The Wrong Hero Has Been Summoned-Chapter 16: Essence

Luther picked up selene and threw her at Luna, "watch her." H said, turning to face the monster. "so this is a monster huh, incredible." Mana lines spread from his hand up until his elbow.

"Careful, that's a D-rank monster, might be too strong for you right now." Luna said, placing Selene at a tree to go help.

"Nahh, its fine. This is a good opportunity to test my progress I made over the past few weeks."

Vess moved next to him, her eyes flashing with concern. "This is not the time to test yourself. That thing... it's not normal."

He ignored her, stepping forward with his sword raised. The yellow light pulsed stronger, responding to the monster's presence. "I've been training for weeks. Let me handle this."

The Void Render seemed confused by his approach. It pulled back slightly, the swirling voids where its face should be turning toward the glowing sword.

"It's draining mana," Dominic called out weakly from where he leaned against a tree. "Don't use your power against it!"

"Ohhh, that's interesting," he smirked.

The monster attacked suddenly, a massive tendril shooting toward his chest. He dodged to the side, swinging his sword in a wide arc that caught the edge of the tendril. Where the blade touched, the monster's substance sizzled and pulled away.

"It doesn't like your sword," Luna observed, kneeling beside the injured woman. "But be careful!"

He felt a rush of confidence.

He charged forward, the sword leading. The monster shrieked—a sound that made his teeth hurt—and lashed out with multiple tendrils.

He cut through the first two, but a third caught him in the side, sending him tumbling across the clearing. Pain exploded through his ribs.

"Dammit," he gasped, pushing himself up. "Stronger than it looks."

Vess appeared at his side again. "You can't fight it alone. We need to work together."

"I don't need help," he growled, but his side throbbed with each breath.

The monster seemed to be studying them, its form shifting and bubbling. Embedded weapons and bones pushed closer to its surface, like it was preparing to use them.

"Look out!" Luna shouted as the creature suddenly launched bone shards toward them.

Vess yanked him down as the deadly projectiles flew overhead. "Still think you don't need help?"

He grunted, watching as the monster began to move toward the injured Selene and Dominic. "Fine. What's the plan?"

"Your sword hurts it, but you need to get close enough without getting caught. I'll distract it."

Before he could argue, she darted forward, her small form moving with surprising speed. She circled the monster, drawing its attention away from the injured pair.

Luther forced himself to his feet, ignoring the pain in his side. The pendant at his chest pulsed, sending warmth through his body that dulled the pain.

Luna joined Vess, throwing small objects from her pack that burst into bright flashes of light when they hit the monster. It recoiled, tendrils whipping wildly.

"Now!" Vess shouted.

He charged, channeling mana into the sword. The yellow glow intensified, spreading up his arm. He felt the power building, wilder and stronger than before.

The monster sensed him coming and turned, a massive tendril rising to strike.

Time seemed to slow. He saw the attack coming but couldn't dodge in time. Instead, he poured everything into his sword and swung upward.

The blade met the tendril—and cut straight through. The severed piece fell to the ground, dissolving into black sludge.

The monster shrieked again, pulling back. He pressed his advantage, slashing at its main body. Each cut made the creature smaller as parts of it dissolved away.

"It's working!" Luna called out.

The monster suddenly surged forward in desperation, multiple tendrils striking at once. He tried to block but some caught him across the chest, sending him flying backward.

He hit the ground hard, the sword nearly slipping from his grip. The world spun around him, and he tasted blood.

Through blurred vision, he saw the monster turning toward Vess, who stood her ground despite being clearly outmatched.

"No," he growled, struggling to stand.

"You still have a lot to learn." Luna said, standing beside him as she equipped her combat outfit. "watch and learn." Divine power radiated from her daggers as she boosted her physical abilities. "this is how you fight."

She moved like lightning, her daggers flashing with bright light as she attacked the monster. Each strike was perfect, cutting deep into the black mass. The monster screamed and tried to grab her, but she was too fast.

Vess joined the fight, moving in perfect sync with her. They seemed to read each other's minds, attacking from different sides.

"Show offs," he said, still struggling to stand.

The monster was shrinking with each hit, parts of it melting away. But it wasn't giving up. It suddenly changed tactics, sinking partly into the ground and sending waves of dark energy outward.

Luna jumped high to avoid the attack, but Vess wasn't quick enough. The wave caught her, sending her tumbling across the clearing.

This content is taken from fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm.

"Vess!" Luna shouted, her focus breaking for just a moment.

The monster took advantage, a thick tendril shooting out and wrapping around her leg. It yanked her down hard and began dragging her toward its center.

Luther forced himself to his feet, ignoring the burning pain in his side.

"Looks like I am not the only amateur here," he muttered, gripping the sword in a spear pose. "Haaaah, this should do it." He gathered mana into his arm, condensing it and then releasing it, in one powerful throw.

The sword flew in the arm with incredible speed, striking the monster where its face should have been. It screamed out in pain, its form dissolving for a brief moment before trying to rebuild itself by absorbing Luna's mana.

"Kugh, you bastard, let go of me!" She couldn't do anything as her energy was slowly decreasing.

'One more push.' He thought as he dashed at the monster, 'not fast enough, more!' He poured even more mana into his legs, making him feel dizzy but he pressed on. The monster sensed him and tried to attack but he easily dodged, sliding under its tendrils and grabbing his sword.

'Found it.' He said with a smirk as he could feel the core's presence. He thrust his sword into the monster's core, feeling resistance as the blade pierced through the strange, viscous substance. The creature's scream changed pitch, becoming higher, more desperate—a sound of genuine pain rather than rage.

"Found you," he whispered, twisting the blade.

Yellow mana flowed from his arm into the sword, through the sword into the monster's core.

The monster thrashed wildly, releasing Luna as it tried to escape the sword embedded in its center. She fell to the ground, gasping for breath, her skin pale from the energy drain.

He held tight to the hilt, gritting his teeth as the monster's death throes threatened to tear the weapon from his grasp. His mana spread through the creature's body like poison, yellow light glowing through its skin from within.

"What's happening to it?" Vess called out, staggering to her feet.

The monster's form began to collapse, parts of it dissolving into black mist. The weapons and bones embedded in its body clattered to the ground as the substance holding them disintegrated.

"It's dying," Luna said weakly, watching with wide eyes. "But something's not right..."

The yellow energy from Luther's sword wasn't just destroying the monster—it was consuming it. something was not right, with each passing second, he drew in the dissolving essence of the creature through his sword.

Luther felt a surge of power unlike anything he'd experienced before. His mana pathways burned, expanding to accommodate the influx of energy. It was exhilarating and terrifying at once—like being filled with liquid fire.

"Luther, let go of the sword!" Vess shouted, her voice tinged with alarm. "Something's wrong!"

He couldn't let go. Whether by choice or compulsion, his hand remained locked around the hilt as the last of the monster dissolved. The sword pulsed once more, blindingly bright, then went dark.

He staggered backward, finally able to release his grip. The weapon felt different now—heavier, somehow alive in his hand.

"What... what just happened?" he gasped, looking down at the blade. Thin veins of black now ran through the yellow, as if the monster's essence had been absorbed into the metal itself.

His vision fully goes black and he passed out.