章 115: Battle Against the Manatite Hydra - Pt 2
The strike from behind sent me tumbling forward. I finally came to a stop when I collided with the massive mana crystal that Rudeus was stuck in. The back of my head cracked against the crystal, sending me into a momentary daze.
I looked up at Rudeus trapped in the crystal. The light passing through the crystal illuminated the area in a green hue. The particulates my collision had knocked up in the air had a beautiful glow to them. I reached up my hand toward Rudeus.
The chaos around me seemed to melt away as I was overtaken by a sense of peace. My pain faded as I stared at his visage. However, my peace cracked as I realized that he did not look calm. In fact, Rudeus seemed to be frozen in a state of distress. Then, all of a sudden I heard a high pitched *PING*.
'Huh? What was that?'
*PING*
'Again. That sound is familiar. That's the sound the Hydra's scales make when they deflect magic, isn't it?'
*KRRRCK*
"Raaaah!"
*PING*
The sounds of battle continued. But who was the hydra fighting? I thought we had all been taken out?
I turned my head away from Rudeus and looked forward to see a deep mist covering the battlefield. Sudden movements and loud clashes made it obvious that the fight was still ongoing.
'Is it Talhand? Or perhaps Elinalise? I don't think Roxy could cast magic without the ability to speak. No it doesn't matter who it is.'
I forced myself to my feet. To my surprise, I didn't seem badly injured. I reached to my back where I was sure the Hydra had struck me to find not a scratch. In fact, the only place I hurt at all was where I cracked my head against the Mana Crystal. Looking back at what happened, the strike to my back felt more like a push... and it didn't feel very solid either... almost like a concentrated burst of air...
'I don't know how it happened, but somehow I'm alright. I need to hurry up and get back in the fight to help whoever is still alive!'
One of the Hydra's heads emerged from the fog but was looking away from me. I used the opportunity to launch a longsword of light and send the head flying.
'If it can regenerate, then I just need to cut off all nine heads before they can heal!'
That's what I thought, but deep down I doubted that it was possible.
"Ugh! Its scales are too hard! I can't get through!"
A familiar voice yelled out from the other side of the room. I couldn't tell exactly where it was coming from but I recognized his voice. It was Rudeus' father, Paul!
"Let this divine power be as satisfying nourishment, giving one who has lost their strength the strength to rise again! [Healing]!"
I heard yet another familiar voice chanting that spell. This time it was his mother, Zenith!
The fog was beginning to clear and I could see the yellow-green glow of Zenith's healing magic as she held her hand to Roxy's throat.
*Cough, Cough!*
"Roxy, are you ok? Say something!", Zenith yelled worriedly.
"I... I... uh... Huh?"
Roxy seemed to be at a loss for words.
*KRRRCK*
The sound of scales scraping against metal rang out once again as Paul deflected a strike aimed at Zenith and Roxy using the two swords he dual wielded in front of him.
*Whooosh!*
From my other side I heard a loud gust of wind. I turned to see Sylphiette flying backwards through the air while holding Elinalise. Once she landed a good distance away she held her hand to Elinalise's shoulder. A yellow-green glow emitted from her hand as the Elinalise's flesh closed up and the bleeding stopped, leaving her with one arm.
"I'm sorry Elinalise. I haven't mastered King-Tier healing magic yet."
"Ha... Ha... No... Don't be sorry... You saved my life."
Elinalise seemed out of breath but managed to get to her feet.
*Ting* *Ting*
Paul lunged at the Hydra's neck, in a spinning move he struck the same spot with both swords one after another, but he only left behind a surface level gouge on the scale, similar to the first time I attacked it.
"Damn! I can't get through!"
"Hya!"
I launched forward and finished what Paul started as the Hydra's head plopped on the ground beside us.
"Eris! Nice going!", he shouted, a bit surprised.
"Be careful!", I warned him. "The heads will regenerate in no time!"
