"Don't!!" Isola's eyes widened and warned as he suddenly leaped towards her, intent on using his ring blade to free her from her fate.
But just as she expected, as he sprang forward, the entire organic chamber tremored violently, as if the Kraken itself could sense the impending threat to its precious Life Pearl. No matter how weak its enemy was, it would never risk letting them get near its Life Pearl or disrupt anything.
Without warning, torrents of nightmarish acidic water erupted from all sides of the chamber.
This vile, corrosive elixir was as black as the deepest ocean trenches. Its odor was overpowering and nauseating, a noxious combination of rotting flesh and burnt sulfur that was nearly impossible to endure by any normal person.
Isola could only watch in dismay as the man she barely knew seemed poised to meet a gruesome end.
Despite her warnings, he had risked everything, and it appeared that he would pay the ultimate price for his foolhardiness. However, like he said, doing nothing wouldn't change anything.
But then, her brows furrowed and her breath caught in her throat as a harrowing transformation began to unfold before her.
As the hissing acidic water raced towards him, his body contorted and writhed, as if some dark force had possessed him. The very air around him seemed to crackle and shudder, as though recoiling from the malevolent energy that now emanated from him.
Before her astonished eyes, his skin and flesh burned away as if consumed by some unseen inferno, leaving behind only a charred black skeleton.
Dark green flames danced around the skeletal frame, casting eerie shadows on the chamber walls. The hollow eye sockets glowed with an hellish, dark green light, making it seem as though the very essence of the underworld had been summoned into this mortal domain. In his bony hand, the ring blade remained, as if unaffected by the ghastly flames.
Isola's mind reeled, desperately trying to make sense of the terrifying spectacle before her. It seemed as if he had turned into a creature from the depths of Tartarus itself, a fearsome specter that defied both reason and reality. Was he really an ordinary man or a monster?
But just as she was beginning to grasp the horror of his transformation, the acidic water engulfed the blazing skeleton.
The liquid hissed and spat as it extinguished the dark green flames, and Isola could see the bones of the skeleton dissolving rapidly within the corrosive torrent. In just one or two moments, the once fearsome specter was reduced to nothing more than a fading memory.
Isola stared at the spot where the sailor had been, her shock giving way to a hollow emptiness. She had borne witness to a power beyond her understanding, only to see it snuffed out by the Kraken's relentless defense of its Life Pearl.
In the aftermath of the blazing skeleton's destruction, a heavy, suffocating silence settled over the chamber.
The once chaotic and frenetic energy that had accompanied Asher's transformation and the subsequent onslaught of acidic water had dissipated, leaving an eerie stillness in its wake.
Isola's thoughts swirled like a tempest, struggling to comprehend the inexplicable events she had just witnessed.
In the unsettling quiet, she found herself unexpectedly unnerved by the sudden absence of the mysterious sailor who had tried to save her.
Despite her initial disbelief at the his audacity, a part of her couldn't help but feel a strange emptiness within her upon seeing him dying after trying to rescue her despite knowing what awaited him.
Thinking about his strange transformation, she felt it must be some special power of his race, though she was still unable to believe such a power could be possible.
As she stared into the still waters, lost in her thoughts, Isola suddenly pulled together her brows upon noticing the previously still acidic waters suddenly forming ripples.
Just as she was about to wonder what was going on, her eyes widened upon seeing a bony hand suddenly emerging from the acid.
The skeletal fingers clawed at the air, as if desperately seeking hold on some unseen lifeline. The sight made her eyes tremble, and she found herself holding her breath, unable to look away from the macabre scene unfolding before her.
Her sharp, perceptive gaze remained fixed on the strange sight before her as the bony hand erupted into dark green flames.
The infernal blaze rapidly spread, engulfing the entire skeleton in a vivid, eerie light that cast shifting shadows across the chamber walls. The charred black bones, now ablaze with a hellish aura, rose with a commanding presence from the treacherous acidic waters.
Isola's heart hammered in her chest, her mind racing as she tried to comprehend the extraordinary scene unfolding before her. Her intelligence and curiosity warred with her apprehension as she found herself both fascinated and perturbed by the hellish figure that now stood before her, its bones rapidly putting itself together, almost instantaneously.
As the Umbralfiend Princess, she had seen and experienced many shocking things, but nothing could have prepared her for this.
With each determined step, he waded through the corrosive liquid, his bones disintegrating and reforming in a ceaseless cycle.
Isola watched, both stupified and horrified, as this blazing skeleton pressed onward. She couldn't believe how he was far stronger than before, if that was even him in the first place.
His fiery aura was already scorching the fleshy walls, making them quiver and recoil under its intensity.
But what was even more shocking was that the acid, which had once seemed like an insurmountable obstacle, seemed to gradually lose its potency against him. It was as if he was drawing strength from the very substance that sought to destroy him.
"What are you…" Isola mumbled with a stupefied look as she saw him wading through the acidic waters. She couldn't help feel more curious about this mysterious sailor who defied all laws and rules she knew.
[ Status : Linked STR + 75% DEX +75% ]
MP : 10,232 / 23,907
Asher's eyes darted to his stats, marveling at the stunning revelation that he had reached the strength of a mid-level Soul Reaper!
As the acid continued to dissolve him, his Hellbringer form drew power from the darkness the creature unleashed to kill him as fast as possible.
But he was keenly aware of his rapidly depleting MP that accompanied this surge in strength, and he knew time was of the essence. Not even a minute passed, and already more than half of his MP was exhausted.
