Chapter 08 Rein vs The Maulgor Colossus

 “We don’t have much time. What’s the plan, dad?”

Cael looked over the shattered ground, the burned-out buildings, the fleeing villagers. 

“The guards and villagers will deal with the small fries, hopefully. You and me... we go all in. We hit it from opposite sides—don’t let it focus on just one of us. Elenora will bind its legs if she can, restrict movement. We aim for the joints—between the armor plates. Those glowing cracks are heat veins. Hit them hard enough, they rupture. We won’t get a second chance if it goes into overheat, it will burn everything around it. So, we need to make every hit count before it goes into rampage mode.”

Elenora stepped close, brushing her hand against Rein’s cheek. 

“Don't use your fire attacks on it, that thing is not affected by it. Ice, water or earth magic would be ideal, but I can't cast them. Rein, if you must, use your lightning magic. And also, promise me you’ll survive.”

“I’ll try, Mom. I’ll try with everything I have.”

The Maulgor Colossus roared again, as if mocking their resolve.

Cael didn’t wait.

Sword in both hands, he shot forward like a bolt loosed from a bow. Rein barely had time to blink before his father was under the monster’s shadow, feet grinding the dirt as he slid into range. The gleam of his greatsword caught the firelight—then wham—he swept low, aiming for the soft joint behind the beast’s knee. The blade struck true.

SCHRRRRAK!

A spray of molten blood hissed through the air like acid. It splashed across Cael’s blade, the steel turning red-hot in seconds, smoke rising off it.

“Binding magic! NOW!”

From behind, Elenora raised both arms. Her magic surged—thick, thorny roots erupted from the ground, snaking like serpents around the Colossus’s legs. They coiled fast and tight, glowing with her mana as they tugged down, trying to ground the beast.

It shrieked, twisting violently—but the vines held.

Rein saw the opening and leapt into motion.

He kicked off the cobblestones ground, sprinting with everything he had. His sword trailed electric sparks. Mana flared through his body, amplifying his speed—his vision tunneled in on the target, the exposed part glowing between obsidian plates. With a flash of light, he kicked off the scorched earth — the ground beneath him exploded, fracturing outward in a spiderweb of cracks. Dust erupted in a halo behind him, stones launched into the air like shrapnel.

"You're going down, monster! Lightning Flash Step!"

For an instant, he vanished — a blue-white blur beaming through the smoky battlefield, the air around him whipping into a vortex, sparking with electric magical pressure. He flew—arms pulled back, ready to drive his blade deep into the Colossus’s core.

But the monster saw him.

With a bone-rattling growl, it spun—just enough—and one massive forearm, plated in volcanic armor, smashed into Rein mid-air like a battering ram.

Kaaaaa-boooom!

Rein flew. He was a blur of limbs and broken breath, crashing through the roof of a house, smashing through its stone wall like a cannonball—then another and another. His body hit the village wall hard enough to punch a hole clean through it. A cloud of dust erupted as stone fractured in a spiderweb pattern around his cratered impact.

Rein’s body twitched in the rubble. Then a bloodied cough. He wasn’t unconscious—but close.

Through blurred vision, he saw his father scream his name. Elenora let out a cry. The Colossus, now enraged, turned its molten gaze on them.

Pain. That was the first thing Rein felt. It was everywhere. His ribs screamed. His arms barely moved. Blood trickled down from his forehead, blurring one eye. His ears rang—an endless, high-pitched screech that drowned out everything else. It was like the world had gone silent, swallowed in a vacuum.

He pushed himself up.

Everything was spinning. His vision swam, edges pulsing red. His hands shook as he braced against the rubble, breath coming in gasps. Something was definitely broken—his ribs? His shoulder? Maybe both. But none of it mattered. He had to move.

He staggered forward, dragging one foot behind him— most likely broken too. Every step was agony, every breath a knife in his lungs.

But then—through the haze—he saw them.

His parents.

His father, Cael, sword drawn again, trying to rally what was left of the defense. Elenora beside him, hands glowing with magic. And the beast—the Colossus—towered before them, like a nightmare stitched together from fire and hate.

His eyes opened wide as he saw his mother shouting something—her lips moved, frantic, panicked. Cael opened his mouth to scream, to warn him, but the only thing he heard was the ringing. The sound still hadn’t returned. 

Rein stumbled forward.

“No… no, no… please… Wait… I’m coming… hold on, just hold on... I’ll help… I can help… I can still fight!”

But then it happened. The Colossus moved. Fast. Too fast. Its claws swept in a wide arc. Rein’s mother barely had time to raise a barrier. It shattered like glass.

Cael leapt—too late.

The beast’s tail came crashing down, slamming into him with a crunch.

Rein’s legs stopped moving.

He watched in horror as his father was hurled into the dirt, unmoving. His mother screamed, tried to run—but the monster was on her. A brutal swipe of its claw silenced her.

It was over in seconds.

One moment they were there—fighting, breathing.

The next… they were just gone.

Rein’s knees gave out. He collapsed into the dirt, staring. His arms hung at his sides, shaking uncontrollably.

“No… No, no, no, no, no… this can't be happening!”

The ringing faded now, and with it came the full sound of the violence around him—the burning, the monsters, the screaming. The reality. They were dead.

“YOU BASTARD!! What have you done!”

His voice cracked and roared all at once, tearing from his lungs in a scream that split the air. He clawed at the ground, dragging himself forward, rage pouring from every fiber of his being.

“You… you killed them… you—”

His eyes lit with fury.

He clenched both hands, pushing them forward, fingers trembling with the last threads of mana still flickering in his body.

“Lightning...”

The spell circle formed, unstable, barely holding together. Sparks danced along his arms. His body screamed at him to stop. But he didn’t.

“BLAAAAAAAAAAAAST!!”

The spell fired with a thunderous boom, the explosion lighting up the night sky. It struck the Colossus in the chest, detonating in a storm of lightning sparks and flame. A shockwave rippled through the village. Glass shattered in nearby buildings. Smoke rose to the clouds, and debris fell like rain.

He slumped forward, arms limp. The last of his energy gone. His knees hit the ground.

He stared through the smoke and fire, panting, barely holding himself up.

“You’re not getting away… You hear me…? I will kill you for that!”

His head dropped. The world began to darken at the edges.

“I’ll kill you... for them... for everyone… you took.”