Chapter 395: Luring It Away Alone

“Lucian......”

Frots spoke slowly, his voice heavy with worry,

“Can you handle this?”

“......I have to, even if I can’t. Because I still want to live.”

Lucian raised his shield silently, the same motion he’d performed a thousand times before.

“ROAR——!”

The three Monsters launched their attack simultaneously.

“COME ON! OVER HERE! COME AT ME!!”

Lucian roared at the top of his lungs, slamming his sword against his shield repeatedly, as if taunting the beasts.

Enraged by the provocation, the Monsters immediately shifted their target to Lucian, charging toward him with bared claws.

“Berserker Aura!”

A blaze of fiery energy erupted from Lucian’s body, coating him in a shimmering crimson glow.

“HYAAH!!!”

He charged head-on at the Monsters, shield raised to meet their assault.

THUD!

The first Monster was brought to a screeching halt by his charge.

SWISH!

A swift sword slash forced the second Monster to retreat, buying him a split second of respite.

“ROAR!”

But the third Monster lashed out with its massive claws, aiming to tear Lucian’s body to shreds.

“Not gonna happen!”

CRASH!

The ground erupted in front of him, a wall of solid stone rising up to block the Monster’s path.

SPLINTER!

Yet in the blink of an eye, the wall shattered like fragile paper beneath the Monster’s razor-sharp claws.

The attack had been slowed, if only for a moment—but the Monster quickly readjusted its trajectory, its claws still streaking toward Lucian.

WHOOSH!

A figure darted out from behind the Monster.

SWISH! SWISH!

Two quick slashes landed precisely on the back of its hind legs.

“ROAR——”

The Monster howled in pain, its claws swiping wildly off-target.

Lucian dodged the attack by the skin of his teeth, his heart pounding in his chest.

The Monster retracted its claws, its blood-red eyes locking onto the figure who’d ambushed it.

“ROAR——!”

It let out a deafening snarl and charged straight at Frots.

“Frots, fall back!”

Eileen shouted urgently, her voice cracking with fear.

Frots didn’t need to be told twice. He turned and ran, sprinting as fast as his legs could carry him—but the High-Rank Monster was faster.

“GET OUT OF MY WAY!”

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Russell leaped high into the air, his spear raised as he thrust it toward the Monster chasing Frots.

BANG!

The Monster swatted the spear aside with a single claw, deflecting his attack with ease.

“That’s right! Your opponent’s me, you overgrown lizard!”

Russell readied himself to strike again—but to his shock, the Monster didn’t even spare him a glance. It just kept charging after Frots.

“Dammit! Its hatred for Frots is too strong!”

Eileen’s face paled as she realized the danger.

THUD——!

Just in time, Lucian appeared out of nowhere, throwing himself between the Monster and Frots.

But in doing so, he freed the other two Monsters he’d been holding off.

“ROAR!”

One of them lunged at Lucian, its jaws snapping shut inches from his neck.

Lucian parried the attack with his sword, the impact sending a jolt up his arm.

The remaining Monster seized the opening, charging straight at Lucian’s unprotected flank.

Lucian was forced to roll sideways, narrowly avoiding being gored by its claws.

In an instant, Lucian was completely surrounded by the three Monsters, each blow forcing him to fight for his life. Even with the other three launching constant magical attacks to support him, the tide of battle was rapidly turning against them.

“This isn’t working! We can’t keep this up! Lucian can only hold off two of them at most! Someone has to draw one away from him!”

Eileen analyzed the situation in a split second, her voice sharp with urgency.

“Then I’ll do it!”

Russell shouted, his voice ringing with resolve.

“I’ll lure one of them away by myself! While Lucian holds the other two, the rest of you take them down! Do you hear me?!”

Without waiting for a reply, he charged straight at one of the Monsters.

“Hey, you piece of garbage! Eat a spear to the face, courtesy of Russell the Great!”

He thrust his spear forward with all his strength.

