It's petrifying... they're scared. Anyone would be, seeing this...

Picture a scene...

No. The scene lack significance in the mind of the wielders. Their eyes are glued, fixated on that thing.

A body built on a mountain of pure muscle embellished with mustard-like skin, the texture of rubber but it's also not rubber. A hard feeling to describe but by just looking. It's... It's alluring.

More pleasant to look at... some may call it majesty.

Despite this, they can't help but acknowledge this entity's horrific features. Three pairs of arms lay on the sides of its torso, long enough the slide along the floor as it moves. Just like dragging a large bed sheet.

Its head is devoid of anything much. No hair, no ears, no nose. Just an eye embedded deep and there's something else.

But it's stitched by strings of its flesh.

The bottom half of the monster appears to be missing. Somehow through mysterious means, its body traverses the rough space, suspended in the air. Describing this behavior, it feels like an animal in its natural habitat. Just cruising along.

Truly a disturbing sight.

The situation is too worse much for them. The wielders standstill... an uncomfortable feeling washed over them, their weapons beginning to drench in sweat.

All but one... overcome his fears and boldly steps forward.

Such bravery and confidence, one befitting a leader. He gives his peer a certain look.

Immediately, they tighten their grip. Their eyes are now filled with determination.

Kanji "My friends. To be honest with you, we don't have a lead on this creature's abilities... but going through this cave. I can conclude that the anomaly crystal is tailored to my aspect. So don't panic. I'm going to try something."

Concentrating their sight on Kanji, their hearts beat faster and faster as he crouches closer to the creature.

No response.

Kanji exhales and puts his chain forward. It begins to spin.

A silent breeze collides with its form, but still no reaction. However...

Adrian "Oh my god! That's a lynx!"

Diana "Ssssshhhh! Shut the fuck up, you wimp!"

Oh no.

Their bodies stutter, they don't know what happened and refuse to look back.

Waiting for something to happen. Waiting. Waiting....... THEY CAN'T TAKE IT!

The group turns around.

No-Nothing happened. As if it couldn't hear or ignore their behavior.

Kanji "Whew! That was unexpected... It appears the creature is deaf. With this, we can finally talk with ease. Looking at the creature's bottom half, the invisible feline animal only becomes visible due to a shift in the wind. It must be made of sound! You guys stay here. I'll go to test my theory."

Moving inches closer, His hand reaches out... it goes through.

Kanji "I knew it! Wait. What about its other..."

Claire "No! Kaney! Wai-"

It goes through.

All "A projection?!"

Kanji "Ok, this is disappointing. All that tension for a mere projection. Then again... now that I think about the previous trial. We can say there must be an obvious trick to this one too."

Sarah "Excuse me... I think I might have a suggestion."

Kanji "Go ahead, Sarah. Speak away. Also, if anyone else has an idea. Please, don't be afraid to share."

Sarah "Thank you for the permission, Kanji. My idea is that maybe there might a secret key in this place like an escape room. Seeing the previous challenges were formatted to be different types of games. Who's to say this time it isn't an escape room."

Dave "Ayo, Sas. That was super 5head! What the fuck?! You sound like Kanji Lmao. Did you use your "Eldritch" doohicky to leech off him?"

Sarah "Shut up! I had to use all my brain power to come up with that, you know. And now you're fucking ruining it!"

Noah "Yeah, stop the nagging. You... sunglasses monkey." "Dave. Sorry, but it had to be done. I mean it this time. You were being too rude."

Dave "Oh no. Help me. I'm being attacked by the doom and gloom twin, dudes."

Diana "Stop arguing you three! As much as I want to join the Icarus roasting train, the task comes first. So stop talking and start searching!"

Kanji "Oh, I almost forgot. Right now, we need as much help as we can get. Let's see if Azan is awake."

He opens his subspace and immediately someone steps out.

Azan "Holy! That was suffocating! Being stuck in that place. Okay, I'm here now! Wait, what's happening? What is that thing?!"

Mina "Azan, you're okay! I was so worried!"

She said, hugging him tightly.

Kanji "Okay, Mina. You can stop now, I have to tell him what happened."

