“This… This is definitely not good…” Triggs’ reaction to their dire situation.

GRAAAAA!!!

Before Triggs could even react, a Sigbin sneaked behind him and pinned him to the floor.

“ACK!!!”

Before he knew it, multiple Sigbins had mobbed him, taking turns attacking his body like a swarm of flies.

“Calla!!!” he called for help.

Quickly, Calla chanted her Words, “AQUA VERBERARE!”

Ball-sized water spheres were pulled from the sea and launched like cannonballs at the Sigbins attacking Triggs.

ZOOM! ZO-ZO-ZOOM! ZOOM!!!!

BRACK! BA-BA-BRACK! BRACK!!!!

The attack cleared the area, flushing the monsters away and setting the man free.

Hurriedly, Lae went to heal Triggs’ wounds. “ACCELERATIO VITAE!!..... Are you alright, Triggs?”

“Yes, I’m fine,” Triggs replied, recovering to his feet.

After nodding in confirmation, Lae created her signature vine whip using her Words, ready to engage in the battle.

Meanwhile, a few feet away from them, Otto and Monty were already busy fighting off the Sigbins.

Already clad in full crystal armor, Otto braced himself in a defensive stance. "We are outnumbered!" he grunted, fending off the Sigbins attempting to pounce on him.

“Oh, you don’t say,” Monty replied sarcastically. Then, hoping for a quick solution to their dire situation, he called out to his Giya, "Naash, are you there?!"

Monty gave a nod, signaling that he had noticed his Giya's presence.

“Now is a good time to be useful. Let’s annihilate these ants!!!” he said to Naash.

After that, a frown appeared on his face as if he heard an undesired reply from Naash.

“The fuck!? When is the ‘right time’ for you, seriously!?” Monty whined like a child. “Fuck it! I have to do this without your help — AGAIN!!” he exclaimed, emphasizing the word ‘again’.

And just like that, Monty went into battle without Naash’s help, relying only on his trusty sling.

Returning to Triggs; he noticed similarities to the situation at the lake in Mt. Iriga. He thought of a strategy that might shift the battle in their favor.

He looked at the sea and whispered, "Come on, make this work." Aiming his right hand at the water, he chanted with desperation, "AQUA PRIMAFORMA!" At the same time, he waved his hand as if trying to pull the water out of the ocean.

…

Nothing happened.

He repeated, now, with a forceful groan.

"AQUA PRIMAFORMA! HNGG!!!"

…

As expected, nothing happened.

“Ugh! How does this work, really!?” he uttered with frustration.

Suddenly, Triggs saw Calla drop to her knees, clasping her hands together, facing the sky, and closing her eyes.

Surprised, Triggs asked, “Uhm… What are you doing, Calla?”

However, the lady did not answer. She just continued what she was doing, murmuring inaudible words solemnly.

By then, Triggs realized that Calla was praying. Still, he was clueless about what specific move she was trying to achieve. Regardless, Triggs focused on protecting Calla from the Sigbins trying to disrupt her.

Already struggling to hold off the onslaught of Sigbins, Otto shouted from a distance, “We can’t hold this anymore! Should we retreat, Lae!?”

Unbeknownst to them, Lae was already grappling with an internal dilemma. She could clearly see they were in a losing situation, but retreating would only cause further delays. The pressure of the Ultimatum weighed heavily on her, leaving her feeling trapped and uncertain.

WOOSH-WISH!!!... rumm……

“Do you hear that!?” Monty heard a strange rumbling noise coming from the sea.

Closest to the waters, Triggs noticed the small, violent waves from the sea. The sea breeze intensified as the water seemed to be draining away, as if being pulled into something in the distance.

“Is that!?”

Rummm…

Looking at the ocean, Triggs saw the horizon begin to rise, with the water forming into a shadowy mountain. As the lightning in the cloudy sky grew more intense, a growing roar slowly engulfed the island’s silence as a gigantic wave surged forward.

“Uhm, Calla… I think a tsunami is too much…” Triggs murmured. Worry could be felt in his shaking voice.

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“Triggs! Make her stop!!!” Monty shouted.

But before Triggs could intervene, Calla chanted the final Words of her ritual: “VORANS AQUA!” She then collapsed to the ground, utterly depleted of energy.

The scene unfolded in slow motion for Triggs. The uncanny effect lingered as he observed the mischievous smirk of fulfilment on Calla’s face just before she collapsed. “And now, we’re fucked,” he uttered.

Rrrummmm…

The monstrous wave continued growing, fastly arriving on the island.

