Liam was launched into the air by the impact, and before he could lose control, he stepped onto the ceiling and used his Feather Magic to propel himself, increasing his speed. However, the zombie's head immediately spun, and Liam's body became heavier, causing his speed to decrease drastically. The creature took advantage of the opening and struck him with a headbutt, pinning him against the wall.
Several meters behind him, Kai watched carefully, calculating the distance between himself and the enemy.
'Six meters... exactly as Enrico said. Since it's a Level One Zara, it doesn't have such a large range. The problem now is how to hit it.'
Kai took a deep breath and charged.
"Crescent Slash!"
A blade of energy was launched at the zombie's back, but as soon as the creature's head spun, the attack was deflected upward. The monster immediately charged at Kai, forcing him to retreat to increase the distance while also buying time for Liam to recover.
Liam realized that the zombie had limitations and stood back up despite the pain. He assumed a thrusting stance and charged using his Feather Magic, increasing the speed of his movements. When the zombie turned its head to make that area heavier, Liam took a step backward and stopped exactly at the six-meter mark.
Kai felt the increase in gravity on his body, but forced his muscles to move and charged anyway. Taking advantage of the moment when the creature was focused on Liam, he managed to strike one of its arms and quickly cut it off.
The zombie simply picked up its severed arm and retreated, showing no sign of pain.
Liam switched the spear to his other hand, as the injured one was trembling because of the wound, and began regenerating the limb using his magic.
"Angelic Feathers."
The feathers wrapped around his injured hand, accelerating the recovery while Kai remained focused on the enemy.
"We finally managed to hit it, but it doesn't even seem to feel pain. Actually, none of them seem to."
The two prepared to continue their attack, but suddenly, the air around the zombie began to change. A strange pressure filled the corridor, and the creature began transforming before them.
Kai and Liam tried to advance to stop the transformation, but the pressure increased so intensely that both were forced to their knees.
The zombie's head began to dissolve, while a cloud of dust swirled around its waist, transforming into something resembling its own head. Its body became more robust, and the core appeared in the center of its chest, glowing intensely.
Kai felt an even greater danger coming from the creature.
Then, for a brief moment, gravity disappeared.
'Now!'
Kai grabbed Liam and jumped away.
The next instant, a huge hole appeared exactly where the two had been.
Gravispecter had reached its complete form, just as the Crimson Devourer had done earlier.
"W-what is this?"
Kai retreated even farther while remaining beside Liam.
Liam was covered in sweat, trying to control his breathing as he watched the creature.
"His ability is gravity, right? If he can make certain areas heavy and others light... what do you think happens when he combines the two?"
Kai's eyes widened as he understood.
Gravispecter applied an intense gravitational force in one direction while creating a region of weightlessness in the center, causing the surrounding mass to be violently displaced and producing a kind of reverse wave capable of causing enormous damage.
Liam took another step backward.
'This is much worse than before.'
"This must only be a fraction of what gravitational magic can do. We're lucky he's only a Level One Zara."
Gravispecter raised both hands and slammed them down against the place where the two were standing. Kai pushed Liam aside and barely managed to dodge. Two holes approximately one and a half meters wide appeared in the wall behind them from the impact.
Liam watched the creature carefully and, upon realizing something, let out a sigh of relief.
"Sir Kai! It seems like he's sacrificing both types of magic to create a more powerful one, but it takes two seconds to activate!"
Kai tightened his grip on the sword.
'Damn it... I wanted a real rematch. Why can't I awaken the sword like Enrico said?'
Gravispecter raised one hand and pointed directly at Kai.
The creature activated its magic.
Kai raised his sword to defend himself, and the blade resisted for only one second, but that brief moment was enough for him to lower his head and avoid the direct blow.
CRACK!
The problem was that the sword broke in half.
Kai remained still for a moment, staring at the pieces of the weapon in his hands.
"My father's sword..."
Before he could react, Gravispecter charged and struck him head-on, sending him crashing into the wall.
"Sir Kai!"
Liam immediately appeared and struck the monster's arm with his spear, interrupting the next attack and preventing it from delivering the finishing blow.
Kai fell to the ground and felt blood running from the corner of his mouth.
'It seems like he also became physically stronger...'
He took a deep breath as he began closing his eyes, remembering the conversation he had with Enrico after Enrico had explained that Gravispecter probably had a range limit because it was a Zara.
"Kai, you really can defeat it on your own... but not yet."
"But I want my rematch."
Before he could continue, a finger touched his forehead.
"Ow! Why?"
Kai brought a hand to the spot that had been hit and stared at Enrico, who was lying on the ground.
"Your father didn't think that way at first."
Kai remained still for several seconds.
"You knew my father?"
Enrico turned his face to the side, keeping his eyes closed as he calmly replied:
"Yes. Let's say I learned... a lot during those two weeks before our duel. I learned about myself, about the people around me, and about the kind of person I wanted to become."
Kai frowned, trying to understand the connection between that and his father.
"But what does that have to do with him? My father always said that he was just..."
"A warrior doing his job, right?"
Enrico finished the sentence before Kai could.
Kai remained silent. That was exactly how his father used to talk about his own past, as if facing monsters, wars, and powerful enemies had been nothing more than an obligation.
Enrico opened his eyes and looked at him.
"It's no surprise that he abandoned everything to live a normal life. After carrying so many responsibilities, he probably just wanted a peaceful life."
Kai lowered his gaze to the broken sword.
"So you really know who he was?"
Enrico slowly stood up and walked toward him.