Kanji relays the information to him.

Azan "I understand. I'm not going to question it. Let's get started, Mina."

Mina "Right! Let's go!"

And off they all go...

Time passes... this is if you could tell. Being inside an enclosed area may erode the mind, creating stress as the wielders flip over every rock and comb through every plant.

Sadly, their search offered them nothing.

Azan "Guys. At this point, I believe this is pointless and a complete waste of our time."

Mina "I want to agree with you on that but... we mustn't lose hope! We will find something eventually!"

Dave "Copium plus Davedespair plus GoingInsane plus Sas's idea failed."

Kanji "Come on now, let's focus guys! Adrian, have you found anything?!... Adrian?"

His eyes are locked. What is he looking at? The creature? No... the way it moves.

Walking forward, Kanji sees a notebook and a pen in Adrian's hands. Something is bothering Kanji, a slight buzzing noise. Where is it coming from? He looks down...

Kanji " Woah! A fan?! Where did you get all of these objects?"

Adrian "Claire, conjured the fan and I got these from Gwen. She gave it to me in case there'll be some noting to do. Anyway, I think I found a clue. Notice anything strange with the way it moves. It's going in a pattern! I was able to trace it by holding the fan and revealing the lynx's feet."

Kanji "Okay, I'll accompany you. The rest of you, keep searching!"

The two wielders pursue the creature closely. Eventually, the note forms an arrangement of letters.

Kanji " L. Y. N. A. N. D. G. U. R. I. U. M. Lyn and Gurium? What's that? A name? Some kind of code word? Or a more mysterious factor?"

Adrian "In my opinion, it might be the creature's name. Maybe the up-half is Lyn and the bottom-half is Gurium."

Kanji "Whatever it is, it doesn't help us right now. Shit. Everyone meet us over here!"

...

Dave "Ay, boss. Wha'up?"

Kanji "Okay, everyone's here. I'm just gonna say it. Our current methods aren't scoring any points. So, any other ideas?"

Claire "Maybe saying a certain word might work. I go first! Flank steak. Stairs. Bro. Sis. Age. Sound. Plastic. Chicken. Troll. Bard-

Kanji "Claire, I think you're just saying random words. But good input."

She smiles at him and attempts to hug him. He responds with resistance, trying to dodge it.

He fails. Gwen takes advantage and hugs him as well.

Kanji "Hmmm... Ok, guys. More ideas? Anyone?"

Dave "Maybe if we break enough shit in this place. That guardian dude will become piss and we have to beat him lol."

Diana "Icarus, now you're talking my language! That sounds like a great idea. Let's do it!"

Approaching a nearby wall, they waste time no... the sound of rapid heavy punches against the wall can be heard... it trembles the entire room.

However, the effect belittles the action. Their eyes widen to see their actions reward them with nothing.

Dave "Well, shit. This place is APPARENTLY made of magic. Abrakadabra, Hahaa lol. What the hell?!"

Diana "That's a reasonable way to put it! Fuck! Are we stuck here until we beat that thing?!"

Azan "Now. now. Remain calm. Maybe the answer is simple and we're just overlooking it."

Kanji "Makes sense. What do you suggest?"

Azan "First of all, there's a spring here. There must a reason for it."

Mina "Azzy, you're right! Damn, you're smart."

Kanji "Trying to compete me in the battle of intelligence, are we Azan? I commend your victory. I never thought about that."

Azan "No, I would never try! I have much respect for you! I just got the idea out of nowhere!"

Kanji "Nonsense! No idea comes from nowhere. You should take your achievement to heart, even the littlest of things can make you feel fulfilled and happy. Neglecting this fact will eat you alive eventually. So, I suggest you take your win. End of story."

Azan "Okay... if you... say so."

Kanji walks past him toward the outer ring of the spring, and they all follow him. He tips his head in, preparing to dive headfirst toward its depths.

Suddenly, a strange smell enters his nostril. This is...

Kanji "Wait. Wait a minute! I know this smell! Claire, conjure up an electron microscope!"

Claire "Okay. Here... Kaney, what are you doing?"

