Chapter 13: The Power of a SSSS-rank

Things could be going better, but at least Elisa had gotten the relic; all Theo had to do was deal with the Verant. He knew this job was gonna be a pain when it came directly from the Emperor, which meant he had no choice but to do it. The Verant's third eye darted to him before briefly flashing red. He clicked his tongue in annoyance as he put some distance between himself and the thing. Verants were classified as Reverend-level monsters, but that rank changes depending on how many Egos they copied and the quality. And since it had already copied his gravity Ego, it was near the level of strength of an Ancient Monster. He wouldn't be stressing so much if he were alone; then he could use that, his ace, something even the Verant couldn't copy. This was gonna take a while.

The Monster attacked, and Elisa managed to stagger backward before it slammed its open hand on the ground. The impact from the strike, combined with the momentum from her backstep, sent her rolling, only stopping when someone grabbed her. It was the GM. His attention went from the thing to her, "Do you still have the relic?" She nodded,

" Good, I need you to hold onto it until this is all over. What we are fighting is a Verant, it can-" He glanced over to the Verant before pushing her away hard. Rude, and then the ground around him cracked, like some invisible force was pushing down on him...Elisa glances over at the Varent, which held its finger pointed at Theo; it was using his Ego against him. A monster. Using an Ego... "DONT!" Theo yelled, startling Elisa, snapping her out of whatever trance she was in, and her hand grasped Irokomi. She immediately let go,

"If you use that power now, it'll only copy it. Just let me handle it!" He said, holding his open palm to the ground, his longsword lay on the ground next to him. Just then, the pressure holding him broke with a loud snap; he had countered the heavy gravity with his own. Elisa kept her Ego running through her legs in case she needed to make a run for it. Something ran at the Verant; it was Allia. She pierced its leg, using the sword as leverage to scale the massive creature. As she climbed, she left cuts all over its body; her sword appeared to be designed so it could split into smaller parts. She wielded it like a chainwhip. Allia managed to get up to its arm before being flung away, stopping inches from the ground, thanks to Theo holding her in place using his Ego. His free hand began glowing. Not the entire arm, but underneath his skin was a strange white-black glow. He threw a punch with his glowing hand, and a bolt of energy fired. It normally would've missed the Verant, but once it went past it, the bolt bent around and pierced through the shoulder of the beast, causing it to let out a roar of pain. Theo had used his gravity Ego to freely control the direction of the bolt. He outstretches his glowing hand, commanding the bolt to break into multiple smaller bolts and riddle the Verant with holes. But, of course, it wouldn't be a powerful monster without regeneration. A stupid good one at that.

Edward and Theo led the fight. From what shes seen so far, Edward's ego was some kind of sealing. The Verant's body would freeze sometimes, a yellow magic circle surrounding the part that Edward held sealed. Trying to restrain the whole body was pointless since it broke free after 25 seconds, but that seemed to be more than enough for Allia to jump in. Elisa felt bad. If only she could just control Irokomi, then this fight would be over. She was lost in thought when Theo suddenly came skidding over. The Verant had switched to a more hands-on tactic, making it harder for Edward to seal it.

" Keep your eyes open, kid," He said, the thrill of the hunt flaring in his eyes, "I'm about to show you the power of a SSSS-rank Hunter."

The fight changed entirely. What was a balanced fight between three powerful fighters became a one-sided beat-down by one Hunter. Theo had increased the weight on his gravity, and whenever the Verant tried countering, he'd simply amp it up more. The bolts of energy seemed to glow darker as they hit harder. Edward and Allia stood back as the Grandmaster went at it. The Verant got a lucky hit in, and Theo was knocked back to the ground, getting up like it was nothing, wiping his mouth as he grinned. Elisa watched in awe. The whole fight felt surreal. But it was here that she fully understood her true obstacle; If she wanted to become Grandmaster, she would need to reach his level of strength, and then go beyond. Then Elisa felt it; they all felt it. Varlant energy reminiscent of Irokomi burst forth from Theo; it was like what she felt during the entrance exam, when she first met him during the duel. Theo reeled his hand back, like he was about to throw a spear, and then it formed. A giant spear made from the same energy as before, the Verant reeled its hand back in turn, and just before the spear punched a gaping hole in its chest, Elisa saw a faint flicker of void.

Theo felt ecstatic. It had been way too long since he had fought something for this long; it was a shame he didn't get to use that, it would've been more fun. But it was a good thing he ended the fight now, otherwise he'd have to fight it while it used Elsia's second Ego. It seemed it had finished copying it a while ago, but only used it when it was going to die. The verant rested dead on its knees, its head drooped as all three eyes were lifeless. He'd need to grab a chunk from its horn when he settled things with the two from Kraianth. The horn makes for a great weapon material, along with a few other uses. He turned to retrieve his longsword that he had dropped at the very start of this fight when a magic circle grabbed him, restraining his arms. This one was much stronger than the ones used against the Verant. Smart, they'd just seen what he could do; now he was out of the game. Or so they thought. "No hard feelings, man, but we also got orders; the relic comes with us," Edward said, still within his line of sight. But he didn't. Someone was coming, someone powerful. The far wall blasted open.

Just when she thought it was over, she felt a powerful Ego, and then a large circle opened in the far wall. It sat diagonally, reaching all the way up to the surface. A man appears at the mouth of the new opening. He wore black pants and a red dress shirt, along with an erivis cloak. His brown short hair was combed back, and his wisteria colored eyes locked with Elisa's. It was him. Her eyes went wide with rage. Him. The man from that day, she still remembers. The fire, the screams. It was all HIS fault. The Emperor of Kraianth, the man who massacred the Ky'urai family. Her goal was standing in front of her, and she wasn't going to let it go.

Bad. It's not like Theo couldn't handle Julius, but Elias had seemingly lost her mind as she launched an attack on an Emperor. He needed to get out of these restraints immediately. Theo flexed against the seal, plasmic chaos began welling in his arms as the circle began to waver. The seal would double, and then triple; Edward was making sure he didn't go anywhere. Unfortunately, he would fail. Theo intensified his gaze at Edward before the gravity around him quadrupled, forcing him to let go of the extra seals and allowing him to break free. By the time he had freed himself, Elisa was already swinging her sword at Julius, who was stepping out of the way. As much as he'd like to help, having an Emperor die now would cause more problems, like having the entire Kraianth throw everyone into a war. Julius noticed Theo watching. In one swift move, he positioned himself in front of Elisa before kicking her hard. The speed at which she flew made it nearly impossible for him to catch her, but he managed. 

 "That was really stupid of you, going after an Emperor suddenly," the kick had done some real damage to her, he let her down from his gravity and propped her up in his arm, "Its been awhile, Grandmaster. I don't wish to fight so please call off your Hunter, Im simpy here to get my people, and the relic." amidst all the chaos he had forgotten the one thing he came for, "The girl has the relic!" Allia yelled, how annoying. Julia's expression was calm; it seemed like he knew already. Theo could easily take the two of them, but if Julias joins in, then it'll be difficult, plus he'd be defending Elisa. "What about the relic, do you still have it?" he asked the girl. She was barely awake, but managed to raise her left hand; it was held shut, but that must mean she had the relic still. Theo breathed a sigh of relief. Relief turned to panic. When she unclenched her hand, the relic was there. The problem? It was embedded in her hand.