Cassian’s fist sank into the monster’s gut with a sickening crunch. The lava-stone gauntlets covering his hands glowed a furious red, molten cracks racing across the surface like veins of fire. The creature folded forward, its mouth opening to release a strangled shriek, then Cassian’s knuckles flared. A fireball erupted point-blank, swallowing the monster’s body in flames and catching the two unfortunate monsters standing behind it. Their twisted forms writhed for only a second before collapsing into ash. Cassian threw his head back and laughed, eyes wide, a manic grin twisting across his face. "Ha! That’s more like it!" From behind him, an arrow streaked past, the shaft glowing with swirling green wind mana. It struck another monster square in the head, detonating with a sharp burst of air that splintered its skull like glass. "Don’t waste your mana, you maniac." Lyra muttered, lowering her long bow. Her half elven ears twitched as she glared at Cassian, her nose wrinkling in open disgust. Cassian barked out a laugh. "What? That was efficient!" "Efficient would be killing them without looking like a lunatic." Lyra rolled her eyes and glanced at the quiet figure beside her. "Right, Sylvie?" The blue-haired girl didn’t answer. She stood motionless, her bow lowered, her expression flat. The shy, stuttering Sylvie they knew was nowhere to be seen. Her battle mode had taken over again. The second self she slipped into when fighting began. Cold. Composed and silent. Cassian exhaled sharply, snapping his fingers in front of her face. "Right, I forgot. She’s switched." Sylvie ignored him, pulling a mana potion from her storage ring. She uncorked it in one smooth motion, tilting it back and drinking without a word. The blue liquid glowed faintly as it slid down her throat, and she wiped her lips before speaking, her voice calm and clipped. "We should head back to the training room. There’s no point wandering anymore. If students are alive, they’re hiding. If they’re not..." Her voice carried no emotion, no softness. "...then they’re already dead. We should regroup. Rest and decide our next step." Her tone cut through the smoke-filled air. Cassian snorted, running a hand through his sweat-dampened red hair. "Damn, she’s cold when she talks ." Lyra’s mouth quirked slightly, but she only nodded. "She’s right. Reo and Serena’s team were heading that way too. We might as well join them." Sylvie gave a sharp nod. But before they could move, Lyra froze. Her pointed ears twitched, the subtle shift of someone catching a distant sound. She narrowed her gaze, pouring mana into her eyes. Cassian glanced at her. Her gaze fixed on a distant point. The haze of smoke parted just enough for her sight to pierce through. Three figures were running hard in their direction. As the shapes closed the distance, their faces became clear. Eleanora, Kyle, Cedric. Cassian broke into a grin and waved, completely oblivious to the tension painted on their expressions. "Oh, it’s those three! HEY! KYLE! CEDRIC! PRINCESS!" His voice echoed across the ruined courtyard. But the three didn’t respond. Sylvie’s eyes narrowed. And she was right. Even from here, their faces looked pale, drained. Their movements weren’t just fast, they were frantic. The trio sprinted past without a word, dust kicking up in their wake. "Hey! What the hell?" Cassian yelled, twisting his head after them. "Eleanora?" Lyra called after them. Then the ground shook. At first, just a faint tremor. A vibration under their boots. Then stronger. Stone cracked. Dust fell from the ruined walls. The earth itself began to groan. Sylvie’s and Lyra’s eyes widened in unison. Without a word, they bolted after Kyle’s group. "Wait... what the hell is going on with you two?" Cassian barked, still planted where he stood. But then the tremors grew violent, rattling his bones. He whipped his head back... From the cloud of dust, a massive shadow rose. The air screamed with pressure. A towering mammoth, eight meters tall, its body draped in black-and-white fur. Steel tusks gleamed like scythes. A cyclone roared around its frame, not wild but controlled, spinning tight like armor. It thundered forward, shaking the earth with each step. It raised its trunk, and launched a compressed blade of wind straight at him. Cassian’s body moved on instinct. He threw himself to the side, rolling as the blast carved through the ground where he had just stood. The stone split open, leaving a jagged trench meters deep. His heart slammed against his ribs. He didn’t waste another second. He ran, boots pounding the fractured ground as he caught up to Lyra and Sylvie, the mammoth’s roar shaking the air behind them. "What