Koss stood next to the Royal Guard Ant. He was blocking a deadly attack of four scythes that swung at him at the same time. He stood his ground with a sword and a large leg of the monstrous ant, blocking two scythes on each side. Previously, Koss took the opportunity to use Force Shock on the ant's leg that Vincent had punched. The leg riddled with tiny cobwebs of cracks was about to receive a shattering touch. Koss used the CQC mana manipulation art. A fist-sized portion of the carapace shattered on the ant's leg, revealing unguarded flesh. Shortly, with a swift swing of a sword, the leg fell to the ground. Koss then quickly picked the leg and used the ant's hard body parts to his advantage. When he blocked the four scythes, the sword deeply chipped while the ant's leg only received a deep scratch. "Hey, did you become weaker and slower? You didn't even cut my sword, haha." Koss taunted. He felt the monstrous ant swung its four appendages slower. In the heat of the battle, Koss forgot that the cold sword Elsir was still stuck inside the Royal Guard Ant. It was quickly freezing the monstrous ant's upper body, causing the four deadly appendages to slow and the power to diminish. As the pain started building up, the Royal Guard Ant's movements and actions gradually slowed. The ant also turned its body slower with one less leg. However, its attacks remained deadly. Vincent wanted to help. He turned his head towards Lupa and told her, "The fight is getting too dangerous, and you lost your claws. A cornered rat is the most unpredictable enemy to fight. Go to Ester and Tula." "But..." Lupa complained. "Ester must be exhausted from channeling her mana into the sword. Even though you lost your claws, you can help the two of them change locations if the ant decided to attack them." Vincent wanted to fight with his mind clear. Lupa couldn't fight at her best with a sticky and slippery ground. There weren't any trees to climb and take advantage of her mobility either. One slash or a ball of acid would kill Lupa in an instant. "...fine. I will protect Ester and Tula. " Lupa frowned. She took a few steps and turned her head. "Don't get hurt. I want to sleep on your lap tonight." She continued cheekily. Vincent nodded and then saw the cheeky wolf girl leave. Her actions make his unpleasant emotions lighten up a bit. A slight smile raised on his face. [Yep, Lupa is a predator indeed. She doesn't let her prey go no matter what happens. Koss about to die if we don't intervene, and she is asking for rewards.] Hara heard Koss's comment and decided to attack. He wanted the monstrous ant to die as quickly as possible. Hara ran to grab the sword stuck in the acid sack. He only fought against a Soldier Ant and not an Acid Ant, and as such, he didn't know the sack was filled to the brim with acid. He also thought Koss ordered them to let go of their sword to raise their guard and not because of the acid. Hara grabbed the hilt and swung the sword. He wanted to cut the acid sack and kill the ant. But as the melted sword acting as a plug was pulled out, the opposite of his intentions happened, and shortly... "Arghhh!" Hara screamed in agony. Acid sprayed from the acid sack, quickly covering his body with acid. Even though he was wearing metal armor, not all of his body was covered. The acid also seeped thru the armor seams, melting his flesh. Hara fell on his keens a few seconds later and passed away in a gruesome death. The metal armor he wore lay on the slowly melting bones like soft melting plastic. "Close your eye, Tula!" Exclaimed Ester. She didn't want little Tula to watch Hara die. "Lupa, can you take this shield to Koss? This shield is harder than metal shields. " Ester found the mudcrab shield while they were hiding. Its shell was stronger and more resistant to acid than the metal shields, or so she hoped. Tula felt relieved hearing her big sister worry about her father's safety. However, Ester mostly wanted to increase Vincent's survivability. She didn't want to lose him. Lupa understood Ester's intentions as if they communicated telepathically. She rushed with the shield in hand, unfazed by Hara's brutal death. She was used to human corpses in her wolf life, so it wasn't new sight. Culo couldn't believe his eyes. He was thinking of making the same advance and try to kill the Royal Guard quickly. Such sight of the melting Hara inflicted fear and despair in his soul. Culo wet himself and took a few steps back. He soon tripped on the root of a tree stump as his shaky feet didn't know where they stepped. His shield holding hand landed inside the stump... *Crack* An ant egg broke from the shield slamming against the egg's shell. This sound caught the attention of the monstrous ant trying to kill Koss. The antennas of the Royal Guard Ant twitched violently. The ant's head turned, and its glare locked upon Culo filled with murderous intent. The Royal Guard Ant pushed Koss away and then withdrew its appendages. The ant started walking towards Culo with a bloodlust