“Lae, we need to make a decision now!!!” Otto urged

“GAAAHHH!!” With her absent-mindedness, Lae was helplessly mobbed by the Sigbins.

Otto immediately noticed his ally’s situation. “Monty, go create a Portal! I’m going to save Lae.

“Huh!? I don’t even know how to…”

“GRAAA!!!!” Like a mindless raging bull, he charged at Lae’s location.

“That idiot! He even forgot that I don’t know how to make a Portal!!!” Monty blabbered, watching Otto charge across the battlefield.

“GRAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!”

BRAGABAM!!! SWOOSH-SLASH-SLASH!!!

Using his bulky body, Otto slammed the cluster of creatures swarming Lae. Forcefully, he swiped his muscular arms, throwing away the monsters before finishing them with powerful sword strikes.

Clearing up the monsters, the beefy man hurried to aid his injured ally. “You good, Lae?” he asked after seeing the wounds and scratches Lae had received.

Still in turmoil, the lady couldn’t even spout a word; she just replied with a shaky nod. Wasting no time, Lae used her Words to heal her own body.

RRRUUUMMMM……

Seeing the tsunami getting closer, Otto urged the lady again, “Lae! We really need to get out of here! Let’s just return with a new plan.”

“No, Kuya Otto, we can’t… We don’t have time left…”

“But…”

But then, Lae shot Otto a convincing stare. Her teary eyes glistened with desperation, and her expression conveyed the stark reality of their choicelessness.

Otto felt the deep anguish on Lae's face. With a grimace, he bowed his head and, reluctantly persuaded, he muttered, "Tsk, fine! Fine!!"

After a quick glance at Calla and Triggs' position, Otto nodded at Lae, silently signaling, "Let's move there!"

With a quick wit, Lae understood the message. She affirmed with a nod.

Together, they sprinted through the chaos, shoving and slashing away every creature that got in their way.

“Monty! Get in here!!!” Otto yelled, urging Monty to follow them.

“Huh!? We’re huddling now?” Monty blabbered, but he followed the command anyway.

RRRRUUUUMMMM……

The gigantic wave reached its peak, looming ominously above the bay, just moments away from crashing down.

As the team regrouped, Otto commanded, “Stay close! I’m going to build a crystal dome.”

Following his orders, Triggs, Lae, and Monty huddled tightly around Calla’s unconscious body, preparing for the impending impact.

Otto closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths, stretching to release the tension in his muscles. He concentrated on the magic he was about to cast. But just before he could utter his Words, Triggs noticed something.

Hey! Zaine is still there!!!” he yelled, pointing his finger at Zaine’s location.

“What is he doing!?” Otto muttered.

“That fucking idiot! Who the heck does he think he is!? The main character!?” Monty blabbered.

Zaine, looking like a lost child, was stumbling blindly through the chaotic battlefield.

Observing Zaine’s erratic movements, Lae immediately realized what was happening, “No, I think the effect of the Words already wore off for Zaine.”

RRRRRUUUUUMMMMM……

To save Zaine, Triggs devised a quick plan. “Lae, quick! Throw your lasso at Zaine!”

After nodding, Lae planted her feet and whirled her vine overhead, building momentum for the throw. As she completed a few rotations, she locked her gaze on Zaine, ensuring she wouldn’t miss. With a determined grunt, she shouted, “KAAAAAH!!!!” and hurled the other end of the lasso.

WOOOM!!!!

“Zaine! Heads up!”

SPLANK!!!

Fortunately, the vine landed directly on Zaine, causing him to stumble slightly from the impact. However, the force of the drop made him notice the vine immediately.

“Thread the line, Zaine!!!” Lae urged.

RRRRRUUUUUMMMMMsshh……

Acting quickly, Zaine grabbed the vine, using it as a guide to navigate his way to the team’s location.

GWARAAGAAAHHH!!!!

But before Zaine could move, a monster grabbed his foot, causing him to fall to the ground once more. Seconds later, more Sigbins flocked to him.

“Shit!” Triggs muttered.

Resisting, Zaine wrapped the vine around his arm while struggling to fend off the creatures with his feet.

RRRRRUUUUUMMMMMssshhh!!!……

“Zaine! Hold on tightly!” Lae shouted as she started pulling the vine.

GRAGWAGAH!! GAHRAGAGWAH!!!!

More Sigbins appeared to pull away Zaine; the scene almost looked like a tug-of-war.

RRRUUUMMMSSSSSHHHHHH!!!!!!……

“KAAAAHHH!!! Guys help please!” exclaimed.

Otto, Triggs, and Monty sprung to help Lae pull the vine.