"Get down!", Paul yelled as he pushed my head down and crouched along with me. I felt the air above us heat up as scorching flames shot through the air towards the Hydra.
*PING*
The fireball continuously shrank in size as it approached the hydra until it finally evaporated.
"You have to get closer than that", Paul yelled back towards Sylphy. "It will only work if you fire from point blank range!"
"The Hydra can't regrow its heads if you sear its flesh after decapitating it!", Paul explained as he turned back towards me. "You're the only one who can cut through those scales, Eris! Work with Sylphy and Roxy to take the heads off one by one. I'll cover your blind spots!"
The Hydra's head I just cut off quickly regenerated. How can he be so sure this will work? Has he fought one of these before? I suppose it's possible. He was an S-Ranked adventurer with Ghislaine after all. But Elinalise and Tallhand were in their party as well weren't they? They didn't recognize this beast.
Roxy and Elinalise rejoined our squad, snapping me out of my thoughts, while Zenith ran to the other side of the room to check on Talhand, who remained implanted into the wall.
"Follow my lead!", I shouted as the Hydra turned three more of its heads towards our huddle.
The Hydra never seemed to attack with more than four heads at once, but usually only three at most. Probably because using any more they would just get in each other's way I would guess. Either way, that was good news for us.
Paul and Elinalise followed at my left and right while Sylphy and Roxy were right behind us. Together we formed a sort of 'W' shaped formation. As the Hydra's heads snapped towards us, I attacked the middle head while Elinalise and Paul blocked the heads on the two sides.
I was worried that Elinalise wouldn't be able to guard against the Hydra with one arm, but she nimbly deflected the blow using her shield. She seemed to be an expert at guiding her enemy's attack in the direction she wanted so that she could use their momentum against them; it was something Ruijerd taught me during our training together on the Demon Continent. Paul could do the same to some extent but what he lacked in finesse he made up for in strength. Having both arms helps as well.
"Shaaaaah!"
The Hydra hissed in anger and pain as the center head fell to the ground.
"[Fireball]!"
Just as planned, Roxy charged in from behind me and the Hydra's fresh wound was immediately seared shut wish a loud *Psssh!*
As though the Hydra expected this to happen a fourth head lunged at Roxy from the side but Sylphy was there to wash Roxy away with a [Flood Flush] spell.
The five of us backed away to gain some distance from the Hydra as we observed it carefully. Sure enough, the head wasn't growing back where Roxy had seared it closed! Paul was right! We can do this after all!
"I've only got two [Fireball] scrolls left", Roxy announced. "It would be difficult to time the incantation with Eris' slashes. Do you feel up to taking the lead, Sylphy?"
I looked over towards Sylphy and the nervousness in her eyes was apparent. She may be a master of magical duels and combat, but it was plain to see that she was unused to actual life or death battle.
"I can do it", She answered with determination.
The Hydra must have thought we'd had enough time to regather our thoughts as its massive body came lumbering towards us. Once it got within striking range, three of its heads came whirring at us from multiple angles.
Paul parried one of the heads while I sliced off another. From the corner of my eye I caught a blood spray as Elinalise grunted in pain.
"Let this divine power be as satisfying nourishment- [Healing]!"
Roxy quickly healed Elinalise while Sylphy followed behind me and slammed her open hand towards the Hydra's flailing neck.
*Psssh!*
Flames erupted from her hands and scorched the Hydra's open wound a charred black. Sylphy seemed to be admiring her work as another of the Hydra's heads came in for a counter attack.
"Watch out!", I yelled as I tackled her to the ground.
I managed to knock Sylphy out of harm's way in time, but it didn't come without a cost. A sharp pain shot up from my leg as I looked down to see a big chunk of meat from my thigh was missing. blood poured out profusely.
*KRRRCK*
Paul deflected another attack coming at us while Elinalise lifted me up on her shoulder and helped me get some distance from the Hydra. Roxy cast [Deep Mist] to provide us cover for our escape.
