KiAera followed the two tree monsters, with Amber and Pi Osseod beside her. The five of them walked for nearly ten minutes before they came across a clearing filled with light-blue crystals jutting out from the ground. The crystals varied in size; some were as tall as KiAera, while others were only as big as her paw.
"Here ya go! This is where you can find the yummy crystals!" Saptal announced with a rumble as he dipped his branches towards the crystals.
Sapshorla turned to KiAera with a tilt of her branches. "Do you need help to gather them?"
"Yes, please. That would be great." KiAera replied with a smile. She then glanced towards Amber and Pi Osseod. "Would you two like to help too?"
Amber chirped in response and nodded. "Crystals!"
Pi Osseod blinked upon hearing the question. It then flicked its ears with a hop. "Osseods! Crystal Foods tasty! Yums!" It dashed towards the crystals without another word, headbutting a gigantic one with a resounding crack.
KiAera nodded at the responses before turning to Sapshorla and Saptal. She smiled as she spoke. "Thank you for your help!"
"It is no problem, KiAera! We are happy to assist you," Saptal replied with a rumble and dip of his branches.
Sapshorla hummed in agreement with a sway of her branches. "Yes, we would like to be of help if possible."
The group proceeded to gather the light-blue crystals scattered across the clearing. They gathered about fifty of them within ten minutes.
૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა
★🌱Items Obtained:
Light-Blue Crystals: 11 (+53) -★ 64
૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა
During the collection, KiAera had to chip down the largest ones to fit them into her satchel, which took about five minutes each. The crystals were all around one to two meters tall, so they were quite large.
Subsequently, another surprise made itself known as she discovered there was a limitation to how small she could breakdown the crystals; it appeared as though she could only reduce their size to an extent—about the size of her paw—before an arcane resistance was met, no matter what she did.
Nonetheless, she managed to split them into dozens, within the limitation.
As a result, her every single satchel she brought became full, so KiAera decided it was best to offer the remains to Saptal and Sapshorla, especially in thanks to their generosity.
૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა
★🌱Items Obtained:
Light-Blue Crystals: 64 (+48) -★ 112
૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა
Afterwards, KiAera turned towards the two tree monsters with a smile. She dipped her head towards them in respect. "Thank you for your help, Sapshorla, Saptal." She said, while Amber and Pi Osseod bowed their heads as well.
Saptal rumbled with a dip of his branches. "It was no problem! We are happy to have been of assistance."
"Yes, we hope this helps you!" Sapshorla replied with a sway of her branches.
KiAera nodded at their response before turning to Amber and Pi Osseod. She glanced towards the two tree monsters once more and smiled. "Well then, we'll be going now! Thank you again!" She said, waving goodbye.
Saptal rumbled with a nod of his trunk. He dipped his branches towards KiAera in farewell. "Take care, little ones!"
Sapshorla hummed with a tilt of her branches as she too waved goodbye.
"N𝐎T S𝐎 𝐅A𝐒T Y𝐎U B𝐀S𝐓A𝐑D𝐒!" a raspy, almost unintelligible voice, suddenly roared from behind them.
The group turned to see a large creature lumbered towards them with its mouth wide open, revealing rows of wooden, razor-sharp teeth. Its body was covered in bark, its eye glowed a malignant green like poison, and its claws were long and jagged. It was about the size of Saptal and Sapshorla, towering several stories above the ground.
໒꒰ྀིっ˕ -｡꒱ྀི১૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა૮꒰⸝⸝★ ̫ <⸝⸝꒱ა
★ Hostile Zeozon Detected!
Creature: Tropiruth
Species: Tropiruth
★ Sobriquet: "Terror Treant"
★ Evolution Stage: [Fledgling] (F)
★ Variant Grade: [Common]
★ Attribute Influence: [Plant] [Doom]
★ Destruction Scale: [Localized]
★ Alignment: [Predator] [Chaotic Evil]
Accumulated Particles (APeX): [4680 Units]
໒꒰ྀིっ˕ -｡꒱ྀི১૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა૮꒰⸝⸝★ ̫ <⸝⸝꒱ა
KiAera recognized it as one of the monsters she had fought in the past—the same species as the creature that almost devoured Amber—on her.
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
She narrowed her eyes at the sight of the creature and instinctively crouched down into a battle stance.
Saptal rumbled with concern upon seeing the Tropiruth. "What is it doing here? It's so far from its territory..." he muttered as he turned towards Sapshorla with a tilt of his branches. "Sapkin, do ya know why it's here?"
