Garner went silent for a second, then the veins on his forehead started to twitch. He forced a smile on his face and said. "Good, good. I will remember to hang your head on my front gate to remind stupid lords like you."
Benimaru didn't say anything; instead, he analyzed the status screen before his eyes.
[ Garner, Lord of the Fallen Leaves (Cursed Mera) (4th Stage Novice Realm) : Dark magicians of the Demon Realm. Cursed Meras are mostly seen on the 14th Floor. They are known for their toxic and cursed tree magic usage. They are also hard to kill, as they could seep away life force from plant life in a matter of seconds. ]
Benimaru's face darkened a little after reading that, but he quickly hid it away, not letting Garner show any sign of weakness. 'This will be hard. He is not like the opponents I fought in the past. He is a prodigy of the bottom floor's race, and the characteristics of this race are a bit broken.'
"Huh? Why are you silent? Is it because you are scared of me, right?" Garner smirked while pressing his right hand forward. "Well, it looks like this fight will finish very fast."
Tree roots that were like sharp spikes sprung out of the ground, aiming to make Benimaru into a honeycomb.
But Benimaru was waiting for this to take Garner by surprise and possibly finish it in one sweep. He brought out his katana, slashing it multiple times in a flash. Then he used his purple lightning to burst himself toward Garner.
Garner, who had just finished making that move, was taken by surprise, not even noticing Benimaru's sudden dash toward him.
Benimaru came before Garner and swung his katana, which was burning with purple flames. Garner quickly crossed his arms, and a thick shield made of unknown wood was conjured that blocked Benimaru's attack. However, that wasn't enough, as Benimaru's katana just cut through half of it when the purple flame turned into a blaze, eating Garner's entire shield.
BOOM!
A loud explosion occurred, blasting Garner away. He smashed into a tree, eventually stopping his flight. He got out of the thick tree that was able to take in Garner's force and his whole body. Garner looked at his hands, which were charred and broken beyond repair.
But that was subverted when tree roots came out of his back, inserting themselves into the tree he was stuck in. In a matter of seconds, Garner's arms got healed at the cost of the massive and healthy tree dying.
Garner then shifted his focus to Benimaru, who was dashing toward him at full speed. He quickly made a sign with both of his hands and said. " [ Curse of Gargatos - Cruel Tongue ] "
Seven tree roots burst out of Garner's back, moving in an unpredictable manner like an octopus's legs. His eyes turned black, as if he were being possessed by someone. Garner looked at Benimaru, tilting his head like a zombie.
Benimaru had his guard up when he saw Garner use some unknown spell. But that still didn't let him be safe. The moment he came near Garner, the tentacle-like roots shot at him like arrows, not letting Benimaru even react.
'So fast!?' Benimaru's eyes widened in shock as he could only think of one way to avoid them. He swiped his left hand from left to right and whispered. " [ Wall of Devastation ] "
A rectangle shaped wall made of purple fire, conjured before Benimaryu in an instant. This was a combination of two spells he bought from the shop. There was no spell in the shop currently that did match with his power, so he had to come up with his own.
This wall had strong defensive ability and quake damage too, which was shown right now.
Boom!
The tentacle roots tried to pierce through that wall but got blocked as if they were hit against a boulder made of steel, and that wasn't the end of it as a strong repulsive force and explosion occurred that forced the tentacle roots away while also damaging them.
However, it looks like these damages were nothing, as they healed in a matter of seconds. On the other hand, Benimaru used that small opening to come closer to Garner.
Garner knew his tentacle roots would be able to attack Benimaru now and even be able to stop him, but he wasn't satisfied with just that. He opened his mouth wide open, and along with that, a green flower with four dark petals bloomed on top of his head.
A dark green energy ball started to conjure in his mouth, aiming at Benimaru, who was up close.
[ Curse of Gargatos - Sun Eater ]
Garner used a spell that worked like photosynthesis, but here it was to make an energy ball from the sun's energy with special attributes to it. If Benimaru gets touched by that, his body would start to corrode at breakneck speed, and he would have to use more than enough energy to heal it than normal times.
However, Benimaru didn't know that, but it didn't matter much as he could feel the fetal threat from it. So he also decided to use his own skills to counter it.
He came to a halt and inserted his katana in the ground. Knowing he was about to get attacked from everywhere by the tentacle roots and the possible attack from Garner's mouth.
" [ Chaos Dome ] " Just as Benimaru uttered those words, a sphere spread out of his katana that was mixed with purple thunder and purple fire, which clashed against the tentacle roots.
At that moment, the energy ball inside Garner's mouth shot out like a cannonball. A dark beam with green tints on it made contact with Benimaru's expanding dome.
Boom..
Then simultaneously, large explosions occurred that blasted away the trees and soil.
"You…" Garner whispered in a hoarse tone with a shocked expression, as he didn't expect someone weaker than him to explode with such power. His tentacle roots — which were almost destroyed by the counterattack of Benimaru's dome — started to restore themselves after absorbing the life essence of the surrounding plants.
In the center of the explosion, where Benimaru was, the dust settled down, revealing Benimaru, who was intact. Instead of looking ahead, he glanced at his pair of burned hands. 'Somehow, that beam actually managed to enter my dome. I'm glad I used this technique, or I might have been heavily injured.'
Finally, he looked at Garner, who looked intact, just like him. 'This vitality… this is going to be a big headache. I have to finish this quickly, or I hope my stamina can hold till the end.'
While Benimaru was contemplating the rest of the fight, Garner was thinking of something else. 'How was he able to damage me while being under the influence of Lord Gargatos's power? His powers—it feels so familiar—as if I have seen it many times in my life.' Garner halted his train of thought at that moment as he saw Benimaru about to make a move.
Benimaru steeled his heart and came up with a plan. 'I guess I will have to destroy the source of his recovery ability.'
…
Meanwhile, on the other side of things.
Ragnar was running as fast as possible with Ravenna on his shoulder. 'I have to leave this place fast or they might cau- "
Ragnar wasn't able to finish his thought when he felt two unknown yet familiar presences from behind. He ran as fast as possible without looking back, as he knew who they were. 'Damn it, they are so fast!'
Gorebuzz made cricket-like noises upon noticing Ragnar. It left behind its partner, Swinefeind, and sprinted with its full speed, which resulted in catching up to Ragnar.
Ragnar knew he couldn't outrun them, so he made a choice instantly. He came to a sudden halt and gave a roundhouse kick – rotating his body – taking the Gorebuzz by complete surprise.
Bam!
Ragnar's kick landed on Gorebuzz's face, smashing its body into the tree nearby. Then he dropped Ravenna's body to the side, letting her rest against a tree.
After doing that, Ragnar quickly came before Gorebuzz. He rested his right feet on its stomach and then grabbed hold of its arms.
Gritting his teeth, Ragnar gave a silent roar and pulled both of its arms out from its body.
Rippp!
"KRAA!" The Gorebuzz shrieked in pain after losing its arms.
Meanwhile, Ragnar played with the Gorebuzz's arms a little, eventually becoming familiar with them. After he was done, he looked to the side, at the Gorebuzz and swung the scythe on his left hand, severing its upper body from its bottom.
The Gorebuzz was about to heal its arms and give a try to kill Ragnar, as without its arms it is nothing. But it didn't expect Ragnar would use its weapons against itself, taking it by surprise once again.
Ragnar wasn't able to go for a surekill as the Swinefiend had already arrived. He glanced at it, preparing his newly found weapons. 'I hope this can kill it. These guys have vitality beyond imagination.'
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