Chapter 148: A Promise in Exchange
The moment they collided, the ground beneath cracked before it collapsed entirely. A shockwave ripped outward in every direction, tearing through the mountainside as layers of stone and ice were blown apart like paper.
For a split second, there was nothing but white, until...
CRASH!
Kko tore through the smoke, claws slamming downward with enough force to split the earth open. The strike carved a massive trench across the mountainside, ice erupting upward, freezing everything it touched.
But she hit nothing, as the Mad Dog was already gone.
He reappeared above her, a spear in his hand dripping with venom as he drove it downward with effortless force. His massive hound form twisted midair, jaws wide open as it delivered a follow-up attack.
Both Morphing and Manifestation...
She managed to dodge the spear, but not before the bite slammed down into her shoulder, force driving her entire body into the ground. The mountain gave way, collapsing partially as debris rained down upon them.
"Professor, it’s gonna hit us too—!" Aren shouted, observing the trajectory of the falling debris.
"Got it!" Sterling nodded, slamming her hands down violently onto the wooden floors.
Immediately, a matrix of barely visible strings wove together outside of the cabin. As soon as debris touched it, rocks were sliced into a million individual pieces, almost like passing through a mesh grinder, turning into dust and falling harmlessly to the floor.
Aren staggered, barely managing to keep his footing as the ground beneath him shook violently.
"...This is insane," Daniel muttered, gripping the edge of the table just to stay upright. "Is this what our peak is supposed to look like?"
"You won’t reach your peak if Kko loses this fight..." Sterling replied grimly.
All eyes were still on the fight, on the Lord-Class Beast that seemed to be on the counter-attack.
A massive chunk of the mountain was ripped free as the White Tiger retaliated, her claws raking upward in a sweeping motion that carved through both stone and flesh alike.
The attack hit the man and absolutely split straight through his body mid-motion. His torso separated as limbs tore free, his whole body literally separating into three pieces as they slid downward.
For a moment—
It looked like she’d won.
But, the man grinned. Even without seeing his mouth, Aren knew. He never felt like he was in danger.
"Ahh...that was my favorite jacket."
Kko’s eyes widened, immediately backing off as she gauged him again. She breathed heavily, even if there weren’t any immediately dangerous wounds or scars on her, Aren realized one thing—
She’s running out of ether.
Lord-Class Beasts and above tend to stay in human form, simply because being in their original body consumes too much ether.
But from the looks of it, the Mad Hound was in the same state. He’d taken on so many hits that his wounds were regenerating slower that before.
But it didn’t matter much. The man casually used his right arm to tap his mid-section back in place before the skin around it bound together, completely healing his wound as if nothing happened.
"...Tch," Kko clicked her tongue, realizing the same fact. If she was out of ether, the chances of beating him were absolutely zero.
For a brief moment, neither of them moved. Even the storm seemed to quiet, as if the mountain itself understood what was about to happen.
Aren felt it immediately, the shift in intent as they both stared each other down.
They’re trying to end it with the next move.
Professor Sterling realized the same thing next to him, already reinforcing the cabin with as much ether as she could.
He turned his eyes back to the field...where it finally erupted.
The next instant Kko surged forward. Her claws tore through the air in a single motion, releasing a barrage of condensed ether slashes that tore across the battlefield and even the sound barrier itself. Aren was sure that each swipe was enough to split the mountain itself in half.
At the same time, the Mad Dog moved.
His arms snapped back, his jagged spear twisted together before hurling it forward with everything he had. The spear tore through the air, spilling its blackened venom apart in its wake as it met Kko’s attack head-on.
The collision erased everything.
A deafening explosion swallowed the battlefield, snow and stone erupting outward in a violent storm as the entire mountainside seemed to give way.
The shockwave tore through the air with such force that even within Sterling’s barrier, Aren felt his footing give way, the threads of the dome trembling under the pressure as if they might collapse at any second.
Both Aren and Daniel struggled to stay on their feet, grasping to stay in place as the pressure tore through the cabin.
For a few seconds, there was nothing but white. Snow, mist, and debris churned together into a blinding veil that hid everything beyond it.
The sound faded just as quickly as it came, leaving behind a heavy silence that pressed down on everyone inside the cabin.
