In the subspace, Wéidù Māo lay on Somniroth's back, her ears and tail drooping, her beautiful eyes watering. "Does Master hate me now?" she whimpered to herself.

Somniroth opened one of his eyes, looking around, hoping any of the others would jump in, but it seemed like they were all expecting him to comfort her. He let out a long, exaggerated breath, his discontent evident.

"What is the problem, Māo?" he asked the little cat lying on his back. Wéidù Māo curled into a tight ball, tucking its paws beneath its body, its tail wrapped closely around itself as though trying to disappear.

"I disappointed master. By running away from the battle," she mumbled as she bit her lip, desperately trying to hold back her tears.

Somniroth sighed heavily, and with his tail lightly patted Māo on the back. "Don't worry too much about it; that is just how he is. I was once like that too. Just try your best; you are not useless," he said in a gentle tone. "He just hadn't found the proper way to best utilize your abilities," he stated as he kept patting her back lightly with his tail.

Sniffling, the little cat felt a little better, her ears perking up a little. Then Atlas Ursus interjected, "That's right. He himself is also going through a lot, and fighting is his only escape right now, so that's why he judges everything by its usefulness when fighting for now."

Yuurei just nodded along, just like the others; they were all in agreement and hoped that their master would overcome his trauma soon for his own sake and for their sake. Then Atrum Spectre said, "Fighting constantly is fine in the beginning, but as time passes, it becomes an exhausting burden that weighs heavily on everyone involved." The other familiars fell silent, each knowing the truth in those words.

Clearing his throat loudly, Somniroth nodded along. "So Māo, don't worry too much about it. Just do your best; master will surely realize your true value soon." After saying that, he closed his eye again and laid his head down again.

The others could only sigh collectively, "He's way too lazy," stated Māo. And the others couldn't stop laughing.

"Puhahaha! She got you there, you overgrown lizard!" cackled Altas Ursus.

"Whoa!" Then Māo was flung off Somniroth's back, landing gracefully. Next to Yuurei, she pouted with a "Hmph!" stomping away menacingly, or as menacingly as a small cat could manage.

"And you watch out, you fat bear; I'll eat you next before my next nap," quipped Somniroth while still lazily lying in his cozy spot.

"Ha! "You can try; I don't mind eating some overgrown lizard for dinner," answered Atlas Ursus, trying his best not to burst out laughing.

"Ok, that's enough. Remember, Master is fighting that flame colossus right now, so be prepared to be summoned." said Yuurei, as she stood completely still looking at the spot where Teo had left earlier.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

***

Teo stood in front of the huge colossus after finishing off the little ones for what felt like the hundredth time. "This sucks! But at least I've found its weakness now—a small core is floating around somewhere in that gigantic body, huh," he said as he crushed the final core of the little monsters with his teeth.

"Ready, Sora?" He asked, smiling crazily, his appearance looking like he was a homeless man. His clothes were torn almost completely apart, his skin covered in blood and constantly healing the burn wounds he received.

"I am ready, master. This battle is exhilarating!" Theo heard. His grin growing even wider, almost like he was a feral beast that had just found easy prey.

"Here's the plan," he mumbled, swinging his blade in a wide arc. "We will first make an opening to the subspace where they will all jump out to frontally attack the colossus. Then when they're trying to destroy it frontally, we will attack from all kinds of different angles to try and destroy its core."

"Attack frontally!" he ordered as he started moving at such high speeds that the colossus couldn't follow it. So instead it focused its attention on the new enemies that appeared out of the portal.

"You heard him; let's kick some ass." Atlas Ursus charged forward, unleashing a devastating roar. He looked unstoppable, like the epitome of physical force.

The others weren't idling around. Ember Tyrant summoned his destruction blade again and also charged forward. Yōulíng É stayed more toward the back, but she wasn't idle—shrouding the battlefield in mist to make the colossus miss his attacks and obstruct his vision.

And all the way at the front was none other than Testudo Aegis, using his earth magic to reshape the volcanic terrain. He made it almost impossible for the colossus to attack without smashing through multiple layers of strengthened earth walls.

Cutting off an arm each, Ursus and Tyrant turned around and went for the next best target—its legs. Cutting those off easily as well, what followed was a massacre with all of them attacking simultaneously. They destroyed every centimeter of its body, and finally, after almost an hour of destroying, dodging, healing, and a ruthless beatdown, they finally saw the core.

The colossus sensing imminent danger let out a deafening roar, and then it happened. It started gathering magical energy atop its huge crown.

"Oh no! Everyone dodge!" screamed Yuurei. "This is the same attack as he did earlier when the master went into the subspace!"

Hearing that, Teo jumped into action, appearing behind the familiars; he opened a subspace entrance. "Everyone, retreat now!" He ordered. And they all entered swiftly.

Closing the entrance, he started forming a huge spear with his blood magic. Hurling the spear with all his might, the crimson weapon streaking through the air like a comet. It struck the core dead center, shattering its defenses. But the attack triggered the colossus’s final act—a desperate, cataclysmic surge of power.

The moment the spear struck, the colossus let out a deafening screech, as though the very essence of its being was being torn apart. The ground beneath them trembled, shaking violently. A blinding flash of light erupted from the crown, the raw energy radiating outward in a devastating shockwave. Pushing Teo back as the flames that accompanied it consumed everything.

Teo gritted his teeth, raising a shield of blood magic just in time to deflect the worst of the blast. But even that wasn't enough to shield him completely. The shockwave slammed into him with the force of a mountain, sending him crashing into the debris-ridden ground. His body burned with searing heat, and he could feel his healing struggling to keep up as the wounds spread across his skin.

Through the smoke and chaos, he could see the colossus's form crumbling, its massive body disintegrating into nothingness.

"That was intense," mumbled Teo as he felt his skin constantly tearing and regenerating.