Kanji "Just confirming something. Let's see here. Taking this drop of water and looking into this microphone... its molecular structure. This is... Acetone! A common and safe form of dissolvent. This substance is mostly used in nail polish remover, paint remover, and varnish remover. But it has the capacity also damage rubber!"

Kanji puts the microscope into his storage and dips his chain into the body of water and carries the drench object.

Moving forward, Kanji aims for a confrontation assault. However, It still wanders off, ignoring his aggressive presence moving closer and closer.

Kanji "Before I do this. Everyone, I have a plan. AN and Amelia, you guys will be our eyes and ears. Warn us of its attacks if you can. Amelia makes sure everyone is Connected and cast Blur. Also, create a clone of each one of us in case any one of us gets attacked."

Am/AN "Aye Aye!"

Kanji "Dave, Diana, Mina, and Azan. You guys are the front liners, come next to me. We act as defenders and attackers. If we decide to attack, three of us will go while the other two will stay on guard. In the case of urgency, the reverse will be optimal."

Da/Di/Mi/Azan "YES! BOSS!"

Kanji "Lastly, Claire and Sarah. You two protect Amelia and provide range support."

Cl/Sarah "Right!"

Noah "Errrr... what about me?" "What do I do?"

Kanji "Honestly, seeing your personality. It doesn't fit your power. Maybe... try to conjure up any amount of emotion if you can... and try your best to help. I guess."

Noah "Ok." "Whew. I don't have to fight."

Standing face to face with the monster, Kanji doesn't hesitate... and takes a swing.

It hits. A chunk of its mass rips off from the right side of its torso. There's no bleeding or any internal organs. It's like cutting off clay but much harder.

Its eye targets the attacker.

Azan and Dave jump in, their weapons raised high.

Da/Azan "Take this!"

Huh???

It... It goes through its body.

Kanji "Shit! Shit! You can only hurt it when your weapon is dipped in Acetone! Everyone go dip your weapon! I'll pull him away!"

Amelia "Wait, Kanji. Here have this clone!"

Amelia makes Kanji blurry and creates a copy following him.

As the others dip their weapons in the spring, Kanji distance himself further and further away.

The creature bolts forward ignoring the cone.

Kanji "Fuck that didn't help!"

Kanji picks up the speed. A futile choice. It is in attacking range, he notices its arm.

Kanji "The fuck?! It's stretching!"

Six fist flings toward with blinding speed. Kanji blocks two of them, the others...

Kanji "Argh!" "This speed and accuracy! Damn!"

His body flies back and grinds against the floor, leaving fractures in both of his fibulae. Desperate for recovery, he holds onto one of the creature's arms.

Kanji "Ha! Got you!"

Kanji attempts to absorb the monster's elastic energy.... it refuses, his body is incapable of absorbing such power.

A loud ringing sound comes from the left.

Something stuck to his leg. A claw?

Kanji "Aaaaaarrrrgh! What was that?!"

Holding in his pain, Kanji jumps back. A poor choice, he lost control over his legs.

Staring his left arm, he feels like every single cell within is bleeding. At this rate, he'll blackout.

Kanji "Fuck. I need to calm down! Think! With the amount of time I have left, what can I do?!"

He stares at the creature, it's moving away while retracting its arms.

Kanji "Is it going for the same attack as before? Dammit. Wait... why didn't it just finish me off with its Lynx part?... unless it takes turns attacking!"

Kanji tries to yell but he can't even do that. It's so blurry... so dizzy.

The creature charges forward. His mind races... finally his instinct kicks into overdrive. In a ditch effort, Kanji conjures up The |10. Umbral Cape|.

An ethereal translucence piece of cloth made of stardust covers his entire body.

The monster stops, it looks worried. Something tells it to not go near Kanji.

Free from its aggression, Kanji gather every ounce of thought he has left.

Kanji "A...AN. Y-You the.. .there?"

AN "Yes, Kanji! Oh my god! You look messed up! Don't worry I activate the healing-

Kanji "Wa... Wait a... mi... minute. Not... yet. I have a... me.. message. Tell the... the others this "It attacks... then the ot-other attacks" and don't... attack... it... all... at......."

