Rael: The Journey of Creation

Heat flowed toward me while the temperature in the surroundings dropped. I wasn't sure how big this pit was in actual measurements, but if I were to separate it into three parts—the outer, the inner, and the center—then the outer was already producing ice on the ground, the inner was only slightly cooler, and the center (me) was extremely hot.

"Hah~ hah~" I should have thought this through a little more. It was starting to become painful to breathe, and I couldn't take any more heat.

"Keep it up, Rael! Kyoko and I can handle the first wave!" I could barely make out Selene's voice through the pain, but she didn't realize how excruciating this was. It felt like I was melting slowly! Still, I'll try to maintain this for a bit longer. I think I can do that, even through the pain.

Ahh, let me give her this. The spear was still in my hands, and since I wasn't in a good spot to use it, I tossed it to Selene. Kyoko was focused on the other side of the beasts, so I opted for the easier target.

"Selene, here!"

She caught the spear and gave me a nod of appreciation. I'm sure she realized I didn't have the focus to talk.

"Light, coil and become a wave to rid my darkness!"

"Darkness, bend and become a net to trap the light!"

"[Light Wave] [Dark Ties]!"

Light and darkness worked in tandem, trapping the beasts, and with the sudden drop in temperature, their escape became unlikely. Kyoko waved her hand, and a concentrated wave of light wiped out the dark binds, along with all the beasts inside, reducing them to ash! Unfortunately, she only killed about 20 beasts, which didn't make much of a dent in their numbers.

Selene didn't cast any other magic aside from her earlier strengthening spell. However, she demonstrated her skill with the spear, skewering beast after beast with each precise thrust.

'I-I can't hold on any longer. I need to release all this energy.' I shifted my legs slightly and crouched, channeling all the heat I had gathered into my core and preparing to release it.

"Kyoko! Selene! Shield yourselves now!"

"Eh?!"

"!?"

"[Heat Blast!]" I shouted, and at the same time, a massive wave of hot energy exploded outward. Any beast within the pit couldn't escape—nothing could escape.

A few seconds passed, and the aftermath revealed itself. Every single beast within the pit was extinguished, and fortunately, the two girls managed to defend themselves in time. I, on the other hand, was in extreme pain.

"Ughhhh hah~ hah~" I could hear my labored breathing, but fortunately, I still had plenty of mana. The spell, as I envisioned it, absorbed the hot mana elements from the environment and pulled it toward me. The downside was the sensation of being burned alive, but on the bright side, it didn't use much mana. However, there were restrictions on movement, and I still couldn't control mana properly, which were major issues. I was being carried heavily by the unique trait given to me. Without its auto-adjustments—or whatever it does—I wouldn't have been able to achieve 95% of the things I've done since waking up.

'I really need to find time to learn. I don't think playing it by ear is going to keep working in the long run.' I added this to my plans for the future while trying my best to stay standing. The worst part was that there were still all the beasts above us, but this second wave we were definitely more prepared for, so drastic measures shouldn't be needed.

"Selene, guard him! I'll try my best to handle the second wave!"

Selene rushed toward me and stood to my right, facing me. Her bright sky-blue eyes brought a sense of comfort, which helped me relax a little.

"That was really good! It's weird that the ground didn't break or distort at all, but whatever."

'She's right. Why didn't the ground break or even heat up at all?' I didn't voice my thoughts but just gave a slight nod in response. There are materials that couldn't be broken without enough force on Earth, so I'm sure here there are materials even tougher.

'It really is probably nothing. I should focus on the more pressing matters!' I moved my eyes upward, and the second wave began! The second set jumped down, but this time I noticed something while they were in the air. These beasts seemed stronger based on the tattoos lining their bodies. For every brown or blue-marked beast, there was a silver one. That meant half of them were silver-marked!

"Kyoko, you sure you got it?"

"Yeah, yeah, no need to worry! Just make sure he doesn't die. I want him to be there when your dad chews your ass out!"

"I-Is this really the time?!"

