Chapter 102: core of zeriod

Chapter 102: Chapter 102: core of zeriod

Benjamin came back.

He stumbled out of the rubble, his body emerging from the debris like a corpse clawing its way out of a grave. His body was broken, shattered in ways that should have been fatal, his limbs twisted at unnatural angles, his ribs cracked and splintered, his internal organs bruised and bleeding. His face was a mess, a canvas of blood and bruises and swelling that made him almost unrecognizable, his features distorted by the damage he had sustained. His arm was still bleeding, the wound refusing to close, the blood dripping steadily onto the ground beneath him, forming a dark, spreading pool. His regeneration was slow, weak, struggling, the once-formidable ability now reduced to a pathetic trickle of healing that could barely keep up with the damage he had taken.

But he was standing. He was walking. He was alive.

He was shaking.

His whole body was trembling, a fine, violent tremor that shook him from head to toe. His hands were shaking, his fingers twitching and spasming uncontrollably. His legs were shaking, barely able to support his weight, threatening to give out with every step he took. His breath was shaking, coming in short, ragged gasps that rattled in his chest and echoed in his throat. He was scared. He was terrified. He was broken, not just in body but in spirit, his mind teetering on the edge of something dark and dangerous.

Then he stopped.

He looked at Daniel, his eyes wild and unfocused, taking in the sight of his enemy standing there, calm and composed, untouched by the chaos that surrounded them. He looked at the clones, the army of shadows that stood behind Daniel, waiting, obedient, patient. He looked at the girls, Fluffy and Lyra and Cheeky, sitting on the ground, exhausted but alive, watching him with expressions of contempt and pity. He looked at the destruction around them, the shattered trees, the crumbled rocks, the torn earth, the evidence of his defeat written in the landscape itself.

And he laughed.

He laughed and laughed and laughed, a loud, crazed, manic laugh that tore from his throat and echoed through the clearing. It was a horrible sound, devoid of humor, filled instead with madness and desperation and a terrible, clawing denial. It bounced off the trees, the sound reverberating through the forest. It filled the air, pressing down on everyone who heard it like a physical weight.

"It’s already time!" he shouted, his voice cracking and breaking. "Hahaha! It’s already time!"

Daniel frowned, his brow furrowing in confusion. "What?"

"You fools!" Benjamin shouted, his eyes wild and gleaming with a terrible, manic light. "You fools! You’ve already lost! Hahaha!"

Daniel’s eye twitched, a small, almost imperceptible movement that betrayed the annoyance building inside him. He was annoyed, his patience wearing thin. He was tired, the long fight finally taking its toll. He was done with this guy, done with his madness, done with his desperate, pathetic attempts to cling to some imagined victory.

"Alright," he said, his voice flat and cold. "Enough."

He raised his hand, a simple, casual gesture that carried the weight of absolute authority. He gestured at the clones, his shadowy army standing ready behind him.

"Beat him up."

The clones moved.

One hundred shadow clones charged at Benjamin, their dark forms surging forward like a tide of darkness, a wave of shadow and fury. They were dark, their bodies made of shadow and substance, solid and real and terrifying. They were silent, their movements eerily quiet, no battle cries, no shouts of anger, just the soft whisper of their feet on the earth and the steady rhythm of their advance. They were relentless, their pace never faltering, never slowing, driven by a singular purpose. They were a tide of shadows, sweeping across the clearing like a flood. They were a storm of darkness, unstoppable and overwhelming. They were an army of one, a hundred extensions of Daniel’s will, each one identical, each one obedient, each one deadly.

Benjamin tried to fight back, his survival instincts kicking in despite the exhaustion and fear that gripped him. He raised his hand, his fingers spread wide, and wind gathered around him, swirling and spinning and coalescing into a blade of pure, concentrated force. He slashed, the blade cutting through the air with a sharp, whistling sound. A clone exploded, its body dissolving into shadow and mist. He slashed again, his movements desperate and wild. Another clone exploded, its form breaking apart and fading into nothingness.

But there were too many. Too many clones. Too many shadows. Too many Daniels.

They swarmed him, their dark forms closing in from all sides, cutting off his escape routes, hemming him in. They punched him, their fists connecting with his body with sickening thuds. They kicked him, their feet slamming into his ribs and legs and face. They slammed him, their bodies crashing into his with the force of a battering ram. They crushed him, their weight pressing down on him, overwhelming him, burying him under a pile of shadow and fury.