The aspect of Energy is down for the count. AN without a choice clicks on the sleep healing.

AN "Guys... I have bad news. Kanji is knocked out."

Claire "WHAT?! NO! I HAVE TO-

Amelia "Calm down, Claire! Don't rush it carelessly, lass!"

Claire "But Kaney! He's-

AN "It's alright! He is currently healing, lucky his new ability created a barrier between him and the monster."

Claire "Oh... that's... I'm glad."

Diana "It's cool that the boss survived, but how are we going to deal with that thing now without him?!"

AN "Before he was knocked out, he wanted me to tell you guys two things about the creature. Through my observation and what Kanji told me, I think the creature only attacks in turns between its parts."

Sarah "What does that mean?"

AN "It means the upper half of its body attacks then its bottom and then the top half again."

Dave "Yo, what is this scripted shit? Guys, it's like an NPC lol!"

Azan "Anything else Kanji left for us?"

AN "I think he said to not attack him all at once. I don't understand what it means."

Mina looks at the monster, it went back to its wandering state. She understands it now.

Mina "I know what he meant! The creature only attacks those that attack it. Meaning if some of us don't attack the monster, we will be safe."

Sarah "Oh, that means we don't have to worry about protecting duty. Then there's also another problem if a bunch of us decide to attack it then there's a high chance we'll all get hurt."

Adrian "Not only that, we don't know everything that thing does. Like how will it respond with several people attacking it or which attacker it prioritizes?"

Diana "Errr... what?"

Dave "Yeah, I'm with you on this one."

Azan "I think he is suggesting that we fight it one by one because each time one of us tags out, we will learn more and more until victory is ours."

Mina "Yeah! That sounds great!"

Sarah "But will it keep attacking the same person if another step in or will it attack both or will it switch?"

AN "Looking at its behavior now. Maybe it eventually ignores its initial attacker and moves on."

Sarah "Well, that looks like the best lead we have. Then let's just go with it."

Noah "Agreed." "Just hope I won't go first."

Dave "Alright! Who's the one sacrificing, dudes?"

They stare at him.

Dave "Oooh.... Fuck. Fine. Let's do this! LEEEERAAAAY JAAAANNNNKKKKOOONNNSSS!"

Diana "Wait! You fucking idiot!"

Dave drenches his bat in the spring and rushes forward.

Spiking up his bat, Dave swings the object against one of the monster's left arms.

Rip and tear!

He pulls it back with immense force, causing the air to rupture.

The arm flies across the room.

The monster eyes Dave.

The sound of ringing comes from the right.

His bat warps into a shield, he turns it toward the sound.

Ding.

Dave feels the vibration through his shield.

Then...a blooming pain builds up. The feeling can be described as being poked with trillions of small needles. He doesn't want to look.

Dave retreat and glares at the monster, his teeth grinding against each other. His head spins, he can barely hold up his bat.

Dave "Shit, man. That didn't work. Fuck, am I really out this early?!"

Diana "Yes, you are! I told you not to-

Dave "Woah! What are you doing?! Put me down!"

Diana -go you FUCKING IDIOT!"

The others see something fly towards them. Success! They caught it. Well, they caught Dave.

AN "Dave. You have to watch out for its bottom half attack. Me and Claire have a limited amount of healing, you know."

Dave "Aw, sorry. Dude, I was confident lol. That's it, go!"

Dave falls asleep on Amelia's lap.

Claire "Wow, that cheeky bastard! He planned this. Didn't he?"

Amelia "Honestly, his foresight is great but his antics can cause him problems. Then again, that is why I adore him."

Azan "Guys, pay attention. We need to observe to obtain new info. So far, we only know two of its attacks. And AN's guess was right! It ignored its initial attacker if another one interferes."

Sarah "Hey, question. Why is there a tiny fan attached to her waist?"

Azan "Isn't it obvious? It is for seeing the invisible attack, i.e. the lynx's claw swipe."

Sarah "Oh, right! Adrian figured it out earlier. My bad."

