System's POV
chapter-296

There was a small Elite Group of Artemians that separated from their formation to continue their pursuit of the fleeing Wanderers.

Their captain had the ability to use group teleport, allowing them to teleport anywhere within two miles in any direction.

Fifty Artemians, led by a Rank 7 Sovereign, appeared at the front of the Monster Stampede, blocking their path to escape.

Monsters were stronger and faster than Wanderers, so they took the lead, while the teenage boys and girls were at the rear of their formation.

"Lowly creatures, just accept your fate and allow yourselves to be sacrificed!" the Rank 7 Sovereign shouted. "Kill them!"

The Artemians charged forward, with their armor glowing in a bright light.

This light increased their strength for a period of time, giving them the confidence to annihilate the Monster Stampede.

At least, that was what they originally believed.

When the two forces were about to clash, the ground under their feet gave way, and they all fell into a ditch.

This ditch was only three meters deep, and the Artemians were four meters tall.

Due to how sudden the situation was, they were unable to react in time and got trampled by the Monster Stampede.

Blacky, who was leading the pack, barked, telling the Monsters behind him to Gang Bang the fallen Artemians.

All of them were Rank 5 Monsters and above, so they weren't any weaker than the Artemians.

Because of this, they trampled, mawed, bit, slashed, and shredded the arrogant invaders who must have thought that they were dealing with Low-Ranked Monsters.

While the monsters were attacking the Artemians trapped in the ditch, Rocky was also attacking them from below ground.

Of course, he focused his attention on the Rank 7 Sovereign, which was the strongest of them all.

As long as he could contain their captain, Blacky and the other monsters would handle the rest.

Thirteen had also taken into consideration that, when the battle started, the Artemians would divide their forces to handle the different variables that would pop up across the battlefield.

But, the boy also considered one important factor, and that was the arrogance of the Artemians.

For them, any creature born in Solterra was a lowly creature who couldn't measure up to their might.

Unfortunately, they had greatly underestimated the number and strength of the Monsters of the Arcadian Archipelago, who didn't hesitate to engage them in battle.

Dying screams reverberated in the surroundings as Giga went on a rampage and smashed every Artemian within his reach.

When he fought against Arundel, he was clearly outmatched.

In his dying moments, the one thing he regretted was being too weak to help Zion, so when the two of them had a heart-to-heart talk, the Blaze Skunk asked his Master to make him stronger.

Thirteen agreed. Instead of allowing Giga to break through to the next Rank, and become a Rank 6 Monster, he made the Skunk clear certain conditions, allowing him to evolve into a Sovereign.

A Rank 5 Sovereign was just as strong as a Rank 6 Alpha Monster, and the path that the ten-year-old had chosen for one of his best friends was the path of the Sovereign.

But, Giga wasn't just an ordinary Sovereign.

He was a mutated Sovereign who had drunk the blood and eaten the meat of a Rank 9 Fire Dragon, making him stronger than ordinary monsters with the same rank as him.

He was still weaker than the Rank 7 Captain of the Artemians, but it didn't matter. After all, he wasn't fighting him in a one-on-one battle.

He was fighting him with his allies, who had faced Arundel alongside him.

Hercules was like a juggernaut who smashed against the Rank 7 Monster's head, breaking the Captain's teeth.

The Obsidian Tiger Beetle wasn't a monster that specialized in attacks.

No. It was a monster that specialized in defense.

But, thanks to its ability, Road Runner, it was able to run at great speeds. Using the built-up momentum, it would ram itself against any target, making them feel as if they were hit by a bullet train.

Blacky, who specialized in speed, bit on the Artemian Captain's neck, holding him in place.

Giga then activated his ability, Titan's Heart, and transformed into a seven-meter-tall Blaze Skunk.

The three friends had coordinated their time perfectly.

At the same time that Blacky bit on the Captain's neck, Giga's blaze was only two seconds away from descending on the Captain's head.

A split second before the moment of impact, Blacky backed off, so that he wouldn't be caught in the aftermath of one of Giga's strongest close combat abilities.

It was none other than the Gigaton Smash, which was imbued with the flames of a Fire Dragon.

A second later, a cracking sound was heard, followed by a dying scream as blazing flames spread in the surroundings.

Giga didn't take any chances and unleashed consecutive Gigaton Smash until the Captain's head turned into a burning meat paste.

"No! Spare me!"

"Stop! I order you to stop!"

"I am an Artemian! I won't die here! I can't die here!"

"You lowly monsters! Damn you all!"

The cries fell on deaf ears as the monsters continued their rampage, not showing a shred of mercy.

When the Wanderers caught up with the monster army, all they saw was the bloodied bodies of the Artemians, being eaten by the monsters.

Giga gave the Rank 7 Sovereign Core to Hercules, while he and Blacky tore off some meat from the foe they had killed.

They had no idea what the Artemians tasted like, so the two decided to have a taste.

After chewing a few times, the Skunk and the Hound spat at the same time and looked at the dead body in disdain.

"This F*cker's flesh taste like that poisonous toad that we tried to eat last time," Blacky barked.

"Yes." Giga growled. "Absolutely disgusting."

After the two of them finished giving their criticisms about the taste of the Artemian Captain, Giga gestured to the Wanderers to keep running.

They still had plenty of distance to cover, and judging by their speed, it would take them at least half an hour more to reach the pillar of blue light in the distance.

Thirteen had asked them to accompany the Wanderers and ensure that they were safe.

The Trolls and the Ogres were inside Rocky's Mobile Fortress, ready to assist in case they needed backup.

They weren't really made for long-distance marathons, so they were hitching a ride in the Magma Bal-Boa, ready to assist their friends at a moment's notice.

Although they weren't saying anything, all of them who had fought against Arundel could feel it in the air.

Something very dangerous and deadly was looming in the heavens above.

Feeling anxious, Giga urged the Wanderers to increase their pace so that he could return to his Master's side before something outside of Thirteen's calculations took place.