the hell is that thing?!" Cassian yelled, his voice panicked. Kyle shot back, his voice clipped as he kept his stride. "Ask Cedric. He was the one who caught its attention." Immediately, all eyes swung toward Cedric. "You attracted its attention?" Cassian, Sylvie, and Lyra demanded in unison. Cedric nearly tripped over his own feet. "W-what?! How could you just blame me like that?!" Kyle’s voice cut cold. "You didn’t tell me it had regeneration." Cedric flinched, his face twisting. "It wasn’t supposed to matter! And you were the one who pissed it off with that lightning strike!" "Wait. Regeneration?!" Kyle’s silence was answer enough. "Oh, fuck me sideways" Lyra muttered, her knuckles whitening around her bow. Eleanora glanced back, her crimson eyes narrowing as she caught the mammoth barreling after them. The cyclone around the beast seemed even stronger now, sucking rubble into its vortex as it charged with terrifying momentum. His jaw tightened. Then, suddenly, he spoke. "I think... I have a plan to defeat it." Lyra glanced at him, her bow still in hand. "You sure it’ll work?" Kyle didn’t answer right away. His eyes flickered toward the ground, then away again. "...I don’t know. It might not work at all. But what choice do we have?" Lyra exhaled hard through her nose. One by one, the others nodded. Whatever doubts they had, they buried them. In the end, all of them trusted Kyle enough to follow. The plan was simple, but dangerous. Cedric and Cassian broke away first, splitting in opposite directions to draw the mammoth’s eyes. Its massive head swiveled, nostrils flaring. But when Kyle unleashed a burst of lightning across its flank, the beast roared and focused on him instead. Kyle shouted, sparks dancing across his arms. Lyra and Sylvie veered wide, disappearing into cover. Eleanora melted into shadow, her form vanishing into the ruined terrain as she sprinted toward the opposite ridge. For a moment, the mammoth lumbered after her, but Kyle’s next barrage of lightning bolts snapped its rage back toward him. The air screamed as blades of wind cut the ground apart around him. Official source is novel·fire·net Kyle’s body flickered with crackling bursts of speed, dodging each strike by inches. The chase dragged on for fifteen long minutes, every second stretching like an eternity. Dust and rubble churned in the beast’s wake as Kyle led it through a twisting route, his chest burning, legs screaming. But he held on. Then above them, a flare of golden light suddenly exploded in the sky. Kyle gritted his teeth and took a sharp turn, funneling the monster straight toward the academy’s artificial canyon, the training field carved with sheer walls of stone. Up ahead, Sylvie stood waiting at the canyon’s mouth, her staff trembling in her hands. Her face was pale, drenched in sweat, but her eyes burned with focus. Mana surged around her like an ocean. Kyle stumbled to her side, gasping from all the running. The mammoth slowed, sensing the pressure. The cyclone around its body shifted, concentrating in front of it, shaping into a massive shield of compressed wind. Sylvie raised her staff, and unleashed everything she had. A colossal water drill erupted forward, spiraling with crushing force. The ground quaked under its pressure as it slammed into the mammoth’s barrier. The canyon howled with the clash. For a heartbeat, the shield held. Wind screamed, water shrieked, and the air twisted violently between them. Then the drill punched through, piercing fur, ripping flesh. A deep wound gaped across the monster’s chest. But even as blood poured, the flesh began knitting itself back together. Kyle’s eyes narrowed. ’Just as we thought. It’s regenerating.’ The water spell hadn’t been the killing blow. It was a distraction. Because beneath the mammoth’s feet, faint runes lit up, glowing brighter and brighter until the earth groaned. Cassian had drawn them into the stone. His earth affinity had weakened the ground, loosening it piece by piece. Now the weight of the beast triggered the collapse. The canyon floor gave way. With a thunderous crash, the mammoth plunged into a massive crater, eight meters deep. The ground shattered under its bulk, dust billowing like smoke. For a moment, the cyclone flickered, faltered. Its focus was broken. But even then, it wasn’t enough. Kyle’s chest heaved, his eyes fixed on the pit below. He and Eleanora had already guessed as much. The information about the Fractal Veil was scarce, but one thing seemed certain... Defeating the strongest monster here might be their only way out. And judging by the sheer power radiating from the mammoth, there was no doubt. This was it. The strongest monster here.