As the war raged on, Josh Aratat and his generals pressed forward, slaying the manticore spawns one by one. They had discovered a weakness—strike the third digit of the scorpion-like stinger, and the creature would fall.
Shammah, one of Josh's fiercest generals, lunged at a snarling manticore, his blade arcing toward its tail. But he missed by mere inches. In a blink, the beast retaliated—its clawed paws crashed into Shammah's chest, sending him staggering backward.
Only his high cultivation level spared him. A lesser warrior would've been reduced to dust beneath that blow.
Pain flared in Shammah's ribs, and his vision pulsed red. Gritting his teeth, he surged forward again. With nimble footwork, he slipped past the manticore's thrashing body and closed in on its stinger. This time, he was ready.
A precise strike—his sword pierced the third digit.
The manticore screeched and collapsed, its body erupting into flames and vanishing into glowing embers.
But before Shammah could breathe a sigh of relief, agony erupted down his spine. Two stingers punctured his back, another tore into his thigh, and two more loomed, poised to strike his skull.
He screamed, blood pouring from his mouth, nose, and eyes as venom coursed through his veins like wildfire.
Josh Aratat heard the scream—raw, sharp, and riddled with agony—and something inside him snapped.
His heart seized. Panic coursed through him like lightning in his veins. The bond he shared with his generals wasn't just forged through battles or loyalty—it was spiritual. Deep. So deep that when one of them suffered, he felt it too, as if the blade had pierced his own flesh.
"Shammah…" he whispered, a tremor in his voice.
Without wasting a second, he turned sharply and called out, voice slicing through the chaos of war. "Ralia Amia!"
She heard him and turned from her fight, her eyes immediately locking with his. He didn't need to explain further.
"Flood them with fear," Josh commanded.
Ralia nodded. With elegance and fury, she vaulted over the charred remains of a manticore she had just wounded. In one hand, she clutched her memory orb—its glow pulsating like a heartbeat—while with the other, she steadied herself mid-air. Using her foot, she landed a precise kick on the third digit of the manticore's tail below her. The beast exploded into flaming embers, hissing as it dissolved into the dust of the battlefield.
Without pausing to admire the kill, she rushed forward, aura expanding. With a subtle flick of her wrist, she released a ripple—an invisible psychic wave that cut through the space between her and the manticores attacking Shammah. The energy coiled into their minds, fracturing their resolve. Their ferocity dulled. Fear bloomed.
Josh turned again, his eyes scanning the horizon. He didn't hesitate.
"Lola," he called, his voice firmer now. "I need your strength."
She was already moving.
Lola had never left Josh's side. Not in battle, not in strategy. Not even in silence. Her loyalty was unwavering—but what tethered her most fiercely wasn't duty. It was love. A love that burned with every glance and echoed in every step she took beside him.
At his call, she surged forward. Her whip snapped like lightning, catching two manticores by their raised stingers mid-strike. With a twist of her wrist and a cry that shook the air, she yanked herself into the sky. Electricity flared around her.
Thunder cracked.
A bolt of raw, divine fury descended, striking the captured beasts and reducing them to ash and glowing flame.
She landed hard, breath ragged, and didn't pause. Without needing directions, she raced toward the scene—toward Shammah, where Josh Aratat was already moving.
Josh Aratat arrived like a bolt of judgment.
Without hesitation, he raised his rod high above his head. The manticore looming over Shammah had its stinger raised, poised to crush the wounded general's skull. Time felt like it slowed—Josh's heart thundered as he brought the rod down with precision.
Crack!
The rod connected with the third digit of the beast's tail. A resonant pulse of ethereal energy burst from the strike, enveloping the manticore in glowing threads of light before it erupted into flame and scattered into ash.
But Josh didn't pause.
Another manticore lunged. With a pivot and surge of strength, he struck again. The second attack landed with equal force and deadly accuracy. In less than a breath, the second monster met the same fate—consumed in fire, gone.
By then, Ralia Amia's mood manipulation had begun to take full effect.
The remaining manticores slowed—an unnatural sluggishness creeping into their movements. Their eyes flickered with uncertainty. Claws faltered. They hesitated.
Fear.
It made them easy prey.
Josh didn't need to say a word when Lola joined the fray. Her presence beside him was as natural as breath. Their synergy was flawless. Her whip sang through the air, lashing around a stinger. Thunder crashed behind her strike. Each coordinated attack with Josh cut down the beasts, one after another, until the last of the five lay in embers and silence.
Shammah slumped forward, panting. Though the immediate danger had passed, his skin was pale, and his veins darkened beneath the surface—evidence of the manticore venom spreading fast.
Josh's expression turned grim.
"David Stormborn," he whispered.
Instantly, the kingly system's avatar manifested within his mind—a man dressed in opulence, standing with the relaxed air of someone entirely detached from the chaos unfolding on the battlefield.
Josh ignored the man's casual demeanor. "I need a cure for manticore poison. Fast."
David's voice came calmly, almost amused. "There is no antidote within the kingly system. However… if you can bring me a manticore stinger, I can assist you in crafting one."
Josh's brow tightened. "We've discovered their weak point, thanks to your help—we cut the third digit of their stinger and they combust. How am I supposed to retrieve a stinger intact?"
Before the frustration could fully settle in, David raised a hand. "Simple. Cut the tail from its base—sever it from the back, not the stinger's tip. The manticore will die, yes, but it won't vanish. Once you have it, summon me again. I'll take it from there."
Then, without another word, David Stormborn vanished into Josh's subconscious.
Josh clenched his jaw.
The battle was far from over—and now, time was against them.