filled glare. It was enraged by the ant infant's death. "Koss, catch this!" Lupa exclaimed. Lupa threw the mudcrab shield at Koss. He was taking a few steps back from the powerful push when he noticed a shield flying towards him. Koss dropped the ant's leg and caught the shield from the edge. It had no handle to hold from, but Koss carefully used Force Shock to dig five small finger-sized holes for a firm grip. The Royal Guard Ant ignored Lupa and Koss with a new shield, like a mad bull only seeing red, Culo was in its sights. The ant raised its scythe-like appendage and then brought it down, splitting Culo in two, killing him instantly in the blink of an eye. Lupa saw Culo get split in two as if there was no resistance from the metal or bones. Such death made her understand one thing. Without claws, it might've been her if she kept on fighting. "I will protect Ester and Tula." Mumbled Lupa as she returned to the two hiding girls. The situation didn't look promising. The Royal Guard Ant was injured, but the only remaining fighters were Koss and Vincent. Tula was scared to her core. Ester was weak and exhausted. On the other hand, Lupa could fight, but Tula's sword and shield could only last for a few hits. 'I want to help, but I never trained with human equipment. I might get my mate hurt if he tries to help me.' Lupa thought after watching Culo get severed like a clay doll. Vincent was tired and had time against him. Koss was tired and held a sword that could break after a few hits. The shell shield was his one and only object that could help him survive. The Royal Guard Ant turned its body and lunged at Koss with the intent to kill at all costs. It seemed the monstrous ant didn't want to suffer any more egg casualties. The Royal Guard Ant's job was to protect and raise the new ant generation. As such, losing an egg meant it failed its job. The Royal Guard Ant relentlessly attacked Koss, but this time the shield wasn't cut. Only a few chips and dents were made on every swing. An adult mudcrab was a strong contender against the ants. Koss used Energy Flow to hold his ground by increasing the body's gravitational pull. It seemed like it was going to take some time for the monstrous ant to penetrate his unyielding defense. [Vincent, only a minute is left for Overheat to end. Should we try to impale the large ant with Elsir? It can go a little bit more inside.] Vincent simply nodded. He didn't have time to think as the fight took its toll on his body and mind. His body was injured, and his legs were trembling from the pain. He felt exhausted, but he had to continue. Vincent could heal himself to stop the bleeding, but Minor Heal makes the recipient tired the more the spell heals. If Vincent healed himself, he might fall asleep the next second. Vincent used the last bit of power in his trembling legs and sprang forward at the attacking Royal Guard Ant. Clenching his fist, Vincent swiftly punched Elsir inside the enraged monstrous ant. *Crack!* Elsir shot inside like a nail struck by a hammer, causing the frozen hard carapace to become riddled with cracks. Bits of frozen carapace and flesh fell on the ground. With them fell one of the four appanages attacking Koss. Soon, a small hole appeared on the monstrous ant. The Royal Guard Ant only heard the cracking sound coming from its torso. The ant didn't feel pain as if the sensory nerves were numb from the cold. [Scythe from above, dodge!] Vincent looked up and jumped backward at the same time. As he noticed he wasn't quick enough, he raised his arms to guard against the incoming sharp scythe. *Clang* The attack got blocked, and sparks flew. Vincent was knocked a few meters back from the force, but his legs didn't have much strength remaining. He fell and tumbled on the ground. With the new power-up, the blood mutated gauntlets didn't break. Only a few chips on the surface appeared. Overheat made the gauntlets thicker and harder to break. Koss didn't like how Vincent was knocked away. He could feel Vincent was at his limits. Koss charged shield first to attract the ant's attention. 'I need to taunt this massive ant and attack its new weak spot. I'm the only fighter left. Vincent can't keep up... ' 'Well. Who am I fooling?' 'This fight would've been easier if my twin brother was with us. I only have enough control for one Force Shock on each arm. I need to wait for the right time. ' Koss thought. He raised the shield and restarted, blocking the assault with a plan in mind. Vincent got up from the mighty blow. He felt a little groggy, and his legs had a hard time keeping his balance stable. Ester, Lupa, and Tula worried about both Vincent and Koss. Ester wanted to help, but she was exhausted, and her body started to hurt from mana fatigue. Tula was worried about everyone remaining alive. She was also concerned after she noticed Ester's pained expressions. Lupa similarly wanted to do something for Vincent or Ester, but she didn't know how to help other than keeping the two girls from harm's way.