The Karken's wounds had already healed.
Erik, Elsa, Eri, Old Man Val, and Aron stood facing it. The sorcerer was barely standing—his body trembling, too drained to fight any longer.
"Do you know where the other heart is?" Val asked Erik.
"No. And without that, killing it won't be easy!" Erik shouted, charging forward.
Val followed close behind. As he did, he noticed Aron speaking quietly to Eri and Elsa. But he had no time to dwell on it—his focus snapped back to the Karken.
The monster charged at Val. He swung his hammer, and though it connected, the sheer force of the impact sent both his hammer and the Karken's arm recoiling in opposite directions.
Erik lunged into the air, aiming for the Karken's head. If he couldn't find the second heart, the next best target was the brain. Even if it didn't kill it, damaging the brain would cost the Karken a lot of mana to heal—and in the process, Erik might locate the heart.
The Karken lashed out with one of its massive fangs. Erik blocked it, then cut off the other fang with his dagger. Holding tight to the fang he blocked, he wedged the dagger in and clung to it as the Karken thrashed.
Finally, the fang snapped backward—dragging Erik with it toward the creature's face. He let go at the last second and drove his sword down between its eyes.
Clang!
The blade met resistance—it barely scratched the surface.
"What the fuck… how is it so strong?"
The Karken punched him midair. Erik went flying, slamming into the dirt and tumbling to a stop near Elsa.
"I've seen you in better condition," Elsa said with a faint smile, helping him up.
Erik winced and looked ahead. Aron was kneeling, his sword planted in the ground. His body was glowing—surrounded by golden particles.
"He's using his blessing?" Erik asked, shocked.
Elsa nodded. "He's linked with the sorcerer. It's taking time."
Linking was a rare technique—a sorcerer could channel their own mana, or atmospheric mana, into another person's mana pool. It was the only way to fuel high-level blessings.
A sudden shout.
"Hey! A little help here!" Eri's voice rang out. She was dodging blows, arrows nocked but not enough time to shoot.
"Alright. I'll help her and Val. Buy Aron time. You stay here—protect him if any of the small ones come," Erik said to Elsa before sprinting off.
"Okay," Elsa said, turning to guard Aron.
Erik joined Eri and Val. "I'm going all out now!" Eri shouted. She fired four arrows at once—exploding across the Karken's face.
"Take this, you bastard!" Val roared, slamming his hammer into the same spot Erik had aimed for earlier. The impact cracked the Karken's skull.
Val raised his hammer. Erik jumped, stepped off it midair, and was launched above the monster. With the crack exposed, he drove his sword into it, pressing down with everything he had.
The Karken howled—but not in rage. It sounded more like… sorrow.
"Shit."
Black figures scrambled toward them—eight or nine of the smaller Karkens. Elsa prepared to intercept, but they ignored her. Ignored Aron. Even passed by Val, evading his hammer.
They ran straight to the main Karken, and the monster's body began to melt.
It grabbed the smaller ones, shoving them into itself—into its chest, its limbs, its back. A grotesque sight.
Erik felt it—the Karken's mana. It was getting stronger. The mutation had stopped, but its power had increased.
The monster lowered its head and then shot it upward. Erik held tight to his sword, but it was ripped from the wound, sending him airborne.
WHAM!
A massive strike caught him midair. Erik crashed into the ground, rolled, and groaned. Pain exploded across his ribs, legs, back.
He stood, limping through the smoke and chaos.
"Just a little more time…" he whispered to himself, stepping past White Calvary soldiers toward the front lines.
Then he saw it—Eri on the ground. Val was clinging to the Karken's fang.
"Shit! Shit!"
His mana pool was already down to half.
"Well, it's now or never."
That's when he felt it.
A pulse of mana. Strong. Steady. Focused.
He turned.
That aura—
Elsa
She was radiating pure energy. Mana swirling around her like a storm.
No way… she's activating her core?