His bones were still getting dissolved by the acid but not as instantaneously as before. However, he didn't want to gain any more power and let his MP reduce even faster.
With a steely, determined gaze, he locked eyes with Isola and activated his "Never Look Behind" skill.
In an instant, his blazing figure vanished from the acidic waters, leaving Isola momentarily confounded.
Her confusion was short-lived, however, as she felt the heat of flames whooshing behind her.
Whirling around, her eyes widened in shock at the sight of his half-melted skeletal form, now standing mere inches away.
"I'm getting you out of here," Asher declared, his voice eerily echoing from within the skeletal form as he brandished his ring blade and slashed at the tendrils with all his might.
Isola, weak and sickly from her ordeal, pleaded with him, her voice firm yet with a hint of tremble, "No, please! I cannot abandon my duty to my people. I have to do this as the prophecy foretold!" She mentally conveyed to him with a desperate look.
She never expected he would get this far and didn't take his words seriously. But now that things unfolded like this, she didn't want him to free her.
She had already come so far and so how could she run away from her responsibility and promises she made towards her people? She didn't even want to imagine how their faces would look if they knew she let them down when they needed her the most.
But Asher was resolute as he voiced fiercely, "Fuck the prophecy! Your life is far more worth than being a sacrificial lamb. Even if you sacrifice yourself, your people will die. But if you live you have the chance to change not only your people's fate but your own as well. So, are you really willing to give up on that and die with regrets?" Asher didn't know what prophecy she was talking about or why he was saying all this to her and trying to change her mind. But the face of a certain someone flashed in his mind while talking to her and hearing the word 'prophecy' made him let out his own frustration as well.
However, while he was talking to her, he was still swinging his ring blade with expert precision, trying to slice through the tendrils that bound her.
But the tendrils were too tough and he was only making small cuts that would take him a few more seconds to cut through. However, despite knowing that the Kraken won't use its acid where its heart and Isola was located, he didn't know if it might come up with some other way to kill him.
Isola's eyes widened as his words struck a chord within her. She had spent her entire life dedicated to her people, always pushing aside her own desires and dreams for the sake of others. But in that moment, listening to his words, she couldn't help but feel a spark of hope ignite within her heart.
For the first time, someone made her wonder if her life was only worthy enough to end up as a sacrifice.
For the first time, she dared to entertain the thought that her life could hold value beyond her role as the Midnight Maiden.
She glanced at this mysterious sailor who was risking his life for her sake and felt a new, unfamiliar emotion stirring within her chest. If he had this special and mysterious power he could have escaped on his own and yet he stayed to free her.
His relentless determination and selflessness left Isola feeling both humbled and inspired.
She felt herself drawn to him, not only for the strength and power he displayed, but for the unwavering belief that her life was worth saving. In that moment, she realized that perhaps her destiny was not entirely set in stone, that she might still have the power to change her fate and the future of her people.
*Swooosh!*
But her thoughts were dispersed when the cocoon finally succumbed to the relentless force of his strikes.
*KRRREEEE!*
The moment Asher severed the tendrils and freed Isola from her cocoon, a deep, guttural screech echoed throughout the chamber, as though the Kraken itself was crying out in pain.
The once pulsating walls surrounding them seemed to lose their vigor, their rhythmic undulations faltering and growing weaker.
As the Kraken struggled to regain its bearings, the entire cavernous fleshy chamber shuddered and convulsed, the massive beast's agony reverberating through the very core of its being.
Isola's weakened form tumbled out, the tendrils that had once held her captive now powerless and severed. Her world seemed to blur, the cocoon's disintegration leaving her feeling disoriented and vulnerable.
Her pale face and frail body were signs of her life force barely lingering in her body and with all the shaking under her, she couldn't even muster the strength to balance herself.
But before she could crash onto the floor, his strong, bony arms wrapped around her curvaceous waist, catching her in a protective embrace, his hellish flames not even stinging her in the slightest.
Their faces mere inches apart, Isola's wide eyes met the hollow, glowing depths of his skeletal visage.
The intensity of their gazes created an electric, almost palpable connection that seemed to suspend time itself.
In that brief moment, as he held her close, a strange warmth enveloped Isola – a warmth that seemed to defy the cold, harsh reality of their situation.
Despite the eerie and menacing appearance of his body, there was a gentleness in his grip, as if indirectly telling her that she didn't have to worry anymore.
But she had no idea that Asher was taking a look at his stats and thinking of his next moves to get out of here. He never got the opportunity to properly think about his exit plan since he had no idea how things would go. There was still a large pool of bone melting acid before him and he won't be able to make it across with his remaining MP.
His only relief was that freeing Isola really hurt the Kraken more than he expected. He never thought this monster could let out such a cry of pain and all the shaking in the inside only went on to prove that the Kraken was stumbling around without a good hold over its balance.
Asher felt that he had no choice but to risk crossing across. Worst case, Isola would die while he can escape to his Damned Dimension. At least he succeeded in what he set out to do.
However, just as he was about to cross, a sudden, swift movement caught his attention. The broken tendrils, which had seemed lifeless just a moment ago, sprang to life with a vengeance.
They shot towards him like lightning, catching him off guard and ensnaring him in their serpentine grip, making Isola gasp as she fell to the floor.
"Wha-?!" Asher's shock was palpable as the tendrils with the toughness of steel, coiled around him, trapping his limbs and immobilizing him within their cold, unyielding embrace.
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