The Extra's Reincarnation

Chapter 70: Arborax (3)

As Julian finished analyzing his plan he turned to Kyra, his intense blue gaze meeting hers. "I’ll cover you while you focus on supporting Marcus. Don’t worry about anything else."

Kyra hesitated for a moment, still puzzled by Julian’s unexpected abilities, but nodded in agreement. "Alright, let’s do this."

With a collective deep breath, the team prepared to execute their desperate plan. Faustino dropped the barrier, immediately unleashing a massive storm of flames that carved a path through the Arborax’s writhing branches.

"Now, Kyra!" Julian shouted.

Kyra’s hands glowed bright green as she conjured a series of floating wind platforms, each one higher than the last, creating a stairway to the monster’s head. Marcus wasted no time, leaping onto the first platform and beginning his ascent.

As Marcus climbed, Julian positioned himself in front of Kyra, his fingers once again forming that peculiar gun shape.

-My words should’ve been enough to push him forward, if anything, it’s more likely effective for him to slay the monster instead of me, I doubt Faustino would have the heart to guard Kyra, anyway.

GYAK!

Arborax observed the current situation, and it began to realize that they were no longer focused on attacking its branches, so it sent a barrage of wooden limbs towards the ones on the lower ground.

"Bang... Bang... Bang..."

Julian’s mana bullets flew with pinpoint accuracy, shattering any branch that came near Kyra.

His eyes glowed with that eerie red light, tracking every movement of the monster.

Meanwhile, Marcus jumped from platform to platform, his wind blade slicing through any branches that Faustino’s flames missed. As he neared the top, the Arborax let out a deafening roar, shaking the very ground beneath them.

"Almost there!" Marcus shouted.

He leapt onto the final platform, now eye-level with the Arborax’s massive head.

The creature’s eyes, glowing an eerie green, locked onto Marcus.

It let out another ear-splitting screech and began thrashing wildly, desperate to protect its vulnerable core.

Below, Julian continued his relentless defense of Kyra, his mana bullets decimating any branch that dared come close.

Sweat beaded on his brow as he scanned over his surroundings, trying not to overdo it with his output of attacks.

"Marcus, hurry!" Kyra called out, her arms trembling as she struggled to maintain the wind platforms.

"I can’t hold these much longer!"

Faustino grunted with effort, his flames beginning to flicker and wane.

"My mana’s running low. Whatever you’re going to do, do it now!"

Marcus gritted his teeth, tightening his grip on his wind blade. He could see a faint pulsing light at the center of the Arborax’s head–the core they’d been

With that, she strode away, leaving the team to process their victory and prepare for what was to come.

As the group dispersed for their well-earned break, Julian found himself drifting toward a quiet corner of the hall. Although his mind was exhausted, his body was not.

Though he was gifted with a god given body, he was processing everything that had happened during the challenge. He had managed to contribute significantly without overexerting his abilities, yet he couldn’t shake the feeling that he had attracted more attention than he intended.

All Julian truly desired in The Royal 8 was to earn the role of the royal blade and live a comfortable life with his mother, while observing the main character, Kaelen, defeat every villain in the story.

"Haah... what a bother..."

Julian leaned against a wall, lost in thought, when he felt a presence approach.

He looked up to see Marcus standing before him, an unreadable expression on his face.

"That was some impressive work out there, especially for someone who claimed to still be ’discovering their strengths’."

Marcus remarked in a neutral tone. Unfortunately for Julian, Marcus was one of the few people who were aware of his magical abnormalities.