Floating Islands: SSS Gacha Lord-Chapter 48 - Lava-Bound Brawl

Raze, his frame now swollen with muscle and wrapped in crackling dark energy, let out a thunderous roar that rolled across the open field, sending a chill down the spines of the few spectators who dared to watch.

Karian lunged forward, his greatsword blazing as it cleaved through the air. The blade burst into flames upon contact with Raze’s hand. But Raze caught it barehanded, halting the mighty weapon with nothing but brute strength.

The impact of the clash echoed throughout the entire battlefield.

"What a pathetic excuse for a sword strike. You ought to be ashamed, swinging like that with a body so massive. Hahaha!" Raze laughed, clearly a master of cutting insults as much as combat.

Undeterred, Karian pressed on, launching blow after blow with relentless ferocity. His strikes came fast and hard, each one powerful enough to split stone. But Raze didn’t flinch. He blocked every attack with his hand, as if such violent force barely mattered to his transformed body.

Then, with a sudden surge of power, Raze gripped the greatsword tightly, twisted it from Karian’s grasp, and hurled both sword and man to the side with terrifying force.

Karian was thrown away, crashing hard into the scorched earth. His greatsword flew from his hand, landing far from him. Glowing splashes of lava struck his body, drawing grimaces from those watching. They could feel the pain just by looking.

In that moment, a chain tipped with a vicious blade snapped through the air, coiling tightly around Raze’s neck from behind. Kurogasa had arrived.

He rushed forward, unleashing a barrage of spectral duplicates, each one darting in and striking with eerie synchronization. One by one, they lunged at Raze.

"Is this supposed to scare me?" Raze snarled. "I’ve had tougher fights wiping shit off my boots, you masked little maggot!"

Raze swung with feral strength, every blow scattering the illusions into smoke. But the moment he destroyed one, another leapt in. And then, amidst the chaos, the real Kurogasa appeared, slashing viciously at Raze’s exposed torso.

"You sneak up like a coward and still can’t make me bleed? You’re not a warrior. You’re just a twitchy rat dressed in rags!"

Kurogasa moved with deadly precision, attacking from every direction at blistering speed. Raze struggled to track him, the ninja’s footwork and illusions keeping him constantly off-balance. In fury, Raze lashed out with hammering fists, each one shaking the air, but always missing by a breath.

Then Karian surged into the fray, his greatsword cleaving down with earthshaking force. At the same time, Kurogasa wrenched his kusarigama tighter around Raze’s throat, anchoring him in place.

"You think this is a victory?" Raze bellowed, his eyes wild with rage. "Two worms squirming together in the dirt still stink just the same!"

With a savage roar, Raze hurled himself forward, dragging Kurogasa off his feet and flinging him into the air. He leapt after him, muscles straining and energy crackling, only for Kurogasa to vanish mid-flight, dissolving into shadow and smoke with an elegant, ghost-like twist.

Atlas swallowed hard, watching the brutal clash unfold before him. From the corner of his eye, he caught Morganna’s faint smile. It was the kind of smile that hinted she might be tempted to join the chaos herself.

"This is a waste of time," she murmured.

"Give them a moment," he replied calmly.

In that instant, Karian wrenched Raze back to the ground, and the two exploded into a fresh storm of violence. Raze’s colossal fists crashing down against the iron will of Karian’s greatsword.

"Let’s see if your mouth’s got back up, you damn blowhard!" Karian bellowed, continuing his relentless barrage.

"Shut up and focus on your sorry-ass swings, you cockroach-brained ass-licker!" Raze snarled.

Even with Kurogasa’s kusarigama chain still tight around his neck, Raze lunged at Karian again. He caught him by the shoulders and slammed a brutal fist into his gut, sending him stumbling back with a choked gasp.

Raze pressed the attack. Karian held his ground, blocking with both arms, though from the way his muscles strained, it was clear those arms were moments from breaking under the sheer force of the assault.

Atlas swallowed again. Lyrassa can heal those arms, right? he thought silently.

At that moment, Kurogasa yanked hard on the chain, jerking Raze back and forcing him to release Karian.

Despite wielding a Unique-grade weapon, Kurogasa struggled just to keep the rampaging Raze restrained. Raze fought with nothing but bare hands. Yet not even enchanted steel could fully contain the monstrous strength he wielded.

"Damn... are we even needed on this team? Just look at them. They’re actual monsters," one of the soldiers muttered.

"These guys are actual monsters."

"With just the three of them, our next battle’s gonna feel like a damn picnic."

"But that Hulk-looking guy... he’s unreal."

"I’m not going anywhere near him."

"Yeah, if he tossed me like that, I’d be nothing but shattered bones and regret."

Atlas stood watching as the savage, relentless fight unfolded before him. There was something in Karian’s expression that told him the man was thoroughly enjoying himself. Kurogasa, on the other hand, was different. He moved with deadly grace, but there was a hesitation in him. It was subtle, but clear. He wasn’t giving it his all.

Were they simply relishing the rush of a no-holds-barred battle?

Atlas’s lips curved into a faint smile. Perhaps letting them loose like this, in a space where they could go all-out, hadn’t been such a reckless idea after all.

Lyrassa?

She stood nearby with Edrik, both quietly observing the storm of fists and steel.

Then Edrik glanced at Atlas, who gave him a single nod. Time to end it.

Without missing a beat, Lyrassa ascended gracefully, twisting through the air. Her arms spread wide, summoning thick vines from the earth that surged upward and snaked around Raze.

Raze roared, thrashing violently as the vines wrapped around him. He tore at them with savage fury, muscles straining as he fought the creeping mass that tried to cocoon his monstrous form. His defiance burned bright, even as the vines tightened with nature’s unyielding grip.

Karian struck once more, his greatsword crashing down toward Raze’s skull. The impact drove Raze to the ground, yet still he thrashed, tearing through some of the vines that bound him.

Kurogasa moved in swiftly, his chains tightening and reinforcing the entrapment, until at last, the vines wound into a thick cocoon, encasing Raze completely.

Raze roared in fury, straining against his prison. Karian responded with brutality, bringing his greatsword down on Raze’s head again and again. Slowly, the resistance began to wane. Raze’s movements dulled, the fire in his eyes dimming as awareness began to return.

Then his colossal form began to recede, muscles shrinking and the monstrous energy fading, until he once again resembled his original form: a lean, slightly disheveled magician.

As the battle came to a close, Atlas stepped forward. From within the thick shell of vines, Milo emerged, wide-eyed and dazed. He stumbled out, shivering, quickly pulling clothes from his inventory. His hands shook uncontrollably as he struggled to dress, fingers fumbling with buttons in sheer panic. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

Once clothed, he collapsed to his knees, bowing again and again before Atlas, his forehead smacking the scorched earth with each motion. Each time, he winced in pain, the heat searing his skin.

"My Lord, forgive me, please forgive me! Don’t punish me, My Lord... please, I beg you!" he cried out, interrupted now and then by sharp yelps as the burning ground reminded him of his place.

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