Chapter 420: System's Final Boss - 4

Elio found his attack options increasingly limited. Each attempt to reach Zahyla's neck was deflected, countered, or intercepted by perfectly positioned artromus.

His advantage in perception remained overwhelming, but the space to exploit it constantly shrank.

"Can you feel it too?" Zahyla asked, her voice mixing amusement and concentration while dodging another attack. "How the body remembers, how each cell awakens to its true potential… How we adapt."

A burst of combined magic forced Elio into an evasive maneuver, canceling his attack. Three artromus seized the opening, their claws tracing deadly arcs that required all his control to avoid.

"Fascinating how even at this limited level..." Zahyla interwove more elements in impossible patterns that Elio couldn't counter in time, "true control finds its way."

The pressure on Elio increased. Each passing instant, Zahyla seemed more comfortable, more fluid, more lethal.