"Funny coming from someone who led us here."

"Really... it's not like I intended for this to happen." Selene muttered the last part, and only I heard it. She wasn't upset, though; she just pouted a little, and her face turned slightly pink. It was very cute.

"It's alright. Shit just happens sometimes." I gave her some comfort and went back to being silent.

"I'm glad you understand! That makes me feel a little bit better, but I can't deny that rushing in wasn't the smartest move."

"It wasn't, but seriously, don't worry about it too much. People make mistakes, and it isn't like you're some war general or something. Wait... are you?"

"NO! How old do you think I am?!"

"Ow! Why would you hit me when you can see I'm clearly hurt?!"

"Since you've got time to think I'm old, you must not be hurt enough!"

"I-I didn't even say you were old. Some people are talented enough to be in that position early on!"

"So you're saying I come off as one of those talented people?"

"I didn't say that either. OW!" Instead of punching my arm like last time, she pinched the skin and twisted it. That hurt way worse!

"Yo—We'll continue this later!"

The beasts finally—and I mean finally—landed on the ground, beginning their second attack. 'Why couldn't they have landed sooner and saved my poor arm, man.'

"GRAAA!!!!" The beasts let out a synchronized roar as they dashed forward, clearly aiming to tear Kyoko to pieces. She was well-prepared, with a light shield covering the area around her body while she used darkness magic to deal damage. She was running a pretty efficient system, except for the ones that didn't go for her.

Many beasts—around the upper 30s—pushed past her, ignoring Kyoko completely. Selene, fortunately, took care of those as they got closer to us, and in little time, the second wave was actually complete. It was all too smooth compared to the first one!

Unfortunately, we didn't get much time between the second and third waves, as the beasts had already landed by the time the last one was killed! This one would be the hardest yet because all the beasts—from panthers and tigers to spiders and snakes—had golden markings. Perhaps they weren't the strongest, but they definitely had annoying abilities, at least based on my understanding of the markings.

'Can't I just ask?'

"Hey, Selene, what exactly are those markings?"

"Huh? Your family even handles that differently? Basically, it's their unique ranking system. Just like how our eyes glow a certain way depending on our unique abilities, beasts are born with specific colored tattoo markings." She explained it easily while also keeping an eye on the beasts that had just landed.

"I got ya. I'm feeling better now, so go help her if you need to. I'll try my best to support or just handle my share."

"It's fine! She knows her limits. She'll probably line them up for us to strike them down while they're distracted."

"You think so?"

"I've known her for a while, as you already know, so I'd say it's more like I know she will."

"Fair enough. By the way, you wouldn't happen to be able to teleport, would you?"

"I can, but it's only one person or object, and it isn't that far. I could probably get one of us out of this hole!"

"Alright, if shit does go awry, teleport Kyoko out."

"Huh? You don't wanna be the one to go?" She was genuinely confused.

"Nah. Like you said earlier, I can adapt or figure it out. Plus, you have a pretty great skill set in both magic and physical prowess. While she isn't weak by any means, Kyoko would just hold us back."

"I'm glad she can't hear you! She'd definitely give you an earful, haha~"

"I mean, it's just the facts, though. Her magic, while great, isn't as practical, you know what I mean."

Selene nodded. "Yeah, I understand! I'll free her right now, actually!"

"W-Wait! Shouldn't you save it for when we need it?!"

"What~? Scared of a few beasts? Gonna hide behind a girl, you scaredy cat~"

"Woman. On my life, I'm going to make you eat those words."

"Oh sure. Hahaha, I doubt you could kill more than me!"

"Let's make a bet then!"

"Sure! Ho—"

"YOU TWO STOP FLIRTING AND HELP ME, DAMN IT!" Kyoko snapped, bringing our attention back to reality. She was absolutely swarmed with beasts and had taken quite a bit of damage. 'Yikes… I feel bad.'

I looked at Selene and nodded. She could teleport Kyoko away, and we'd handle the rest as a way to make it up to her... totally not just to continue our bet.