Abyss (1)

As the three pillars of the human army battled against the monster horde, Finn was ghosting about the battlefield, killing any monster who dared go near him with a flick of his fingers.

With the horde mostly composed of rank 1 and rank 2 abominations, his mana consumption was negligible.

As such Finn flicked off many fire bullets with practised efficiency, and the easy-to-cast spell destroyed the monsters which surrounded his figure. Gazing at the carnage of the battlefield, Finn reminded himself not to forget the mission he was assigned.

'I must not lose sight of the mission. I must think of the bigger picture. My actions will affect future machinations and developments, so I have to get this right!'

Currently situated in the territory between Astrid and Otto, Finn continued killing the monsters in his way as he travelled closer and closer to his target.

As a scion of a former noble family which fell from grace after being annihilated by the many enemies it made through its domineering and unyielding attitude, Finn had a lot of pressure on his shoulders.

With his enemies hellbent on destroying him and his family, Finn had to find a way to survive. Which he ingeniously did, however, not without paying a price.

Using jokes and humour to hide the pain and anguish he experienced daily, Finn created a whole new persona altogether. A persona which appeared to be amiable and aligned with everyone's choices, placing them more important than himself.

Along with a bit of trickery and disguise, the persona achieved the effect of throwing his enemies off his tail long enough to achieve a modicum of strength. However, that was not to say that it didn't come with its own set of disadvantages.

Due to exhibiting a persona aimed at pleasing others on the outside, Finn slowly lost touch with his real personality that lurked underneath. Now he couldn't differentiate whether it was the real 'him' talking, or the one guided by the persona.

In addition to his childhood experiences as well as seeing the deceit, manipulation, and treachery for so long, Finn slowly became unfeeling and emotionless. A numb shell which has witnessed the darkest sides of humanity.

Heaving a complicated sigh, Finn returned his focus to slaughtering what seemed to be an endless amount of monsters as his target appeared in his vision. Narrowing his eyes, he contemplated the best course of action to take.

However, he didn't get to think for very long as an almighty, colossal pressure appeared in the skies. With a mighty roar, the source of the indomitable aura became known.

***

ROAR-!

As the ear-splitting roar reverberated around the battlefield, every living creature, whether it be human or monster, froze in its tracks.

Blanketing the raging battlefield with its aura, the Wyvern scanned with its watchful eye for any sign of the detestable human who stole its offspring.

Finding no sign, the wyvern in its rage increased the pressure its body released as a collective groan rang out on the battlefield below.

Trembling in fear, every soldier in the human encampment felt themselves lose control over their bodies as their weapons clattered to the ground.

Experiencing the gigantic pressure emitted by the huge winged creature high in the skies, they felt as if death was staring straight at them, ready to bring their souls into the afterlife.

The monsters who were on a rampage a moment ago were now prostrating in the direction of the sovereign of abominations flying high in the sky.

Monsters possessed extremely great senses and as such were able to understand how much power this winged being held, so it was only natural that alongside awe and reverence they felt the same fear.

Evan, who was one of the weakest on the battlefield, had an even worse reaction to the arrival of the Wyvern. With blood streaming from his orifices, his vision suddenly turned dark red as his eyes released a gushing flow of bright red ichor.

Unable to sense anything anymore, Evan felt he had entered a deep, dark abyss. An abyss in which he would be forever imprisoned.

A sense of panic began assaulting him, accentuating the dread and fear of having his eyes, nose, ear, and mouth, among others, streaming with blood.

Vomiting up bright red ichor, Evan kneeled to the ground as he fell to one knee, feeling a bout of weakness overcome his body.

'N-No What's happening?'

***

'A beta-level monster! What's it doing all the way over here?'

Gazing upward at the massive creature covered in an orange hue from the light of dusk, Otto's face became grim.

With quite a number of soldiers having already been killed by the savage monsters, the subordinates under his command were in no way, shape, or form ready to fight, particularly with the arrival of this horrifyingly powerful monster.

As he was one whole major rank beneath the Wyvern, Otto felt as if a truck was pressing on his chest. Desperately resisting the gigantic pressure, his grip on his silver hammer tightened.

'What do I do? There is no one here who can fight against that wyvern and remain alive after a few seconds. To top it all off, the leader of the monster horde hasn't even shown itself yet. Fuck!'

Having no clue what to do, Otto just went with what he felt to be the right decision as his loud bellow echoed across the plains.

"Fellow humans, listen up! That abomination up there in the sky is a beta-level monster more commonly regarded as a monster equivalent to a rank 4 powerhouse."

Taking a deep breath, he continued speaking once more, this time with large amounts of rage contained within his deep voice.

"I will not lie to you and say that we will make it out of this battle alive, but I will say that if you die today, hold your head up high, and know that your successors shall avenge you tenfold. Now! I need you miserable wretches to slaughter as many monsters as you can while I engage with that repulsive, overgrown lizard up there."

After he finished speaking, Otto's broad shoulders sagged a little as the stalwart man faltered for a moment before gathering himself together.

RIP-! RIP-! RIP-!

With his frame enlarging into that comparable to a giant as his clothes ripped apart, Otto's eyes never wavered as his solemn voice rang out, preparing to pay the ultimate sacrifice.

"Fight! To keep the fire of humanity blazing deep within your souls. Fight! For your deceased family, deceased relatives, and deceased partners. Fight! To show them that humans are never to be messed with lightly."