"What the fuck?" Wain exclaimed, looking up at the magic circle high in the sky.
He didn't expect the Wyvern to decide to attack him from that distance. There were several kilometers between them, but that didn't stop one of the four beasts from springing into action.
There were few humans in the ice-land territory at the time. Wain was the only one who sneaked closer to the center.
The others hesitated to enter further. No one wanted to die and risk their lives, they wanted to learn more about their enemies and the island first.
Wain, the ice cliffs, and a few monsters were the only ones who could suffer a wyvern attack.
Crackle.
The magic circle ostensibly glowed, and several blue flashes flew out of it. Wain prepared to dodge, but they flew not toward him but toward the hills in the distance. There were three hills in all, and on each of them flew a huge tomb of ice.
Cracks appeared in them, and they began to crumble, like sarcophagi holding ancient evil within them. Massive, stone gargoyles crawled out of them, their bodies covered in places with a thick layer of ice.
Each gargoyle was armed with a long spear, but they were slightly different. The spear of the first gargoyle had one tip, the spear of the second had two, and the third had three. They stared at Wain but did not move.
Wain glanced at the Wyvern and saw it close its eyes as if to show that Wain was not yet worthy of fighting it.
"Huh, that's pretty arrogant, well okay, I'll pass your trial." Wain uttered and rushed towards the gargoyles.
They humbly waited for him like guards, and when Wain got close enough, they simultaneously raised their spears. They also threw them in sync, putting Wain at a disadvantage.
He couldn't fight off the three spears, so he had to fall back. The gargoyles jumped down the slopes and gripped their spears tightly, then they attacked Wain sharply, striking him with perfectionist precision.
Wain's eyes sparkled, and he swung his sword to block the first gargoyle's lunge, then the second gargoyle attacked from the left and the third from the right.
They formed a triangular formation and acted as a single mechanism, preventing Wain from taking a single step to the right.
Their lances struck at various points on Wain's body and vital organs. However, he was fast enough to react to their attacks, but he couldn't attack back.
Wain found himself in the same situation as Beastfolk, who was forced to defend himself under Wain's hail of attacks.
'Shit, maybe I should use one of the forms,' Wain thought and ducked slightly. The tip of the spear flew over his head.
'No, I can't, I need to conserve energy for the battle with the wyvern, and I also need to think about where I'll rest afterwards.' The second gargoyle aimed at Wain's legs, but he jumped up slightly, bypassing the attack.
'Hmm, until recently, I didn't have the skill to attack enemies en masse, but I solved that problem a few hours ago.' Wain thought and activated his new skill, The Serpent's Step: Tail.
A massive, phantom serpent's tail appeared behind him, and Wain swung his arm. The tail, like a whip, collapsed on the gargoyles and tossed them aside. However, they didn't die, they put their spears in front of them at the last moment and thus softened the blow.
But, for Wain, this was the perfect opportunity to start dominating this battle. The gargoyles had taken him in their pincers and kept him from moving, but now he was free.
Whooooooosh.
Wain turned into a wind burst and attacked the first gargoyle. He punched the monster in the stomach, shattering the stone armor into small shards, and then thrust his sword deep into the gargoyle's chest.
He used the Shattered Part and linked the two swords together, there was an explosion of darkness, and the first gargoyle was destroyed.
The remaining two did not change their strategy. They acted together and simultaneously attacked Wain. Their footsteps were bulky and heavy, the ice cracking beneath them, but they were as fast as a blizzard.
Wain could now defend himself as well as attack, so when the spears almost reached him, he swung toward the gargoyles and swung his sword at one of them.
The blast of darkness severely injured the gargoyle, its stone armor beginning to melt under the corrosive effect. However, it did not retreat and continued its attack.
The gargoyles swung their spears simultaneously again, but Wain did not dodge this time.
He blocked the spear of the second gargoyle with his sword, and the spear of the third he gripped firmly with his hand. Then Wain made a sharp 180-degree turn and snatched the spear of the third gargoyle.
Wain smirked and thrust the spear into the wounded, blast of darkness, the third gargoyle. He swung the spear with force and tore the monster's body in two.
The second gargoyle did not know what to do in this situation. It had lost its comrades, and alone the gargoyle could not defeat Wain, so the monster made a desperate move.
The gargoyle's eyes glowed brightly, as did the cracks in its stone armor. Wain's eyes narrowed, and he turned into a windblown flash, moving a great distance away from the monster.
Boooooom.
The gargoyle exploded, and hundreds of icy shards of infused energy headed in different directions. There was nowhere for Wain to hide, no rocks or trees around, so he had to duck and batter the shards away with his sword.
When it was over, three purple souls flew into Wain's body.
'What? Were they Heroic Rated? Huh, you'd expect nothing less from a creature with a Legendary Rating Soul.' Wain thought and turned toward the Wyvern.
The beast didn't move, but it was no longer asleep. The Wyvern stared at Wain. Its blue eyes, like the eternal ice, were mesmerizing and intimidating.
"I passed your trial! Don't you think it's time to move on to something more interesting!" Wain exclaimed.
He was far away, but the Wyvern definitely heard him. The beast sighed, turning the rocks in front of it into ice floes, and began to rise slowly. The ground trembled, and the four icy rocks next to the Wyvern began to crumble and rumble down.
Wain felt his heart begin to beat faster. He had waited a long time for this moment, he needed to get the Legendary Rating Soul as one of the conditions for evolution, but he also wanted a masterpiece battle.
When Wain fought Ambassador of Light, Elf, in the Arena, he experienced unforgettable emotions. It was comparable only to the battle with Forgotten in the first area of Purgatory that Wain visited.
The Wyvern was enormous, comparable to a mountain, both in size and grandeur. Wain trembled and began preparations for a massive battle. The Ring of Damned glowed brightly, and a blue pill and a potion of blue liquid appeared in his hand.
Wain is also prepared to activate one of the forms. Wain wasn't going to spare any energy for this battle, so he wanted to use Black Sun Aristocrat's fourth form.
Energy began to build up around him, but suddenly something stopped Wain.
"Stop..."
"Not his..."
"I..."
That voice came from Wain's chest, or rather from his Soul Altar.