"Oh merciful mother of gods, please heal this one's wounds, and let him recover with a healthy body! [X-Healing]"
Once again, Roxy cast her healing magic. I watched as the thigh muscle reformed and the large wound on my leg closed up. The pain faded away almost immediately.
"Thank's Roxy."
She nodded in acknowledgement before turning her attention back to the Hydra, who was making its way out of the fog and towards us.
"I'm so sorry!", Sylphy yelled out. "You got hurt because of me!"
"Stay focused", Paul warned. "We can't afford to lose focus for an instant. A single mistake could cost us our lives."
The five of us got back into formation as the Hydra approached. Just like before, I launched a longsword of light sending another head flying. Sylphy was right behind me to sear the wound shut. This time she immediately jumped back into formation. In the same way, a fourth of the Hydra's heads were removed shortly thereafter.
Suddenly, the Hydra's movements changed. Now all five of its remaining heads attacked in unison and had their sights set on Elinalise. I sliced off one of the incoming heads, but the other four continued their assault single mindedly. Paul parried one of them and Elinalise jumped out of the way of another. She used her shield to block the incoming attack of the fourth head, but the fifth head came at her side while she was being pushed back.
*PIIING*
A loud screeching noise echoed out as the Hydra's fifth head collided with a thick ice wall. The magically formed wall that Sylphy conjured dissipated quickly but it allowed just enough time for Paul to knock back the head that was pushing Elinalise and get us back in formation.
Meanwhile...
"[Fireball!]"
Roxy had used another of her scrolls to char the wound shut from the fifth decapitated Hydra head.
"Four more to go! We can do this!", Paul yelled out in encouragement.
We followed the same plan of attack to successfully remove and sear a sixth of the Hydra's heads leaving three left. It was then that the Hydra's movements changed once again. The beast staggered back as though it was afraid of us.
"Press the attack!", Paul yelled out.
I launched yet another longsword of light (I was starting to feel a little bit tired at this point), and a seventh of its heads fell to the floor with a clud. Strangely, there was no counter attack incoming but rather the other two heads were chomping down on the stumps that we had seared shut. I watched in horror as the meat and bone began to knit back together.
"Don't give it time to regenerate!", Elinalise yelled out.
Roxy ran alongside Paul to one of the heads that were beginning to heal while Sylphy followed me to the other. Paul deflected an attack from one of the two remaining heads as Roxy cauterized the healing wound just in time.
Sylphy made her way towards the other healing stump while I sliced off the head that attacked us. One after the other she seared the wounds shut.
Now only one head remained.
The Hydra stretched its one remaining head to the ceiling as it reared back its body. Was it retreating? No... it's more like...
"Watch out!", Elinalise yelled. "It's going to breathe some kind of element!"
"Get behind me!", Sylphy shouted.
Sylphiette conjured a massive wall of water between the Hydra and ourselves. Not a moment later, the Hydra lunged forward as it exhaled a tremendous stream of flames. Enormous plumes of steams bellowed out from all sides as the Hydra's flames collided with the wall of water.
"Ngh!!"
I could see Sylphy struggling as the wall of water began to quiver.
"Goddess of the flowing river and boundless ocean, heed my call. Rise, and become my shield! [Water Shield]"
A second wall of water formed behind Sylphy's just in time as the flames finally evaporated what was left of it. Sylphy fell to one knee, before reaching her hands back out and strengthening Roxy's wall of water. The wall they weaved together stood stronger than their combined individual strengths. It held its own against the Hydra's rage.
The moment the creature lowered its head and the flames subsided, Sylphy and Roxy dropped their water wall and I sprung forward, launching one final longsword of light, and removing the Hydra's final head.
As the final head fell, the rest of the Hydra's massive body crumpled to the ground with it. A thunderous *BOOM* echoed throughout the room as its body struck the floor.
There would be no further regeneration. I could tell. The Hydra was dead.
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