"I know enough. Your father was the great hero of the previous generation. The man who defeated the Demon King of that era and saved countless people. For a long time, he was considered one of the greatest warriors who had ever lived."
Kai's eyes widened.
Enrico pointed at the pieces of the sword in his hands.
"And now you carry his sword."
Kai stared at the broken weapon, completely shocked. For the first time, he began to realize that his father might have hidden far more about his past than he had imagined.
"I know you're different from him. Your father hated fighting, but he was chosen to wield the Holy Sword at a young age. You, on the other hand, like fighting. You can tell just by the way you look at your opponents."
Enrico took a notebook out of his backpack and sat down as he began to draw. Kai approached, curious, following each stroke that appeared on the paper.
"The name of this sword is the Heroic Blade of the Moon. It was the sword your father carried throughout his entire life. Even after obtaining the Holy Sword, he continued developing his own techniques with it."
Enrico turned the notebook around to show him the drawing. It was the image of a man standing on the moon, raising a sword into the air as if proclaiming his victory.
"This sword evolved alongside your father and eventually acquired a unique magic called Heroic Magic. When the wielder faces difficulties, it also grows stronger. In addition, it can undergo up to three different transformations, evolving according to the experiences and limits of whoever wields it."
Enrico partially closed the notebook and looked seriously at Kai.
"But it won't evolve in the same way with you. The sword adapts to its wielder, so the result will depend on the path you choose. You won't be the same as your father... because you like battles, don't you?"
Kai lowered his gaze to the sword he was holding.
"You know more about my father than I do."
Enrico seemed surprised by the statement and then shrugged.
"Of course I do. He hid himself very well and even changed his name to leave his past behind."
Enrico paused for a moment and smiled.
"I was just a fan who wanted the chance to shake his hand."
Kai remained silent for several minutes, looking at Enrico and trying to understand what was behind that admiration. After hesitating for a while, he finally asked:
"I know he was a hero... but is that the only reason you admire him?"
Enrico looked away. For a few seconds, he did not answer. Then, slowly, he smiled.
"No. I admire him because he showed me what a real father should be like."
Kai remained silent, wanting to ask more questions. However, at that moment, a staircase began to appear before them, interrupting the conversation.
The two stood up and looked at the path that had just appeared.
Back in the present, Kai opened his eyes just in time to see Liam's arm being torn off by the gravitational pressure generated by that monster.
"GAAAAAH!"
Liam fell backward, clutching the wound as he tried to remain conscious. Then he noticed Gravispecter's foot coming toward him.
He gritted his teeth.
'Not yet.'
Spinning the spear in his remaining hand, Liam barely managed to deflect the blow. Even injured and losing blood, he refused to give up.
Without stopping, Gravispecter advanced again and pierced Liam's stomach with one of its claws.
"Guh..."
Liam coughed up blood, but instead of retreating, he raised the spear and stared at the monster with a determined expression.
"Haa... thanks to you, I managed to come up with something new."
The spear began to become heavier in his hands.
Liam gripped it tightly and threw it at Gravispecter. The weapon pierced the creature's thigh and pinned it to the ground. Still holding the claw that was piercing his body, Liam gave a tired smile.
"Feather Magic: Extra Weight. It's not as good as yours... but it works, doesn't it?"
Then he looked behind Gravispecter.
Kai had stood up again.
Despite his sword being broken, he firmly held what remained of it and assumed an attacking stance. At that moment, a light appeared around the weapon.
[Heroic Blade of the Moon has awakened.]
[Rarity increased to Rare.]
[Ability: Magic Slash]
[This sword can cut through magic of a level equal to or lower than the user's.]
Raising the sword above his head, Kai remembered his father. Despite being a warrior, he never trained. He had abandoned that life and chosen to live simply alongside his family.
The only time he took up his sword again was to save the village where Kai used to play with his friends. On that day, his father jumped in front of an attack meant for his own son and, even while injured, exterminated all the demons that had invaded the place to ensure Kai survived.
"Live your life the way you want, son. Your father will always be watching over you from the heavens."
Those were his last words.
That had been the worst day of Kai's life. Even so, he continued moving forward, carrying his father's memories with him and the desire to discover for himself what kind of person he wanted to become.
'If I managed to overcome that day... then this is nothing.'
Kai brought the sword down with all his strength.
The blade cut through Gravispecter and split its body in half. The creature still tried to raise its remaining arm to attack, but it was not fast enough. The slash continued until it reached the magical core, which was also split apart.
That day, no one recognized his father. Everyone simply forgot that he had been the only one to die protecting the village, and after that incident, Kai never returned to that city. To be honest, he did not even want to return to that place, as he only wanted to keep moving forward.
Now, with determined eyes, he watched Gravispecter disappear before him.
'Thank you for telling me about my father, Enrico.'
Liam fell backward, and Kai immediately ran toward him with a worried expression.
"First, we need to stop the bleeding."
Liam raised his hand to reassure him, but soon assumed a serious expression.
"No. You need to go help the others. They might be in danger."
"But..."
"Don't worry. I can heal myself with my magic. The only problem is that I won't have enough mana to do anything else afterward."
Kai hesitated for a few seconds but eventually nodded. He helped Liam hide behind some rocks, making sure he was protected, and then stood up.
"I'll come back as soon as I can."
Liam began to lose consciousness, but remained awake long enough to complete the healing. As soon as he finished, his body finally relaxed, and he remained motionless behind the rocks, breathing with difficulty.
Meanwhile, Kai ran through the hole where he had been thrown, moving as fast as he could while searching for the others.