Azan "Just keep observing. We won't want to miss any more info."

Round two begins.

Diana drenches her hand into the spring and begins walloping the monster's chest. Punch after punch. She begins to see dents all over its mass.

Diana "It's working. Now, let's see if it works on this thing"

Diana uses her power of friction, the ground feels harder to traverse.

It doesn't care and moves forward with ease. Again, it flings six ultra-fast punches.

She barely dodges each punch.

Diana "Come here asshole! Take this!"

With a strong yank on its hand, Diana delivers an uppercut. The force sent the monster flying a short distance and its body hits the ground.

Diana "Booyah! Headshot!"

... it leans back up effortlessly.

Diana "Damn, you are fucking resilient. Come on then! Throw your swipes!"

She can see the lynx running in for an attack. She hears the ringing however, the attack is clear as day.

She dodges the claw swipe with ease.

Diana "Hah! Too easy! Wait... what the?"

She looks at her legs, and a waterfall of blood rushes out.

Diana "Shit! When did this happen?! Wait, did that... Did that fucker attack again?!"

Looking at the creature's upper half, some of her marks are beginning to revert slowly.

Diana "I see... you're covering up for your buddy so it heals, huh? Damn... I wasn't expecting that. You win."

She raises her hand, signaling the others. Mina steps in and grabs the fan off her waist.

Mina "Don't worry! I'll pick it from here."

Diana nods and trudges back. The monster tries to go after her, but Mina slices its neck with her machete. Its head is holding on to the small chunk of flesh that is still left. The monster then covers the injury with four of its arms.

Mina "That's right! Your opponent is me!"

Diana's knee touches the ground. Her friends gather around.

Azan "Nice job out there. Any new about that thing?"

Diana "First of all, the bastard is kinda smart. If one of its parts gets injured, the other part will attack again and again, so it can heal."

Azan "Ummm, so we need a way to destroy that lynx. But how do you kill a sound?"

Sarah "Sound only exists because of air. Fuck. If only Gwen was here, she could just delete it in an instant"

Adrian "Sound can also be weakened if submerged in water."

Azan "Hey, that's genius! We need the opportunity to knock it into the spring."

Diana "Good luck with that. It barely moved back when I hit it."

Azan "We won't know for sure unless we try. AN, please relay this to Mina."

AN "Right! Mina, what you have to do is..."

Mina "...Right. Ok. I got it."

She herds the monster near the spring. It stops.

Mina "Huh? Why did it stop?! Don't tell me it knew?! Fine! If that's how you want the play the game then... I'm coming to you!"

The girl leaps and clings to the monster. Her actions begin to mess with its behavior, not knowing how to respond or attack her.

It begins to shake and spin.

Mina "It's useless! Eat time!"

Mina activates |1. Aging|. She can see its skin deteriorating rapidly.

Mina "Yes, it's working! Waaaaa! Where is it going?!"

Thud! It crashes Mina's body against the wall.

Mina "Ow! My back!"

She looks up into its eye, the monster seems agitated. The lynx prepare to claw at her face.

Mina "Oh fuck! HELP!-

Azan steps in and takes her away.

Azan "Ok, that was very close. Mina, what were you thinking?"

Mina "I thought that it won't be smart enough to do that!"

Azan "At this point, underestimating that thing is a death sentence."

Mina "Ok, that's fair. I barely got any other detail from it though!"

Azan "Don't worry. I got an idea!"

He brings Mina to Claire. She conjures up one more medical device.

Claire "Shit. No more slots left. We can't take any more risks. Az, you need to end this."

Azan "Relax, I have a plan but I need you and Sarah to fire when I say so. Got it!"

Cl/Sarah "Got it!"

Azan approaches it.

One last shot. He turns his suitcase into "Attack mode", and Azan charges in.

One claw swipes from the left, and he dodges it. One from above, he avoids again.

Azan "Slice one!"

He swings at the creature's right arm, leaving a deep gash.

The swipes become faster and faster. He dodges them all.

Azan "Slice two!"

With a heavy swing, the blade slice through its yellow flesh and cuts off one more of its left arms.