Benjamin screamed, a raw, primal sound that tore from his throat and echoed through the clearing. He tried to dodge, his body twisting and turning in a desperate attempt to avoid the onslaught. He tried to block, his arms coming up to protect his face and chest. He tried to fight back, his wind blade slashing and cutting at the clones that surrounded him. But he was overwhelmed, his defenses crumbling under the relentless assault. He was surrounded, the clones pressing in from all sides. He was buried, his body disappearing under a pile of dark forms.

The clones kept attacking, their assault never ceasing, never slowing. They kept punching, their fists raining down on Benjamin’s broken body. They kept kicking, their feet slamming into him with brutal efficiency. They kept slamming, their bodies crashing into his with the force of a landslide. They kept crushing, their weight pressing down on him, suffocating him, breaking him.

Benjamin’s regeneration was failing, his body finally reaching its limit. His body was breaking, bones cracking and splintering under the assault. His bones were cracking, the sound sharp and sickening in the chaos. His flesh was tearing, skin splitting and blood spraying.

The clones didn’t stop. They kept attacking, their assault as relentless as ever. They kept punching, their fists never tiring. They kept kicking, their feet never slowing. They kept slamming, their bodies never faltering. They kept crushing, their weight never lifting.

Benjamin screamed, his voice high and desperate. He cried, tears streaming down his face and mixing with the blood. He begged, his voice breaking on every word. He pleaded, his pride shattered, his dignity gone.

"Stop!" he shouted, his voice cracking. "Please! Stop!"

The clones didn’t stop. They kept attacking, their assault as relentless as ever. They kept punching, their fists never tiring. They kept kicking, their feet never slowing. They kept slamming, their bodies never faltering. They kept crushing, their weight never lifting.

Daniel watched, his expression calm, his eyes cold. He felt nothing as he watched Benjamin suffer, no pity, no remorse, no satisfaction. He just watched, his cold eyes taking in every detail of the beating, cataloging every blow, every scream, every plea.

"Enough," he said, his voice cutting through the chaos.

The clones stopped, their assault ceasing instantly. They stepped back, their dark forms retreating, their bodies moving with mechanical precision. They stood there, waiting, obedient, patient.

Benjamin was on his knees, his body broken and battered, barely recognizable as the man he had been. His body was broken, shattered in ways that should have been fatal. His face was a mess, a mask of blood and bruises and swelling. His blood was everywhere, pooling on the ground beneath him, splattered on the clones, staining the earth. His regeneration had stopped, the ability finally giving out. He wasn’t healing anymore. He was just there, just broken, just defeated.

But he was laughing.

"Hahaha," he laughed, his voice weak and broken. "Hahaha. Hahaha."

Paul watched from the ground, his body broken and battered, his face pale and drawn. His eyes were wide, filled with a mixture of horror and fascination.

"He’s going insane," Paul said, his voice hoarse and weak. "He’s lost his mind."

Daniel didn’t answer. He was thinking, his mind working overtime. He was recalling, piecing together the fragments of information he had gathered. He was putting the pieces together, connecting the dots, seeing the pattern that had been hidden beneath the surface.

The attack on the city, the chaos and destruction that had engulfed the streets. The barrier, the magical shield that had sealed them in. The monsters, the horde of creatures that had swarmed through the streets. The elves, the mysterious attackers who had appeared from nowhere. The crystal, the object that seemed to be at the center of everything.

He looked at Elara, his eyes sharp and assessing. She was standing near the edge of the clearing, her face pale, her eyes wide.

"Elara," he said, his voice calm but insistent.

She looked at him, her expression confused. "Yes?"

"What were their goals? What were they trying to do?"

Elara blinked, caught off guard by the question. "What?"

"Their goals. What were they trying to do? What were they after?"

Elara thought about it, her brow furrowing as she tried to recall what she knew. Her expression was confused, her mind struggling to process the question.

"They wanted the Core of Zariod," she said slowly. "It’s a crystal. A special crystal. They need it to summon the demon lord."

Daniel nodded, his expression unchanged. "And where is this crystal?"

"It’s in the guild. In a vault. It’s protected."

Daniel nodded again. "And the vault? How big is it?"

Elara frowned, her confusion deepening. "What?"

