"Get the meat!"
"Hey, that's my meat! I'm the one who killed it!"
"Shut up, you two—we're clearly in the same crew!"
The moment Rei and Djeeta arrived at the island Sierokarte had mentioned, they were immediately greeted by chaos. Crews were fighting the same primal beast everywhere they looked, voices shouting over one another as battles broke out across the island.
It seemed that aside from endlessly resurrecting, the primal beast could also split into multiple copies whenever someone brought out the meat to summon it.
Thankfully, they hadn't used the Grandcypher. Rei had flown them here using his wings, so they didn't have to worry about finding a place to land an airship in the middle of all this madness.
"That's… a lot of people," Djeeta said, looking around as battles erupted in every direction.
"Sierokarte said this only happens once every two months," Rei replied. "They're probably trying to earn as much money as possible while the event is active."
"Yeah, but where are we supposed to put the meat?" Djeeta asked, frowning slightly. "With the way you fight, we're going to need a lot of space."
Every time Rei fought, the aftermath usually involved widespread destruction—especially against something like a primal beast.
"Oh, right. Don't use attacks that ignore immortality," Djeeta quickly added. "We don't want to ruin the event or mess up other people's income."
"I know," Rei answered calmly. "…I'm aware."
Instead of fighting on the outer edge of the island, the two of them decided to head deeper into the inner area.
They both knew that the further they went, the stronger the primal beasts that appeared would be.
In Rei's mind, the outer island was probably equivalent to level 100 bosses. Deeper inside would be around 125… maybe 150. And further still, the nightmare-level ones—around 200.
Even so, they were only copies. No matter how strong they became, they still couldn't compare to the original primal beast that created them.
And that was fine. Their goal was never the original one anyway. Killing it would only make the entire event disappear, and neither of them wanted that.
"There are barely any people now," Djeeta said, glancing around.
Earlier, the island had been so crowded it was hard to walk without getting hit by stray magic, flying bullets, or even careless sword swings.
But now, the deeper they went, the quieter it became.
Only a few crews could be seen ahead—people who, like them, had chosen to venture further into the island.
But unlike them, the crews that had been walking ahead stopped once they reached a certain depth of the island.
Rei and Djeeta, however, kept going.
After walking for a while longer, they finally couldn't see anyone anymore. Now, it was just the two of them.
"Seems like we're the only ones who came this deep," Djeeta said, looking around. "Also… this island is really weird. I've never seen one like this before."
The island they were standing on was completely different from the others they had visited.
There was no forest. No trees.
No rivers. No green grass. No monsters roaming around.
There was no sign of life at all—except for the primal beasts that kept respawning.
Only bare mountains and a desolate landscape stretched endlessly around them. The environment itself felt hostile, like nothing was meant to live here in the first place.
"Yeah," Rei said after taking a look around. "When you think about it, this place is kind of perfect as a battlefield. There's nothing here that would get in the way of movement."
"Hmmm," Djeeta nodded quietly, agreeing.
After deciding this was the spot, Rei opened a small portal in the air. A bag filled with meat dropped out of it and landed on his palm.
"So we just throw this and wait for the primal beast?" Djeeta asked curiously, staring at the bag.
"Probably. We've got a lot thanks to Siero," Rei replied. "But let me put around thirty first."
"I see…" Djeeta said, her voice trailing off.
She clenched her hand slightly. "I really want to help… but you know…"
With her boundary power already depleted and barely usable—and without a proper weapon—there was nothing she could do right now.
Rei glanced at her, then smiled lightly. "Don't worry. I'll grind really hard for you."
After placing exactly thirty pieces of meat some distance in front of them, they waited.
Not even a minute passed before Rei felt the atmosphere shift. The air ahead began to distort, rippling unnaturally.
"Something's happening," Djeeta said.
Both of them stared as the meat started to twist and warp, as if being absorbed by something unseen. One by one, it vanished completely.