Shocked from losing its arm, the monster stands still not knowing what to do next.

Azan "Ok! It's time! Claire! Sarah! Aim for its right arms!"

They fire their weapons, blowing off two of its three right arms.

Azan "Ha! You know you look pretty normal now. You monster."

?? NCOHEHKSHF.

Azan "What the fuck?!"

A complete U-turn, it ignores Azan and charges toward the group.

Claire and Sarah panic, but it effortlessly plows through, knocking them aside. Noah suddenly sees this, and a burst of fear enters him,

He puts his arms out.

Noah "Don't." "Don't come here!"

A massive black shield manifests and.... pushes the creature into the spring!

Noah "Oh. shit." "Wow, that was lucky as hell!"

Sarah "Holy shit! Great job, man!"

Amelia "Lad, that was close. Thank you for protecting me."

Noah "Err.. you're welcome." "Damn. I still can't I did that!"

Azan "Excellent, I guess staying near the spring was an unconscious but great choice."

Claire "Awesome! Does this means it's over?"

Azan "Maybe... let us take a look."

They peer in, for a moment there's a ripple in the water, but then-

Something shoots out. It's the thing.

But... different. Its elongated arms are now average size. The lynx, it's gone! Now replaced with a pair of the invisible leg.

They look at its face... OH, GOD! A row of jagged and disfigured rows of teeth reveals itself

It opens up its jaw.

?? LYN! MY BELOVED! I, GURIUM WILL PAINT THE WALLS WITH THEIR BLOOD!

A flash of light... one strike... no one could it coming. Noah's left arm is gone.

Noah "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

The immeasurable amount of pain he's experiencing is indescribable. A pink fog flies out in all directions causing everyone in the facility to feel his pain.

Sarah "Argh!!! What is this?! Someone stop it! It hurts!"

Gu Puny creatures. Can't bear the pain. You took my arms. So I'll take yours.

They watch in fear as the monster puts Noah's arm into its mouth, gobbling it down.

Claire "Shit! We need to stop his pain! Someone take this anesthetic and take it to Noah!"

Gurium stands over Noah, ready to take another.

Azan "NO! STOP HIM!"

Gu It's too late. DIE!

...

Gu WHAT? YOU-

?? "God!... My arm hurts! I don't know if I should call this a blessing or not. All I know is that I'm glad that you targeted his left instead of his right."

Gu You. I defeated you! How are you here?!

Claire "Kaney!"

Kanji "It takes more than that to put me down. Everyone, I'll take it from here!"

Azan "But Kanji, you don't know all of its-

Kanji "Don't worry! Somehow, I heard everything during my sleep. I believe AN's voice was just that strong."

Gu Enough talking. Eat my leg!

Gurium grins and aims at Kanji's head.

Gu Huh? WHAT?!

Kanji "Surprising isn't it? To be real with you, this was quite risky on my part."

Everyone is shocked to see that his cape moved up to protect his face.

Gurium looks at his leg. It shrank.

Gu Why? How?

Kanji "It turns out that focusing solely on the cape. I could control it with ease, but the consequence is that I have to fight with only my fist which is ok with me. Come on! Fight me bitch!"

Gu I'll wipe the smug off your face. No, I'll wipe your face off!

Kanji releases a burst of electricity covering Gurium and the nearby terrain.

Gu "Hah! That tickles. Wait... where did he go-UCK!"

A clean hit in the back of the head. Gurium falls flat on his face.

Gu You'll pay for that!

Gurium swing aimlessly trying to hit Kanji.

Gu Stop dodging!

Kanji "Sorry... but NO!"

Seizing the moment, he forms an energy blade made of heat and carves off its right arm.

Gurium retreats against the wall. Feeling cornered, it anchors its only hand in place and starts stretching it around the room with unbelievable speed.

A sound of rushing winds approaches Kanji.

Gu "Take this!"

Everyone holds their breath.

It hits...

... the cape!

Gu "What. WHAT?! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooo......."

The voice gradually disappears as his body is sucked into Kanji's cape.

A strange power begins to rise from within the depths of Kanji's soul.