'Yay! I can finally leave!' Arianne communicated telepathically with Arlo.
'I am sorry!' Arlo apologized, a guilty look flashing on his face.
'If you mean it, then don't send me back into the seal.'
Arlo gave a wry smile but he didn't comment on it. After all, he also didn't have a choice in this matter.
He wasn't strong to the point where he could resist the whole world if they came after it.
Right now he wasn't even the strongest among his peers.
Clenching his hands, Arlo steeled his resolve once more; the last scene Old Bro showed him flashing in his mind.
'I don't want to be so helpless again.'
Remembering how his parents were attacked and he wasn't able to do a thing about it, Arlo whispered:
"Never again!"
He fixed his gaze on the immobile ape-like beast and spoke:
"Let's go, Anita!"
Anita who was bobbing happily on his head jumped off before a cloud of darkness surrounded her.
She moved towards the dark places in the forest and quickly disappeared.
Rosaline's eyes widened in surprise.
"Isn't that darkness laws?"
Looking at Arlo who kicked off the ground and moved toward the ape-like beast, she couldn't help but question under her breath:
"Who the hell are you?"
Arlo approached the ape beast and only stopped when he captured its attention.
The beast moved his head toward Arlo and looked at him cautiously.
It might be rendered powerless by the aura of the two beasts fighting high in the sky, but he didn't fear any other person present.
While the beast gazed at Arlo threateningly, it didn't notice the shadow behind it move a bit.
The cute voice of a little girl echoed amidst the constant sound of explosions coming from the clash up in the sky.
"Universal devouring!"
Anita suddenly expanded in size, and in an instant covered the entirety of the upper portion of the ape's body with only its head remaining.
Within death's grasp, the beast overcame the fear it felt from the two beasts in the sky and roared in anger.
"Roooa...." unfortunately the roar was cut short as Arlo who was just a meter in front of it flashed before it instantly and sent an orb into its opened mouth.
*Bang!*
Before the ape beast could even grunt in pain, Anita covered it completely, before returning to her normal size.
She remained still in her position as her body shone with a blue light.
Arlo knew it would take a little while for her to digest the ape's power.
Turning back, he ignored Rosaline's stunned expression and joined Arianne and Joe in watching the battle raging on in the sky.
The firebird had risen high into the sky, far from the reach of the massive trees.
But even with this unique advantage, it still couldn't get one over the black steel spider.
Using the utmost top of the massive trees as footholds, the massive spider covered the entire region of their battle in its web.
Every time, the firebird launched a fireball, it would also release a net of webs to cover it and contain the explosion.
Seeing the two formidable beasts battle it out, Arlo confirmed once more that there was no way they could defeat such a beast with their current powers.
At least using normal methods.
Evangeline's words flashed within his mind:
'Dirty martial arts...'
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Arlo was woken up from his thoughts when he felt movement from behind.
Without turning back, he asked in his mind:
'Done already?'
With a puff of darkness, Anita appeared on his head.
Instead of replying, Anita responded with her action.
An enormous amount of energy was released from the blue slime on his arm, before feeling his entire body with strength Arlo had never felt before.
Feeling his energy reserve that was almost depleted from running for several hours recovered, Arlo couldn't help but voice out:
"Nice!"
With that he moved towards Joe and spoke in a loud voice:
"I have a plan!"
Successfully capturing Joe and Rosaline's attention, Arlo looked at Arianne and shouted:
"Arianne, if you want to kill that beast, come listen to my plan!"
Arianne who had remained still without moving her gaze from the firebird finally moved.
.....
Five minutes later.
Arlo was high up on the branch of a massive tree with Anita resting in his embrace.
He kissed Anita's slimy body and spoke:
"I will leave it to you!"
"Hmm." Anita gave a satisfied moan.
Anita was the anchor of their plan.
He placed her on the branch and jumped toward another's branch as he made his way opposite where Arianne was staying.
Rosaline rested on a tree in the opposite direction of Joe.
Around Joe's neck coiled the 2m pitch-black snake, its starry eyes gazing intelligently at the scene in front of it.
While the others thought the snake was at death's door, Joe could feel the vitality of the snake reviving, it was just that it was only to a small extent enough for it to barely escape the claws of death.
The four of them were very high up the massive trees and close to the raging battle.
They waited for the signal from Arlo.
Arlo's position wasn't too far away from Anita: because she would be unsummoned if the distance between them was too much.