Then, almost immediately, the distortion appeared again in the same spot—this time far larger. Reality itself seemed to tear open, and from within it, something emerged.
"Is that… Behemoth?" Rei murmured as the primal beast took form where the meat had been.
Behemoth was one of the bosses that appeared during Guild War in the game. It wasn't as massive as primal beasts like Tiamat, Yggdrasil, Leviathan, or Colossus—but it was still enormous. Its body alone was comparable in size to the Grandcypher, which was considered one of the largest airships in the Sky Realm.
Behemoth's massive frame was carried by four powerful legs, each ending in oversized claws that dug into the ground as if tearing at solid ground. Its head was low and predatory, adorned with long, curved horns that swept backward like sharpened blades. Thick muscle and dark fur wrapped its body, giving it a brutal, oppressive presence that radiated raw force. Behind it, a long, heavy tail lashed slowly from side to side, the hardened tip moving with deliberate menace—clearly meant to crush or cleave anything that wandered too close.
[IMAGE]
"You know that primal beast?" Djeeta asked, hearing him say its name.
"Yeah. I know it for sure…" Rei replied. That boss had appeared countless times back in the game, before Guild War bosses were replaced with humanoid primal beasts instead of monsters like this.
"ROOOAAAARRR!"
The moment it fully materialized, the primal beast let out a deafening roar.
The ground around it shattered instantly, cracks spreading outward as violent wind blasted toward Rei and Djeeta.
Rei stepped forward without hesitation, positioning himself in front of Djeeta and taking the full force of the wind head-on to shield her.
After a moment, the roaring stopped.
The primal beast slowly lifted its head, scanning its surroundings—searching for the ones who had summoned it.
"Djeeta," Rei warned.
"Yeah. I'll back off a little. I'll leave the rest to you," Djeeta said as she moved a good distance away from him, making sure she wouldn't hinder the fight.
The moment Djeeta moved, the primal beast noticed them.
Without hesitation, Behemoth lowered its head and rushed toward them at terrifying speed, its sharp horns aimed straight at Rei, clearly intending to gore him in a single charge.
Normally, the strategy when fighting Behemoth was to evade its attacks and wait for openings. Its movements were brutal and animalistic, yet filled with a dangerous kind of cunning.
But Rei was different.
At this point in the story, he was already far beyond what anyone in the first arc should be capable of.
Rei didn't move at all, calmly letting Behemoth charge straight at him.
BAAM!
Rei caught the horns just before they could pierce him, stopping Behemoth dead in its tracks without being pushed back even a step.
The force of the charge didn't disappear—it was driven straight into the ground beneath Rei's feet, causing the terrain behind him to explode and collapse from the impact.
"Colossus: Standby mode," Rei murmured as he activated Colossus's ability.
He spun in place, dragging Behemoth along with sheer force before hurling it far ahead of him.
Behemoth was sent flying through the air before crashing violently into the ground, the impact carving out a massive crater.
With Behemoth thrown far away and still struggling to rise, Rei used the opening to continue charging Standby Mode.
Colossus's Standby Mode rendered him unable to move for a short time as his body was attuned to Colossus's power.
With every passing second, his physical strength kept increasing—doubling, then tripling, climbing to five times and beyond, continuously rising.
He planned to rely purely on physical strength instead of magic. His Opus weapons possessed abilities that ignored immortality, and using them here would defeat the purpose of the fight.
Besides, it had been a long time since he had fought seriously using only his body, without relying on weapons.
Half a minute passed before Behemoth finally stood up again, fixing its gaze on Rei. This time, it seemed even more enraged than before.
Another roar tore through the air, but unlike before, lightning began to gather around its horns, striking the ground around it repeatedly.
The electricity concentrated at the tips of its horns, crackling violently—then Behemoth charged again, moving even faster than before.
Thirty-three seconds had passed since Behemoth had been thrown.
"Standby mode… ended."
Rei could feel it—his entire body was overflowing with power, even without his wings.
