My Tribrid System: More than a Monster

Chapter 76

While the battle between the Aberrant and Bruce raged on in a whirlwind of dust and blood, Kai had already caught up with Trisha.

She was moving with singular focus, her eyes scanning the ruins for any sign of the boss-class beast.

”What do you want?” she asked, her voice cold and level, not even bothering to turn her head.

”To help,” Kai answered simply.

”I don’t need help.”

”You surely do. You are currently dangerously low on Meta-Force. If you come across the boss now, you won’t be able to handle it alone.

I promised Instructor Sony that I would get everyone back safely, and that includes you,” Kai replied firmly, matching her stride until they were walking side by side.

”... Still, I don’t need your assistance.”

”Why do you have to be so stubborn?”

Trisha remained silent for a few seconds, her gaze fixed firmly on the path ahead.

Finally, she gave a microscopic shrug.

”Fine. Do whatever you want.”

Kai nodded, keeping his hands in his pockets.

He occasionally winced in mild pain from his lingering injuries, but he refused to slow down.

”By the way, do you actually know where the boss is located?” he asked, watching as Trisha led them toward a cluster of half-crumbled, ancient buildings.

”I have an idea.”

”And why exactly are we heading into the ruins?”

Trisha didn’t offer a reply, choosing instead to maintain a heavy silence.

Her eyes darted around the environment cautiously, but her mind was elsewhere, dwelling on the revelation back at the clearing.

’That monster... is it really that kid? How is such a transformation possible? Is he going to become a future threat to humanity?’ she mused, her hands squeezing into tight fists.

’Because if he is, I swear on my family name, I will eliminate him before he even realizes what is ha—’

”I spot movement,” Kai’s voice cut through her thoughts, pulling her back to the present.

He stopped abruptly in the center of three skeletal buildings.

He scanned the shadows of the structures for a few tense moments when—

”Look out,” Trisha warned.

Her voice was eerily calm, devoid of any hint of fear or urgency.

Spinning around sharply, Kai was met face-to-face with a pair of jagged claws streaking toward his head.

With a flash of desperation and quick reflexes, he forced the last of his energy to his skin.

His face instantly hardened, coated in shimmering, purple crystalline diamonds.

Clang—!

The claws struck the amethyst-like surface with a resounding ring, nicking off tiny, sparkling shards.

The sheer force of the blow sent Kai skidding backward across the gravel.

It didn’t take more than a few seconds before the crystalline armor on his face shattered and fell away.

He was running on fumes; maintaining even a partial transformation for more than a second was an agonizing struggle.

Standing before the duo was a creature similar to the goat-like beasts they had faced earlier, but this one was taller, bulkier, and far more ferocious.

Its claws were unnaturally long, curved like twin scythes, and its crimson eyes glared at the humans as if it had finally spotted the perfect snacks to devour.

”Don’t slow me down,” Trisha uttered coldly.

Without waiting for the beast to make the next move, she charged.

Thud, Thud—!

Her heavy footsteps echoed against the stone.

Frost began to shimmer and swirl around her palms, and within seconds, twin daggers of solid ice materialized in her grip.

She blurred, appearing before the beast in a flurry of cold air.

The creature’s claws lashed through the air toward her neck at a blazing velocity.

With calculated agility, she raised one of her daggers, blocking the strike with all her might.

The impact was so great that the sharp claw chipped the frozen blade badly.

Simultaneously, a second slash aimed for her abdomen came whistling from below.

Trisha leaped back with every ounce of strength she had left, narrowly dodging the claw that tore through the empty air with enough force to nearly split the wind in two.

The moment her feet touched the ground, she didn’t waste a heartbeat.

She hurled the remaining dagger in her hand, sending the frozen projectile whistling toward the beast at maximum speed.

Clang—!

The beast swung its massive claw with predatory precision, batting the ice dagger off course before it could find its mark.

But unknown to the monster, the throw was merely a calculated feint.

Trisha had already closed the distance, her form blurring as she appeared before the creature before it could even register the shift in the wind.

She brought her remaining blade down in a savage overhead slash, but the beast was not an Advanced-rank for nothing.

With a guttural snarl, it crossed its scythe-like claws above its head, catching the strike in a shower of frozen sparks.

Trish gritted her teeth, her eyes blazing with an intense, frigid light.

She poured every remaining drop of her Meta-Force into the press, yet she was unable to bypass the iron-clad defense of the monster’s guard.

The Goatee beast expeditiously arced its powerful, hooved foot forward, buried it deep into the girl’s abdomen with tremendous, bone-shaking force.

Saliva shot from her mouth as the air was forcefully driven from her lungs, her body instantly blasted backward like a ragdoll.

The beast bolted after her without a single moment of hesitation.

Its speed was terrifying—far too fast for most to track—as it appeared above the hurtling Trisha as if it had been standing there all along. It raised a claw high, poised to cleave the girl in two while she was still mid-air.

With her teeth clenched in a death grip, a fresh ice dagger materialized in Trisha’s hand.

She swung it downward with all her might, piercing the hard earth to anchor herself.

The friction grinded her body to a painful, jarring halt, but she didn’t stop there.

Holding her breath against the agony in her ribs, she kicked off the ground, throwing her body to the side just as the beast’s claw ripped through the spot where she had been a microsecond before.

Dust and debris kicked up into the air in a violent spray while Trish’s body rolled across the jagged stone.

With eyes as cold as the Siberian wastes, she sprang up instantaneously and clapped her hands together.

Swooosh—!

Half a dozen jagged ice shards burst from her fingertips, whistling through the air to strike the beast squarely on its back.

They dug deep into the thick, matted fur, but the creature’s hide was too tough; the ice shattered against its skin without drawing a single drop of blood.

A pair of furious red eyes pierced through the veil of settling dust, glaring at Trisha with murderous intent.

Its hooves dug into the ground, cracking the pavement as its massive thighs tensed, ready to explode forward.

The monster didn’t wait. It blasted forward in a blur of brown fur and silver steel.

Claws tore through the air, and within a literal second, it was on top of Trisha once more.

It was moving too fast for even her sharpened senses to react to as the beast lifted its limb, ready to deliver a finishing blow.

But before it could even think of executing the strike—

Bang—!

The sudden, thunderous sound drew the beast’s attention, causing it to instinctively turn its head.

Bam—!

A thick, purple crystalline column smashed into its face with the staggering force of a heavy baseball bat.

The impact sent the Goatee’s head snapping to the side, blood spraying from its snout as it staggered under the weight of the blow.

”Damn it, Trisha! Stop running off alone!” Kai’s annoyed voice echoed through the ruins as he stepped into view, his hands glowing with the faint, flickering light of his remaining energy.