"The vault. How big is it? Can it fit people? Can it fit ten people?"

Elara’s eyes widened, realization beginning to dawn. "I... I don’t know. Maybe? It’s a room. A large room."

Daniel smiled, a cold, dangerous smile that sent shivers down the spines of everyone who saw it.

"So it’s a room," he said. "That’s why I’m sure they have it now."

The others stared at him, their mouths open, their eyes wide. They didn’t understand, their minds struggling to keep up with his reasoning.

"What?" Paul said, his voice confused. "What do you mean?"

Daniel looked at him, his expression calm, his eyes cold.

"Their goal was the crystal. The crystal is in the guild. The guild is currently unprotected. So their plan was to use the city as a distraction."

He paused, letting his words sink in.

"The city was attacked. The people were panicking. The guild members were busy. The vice leaders were fighting. Everyone was distracted."

He paused again, his eyes moving from face to face, ensuring that everyone was listening.

"And this elf? He was another distraction. He kept us busy. He kept us fighting. He kept us away from the guild."

He looked at Benjamin, his eyes cold and assessing, taking in the laughing, broken form.

"So someone is in there right now," Daniel said, his voice flat and matter-of-fact. "Someone is in the guild. Someone is taking the crystal."

Elara’s face went pale, her hands shaking at her sides.

"But... but the crystal is in a vault," she said, her voice desperate. "A vault that no one can break easily."

Daniel looked at her, his expression unchanged. "How big is the vault?"

"I... I don’t know. It’s a room. A large room."

"A room that can fit ten people?"

"Yes. Probably."

Daniel nodded, his expression grim. "Then they have it."

The others stared at him, their mouths open, their eyes wide. They were shocked, stunned by the implications of his words.

"There was a guy with a teleportation talent," Daniel said, his voice calm and measured. "He got Brutus out of the city. If Brutus didn’t kill him, then he got back. And he has the crystal with him."

He paused, letting the weight of his words settle over them.

"So we lost," he said, his voice flat and emotionless. "We lost the crystal. We lost the fight. We lost everything."

The others were silent, their faces pale, their eyes wide. They were shocked, their minds struggling to process the implications of his words. They were stunned, their bodies frozen in place. They were defeated, their spirits crushed by the weight of their failure.

They had thought Daniel was just a dumbass, a fool who stumbled into power he didn’t deserve. A pervert, his eyes lingering on the girls in ways that made them uncomfortable. A fool, his casual demeanor and flippant attitude making him seem unserious and unreliable. But he had figured it out, his mind cutting through the confusion and chaos to find the truth. He had put the pieces together, connecting the dots that everyone else had missed. He had seen the truth, the terrible, undeniable truth that lay beneath the surface.

Benjamin laughed, a loud, crazed laugh that echoed through the clearing.

"Smart," he said, his voice broken but filled with a terrible, mocking admiration. "Handsome. Strong. That’s why I really want you dead."

Daniel looked at him, his expression calm, his eyes cold.

"Then come and kill me," he said, his voice flat and challenging.

Benjamin didn’t answer. He just laughed, his voice rising and falling in waves of madness.

Then a shadow appeared.

An elf stepped out of the shadow, his form materializing from the darkness like a spirit summoned from the void. He was tall, his height towering over everyone present. Thin, his body lean and angular, his limbs long and slender. He wore black robes, the fabric dark and flowing, hiding his form and adding to his mysterious air. His face was hidden, obscured by the hood of his robes and the shadows that seemed to cling to him. His eyes glowed purple, the color bright and unnatural, filled with a dark, hungry light.

He was holding a crystal.

It was shaped like a star, but with six pointy sides, the geometry strange and alien. It glowed with a dark, hungry light, the color deep and unsettling, pulsing with a rhythm that seemed almost alive. It pulsed with power, waves of energy radiating from it and washing over the clearing, making the air feel thick and heavy.

It was the Core of Zariod.

The elf walked toward Benjamin, his steps slow and deliberate, his movements graceful and predatory. He bowed, his posture submissive but his eyes gleaming with a dark, hidden amusement.

"Mission accomplished, master," he said, his voice smooth and cold. "Shall I start the sacrificial process?"

[Magic Castle = 5 bonus Chapter’s the same day]

[Space craft= 15 bonus Chapter’s the same day]

[Golden gachapon= 25 bonus Chapter’s]