Lord Of Beasts

Something enormous moved beneath the water.

The surface split, and a gigantic head-like thing emerged.

Then another section of its body.

And another.

The creature kept rising, revealing more and more of its enormous form.

Its body was covered in enormous overlapping scales, dark and almost black beneath the blue light of the Tower. Long fins extended from its sides, and its body continued beneath the surface for what looked like an impossible distance.

The creature’s head alone was the size of a truck.

Two enormous green eyes opened.

They were cold and ancient, but unmistakably predatory.

A familiar system window floated above its head.

{Boss Beast Status}

{Race: Leviathan

Growth Stage: Prime

Beast Rank: A

Strength: 91

Speed: 53

Stamina: 64

MP: 86/86}

Ethan stared at the screen.

He didn’t speak.

His eyes moved across the numbers again before slowly shifting back toward the enormous creature.

”A Rank...”

His mouth went dry.

The Leviathan opened its mouth.

Rows of enormous teeth emerged from the darkness, each one looking large enough to impale Ethan’s entire body. Ethan slowly backed away, flames flickering around his body, and summoned all of his beasts.

”This is a fucking A Rank?”

Wolfy growled, Talon cawed overhead, and Storm crackled with electricity.

All of them were tense but ready, just like their master.

Ethan’s expression hardened.

He had fought B Rank beasts and had even killed B+ Rank creatures.

But this was different.

This wasn’t simply a stronger version of the same thing.

The difference between B and A was enormous.

Ethan had seen A Rank Titled in action and knew the kind of destruction they were capable of. Its presence alone was suffocating, especially with its unfathomable size, and he couldn’t compare it to the likes of the Golden Flutterer.

’This is like something out of an apocalypse movie.’

It looked like a giant water dragon of sorts.

The Leviathan suddenly moved.

”Shit!”

Ethan burst into the air as the ocean exploded.

A massive wave slammed outward, crushing every surrounding platform beneath the force. He stabilised himself mid-air, amazed by what he was seeing. His body was wrapped in blazing orange fire, the heat radiating from his skin as mana surged through his body.

The Leviathan had barely moved.

Yet the force of the water alone had been enough to form a miniature tsunami.

Ethan looked at his beasts.

”Everyone, spread out!”

Wolfy jumped into the water.

Talon climbed higher into the sky.

Storm flew to Ethan’s side, who was staring at the giant Leviathan.

He had no idea how he was going to kill this thing.

But one thing was certain.

He wasn’t going to find the answer just by looking at it.

”Let’s see what you’ve got.”

Ethan shot forward.

Flare Drive erupted from his body, propelling him across the surface of the water as flames streamed behind him. The Leviathan turned its enormous head to follow his movement, but Ethan was already twisting through the air, gathering mana into his arm.

He unleashed a Blazing Arc.

A massive crescent of condensed flame tore across the air and struck the Leviathan directly across the side of its head. The explosion illuminated the ocean, sending a burst of heat and fire across the creature’s enormous scales.

Ethan’s eyes narrowed.

”Did it work?”

The flames faded.

The Leviathan was unharmed.

It didn’t even bother it, let alone injure it.

”You’ve got to be kidding me.”

The Leviathan turned toward him, seemingly completely unaffected by the attack. Its enormous mouth opened, and a torrent of water erupted from within.

Ethan barely activated Flare Drive in time.

The attack passed beneath him and slammed into the ocean. It was like a liquid missile had been fired, and the impact was like a bomb had been detonated beneath the surface of the water.

Ethan stared at the destruction.

’If that hits me...’

The Leviathan wasn’t simply physically powerful.

Its elemental control was insane, allowing it to turn the entire ocean around them into a weapon. Every wave, current, and blast of water could become an attack, and Ethan was fighting in the one environment where his own fire-based abilities were at their weakest.

Storm and Wolfy had been trying to attack it simultaneously, but it was simply too durable. The only weaknesses it seemed to have were its size and its lack of mobility.

And Ethan planned on exploiting them.

’I guess we can try what we did to defeat that Abyssal Maelwyrm.’

He turned toward his beasts.

”Talon!”

The Skyrend Hawk immediately dove.

Wind gathered around its body as mana poured into its wings.

Wild Whirlwind activated.

Talon began circling the Leviathan at incredible speed, rapidly creating a vortex around the enormous beast. The surrounding water began to churn as the growing whirlwind pulled the surface into a violent spiral.

Ethan watched carefully.

The Leviathan’s movement slowed.

He saw an opportunity.

”Now!”

Wolfy attacked from below.

The Fenrir burst from the water and slammed its jaws into the Leviathan’s side. At the same time, Storm unleashed lightning, electricity spreading across the surface of the ocean as Ethan’s flames roared to life.

Ethan flew directly toward the Leviathan’s exposed head, using Variable Beast Impact in the form of a flaming fist.

”Everything at once!”

For a brief moment, all of their attacks connected.

Wind.

Lightning.

Fire.

Wolfy’s Crescent Fang.

The combined assault detonated around the Leviathan.

Water exploded into the sky as fire and lightning tore through the swirling ocean. Steam rapidly covered the battlefield, obscuring Ethan’s vision as the enormous explosion echoed across the floor.

Ethan grinned.

”Got you.”

Then something moved inside the steam.

Ethan’s smile vanished.

The Leviathan emerged from the cloud.

Its scales were completely intact, without so much as a scratch.

”Fuck...”

The beast swung its giant tail.

Ethan tried to dodge, but he wasn’t fast enough. The massive appendage slammed into his body and launched him through the air.

He smashed into the surface of the ocean.

Pain exploded through his chest.

Ethan forced himself upward, coughing blood as he broke through the water with his flickering flames.

”That fucking hurt.”

To cover for its master and give him time to recover, Wolfy attacked again.

The Leviathan’s head snapped toward him.

A blast of compressed water struck Wolfy head-on.

The Fenrir was thrown through the air.

”Wo-!”

Ethan immediately burst toward him.

Wolfy skipped across the water like a pebble before crashing onto a distant platform that shook beneath his enormous body. Ethan’s heart jumped as he saw the giant beast struggling to move.

”Wolfy!”

Ethan landed beside his beast.

Wolfy tried to stand, but its legs shook beneath it. Blood stained its fur, and its breathing was noticeably heavier than before.

All from a single attack.

Ethan’s expression darkened.

’Beast Mend.’

Warm light spread across Wolfy’s body.

The worst of its injuries began closing, and the blood slowly stopped flowing. Even with the healing, however, Ethan could still see how badly the attack had affected arguably the strongest of his beasts.

”This isn’t good.”