The Monster dodged backward, narrowly avoiding the tip—but the Wind Slash extending from the spear still sliced a deep gash across its flank.

“ROAR——!”

The Monster roared in fury, its eyes blazing with rage.

It abandoned Lucian entirely and charged straight at Russell.

Russell immediately turned and ran, leading the Monster away from the others.

“Wait! Russell, where are you going?!”

Eileen screamed in panic, her eyes widening with horror.

“I’m luring it away! If we stay here, we’re all dead!”

Russell shouted over his shoulder, his figure growing smaller with every step.

“No! You’ll die if you face a High-Rank Monster alone!”

Eileen’s heart was pounding in her chest. She lifted her foot, ready to chase after him.

“STAY RIGHT WHERE YOU ARE!”

Eileen’s foot froze mid-air, rooted to the spot by Russell’s commanding voice.

“You listen to me! I——”

“——will NOT die here!”

Russell’s voice faded into the distance, his figure disappearing from the three’s sight at last.

“......”

Eileen’s face twisted with grief and anger. She gripped her wand so tightly her knuckles turned white.

BOOM!

The ground beneath the two Monsters fighting Lucian liquefied, turning into a pool of quicksand that threw them off balance.

“You monsters! DIE!!”

CRACK!

Dozens of Earth Spikes erupted from the ground, piercing toward the flailing Monsters......

With one Monster gone, Team Silver seemed to have narrowly escaped certain death. But the cost of their survival was Russell’s life, hanging in the balance far away......

“Gasp...... Gasp......”

Russell panted heavily, his lungs burning with every breath.

“How long are you gonna keep chasing me, you overgrown sack of scales?!”

“ROAR——!”

Russell’s taunt only enraged the Monster further. It let out a deafening roar and leaped into the air, its massive body casting a shadow over Russell as it descended rapidly.

CRASH!

A devastating blow slammed down toward him.

Russell raised his spear in a desperate attempt to block.

THUD——!

The impact sent him flying like a cannonball, his body slamming into a tree trunk with a sickening crunch.

“Cough...... Cough cough...... Ugh!”

Russell spat out a mouthful of blood, the metallic taste filling his mouth.

He propped himself up with his spear, struggling to stand despite the searing pain in every bone.

“Dammit...... How the hell is it this strong......”

“ROAR——!”

The Monster opened its maw wide, revealing rows of sharp, glistening teeth as it charged at him again.

“You bastard! Who’s afraid of you?!”

Russell cursed loudly, raising his spear and charging straight at the Monster.

CRASH!

Their attacks collided once more.

Russell was sent flying again, but this time, he managed to leave a deep gash across the Monster’s face.

The pain only made the Monster more ferocious.

“ROAR——!!!”

Russell had barely climbed to his feet when the Monster was upon him again.

“HYAAH——!!!”

He wrapped his spear in swirling green wind and thrust it forward with all his remaining strength, as if throwing a javelin.

BOOM!

“URGH——!”

Russell’s body was sent flying through the air, a fountain of blood erupting from his mouth. His vision blurred, his consciousness slipping away like sand through his fingers.

In a desperate bid to stay awake, he bit down hard on his tongue, the pain jolting him back to his senses.

“O-One...... More......”

He forced his battered body to stay upright, his eyes blazing with unyielding resolve. He roared and charged at the Monster one final time.

“ROAR!”

The enraged Monster lashed out with its claws once more, aiming for the tiny, stubborn human who dared to defy it.

CRASH! CRASH! CRASH......

It was a battle so lopsided it defied all reason—a fight between a mortal man and a beast far beyond his league.

Blood blurred Russell’s vision. His body was so badly injured that he could collapse at any moment.

Yet still, he fought on.

Fought until his eyes lost all focus.

Fought until his thoughts slowed to a crawl.

Fought until his body began to feel cold.

......Cold?

That’s strange......

Why am I feeling cold?

It isn’t even winter......