating. However, he didn't cry out. Suddenly, the serpent was struck by an attack that momentarily stopped it.

It was Aria finally joining the battle, having finished exterminating the small fry. The corpses of the monsters could be seen in the hundreds behind her.

"I thought you didn't need any help," she said with an amused expression.

"I guess I do need you," Logan replied.

"Of course, you need me," she said, smiling at him.

"I was a bit too confident, I admit it," Logan said.

"Are you holding up?" she asked, looking at the wounds on his body.

"Better than you and the horse," he replied, laughing.

"Tch, you're perfectly fine!" she swore, pouting.

"Let's finish this. I'm actually in pain. Can you put out the walking flame?" Logan asked.

"Give me a minute to charge up my new find," Logan replied.

"Very well," Logan said.

The stone swords formed again before flying in the direction of the serpent. They were, of course, ineffective, but that wasn't the purpose of the maneuver. Logan was restraining the serpent as Aria had requested. Logan briefly glanced at her, seeing her concentrating a massive amount of water while the serpent focused solely on him.

The robed man tried to alert the serpent, but it was ragingly focused on Logan. It didn't listen simply because of the ability it had previously used. Finally, after a long and exhausting wait, she was finally ready.

Aria shot a huge water ball twice the size of the serpent toward it. It got caught inside, immediately causing steam due to the encounter of water and fire. Fortunately, there was much more water than fire, so the serpent was extinguished within this gigantic water bubble. She then froze the bubble, trapping the serpent before collapsing from fatigue, having depleted all her mana.

Logan immediately seized the opportunity he was given, and the serpent was slashed by the stone swords. It was also hit by the stone bullets Logan threw, with no chance of survival.

"No, no, it can't be!" he said incredulously.

The man was taken aback as the battle had turned in an instant. He began to retreat, without thinking for long, deciding to flee with his tail between his legs.

"How can that beastgirl fight alongside a human? She must have a slave seal that forces her to obey; otherwise, I could have killed him!" he spat as he fled.

Lost in his thoughts and in the rush to escape, he didn't notice the shadow approaching him. Without a sound, he was pinned to the ground, before seeing bright red eyes looking at him.

"Where did you think you were going? Who are you? What is your purpose?" Logan asked, lifting the man in the air.

The suspended man grabbed his hands, and his face was still hidden by the hood of the black robe. With his free hand, Logan removed it, and his expression immediately tensed.

"What?" he said, his eyes flickering.

The man was not actually a man but a beastman with cheetah features.

"Forgive me, I couldn't complete my mission," the beastman whispered.

Before Logan could speak again, white foam began to come out of the man's mouth. His beautiful black eyes turned into a cold white, and the man died in horrible convulsions. Logan let go of the body, which fell to the ground with completely rolled-back white eyes.

"Poison!" Logan exclaimed.

Logan looked at the dead man sprawled on the ground as Aria arrived a few seconds later.

"What's going on here?" she said, discovering the nature of the man.

Thus, this brief night of battle ended with the completion of the mission and, above all, new questions. However, things would not stop here, as many other events would take place.

Lore Info:

The Hertha is a serpent normally found in the hot regions of the southern desert continent. Its scales are ablaze, extremely hot, and resistant to physical attacks. They also regenerate at a very fast pace, so they are not left defenseless when used as weapons. The largest specimens can reach six times the size of a human, so be extremely cautious if you come across them.

They are also prevalent in certain types of dungeons, such as fire or reptile-themed dungeons. There are also mutations of these serpents called Hertha Kings. The first sighting of such a specimen occurred during a dungeon breakthrough in the region of the Ecclésia Kingdom, where an entire small town was annihilated before it was killed by the King himself.