Slowly, the storm began to settle, mist thinning before the scene beyond came into view. Sterling gasped, placing a hand onto her mouth as muffled cries broke out.
Kko crashed into the mountain.
Her massive form had already disappeared, her body reverting back to human as she lay crumpled in the snow, barely moving. A deep gash tore across her stomach, blood spreading outward beneath her and staining the white ground in red.
Across from her, the Mad Dog still stood.
The remnants of the spear had pierced through his shoulder, his body visibly damaged from the clash—but even as they watched, the wound began to close. Flesh pulled itself back together until it had never been there at all.
But instead of giving the finishing blow, he turned...and stared directly at Aren.
His breath caught. There was no killing intent behind it...just recognition. Like a hunter finally finding what it had been tracking all along.
Aren’s fingers tightened instinctively around the drake, pulling it closer to his chest as if that alone could shield it. The small creature trembled in his arms, claws digging into his sleeve as it tried to press itself further into him.
"...Brother...?" it whispered weakly.
The Mad Dog took a step forward, completely unbothered. The distance between them suddenly felt far too small.
And it really was. As just in his next blink, the Mad Dog was right in front of his face.
Aren froze.
What—
His mind raced, his instincts screamed at him to move, to run, to do something...but his body refused to follow
Aren’s muscles locked, not from fear alone, but from the crushing certainty that if he moved—
He would die.
Across from him, the Mad Dog tilted his head slightly, as if observing something curious. Then, in that same rough, filtered voice, he demanded:
"...Hand it over."
His body remained locked in place, the drake held tightly against his chest as his mind spiraled through every possible outcome at once.
Fight.
If I remove the dampener and push everything into a single strike.
Maybe I can catch him off guard!
Impossible.
Run.
Grab Professor Sterling and the others, break through the back window and disappear into the storm.
Impossible.
Wait.
Reinforcements could come at any time. Fifteen minutes. Has it been that long? It might as well have been a lifetime.
They wouldn’t last fifteen seconds.
Impossible.
Every option circled back to the same end.
Death.
"...Maybe you need a little push."
The Mad Dog turned his head, gaze drifting over the room.
Marcus, barely standing. Daniel, unable to move. Iris and Emily, unconscious.
Luna.
The man’s head tilted slightly as he observed her. He paused faintly before whispering. "Perfect Compatibility Syndrome...Yes... I once had that too."
Aren’s eyes widened. For a brief second, he thought he misheard him. But the Mad Dog didn’t look away.
"There’s a way to fix it," he continued, almost casually. "You probably don’t know that yet."
"You try to suppress it, it breaks her from the inside. You let it run, it consumes her..."
"...There’s a method," the Mad Dog continued. "Done right...she can live."
"..."
"..."
"But that’s not really your concern right now, is it?"
Immediately, he appeared right next to Luna, a blade pressed against her neck as he slowly drew blood.
"No," he said quietly. "Your concern is whether she makes it through the next ten seconds."
"Because if you don’t hand it over," the Mad Dog added, almost thoughtfully, "I’ll start there."
Aren’s hands trembled, staring at Luna before he looked down upon the drake within his arms.
"...Brother?" it whispered, voice shaking as it clutched onto him tighter. "I’m scared...!"
Aren closed his eyes, gritting his teeth as he ran through the options once more.
But ultimately...
"I’m sorry."
His arms moved, reluctantly, almost like someone had possessed him and caused it to extend. Like something was forcing the motion forward while another part clawed desperately to hold it back.
The drake trembled in his hands, its small claws tightening around his sleeve as if it could anchor itself there.
"...Brother...?" it whispered.
Aren finally opened his eyes, looking not at the Mad Dog or Luna—but at the creature in his arms.
For a moment, the chaos around them disappeared as time seemed to slow. Yet conviction, or maybe guilt, swallowed him, allowing him only to utter a single thing.
"I’m going to get you back...I promise."
The drake’s grip loosened slightly. Hesitating slightly, it closed its eyes, a single tear forming as it nodded slowly.
"Okay."
"I believe you."
Aren’s arms stopped for a split second, then he pushed the small drake who’d considered him his Brother, his savior...forward into the Mad Dog’s arm—
And let go.