RUMSSSSHHHHHHKRRRR!!!!!!……

The tsunami was seconds away from crashing.

“PULL HARDER GUYS!!!!!”

SSSSSSHHHHHHKRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!……

“GRAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!”

SSSHHHKRRR-BRAGAKAAAAASSHHH!!!!!!

…

…

…

Clop-clop! Clop-clop! Clop-Clop! CLOP-CLOP!!!!....

A metallic rhythm echoed through the dark hall as hooves clattered against the marble floor.

“Ne-ee-eeigh!!!!”

A peculiar creature, with the head and hooves of a horse and the muscular body of a human, galloped through the narrow passage.

Click-clack… Click-clack… Click-clack…

The metal gates of the cells lining the hall's sidewalls rattled as a breeze blew past, stirred by the creature's swift movement. A closer look would reveal that these cells were meant to contain creatures and monsters, indicated by the food trays and training equipment scattered around. Yet, at that moment, every cell stood empty.

“Gante! Gante! We have a problem!!” the horse-like creature yelled.

At the end of the hall, another towering figure stood motionless—a gigantic humanoid nearly 10 feet tall. Wearing only a leather loincloth around his groin, the being's dark skin was shrouded in thick, gray hair. A cloud of smoke hung around him, emanating from the huge cigar he was puffing. The giant was standing guard in front of a rusty metal door, which likely led to the main function hall of the establishment.

“Gante! Gante! We have a problem - neigh!!” the horse creature repeated.

“My goodness, this Tikbalang* couldn’t even speak without yelling,” the giant mumbled, releasing a thick cloud of smoke. His voice was so deep that even his faint murmur reverberated through the hall.

Arriving, the horse creature scolded the giant, “Heeey! Why are you smoking here—neigh!? You should hang out on a tree outside or something. If Our Lord sees you doing that here, he will surely be enraged—neigh!”

“Are you an idiot? You’re the one who requested a station change. I’m the Kapre* here, so I should be the one patrolling the forest and you’re the one that should be guarding this place,” the giant argued.

“Oooh!!! I forgot! Ne-ee-eeigh!!!!”

“Stupid horse,” the giant mumbled. “By the way, why are you even here, Bayo? And what’s with all the commotion?”

“Gante!!! Intruders! There are intruders on the island—neigh!”

“Then let the rodents (Sigbins) handle it,” the giant replied nonchalantly, puffing another smoke.

“That’s the problem, Gante!!! The Sigbins were wiped out by a tsunami!!!”

“HAAAAA!!!??” the giant exclaimed with an exaggerated shocked expression. “Then we should report this to Our Lord!!!”

“That’s why I’m here — neigh!!!”

“Okay-okay!!!”

Hurriedly and frantically, the giant tossed his cigar to the floor, extinguishing it with his massive foot. He then swung open the metallic door behind him, revealing a vast, shadowy chamber beyond.

A cold mist escaped as the chilling air inside the chamber quickly condensed with the warmer air outside. The chamber was enveloped in darkness, but a quick glance revealed it to be as spacious as an indoor sports arena.

“My Lord!! My Lord!!!” the horse creature shouted across the chamber.

In an instant, an angered voice of an unknown being inside the chamber replied, “What is it!? How many times should I tell you to knock first before entering!? You’re disturbing me!!!”

“I’m sorry — neigh. But, My Lord… hmpp…”

Before the horse could finish his sentence, the giant suddenly silenced him by gripping his long mouth.

“My Lord! I spotted intruders on our island!!!!” the giant claimed.

The horse was shocked and infuriated by the giant’s audacity.

CLAP!!!

With a powerful stomp, the horse struck the giant's foot with his hooves, forcing him to release his grip.

“GAAHH!!!” the giant writhed in pain.

“No, My Lord! I’m the one who spotted them — neigh!!!”

“SILENCE!!!” the unknown being yelled, his voice filling the room. “I don’t care who found it! Who are these intruders!? What do they want this time!?”

“I don’t know, My Lord. But they killed all the Sigbins with a tsunami — neigh!!!”

“WHAT!?”

A short silence happened, as the being’s frustration lingered in the room.

“Uhm, should we do something, My Lord?”

“Should we eradicate them — neigh!?”

“No!!! You two are my most reliable servants. You need to stay here.”

Hearing the compliment, the giant and the horse blushed.

“Oh, you didn’t have to say that, My Lord…” the giant murmured while fidgeting his fingers

“Thanks, My Lord – ne-ee-eeigh!!!!

“Just send out the Dogs. Let them handle it.”

“Yes, My Lord!” the giant and horse replied in sync.