'It's time!' he sent telepathically to Anita.
Suddenly the still Anita erupted with a green essence, and immediately after, an astonishing scene took place.
Aside from the branches Arlo, Arianne, Joe, and Rosaline were standing on, all the branches of the massive trees in the surrounding ten meters lengthened and streaked toward the sky.
The two formidable beasts who were in a heated battle were caught off guard; the strengthened branches tightening across their body.
"SCREEEE!*
*SHRIEK!*
The two beasts released angry cries. They weren't oblivious to the movement of the humans they deemed as rats below them, it was just that they thought their actions insignificant.
Now caught within their grasp, they couldn't help but feel humiliated.
But before they could react, Rosaline quickly moved toward one of the huge legs of the massive black spider.
"World of darkness!"
Her beautiful voice resounded out.
A massive burst of mana was released from her body and immediately after, a sphere of darkness enveloped her and the massive black steel spider.
Rosaline proved to be a notch above Bon and Judi.
Compared to when Judi used this skill against Arlo, Rosaline's was stronger and far larger. Not only that, it didn't interfere with the branches that were holding the spider in place, which showed her masterful control over the skill.
Her task was to restrain the black steel spider for at most 30 seconds.
At the same time, she enveloped the black steel spider in the world of darkness, Arlo, Arianne, and Joe ran atop the branches that were holding the firebird in place.
The firebird naturally noticed them and released another cry, the intensity of the flames around it rising.
*Whoosh!*
*Whoosh!*
*Whoosh!*
Three poison bombs suddenly landed on the firebird.
While the poison bombs barely had any effect as they were even almost burnt away by the high temperature of the flames around it before hitting its body; the firebird felt humiliated that such a weak human's attack had even reached it.
Seeing that he had successfully captured the attention of the firebird, Joe shouted at the top of his lungs:
"NOW!"
Arianne's current over two-meter body which had been matching the pace at which Arlo and Joe ran suddenly turned into a blur, one that Arlo could barely catch with his eyes.
A few meters from the back of the firebird, she jumped high into the air and released a roar, one filled with anger.
"ROOOAR!"
Using the blood from her previous injuries which were still covering her, she summoned two long chains and launched them at the neck of the firebird.
The chains wrapped around the firebird's neck, and a moment later, Arianne landed at its back, between its two wings.
Ignoring the flames that were already burning her lower parts, she pulled at the chains.
"SCREE!*
A painful cry escaped the beak of the firebird.
From the moment Anita released her branches to now, five breaths have barely passed.
The firebird couldn't even flap its wings properly due to the restraints on its body.
The chains around the neck tightened more as Arianne pulled with all her force. Her body which was being burnt away by the scorching waves of flames regenerated almost simultaneously, allowing Arianne to remain on the firebird's back.
Seeing that it couldn't depend on its natural flames, the firebird gathered its mana and prepared to launch a devastating attack at these weaklings that dared to fight it.
At almost the tenth breath since Arlo's group moved, a loud ringing sound drifted into the ears of the firebird, momentarily stopping it from making its attacks.
The firebird's pupils constricted as it saw the small figure in front of it, with two huge orbs spinning at his sides.
Arlo locked eyes with the firebird and at that instant, time seemed to stop.
Evangeline's voice rang in his mind:
'Even the strongest has a weak point'
After thinking about it, Arlo realized there was only one weakness he could utilize against this bird.
It was its eyes.
The two orbs twice the size of a basketball moved toward the firebird's eyes with a loud ringing sound.
*Pushi!*
The eyeballs of the firebird were blasted into a mess of blood and gore.
*SCREEE!*
A painful cry, louder than the previous ones escaped the beak of the firebird.
But that wasn't all, Arlo who was still in the air rose a few meters higher until he reached a point above the firebird's head.
As his body fell from the influence of gravity, Arlo positioned his body in such a way that his knees were pointed downward, with his feet held by his hands from behind.
He concentrated all his Ki on his knees as he gave a loud cry.
At the same time, Arianne roared louder and pulled the chains with a strength that could snap even the trunk of the massive trees in two.
*Crack!*
A cracking sound resounded from the neck of the firebird at the same time that...
*BAAAAAAAAM!*
*CRACK!*
Arlo landed on the head of the firebird
*****
AN: Thanks to all those who are following the novel. From next week, there will be a minimum of 5 chapters released. If you haven't added the novel as your favorite, be sure to do so. Thank you.