"Sapkin, I'm not sure," Sapshorla answered as she rustled with worry. She then turned to KiAera with a tilt of her branches. "Little ones! Please be careful! This is a dangerous monster!"
KiAera nodded in response and glanced towards Amber and Pi Osseod beside her. They too seemed to be wary of the Tropiruth before them.
"𝐒i𝐥e𝐧c𝐞 𝐲o𝐮 𝐩a𝐭h𝐞t𝐢c S𝐚p𝐤i𝐧s! 𝐖h𝐞r𝐞 𝐝i𝐝 𝐲o𝐮r𝐬e𝐥v𝐞s g𝐞t t𝐡e m𝐮c𝐡 𝐦a𝐠n𝐮m o𝐟 𝐚l𝐥 𝐨f𝐟i𝐜i𝐚l p𝐫i𝐯i𝐥e𝐠e𝐬 𝐭o e𝐧t𝐞r T𝐫o𝐩i𝐫u𝐭h's d𝐨m𝐚i𝐧?!" The Tropiruth roared with a stomp of its wooden foot.
Saptal rumbled with concern upon hearing the Tropiruth's words. "What is it talking about? We didn't enter your domain! We are just passing through!" He protested as he dipped his branches towards himself and Sapshorla in emphasis.
Sapshorla rustled with worry at Saptal's words. She turned towards KiAera with a tilt of her branches. "Little ones... You should run away from here! This is dangerous!"
"𝐑u𝐧 𝐚w𝐚y?! H𝐚h! 𝐓h𝐞 𝐥i𝐭t𝐥e m𝐞a𝐥s a𝐧d y𝐨u S𝐚p𝐤i𝐧s s𝐡a𝐥l b𝐞 𝐝e𝐯o𝐮r𝐞d! 𝐈t'𝐬 𝐚 𝐩𝐫𝐢v𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐠𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐜оn𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐝 b𝐲 T𝐫o𝐩i𝐑u𝐭𝐡!" The Tropiruth bellowed as it stomped its wooden foot once more. It then let out a roar as it lunged forward, mouth wide open to reveal its rows of razor-sharp teeth.
Sapshorla screamed as she stumbled back in terror. She turned towards Saptal with panic in her voice. "Sapkin! What do we do?!" She cried out.
"I'm not sure!" Saptal answered as he too stumbled back in fear.
KiAera narrowed her eyes at the Tropiruth's approach. Instinctively, she reacted quickly, dashing towards the Tropiruth's right side, with Amber and Pi Osseod in tow. She then leapt into the air, casting her [Ignite].
Her concentration went to her Merecritt ears, and she swiped her flaming ears to take a gash out of one its wooden legs, causing it to stumble forward with a loud crash.
૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა
[Elemental Advantage]
KiAera's [Fire] is advantageous against the [Plant] and [Doom] influenced [Tropiruth]!
૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა
The Tropiruth let out an angry roar as it turned towards KiAera with rage burning in its glowing green eye. "𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐠𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐥! 𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 s𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐭𝐨 d𝐢𝐞?!" It bellowed as it dashed toward KiAera with another roar.
Suddenly, Pi Osseod's projectiles pierced through the air only to harmlessly shatter against the Tropiruth's wooden hide.
૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა
[Insight]
Pi Osseod's power too low to inflict harm…
૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა
Amber, on the other hand, jumped onto the Tropiruth's head and began pecking at its eye with her beak.
"StoP iT!" The Tropiruth roared as it raised its claws, swatting at Amber with a mighty swing. KiAera dived in taking the brunt of the attack.
"LEELEE!" Amber cried out as she was knocked away, crashing into a nearby tree trunk with a resounding crack.
"AMBER!" KiAera shouted as she turned towards Amber in concern. She then glanced towards the Tropiruth, narrowing her eyes. "Damn you…"
"THerE 𝐢s n𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐩Er 𝐩l𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 s𝐭ú𝐛𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐚nds l𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮!"
KiAera snarled as she readied her stance. "I'm not going to let you hurt anyone else, you bastard," she hissed before accelerating across the field.
"𝐎𝐡? 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭'𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬? 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐨 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭? 𝐈 𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐦𝐞!" the Tropiruth taunted; it swiped at KiAera with its clawed hand, only to be met by a fiery tail that incinerated one of its wooden arms.
"That sounds great! I'm up for it!" KiAera replied excitedly. She leapt into the air and began to accelerate, darting around in a circle with her tail lashing outwards.
૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა
Skill cast!