The power was still far below what he could achieve when using six wings, but it was more than sufficient for pure physical combat instead of the overwhelming magic channeled through his wings.
Behemoth charged straight toward Rei, its massive body moving at terrifying speed despite its size.
Lightning continued to crackle violently around its horns, arcs of electricity snapping through the air and striking the ground with every step it took. Each stride shattered stone beneath its four legs, leaving deep cracks spreading across the desolate island.
The distance between them closed rapidly.
Far back, Djeeta watched closely—but there wasn't a trace of worry on her face. She knew exactly how strong Rei was. This level of attack wasn't enough to threaten him.
Just before Behemoth could reach him, Rei calmly raised his right leg.
"Ground shatter."
He slammed his foot down with overwhelming force.
The moment his leg struck the ground, a shockwave exploded forward.
The ground in front of Rei collapsed instantly, the solid ground breaking apart as if it had turned fragile. Cracks spread outward in a straight line toward Behemoth, widening and deepening in an instant.
The violent vibration surged beneath Behemoth's feet, disrupting its charge.
Unable to stabilize its footing, Behemoth's massive body lurched forward as its balance was completely thrown off. Its legs slipped against the fractured ground, and its momentum worked against it.
With a heavy crash, Behemoth fell, its enormous body slamming into the broken earth as dust and debris were thrown into the air.
Rei had no intention of stopping it completely.
This attack was meant only to halt its charge—and make it fall.
Behemoth thrashed violently, its massive body twisting as it tried to tear itself free from the shattered island surface. Its claws gouged deep lines into the ground, lightning still crackling wildly around its horns as it roared in fury.
But before it could regain its footing, Rei was already gone.
With Standby Mode finished, his body moved freely again. Rei leapt high into the air, soaring above Behemoth's massive frame. From below, the primal beast barely had time to react before a shadow fell over it.
"I'm gonna borrow your move, Aliza."
His right leg ignited.
Flames burst forth violently, fed by Colossus's power, wrapping tightly around his leg instead of dispersing outward. The heat twisted the air, the fire sharpening rather than spreading—focused, dense, and destructive.
Rei drew his left leg back.
Just like the Rider Kicks he used to watch back in his old world.
"Fangs of the Dragon!"
He plunged downward.
The flames surged in response, swelling and warping into a feral shape. A dragon's silhouette formed around his leg, its jaws wide open, fire roaring as if alive. The heat intensified to the point where the stone below Behemoth began to glow faintly.
The impact came an instant later.
Rei's flaming kick slammed directly into Behemoth's upper body.
A deafening explosion echoed across the island.
The dragon-shaped flames tore through Behemoth's defenses, the force driving its massive body downward as the island surface collapsed beneath it. Cracks spread outward like a web, chunks of stone erupting into the air as Behemoth lost all balance.
Its roar turned into a strangled cry as its limbs failed to find footing, its enormous frame crashing hard into the fractured ground.
From a distance, Djeeta watched silently.
The dragon-shaped flames devoured Behemoth whole.
Rei's kick didn't just strike—it pierced through.
The moment his right leg connected, the accumulated power from Standby Mode was released all at once. The impact shattered the island surface beneath Behemoth entirely, the force traveling straight through its massive body instead of dispersing outward.
A thunderous explosion tore across the desolate island.
The dragon-shaped fire erupted from Behemoth's back, ripping through armor, flesh, and bone in a single, overwhelming surge. Lightning around its horns flickered violently before being swallowed by the flames.
Behemoth's roar was cut short.
Its enormous body went rigid for a split second—then collapsed.
The primal beast crashed lifelessly into the broken ground, its four legs giving out completely as cracks spread across its body like shattered glass. The glow in its eyes faded, the lightning dissipated, and the chaotic energy that sustained it vanished into the air.
Silence followed.
The dragon-shaped flames dispersed, leaving behind only scorched stone and the massive corpse of Behemoth embedded into the island.
Rei landed lightly a short distance away, the flames around his leg fading as he straightened up.
"…Done."