Lord Of Beasts

There was no way for Jared to win; it was the brutal reality of things.

The Ant Commander was bad enough, let alone the endless swarm of ant beasts behind it in this cramped and suffocating tunnel. Not to mention the minimal visibility, relying on the weak light held behind them.

Ethan exhaled slowly.

’Yeah... we’re probably fucked.’

There was no point sugarcoating it.

And yet, he stood there calmly, torch in hand, as if this were just another normal day.

Like nothing was wrong.

Beside him, the red-eyed A Rank was shaking, visibly so.

Her breathing was uneven, and her hands trembled, the light from the torch she held revealing as such.

She glanced at Ethan, and confusion flickered across her face.

’How is he so calm?’

’Either he’s insane, or he knows something I don’t...’

Without realising it, she edged closer to him, almost as if drawn by his puzzling confidence. He noticed as such, but he didn’t react and kept going back to the same thing.

’An A Rank should be able to wipe this entire place out alone...’

Ethan didn’t even look at her.

’And yet she’s hiding behind me... an E Rank?’

He almost laughed, but his attention shifted back to Jared.

”Form up on me!” Jared roared. ”Don’t lose hope!”

His voice was strong and his stance solid, and even in the face of an insurmountable wall, he wasn’t wavering.

Ethan respected it, but he could also see the underlying rationale.

’There’s no running away for him. Not at his size, and especially not with all that armour and that massive shield.’

He was sure his speed wasn’t enough, and even if it was decent, how far would he get before the ant beasts caught up?

Jared would just end up tiring himself out, since they were already deep into this tunnel.

Ethan’s lips curled slightly.

’So he’s made his choice. To stand his ground and try to fight his way out of this.’

But for that to work, he needed the D Ranks to remain calm and focused, because the moment they broke, he was done for. As weak as they were, they were still dealing damage alongside him.

Jared put up his shield as the Ant Commander charged at him.

”Iron Rebound!”

There was a powerful impact, and the C Rank Ant Beast was knocked back, but it was unscathed and quickly followed up with a second attack. This beast wasn’t like the others, and it was only a matter of time before Jared and the D Ranks faltered.

Ethan’s eyes narrowed slightly.

’Jared is strong, and the D Ranks aren’t that bad either, but it’s still not enough.’

That much was clear.

’But I can’t think of a way to win, even if I use all of my abilities.’

Ethan could summon all of his beasts and use all of his skills, even Beast Call, and it wouldn’t change much.

It would just be delaying the inevitable.

There were simply too many ant beasts to kill, and he would get nothing out of trying to help. If there was a guaranteed path to victory he could foresee, he definitely would have considered it.

But there were times when you had to put yourself first, and this was definitely one of them.

His eyes flickered.

’Beast Assimilation: Wolfy.’

Power surged through him, and his senses sharpened instantly: his hearing, smell, and spatial awareness.

He closed his eyes briefly to focus, and what he felt made his expression shift. The incoming vibrations signified that there were far more beasts heading their way, dozens, maybe even hundreds.

But there didn’t seem to be anything from the way they had come, which was what he wanted to confirm.

The A Rank watched him, completely confused.

’What is he doing?’ Is he-’

Without warning, Ethan took off the backpack, placing it on the ground as well as placing the torch he was carrying beside it.

’Call me whatever the fuck you want, I’m not staying here and dying.’

With that, he turned and ran for his life.

’At least I’m considerate enough to leave them the torch so they can see a little, not that it will change anything.’

He didn’t hesitate once he had made up his mind, nor did he need to explain himself to anyone. Being decisive was something he prided himself on, and there was no such thing as being shameless when it came to one’s survival.

And he had already thought things through.

’Even if they survive, no one’s blaming an E Rank for running.’

That was very true.

’My best chance is heading back to the starting point and regrouping with the others, especially Darius.’

Because if the B Rank couldn’t handle this, and the A Rank clearly wasn’t going to, then it was already over...

-

Meanwhile, behind him, chaos erupted among the group he had left behind.

”Wait! He’s running?!” one of the D Ranks shouted.

”Forget him!” Jared barked instantly. ”Focus!”

It wasn’t like Ethan was actively helping them fend off against the ant beasts anyway.

Moments after, the A Rank moved too, rushing after Ethan silently. After weighing her options, it seemed like a no-brainer, and something about the blue-eyed man drew her towards him.

The D Ranks noticed that too, but there was no time to care or think as the swarm surged once again.

”I will not die here!”

Jared stepped forward with a powerful war cry.

He smashed his shield into the Ant Commander, knocking it back, before crushing the skull of an E Rank Ant Beast with his fist.

The only reason they had lasted this long was that these beasts couldn’t surround them. Being in a narrow tunnel was their biggest saving grace, allowing them to face off against a limited number of beasts at a time.

A smaller Ant Beast rushed at him, and he stomped down on it with his giant armoured foot.

Crunch!

Its head caved in, chitin splintering like glass.

Another ant beast charged at him, but he managed to shield it off.

”Iron Rebound!”

The force detonated outward, rupturing the beast’s body mid-air, its insides spraying across the tunnel walls.

Jared pushed forward like a living wall; the only beast he was unable to kill was the Ant Commander. Instead, that beast kept calling more and ordering the surrounding beasts to continue attacking.

The D Ranks fought beside him, but their composure was slipping.

Fatigue made cowards of even the strongest of people, and the two Titled behind Jared were far from being the strongest.

”There’s too many!” the blade user gasped, his breathing uneven.

”Hold formation!” Jared bellowed.

The blade user swung again, and a burst of compressed air shattered an ant’s shell.

Another beast followed, but this time his timing faltered.

It was only slightly, maybe it was the weariness catching up to him, but that was all it took.

The ant beast lunged low, its mandibles clamped around his ankle.

Crack!

Bone snapped instantly.

”Aaaggghhh!!”

He collapsed, his blade clattering from his grip.

Before he could recover or Jared could shield him from them, the other beasts were on him.

One ant tore into his thigh.

Another into his side.

Mandibles punched through flesh, ripping chunks free.

”Get them off! Get them off me!!!”

He clawed at them desperately, fingers slipping in his own blood.

One ant latched onto his arm and tore it off cleanly with a swing of its head.

”Aaaggghhh!!”

His scream became something inhuman as his arm was wrenched free at the shoulder. Blood sprayed across the stone floor as he choked, screamed, and begged for someone to save him.

All Jared and the remaining D Rank could do was try to block out his cries as they fought and proceeded to be pushed back by the beast swarm.

His wailing only stopped when another mandible crushed his skull.

Then there was a tense silence.

And it wasn’t long after that they joined their fallen companion...