[MereSwiftness]
[Fire Twister]
[Spectral Flame]
૮꒰˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶꒱ა
The flames surrounding her fur grew hotter, igniting the area and engulfing the Tropiruth's entire body in a pillar of fire.
The Tropiruth let out an anguished scream as it stumbled backwards, its wooden body on fire. "Y𝐨𝐮 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐁𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡! 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮?!" It roared in pain as it flailed wildly.
KiAera growled, leaping into the air once more with her claws bared. "I'm your worst nightmare!" She snarled as she struck the Tropiruth with both claws simultaneously in quick succession, gouging large chunks out of its wooden body.
★ [Claw Swipe] - Beast - TECH: 18 -> TECH: 19
The Tropiruth roared as it twisted towards KiAera and swiped its claws at her. It missed by inches, but the force of the blow sent her flying through the air. She landed on her back with a thud, rolling for several feet before coming to a stop.
"KiAera!" Amber cried out in alarm upon seeing KiAera's fall.
KiAera's back stung with the wrath of a thousand wasp stings, and she felt blood dripping down from her forehead. "S-stay back, Amber!"
KiAera staggered to her feet with a groan, blinking the particles out of her eyes. She looked up to see the Tropiruth looming over her, its green eye glowing with hatred. "H𝐚h𝐚h𝐚! I𝐭 𝐬e𝐞m𝐬 𝐲o𝐮 𝐡a𝐯e u𝐧d𝐞r𝐞s𝐭i𝐦a𝐭e𝐝 𝐦e, 𝐦i𝐧i m𝐞a𝐥! Y𝐨u'r𝐞 𝐟i𝐧i𝐬h𝐞d n𝐨w," it hissed as it raised a clawed hand.
KiAera panted heavily as she stared up at the Tropiruth. "I won't die here," she glared, lowering herself in a crouch. She winced, feeling pain blossoming from a leg.
"W𝐞ll, 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 a 𝐧𝐨 t𝐨 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 d𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡," the Tropiruth growled as it brought down its clawed hand.
KiAera braced herself for the impact, gritting her teeth as she waited for the inevitable pain that would come with it. But instead of feeling sharp claws tearing through her flesh, she heard a loud crash slamming into the Tropiruth and sent it flying backwards with a roar of pain.
The Tropiruth crashed with a thud, letting out a pained groan as it struggled to get back up.
KiAera blinked in surprise and looked up to see Saptal standing before her, his branches outstretched protectively.
"Saptal?" KiAera breathed as she stared at him in shock. "Why did you... I could have handled it."
"You're injured. Let me help you," Saptal insisted. He turned towards the Tropiruth, his branches shifting into an offensive stance.
"𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐝𝐢𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐨!" The Tropiruth roared as it lunged towards Saptal, only to be met with a barrage of large, crystalline chunks.
"Right back at you, creep!" Sapshorla yelled as she hurled another volley of projectiles from the forest floor.
The Tropiruth stumbled backwards from the attack with a cry of pain. It turned towards KiAera and Saptal, snarling in rage. "𝐘𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧 f𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐭 𝐧ów!" It hissed as it raised its claws. With a grip of a crystalline boulder, it hurled it at Sapshorla.
KiAera watched in horror as Sapshorla was smashed by a giant crystal projectile.
Sapshorla cried out as the crystalline boulder shattered into hundreds of pieces, the shards cutting into her bark. She fell to her face with a pained groan, holding her side in pain.
Saptal let out a low growl and charged towards the Tropiruth with his branches. "You harmed my Sapkin!"
Saptal's branches morphed into a shield before KiAera's eyes, just as the Tropiruth lunged at them. The wooden claws struck Saptal's shield, leaving deep gashes in the bark.
The Tropiruth roared in anger as it continued to lash at the shield. "𝐈 𝐰𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐛𝐞 s𝐮b𝐝u𝐞d 𝐛𝐲 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬!" It howled as it continued to scratch furiously at Saptal's shield.
"No! Stay back!" Saptal yelled, his shield beginning to splinter and break from the strain of the Tropiruth's blows.
"Sapkin... please..." Sapshorla pleaded, tears streaming down her face.
"I'll protect you, Sapkin," Saptal responded, gritting his teeth in concentration. He pushed the Tropiruth back, giving himself enough time to mend his shield.
KiAera took that moment to unsheathe her crystal spear. She swiped its diamond point through the fire of her tail tip, igniting it.
★ [Ignite] - Fire - TECH: 1 -> TECH: 2
"COME AT ME YOU COWARDLY CROOK! Saptal! Cover me!" KiAera bellowed, holding her spear before her as she charged towards the Tropiruth with flames kindling her fur.