Jahi PoV
Watching as Mom retrieved the various black scales and long, grey bones from the now dead Volcanis Drake, I pursed my lips as I contemplated what my opponent could possibly be.
In theory, the Volcanis Drake was a perfect counter to Mom in many ways; extremely resilient scales, immune to Fire Magic to a high degree, strong, quick...
It did everything right in its evolution to fight against Mom, but at the end of the day it was just a monster; it's lack of intelligence and sentience robbed it of the ability to become the threat to her that it was meant to be.
Of course, I wasn't deluded enough to believe that just because my Mom managed to easily win hers I would win mine, let alone in such an easy manner, and with Lady Fenryas' words ringing around the clearing, I set my jaw as Mom jumped up to join us, her mana wrapped around the various monster parts in her arms.
Far from enough to create a piece of armor from just them, they would likely be added to an alloy to further increase whatever she had commissioned, either as is or melted down; I didn't exactly know how forging with monster parts worked, so...
Anput instantly was by her side, the Jackalkin curious as she inspected the small, splintered scale that Mom tossed her, like she knew that she needed to give the tanned woman some type of distraction before hand.
"Alright! Who's next?"
There was a brief silence before the Knights began to mutter to one another, none wanting to go up just yet, so they started egging their friends to go first.
I stepped up, wanting to get this out of the way and see just how terrifying the monster reared to counter me would be.
"Oh~! So the brat wants to follow in her Mom's footsteps~? Sounds like a plan to me... Go, go. As soon as your down in the arena, search for the cage that's melting quick; otherwise, just prepare yourself to get attacked..."
Nodding, I stepped off of the platform without another word, unsheathing the great sword on my back and resting its edge on my shoulder, all while I scanned the surrounding area.
Dozens upon dozens of cages were littered around the cavern, some illuminated by the magma flowing around the ground lazily, others pitch black.
Looking between all of them, I found the one that was melting, but the monster inside was already gone.
I strained my hearing as I stepped forwards, entering the open space and looking around, searching for any signs of the escaped monster; there was not a chance that it would be allowed to leave, not with the seven powerful women above looking down over the arena.
Though, I could feel a multitude of gazes on just me, and three of them were burning a hole into my back, making me smile wryly.
Probably should have said something to them, but oh well~
Hearing something behind me, I looked around my shoulder and frowned, not seeing anything - nor any displaced black sand or any tracks...
So I'm fighting something sneaky - likely quick too, since those tend to be hand in hand on monsters, though it could be something like a panther or leopard; a stealthy, yet powerful monster...
I continued to search the area around me before sighing, rousing my mana and sending it towards my hand as I traced out a rather simple, quick spell.
A sphere of golden light appeared in my palm, and I tossed the sphere up, illuminating the cavern and various cages in bright golden rays, giving me a better view of the caged monsters and arena.
Many hissed or growled as they shied away from the bright light, but I ignore the monsters inside the cages and instead focused on searching for mine, only to grunt as I felt something collide with me from behind.
Stumbling forwards, I spun and grabbed for the thing that slammed into me, my fingers brushing against smooth fur.
I barely managed to see the black and gray furred monster that attacked me, its four eyes screwed shut as it hissed in pain.
However, as I tried to kick the monster, it jumped back and hid amongst the cages again, slowly getting used to the harsh light.
Chasing after it wasn't a smart decision either, as the caged monsters were all trying to get free and attack me, and with them all placed with only a few feet between them, that would be a terrible idea.
So, I had to track it with my eyes, following it as it prowled between the various cages.
Around four feet long and three feet tall, the monster had a furry front half and a scaly back half, both of which were as dark as possible so that it could blend in with the surrounding environment.
Those four eyes were gleaming with malice, before the monster surrounded itself in thin strands of green mana, its fur stiffening as it launched itself at me suddenly.
Raising my sword, I prepared to swat it away before grunting, sharp pains flooding my side as the monster jumped mid air to crash into my ribs.
Its fur pricked past my armor and peppered my skin with wounds, whilst the momentum cracked a rib.
Before it could bring its claws to bear, I jabbed the pommel of my weapon into its temple, pushing it away as I tried to stabilize myself, only to grunt again as it just performed the same trick, creating a platform in the air to jump back at me.
This time, it crashed into my knee, buckling it and forcing me down.
Growling in annoyance, I flooded my system with mana and stood up, ignoring the pain and focusing on the blur of fur and scales that scrambled around me.
Raising my hand, I began to trace runes before smirking, watching as it lunged forwards to attack upon seeing the golden runes.
I cleaved my blade towards its lithe body, watching as it avoided the sword once more, only for it to yelp as my fist crashed into its shoulder.
Tumbling away, it got to its feet and glared at me, before bounding forwards as it saw another rune flicker into existence.
This time, it prepared itself for the feint and jumped twice, trying to avoid any attacks I could send its way.
However, I didn't bother and just finished the spell, only grunting as it slammed its head straight into my abdomen, cracking a few more ribs and knocking the air from my lungs.
My fingers continued to move, finishing the spell even as its long claws sunk into my side, hooking into my muscles and trying to tear them out.
A flash of brilliant gold erupted around us, and the monster screeched as it felt chains wrap around its body, constricting tighter and tighter as it wrung the things neck, earning a satisfying crunch.
Dropping to the ground, the dual material monster laid there lifeless, blood clinging to its talons as its paw slipped from my side, making me wince.
Placing my palm on the wounds, I took shallow breaths as I began to heal myself, before gingerly lowering myself to the ground as I searched the monster for something valuable.
Not finding anything, I shrugged as I instead decided to trust my instincts and unsheathed a dagger, plucking its eyes and opening it up, revealing its organs.
Surely something here would be worth something...
Wrapping each in a bundle of mana, I watched as the monster slowly turned to dust, leaving me with its four eyes, heart, liver, Core, and some bones, as well as some kind of sack...
Shrugging, I stood up and looked back towards the platform, where I saw Mom staring at me with a neutral expression and Lady Fenryas frowning.
I made my way back to the platform, jumping up and looking between the two.
"Passable."
"Fucking boring."
As soon as I heard that, I just sighed and shook my head, walking past them and rejoining the three women who were half glaring at me, a wry smile on my lips as I offered them...
Organs.
ƥandasnovel·ƈom Oh, and I reeked of blood...
Surely this would be enough of a peace offering to make them forgive me for not saying anything to them?
...
Right?
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